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16 Mar 24. The British Army will opt for the 120mm mortar over the 81mm, and use cheaper rockets over Brimstone missiles.
The British Army has decided to reorganise its deployment of mortars and missiles in an effort to bring more mortar firepower to the battlefield, while also remaining concious of costs per missile.
Firstly, the Army will replace many of its existing L16 81-millimetre (mm) mortars with a new 120mm system, which will provide greater firepower.
L16 mortars are battlegroup-level indirect fire weapon systems that are capable of providing accurate high explosive, smoke and illuminating rounds out to a maximum range of 5.6 kilometres (km).
Mortar platoons are mounted in and fire from armoured personnel carriers, increasing mobility and enabling rapid disengagement and movement to new fire positions.
While it is not yet known what type of 120mm mortar systems the Army will deploy, the average maximum range of this heavy calibre can reach up to 7.2km to 9.5km. The 120mm has become a common standard across Nato, but until now the UK had been the only major Western Army in which it was not in use.
Interoperability with allies and partners has become a cardinal rule for Nato members today. For that reason, the British Army’s decision to make the change is to align more closely with allied troops.
However, it should be noted that the only force to continue using the existing L16 will be with the Royal Commandos, for whom the system is more readily deployable – troops can even jump out of a plane with the system.
Secondly, the Army will also start using cheaper 70mm rockets over the more costly Brimstone anti-armour missiles.
The UK’s Project Wolfram, a little-known programme to develop a next-generation mobile anti-armour capability utilising the Brimstone missile, could be set to begin live fire tests as early as Q2 2024, in the latest step to provide the British Army with a battlefield-shaping weapon.
Brimstone itself is a ‘one missile multiple platform’ system that can be used against platforms ranging from fast jet, attack helicopters, remotely piloted air systems, to land and maritime platforms, using the same missile. The lightweight strike missile has a length of 1.8m, a diameter of 180mm and weighs 50kg.
At the end of February, the UK sent 200 Brimstone anti-tank missiles to Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
These changes follow efforts to reform the UK’s procurement process at the end of February, whereby the Minister for Defence Procurement James Cartlidge pushed for the spiral development of systems.
“Rather than striving for perfection before delivering to the frontline, capabilities at 60-80% of their full potential will be provided to the user, allowing early application, and subsequent improvements to reach their full potential.”
Essentially, this plan eases the stress on UK industry to supply much-needed military systems at pace at the cost of buying bespoke alterations, instead the Government has opted for systems off-the-shelf.
As part of these efforts to sustain existing military systems, the British Army’s changes similarly point to the fact that the procurement of new, bespoke systems is not necessarily the solution to force modernisation and readiness.
This an issue that the Hungarian Government are struggling with as they seek to balance their policy of faster procurement and forming a clearer doctrine for its force structure.
(Source: army-technology.com)
17 Mar 24. RoK To ‘Junk’ US SM-2 Missiles; Will Go Indigenous For Next-Gen KDDX Destroyers To Check North.
Amid North Korean missile and drone threats, South Korea is developing an indigenous ship-based air defense system for its upcoming home-built Korean Destroyer Next Generation (KDDX). The missile is also envisaged to replace the US-origin Standard Missile-2 (SM-2) that South Korea uses.
The country’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced signing a $249 million deal with South Korean defense and aerospace major LIG Nex1. Seoul plans to have 90 percent of the missile’s components be indigenous.
However, reports said the new missile is largely an analog of the SM-2.
Home-Built, Mass-Produced System Before North Korean Swarms
This techno-industrial goal can also be inferred to have a tactical reason for retaining the capability to mass manufacture the missile and replenish stocks in the event of a prolonged war with North Korea.
That lesson, too, stems from the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, where both Kyiv and Tel Aviv rapidly deplete their surface-to-air missiles (SAM) to Russia’s Geran-2 drones or Hamas’s cheap rockets.
Ukraine’s US and European-made Patriot PAC-3, Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile (NASAMS), IRIST-T, or the SAMP/T have come from America’s, Germany’s, and France’s armories. Ukraine, too, had flagged this issue before NATO, calling for a steady supply of anti-air missiles.
New Missile For New Warship
The KDDX itself is a “locally developed combat system equipped with locally produced guided weapons,” being a “smaller Korean version of the US Aegis destroyer.” The planned “naval surface-to-air missile-II is an innovative weapon system (that is expected) to boast precision guidance and search capabilities,” reported PulseNews.
Graphic illustration of South Korea’s Ship-to-Air Missile-II intercepting a North Korean anti-ship cruise missile and a fighter aircraft. Source: DAPA
“Replacing the US Standard Missile 2 currently in operation, the new surface-to-air missile is dubbed as type II due to its close operational objectives and concept to the SM-2 missile,” the report added.
LIG Nex1’s “extensive expertise in precision-guided weapons” explains its choice as the “prime contractor for the new surface-to-air missile system.” The project’s design and development phase will run “through 2030.”
DAPA “emphasized” that the military’s acquisition of an “upgraded air defense system against North Korean air threats will strengthen the independent capabilities of local defense enterprises in the research and development of precision-guided weapons.”
Missile’s Capabilities
An illustrated graphic of the Ship-to-Air Missile-II (SAM-II) operational concept shows the missile being flung in a ‘cold-launch’ mode from what can only be vertical launch silo (VLS) cells, with the booster falling off. Thus qualifying as a two-stage projectile, the missile is shown intercepting an incoming North Korean missile at a lower altitude while the latter is in a sea-skimming mode.
It also strikes a fighter-bomber, what appears to be a Russian-origin MiG-29.
Overhead satellites are depicted as linked to the missile, implying the SAM-II will receive guidance and course updates from space-based assets.
In December 2023, South Korea launched its first spy satellite on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from the Vandenberg US Space Force Base in California.
However, reports describe it as a “reconnaissance satellite” meant to “monitor nuclear-armed North Korea,” suggesting it might predominantly have optical systems and not high-bandwidth communication or Position Navigation Timing (PNT) transponders that can guide missiles.
The KDDX will also be equipped with a ballistic missile interception system. This involves adapting and developing the naval version of “L-SAM,” a long-range surface-to-air guided weapon, too “being developed with domestic technology.” “Thus, the KDDX will be equipped with new Korean versions of medium-range and long-range surface-to-air missiles capable of intercepting ballistic missiles,” said NavalNews.
Standard Missile-2 (SM-2)
The Raytheon-developed SM-2, meanwhile, is designed to shoot down aircraft and anti-ship missiles at a range of 167 km. It is also used by the Australian and Japanese navies. In December 2019, the State Department approved the sale of 94 SM-2s to South Korea for $314 million.
South Korea possibly uses the SM-2 Medium Range (MR) Block I (SM-2MR Block I), also known as the RIM-66 Standard MR. This is because the other SM-2 variant is the SM-2 Block IV (RIM-156A), used to intercept ballistic missiles in their terminal phase. This is a completely different category of threat, not the North Korean cruise missiles and jets that the new South Korean missile or the SM-2 are meant to tackle.
Developed in the 1970s, the SM-2MR introduced inertial and command mid-course guidance. The missile’s autopilot is programmed to fly the most efficient path to the target and can receive course corrections from the ground.
Target illumination for semi-active homing is needed only for a few seconds in the terminal phase of the interception. This capability enables the Aegis combat system and the New Threat Upgrade (NTU) equipped vessels to time share illumination radars, greatly increasing the number of targets that can be engaged at one time.
North Korean Missile Tests
On February 15, North Korea tested the Padasuri-6 “surface-to-sea missile.” “Multiple” missiles were fired that “hit their intended targets after flying over the East Sea (or Sea of Japan) for 1,400 seconds.” The missile, seen in an official photo by KCNA, exhibited sufficient sophistication in design and fundamental technical concepts.
