25 Oct 10. VT Miltope, a company of VT Systems, Inc. (VT Systems), today announced a new family of ruggedized computer products that represent the next generation of mission critical rugged computers, HARD WEAR™ for demanding military environments. The company’s launch of its newest rugged family, which includes clamshell laptops, convertible laptops, handhelds, and mounted computers, solidifies VT Miltope’s position as a leading provider of rugged computers that meet the difficult real-world mission requirements our military faces daily. VT Miltope now has a full spectrum of ruggedized mobile computing solutions and form factors that meet the growing mission and application needs of today’s military. In garrison or in the field, the company’s HARD WEAR™ sets a new standard for military rugged computers.
“Our military is on the forefront of technological development, and one of our biggest challenges is in the management of critical information. VT Miltope developed a new family of HARD WEAR™ computers to provide robust and rugged computing platforms to meet those challenges. The VT Miltope name continues to be synonymous with ultra-rugged military computers. For over 30 years, the company has earned its reputation as the premier supplier of rugged computers for military programs. They are designed and built tough, inside and out, to support our soldiers in the most challenging environmental conditions imaginable.”
22 Oct 10. BAE Systems unveiled the Boldstroke(tm) directable infrared countermeasures suite, an integrated aircraft survivability system designed to protect aircraft from infrared-guided missiles and other evolving threats. The Boldstroke DIRCM was publicly displayed for the first time during the Association of the United States Army Annual Meeting & Symposium in Washington, D.C. October 25 – 27. The Boldstroke DIRCM, backed by BAE Systems’ capability for end-to-end multispectral testing, is the next step in the evolution of aircraft survivability equipment. Boldstroke is a modular, lightweight, highly reliable, and low-cost directable infrared countermeasure suite. It uses modular open-system architecture and non-proprietary standard interfaces that support interchangeability and technology insertion. The Boldstroke DIRCM allows for direct and fiber coupling between the laser and pointer/tracker, providing installation flexibility to meet the size, weight, and power requirements of both light and heavy rotary-wing platforms. The Boldstroke DIRCM is fully compatible with BAE Systems’ field-proven Common Missile Warning System and consists of flight-proven hardware and algorithms ready for low-risk transition to operational testing. Its compact pointer/tracker is based on a flight-tested gimbal design and advances laser technology to provide spectral diversity and power margin to address emerging threats. The system reduces A-Kit and B-Kit weight to maximize aircraft useful payload and increases weapon system availability, providing significant life-cycle cost savings. (Source: ASD Network)
27 Oct 10. AgustaWestland North America has confirmed its intention to offer helicopters from its civil range for two fledging Department of Defense rotorcraft programmes. The company is pushing two aircraft produced at its Philadelphia facility – the AW139 and the AW119 Ke – for the requirements, claiming they could be produced quickly and at low-risk. Speaking at the AUSA Annual Meeting in Washington, DC, on 27 October, AgustaWestland vice president of strategy Dan Hill said such an adoption of civil airframes for military use would help the Pentagon refresh its rotorcraft fleet at a much lower risk.
‘Rather than just buying more of what we already have, we should be looking to replace these older aircraft now. I don’t know if the situation at the moment offers the best value for the American taxpayer or for that matter the warfighter who deserve new technology that has been introduced at low risk,’ Hill said. He co