LONDON, May 5th, 2011 -- Lockheed Martin press release

Lockheed Martin, Finmeccanica – through its UK company SELEX Systems Integration - and Cobham have signed an agreement to form Fusion Air Traffic Management, which will address Project MARSHALL - formerly known as the Joint Military Air Traffic Services (JMATS) programme.

The three team members have unparalleled track records in large-scale service delivery, programme management, systems integration and long-term support for Air Traffic Services. Together, the Fusion team offers a proven capability to deliver the optimum approach, solution and underlying values to fulfil the programme effectively.

MARSHALL is a major Air Traffic Services project for the Ministry of Defence (MOD). It will provide long-term air traffic management capability for the safe operation of all the MOD’s main bases, airfields and air weapon ranges in the UK and overseas, including those used for deployed operations. MARSHALL will also deliver significant savings to the MOD over the 22-year lifetime of the programme through improved efficiencies, economies of scale and innovation.

Lockheed Martin UK Chief Executive Stephen Ball said: “The team name Fusion was chosen to reflect the very best of each of the three organisations for the benefit of the MOD. We believe that together we are best placed to understand the technical complexities and commercial challenges of the programme and then reliably deliver safe and innovative solutions that will add real value.”

SELEX Systems Integration Chief Executive Michael Clayforth-Carr added: “All three companies have significant current military and civil air traffic control business in the UK and around the world. We fully understand the technological requirements and the attendant service delivery challenge and are all operating successfully within the MOD’s current contractual environment.”

Cobham UK Managing Director of Aviation Services Des Taylor commented: “Fusion has been carefully constructed to ensure that, whilst all team members understand the challenges of the programme as a whole, each company also brings a particular expertise which allows it to take the lead in its particular field. For more than 25 years, Cobham has provided the MOD with a wide range of managed services and Cobham – through Fusion – will provide Project MARSHALL with leadership in the support solution and field service delivery.”

About MARSHALL (formerly known as JMATS)

Project MARSHALL is the key Air Traffic Management programme for the Ministry of Defence (MOD) as it will provide the capability to support UK military flying and air deployed operations for the long term. These Air Traffic Services will provide air traffic control and air traffic management for all of the MoD’s aerodromes and air weapon ranges both in the UK and overseas including those used for current deployed operations. It will also ensure that obsolescence is removed from the current system and that the MOD complies with the legal requirements of managing an air traffic service and enable the safe operation of its aerial platforms. Project MARSHALL will be a “managed service” which will deliver savings over the lifetime of the programme through improved efficiencies, scale and innovation. MARSHALL will enable the MOD to continue to conduct flying operations, contributing to the protection of UK sovereign airspace including support to counter terrorism.

May 4, 2011 ASDNews Source : Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA)

Washington - The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress Monday of a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of the United Kingdom of Ordnance Alteration Kits for conversion and upgrades of MK15 PHALANX Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $137 million. The Government of the United Kingdom (UK) has requested the sale of 20 Block 1A to Block 1B Baseline 2 configuration Ordnance Alteration Kits and 16 Block 1B Baseline 1 to Baseline 2 Ordnance Alteration Kits for conversion and upgrades of MK15 PHALANX Close-In Weapon System (CIWS), spare and repair parts, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, software support, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics support services, and all other related elements of program support. The estimated cost is $137 million. This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to maintain and improve the security of a key NATO partner that has been, and continues to be, an important force for political stability and economic power in Europe.

The MK 15 PHALANX CIWS overhauls/upgrades will be used for close-in ship self-defense against air and surface threats onboard the UK's naval combatants and auxiliaries. The MK 15 PHALANX CIWS Block 1B Baseline 2 upgrades will provide enhanced electro-optical and radiofrequency close-in detection, tracking and engagement capabilities over the UK's existing MK 15 PHALANX systems, while improving CIWS supportability, maintainability and interoperability with U.S. systems. The UK, which already has earlier versions of the MK 15 PHALANX in its inventory, will have no problem absorbing these upgrades and support into its armed forces. The proposed sale of this equipment will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

