Americas
Elbit America won a $10 million order deal with no options for the procurement of integrated avionics processors in support of the V-22 aircraft. Work will be performed in Haifa, Israel; and Fort Worth, Texas. Work is expected to be completed by December 2024. Annual working capital funds (Navy) in the full amount of $10,527,580 will be obligated at the time of award, and funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The V-22 is a military aircraft that can take off and land vertically like a helicopter, but fly forward like a fixed-wing plane. It’s primarily used by the United States Marine Corps and United States Air Force for troop and cargo transport, as well as search and rescue missions.
Raytheon/Lockheed Martin Javelin JV won a $1 billion deal or the Javelin Weapon System and associated support equipment. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 2, 2027. US Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity
Middle East & Africa
Israeli forces reportedly deployed explosive-laden drones during a counter-terrorism operation in the West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday morning. An Israeli security team comprising members of the Israel Defense Forces, the Israel Police, and the Shin Bet sent a combat drone inside a house where suspected Hamas gunmen were hiding, The Jerusalem Post said. Four people were killed in the operation, including two suspected Hamas members accused of killing an Israeli-British mother and her two daughters in Israel last month.
Europe
Ukraine said Saturday that it had for the first time downed a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile during a wave of Russian attacks in the night between last Wednesday and Thursday. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who unveiled the Kinzhal missile in 2018, has termed it “an ideal weapon” that is extremely difficult for missile defenses to intercept. “I congratulate the Ukrainian people on the historic event,” General Mykola Oleshchuk said on Telegram. “Yes, we shot down the ‘unparallelled’ Kinzhal” missile.
The United Kingdom has begun flight crew training on the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) MQ-9B Protector RG1 medium-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The first cohort of Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots, sensor operators (SOs), and mission intelligence co-ordinators (MICs) have begun training on the type at GA-ASI’s Flight Test and Training Center (FTTC) in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Asia-Pacific
The Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense (MND) has announced that it will receive indigenously-developed Sky Sword II mobile missile launchers beginning next week. The move is part of the country’s $771.6 million Sea and Air Combat Capability Enhancement Plan to build various missiles, launchers, and military facilities.
Today’s Video
WATCH: The Insane Engineering of the Javelin
