Boeing nets JDAM Extension | Saab to provide GlobalEye to Finland | Elbit Systems to supply Drones to Philippines

Americas

Raytheon won a $33 million firm-fixed-price contract to demonstrate a new dual-band towed decoy to help US Navy Super Hornet jet fighter-bomber pilots avoid modern sophisticated enemy radar-guided anti-aircraft missiles. The deal supports the Dual Band Decoy Program, which aims to meet an urgent Navy necessity to protect crews of area-penetrating attack jets like the F/A-18E/F Super Hornets from enemy radar-guided missiles that operate on two separate frequencies, such as X-band and S-band. Raytheon will demonstrate expanded capabilities of the Integrated Defensive Electronic Countermeasures AN/ALE-55 Fiber Optic Towed Decoy and AN/ALE-50 Advanced Airborne Expendable Decoy. The company will perform work in Goleta, California and scheduled completion date is in September 2021.

The US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center in Utah awarded Boeing a five-year-extension to an earlier contract for JDAM guided bomb tailkits, spares, repairs and technical services. This deal increases the contract ceiling by over $6.5 billion. The Joint Direct Attack Munition guidance kit features a GPS-aided inertial navigational system that essentially converts “dumb” gravity bombs into accurate, guided “smart bombs“, improving their accuracy. Once released, the JDAM autonomously navigates to the designated coordinates. In April, Boeing won a $250 million, 10-year contract for Joint Direct Attack Munition guidance kit services. The extension includes Foreign Military Sales funds. Work will take place in St. Louis, Missouri, and will be completed by February 28, 2025.

Middle East & Africa

Reuters reported that Iran would further scale back its compliance with nuclear deal commitments due to the lack of „positive signals“ from fellow signatories to the pact. Tehran has said in May that, unless world powers protected its economy from US sanctions within 60 days, Iran would start enriching uranium at a higher level. Also in May, Iran stopped complying with some of the commitments in the 2015 nuclear deal. The United States unilaterally withdrew from the accord in 2018 and tightened sanctions on Tehran.

Europe

The offer by Saab to deliver its Gripen to Finland also entails two GlobalEye Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft, the Swedish company announced via a press release. Saab’s GlobalEye is a multi-role AEW&C solution that can detect and track airborne and surface targets on land as well as on sea. According to Saab, AEW&C capability would increase Finland’s situational awareness and provide increased pre-warning time, supporting the protection of the nation’s territorial integrity. AEW&C systems have shown to provide an efficient deterrent effect whilst enhancing and maximizing the combat effectiveness of a fighter fleet. Saab’s proposal comprises 64 Gripen aircraft, of which 52 are single-seat Gripen E and 12 are dual-seat Gripen F, as well as two GlobalEye AEW&C aircraft. Finland is planning a procurement decision in 2021.

France wants to to purchase an additional H225M, which will be operated by the French Air Force, Airbus said on June 14. The French Defense Procurement Agency DGA has signed the order. The aircraft will reportedly be delivered in a configuration that allows it to be interoperable with the existing fleet of 10 H225Ms in the French Air Force and in particular it will be capable of inflight refueling, an essential operational advantage that this helicopter offers. The French Air Force will utilize the aircraft for Special Forces and Search and Rescue missions. Two Makila 2A1 engines power the multi-purpose H225M, which features a five-blade rotor that provides an exceptionally low vibration level. The modular Spheriflex design of rotor mechanical assemblies allows for lower maintenance.

Asia-Pacific

Israeli defense company Elbit Systems could possibly net a $180 million drone deal with the Philippines Army, Globes reports. Sources apparently say, that the deal, which includes the Hermes 900, Hermes 450, Skylark 1, and Skylark 3 UAV, could possibly be signed in the next couple of weeks. The Philippine Army will use these UAVs for intelligence gathering, patrols, and border defense missions. The Army will adapt the drones to homeland and internal security missions for the Philippines, a country of many islands that faces terrorist threats. The Hermes 450 and Hermes 900 are multi-role drones used for long-range missions. Skylark 1 and Skylark 3 are tactical UAVS designed mainly for use by field units for real time observation and intelligence gathering missions. Skylark 3 is optimized for both dismounted and vehicle-based operation.

Today’s Video

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JDAM: A GPS-INS Add-on Adds Accuracy to Airstrikes

Precision bombing has been a significant military goal since the invention of the Norden bomb sight in the 1920s, but its application remained elusive. Over 30 years later, in Vietnam, the destruction of a single target could require 300 bombs, which meant sending an appropriate number of fighters or bombers into harm’s way to deliver them. Even the 1991 Desert Storm war with Iraq featured unguided munitions for the most part. The USAF some laser and TV-guided weapons like Paveway bombs and Maverick missiles, but they were very expensive, and only effective in good weather. If precision bombing was finally to become a reality throughout the Air Force, a new approach would be needed. The Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) became that alternative, an engine of military transformation that was also a model of procurement transformation.

DID’s FOCUS articles offer in-depth, updated looks at significant military programs of record. This DID FOCUS Article looks at the transformational history of the JDAM GPS-guided bomb program, the ongoing efforts to bring its capabilities up to and beyond the level of dual-mode guidance kits like Israel’s Spice and Raytheon’s Enhanced Paveway, and the contracts issued under the JDAM program since its inception.[updated]

The Larks, Still Bravely Singing, Fly… Elbit’s Skylark UAVs

Elbit’s Skylark-I mini-UAV has become a popular choice for portable “over the hill” surveillance, as nations like Israel, Australia, Canada, France, Mexico, Poland, Sweden, et. al. adopt it for battlefield use. Bental’s electric propulsion system using brushless permanent magnetic motors is an especial benefit to Skylark operators, as its silent operation avoids warning enemy targets of its presence.

In an effort to build on that success, Elbit soon introduced the larger Skylark-II for battalion level UAV operations, fired from a rail launcher mounted on small wheeled vehicles rather than launched by hand. In exchange for the launcher requirement and a doubling of the crew size to 2, the Skylark-II gains a mission radius of 50-60 km instead of 10 km, and the ability to mount larger sensor packages. Awards soon followed from sources as varied as Popular Science and industry analysts Frost & Sullivan – but awards don’t pay the bills. Fortunately, orders have followed.