Lieutenant General Adrian Bradshaw talks about security in Tagab Valley with a French Army serviceman, in a guard tower at Forward Operating Base Tagab, Afghanistan – Picture ISAF

18 Oct 12 UK MoD -A Military Operations news article

Lieutenant General Adrian Bradshaw, having recently completed his 12-month tour in Kabul as the Deputy Commander ISAF and UK National Component Commander, gave a briefing to media in the MOD's Main Building yesterday, 17 October.

The General began by saying that it might come as a surprise, given that some of the media commentary on the Afghan campaign had not been one of unmitigated success, that his message was essentially one of good news.

He said that ISAF was stepping back from the combat role that it had had in the early days and was increasingly mentoring and advising the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) who were successfully taking over that responsibility. As a result of disengaging from the combat role, ISAF was suffering between 38 and 40 per cent fewer casualties when compared to last year's figures.

Around three-quarters of the Afghan population now lived in areas of transition where the ANSF were taking the lead in providing security.

The insurgent threat

Over the years the insurgents' objective has been to achieve dominance in the populated areas of Helmand and Kandahar provinces. Last year they campaigned strenuously to recover and get control of the districts that had been ceded to the Afghan Government:

    "In trying to do that the insurgents manifestly failed, and in fact they saw reverses in their fortunes" said the General. "Instead we saw the influence of the government and of the ANSF extended over the year up to Kajaki, and security was established in places like Marjah, which you may remember was once described as 'the bleeding ulcer of Helmand'.

    "I walked down there a number of months ago with US and Afghan forces without body armour, without helmet, I went into an internet café, talked to members of the local Afghan police and the place was very changed from the picture 12 months ago."

Across the country there has been a nine per cent decrease in enemy attacks, a steady downward trend that has continued throughout 2012.

An Afghan National Army honour guard leads a parade formation of newly-graduated non-commisioned officers during a ceremony at Camp Ghazi, Kabul, Afghanistan – Picture ISAF

This trend could be seen in an even more favourable light said General Bradshaw as they had been coloured by the fact that there had been a number of significant operations into insurgent sanctuaries in northern Helmand and elsewhere which prompted quite a lot of response from the insurgents in terms of direct fire attack:

    "One of the effects that we have seen this year which is quite marked is the displacement of violence out of the main populated areas and out to the margins," he said.

In the second quarter of 2012 compared to the same period of last year statistics show a 30 per cent reduction in the number of Afghans living within one kilometre of an enemy-initiated attack, and in the third quarter the figure had gone down to 13 per cent:

    "We are seeing the effects of this on the population in our survey data," said the General. "The level of concern about security has dropped in relation to other concerns such as employment, provision of electricity and missing bridges - which is a good sign."

All of the signs showed that the insurgents were under pressure. Thanks to a poor poppy harvest and vigorous counter-narcotics activities, such as eradication programmes, seizures of caches and very effective interdiction operations, the insurgents' traditional revenue had been hit and they had made very little money from narcotics last year.

As a result the insurgents are short of equipment. Partly because of this, improvised explosive device (IED) attacks are ten per cent down across the country compared to last year's numbers.

An indicative example being the increasing cost of making IEDs:

    "Last year an IED would cost on average $200 [US dollars] to make, whereas now they are costing between $600 and $800."

Lieutenant General Adrian Bradshaw checks ground position from a Black Hawk helicopter carrying him and the commander of Task Force Lafayette, Brigadier General Eric Hautecloque Rayz of the French Army, over Afghanistan – Picture ISAF

The insurgents' response to this is grim and points to desperation:

    "In Sangin, insurgents are targeting people whose family members have accidentally triggered IEDs, usually with dire consequences, forcing them to publicly apologise; they then flog them and recover the cost of the IED from them."

There has been a 15 per cent reduction in explosions across the country since last year which points to an improvement in the find and clear procedures. And in the last three years the number of IED attacks resulting in deaths of ISAF troops has reduced from 25 to 12 per cent:

    "We continue to bear down on the use of IEDs; of course they remain a significant threat, and it is never time to get complacent about it," said the General.

