Defence`s Feeds

The Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) will equip their new destroyers with the Aegis Baseline 9 naval combat system. The system, which has been described as the latest evolution in the Aegis series, will feature integrated air- and missile-defence

The US Army has published the draft request for proposals (RfP) for a new Small Airborne Networking Radio (SANR) that will replace Rockwell Collins' ARC-210D radio. The army will award a single indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract for 7,000 radios. The decision to award a

The US Air Force (USAF) has awarded General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GAASI) a USD370.9 million contract for the procurement of an additional 30 MQ-9 Reaper medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Awarded by the Department of Defense (DoD) on 15 August, the

Key Points Producing useful analysis of conflict and terrorism requires analysts to understand that seemingly irrational acts of violence are often not irrational to the perpetrators. The ability to empathise with individuals caught up in violent or conflict situations can help analysts to engage

Vietnam's military has demonstrated its ability to deploy its Russian-made K-300P Bastion-P (SSC-5 'Stooge') coastal defence system in an exercise that was revealed by the Vietnam National Defence television channel (QPVN) on 10 August. The broadcaster showed footage of two K-340P mobile Bastion-P

Americas Bolivia - 15 August 2016: In La Paz and Potosí, mining co-operatives threatened to restart a strike in 48 hours if the government did not release arrested colleagues. Brazil - 15 August 2016: In Vila Americana, Volta Redonda, Rio de Janeiro, workers at BR-Distribuidora, the fuel unit

Americas

• The USMC has announced the beginning of a mass repair effort of its CH-53E fleet following the fatal crash of one in 2014. In total, 147 of the aging heavy lift helicopters will undergo the reset over a three-year period. Each helicopter will undergo a 110 process where it will be stripped down, rebuilt, and have any high-time components switched out.

• A US Navy guided-missile destroyer has received an RQ-20B Puma UAV with a precision recovery system. Manufacturer AeroVironment stated that the recovery system enables the Puma to operate from a variety of vessels for rapid response reconnaissance. The multi-environment UAV is hand launched, and is programmed to autonomously glide back to the flight deck, but can also float; allowing for sea recovery.

Middle East North Africa

• 2016 has not been a good year for Egyptian airport security. Enter Smiths Detection who has been contracted $22 million to deliver advanced screening systems for cargo and passengers in an effort to bolster security at Egyptian airports. Included in the deal are X-ray scanners, people-screening systems and trace detectors.

• A new training helicopter acquisition competition for the Israeli Air Force is in its final stages. Remaining in the hunt are the AgustaWestland AW119, Airbus Helicopters H125, and Bell Helicopter 407GXP with a selection expected by the end of the year. Tel Aviv is hoping to secure the helicopters and basic instruction through a private finance initiative arrangement which involves a private company buying the new helicopters and selling flight hours to the air force.

Europe

• Leonardo-Finmeccanica has resumed testing of their AW609 tilt-rotor aircraft. Trials were put on hold following an October 2015 crash of their second prototype. The aircraft is now in Philadelphia but will be replaced by a recently assembled model that has been ground tested in Italy. Certification is expected for 2018.

• A mine mapping mission in the Baltic Sea is to commence next month as the first major milestone of the Allied Munitions Detection Underwater (AMDU) program. The joint German and US Navy initiative will see mine warfare experts join to classify, detect, and map bottom and buried munitions. AMDU began in 2015 as a way to develop, test and evaluate novel unmanned autonomous survey concepts through sea trials and workshops.

Asia Pacific

• It’s all systems go with Taiwan’s planned indigenous trainer development. The state-owned Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC) will be allocated $15 million next year to begin the process of developing a new aircraft based on their IDF and to have made its maiden flight by 2020. Taiwan’s new government has been extremely keen on bolstering the governments defense industry and military capabilities; so having the new trainer airborne before the next election will be a key goal.

• A US general has called on India to increase their military aid to Afghanistan. Gen. John Nicholson made the plea due to a Russian arms embargo resulting in a growing scarcity of spare parts for Russian-made weaponry used by Afghan forces. So far New Delhi has already transferred four Mi-25 attack helicopters to Kabul to help boost their hodgepodge collection of often unserviceable aircraft.

Today’s Video

Afghanistan’s Air Force:

F-CK-1D Hsiung Ying
(click to view full)

In 2006, the Taiwan’s Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC), based in Taichung, celebrated the upgrade of 2 of the ROCAF’s 130 F-CK-1A/B Ching-Kuo Indigenous Defense Fighters, “to improve their combat-capabilities against China.” Details that have emerged since show a set of F-CK-1C/D upgrades that turns the aircraft into fully multi-role fighters, moving them beyond their current limitations as air superiority aircraft and de facto lead-in fighter trainers for the ROCAF’s F-16s and Mirage 2000s.

Upgrades of the ROCAF’s other 128 aircraft were set to follow, even as China continues to deploy advanced SU-30 family and J-10 4+ generation fighters on their side of the Taiwan Straits. The new “F-CK-1C/D Hsiung Ying” (Brave Hawk) would still be a generation behind China’s most advanced machines, and budgets had to be approved to accomplish even that much. That approval was stalled for years, but the upgrade project has finally finished Phase 1 – even as Taiwan’s request to buy 66 F-16C/D fighters remains stalled in Washington…

F-CK-1: Taiwan’s Indigenous Defense Fighter

As one can see, the Ching-Kuo IDF borrows design features from the F-16 Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet, and F-20 Tigershark, but its two ITEC TFE-1042-70 engines generate only 9,500 lbs/ 42kN thrust each, leaving it somewhat underpowered. These air superiority fighters made their first flight in 1989, and in January 2000, the type was declared fully operational in the RoC (Republic of China) Air Force. The last of a total of 130 aircraft entered service in July 2000, and state-run AIDC was commissioned to carry out the IDF’s mid-life upgrade project in cooperation with the military-run Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology.

A 2006 Taipei Times report begins to place this effort in context:

“AIDC is upgrading the IDFs because in most countries, warplanes are upgraded 10 years after they have entered service. Ten years ago the Air Force launched its second-generation fleet — 130 IDFs, 150 F-16 Block A/Bs and 60 Mirage 2000-5s — to boost defenses against China. The Air Force is seeking to introduce its third-generation fleet.”

F-CK-1C/D Hsiung Ying: Key Upgrades F-CK-1C/D cockpit
(click to view full)

AIDC’s improvement package is said to cover 3 main areas.

Avionics. Upgraded F-CK-1C/Ds reportedly features a digital cockpit with a tri-color multi-function heads-up display, a new 32-bit flight control computer system, improved IFF, better electronic counter-measures, and a switch-out of obsolete parts and electronic components for new designs.

Radar. The Golden Dragon CD-53 multi-mode pulse Doppler radar has look-down, shoot-down capability and can operate in air and sea search mode with a range over 80 nautical miles. This is respectable performance, but many modern radars offer significant improvements. The extent of the CD-53’s improvements will make a significant difference to the upgraded fighters’ combat capabilities when facing enemies like China’s SU-30MKKs, with their advanced Phazotron radars and long-range missiles. Reports seem to indicate that the main changes involve better multi-target tracking and jamming resistance.

Weapons. Upgraded fighters have reportedly been fitted with additional fuel tanks to extend range and patrol time, along with a reinforced structure to accommodate dorsal conformal fuel tanks. Added weapon pylons for Tienchien (Skysword) II air-to-air missiles raise capacity from 2 to 4. The integration of Sky Sword IIA ARM radar-killer missiles, and Wan Chien GPS-guided cruise missiles with a 200 km range, will make the aircraft a true multi-role fighter at last.

Beyond the Hsiung Ying ROCAF F-16A fires Maverick
(click to view full)

Beyond the F-CK-1’s upgrade program, press reports have consistently said that Taiwan remains interested in augmenting its F-16 fleet by requesting an NT 150 billion (roughly $4 billion) order of 66 F-16 C/D Block 50/52+ aircraft from the USA. Unfortunately, the USA refused to approve the sale until Taiwan approves a critical weapons package that has been languishing for years, due to the opposition Kuomintang party’s persistent stalling on ever-shifting grounds. By the time that package cleared, the US State Department was no longer prepared to sell Taiwan F-16s, despite a mutual treaty which clearly states that defense needs shall be the only considerations governing weapon sales to Taiwan. Both sides eventually agreed on a program to upgrade existing F-16s, but that requires pulling planes out of service for many months.

That shift, and the coming retirement of Taiwan’s Mirage 200 fleet, makes the Hsiung Ying fleet upgrades more important than ever. Even if it’s not nearly enough to stop the balance of power sliding further away from Taiwan.

Contracts & Key Events F-CK-1C/D unveiling
(click to view full)

August 16/16: It’s all systems go with Taiwan’s planned indigenous trainer development. The state-owned Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC) will be allocated $15 million next year to begin the process of developing a new aircraft based on their IDF and to have made its maiden flight by 2020. Taiwan’s new government has been extremely keen on bolstering the governments defense industry and military capabilities; so having the new trainer airborne before the next election will be a key goal.

Jan 16/14: Phase 1 complete. A ceremony at Tainan AFB in Southern Taiwan marks the completion of the initial Hsiang-Chang Project to upgrade the 443rd Tactical Fighter Wing’s 71 fighters. Another 56 fighters belonging to the 427th TFW in Taichung AB are slated for upgrades as Phase 2, which will run until 2017.

Articles also focuses on the Wan Chen cruise missile, whose serial production is expected to begin in 2015. They’re said to have a 200 km range, with some evidence of radar shaping to lower their visibility, and are reportedly tasked as delivery devices for cluster bombs against Chinese airstrips, radar installations, missile bases, etc. Sources: FOCUS Taiwan, “President gives thumbs-up to upgraded IDF jets” | The Diplomat, “Taiwan Unveils ‘Wan Chien’ Air-To-Ground Cruise Missile”.

Phase 1 complete

March 13/13: Beyond F-16s. Citing a newly released quadrennial defense review, Taiwan’s media say that the ROCAF wants to step beyond the upgraded Hsiung Yings, and develop a new fighter with features like lower radar cross-section, long-range, and aerial refueling receiver, as well as the ability to launch missiles against land targets or ships.

Taiwan’s military currently estimates that the fighter and small submarine development programs will cost about NT$500 billion (about $16.9 billion). Which means they’ll be lucky to keep the real total below $20 billion.

On the other hand, Liberty Times quotes KMT Legislator Lin Yu-fang statements that “For our national survival, we need to build up our defense capability under our own steam,” as a result of the USA’s increasing reluctance to assist Taiwan. Focus Taiwan [dead link] | Defense Update, “Taiwan to Seek Development of an Indigenous Stealth Fighter”.

Oct 1/12: F-16 upgrades. Lockheed Martin announces a contract valued at up to $1.85 billion to begin upgrading 145 ROCAF F-16A/B Block 20 fighters to the “F-16S” (not T?) configuration, including an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, embedded global positioning, electronic warfare upgrades, and other avionics improvements. Note Lockheed’s use of the word “begin”; the complete upgrade is very likely to cost more than $1.85 billion.

The F-16S upgrades will follow a detailed Sept 21/11 DSCA request, but they will not provide any new planes to Taiwan. The firm’s proposed F-16V model is similar, and was unveiled for general export/upgrade at Singapore’s airshow in February 2012.

Parallel F-16 upgrades

June 26/11: Deliveries. Taiwan is set to receive its first batch of upgraded F-CK-1C/D Hsiung Ying Indigenous Defensive Fighters at 443 Wing in central Taichung, on June 30/11. The 4-year, TWD 17 billion (about $587 million) project to upgrade 71 of the fighters began in 2009. Luo Shou-he, the ROCAF spokesman who announced the delivery, said that: “The rest of IDFs may or may not be upgraded, contingent upon our future budget.”

The retro-fitted jets add 2 more pylons, plus improved radars, mission computers, IFF, electronic counter-measures, and other electronics. They also switch out obsolete parts and electronic components for new designs. Several of the reports covering this milestone reiterate the Taiwanese government’s need for F-16C/Ds, which it continues to express in public. Focus Taiwan | Taiwan’s China Post | Taipei Times || AP via CNBC.

F-CK-1B Ching-Kuos
(click to view all 3)

Dec 8/09: Contract. AIDC’s CEO confirms the signing of a contract for the IDF Hsing Sheng upgrade project, covering 71 fighters. China Times [Taiwan publication, in Chinese].

Contract for 71

July 23/08: Lobbying. Flight International reports that the upgrade program has yet to be funded. Taiwan’s Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) is urging its government to fund the program, citing the USA’s ongoing refusal to approve a multi-billion arms package request that includes F-16C/D fighters.

State Department officials sympathetic to China are reportedly working to block the sale, and despite China’s rapid arms buildup, US Pacific Command, commander Adm Timothy Keating is quoted as saying that Washington’s decision makers have concluded that there is “no pressing, compelling need” for an arms sale to Taiwan.

March 27/07: Rollout. The first upgraded Ching-Kuo fighter makes its debut at Aerospace Industrial Development Corp.’s (AIDC) central Taiwan plant in Taichung County’s Shalu township, in central Taiwan. Reports vary. Some say the upgraded aircraft will be renamed the Chingkuo Imposing Eagle; others say it will be Hsiung Ying (Chinese: “Brave Hawk”). See release.

Rollout

Additional Readings

• DID – Taiwan’s (Un?)Stalled Force Modernization

• Milavia – AIDC Ching-Kuo F-CK-1 (IDF)

• Air Force Technology – Ching-Kuo (IDF) Indigenous Defence Fighter, Taiwan

• Wikipedia – AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuo

• AIDC – F-CK-1 C/D (2001 ~). In Chinese.

• AIDC – IDF (1981~1999). In Chinese.

News & Views

• Taipei Times (July 31/06) – Taiwan Quick Take: Fighter jets to be upgraded

• Reuters (July 27/06) – Taiwan seeks 66 F-16 fighters -U.S. official

• Defense Aerospace (July 14/06) – MND Mulls US$4b Budget for 66 Fighters

• (March 14/06) – Edwards flight testers exercise for war performing real-world test for Taiwan. The testing itself was performed to equip the Taiwan Air Force’s F-16s with the capability to carry a pylon that can deploy and tow decoys, while maintaining the aircraft’s full maneuverability. This pylon is a functional replacement for the standard weapons pylon, and provides the additional capability for the jet to carry 2 towed decoys that deploy from the pylon and trail behind the jet to draw missiles away from the aircraft. It’s possible that the F-CK-1C/D may also have this capability.

Puma AE team
(click to view full)

The mini-UAV market may lack the high individual price tags of vehicles like the RQ-4 Global Hawk, or the battlefield strike impact of an MQ-9 Reaper, but it does have 2 advantages. One is less concern about “deconfliction” with manned aircraft, as described in “Field Report on Raven, Shadow UAVs From the 101st.” Mini-UAVs usually fly below 1,000 feet, and a styrofoam-like body with a 5 foot wingspan is much less of a collision threat than larger and more solidly-built platforms like the man-sized RQ-7 Shadow, or the Cessna-sized MQ-1 Predator.

The other advantage is mini-UAVs’ suitability for special operations troops, who are being employed in numbers on the front lines around the world. “Raven UAVs Winning Gold in Afghanistan’s ‘Commando Olympics’” details the global scale of this interest – and in July 2008, a $200 million US SOCOM contract for a breakthrough mini-UAV underscored it again. Now AeroVironment’s S2AS/ RQ-20A Puma AE is moving beyond Special Operations, and into the regular force.

Mini-UAVs: Evolution & Advantages CL-227, pre-launch
(click to view full)

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) that can perform battlefield missions seem like a recent phenomenon, but countries like Israel and Canada have been building and using them for 3 decades now. Israel translated its early lead into a globally competitive UAV industry; Canada has not, as the early lead generated by projects like the CL-227 Sentinel/”flying peanut” withered on the vine.

As American forces began to adopt UAVs more widely, however, opportunities were created for domestic manufacturers to establish volume production, and become global leaders. The American penchant for technology, and the pressure of battlefield requirements, began to create another opportunity: greater UAV diversity. At the high-end, UAVs moved from brigade, fleet group, and division surveillance roles, and began to replace high-end national reconnaissance assets (vid. RQ-4 Global Hawk). At the brigade and division levels, armed UAVs began to give these devices important strike roles in counterinsurgency scenarios (vid. MQ-1/9 Predator family).

The next level down are tactical UAVs like Textron AAI’s RQ-7 Shadow, IAI’s Searcher II, Elbit’s Skylark II, or the Boeing/Insitu ScanEagle. They require additional support equipment for launch/recovery, and have the ability to cover “this sector” or even “this city”.

RQ-14 Dragon Eye,
Smithsonian NASM
(click to view full)

At the same time, the march of technology had made another new development possible: large numbers of “mini-UAVs” small enough for soldiers to carry, with electronic sensors that could capture good quality imagery, and then relay it to troops over expanding electronic networks.

The mini-UAV market focuses on flying devices that can be carried, launched, and recovered by soldiers. They generally have ranges up to 20 km, and an endurance of 1-3 hours in the air. These UAVs aren’t designed to do depth reconnaissance, but to look over the next hill, watch a neighborhood in a city before troops enter it, patrol a base’s outer perimeter, etc.

Even smaller micro-UAVs are in development, and focus more tightly on “this building” or “this engagement”.

Aerovironment’s Mini-Mes Pointer UAV
(click to view larger)

The late Dr. McReady’s Aerovironment, Inc. has a history of aerial innovation, from human and solar-powered flight to early entries that helped define the mini-UAV market. Their main competition is Israel’s Elbit Systems (esp. the popular Skylark I), while their most advanced competitor may be Prioria’s Maveric, selected by the Canadian armed forces. As Aerovironment’s history shows, however, their own firm’s new designs are their most frequent competitors:

1990: Aerovironment delivers the first privately-developed FQM-151 Pointer hand-launched UAVs, for “extended evaluation” by the US military and Special Operations communities. Some are used in Iraq and Kuwait during Desert Storm in 1991.

The subsequent Puma UAV design, begun in 2001, can be fairly characterized as a Pointer UAV that incorporates most of the industry’s advances since 1990. It’s part of a long progression for AeroVironment, which has played a big role in the mini-UAV space’s evolution:

2003: Aerovironment’s Dragon Eye/Swift (RQ-14) wins the US Marines’ competition for a mini-UAV.

2004: A new Aerovironment mini-UAV, the RQ-11A Raven, is fielded under limited expedited orders with the US Army’s 10th Mountain Division, and some special forces. This is not a formal competition, however, but an outgrowth of a 2002 ACTD (advanced concept technology demonstration) project.

RQ-11, Iraq
(click to view full)

Fall 2005: The US Army’s RPUAV competition arises from the RQ-11’s success. SOCOM joins this competition, and the upgraded RQ-11B Raven wins.

The US Marines switched from Dragon Eye to the Raven B in 2007, and the US Air Force now fields them too. Raven has also proved popular with foreign militaries, and is in service with Britain, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Spain, among others.

August 2006: The USAF picks another Aerovironment mini-UAV for its BATMAV UAV competition, and deliveries begin under the 5-year $45 million contract. The Wasp UAV began as a DARPA project, and the larger Wasp-III is a 1-pound vehicle with a wingspan just under 3 feet. It is called a ‘micro-UAV,’ but in truth it sits on the borderline between mini-UAV systems and true micro-UAVs.

Late 2007: The US Marines began buying and issuing Wasp-IIIs at the platoon level, complementing the RQ-11 Raven B, which is issued at the company and battalion levels. In January 2008, the USAF approved full-rate BATMAV production.

June 2008: SOCOM’s AECV program aims to select a mini-UAV that can be used by all branches, including Navy SEAL teams and USMC MARSOC. It picks the Puma AE, a new UAV from Aerovironment that adds a stabilized micro-camera, waterproofing, and the ability to land and recover the UAV on water. The “RQ-20” Puma subsequently finds a niche with route clearance minehunters, thanks to the advanced state of its optics, and ends up serving with the regular US Army, Marines & Air Force.

The Puma AE RQ-20A Puma assembly
(click to view full)

Puma is slightly larger than Raven as is Aerovironment’s largest mini-UAV offering, but it’s still man-portable and hand-launched. The original Puma was almost 6 feet long, with a wingspan of 8.5 feet. Aerovironment pursued the typical young industry profile of build-field test-build as it developed the AE variant, issuing modified UAVs to units in the field for evaluation and feedback.

The US SOCOM contract has been the Puma program’s focus for a some time now, as SOCOM’s specifications led Aerovironment to conclude that its larger Puma platform was a better fit than the existing RQ-11B Raven. Along the way, Puma has been used for hybrid fuel cell experiments, and an “Aqua-Puma” driven by requests from the field served as an interim step along the road to the final Puma AE. In March 2012, it received the formal USAF designation “RQ-20A.”

AV on Puma AE
click for video

The hand-launched Puma AE’s most significant innovation is that it can land on both land and water, surviving near-vertical “deep stall” final approaches. In addition to the obvious special forces scenarios like river infiltrations, the ability to land on water and in very tight areas on land means that Puma can also be used from boats and ships, without vessel modifications for landing systems or vehicle storage.

The other big innovation is its sensor system. Previous mini-UAV systems tended to have micro-cameras that could be moved by the operator to pan, tilt, or zoom. What they usually have not had was a camera that was fully stabilized to fix on a designated point and provide a steady, constant image that compensates for aircraft movement etc. Recently, firms like Israel’s Bental Systems have begun to offer stabilized micro-payloads. Puma AE incorporates this innovation in an EO/IR day- and night-capable, waterproof sensor package that provides this kind of image tracking and stabilization. Other payload designs can be clipped in as they are developed for military or civilian applications.

Control is exercised from Aerovironment’s Ground Control Station (GCS) with a line of sight communications range of 15 km, and the system has its own internal GPS for positioning. The Ground Control Station is shared by the firm’s Raven and Wasp/BATMAV systems. Flight endurance is about 2 hours in the production version, and typical flight altitude is 100-500 feet. Like other mini-UAVs, Puma relies on its small size, small radar profile, and quiet engine to avoid detection.

Contracts and Key Events FY 2013 -2016

Raven & Puma
click for video

August 16/16: A US Navy guided-missile destroyer has received an RQ-20B Puma UAV with a precision recovery system. Manufacturer AeroVironment stated that the recovery system enables the Puma to operate from a variety of vessels for rapid response reconnaissance. The multi-environment UAV is hand launched, and is programmed to autonomously glide back to the flight deck, but can also float; allowing for sea recovery.

July 26/13: FAA. The US Federal Aviation Administration issues its 1st UAV Restricted Category Type Certificates, which include the Puma UAV. The UAV will support emergency response crews for oil spill monitoring and wildlife surveillance over Alaska’s Beaufort Sea, within the Arctic Circle.

Experimental Airworthiness Certificates have been used for non-government UAV operations in the past, but they don’t allow commercial use. The FAA says that US military acceptance of the ScanEagle and Puma designs was an important factor in granting the new Restricted Category certificates, which do allow commercial operations.

That’s going to be a hotter area for UAV manufacturers over the next few years, and for the FAA as well. The Federal Aviation Administration Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 mandated that the FAA integrate UAVs into domestic airspace by 2015, but a key deadline establishing 6 pilot sites by August 2012 wasn’t met. These type certificates are a small step forward, within a larger framework. Sources: US FAA | AeroVironment | NDIA’s National Defense magazine | Seattle Times.

(Restricted) Commercial USA in USA

Jan 3/13: SUAS 2013-2017. U.S. Army Contracting Command in Natick, MA awards a 5-year, $248 million multiple-vendor fixed-price Small UAS contract. From FBO.gov:

“The Army currently has fielded 1,798 RQ-11B systems and 325 RQ-20A systems and has a requirement to sustain and maintain this existing fleet. The Army has met 92% of the RQ-11B Army Acquisition Objective (AAO), and has met 83% of the anticipated need for RQ-20A (required by USFOR-A-issued JUONS). Additionally, the current [DID: RQ-11B & RQ-20A] fleet has pre-planned spiral upgrades such as the Gimbal payload, which will be competed and retrofitted under this effort. The need exists to complete the AAO; maintain, sustain and upgrade the fleet; and procure future SUAS Systems as required by DoD, Other Government Agencies (OGA) and foreign countries.”

Vendors will compete for each order, and work can include full Unmanned Aerial Systems, upgrades, testing, packaging, marking, and storage and shipping. Work location will be determined with each order, and the contract runs until Dec 20/17. The bid was solicited through the Internet, with 5 bids received. All 5 qualified to compete:

• RQ-11B Raven & RQ-20A Puma: AeroVironment Inc. in Monrovia, CA (W911QY-13-D-0073). Obviously, they’re in a strong position for fleet upgrades at least, as well as for additional UAVs.

• NOVA Block III: Altavian in Gainesville, FL (W911QY-13-D-0074). They’re not a household name, but their air/land UAV is working with the USACE (Army Corps of Engineers). They partner with ISR Group Inc. in Savannah, TN for support and service.

• Skylark-I LE Block 2: Elbit Systems of America LLC in Fort Worth, TX (W911QY-13-D-0075).

• Skystinger, and others: Innovative Automation Technologies LLC in Gainesville, FL (W911QY-13-D-0076). Skystinger is more like the RQ-11 Raven, while their AXO is closer to the RQ-20 Puma. Note that The Skystinger is the only UAS that IAT could confirm, but they did say there was more than 1 UAS offered.

• Desert Hawk III: Lockheed Martin Corporation, Owego, NY (W911QY-13-D-0077). The Desert Hawk has been successfully used on the front lines by British forces.

The AECV contract expires in 2013, so this appears to be the follow-on. See also: AeroVironment | Elbit Systems | Gainesville Sun.

SUAS multi-vendor

Oct 20/12: Support. The US government announces a woman-owned small business only solicitation for up to $25.5 million in SUAS support work, after soliciting interest and finding 3 such businesses who qualify. The FBO.gov solicitation adds that:

“…SUAS PdO must maintain the capability to support current and future Warfighter needs for SUAS systems in CONUS and OCONUS…. The objective of the SUAS Support Program is to support the Warfighter’s as well as other Governmental Agencies (OGAs) and Non-Governmental Agencies users’ SUAS-related sustainment needs. These needs primarily include SUAS training, maintenance, repairs, and engineering services. Additionally, the SUAS PdO will require various logistics, technical management, and program management services to support its SUAS customers.”

FY 2012

USAF, USMC, Denmark & Sweden become customers; Puma becomes RQ-20; #1,000 delivered. Moving launch,
Afghanistan
(click to view full)

June 12/12: Danish win. Aerovironment announces a $9.6 million win in Denmark. This competed win follows a $2.4 million Danish Army order for RQ-11B Raven systems in 2007.

Denmark

June 11/12: Swedish win. AeroVironment announces that they’ve won an unspecified Swedish firm fixed-price contract for 12 hybrid small unmanned aircraft systems. The Swedish Army’s order will be a mix of Puma AE and Wasp air vehicles, plus a set of common ground stations, training, and logistics support. Contract options could increase the buy to a total of 30 systems. The firm adds a roundup of foreign RQ-11 Raven, RQ-20 Puma, and Wasp customers:

“In addition to Sweden, other international governments that have purchased AeroVironment small UAS include Australia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Italy, Lebanon, the Netherlands, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Uganda, and the United Kingdom.”

Sweden

April 20/12: Puma = RQ-20. AeroVironment announces a $20.4 million firm-fixed-price follow-on order from the US Army for RQ-20A Puma AEs. They will provide overwatch for security, route clearance operations, etc. in Afghanistan. Delivery is scheduled within 30 days.

Separately, AeroVironment announced the production and delivery of its 1,000th Puma AE air vehicle, and the USAF’s approval of the “RQ-20A” designation for the Puma AE system.

Milestones: #1,000, RQ-20A

April 20/12: USMC order. AeroVironment announces the 1st RQ-20A Puma AE order from the US Marine Corps. The $5.6 million firm-fixed-price order was placed via the all-services contract now managed by the US Army. Delivery is scheduled within 2 weeks.

The USMC were pioneers in adopting mini-UAVs, picking AeroVironment’s RQ-14 Dragon Eye in 2003 for the Small Unit Remote Scouting System (SURSS) program. Other buys from the firm have included Wasp mini-UAVs beginning in 2007, and the replacement of their Dragon Eyes with RQ-11B Ravens beginning in 2009. The Puma buy will give the Marines the full 3 tiers of mini-UAV performance: Wasp, Raven, and Puma, ahead of the US Army’s own plans (vid. Feb 4/11 entry).

USMC’s 1st

April 18/12: USAF order. AeroVironment announces its 1st Puma AE order from the USAF, which already uses its RQ-11 Raven and Wasp mini-UAVs. The $2.4 million firm-fixed-price order is below the threshold for public notification, and was placed on April 5/12 through the existing U.S. Army contract. Delivery is scheduled within 2 weeks.

USAF 1st

April 4/12: Plans. The US Army discusses its plans for a family of small UAVs again. They may actually be headed toward 2 Family of Small UAS contracts (1 products, 1 services), in an effort to “refine requirements.” After all this time, the Army is still working on a capabilities document outlining the parameters of the Family of Small UAS.

The Army is also hoping to develop a universal control station for the F-SUAS.

Feb 13/12: Sentient MTI. AeroVironment, Inc. announces an exclusive global distribution license with Sentient in Melbourne, Australia for its Kestrel Land MTI Tier I automatic target detection software, designed for full motion video for use with small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). Kestrel software automatically detects moving objects, then places tracking boxes around them for easy monitoring. That’s especially helpful with mini-UAVs, because of the payload optics’ limitations, and better tracking of multiple moving objects fills an obvious need of front-line troops.

Over the past 18 months Sentient and AeroVironment have optimized and integrated the software with AeroVironment’s mini-UAS common Ground Control System for Puma, Raven, and Wasp UAVs. Sentient makes a number of Kestrel solutions used around the world. It’s worth noting that the AeroVironment deal doesn’t impair its Kestrel Land MTI Tier II/III used by larger UAVs like the ScanEagle, RQ-7 Shadow, and MQ-9 Reaper; and by patrol aircraft like the P-3 Orion; or its Kestrel Maritime products. What it does, is fence in the market for mini-UAS solutions with a desirable and hard-to copy capability. AeroVironment | Sentient.

Jan 31/12: Pentagon DVIDS discusses preparations by the “Lancers” of Second Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, who are “going into Operation Enduring Freedom with the most Raven [a small unit UAS] and Puma operators in the history of OEF combat,” according to AMCOM UAS specialist Tarah Hollingsworth. Sgt. Christopher Harris, a 2nd SBCT UAS operations non-commissioned officer, adds that:

“I was on the initial fielding of the Puma when it was first brought in about three years ago when I was in Afghanistan… We were able to use it on all kinds of patrols, whether it be presence patrols, recon or anything of that sort. I utilized it two times for a call for fire; it’s very accurate for that.”

FY 2011

US Army joins AECV buy, assumes management of the contract; US Army’s 3-tier mini-UAV plans; RQ-16’s Tango Uniform opportunity?; Communication relay demo; Training issues. Puma AE, pre-launch
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2011: The US Army assumes management of US SOCOM’s AECV contract, following its own October 2010 order for the UAVs, and interest from other services. Source.

AECV = Army

Aug 16/11: Comm relay. Boeing announces successful May and August demonstrations of its new narrowband communications relay, using an Insitu ScanEagle and AeroVironment’s Puma AE mini-UAV. During the multiservice demonstrations, held in California, the UAVs flew at a variety of altitudes while linking handheld military radios dispersed over mountainous regions, extending the radios’ range tenfold.

Larger RQ-7B Shadow UAVs have also been used in this role, but those are generally controlled at the battalion level or above. Narrowband relays small enough to work on hand-launched mini-UAVs like the Puma AE would represent an important step forward, especially for Special Operations forces.

August 16/11: AeroVironment, Inc. announces a $65.5 million firm-fixed-price contract delivery order for new digital Puma AEs, and initial spares packages. It’s another buy under the existing $200 million US SOCOM All Environment Capable Variant (AECV) contract (vid. July 1/08), and will be delivered in the coming months.

June 9/11: AeroVironment, Inc. in Monrovia, CA receives a $13.1 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification for “Puma unmanned aircraft systems training and contractor logistics support.” Aerovironment has since confirmed that this is for the Puma AE. They now simply call it “Puma,” because the very different UAV they had formerly called Puma is not in production.

Work will be performed in Simi Valley, CA, and Kandahar, Afghanistan, with an estimated completion date of Oct 14/11. One bid was solicited, with one bid received by the U.S. Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W58RGZ-11-C-0004).

April 20/11: Training issues. The US Army currently equips each brigade with 15 RQ-11B Raven systems, but the 9 Afghan BCTs want to raise that to 35 each (105 UAVs). They’re also shipping larger Puma-AE UAV systems into theater, with 64 in and another 20 requested. So what’s the problem? Training.

Right now, the US FAA requires Federal Aviation Administration must issue a certificate of authorization, in order to fly UAVs in US air space. There are limits to that requirement, but it takes months to get that certification, and it’s hurting operator training. Commanders are complaining that some operators lack adequate pre-combat preparation, and must learn on the job.

In response, the US Army has instituted a buddy program, a tracking program for operators, and a ground-based technical solution. Under the buddy program, skilled mini-UAV operators will teach other soldiers. The web tracker will make sure that qualified operators don’t get lost in the shuffle when they move from one brigade to another. The technical solution involves a ground-based sense-and-avoid system that may help expedite FAA certification. NDIA’s National Defense Magazine.

April 21/11: AeroVironment, Inc. announces an $11.5 million firm-fixed-price delivery order for new digital Puma AE systems, initial spares packages, and training services.

The new UAVs were bought under the existing United States Special Operations Command All Environment Capable Variant (USSOCOM AECV) indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract, and deliveries are scheduled to be completed over the next several months.

Feb 4/11: Platoon mini-trio. Aviation Week reports that the US Army wants to beef up UAV availability down to the platoon level, in an environment where, as Army Operations Office aviation UAS director Lt. Col. James Cutting puts it, “there will never be enough multi-million-dollar systems to cover them.” Where now there are 17 RQ-11 Ravens in a brigade combat team (BCT), the Army plans to increase this to 49 “Small UAS family of systems”, initially made up of AeroVironment’s Puma at the high end, RQ-11B Raven mini-UAV as the core, and smaller Wasp III as the true “flying binoculars” micro-UAV.

Down the road, this set is expected to be a competition, and the numbers involved make it an attractive target. According to Cutting, the Army will push the new UAVs directly down to engineer, armor and infantry units, rather than forming more aviation units and adding their overhead. Since the UAVs in question are so small, and fly at under 1,000 feet, they can be used without worrying about “deconfliction,” and don’t really require the same planning & support overhead as, for instance, a unit of RQ-7B Shadows, or MQ-1C Gray Eagles. Aviation Week | Aviation Week Ares.

Jan 6/11: The US Army issues a stop-work order on the Class I Unmanned Aerial System (RQ-16 T-Hawk), as part of the E-IBCT next-generation brigades. Formal termination takes place on Feb 3/11. In light of the Oct 22/10 order, this could become a major opportunity for the Puma AE. Defense News.

Oct 26/10: Aerovironment announces a $7.2 million for an unspecified number of new digital Puma AE systems and training services, under the existing US SOCOM indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract.

Oct 25/10: More Army minis. The NDIA’s National Defense magazine reports that Puma AE is forcing its way into regular Army operations, due to a combination of unforgiving high-altitude terrain and roadside mission demands:

“The Army currently supplies 15 sets of Ravens (with three aircraft per set) to each brigade in Afghanistan. The current plan is to buy 3,000 Ravens, and the Army so far has acquired more than 2,000… [but units] have asked for a “larger small” unmanned aircraft that can carry more sensors and fly longer… So the Army is now tapping into the SOCOM contract and buying 72 Pumas to meet urgent demands, Gonzalez said. The Puma request came directly from the top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus… The Army already is testing the concept of a “family” of three aircraft (Raven, Puma and Wasp) in combat. It fielded 15 sets six months ago to the 101st Airborne Division and will allow the unit to keep them for a year for further evaluation, said Gonzalez. One of the concerns is designing a controller that can operate all three aircraft.”

Oct 22/10: AeroVironment, Inc. in Simi Valley, CA receives a $17.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee letter contract, which establishes not-to-exceed amounts for Puma-AE capable contractor logistics support, training, and accounting for contract services in support of Joint Urgent Operational Need Statement CC-0289, entitled, “Unmanned Aircraft Systems for Route Clearance.”

AeroVironment confirms that this order is for the regular army, not SOCOM. The RQ-16 T-Hawk ducted fan UAV is supposed to be handling that special niche, but the Puma would appear to have carved out a place, thanks to its stabilized EO/IR payload, and added conventional reconnaissance capabilities. Work is to be performed in Simi Valley, CA, with an estimated completion date of Oct 14/11. One bid was solicited with one bid received by U.S. Army Contracting Command, CCAM-AR-A at Redstone Arsenal, AL (W58RGZ-11-C-0004).

Army in.

FY 2008 – 2010

$200M AECV win for US special Operations. Puma AE concept
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Sept 8/10: An additional order valued at $4.4 million for Puma AE payloads and retrofits. Work is scheduled to be performed “within a period of several months.” Source.

Aug 31/10: Aerovironment announces a $35.3 million delivery order for digital Puma AE systems, spares and training service, under the existing US SOCOM indefinite delivery/ indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract. Work is scheduled to be performed “within a period of several months.”

July 1/08: US SOCOM AECV. AeroVironment, Inc., wins a 5-year (base year plus 4 one-year option periods), maximum $200 million indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for an “all environment capable variant small unmanned aircraft systems” from the US SOCOM’s Program Executive Office – Fixed Wing. It covers aircraft, ground control systems, spares, repairs and training under a combination firm fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost reimbursable arrangement. The initial delivery order is valued at $6 million, and is fully funded.

Work will be performed in Simi Valley, CA and the base year period lasts for exactly 1 year from date of contract award. This contract was awarded through full and open competition (H92222-08-D-0048). See also Aerovironment release.

SOCOM AECV

Puma fuel cell
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March 6/08: AeroVironment announces a 9 hour flight for a modified Puma powered by an onboard fuel cell/ battery hybrid energy storage system. During the flight, a 2-camera payload system provided a live, streaming video feed from the Puma. Aerovironment developed the battery pack, power electronics and controls portion of the hybrid energy storage system, which used London-listed Protonex Technology Corporation’s Pulse UAV fuel cell system.

This successful demonstration is not part of the SOCOM bid, but is conducted under Aerovironment’s separate small business innovation research (SBIR) Phase II contract with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). AFRL’s goal is to develop advanced energy storage and propulsion technologies for unmanned aircraft. The overall program advanced swiftly from kickoff in January 2007, to a 5-hour flight in May 2007, a 7-hour flight in July 2007, and then this 9-hour flight. Aerovironment release.

Additional Readings & Sources

• Aerovironment – UAS: Puma AE

• Aerovironment – UAS Advanced Development Center: Fuel Cell Puma

• Designation Systems – Aerovironment Puma. Differs in a number of significant respects from the Puma AE.

• Aerovironment – BATMAV. Also known as Wasp-III.

• USAF – BATMAV Micro Unmanned Aircraft System

• See DID’s coverage of the RQ-11 Raven, beginning in Feb 2005 with “Raven UAV Draws Raves From The Field” and including “Field Report on Raven, Shadow UAVs From the 101st“.

• DID (2005) – AeroVironment Given SBIR contract for New UAVs: Can They Do It Again?

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The Taleban have made significant inroads in a number of strategic areas in the northern province of Baghlan over the past two years. They now pose a greater threat than ever to the Baghlan-Balkh highway, part of the Ring Road which here links Kabul to the north. The Taleban know that by blocking highways, they can effectively undermine the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), both psychologically and physically. In response, the ANSF have conducted several military operations, beginning in late 2015 and continuing throughout 2016. AAN’s Obaid Ali examines the current security situation along this crucial highway, while also looking at the insurgents’ shift in tactics and the impact of ANSF operations. One such operation resulted in the displacement of hundreds of families and the erosion of local communities’ trust in the government.

In May 2016, the Taleban established a check post in Chashma-ye Shir, an area located directly to the east of the Baghlan-Balkh highway and only a few kilometres northwest of the provincial capital, Pul-e Khumri. Since then, the group have searched vehicles in order to capture ANSF service members. In the past few years, the area has been an important foothold for the Taleban. Its strategic location connects the contested areas of Dand-e Ghori (AAN analysis of 2015 developments here) and Dand-e Shahabuddin, through which this important highway passes.

The Baghlan-Balkh highway, which forms part of the important Ring Road connecting the north to the west of the country, is a vital transit route between Pul-e Khumri and the northwestern provinces of Samangan, Balkh, Jawzjan, Sar-e Pul and Faryab. The Taleban have strived for some time to increase their presence along this arterial route, particularly following the fall of Kunduz in late September 2015.

The roads connecting Baghlan to Samangan and Kunduz are especially important to the ANSF. They use these for transporting military equipment, ammunition and reinforcements in their attempts to secure the increasingly insecure provinces of the north, and, in particular, the northeast. Having understood the importance of these routes, the Taleban have started to close in on the Baghlan-Balkh highway by establishing mobile checkpoints in their search for members of the ANSF, as well as to establish a permanent presence in the area. The increased Taleban presence in Chashma-ye Shir has enabled them to monitor the highway more closely, which locals see as a first step towards taking complete control of this section of the highway.

Dand-e Ghori: between the ANSF and the Taleban

Dand-e Ghori is a Pashtun-dominated area of around 60 to 70 villages to the northwest of Pul-e Khumri, where the ANSF have always struggled to retain control. After the Taleban announced their so-called spring offensive in 2015, they began attacking the ANSF in Baghlan with Dand-e Ghori as their initial target. Local support for the insurgency in some of the villages and limited ANSF manpower put the government forces at a disadvantage. The insurgents, on the other hand, were able to move around the area freely.

In September 2015, Dand-e Ghori fell to the Taleban and remained under their control for five months (see report here). In January 2016, the ANSF conducted a large-scale operation to clear the area. On 6 March 2016, they managed to repel the Taleban and retake control. However, a day after the ANSF left Dand-e Ghori, handing over responsibility to local forces – an Afghan Local Police (ALP) unit led by Mullah Alam, a former commander of Hezb-e Islami-ye Afghanistan, from the Ahmadzai tribe of Dand-e Ghori – the Taleban conducted a counter-offensive. They re-took Dand-e Ghori within a day.

The impact of ANSF operations on civilians

The ANSF operation in Dand-e Ghori, termed Khurshid 20, while having no lasting impact on the security situation in Baghlan, had significant, negative repercussions on the lives of the local civilian population caught up in the fighting. According to Afghan media reports, more than 1,500 families had to leave Dand-e Ghori and neighbouring Dahna-ye Ghori district as a result of the operations (see here and here). The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Kabul reported that the number of officially registered IDPs for these two locations still exceeded 5,000 families as of mid-June 2016 – indicating that the displacement was not restricted to the period of the operations. UNAMA also highlighted this displacement in its civilian casualty report, citing “new patterns of displacement in Baghlan province,” with “more than 32,500 individuals displaced by the fighting in Dand-e-Ghori and Dand-e-Shahabuddin by the beginning of 2016.”

Civil society representatives and local elders had earlier accused the government of failing to protect Dand-e Ghori, which had been considered ‘cleared’ in March 2016. Atef Arefyan, a civil society representative, told AAN “the ANSF has not pursued the insurgents in their hiding places.” He said the Taleban fled to Bibi Ghahwara in March 2016, an area about 15 kilometres northwest of Dand-e Ghori in the direction of Samangan, but the ANSF had not even tried to challenge them there. He was referring to the fact that, after the operations, the ANSF handed over responsibility for securing the area to Mullah Alam’s ALP unit, without taking any other action to protect the area. Furthermore, Arefyan pointed out, it was impossible for a 200-person ALP unit to secure this vulnerable area of mostly Pashtun villages (some of the Taleban are also from the area – notably, the shadow governor of Baghlan, Mullah Helal.) Local elders also doubted the ALP’s ability to protect the area. One of them told AAN “the ALP and the anti-Taleban uprising group are not sufficient to defeat the Taleban [in our area],” adding that “the shortage of ammunition, the lack of modern weapons as well as the influence of powerbrokers for personal gains are the reasons that have prevented the ALP from protecting the area successfully against the Taleban.”

According to video evidence made available to AAN, many ALP fighters surrendered to the Taleban when they counter-attacked the day after the ANSF left Dand-e Ghori. Some laid down their weapons and returned home, while others joined the Taleban outright. According to a Taleban source at the ALP base in Qala-ye Khoja, around 40 local police under the command of Rais Faiz surrendered to the insurgency.

 In light of these developments and the accusations made against the government, emotions have been running high among the local population. Many cannot understand why the government is unable to protect them or at least to make an attempt to do so. Ahmadzai, a local tribal elder, told AAN that he thinks discrimination is behind this approach, echoing what many local Pashtuns say about the Tajik-dominated provincial government: “The local government intentionally does not want to ensure stability in Pashtun-dominated areas; instead they want to shut down schools and health clinics and make a battleground out of Dand-e Ghori. (…) If the government really wanted to maintain stability in Dand-e Ghori, it would have established [permanent] military bases to protect the cleared areas.”

Government officials, however, portrayed the collapse of Dand-e Ghori as a result of not having enough ANSF personnel to maintain permanent bases there. Mahmud Haqmal, the spokesman for the Baghlan governor, tried to defend the government’s position by pointing out that, “the ANSF has the responsibility to conduct operations in other parts of the country, [too]. That is why, after the clearance operations in Dand-e Ghori, the ANSF deployed to other contested areas.” However, the police chief also admitted that the security forces, even when in the area, could not effectively fight the Taleban due to shortages of equipment and weak morale after sustaining heavy losses in the area. Nur Habib Golbahari, Baghlan’s Chief of Police, claimed that security forces, after having to fight in Burka, Nehrin, Baghlan-e Jadid and Dand-e Ghori districts, were “tired of fighting.”

Regardless of the reasons, the ANSF have been unable to secure the area permanently. Accusations by local elders against the ANSF and the government, as well as a lack of solutions on how to address current challenges, are exacerbating local communities’ existing frustrations. Their reactions to these accusations, in turn, signal that few, if any, improvements will be made in the near future. Indeed, the Taleban appear to have set their sights on extending their control along the crucial Baghlan-Balkh highway.

The Taleban closing in on the highway

The Taleban have been trying to intimidate people travelling along the Baghlan-Balkh highway since late 2015. Holding onto earlier territorial gains, they continued attacking ANSF check-posts along the highway and slowly expanded their grip over more territory, such as Bagh-e Shamal, some five kilometres to the north of Pul-e Khumri, and around Surkh Kotal.

Ahead of the Taleban completely capturing Chashma-ye Shir in May 2016, they had already established a mobile checkpoint there during daylight hours and searching of vehicles for ANSF service members has first been reported in October 2015. In December 2015, the Taleban attacked the vehicle of General Hessamuddin Haqbin, former head of the Hairatan port in Balkh province and a prominent local figure. Haqbin himself was seriously injured, as were three other passengers. His bodyguard was killed. According to an Afghan media report, in that month alone, there were three major attacks on this part of the Baghlan-Balkh highway.

As a result of this increase in attacks, local residents and provincial council members called on the National Unity Government to do more to improve security along this section of the Baghlan-Balkh highway. It took a few months, however, before the government finally took action. It was only following the locals’ protests (and several smaller operations in Dand-e Ghori and Dand-e Shahabuddin in the first months of 2016), that the ANSF conducted several counter-offensives to repel the Taleban from the highway. To date, they have yet to produce any substantial or lasting outcome. After the counter-offensives, the ANSF only managed to secure the highway during the day, between 8 am and 6 pm, by establishing mobile check-posts along the highway. The Taleban, however, have meanwhile further bolstered their presence. They overran strategic bases close to the highway, such as Surkh Kotal, as well as areas around Pul-e Khumri.

According to provincial council members, by the beginning of May 2016, Chashma-ye Shir was entirely under Taleban control. They were now regularly searching vehicles for ANSF personnel and government officials.

The siege of Surkh Kotal

Another nerve centre is Surkh Kotal, located eight kilometres to the northwest of Pul-e Khumri, a pass known for its nearby archaeological site, the ruins of a terraced Zoroastrian fire temple. This area is predominately inhabited by Hazaras, who suffered abuses at the hands of the Taleban prior to 2001. In 2015, possibly in an attempt to pre-empt fighting in their area, community elders from villages around Surkh Kotal entered into a ceasefire deal with the local insurgency under the following conditions: local communities would pay taxes to the Taleban, grant them unhindered passage through the area and provide them food when requested – in exchange for the insurgents promising not to fight in the Surkh Kotal area (see AAN’s previous report here). The deal fell apart, however, in January 2016, when the local Hazara communities supported the ANSF military operations against the Taleban in Dand-e Ghori.

As a consequence, the Taleban attacked Surkh Kotal village on 14 May 2016 in an attempt to capture it and eliminate the newly-established, local anti-Taleban militia unit known as khezesh-e mardomi (Dari for ‘people’s uprising’). This group, like so many similar ones established over the past few years, is supported by the National Directorate of Security (NDS) with weapons, money and logistics (see short report here and also AAN’s dispatches on NDS supporting anti-Taleban uprising groups in Ghazni here and here). Apart from the local anti-Taleban militia, there was also a small Afghan Local Police (ALP) unit of about 20 men established in 2012 and supported by the Ministry of Interior.

