Nouvelles

Jen Judson WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin's Sikorsky and Bell have each begun to forge the aircraft that will compete to become the U.S. Army's Future Armed Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) expected to be fielded by 2030. “It's become very real to me,” Brig. Gen. Wally Rugen, who leads the Army's effort to develop future vertical lift aircraft, told Defense News in a recent interview. “We're seeing forgings, castings, transmissions, gear boxes, blades, cockpits, airframes, real tangible things that are already built, already manufactured and going together,” he said. Final designs on the aircraft are due from both Bell and Lockheed in November, according to Rugen. And despite complications across the defense industry due to the coronavirus pandemic, both vendors “see no problem” achieving that original schedule. The Army will take about a month to review those final designs, Rugen said, and then the service will conduct a readiness review with Army senior leaders in mid-December, where the hope is the program will get the final go-ahead. The service is pushing for the prototypes to fly for the first time in the first quarter of fiscal 2023. One major factor in getting those prototypes airborne is whether the Army's Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP) engine is ready to drop into the aircraft. The ITEP engine has been developed to replace the engines in UH-60 Black Hawk utility and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, but will also be FARA's first engine. Key to progress with that is getting the first engine into testing starting in late 2021, Rugen said. “That is our engine and that is our critical path really through the engine,” he said. General Electric, which is building the ITEP engine for the Army, “understands that,” Rugen said. “They've had a lot of friction to fight through and they're fighting through it very well from what I can see,” he added, referring to the impact of the pandemic on the company's progress. While the ITEP engine schedule has not slipped, it has now essentially lost any padding and is aligned with the original schedule, Rugen said. General Electric and the Army had previously found some ways to accelerate the timeline. In addition to ITEP, the Army is also planning on furnishing a gun and a modular effects launcher to both competitors. The 20mm gun has begun firing live rounds and will fire 285,000 rounds “this year,” Rugen said. The modular effects launcher is in the prototyping phase, but Rugen added that, like the 20mm gun, it will fly at Project Convergence 2021 on a FARA surrogate aircraft. Sikorsky has pitched a design based off of its S-97 Raider that it is calling the Raider X. The S-97 has been flying for more than five years. “These flights have produced tremendous data that inform our flight program, help refine the design of Raider X ... and reduce risk for the program,” Jay Macklin, Sikorsky's business development director for FVL, told Defense News. The company began building physical components last year in anticipation of a contract to build a prototype, he said. Sikorsky also has had key suppliers under contract for more than a year. During the flight test period, Sikorsky plans to be “more focused on validation of design versus traditional methods of fly-fix-fly that have been used on many past aircraft across industry,” Macklin said. Bell unveiled its design — the 360 Invictus — for FARA a year ago just ahead of the Association of the U.S. Army's annual conference. Bell has completed multiple design and risk reviews and reports it is on schedule for its build, according to Chris Gehler, vice president and program director of the Invictus program. The company has completed critical design reviews for rotors and drive systems, and the team has been accepting parts at its Amarillo, Texas, facility where it will soon begin to build the aircraft, Gehler told Defense News. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/ausa/2020/10/14/lockheed-bell-begin-forging-prototypes-to-compete-for-armys-future-armed-recon-aircraft/

Jen Judson WASHINGTON — As the Army looks to bring on two future helicopters by 2030, the service is planning to review its entire aviation fleet in fiscal 2023, Lt. Gen. James Pasquarette, the Army G-8, told Defense News in an Oct. 8 interview. Over the past several years, the Army has said it is at “an inflection point” when it comes to prioritizing modernization in order to ensure soldiers can fight in a multidomain environment against near-peer adversaries. Part of that is ensuring the Army is balanced properly when it comes to making sure the current fleet is ready while funding the ambitious development of two new aircraft along with a number of other enablers like a digital backbone, air-launched effects and a new engine, to name a few. In FY20, the Army took controversial steps to shift funding from the current fleet to the future one when it decided it would not buy Block II CH-47F Chinook cargo helicopters for the active force, opting to procure the variant just for special operations. Congress has pushed back on that decision in both its FY20 and FY21 defense bills, injecting funding into the program to keep the pump primed to build Block II Chinooks for the active component against the Army's wishes. So far the Army isn't planning on backing down on its decision to scale down and only buy the Block II variant for special operations. “The Army's position has not changed. I mean, our position is we don't have to make a decision,” Pasquarette said. “It's based on the age of the fleet and other factors,” Pasquarette said. “Our concern is that if Congress decides that we need to move down the Block II path here ... that starts to push out dollars against our modernization priorities that we're very concerned about.” The Army “must develop” both the Future Armed Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) and the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA), he stressed. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy also signaled during an Oct. 8 interview with Defense News that tough decisions on the aviation fleet would have to be made as the FLRAA and FARA aircraft begin to fly. The prototype aircraft for FARA are expected to start flying in the fourth quarter of FY22 and the engineering and manufacturing development phase is expected to begin in FY24. FLRAA prototypes will be delivered in roughly the summer of 2026. The last time the Army restructured its fleet was in 2013 to deal with impending budget cuts and reductions that would have been made through sequestration. The effort was a way to take control of what was cut rather than let every program across the board take salami-slice chops. As a result, the service decided to retire its OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters and use AH-64E Apache attack helicopters paired with Shadow unmanned aircraft systems to fill the armed scout role until future aircraft could come online. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/ausa/2020/10/14/army-to-conduct-thorough-review-of-aviation-fleet-in-fy23/

