Americas
Huntington Ingalls (HII) is being contracted to support two of the US Navy’s Ticonderoga-class cruisers. The cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification is priced at $10.7 million and provides for material purchases and management for the USS Chosin and USS Vicksburg. HII will provide a number of efforts including engineering, technical, planning, ship configuration, data, and logistics work. These efforts cover lifetime support of both maintenance and modernization. The Ticonderoga Class remains critical to American seapower, functioning as anti-air defense platform, and contributing substantial anti-ship and anti-submarine combat power to its assigned naval groups. Work will be performed at HII’s shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and is expected to be complete by August 2019.
Flight Global reports that the US Marine Corps intends to replace two of its ageing C-9B Skytrain executive transports with two Boeing C-40 aircraft. Supported by the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), the USMC is currently conducting a market survey to identify a potential business that could procure and deliver the aircraft. NAVAIR says it is open to considering a second-hand aircraft, however the it is more likely that the service will turn to Boeing, the aircraft’s sole manufacturer. The 737 based C-40 Clipper comes in 3 variants; the C-40A is a Navy aircraft, while its counterpart C-40C and executive/VIP C-40Bs are USAF planes. The C-40A is modified with a large cargo door, and the strengthened wings and landing gear of the 737-800. The aircraft is certified to operate in three configurations: an all-passenger configuration that can accommodate 121 passengers, an all-cargo configuration of eight cargo pallets, or a combination of three pallets and 70 passengers. The Clipper has a range of 3,400 nautical miles with 5,000 pounds of cargo, and can carry up to 40,000 pounds.
Middle East & Africa
The Egyptian Navy inks a five-year in-service support agreement with France’s Naval Group. Managed by a company subsidiary work will be performed in the port of Alexandria and covers a number of vessels. “This milestone marks a new step in the long-term strategic partnership between Naval Group and the Egyptian Navy. Naval Group is proud to serve the Egyptian Navy,” Naval Group said. The Egyptian Navy took delivery of the second out of four Naval Group produced Gowind-corvettes in September 2018; the navy’s other Naval Group vessel, the FREMM multi-mission frigate Tahya Misr was delivered in 2015. In June 2016, Naval Group delivered two Mistral-class Landing Helicopter Dock vessels to the Egyptian Navy.
Europe
Sweden’s Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) is contracting Saab to deliver Giraffe 4A multi-function radars and maintain the military’s Arthur artillery locating system. The Giraffe 4A digital multi-channel system features an active electronically scanned array (AESA) technology based on gallium nitride (GaN). The system can be used for air surveillance and air defense as well as warning and artillery locating tasks. “Our ground-based radar Giraffe 4A strengthens our customers’ capability to detect incoming threats including tactical ballistic missiles. Tensions around us are increasing and the system gives our customers a world-class multi-function capability that helps to protect their interests”, says Anders Carp, Head of Saab’s business area Surveillance. Arthur is a stand alone medium-range passive phased array C-band radar that detects incoming shells and rockets, and determines where they were fired from before the shells can even land. The system can reportedly detect a mortar bomb at 55 km, shells at 31 km rockets at 50 – 60 km, locating targets at a rate of 100 per minute. It has been sold to several countries, including South Korea and the United Kingdom.
The Dutch Armed Forces are procuring a number of next-generation container systems from the Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group. The Cambridge headquartered company will provide more than 1400 container systems over the next five years under this $127 million deal. The production order includes command and control shelters, workshops, controlled atmosphere and basic stores units, together with a 14-year fully integrated availability support package, including a full availability-based fleet management package. Alistair McPhee, chief executive of Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, told Business Weekly: “Winning this contract is a major milestone in the strategic development of our Land Systems business and emphasises our capability to manage major programmes which benefits not only Marshall but local suppliers. “During both the implementation and support phases of this contract we will be working closely with Dutch industry not only as part of the supply chain but also as part of the development of our business across Europe.” Marshall “specialises in providing deployable infrastructure or shelters, vehicle systems and support services to military forces worldwide”. Army Technology notes that more than 6,000 shelters in more than 200 configurations are in currently in service.
The Franco-German training academy (EFA) in Le Cannet-des-Maures in South-East France is now equipped with a fully upgraded Eurocopter Tiger simulation system. The system has been configured to train aircrews of France’s Tiger HAD combat support variant and Germany’s UHT Step 2 anti-tank and fire support variant. Work is being done as part of the Tiger Aircrew Training Means (TATM) program that started in December 2014. Performed by Thales and Rheinmetall, upgrade work included new cockpit configurations, displays and avionics for both variants and new weapons systems for the HAD version. Awarded by the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation, the program also includes a support package for all 20 simulators in service until 2025.
Asia-Pacific
Two US Marine aircraft crashed into the sea off the coast of Japan during a nightime air-to-air refueling exercise on Thursday. The incident involved an F/A-18 fighter jet and a KC-130 tanker aircraft. CNN was told that five crew were on board the KC-130 and two on the F/A-18 at the time of the crash. The ‘mishap’, as the US Marine Corps describes it, happened some 200 miles of the coast as the aircraft flew through adverse weather conditions. Two Marines were rescued. One is in “fair condition”, while the other “is being transported to a local hospital for evaluation”, Corps’ officials told the BBC. F/A-18 Super Hornets are designed for both air-superiority and land attack missions, and can carry a variety of ordnance ranging from air-to-air missiles and precision-guided bombs to standoff munitions. The US Marines fly smaller, earlier-generation F/A-18 C/D Hornets that are no longer in production. The KC-130J is a multi-role, medium-sized fixed-wing aerial refueling aircraft manufactured by Lockheed Martin, it essentially is a very advanced derivative of the standard C-130J.
Today’s Video
Watch: Royal Navy and RAF locked in dogfight over new jets | Sky News
