Taurus Shares Plummet on Execs Indictment | LM Delivers 2000th JASSM to USAF | Poland Becomes 14th Patriot Partner Nation

Americas

• Northrop Grumman is to produce and deliver nine AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task-Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) AESA air defense radar systems to the USMC. The manufacturer already had an order for six G/ATORs under the low rate initial production (LRIP) phase, this latest contract brings the total number ordered to 15. It’s expected that the first AN/TPS-80 will be delivered in February 2017.

• In the wake of an arms smuggling scandal, shares at Brazil’s Taurus have plummeted. Two former executives of South America’s biggest gun maker have been indicted as part of a scheme to import small arms illegally to Yemen. As a result Taurus, who is a major supplier of firearms to Brazil’s police and military and one of the top five makers of handguns in the US market, experienced an 8 percent drop in shares on Tuesday, their biggest drop in 16 months.

• Lockheed Martin announced that it recently delivered the 2,000th Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) to the USAF. This missile is a baseline version completed under the 12th production lot. Production of this lot began in January and covers 150 baseline JASSM cruise missiles and 60 JASSM-Extended Range (ER) missiles.

• Zel Technologies has been awarded a max $165 million Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Agency contract to research and develop counter-IED technologies. The deal will assist the agency in enabling Pentagon actions to counter improvised threats with tactical responsiveness and through anticipatory, rapid acquisition in support of combatant command’s efforts to prepare for and adapt to counter-terrorism, counterinsurgency and other related mission areas. Zel will also identify and maintain an understanding of risks, capability gaps and vulnerabilities of the joint force to drive rapid assessments, enabling informed investments in counter-threat tech and non-materiel solutions within the combatant command’s latest time of value.

Europe

• Poland has officially selected the Patriot air defense missile system, making it the 6th NATO Patriot country and the 14th Patriot partner nation. Manufacturer Raytheon made the announcement saying that the company “will continue supporting the US and Polish governments through the Foreign Military Sales process,” and that it “will also partner with Poland’s government and industry to finalize offset and industrial participation plans.” So far, Raytheon has already signed eight contracts and more than 30 letters of intent with Polish industry.

• Spain’s first A400M airlifter has made its maiden flight. Known as MSN44, the aircraft took off from the A400M final assembly line in Seville, Spain, and landed nearly four hours later. Manufacturer Airbus considers the flight an important milestone toward the aircraft’s delivery.

Asia Pacific

• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has conducted the first flight of its three-ton light utility helicopter (LUH). This is the third indigenous helicopter from the Indian state-owned company and is powered by a single Safran HE Ardiden-1U engine and can carry up to six passengers. HAL hopes to obtain its initial operational certification by end-2017 when it will replace the military’s Chetak and Cheetah helicopters.

• Ukraine and aircraft manufacturer Antonov are seeking some $500 million in investment from China in order to complete an updated version of the An-225 Mriya. Regarded as the world’s biggest aircraft, the cargo plane was designed as part of the former Soviet Union’s space program, however only one was ever completed. Now, Antonov and Chinese aerospace giant the Aerospace Industry Corporation of China (AICC) have signed a cooperation agreement under which Antonov planes could be manufactured jointly in China.

Today’s Video

The development of Saab’s fighter-bomber:

Rockwell Collins Debuts Helmet Mounted Vision Sys | Egyptian Pilots to Train on Russia’s Ka-52K | NK Launches Ballistic Missiles During G20 China Meeting

Americas

• The US Navy will field-test the latest Aegis Baseline 9.2C alongside the first intercept test for the SM-3 Block 2A interceptor next month. A new feature added to the software build is the “engage-on-remote” capability that will allow the SM-3 missile to target a ballistic missile during data derived from another sensor such as a satellite. However October’s test will not see that feature tested.

• Rockwell Collins debuted its new combat helmet-mounted Integrated Digital Vision System. The new gear combines mission data and multi-spectral vision into an advanced display system while offering a 24/7, hands-free, seamless transition from dark to light environments. Furthermore, it is the first hands-free, helmet-mounted display system that fuses incoming data from various sources such as a command center, other troops, or drones with multi-spectral vision.

Middle East & North Africa

• It’s been reported that Saudi Arabia has bought an unspecific number of Wing Loong UAVs from China. Modeled on the MQ-1 Predator, the UAV’s are able to carry two air-to-ground missiles as well as having their usual surveillance capabilities. So far, the drone has been sold to four nations with discussions underway with several more.

