The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory found a conductive carbon-fiber nanocoating that provides electromagnetic shielding from high-power microwave and directed-energy weapons. The coating is nickel chemical vapor deposition (NiCVD). Trials were performed by Conductive Composites Co. of Heber City, Utah. A film 50 nanometers to 1-2 microns thick is applied in a continuous process by a NiCVD reactor. The coating is most effective on nonwoven carbon-fiber broad goods such as paper or cloth, but can be applied to felts, foams, woven cloths and Kevlar.
Robert Brammer, vice president and chief technology officer of Northrop Grumman Information Systems, has spent more than 40 years working on an array of scientific programs in aerospace and defense—from the Apollo space program to cybersecurity. Among his recent professional concerns—and personal interests—is climate change and the impact it could have on national policy and corporate strategy.
French air force and navy Rafale F3 combat aircraft are touted as true “omnirole fighters.” Military officials say there are multirole fighters that conduct reconnaissance, air-to-air combat, air-to-surface attack or deterrence, but only one at a time. The F3 can perform all in a single mission, they maintain. Stephane Reb, Rafale program manager at French procurement agency DGA, explains: “The intention from the outset [with the F3] was to have a joint and omnirole fighter to replace all other aircraft in the air force.”
As the U.S. Army makes plans for its future after operations wind down in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is looking to small units—platoons and squads—to drive new tactics and technologies. This is apparent in the Army's Brigade Combat Team Modernization program, which is focused on the brigade and below. One emphasis here is communication capabilities that connect small units with each other, while plugging them into larger networks and sensor platforms such as unmanned aerial systems.
Israeli manufacturers are ramping up development of small, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) powered by electric motors and, in at least one case, a hydrogen fuel cell. The UAVs are for tactical use and feature advanced payloads and data links, and cover a range of altitudes.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are integrating high-capacity Internet protocol data networking in Merkava armored battalions with the WIN Battle Management Systems (BMS), developed by Elbit Systems. The new wireless communication channel employs a low-power, stand-alone encrypted radio operating in the S-band range. The radio is designed for short-range communications. The unit augments the tactical network radio in the tank, which remains the primary voice channel.
In the most remote corners of Afghanistan, Iraq or any other place where the U.S. has deployed its military, a special operations force (SOF) can run a biometric scan on a suspect and know within 10 min. whether he has already been logged in the databases of the Defense Department, FBI, Homeland Security Department or Interpol.
Tetraedr, a Belarus contractor, is entering the growing mobile air-defense systems market with the T38 Stilet, the latest evolution of the Russian OSA-AKM (NATO name SA-8 Gecko) surface-to-air missile (SAM) system. The T38 can be an appealing option for customers that operate the SA-8. The new system is “affordable,” Tetraedr says, and Belarus has few restrictions on military exports. On the other hand, it is an evolutionary product based on a design that entered service 40 years ago.
India has short-listed Dassault's Rafale and the Eurofighter Typhoon for the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) bid, which is expected to result in procurement of 126 fighters worth $12 billion. A huge battle over industrial terms is now expected as vendors submit their revised offset proposals later this year.
The Airbus A400M should be the leader in the large military transport market within 10 years, reckons Antonio Rodriguez Barberan, senior vice president of commercial business at Airbus Military, “because we will be the only actors left. The [Lockheed Martin] C-130s and [Boeing] C-17s will need replacing by then and their production line is closing down,” he told DTI at the new Airbus Military training center here last month.
The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have heightened a need for helicopters to overcome “brownouts,” low-visibility landings caused by clouds of sand and dust generated by rotor wash. One technique for this comes from the U.K. Defense Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) and industry partners. At a recent demonstration in London, DSTL showed a helmet-mounted display that combines input from aircraft sensors with 3-D conformal symbology, so pilots can hover or land without visual references.
The aftermath of the raid that killed Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden pointed to the existence of a stealth version of the Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopter—and to the difficulty of keeping secrets in the Internet age.
