USAF New Bomber – B-21 – Gets a Base

The good news? 2006 saw a convergence of opinion within the USAF that a new long-range strike platform was needed. This is understandable given the B-52H Stratofortress fleet’s age (40-50 years), the B-1B Lancer’s internal power and electronics issues, both of these platforms’ low survivability against advanced air defense systems, and the B-2A Spirit stealth bomber’s very small numbers (21, of which 7-12 are generally operational). The unmanned J-UCAS program, meanwhile was seen as having inadequate range and payload (Boeing X-45C: 1,400 mile radius with 8 GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs). The USAF decided that J-UCAS wasn’t a solution and pulled out, stalling American UCAV development until the Navy chose to go ahead with the carrier-based N-UCAS.

The bad news? They seemed to have little idea of exactly what they wanted in their bomber. The FY 2010 budget killed those plans anyway, but in September 2010, pressure to field a new bomber began to rise again. By the time fiscal year 2015 budget planning was in motion, both DoD and the Air Force seemed committed to making the program one of the service’s top 3 priorities.

ATP-SE: LITENING Targeting Pods Now Feature ‘Gen-5’

At the end of September 2010, the USAF dropped something of a bombshell. Under their $2.3 billion Advanced Targeting Pod – Sensor Enhancement (ATP-SE) contract, the service that had begun standardizing on one future surveillance and targeting pod type decided to change course, and split its buys.

This decision is a huge breakthrough for Northrop Grumman, whose LITENING pod had lost the USAF’s initial 2001 Advanced Targeting Pod competition. As a result of that competition, the USAF’s buys had shifted from LITENING to Sniper pods, and Lockheed Martin’s Sniper became the pod of choice for integration onto new USAF platforms. Since then, both of these pods have chalked up procurement wins around the world, and both manufacturers kept improving their products. That continued competition would eventually change the landscape once again.

In January 2015, Rafael announced that their upcoming upgrade that they call G-4 Advanced outside the U.S., and “G-5” for the Americans will have air-to-air targeting capabilities.

In addition to more diverse targeting, the pods are said to feature inter-asset communications and sensor sharing capabilities – in essence some of the whiz-bang features touted in the F-35 platform that is supposed to push the F/A-18 into obsolescence.

Russian Armed Forces: Bring on the Big Budget Boost

Making a comeback?

The Russian Ministry of Defense plans to replace nearly half of the Russian Army’s hardware by 2015, according to Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov. Ivanov said military spending over the next 8 years was planned at $189 billion, and that official Russian military spending had quadrupled from 2001 to reach $31 billion this year.

Ivanov said weapons purchases would include “17 intercontinental ballistic missiles, 4 military spacecraft with the same number of launch rockets for them,” as well as new bombers, ships, and other heavy equipment. The ICBMs are believed to be the new SS-27 Topol-M, and other plans reportedly include 50 new bombers, 31 ships of varying sizes, and fully re-arming 40 tank, 97 infantry and 50 parachute battalions. Some outside observers doubt Russia’s ability to fulfill these plans, however, given a closed military procurement system, that’s very resistant to scrutiny, in a country with a record of corruption. See Defense-Aerospace: “Russia to Spend $189bn on Weapons by 2015” | “Russia’s Defense Minister Unveils Plans to Overhaul Military.”

Update

January 19/17: Russia has test-fired a Topol-M ICBM, one of the first ballistic missiles to be developed after the fall of the Soviet Union. Capable of being deployed from missile silos or APU launchers mounted on the 16-wheeled MZKT-79221 universal transporter-erector-launcher, the test was carried out to confirm the weapon’s stability. The weapon’s developers claim their product is able to bypass any current or planned US missile defense system, and can make evasive maneuvers to avoid missile interceptors during flight.

Whatever Floats Your Tank: the USN’s Improved Navy Lighterage System

Lighterage from USS Seay

Lighterage is about loading or unloading ships using lighters (barges) that can form a sort of ad-hoc ramp or shuttle from ships at anchor; they are often used when a port’s dockside is too shallow for the ship, or dockside berths are unavailable. These modules greatly expand landing options for well-equipped militaries, and may be versatile enough to be used in sea-based transfers as well. Even so, lighterage is one of those quiet enablers that rarely receives the attention it merits.

$109.6M for Improved B-2A Bomber Heat Shields

B-2A Spirit

In September 2011, Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems in Palmdale, CA received a $109.6 million a firm-fixed-price contract “for aft decks applicable to B-2 aircrafts.” We asked Northrop Grumman about this, and they said that this stealth bomber contract was about buying spares with improved durability. The aft deck shields the composite airframe from the heat of the engines’ exhaust, and the redesign follows a thorough thermal and structural analysis of the aft deck, its adjoining structures and the operating environment.

Work will be performed in Palmdale, CA and in St. Augustine, FL, until April 19/16. The Defense Logistics Agency Aviation at Tinker Air Force Base, OK manages the contract (SPRTA1-11-C-0112). While the B-2 fleet’s FAST umbrella contract covers most modifications and maintenance, this is separate from FAST.

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: 2009-2010

F-35A: incoming…

The $382 billion F-35 Joint Strike fighter program may well be the largest single global defense program in history. This major multinational program is intended to produce an “affordably stealthy” multi-role fighter that will have 3 variants: the F-35A conventional version for the US Air Force et. al.; the F-35B Short Take-Off, Vertical Landing for the US Marines, British Royal Navy, et. al.; and the F-35C conventional carrier-launched version for the US Navy. The aircraft is named after Lockheed’s famous WW2 P-38 Lightning, and the Mach 2, stacked-engine English Electric (now BAE) Lightning jet. Lightning II system development partners included The USA & Britain (Tier 1), Italy and the Netherlands (Tier 2), and Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway and Turkey (Tier 3), with Singapore and Israel as “Security Cooperation Partners.” Now the challenge is agreeing on production phase membership and arrangements, to be followed by initial purchase commitments in 2009-2010.

This updated article has expanded to feature more detail regarding the F-35 program, including contracts, sub-contracts, and notable events and reports. Recent events and major programs shifts have been added to this article, in order to ensure maximum continuity and context. 2012 developments are covered in this follow-up article.

$486M for more LITENING G4 Pods, Upgrades

LITENING AT onto B-52

“ATP-SE: LITENING Strikes as USAF Splits Future Targeting Pod Orders” covered the USAF’s recent multi-year, dual-buy award of cutting-edge surveillance and targeting pods from Lockheed Martin (Sniper ATP-SE), and Northrop Grumman (LITENING SE). The award was a breakthrough for Northrop Grumman, but they do have other American contracts to supply the US Marine Corps and the US Air Force Reserve/ National Guard.

In late December 2010, Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. in Rolling Meadows, IL received a $486 million contract modification from US Naval Air Systems Command. The firm has now confirmed that order’s precise makeup to DID…

Rapid Fire: 2010-02-22

• US Air Force Chief of Staff warns F-35 Joint Strike Fighter could exceed Nunn-McCurdy limits on unit cost growth.

• Iraqi Air Force: development and current state.

• Britain, France sign Memorandum of Understanding re: Urgent Operational Request buys. UK MoD | French DGA [in French].

• L-3 to acquire Insight Technology, a supplier of night vision devices to the US military.

• Raytheon Australia gets 3-year, A$21.5 million contract to support F/A-18F Super Hornet training systems at the RAAF base Amberley. Australia’s expects 1st of 24 Super Hornets in late March 2010.

• Smart thinking under AFSO21 helps USAF improve B-1 bomber maintenance.

• New Fort Carson facilities achieving LEED Gold ratings.

• Raytheon’s Miniature Air Launched Decoy Jammer (MALD-J) completes US Air Force critical design review.

Northrop Grumman Provides Communicatons Upgrades for USAF’s ASIP

B-52H

Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. in San Diego, CA received an $8.2 million contract to provide Phase II data rate communications upgrades for the Aircraft Structural Integrity Program (ASIP).

The US Air Force initiated the ASIP because of catastrophic, unanticipated, in-flight fatigue failures of in-service aircraft. ASIP is the management tool for the USAF to safely manage the fleet from initial operating capability through the design service goal and beyond.

The program focuses on monitoring the structural integrity of USAF aircraft, including:

Boeing Wins $750M to Support the B-52H Fleet

B-52H and B-17:
only as old as I feel…

In June 2009, the US Air Force is replaced Boeing’s existing fleet support contract for the USA’s B-52 heavy bomber fleet, with a 10-year, $750 million firm-fixed-price Engineering Sustainment Program (ESP) contract. All of the USAF’s 94 remaining B-52Hs were built at and delivered from Boeing’s Wichita, KS facility, and the ESP contract will support about 150 Boeing jobs.

Under the ESP contract, Boeing employees in Wichita, KS; Oklahoma City, OK; and at Barksdale AFB in Shreveport, LA will maintain the fleet’s readiness, handle and maintain the aircrafts’ engineering data, conduct related analyses and tests, investigate deficiencies or field issues, provide in-flight emergency response support, and perform required hardware and software modernization and upgrade work. Unfortunately, key upgrades like fleet replacing the ancient JT3D/TF33 turbofans to improve fuel consumption, maintenance, and efficiency have failed to materialize over the years. Nevertheless…