• Russia’s Izvestia reported that during a recent meeting between Egyptian and Russian defense ministers, both sides agreed to proceed with the training of Egyptian pilots on flying the Ka-52K naval attack helicopter. It’s believed that Egypt will now go back and formulate what training requirements are needed for the pilots. The attack helicopters will go toward operations tackling jihadists in the Sinai desert.

Europe

• Saab is to deliver two fully instrumented laser-based Tactical Engagement Simulation Systems (TESS) to Poland. The company said the systems are being supplied under an initial order for a two-year contract from the academy, and enable realistic combat training using small arms and anti-tank weapons laser simulators and evaluate the results of exercises.

• The Saudi foreign minister is to brief British MPs personally today to urge them not to ban UK arms sales to the Gulf kingdom. UK lawmakers have been put under increased pressure following UN claims that British weapons were used to conduct indiscriminate attacks on civilian targets in Yemen. According to the group Campaign Against the Arms Trade, the UK had licensed more than $4.4 billion worth of arms sales to Saudi Arabia since the bombing of Yemen began in March 2015.

Asia Pacific

• Progress has been made in talks between Pakistan and Russia over the purchase of the Su-35 fighters. Pakistani Ambassador to Russia Qazi Khalilullah called the talks “fruitful” adding that Islamabad “is considering different options of deepening cooperation with Russia.”

• As the leaders of the Group of 20 major economies held a summit in China over the weekend, North Korea launched three ballistic missiles which flew about 1,000 km (600 miles), hitting Japan’s air defense identification zone. The launch drew immediate condemnation from the United States, which described them as “reckless,” and diplomats said the UN Security Council has discussed them behind closed doors at Washington’s and Tokyo’s requests.

Today’s Video

Iran’s S-300 spotted at the Fordow nuclear facility:

USAF RFI for Bell UH-1N Replacement in Works | Israel’s Space Comm Looks for Free Flight or $50M from SpaceX | Philippines Requests 14% Defense Budget Increase

Americas

• Two former executives of Brazil’s Forjas Taurus SA have been charged with selling weapons to a well known arms trafficker to Yemen. The indictment charges that the executives oversaw the shipping of 8,000 handguns in 2013 to Fares Mohammed Hassan Mana’a, an arms smuggler active around the Horn of Africa, which were first sent to Djibouti and then redirected to Yemen. Yemen has been in the grips of a civil war between Houthi rebels and a Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemeni president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.

• The USAF are to reset their Bell Helicopter UH-1N replacement program with a new request for information and a draft system requirements document to be issued on September 9. Under the long-awaited program, the new acquisition will replace the 62 Vietnam-era UH-1N Huey helicopters that support the service’s nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile bases in Wyoming, Montana and North Dakota. The service had previously wanted to sole-source 41 UH-60Ms to replace the 62 UH-1Ns, but they have now elected to open the competition to other manufacturers.

• Israel’s Space Communication Ltd may seek either $50 million or a free flight from SpaceX, following the destruction of a Spacecom communications satellite last week by an explosion at SpaceX’s Florida launch site. The failed launch has had a profound impact on Spacecom with its equity expected to decline by $30 million to $123 million following a 9% dip in its share price on Thursday, followed by a further 34% drop when trading resumed. SpaceX said on Friday that it would shift flights to a second launch site in Florida, which is nearing completion and which was last used to launch NASA’s space shuttles.

Middle East & North Africa

• Qatar has signed a deal with MBDA for the purchase of a coastal missile system that uses two types of missiles. The system will deploy the Marte ER (the Extended Range version of the Marte missile) and Exocet MM40 Block 3, and can work autonomously or data-linked to a coastal surveillance network. Further details of the sale remain unknown, but follow a deal signed in June to supply missiles for new naval vessels recently procured from Fincantieri.

• PKL Services have been awarded a $495 million USAF contract for work on the Royal Saudi Air Force’s F-15 fleet. The indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract covers maintenance, upgrade, and training of the Saudi Strike Eagle S- and SA-type fighters. Saudi Arabia has been flying the F-15SA since 2013, and features include improved performance and increased survivability at a lower life-cycle cost as well as two additional wing stations for increased payload and capability.