3 May 2011 By ANDREW CHUTER DefenseNews

LONDON - British company Marshall Aerospace has secured an order to supply body fuel tanks to boost the performance of the Boeing 767, selected by the U.S. Air Force to become its new KC-46A in-flight refueling tanker. European industry may have missed out on the big prize when EADS failed to win the huge KC-46A contract, but U.K. companies aligned with the 767 bid have started to see their position on the Boeing team turn into firm contracts. Marshall Aerospace announced it has been awarded a deal to design and supply body fuel tanks for the 767-derived tanker to increase flight range and refueling capability. Each aircraft will carry four of the tanks. Initially, the Marshall deal covers a batch of tanks destined to be fitted to development aircraft, but the Cambridge-based company said in a statement that it expects production orders will follow from the USAF for more than 650 tanks over a 15-year period. The value of the program is expected to exceed 100 million pounds ($165 million) over the duration of the program, and Marshall said it expects that number to rise on the back of export prospects for the tanker. Boeing has previously awarded Marshall body fuel tank work on aircraft such as the P-8 Poseidon, the 777 and the 747. Earlier this year, Boeing's 767 beat out a bid by its European rival, which offered a variant of the Airbus A330 airliner, to supply 179 KC-46A tankers to the USAF. In February, British company Cobham announced it was to supply the hose and drogue refueling systems for the KC-46A. Most of that work will be conducted at a new facility in Davenport, Iowa. Cobham was in a win-win situation; its market-leading refueling systems were also specified for the Airbus plane. A Cobham spokesman in the U.K. said he expected the total amount of work generated for the company by the tanker order would be about $1 billion over the life of the program. That work would be dominated by supply and support of the refueling systems, he said.

3 mai 2011 LeTelegramme

Une manoeuvre navale multinationale de lutte anti-sous marine, baptisée SPONTEX 11, se déroulera du 9 au 19 mai au large de Brest. Elle réunira huit bâtiments de combat, plusieurs aéronefs et deux sous-marins en provenance de six pays.

Cette manoeuvre multinationale aura lieu dans le Golfe de Gascogne sous commandement de la France, annonce la préfecture maritime de l'Atlantique. Ces manoeuvres d’ampleur réuniront une force navale (Task force 450) composée de 8 bâtiments de combat, de plusieurs aéronefs (avions de patrouille maritime et hélicoptères) et de 2 sous-marins en provenance de 6 pays (Allemagne, Etats-Unis, Grande-Bretagne, Pologne, Suède, France).

Le commandement de cette Task Force sera assuré par le vice-amiral Labonne, adjoint organique à Brest de l’Amiral commandant la Force d’Action Navale, à la tête d’un état-major embarqué à bord de la frégate anti sous-marine De Grasse.

Tester la capacité à gérer la menace sous-marine

SPONTEX 11, dont le thème général est la lutte anti-sous-marine, permet aux six marines participantes de tester leur capacité à gérer la menace sous-marine dans une situation géopolitique évolutive et d’échanger leurs savoir-faire dans ce domaine.  

03 May 2011 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: U.S Army; issued May 2, 2011)

HOHENFELS, Germany --- Rotors ripping the air, four UH-1 Iroquois helicopters soared above Hohenfels for the last time at a retirement ceremony for the aircraft, April 27, 2011.

A total of 10 "Hueys" have served at Hohenfels over the past 40 years, most recently as training aids for the Joint Multinational Readiness Center.

"This is the last of the Hueys in service in U.S. Army Europe," said Col. John M. Spiszer, JMRC commander.

The original designation for the aircraft was HU-1 which led pilots to nickname it "Huey." Though the designation was later changed to UH-1, the term Huey stuck.

Medal of Honor recipient retired Col. Bruce Crandall attended the ceremony as the guest of honor. Crandall, whose story was dramatized in the Mel Gibson film "We were Soldiers," led the first major division operation of airmobile troops into Landing Zone X-ray in Vietnam's la Drang Valley on Nov. 14, 1965.

Under extreme enemy fire, Crandall completed 22 flights in his unarmed Huey, evacuating some 70 wounded Soldiers and providing ammunition to the troops on the ground.

"I fell in love with the Huey the moment I got in," Crandall said. "I bet most guys who flew it felt like that."

Crandall praised not only the Huey's versatility, but also its toughness.

"It would take a hell of a beating and keep flying," he said. "On Nov. 14, half the ships were shot up. I changed helicopters and the next lift got shot up some more, and I went back to the first one. All you needed was enough duct tape to cover the holes."