North Korea’s Padasuri-6 anti-ship cruise missile during its launch on February 15. Source: KCNA
It showed a disposable booster stage in the tail-end, an underbelly intake, and a small module protruding under the chin. This could possibly come into play during the terminal stage while honing in on a target.
On February 2, it tested another unidentified series of “cruise” and “new land-to-air missiles” off its west coast in a “barrage of launches.” One official photo showed the missile taking off vertically and then hitting a land target on a coast while approaching it horizontally. It is not clear if the launch and target engagement/destruction photos belong to the same missile.
(Source: Google/https://www.eurasiantimes.com/)
15 Mar 24. Baykar integrating more weapons on Akinci. The Baykar Bayraktar Akıncı unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is carrying out firing trials with versions of the Roketsan MAM-L and MAM-T guided bombs that can be used against targets concealed by cloud cover, the UAV’s Turkish manufacturer announced on 15 March. Both the MAM-L, which is the standard munition for Baykar’s UAVs, and the MAM-T, a small glide bomb, usually use semi-active laser guidance, but the company said it was testing a MAM-L with a television (TV) seeker and a MAM-T with an imaging infrared (IIR) seeker. Baykar released a video showing two MAM-Ls being loaded on the inner and middle hardpoints on the left wing of an Akıncı at Baykar’s Çorlu facility, while the aircraft’s right wing was shown with two smaller MAM-C guided bombs on its outer hardpoint and a MAM-T on its middle hardpoint. The inner hardpoints on both sides were loaded with general-purpose bombs that appeared to be fitted with glide kits. (Source: Janes)
15 Mar 24. New Turkish MiLGEM frigate TCG Istanbul conducts VLS missile tests. The TCG Istanbul is the first of the i/istif-class frigates developed under the MiLGEM programme, with eight vessels of the design now on contract.
Recently commissioned into service with the Turkish Navy, the first of the Istanbul-class guided missile frigates, TCG Istanbul (F-515), has conducted its inaugural missile test firing from its MIDLAS vertical launch system (VLS).
Built by Turkish shipbuilder STM, the TCG Istanbul, having conducted sea acceptance tests, fired the HISAR-D RF missile which also saw put the ship’s ADVENT combat management system, developed by Havelsan, through its paces.
The landmark has been talked-up by Turkish officials as it has seen the firing of a Turkish missile – manufactured by Rocketsan) – from indigenously designed and sourced VLS and CMS systems.
The contract for the construction of the TCG Istanbul – the first ship in the MiLGEM i-class frigate project under Phase 2 of the MiLGEM Ada-class corvette programme – was signed in April 2019 between STM and Türkiye’s Defence Industry Agency (SSB). The vessel was launched in January 2021 and put to sea for the first time in June 2023 for trials.
The Istanbul class, also known as the istif or i-class frigates displace around 2,400 tonnes, around 30% more than the Ada-class corvettes, and slightly longer at 113m, compared to the Ada’s 100m.
According to manufacturer STM, Istanbul-class frigates are able to perform the full spectrum of naval combat operations, with anti-submarine, anti-surface, and anti-air warfare capabilities.
Indigenisation of defence equipment has been a key focus for the Istif-class, with TCG Istanbul featuring, as well as its VLS, CMS, and missile systems, Turkish-origin Cenk-S AESA radar and Gökdeniz Close-In Air Weapon System (CWIS) from Aselsan.
However, some marine equipment is being sourced from overseas suppliers, with General Electric Marine signing a deal in 2023 to supply its LM2500 gas turbines to be fitted into later vessels in the istif class.
A ceremony was held for the first sheet metal cutting of the three additional i-class frigates (TCG Izmir, TCG Icel, and TCG Izmit) took place in April 2023, in the presence of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The intention is to complete the construction of the three frigates within 36 months and to deliver them to the Turkish Navy, states STM, with the vessel’s to be built concurrently.
Türkiye’s MiLGEM frigate fleet renewal programme
Türkiye’s MiLGEM programme is overseeing the development of a series of surface warships classes for the Turkish Navy, with a contract signed in April 2023 for a further three i-class frigates to the same design of TCG Istanbul.
In January 2024, the Defence Industry Executive Committee (SSİK), decided to extend the MiLGEM project with the construction of four further i-class frigates (numbered 9–12), increasing the number to be built in programme to eight vessels.
Türkiye is also building a series of Ada-class corvettes for Pakistan, in a deal dating from 2018 at the early stages of the MiLGEM programme.
(Source: naval-technology.com)
15 Mar 24. ALTIUS-700M Hits All Targets in Successful Test of Largest Loitering Munition on the Market.
ALTIUS-700M brings unmatched payload capacity to the loitering munitions market, combining multi-domain launch, proven collaborative autonomy, and category-leading range with a larger, penetrating warhead to kill or disable armored targets and infrastructure. In September, Anduril Industries executed the first end-to-end live fire test for ALTIUS-700M at Dugway Proving Grounds, Utah, and demonstrated flawless system performance with direct hits across six missions.
The September event in Utah was the first opportunity for Anduril engineers to test the ALTIUS-700M with a live warhead. Following previous trials of subsystems and inert system testing, the system was integrated and fully-tested for the first time from launch to successful delivery of effects on target. Alongside Department of Defense partners, the ALTIUS-700M team successfully completed all test objectives and proved that the system was accurate and effective against the chosen target set.
About 700M
ALTIUS is a family of modular, highly-configurable, and multi-platform launched effects designed for expeditionary deployment by air, ground, or maritime forces for a variety of missions. ALTIUS can be configured to perform intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and targeting (ISR&T); communications relay; cyber warfare; or kinetic strike. With industry-leading loitering time, extended range, and modular and open hardware and software architectures, ALTIUS is a comprehensive family of launched effects designed to collaborate to enable simultaneous mission execution to achieve complex mission objectives. ALTIUS has demonstrated its category-leading performance across deployments ranging from hurricane data collection to the battlefields of Ukraine, as well as through a series of test events, demonstrations, and exercises.
ALTIUS-700M brings category-leading payload capacity to the loitering munitions market. With a munition payload capacity of up to 33 pounds – comparable to an AGM-114 Hellfire missile – 700M delivers highly-precise, devastating strikes on large and armored targets, including tanks, vehicles, vessels, and infrastructure. With significant payload mass, high terminal velocity, and optional delayed fuze payload configurations, 700M can easily penetrate target walls to deliver maximum effect on armored targets. ALTIUS-700M offers up to 100 miles of range and 75 minutes of flight time, providing warfighters with longer standoff distance and increased loitering time on-station to locate targets and deliver kinetic effects.
ALTIUS-700M builds on the success of the broader ALTIUS family of systems. ALTIUS-M (600M and 700m) leverage a mature common software baseline and open system architecture to integrate with a range of payloads and mission software suites. By combining advanced autonomy capabilities with a simplified user interface, a single operator is able to control multiple ALTIUS simultaneously, with each asset tasked with a unique mission based on its individual payload capability. 700M ensures that the operator maintains decisive control over tasking and terminal execution, delivering devastating effects at extreme ranges without the constraints of laser target designation or the repercussions of fire and forget.
Anduril has invested more than $60M into a new 180,000 square foot production facility in Atlanta, Georgia to scale manufacturing of ALTIUS. Anduril has already designed, manufactured, and delivered hundreds of ALTIUS variants to U.S. Government customers over the past six years.
With unmatched payload capacity, best-in-class range, and advanced autonomy to execute coordinated strikes, ALTIUS-700M is the most lethal tactical loitering munition available today.
