New USV. Saildrone, the developer of small unmanned surface vessels (USVs) for security, science and environmental missions, last week introduced its 33-foot Voyager mid-size USV, which is designed for near-shore ocean mapping and maritime security missions. Saildrone says the Voyager includes an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance sensor suite that has a smart camera array, digital radar, and sub-surface passive acoustics. The mapping suite includes multibeam sonar for seafloor mapping of depths to 900 feet. Voyager is primarily powered by wind and solar and features an electric propulsion alternative for low-wing and near-shore operations. Saildrone also makes the 65-foot Surveyor and 23-foot Explorer USVs.
Invitation to Bid. Elbit America, a leading supplier of border security surveillance systems to Customs and Border Protection, has been invited to bid on the agency’s new program to provide integrated tower-based sensor systems to further bolster security along the U.S. southwest and northern borders. CBP in December 2022 issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for its Consolidated Tower and Surveillance Equipment program, which is expected to include several hundred new surveillance towers and upgrades to nearly 200 legacy towers with new sensors and equipment. Raanan Horowitz, president and CEO of Elbit America, told
Defense Daily last week that the company first provided a written response to the RFP and then was invited to provide a video presentation of its solution before receiving the invitation to submit a proposal. CBP currently uses Elbit’s long-range Integrated Fixed Tower system along portions of the southwest border.
OA, OA. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which is attempting to move down the path of pursuing open architecture (OA) solutions for its security detection equipment, will host a virtual industry day on April 27 to discuss its new OA initiatives, opportunities and the key components of its approach. The agency has discussed moving to open architectures for years but a recent OA roadmap and high-level backing by its top official, David Pekoske, appear to be moving the ball further along. OA is a design approach that requires software and hardware to have standards that enable interoperability so that third party vendors, not just the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), can create subsystem improvements that will easily work with a piece of detection equipment, eliminating TSA’s reliance on the OEM for all upgrades.
GDIT Award. General Dynamics Information Technology has been awarded a $1.7 billion contract to support the Army Aviation Center of Excellence’ flight school training services. Under the deal, which has a five-year base period and seven option years, GDIT said it will use advanced simulation technology to help train Army rotary wing aviators at Fort Rucker in Alabama. “We have partnered with the U.S. Army for nearly two decades and provided more than one million hours of simulation training,” Amy Gilliland, GDIT’s president, said in a statement. “We are looking forward to continuing to support the next generation of aviators with cost-effective and modern training capabilities.”
Successful C-UAS Testing. BAE Systems last month said the Defense Department’s Joint Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office (JCO) successfully tested the company’s laser guidance kits for its 70-millimeter APKWS rockets. BAE says the demonstration, which took place in late January and early February at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, paves the way for international fielding of the APKWS kits for counter-UAS operations. BAE also says the kits demonstrated 100 percent effectiveness against UAS weighing between 25 and 55-pounds and traveling at more than 100 miles per hour. L3Harris Technologies’ Vampire counter-drone system deployed to Ukraine includes the laser-guided APKWS.
…Other Vendors. The JCO told Defense Daily last week that in addition to an Invariant/BAE Systems offering, the testing also including systems from Science Applications International Corp., Northrop Grumman, Anduril Industries, and VersaTol UAS. Anduril and VersaTol both offer UAS systems that intercept and destroy other drones. The JCO said the focus of the demonstrations was on Group 3 one-way-attack UAS defeat. Group 3 drones weigh less than 1,320 pounds. “The JCO wrote a report following the demonstration on assessment results and analysis, which will not be released to the public,” a JCO spokesman told Defense Daily. “Each vendor has received report information pertinent to their system. No final decisions have been made based on this industry demonstration.”
Finland To NATO. Finland on April 4 officially became NATO’s 31st member nation. The move doubles the alliance’s border with Russia. “Finland is a proud democracy whose highly capable military will greatly strengthen NATO. Its decision to join the alliance reflects the appeal of NATO’s democratic values, as well as NATO’s vital role in upholding the rules-based international order,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement. “More than a year into [Russian] President Vladimir Putin’s cruel and unprovoked war against Ukraine, NATO is more unified and more resolute than ever. Putin’s war is not the result of NATO enlargement—it is the cause of NATO enlargement.”
…Sweden. Austin noted he is also traveling to Sweden later in April to discuss regional security issues and plans for Stockholm’s pending ascension to NATO. “I look forward to working alongside Finland as an ally, and to seeing Sweden join the alliance as soon as possible,” Austin said. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also said in a statement he encourages “Türkiye and Hungary to ratify the accession protocols for Sweden without delay so we can welcome Sweden into the Alliance as soon as possible.” Ascension into NATO requires the approval of all 30 member nations for final ratification.
Future GMTI. The Department of the Air Force has said that a future mix of airborne and space assets for ground moving target indication (GMTI) is likely, and the department is to team with the intelligence community and combatant commanders on the effort. “The Space Force intends to partner with the National Reconnaissance Office, primarily to leverage some of their existing work and economies of scale,” says Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant, the U.S. Space Force’s deputy chief of space operations for strategy, plans, programs, and requirements. “The Space Force is writing the CDD (capability development document) for space-based GMTI. We’re writing the CONOPS (concept of operations) and the CONEMP (concept of employment).” Dedicated GMTI has been the bailiwick of the Air Force’s Northrop Grumman E-8 Joint STARS aircraft the service is retiring.
Bandit Design. The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) said that its Bandit program “passed a significant milestone after passing a Critical Design Review last month,” a go-ahead allowing Bandit to move into the demonstration phase. Bandit seeks to develop fifth-generation drones to serve as adversary air trainers for the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. In March last year, AFRL awarded Blue Force Technologies an up to $9 million Small Business Innovation Research initial contract for the design maturation and engine ground testing of the company’s Fury drones with options to build up to four of the drones. Blue Force has said that it is maturing the Fury “high-performance uncrewed 5th generation fighter design that provides replication of pacing threats at a fraction of the cost of a crewed fighter.”
A-10 Deployment. U.S. Air Forces Central said on March 31 that A-10 close air support planes and personnel from Moody AFB, Ga.’s 75th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron and 75th Expeditionary Fighter Generation Squadron have arrived at Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates to support the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing there. Air Force Lt. Col. E. Aaron Brady, the commander of the 75th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron, said in an AFCENT release that the squadron is “eager to build relationships around CENTCOM and provide seamless close air support and air interdiction capabilities to our partners, which will help our pilots prepare for transition to fifth-gen fighters.” The Air Force has proposed divesting 42 A-10s in fiscal 2024.