Rapid Fire June 18, 2013: US Leaves UAV Export Opportunities for China to Pursue

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* The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission lists [PDF] reported Chinese UAV projects, and predicts that the USA’s own policies will give China the export opening they need. China may not be ready immediately, but note that the Saudis are already looking elsewhere, and the UAE isn’t likely to be content with unarmed Predator XPs for long. * US Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK, Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee) thinks the Administration’s pursuit of biofuels “defies comprehension” in a context of decreasing defense spending and booming US fossil fuel production. His colleagues from the House are also targeting renewable energy funding at the Department of Energy. * Researchers from Sandia National Laboratories have been working on developing fertilizer that can’t be mixed into explosives, but real-world tests so far don’t seem conclusive. * The US Army is starting to field ground satellite terminals called the Secure Internet Protocol Router/Non-secure Internet Protocol Router Access Point 1.2-meter Lite (SNAP Lite), whose smaller size makes them easier to transport and faster to deploy. * A 2nd iteration of the Hot Weather Mountain Combat Boot (HWMCB) should bring US soldiers more breathability just in time for their withdrawal from Afghanistan. * Political […]

* The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission lists [PDF] reported Chinese UAV projects, and predicts that the USA’s own policies will give China the export opening they need. China may not be ready immediately, but note that the Saudis are already looking elsewhere, and the UAE isn’t likely to be content with unarmed Predator XPs for long.

* US Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK, Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee) thinks the Administration’s pursuit of biofuels “defies comprehension” in a context of decreasing defense spending and booming US fossil fuel production. His colleagues from the House are also targeting renewable energy funding at the Department of Energy.

* Researchers from Sandia National Laboratories have been working on developing fertilizer that can’t be mixed into explosives, but real-world tests so far don’t seem conclusive.

* The US Army is starting to field ground satellite terminals called the Secure Internet Protocol Router/Non-secure Internet Protocol Router Access Point 1.2-meter Lite (SNAP Lite), whose smaller size makes them easier to transport and faster to deploy.

* A 2nd iteration of the Hot Weather Mountain Combat Boot (HWMCB) should bring US soldiers more breathability just in time for their withdrawal from Afghanistan.

* Political fallout from the NSA’s population surveillance programs is making waves in Canada, whose CSEC works very closely with the NSA. New telecom player Wind Mobile is touting its secure network in response, but its own corporate deal is stalled by the Canadian government over security concerns about Russian ownership, and core network infrastructure provided by China’s Huawei. “Let someone else’s spies eavesdrop on you for a change”… might actually be a winning marketing campaign.

* India’s government may want to favor its local arms manufacturers, but its Delhi High Court at least stated in a recent ruling [PDF] that foreign manufacturers benefit from equal constitutional rights:

“The Ministry of Defence (MoD) should have been pleased on May 29, when the high court here dismissed a petition filed by Israel Military Industries (IMI) against the MoD’s blacklisting of the Israeli arms vendor and the cancellation of a Rs 1,060-crore contract for artillery ammunition explosives.

Paradoxically, the MoD is considering challenging that judgment, which has potentially opened the doors for legal challenges by foreign arms vendors against MoD procurement decisions. Even while rejecting IMI’s petition, the court has effectively granted foreign vendors the constitutional right to be treated equally with Indian firms.”

* MBDA’s Concept Visions introduces Hoplite, a 140+ km ramjet-powered precision strike missile that can be containerized for deployment on land, or quad-packed in a VLS cell at sea.

* AviationWeek’s video below reviews military programs presented in Le Bourget this year, and concludes that the tradeshow is going to be dominated by civil contracts:

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