MOSCOU, 27 novembre - RIA Novosti

Deux bombardiers stratégiques Tupolev Tu-95MS de l'Aviation russe à long rayon d'action ont survolé mercredi la mer de Norvège sous escorte d'avions militaires norvégiens, a annoncé à Moscou le porte-parole du ministère russe de la Défense Igor Klimov.

"Deux bombardiers stratégiques Tu-95MS ont décollé de la base d'Engels pour effectuer une mission de patrouille. Ils ont survolé les eaux neutres de la mer de Norvège. Les équipages des Tu-95MS se sont entraînés à piloter leurs appareils dans une zone sans repères. Le vol a duré environ 13 heures", a indiqué le colonel Klimov.

Deux avions F-16A norvégiens ont escorté les bombardiers russes dans certaines régions.

L'Aviation russe à long rayon d'action survole régulièrement l'Arctique, l'Atlantique, la mer Noire et le Pacifique dans le cadre de programmes d'entraînement de pilotes, notamment afin de les familiariser avec les techniques de ravitaillement en vol. Tous les vols sont effectués en stricte conformité aux normes internationales d'utilisation de l'espace aérien.

08/10/2013 by Paul Fiddian - Armed Forces International's Lead Reporter

Warships, combat aircraft and armed forces personnel have arrived en masse in and around Scotland for the latest edition of the Joint Warrior military training exercises programme.

Joint Warrior 13-2 started on 7 October and runs until 17 October. Involved are a host of Royal Navy ships and examples from France, Norway and Denmark, RAF and NATO air force fast jets and various maritime patrol aircraft.

These air and sea-based assets will participate in multiple joint scenarios - among them, terror response operations, counter-insurgency work and anti-piracy campaigns. Other focus areas include electronic warfare training, anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and logistics/support training.

Joint Warrior Exercises

The Joint Warrior exercises are staged two times a year - typically in April and October.

Exercise Joint Warrior is one of many such military training exercises carried out at locations the world-over. It and its counterparts exist to reinforce already-present international ties and give armed forces the chances to swap tactics and training knowledge.

One element of this edition is Exercise Capable Eagle, within which Royal Air Force Typhoons will fly alongside French Air Force Mirage 2000s. "This is the first time that the British and French air forces will have conducted a combined end-to-end exercise", Air Chief Marshal Sir Andrew Pulford, the Chief of the Air Staff, commented. "Recent operations have demonstrated the tangible benefits of French and British airmen and women working closely together, at all levels, and I know that this exercise will provide the opportunity to further enhance the ability of two of NATO's major partners to take a leading role in future multinational operations.

Joint Warrior 13-2

Other participating Joint Warrior 13-2 assets include Royal Air Force Tornado GR4 strike aircraft and Hawk T1 jet trainers and a French Air Force KC-135 tanker.

Naval participants include the Royal Navy's Type 23 frigates HMS Monmouth, HMSPortland, HMS Somerset, HMS Sutherland, and HMS Northumberland. Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessels HMS Cattistock and HMS Brocklesby and the Sandown-class minehunter, HMS Bangor. The Royal Danish Navy's HDMS Absalon leads the international maritime contingent while host bases include HM Naval Base Clyde, RAF Leuchars and RAF Lossiemouth.

24 September 2013 Thales

Thales has signed the first contract to provide through-life support for six MRR (Multi-Role Radar) systems aboard Royal Norwegian Navy Skjold-class corvettes. The five-year contract with the Norwegian Defence Logistics Organisation (NDLO) highlights the company’s excellent relations with its Norwegian customer.

The Royal Norwegian Navy acquired six Thales MRR radars for a fleet of six Skjold-class corvettes delivered between 2010 and 2013. MRR radars provide long-range 3D air and surface surveillance combined with vessel self-defence and threat evaluation capabilities. This is Thales's first support contract for this type of radar.

The contract is tailored to the exact maintenance requirements of the customer and brings NDLO access to the full range of Thales skills and experience in naval defence and radar systems. It is based on a business model that ensures optimal system performance from service entry and throughout the equipment life cycle.

For Thales, this partnership with NDLO sets up the first worldwide reference for this equipment.

MOSCOW, September 23 (RIA Novosti)

Norwegian military inspectors are set to fly above Russia and Belarus starting from Monday under the international Open Skies Treaty, a Russian Defense Ministry official has said.

“Within the framework of the international Open Skies Treaty, Norwegian specialists flying Romania’s An-30 aircraft will perform a surveillance flight above the territories of Russia and Belarus in the period between September 23 and 27,” said Sergei Ryzhkov, the head of the ministry’s National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center.

