Rapid Fire 2011-04-01: Mobile Counter IED

• Huntington Ingalls Industries begins trading on New York Stock Exchange after Northrop Grumman completes the $6.7 billion spinoff of shipbuilding subsidiary.

• UK military’s antiquated information systems for logistics supply chain management have resulted in delays of supplies to front-line troops, says UK National Audit Office.

• China’s National Defense in 2010 white paper stresses “defensive” nature of military buildup, criticizes US for selling weapons to Taiwan. Criticism of Chinese weapon sales to rogue regimes like Zimbabwe, Myanmar, Sudan, et. al. is mysteriously absent.

• House Armed Services Committee chairman warns that NATO might have to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya for a decade. Would it?

• The global military communications market reached $15.9 billion in 2010, according to Visiongain report.

• NATO plans to deploy mobile counter-IED labs by the end of year.

• AAR snags $27 million order to supply specialized shelters to the US Army’s Standard Automotive Tool Set program.

• Pratt & Whitney secures $6.8 million USAF contract extension to maintain the F100-PW-220E engines powering the Italian Air Force’s F-16 fighter jets. Intended as temporary gap-fillers, those F-16s are currently seeing action over Libya.

Djibouti, Africa: Base Operations Contracting

Djibouti & region

Djibouti is an important base for western navies, the French Foreign Legion, and the US Marines. It sits in a very strategic location, at the entrance to the Red Sea and astride the passage from the Indian Ocean to the Suez Canal. This has made it a key base for strike aircraft, UAVs, and troops, as well as a key hub from the new AFRICOM. Maintaining and operating that base takes work, of course. The US Navy’s Seabees have done excellent work there, and the base is being used as a testing ground for containerized renewable power options.

In the modern era, however, military construction teams are not the only ones involved in keeping the base running. Contractors are also involved. The base operations services contract was competitively procured via the NAVFAC e-solicitation website, with 6 proposals received by the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Europe and Southwest Asia in Naples, Italy (N33191-07-D-0207). The winner was:

MARSS & More: Quasi-Civilian Spy Plane Services On the Front Lines

Latest updates[?]: $50M to AirScan in Iraq.

RC-7B “Crazy Hawk”

The US military has planes like F-22A stealth fighters that make a lot of news. It also has planes that make very little news, even though they play key roles in a number of conflicts around the world. One example is the RC-7B/EO-5B “Crazy Hawk”/ Airborne Reconnaissance Low aircraft, which use their short-field takeoff capabilities and array of imaging, signals collection, and radar sensors to monitor developments on the ground. The RC-7B made the news briefly in 1999 when one went down in Colombia, and again when the US military had to cancel the $8 billion ACS (Aerial Common Sensor) replacement program in 2006 and start over in 2008. Meanwhile, the situation in Afghanistan and Iraq is well suited to planes like the Dash-7 derived RC-7Bs.

ACS’ cancellation, delay, and restructuring have left the Navy pursuing its own independent program. The US Army’s RC-12N Guardrail electronic intelligence aircraft are being refurbished to keep them current and in service until the ACS arrives. And the RC-7B fleet continues to receive additional help, via a parallel program called MARSS. It’s part of a trend that involves putting private ISR(Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance) planes on the front lines.

Rapid Fire 2011-03-31: State-sponsored Cyber Threats

• US costs of Libyan operation total $550 million so far, according to DoD official.

• Flight International provides an overview of allied air operations and assets against Libyan air defenses, and adds the destruction of a Libyan plane by a French Rafale fighter – after the Libyan aircraft landed. The evolving Wikipedia entry remains an excellent overview of the forces at work so far, and includes a timeline. See also Canada’s National Post, who shows recent events using changing maps.

• While initial goals have been reached, NATO remains divided on what’s next, as are key US figures. Meanwhile, as WIRED puts it: “While Libya War Grows, Obama Team Denies It’s a War.” That’s dangerous territory for an administration with no Congressional approval for its actions, hence a 60-day time limit, and no endgame in sight.

EADS Solidifies MRO Position with Vector Acquisition

A week after the March 2011 revelation that EADS was in discussions with Toronto Stock Exchange listed Vector Aerospace, a support agreement with EADS subsidiary Eurocopter Holding will acquire all of Vector’s issued and outstanding common shares for consideration of C$ 13 ($12.95) per share, valuing the firm at about C$ 625 million. The offer price is 15% above the closing price when trading was halted, and 80% above the price on Dec 31/10, when the firm publicly announced that it was open to merger offers.

