Rapid Fire: 2010-04-13

• Polish AF Tu-154M Lux crash: the political ripples in Poland, as crash theories swirl. The “black boxes” were recovered, and technical problems appear to have been ruled out early.

• Financial crisis creating ripples of defense cuts and reorgnizations in Europe. But then, that trend is nothing new.

• German military restructuring could free up troops to send abroad.

• More fallout from the 2006 war in Lebanon: Israel upgrading its Centurion based Puma heavy assault vehicle.

• 8th Special Operations Sqn. CV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor crashes in Zabul province, killing 4; cause not currently known.

• Britain’s Labour Party backtracks on Trident submarine reduction pledge, as election looms.

• BAE Systems tops list of international arms supplier, according to Stockholm research institute.

• Boeing discusses role in GPS-III’s OCX ground control contract.

• Homicide bombers: suicide as strategy, or just strategic suicide?

• US reopens Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan, backs interim government. Radio Free Europe | AFP | Voice of America

• US military’s green projects, including spray foam insulation for Army tents, are expected to save the Pentagon $1.6 billion.

Iraqi Security Forces Order of Battle 2010-04

(c) DJ Elliott

DJ Elliott is a retired USN Intelligence Specialist (22 years active duty) who has been analyzing and writing on Iraqi Security Forces developments since 2006. His Iraqi Security Forces Order of Battle is an open-source compilation that attempts to map and detail Iraqi units and equipment, as their military branches and internal security forces grow and mature. While “good enough for government use” is not usually uttered as a compliment, US Army TRADOC has maintained permission to use the ISF OOB for their unclassified handouts since 2008.

This compilation is reproduced here with full permission. It offers a set of updates highlighting recent changes in the ISF’s composition and development, followed by the full updated ISF OOBs in PDF form.

$36.9M to Argon for Low-rate Initial Production of US Navy’s SSEE Increment F

SSEE: Big and Bulky

Argon ST in Fairfax, VA received a $36.9 million contract for low-rate initial production of the US Navy’s Ship’s Signal Exploitation Equipment (SSEE) Increment F system.

The base contract also includes priced options to allow the government to procure full-rate production units over a 4-year period beginning in 2011

The SSEE is a signals exploitation system that provides ship commanders with threat ID information. It allows the operators to monitor and analyze signals of interest within the Ship’s Signals Exploitation Space (SSES) aboard a variety of ship classes…

$11.5M to FM for Special Ops Machine Gun Overhaul

5.56mm Mk46 MOD0

FN Manufacturing in Columbia, SC received an $11.5 million firm-fixed-priced, indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract to refurbish and overhaul machine guns in support of multiple US military agencies.

The company will overhaul MK46 lightweight machine gun (LMG), MK 48 LMG, and the M240 machine gun.

Both the MK46 and MK48 LMGs are designed specifically for US special ops requirements. The Mk46 is a lighter weight variants of the 5.56mm M249 “Minimi” Squad Automatic Weapon…