The aircraft’s surveillance equipment was inspected and certified by international experts, including from Russia. It has no weapons on board.

Russian and Belarusian experts will also be on board the aircraft, to oversee the proper use of surveillance and filming equipment in line with the treaty’s provisions.

The Open Skies Treaty, which entered into force on January 1, 2002, establishes a regime of unarmed aerial observation flights over the territories of its 34 member states to promote openness and the transparency of military forces and activities. Russia ratified the deal in May 2001.

Under the treaty, each aircraft flying under the Open Skies program is fitted with a sensor suite including optical panoramic and framing cameras, video cameras with real-time display, thermal infrared imaging sensors, and imaging radar.

The image data recorded during the observation flights can be shared among all signatories to support the monitoring of compliance with existing or future arms control treaties.

09/09/2013 Defence IQ Press

Britain and Norway are investigating possible collaboration in the support and training for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The two sides said they are looking at cooperation opportunities in maintenance, sustainment and training of crew and technicians.

The collaboration announcement followed a Sept. 5 meeting in London between British defense procurement minister Philip Dunne and his Norwegian counterpart, Eirik-Owre Thorshaug. A spokesman for the Norwegian Ministry of Defence said exploratory discussions between officials were continuing today in London.

The talks come against a background of wider European efforts to collaborate on F-35 support, but the spokesman said that with similar delivery timelines and their geographical proximity it was natural the British and Norwegians would consider bilateral opportunities.

“This will be the first time in nearly 60 years that Norway and the UK will operate a similar type of fighter aircraft [the last time was the Vampire] and this naturally opens up new possibilities for co-operation,” said Thorshaug.

“The pooling and sharing of resources and maintenance capabilities is already at the heart of the support strategy for operating the F-35 [in Europe], and the UK and Norwegian MoD are looking to see where further national synergies may exist. In this context, both governments are encouraging UK and Norwegian industry to explore collaborative opportunities for cooperation in support and sustainment of our common F-35 fleet,” the two sides said in a statement. [Defense News]

Production delays on Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35 fighter aircraft have contributed to major cost increases and schedule delays for the $43 billion Navy program to build three aircraft carriers, and could eventually lead to pricey retrofits to the initial ship after it's delivered.

Newport News Shipbuilding is manufacturing three Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers, which will replace the current Nimitz-class carriers. The lead ship, CVN 78, is under construction and preparation work is under way for the second, CVN 79.

Among its features is the ability to launch about 90 aircraft, including the F-35, but aircraft development and testing delays have affected integration activities on the lead ship, according to a Thursday report from the Government Accountability Office.

For example, the Navy has been unable to complete planned testing of the F-35 with the ship's electromagnetic aircraft launch system, the advanced arresting gear system used when landing and the ship’s storage capabilities for the F- 35’s tires, wheels and lithium-ion batteries that provide startup and backup power.

F-35 initial capability was scheduled to occur prior to the shipbuilder’s delivery of the first ship to the Navy in 2016. But because of the F-35 delays, the Navy will not field the aircraft until at least 2017 — one year after the carrier delivery. As a result, the Navy has deferred F-35 integration activities, "which introduces risk of system incompatibilities and costly retrofits to the ship after it is delivered to the Navy," the GAO reported. [Washington Business Journal]

Northrop Grumman Corp. named Brian E. Chappel to lead the company’s F-35 Lightning II program, also known as the Joint Strike Fighter.

Northrop’s Aerospace Systems sector, based in Redondo Beach, is principal partner on the F-35 to prime contractor Lockheed Martin Corp.

Chappel will direct and oversee cost, schedule, technical matters, quality and customer satisfaction for production of the aircraft’s center fuselage, Northrop said in a statement. Northrop produces the center fuselage in Palmdale and performs engineering work in El Segundo.

Chappel most recently served as vice president of Business Management and chief financial officer for the company’s Advanced Development Programs business unit.

Chappel joined Northrop in 1993 after serving in the U.S. Air Force. His experience in Northrop includes business development, proposals, contracts, pricing and program business operations. [Daily Breeze]

The Pentagon's chief arms buyer on Wednesday said he did not expect the U.S. Navy to significantly change its plans to buy F-35 fighter jets built by Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N), despite mounting pressure on the U.S. military budget.

Frank Kendall, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, told the Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit that the $392 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter was the U.S. military's highest priority conventional warfare program.

