CROWS = Videogame + Vehicle + Real Guns

CROWS = Videogame + Vehicle + Real Guns (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: Most military vehicles can mount some sort of weapon, and even small protected vehicles like up-armored Hummers have top mounts. Manning them can be hazardous, however, as the story behind the Chavis Turret illustrates. Gunners are especially exposed to enemy sniper fire and counter-fire in urban environments, which figure prominently in current and expected war scenarios.

CROWS in Iraq

In response, larger armored vehicles have begun using Remote Weapon Systems (RWS), consisting of a gun and sensors that sit on top of the vehicle. These systems are controlled from inside via joystick and screen, and all ammunition, sensors, et. al. are part of the topside assembly. This approach does reduce situational awareness in many instances, thanks to a narrower field of view and fewer audio cues. In exchange, however, RWS systems offer full in-hull protection for the crew, much better fire-on-the-move capability, and the ability to use the RWS’ advanced sensors in night or obscurement scenarios. RWS have become extremely popular in recent years; major competitors in this space now include BAE (LEMUR), Elbit Systems (ORCWS), Kongsberg (Protector), RAFAEL (RCWS and Samson families), and Thales (SWARM). The USA’s Common Remotely-Operated Weapons Station (CROWS) is a program uses smaller RWS options on vehicles like up-armored Hummers or blast-resistant MRAPs, in order to offer them the same set of trade-offs and benefits. CROWS orders had traditionally been filled by Recon/Optical Inc., but a major “CROWS-II” framework agreement with Kongsberg in 2007 changed that landscape. September 2008 has seen a large order under that framework, and the marriage of CROWS with an anti-sniper system… *The CROWS System *Contracts & Key Events [updated] *Additional Readings The CROWS System R/O’s CROWS CROWS currently equip the M1114 up-armored HMMWV (Armored Scouts/Military Police), and M1116 up-armored HMMWV (U.S. Air Force); the M93A1P1 nuclear, biological, chemical reconnaissance vehicle, scout vehicle; and some of Textron’s M1117 Guardian Armored Security Vehicles (Military Police), which have their own armored turret as part of the design. CROWS is versatile and modular. It can mount weapons such as the M2 HB .50-cal Machine Gun, Mk19 40-mm Automatic Grenade Machine Gun, M240B 7.62-mm MG(Machine Gun) and M249 5.56-mm Squad Automatic Weapon. The system’s sensor unit includes a daylight video camera with digital video processing capabilities, a thermal imager for night operations, and an eyesafe laser rangefinder. It is furnished with a fully integrated fire control system that provides ballistic correction, and offers a 2-axis stabilized (azimuth and elevation) gunner-operated weapon system, that corrects for vehicle movement. The Recon/Optical mount is capable of continuous 360 degree azimuth rotation and -20 to +60 degree elevation; the Kongsberg mount shares these abilities, with a maximum slew rate of 100 degrees/second and a topside weight under 350 pounds. The system’s control group, which mounts inside the vehicle, is the gunner interface allowing operation within the vehicle’s protective shell. Its main components include a display unit, Switch Panel Unit (SPU), and hand controller (joystick). The control group provides full remote control of the weapon system via on-screen menus presented on the display, and by the switches on the SPU and joystick. The CROWS system has received excellent reviews from US troops in Iraq – and if this sounds like a video-game to you, you’re in good company. As “CROWS: Public Videogame Turns Into Weapon Trainer” noted in May 2006, the US Army worked with game developers to put a CROWS module and mission sets into the new version of the hit Pentagon-sponsored videogame/ recruiting tool/ preparation tool “America’s Army.” That would certainly cut the time required to train new recruits. Indeed, the additional levels of proficiency possible through such approaches will act as another incentive for countries to equip their vehicles with RWS systems, instead of traditional gunner mounts. Contracts & Key Events Sept 23/08: Kongsberg announcement: “Last week, the US Army issued Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS a contract valued at $15 million for additional PROTECTOR Remote Weapon Stations (RWSs) to be integrated into the Vanguard Sniper Defense System and manufactured in Johnstown, PA….Under this latest contract, the CROWS II will be included with the Vanguard Sniper Defense System for the US Army’s Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles.” The Vanguard system has been developed b DoubleShot, inc. of Rohnert Park, CA, under a $10.7 million contract announced on Aug 8/07. Sept 10/08: Kongsberg announces an order valued at NOK 1.1 billion (about $198 million) from the US Army. The weapon stations will be manufactured at Kongsberg’s plant in Johnstown, PA, and deliveries will take place in 2010. June 12/08: Kongsberg announces that they have booked an order valued at NOK 58 million (about $11.2 million) from the US Army, as part of the CROWS framework agreement signed in August 2007. The deliveries will take place in first half of 2009. The announcement