Airbus Tapped For Lakota Logistics Support | Epsilor To Launch Li-Ion NATO 6T Battery | New Zealand To Train Ukrainian Soldiers

Americas

Airbus US Space & Defense won a $14.3 million deal for UH-72 Lakota helicopter contractor logistics support and engineering services. The UH-72 Lakota is the US Army’s multi-mission helicopter, which acts as the key platform for the US Army, Navy and National Guard in their mission of protecting and serving communities across America. It combines operational capability, reliability and affordability, fulfilling all the Army’s requirements for speed, range, endurance and overall performance. Work will take place in Texas. Estimated completion date is December 31, 2026.

The US Navy’s Airborne Command & Control and Logistics Wing (ACCLOGWING) achieved a new milestone on May 6 when it was able to generate 23 Fully Mission Capable (FMC) E-2Ds, surpassing a record of 22 aircraft set in April 29, 2022. “Attaining 23 FMC, above our target of 22, is a huge accomplishment not only for our community but for Naval Aviation,” said Capt. Chris “Mullet” Hulitt, ACCLOGWING commodore. “We’re embracing the Chief of Naval Operations’ ‘Get Real, Get Better’ guidance to take hard, honest looks at our efforts to make sure we have the right plan. We achieved this through unwavering determination and superb teamwork across an entire team of teams in the NAE.”

Middle East & Africa

Epsilor, an Israeli developer and manufacturer of mobile energy products for defense and aerospace applications, will reveal its NATO 6T Li-Ion rechargeable battery in a metal-case that meets the safety requirements of MIL-PRF-32565C (the US Army Performance Specification) at  Eurostory 2022 show, which will take place on mid-June in Paris. Epsilor’s 6T battery is equipped with a smart Battery Management System (BMS) with self-charging and self-balancing.

Europe

Two French Air Force Rafale fighters had a mid-air collision during an airshow demonstration on May 22. Both jets landed safely and one piece of the debris landed in the town of Gensac-la-Pallue. Photos online showed that the jet damaged was a Rafale in black livery that recently participated in NATO Tigers Meet. The aircraft from EC 3/30 had won an award for the best painted aircraft. EC 3/30 had also won the Silver Tiger award at the exercise in Greece.

Asia-Pacific

Subaru has flown the first production UH-2 helicopter at Utsunomiya Air Field on May 20. The helicopter, based on the Bell 412EPX, is ordered by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force. The pilot flew the aircraft for 30 minutes during the flight.

According to news reports, New Zealand’s government unveiled plans to train a small number of Ukrainian soldiers in using field artillery guns, deepening the country’s involvement in a conflict on the other side of the world. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said her cabinet agreed to deploy up to 30 members of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) to Britain to train Ukrainian forces in the use of L119 105mm howitzers. The deployment will run until the end of July and Chief of Defense Force Air Marshal Kevin Short said his personnel expected about 230 Ukrainian soldiers to be trained.

Today’s Video

WATCH: UH-72B Lakota : The next generation helicopter of U.S. Army

UH-72 Lakota Light Helicopter Lands Airbus in US Defense Market

DID’s FOCUS articles offer in-depth, updated looks at significant military programs of record. This is DID’s FOCUS Article regarding the US Army’s Light Utility Helicopter program, covering the program and its objectives, the winning bid team and industrial arrangements, and contracts.

The US Army’s LUH program will finish as a 325 helicopter acquisition program that will be worth about $2.3 billion when all is said and done. It aimed to replace existing UH-1 Hueys and OH-58 Kiowa utility variants in non-combat roles, freeing up larger and more expensive UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters for front-line duty. In June 2006, a variant of Eurocopter’s EC145 beat AgustaWestland’s AB139, Bell-Textron’s 412EP Twin Huey, and MD Helicopters’ 902 Explorer NOTAR (No Tail Rotor) design. The win marked EADS’ 1st serious military win in the American market, and their “UH-145” became the “UH-72A Lakota” at an official December 2006 naming ceremony.

Eurocopter has continued to field new mission kits and deliver helicopters from its Mississippi production line, while trying to build on their LUH breakthrough. A training helicopter win will keep the line going for a couple more years…

France’s Rafale

Will Dassault’s fighter become a fashionably late fighter platform that builds on its parent company’s past successes – or just “the late Rafale”? It all began as a 1985 break-away from the multinational consortium that went on to create EADS’ Eurofighter. The French needed a lighter aircraft that was suitable for carrier use, and were reportedly unwilling to cede design authority over the project. As is so often true of French defense procurement policy, the choice came down to paying additional costs for full independence and exact needs, or losing key industrial capabilities by partnering or buying abroad. France has generally opted for expensive but independent defense choices, and the Rafale was no exception.

Those costs, and associated delays triggered by the end of the Cold War and reduced funding, proved to be very costly indeed. Unlike previous French fighters, which relied on exports to lower their costs and keep production lines humming, the Rafale has yet to secure a single export contract – in part because initial versions were hampered by impaired capabilities in key roles. The Rafale may, at last, be ready to be what its vendors say: a true omnirole aircraft, ready for prime time on the global export stage. The question is whether it’s too late. Rivals like EADS’ Eurofighter, Russia’s Su-27/30 family, and the American “teen series” of F-15/16/18 variants are all well established. Meanwhile, Saab’s versatile and cheaper JAS-39 Gripen remains a stubborn foe in key export competitions, and the multinational F-35 juggernaut is bearing down on it.