Kellogg, Brown & Root Services, Inc. in Houston, TX, which is now an independent company, received a $24.6 million firm-fixed price and cost-reimbursement contract for Kosovo support services. Work will be performed in Texas, Germany and Kosovo, and is expected to be completed by July 31/11. The original $68.2 million contract was announced on June 23/05, and was slated to last until June 2010. An Oct 5/07 announcement noted that the ceiling was now $70.3 million, and also extended the period to July 31/11.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Winchester, VA originally solicited 66 bids on Sept 29/03, and 3 bids were received (W912ER-05-D-0003).

RG-33 variant
(click to view full)

The USA’s Mine-Resistant, Ambush Protected (MRAP) program has been a long road for BAE Systems. In the wake of the US Army’s belated realization that mine protection was critical for vehicles in theater, BAE’s designs, long-standing experience in the field, and production capacity had made them an early favorite. By June 20/07, however, contracts had been issued for 3,266 Category I patrol & Category II squad-sized MRAP vehicles, fully 42% of a the program’s planned 7,774 orders. Force Protection had racked up orders for 1,780 Cougar vehicles, and Navistar/Plasan Sasa had come out of the tests at Aberdeen with orders for 1,216 of its MaxxPro joint design. BAE sat in 4th place with orders for just 90 vehicles – 2.8% of the total. It had to be a humbling experience for the firm that went into 2004 as the world leader in the field.

BAE has worked hard to catch up, and recent contracts have put them solidly back into the competition, even as the number of MRAPs in the program has expanded. The latest orders widen their lead over 3rd place firm Force Protection, and make them one of just 2 firms with a foothold under the new MRAP-II qualifications. MRAP-II includes protection against EFP (explosively-formed projectile) land mines that fire the equivalent of a cannon shell at the vehicle, in addition to the standard underbody blasts. Meanwhile, BAE has added a new vehicle type to the family, and is receiving more SOCOM orders and an MRAP up-armoring contract…

• BAE MRAP: The Vehicles
• BAE MRAP: The Current Tally
• BAE MRAP: Contracts & Key Events [updated]
• Appendix A: MRAP Competition Half-Time Update, June 28/07
  
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TCOM 17M RAID Aerostat
(click to view full)

The RAID program is a combination of cameras and surveillance equipment positioned on high towers and aerostats. Aerostats differ from blimps in that blimps are powered, while aerostats are anchored to the ground via a cranked tether that also supplies electrical power. Because the aerostats are not highly pressurized, bullets won’t burst them and they can actually remain buoyant for hours after suffering multiple punctures.

The RAID concept used a smaller TCOM 17M instead of the TCOM 71M JLENS aerostats used for cruise missile and air defense, and has sensors optimized for battlefield surveillance rather than powerful air defense radars. The result is a form of survivable and permanent surveillance over key areas that has been deployed to Afghanistan & Iraq. It can also be deployed as a tower system, and this “Eagle Eye/ GBOSS” deployment is turning out to be the preferred mode.

Raytheon recently received a contract from the US Marine Corps for more systems, which has now been followed by an additional US Army order…

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Do you feel lucky…?
(click to view full)

DID has covered the T-45 Training System before, which includes T-45 Goshawk aircraft, advanced flight simulators, computer-assisted instructional programs, a computerized training integration system, and a contractor logistics support package. The integration of all five elements is designed to produce a superior pilot in less time and at lower cost than previous training systems.

The US Navy uses the Hawk-based T-45TS system to train its pilots for the transition from T-6A Texan II/ JPATS aircraft to modern jet fighters – and carrier landings. This is not a risk-free assignment, by any means. Nevertheless, it is a critical link in the naval aviation chain.

