Nouvelles

Steve Trimble The design of the Northrop Grumman B-21's trailing edge has led to speculation about a high-altitude role for the secretive stealth bomber, and new U.S. Air Force statements appear to confirm that analysis. As the U.S. Air Force enters a legally required environmental impact review process for basing the new bomber, service officials disclosed a few new details about the design on large poster boards displayed at public meetings since February. The posters are now available on B21EIS.com, a clearinghouse web site set up by the Air Force to share data during the year-long process to complete the final environmental impact statement. “The B-21 is not expected to use low altitude training routes,” the Air Force poster says. The B-2 was originally conceived as a high-altitude bomber, but a last-minute requirements change during the development phase forced Northrop Grumman to redesign the bomber for a low-altitude mission. As a result, the trailing edge was transformed from a simple W-shape to the sawtooth design seen today. The B-2, like the preceding B-52 and B-1B fleets, need low-altitude training routes. The renderings of the B-21 released by the Air Force so far reveal a trailing edge that resembles the original, high-altitude design for the B-2. The Air Force has never confirmed operational details about the future stealth bomber. Another comment on the Air Force's poster provides the first official description of the B-21's acoustic signature, as well as the performance of the engines. “The B-21 engine noise is expected to be quieter than the B-1B and about the same or quieter than the B-2,” the poster says. Previously, the only detail released by the Air Force about the B-21's engines is that Pratt & Whitney is named as one of seven of Northrop's suppliers. The poster data appears to confirm expectations that the B-21 would use a non-afterburning engine, like the similarly subsonic, flying wing-shaped, B-2. The supersonic B-1B is powered by afterburning engines. The Air Force has selected Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakora as the site for the first B-21 operational squadron, followed by Dyess AFB in Texas and Whiteman AFB, Missouri. The environmental impact review is evaluating Ellsworth and Dyess for the main operating beddown 1 location. https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/aircraft-propulsion/new-usaf-materials-hint-high-altitude-role-b-21

Irene Klotz United Launch Alliance (ULA) CEO Tory Bruno is keen on competition, even if that means losing a government contract every now and then, as happened in February when NASA chose a SpaceX Falcon Heavy to launch a science probe to the metal asteroid Psyche in 2022 for $117 million. ULA had offered Psyche mission launch services aboard its workhorse Atlas V for an undisclosed price. “Can't win them all,” Bruno tells Aviation Week. “We win about half, but that's OK. That's how competition is supposed to work. “It's healthy for the government. It's healthy for the industry . . . because we try to be as efficient as we can and to differentiate ourselves, which ultimately usually results in more value for the customer, either in capabilities or in prices,” he adds. Bruno's mettle is being put to the test. This summer, a heated two-year competition to provide national security space launch (NSSL) services through 2027 concludes with the U.S. Air Force deciding whether to retain incumbents ULA and SpaceX or replace one or both with Northrop Grumman and/or Blue Origin. The Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, in partnership with the National Reconnaissance Office, plans to award firm fixed-price, indefinite-delivery contracts to two domestic launch service providers for procurements in fiscal 2020-24, with work split 60/40%. The NSSL Phase 2 Launch Service Procurement (LSP)—the first such solicitation since 2005—is designed to end dependence on Russian rocket engines for national security space launches, reduce launch costs and spur competition for current and future national security space launches. Unlike its competitors, ULA's business plan rests on winning a Phase 2 award. “We have an entire business plan that presumes we are going to win Phase 2,” Bruno said during a March 10 media roundtable at the Satellite 2020 conference in Washington. If ULA does not win, he added, “We'd have to go evaluate that.” Based on satellite orders compiled by several industry association surveys, Bruno figures there is enough business for two domestic medium-to-heavy-lift launch service providers, and he is confident ULA will be one of them. “There isn't much rocket science to this,” Bruno said. “The launch service provider is at the end of a 5-7-year-long chain. It's going to be about 30-35 launches a year for the next several years,” he said during a March 11 panel session at the conference. “We all need about 8-12 launches a year, at least, to be a sustainable, viable business. That makes room for four [launch service providers]. “The Russians will always have one—it is state-sponsored—they will make sure. Ariane will always exist, the Europeans will make sure. That leaves two for the U.S. because