03 juin 2013 Par Hassan Meddah - Usinenouvelle.com

Si le ministre de la Défense privilégie pour l'instant d'autres fournisseurs, le fabricant français a démontré les performances de son dernier drone à l'étranger notamment au Qatar ou au Kazakhstan. Exposé au prochain Bourget, le Patroller vise également le marché de la sécurité civile.

Fabrique-t-on des drones militaires de surveillance en France ? Oui, à Montluçon en Auvergne ! Qui l'eut cru ? Et pourtant, en pleine terre bourbonnaise, dans le hall d'intégration de l'usine de Sagem, trois drones tactiques dont deux portant déjà la cocarde tricolore, sont en cours d'assemblage à différents stades d'avancement, ils vont bientôt effectuer leur premier vol de contrôle et rejoindre les rangs de l'armée française pour remplacer les modèles abimés lors du conflit afghan. Mais ces Sperwer, drones reconnaissables par leur voilure en forme d'aile delta, conçus dans les années 90, ne correspondent plus aux exigences actuelles des armées. Trop petits, ces drones dits tactiques sont désormais limités: aussi bien au niveau de leur autonomie (moins de 10 heures de vol) que de leur charge utile limitée à environ 60 Kg. Des performances qui restreignent de fait leur mission de renseignement. Aujourd'hui, toutes les armées du monde et les forces françaises y compris, rêvent de drones stratégiques ultra-performants dits "MALE" (pour Moyenne altitude longue endurance) voire "HALE" (Haute altitude longue endurance) capables de voler une trentaine d'heures et d'embarquer jusqu'à 2 tonnes de charge utile.

3 000 vols

Les Sperwer ont toute même fait les beaux jours de Sagem : ce modèle a été produit en série et vendu à 140 exemplaires. Aucun autre fabricant européen ne peut en dire autant. "Ce drone a été développé sur fonds propres. La conception et la fabrication sont totalement françaises ou presque, ainsi que le support en opération. Nous n'avons pas attendu de commandes de l'Etat pour le produire. D'ailleurs la France n'a été que notre quatrième client", explique Patrick Durieux, directeur commercial de l'activité drones de Sagem. Les Pays-Bas, la Suède, la Norvège, la Grèce et le Canada ont largement exploité les Sperwer en Afghanistan. En neuf ans de conflit, ces appareils ont cumulé plus de 3 000 vols. "Nous avons assuré le support en exploitation durant toute cette période. Cela nous confère une expérience unique en Europe dans le domaine des drones", explique le responsable de Sagem.

Grâce à ce savoir-faire, la filiale du groupe Safran veut réitérer ce succès avec son nouveau drone, le Patroller. Un premier exemplaire opérationnel est visible à l'usine de Montluçon à côté de la ligne d'assemblage des Sperwer. Pour le concevoir, Sagem a pris en compte l'expérience accumulée en Afghanistan. Les deux appareils n'ont plus rien à voir. Ainsi le nouveau drone appartient à la famille des MALE légers d'environ 1 tonne plutôt que des drones tactiques. Ses performances ont été démultipliées. Le Patroller s'appuie sur une cellule d'avion piloté, le S-15 de l'avionneur allemand Stemme. Cette plateforme de 18 m d'envergure et déjà certifiée EASA, est capable de voler jusqu'à une trentaine d'heures avec des pointes à 300 km/heure tout en étant relativement silencieuse. 

Conception européenne

A l'intérieur du cockpit et sous ses ailes, l'appareil peut transporter environ 250 kg de charge utile. Soit une grande variété de capteurs (caméra thermique, équipement optronique, radar, détecteur de balises, systèmes d'écoutes électromagnétiques...) et même des roquettes ou des missiles tactiques. Sa chaîne d'image, 100% Sagem (des capteurs embarqués jusqu'à la station sol en passant par le traitement informatique) permet de distinguer avec netteté des cibles à 3 km de distance. Pour compléter la panoplie de l'avion espion, le Patroller intègre d'autres équipements fournis par des partenaires européens : la transmission par Thales ou Zodiac, le radar par l'italien Selex (groupe Finmecannica), le système de guerre électronique par Thales, l'armement par MBDA...

