Defense Business | Defense Update

KMW Takes Over British Bridgemaker WFEL

Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co. KG has taken over the UK company WFEL Ltd. based in Stockport, Cheshire. WFEL is regarded as the world-market leader for mobile bridging systems in both military and civil applications.

May 23, 2012 12:17

Russia Testing Italian Centauro Wheeled Tanks

Russia is testing Italy’s Centauro ‘wheeled tank’ and considering building it under license. The company has already delivered two Centauro vehicles, the original design with the 105mm gun and another fitted with a Russian 125mm cannon.

May 12, 2012 22:07

India is Shopping for Nine Bizjets for Special-Missions

The Indian Air Force has floated a brand new requirement to support the acquisition of nine special mission aircraft for airborne Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), Communications Jamming (COMJAM), ground survey and target towing.

May 7, 2012 12:02

Kazakhstan to Jointly Produce Ukrainian BTR-4 APCs

An unexpected agreement was signed at Kadex 2012 Show by the representatives of Kiev and Astana about a local production of the Ukrainian 8×8 BTR-4 wheeled Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) of which Kazakhstan is meant to receive 100. The contract’s value is being estimated around US$150 million. The BTR-4 was [...]

May 7, 2012 08:57

China is Interested in the Russian S400 Triumf

According to some sources Beijing expressed interest to acquire Russian S-400 counter-missile system. To date the Chinese use the components of the S-300 system but are said to be willing to enter closer co-operation on military and technological levels which would eventually lead to implementation of the S-400′s in a [...]

May 7, 2012 08:26

DigitalGlobe Rejects GeoEye Proposed Acquisition

Satellite imagery company GeoEye Inc offered to buy rival DigitalGlobe Inc today for $792 million in cash and stock as it tries to make up for a possible revenue loss from U.S. defense spending cuts.

May 7, 2012 07:57

Australia Delays in F-35 Procurement

In an unexpected statement 3 May, Australian Defense Minister Stephen Smith announced Australia’s decision to delay its purchase of 12 Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) for at least two years.

May 4, 2012 08:40

9th Virginia Class Nuclear Sub Delivered to the US Navy One Year Ahead of Schedule and Under Budget

The U.S. Navy took delivery of PCU Mississippi (SSN 782) from General Dynamics Electric Boat (GDEB) yesterday May 2, 2012 one year early to the submarine’s contract delivery date of April 30, 2013. PCU Mississippi took just more than 62 months to build, which set the record for the Virginia Class Submarine Program’s fastest delivery

May 3, 2012 23:16

Aeronautics to Supply Finland with 55 Orbiter Mini-UAV Systems

Finland has selected the Israeli Orbiter-2 mini-UAV system for its next generation Unmanned Aerial System to be used in support of the tactical ground forces. The acquisition of 55 systems is expected to be worth about US$30 million.

May 3, 2012 17:43

Switzerland to Pick an Israeli Successor for the Ranger

The Swiss defense forces has shortlisted two Israeli Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for the next generation Swiss reconnaissance drone. The Heron 1 drone from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Hermes 900 proposed by Elbit Systems were the two systems shortlisted by the Swiss evaluation team

May 2, 2012 14:42

Research: Armored Vehicles Market to Shrink by one Billion US$ over the next Decade

Market research company ICD predicts the global market for armored and counter IED vehicles which was valued at US$25.1 billion in 2011 will decline during the next nine years, as global operations in Afghanistan and Iraq drawing down toward the second half of the decade. As a result, the global [...]

May 2, 2012 13:51

Research: With 150 New Submarines to be Built until 2021, the Submarine Market Seems to be on Solid Ground

The military submarine market is expected to continue growing in a modest pace through the second decade of the 21st century, as naval forces are inducting modern, more capable submarines, designed for extended operational missions at sea.

May 2, 2012 11:56

Research: Global UAS Market to Grow by 4 Percent Annually until 2021

The global UAV market is expected to increase at a Combined Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 4.08% in the ten-year period between 2011 and 2012. While the demand for advanced technology UAVs is forecast to be on the rise, particularly for MALE UAVs, the global economic pressure and high R&D costs are driving JVs and consolidation in the developed markets, while low reliability and high accident rate limit the use of UAS mainly to combat roles.

May 2, 2012 10:20

Israel MOD Approved 30,000 Defense Exports to 130 Countries in 2011

In 2011 the Israel Ministry Of Defense (IMOD) licensed over 1,200 companies and 6,000 individuals licensed to export defense products and services to foreign countries. According to Export Control Branch chief Meir Shalit, the branch handled about 30,000 export applications in 2011 and approved 94%. Of those restricted, 43 were suspected in export control violations.

April 18, 2012 11:10

GTAG Promotes Defense Exports for Israel’s SME

Following the success of the first meeting, the Israeli Government Technology Allied Group (GTAG) is holding the second meeting on April 16, 2012. GTAG is an interest group supporting Israeli Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) active in the defense and security export market

April 11, 2012 18:00

Rafael Invests in a Brazilian Aerospace Company

The Israeli defense company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems announced the acquisition of a 40% stake in the Brazilian aerospace company GESPI Aeronautics, deepening its position in the growing Brazilian homeland security and defense market.