(Source: ASD Network)
14 Mar 24. US Army Wants $120m for LASSO Kamikaze Drones in Fiscal 2025.
The US Army is asking lawmakers for $120.6m to procure Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) production systems in fiscal 2025 as the U.S. military moves to beef up its arsenal of loitering munitions.
LASSO is a new-start program for fiscal 2025 that’s part of the service’s vision for a family of low-altitude UAS that are “semi-autonomous (human-in-the-loop) unmanned aerial systems that improves the Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) lethality in terms of stand-off and destruction against dismounted formations, armored vehicles, and tanks,” according to newly released budget justification documents.
The goal of the project is to make infantry brigades as lethal as armored brigades, according to the Army.
Unlike traditional munitions, loitering munitions — also known as kamikaze drones or one-way attack UAS — can fly around until they identify a target. And unlike armed unmanned aerial systems that launch missiles, kamikaze drones destroy their target by crashing into it. They can be armed with a warhead to enhance their potency.
The Army describes the LASSO capability as a lightweight, man-portable weapon that can operate day or night. It includes all-up rounds with a launch-and-delivery system and payload.
It also comes with a fire control system that consists of the fire control unit, ground data link and terminal, and other ancillary equipment.
“LASSO can range less than or equal to 20km (straight line with auxiliary antenna) with a flight endurance that enables the Soldier to make multiple orbits within the IBCT typically assigned battlespace, to acquire and attack targets within and beyond current crew served and small arms fire. The range/endurance enables the unit to utilize reach back capability and maximize standoff … from enemy fires, significantly reducing risk to the Soldier,” according to budget justification documents.
“Unlike existing direct and indirect fire weapon systems, LASSO’s discreet payload and unique capability delivers Soldiers the ability to abort against targets in a dynamic situation (e.g., use of human shields) or prosecute targets that would have been deemed non-viable in past due to the higher collateral damage associated with alternative munitions,” officials wrote. “The LASSO base capability will be optimized to defeat tanks rapidly and precisely for IBCTs. Follow on increments will support future capabilities for company and below echelons. Future increments will focus on additional range increases, enhanced lethality, and advanced payload options (personnel, hard sites, etc.).”
The $121m that the Army is requesting would support the procurement of 54 fire control units, 434 all-up rounds and 144 reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition components.
The Army has picked AeroVironment’s Switchblade 600 for the first increment of LASSO. However, the service doesn’t intend for it to be a winner-take-all program for industry.
“We’re gonna have multiple variants and we’re gonna have competition. So, to meet the urgent need, we’ve gone sole source to a limited number of SB 600, which is a very good system. But there’s a lot of companies in this space with a lot of good tech. So, we want to have really continuous competition because different companies have things that fit different parts of the mission space better … This is one where I think it’d be unwise to pick one at the start and just say, ‘Nope, this is it. Nobody else gets anything. This one company is it.’ There’s too much competition in this space. We want to leverage that innovation,”
Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Doug Bush said in an interview with DefenseScoop at the Reagan National Defense Forum in December.
For loitering munitions with modular payloads, the Army would like to retain some flexibility on what those payloads are, based on the service’s needs, Bush said last week during a meeting with reporters to preview the fiscal 2025 budget request.
“We might be heavy one year in [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] and heavy the next year on strike,” he said.
The newly released budget justification documents did not include any additional funding for LASSO beyond fiscal 2025. (Source: UAS VISION/Defense Scoop)
13 Mar 24. IRIS-T SLM in process of entering IBCS network.
The arrangement will help to strengthen Europe’s defence market attractiveness as the IRIS-T SLM customer base continues to grow on the continent. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the German missile manufacturer, Diehl Defence, and the US prime, Northrop Grumman, to explore the possibility of bringing the IRIS-T SLM ground-based air defence system into the Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) network.
This has prompted a study to validate the common applications of the medium-range missile defence system with the multi-domain, sensor-effector network. In the case of a susccessful evaluation, the German Armed Forces will employ the integrated network, and possibly other European nations too.
IBCS was initially designed for the US Army as it connected various sensors and effectors that were never designed to work together into one command and control (C2) ‘system of systems’ platform where data is shared across the network.
This C2 platform enables the efficient and affordable integration of current and future systems, including assets deployed over IP-enabled networks, counter-uncrewed aerial systems (C-UAS), 4th and 5th generation aircraft, space-based sensors and more. It senses, identifies, tracks and defeats evolving air and missile threats, enabling multi-domain operations.
Buying European
The insertion of a German air defence system into the mix will support European efforts to indigenise EU defence industry systems. Longer term objectives were recently put forward to help boost Europe’s defence market attractiveness, with the aim of prompting Member States to spend 60% of their defence procurement budgets on European systems by 2035.
This longer-term approach to EU defence collaboration comes after a realisation that European militaries have become heavily reliant on US defence technology in recent years.
Poland alone is currently in the process of building a substantial American defence portfolio. According to GlobalData intelligence, the Central European nation is currently in the process of acquiring MIM-104F Patriot systems, F-35A Lightning II fighters, M142 HIMARS, M1A2 Abrams SEPv3 main battle tanks, AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, MQ-9 Reaper UAS, among others.
The Diehl-Northrop partnership comes just as the IRIS-T SLM has gained a growing customer base across the European continent. At the end of April 2023, the German Bundeswehr gave the system to Ukraine; the second of four systems to be donated to the country amid a costly war of attrition.
Likewise, Estonia and Latvia followed suit, with the two Baltic nations entering negotiations with Diehl Defence to jointly procure the system.
The IRIS-T SLM launcher unit is based on a MAN 8×8 truck with eight missile container launchers mounted at the rear. The arrangement of the missile container launchers consist of two banks of four missiles.
The system provides 360-degree protection against aircraft, helicopters, cruise missiles, and guided weapons. This mobility increases responsiveness – a necessary capability when facing advanced threats as Ukraine had with Russia’s supposedly ‘hypersonic’ missile last year.
It enables simultaneous engagement of multiple targets. It operates at short to medium-ranges (distances of 40km) within extremely brief reaction times (reaching Mach 3). (Source: army-technology.com)
12 Mar 24. USMC budget would add range, lethality to Force Design tools. The U.S. Marine Corps plans to upgrade systems it already fielded during its Force Design modernization effort, with its fiscal 2025 budget request looking to boost sensing and striking capabilities.
The FY25 request includes $4.2bn for Marine Corps ground procurement — up slightly from the $4.0bn request in FY24 — as well as $3bn more for research and development across its portfolio.
Among these efforts is the move from the NMESIS — the Navy/Marine Corps Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System that transforms an unmanned Joint Light Tactical Vehicle into a remote anti-ship missile launcher — to a Long Range Fires program with even greater range.
The Corps’ original NMESIS system uses the Naval Strike Missile, with an advertised range of greater than 100 nautical miles. Service leaders have said they’d like to see that range increase tenfold — which the Corps would realize with the addition of the Long Range Fires program.
Budget documents show a pause in NMESIS procurement, with zero units included in the FY25 request, after 24 in FY24 and 97 in FY23.
A new Long Range Fires program picks up where NMESIS leaves off in the budget, with the Corps asking for eight units in FY25 and 46 across the next five years.
Marine Corps spokesman Maj. Kevin Stephensen told Defense News these two are separate but complementary ground launcher programs.
“NMESIS is based on the Naval Strike Missile and provides a small, highly deployable missile launcher. This system is being fielded to the Marine Littoral Regiments as part of Force Design and will be the primary ground launched anti-ship capability in the Marine Corps,” he said, noting the procurement in FY23 and 24 completed the Marines’ needed initial capability.
Budget documents show that, while the Corps is done buying its initial tranche of launchers, it asks for money for 90 Naval Strike Missiles to boost the inventory as it stands up additional batteries.