The Army began phasing out the Huey's in the '80s with the introduction of the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. With the introduction of the smaller, quieter, and more maneuverable UH-72A Lakotas, the retirement of the Army's fleet of Hueys has accelerated. The Lakota is also replacing the UH-1 at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center..

Several guests took part in some final flights throughout the day, including Mayor Peter Braun of Schmidmuehlen.

"I was born near Hohenfels in Schmidmuehlen, and the whole time as a child till now, I hear the helicopters," Braun said. "Now, the helicopters go, and it is a bit sad. I am going to miss them."

Hohenfels Middle/High School science teacher Randall Roberts also enjoyed one of the last flights. Roberts flew Hueys for 15 years during his military career.

"It's an emotional moment for me," Roberts said. "I loved the Huey. It's so friendly to fly. You could do every emergency procedure in the world and still recover in the Huey. I never thought I'd be in one again. It's an extreme honor, but it's a melancholy honor."

The four helicopters flew to Ramstein Air Force Base after the ceremony where they will be airlifted to Florida, then rebuilt into dual-engine Huey 2S, and returned to service with the Department of State Air Wing.

Lt. Col. Brian Dillon, Joint Multinational Readiness Center senior aviation observer controller, said, "As we bid farewell to the UH-1 today, we'll hold on to the legacy of the pilots and crew chiefs who flew her and kept her in the air."

"It took men like Colonel Crandall to turn the UH-1 into an iconic aircraft. The UH-1 became a legendary aircraft because it was flown by legends," he added.

Crandall said he has attended several retirement ceremonies for the Huey, even going up in the final flight at Yakima Training Center in Washington last February.

Many Hueys are still in use today, in foreign military as well as civilian service. The 78-year-old Crandall predicted the Huey will be in use somewhere for another 50 years.

"If I get to fly the last Huey, I'll be 110 years old," he joked.

02.05.2011 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Defense Security Cooperation Agency; issued April 29, 2011)

WASHINGTON --- The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress Monday of a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of the United Kingdom of Ordnance Alteration Kits for conversion and upgrades of MK15 PHALANX Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $137 million. The Government of the United Kingdom (UK) has requested the sale of 20 Block 1A to Block 1B Baseline 2 configuration Ordnance Alteration Kits and 16 Block 1B Baseline 1 to Baseline 2 Ordnance Alteration Kits for conversion and upgrades of MK15 PHALANX Close-In Weapon System (CIWS), spare and repair parts, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, software support, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics support services, and all other related elements of program support. The estimated cost is $137 million. This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to maintain and improve the security of a key NATO partner that has been, and continues to be, an important force for political stability and economic power in Europe. The MK 15 PHALANX CIWS overhauls/upgrades will be used for close-in ship self-defense against air and surface threats onboard the UK’s naval combatants and auxiliaries. The MK 15 PHALANX CIWS Block 1B Baseline 2 upgrades will provide enhanced electro-optical and radiofrequency close-in detection, tracking and engagement capabilities over the UK’s existing MK 15 PHALANX systems, while improving CIWS supportability, maintainability and interoperability with U.S. systems. The UK, which already has earlier versions of the MK 15 PHALANX in its inventory, will have no problem absorbing these upgrades and support into its armed forces. The proposed sale of this equipment will not alter the basic military balance in the region. The prime contractor will be Raytheon Systems Company in Tucson, Arizona. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale. Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to the UK.

SOURCE defense-update.com

Apr 28 2011 By David Pugliese’s Defence Watch

From AgustaWestland:

Reston, Va. - AgustaWestland North America, an AgustaWestland company, is pleased that the U.S. Air Force has announced it is moving forward with a competition for the Common Vertical Lift Support Platform and HH-60 recapitalization programs.

"AgustaWestland North America is prepared to participate and to vigorously compete for both the U.S. Air Force's CVLSP and HH-60 recapitalization programs - two separate but important missions," said AgustaWestland North America's Chief Executive Officer, R. Scott Rettig. "We plan to offer the advanced military version of the best selling AW139 - the AW139M - which has been fully missionized with proven U.S. military technology for CVLSP requirements, and the battle-tested HH-71 for the Combat Search and Rescue mission."