Insurgents lose heart

General Bradshaw went on to describe the effect that all this was having on the Taliban's leadership which was showing ever-widening fractures. He referred to an unclassified open source report by a senior Taliban leader published in a newspaper. The context was surprisingly downbeat, free from the usual insurgent rhetoric:

    "The Taliban capturing Kabul," one paragraph began, "is a very distant prospect."

    "This tells us that they are beginning to realise that they cannot achieve their aims by military means alone. That means they know they have to choose the political path," explained the General, who also pointed out that the text made no reference to 2014 or the possibility that things might improve for the insurgents after that.

Reintegration

As it seemed that the message was beginning to seep into the insurgent's mind that it was time to engage with the legitimate political process, reconciliation and reintegration were gaining momentum to bring the low-level fighters back into the communities:

    "There is a very effective bureaucracy across the country to allow this to happen, and we have already 5,000 folk in the programme with several hundred more in waiting," said Lt Gen Bradshaw. "The beneficiaries of this are the communities, and the elders vouch for those in the programme."

He acknowledged that although this was not yet a game-changer, it was significant.

Afghan soldiers document siezed bomb-making materials following a successful strike operation. Lieutenant General Bradshaw explained that the success of such operations across Afghanistan has made the devices very costly for insurgents to produce – Picture ISAF

Afghan National Security Forces

The ANSF had surprised many with the level of progress they had made, said the General. Now a third-of-a-million-strong, three-quarters of the Afghan National Army who were being partnered by ISAF were now in the top three categories of proficiency and improving all the time:

    "The ANSF are doing between 85 to 95 per cent of all their own training, Afghan instructors are training their own soldiers, with us advising, but more and more standing back."

Their forces in the field have for some time been doing the planning for their operations, and leading in the field, executing very competently at brigade-level, which the General described as 'operations of some sophistication'.

Where the terrain allowed, such as in Regional Command (East), the ANSF were also leading operations at Corps-level, with brigades manoeuvring in the field:

    "There's a bit of tough love in our support, if our advisers see a kandak is running short of water, then they will ask the commanders what they intend to do, but you won't see lots of ISAF water for the troops to drink. A few days going thirsty drives home the lesson," said General Bradshaw.

As a consequence, logistics, which had been a weak link, was now being solved. The process for getting supplies was better understood and being factored into the planning.

The strength of the ANSF artillery and special forces had proved themselves and even close air support was developing nicely, as was the Afghan casualty evacuation capability. All in all, this progress, said General Bradshaw, was instilling confidence not only in the ANSF but in the communities that they serve.

Lieutenant General Adrian Bradshaw welcomes Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt to ISAF Headquarters in Kabul – Picture ISAF

Insider threat

The General stressed that the insider threat, known as 'green on blue' incidents, was being taken extremely seriously at the very highest level:

    "Any family who loses a family member to combat operations has our deepest condolences. If they lose a family member to an insider attack, clearly this can be even tougher to deal with and understand," said the General.

He said that Commander ISAF was dealing with this personally and was determined to grip this issue, and that the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, was also taking the problem seriously.

General Bradshaw went on to say that the Afghan Army was now a very professional organisation with good systems within it, geared up to spotting and dealing with soldiers who looked as if they were becoming disenchanted, or whose behaviour was causing concern.

The General was also keen to stress that ISAF and Afghan security forces had many thousands of interactions every day of the week:

    "Every day we see their professionalism and their commitment, and we also see the very effective and close working relationship that we have with them."

Still much to do

General Bradshaw acknowledged that there was still a lot to do but pointed out that there was still two years of development time and he was robust in his view that improvements, partly inspired by the tough love of the ISAF advisers, would be sufficient. The ISAF model, to carefully draw back in graduated stages as the various levels of ANSF capability and confidence grew, was proving to be effective:

    "There will be no sudden cliff-edge draw back, it will all be carefully managed and modulated, and at the end we are confident the Afghans will be well able to take over the job," said the General.