Looking ahead on NMESIS, Stephensen said that the Corps is testing additional capabilities in FY25 that will be incorporated into a new production baseline that will begin in FY26.
The Long Range Fires program, on the other hand, “is based on the larger Tomahawk missile and provides a longer range but less deployable and mobile system that is being fielded to the 11th Marine Regiment in Camp Pendleton,” Stephensen said.
Whereas the NMESIS will hop around theater with highly mobile small units, the larger and heavier Long Range Fires “will deploy as requested by the Combatant Commander in support of long range strike missions,” Stephensen said.
Indeed, the Corps asked for 22 Block V Tactical Tomahawk missiles in the request. Long Range Fires “will support land and future maritime strike requirements and addresses capability gaps defined in the Joint Requirements Oversight Council,” according to the budget documents.
Elsewhere in the ground procurement budget, the Corps asks for funding for its Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar. The service purchased its last radar in FY23 but continues to make improvements to the sensor that’s at the heart of its Marine Littoral Regiment formation.
Stephensen said the money would cover upgrades such as retrofitting the first three systems built during low-rate initial production from the initial gallium arsenide semiconductor to the newer gallium nitride, more resilient communications to meet Pentagon-mandated GPS M-Code and Crypto modernization requirements, kits to upgrade four radars with an extended range mode and continued software development to integrate items including Naval Integrated Fire Control and Non-Cooperative Target Recognition.
Budget documents show this G/ATOR upgrade effort will cost $51.3m and is meant to “provide unprecedented reach, volume, and precision in the execution of Operational Maneuver from the Sea, allowing naval forces to project and sustain power deep inland,” according to the documents.
The Corps’ procurement budget also asks for $810.3m to buy 80 Amphibious Combat Vehicle 30mm variants — which adds a cannon atop the vehicle, compared to the personnel transport variant the Marines first bought — $340.5m for 674 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles and 340 companion trailers, and $180m for Marine Air Defense Integrated System Increment 1 systems that deploy atop the JLTV.
The research and development budget request includes $60.2 m for the ACV program to complete prime contractor test support for the ACV-30 variant, and to continue design work and build three production readiness test vehicles for the ACV recovery variant.
Within the Navy’s aviation procurement account, the Corps requests funding for 19 of its CH-53K King Stallion heavy lift helicopters, which would kick off a two-year block buy for the helos themselves and a five-year multiyear procurement contract for the engines. (Source: C4ISR & Networks)
11 Mar 24. US Army scraps Extended Range Cannon Artillery prototype effort. The ERCA system uses a service-developed, 58-caliber gun tube mounted on the chassis of a BAE Systems-made Paladin Integrated Management howitzer. (Ana Henderson/U.S. Army)
The U.S. Army is changing its approach to acquiring a long-range artillery capability and scrapping its 58-caliber Extended Range Cannon Artillery prototyping effort, according to the service’s acquisition chief.
“We concluded the prototyping activity last fall,” Doug Bush told reporters at a March 8 briefing on the fiscal 2025 budget request. “Unfortunately, [it was] not successful enough to go straight into production.”
The new plan — following an “exhaustive” tactical fires study meant to revalidate elements of the extended-range cannon requirement led by Army Futures Command — is to evaluate existing options from industry this summer “to get a sense of the maturity of those systems.”
Of the 24 new Army systems slated to make it into the hands of soldiers by the end of 2023, only the Extended Range Cannon Artillery program missed that goal. The ERCA system uses a service-developed, 58-caliber gun tube mounted on the chassis of a BAE Systems-made Paladin Integrated Management howitzer.
The Army was building 20 prototypes of the ERCA system: two for destructive testing and the remaining 18 for a battalion.
The operational evaluation of ERCA revealed “engineering challenges,” Bush said a year ago. Observations in early testing of prototypes showed excessive wear on the gun tube after firing a relatively low number of rounds.
Army Futures Command leader Gen. James Rainey told Defense News last summer the service was working on a new conventional fires strategy expected by the end of the calendar year. The strategy would determine both capability and capacity of what exists and what the Army may need, Rainey said.
The strategy considered new technology to enhance conventional fires on the battlefield, such as advances in propellant that make it possible for midrange cannons to shoot as far as longer-range systems.
Depending on the artillery strategy’s conclusions, there are a variety of options the service could consider in order to fulfill the Army’s requirement for an extended-range cannon, Bush said.
The Army was able to conduct a variety of successful tests with ERCA prototypes, including hitting a target on the nose 70 kilometers (43 miles) away at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, in December 2020 using an Excalibur extended-range guided artillery shell.
The problems with the cannon were mostly related to the length of the gun tube and its ability to withstand a large number of projectiles without excessive wear to the gun tube.
The Army is racing to extend artillery ranges on the battlefield to take away advantages of high-end adversaries like Russia and China. The ERCA weapon was intended to be able to fire at and destroy targets from a position out of the range of enemy systems.
That requirement remains, Bush stressed last week.
The hope now is to find systems that currently exist and are capable. The Army would then choose one for production if it proves promising, Bush said.
“There [are] things people say, and then we need to actually do testing to make sure it’s true,” he explained.
“It’s a shift from developing something new to working with what is available both domestically and internationally to get the range,” he added, “because the fires study validated the range and volume are still needed, so we want to find a different way to get there.”
The Army is asking for $55 m in its FY25 budget to pursue the new effort to find an extended-range cannon capability.
The service also plans to continue developing new munitions it was already working on as part of the ERCA program, Bush noted.
(Source: Defense News)
14 Mar 24. Indian Navy launches two ASW craft for ISR against littoral threats. India’s anti-submarine warfare shallow craft are the fifth and sixth vessels to be launched while Pakistan pursues new submarines from China.
The Indian Navy launched ‘Agray’ and ‘Akshay’, the fifth and sixth ships within its anti-submarine warfare (ASW) shallow water craft fleet on 13 March 2024.
These two ships have been re-christened as Agray and Akshay, named after the former Abhay-class corvettes Agray and Akshay of Indian Navy.
The Arnala-class will replace the in-service Abhay-class ASW corvettes of Indian Navy and are also designed to undertake anti-submarine operations in coastal waters, low intensity maritime operations, and mine-laying operations.
for building eight ASW ships was signed between the Indian Ministry of Defence and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), based in Kolkata on 29 April 2019 in a deal worth $1.9bn.
The ASW craft ships are 77.6 metres (m) long and 105m wide with a displacement of 900 tonnes and endurance of over 1800 nautical miles.
In December 2023, the Navy began laying the keels for two ASW craft with Cochin Shipyard, the largest Indian shipbuilding company. The construction of the new fleet forms a part of the government’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (Make in India) initiative.
ASW craft will perform sub-surface surveillance along coastal waters, co-ordinated ASW operations with aircraft, and destroy sub-surface targets in inland waters.
These warships will also perform search and rescue operations during both day and night in coastal areas, defend intruding aircraft, and lay mines on the sea bed.
The vessels can sprint fast for short bursts for maintaining contact with a detected submarine. It will also have the capability of sharing information of enemy submarine with friendly anti-submarine warships and aircraft through sophisticated data link networks.
India’s nuclear-wielding neighbour, Pakistan, is currently acquiring two Type-039A diesel-electric submarines from China. GlobalData projects both Yuan-class boats are due to be worth $897m and $833m respectively over the next decade.
Moreover, these new submarines will employ air-independent propulsion methods, which allows a non-nuclear submarine to operate beneath the surface without access to atmospheric oxygen – a major augmentation to conventional attack submarines.