"Ce drone est de conception européenne sous maîtrise française. On maîtrise 100% les problèmes techniques et on peut réagir très vite pour apporter des évolutions. A contrario, passer un fournisseur non européen, c'est prendre le risque d'acheter des boites noires", explique Patrick Durieux de Sagem. Toutefois, ces performances ne rivalisent pas avec les véritables drones MALE lourds d'environ 5 tonnes qui intéressent actuellement l'armée française, que seuls General Atomics avec son Reaper et l'israélien IAI avec le Heron TP sont capables de fournir. 

Sagem nourrit toutefois d'autres espoirs. Dans la catégorie des drones MALE légers, l'armée française teste avec les forces britanniques le Watchkeeper de Thales. Et tant que la décision d'achat final n'est pas prise, le fabricant français ne désespère pas de faire valoir les qualités de son appareil. Par ailleurs, le Patroller a d'autres débouchés possibles que les forces tricolores. D'autant plus qu'il a été développé sur les fonds propres du groupe comme le Sperwer. Sa polyvalence en termes de capteurs embarqués lui permet de remplir des missions de sécurité territoriale et civile (surveillance des frontières, sauvegarde maritime, détection de départ de feu, surveillance des grands événements...). Le coût d'une heure de vol de drone est en effet moindre, comparée à celle d'une surveillance effectuée par pilote. Et comme pour le Sperwer, Sagem mise également sur les marchés exports. "Le Patroller répond assez bien au cahier des charges qui sortent à l'export notamment au Moyen-Orient, en Asie, en Pologne, au Kazakhstan". Le Patroller a déjà été démontré fin avril au Qatar. Au Bourget, le constructeur ne manquera pas de mettre en avant son appareil sans pilote espérant y séduire les clients potentiels.

Jun. 3, 2013 by Zach Rosenberg – FG

Washington DC - RAC MiG has signed a research and development contract to build an unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) based on its previous Skat design.

The deal, reported by news agency RIA Novosti, is for an autonomous system which requires minimal oversight once in flight. The Skat - a stealthy flying wing design - is the most sophisticated Russian UAV known. The country has had mixed success with developing unmanned systems, and has in the past purchased systems from Israel.

"We signed a R&D contract for UCAVs on 15 May," says RAC MiG director general Sergei Korotkov. "The contract requirements include a mock-up for a future UCAV for the defence ministry. We are already ahead on this, based on our Skat programme."

The Skat system was first unveiled in 2007.

Jun. 2, 2013 By PAUL McLEARY – Defense News

WASHINGTON — Everyone from the US defense secretary to the service chiefs to industry executives at major companies are concerned about the health of the smaller, specialized parts suppliers that keep planes flying, ships steaming and trucks on the road.

But what to do about them as the defense sector constricts and commercial markets rebound is a problem that no one has managed to solve.

Over the past few years of belt tightening at the Pentagon — with fewer new start programs coming on line — “certainly you’ve seen some consolidation in the supply base and I think that is a significant concern to everyone in the business,” said Rick Edwards, executive vice president for Lockheed Martin’s Missiles and Fire Control business.

During a May 15 interview at the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference in Tampa, Fla., Edwards offered a candid assessment of how surging markets like domestic oil and natural gas production may be luring some second- and third-tier suppliers from the defense industry, and the difficulties the industry is facing recruiting and retaining qualified engineers in a tightening, and highly competitive, market.

“Being in the defense business requires a level of rigor and discipline that doesn’t come free,” he said, particularly when you see the current upswing in some commercial markets that could encourage smaller companies to abandon the defense sector where the volume of work is going down.