He said that it was impressive to see how the locals viewed their security forces and clearly took pride in having their sons and brothers looking after their security.

Lt Gen Bradshaw concluded by paying tribute to UK and ISAF troops and the achievements they were making thanks to their skill, patience, courage and great endurance.

18/10 LesEchos.fr (Reuters)

Le ministre français de la Défense Jean-Yves Le Drian a déclaré jeudi qu'il regrettait l'échec des discussions entre EADS et le britannique BAE Systems en vue d'une fusion, estimant toutefois que cet échec ne contrariait pas les efforts de la France pour bâtir une Europe de la Défense.

Jean-Yves Le Drian s'exprimait en marge de la cérémonie de la mise à flot de la frégate multimissions (Fremm) Normandie sur le site du constructeur naval militaire DCNS à Lorient (Morbihan).

"Ce projet (EADS-BAE) n'a pas été jusqu'au bout parce que les deux entreprises ont estimé qu'elles n'avaient pas toutes les conditions politiques pour le remplir. Je le regrette aussi", a-t-il dit à des journalistes.

"C'était une opportunité considérable mais ça ne contrarie pas les efforts que nous voulons mettre en oeuvre pour identifier une Europe de la défense. Les éléments de la relance ne sont pas trop contrariés par cet échec."

Jean-Yves Le Drian a précisé que ses "interrogations" sur l'opération, qui portaient notamment sur les capacités de la France en termes de missiles et sur le sort des entreprises hors du nouvel ensemble, avaient été levées lors de discussions "malheureusement trop courtes".

"Un mois de discussions pour faire un ensemble aussi majeur, c'était quand même très court. C'est une des raisons de l'échec", a estimé le ministre de la Défense.

Jean-Yves Le Drian n'a en revanche pas souhaite s'étendre sur la consolidation à venir du secteur français et européen de la Défense.

Le gouvernement précédent avait esquissé un début de recomposition autour de l'équipementier Thales, qui détient 35% de DCNS.

Un projet d'entrée de Thales au capital de Nexter, le fabricant du char Leclerc, a été gelé avant l'élection présidentielle.

Dassault Aviation détient de son côté 26% de Thales.

Jean-Yves Le Drian a également dit espérer une décision "avant la fin de l'année" concernant le drone de surveillance Male (Moyenne altitude longue endurance), destiné à succéder au Harfang d'EADS qui arrive en fin de vie.

Il a dit discuter de ce sujet avec le Royaume-Uni et l'Allemagne, alors que le gouvernement précédent privilégiait une solution purement franco-britannique autour d'un tandem Dassault Aviation-BAE Systems.

Le drone Male figure au projet de budget français de la Défense en 2013, maintenu a 31,4 milliards d'euros, comme en 2012.

A l'issue de la mise à flot de la frégate Normandie, Jean-Yves Le Drian a confirmé la commande par la France de 11 frégates Fremm, assurant à DCNS une charge de travail jusqu'en 2022.

La France prendra livraison d'ici la fin de l'année de la frégate Aquitaine, la première unité de nouvelle génération. La frégate Normandie, sera livrée à la France en 2014.

Oct. 19, 2012 by Arie Egozi – FG

Tel Aviv - Switzerland has completed in-country flight evaluations of two Israeli unmanned air systems, with a decision on its medium-altitude, long-endurance surveillance requirement expected to be made during 2014.

Israel Aerospace Industries' Heron 1 was tested by the Armasuisse procurement agency in September, with the activity having been followed by flights with Elbit Systems' Hermes 900 this month. Both air vehicles were demonstrated in a variety of flight envelopes.

The competition in Switzerland is the latest in a long list in which the rival manufacturers have gone head-to-head.

In May, Elbit won a contract to supply a mixed fleet of Hermes 900 and smaller Hermes 450 UAS to Colombia.

Sources in the Israeli defence establishment say the deal was placed under a government-to-government arrangement after a previous purchase was cancelled amid a "power struggle" between Elbit and IAI.