also mentions a NOK 135 million (about $26 million) order by General Dynamics Land Systems in USA for “deliveries of weapon control systems for armoured personnel vehicles to US Army.” these are almost certainly destined for the US Army’s wheeled Stryker APCs, which use the Kongsberg Protector RWS. May 30/08: Kongsberg announces that it has booked an order valued at NOK 585 million (about $115.8 million) from the US Army under the CROWS framework agreement signed in August 2007. Deliveries will begin in second half of 2009. May 19/08: BAE Systems announces a $60 million order to provide thermal imaging modules to Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace AS for use with the systems in its CROWS-II contract. This is the first phase of a 5-year contract to supply up to 6,500 thermal sights, and additional contracts could increase the subcontract’s value to $200 million depending on Kongsberg’s orders. See also Oct 23/07 entry. BAE’s release claims that its “TIM1500 is the longest-range uncooled imager in service on remote weapon stations.” Uncooled imagers are preferred, because removing the need for cryogenic cooling reduces power requirements, weight, and size. Jan 2/08: Recon/Optical’s protest to the US Congressional Government Accountability Office is denied. Kongsberg release. Oct 23/07: BAE Systems announces a 5-year contract, with a potential value of up to $200 million to manufacture and deliver up to 6,500 TIM1500 thermal sights to Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace AS for the CROWS II system. The CROWS II program has a maximum order quantity of 6,500 remote weapon stations. Production deliveries will begin in early 2008. The initial order is a $15 million contract. Under an August 2005 contract valued at about $50 million, BAE Systems has already provided more than 1,400 TIM1500 units to Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace AS in support of the U.S. Army Stryker program. Production deliveries under that contract began in November 2005 and are expected to continue through April 2008. BAE Systems release. Aug 22/07: There’s a new RWS in town. Kongsberg Gruppen ASA subsidiary Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace won a 5-year, $1 billion firm-fixed-price and time and materials framework agreement for the delivery of up to 6,500 CROWS systems to the US Army. Duties will include delivery of Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station Systems, spare parts, depot operations, and field service representatives. The firm entered a modified version of its M151 PROTECTOR RWS that equips the USA’s Stryker vehicle fleet. an in-theater support arrangement is already in place for Protector systems via a General Motors/ General Dynamics partnership, under this contract, Kongsberg will handle CROWS work on its own. Kongsberg release. The CROWS-II win means that future CROWS orders will go to Kongsberg, but actual purchases under the framework agreement will be driven by future demand and annual allocations. While DefenseLINK says that work will be performed in Johnstown, PA, this facility reportedly has only 16 employees; most of the manufacturing will take place in Norway, and is expected to be complete by Aug 1/12. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Bids were solicited via the World Wide Web on Aug. 23, 2006, and 3 bids were received by the U.S. Army Joint Munitions and Lethality Life Cycle Command at Picatinny Arsenal, NJ (W15QKN-07-D-0018). Kongsberg also received the first order under the framework agreement, which carries a value of $292.9 million and applies to the delivery of weapon stations, spare parts and support. Sept 26/06: Recon Optical Inc. in Barrington, IL received a $37.7 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for units of the common remotely operated weapon station. Work will be performed in Barrington, IL and is expected to be complete by June 1, 2007. This was a sole source contract initiated on March 29, 2006 by the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command atPicatinny Arsenal, NJ (W15QKN-06-C-0152). May 16/06: Recon Optical Inc. in Barrington, IL received an additional $36.3 million firm-fixed-price contract for the CROWS. Work will be performed in Barrington, IL, and is expected to be complete by April 1, 2007. This was a sole source contract initiated on March 29, 2006 by the Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command in Picatinny Arsenal, NJ (W15QKN-06-C-0152). Aug 3/05: Recon Optical Inc. in Barrington, IL received a $68 million firm-fixed price contract for 230 common remotely operated weapon stations (CROWS). Work on this contract will be performed at Barrington, IL and will be completed by April 30, 2006. The U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command Picatinny Arsenal, NJ issued the contract (W15QKN-05-C-1209). Sept 26/05: Recon Optical Inc. in Barrington, IL received an $8 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for the common remotely operated weapon station. Work will be performed in Barrington, IL and is expected to be complete by March 30, 2007. This was a sole source contract initiated on Aug. 16, 2005 by the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command in Picatinny Arsenal, NJ (W15QKN-05-C-1209).

