DID has covered European Defense Agency (EDA) Chief Executive Nick Whitney’s efforts toward greater European defense industry integration for some time now. In a recent speech at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, the EU official attempted to outline what the EDA is and isn’t, and why he believes its success is certain. He also covered how the EDA’s initiatives in armaments cooperation et. al. related to transatlantic defense trade, the current barriers that are leading Europeans to develop their own weapons, and America’s long-term interests. Read the transcript of his speech here.
On July 22, 2005, DID reported that the U.S. Army had temporarily suspended the Request for Proposal (RFP) for the acquisition of a new family of small weapons – Objective Individual Combat Weapon Increment 1 (OICW-1). Increment 1 would have opened the door for the new H&K XM-8 weapon family, which was touted as the successor to the M16A4 assault rifle, M249 SAW light machine gun, and even the M9 pistol via a cut-down version. See DID’s full coverage and links.
Now Murdoc Online reports that OICW increment 1 has been formally canceled while the Pentagon reconsiders its plans in light of lessons from Iraq and Afghanistan. The USA may also wish to take into account Israeli lessons learned under related conditions during military operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, which resulted in the new TAR-21 Tavor assault weapon family.
JULY 2007 UPDATE:The XM8 is going to be tested against the current M4 carbine, the improved HK416 version, and SOCOM’s FN-SCAR 5.56mm rifle for reliability in sandy conditions.
DID has covered the 250-pound, GPS/INS guided GBU-39 Small Diamater Bomb before. This smart little glide bomb is considered one of the most transformational items in the USAF because of the way its small size and structure penetrating punch can make every single USAF aircraft many times more effective. The SDB is being tested on the F/A-22 Raptor as its primary strike weapon, and production has begun; but the Darlene Druyun scandals have forced the $1.7 billion Phase II (SDB moving target killer) contract back to a competitive rebid.
Meanwhile, Boeing subsidiary McDonnell Douglas Corp. in St. Louis, MO has received a $38.3 million firm-fixed-price contract, exercising the Lot 2 option for the SDB increment I fixed/stationary target design. The contract covers low rate initial production (LRIP) for munitions, carriages, and associated trainers and technical support. The DoD DefenseLINK release notes that work will be performed at Sargent Fletcher Inc. in El Monte, CA, and that work will be complete by September 2007. The Air Armament Center at Eglin Air Force Base, FL (which includes the Miniature Munitions Systems Group) issued the contract (FA8681-06-C-0012).
Small business qualifier Logistics Services International in Jacksonville, FL received a not to exceed $30.3 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to conduct site surveys, training plan and curriculum development, aircrew and maintenance training, publications review/update, and other support services for the P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft. This work is being performed for the government of Pakistan under the Foreign Military Sales Program; as DID noted in June, Pakistan has ordered 8 Orion aircraft as part of a $1.3 billion weapons package.
Designed after US Navy training standards, this training and support package will provide Pakistan aircrew and maintenance personnel with technical proficiency in their respective positions. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, FL (75%) and Karachi, Pakistan (25%), and is expected to be complete in November 2010. This contract was not competitively procured by the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division in Orlando, FL (N61339-06-D-0001).
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in New Orleans, LA has issued a series of contracts related to restoration, repair, and planning work along the Gulf Coast. These three contracts have a total value of $47.4 million.
Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, AZ received a $7 million modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-03-C-0001) for one lot of steel and aluminum material and Guidance Electronic Unit Circuit Card assemblies, in support of the fiscal 2006 AGM-154C Joint Stand-Off Weapon Block II Full Rate Production Program. The JSOW-C precision glide bomb incorporates an imaging infrared seeker for high precision, and adds a Broach multi-stage warhead that has both hard target penetration and blast-fragmentation capability.
Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, and is expected to be complete in February 2008. The Naval Air Systems Command in Patuxent River, MD issued the contract modification. See all DID coverage related to the JSOW precision strike glide bomb.
Nordic Ammunition Co. (or “Nammo”) in Karlsborg, Sweden received an $8.8 million firm-fixed-price contract for 5.56mm M995 and 7.62mm M993 armor piercing cartridges. Nammo subsidiary Vanasverken supplies the Swedish Defense forces, and specializes in armor piercing and sniper ammunition development. Their other specialty is a new non-toxic ammunition cartridge.
Work will be performed in Bedford, PA and is expected to be complete by Oct. 30, 2009. This was a sole source contract initiated on June 17, 2005 by the Picatinny Center for Contracting and Commerce in Picatinny Arsenal, NJ (W15QKN-06-C-0009).