Precision machining, in particular, is an industry that is taking advantage of the booming domestic energy and drilling market, where companies can make more money machining parts for the oil business than they can making parts for programs such as the Hellfire missile.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno echoed the concern over retaining smaller suppliers in a May 29 speech when he fretted over “the smaller [companies] who do so much for us in terms of developing some niche technologies. How do we keep them going as we reduce budgets?”

One of Lockheed’s answers involves stepping in and helping them, regardless of whether they want the assistance.

“Supporting and helping our suppliers is not something that’s optional,” Edwards said. “You are dependent on them for success and we view them as an integral part of our team because if the product fails or doesn’t deliver, that’s a reflection on Lockheed Martin. So we are not reluctant to go help them, even if they don’t want the help, quite honestly.”

He said that this level of interdiction with suppliers “has probably doubled in the last couple years” as the volume of work has gone down. And there doesn’t look to be a lot of help on the horizon. In a rather downcast assessment of what’s to come, the Pentagon’s chief for industrial base and manufacturing policy, Brett Lambert, told a Washington industry crowd on April 25 that while he is working to identify the most critical aspects of the industrial base that must be sustained, “there’s going to be a lot of bad news that’s given out to companies” over the next several years.

“We should make no illusions,” Lambert said. “We will identify critical key suppliers that will go under because we will have made the assumption, based on our strategy moving forward, that that is no longer a critical capability to our future force.”

As the Pentagon looks to spend less on new start programs and attempts to incorporate more mature technologies on the few new programs in development, a large burden is being shifted to industry to bring new solutions to the table, and sooner.

With this in mind, Edwards said that in his business segment, the biggest employer of his engineers is in internal research and development (IRAD).

Spending on IRAD generates products quickly and keeps engineers sharp. It also keeps them working.

“I want to be able to keep my technical base — my design engineers — engaged so they don’t look at this thing and say, ‘We’re in a defense downturn, there aren’t a lot of development programs, I think I’ll go take that job designing Madden 2020’ or something. That’s an issue,” he said.

Adding to the problem is the fact that the demographics of engineering schools don’t always work in favor of the defense industry. In most years, about 30 to 35 percent of engineering graduates are US citizens who can get clearances, which means that the pool for qualified talent is small, and there are many opportunities for graduates across a variety of industries.

But Edwards said the people who do work for him are going to remain busy, anticipating the next requirement from a customer who, while reducing its buys, will continue to invest what it can in new solutions.

June 1, 2013. David Pugliese - Defence Watch

From Aviation Week:

The U.S. Air Force, by far the largest presumed user of the F-35 fighter, has agreed to declare initial operational capability with a much more limited software and weapons capability that initially planned, according to a report sent to Congress May 31.

The Air Force now plans to declare initial operational capability (IOC) with 12 F-35As (and trained pilots and maintainers) in December 2016, before the long-awaited 3F software package is fully tested. The service previously planned to wait for the 3F package because it allows for an expanded engagement envelope and more diverse weapons.

OSHKOSH, Wis. (Aug. 23, 2012) —  Oshkosh Defense

The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded Oshkosh Defense, a division of Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK), a contract for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) program’s Engineering, Manufacturing and Development (EMD) phase.  The JLTV program aims to replace many of the U.S. military’s aged HMMWVs with a lightweight vehicle that offers greater protection, mobility and transportability.

“The JLTV program is critical to supporting our troops who stand in harm’s way and deserve the best equipment that industry can provide,” said John Urias, Oshkosh Corporation executive vice president and president, Oshkosh Defense.  “The Oshkosh JLTV solution will allow the Army and Marine Corps to provide unprecedented levels of protection and off-road mobility in a light vehicle – so that their troops can accomplish their missions and return home safely.”

JLTV is managed by the Joint U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps program, under the leadership of the U.S. Army's Program Executive Office for Combat Support and Combat Service Support (PEO CS&CSS).  Under the contract, Oshkosh will deliver 22 Oshkosh-designed and manufactured JLTV prototypes within 365 days of contract award, and support government testing and evaluation of the prototypes. 