Slovenian Army’s New APCs: Patria’s AMVs

Slovenian Army’s New APCs: Patria’s AMVs (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: On June 12/06, the Slovenian Ministry of Defence announced that Patria’s Armored Modular Vehicle (AMV) had been selected as the preferred vehicle for the its armored vehicle program. Patria notes that the order will include 135 wheeled armored personnel carriers in 4 different versions, including one variant with Patria’s new unmanned NEMO 120mm mortar turret. The deal had been negotiated at EUR 278 million (about $367 million), with deliveries to take place from 2007-2013.

Patria AMV w. NEMO turret

That order is still going through, but Israel’s Elbit suffered a recent setback when its ORCWS rmotely-operated turrets were removed from the program. They will be replaced by a competitor… AMV w. RLS IFV turret The AMV’s most frequent competition comes from General Dynamics’ twin subsidiaries: Steyr with its Pandur II, and MOWAG with its LAV III Piranha. The December 2006 Patria release touts their AMV’s status as ”...first of its kind in the world with the unique level of mine protection certified by South African authorities.” Even so, each competitor has seen its share of recent wins. Patria had won some of these competitions, including a large 690-vehicle contract in Poland, plus 84 AMV orders from Finland so far that include 24 breech-loading 120mm AMOS twin-mortar variants. It has also lost competitions in Belgium (242 LAV III Piranhas for $850 million) The Czech Republic (199 Pandur IIs for $1 billion), and Portugal (260 Pandur IIs for $482 million). The Slovenian award was a significant win for Patria in this context, and it was also significant as the first sale of their new single-barreled New Efficient MOrtar 120mm system, introduced in June 2006. Patria is better known for its twin-barreled and manned AMOS 120mm mortar turret, developed in partnership with BAE Hagglunds. Despite initial orders of 2 AMOS systems for the Finnish Army and 2 evaluation systems for Sweden, Defense Update describes AMOS as having an “inhibitive price tag.” This may create a market opportunity for the single-barreled EMO, despite its lower rate of fire. The AMV vehicles will be manufactured in Finland and in Slovenia with local co-operation partners. Industrial offsets will include 30% direct offsets within the contract, and 70% other Slovenian items exported globally. Production will gradually be transferred to Slovenia in 2007 and 2008, with Rotis and Gorenje in prominent roles. Patria Oyj is owned 25%/75% by the Finnish State and EADS, and its AMV has been in serial production since 2004. UPDATES: Sept 19/08: The Slovenian Ministry of Defence removes Elbit’s ORCWS systems from the program, due to “shortcomings discovered in testing… above all at very low temperatures.” The ministry judged that Patria’s Slovenian intermediary Rotis d.o.o. had failed to secure the contractually agreed quality and reliability level of the weapon stations. Rotis has suggested Kongsberg’s M151 Protector system as a replacement, and accepted all the risks and costs of the change. This removes the up-gunned 30mm gun option, as the M151 is limited to a range up to 12.7mm machine guns, and 40mm grenade machine guns. The Slovenian ministry has signed an annex to the contract to change that term, though prices and the delivery deadlines have not changed. Slovenian MoD release. July 25/07: Elbit Systems announces a contract to supply overhead remote controlled weapon stations and unmanned turrets, as well as other electronic and electro-optical systems and components, for the Slovenian Armored Vehicle Program. Their portion is valued at approximately $ 40 million, with deliveries scheduled to take place through 2011. Elbit Systems is working with Patria AMV, and they will deliver laser detection systems along with their 30mm ORCWS-30 and ORCWS (for 7.62mm or 12.7mm machine guns, or 40mm grenade machine guns) remote-control turrets on board Patria AMV 8X8 vehicles. ORCWS stands for Overhead Remote Controlled Weapon System, and is controlled from within the vehicle using a joystick and screen that shows imagery from the ORCWS’ multi-spectral sensor systems. See “Elbit Wins ORCWS Turret Orders" for more.