we want to ensure space access via two providers. So that is the right number, and that's why the Air Force will select two very shortly this summer,” Bruno says. The SpaceX View SpaceX looks at the launch market pie with a different eye. First, the company expects more than half of its projected 35-38 Falcon launches this year to carry Starlink satellites manufactured, owned and operated by SpaceX into low Earth orbit (LEO), a project intended to provide global high-speed, low-latency internet service. SpaceX's sixth batch of 60 Starlinks reached orbit on March 18, bringing the constellation head count to about 360. When that number doubles, SpaceX expects to be able to provide seamless internet coverage covering latitudes about 25 deg. north and south of the equator. After 24 launches, with approximately 1,440 Starlinks in orbit, the network will be capable of full global coverage, according to SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell. Ultimately, SpaceX plans to operate approximately 12,000 satellites, with a possible expansion to 42,000. The company is still working with the International Telecommunication Union for spectrum allocation and with individual countries for permission to transmit data to and from non-U.S. territories. Starlink's raison d'etre is to bring in enough revenue to carry out the space colonization dream of tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, who founded SpaceX in 2002 with the goal of creating technologies for interplanetary transportation, with a particular eye on Mars. Toward that end Musk, who also serves as SpaceX CEO and chief engineer, is focused on developing the Starship, a two-stage, fully reusable transportation system capable of placing 110 tons (100 metric tons) into LEO. By comparison, the 1960s-era single-use Saturn V Moon rocket could put 154 tons into LEO. SpaceX is counting on revenue from the Starlink constellation to fast-track Starship development. Flying cargo and crew to the International Space Station and launching commercial and government satellites on the existing Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy fleet can bring in up to $3 billion a year, Musk said during a March 9 keynote address at Satellite 2020. Providing broadband should generate an order of magnitude more revenue, probably about $30 billion a year—a fraction of the current $2.8 trillion value of the telecommunications industry, Musk says. “Starlink is not some huge threat to telcos. In fact, it will be helpful to telcos because Starlink will serve the hardest-to-serve customers that telcos otherwise have problems with,” using landlines or cellphone towers, he adds. Shotwell says that even without Starlink, SpaceX is profitable. “Starlink is additive to our business,” she told reporters during a media roundtable in October. “We make money on the core business of SpaceX, which is Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and Dragons. “We could do Starship just on our own operating income, on our revenue, if we were to spread it out over time,” she added. “But Elon wants to get things done quickly, and so we're spending a lot of money on advancing Starship and Starlink. SpaceX does not need Starlink to be a healthy business.” In support of Phase 2, SpaceX has unveiled plans for a movable tower at its Falcon launch base at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The 284-ft.-tall gantry features 11 floors and doors to shield Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets from rain and wind, while providing a controlled environment to hoist payloads on top of the vehicles as they stand vertically at the pad. SpaceX currently installs payloads horizontally inside hangars near its three launchpads. Some of the national security missions, however, require vertical integration. SpaceX also is working to qualify a longer payload shroud, which likewise is required for some NSSL missions. Starry-eyed SpaceX's passion for the Starship, previously known as the Big Falcon Rocket, caused a rare misstep in the company's quest for U.S. government launch contracts when it included a small role for the megabooster in its LSP developmental Launch Service Agreements (LSA) proposal, a precursor to the ongoing competition for launch services. In 2018, the Air Force awarded three LSA contracts, collectively worth about $2 billion, to ULA, Northrop Grumman and Blue Origin to help defray the costs of developing launch-system prototypes aimed at fulfilling various national security payload delivery requirements. SpaceX's LSA bid included use of the Starship for launch of some of the heaviest payloads and most challenging missions in 2025 and beyond, a scenario the Air Force deemed “high-risk.” SpaceX responded in May 2019 with a federal lawsuit, challenging the Air Force's procurement process. The lawsuit is under consideration in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. An LSA award was not necessary for companies to compete for the LSP Phase 2 program. Ironically, iconoclastic SpaceX, which previously sued the Air Force to speed up the breakup of ULA's 2006-16 monopoly on national security space launch services, is the only