He said the Navy needed the added capabilities that the F-35 offered, noting that other countries were developing their own radar-evading fighter planes, advanced electronic warfare capabilities and other advanced weapons that threatened the U.S. military's ability to "control the air."

"I don't see any indication that the Navy is going to change its plans in any fundamental way," Kendall told the summit.

The Navy and other branches of the military have been mapping out their options if lawmakers fail to reverse mandatory budget cuts and they are forced to implement an additional 10 percent budget cut in fiscal 2015.

One possibility under discussion has been a two-year pause in orders for the F-35C carrier variant, a move that could increase the cost of the remaining aircraft to be bought by the Marine Corps and the Air Force, according to four sources familiar with the issue. [Reuters]

A worst-case scenario of cost risks in a Department of National Defence report on a possible acquisition of 65 Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets estimates the airplanes could cost Canada up to $71-billion through acquisition, sustainment and operations over 36 years.

The costs, $25-billion more than the current National Defence estimate, are contained in a section of the department’s latest report to Parliament on the F-35 that outlines “cost risk and uncertainty” and is intended to provide a range of effects on the cost of buying and operating a fleet of stealth attack planes if factors such as inflation, the exchange rate between the Canadian and U.S. dollar, the cost of fuel and the rate of aircraft to be produced by Lockheed Martin fluctuates either higher or lower than the estimates that are behind the current National Defence figures. [Ottowa Citizen]

Un E-3F Awacs de l’escadron de détection et contrôle aéroportés 00.036 «Berry» de la base aérienne d’Avord.

28/08/2013 Armée de l'air

Du 24 août au 6 septembre 2013 se déroule l’exercice Brillant Arrow en Norvège sur la base aérienne d’Oerlan, située dans le centre du pays. Ces exercices internationaux ont vocation à préparer la France à la prise d’alerte de la NRF en 2014 (Nato response Force – Force de réaction rapide de l’Otan).

Cinq Mirage 2000 D de l’escadron de chasse 1/3 «Navarre» de la base aérienne 133 de Nancy-Ochey participent à cet exercice aux côtés d’un E-3F Awacs de l’escadron de détection et de contrôle aéroportés 00.036 « Berry » de la base aérienne 702 d’Avord. Réalistes et évolutifs, les multiples scénarios élaborés pour la 3e dimension sont associés à de nombreuses menaces air-air et sol-air. Les équipages s’entraînent à la préparation et à la réalisation de missions complexes de type COMAO (composite air operation), CAS (close air support), extraction de ressortissants, en intégrant des forces spéciales et des moyens de CSAR (combat search and rescue).

D’un haut niveau tactique, l’exercice est actuellement mené dans un contexte multinational avec la participation de différents pays de l’Alliance (Allemagne, États-Unis, France, Grande-Bretagne, Grèce, Norvège, Pays-Bas, Pologne, Portugal et Turquie).

Jul 3, 2013 ASDNews Source : Kongsberg Gruppen

KONGSBERG has received two orders with a total value of MNOK 190 for deliveries of Rudders & Vertical Leading Edges and Centre Fuselage Parts for F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

The orders are based on frame agreements signed in 2008 and 2009 with Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. The orders include deliveries to 41 aircrafts.

26.06.2013 Raytheon - army-guide.com

Raytheon Company has delivered the first High Mobility Launcher (HML) for Norway's National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) to provide Norway with advanced air defense capability. When time is of the essence to protect high-value assets and populations, the HML significantly reduces the time required to transport and ready the system.

"The Royal Norwegian Air Force is the first international NASAMS customer to receive this highly mobile solution that can be easily rolled on and off a C-130," said Sanjay Kapoor, vice president of Integrated Air and Missile Defense for Raytheon's Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) business. "This is an important milestone for Raytheon and our partner KONGSBERG because of the transportability, safety and security it brings to the maneuvering forces when countering evolving threats."

The new HML has the modern NASAMS electronics that the Norwegian Air Force will soon be installing and upgrading in its existing fleet of canister launchers. The resulting commonality will help reduce maintenance and lifecycle costs. The modern package includes GPS and north-finding instrumentation for quicker system placement and positioning in the battlefield and increased target engagement accuracy. In addition to Norway and an undisclosed customer, the Raytheon-KONGSBERG NASAMS is currently deployed in Finland, the Netherlands, Spain and the U.S. National Capital Region.

Jun. 14, 2013 Defense News (AFP)

OSLO — Norway will soon become the only country in Europe to extend its military conscription to women in peacetime after parliament reached agreement on the issue Friday.

