ER/MP, armed

Support for front-line QRC detachments. (Jan 17/12)

In August 2005, “Team Warrior” leader General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. in San Diego, CA won a $214.4 million cost-plus-incentive-fee contract for research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) of the Extended Range/ Multi Purpose Unmanned Aerial Vehicle System (ER/MP UAS). That was just the first step along the US Army’s road to fielding a true Medium Altitude, Long Endurance, armed UAV, modified from the USAF’s famous MQ-1 Predator. Now, the MQ-1C Gray Eagle has entered low-rate production as the Army’s high-end UAV.

The ER/MP program is part of the US Army’s reinvestment of dollars from the canceled RAH-66 Comanche helicopter program, and directly supports the Army’s Aviation Modernization Plan. ER/MP could be a $1 billion effort, and its position got a boost when a 2007 program restructuring cut the Future Combat Systems Class III UAV competition in favor of ER/MP. Now, in FY 2011, the MQ-1C “Gray Eagle” prepares to move into full production, following the first big “Key West” battle of the 21st century between the USAF and US Army…

• The MQ-1C Gray Eagle, and its Band of Brothers
• The Army’s ER/MP Program
• ER/MP UAS – Enter the Warrior: Contracts & Key Events [updated]
• Appendix A: US Army et. al. vs. USAF Over UAVs
• Appendix B: Additional Readings – Who Controls the UAVs?
• Appendix C: Other Additional Readings
  Continue Reading… »

Oshkosh M-ATV

Minor services contract. (Jan 5/11)

“The Government plans to acquire an MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV). The M-ATV is a lighter, off-road, and more maneuverable vehicle that incorporates current MRAP level [bullet and mine blast] protection. The M-ATV will require effectiveness in an off-road mission profile. The vehicle will include EFP (Explosively Formed Projectile land mine) and RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade panzerfaust) protection (integral or removable kit). The M-ATV will maximize both protection levels and off-road mobility & maneuverability attributes, and must balance the effects of size and weight while attempting to achieve the stated requirements.”
  —US government FedBizOpps, November 2008

Oshkosh Defense’s M-ATV candidate secured a long-denied MRAP win, and the firm continues to remain ahead of production targets. The initial plan expected to spend up to $3.3 billion to order 5,244 M-ATVs for the US Army (2,598), Marine Corps (1,565), Special Operations Command (643), US Air Force (280) and the Navy (65), plus 93 test vehicles. FY 2010 budgets and purchases have pushed this total even higher, and orders now stand at over 8,800…

• MRAP ATV: Requirements and Contenders
• M-ATV Variants
• Contracts and Key Events [updated]
• Additional Readings
  Continue Reading… »

B-52H: to 2030?

BAE contract; Rust never sleeps. (Sept 26/11)

The current US Air Force fleet, whose planes are more than 23 years old on average, is the oldest in USAF history. It won’t keep that title for very long. Many transport aircraft and aerial refueling tankers are more than 40 years old – and under current plans, some may be as many as 70-80 years old before they retire. Since the price for next-generation planes has risen faster than inflation, average aircraft age will climb even if the US military gets every plane it asks for in its future plans. Nor is the USA the only country facing this problem.

As this dynamic plays out and average age continues to rise, addressing the issues related to aging aircraft becomes more and more important in order to maintain acceptable force numbers, readiness levels, and aircraft maintainability; avoid squeezing out recapitalization budgets; handle personnel turnover that becomes more and more damaging; and keep maintenance costs in line, despite new technical problems that will present unforeseen difficulties. Like F-15 fighters that are under flight restrictions due to structural fatigue concerns – or grounded entirely.

