Nouvelles

By Greg Waldron7 December 2020 Taiwan has upgraded 18 Lockheed Martin F-16A/Bs to the new F-16V standard, and hopes to complete all 141 planned upgrades by 2023. In addition, 66 new F-16Vs from a 2019 deal with the US government will be completed by 2026, according to a recent report by Taiwan's Central News Agency, quoting the Taiwanese military. The work is being undertaken by local airframer AIDC with support from Lockheed. Taipei hopes to complete the upgrade work by 2023, a year later than originally planned. The report adds that the Taiwan F-16V fleet will feature the Raytheon ALQ-184 electronic countermeasures pod, which is consistent with US Air Force equipment. The upgrade affects the mission computer, airframe, cockpit instruments, and electronic warfare system. The jets will also receive an active electronically scanned array radar in the form of Northrop Grumman's Scalable Agile Beam Radar. The project involves AIDC essentially installing a kit originally developed by Lockheed. Taipei has an urgent need to upgrade its defence capabilities owing to increasing military pressure from China, which views the democratic island as a province. Beijing, which has rapidly developed its military over the last decade, regularly mounts probing flights to test Taiwan's air defences. https://www.flightglobal.com/defence/taiwan-f-16-upgrade-aims-for-2023-completion/141502.article?referrer=RSS

12/7/2020 By Jon Harper The Pentagon continues to pump additional funding into 5G technologies that have military and commercial applications. But it is also eyeing 6G and other next-generation communications capabilities. The term 5G refers to the oncoming fifth generation of wireless networks that will yield a major improvement in data speed, volume and latency over today's fourth-gen networks, known as 4G. In October, the Defense Department announced $600 million in awards for 5G test bed and experimentation activities at five U.S. military test sites. The work will be expanded to seven additional sites next year. “These activities represent the largest full scale 5G tests for dual-use applications anywhere in the world,” Acting Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Michael Kratsios told reporters. Commercial partners on the sites will include AT&T, Ericsson, Federated Research, Nokia and the Scientific Research Corporation. “This testing experimentation will not only dramatically improve our warfighting capabilities, it will also bring new uses and opportunities for this technology to the private sector,” Kratsios said. “These sandboxing activities at military bases harness the department's unique authorities to pursue bold innovations and game changing technologies.” Nations that master advanced communication technologies will enjoy long-term economic and military advantages, he added. Initial use cases for 5G envisioned by the Pentagon include integrating augmented reality and virtual reality into mission planning and training; developing “smart” warehouses to enhance logistics operations; and dynamic electromagnetic spectrum sharing in congested and contested environments. Starting in 2021, there will be an emphasis on the security aspects of 5G as well as innovations in next-gen capabilities such as 6G and 7G, Joseph Evans, the Defense Department's principal director for 5G, told reporters. Broad agency announcements on those topics are slated to be released in the January 2021 timeframe, Evans said. Elsa Kania, an adjunct senior fellow with the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, suggested the Pentagon might be getting ahead of itself. “I will be a little bit skeptical of talk of 6G when 5G is still at a nascent stage in so many fronts and we have yet to explore or exploit the full potential of 5G,” she said during a panel discussion. “I'm sure we will hear much more about 6G in the years to come, but I think for the time being, keeping the focus on how to ensure that 5G itself is secure and reliable” is a better approach. https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2020/12/7/defense-department-looking-beyond-5g

China's heavy investments in the defense industry appears to be paying off with Beijing dominating the global arms market in 2019 while Russia is losing ground. Total sales by the top 25 rose by 8.5% to $361 billion, or 50 times the annual budget of the U.N.'s peacekeeping operations. The United States is still number 1, accounting for 61% of sales by the world's top 25 manufacturers last year, way ahead of China's 16%, a Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report published Monday reveals. In 2019, the top five arms companies were all based in the U.S. - Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and General Dynamics. These five together registered $166 billion in annual arms sales. In total, 12 U.S. companies appear in the top 25 for 2019, accounting for 61% of the combined arms sales of the top 25. The largest absolute increase in arms revenue was registered by Lockheed Martin: $5.1 billion, equivalent to 11% in real terms. Chinese companies that made its way to the global top 25 are Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC; ranked 6th), China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC; ranked 8th), China North Industries Group Corporation (NORINCO; ranked 9th), and China South Industries Group Corporation (CSGC; ranked 24th). Their combined revenue grew by 4.8% between 2018 and 2019. “Chinese arms companies are benefiting from military modernization programmes for the People's Liberation Army,” SIPRI Senior Researcher Nan Tian said. The only two Russian companies in the list - S-400 missile system manufacturer Almaz-Antey in 15th spot and United Shipbuilding in 25th - accounted for 3.9% of 2019 arms sales. The revenues of the two firms both decreased between 2018 and 2019, by a combined total of $634 million. A third Russian company, United Aircraft, lost $1.3 billion in sales and dropped out of the top 25 in 2019. Alexandra Kuimova, Researcher at SIPRI, said: “Domestic competition and reduced government spending on fleet modernization were two of the main challenges for United Shipbuilding in 2019.” For the first time, a Middle Eastern firm appears in the top 25 ranking. EDGE, based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), was created in 2019 from the merger of more than 25 smaller companies. It ranks at number 22 and accounted for 1.3% of total arms sales of the top 25. https://www.defenseworld.net/news/28477#.X8_0tdhKiUk

