US “Chair” Force?
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UAVs have played a crucial role in gathering intelligence in the US military’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. There are thousands of UAVs gathering and distributing valuable data on the enemy, but each system uses its own proprietary subsystem to control the air vehicle as well as receive and process the data. Yet commanders need access to information gathered by all types of UAVs that are flying missions in their area of operation.

Recognizing this shortcoming, the Pentagon began an effort in 2008 to break down the proprietary barriers between UAV systems and create a single GCS that will fly all types of drones.

This free-to-view DID Spotlight article examines the problem of proprietary UAV systems and efforts to break down barriers to sharing vital UAV-generated information.

• Ground Control to Major Tom: The Role of GCS
• Come Together: The Pentagon’s UCS-WG
• Are You Going STANAG?: NATO’s Standard
• One is the Loneliest Number: AAI’s OneSystem
• Red ROVER, Red ROVER: The ROVER Datalink
• Masters of the Universe: Raytheon’s UCS
• Too Close to the Sun: ICARUS and Autonomy
• Contracts and Key Events
• Additional Readings
  
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MTN shipboard VSAT

The US Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) awarded a contract worth up to $50 million to MTN Government Services (MTNGS), a subsidiary of Miramar, FL-based MTN Satellite Communications (MTN), to provide global broadband satellite services.

Under the firm, fixed-price, 5-year contract, MTNGS will supply global C- and Ku-band satellite bandwidth to the agency.

The initial 6-month award is for $6.5 million. The contract includes 5 options, which if exercised, will bring the total contract value to $50 million…

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FRES-U finalists:
There can be… none?
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FRES-SV weapon agreement; Shake, rattle & roll testing; BAE shifts course in bid to win FRES-SV contract. (March 12/10)

Many of Britain’s army vehicles are old and worn, and the necessities of hard service on the battlefield are only accelerating that wear. The multi-billion pound “Future Rapid Effects System” (FRES) aims to recapitalize the core of Britain’s armored vehicle fleet over the next decade or more, filling many of the same medium armor roles as the Stryker Family of armored wheeled vehicles and/or the Future Combat Systems’ Manned Ground Vehicle family. Current estimates indicate a potential requirement for over 3,700 FRES vehicles, including utility and reconnaissance variants. Even so, one should be cautioned that actual numbers bought usually fall short of intended figures for early-stage defense programs.

The FRES program was spawned by the UK’s withdrawal from the German-Dutch-UK Boxer MRAV modular wheeled APC program, in order to develop a more deployable vehicle that fit Britain’s exact requirements. Those initial requirements were challenging, however, and experience in Iraq and Afghanistan led to decisions that changed a number of requirements. In the end, GD MOWAG’s Piranha V won the utility vehicle competition. FRES-U is not the end of the competition, however, or the contracts. In fact, FRES-U had the winning bidder’s preferred status revoked; that entire phase will now take a back seat to the FRS-SV scout version…

• FRES: The Program
• FRES: Contracts & Key Events [updated]
• Additional Readings [updated]
• Appendix 1 – The British Army’s Armored Vehicle Fleet, late 2006
• Appendix 2 – A New Procurement Approach: System House Challenges
• Appendix 3 – FRES: Key Challenges for the Contractors
• Appendix 4 – FRES Experiments: Electronic Architecture Contracts
• Appendix 5 – FRES Experiments: Vehicle-Related Contracts
  
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Nimrod MR2 at work
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MRA4 declared fit for training, as MR2 fleet retires early, leaving a gap. (March 10/10)

British naval theorist Sir Julian Corbett saw the navy’s proper role as “directly or indirectly either to secure the command of the sea or to prevent the enemy from securing it.” Airpower plays a prominent role in both of those missions. In 1996, Britain began a program to rebuild their existing Nimrod MR2 maritime patrol planes to the MRA4 standard with new wings, new engines, and new internal technologies and mission systems. Unfortunately, that program has faced a series of budget cuts, stalls, and conditions that have reduced the program from 21 aircraft, to 12, to 9. At times, it has been threatened with complete cancellation.

Like Lockheed’s P-3 Orion, Britain’s Nimrod aircraft are also based on a previous airliner design. Unlike the USA, Britain chose a jet-age Comet airframe. They ended up with an aircraft that boasted an unrefueled endurance of over 10 hours and longer range than the P-3, but less-favorable “low and slow” flight characteristics. The British claim, however, that “propeller-engined aircraft make a discrete resonance that can be detected by submerged submarines, whereas the jet noise of the Nimrod is virtually undetectable.”