18 octobre 2012 Par HASSAN MEDDAH -  L'Usine Nouvelle n°3303

Dans la recomposition qui s'annonce, l'acteur au centre du jeu est l'italien Finmeccanica, un véritable mini-EADS transalpin.

La méga-fusion avortée entre EADS et BAE Systems ne restera pas sans suite. « Ce projet a montré que la grande majorité des industriels français et européens n'a pas la taille critique pour porter les investissements nécessaires dans les prochaines années. Nexter, Dassault Aviation, Rheinmetal... ne font pas le poids dans la nouvelle compétition mondiale.

Cet article sur le site de l’Usine Nouvelle

18.10.2012 Vincent Lamigeon, grand reporter à Challenges Supersonique

Résumons. L’Allemagne a fait capoter la fusion EADS-BAE par un veto de la chancelière Angela Merkel. L’Allemagne refuse d’assumer cette responsabilité, la renvoyant à un fantasmatique désaccord entre Paris et Londres que le strict examen des faits suffit à démentir. L’Allemagne a négocié ou négocie des baisses de commandes d’équipements militaires (A400M, hélicoptères Tigre et NH-90), tout en gardant la charge industrielle liée à ses commandes d’origine. L’Allemagne refuse de verser son écot au développement de l’A350 (une avance remboursable de 600 millions d'euros), pour protester contre une charge de travail « principalement localisée en France ». L’Allemagne veut entrer au capital d’EADS après avoir critiqué pendant des années la présence de la France au capital.

Bref, les dirigeants d’EADS auraient de quoi vouloir éructer le mot de Canbronne, en français ou en allemand, à la fac de leurs interlocuteurs de Berlin. Pourquoi ces vapeurs soudaines outre-Rhin ? Un premier point est à prendre en compte : l’Allemagne entre en période électorale. « C’est la principale cause du veto allemand », assure un familier du siège d’EADS. Effrayée par les risques de pertes de technologies et/ou emplois en Allemagne, la chancelière aurait préféré couper court à la poursuite des discussions pour ne pas prêter le flanc à l’accusation de brader les intérêts allemands chez EADS. Les relations conflictuelles entre Tom Enders, patron d’EADS, et le coordinateur du gouvernement allemand pour le secteur aéronautique, le rigoriste Peter Hintze (photo CDU), n’aident pas non plus à calmer les tensions entre l’Allemagne et EADS.

Interviewé dans Challenges cette semaine, Marwan Lahoud, directeur de la stratégie et de l’international d’EADS s’emploie à calmer le jeu, et à rappeler la présence industrielle du groupe en Allemagne : « Nous avons 50 000 salariés en Allemagne, nous sommes le premier fournisseur du ministère de la Défense allemand. Il n’y a pas d’antagonisme, nous sommes allemands outre-Rhin et français en France ! » L’argument de Berlin sur l’A350, accusé d’être trop français, apparaît aussi fallacieux : les sites de Hambourg, Stade et Brême sont largement sollicités sur le programme de long-courrier (fuselage arrière, empennage, équipement de la voilure).

Que peut donc faire EADS ? Le groupe européen ne peut certes pas envoyer paître un de ses principaux clients. Mais il a un sacré levier de négociation. L’Allemagne veut couper dans ses commandes militaires ? EADS peut dégainer l’argument des risques pour l’emploi en Allemagne, tous les engagements sur le sujet ayant été rendus caducs par l’échec de la fusion avec BAE. Le camp français aussi a une arme atomique : si l’Allemagne, via la banque publique KfW, veut récupérer les droits de Daimler en plus de sa part dans le capital d’EADS, il faut modifier le pacte d’actionnaires. Et donc obtenir l’aval de la France et de Lagardère.

On touche là au talon d’Achille de la politique allemande : à trop tirer sur la corde de toutes parts, elle risque de monter tous les interlocuteurs contre elle, et pénaliser par là-même ses propres intérêts. Etrange stratégie.