The biggest contracts aren’t always the ones deserving of the most attention. Enter the USA’s Joint Council on Aging Aircraft (JCAA), and initiatives like the Navy’s ASLS. Enter, too, DID’s Spotlight article. It seeks to place the situation and its effects in perspective, via background, contracts, and a research trove of articles that tap the expertise and observations of outside parties and senior sources within the US military…

• The JCAA
• Contracts & Key Events [updated]
• Aging Aircraft: Some Additional Readings [updated]
  Continue Reading… »

AEDC at work: X-29

Another $208.5M. (Sept 8/11)

The Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC), named for U.S. Air Force pioneer Gen. Henry “Hap” Arnold, bills itself as “The World’s Premier Flight Simulation Test Facility.” Nearly half of the AEDC’s 58 test facilities are unique in the U.S., and 14 are unique in the world. These specialized test facilities have played a crucial role in the development and sustainment of virtually every high performance aircraft, air-to-air and air-to-ground weapon, missile, and space system in use by all four of the U.S. military services today. The Center has also been involved in the development of every NASA manned space system, many satellites, and numerous commercial aircraft and spacecraft systems.

In 2003, the Air Force consolidated the test operations contract and the base services contract into a single contract for operations, maintenance, information management, and base support, which was awarded to Aerospace Testing Alliance (ATA) in Tullahoma, TN…

• AEDC Services
• AEDC Contracts [updated]
• Additional Readings
  Continue Reading… »

• A new report from the unaligned CSBA think tank [PDF] states that “the growth and proliferation of anti-access/area-denial capabilities, together with short-range guided munitions, have the potential to bring the era of the aircraft carrier to an end, obviate the ability of short-range, tactical U.S. air power to operate from forward bases, and substantially raise the difficulties and costs of moving heavy ground forces into overseas theaters, much less sustaining them once there.” 

• The IISS use the first day of the Shangri-La Dialogue to unveil its latest study of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

• Canada sends out mixed messages regarding negotiations for overseas bases.

• Boeing delivers 2 more F100-powered F-15Ks to Daegu AB in South Korea. That makes 10 planes, from the 21-plane F-X-2 batch.

• Nanotechnology advances may lead to the transformation of combat fatigues and and bulky equipment into lightweight do-it-all battle uniforms.

• Mexico’s drug wars driving armored car maker Texas Armoring Corporation’s rapid growth.

• As a British Government Minister declares that offensive cyber warfare is an integral part of the UK’s armory, the Ministry of Defence outline their new Materiel Strategy.

• Cassidian win contract to provide the Canadian Navy new technologies to detect and counter laser-based threats against its vessels.

• The US Navy announces that CVN 79, the 2nd Ford Class aircraft carrier, will be named the USS John F. Kennedy. It will continue the namesake legacy of the non-nuclear powered CV 67, retired in 2007.

• The U.S. Navy successfully tested the DDG 1000’s Integrated Power System (IPS) at full power at the Land Based Test Site located in Philadelphia, May 11.

• The U.S. Navy also approves ATK’s Hostile Fire Indication (HFI) capability upgrade for the AAR-47 Missile Warning System.

• Singapore’s ST Engineering announce the formation of a joint venture (JV) company with Nanyang Technological University and DSO National Laboratories. The JV will design, develop and produce advanced earth observation satellites.

• India’s Mahindra and Mahindra report a 6.4% year-on-year rise in fourth quarter net profit.

In 2005, the Canadian Department of National Defence awarded a 22-year, $1.77-billion (USD $1.5 billion) contract to an “Allied Wings” team lead by Kelowna Flightcraft Ltd. of Kelowna, British Columbia, who beat out a competing group led by Bombardier’s military training division in Mirabel, Quebec. The long-term contract will provide primary flight training training and support services to the Canadian Forces and international allies. These services will be provided out of the “Canada Wings Aviation Training Centre” in the Southport Aerospace Centre near Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.

