The
Counter-Rocket, Artillery, Mortar (C-RAM) capability, employed
since 2006 by the U.S. Army's to defend coalition forces in
the Middle East theater is being expanded, under a recent $71
million contract awarded to Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC).
The new award funds continued development and support of the
program. The current system integrates radars, command and control
and alerting systems to warn units threatened by imminent attack.
Future enhancements could also include means to intercept
incoming threats.
South Korea is also planning to invest some $2.4 billion to
introduce 20 'next generation' fighters. Korea is planning to
introduce the twin-engine fighter into service by 2010 –
2012, therefore ruling out the Lockheed Martin's F-35 model.
Korea is planning to purchase up to 120 next-generation fighter
jets, as part of the planned air-force modernization, drastically
increasing combat capability by 2020.
Russia
completed the deliveries of the
TOR M1 air defense systems to Iran 12 months ahead of schedule.
Shipments began in November
2006 and by the year's end, over half of the order has been
fulfilled. Yesterday, January 16, 2007 Russia announced that
deliveries were completed. Russian defense minister Sergei Ivanov
confirmed the delivery and added that Moscow will continue to
develop military and technical cooperation with Tehran. This
could hint on further sales of S-300
air defense missiles, which were requested by Iran for several
years, but so-far denied by Russia. The delivery was completed
about 12 months ahead of time. According to the original schedule,
completion of deliveries were expected to continue through 2008.
QinetiQ will develop and demonstrate advanced layered protection
concepts, improving the survivability of armored vehicles as
part of the UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) Vehicle Technology
Integration Demonstrator (VTID) program. The program's objectives
are to evaluate survivability and protection solutions beyond
traditional armor. The program will assess a wide range of survivability
solutions, from visual awareness and sensor suites, disrupters
and interceptors and ‘soft’ solutions like smoke,
through to active camouflage and electric armor. Initial trials,
using an FV432 vehicle demonstrator are expected in 2009.
Goodrich Corporation's (NYSE: GR - News) DB-110 reconnaissance
pod has successfully completed flight testing as part of the
F-16 Poland Peace Sky program. Testing was conducted recently
at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The Goodrich DB-110 reconnaissance
pod is carried on the F-16's centerline station and is controlled
by the pilot using a cockpit Multifunction Display (MFD). The
pilot has the ability to: collect imagery automatically via
a pre- programmed mission plan; edit the plan; view imagery
in the cockpit; and command the pod to collect targets of opportunity.
Oman Orders Ocean
Patrol Vessels from the Britain
VT Group, the Support Services and Shipbuilding Company, has
signed a contract with the Government of Oman to supply three
Ocean Patrol Vessels (OPVs) for the Royal Navy of Oman. The
lead ship, measured 100 meters in length, is scheduled for hand-over
in early 2010, to be followed by the other two delivered in
six and 12 months intervals. The program is valued at around
£400 million over a five-year period, including initial
support.
BAE Systems will lead an industry team developing novel satellite
communications (NSC) systems under a Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA) program. The agency awarded the team
an initial $10 million contract, with options for an additional
$4.3 million. The purpose of this research is to exploit new
methods to defend the satellite communications uplinks against
electronic attack.
Lockheed Martin will experiment with a potential air-launched
derivative of the Patriot Advanced Capability – (PAC-3),
for Air Launched Hit-To-Kill (ALHTK) application. The Lockheed
Martin initiative began as risk assessment, concluded in April
2006 identifying the concept's feasibility, and is now progressed
to a Risk Reduction/Concept Definition Phase funded Missile
defense Agency (MDA) US$ 3 million award.
Boeing [NYSE: BA] and the U.S. Air Force carried out the first
test in a series of demonstrations evaluating the use of near-space
airborne platform providing theater-wide information broker
services, dispatching real-time tactical communications and
information to ground forces. The series, dubbed Project Marti,
will integrate persistent, High-Altitude, Long Endurance (HALE)
concept vehicles, acting as communications relay and hub, communicating
between unmanned air systems operating at lower altitude, and
users across the theater. The links will span over a large geographic
region, beyond the reach of a single low-altitude asset, without
the need for expensive space-based assets that are often reserved
for higher priority missions.
Greece To Receive 12 AH-64D Longbows This Year
The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has begun the delivery of 12
new AH-64DHA Apache Longbow helicopters being produced for the
Hellenic Army in Greece. The aircraft are part of a combined
Foreign Military Sales agreement with the U.S. Army and direct
commercial agreement with Boeing. All helicopters will be delivered
this year.
The
Counter-Rocket, Artillery, Mortar (C-RAM) capability, employed
since 2006 by the U.S. Army's to defend coalition forces in
the Middle East theater is being expanded, under a recent $71
million contract awarded to Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC).
The new award funds continued development and support of the
program. The current system integrates radars, command and control
and alerting systems to warn units threatened by imminent attack.
Future enhancements could also include means to 
Russia
completed the deliveries of the
