Chemring Ordnance to deliver HE-PD Cartridges to US Navy | IAI presents ADA-O | PZL to deliver M28 to Nepal
Mar 05, 2019 05:00 UTCAmericas
The Navy awarded Austal USA a $13.6 million contract modification for the 11th and 12th Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) ships. The modification provides for the incorporation of a structural bow section engineering change proposal. The Spearhead-Class EPF is a Navy-led shipbuilding program. The class was previously designated as Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV). The EPF ships provide high-speed, shallow-draft transportation capability to support the intra-theater maneuver of personnel, supplies, and equipment for the Navy, Marine Corps and Army. The EPF program received Milestone A approval in May 2006. On 16 September 2016, Austal won a contract to design and construct EPF-11 and EPF-12. In 2015, the USNS Spearhead, the lead ship of the class, experienced bow-damage from rough seas requiring more than a half-million dollars to repair. It was determined that a design change recommended by Austal to the Navy late in the design phase in order to save weight has resulted in a weakened bow structure. The current modification is an undefinitized contract action for implementation of change to the bow structure on EPF 11 and EPF 12 on the DD&C Contract Line Item for each respective ship. Work will take place in Alabama, Mississippi, and Massachusetts and is scheduled to be finished by July this year.
The Navy contracted Chemring Ordnance $10.4 million for the manufacture, assembly, test, and delivery of 57mm High Explosive – Point Detonating (HE-PD) cartridges. The 57mm HE-PD Cartridge is a 57mm/70, electrically-primed cartridge designed to function in the 57mm MK 110 Gun Mount (GM). The MK 110 GM is employed on the Navy Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) class as well as the Coast Guard Legend-class National Security Cutters (NSC). The LCS is a fast, highly maneuverable, networked surface combat ship designed to satisfy the requirement for shallow draft vessels. The NSC is the largest and most technically advanced class of cutter designed for the US Coast Guard under the Deepwater program. The contract is to develop and produce 57mm HE-PD cartridges intended for combating surface and ground targets. The cartridge consists of a high explosive projectile with the ability to point detonate, a brass cartridge case loaded with propellant charge, and an electric primer. Chemring Ordnance designs, develops, and manufactures ordnance, pyrotechnic, and other munition components for military, homeland security, and first responders. The company offers 40mm low and high velocity ammunition, pyrotechnic marking, smoking, signaling, and tactical illumination devices, battlefield effects simulators, hand grenade fuses, and other ammunition components. Work under the contract will take place in Perry, Florida and is scheduled to be completed by February 2021.
The Missile Defense Agency awarded Lockheed Martin a $830.6 million contract modification for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) element development and support services. THAAD is an anti-ballistic missile defense system established to shoot down enemy ballistic missiles in their descent phase by intercepting and destroying them. The THAAD interceptor carries no warhead, but relies on its kinetic energy of impact to destroy the incoming missile. The program is similar to the Navy’s sea-based Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System. The new contract modification exercises an option for additional incremental development, support to flight and ground test programs, and responsive support to requirements to sustain the Ballistic Missile Defense System throughout its life cycle. Work will take place in Sunnyvale, California, and Huntsville, Alabama. Completion dates for work are expected under future task order awards.
Middle East & Africa
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) presented the ADA-O, a variant of the ADA system, which addresses GPS jammers to ensure GPS availability for land platforms. ADA is an advanced turnkey solution that hardens avionic systems against GPS jamming. It ensures the availability of GPS- and GNSS-based navigation, communication, and EW systems even under direct, electronic attack from GPS jammers or other methods of interference. The ADA involves the use of advanced digital processing techniques that provide a high-level of immunity in severe and dynamic multi-jammer scenarios. IAI recently won a contract to provide the ADA system for an unknown Asia-Pacific country. With the new ADA-O variant the land platform can be integrated into a range of platforms, providing operational response capabilities for telecom, navigation and C2 systems. The system supports end users such as armored vehicles, artillery, C2 centers, and communication carriers.
Europe
Airbus delivered the first upgraded Tranche 1 Eurofighter to Spain. The company performed the upgrade at its facilities in Getafe near Madrid, Spain. The enhancements included the introduction of hardware modifications, which support the Operational Flight Program 02 (OFP-02) developed by Spain’s Armament and Experimental Logistics Centre (CLAEX). The company also integrated Tranche 2 and Tranche 3 equipment on the aircraft, including a computer symbol generator, digital video and voice recorder, laser designator pod and maintenance data panel. CLAEX will use this first single-seat Eurofighter, to be followed by a second two-seat aircraft currently undergoing the upgrade, as a test aircraft for the qualification of these new capabilities that will be implemented on the Air Force’s fleet of 15 Tranche 1 Eurofighters. The Eurofighter Typhoon is a project with four European nations, the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain as founding members.
Asia-Pacific
The US Air Force contracted Polish aircraft manufacturer Polskie Zaklady Lotnicze $19 million to deliver a pair of PZL Mielec M28 short take-off and landing (STOL) light transport aircraft to Nepal. The PZL M28 Skytruck is a twin-engined high-wing strutted monoplane with an all-metal airframe, twin vertical fins and a tricycle fixed landing gear. The Nepalese Army Air Wing already has one M28 in its inventory, which was donated by the Polish Air Force in 2004. The aircraft crash-landed at Kolti Airport in 2017. The award to the Polish aircraft manufacturer covers two of the latest Block 5 aircraft, as well as services and support. The aircraft are scheduled to be delivered to Kathmandu by December 20. Work will take place in Mielec, Poland.
The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) prepares to retire its Bell 429 helicopters, Jane’s reports. The RAN progressively transitioned its naval aviation training operations to the Airbus EC-135T2+ helicopter. The EC135 T2+ is a member of the H135 family of light twin-engine helicopters. Airbus delivered the final EC135 T2+ to Australia in 2016. The RAN previously operated a fleet of three Bell 429s to prepare its pilots for the MH-60R Seahawks or the MRH-90 helicopters. These helicopters were leased from a Raytheon-Bell partnership under a $26 million deal signed in September 2011. The final Bell 429 made its last public appearance at the Avalon Airshow 2019.
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