All of the parties represented in parliament, with the exception of the small Christian Democrat party, agreed to back a proposal by the center-left government for a “gender-neutral” military conscription.

In practice, that means that Norway’s mandatory one-year military service will be extended to women, probably as of 2015, according to the defense ministry’s proposal.

“Norway will be the first European country to draft women in peacetime,” a defense ministry spokesman, Lars Gjemble, said.

A number of other European countries have gone in the opposite direction in recent years, moving away from conscription toward professional armies.

Norway’s parliament is expected to adopt the bill by a broad majority, but a date has yet to be set for the vote.

The move is seen as a step toward gender equality and a bid to diversify the competencies within the military.

It is not due to a lack of conscripts: only 8,000 to 10,000 Norwegians are called up each year, among the some 60,000 who are theoretically eligible.

The conscripts are selected based on physical and psychological tests, as well as their motivation.

“This is a historic day,” said Defense Minister Anne-Grete Stroem-Erichsen.

“And it comes the very week when we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of women obtaining the right to vote,” she added.

Norwegian women have been allowed to do military service on a volunteer basis since 1976. They currently represent about 10 percent of conscripts.

Even before the adoption of a “gender-neutral” military service, the defense ministry had set a target of 20 percent women in the armed forces by 2020.

Outside of Europe, some countries such as Israel require both men and women to complete their military service.

NR 13.192 - le 13 juin 2013 forces.gc.ca

OTTAWA – Le Chef d’état-major de la Défense, le général Tom Lawson, a participé à une réunion de deux jours des chefs de la Défense des pays nordiques, organisée par le Chef de la Défense danois, le général Peter Bartram, à Ilulissat, au Groenland, les 11 et 12 juin. Cette deuxième rencontre annuelle des chefs de la Défense des pays nordiques a servi à élaborer les résultats de la réunion de 2012 qui a eu lieu à Goose Bay (T.-N.-L.), en renforçant les relations régionales en matière de défense et en favorisant le dialogue sur les questions nordiques d’intérêt commun.

« C’est avec plaisir que j’ai participé à cette rencontre organisée par nos amis danois. Cette série de réunions nous a aidés, mes homologues et moi, à continuer d’améliorer notre compréhension mutuelle de ces questions, et notre partage d’expériences et d’expertises liées à l’Arctique. J’ai également trouvé nos séances collectives et bilatérales très fructueuses, a déclaré le général Lawson. Bien que nous ayons chacun nos propres réalités nationales, nous partageons aussi de nombreux intérêts dans le Nord, comme, entre autres, la recherche et le sauvetage, la gérance de l’environnement, et l’appuie à nos autorités civiles respectives. Je crois que cette réunion a contribué à notre dialogue collectif et a amélioré la relation de défense entre le Canada et nos voisins du Nord. J’ai hâte à notre prochaine rencontre et à élaborer davantage cette précieuse initiative. »

Parmi les participants à la rencontre se trouvaient Son Altesse Royale le prince Joachim, le prince du Danemark, les chefs ainsi que les autres représentants de la Défense du Canada, du Danemark, des États-Unis, de la Finlande, de l’Islande, de la Norvège, de la Russie et de la Suède. L’initiative de cette année a également réuni les commandants des régions du Nord afin d’examiner les domaines de collaboration potentielle.

L’objectif principal de cette conférence de deux jours visait à permettre à toutes les parties d’élaborer leurs relations de défense existantes en leur offrant l’occasion d’entamer des discussions directes multilatérales et bilatérales axées sur les questions touchant les affaires du Nord. Les sujets discutés ont compris le partage des connaissances et de l’expertise relatives aux défis opérationnels régionaux, à la gestion responsable du Nord, et au rôle que peuvent jouer les militaires du Nord afin d’appuyer leurs autorités civiles respectives.

La toute première réunion des chefs de la Défense des pays nordiques a été lancée par le Chef d’état-major de la Défense du Canada en 2012 afin de créer un forum où les chefs et les autres hauts dirigeants de la Défense régionaux pouvaient discuter de questions de sécurité communes liées au Nord.

May 30, 2013 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Norwegian Ministry of Defence; issued May 30, 2013)

New MoU Between the Netherlands and Norway

The Netherlands and Norway signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in The Hague on Wednesday 24 April 2013. It was signed by Director of the Defence Materiel Organization, Lex Hendrichs (the Netherlands) and National Armaments Director Morten Tiller (Norway).