Since 2006, Oshkosh has invested significantly in independent R&D to develop its JLTV solution.  Oshkosh employed a generational product development approach that aligned to rapidly evolving technical requirements.  As a result, the Oshkosh JLTV delivers the latest automotive technologies, an advanced crew protection system, and a next generation TAK-4i™ independent suspension system to achieve JLTV performance at an affordable price.  The Oshkosh JLTV is fully tested, ready for initial production, and meets or exceeds the requirements of the JLTV program.

“The Oshkosh JLTV solution was designed with a purpose – to keep Warfighters safe on future battlefields with unpredictable terrain, tactics, and threats,” said John Bryant, vice president and general manager of Joint and Marine Corps Programs for Oshkosh Defense.  “Oshkosh has a 90-year history of delivering high quality military vehicle programs on-time and on-budget, and our JLTV program is no exception.  We understand how critical this light, protected, off-road vehicle will be to Warfighters.” 

The Oshkosh JLTV solution, called the Light Combat Tactical All-Terrain Vehicle, or L-ATV, offers an advanced crew protection system that has been extensively tested and is proven to optimize crew survivability.  The L-ATV can accept multiple armor configurations, which allows the vehicle to adapt easily to changing operational requirements. The L-ATV also applies the Oshkosh TAK-4i™ intelligent independent-suspension system to provide significantly faster speeds when operating off-road, which can be critical to troops’ safety. 

Oshkosh Defense has an unwavering commitment to the men and women who serve our nation.  Notably, Oshkosh was awarded the M-ATV contract in June 2009 on an urgent needs basis.  Oshkosh ramped up production at a historical pace – delivering 1,000 vehicles per month within six months.  Oshkosh delivered more than 8,700 M-ATVs, most of which were deployed in Afghanistan and are credited for saving thousands of troops’ lives. 

“Oshkosh’s M-ATV is the only vehicle in the combat theater in Afghanistan performing the JLTV’s mission profile,” said Bryant. “We delivered more than 8,700 M-ATV’s on-time and on-budget, and Oshkosh will bring the same level of commitment to the JLTV program.”

More information about the Oshkosh JLTV solution is available at http://www.oshkoshdefense.com/jltv.

About Oshkosh Defense

Oshkosh Defense, a division of Oshkosh Corporation, is an industry-leading global designer and manufacturer of tactical and protected military vehicles, delivering a full product line of conventional and hybrid vehicles, advanced armor options, proprietary suspensions and vehicles with payloads that can exceed 70 tons. Oshkosh Defense provides a global service and supply network including full life-cycle support and remanufacturing, and its vehicles are recognized the world over for superior performance, reliability and protection. For more information, visit www.oshkoshdefense.com.

About Oshkosh Corporation

Oshkosh Corporation is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of specialty access equipment, commercial, fire & emergency and military vehicles and vehicle bodies. Oshkosh Corporation manufactures, distributes and services products under the brands of Oshkosh®, JLG®, Pierce®, McNeilus®, Jerr-Dan®, Oshkosh Specialty Vehicles, Frontline™, CON-E-CO®, London® and IMT®. Oshkosh products are valued worldwide in businesses where high quality, superior performance, rugged reliability and long-term value are paramount. For more information, visit www.oshkoshcorporation.com.

®, TM All brand names referred to in this news release are trademarks of Oshkosh Corporation or its subsidiary companies

01/06/2013 Armée de Terre - Economie et technologie

La 13e édition du forum entreprises-Défense (FED) s’est tenue à Versailles du 29 au 30 mai 2013. Le chef d’État-major de l’armée de Terre (CEMAT) a souligné que le partenariat État/Entreprise permettait à nos matériels de répondre aux exigences accrues des théâtres.

Ce salon réunit les donneurs d’ordres et les fournisseurs de la Défense française et constitue un rendez-vous essentiel pour de très nombreuses entreprises, françaises ou étrangères, pour présenter et promouvoir leurs technologies et leurs savoir-faire.