DID recaps its coverage of the complete T45TS system, notes the relevant budgetary figures, and covers its contracts from FY 2006 onward. This May 1, it’s appropriate that our coverage focuses on a union-related contract award…

• History & Background
• T45TS Contracts
  
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Iraqi Police,
Baghdad
(click to view full)

Global Fleet Sales, Inc. is a member of the RM Asia Group of Companies, and has a long history of working in “difficult market situations” to produce modified and baseline Ford vehicles for companies and organizations involved in Humanitarian, Aid, Relief and Development Projects, and Police services around the world. The firm has been tapped for a number of US government contracts beginning in 2005, and DID has covered one of those contracts for Afghan Police vehicles. GFS maintains all of the vehicles used by the Afghan National Army, with maintenance facilities in Mazar-e-Sharif, Herat, Kandahar, Kabul and Gardez; its parent firm RM Asia has a full country office in Afghanistan.

GFS has now opened a production and engineering center at Thailand’s Laem Chabang duty free deep sea port, near the Ford plant at Rayong. The new production facility provides the full range of vehicle modifications ranging from special application fire trucks to ambulances, military Vehicles, severe off-road (SOR is an excellent acronym…) vehicles, refrigerated boxes, and limited accessory fitting. They complement the firm’s on-site warehouses for parts et. al.

A couple of recent awards fall under a 3 year firm-fixed-price contract with the US military to provide modified vehicles for customers like the Afghan and Iraqi police, and for other foreign military sales customers who might choose to order under the set contract terms and advantageous prices the US military has negotiated. GFS’ Contracts include…

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USMC RG-31,
IEDed in Iraq
(click to view story)

BAE OMC’s RG-31 was the first mine-resistant vehicle fielded by US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, where it was used by the 101st Airborne (and reportedly by SOCOM) as a patrol vehicle. Since hostilities began, a series of orders have been placed by US forces through an odd triumverate: General Dynamics Land Systems Canada was partnered with BAE OMC of South Africa and its GDLS parent in the USA. All contracts are signed through the Canadian Commercial Corporation, a Crown Agency of the Canadian Government (who also use RG-31s).

According to General Dynamics, as of August 2007, U.S. forces had ordered 492 RG-31 vehicles, including 309 of the improved RG-31 Mk5 variant for the U.S. Army and Special Operations Command (SOCOM). Almost none of these orders had come through the MRAP program, however – just 20 vehicles as of July 2007, even as competitors like Navistar and Force Protection had seen order book totals approaching 2,000.

General Dynamics does reap 50% of every Cougar MRAP order to Force Protection, via the Force Dynamics partnership, but the RG-31 had been MIA. An August 2007 order for 600 more vehicles put General Dynamics back in the game as a distant 4th place producer; hopefully, US forces will be able to avoid the initial maintenance issues that have given Canadian RG-31s problems in Afghanistan. The latest developments involve American contract involving what appear to be some design changes…

• GD’s Other MRAP Entries: The RG-31 Family
• RG-31 MRAP Contracts
  
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M1A2 SEP
(click to view full)

America’s M1 Abrams tanks come in a number of versions. In addition to the M1A1 that is now standard, the US Army is beginning to field its M1 TUSK for urban warfare. It also operates the M1A2 System Enhancement Program (SEP), currently the most advanced standard variant.

The M1A2 SEP is builds on the digitized M1A2 platform with an improved armor package of third generation steel-encased depleted uranium armor, a new command and control system, second-generation FLIR thermal sights that include a Commander’s Independent Thermal Viewer (CITV) for “hunter-killer” operation, the Under Armor Auxiliary Power Unit (UAAPU) that lets crews run key electronics without running the engine, and a Thermal Management System (TMS – i.e. air conditioning for crew & electronics). The M1A2 SEP also features enhanced electronics like color maps and displays, improved networked communications, high-density computer memory and increased microprocessing speed, a more user friendly “Soldier Machine Interface (SMI)”, and an open operating computing system that will make future upgrades and additions easier.