Phase 2 contender offering an existing and certified family of launchers. The company, which publishes base pricing on its website, has not disclosed what it would charge for NSSL missions, but SpaceX is well-known for undercutting its competition. Ten years ago, Iridium shopped for launch services to put its next-generation network of 75 communications satellites into orbit. It signed with SpaceX, which at the time was preparing for the first flight of the Falcon 9. SpaceX's bid for the Iridium Next launch campaign—which consisted of eight flights from January 2017 to January 2019 from Vandenberg AFB in California—was $500 million. “My next price from there was $1.2 billion to launch the same 75 satellites,” says Iridium CEO Matt Desch. “Thank God for SpaceX . . . . I'm not sure I could have afforded the second-best price.” Six years later, SpaceX broke ULA's monopoly on the Air Force's launch business with an $83 million winning bid to fly a GPS 3 satellite, undercutting the government's cost estimate, based on previous GPS launches by ULA, by about 40%, the Space and Missile Systems Center said at the time. Price and performance may tip the scales in SpaceX's favor for the upcoming Phase 2 LSP awards. With its March 18 launch, SpaceX has carried out 83 Falcon 9 missions, with one inflight failure and one accident during a prelaunch static test fire that cost another booster and payload. The Falcon Heavy has flown three times, all successfully. The Rocket That Scrum Built One company hoping to wrest the NSSL business away from the incumbents is Northrop Grumman, which presents a very different view of launch market viability. “The Air Force's intent from the beginning is to make sure that our business case didn't depend on them with large numbers of launches,” says Northrop's Charlie Precourt, vice president of propulsion systems. “We're not a launch vehicle searching for lots of different payloads,” he adds. “We're a launch vehicle that is built on existing manufacturing lines, facilities and workforce infrastructure.” Northrop's Phase 2 offering, the Omega, can close its business case with just 3-4 launches per year, far below ULA's estimate of what it takes to sustain a viable medium- to heavy-lift launch service program. Northrop is heavily leveraging investments and existing work for NASA and the defense community to develop the Omega, a family of two-stage, solid-propellant boosters topped with an Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10 upper stage. ULA also is using an RL10 for the upper stage of the Vulcan. “The core of the Omega rocket is in form, fit and function the same as a segment of the SLS [Space Launch System] booster,” says Precourt. “What we're doing is a little bit different than what a launch vehicle company would normally do, which is to pursue lots of different payload customers. We meet that business need for the Air Force in a different way.” But the Omega also is a departure from Northrop's current programs, which include the five-segment solid-rocket motors for NASA's SLS, the air-launched Pegasus booster, the Minotaur and Antares. Northrop used an agile development system called scrum—initially developed by teams to write software in sprints—to design and manufacture the Omega. “We like to call Omega the rocket that scrum built,” says Precourt. “Scrum is about moving faster, how to innovate to go faster and do more in less time.” Between the May 2019 and February 2020 static test firings of the Omega's first and second stages in Promontory, Utah, engineers used scrum methodologies to apply lessons learned, such as determining what the environments were like inside the motor and how it behaves when fired, Precourt says. Both static firings were successful, completing full-scale engine testings planned prior to the Omega's debut launch in 2021. However, the May test, during which the Omega's two 31-ft. solid-propellant rocket motors were ignited, ended with the booster's 18-ft.-long nozzle breaking apart, a function of atmospheric conditions during testing and not an issue for certification or flight, Northrop says. “The nozzle was just one part of the design we analyzed. Our engineers ran in sprints, with the customer as part of the team, to assess data, anchor models and optimize the design,” says Precourt. “By taking a little extra time between the two tests and utilizing scrum, we were able to fully test design improvements without any impact to our launch-readiness date. We're deploying scrum more broadly across the plant as we go.” Under terms of Northrop's $792 million LSA agreement, awarded in 2018 for Omega development and certification work, the company plans to conduct two more full-duration static tests of the first and second stages after the Omega's first two flights, which will be used to certify the booster for national space security missions. Northrop is developing the Omega primarily to provide launch services to the Air Force, but it is also offering the rocket commercially. In December, the company announced it had a customer for the Omega's first flight, one of two missions required prior to flying high-value national security payloads. The