Todd South The gun that will replace both the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon and the M16/M4 rifle/carbine weapons — and add a new, widely distributed caliber to the U.S. military inventory for the first time in decades — is less than two years away. The Next Generation Squad Weapon finished its first prototype test event in September. The three previously selected offerings came from Sig Sauer, Textron Systems and General Dynamics Ordnance. Brig. Gen. David Hodne, Infantry School commandant and Soldier Lethality Cross Functional Team director, along with Brig. Gen. Anthony Potts, head of Program Executive Office Soldier, gave updates to Army Times ahead of the Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting and Exposition. Concurrently, the Army in April has also selected two companies, L3 Technologies and Vortex Optics, to compete for the fire control for the weapons system. Sig Sauer's design looks much like a conventional assault rifle while GD is using a bullpup design, which shortens the length by building the magazine feed into the weapon stock. Textron has built its weapon around the cartridge, which is unique to them, a cased telescope item that has the projectile inside of the casing to reduce weight. Back in April, each of the companies provided 15 rifles, 15 automatic rifles and 180,000 cartridges using the government-developed 6.8mm projectile. The 6.8mm projectile was chosen after decades of testing and evaluation showed that 5.56mm lethality at mid-ranges on the battlefield was inadequate and existing 7.62mm could be outperformed by the 6.8mm round and save weight for the soldier. The new caliber also gives the soldier both a rifle and automatic rifle firing the same round, both effective past the 600m mark of existing light calibers. Following the September testing, the companies will have six months until their next prototype test, scheduled to begin in February. During the annual Maneuver Warfighter Conference at Fort Benning in Georgia, Maj. Wyatt Ottmar, project officer over NGSW for the Soldier Lethality CFT, laid out some of the recent developments and next steps for the weapons system. Ottmar noted that Sig Sauer provided a combined steel lower and brass upper ammunition cartridge to reduce weight. A contract is expected to be awarded to one of the three companies this coming fiscal year with fielding to start in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022, or sometime between August and October 2022, to Infantry, Stryker and Armor Brigade Combat Teams. Ultimately, the weapon will be fielded to all close combat forces, including special operations forces, infantry, combat engineers and scouts. The fire control is expected to field six months ahead of the weapon, Potts said. That will allow the NGSW producer to better integrate the optic with the weapon. https://www.defensenews.com/news/your-army/2020/10/14/the-armys-saw-and-m4-replacement-is-headed-to-troops-by-2022/

