Rapid Fire 2011-03-10: Rosoboronexport 2011 Sales

• USMC could lose up to a 3rd of its acquisition money, $563 million, under a FY 2011 continuing resolution, Commandant Gen. James Amos tells Senate Armed Services Committee.

• Former L-3 engineer Sixing “Steve” Liu faces up to 20 years in prison on charges of exporting defense-related technical data to China without a license.

• Russia’s state-run arms exporter Rosoboronexport expects to make $9.5 billion in arms sales in 2011.

Iraqi Security Forces Order of Battle, March 2011

(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 format.

USA Spends up to $1.1B for Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile Targets

Orbital MRT launch

March 8/11: The US Missile Defense Agency’s issues Orbital Sciences Corp. a $217.1 million firm-fixed-price contract with provisions for fixed-price incentive, cost-plus-award-fee, cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost-plus-fixed-fee, and cost-reimbursement clauses. In exchange, Orbital and subcontractors that include ATK and Honeywell will supply fully ready intermediate range ballistic missile targets, associated objects; and support services that include inventory storage and maintenance management, pre- and post-mission analysis, launch preparation and execution, engineering services, and modeling and simulation. If all options are exercised, the contract’s total value could rise to $1.1 billion. The total contract period of performance is from March 2011 to January 2018 (HQ0147-11-C-0006).

Orbital’s Multi-Mode Medium Range Target (MRT) system is frequently used to test SM-3/Aegis BMD and THAAD missile defense systems. It’s an innovative design that can be launched from land, sea, or even out the back of a C-17 heavy transport, using a parachute extraction and descent system. Orbital confirms to DID that the IRBM-T will be a new design, however, which they are not yet at liberty to discuss.

This purchase, and the push for a new design, fits into an important modern trend…