debut mission will carry one or two Saturn NationSat geostationary communications satellites. Northrop said it is “converging on an agreement” with a customer for the Omega's second flight, which is expected to launch next summer, says spokeswoman Jennifer Bowman. Winning a follow-on Phase 2 contract is a high priority for Northrop. “We've been working really hard on that,” Precourt tells Aviation Week “Northrop as an entire company is focused on national security space. “We do threat assessment, mission planning, mission control and operations, satellite design and manufacturing [and] direct support of information to the warfighter,” he says. “Launch is a piece of that full-value stream of delivering to the warfighter, so NSSL fits right into the DNA of the company. We're really determined to deliver for the Air Force.” As to what it will take to dethrone an incumbent, Precourt says it is not that unusual: “It all comes down to who is best-prepared and best meets the need. That's what we're working hard to do.” Getting a Toehold Among the four contenders for the Air Force's launch business, Blue Origin's New Glenn offering may be the longest-shot, but even if it does not win a Phase 2 contract, it fully expects to be a key part of the team. That is because the company's BE-4 engines will power the first stages of both ULA's Vulcan rocket and Blue's New Glenn. Company founder Jeff Bezos has invested $2.5 billion in the New Glenn, including a new $200 million, 350,000-ft.2 factory and office complex in Huntsville, Alabama, where BE-4 engines and the New Glenn's BE-3U upper stages will be manufactured. Blue Origin also is expanding New Glenn manufacturing facilities adjacent to Kennedy Space Center. In March, the normally low-profile company displayed videos of the New Glenn's newly completed mission control center, a first-stage fuel tank, which is the rocket's largest structure, and the first completed 23-ft.-long payload fairing. At nearby Cape Canaveral AFS, a launch complex for the New Glenn is under construction, with the booster's debut expected in late 2021. Like SpaceX and Northrop, Blue Origin's future does not hinge on winning a Phase 2 contract. The company won LSA funding, which it says it is using to cover NSSL certification costs and program requirements to develop a West Coast launch site for polar orbits. Blue Origin has signed New Glenn launch contracts with at least five customers—Eutelsat, mμ Space Corp. of Thailand, Sky Perfect JSAT, OneWeb and Telesat—several of which are buying multiple flights. Powered by seven BE-4 engines on its reusable first stage, the New Glenn is designed to carry nearly 50 tons to LEO. “And that is the smallest orbital vehicle we are planning to build and launch,” says Clay Mowry, Blue Origin vice president of sales, marketing and customer experience. Like SpaceX's Musk, Bezos aims to parlay his company's space transportation technology into a future that more closely resembles the science fiction novels both men hold dear. Bezos' vision is for millions of people to be living and working off Earth. ULA and Northrop, meanwhile, seek only to serve the national security mission. The Air Force has never had such ripe pickings. https://aviationweek.com/shows-events/space-symposium/four-bidders-square-over-two-coveted-us-air-force-contracts

Aarhus, March 25, 2020 - The French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which visits Danish waters this week, is equipped with two radar systems provided by Terma. The SCANTER 6000 radar systems are used for surveillance, search and navigation at sea - and in the air to guide helicopters on landing. In recent years, Terma has provided radar systems to a number of vessels in the French Navy through a collaboration with the French defense company Naval Group, which among others has built Charles de Gaulle. The French carrier has a fixed crew of about 2,000 men and weighs about 40,500 tonnes. It is accompanied by several escort ships and will be accompanied by the Danish frigate Niels Juel of the Iver Huitfeldt class during its visit. Through its long-standing partnership with the Danish Navy, Terma has provided radar systems, self-defense systems and command-control systems to all of the Navy's large naval vessels, including the three frigates, which also make use of the same radar type SCANTER 6000 as Charles de Gaulle. Terma's radar systems are used by many countries around the world on many different types of navy and coastguard vessels due to their ability to see small targets such as fast crafts and jet skis at long range and in all kinds of weather. Terma's radars are therefore also used for coastal and traffic surveillance e.g. at VTS Storebælt. About us The Denmark based high-tech Terma Group develops products and systems for defense and non-defense security applications; including command and control systems, radar systems, self-protection systems for aircraft, space technology, and aerostructures for the aircraft industry. Follow us on Instagram Twitter Linkedin Youtube Media contact: Kasper Rasmussen T:+45 2022 6091 E: kar@terma.com View source version on Terma Group : https://www.terma.com/press/news-2020/danish-radars-on-french-aircraft-carrier/