April 9, 2012 21:57

SOCOM Hires Arma Global to Deliver Deployed C2 Networks

Arma Global Corp. will develop and deploy an advanced intelligence management, mission planning and control system for the US Special Operations Command. The company has been awarded SOCOM contract worth half a billion US$ for the job for the delivery of the Tactical Local Area Network (TACLAN) system.

April 3, 2012 22:47

Indian Truck Makers Line Up to Renew Thousands of Military Vehicles

The Indian Army has a fleet of more than 150,000 vehicles. The services buy around 7,000 new trucks every year, a volume attracting commercial vehicle manufacturers to invest in meeting peculiar military standards. This year at DefExpo 2012, traditional truck manufacturers Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland were joined by the new competitor Asia Motor Works, each taking aim at specific segments of this huge market.

March 30, 2012 21:47

Mahindra Defence, RAFAEL to Establish JV Specialized in Protection Systems

Aiming to become a leading defense systems integrator in India, Mahindra & Mahindra has partnered with Israel’s defense company Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, to establish a Joint Venture (JV) company to develop and manufacture products such as Anti Torpedo Defense Systems, Electronic Warfare Systems, Advanced Armoring Solutions and remotely operated weapon stations for Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicles (FICV).

March 30, 2012 20:53

Israel’s TOP 3 Financial Reports Reflect Solid Defense Business for 2011

The financial reports published in the recent week by Israel’s top three defense companies reflect a mixed image of the defense business arena in Israel and abroad. The combined sales of IAI, Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems to the defense market were $7.296 Billion, representing 6% growth over the combined sales of $6,871 in 2010.

March 29, 2012 12:01

Despite Drought, Plasan Prepares for Future Demand Acquiring Control of US APS Developer Artis

Israel’s armor protection company Plasan announced today the acquisition of controlling interest in Artis LLC, a Virginia-based engineering company. Iron Curtain is a vehicle active protection system developed under a DARPA contract. The system has been demonstrated on live firing tests on the HMMWV and is currently being integrated on the M-ATV.

March 7, 2012 14:03

India Bans six Companies from MOD Contracts

India bans six companies from MOD contracts. These include IMI from Israel; STK from Singapore, the Swiss Rheinmetall Air Defence (RAD) and Corporation Defence, Russia. The two Indian domestic companies included are TS Kisan and RK Machine Tools.

March 6, 2012 15:35

Elbit Systems Large Area Display Selected for Boeing’s Advanced Cockpit Technology

The Boeing Company has selected Elbit Systems to provide advanced avionics systems for its fighter aircraft. Elbit Systems’ Brazilian subsidiary AEL Sistemas S.A. of Porto Alegre is positioned to become a key member in the program, supporting Boeing’s F/A-18E/F bid for the FX-2 in Brazil

March 5, 2012 20:12

Japan, Britain to Review Joint Armament Development

Media sources are reporting that Japan and Britain may soon begin negotiations to create a joint project for the development of weapons to reinforce each nation’s domestic weapon’s industries. Britain previously proposed the two nations collaborate in the development of an autoloading mechanism for 155-milimeter howitzers and three other defense systems

March 5, 2012 10:48

Japan’s Defense Market Forecast 2012-2016

The Japanese defense budget is the fifth-largest in the world. Tokyo is rated among the top military spenders in Asia, along with China and India. Japan’s defense spending recorded a CAGR of 10.04% in the years 2007-2011. Japan has capped its defense budget at 1% of GDP, and is expected to continue to do so over the forecast period.

March 1, 2012 14:26

The U.S. defense Market 2012-2016: Market Opportunities & Challenges

The US military spending as a percentage of GDP is expected to decline to an average of 4.0% over the next five years (2012-2016), down from 4.6% during the past five years (2007-2011), due to government efforts reduce its fiscal deficit from the 2010 value

February 29, 2012 21:14

The Norwegian Defense Market – Opportunities & Challenges

Defense expenditure in Norway is expected to drop in Norway, representing only 2.51% real growth in the next four years (2012-2016). The main growth areas are international peacekeeping mission support, border security and defense and homeland defense.

February 29, 2012 20:30

New US ITAR Regulations Formulate Favored Defense Partners

The Treaties between the United States, the UK and Australia allows these countries to gain a commercial advantage in the global defense market, streamlining the regulatory process that often poses a significant barrier to all but only the biggest or well financed companies.

February 21, 2012 20:45

Busy Time for RAFAEL in ASIA

“We are investing a great deal in supporting our activities in the Asian market,” Lova Drori,Executive VP Marketing at RAFAEL Advanced Defense Systems Ltd, told Defense Update, “Defense exhibitions offer part of our activities in this region. In addition to Singapore Airshow RAFAEL will also participated this year in defense [...]

February 14, 2012 17:44

Some DoD Budget Numbers Leak Out

On February 11, Reuters News Service and other media outlets announced some specific details contained in the US Department of Defense’s Fiscal Year 2013 budget submission. Much of what was released was already known. The official budget proposal is expected to be released on February 13. The numbers being reported [...]

February 12, 2012 09:46