Currently, Pakistan operates three Agosta-90B class diesel-electric submarines, acquired between 1999 and 2008, as well as two Agosta-70 class boats, procured between 1979 and 1980. (Source: naval-technology.com)
12 Mar 24. USAF budget backs Raytheon hypersonic, no Lockheed missile funds. The U.S. Air Force’s proposed fiscal 2025 budget requests $517m to keep developing its Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile — but the AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon’s future is looking dim.
The service’s FY25 budget, released Monday, includes no procurement nor research and development funding for Lockheed Martin’s ARRW. The service has one final all-up round test planned for the weapon soon and will wrap up its rapid prototyping program this year.
HACM and ARRW are the Air Force’s two main programs to develop hypersonic capabilities that can fly at speeds greater than Mach 5 and be highly maneuverable, making them hard for enemies to track and shoot down. Both are air-launched, and the service said in budget documents the programs are complementary. HACM is an air-breathing missile, and ARRW is a boost-glide hypersonic weapon.
China and Russia have focused heavily on developing hypersonic capabilities. Some lawmakers have criticized the Pentagon’s progress on fielding the United States’ own hypersonic weapons, and warned the country is falling behind.
Andrew Hunter, the Air Force’s assistant secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics, told reporters at the McAleese & Associates conference on March 7 that the results of ARRW’s final test will help the Air Force determine the program’s maturity and identify the mix of hypersonic capabilities it will need.
“The Air Force remains committed to fully analyzing and understanding all test data gathered while conducting the ARRW rapid prototyping test series,” the service said in an email. “This data will inform subsequent development and fielding decisions with ARRW.”
In a statement to Defense News, Lockheed Martin expressed pride in its work on ARRW.
“Lockheed Martin has exceeded requirements on the ARRW program, achieving a mature, fully-qualified weapon system and an established production line,” the company said. “The exceptional work accomplished by this government-contractor team will provide synergies to follow-on opportunities. Lockheed Martin will continue to apply our expertise to deliver tactical and operational assets to ensure revolutionary hypersonic-strike capabilities can be rapidly deployed to the U.S. military.”
Lt. Gen. Dale White, military deputy for Hunter’s office, told lawmakers Tuesday that ARRW has been “a categorical success to date,” and said a final decision on the program will be based on an analysis of its final flight test.
ARRW’s future has been in doubt since a March 2023 test failed. Shortly after, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told lawmakers the program had “struggled” in testing. Kendall also said in that hearing the service was more committed to HACM, which he said had been “reasonably successful” and would be compatible with more of the service’s aircraft.
The day after Kendall testified to Congress, Hunter, the Air Force’s assistant secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics, told lawmakers the service didn’t plan to pursue follow-on procurement of ARRW after its prototyping concluded.
Budget documents released Monday said HACM would be able to carry out “vastly different trajectories” than a boost-glide missile such as ARRW, and its additional complexity would make it more of a threat against adversaries. HACM is also smaller than ARRW, which makes it easier to mount on more aircraft, the documents said.
The Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon’s total cost will be $1.7bn.
The Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile’s $517m in research, development test and evaluation funds would be a considerable increase from fiscal 2023, when it received $387m in R&D funding, and fiscal 2024, in which the Air Force requested $382m for the program.
The Air Force also expects to spend almost $449m on HACM in fiscal 2026, and a little more than $200m on the program in the following two years. In all, the Air Force so far expects to spend more than $2.4bn on HACM.
The Air Force in 2022 awarded Raytheon, a subsidiary of the company now called RTX, and Northrop Grumman a contract to develop HACM, which grew out of a program dubbed Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept, which the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency managed.
Hunter said at the McAleese conference that while HACM is still a so-called middle tier of acquisition program meant to rapidly develop prototypes, he has stressed to industry that the Air Force intends to field such capabilities one day — and industry should act like the government is working on a production program.
“[T]he goal is to develop a fielded capability that we will move into production on the most rapid time frame that we can reasonably and prudently carry out and execute,” Hunter said.
He later told reporters there are now no testing dates set for HACM.
The Army and Navy are also expecting delays to their joint hypersonic program, as testing has fallen behind schedule. The Army calls its ground-launched missile the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon, and the Navy calls its sea-launched version Conventional Prompt Strike. The two services had planned to buy hypersonic missiles in 2025, but those moves are now on hold to allow testing to catch up. (Source: Defense News)
12 Mar 24. British Army to begin ramping down SA80 rifle. British Army to retain SA80 battle rifle for years to come as industry engagement for replacement under Project Grayburn to begin in late-2024.
The British Army is beginning to ‘ramp down’ production of its existing assault rifle, the SA80, designated L85A3, ahead of the induction of its replacement system under Project Grayburn.
First introduced into the service in 1985, and manufactured by the German firearms supplier, Heckler & Koch, the SA80 5.56-millimetre, gas-operated rifle has undergone three iteration developments: from A1 to A2 in 2002, while the latest A3 configuration was first issued in 2018.
A2 was fitted with a heavier and longer barrel for achieving greater muzzle velocity than the original A1 rifle base model.
Later, the A3 version minimised its visual and infrared spectrums; it is more scratch-resistant; and it came with a new handguard that supports the upper receiver while improving the precision and accuracy of the weapon system.
It has been used by UK forces in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as more distant conflicts such as the First Gulf War and the unrest in Bosnia as part of United Nations peacekeeping operations, the SA80 suffered through significant jamming and operational failures when employed in adverse environmental conditions, prior to the introduction of the more recent variants.
In January 2022 a Parliamentary written response revealed that the UK had a total inventory of 134,912 SA80A2 variants and 17,900 SA80A3 variants, held across defence.
Project Grayburn
This time last year, British Army officials told Army Technology that Project Grayburn, which was at the time still undergoing its concept phase, was due to to replace the SA80 some time in 2025, with a “modular” system potentially an option.
Since then it has been confirmed that the future weapon system will have operational commonality and it was further revealed that the British Army will approach industry partners toward the end of 2024, kick-starting the Grayburn replacement programme.
Defence Equipment & Support – the UK’s defence procurement branch, responsible for managing acquisition and the through-life support of systems – laid out its current focus on procuring 170,000 units that can be integrated across the Armed Forces. (Source: army-technology.com)
13 Mar 24. India’s nuclear weapon development could start regional arms race. The country’s DRDO has carried out the first flight of an Agni-5 ballistic missile equipped with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles, all of which could be nuclear-tipped. The flight test by India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of the country’s Agni-5 ship-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), fitted with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle (MIRV) technology, could ignite a regional nuclear arms race, analysts state.
Announcing the first flight of a MIRV-equipped Agni-5 SLBM on 11 March, Indian authorities hailed the technological milestone, with India joining the US, UK, France, Russia, and China as countries able to launch MIRV-equipped ballistic missiles. When fitted with MIRVs, a ballistic missile’s potential destructive capacity is enhanced significantly, with each independent re-entry able to be equipped with a nuclear warhead.
Alternatively, non-nuclear tipped MIRVs could act as decoys in an attempt to confuse or saturate enemy air defences, enabling MIRVs that have nuclear warheads to get through to target.
The Agni-5 ballistic missile has a range in excess of 5,000km, and potentially beyond 7,000km according to some estimates.
Tushar Mangure, defence analyst at GlobalData, said that, following the Agni-5 test, the next steps will see India likely deploying MIRV technology in its K-5 and K-6 SLBMs onboard the Arihant-class and the upcoming S5-class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) of the Indian Navy, which will enhance the country’s sea-based deterrence.
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“This is particularly relevant for India, as it is trying to counter potential aggression from a stronger regional rival, China,” Mangure said.
