Nouvelles

Le projet de budget 2021 des armées est examiné en séance publique ce vendredi 30 octobre à l'Assemblée nationale. A hauteur de 39,2 milliards d'euros, en hausse de 4,5%, ce projet de budget apparaît toujours comme une priorité nationale, relève Le Monde. Les crédits de 2021 sont destinés à «réparer» et «moderniser» la défense. Ils permettront notamment d'acquérir trois avions tankers multirôles supplémentaires (MRTT), d'admettre le nouveau sous-marin Suffren au service actif, d'accroître les moyens cyberoffensifs des armées, et d'acheter des missiles air-sol AASM dans le cadre de la reconstitution des stocks de munitions. Florence Parly confirme qu'un texte législatif sera émis pour procéder à l'actualisation de la Loi de Programmation Militaire d'ici à fin 2021. Pour plus de détails : https://www.defense.gouv.fr/actualites/articles/projet-de-loi-de-finances-2021-engagements-tenus-pour-le-budget-de-la-defense

Tom Kington ROME — Italy has announced a major boost to its defense budget even as the country spends millions of euros battling the devastating effect of COVID-19 on its economy. Overall defense ministry spending is up 9.6 percent this year to €15.3 billion (U.S. $18.1 billion), with the procurement budget emerging as the big winner as it rises by 26 percent from last year if coupled with top-up spending from the industry ministry. “This is a very positive budget for the armed forces, especially for procurement during this challenging economic climate,” said Paolo Crippa, a defense analyst at the CESI think tank in Rome. The figures are included in Italy's 2020 budget, which should have been released in the spring, but was held up by the COVID-19 crisis which hit Italy hard in March and is now threatening the country again. This year's €15.3 billion defense ministry spending compares to just under €14 billion last year, signaling a halt in a series of year-on-year falls. Procurement takes up €2.8 billion of the budget, up 50 percent on last year, but for a true picture of Italian procurement spending the annual top-up for domestic procurement provided by the Italian industry ministry must be added, which amounts to €2.64 billion, also up from last year. The total to spend on procurement therefore comes to €5.45 billion, up 26 percent on last year's €4.32 billion. Of the other two other spending categories in the ministry budget, Maintenance and Operations rises 23 percent to €2.15 billion, while personnel spending remains stable at €10.4 billion. “The rise in M&O spending follows claims by generals that cuts were damaging military readiness,” said Crippa. The budget was drawn up by defense minister Lorenzo Guerini, a member of the center-left Democratic Party which governs in a coalition government with the anti-establishment Five Star party. Since first entering government in 2018, Five Star has softened its anti-military stance, which saw it initially push to scrap the F-35 program. This year, the F-35 program receives €800 million to help conclude the purchase of the first 28 of Italy's planned 90 aircraft buy. A further €126 million is also budgeted to get the purchase of the next 27 aircraft underway. Other ongoing programs that get more funding in 2020 include the purchase of 650 new VTLM 2 vehicles – an upgrade of the army Lince vehicle, as well as a mid-life refurbishment for Italy's Storm Shadow missiles and the purchase of T-345 and T-346 jet trainers. Further programs also getting a dose of regular funding are Italy's new, €1.17 billion LHD vessel the Trieste, a €2 billion acquisition of 150 new Centauro II wheeled tanks and a €974 million purchase of 16 new CH-47F helicopters. Comparing the total envisaged price tag of some programs in the budget to the price listed in last year's budget reveals costs are rising. A plan to buy four new U-212 NFS submarines has risen from €2.35 billion to €2.68 billion this year, a hike of over €300 million. The ongoing purchase of ten PPA naval vessels has risen over €400 million to €4.27 billion. Some programs appear for the first time in the budget, including two new “DDX” destroyers for the Navy. No money is earmarked in 2020 but €4.5 million is due to be used for a de-risking study beginning in 2021. A second new entry is a listing for a “multi-mission, multi-sensor” Gulfstream G-550 jet. Without stating how many aircraft Italy plans to order, the budget gives the total price tag of the program as €1.23 billion and states that funding will start in 2021. The capabilities of the platform listed include command-and-control, “electronic superiority” and “electronic protection of forces.” An Italian analyst who declined to be named said the program was a reprisal of a long nurtured Italian plan for a sensor platform dubbed JAMMS, which would offer signals intelligence, communications relay and radar capabilities. The Italian Air Force declined to comment on the program. An illustration of the aircraft in the budget document resembles Israel's “Shavit” Signals Intelligence Gulfstream. Italy already flies two Gulfstream 550 Conformal Airborne Early Warning aircraft it purchased from Israel's IAI in 2012 as part of a swap deal under which Israel purchased 30 M-346 trainers from Italian firm Leonardo. The budget document states that after getting underway, the new program will take onboard future technology advancements and the benefits of “international cooperation accords.” The analyst said, “There is a plan to buy the platform now since the Gulfstream G550 is going out of production, then add Israeli systems in return for purchases by Israel from Italian industry.” Programs on the military's wish list which do not have any funding earmarked yet also get a mention in the budget document, starting with investment in the U.K.