by Jon Grevatt The US Department of Defense (DoD) has identified four additional Chinese corporations that it claims have links to China's military. The companies' inclusion on the list of ‘Communist Chinese military companies' means that US investors will be prevented from buying stock in the firms from January 2021. The new list, which takes the number of blacklisted Chinese companies to 35, features corporations that are known primarily for operations in commercial domains. They include the Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), China Construction Technology Company (CCTC), China International Engineering Consulting Corporation (CIECC), and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). The DoD said these firms' inclusion on the list is aligned with US efforts to tackle China's military-civil fusion (MCF) strategy, which seeks to adopt advanced commercial technologies for military gains. It said, “The [DoD] is determined to highlight and counter the People's Republic of China's (PRC) military-civil fusion development strategy, which supports the modernisation goals of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) by ensuring its access to advanced technologies and expertise acquired and developed by even those PRC companies, universities, and research programs that appear to be civilian entities.” The DoD added that the list of Chinese companies will continue to be updated “with additional entities as appropriate”. In response to the listing, China's foreign ministry spokesperson said on 4 December that the move constituted a “groundless suppression”. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/us-expands-list-of-communist-chinese-military-companies

United States still the leading country in arms spending and sales, followed by China, driven partly by its military modernisation Six American and three Chinese companies dominate the top 10 makers in Swedish think tank's annual ranking Kristin Huang Three Chinese arms companies have been ranked among the world's top 10 for weapons sales in 2019 in a Stockholm security think tank's annual list of the largest arms manufacturers. The United States was the leading nation in terms of both arms spending and sales of weapons, with China in second place in both respects. In the ranking by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), six US companies and three Chinese firms made up the top 10 along with one from Britain. Aviation Industry Corporation of China, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation and China North Industries Group Corporation were ranked sixth, eighth and ninth respectively in the list of companies. A fourth Chinese arms firm, China South Industries Group Corporation, was ranked 24th among the 25 companies examined in SIPRI's report, released on Monday. Data from SIPRI's arms transfer database showed that aircraft, ships, missiles, armoured vehicles and air defence systems were the four Chinese firms' top revenue generators in 2018 and 2019, totalling nearly US$2.5 billion, with the top three buyers of Chinese weapons being Pakistan, Bangladesh and Thailand. The combined revenue of the four Chinese companies grew by 4.8 per cent overall between 2018 and 2019, to US$56.7 billion. This was the first time SIPRI had included Chinese companies in its annual ranking, having previously cited a lack of reliable data. The report said overall arms sales by the top 25 companies rose by 8.5 per cent in 2019 to US$361 billion, with the leading five all coming from the United States: Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and General Dynamics, with combined arms sales of US$166 billion. Another American firm, L3Harris Technologies, was in 10th place, while Britain's BAE Systems was seventh. The US arms industry accounted for 61 per cent of sales by the world's top 25 manufacturers last year, followed by China in second place with 16 per cent, according to the report. Six western European companies collectively accounted for 18 per cent, while the two Russian companies in the list made up 4 per cent. Zhou Chenming, a military expert in Beijing, said relatively cheap prices and good quality made Chinese weapons competitive in the global arms market. “China has invested huge money in developing cutting-edge weapons for years, and now Chinese weapons have improved their performance and are at reasonable prices which can be accepted by many developing countries,” Zhou said. But Zhou did not expect the growth for Chinese companies to continue at the same rate, partly because of international polarisation driven by China's rivalry with the US. “I think most US allies will continue buying arms from the US, and Russia will keep its own market share, and it will be quite difficult for China to increase its arms export revenue,” he said. Nan Tian, a senior researcher from SIPRI, said Chinese arms companies had benefited from the drive to modernise the country's People's Liberation Army since 2015. China was already viewed by the United States as its strongest competitor in cutting-edge military technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing, according to a US Congressional Research Service report released in August. “China and the United States are the two biggest states in terms of global arms spending, with companies cut to size,” Lucie Beraud-Sudreau, director of SIPRI's arms and military expenditure programme, was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse. The US has dominated the market for decades, but China's growth “corresponds to the implementation of reforms to modernise the People's Liberation Army”, she said. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3112823/pla-reforms-drive-china-second-place-after-us-global-arms