Europe

• With their own new shiny weapons soon to be delivered as part of its NATO upgrade, Lithuania is passing on their older ammunition to embattled neighbor Ukraine. Over 150 tons of Soviet ammunition, mainly AK-47 cartridges, are been sent from their old munitions stocks as part of a 2014 commitment to support Ukraine’s operations against a Russian-backed insurgency in eastern Ukraine. So far NATO, primarily the US, has been reluctant to directly support non-NATO member Ukraine with offensive military equipment, limiting its support to “non-lethal” aid.

Asia Pacific

• An export version of the Kalibr cruise missile may be sold to India, according to Russian media. Due to provisions of international agreements that prohibit the export of missiles with a greater flight distance, the distance of the export models could be curtailed to to less than 300km. The Kalibr has seen battlefield testing during Russia’s support for the Syrian government through their ongoing civil war with several launches targeting groups such as the Islamic State and former Al-Qaeda outfit, Jabhat Fatah al Sham (previously known as the Al Nusra Front).

• Philippines are to request a 14% defense budget increase in order to enhance maritime security and tackle Islamist militants. Large budget increase jumps are fast becoming a trend for south and east Asian governments, as many aim to counter both an increasingly assertive China and domestic security issues. With these funds, President Rodrigo Duterte has vowed to “destroy” the Islamic State-linked Abu Sayyaf, responsible for a spate of kidnappings in the country’s Muslim majority south, and also linked to last Friday’s bombing in Davao City.

Today’s Video

A CH-47 Chinook assisting an Apache stuck in a muddy Texas field :

Israel’s AMOS-6 Dual-Use COMSAT

AMOS-6 signing
(click to view larger)

In November 2012, Israel Aerospace Industries signed a minimum $185 million contract with Israel’s Spacecom satellite company. In return, IAI will build and operate the dual-use AMOS-6 communications satellite, covering Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. The launch contract will be a separate transaction.

Like most providers, Spacecom has already sold capacity on the satellite, including a $20 million lifetime contract from the Israeli government, who will receive a beam in an agreed-upon frequency band…

NG Gets $375M for G/ATOR Sys | Congress Set to Approve $7B in Arms to Qatar & Kuwait | Japan Plans to Boost Defense Budget Again for 2017

Americas

• A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded during a static test-firing yesterday morning at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The explosion resulted in the destruction of its payload, an Israeli-owned AMOS-6 communications satellite. SpaceX had planned to launch the Falcon 9 and satellite into orbit on Saturday.

• Northrop Grumman has been awarded a $375 million Navy contract for procurement of the Ground/Air Task-Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) system. Due for completion in 2020, the contract will cover nine G/ATOR low-rate initial production systems. G/ATOR provides a highly mobile, multi-mission radar system designed to support global expeditionary requirements and offers multi-faceted detection and tracking capabilities to engage a range of hostile threats while providing robust air traffic control.

• US government and industry officials have been cleared to finish negotiations for the sale of 24 Beechcraft T-6C Texan trainers to the Argentine air force. The $300 million sale comes at the same time as the completion of the 20-year-old Joint Primary Aircraft Training Systems (JPATS) program, offering a timely lifeline to the T-6C production line in Wichita, Kansas. The company also has received a recent order from the UK Ministry of Defence to supply T-6 trainers to replace Embraer Tucanos.

Middle East & North Africa

• After years of delay, the US Congress look set to approve a $7 billion arms sale to Qatar and Kuwait as early as next week. The sales have been pending for more than two years, amid concerns raised by Israel that equipment sent to Gulf Arab states would be used against them. Qatar has been waiting on a $4 billion sale for 36 Boeing F-15 fighter jets, while Kuwait is looking for 28 F/A- 18E/F Super Hornets, plus options for 12 more, valued at around $3 billion.

Europe

• Ukraine and China are to recommence the production of the Antonov An-225 “Cossack” strategic airlifter. As part of the deal, Beijing will get access to designs and technologies of the aircraft for the purposes of domestic production. Only one An-255 was ever finished to an airworthy standard and flown, and while work on a second example was begun it had become clear by mid-2001 that funding would no longer be provided, and the project was shelved.

Asia Pacific

• South Korea may join the US Navy, India, and Australia in operating the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft, according to defense ministry officials. If given the go ahead, Seoul may purchase four of the aircraft to help expand their surveillance and anti-submarine warfare capabilities following submarine launched ballistic missile (SLBM) tests by North Korea. The aircraft can fly at altitudes up to 41,000 feet and are capable of striking enemy submarines immediately upon detecting them with weapons such as the MK 54 torpedo.