-led Tempest program for a future sixth-generation fighter. But the absence of cash for the program, which the U.K. and Sweden have already invested in, risked making Italy the weakest partner in the trio, wrote Italian defense publication RID. “In this way, there is the risk that Italy's ability to influence the development decreases and it will be weaker when it comes to future talks on the dividing of manufacturing,” the publication stated. The document also confirms Italy's interest in joining the U.S. Future Vertical Lift helicopter initiative to build next generation helicopters, which is currently being pursued by the United States only. Government officials have already mulled investing in the program using funds paid out by the EU to help the Italian economy rebound from COVID-19. Analysts have suggested that buying into FVL may overlap with work by Italy's Leonardo to build the AW249, a replacement for Italy's AW129 Mangusta attack helicopter. This year, the plan to complete a €2.7 billion purchase of 48 of the AW249 helicopters receives funding in the budget. “There is cash for the successor to the AW129 but seeing the mention of the FVL confirms Italy is also interested in that initiative,” said Crippa. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2020/10/28/italy-defense-budget-rebounds-despite-covid-crisis/

Nathan Strout WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory has awarded Descartes Labs a $2.2 million contract to generate real-time analytics with a focus on developing moving target indication data, the company announced Oct. 27. Under this new contract, AFRL will gain access to the company's geospatial analytics platform, which uses artificial intelligence and computer vision to process and fuse sensor data, such as satellite imagery, for tactical use. Descartes Labs claims the focus of this contract will involve using its platform to help the Air Force solve the challenge of generating moving target indication data for ground and airborne targets. The New Mexico-based company was recently awarded a contract from AFRL and AFWERX — an Air Force effort to spark innovation through nontraditional vendors — that gave the service access to Descartes Labs' geospatial analytics platform for multi-sensor data fusion and situational awareness. The company has also worked with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, helping the firm further refine its approach. “Through the implementation of multi-sensor analytics, the Air Force is creating a forward-thinking state-of-the-art national security system,” Mike Warren, Descartes Labs co-founder and chief technology officer, said in a statement. “Through increasing use of diverse types of data, the Air Force is laying the groundwork to solve tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance problems now and in the future.” This latest contract was issued through AFRL's Space Technology Advanced Research program, which was launched in summer 2019 to develop enabling technologies for space-based capabilities, including on-orbit servicing, debris management, ground systems and more. http://9. https://www.c4isrnet.com/intel-geoint/2020/10/28/the-air-force-wants-help-seeing-moving-targets-in-its-sensor-data/

AIR FORCE Megan-PCI JV LLC, Dayton, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0002); CPM-AWA LLC, Dayton, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0003); Peak Runge Co. JV, Port Clinton, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0004); John Cecil Construction Co., Columbus, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0005); NISOU LGC JV LLC, Detroit, Michigan (FA8601-21-D-0006); CAM Management and Services, Dayton, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0007); Pontiac Drywall Systems Inc., Pontiac, Michigan (FA8601-21-D-0008); OAC Action Construction, Miami, Florida (FA8601-21-D0009); Butt Construction Co., Dayton, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0010); Dawn Inc., Warren, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0011); A&H Ambica JV LLC, Livonia, Michigan (FA8601-21-D-0012); and Pinnacle Construction & Development, Independence, Ohio (FA8601-21-D-0013), have been awarded a $247,000,000 multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for construction projects. Work will be performed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and is expected to be completed Aug. 31, 2025. These awards are the result of a competitive acquisition and 21 offers were received. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,500 are being obligated to each contractor at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin Corp., Syracuse, New York, has been awarded a $25,000,000 ceiling indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the Atmospheric Early Warning System AN/FPS-117 Radar program. This contract provides for contractor logistics support and radar hardware/spares procurement. Work will be performed in Syracuse, New York, as well as various sites in Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, Puerto Rico and Utah. The work is expected to be complete by March 2026. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $3,946,336 are being obligated at the time of award. Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (FA8217-20-D-0006). NAVY Q.E.D. Systems Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia, is awarded a $76,360,281 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for specification development and availability execution support, formerly known as third party planning services for guided missile cruiser (CG), guided missile destroyer (DDG), landing helicopter assault, landing helicopter dock landing platform dock, and dock landing ship class vessels. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $229,411,097. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (51%); San Diego, California (43%); and Everett, Washington (6%), and is expected to be completed by October 2023. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $2,825,931 is being obligated at time of award and funding in the amount of $2,825,931 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured; a history of one bids and a lack of sources sought responses form the basis of the justification and approval for this effort. This single source contract to Q.E.D. will allow the government additional time to conduct extensive market research in preparation for a follow-on competitive effort. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-21-C-4200). DRS Systems Co. Inc., Melbourne, Florida, is awarded a $10,503,852 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-13-C-4229 for an engineering change to the Energy Magazine Prototype design for the DDG51-class destroyer program. This award is for an engineering change proposal to the Energy Storage Module that will provide capability to supply power to a directed energy load and includes design, build and testing for a total of two prototype units. Work will be performed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is expected to be completed by June 2022. No funding will be obligated at time of award. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin Corp., Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Florida, is awarded a $9,835,348 cost-plus-fixed-fee order (N00019-21-F-0062) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-19-G-0029. This order provides non-recurring engineering for the production of target designator sets and electro-optical in support of AH-1Z Light Attack helicopters for Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida (97%); and Ocala, Florida (3%), and is expected to be completed in November 2022. FMS funds in the amount of $9,835,348 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. ARMY General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, was awarded a $70,706,229 modification (P00019) to contract W31P4Q-15-D-0003 for engineering and technical services required to accomplish research, development, integration, test, sustainment and operation across the family of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. unmanned aircraft systems. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 27, 2022. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity. *Small business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2397509/source/GovDelivery/

POLITICO spoke with managers at eight defense companies of varying sizes to see how their response to the pandemic has changed seven months in. JACQUELINE FELDSCHER From Zoom meetings to mental health check-ins during the work day to reconfiguring office spaces, most defense CEOs say the changes forced by the coronavirus will be permanent even after this crisis is over. The pandemic upended the industry in March, sending most employees who could telework home and requiring additional safety precautions for those who still had to go to the office. Companies quickly adopted best practices, such as frequent hand-washing, deep cleaning, distance between employees and eventually wearing masks. But over the past seven months, many companies have gone beyond these initial steps to protect the health of their employees and changed how they operate in other areas of their business. That includes adding benefits for the workforce, increasing the use of virtual communications and protecting supply chains. “We need to first calm down any sense of a focus on getting back to normal,” said Karl Hutter, the CEO of Click Bond, a supplier to defense companies. “There's not going to be a going back to normal.” A top challenge CEOs cited is trying to maintain a company's culture and community when at least some of the workforce is working from home full-time and it's still unsafe to gather for morale-building events such as anniversary celebrations or holiday parties. Industry leaders are also rethinking what their companies will look like in the future, including how many employees will continue to work from home full-time and how offices will be laid out. POLITICO spoke with managers at eight defense companies of varying sizes to see how their response to the pandemic has changed seven months in. Caring for the workforce The coronavirus pandemic has heaped stress on employees, many of whom are trying to juggle a full-time job with full-time child care amid a crisis that can make it anxiety-inducing to step outside. As a result, industry leaders almost unanimously said they have prioritized caring for employees' mental health in a new way to try to both give workers coping mechanisms and ease whatever stress they can. Click Bond, for example, has launched a pilot program in which about two dozen staff meet weekly for a 12-week program on wellness, including a focus on mindful movement and meditations. Hutter said he hopes the pilot, which is being used by many different demographics from younger workers to “hard-boiled tool makers,” will become a broader, long-term initiative. To help working parents, SAIC has given employees access to online tutoring help for their children to help ease the burden of working full-time while also helping children navigate the virtual classroom, said Amy Benson, SAIC's vice president of government affairs. United Launch Alliance and SAIC both established “leave banks,” which allow employees who won't use all of their vacation to donate that time off to colleagues who may need it. ULA CEO Tory Bruno said this will become a permanent benefit at his company once the pandemic is over. “It forces you to take on things like this, then you learn about them,” he