The MoU has a broad scope of co-operation on research and development, exchange of personnel and information, cooperation on quality assurance and invites to co-operation in industrial defence areas of production, services, technology and trade.

The goal is that the Netherlands and Norway can strengthen defence effectiveness and output through common efforts. The objective is to facilitate joint efforts by review of equipment and logistics support requirements, technical evaluation, the exchange of personnel and know-how, and technological co-operation.

The MoU is currently valid for five years and will be automatically renewed unless modification or termination is desired by a party. The formal title of the agreement is: Memorandum of Understanding between the Minister of Defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of Norway concerning Defence Materiel Co-operation.

MOSCOW, May 30 (RIA Novosti)

 Russian and Norwegian naval forces will conduct a joint exercise in the Barents Sea on June 4-7, Northern Fleet spokesman Vadim Serga said on Thursday.

Russia’s Northern Fleet will contribute the tugboat SB-523, an Ilyushin Il-38 maritime patrol aircraft and an Mi-8 Hip helicopter to the Barents-2013 exercise.

The two nations' search and rescue services will test their interoperability in evacuation of crews and aircraft in distress at sea, and cleanup of oil spills.

The Barents exercise is conducted every year in accordance with a 1995 Russian-Norwegian intergovernmental agreement, Serga said.

This year’s exercise, which has a rotating command system, will be under Russian control, he said.

26/04/2013 F.G. – LaTribune.fr

Le gouvernement norvégien a demandé vendredi l'accord du Parlement pour passer commande d'une première tranche de F-35, l'avion de combat du constructeur américain Lockheed Martin pourtant plombé par des surcoûts et des retards liés aux difficultés de son développement technique. Singapour étudie aussi une commande.

 C’est un pas supplémentaire vers la commande d’une première tranche de F-35 qu’a fait vendredi le gouvernement norvégien en demandant le feu vert du Parlement pour cette commande. Malgré les dérapages du programme et l’envolée de sa facture, le ministère de la Défense a sollicité les élus pour qu'ils lui accordent 12,9 milliards de couronnes (1,69 milliard d'euros) pour acheter non seulement l'achat des six premiers avions de combat du constructeur américain Lockheed Martin (4,5 milliards), mais aussi celui de simulateurs et des dépenses d'équipement, d'intégration d'un système d'armes et d'entraînement (8,4 milliards). La Norvège, qui fait partie des neuf pays partenaires impliqués dans le développement du F-35, veut pouvoir compter sur ces chasseurs en 2017 pour remplacer sa flotte vieillissante des F-16. En 2008, le pays scandinave avait annoncé son intention d'acheter jusqu'à 52 appareils de ce type pour une enveloppe totale tournant autour de 60 milliards de couronnes, son plus important achat hors industrie pétrolière. La Norvège, qui a étalé ses commandes dans le temps, entend prendre livraison de six appareils chaque année entre 2017 et 2024. Face au risque d’envolée de la facture, le gouvernement a prévu une enveloppe de 11 milliards de couronnes.

Singapour évalue le F-35

Alors qu’il est critiqué pour ses surcoûts et ses retards, le programme F-35 risque de faire les frais des réductions budgétaires dans plusieurs pays, voire aux Etats-Unis, son premier client qui envisage l'achat de plus de 2.400 exemplaires. Pour autant, malgré ses déboires Singapour avait indiqué, mi-mars, être en phase finale de l'évaluation du projet de remplacement de ses avions de combat F-15 et F-16 par des F-35, également appelé Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). « Bien que le F-35 soit toujours en développement, nous sommes intéressés par ce programme, au regard de nos besoins futurs », avait déclaré le ministre de la Défense Ng Eng Hen lors d'un débat sur le budget national. Il « devra être certain que cet avion de combat multi-rôles réponde à nos objectifs sur le long terme, soit sur la bonne voie pour être efficace opérationnellement et, le plus important, soit un programme efficace au niveau des coûts », a-til ajouté le ministre.

Vols d'essais suspendus en février

Le F35, dont les Etats-Unis sont le maître d'oeuvre, est conçu en coopération avec huit autres pays: le Royaume-Uni, les Pays-Bas, le Canada, le Danemark, la Norvège, l'Australie, la Turquie et l'Italie. Le programme est destiné à remplacer la flotte vieillissante de F-16 et de F-18 dans la deuxième moitié de la décennie.

En février, l'armée américaine avait dû suspendre les vols d'essai de ses nouveaux chasseurs en raison de potentiels problèmes de moteur.