Par Michel Cabirol Comment et pourquoi l'organisateur d'Eurosatory ont pris la décision d'annuler l'édition 2020 du plus grand salon d'armements terrestres au monde. Voici les coulisses de cette décision. C'est bien la mort dans l''me que le Coges a dû annuler l'édition 2020 d'Eurosatory, le plus grand salon international de défense et de sécurité terrestres et aéroterrestres. Car jusqu'à peu la ligne tenue par l'organisateur d'Eurosatory était le déroulement normal du salon, qui aurait été "à l'équilibre" en dépit de quelques annulations d'exposants et de réduction de la voilure (annulation des démonstrations dynamiques...). Toutefois, cette position "n'est plus tenable", estime le Coges dans une note datée du 23 mars que La Tribune s'est procurée. Et de conclure qu'il recommande au bureau exécutif du GICAT l'annulation d'Eurosatory 2020 sans report du salon. Au final, il y avait plus de risques que d'avantages à maintenir le salon. Son annulation ne devrait pas coûter de l'argent au Coges. Ce denrier a dépensé au 24 mars près de 11 millions d'euros dans la préparation du salon. L'organisateur "fait tout depuis un mois pour différer ses engagements de dépense et a cessé tout engagement depuis le passage au stade 3", explique-t-il dans cette note. Il a également souscrit avec une grande sagesse en décembre 2019 une assurance annulation du salon comprenant une extension "maladies infectieuses", à concurrence de 13 millions d'euros sur un budget de dépense estimé à 20,6 millions. Au 30 avril, les prévisions d'engagement pour la préparation du salon doivent d'élever à 14,3 millions. Cela montre "bien tout l'intérêt d'annuler aujourd'hui", estime le Coges, qui devrait s'en sortir relativement bien au contraire du GICAT, qui ne pourra pas percevoir de dividendes. Les raisons de l'annulation Pourquoi Eurosatory ne peut plus tenir ? Après plusieurs annulations de salons comme Dimdex au Qatar (16-18 mars), LAAD Security au Brésil (14-16 avril) et ILA Berlin (13-17 mai), les premières annulations de salons prévues en juin aux mêmes dates que celui d'Eurosatory ont commencé à mettre sous forte pression les organisateurs : Viva Technology (11-13 juin) et Interschutz (salon mondial des pompiers à Hanovre). Mais l'annulation du salon britannique de l'aéronautique de Farnborough, prévu pourtant du 20 au 24 juillet, a été le coup de gr'ce. Mais là n'est pas la seule raison. Au-delà des quelques annulations d'exposants déjà reçues, le Coges recevait de plus en plus d'appels de sociétés exposantes qui ne souhaitaient plus engager de frais de préparation de leur stand et qui s'interrogeaient sur la présence de visiteurs au salon. Par ailleurs, des sociétés étrangères, qui représentent 65% des exposants à Eurosatory, avaient déjà commencé à annuler le transit de leurs matériels. Par ailleurs, le Coges ne recevait plus de demande de badge de visiteurs depuis plusieurs jours. Et en même temps, les fournisseurs qui permettent de réaliser le salon sont "quasiment tous à l'arrêt et auront des difficultés à redémarrer fin avril pour un salon début juin", explique le Coges. Il faut à minima cinq semaines de montage. Enfin, et surtout, le ministère des Armées qui invite les hautes personnalités étrangères venant de tous les pays du monde (240 délégations en 2018 représentant près de 1.000 VIP), a d'autres chats à fouetter en ce moment avec la crise du Covid-19 et le lancement de l'opération Résilience. "Nous sommes en contact avec le ministère des armées qui ne pourra sans doute pas lancer ces invitations dans le contexte actuel", estime le Coges dans sa note. "La tenue du salon en juin 2020 n'est aujourd'hui plus envisageable", conclut-il. La piste d'un report a été écartée Le Coges a étudié un report du salon à la condition de retrouver la disponibilité des exposants et d'un parc d'exposition. Pas facile quand la majorité des exposants sont aussi présents sur d'autres salons de défense dans le monde et très peu sont capables de mener de front deux salons. Des études lancées par le Coges ont trouvé une seule et unique solution : reporter Eurosatory au parc des exposition du Bourget, pendant Euronaval (du 20 au 23 octobre 2020). Mais cette piste a été abandonnée. Car d'une part, les exposants américains qui participent au salon AUSA début octobre risque de faire défaut, selon le Coges. Surtout, une cinquantaine d'exposants, présents sur les deux salons (Euronaval et Eurosatory), ne réaliseront plus qu'un seul stand. Pas sûr que le Gican voyait cette opération d'un bon œil... D'autant que le Coges estime dans sa note que "sur le plan financier, les chiffres d'affaires des deux salons ne vont pas s'ajouter". https://www.latribune.fr/entreprises-finance/industrie/aeronautique-defense/pourquoi-le-salon-de-defense-eurosatory-a-finalement-ete-annule-843347.html