This is not the first time the Canadian government has chosen a public/private approach to aviation training. Bombardier was already managing the Contracted Flying Training and Support (CFTS) program, and the public-private NATO Flying Training in Canada (NFTC) program has been running since 1997. In some ways, however, the new “Allied Wings” contract was a logical next step aimed at solidifying Canada’s traditional advantages, as Canada attempts to make itself an international center of excellence for foreign military aviator training…

• NATO Flying Training in Canada
• Primary Training: Competition for CFTS [updated]
• The Big Picture: International Flight Training in Canada [updated]
• Contracts & Key Events [NEW]
• Additional Readings & Sources [updated]
  Continue Reading… »

New USAF ABU

In March 2006, “Fractal Creep: New Digitized Camo Uniforms for USAF, USN, Jordan” looked at some of the new fractal camouflage patterns emerging on the market, and the some of the design decisions behind the uniforms themselves. The new uniform design is a pixilated tiger stripe, with 4 soft earth tones of tan, grey, green and blue. The Air Force Battle Uniform will have a permanent crease and will be offered in 50-50 nylon-cotton blend permanent press fabric, eliminating the need for winter and summer weight uniforms. It will also be available in more body sizes, tailored for men and women. A tan T-shirt and polish-free suede cowhide boots in matching green-gray color will accompany the uniform, and will be available in men’s and women’s sizes. So will a fleece.

Back in 2006, Brig. Gen Robert R. Allardice said that they:

F-15SG, armed

The rest of the story: rollout, and deployment. (April 5/10)

At the dawn of the 21st Century, Singapore decided that it needed a new aircraft to replace its often-upgraded A-4SU Super Skyhawks. This was hardly surprising; John McCain had been flying an older model A-4 Skyhawk when he was shot down during the Vietnam War. The decision to require a twin-engine aircraft eliminated the JAS-39 Gripen and F-16 E/F Block 60 from the competition, and the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and Sukhoi Su-30 family were also scratched. That left just 3 finalists: Boeing’s F-15 Strike Eagle, France’s Rafale, and the Eurofighter Typhoon. Limited air-ground capabilities and a slow upgrade schedule splashed the Eurofighter, leaving just 2 contenders still flying.

September 2005 releases tapped Boeing as the winner, and the deal was done in December 2005. The 12-plane, $1+ billion order (est. $1.4-1.8 billion) was good news for Boeing: Singapore’s F-15SGs, and South Korea’s 40-60 plane F-15K order, kept the assembly line open for this 2-seat, multi-role fighter. With all of these features built into its F-15SG variant, Singapore has legitimate grounds to argue that it will be flying the world’s most advanced version of the F-15 Strike Eagle…

• Contracts and Key Events
• Appendix A: The F-15SG and the Global Fighter Market
• Appendix B: Additional Readings & Sources – Equipment
• Appendix C: Additional Readings & Sources – Other News & Developments
• Appendix D: Additional Readings & Sources – Market Analysis and Background
  Continue Reading… »

Despite its staid sounding name, The Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC has been anything but staid and diplomatic in its recent series of reports on America’s defense procurement plans. “ABANDON SHIPS: The Costly Illusion of Unaffordable Transformation” was indeed a shot across the bow. Lest anyone think that assessment was an aberration, CSIS has now followed it up with its look at the US Air Force: “America’s Self-Destroying Air Power – Becoming Your Own Peer Threat” [Summary | Full report, PDF format]:

”[The] new Burke Chair report… examines the impact of a crisis in aircraft procurement on tactical, strategic, and enabling capabilities of US air power. It draws on recent government and other reports to describe the problems in US aircraft procurement and their impact on US air power and the challenges the next administration will face in force planning and budgeting.

....The problems described in this report must be kept in context. Every service has, to some extent, mortgaged its future by failing to contain equipment costs, and by trading existing equipment and force elements for developing new systems that it may never be able to procure in the numbers planned…. US aircraft procurements are no exception. The problems are so severe that the US risks becoming its own peer threat to US airpower…. These problems are compounded by the fact that there now are fewer program alternatives if any key aircraft program runs into trouble. They are also compounded by the systematic underestimation of technology risk, growth in performance requirements, the use of failed methods of cost analysis, and the pressure to “sell” programs by understating cost and risk. All have combined to push air modernization to the crisis point.”