Development could drive regional arms race
According to GlobalData’s Global Missiles & Missile Defense Systems Market Forecast 2023-2033 report, the global cumulative spending on strategic land-attack missiles is estimated to be about $71.2bn between 2023 and 2033, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 6.5%.
India is expected to account for 15% of this expenditure owing to the aggressive modernisation of ballistic missile inventory and the induction of new SSBNs in its fleet.
“With four Arihant-class and three S5-class SSBNs, India is anticipated to deploy around 60 to 72 SLBMs with MIRVs by the next decade. The Agni Prime, Agni-4, Agni-5, and Agni-6 missiles will constitute most of the land-based strategic missile arsenal.
“These next-gen missiles feature enhanced guidance systems, better propellants, lightweight materials, and canisterization for faster deployment. They are anticipated to replace the in-service ballistic missiles, including the Prithvi, Agni-1, and Agni-2,” Mangure stated.
However, Mangure said that the development of such a capability for India could lead to an increasing of tensions in the region as neighbouring countries seek to match or exceed New Delhi’s technological step forward.
“The deployment of missiles like Agni-5 will certainly improve India’s deterrence but may also lead to a regional nuclear arms race, putting over three bn people under the threat of potential nuclear fallout.”
(Source: army-technology.com)
12 Mar 24. AUKUS army chiefs: distributed long-range fires have role in littoral warfare.
Pillar 2 of the AUKUS pact between the UK, Australia, and the US offers more immediate benefits to the three countries, through technology development and information sharing.
Land-based long-range rockets and artillery systems, commonly referred to as ‘fires’, are among the most critical capabilities being developed for the armies of the UK, US, and Australia, enabling not just ground-effect but also into the littorals as well.
This was among the key talking points during a panel discussion hosted by the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), which hosted the service chiefs of the Australian Army, the British Army, and the US Army, in an on-the-record discussion on 11 March, 2024 at its Washington site.
All three land services are exploring how to harness the intended benefits of the AUKUS agreement, a trilateral defence pact between the UK, US, and Australia to manage threats around the world first announced in September 2021. Under Pillar 2 of the pact, the three countries armies will explore areas of cooperation in critical technologies development.
While the more well-known Pillar 1, which will see Australia initially lease and then acquire nuclear-powered submarines from the US and UK, has garnered more headlines, the delivery timelines are such as the near-term benefits of AUKUS to the three countries is in Pillar 2. In 2023 the UK, US, and Australia signed a statement of intent identifying areas of cooperation in the months and years ahead.
One key area readily identified by the service chiefs speaking at the CSIS event was in the ability of distributed land forces, operating close to the shoreline, to utilise long-range fires to contribute to the wider anti access, area denial (A2AD) zones created as part of integrated forces operations.
Such capabilities would see land forces able to play a significant role in mainly maritime areas of operation, including in the Asia-Pacific.
Land forces have role to play in the littorals
Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, Chief of the Australian Army, said that the country’s land domain transformation was about “long-range precision fires” and to ensure the ability to maneouvre in the littoral environments.
Following a 2023 assessment of defence strategy, the Australian Army had been “directed to assist” with operations in the littorals, Stuart stated.
General Randy A George, Chief of Staff of the US Army, pointed to the development of the Precision Strike Munition, also known as PrSM, as a capability that would enable land forces to strike well into the maritime domain.
In early March, PrSM manufacturer Lockheed Martin was awarded a further $219m contract from the US Army to ramp up production of the missiles and follows the delivery of the first batch in December 2023.
The PrSM capability is designed to strike targets at ranges of up to 400km and is compatible with existing launch platforms currently in service such as the HIMARS and Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS).
Lockheed Martin also claimed in March to have “doubled” the range of the existing Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) through the new Extended Range munition during test firing at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. This would provide a long-range fires capability of around 150km.
“You are not going to win a war from the seas, certainly not from the air,” said George, talking up the importance of the land domain fight, adding that long range fires, in whatever environment, was going to make “a difference”.
Continuing, George stated the ability of land forces to operate “in a distributed” format, which could see a number of long-range fires platforms spread out of a wide area, would make locating and neutralising such a capability extremely difficult.
To this end, a number of long-range fires platforms could have an impact greater than their acquisition costs, able to target enemy surface warships at distance entering the littoral A2AD zone. (Source: army-technology.com)
13 Mar 24. MBDA stockpiles 80 tonnes of ‘nuanced’ iron amid supply chain tension. MBDA has made an almost 20-fold increased in its stockpiles of special irons to prepare against supply chain lead time increases.
MBDA has increased its stockpiles of ‘nuanced’ irons to 80 tonnes, almost 20 times its regular stock of the material, said CEO Éric Béranger on 13 March at the MBDA annual press conference, in response to high tension in the company’s supply chains.
The move to stockpe by MBDA is to offset against a future of extended lead times, and is an extension of activity begun during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Not only have we not stopped what we started during Covid, but we have accelerated and increased it,” said Béranger.
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The production of missiles at MBDA involves the use of specific types of iron with special properties that are difficult to acquire. Béranger says are generally held at the company in quantities approaching 4 or 5 tonnes, and the decision to acquire 80 tonnes of the material represents the companies emphasis on stockpiling against future disruptions.
Béranger also said that MBDA have already stockpiled sufficient titanium for the production of ‘several thousand’ missiles, and are stockpiling electronic components based on their own analysis of where shortages may affect lead times.
“On supply chain – ‘touching wood’ – we don’t have any shortage today. There is a high tension in the supply chain, and we can see lead times extending. And this is the reason why we are carefully analysing, domain by domain, supply by supply, the situation of suppliers. And when we sense a risk that certain components or certain raw materials may become longer to acquire, then we make stocks in order to have buffers. So this is what we are doing,” said Béranger.
MBDA had a strong year in 2023, outdoing what was thought to be an exceptional performance in 2022. Deliveries and new orders both went up by approximately 10% in 2023 compared with the previous year, taking on €9.9bn ($10.8bn) of orders, and delivering on €4.5bn of contracts. In total, 70% of new orders were for air defence systems.
Of exports outside of the MBDA nations of the France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK, 76% of orders were to other European nations, reflecting the acceleration in defence spend that has been reported across the region.
Supply chain disruptions have been a major consideration for industry in recent years, with complications arising through the shut-down of activity during the coronavirus pandemic, the blocking of the Suez Canal, and the end of trading relationships with companies in Russia.
Stockpiling is an acute approach to overcoming supply chain disruption, with benefits companies against short term crises.
Longer term solutions that have become popular often centre on shortening supply chains, and either ‘near-shoring’ or ‘friend-shoring‘ supply to nations that are closer to the manufacturing country, or strategically aligned to it.
‘Re-shoring’ supply, by bringing outsourced activity back within national boundaries has also seen popularity in the wake of the covid pandemic disruptions. (Source: army-technology.com)
11 Mar 24. Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT) company, announced today the Grand Opening of its Weapon System’s Integration Lab (WSIL) in Arlington, TX. The state-of-the-art facility will aid in in the safe, rapid, and efficient integration and test of a next generation fly-by-wire tiltrotor and mission systems using a modular open systems approach (MOSA) for the United States Army’s Future Long- Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA).
As part of our commitment to deliver the U.S. Army’s FLRAA capability to our nation’s warfighters, Bell is pleased to announce the opening of its latest systems integration lab,” said Ryan Ehinger, Bell’s Senior Vice President and Program Director, FLRAA program. “This dedicated SIL supports the application, verification and validation of Bell’s innovative digital engineering approach and open architecture, playing a critical role in delivering outstanding operational performance and versatility to the U.S. Army.”
“We are grateful for our partnership with Bell, who has made Arlington the home of its Flight Research Center for nearly six decades now. The Arlington Economic Development Corporation’s recent strategic investment shows our city’s continued commitment to supporting innovation right here in our backyard,” Mayor Jim Ross said.