• Once again, Japan has upped its request of funds for next year’s defense budget. Now valued at $51.47 billion, the funds will go toward rejigging the nation’s defense requirements amid a decrease in Russian threats and an increased threat from North Korea. The most expensive purchase is the $970 million upgrade of their Patriot missile defense system, while another significant amount will go for funding to improve Aegis destroyers, Japan’s first line of defense against ballistic missiles.

• Sikorsky is to produce and deliver 24 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters to Taiwan. The $135 million sale will see the aircraft uniquely configured for the Taiwanese government with delivery by October 2018. This follows a recent $158 million contract modification to produce 14 more Black Hawks for the US Army.

Today’s Video

Explosion of SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket:

Oshkosh JLTV New Light Recon for US Army | US Lawmakers Call for Walk Back on Saudi Arms Deal | Mitsu Heavy Industries May Build Armored Vehicle with US Partner

Americas

• The US Army is planning to make the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) its new Light Reconnaissance Vehicle platform and arm it with a variant of the M230 chain gun found on the AH-64 attack helicopter. Manufacturer Oshkosh won a $6.7 billion contract last fall to build the first 17,000 production models of the JLTV. In total, the Army and Marine Corps plan to buy a total of nearly 55,000 of the combat vehicles, including 49,100 for the Army and 5,500 for the Corps, to replace about a third of the Humvee fleets.

• US lawmakers have called for a freeze on a $1.15 billion arms deal to Saudi Arabia citing concerns regarding the kingdom’s ongoing war against Houthi rebels in Yemen. Signed by 64 members of Congress, a letter was addressed to the Obama Administration asking them to walk back the August 8 approval of the sale, which would include replacing tanks destroyed in the Yemen campaign. The conflict has resulted in the deaths of 3,704 civilians and claims of war crimes have resulted in several Western governments having their Saudi weapons sales scrutinized.

• General Dynamics – Ordnance and Tactical Systems has been awarded a $39 million modification to a foreign military sales contract for various bomb bodies. The deal would see the production of 162 MK82-1 bomb bodies; 7,245 MK82-6 bomb bodies; and 9,664 MK84-10 bomb bodies for the governments of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, France, and Iraq. Completion is expected for December 2017.

Europe

• General Atomic has lodged a protest with the German government over their plan to lease armed Heron UAVs for surveillance missions. The lawsuit is expected to result in significant delays to the UAV’s delivery. GA’s complaint has stemmed from Berlin’s decision to drop their MQ-1 Predator B drones in favor of the Heron lease to service the country’s surveillance needs until the development of a collaborative EU drone, due for 2025.

• Ukroboronprom has confirmed that the indigenous Horlytsia unmanned aircraft system is ready for delivery to the Ukrainian armed forces in 2018 pending funding allocations from the government. The company’s deputy director Yuriy Paschenko told Interfax that “Works are being carried out within six months. As of today, the creation of the airframe has been completed. Before the end of 2016, we must complete the creation of the development type, complete all the research and development under the project in 2017, as well as the state tests, resulting in the adoption of the weapons.”

• A Swiss F/A-18C pilot missing since Monday has been found dead. The crash occurred in the Alps during a routine training exercise. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the crash, the third by a Swiss Air Force F/A 18 in the past three years.

Asia Pacific

• Raytheon and Lockheed Martin’s Javelin Joint Venture team has inked a letter of intent with India’s Tata Power Company to explore development of the Javelin missile under the Make in India initiative. The venture would see the collaboration also create a strategy to co-develop and produce the Javelin system while integrating platform mounts to meet Indian requirements. Fielded by the US Army and the US Marine Corps, the missile system has been approved for 15 foreign military sales customers.

• Following their failure to secure a $40 billion contract to sell submarines to Australia, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) is discussing the possibility of developing an armored vehicle with an undisclosed US company. If given the go ahead, it will mark the first time a Japanese firm builds arms for a foreign customer. While new territory for the company, potential foreign partners could be attracted by their armored vehicle technology, notably heavy-duty tank engines, gear technology, and water jet propulsion systems that could be used to drive amphibious vehicles.

Today’s Video

60 Years of the KC-135 Stratotanker: