Defence`s Feeds

A total of 153 candidates have been validly nominated for the seventh-term Legislative Council (LegCo) election in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), an eligibility review committee said Friday.

Taiwan reported on Friday 10 new cases of COVID-19, all contracted overseas, and no new deaths from the disease, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).

The Union Government is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of COVID-19 vaccination throughout the country

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HawkEye 360 announced on 8 November that it had closed USD145 million in new funding. Two of the largest investors are Insight Partners and the UK-based Seraphim Space....

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has revealed plans to identify hybrid powertrain technologies with application to Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA)...

Spanish company Alpha Unmanned Systems (AUS) has won an order to supply five of its Alpha 900 helicopter unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to the Hellenic Navy.

The partnership signed with Dushanbe on 9 November rounds off India's plan to become the new intelligence hub for Afghanistan (IO, 15/10/21). The sweeping bilateral agreement, signed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's national security adviser Ajit Doval and Tajikistan's security

Created less than a month ago, the new Emirati distributor AFB Systems has grand plans to make it big on

Leonardo is getting ready to return to India's defence sector after a 2015 ban from bidding on defence contracts in

Turkish intelligence service MIT, which is already heavily engaged outside Turkey, is also making a particular effort to strengthen its

On 8 November, the website of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) published an open letter written by

QinetiQ Group conducted an “unsuccessful acquisition activity” in the first half of fiscal year (FY) 2022, according to the UK-based defence contractor.

Americas

Lockheed Martin won a $19 million contract modification, that adds scope to provide delivery and installation of a multispectral database and delivery of crypto ignition keys in support of F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter in support of the Air Force and the government of the Republic of Korea. Work will take place in Wisconsin and. Texas. Estimated completion will be in September 2023.

The US Navy awarded Lockheed Martin a $15.9 million contract modification, which exercises an option to procure seven retrofit advanced radar processor systems for the E-2D aircraft. The E-2D Hawkeye features a state-of-the-art radar with a two-generation leap in capability and upgraded aircraft systems that will improve supportability and increase readiness. Work will take place in New York and Massachusetts. Estimated completion will be in February 2026.

Middle East & Africa

According to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the country is in the final stage of negotiations with South Korea to buy the M-SAM air defense missile system. Tariq Abdul Rahim Al Hosani, CEO of the Tawazun Economic Council, confirmed to Gulf Today that the both sides are “close to concluding a final agreement.”

The Somali National Army (SNA) received a donation of military vehicles including trucks and ambulances from Turkey. Senior military officials received the donation after a ceremony at the Turkish Embassy in the capital of Mogadishu. Officials from Turkey’s military mission, Turk-Som, also attended the ceremony, Turkey’s government-owned Anadolu Agency reported.

Europe

Rheinmetall completed demonstration trials of the Soucy Composite Rubber Track (CRT) system on the Lynx KF41 Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV). Rheinmetall Managing Director Gary Stewart said the CRT demonstration confirmed the Lynx IFV was capable of utilising both steel and composite rubber tracks.

Asia-Pacific

Thales Australia announced a $6 million investment in advanced manufacturing equipment at the Commonwealth owned Mulwala facility in regional New South Wales1, to accelerate sovereign guided weapons manufacturing capability. Thales’s investment in new large-scale preparation and mixing equipment will enable a 500% increase in the size of rocket motors able to be manufactured at Mulwala, supporting production of advanced guided weapons and hypersonic weapons.

Today’s Video

Watch: Rheinmetall – The making of Lynx Combat Support Vehicle

The United Arab Emirates' defence procurement and research organisation, the Tawazun Economic Council, announced on 18 November that it had launched a new project to...

The University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) has been awarded a five-year contract valued at up to USD88 million to pursue research and development into autonomous...

Boeing delivered the first P-8A Poseidon maritime multimission aircraft (MMA) for Norway on 18 November.

Forging a viable ‘rapid deployment capability' (RDC) of up to 5,000 troops lies at the heart of the European Union's new draft strategy blueprint, known as the Strategic...

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) announced on 18 November that it had signed two agreements with Emirati defence conglomerate Edge at the Dubai Airshow covering...

Some 50 helicopter tactics specialists and operators from 12 EDA Member States and Switzerland, and as well as representatives of EDA’s Helicopter Chief Instructor Team, the Joint Air Power Competence Centre (JAPCC), the NATO Special Operations Headquarters (NSHQ), the European Personnel Recovery Centre (EPRC) met from 8-11 November in Ostrava, Czech Republic, for the Agency’s 12th Helicopter Tactics Symposium, hosted by the Czech Air Force.

Organised under EDA’s Helicopter Exercise Programme (HEP), the event allowed European helicopter crews to discuss and share expertise and best practices related to helicopter tactics, national and international training and operational experience.

A first part of the symposium was devoted to drawing tactical lessons from previous EDA helicopter training activities, such as exercise “Hot Blade 21” held last June at Beja Air Base in Portugal, and EDA’s recent 7th Helicopter Tactics Instructor Course (HTIC). Next year’s “Fire Blade” exercise, to be held in Hungary in June 2022 with a focus on Composite Air Operations (COMAO) and national training required by the participating Member States, was also discussed.

A second part of the exercise was centered on enhancing the common knowledge about other organisations and of the tactical procedures used in other partner countries. Here a wide range of topics were addressed, such as joint all domain operations, the NSHQ’s roles and responsibilities, the EPRC and personnel recovery, NATO’s Special Operation Air Task Units (SOATU) project, the German Air Force special forces H145M helicopters, evasion eraining against fighters, attack helicopter tactics and experiences, landing zone operations and evasion maneuvers against ground based air defence threats.

Switzerland, as a new HEP Member State, participated in its first HEP activity and briefed about their Air Force helicopter organisation and missions. MEDEVAC support using rotary wing assets was also addressed, including EDA´s AIR MEDEVAC project which is focused on support to operations.

A major milestone of this symposium was the introduction, by EDA’s Chief Instructor Team, of the new EDA HEP Standard Operating Procedures (HEP SOP) V5.0 following its formal release. This document is from now on the basis for all future EDA helicopter trainings, ensuring standardisation and fostering interoperability among European helicopter operators and units. 

More information:

• EDA Helicopter Exercise Programme (HEP)