Manufactured in the company's Philadelphia, Pa. facility, the AW139M has been configured with the latest U.S. military technology from suppliers across the United States, ensuring that it is a cost effective, off the shelf option for the U.S. Air Force. The AW139M includes a high-definition FLIR, self protection equipment including infrared detection and countermeasures, avionics, heavy duty landing gear, ballistic protection and other dedicated equipment, allowing all-weather operation at the U.S. Air Force's northern-tier missile bases.

The HH-71, based on the operationally-proven AW101, offers a robust platform for critical combat search and rescue missions. With extensive experience in Afghanistan and Iraq, the HH-71's size, low acoustic signature, long range all-weather capability and effectiveness in austere environments such as sand and snow enables the warfighter to complete challenging combat search and rescue missions with speed, range, security and safety. The HH-71 includes three engines providing aircrews the assurance that the mission can be safely completed, even under hostile or irregular warfare conditions.

source agustawestland.com

April 27, 2011 SHEPARD GROUP

AgustaWestland North America, an AgustaWestland company, is pleased that the US Air Force has announced it is moving forward with a competition for the Common Vertical Lift Support Platform and HH-60 recapitalization programs. "AgustaWestland North America is prepared to participate and to vigorously compete for both the US Air Force's CVLSP and HH-60 recapitalization programs - two separate but important missions," said AgustaWestland North America's Chief Executive Officer, R. Scott Rettig. "We plan to offer the advanced military version of the best selling AW139 - the AW139M - which has been fully missionized with proven US military technology for CVLSP requirements, and the battle-tested HH-71 for the Combat Search and Rescue mission." Manufactured in the company's Philadelphia, Pa. facility, the AW139M has been configured with the latest US military technology from suppliers across the United States, ensuring that it is a cost effective, off the shelf option for the US Air Force. The AW139M includes a high-definition FLIR, self protection equipment including infrared detection and countermeasures, avionics, heavy duty landing gear, ballistic protection and other dedicated equipment, allowing all-weather operation at the US Air Force's northern-tier missile bases. The HH-71, based on the operationally-proven AW101, offers a robust platform for critical combat search and rescue missions. With extensive experience in Afghanistan and Iraq, the HH-71's size, low acoustic signature, long range all-weather capability and effectiveness in austere environments such as sand and snow enables the warfighter to complete challenging combat search and rescue missions with speed, range, security and safety. The HH-71 includes three engines providing aircrews the assurance that the mission can be safely completed, even under hostile or irregular warfare conditions.

Photo: BAE Systems

Apr 26, 2011 By David A. Fulghum AviationWeek.com

Cannon do not have to be lethal to be useful. Directed-energy weapons are being paired with traditional kinetic naval weapons to produce an advanced shipboard defense against people, small arms, light boats and unmanned aircraft. Options include non-lethal and low-power effects. But the new combinations also offer lethal, higher-power capabilities for a much larger target set including enemy air defenses and anti-ship cruise missiles. Plans include introducing high-power microwave (HPM) devices for counter-electronics attacks and high-energy lasers, say BAE Systems officials, who were in Washington for the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exposition. Other options are to put the HPM devices into UAVs or small missiles that can be carried by unmanned helicopters like the Northrop Grumman Fire Scout to patrol ahead of and above ships. The team of BAE Systems as integrator and Boeing, which is supplying the beam director, contends that the technology and platforms, both air and sea, are available and await only the miniaturization of some key components.