Cette biennale très attendue, organisée en alternance avec Eurosatory, a été inaugurée le 29 mai par le général d’armée Bertrand Ract-Madoux chef d’État-major de l’armée de Terre (CEMAT), en présence de nombreuses autorités civiles et militaires. Dans son allocution, le CEMAT a souligné l’importance de l’innovation et du partenariat de l’État/Entreprise permettant ainsi à nos matériels de répondre aux exigences accrues des théâtres.

Cette année, le salon a accueilli 161 exposants dont 17 entreprises étrangères et s’est appuyé sur la participation de plusieurs grands groupes industriels et d’un nombre important de PME-PMI.

Ce forum était organisé par la structure intégrée du maintien en condition opérationnelle des matériels terrestres (SIMMT) en partenariat avec la chambre de commerce et d’industrie Paris Île-de-France.

May 31, 2013 ASDNews Source : Babcock International

Work has been completed on schedule in preparation for the installation by Babcock of a first of class state-of-the-art Membrane Bio-Reactor (MBR) on HMS Ocean.  This represents a significant proportion of the vessel’s current upgrade package and is an integral part of the 15 month overhaul programme underway at Babcock’s Devonport Royal Dockyard.

The new MBR replaces the ship’s existing 15 year old sewage treatment system and will be capable of processing both waste water and sewage (black and grey water, galley, laundry, sink and shower waste).  Installation of this new system will ensure that HMS Ocean leaves this upkeep period in full compliance with current and future planned IMO and MARPOL regulations due to come into force in 2015, enabling the ship to operate globally in carrying out her designated tasking.

The project to manufacture, supply and fit the new MBR system is being undertaken in a joint approach by Babcock (responsible for removal of old and installation of the new system and equipment in the installation path) and the system Original Equipment Manufacturer Hamworthy Water Systems (providing custom built modular components, on-site fabrication of new tanks and setting the system to work).  This substantial project, which extends through the length of the ship at 7-9 deck, impacts on the upkeep schedule at every level.

Last month (April 2013) saw completion to schedule of considerable preparatory work to allow the installation phase of the new system to commence.  This has included cutting three shipping routes (approximately 2.5m2) into the hull, removal of the three redundant sewage treatment plants located forward, aft and amidships, and removal or re-routing of systems and equipment in the path of the new equipment fit.  The Mid Auxiliary Room (MAR) – the ship’s compartment most affected by the MBR installation – is now virtually empty, ready to accommodate the new system.

The scale of the installation project ahead is huge.  As well as more than 3km of constructive and mechanical fluid system pipework to be taken out and/or re-sited, over 1.5km of new MBR pipework is to be fitted between the various system components, along with over 3.7km of new cabling to be run and sealed for the new equipment fit.  New holding, collection and pumping tanks are to be fabricated & fitted forward and aft, and transfer pumps, filtration membranes, grease separators and screen presses integral to the MBR system will also be installed, along with control and monitoring equipment.  Almost every compartment of the ship will see some MBR-related work.

Babcock Warship Support SSS Delivery Director, Mike Weeks, said: “A particular challenge lies in the re-installing or re-routing of existing systems and accommodation of the new system equipment within the Mid Auxiliary Room.  3D computer modelling has been undertaken to facilitate this, with installation drawings now agreed and approved.  We are now starting installation of the MBR.  It’s a tight timescale to achieve a working system ready for when ship’s staff move on board, but good progress has been made to date by all parties involved, and work on this critical path project is currently on-schedule.  We’ll be working hard to maintain that through the installation phase.  As in all aspects of this massive upkeep period, we will be focusing on delivering this fit safely, on-schedule and at optimum value for money.”

The extensive deep maintenance programme on HMS Ocean is the first on an amphibious capital ship since full implementation of the Surface Ship Support Alliance (SSSA), under which Babcock leads the Class Output Management (COM) team responsible for delivering support to all amphibious vessels.  The knowledge and experience gained through this project will contribute to de-risking future upkeeps, most notably for HMS Albion and Bulwark, as well as helping to inform and guide the maintenance strategy for the new Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers.