March 26, 2020 - Saab has performed the first metal cut for the two-seater fighter aircraft Gripen F, marking an important milestone in the programme. Gripen F is under development for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) and shares the same advanced design and features as Gripen E, but with seat, displays and controls for a second crew member. Gripen F has both a training mode for tuition of one crew member and a mode whereby the two crew members can share the workload with different display settings. The first part was manufactured recently at Saab's facilities in Linköping and is for the air duct section, just behind the cockpit of the aircraft. “This milestone is important for the Gripen project because it demonstrates that the development phase is proceeding properly. This signals the beginning of the production of the two-seater aircraft, Gripen F, which is much anticipated by the Brazilian Air Force,” says Colonel Renato Leite, head of the Monitoring and Control Group (GAC-Saab) at the Brazilian Air Force. The joint industrial programme on Gripen F is between Saab and the Brazilian partner companies Embraer, AEL Sistemas, Akaer and Atech. Currently, approximately 400 engineers are working with the development of Gripen F, mainly at Gripen Design and Development Network (GDDN) at the Embraer plant in Gavião Peixoto, São Paulo State, Brazil. Manufacturing will take place both in Sweden and in Brazil. “Very effective teamwork among many dedicated people, both in Sweden and in Brazil, paved the way for this milestone on this new version of Gripen. These kind of milestones are special moments due to their rarity and that feels great,” says Jonas Hjelm, head of Saab business area Aeronautics. Brazil has ordered 28 Gripen E fighters that will be delivered to Brazil starting from 2021 and eight Gripen F fighters, starting from 2023. Gripen F is also being offered by Saab to Finland for their fighter replacement programme. Please click here to watch a short video about the first metal cut. For further information, please contact: Saab Press Centre, +46 (0)734 180 018, presscentre@saabgroup.com www.saabgroup.com www.saabgroup.com/YouTube Follow us on twitter: @saab View source version on Saab: https://saabgroup.com/media/news-press/news/2020-03/gripen-f-fighter-production-under-way/

Rome, March 25, 2020 - Leonardo is extending its training services capabilities to include rotorcraft unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to provide 360° training solutions to its growing customer base for maximised mission effectiveness and safety. The Company has recently obtained an Authorized Training Organization Certificate for UAS released by ENAC (Italian National Civil Aviation Authority). With this certification Leonardo is now able to supply training services for light and very light category remotely piloted systems (up to 25 kg) through its Helicopter Training Academy headquartered in Sesto Calende (Northern Italy). This certification heavily adds to the overall quality level and versatility of training services provided by Leonardo, making the Company the world's first rotorcraft OEM with this capability - it is expected to be recognised by EASA in 2021. This latest service addition allows Leonardo to respond to the evolving market demands by those helicopter operators who are increasingly using small UAS for their missions, including those carrying out disaster relief and emergency response tasks. Furthermore, Leonardo is also developing a comprehensive training package for the AWHERO 200 kg class RUAS. The AWHERO was also involved in the successful maritime surveillance capability demonstration performed in the framework of the European OCEAN 2020 initiative in the Mediterranean Sea at the end of 2019. The training syllabus will exploit solutions and methodologies available for piloted helicopters leveraging the long-established and rapidly growing training capabilities of the Company offered to operators worldwide through Training Academies and Centres in terms of technologies and simulation. Among the available services, a mission planning system tool based on the Leonardo SkyFlight system will allow customers to include one more operational service for the AWHERO. View source version on Leonardo : https://www.leonardocompany.com/en/press-release-detail/-/detail/2-03-2020-leonardo-extends-its-training-services-capabilities-to-rotorcraft-unmanned-aerial-systems

Fort Worth, Texas, March 25, 2020 – Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, has been selected to continue its work on the U.S. Army's Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) program. As part of the selection, Bell is designing, manufacturing, and testing the Bell 360 Invictus, a prototype rotorcraft designed to provide improved lethality, survivability, and extended reach for Army Aviation. This selection follows almost a full year of design and risk-reduction work by the Bell team as part of the initial contract phase. "The selection of the Bell 360 Invictus to continue in the FARA program builds on our decades-long legacy as an innovator in reconnaissance rotorcraft supporting the maneuver force," said Mitch Snyder, president and CEO of Bell. "Our team has applied innovative thinking with tested technology to give the Army a low-risk option to fulfill its requirements on an aggressive schedule." As part of the U.S. government's Future Vertical Lift (FVL) family of programs, the FARA competition seeks to test and acquire a next-generation