22 avril 2011 Par Rédacteur en chef. PORTAIL DES SOUS-MARINS

Le commandant des forces sous-marines françaises a rencontré le 21 avril le commandant des sous-marins de la Composante Maritime Sud de l’OTAN, sur la base navale de Naples. La rencontre entre le contre-amiral James G. Foggo III et le vice-amiral d’escadre Georges-Henri Mouton faisait partie d’une visite de 2 jours destinée à renforcer les liens entre les 2 marines. Les 2 amiraux ont évoqué leurs forces sous-marines respectives et les opérations en Europe. « Je suis venu à Naples pour rencontrer le contre-amiral Foggo et discuter des relations que nos marines entretiennent en ce qui concerne nos forces sous-marines et, plus particulièrement, nos sous-marins d’attaque, » a déclaré l’amiral Mouton. « Je voulais échanger sur l’amélioration de notre collaboration et parler de l’avenir. ». Bien que cette rencontre ait été la première, les amiraux Mouton et Foggo ont pu longuement travailler et aborder, en toute franchise, de nombreux sujets relatifs aux opérations sous-marines en Europe. « Il est important de construire des relations fortes et, pour cela, de pouvoir s’asseoir, discuter franchement et aller de l’avant » a déclaré l’amiral Foggo. « C’est ce que nous avons fait, c’est-à-dire définir une ligne de conduite et améliorer les liens extrêmement fructueux [qui existent] entre nos deux forces sous-marines. » L’amiral Foggo a également fait état de la récente coopération entre les deux marines en lien avec la situation en Libye. « Nos marines ont travaillé de concert tant lors d’ “Odyssey Dawn” qu’actuellement lors de “Unified Protector”. Nous ne remercierons jamais assez la marine nationale pour tout ce qu’elle fait, » a déclaré l’amiral Foggo.

L'analyse de la rédaction :

Remarquons que l’amiral Foggo III, bien que commandant des sous-marins de l’OTAN pour la « façade sud », s’exprime ici comme « patron » des sous-marins américains.

Référence : US Navy

21 Apr 2011 By GERARD O'DWYER Defensenews

HELSINKI - A diverse political grouping that includes the Progressive Party, the Christian Democrats and the Socialist Left has united to demand that the Norwegian government conduct a detailed, updated review of the cost of the country's Fighter Replacement Program (FRP). The request is happening against a backdrop of increasing development costs tied to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter project. The Ministry of Defense (MoD) has rejected calls for a cost review, maintaining the government is confident it will purchase the U.S. combat aircraft at a price close to its original estimates, based on figures provided by Lockheed Martin in 2008, when Norway selected the F-35 as its next-generation multirole fighter. The Socialist Left Party (SLP), which is the junior party in Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg's center-left coalition government, contends the cost review is warranted because the Storting, the national parliament, has not given final approval to purchasing 52 F-35s, and a request for approval is not due until 2014, said B■ rd Vegard Solhjell, the SLP's parliamentary leader. "I think it is only right that at some point, we stop and go carefully through the figures," Solhjell said. This view is shared by the Progress Party's Øyvind Korsberg, the vice speaker in the Storting. "It is not right that parliament is asked to approve something without first having seen the final bill," Korsberg said. "What is appropriate is to review and know the cost of the aircraft we plan to buy." The MoD says the F-35 program is not in doubt and will proceed normally. "Norway has decided to buy the F-35. The choice is made. Our goal is to achieve 100 percent offset for Norwegian industry, and I do believe we will succeed," Roger Ingebrigtsen, state secretary of state, told the state news agency NTB April 17.

21 Apr 2011 by Thomas Harding, and Jon Swaine THE TELEGRAPH

The Defence Secretary will be joined by Gen Sir David Richards, the head of the Armed Forces, on the mission to drum up greater air support from the Americans who withdrew their combat fighters from Libya earlier this month. Dr Fox and Gen Richards will meet their counterparts the American Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs in a bid for American assistance. They will request Reaper armed drones in order to patrol the skies above the besieged town of Misurata with the ability to strike at very short notice. Nato is experiencing difficulties in getting air power over the port town in time to hit targets as it takes more than an hour to fly jets from southern Italy, although they can remain overhead with air-to-air refueling. Air force chiefs are growing frustrated that Col Muammar Gaddafi's tanks or artillery fire off a couple of rounds then withdraw into cover before they can be hit. The bid has also been made because Nato does not have enough ground attack aircraft to remain permanently overhead "manning a kill box". Dr Fox is also likely to ask about resupply of Paveway bombs and Tomahawk missiles that have been used in large numbers over Libya. The trip has been planned as a Labour peer who is the UN's humanitarian chief criticised the despatch of British military personnel to Libya. to assist rebel fighters against Muammar Gaddafi. Lady Amos, who has become a key figure in restraining western intervention in the country, suggested the arrival of senior British officers could "blur the line" between military and aid missions. Her comments prompted a sharp response from Downing Street, which said Mr Cameron had been "crystal clear" in setting out the advisers' mission, and that they would help the aid effort. Baroness Amos, who was leader of the Lords under Tony Blair, now serves as Ban Ki-Moon's Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. "The UK government will have its own priorities," she said. "My priority is getting humanitarian aid in and making sure that the lines between the humanitarian and the military are not blurred." "I'm not aware of what the terms of reference of these advisers are," she said. Last night a Downing Street spokesman said: "We have been absolutely crystal clear. The advisers are not 'forces on the ground'. "They are assisting the National Transitional Council (NTC) with organisational structures, communications and logistics. This is not blurring the lines. It is quite the opposite." Lady Amos vetoed a plan for the deployment of up to 1,000 EU troops to secure aid missions has been drawn up by senior officials including Lady Ashton, another Labour peer, who is the EU's foreign policy chief. But Baroness Amos refused to issue the request. Aid agencies on the ground have also stressed they do not want to endanger workers by having them associated with armed forces. Having at least three of the drones would ensure 24 hour coverage over Misurata where the bombardments continued yesterday.