Therein hangs a pair of tales – one concerning the buyer’s rationale, and another concerning the takeover saga itself. The EADS acquisition was actually the indirect product of a failed internal takeover bid in 2009…

Rapid Fire 2011-03-30: Contractor Debarment

• Pentagon acquisition chief Ashton Carter tells Commission on Wartime Contracting that DoD needs “fast lane” to speed procurement and deployment of weapons in wartime, warns against over-reliance on contractor debarment to combat fraud.

• The US Federal Communications Commission, fresh from its stellar job selling off the B-2 bomber’s radar frequency and forcing a $1+ billion switch, has issued an L-band broadband satellite license that’s likely to interfere with GPS signals. The question “Where on earth does the FCC get its ideas?” may presuppose the wrong answer.

• A small number of defense programs are driving cost increases in DoD’s budget, GAO finds.

Rapid Fire 2011-03-29: XM25 Grenade Gun

• Want to buy an aircraft carrier? Have we got a deal for you. HMS Ark Royal is up for sale on the Internet.

• Israel Defense Forces deploy first Iron Dome rocket/artillery defense system along the Gaza border.

• Demand for new technologies is predicted to fuel growth in the global defense communications market, according to Frost & Sullivan.

• ATK receives $65.8 million engineering and manufacturing development contract for the US Army’s XM25 auto-ranging grenade gun.

• Lockheed Martin gets contract worth up to $57 million to provide training and technical support for US Coast Guard aviation instruction.

• Israel’s Elbit Systems snags $9.6 million USMC contract to provide the Joint Terminal Attack Controller Laser Target Designator [PDF].

Perrys for Pakistan: USS McInerney & the Alamgir Class

USS McInerney, 2004

On Feb 19/10, the US DSCA announced Pakistan’s official request to buy the Oliver Hazard Perry Class frigate USS McInerney [FFG 8], plus refurbishment and anti-submarine improvements. That deal is now a contract, and is reportedly the first step in an 8-ship purchase.

In 2009, USS McInerney trialed the naval MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopter UAV in counter-drug operations around the Caribbean, and became the first navy ship to use unmanned helicopters in a drug bust. It’s one member of a popular but declining ship class.

Rapid Fire: 2011-03-28

• DoD is increasing the percentage of the budget set aside for small businesses, according to Pentagon officials.

• The Pentagon has failed to implement a management process for European missile defense acquisition, risking delays and cost overruns, says GAO [PDF].

• South African Hawk Mk120 advanced jet trainers to get the OC4 upgrade, so they can share simulated radar data with other air & surface platforms, simulate the use of infra-red and radar guided missiles, and add digital recording capability.

• BAE Systems subsidiary delivers 1,000,000th SAPI/ESAPI/XSAPI body armor insert plate. Note that a set always includes several plates.

• Meanwhile, Australian Defence Apparel will be manufacturing plate inserts for Australian forces at its Bendigo facility. They’ll fit into ADA’s new TBAS body armor design. The casualty? Plate imports from the USA.

• Russian Slava-class guided missile cruiser Marshal Ustinov expected to be transferred from the Northern Fleet to the Pacific Fleet in 2013, after repairs are complete, says Navy official.

• French land defense market expected to total EUR13.1 billion through 2019, as the French army becomes more integrated and interoperable with allies, predicts Frost & Sullivan.

• Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in San Diego, CA raises $285 million to complete acquisition of Herley, a Lancaster, PA supplier of defense microwave products.

• Afghan Brig. Gen Muhammad Sadiq tells Americans he needs engineers and air support, but his troops can handle the fighting in Logar Province.

Rapid Fire 2011-03-25: Top Aerospace/Defense Emerging Markets

• Pentagon chief Robert Gates says US $1.5 billion in annual military aid to Egypt will continue during democratic transition.

• EADS to cut 600 jobs at its Cassidian defense unit in an effort to reduce costs by EUR 400 million over 3-4 years.

• Iranian government suspected of being behind counterfeiting of digital certificates used to secure Internet traffic.

• The top 5 emerging markets in aerospace and defense – Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa – should see robust 15.2% annual growth, reaching $260.1 billion in 2014, predicts Datamonitor.

• German Bundeswehr approves EADS Cassidian’s ParaLander GPS-guided cargo paradrop system for deployment in Afghanistan. The system is part of the same trend as JPADS.

• German Army receives 1st Boxer MRAV wheeled APCs for training, as they prepare to deploy it to Afghanistan later in 2011. One more piece of the puzzle, as Germany keeps adding better protected vehicles there.

• Austria’s defense expenditures are expected to decline at a 5.32% annual rate, dropping from $2.7 billion in 2011 to $2.2 billion in 2015, says iCD Research.

• LaBarge gets $4.5 million US Navy contract to provide cable harnesses for the tactical Tomahawk cruise missile.