In 2021, Bell began construction of a new 47,000 sq. ft. facility to house future development programs at its Flight Research Facility in Arlington, TX. The FLRAA WSIL is Bell’s fifth generation System Integration Lab located at its Flight Research Center. This latest SIL facility supports end-to-end integration of our fly-by-wire systems with state-of-the-art Avionics, Electrical, Hydraulic, Flight Controls, and Mission and Sensor Systems for multiple current and future programs, manned and unmanned.
Bell and the City of Arlington have a history spanning over 55 years. Beginning in 1967, the City of Arlington has played a major role in supporting the innovation of flight-testing for new programs at Bell’s Flight Research Center.
11 Mar 24. Archer delays? The UK MoD issued an RFI for Archer support via the defence portal a couple of weeks ago. They stated IOC is (now) planned to be October 2024, and FOC Dec 2024. This is a slip of 8 months from the ‘fully operational’ April 2024 date published at Contract Award as show below.
The British Army will receive modern artillery platforms to replace those supplied to Ukraine, as part of an agreement struck with Sweden.
The British Army will receive modern artillery platforms to replace those supplied to Ukraine, as part of an agreement struck with Sweden.
The first 14 Archer artillery systems will be owned by the British Army in March 2023 and be fully operational by next April, forming an interim replacement for the 32 AS90 artillery systems the UK gifted to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Designed and built by BAE Systems Bofors in Sweden, Archer has double the maximum range of AS90, greater operational mobility, greater availability and reduced time into action. Operated by 3-4 crew, it has a lower requirement for personnel than the AS90’s five, and benefits from a higher top speed of 70 kph compared to the current 53 kph.
Archer fires further and faster than any artillery system previously in service with the British Army.
LT GEN SHARON NESMITH, DEPUTY CHIEF OF THE GENERAL STAFF
Archer 6 x 6 boasts a fully automated, self-propelled 155mm howitzer gun designed for rapid deployment, with a firing range of 50km using extended range ammunition – a doubling of the AS90’s 25km range. This is an equivalent upgrade as firing from central London to the M25 and now being able to reach Sandhurst in Berkshire.
Loading and firing of Archer is handled from inside the armoured cabin, with the unit able to be deployed into action in just 20 seconds and is ready to move after firing in the same amount of time.
Archer can fire a number of types of 155mm artillery ammunition, including extended range and precision anti-armour shells. It can also fire eight rounds a minute and four rounds in a simultaneous impact-mode, meaning several shells are fired in succession with different trajectories so they hit the same target at the same time.
What has caused the slippage?
- Was the non-competitive procurement decision flawed, being driven by the alleged ability to achieve the April date? BATTLESPACE understands that the original intention was to Lease not Buy the systems.
- Does rapid procurement necessarily equal rapid in-service and thereby this performance underpins the old maxim ‘act in haste and repent at leisure’.
- Given the same people are involved, will the same optimism bias drive MFP procurement decisions?
- Has the different in ammunition types delayed IOC due to requirements to ramp up production in country?
- Has the decision by Sweden to drop the 6×6 Volvo chassis and change to an MAN 8×8 chassis caused issues? Also Norway has pulled out of its 6×6 Archer purchase
- Could a solution be to migrate the exiting x6 systems to a MAN 8×8 chassis and thus make the vehicles common with the truck fleet and make them easier to support?
BATTLESPACE Reader Comment: I am a distant observer of events and as such I am missing a lot of the nuances of the programme. However from my distance this looks like another example of UK / British army exceptionalism, that leads to weird and wonderful conclusions. It follows in line with many examples including LE TacSIS, 40mm CTWS and Challenger 2 and now Challenger 3. Just as the war in Ukraine is demonstrating the problems of fragmented systems (M777, PzH2000, Caesar, AS90!!, M109, and others including Archer) and must be driving consolidation and commonality the UK appears to believe that there is merit in continuing to plough a lone furrow.
This is a further sign of declining relevance of UK forces and the Army in particular. The Army has failed to meet its NATO commitment for many years and there is no sign of an improvement unless the mantra of ‘it will be delivered in five years’ is to be believed. Ukraine has focussed minds on artillery after years of neglect. Whilst there is a risk of fighting the last war, it is clear that there will be significant investment in artillery and ordnance and munitions in general. In this the UK is a sideshow with the real money being spent in Europe. Of course a key challenge for a European investment programme will be the animosity of national champions (Rheinmetall, KNDS etc.). In this regard a paradigm shift is essential. The British Army should be running to catch the European train rather than writing quaint requirements egged on by the usual suspects of subject matter experts (DOSG and QQ).
The challenge for European supply chains is volume. I find some of the figures thrown around by the EU hard to believe. From media reports Hanwha has capacity that is undreamt of in Europe. I am not sure how but can the British Army be nudged towards a ‘common’ solution? Surely that is cheaper that investing in unproven systems (RCH) and an anachronism (Archer). Can Hanwha help Europe to solve its capacity problems? As is often the case collaboration is offer better for everyone than futile competition, which drives cost and delays. As a footnote what role is NGMS playing in European supply chains? The assets paid for by the taxpayer should be sweated harder and integrated into a European supply chain.
08 Mar 24. Rafael expects Iron Beam laser to be active in 2025: Exec.
The Oct. 7 attacks have not had a major impact yet on the company’s bottom line, a top executive tells Breaking Defense.
The outbreak of war following the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks has not derailed Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, a key player in Israel’s defense industry, and the company is on track to deliver its laser-powered Iron Beam system in 2025, according to a top executive.
“Rafael’s performance of 2023 has reached heights that we have not expected, and these will be published on the beginning of April as a summary for 2023,” Gidi Weiss, Vice President of Strategy, Business Development and Marketing at Rafael, told Breaking Defense. But, he said, only a small portion of the company’s growth over the last 24 months has come from either the Israel-Gaza conflict or the conflict in Ukraine.
“The characteristic of the big picture to summarize 2023 is we have reached these new peaks based upon our good standing and reputation and high value proportion to our customers based on long term relationships and competitions we have been participating in over the past few years,” Weiss says. In other words, the current position of the company reflects a long-term trend and that the impact of the current war, now in its fifth month, won’t be felt or realized until some time in the future.
Rafael, whose products include the Iron Dome air defense system and the Trophy active protection system used on Israel’s main battle tanks and APCs, plays a central role in the current war effort. Israel has not published recent data on Iron Dome interceptions, but as of January claimed more than 9,000 rockets fired at Israel from Gaza and also 2,000 from Lebanon and Syria. The Israel Air Force says that there have been “tens” of interceptions by David’s Sling, which is also made by Rafael.
It is unsurprising, then, that the company sees a robust desire for air defense systems moving forward. One capability that Israel has been talking about deploying over the last several years, but which has not been active for the current conflict, is a ground-based laser air defense system, known as the Iron Beam.
In October 2022, a company official told Breaking Defense the Iron Beam would be ready in “two-to-three years,” and Weiss confirmed this week that Rafael expects the system to be fielded “by the end of 2025.” He added that the system has actually been under contract for a “year and a half.”
In addition, in January Rafael said it had completed trials with its Spyder air defense system with Israel’s Ministry of Defense. The Spyder is usually sold abroad as an air defense tool that uses the company’s Python and Derby interceptors, used often to counter aerial threats. Weiss said that the need to protect Israel against a “multitude of drones and UAVs from Hezbollah, and drones and cruise missiles from the Houthis in the south” led to a test that “showed the ability to integrate the system and aptly neutralize threats we see in this arena.”