17.10.2012 par Guillaume Belan (FOB)

Le Kleinflugkörpea (en français: « petit missile ») a réussi son premier essai. Développé par la branche allemande de MBDA (1300 emplois), sur fonds propres, le petit missile a réalisé le 19 septembre son premier tir d’essai au centre de Baumholder en Allemagne. Plus doucement dénommé KFK, ce démonstrateur est le résultat des retours de l’engagement de l’armée allemande en Afghanistan, qui souhaiterait disposer d’un missile d’infanterie petit, léger (5 à 6 kg), pas cher, pour engager différents types de cibles, du sniper au 4X4. Cette arme anti-guerilla doit facilement pouvoir être mise en œuvre par un seul opérateur. Les essais vont se poursuivre en 2013 avec peut-être à la clef un contrat de la Bundeswehr. Qui, elle, plie bagages d’Afghanistan…

Still going strong: David Cameron has said he is committed

to the continuation of Britain's Trident missile system

17 Oct 2012 By Telegraph View

The Prime Minister is reassuring about this country's defence

Under the terms of the Coalition Agreement, the future of the Trident missile system is currently subject to official review. But concerns that this process might leave Britain without a credible nuclear deterrent will have been lessened by yesterday’s exchanges in the House of Commons. David Cameron said he remained committed to its continuation after the Vanguard submarines are withdrawn from service in the next decade. More than that, the Prime Minister made clear his view that the successor submarines should operate on the basis of continuous at-sea deterrence as a “key element” of their credibility.

Although an irreversible decision to replace the deterrent has been put off until 2016, after the next election, it is encouraging to learn that recent suggestions that the Government might consider significantly downgrading Trident appear wide of the mark. Sir Nick Harvey, the Liberal Democrat MP who was until last month the defence minister in charge of the review, has even floated the possibility of locking the warheads “in a cupboard”, to be launched only after several weeks of mounting international tension. Other proposed alternatives include reduced patrols and designing missiles to be launched from aircraft, surface Navy ships or land. At Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday, Sir Nick urged the Government “to keep an open mind about how exactly to replace our nuclear deterrent”.

But no prime minister concerned for the security of the nation can compromise on the ability of the Trident fleet to keep one submarine on permanent patrol. As Mr Cameron rightly observed: “If we are to have a nuclear deterrent… we have something that is credible and believable, otherwise there is no point in having one at all.”

Naval aviators in a hangar at Royal Naval Air Station

Yeovilton with a Second World War Fairey Swordfish

biplane from the Royal Navy Historic Flight - MOD 2012

17 Oct 12 UK MoD - A History and Honour news article

Naval aviators from Lynx 217 Flight based on recently-retired HMS Liverpool have been awarded a prestigious Fleet Air Arm trophy for their part in the NATO-led Libya operation last year.

217 Flight of 815 Naval Air Squadron earned the Osprey Trophy having been in the thick of the action throughout much of the campaign against the Gaddafi regime.

Lynx 217 Flight came under fire from Gaddafi's guns (although the helicopter was not hit, it was shaken by the force of shells exploding), called in fire missions for HMS Liverpool's main 4.5-inch (114mm) gun and scoured the Gulf of Sirte for small boats intending to lay mines in the approaches to the besieged port of Misurata.

These actions earned the air and ground crew the coveted Osprey Trophy - presented each year to the Lynx Flight which contributes most to front line operations.

The Lynx Mk8 helicopters of 815 Naval Air Squadron based at Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton - also known as HMS Heron - are the wings of the solitary Type 42 destroyer still in service, HMS Edinburgh, all six of their successor Type 45 destroyers, and share Flight duties on Type 23 frigates with the larger Merlins of 829 Naval Air Squadron from Culdrose.

The fast, nimble and potent Lynx - about to be replaced by the Wildcat over the next two-to-three years - also supports operations from Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships (there's a Flight currently aboard RFA Argus on drug-busting duties in the Caribbean) and, on occasions, serves with the Royal Navy's capital ships.

In the case of 217 Flight, the helicopter was airborne for more than 270 hours on Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR duties thanks to the Herculean efforts of the small band of maintainers (just seven strong), pilot Lieutenant Alistair Crawford and his observer/flight commander, Lieutenant Phil Barron.

Together they ensured the Lynx was available for missions 94 per cent of the time:

    "It was a brilliant team effort," said Lt Crawford.

    "The Fleet Air Arm is often at the forefront of operations that have a maritime dimension. HMS Liverpool's role was key to many of the successes in the allied operations. It is vital that helicopter operations are an integrated part of the ship and our Flight was involved in the thick of it throughout."

Members of 217 Flight from 815 Naval Air Squadron pictured at Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton with a Fleet Air Arm Lynx helicopter – Picture MOD 2012

All of which meant 217 Flight were very worthy winners of the Osprey Trophy, presented by Fleet Commander Admiral Sir George Zambellas when he visited Yeovilton:

    "This is a chance to reflect on courage and dedication," he said presenting the trophy.

    "Diverse and demanding challenges were met by Liverpool's Flight in the time-honoured traditions of the Naval Service."

The Osprey Trophy was introduced in 2007 in memory of four members of HMS Portland's Flight who lost their lives in a Lynx crash off the Lizard Peninsula in December 2004.

The presentation was attended by relatives and was marked with a flying display by the Black Cats Lynx helicopter display team and a graceful Sea Fury fighter from the Royal Navy Historic Flight.

Also presented was the Robert Sandison Trophy, introduced in 1958 in memory of its namesake pilot. It is awarded annually to the individual aircrew member contributing most to the development of new airborne weapon tactics.

This year it was awarded to Lt Alastair Thompson for his dedicated work whilst deployed on counter-piracy operations over the Indian Ocean:

    "I am very proud - this award was a massive surprise," he said.

    "We were set a challenge which demanded a flexible response and my proposals for revised operational tactics were fully supported by my commander.

    "The successes we had in countering a range of piracy incidents reflect the effectiveness of the Royal Navy's dynamic response to an ongoing threat to maritime security.

    "Although I received the award, I'd like to pay tribute to the professionalism of my Flight, without whom none of this would have been possible."

17 October 2012 naval-technology.com

The Finnish Navy Command has awarded a contract to Marine Alutech to develop and deliver Watercat M18 AMC high-speed landing crafts.

Under the €32m contract, Marine Alutech will deliver 12 Watercat M18 multipurpose vessels to the Finland Navy from 2014 to 2016.

Landing craft are fitted with effective protection and weapon systems to provide high transportation capacity for the crew, as reported by ASDnews.

"The vessel can operate in extreme weather conditions due to its heating and air-conditioning systems."

Designed for archipelago, coastal and offshore conditions, the Watercat M18 AMCs are capable of supporting missions such as troop transportation, medical and evacuation tasks, landing operations, patrolling and escorting tasks, in addition to battlefield support functions.

The vessel can operate in extreme weather conditions due to its heating and air-conditioning systems, while the ballistic and CBRN-protection systems will enable personnel to carry out secure operations in all conditions.

The craft is integrated with satellite navigation and positioning systems, radar, forward looking sonar, AIS, Inmarsat-C, autopilot and onboard camera monitoring system.

Powered by two 660kW diesel main engines with waterjet propulsion, the modern hull design vessel ensures handling and sea keeping capabilities.

Capable of cruising at a top speed in excess of 40k, the boat is also integrated with electronic propulsion control system (drive-by-wire) and network based vessel control system to secure functionality in any situation.

In order to provide defensive capability, the vessel is armed with a primary weapon such as 12.7mm heavy machine gun or 40mm automatic grenade launcher and a coaxial weapon, 7.62mm machine gun.

oct 16, 2012 Damien Kerlouet (BRUXELLES2)

«Nous sommes à la recherche de jeunes qui ne reculent pas devant l’effort physique, qui aiment l’aventure et qui sont prêts à accepter des risques mesurés». C’est en ces termes que le ministre de la Défense belge, Pieter de Crem, a présenté récemment la campagne de recrutement qui va s’ouvrir pour 2013.

