Rapid Fire 2012-02-27: Re-using Used Commercial Components

• Israel Aerospace Industries inks a $1.6B deal with Azerbaijan involving UAVs and missile defense systems.

• The French DGA procurement agency released its 2011 activity report [PDF, in French]. Urgent operational purchase requests vastly decreased to just 20 million Euros ($27M). Support to foreign sales was sustained: DGA reckons French export bookings for 2011 amounted to 6.5 billion Euros (~$8.7B).

• The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) updated its estimate of armament sales by contractor to reflect 2010 sales that turned out at about the same level as 2009. Their Top 100 list is topped by Lockheed Martin, BAE, Boeing, Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics.