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23 Feb 09. Forecast International’s 2009 “The Market for U.S. Defense Electronics” forecasts that this market that will be worth at least $59.512bn from 2009-2018. On an annualized basis, the market shows a steady decline over the next 10 years, from a high of $8.484bn in 2009 to $4.945bn in 2018. This represents a 10-year drop of approximately $3.538bn, or 41.707 percent from the market high. “As America, and most of the world, continues in an economic tsunami of a recession, fears will remain high and stock markets low. Fortunately, one safe haven, for the time being, will be the defense market, with defense electronics being particular healthy,” said author of the report Richard Sterk, Senior Analyst at Forecast International. “If the U.S. government is going to fund projects to stimulate the economy, investing defense is the way to go and upgrading electronics (technology) is always money well spent. Leading the market will likely be Small ticket items (relatively speaking), such as electro-optical (EO) night vision and thermo imaging weapon sights, have leaped into production owing to a proven edge on the battlefield. Likewise, other EO sensors have seen a surge in procurement. “Also being pushed for development and production are systems designed for use in network-centric warfare – systems that connect as many information systems together as possible to allow maximum flow of infor-mation to soldiers in the field,” said Sterk. The top five defense electronics companies in the U.S. continue to draw from the upper echelons of corporate America. As determined by the sampling within this study, the top five are Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, ITT, and General Dynamics. “Of course, the largest impact on spending in the near future will to be the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, as overall levels of defense spending will gradually decrease as violence declines and the pace of operations winds down, Sterk said adding “It must also be remembered that the military will still require significant recapitalization funds to replace lost or damaged equipment even after combat troops are withdrawn.”
26 Feb 09. The U.S. Army’s newest Field Manual (FM) 3-36, Electronic Warfare in Operations, was publicly released at the Association of the United States Army’s Winter Symposium and Exposition, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Feb. 26. This is the first new Army Electronic Warfare (EW) doctrinal publication in more than a decade. It has been developed and published in concert with an overall effort by the Army to rebuild its internal Electronic Warfare capability. FM 3-36 will provide the Army the doctrinal foundation required to support current and future joint and multinational operations, and further development and integration of EW using the Doctrine, Organization, Training, Material, Leadership and Education, Personnel and Facilities (DOTMLPF) process. It provides Army doctrine for EW support of full-spectrum operations; the organizational structure for planning, coordinating, synchronizing and executing EW operations; the relationship of EW with the Army information tasks and Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (EMSO). It will also provide applicable new terms, definitions and principles. FM 3-36 is organized into seven chapters and six appendices. Each chapter addresses a major aspect of Army EW operations. The appendices address aspects of EW operations that complement the operational doctrine. An annotated glossary contains selected terms. The appendices provide greater depth to several areas discussed in the FM, such as the electromagnetic environment, current capabilities, and tools and resources that EW personnel can leverage in their efforts to support the Army. FM 3-36 provides guidance on EW operations for commanders at all echelons and is the authoritative reference for Army personnel involved in the development of doctrine (fundamental principles and tactics, techniques and procedures), mat