Last fall the Pentagon kicked off a research and design effort focused on reworking a fundamental piece of the fighter pilot's tool kit: the flight suit. The U.S. Air Force awarded a $100 million, seven-year contract to TIAX LLC of Lexington, Mass., a firm which, among other products, makes heading sensors and skin decontamination cream.
With much of the Middle East in turmoil, new realities are emerging for Israel and her neighbors, reshaping the strategic environment that has remained nearly constant for more than 30 years, since the 1979 peace accord with Egypt.
REVIEWED BY Pat Toensmeier Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power BY Robert D. Kaplan Random House, 2010 366 pp., $28.00 The geopolitical history of the 20th century was dominated by Western powers as well as the former Soviet Union, and focused attention on two oceans—the Atlantic and the Pacific.
Bill Sweetman (Washington), David Eshel (Tel Aviv)
Without an objective, all the NATO air strikes and the no-fly zone over Libya may produce is a waste of funds and aircraft fatigue life that member nations can hardly afford. The lesson being ignored is that the only way to achieve acceptable results in an operation intended to disrupt enemy forces—and overthrow a rogue leader, in this case Moammar Gadhafi—is to combine air strikes with boots on the ground.
The U.S. Army and Marine Corps are expected this year to seek proposals to retrofit part of their Humvee fleets for added protection (see p. 41). Though both services are interested in the recapitalization program, which involves retrofitting the AM General-built Humvee, the competition has been delayed while each determines its own requirements. The program would take the thin-skinned aluminum Humvees and make them better able to survive attacks from roadside bombs.
Remote sensors provide forces with data about the movements of combatants and civilians in contested areas. This technology could get a boost from three thumbnail-sized satellites that lifted off with space shuttle Endeavour on May 16. Developed by researchers at Cornell University, Sprite satellites are 1-sq.-in. chips designed to travel through space like dust, says Mason Peck, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering. They would be blown by solar winds to distant locations, transmitting space and planetary data back to Earth.
Based on operational experience in securing Italy's coastline against migrant traffickers and smugglers, Selex Galileo's ATOS (Airborne Tactical Observation Surveillance System) is being proposed for a number of missions worldwide.
FLIR Systems is undergoing a transformation. In 2010, the company acquired ICx Technologies, which was formed to focus on homeland security requirements, and merged it into its Government Systems business. The goal was to expand the company's role from being merely a supplier of thermal imaging systems—from hand-held devices to high-end airborne surveillance and targeting turrets—into a developer of security sensors over a wide spectrum, including chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear effects (CBRNE), and increasingly to act as an integrator of those systems.
On the secret-helicopter hunt in Elmira, N.Y., Editor-in-Chief Bill Sweetman indeed found a unique military aircraft—the last survivor of 30 Douglas BTD Destroyer carrier-based bombers, kicked outdoors by Sikorsky's growing customization shop.
The first three Tiger support helicopters of the German army's combat helicopter regiment (KHR 36) were cleared for training flights in April and have been exercising with ground troops for possible deployment to Afghanistan. This follows trials at the German army's aviation school. The helicopters are training with a light infantry regiment, which, with KHR 36, is part of Airmobile Brigade 1. Brigade commander Brig. Gen. Jurgen Setzer says four Tigers could deploy to Afghanistan in 2012, if the deployment decision is made.
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) and Air Force want to deploy wide-angle digital telescopes to monitor the 100,000-plus objects of orbiting debris larger than 1 cm (0.4 in.), which could damage satellites. The telescopes, in development, will use sensitive imaging chips that reduce the optics train needed for big mirrors on conventional telescopes. This would reduce the size of the telescopes, making them easier to reposition. The primary mirror on the telescopes will be 3.5 meters (11.5 ft.) in diameter.
The U.S. Defense Department is expected to soon renew Milestone B approval for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. First granted in 2001 before the development contract was signed, MS-B approval was automatically rescinded last year after the program incurred a Nunn-McCurdy cost overrun breach.