Ireland Restarts Competition for Mine-Resistant Vehicles

Ireland Restarts Competition for Mine-Resistant Vehicles (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: The Republic of Ireland is a neutral power with a small armed forces, whose equipment is more suited to policing than war. Eire’s troops do deploy abroad on UN missions, however, where more protection and firepower are needed. French AML-20/AML-90 armored cars, and GD MOWAG’s wheeled LAV/Piranha vehicles have been purchased and deployed on those operations.

RG-32M

In September 2005, Ireland canceled a planned purchase of up to 66 light-armored tactical vehicles (LTAV), which would have provided its forces with mine-resistant patrol vehicles for use on its missions in Pakistan/Afghanistan, Bosnia, Lebanon and the Golan Heights, The Congo, Liberia, and the Western Sahara between Morocco and Algeria. Instead, the Department of Defence purchased 15 more Piranha-III wheeled APCs in January 2006. That move has now been reconsidered. In early 2008, the EUFOR Chad mission was added to the above deployments, and in May 2008, the An Roinn Cosanta (DoD) restarted the LTAV tender competition. The new competition will be for 27 vehicles, plus a pair of options that could add 27 more and bring the total number of vehicles to 54. Tenders were received in early July 2008, and in September 2008 the 3 finalists were announced: The vehicles selected to go forward to the trials stage of the LTAV tender competition were: RG-32M, by BAE OMC of South Africa. This variant has also been purchased by Sweden, and is designed to function well in extremes of both heat and cold. The RG-32 and its larger, better protected relation the RG-31 are in service with the UN, and with a number of countries around the world. Pather LMV, by Iveco Defence Vehicles UK, a subsidiary of Italy’s Iveco. These vehicles use a mild v-hull, plus a number of additional safety features, in order to defeat mine blasts. They are vehicle is entering widespread service with the British armed forces, and have also been purchased by Italy, Belgium, Croatia, Norway, and Spain. Eagle 4, by General Dynamics MOWAG. Unlike previous Eagle vehicles, this Swiss machine is not based on the USA’s HMMWV. Instead, it uses a Duro truck chassis to improve its load carrying capacity and allow the addition of extra armor. Denmark and Switzerland both use this vehicle. Mine protection maxes out at STANAG 2A, but this option has commonality benefits since Eire already operates Duro trucks. A standard vehicle from each company has now arrived in the Curragh Camp for the commencement of trials, which are expected continue until early November 2008. A contract is expected to be announced before the end of 2008. Irish Department of Defence release.

Saab Develops Royal Thai Air Defence

Saab Develops Royal Thai Air Defence (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: Saab has received an order worth 158 MTHB from the Royal Thai Air Force for development of the Royal Thai Air Force air defence command and control system. The system will be developed in close collaboration with the customer and adapted for the specific requirements of the Royal Thai Air Force. The system involves the latest technology within for example data fusion capabilities, and is developed to be intuitive and user-friendly. “The order is important for the continued development of Saab’s expertise in command and control systems for air defence”, says Peter Wimmerström, President of Saab Systems. The contract has been awarded in competition with the major command & control companies in the world and marks the continued cooperation between Saab and the Royal Thai Air Force.