Jen Judson WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army began building an entire virtual world a few years ago for its Synthetic Training Environment (STE) to bring accuracy and a real-life feel to training, but a deployment of One World Terrain in Afghanistan has proved it's not just a training tool, according to Maj. Gen. Maria Gervais, who is in charge of the service's STE development. One World Terrain, or OWT, compiles realistic and, in some cases, extremely accurate virtual maps of territory all over the globe. The idea is to be able to click on any place on a virtual globe and go there. Soldiers can then train virtually in an exact environment in which they can expect to operate in reality. “We're seeing now there are better uses for operational capability,” Gervais told Defense News in an Oct. 8 interview ahead of the Association of the U.S. Army's annual conference. “And it's helping us inform how do we now expand this to meet training, operational and also targeting requirements.” It all began with a unit that used OWT for training at the National Training Center on Fort Irwin, California, and saw value in it, Gervais said. When the unit deployed to Afghanistan, the soldiers asked to take the system — which included a drone and software — she said. The unit was able to capture terrain for the purpose of mission-planning rehearsal and route planning. But the soldiers also used it to take an in-depth look at the forward-operating base to see how it was set up and analyze it for vulnerabilities. “I will tell you from that usage, they figured out they had to make some changes,” Gervais said. “And then they went out and they started looking at other operating bases within their area. They expanded it.” The system “immediately started proving its utility to them,” she said, “but from that unit from what they were able to do, we then were able to take the next unit that was coming in behind them and provide all that information to them and allow them to understand how One World Terrain could be used.” The Army's 82nd Airborne Division also used the system prior to deploying to another theater. The division captured the terrain, using it for predeployment planning and mission rehearsals, including how and where to set up a base and where to position electronic warfare systems. OWT also helped the 25th Infantry Division out of Hawaii prepare for a Joint Training Readiness Center rotation, and its members also plan to use it during the exercise. These uses have led the Army to provide more drones and software for more units, Gervais said. Starting in December and January, the Army will begin fielding “a little bit more capability,” she added. In March, the STE team went to Germany to observe an assured position, navigation and timing exercise that included a sensor-to-shooter, live-fire drill. The team worked with the 1st Cavalry Division's intelligence analysts and put OWT on the Distributed Common Ground System-Army (DCGS-A) system, which is an intelligence analysis platform. “We showed them the capability, and what came out of there was pretty astounding,” Gervais said. With 3D terrain from OWT in the system, decisions could be made more quickly because there was no need to compare two different databases and reason against it, she said. That cut workload by about 60 percent, she added. OWT was on a DCGS-A system at Project Convergence at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, this year, Gervais said, and it showed the realm of the possible from a targeting perspective. While the STE had a limited scope during Project Convergence, “we're going to be more integrated in Project Convergence 21 next year,” she added, so that “everybody's kind of operating off the 3D terrain.” https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/ausa/2020/10/14/afghanistan-deployment-proves-one-world-terrain-is-more-than-a-training-tool/

Jean-Marc Tanguy Le député de la Haute-Marne, rapporteur spécial pour la défense à la Commission des finances de l'Assemblée Nationale a, une fois de plus, transmis ses doutes sur le projet de loi de finances (PLF) 2021. Surcoûts Opex Le député (LR) de la Haute-Marne, rapporteur spécial pour la défense à la Commission des finances de l'Assemblée Nationale, a une fois de plus transmis ses doutes, ce 13 octobre, sur la fin de gestion 2020, et le projet de loi de finances (PLF) 2021, qui sera étudié en première lecture dans l'hémicycle à la fin du mois. François Cornut-Gentille estime que la « fin de gestion 2020 sera compliquée comme tous les ans, mais un peu plus en 2020 » du fait de l'augmentation des surcoûts Opex liés aux 600 personnels déployés en plus à Barkhane (mais aussi aux pertes en matériels), aux opérations Résilience et Amitié. Ainsi, le niveau pourrait atteindre 1,6 Md€, estime l'élu. Dassault Rafale pour la Grèce Auparavant, le ministère des Armées trouvait des ressources pour financer ces surcoûts : les montants non dépensés du titre 2 par exemple, mais le député estime que la totalité des fonds du T2 seront dépensés cette année. Le report de charge, qui aurait dû se réduire dans le cours de la LPM, progresse, constate François Cornut-Gentille, et pourrait atteindre 15 à 16 %. Le député se félicite aussi des annonces grecques sur le Dassault Rafale, « une bonne nouvelle pour les exportations et pour Dassault Aviation » mais il s'inquiète comme beaucoup des conséquences du prélèvement des 12 Dassault Rafale dans l'Armée de l'Air. Et du fait qu'il va falloir inscrire environ un milliard d'euros non prévus en LPM au chapitre des dépenses. Certes, la Grèce va payer pour les appareils d'occasion (sur lesquels en sus il faudra enlever des équipements/ndlr), mais moins que pour des avions neufs. Definvest pas à la hauteur ? Et la ministre des Armées, Florence Parly, elle-même reconnaissait en commission il y a peu qu'elle n'était pas sûre de récupérer le produit de cette vente même si elle entend obtenir gain de cause avec Bercy. Le niveau du reste à payer, les engagements non couverts par des paiements, atteint les 72,7 MdEUR à la fin 2019, un plus haut historique depuis 2006 au moins. François Cornut Gentille veut aussi dynamiser la logique de Definvest, qui n'a réalisé « que huit opérations » et « n'est pas à la hauteur des enjeux ». Photonis n'a pas été suffisamment protégé, constate-t-il. Enfin, il a déploré l'absence de réponses du ministère des Armées à ses 150 questions budgétaires posées en juillet en vue du PLF2021, ou des réponses trop tardives : 50 sont arrivées au courrier ce samedi. D'autres réponses, enfin, sont accompagnées d'une demande de discrétion, alors qu'elles figurent par ailleurs... en source ouverte, dans d'autres documents budgétaires. https://www.air-cosmos.com/article/budgets-dfense-les-doutes-du-dput-cornut-gentille-23737