said. “None of these benefits I just described will stop.” Companies have contracted with services to provide employees 24/7 virtual access to medical professionals for some health concerns. Managers are also making sure employees have access to health care. Huntington Ingalls Industries, for example, gave new hires health insurance immediately instead of making them wait 90 days, said Bill Ermatinger, the chief human resources officer at the shipbuilding company. Some companies are also regularly testing employees for Covid-19, both to keep facilities running by quickly diagnosing and quarantining any sick people and to ease the minds of those who report to work. “Employees have been very very grateful we're doing it,” said Mark Aslett, the CEO of Mercury Systems. “It's the only way to deal with employees at scale and get results back quickly enough to manage business continuity.” One of the top challenges for CEOs is making up for lost in-person interactions at company-wide events. Bruno has also gotten creative to try to replicate some of the morale boosting and team building that would come from a BBQ at a space launch, for example, by paying for employees to pick up meals from local small businesses. Hutter also stressed the importance of maintaining the culture of Click Bond, and is planning a “drive in theater event” for the company's annual holiday party as a way to safely gather and raise employees' spirits. Embracing virtual tools The inability to safely fly to visit vendors has forced businesses to get comfortable doing more virtually, which industry leaders say they will continue doing because it's more efficient. Anne Shybunko-Moore, the owner of GSE Dynamics, said her team can now check on the status of parts and address technical issues virtually. “I can see that impacting the way I do business going forward,” she said. “Vendor visits and building relationships are still critical in our supply chain, but maybe it's not necessary to fly to California. ... I could meet with eight vendors a day if I had to, virtually, all over the nation.” Some companies also had to overcome security concerns to use video meeting tools such as Zoom. United Launch Alliance did not allow employees to turn video on for virtual meetings before the pandemic out of a concern that something in the background, such as a model or a drawing of a rocket, would be either classified or controlled by international export laws. But after months of no in-person meetings, Bruno said he's instead issued workers rules for what can appear alongside them on camera. This is another practice that will continue after the pandemic is over, he said. “I started to worry about new employees never seeing their coworkers and feeling disconnected ... so we're enabling video everything and giving guidelines asking them to be careful about what's behind them,” he said. Planning for future business Heather Bulk, the CEO of Special Aerospace Services, said she is already knocking down walls at her company's Colorado headquarters to reconfigure the office to accommodate many who say they will feel safer coming back to work in a personal office with a door that closes. She also acknowledged she will need to update the break room, but is not yet sure what a space that is both communal and safe looks like now. “I like the idea that you can have 75 people in one room and they can all share a coffee pot and chat, but I don't foresee this pivoting back to the way it was in 2018 and 2019 for a while,” she said. “By making these changes and making them quickly, I'm able to move forward so in January of 2021, all these office changes should be up to date.” Bulk also said she is taking steps to bring more capabilities in-house, a trend she expects to see across the industry as CEOs work to mitigate disruptions at small businesses that produce critical parts. Many CEOs said they intend to keep some of the enhanced cleaning and distancing policies in place post-pandemic because they will keep the workforce healthy from diseases such as colds and the flu as well. As to what the future of telework looks like once it's safe to return to the office, CEOs are split over how much of their workforce is likely to remain at home. But most agree a hybrid model with some people in the office and some working from home at least part-time is likely to become the new normal. “Productivity has been good. It's been great in fact,” Bruno said. “If you're working a five-day work week, why can't one or two days be at home teleworking where you're not interrupted by a bunch of meetings?” https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/28/coronavirus-changed-defense-industry-culture-433447

Gareth Jennings Northrop Grumman commenced assembly of the first of up to seven MQ-4C Triton high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for Australia, it announced on 27 October. The milestone saw the first jig-load for a Triton intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) UAV for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) take place at Northrop Grumman's Moss Point facility in Mississippi. Final assembly and flight testing will follow at the company's Palmdale facility and at Edwards Air Force Base in California, ahead of delivery to Australia in 2023. “The MQ-4C Triton will be a very important ISR capability for Australia,” Air Commodore Terry van Haren, the RAAF's air attaché to the Australian Embassy in the United States, said during the ceremony that was also attended by senior Australian and US government and military figures. “It is ideally suited for Australian operating conditions, given its high altitude, long endurance, and impressive sensor suite. The Royal Australian Air Force looks forward to operating the MQ-4C alongside its other ISR and response aircraft such as the [Boeing] P-8A Poseidon [maritime multimission aircraft (MMA)].” Australia currently has three Tritons in the US Navy's (USN's) low-rate initial production (LRIP) Lot 5, which also includes two main operating bases, and one forward operating base for the country in an integrated functional capability-four (IFC-4) and multiple intelligence configuration. IFC-4 functionality will add a signals intelligence capability to the UAV's baseline IFC-3 configuration. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/northrop-grumman-begins-building-first-triton-uav-for-australia