1830 postes offerts

En tout, 1.700 militaires et 130 civils qui sont recherchés pour occuper des fonctions allant du Paracommando au Matelot cuisiner, en passant par le contrôleur aérien ou encore l’ambulancier, 175 postes d’officiers (70 francophones et 105 néerlandophones), 515 de sous-officiers (206 F & 309 N), 855 de soldats et de matelots (345 F & 510 N) et 155 de militaires par la voie de l’Engagement Volontaire Militaire sont à pourvoir au sein des quatre corps d’armée. «L’éventail des fonctions ouvertes est très large, mais celles-ci ont toutes un élément commun : leur caractère opérationnel» peut-on lire dans le communiqué du Ministère. Il existe enfin 75 possibilités d’officiers ou de sous-officiers de réserve dans des domaines de la traduction, de la médecine, de la sociologie ou encore de la prévention et avec une formation militaire de 6 à 8 semaines à étaler sur un an. Le but est de mettre savoir-faire et compétences civils à la disposition de la Défense.

A noté qu’en ce qui concerne les 155 Engagements Volontaires Militaires (EVMI), les premiers arrivés seront les premiers servis puisqu’aucun diplôme ou concours particulier n’est exigé. Pour ces jeunes «qui souhaitent une expérience militaire de courte durée» (de 24 à 48 mois), pour reprendre les mots du Ministère, 5 officiers, 10 sous-officiers et 140 soldats et matelots seront embauchés. Quant aux civils, leur recrutement se fera via le Bureau de sélection de l’administration fédérale (SELOR). Certains des postes sont ouverts à tous les ressortissants de l’Union européenne.

Où ?

Géographiquement les offres sont plutôt hétéroclites. Aucune position d’ouverte sur Bruxelles cependant, étant donné que l’on y trouve seulement le Quartier Général de l’armée et l’Ecole militaire. En Brabant Wallon, 21 places sont à pourvoir à Beauchevain en logistique, ingénieur, sécurité ainsi que pilote. 5 places d’ambulanciers ou en logistique sont également ouvertes à Nivelles. Quant au Brabant Flamand, l’armée cherche 21 volontaires spécialistes de la transmission à Peutie, 50 futurs militaires d’infanterie à Heverlee ou encore 35 volontaires en électricité mécanique, logistique ou avec un profil technique à la base aérienne de Melsbroek.

Quelques pourcentages intéressants

Cette année, c’était 1.200 postes qui étaient à prendre. 1.045 postes vacants ont d’ores et déjà été remplis alors que le recrutement se poursuit jusqu’à la fin de l’année. Un bon recruteur pour le pays puisque 8.000 jeunes se sont présentés afin de postuler pour un emploi, dont un peu plus de 250 venaient d’un autre pays de l’UE. Intéressant ! Ce qui l’est peut-être moins c’est que seulement 10% de ces postulants étaient des femmes. Et avec une disparité flagrante : 18% chez les officiers et 13% pour les sous-officiers contre seulement 7% pour les postulants soldats et matelots.

On rajeunit les forces

Il faut dire qu’à côté des journées de recrutement, le Ministère belge de la défense garde son objectif de diminuer l’effectif de ses armées à 30.000 militaires et 2.000 civils à l’horizon 2015. On cherche à rajeunir la force belge face au papy boom – toujours sur base volontaire – tout en limitant les dépenses. Disette budgétaire oblige. Ceci étant, aucune fermeture de caserne supplémentaire ne devrait être prévue pour 2013.

The Italian air force’s first operational HH139 rescue helicopter is based at Gioia del Colle, in south-eastern Italy, and belongs to the 84th Combat SAR center.(IT AF photo)

October 15, 2012 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Italian Air Force; issued Oct. 15, 2012)

(Issued in Italian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

Delivery of First HH-139 to 84th C/SAR Center at Gioia del Colle Begins Modernization of SAR Assets

On Friday, October 12, the first HH-139 rescue helicopter landed at the military airport at Gioia del Colle (BA) where the 84th C/SAR (Combat Search and Rescue) center has been stationed since September 10.