The U.S. Army is taking the next year to craft a transformation strategy that builds off a modernization plan the service issued in 2016, according to the service's acquisition executive. The 2016... https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/budget-policy-operations/us-army-starts-work-transformation-strategy

Honeywell Aerospace Phoenix, October 12, 2020 -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) has won a five-year IDIQ (Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity) contract for the repair and overhaul of its T55-GA-714A engines that operate on the U.S. Army's CH-47 Chinook helicopters. This contract award will ensure that the U.S. Army's Chinook fleet has spare engines to sustain its future missions and overall readiness. The engines will be serviced at Honeywell's new maintenance facility at the company's Aerospace global headquarters in Phoenix. “Honeywell remains committed to supporting the T55 engine and the CH-47F Chinook program with improved maintenance practices, expanded repair capacities and engine modernization improvements that will meet the helicopter's needs for years to come,” said Dave Marinick, president, Engines & Power Systems. “Honeywell's unparalleled T55 repair and overhaul facility was designed to provide the highest level of support for the U.S. Army's needs today and in future missions. Every aspect of the layout and design of this new facility was carefully planned to ensure operational efficiency with U.S. Army mission readiness in mind.” Completion of the new facility means repair and overhaul work on the T55-GA-714A engine will now be in the same location as new engine production. This move allows the workforce to share resources between both engine lines, for a potential surge output of 20 engines per month that can be delivered to the U.S. Army, foreign military and commercial customers. “We've made substantial improvements to the shop layout and process flow of the T55-GA-714A maintenance lines,” said Lesley King, senior director, ISC Operations, Honeywell Aerospace. “So we can double our capacity in the shop and take advantage of our engineering resources on-site to ensure we are meeting our delivery commitments to the Army.” As a world leader in heavy lift, the CH-47F Chinook helicopter is used by the U.S. Army to support domestic and foreign operations by hauling troops and cargo all over the world. Since 1961, Honeywell has improved the horsepower of the T55 engine by 133%. Each improvement has decreased the engine's fuel consumption and lowered the maintenance burden to increase aircraft readiness. Honeywell is executing one such engine improvement program for the T55, which will increase shaft horsepower from today's 4,777 to 6,000. This engine enhancement will allow the CH-47F to increase its useful load at higher density altitudes and will further reduce maintenance hours with the introduction of a newly designed compressor and accessory drive gearbox. About Honeywell Honeywell Aerospace products and services are found on virtually every commercial, defense and space aircraft. The Aerospace business unit builds aircraft engines, cockpit and cabin electronics, wireless connectivity systems, mechanical components and more. Its hardware and software solutions create more fuel-efficient aircraft, more direct and on-time flights and safer skies and airports. For more information, visit www.honeywell.com or follow us at @Honeywell_Aero. Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 technology company that delivers industry-specific solutions that include aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings and industry; and performance materials globally. Our technologies help aircraft, buildings, manufacturing plants, supply chains, and workers become more connected to make our world smarter, safer, and more sustainable. https://www.epicos.com/article/635462/honeywell-secures-repair-and-overhaul-contract-us-army-chinook-fleet