US Army’s Future Combat Systems, fires its first 155mm round

US Army’s Future Combat Systems, fires its first 155mm round (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: The USA’s $160+ billion Future Combat Systems faced a mild restructuring in February 2007, and in July 2007, work began on Phase 1 spinouts to the active force.

In order to speed replacement of the M109 mobile howitzers, some members of Congress had been pushing to speed up fielding of the M1203 NLOS-C 155mm mobile howitzer as a replacement for the USA’s aging M109s, even if this meant breaking Future Combat Systems’ unitary acquisition model by making NLOS-C a separate program. That didn’t happen, thanks in part to FCS critic Senator McCain’s [R-AZ] interesting intervention, but the message was clear.

The prototype of the Non-Line-Of-Sight Cannon, being developed as part of the US Army’s Future Combat Systems, fires its first 155mm round. Unfortunately, even NLOS-C will break the C-130’s 20-ton cargo weight limit by a considerable margin (estimate: 27 tons, which works well in an Airbus A400M but not the C-130J Hercules). As such, FCS’ armored vehicle core is unlikely to ever deliver its most important touted benefit: deployability. On the other hand, NLOS-C does offer new and fully modern mobile howitzers, an aim that has clear Congressional support. As such, the FCS program is making the NLOS-C the lead example for FCS’ tracked Manned Ground Vehicle (MGV) family. This will be DID’s Spotlight article covering the NLOS-C sub-program, from its core platform and fit within Future Combat Systems, to its program and contracts, to additional research materials. The latest developments include the first firing of the NLOS-C while mounted on the MGV chassis.

Japan Tests PAC-3 at White Sands

Japan Tests PAC-3 at White Sands (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: The Japanese Self Defense Forces test-fired a Patriot Advanced Capability – 3 (PAC-3) missile Sept. 17 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., marking the first foreign PAC-3 test there, Lockheed officials said. "The Japanese were well trained. The missile shot came off without any hitches and was extremely successful. We used a surrogate tactical ballistic missile for the test," said retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Dennis Cavin, Lockheed vice president of air and missile and defense. The Japanese "a robust Patriot system architecture and they are improving as we speak. The Japanese began fielding their own Patriot fire units more than 10 years ago." Lockheed Martin sells Patriots via direct commercial sales with the Japanese government. Some production is subcontracted to Japan-based Mitsubishi Heavy Industry. Similar to the Japanese, the German, Dutch and U.S. Armies are upgrading their PAC-2 missiles to the PAC-3 variant, which slams into its target. "Hit-to-kill technology is the chosen technology that all U.S. air defense missile systems are going to," said Cavin, citing the Standard Missile-3 and Terminal High Altitude Air Defense. "A PAC-3 warhead must have body-to-body contact at a precise point to destroy the target. They only way you can achieve that is through speed and mass, and a hit-to-kill kinetic energy is much faster than one packed with explosives." The hit-to-kill intercept technology for the PAC-3 evolved out of U.S. Army experiences with the use of early Patriot missiles in the Gulf War. "What we learned from our experiences in Desert Storm is that we were not able to hit the warhead in all cases. We knew we had to improve that capability," said Cavin. The PAC-3 system can track multiple targets, Cavin said. "Radar feeds data into a fire solution computer. That computer picks an intercept point in space and then the missile turns on its own on-board seeker and acquires the target. It has an exceptionally fast on-board computer. As you are doing the final computations on-board the missile itself, your radar on the ground can look for other targets," he said.