21 avril 2011 par Rédacteur en chef. PORTAIL DES SOUS-MARINS

L’état-major Europe-Afrique des forces navales américaines a organisé sa première conférence de théâtre sur la lutte anti-sous-marine (ASM), le 19 avril à Naples.

Durant la conférence, les officiers de l’état-major ont concentré leur attention sur l’amélioration de l’efficacité de la lutte ASM dans la zone d’opération du théâtre européen.

La lutte ASM utilise des moyens comme les bâtiments, les avions, les hélicoptères et les sous-marins pour comprendre l’espace de bataille sous-marin.

« La prolifération mondiale des technologies sous-marines, en particulier les sous-marins, constitue une menace pour la sécurité nationale, » a déclaré le vice-amiral John M. Richardson, commandant des forces sous-marines américaines. « Notre supériorité sous-marine et l’accès libre aux ressources communes est en danger si nous ne pouvons conserver notre avantage, avec les meilleurs personnels, techniques et matériels, pour contrer cette menace grandissante. »

La conférence a duré une journée et a abordé les principaux problèmes, afin de s’assurer que toutes les actions ASM du théâtre sont en accord avec les directives du commandant des forces sous-marines.

L’amiral James G. Stavridis, commandant du théâtre européen et des forces de l’OTAN (SACEUR), a aussi participé à la conférence. Il a abordé des sujets comme les opérations actuelles et futures, les capacités des partenaires et la construction d’alliance renforcées.

L’OTAN est aussi un important contributeur de la lutte ASM, utilisant des systèmes actifs à basse fréquence, des avions de patrouille maritime et des sous-marins à propulsion anaérobie.

Pendant la conférence, l’amiral Stavridis a discuté de « la constitution d’alliances plus fortes » et de la manière dont cela pouvait être vu lors d’exercices comme “Noble Manta”, “Proud Manta” et “Bold Monarch”. Ces exercices démontrent la détermination de l’OTAN à maintenir les compétences et à améliorer l’interopérabilité dans les opérations coordonnées ASM et de surveillance côtière.

L’amiral Stavridis a aussi évoqué les contributions importantes de la force sous-marine pendant l’opération Odyssey Dawn [1].

« Je voudrais adresser un classique Bravo Zulu [2] à l’excellente force sous-marine pendant “Odyssey Dawn”, » a déclaré l’amiral Stavridis. « Vous avez fait un travail formidable là-bas, bien joué. »

Bien que la conférence n’ait duré qu’une seule journée, le groupe de 15 officiers supérieurs qui y a participé estime que les conclusions sont bénéfiques.

« Il n’y a rien de mieux que de rencontrer, face à face, nos supérieurs et de recevoir leurs directives et leurs ordres, directement et personnellement. Nous allons tous continuer à nous concentrer sur cette partie très importante de la guerre navale, » a déclaré le Capt. Mark Davis, Commandant de la Task Force 69 [3].

Notes :

[1] Le nom donné par les Etats-Unis aux opérations au large de la Libye (opération Harmattan de la marine nationale).

[2] Signal envoyé par radio ou par drapeau, signifiant "Bien joué".

[3] Composante de la 6è Flotte US, chargée de la planification et de l’organisation des opérations de lutte ASM en Méditerranée. La TF 69 est composée de sous-marins nucléaires d’attaque, en transit ou en opération dans la zone.

Référence : US Navy