attack reconnaissance aircraft to fill a critical capability gap identified by the Army on a rapid schedule. The Bell 360 addresses the requirements with a design optimized to achieve the performance, connectivity, sustainability, and reliability for soldiers to fight and operate in multi-domain operations. The aircraft is expected to meet or exceed the Army's requirements, using proven Bell technologies such as fly-by-wire flight controls, a proven articulated rotor design, and an innovative blade design to name a few. Additionally, Bell is partnered with industry leader Collins Aerospace to integrate a new generation of avionics hardware and software featuring cyber-hardened and digital backbone solutions to provide MOSA compliance in accordance with US Army FARA objectives. To ensure the team stays on schedule and on budget, Bell is using a digital design-as-built process. The team is able to connect and collaborate in a real-time digital environment to ensure alignment among all trades to facilitate smoother manufacturing, improve sustainability characteristics, and mitigate schedule risks. This process has been used and refined on Bell commercial projects, as well as during the recent U.S. Army Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator program that produced the Bell V-280 Valor. "The Bell 360 Invictus will help the Army achieve and sustain overmatch against competitors with its new attack and reconnaissance capabilities," said Keith Flail, vice president of Advanced Vertical Lift Systems at Bell. "Our aircraft builds on Bell's legacy of providing ultra-reliable scout rotorcraft by keeping our aircraft affordable with an emphasis on simplifying processes to achieve a sustainable and maintainable aircraft for the warfighters." Initiated following contract award in 2019, the Bell 360 program is producing an advanced, scout aircraft to fulfill requirements set out by the Army FARA program. The Bell 360 design was revealed last October. The next generation design highlights Bell's intent to deliver exceptional performance using proven technologies to preserve schedule and control cost. To learn more about Bell 360 Invictus and FVL, please visit the Bell 360 Invictus website, and follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. This research was partially funded by the Government under Agreement No. No. W911W6-19-9-0002. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Government purposes notwithstanding any copyright notation thereon. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the Aviation Development Directorate, or the U.S. Government. ABOUT BELL Thinking above and beyond is what we do. For more than 80 years, we've been reimagining the experience of flight – and where it can take us. We are pioneers. We were the first to break the sound barrier and to certify a commercial helicopter. We were aboard NASA's first lunar mission and brought advanced tiltrotor systems to market. Today, we're defining the future of on-demand mobility. Headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas – as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Textron Inc., – we have strategic locations around the globe. And with nearly one quarter of our workforce having served, helping our military achieve their missions is a passion of ours. Above all, our breakthrough innovations deliver exceptional experiences to our customers. Efficiently. Reliably. And always, with safety at the forefront. ABOUT TEXTRON INC. Textron Inc. is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, Hawker, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat, Textron Systems, and TRU Simulation + Training. For more information, visit: www.textron.com. Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements which may project revenues or describe strategies, goals, outlook or other non-historical matters; these statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the risk that the U.S. Army will not choose Bell's solution for the FARA program; the efficacy of research and development investments to develop new products or unanticipated expenses or delays in connection with the launching of significant new products or programs; changing priorities or reductions in the U.S. Government defense budget, including those related to military operations in foreign countries; changes in worldwide economic or political conditions that impact demand for our products, interest rates or foreign exchange rates; our ability to perform as anticipated and to control costs under contracts with the U.S. Government; the U.S. Government's ability to unilaterally modify or terminate its contracts with us for the U.S. Government's convenience or for our failure to perform, to change applicable procurement and accounting policies, or, under certain circumstances, to withhold payment or suspend or debar us as a contractor eligible to receive future contract awards; changes in foreign military funding priorities or budget constraints and determinations, or changes in government regulations or policies on the export and import of military and commercial products; and performance issues with key suppliers, subcontractors or business partners. View source version on Bell Textron Inc.: https://investor.textron.com/news/news-releases/press-release-details/2020/BELL-360-Invictus-Chosen-to-Continue-In-US-Armys-New-Scout-Rotorcraft-Competition/default.aspx

