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Daily Rapid Fire

Israel Orders $450M in Munitions from IMI Sys | Gen Atom Gets $56M to Provide Reapers to Spain | Saab Sells $236M for AEWC to Undisclosed Buyer

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Americas * While the starting gun has been fired on the USAF T-X trainer competition, Textron AirLand has yet to decide whether they will enter the race. In an email to the Kansas Star, the company stated that they do not “have a decision to share at this time,” when asked if they would respond […]
Americas

* While the starting gun has been fired on the USAF T-X trainer competition, Textron AirLand has yet to decide whether they will enter the race. In an email to the Kansas Star, the company stated that they do not “have a decision to share at this time,” when asked if they would respond to the USAF’s request for proposals for a new trainer aircraft. Textron announced the successful maiden flight of their first production-conforming Scorpion tactical jet last month, indicating that it may be submitted as the potential replacement for the USAF’s current trainer fleet of T-38 Talon jets.

* A C-130 transport aircraft operated by the Argentine Air Force has been upgraded by state-owned aircraft manufacturer Fábrica Argentina de Aviones SA (FAdeA). The overhaul is part of a five aircraft modernization program, the first of which was completed by L-3 Communications last April. FAdeA will continue to upgrade the remaining three C-130s, with work slated to be carried out between now and 2019. Argentina plans to add 20 years of service life for all five of their C-130 aircraft.

Middle East & North Africa

* Israel’s Defense Ministry has signed a $450 million 7-year order with IMI Systems for the supply of munitions for infantry and armor units. The deal will commence in 2017 and run through to 2025, averaging annual orders at around $65 million. Announcing the deal, the MoD said the multi-year deal would enable the IDF to complete the resupply of stocks expended in the 2014 Gaza war and support Ground Force live-fire training for the coming decade.

Europe

* General Atomics has been contracted by the US government to provide MQ-9 Reaper UAVs to Spain. The $56 million is an adjustment to an existing basic ordering agreement between Washington and Madrid and work is expected to be complete by January 31, 2019. Last February, Spain ordered four aircraft and associated control stations from General Atomics, in what the company says represents one complete Reaper system. The total value of Spain’s Reaper package, along with associated support and equipment, could reach as much as $243 million.

* An unnamed buyer has ordered services and support for their Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEWC) platform from Saab. The company has kept quiet on particular details of the sale, barring that the order is worth $236 million and deliveries will be made from 2019 through to 2021. AEWC technologies allow aircraft to support military intelligence gathering and reconnaissance operations, and can be used to bolster border security or conduct search-and-rescue missions.

* BAE Systems will test and verify the Iron Fist active protection system (APS) on Dutch CV90 Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFV). The Israeli-made radar has the ability to detect, track and intercept incoming rocket-propelled grenades and anti-tank missiles among other threats to the vehicle and its crew. Once the system is integrated by BAE, the Netherlands’ Defence Ministry will decide on whether the systems will be rolled out in full, making it the first NATO country with an APS “of its kind” on combat vehicles.

Asia Pacific

* It’s been reported that a deal is close to being struck for the establishment of a logistic hub in India, providing crucial Su-30 spare parts to the Indian Air Force instead of having them imported from Russia. The agreement, scheduled to be signed in March, will also allow some of the components to be manufactured in India. It is also expected that once the hub is functioning, operational readiness of the IAF Su-30MKI fleet will rise above the current rate of 63 percent.

* Elbit Systems will supply two unknown customers in the Asia/Pacific region with airborne laser designators. Valued at $35 million, the agreement involves two separate contracts to be delivered over a three-year period. The targeting systems being produced are designed to provide operators with precise target designation.

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IMI’s Iron Fist APS:

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