ARMY West-MGE JV,* Tempe, Arizona, was awarded a $40,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for civil works and hydrology and hydraulics services. Bids were solicited via the internet with 15 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 7, 2025. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the contracting activity (W912PP-21-D-0001). AIR FORCE International Enterprises Inc., Talladega, Alabama, has been awarded a $12,469,948 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ), requirements contract for F-16 modular low power radio frequency (MLPRF) and dual mode transmitter (DMT) repairs. This contract provides for the repair of both MLPRF and DMT, which function as part of the radar systems of each F-16 C/D aircraft. Work will be performed in Talladega, Alabama, and is expected to be completed Dec. 6, 2025. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and one offer was received. Funding for the initial order is not presently available due to the contract being a requirements-type IDIQ. The Air Force Material Command, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (FA8251-21-D-0004). U.S. TRANSPORTATION COMMAND Air Transport International Inc., Wilmington, Ohio, has been awarded a task order HTC711-21-F-W009 under contract HTC711-19-D-W002 in the estimated amount of $7,650,630. The contract provides international, commercial, door to door, cargo transportation services. Multiple or single modes (e.g. airlift, sealift, linehaul) of transportation may be used in any combination to move cargo globally. The task order period of performance is from Dec. 4, 2020, to March 6, 2021. Fiscal 2021 transportation working capital funds were obligated at award. U.S. Transportation Command, Directorate of Acquisition, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Dec. 4, 2020) *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2438179/source/GovDelivery/

The DoD Small Business and Technology Partnerships Office announces the opening of the following Broad Agency Announcement (BAA): Army SBIR 21.4 • A214-001: Identifying and Enabling Emerging Technology Leaders IMPORTANT DATES: • December 8, 2020: BAA opens, begin submitting proposals in DSIP • December 23, 2020: Topic Q&A (formerly SITIS) closes to new questions at 12:00 p.m. ET • January 12, 2021: BAA closes, full proposals must be submitted in DSIP no later than 12:00 p.m. ET The instructions and topics for these BAAs are available on DSIP at https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/login and at https://rt.cto.mil/rtl-small-business-resources/sbir-sttr/. Please be sure to submit your proposals as early as possible in order to avoid unexpected delays due to high volume of traffic during the final hours before BAA close. Report system difficulties to the DSIP Help Desk IMMEDIATELY and include screenshots of any error messages received [NEW!] DSIP Registration and Login Effective August 13, 2020: The DoD SBIR/STTR Innovation Portal (DSIP) is now integrated with Login.gov – a government-wide registration platform that provides a seamless login experience. ALL Small Business Concerns (SBCs) are required to register for a Login.gov account and link it to your DSIP account. If you already have a Login.gov account, simply link your existing account to DSIP. To set up your Login.gov account, click the “Login/Register” button on the DSIP homepage, here: https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/login. NOTE: The email address you use for Login.gov should match the email address associated with your existing DSIP account. If you do not recall the email address associated with your DSIP account, or if you already have an existing Login.gov account using a different email address, you will need your Firm's DUNS number and your Firm PIN in order to link your Login.gov account with your DSIP account. If the email address associated with your existing DSIP account has been used for multiple DSIP accounts within your Firm, you will also need your Firm's DUNS number and your Firm PIN in order to link your Login.gov account with your DSIP account. The Firm PIN can be obtained from your Firm Admin. You can view the Firm Admin's contact information by entering your Firm's DUNS number when prompted. If you are the Firm Admin, please ensure that you contact all DSIP users in your Firm and provide them with the Firm PIN. Job Aids and Help Videos are in the Learning & Support section of DSIP, here: https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/learning-support/training-materials. ALL SBCs MUST complete your Login.gov setup as soon as possible to avoid delays in submitting proposals in DSIP. After setting up your Login.gov account, take a few minutes to log in and become familiar with DSIP. • Returning users can log in from the DSIP homepage. • For new program participants, follow the steps for New User Registration to create your account in DSIP. Topic Q&A (formerly SITIS) Proposers may submit technical questions through Topic Q&A page at https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/login. All questions and answers are posted electronically for general viewing. Topic Q&A will close to new questions on December 23, 2020 at 12:00 p.m. ET, but will remain active to view questions and answers related to the topics until the BAA close. Proposers are advised to monitor Topic Q&A during the BAA period for questions and answers and frequently monitor DSIP for updates and amendments to the topics. Learning & Support Visit the Learning & Support section for Job Aids and Help Videos to guide you through submitting and viewing questions and answers in the Topic Q&A, preparing and submitting your proposal in DSIP, and more: https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/learning-support/training-materials DSIP Help Desk Contact Info • Phone Number: 703-214-1333 • Email: DoDSBIRSupport@reisystems.com • Non-Holiday Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. ET • Please refer to the DSIP homepage for Help Desk availability on holidays. Thank you for your interest in the DoD SBIR/STTR Program. DoD SBIR/STTR Support Team To sign up and receive upcoming emails, please follow this link: https://secure.campaigner.com/CSB/Public/Form.aspx?fid=667492&ac=g9gk https://rt.cto.mil/rtl-small-business-resources/sbir-sttr/