This DID article covers the M1A2 Abrams SEP upgrade program, and will be updated and backfilled as new contracts are issued and key events take place. New materials will be noted in green. The most recent addition is a long-lead materials contract…

• M1A2 SEP: Additional Background
• M1A2 SEP: Related Contracts, 1996 – Present
• Additional Readings & Sources
  
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F-22 and F-16s
(click to view full)

The fifth-generation F-22A Raptor fighter program has been the subject of fierce controversy, with advocates and detractors aplenty. On the one hand, the aircraft offers full stealth, revolutionary radar and sensor capabilities, dual air-air and air-ground SEAD capabilities, the ability to cruise above Mach 1 without afterburners, thrust-vectoring super-maneuverability… and a ridiculously lopsided kill record in exercises against the best American fighters. On the other hand, critics charge that it’s too expensive, too limited, and cripples the USAF’s overall force structure. Meanwhile, close American allies like Australia, Japan and Israel, and other allies like Korea, are pressing the USA to abandon its “no export” policy. Most already fly F-15s, but they’re interested in an export version of the F-22 in order to help them deal with advanced – and advancing – Russian-designed aircraft, air-to-air missiles, and surface-to-air missile systems.

This DID FOCUS Article covers both sides of the F-22 controversies in the USA and abroad, and it will also be updated over time to cover and backfill contracts and events related to the F-22A Raptor program. As a result of reader feedback, the newest material has been made more visible by putting it in green type. Recent additions include a multi-year contract for the F-22’s navigation & communication sub-systems, and the damaging bombing of F-22 airfields by stealthy attackers…

• The F-22 Raptor: Background & Controversies (aka. Continue reading…)
• F-22 Raptor: Program and Events
  • Events: 2008 [updated]
  • Events: 2007
  • Events: 2006
  • Events: Pre-2006
• F-22 Raptor: Contracts & Production
  • Contracts: FY 2008 [updated]
  • Contracts: FY 2007
  • Contracts: FY 2006
  • Contracts: Pre-FY 2006
• Additional Readings & Sources
  • The F-22 & Key Components
  • The F-22 Program
  • Official Reports
  • Controversies & Events
    
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IOTV: key features
(click to view full)

When reading about modern body armor one often hears about small arms protective inserts (SAPI) or Enhanced SAPI (ESAPI) ceramic plate inserts. While these inserts are more fragile than past generations of inserts, they offer a significant improvement over its 1990s predecessors in terms of both weight and protection. After episodic issues with production ramp-up and quality control, this gear is widely fielded with the US Army and several allied militaries. The US Marines replaced it with the MTV, and the Army itself has introduced the Improved OTV, and even privately developed body armor like Blackwater Gear use them; all rely on a “vest and plates” approach that uses a similar set of inserts to give the vests most of their bullet-stopping power.

This DID spotlight article covers the USA’s acquisition efforts in this area – including a recent order from the US Army for non-ESAPI plates…

• ESAPI, Explained
• Contracts & Key Events, 2004 – Present [updated]
• Additional Readings & Sources
  
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P-8A Poseidon
(click to view full)

Many people would contend that the P-3 Orion is the greatest maritime patrol aircraft ever flown. These aircraft entered service in 1959 and will continue to serve past 2011. Modifications to their equipment have sharpened their capabilities, and even given them a land-attack and surveillance role. In service with 15 countries, the Orion is a great success – but it’s a very old success, and a replacement is needed.

The P-8A has emerged from the P-7 LRAACA program that was begun in 1988. That program originally envisaged an improved P-3G design, but program cost overruns and interest in opening the competition to commercial designs led to cancellation in 1990. The successor MMA program was begun in March 2000, and Boeing beat Lockheed’s “Orion 21” for the contract with a design based on the ubiquitous 737 passenger jet.

Filling the P-3 Orion’s shoes will be no easy task. What missions will the new P-8A Poseidon face? What do we know about the platform, the project team, and ongoing developments? Will the P-3’s level of global customer coverage give its successor a comparable level of export opportunities? Australia has already signed on, but has the larger market shifted in the interim?

This is DID’s FOCUS Article concerning the P-8A Poseidon Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft, and it will be updated as events and contracts are announced. In the latest news, India may be about to join the program…

• The Controversy: Turboprop, or Turbofan Jet?
• P-8A Poseidon: Platform & Capabilities
• The P-8’s BAMS Companion: Kicking It Up a Notch
• P-8A Poseidon: Program & History
• P-8A Poseidon: Contracts & Events [updated]
• News & Analysis: India’s Interest, and Broader Export Potential
• Additional Readings & Sources: Platforms & Program Background
• Additional Readings & Sources: News & Updates
  
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