Both aircraft types would go on to see long and successful service, and both would also be produced in ELINT (Electronic Intelligence) / SIGNIT (Signals Intelligence) versions: the EP-3, and the Nimrod MR1. Both would also face difficult replacement programs, with the USA canceling the P-7 and eventually settling on the 737-based P-8A. Now, Britain must also execute its replacement program…

• Hunters of Subs & Signals: Britain’s Nimrods
• MRA4 Program: The Next Nimrods
• Contracts and Events [updated]
• Project HELIX: Upgrading the Nimrod R1 ELINT Fleet
• Additional Readings & Sources [updated]
• Addendum: Correction Credit
  
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BCTM B-Kit in Hummer
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The GAO tells Congress BCTM Increment 1 technologies are “immature” and “unreliable.” (March 10/10)

Concerns about cost overruns, vehicle design, and contract structure prompted the Pentagon to cancel the US Army’s Future Combat System (FCS) program in June 2009.

Instead of a single FCS contract, the Pentagon directed the Army to set up a number of separate programs to undertake parts of the FCS program. One of those programs is the Brigade Combat Team Modernization (BCTM) Increment 1. The BCTM Increment 1 capabilities – which include ground robots, UAVs, ground sensors, and vehicle (B-Kit) network integration kits – are planned to be fielded to 7 Infantry Brigade Combat Teams beginning in 2011.

A Boeing/SAIC team recently received a $138 million contract from the Army for low-rate initial production of the brigade sets for the BCTM Increment 1 capabilities…

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The US Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) in Patuxent River, MD is looking for contractors to provide maintenance, logistics, and life cycle service support for its Special Communications Requirement Division’s (SCRD) communication-electronic (C-E) equipment, systems and subsystems.

The SCRD designs, develops, tests and supports joint special operations’ communications and electronics equipment. The division develops quick reaction and testing of communications packages for hand-held and manpack radios, high speed and rigid inflatable boats, mobile and fixed-base operations, special communications vans and other vehicles, and air-land transportable command posts.

NAWCAD recently issued a sources sought notice to get industry feedback for a follow-on to a contract (N00421-06-C-0085) that was awarded to BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services in Rockville, MD in 2006.

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• White House releases its Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative, which includes plans to deploy intrusion detection and prevention systems throughout the US federal government.

• Up to $187.4 million to L-3 for US Navy systems engineering and technical support services.

• ITT snags $45 million order to support US military prepositioned equipment at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait under US Army’s FIRST contract [PDF].

• New Zealand army awards $100 million contract to Lockheed Martin to provide warehousing and repair services.

• Canadian Forces release latest suicide rates, program information. For comparison, the Canadian male rate was 17.9 per 100,000 in 2005, and would be higher if restricted to forces-eligible age ranges.

• Northrop Grumman seeking small businesses to join its GMD missile defense bid. Industry Day on March 11/10, in Huntsville, AL.

• Navantia delivering patrol vessels to Venezuela.

• USAF updating GPS-II ground control software.

• “Bet you’re surprised” category: 3 US Navy facilities nominated for wildlife conservation awards.

• Research and Markets: Study finds that technology companies have role to play in beefing up early warning systems for regional conflicts.

Networking the Navy
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The US Navy’s Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES) program is designed to streamline and update shipboard networks to improve interoperability across the fleet.

The primary goal of the CANES program is to build a secure shipboard network required for naval and joint operations, and consolidate and reduce the number of shipboard networks through the use of cross domain technologies and common computing environment infrastructure.

The US Navy recently awarded 2 contracts, with a potential value of $1.7 billion, for the design and development of the CANES common computing environment. A single prime contractor is expected to be selected in 2011…

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The US Space and Naval Warfare (SPAWAR) Systems Center Pacific in San Diego, CA awarded $145.8 million in contracts to support tactical data link (TDL) systems for US military services and Foreign Military Sales Program.

The TDL systems covered by the contracts include airborne tactical data systems; ballistic missile defense; command and control processor; common link integration processing; dynamic net management; Joint Tactical Radio System; tactical systems (engineering, integration, test, evaluation, fleet) support; and associated subsystems, network, process, and capability maturity model integration support.

The winners of the 3 TDL support contracts are:

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• Chinese People’s Liberation Army Senior Colonel, Liu Mingfu’s new book, “The China Dream”, reportedly argues that China must become the world’s top military power.

• Canada commits CDN $170 million over next 10 years to upgrade Defence Research and Development Canada’s (DRDC) Valcartier facility.

• US Navy’s unfunded priorities list: maintenance, parts.

• US Army makes moves to speed technology transfer to the front lines. Latest gadget: video game to teach cultural sensitivity.

• US Army is done evaluating new “Blue Force Tracker” software (FCBCB2 Joint Capabilities Release), will make a fielding decision in late summer 2010.

• US Sen. Sessions [R-AL] questions criteria for Littoral Combat Ship RFP: AL.com | YouTube video.

• BAE Systems kicks off production of UK Terrier Armored Engineering Vehicles.

• Pentagon lifts ban on accessing social networking sites for unclassified networks.

• Boeing gets A$44 million contract to increase support for Australian Army rotary wing training.