Helen Massy-Beresford December 07, 2020 PARIS—The organizers of the Paris Air Show, the world's largest, have canceled the 2021 edition because of continued uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The board of directors of the Paris Air Show and the board of directors of French aerospace industry association GIFAS made the decision unanimously, describing it as inevitable in a statement Dec. 7. “This reasonable decision was agreed upon unanimously by the Paris Air Show board members in the context of a crisis that has had an unprecedented impact on the aerospace industry,” they said in a joint statement. The coronavirus crisis has devasted demand for travel, with many airlines grounding the majority of their fleets and relying on government bailouts to survive. IATA does not expect traffic to return to 2019 levels before 2024. The Paris Air Show is usually held at Le Bourget Airport, just outside the French capital, and in 2019 attracted over 316,000 visitors, split between civil and defense industry professionals and the general public, making it the largest air show in the world. Orders worth $140 billion—across the civil and military sectors—were announced at the 2019 show. The first Paris Air Show was held in 1909 and the event has taken place every other year since—with interruptions for the two world wars. The 2021 edition was set to be the 54th. “We are obviously disappointed not to be able to hold the 2021 edition of the Paris Air Show. After many months of all trade show activities being suspended throughout the world, the entire international aerospace and defence community was very much looking forward to being able to meet,” the International Paris Air Show chairman and Daher Group chairman Patrick Daher said. “We have already started work to ensure that the 2023 edition celebrates the resurgence of the aerospace industry on an international scale,” he added. The event had been due to take place from June 21-27 next year and the organizers said they would shortly announce the exact dates of the next edition, which will be held in June 2023. https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/aircraft-propulsion/organizers-cancel-paris-air-show-2021-covid-19-uncertainty

France will launch the Future Combat Air System (SCAF) demonstrator next year as part of the enhancement of the armed forces' operational capabilities. Florence Parly, Minister of the Armed Forces, made the announcement as part of the discussion of the Finance Bill (PLF) for 2021 in the French parliament on Thursday. In addition to the SCAF demonstrator, equipment deliveries include 157 Griffon and 20 Jaguar armored vehicles for the Army, a new Multi-Mission Frigate (FREMM) for the French Navy and three new aircraft-MRTT Phénix for the French Air and Space Army. The Senate adopted the bill which provides a budget hike of 4.5% compared to the 2020 budget. In 2021, the army's budget is increased to 39.2 billion euros, 1.7 billion euros more than in 2020. The main thrusts of this budget are the ramp-up of major facilities, support for the French economy and the dynamism of the regions, and an investment effort in terms of innovation, recruitment and the Family plan, Parly said. Minister Parly was quoted as saying in a MoD release, "the 2021 defense budget assignment for the third consecutive year, followed the commitments and financial trajectory of the Military Program Law (LPM) 2019-2025.” The (FCAS- French acronym SCAF) a French-German-Spanish project, received the go-ahead to commence the demonstrator phase in February this year. On February 12 the French and German governments awarded an initial framework contract to Dassault (France) and Airbus (German), besides major system partners MTU Aero Engines, Safran, MBDA, and Thales. https://www.defenseworld.net/news/28469#.X86XENhKiUk