Roughead Pushes for Littoral Combat Ship

Roughead Pushes for Littoral Combat Ship (NSI News Source Info) September 25, 2008: The U.S. Navy's top officer maintained his support for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program even as Congress appeared to be scuttling yet another of the long-delayed ships. "I want to be able to build out the class as quickly as I can," Adm. Gary Roughead, the U.S. Navy's chief of naval operations (CNO), said Sept. 24. "I remain as committed as ever to LCS." House and Senate appropriators agreed to rescind the money granted last year for a third LCS ship and switch the money to help pay for two more ships in the 2009 budget. The first LCS has been delivered to the Navy and the second ship is due next year, but no further littoral ships are on order. "We just need to get that program going," Roughead said. "More ships is a good thing." Roughead's comments came after a National Press Club breakfast in Washington hosted by Government Executive magazine. Responding to questions from moderators and an audience of about 200, Roughead voiced his support for the LCS program. "I'm committed to those ships," he declared. The CNO shed some light on his decision to ask permission to "truncate" the DDG 1000 advanced destroyer program from seven to three ships and continue to build DDG 51-class Aegis destroyers. "DDG 1000 is a ship that had its genesis in the early 1990s," he said, "and I think all of us would agree the world has changed since the early 1990s. We've seen proliferation of threats that did not exist before." The threats, Roughead said, include ballistic missiles - "I believe it will be a weapon of intimidation and blackmail" - and anti-ship missiles, particularly in the hands of groups such as Hezbollah, which fired such a weapon in July 2006 and hit an Israeli warship off Lebanon. Anti-air capability also is a key factor in the DDG 1000 decision. "Our ability to control the seas," he said, "really calls for us to go in and provide area air defense. And as I looked at DDG 1000, it did not give us that capability." Roughead did not fault the destroyer program's management or shipbuilders Northrop Grumman or General Dynamics. "The DDG 1000 program is a well-run program," he said. In testimony to Congress in late July, Navy officials explained that the DDG 51 destroyers with the Aegis combat system were needed to combat the enemy missile threat, which the Navy sees as getting worse. "There is proliferation that takes place from country to country," Roughead said. "There is little question in my mind the missiles Hezbollah is acquiring are coming out of Iran. Proliferation is the way of the future." Asked if he was confident the Navy could defeat such missiles, Roughead said, "I'm very comfortable with our ability to provide the defense we need." Roughead also discussed the increased military and naval capability of Russia, China and Iran. Russia in particular has been a recent concern, after its short mini-invasion of Georgia and dispatch of bomber aircraft and a naval squadron to visit Venezuela. "What you're seeing ... is a navy getting its sea legs back and not operating just around the northern reaches of its country," he said. Roughead, a former commander of the Pacific and Atlantic fleets, recalled meetings with Russian naval leaders in 2007. "A year ago," he said, "it was clear to me the petroleum money was flowing, the Navy was getting going again, the leadership was looking back to the Soviet days as their heyday. The stirrings of wanting to be out and about were there. We're now seeing that. And I believe in coming years, you're going to see the Russian Navy out and about." Of the Chinese - whose development of targetable anti-ship ballistic missiles is thought to be the immediate impetus of the DDG 1000 switch - he noted that country's growth in naval capability. "The indications and alignment of their fleet structure and base structure is really beginning to put their Navy more in the traditional role ... that ensures the flow of commerce on the sea lanes - a Navy that has an ambition that wants to extend its operational reach and influence things," Roughead said. "They are viewing their Navy much the same way we do." As to Iran's ability to challenge the U.S. Navy's presence in the Persian Gulf, Roughead noted the Iranians "see the gulf as their gulf, and they have put in place some naval capabilities that can be problematic. Do I have confidence in our ability to assure the flow [of oil] in the sea lanes? I do. I have confidence there." Roughead also pointed to the increasing importance of Guam, one of the westernmost of U.S. territorial possessions. "Guam will become important from a standpoint of providing a place from which to operate in the western Pacific," the CNO said. "We're looking at the design of [Apra] harbor and the ability to put a carrier in there from time to time - not to base a carrier there, but to stop in and recharge and get back out on the line again."

BAE Systems Secures $742 Million U.S. Army Contract for Bradley Vehicles and Spare Parts