May 31, 2013 ASDNews Source : BAE Systems PLC

    BAE Systems & Polish Defence Holding Offer New Family of Armored Tracked Vehicles for Poland Military

BAE Systems Hägglunds and Polish national defense company, Polish Defence Holding (formerly the Bumar Group), have joined forces to offer new tracked armored combat vehicles for a top-priority Polish military program under an exclusive teaming agreement.

The “Modular Tracked Platform” (MTP) is part of Poland’s National Armor Program.

The MTP timescales are tight with a production contract likely to be let in 2015 and first vehicles delivered for service in 2018. To meet them the team is proposing a family of vehicles which draws heavily on CV90 technology and reaps the benefit of millions of man hours and dollars already invested in its design.

“Polish Defence Holding has extensive experience as an in-country prime contractor and will be critical in developing solutions for this new family of armored fighting vehicles that will meet the military’s requirements in Poland,” said Erwin Bieber, president of BAE Systems’ Land & Armaments sector.

The partnership brings the team one step closer to meeting the demanding technical and time challenges of this major Polish program and delivering critical operational capability to the Polish Land Forces. Polish Defence Holding will be instrumental in facilitating production of the vehicles if this team’s offering is selected.

29.05.2013 Thales Group - army-guide.com

Thales Australia has delivered a further two Hawkei vehicles to the Defence Materiel Organisation on schedule.

The handover of the two Reconnaissance variants under Stage 2 of the Manufactured and Supported in Australia option of Land 121 Phase 4 means that all six vehicles are now with the Department of Defence for testing. All vehicle delivery milestones have been met on schedule.

The six vehicles comprise two Command variants, two Utility variants and two Reconnaissance variants, plus a trailer.

The majority of the evaluation process is being undertaken by the Commonwealth at Monegeetta in Victoria, and includes survivability testing, communications system integration testing, electro-magnetic interference/compatibility testing, reliability growth trials and user assessments.

Vehicles already delivered have so far completed almost half of the planned 100,000km of testing scheduled for the evaluation period. Subject to successful testing of the vehicles, final approval of the project is expected circa 2015, as detailed in the 2012 Defence Capability Plan.

Thales Australia CEO Chris Jenkins said: “We are very pleased to deliver these final two vehicles to Defence on schedule. They are backed by the expertise of our protected mobility engineering teams, and we are working closely with Defence to support the testing and evaluation process.”

“We have invested $30 million in Hawkei, and Australian industry has also put significant effort into the development of these vehicles. I’d like to thank all the companies in the supply chain who have helped us meet this important milestone.”

The Hawkei is manufactured at Thales’s Bendigo facility in Victoria. Employing 200 people, Bendigo is also home of the Bushmaster vehicle that has proven very successful on Australian Defence Force operations overseas.

LAND 121 Phase 4 is a Department of Defence project that seeks to provide up to 1,300 protected light vehicles.

AMMAN, 30 mai - RIA Novosti

La Russie a lancé la production de matériels militaires, principalement d'hélicoptères, destinés à l'Irak, conformément à un contrat de quatre milliards de dollars signé en 2012, a annoncé jeudi à Amman le président du holding russe de hautes technologies Rostec Sergueï Tchemezov.

"Le contrat que nous avons signé avec l'Irak est entré en vigueur, nous avons lancé la production. Le contrat signé pendant une visite du chef du gouvernement irakien Nouri al-Maliki à Moscou porte surtout sur la livraison d'hélicoptères, son montant dépasse quatre milliards de dollars", a indiqué M.Tchemezov devant les journalistes.

Selon les informations précédentes, l'Irak et la Russie ont signé un accord sur l'achat d'armes russes pour 4,3 milliards de dollars en octobre 2012. Aucune information officielle sur les modalités du contrat n'a été communiquée. Selon le directeur du Centre russe d'analyse du commerce mondial d'armes, Igor Korotchenko, il s'agit du plus gros contrat signé par Moscou en 2012.