Americas
Raytheon Missile won a $109.6 million contract modification for MK 15 Close-In Weapon System upgrades and conversions, system overhauls and associated hardware. MK 15 Phalanx CIWS provides ships of the US Navy with an inner layer point defense capability against anti-ship missiles, aircraft and littoral warfare threats that have penetrated other fleet defenses. Phalanx automatically detects, evaluates, tracks, engages and performs kill assessment against ASM and high speed aircraft threats. The current Phalanx variant adds the ability to counter asymmetric warfare threats through the addition of an integrated, stabilized, Electro Optic sensor. Work will take place Kentucky, Arizona, California, Florida, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Arizona, Missouri, Utah, Texas. Estimated completion will be by October 2023.
The US Marine Corps has indicated that besides the Naval Strike Missile, the service intends to field the Maritime Strike Tomahawk missile for anti-ship role as well. It could be mounted on the same unmanned Joint Light Tactical Vehicle that the Marines is using for the Naval Strike Missile, Marine Corps Deputy Commandant for Combat Development and Integration Lt. Gen. Eric Smith told lawmakers. In December the Marines shot a “slug” or inert round off the top of a JLTV to prove the missile could launch in that manner, and the test was successful. This effort is similar to work that was done with Lockheed’s Hellfire air-to-surface missile when the Navy wanted to put it on LCSs – the missile’s effectiveness was already proven, but testing needed to confirm that it could get going from a vertical launch off a ship deck instead of a horizontal launch from under an aircraft in flight.
Middle East & Africa
The US Army awarded Raytheon a $551 million contract to begin production of the Patriot air and missile defense system for the Kingdom of Bahrain. The contract was awarded on January 31, 2020. “Raytheon’s Patriot provides the Kingdom of Bahrain and 16 other countries around the globe with a combat-proven system that protects citizens, infrastructure and armed forces from a broad spectrum of threats,” said Tom Laliberty, vice president of Integrated Air and Missile Defense at Raytheon’s Integrated Defense Systems business. “Patriot works, has saved countless lives, and will continue to do so for many years because the system is constantly tested, modernized, upgraded and improved to stay ahead of the advancing threat.” In August 2019, Bahrain signed a letter of offer and acceptance agreement to purchase Patriot air and missile defense systems from the US Army. The agreement allowed the US Government to start contract negotiations with the Patriot system manufacturer Raytheon for the production of the systems and missiles.
Europe
As part of NATO’s latest historic ordnance disposal operations, Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group One (SNMCMG1) has mapped 35 underwater mines and 3 aircraft bombs in the seabed of Norway’s Oslofjord. The operations were conducted with support from the Royal Norwegian Mine Warfare Datacenter, who embarked aboard the German flagship FGS Donau during the operations. During the recent years the RNoN Mine Warfare Datacenter have studied historical publications and logbooks, and have traced the actual amounts of mines used, and the precise position where they were dropped in the Oslofjord. Historic ordnance disposal operation ran between Feb. 24 and 4 March. The operation identified 170 underwater objects in total, after which these were examined more closely by underwater remote controlled vehicles or divers.
Asia-Pacific
Len Industri and Thales have signed a contract to completely upgrade the mission system of the Indonesian Navy’s KRI Usman-Harun multi-role light frigate. For the last 40 years, Thales has been supplying combat systems for all ships in service for the Indonesian Navy. Len Industri is serving as the systems integrator for the frigate’s Mid Life Modernization (MLM) program. The upgrade is expected to be completed by the end of 2023 and will extend the life of the KRI Usman-Harun frigate, which has more than 15 years of service under its belt. Under the contract, Len Industri and Thales will install the TACTICOS Combat Management System, the SMART-S Mk2 air and surface surveillance radar on the frigate. The companies will also install the STIR EO Mk2 radar and EO fire control system, as well as the Vigile Mk2 tactical multi-purpose R-ESM system.
Japan has secured its first export of military surveillance radars with a contract from the Philippines. Mitsubishi Electric Corp. was awarded the contract to supply three fixed and one mobile radar systems worth $103 million. The company has offered its J/FPS-3 radar for the bid. Delivery is expected to start next year. Officials said that this marked the first time that Japan has secured a contract to export military hardware, a few years after it lifted decades of self-imposed ban on arms exports in 2014. The equipment would bolster the country’s airspace radar coverage amid continuing external security challenges including China’s expansion in the West Philippine Sea.
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