Michel Cabirol Les Etats-Unis tentent d'entraver des initiatives françaises et européennes en vue de desserrer le nœud coulant de la réglementation extraterritoriale américaine ITAR. Les Etats-Unis ne desserrent jamais leur leadership mondial. C'est notamment le cas sur le plan technologique. Ainsi, Washington cherche à maintenir la France et l'Europe sous son emprise technologique afin de contrôler, voire de limiter, les exportation de systèmes d'armes de leurs alliés européens, via notamment la réglementation extraterritoriale ITAR (International traffics in arms regulation). Dans une réponse adressée au député LR François Cornut-Gentille dans le cadre du projet de loi de finances 2021 et rendue publique, le ministère des Armées fait explicitement mention d'entraves de la part des Etats-Unis pour contrecarrer des initiatives européennes pour développer des filières européennes de composants critiques permettant de disposer d'un premier niveau d'autonomie. "Naturellement les États-Unis cherchent à les entraver et misent sur la frilosité de certains États où leur influence est forte", explique le... https://www.latribune.fr/entreprises-finance/industrie/aeronautique-defense/itar-comment-les-etats-unis-jouent-contre-l-autonomie-strategique-francaise-et-europe

Andrew Eversden WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army's new top military IT official has its eyes on several priorities to ensure that the service is prepared for multi-domain operations. Lt. Gen. John Morrison, the Army's first deputy chief of staff for the G-6, a new position created after the Army announced it would be splitting its CIO/G-6 office over the summer, told reporters Tuesday that his new office will focus on strategy, network architectures, and implementation of command, control, communications, and cyber operations efforts. To achieve that, Morrison laid out four pillars that will shape the role of the new G-6 office, which reached initial operating capability after he took over in August. The four pillars are establishing a unified network, positioning cyber and signal forces for multi-domain operations, reforming the cybersecurity process, and driving efficient and effective investments across the network and cyber. The unified network pillar is focused on vertical integration of the tactical network and enterprise networks to create a unified network that can meet the globally dispersed warfighting operations of the service. Right now, Morrison said, the enterprise network is focused on modernizing bases, posts, camps and installations, while the tactical network is centered around brigade combat teams. The unified network will be “imperative” for multi-domain operations, Morrison said. His office will work with Program Executive Office Enterprise Information Systems; PEO Command, Control, Communications-Tactical; and the Network Cross-Functional Team to establish the unified network he said the Army needs to enable Joint All-Domain Command and Control. “We break down the individual theater architectures, and we make it easy for formations that are actually in [the contiguous United States] to rapidly deploy to any area of operations and immediately plug in and start conducting operations, whether that's in competition or conflict,” Morrison said. “That needs to be ... our goal.” As for aligning cyber and signal forces for multi-domain operations, Morrison said that he will be looking at the training, talent management and operational frameworks while adjusting them over time to ensure those soldiers are used effectively during future battles. “That means making sure that we have signal and cyber, underpinned by intelligence, operating in a combined arms fashion in cyberspace to include electromagnetic spectrum,” Morrison said. The three-star also wants to take a “hard look” at the service's risk management framework (RMF) as part of reforming and operationalizing its cybersecurity process. He wants to move the Army away from a bureaucratic system with intermittent reviews to a system where cybersecurity is baked into a system before it's added to the network, then going back “periodically” to make sure there are no new vulnerabilities to the system. As the service works toward enabling multi-domain operations, Morrison is also focused on ensuring that the service is making effective and efficient investments in its network and cyber infrastructure so that it can make the JADC2 concept a reality. For example, Morrison said, his team is looking at what the joint force is doing with cyber so the Army makes investments to develop cyber capabilities that the service needs while ensuring it has links back to the joint force. It's especially important for the Army to be meticulous with its cyber and network investments as the Department of Defense as a whole prepares for flat budgets as the government funds are increasingly directed toward recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, Morrison said. “We are probably entering into a time where budgets may not be all that they have been in the past,” he said. “And quite frankly, we owe it to taxpayers to force ourselves to be efficient and effective.” Before former Army CIO/G-6 Lt. Gen. Bruce Crawford retired, he told reporters that the Army split the CIO/G-6 office to take better advantage of technology, saying that the way his office was structured had become outdated as technology advanced. The Army has yet to nominate a new CIO, but Morrison will work closely with the next official named to that position, he said. “Think of it in this way, the CIO establishes the policies," Morrison said. "We're responsible for the planning and the actual implementation of those policies, and then supporting Army organizations worldwide as they go out and actually execute the policies.” https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/it-networks/2020/10/27/us-armys-top-uniformed-it-official-lays-out-priorities-for-new-office/

