Last updated: Friday Aug 12, 2022 - 05:00 UTC ()
Serious Dollars for AEGIS Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD)
The C-130J: New Hercules & Old Bottlenecks
Rapid Fire | Friday, August 12, 2022, 05:00 UTC ()
US Army Integrating 20kW Laser System Into ISV | Mali Receives Military Aircraft From Russia | Taiwan Holds More Military Drills
Americas
Lockheed Martin won a $12.9 million deal for AEGIS design agent field engineering services. Aegis is an integrated missile guidance system used on US Navy and allied ships to protect the battle group. Work will take place in Virginia, California, Hawaii, Japan, Washington and California. Estimated completion date is in September 2023.
The US Army is integrating a 20 kW-class laser weapon system into its new Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) to help soldiers down smaller unmanned aerial systems (UASs), according to the director of the service’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office Lieutenant General Neil Thurgood. The three-star general spoke at the Space and Missile Defense symposium about a host of programmes under his purview including directed energy initiatives. At the event, he announced that senior service leaders recently approved the development of an Army Multi-Purpose High Energy Laser (AMP-HEL) prototype that they want completed by the end of September 2023.
Middle East & Africa
Mali on Tuesday received military jets and a combat helicopter from Russia. During a ceremony, L-39 and Sukhoi-25 jets as well as Mi-24P helicopter gunships were displayed. No information was disclosed about the conditions for acquiring the gunships. Previous Russian arms deliveries made public this year, were helicopters and surveillance radars as well as mobile radar systems.
Europe
Babcock International has signed it’s second deal in a fortnight to aimed at offering Israeli technologies for British defense programs. The British company’s latest agreement with Israel Aerospace Industries and its subsidiary Elta Systems is aimed at proposing a radar for the Defence Ministry’s Serpens program.
The Spanish military took delivery of a THeMIS robotic vehicle, made by Estonia’s Milrem Robotics, to gauge how unmanned ground technology can improve operations of its ground forces, the company announced August 9. The evaluation comes as some European armies are in the market to equip their soldiers with robots for anything from cargo carrying to surveillance and attack missions.
Asia-Pacific
Taiwan’s army held another live-fire drill Thursday after Beijing ended its largest-ever military exercises around the island and repeated threats to bring the self-ruled democracy under its control. China announced carrying out fresh military drills around Taiwan Monday, days after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island escalated tensions between the two powers.
Today’s Video
WATCH: Mi-24P In War Thunder : A Basic Review
More In-depth Contract News & Updates
Super Hornet Fighter Family MYP-III: Contracts
| Boeing won a $278 million ordering agreement for the procurement of F/A-18 aircraft consumable parts. This is a five-year base contract with one five-year option period. The performance completion date is August 8, 2027. Using military service is the Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2022 through 2027 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Boeing has provided over 430 F/A-18E/Fs to the Navy since the early 2000s. The aircraft serves as the frontline strike fighter of the service branch, supporting air combat operations from aircraft carriers. More »
THAAD: Reach Out and Touch Ballistic Missiles
| South Korea’s government stressed Wednesday it will make its own decisions in strengthening its defenses against North Korean threats, rejecting Chinese calls that it continue the polices of Seoul’s previous government that refrained from adding more US anti-missile batteries that are strongly opposed by Beijing. The differences between South Korea and China underscored a reemerging rift between the countries just a day after their top diplomats met in eastern China and expressed hope that the issue wouldn’t become a “stumbling stone” in relations. Bilateral ties went downhill in 2017 when South Korea installed a missile battery employing the THAAD, in response to nuclear and missile threats from North Korea. More »
MQ-8 Fire Scout VTUAV Program: By Land or By Sea
| The US Navy has carried out a demonstration of the MQ-8C Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO) concept during Exercise Resolute Hunter. The exercise took place at San Clemente Island from June 21 to July 1. HSC-23 flew the unmanned rotorcraft for 23 hours during this period. It had taken off from Point Mugu and flown to San Clemente before control was handed over to a Portable Mission Control Station (MCS-P) deployed there. “Fire Scout is the Navy’s only unmanned helicopter with the ability to deploy from a ship or land with ISR&T at the extended range required for future warfighting,” said Capt. Dennis Monagle, Fire Scout program manager. More »
AGM-158 JASSM: Lockheed’s Family of Stealthy Cruise Missiles
| Lockheed Martin won a $10.4 million contract modification to convert six AGM-158B missiles to test assets and nine weapon systems simulators. Work will be performed in Orlando and is expected to be completed October 31, 2024. The AGM-158 JASSM (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile) is an autonomous, long-range missile developed and produced by the Lockheed Martin. More »
V-22 Osprey: The Multi-Year Buys, 2008-2021
| Triumph Gear System won a $24.3 million contract action for the repair of the pylon conversion actuator used on the V-22 aircraft. The V-22 Osprey is a joint-service, medium-lift, multimission tilt-rotor aircraft developed by Boeing and Bell Helicopters. Boeing is responsible for the fuselage, landing gear, avionics, electrical and hydraulic systems, performance and flying qualities. All work will be performed in Park City, Utah, and is expected to be completed by August 2023. Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity. More »