Spyder would bolster Israel’s existing multi-layered air defenses, which in recent months have had to deal with more threats on more fronts than in previous wars. Weiss also says the company is addressing “immediate improvements and integrations and fixes of issues and technical problems, immediate application of improvement [based on] suggestions from the war fighters, this was phenomenal on all fronts: Land, air, naval cyber, intel, communications.” He did not elaborate on specific changes to systems Rafael supplies the IDF.
In terms of ground vehicles, the exec couldn’t say how many of its systems, such as Trophy, have actively been engaged in the conflict in Gaza. But that didn’t stop him from bragging about the relative lack of casualties for ground forces. (Israel doesn’t release details on the number of tanks damaged, but there have been only a few published incidents in which numerous casualties resulted from impacts to APCs.)
“Never in the history of warfare have there been so many tanks and APCs involved in such a small and tight ground maneuver,” Weiss noted, boasting that Trophy has played a major role in protecting the Israeli forces. (Source: Defense News Early Bird/Breaking Defense.com)
09 Mar 24. Stratolaunch says it completes first powered flight of reusable hypersonic vehicle. Private U.S. company Stratolaunch on Saturday said it had successfully completed the first powered flight of its Talon-A reusable hypersonic vehicle, but did not give precise details.
“Today was a great day for the Stratolaunch team. I am extremely proud of their perseverance to reach this point,” company president Zachary Krevor said in a statement.
“While I can’t share the specific altitude and speed TA-1 reached … we reached high supersonic speeds approaching Mach 5 and collected a great amount of data at an incredible value to our customers,” he said.
Defense contractors hope to capitalize on the shift to hypersonic weapons not only by building them but also by developing new systems to detect and defend against them.
Stratolaunch hopes to complete development of the reusable Talon-A this year.
“Primary objectives for the flight test included accomplishing safe air-launch release of the TA-1 vehicle, engine ignition, acceleration, sustained climb in altitude, and a controlled water landing,” the statement said.
The U.S. and its global rivals are speeding up work on hypersonic weapons, which travel in the upper atmosphere at more than five times the speed of sound. (Source: Reuters)
08 Mar 24. The F-35A Joint Strike Fighter was officially certified to carry nuclear weapons, in this case, the B61-12 thermonuclear free-fall bomb. The F-35A “Lightning II” became the first stealth fighter of its class to be given the green light (as far as we know officially) to carry nuclear weapons.
Russ Goemaere, spokesman for the F-35 Joint Program Office told Breaking Defence’s Michael Marrow that “the F-35A is the first nuclear-capable 5th generation aircraft in history, and the first new platform (fighter or bomber) to achieve this status since the early 1990s.”
“This F-35 nuclear certification effort culminates more than 10 years of intensive efforts across the nuclear enterprise, consisting of 16 different government and industry stakeholders,” said Goemaere, who then added, “The F-35A achieved Nuclear Certification ahead of schedule, providing the U.S. and NATO with a critical capability that supports U.S. extended deterrence commitments ahead of schedule.”-
The future ability to deliver U.S. nuclear bombs was one of the determining factors when several European countries, such as Germany, decided to acquire the F-35A for their Air Forces, instead of other European offers such as the Dassault Rafale, the Saab Gripen or the Eurofighter Typhoon.
Nuclear sharing is a concept of NATO’s nuclear deterrence policy, which allows member countries without nuclear weapons of their own to participate in NATO’s nuclear weapons planning. As part of this arrangement, the U.S. maintains 100 B61 free-fall thermonuclear bombs stored in high-security bunkers at five NATO countries (Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey), which have some of their fighters adapted for use them. (Source: Google/https://www.aviacionline.com/)
11 Mar 24. Thales provides Expeditionary Operations Centre Demonstrator To French Navy For Drone-based Mine Countermeasure Missions.
- Thales took less than six months to develop the Expeditionary Portable Operations Centre (e-POC), a lightweight, full-function mission planning, management and analysis demonstrator for mine countermeasures operations relying on unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).
- The innovative demonstrator is a small form-factor, easily transportable operations centre that will enhance force agility by allowing naval operators to control up to three underwater minehunting drones simultaneously from a single computer set up on board a ship or at a shore station.
- The e-POC solution builds on the M-Cube and MiMap systems, which are currently undergoing operational evaluation by the French Navy, and a number of new system developments.
The French defence procurement agency (DGA) placed an order with Thales, via the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAr), for the provision of an Expeditionary Portable Operations Centre (e-POC) to meet the French Navy’s new requirement for a drone-based mine countermeasures capability. The system was developed in less than six months and has been accepted by the DGA and OCCAr after completing sea trials and delivered to the French Navy. The e-POC demonstrator enables naval forces to conduct mine countermeasures missions quickly and efficiently using only unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).
Thales’s e-POC demonstrator is an easily transportable solution that will ultimately enable the French Navy to deploy underwater drones for mine countermeasures missions in any theatre of operations. It will provide a flexible mission management capability from outside the zone of operations, helping to keep naval personnel out of harm’s way. The e-POC demonstrator runs software developed for the M-Cube1 and MiMap2 systems on a single computer equipped with three control screens to plan, execute and analyse missions requiring the simultaneous deployment of up to three UUVs. The system can be set up on board a ship or at a shore station, and is small enough to fit into just six transport cases for deployment into the theatre of operations. The transport cases are stowed inside the UUV container to streamline logistics and boost mission effectiveness.
“Thales has combined the power of innovation with the agility of its development teams to augment the defensive capabilities of the French Navy. The e-POC solution is designed for rapid deployment into any theatre of operations, making a valuable contribution to future mine countermeasures missions and helping to guarantee the safety of naval personnel.” Gwendoline Blandin-Roger, Vice-President Underwater Systems, Thales.
1 MCUBE is the Mine Counter-measure Mission Management system
2 Mission analysis tool that enables operators to analyse sonar data in real time or recorded during a mission, with the support of artificial intelligence.
07 Mar 24. Brazil shortlists four competitors for its artillery effort. The Brazilian Army has shortlisted four companies as part of its VBC OAP 155 mm SR (Viatura Blindada de Combate Obuseiro Autopropulsado 155mm Sobre Rodas) 155 mm/52 wheeled self-propelled armoured combat vehicle howitzer project. Brazilian logistics command – responsible for the multiphase project together with the army artillery command – has shortlisted Nexter CAESAR 6×6, Elbit Systems ATMOS 6×6, Norinco SH15 6×6, and Excalibur International/Konštrukta-Defence Zuzana 2 proposals, according to an announcement on 4 March. Negotiation rounds with the four competitors will take place separately in March and April 2024. A winner is scheduled to be announced by 3 May after a Best and Final Offer (BAFO) is submitted by each of the bidders between 15 and 19 April. The army is expected to award a contract to perform trials on the initial two weapon systems on 7 May, according to logistics command. (Source: Janes)
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About Galvion:
Galvion designs, develops, and delivers mission critical head, face, and torso protective solutions as well as intelligent power and data management systems for the world’s most demanding military and tactical teams. Founded in 2002 as Revision Military, a foundational belief in calculated investment and capability expansion led to a strategic refocus, resulting in the divestiture of the protective eyewear business, along with the Revision name, in 2019. Rebranded as Galvion, the company’s products and technology continue to evolve beyond purely passive protection, focusing instead on active systems that enhance performance and survivability, with an eye to the ever-changing demands of the modern battlefield. Through advanced design, keen end-user insight and intelligent integration, Galvion engineers uniquely customized solutions that go beyond what was once thought possible.
Privately owned with ISO 9001:2015 certified facilities in Vermont, Massachusetts and New Hampshire in the US, Montreal in Canada and Bristol in the UK, Galvion’s team of 400+ employees work proactively to solve the problems left unsolved by others.
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