Despite the different origins and sources of support, both groups are led by local commander Juma Din Mubarez, a prominent former jihadi commander of Hezb-e Wahdat-e Islami Afghanistan, a Hazara party led by former vice president Muhammad Karim Khalili. This commander and his relatively small number of men had to stand against a large group of Taleban fighters (mainly local men from Dand-e Ghori and Dand-e Shahabuddin) in mid-May 2016, when the insurgents attacked Surkh Kotal village from different directions. The anti-Taleban uprising group and the ALP initially tried to hold their ground and fought hard before Mubarez and his men were finally forced to flee. They retreated to a strategic elevated post located a few hundred metres away, known – for some reason – as Tapa-ye Germanha (‘Hill of Germans’) (1), which is now the base of a Ministry of Interior sub-unit tasked with the protection of the historical site. As such, the unit only consists of a few policemen not formally trained to engage the insurgency.

Unlike past confrontations, when the Taleban allowed pro-government forces to leave the area without pursuit, the Taleban unexpectedly followed Mubarez and his men to Tapa-ye Germanha where they besieged them, as well as the special MoI police unit based there. Hostilities between the two camps lasted for a week. Intensive fighting took place until 23 May 2016, when some of the men from Mubarez’s group and the special police unit managed to escape, driven by the fear that they might eventually be killed if they were captured.

While these pro-government forces were fighting for their lives, the local government in Baghlan issued a controversial statement. On 18 May 2016, provincial governor Abdul Satar Barez claimed that security forces had rescued the fighters who had been besieged (read report here and here). However, on 24 May 2016, Juma Din Mubarez, the commander of the forces who fled to Tapa-ye Germanha, said that the Taleban had still been in control of the hill when he and his men escaped on 23 May 2016. Furthermore, Mubarez noted that the besieged forces had received neither reinforcements nor logistical support from the provincial government at any time (see more here).

Speaking to AAN, Baghlan’s governor’s spokesman Haqmal admitted, “The local government could not deploy reinforcements.” He claimed that the Taleban had planted roadside mines and thus “prevented us from rescuing those besieged security forces.” Local community members largely saw this as an excuse, as there had been no reports of mined roads. It was obvious, however, that provincial government did not have the manpower to deploy reinforcements; the ANSF were engaged in battle against the Taleban in Dand-e Shahabuddin and Baghlan-e Jadid district at the time.

Consequences of Surkh Kotal falling to the Taleban

After all the pro-government forces finally managed to escape, the insurgents established control over Tapa-ye Germanha, a strategic position given it overlooks Surkh Kotal. They have continued to use it as a key location from which they could expand their influence in the area. For example, from there, they could target the highway more effectively as they now had virtually unrestricted access to the now unprotected security check posts along the Baghlan-Balkh highway.

Map of the Northwest of Baghlan Province with the location of Surkh Kotal marked in yellow – the province of Samangan is located to the west and the district of Chahrdara of Kunduz to the north.

The Taleban’s presence in Surkh Kotal also connects the insurgency fronts of western Baghlan province to the ones in the north of Pul-e Khumri, the adjoining Baghlan-e Jadid district and all the way to the restive Chahrdara district in Kunduz province, which is located to the north of Baghlan. The Taleban have had ample opportunity to consolidate their military fronts and supply routes. The insurgents were also to strengthen their strategic position in the wider northeastern region with a better interconnected and secured supply route system. The expansion of the Taleban’s network has also resulted in the potential for the ANSF’s supply routes coming under threat or being cut off – in particular preventing reinforcements from being deployed to areas under insurgency attack, as seen in the case of Kunduz in early October 2015.

Although the ANSF managed to repel the Taleban from Surkh Kotal and retake control of the position on 17 June 2016, this success for the ANSF has probably done little to reverse the Taleban’s gains. Their presence along the highway and around the provincial centre remains a challenge for the ANSF in Baghlan as seen on 14 August 2016 when the Taleban managed to overrun the district centre of Dahna-e Ghori. According to local officials, after serious clashes with the insurgents, the ANSF had to retreat and the Taleban gained control of the district centre.  

Outlook for situation in Baghlan

Since early 2016, Taleban activities in Baghlan have created the impression among local residents that they are preparing for a large-scale assault, not only on the Baghlan-Balkh highway, but also on the province’s centre. Even if such an attack does not take place, their presence in the areas along the Baghlan-Balkh highway as well as close to Pul-e Khumri constitutes a serious threat to the government. According to civil society representatives, the Taleban are currently engaged in collecting ushr (equal to a tenth of a harvest’s yield) from local farmers. This likely explains the current lull in their operations. Unlike before, the Taleban are not only taxing farmers, but also traders and local businessmen. One local businessman told AAN that, for a truck of watermelons coming from areas under Taleban control, he has to pay around 13,000 Afghanis (about 200 US dollars) to the local Taleban commander. The increased income from ushr and other such taxes, help finance the insurgents’ expenses locally as well as bolstering their war chest. This makes them less dependent on the central Taleban leadership to provide them with resources to launch attacks.

The recent flare up of Taleban activity in Kunduz province (AAN dispatch on the Kunduz situation is forthcoming) has further raised concerns among the local population. These developments leave local communities fearful of what is to come.

The latest quarterly report of the Special Inspector of the [US] Government for Afghan Reconstruction (better known for his acronym SIGAR) cites Baghlan as one of the Taleban’s current focal areas.

Beyond the security trends specific to the area, there have been other disquieting developments in Baghlan province as a whole, which seem to indicate a strategic shift in dynamics between the insurgency and the ANSF, with the Taleban ensuring they maintain control, rather than just making territorial gains along the Baghlan-Balkh highway. They achieve this by persistently disrupting security along this vital transport route. Then they connect the areas they occupy (from Dahna-ye Ghori through Dand-e Ghori and Dand-e Shahabuddin to Baghlan-e Jadid towards Chahrdara district of Kunduz province), thereby creating a larger, cross-provincial area of control. This enables them to deploy reinforcements between the east and west of Baghlan, and likewise to and from Kunduz.

The negative effects of the ANSF’s inconsequential clearance operations and their failure to establish a presence in the area has undermined locals’ trust in both the government and the ANSF. This could pose a serious challenge if at some point they need the local population’s support to oust the Taleban. Their trust will be particularly necessary if the government continues to rely on the ALP and other groups to form the backbone of its local security strategy. Prospects for improved security in Baghlan in the second half of 2016 remain as bleak as they were during the first half, especially after the fall of Dahna-ye Ghori on 14 August 2016, the first district to fall into Taleban hands in Baghlan province since 2001.  Worsening security would mostly affect the local civilian population, but also threatens the many seeking to travel or transport goods to and from the northwest. One of the country’s main communication routes remains at risk.

Edited by Lenny Linke, Thomas Ruttig and Kate Clark

 

(1) This cannot be because of recent German presence, as the area had no German PRT outpost. Locals say that under the reign of Emperor Kanishka the Great (circa 124-140 AD) during the Kushan dynasty, ‘Germans’ were based there. This is a subject for further research…

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