Rapid Fire March 30, 2012: Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle

Mar 30, 2012 06:27 UTC by Defense Industry Daily staff
  • The US Army will host [PDF] an industry day on April 24 in Sterling Heights, MI, to present its Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) program, a potential replacement for M113s with the goal of being both more survivable and more mobile. This one started in FY10 but is still really in the early stage. Following the Material Development Decision (MDD), the Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) is scheduled to be finished by FY13, starting the ramp-up of almost $500M in RDT&E spending over the FY12-17 period. See the latest published schedule at the bottom of this entry.
  • Need to defend Japan? Call Gamera! Otherwise known as the J/FPS-5 radar, part of an interconnected set of air defense systems spotlighted by the Asahi Shimbun. Gamera is about to earn its keep again, as North Korea continues fueling a ballistic missile for mid-April launch.
  • Market Opener: Raytheon has a 6-pound MCU that takes up less than 1/5 of a square foot, but will allow India’s “DARIN-II” modified Jaguar strike fighters to start using weapons like the firm’s GPS-guided AGM-154 JSOW glide bombs, AGM-65 Maverick missiles, Paveway laser and/or GPS guided bombs, and AIM-9M Sidewinder short range air-to-air missiles. All without massive changes to the plane’s wiring or software.
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  • Market Opener II: Apple’s iOS 5 for its new iPhones and iPads just received certification in Australia for classified communications up to PROTECTED level. Android has opened up a big lead in the military space, so this will be welcome news for camo-clad Apple fans.

  • SASC Ranking Member John McCain [R-AZ] said he wants clarification from DoD on a number of pending issues [PDF] before he will approve DOD civilian nominations including acquisition officials Frank Kendall, Katharina G. McFarland, and Heidi Shyu. See the webcast of yesterday’s hearing where they testified, along with 3 other nominees. Kendall said fixed-priced contracts on procurement from KC-46A to LCS would have to be broken were sequestration to happen. Republicans would like to meet with President Obama on that topic, but in the absence of agreeing to putting tax increases on the table, is seems unlikely to happen.

  • Daniel Goure at the Lexington Institute asks why the US DoD is not pursing innovative acquisition practices such as availability-based contracting nearly as aggressively as the UK MoD.

  • The Congressional Research Service wrote a report [PDF] on the Obama administration’s “pivot” to Asia.

    • Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle schedule
    Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle plans, as of February 2012
    Categories: Asia - Other, Australia & S. Pacific, Avionics, Britain/U.K., Daily Rapid Fire, Design Innovations, Fighters & Attack, India, IT - Cyber-Security, Japan, Other Corporation, Procurement Innovations, Radars, Raytheon, USA

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