Through five new agreements, Boeing [NYSE: BA] and its Canadian aerospace partners are preparing to deliver C$61 billion and nearly 250,000 jobs to the Canadian economy. “Canada is one of Boeing's most enduring partners and has continuously demonstrated that they have a robust and capable industry supporting both our commercial and defence businesses,” said Charles “Duff” Sullivan, Boeing Canada managing director. “The large scale and scope of these Canadian projects reinforces Boeing's commitment to Canada and gives us an opportunity to build on our motto of promises made, promises kept.” According to new data and projections from economists at Ottawa-based Doyletech Corp., the total economic benefits to Canada and its workforce for the acquisition of the F/A-18 Block III Super Hornet will last for at least 40 years and benefit all regions thanks to billions of dollars in economic growth. A Super Hornet selection for the Future Fighter Capability Project (FFCP) is also expected to deliver hundreds of thousands of high paying jobs critical to the country's economic recovery. “At a time when Canada is working toward recovery efforts coming out of the pandemic, a Super Hornet selection would provide exactly the boost that we need,” said Rick Clayton, economist at Doyletech Corp. “Boeing and its Super Hornet industry partners have a long track record of delivering economic growth to Canada, which gave us the confidence that our data and detailed projections are extremely accurate.” Today's announcement includes partnerships with five of Canada's largest aerospace companies outlining how they would benefit from a Block III Super Hornet selection in the FFCP: CAE (Montreal, Quebec): Boeing and CAE's Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) outlines the implementation of a comprehensive training solution for the Block III Super Hornet based in Canada and under full control of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). This includes full mission simulators and part task training devices for pilot training and maintenance technician training, courseware, as well as Contractor Logistics Support, Training Support Services, and Facilities Services to support RCAF training. L3Harris Technologies (Mirabel, Quebec): The extensive MOU includes a wide range of sustainment services, including depot and base maintenance, engineering and publications support for the Canadian Super Hornet fleet; potential for other Super Hornet depot work; and maintenance scope for Canada's CH-147 Chinook fleet. Peraton Canada (Calgary, Alberta): Boeing and Peraton currently work closely together on CF-18 upgrades. This work will expand to include a full range of Super Hornet avionic repair and overhaul work in Canada. Raytheon Canada Limited (Calgary, Alberta): Boeing and Raytheon Canada's MOU outlines the implementation of large-scale supply chain and warehousing services at Cold Lake and Bagotville to support the new Super Hornet fleet, as well as potential depot avionics radar support. GE Canada Aviation (Mississauga, Ontario): In cooperation with its parent organization, GE Canada will continue to provide both onsite maintenance, repair and overhaul support services for the F414 engines used on the Super Hornet, as well as technical services and engineering within Canada in support of RCAF operations and aircraft engine sustainment. Boeing and its partners have delivered on billions of dollars in industrial and technological benefits obligations dating back more than 25 years. The work started with the sale of the F/A-18s in the mid-1980s and progressed through more recent obligations including acquisition of and sustainment work on the C-17 Globemaster and the CH-47F Chinooks to meet Canada's domestic and international missions. In 2019 Boeing's direct spending rose to C$2.3 billion, a 15% increase in four years. When the indirect and induced effects are calculated, this amount more than doubles to C$5.3 billion, with 20,700 jobs, according to Doyletech. Boeing's long-standing partnership with Canada dates back to 1919, when Bill Boeing made the first international airmail delivery from Vancouver to Seattle. Today, Canada is among Boeing's largest international supply bases, with more than 500 major suppliers spanning every region of the country. With nearly 1,500 employees, Boeing Canada supplies composite parts for all current Boeing commercial airplane models and supports Canadian airlines and the Canadian Armed Forces with products and services. Boeing is the world's largest aerospace company and leading provider of commercial airplanes, defense, space and security systems, and global services. As a top U.S. exporter, the company supports commercial and government customers in more than 150 countries. Building on a legacy of aerospace leadership, Boeing continues to lead in technology and innovation, deliver for its customers and invest in its people and future growth. https://www.miragenews.com/boeing-partners-commit-to-boost-canadian-economy-by-61-billion/