The helicopter flew in from the 15th Wing at Cervia, carrying the first 84th C/SAR Center aircrew that has completed the operational transition to the new helicopter.

This is the first of a series of helicopters which, after a period during which they will operate alongside the HH-3Fs which currently fulfill the C/SAR mission, will allow the complete renewal of the Armed Forces component dedicated to aerial rescue.

The HH-139 is an extremely versatile helicopter, thanks to its comprehensive and modern avionics and sensor configuration, which allows it to operate in any weather condition and in any environment (land, sea or mountain).

It was designed to be used in a variety of missions, as it can be configured for aerial search and rescue both on land and sea, in a primary SAR configuration with five passengers and a stretcher, or in a secondary Emergency Medical Service mission profile, for medicalized transport of two to four patients on stretchers. It can also be used for personnel transport, in which case it can carry up to 14 passengers.

The 84th C/SAR in one of the search and rescue centers operated by the 15th Wing, based at Cervia, which provide, 24 hours a day and for 365 days a year, a useful and often indispensable Search And Rescue service, which is available on all national territory and Italian territorial waters, as well as throughout the Mediterranean Sea basin as part of the International Agreements signed with neighboring countries.

16 October 2012 by Craig Hoyle – FG

London - MBDA and Diehl BGT Defence have completed a firing campaign intended to prove the ability of their PARS 3 LR long-range air-to-surface missile to hit targets moving in a complex urban environment.

Conducted at Germany's Meppen test range on 20 September using a Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopter, the test firings culminated with the successful engagement of a tank moving between two houses. The missile scored a "direct hit" from a range of around 1.6nm (3km), the companies say.

"The tests confirm that PARS 3 LR completely fulfils the specified system performance requirements under operational conditions," MBDA says. Diehl produces the infrared seeker for the weapon, which MBDA says has a maximum range of 3.8nm.

Following the receipt of approval from their German army customer, the programme partners will launch full-scale production of the PARS 3 LR, with Berlin having signed a deal for 680 missiles with their Parsys joint venture.

MBDA says significant export interest also exists, with the type already being offered to meet Indian army requirements, in competition with Rafael's Spike ER.

Oct 16, 2012 ASDNews Source : EB Elektrobit Corporation / Ruderfinn

EB, Elektrobit Corporation (OMX: EBC1V), today announced an agreement to deliver their tactical communication systems to the Finnish Defence Force’s Army. This agreement is a continuation of the pilot series delivery of EB’s Tough VoIP systems in 2009, after which the Finnish Army commenced extensive field trials on the system. The deliveries will be the first phase of the Finnish Army’s long-term procurement program supporting the new network-centric defense model which enhances the ability for joint operations. The EB Tough VoIP communication systems will be utilized by the field and mechanized artillery as well as the Multiple Rocket Launchers Systems (MRLS).

”As procurement this order is special because it’s rarely possible to test the products beforehand so extensively in real operating conditions as we have been able to do in this case,” said procurement engineer Hannu Pohjola from the Finnish Army Materiel Command Headquarters.

Included in the agreement is the pilot delivery of the new generation EB Tough VoIP Field Phones to the Finnish Defence Forces. The new phones bring the broadband IP data connectivity and voice services to the field utilizing conventional field wires.

”The delivery is an important achievement in our goal to be the preferred partner in the area of tactical communications for the Finnish Defence Forces,” said Mikko Viitaniemi, senior product manager responsible for EB Tough VoIP product family. ”It also proves that our products are developed to meet the stringent defense sector requirements.”

Actively looking for system integrator and distributor partners for its defense products, EB will showcase the system together with its Tactical Wireless IP Network products at MILCOM 2012 conference in Orlando, Florida, October 29th – November 1st, at stand 223.