Oshkosh Defense Oshkosh, Wis. October 13, 2020 — Oshkosh Defense, LLC, an Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) company, announced today that the Belgium Ministry of Defence has awarded Oshkosh Defense a contract for 322 Oshkosh Defense Command and Liaison Vehicles (CLV) for the Belgium Defence Forces. The Belgian CLV is the proven Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) platform from Oshkosh equipped with Belgian communication systems. The JLTV is currently used by the U.S. military. “Oshkosh Defense is honored that Belgium has chosen to equip its armed forces with the Oshkosh CLV,” said John Bryant, Executive Vice President, Oshkosh Corporation, and President, Oshkosh Defense. “The Oshkosh CLV offers Belgian soldiers the world's most advanced light military vehicle, delivering next-generation levels of protection, off-road mobility, speed, transportability, and seamless operational and logistical interoperability with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies,” Bryant continued. “The Belgian Defence opted for a worldwide competition in which “money for value” was the only criterion,” said Director Land Systems Colonel Filip De Varé. “The CLV will be integrated in the CaMo program, an international partnership between the French and Belgian land forces.” Traditionally procured via foreign military sales, the Belgian procurement marks Oshkosh Defense's first large direct commercial sale of a JLTV-based vehicle. Belgium joins the United States, the United Kingdom, Lithuania, Slovenia, and Montenegro in choosing this vehicle. As a globally recognized leader in the design and production of military vehicle systems, Oshkosh Defense has the capacity to support both domestic and international customer demand. About Oshkosh Defense Oshkosh Defense is a global leader in the design, production and sustainment of best-in-class military vehicles and mobility systems. As a pioneer of combat-ready vehicle solutions, Oshkosh develops and applies emerging technologies that advance troop safety and mission success. Setting the industry standard for sustaining fleet readiness, Oshkosh ensures every vehicle is supported worldwide throughout its entire life cycle. Oshkosh Defense, LLC is an Oshkosh Corporation company [NYSE: OSK]. Learn more about Oshkosh Defense at www.oshkoshdefense.com About Oshkosh Corporation At Oshkosh (NYSE: OSK), we make innovative, mission-critical equipment to help everyday heroes' advance communities around the world. Headquartered in Wisconsin, Oshkosh Corporation employs more than 15,000 team members worldwide, all united behind a common cause: to make a difference in people's lives. Oshkosh products can be found in more than 150 countries under the brands of JLG®, Pierce®, Oshkosh® Defense, McNeilus®, IMT®, Frontline™, Jerr-Dan®, Oshkosh® Airport Products, CON-E-CO® and London™. For more information, visit www.oshkoshcorp.com ®, ™ All brand names referred to in this news release are trademarks of Oshkosh Corporation or its subsidiary companies. https://www.epicos.com/article/636164/belgium-contracts-322-joint-light-tactical-vehicles-jltv-oshkosh-defense

Patria Group October 13, 2020 - The Finnish Defence Forces will improve its night fighting capability by procuring new image intensifiers for soldiers and hand-held multipurpose observation and surveillance systems for mortar units. Antti Kaikkonen, the Minister of Defence of Finland, has authorized the Finnish Defence Forces Logistics Command to sign a contract with Senop Oy for the procurement of night vision devices. The procurement is based on a Letter of Intent signed on 22 May 2019 and Senop will deliver the systems by the end of 2021. The contract, with a total value of more than 13 million euros, includes a 209 million euro option for the next five years. The option includes image intensifiers, observation and surveillance systems and laser aiming devices. Senop´s new NVG is a small and lightweight night vision device (FDF: Night vision device M20), designed as a soldier's personal night vision device to be used in demanding military environments. NVG utilizes latest aspheric and composite technologies, which enable high performance and low over all system weight. Senop´s laser aiming devices (FDF: Tactical laser aiming device M20 and Soldier´s laser aiming device) are developed to be used as a soldier´s weapon sight and as a target designator for troop leaders. Laser aiming devices are designed for seamless integration with FDF´s existing weapons and are also usable in other weapons / systems. Senop LILLY target acquisition device (FDF: Target acquisition device MPL21) is an extremely light weight device with versatile functions for target acquisition, observation and different types of measuring applications. LILLY is based on high performance thermal imaging, combined with direct view optical channel. This combination enables high performance at all times of day. New image intensifier, laser aiming devices and Senop LILLY sensor have been developed in close cooperation with the Finnish army. “The development work has also required intensive field tests and environmental tests to ensure that the devices are easy to use and stand the strain of hard military operations. I can proudly say that Image intensifier, laser aiming devices and LILLY-sensor have been developed for infantry soldiers with the guidance of real end users”, says Aki Korhonen, Managing Director of Senop. Effective night fighting capability requires overarching capabilities. Senop is developing holistic solutions for networked military environments. Senop has for example delivered Senop VV3X night sights, VVLite night vision devices, and LISA target acquisition systems (FDF: MPL15) for the Finnish Army. All these devices support the capability to fight during the night and in difficult weather conditions. In addition, these systems are networked to modern C2I -systems to support situational awareness. “Our mission is to help customers to build new capabilities by tailoring solutions according to their specific needs and requirements. Our priority customers are armies and soldiers. Our development work with the Finnish Army has shown the agility of our company to support the customers”, Aki Korhonen points out. The development of the Image Intensifier and laser aiming devices was finalised from concept to qualified product within one year. Senop´s Defence&Security portfolio consists of high-performance image intensifiers, night sights, intelligent thermal weapon sights, handheld target acquisition and observation systems, vehicle camera systems, hyperspectral cameras, and multipurpose container-based system platform solutions. https://www.epicos.com/article/635461/senop-supply-night-vision-devices-finnish-defence-forces