March 24, 2020 The U.S. Army has awarded BAE Systems a $339 million contract modification for the production of 48 vehicle sets of M109A7 Self-propelled Howitzer (SPH) and its companion, the M992A3 Carrier, Ammunition, Tracked (CAT) vehicle, and includes post-delivery support and spare parts. The M109A7 SPH and M992A3 CAT vehicle set is a vital program enhancement for increased combat capability and sustainment of the Army's Armored Brigade Combat Teams (ABCTs). The program offers enhanced indirect-fire artillery capabilities to the ABCTs with new technologies for power generation and survivability. The new M109A7 addresses long-term readiness and modernization needs of the M109 self-propelled howitzer family through a critical redesign and production plan that leverages today's most advanced technology. Its state-of-the-art “digital backbone” and power generation capability provides a more robust, survivable, and responsive indirect fire support capability for ABCT Soldiers. The M109A7 is a significant upgrade over the M109A6 as it enhances reliability, maintainability, performance, responsiveness, lethality, and crew survivability. The initial contract was awarded in 2017 for low-rate production. This most recent order brings the total number of M109A7 and M992A3 vehicle sets to 204, with a total contract value of $1.5 billion. The award follows the Army's decision, announced in February, to commence full-rate production of the vehicle. View source version on BAE Systems: https://www.baesystems.com/en/article/u-s--army-awards--339-million-contract-for-m109a7-self-propelled-howitzers-and-m992a3-carrier--ammunition--tracked-vehicles

BETHESDA, Md., March 27, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- At Lockheed Martin, we recognize that the rapid spread of COVID-19 and its wide-ranging impacts have caused severe disruption across society and tragic loss of life around the world. We also recognize that the global pandemic has created a need for urgent action by government, business, communities and citizens. In response to this crisis, our company will be guided by and operate with three clear priorities. First, we will continue to protect the health and safety of our men and women on the job and their families. Second, we will continue to perform and deliver for our customers because what they do for our national security, global communications, and infrastructure is critical to our nation and our allies. Third, we will do our part to use our know-how, resources, and leadership as a company to assist our communities and our country during this period of national crisis. In this regard, today I am announcing that Lockheed Martin will take the following steps as an initial contribution to the national COVID-19 relief and recovery effort: We will advance more than $50 million to small- and medium-sized business partners in our supply chain to ensure they have the financial means to continue to operate, sustain jobs, and support the economy. We will donate $10 million to non-profit organizations involved in COVID-19 related relief and assistance, with emphasis on veterans and military families. We have activated a $6.5 million employee disaster relief fund to assist Lockheed Martin employees and retirees impacted with COVID-19. These are our initial financial steps to help during this time of national need. In addition: We will offer Lockheed Martin's engineering and technical capabilities to help solve the most pressing challenges faced by federal, state, and local officials. We will donate the use of our corporate aircraft and vehicle fleet for COVID-19 relief logistical support and medical supply delivery. We will donate the use of our facilities for crisis-related activities including critical medical supply storage, distribution, and COVID-19 testing, where needed and practical. Finally, during this time of economic uncertainty, we will continue our planned recruiting and hiring. Given the requirement for social distancing, Lockheed Martin will deploy virtual technology and other techniques to sustain our hiring activity during this crisis period. Lockheed Martin understands that the shared effort to combat COVID-19 and recover from its effects will be a long-term one. We will continue to engage national, state, and local leaders to undertake additional measures as needed. And, throughout this crisis, Lockheed Martin remains committed to continuing to deliver critical capabilities for our nation and our allies, supporting job creation and economic recovery, and helping those in need wherever we operate. Marillyn Hewson Chairman, President and CEO Lockheed Martin Corporation About Lockheed Martin Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 110,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. SOURCE Lockheed Martin https://news.lockheedmartin.com/2020-03-27-Statement-From-Lockheed-Martin-Chairman-President-And-CEO-Marillyn-Hewson-On-COVID-19-Response