BAE Systems Secures $742 Million U.S. Army Contract for Bradley Vehicles and Spare Parts (NSI News Source Info) September 24, 2008: BAE Systems has been awarded a contract to remanufacture 300 additional Bradleys, bringing the total to over 550 vehicles. (US Army photo)YORK, Pa. --- BAE Systems, under a $742 million U.S. Army contract, will remanufacture more than 300 Bradley vehicles with additional armor to protect soldiers. The contract is an option to a previously awarded contract for work on 252 Bradley vehicles. The award brings the total value of BAE Systems’ 2008 Bradley remanufacturing contracts to $1.3 billion for 578 vehicles. Under this award, BAE Systems will remanufacture an additional 189 M2A3 vehicles, 115 M3A3 vehicles and 22 M3A3 Bradley Fire Support Team Vehicles in conjunction with the Red River Army Depot through a public private partnership. Initial disassembly and subsystem rebuild will be performed at the depot, with final disassembly and structural modifications completed by BAE Systems in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Final assembly, integration and test will be conducted at the company’s facility in York, Pennsylvania. Bradley vehicles under this contract will be equipped with Improvised Explosive Device Armor, Bradley Urban Survivability Kits and several engineering changes designed to increase soldier survivability. In addition, 51 M2A2 vehicles will be converted to the M3A3 configuration. The company will also provide more than 200 different types of spare parts in varying quantities. “BAE Systems and Red River Army Depot are committed to upgrading and returning Bradley vehicles to combat ready status,” said Andy Hove, vice president of Combat Systems Programs for BAE Systems. “These vehicles will be equipped with the latest survivability enhancements to provide maximum protection to the soldiers in the field.” Work under the contract will begin immediately by the existing workforce, with deliveries ending in February 2011. The contract is managed by the Army’s TACOM Life Cycle Management Command. Bradley Combat Systems continue to provide outstanding survivability, mobility and lethality to U.S. soldiers in close-combat urban situations as well as in open-combat. The Bradley fulfills five critical mission roles – infantry fighting vehicle, cavalry fighting vehicle, fire support vehicle, battle command vehicle and engineer squad vehicle – for the Army's Heavy Brigade Combat Teams. BAE Systems is the premier global defense and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, information technology solutions and customer support services. With approximately 100,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded £15.7 billion (US $31.4 billion) in 2007.

Turkey Buys 80 Russian Anti-Tank Missile Systems

Turkey Buys 80 Russian Anti-Tank Missile Systems (NSI News Source Info) September 24, 2008: Russia will sell 80 Kornet E (NATO designation: AT-14) laser-guided anti-tank missile systems to Turkey in a $70 million deal that is Moscow's first arms sale to the NATO member in 11 years, according to a senior Russian defense industry source. The Russian government arms export monopoly Rosoboronexport and Turkey's Secretariat of Defense Industries, SSM, signed the contract in late August, the official said Sept. 23. All deliveries will be made in 2009, the official said. Developed by the Tula-based Instrument Design Bureau KBP, Kornet E is a semi-automatic laser-guided missile that can hit targets out to 5,500 meters during the daytime and 3,000 meters at night. It can carry anti-tank or thermobaric warheads. Each 60-kilogram system consists of a launcher, thermal sight and a single missile container. It can be ready in three minutes. In 1999, Tula KBP was slapped with sanctions by the United States for delivering Kornet Es to Syria. Israeli media had reported that Syria had leaked them to the Lebanon-based radical Hezbollah group, which used them against Israeli tanks during the August 2006 military conflict in Lebanon. In January 2007, Turkey launched the competition to supply 80 medium-range anti-tank weapon systems, 800 missiles and related maintenance services. Rosoboronexport beat out rival bidders Denel, Rafael and Raytheon.

China says spacecraft launch has no military goals

China says spacecraft launch has no military goals (NSI News Source Info) September 24, 2008: China's launch later this week of a manned spacecraft will be geared toward economic and scientific goals with no military implications, the Xinhua news agency quoted the launch center's director as saying on Tuesday. The Shenzhou-7 spacecraft with three astronauts on board is set to lift off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province, in the northwest of China, on September 25. "China's space program is not pursuing any military goals but serves the country's scientific and economic development," the agency quoted Cui Jijun, commander-in-chief of the ground operation team, as saying. One of the astronauts will make a spacewalk during the mission. China, which has recently unveiled comprehensive space exploration plans, is only one of three countries in the world capable of independently launching manned spaceflights, along with the United States and Russia. The country plans to build its own orbital space station and create a space laboratory before 2020. In 2003 and 2005 the Shenzhou-5 and Shenzhou-6 spacecraft carried three Chinese astronauts into space.