Researchers at Georgia Tech Research Institute and a U.S. Air Force scientist have patented a discovery that could make enemy ground radar warnings more reliable and less expensive. Michael Willis (see photo) and Michael McGuire of GTRI and Charlie Clark of Robins AFB, Ga., share the patent for the digital crystal video receiver. The patent enables digital circuitry to take over functions now performed by analog circuits, which are more difficult to calibrate and maintain, and often require multiple receivers to detect radar signals over a range of frequencies.
The first high-energy lasers on 21st-century battlefields may not be giant weapons like the 747-mounted Airborne Laser, but much smaller, even portable units. Advanced solid-state weapons use complex laser-plasma interactions to achieve lethal or non-lethal effects at will and do not require the power and bulk of the ABL.
Cornered by policy and circumstance, the U.S. Marine Corps' tactical air force is struggling to transition from a diverse but depleted fighter fleet to an inventory made up of one aircraft--Lockheed Martin's F-35B Lightning II, formerly the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). The Marine Corps, which flies three versions of the F/A-18 Hornet plus AV-8B Harrier jump jets, wants to buy around 300 F-35Bs, beginning with six in 2008, even though questions persist about its suitability as a replacement.
Denmark has taken a big step in transforming its maritime capabilities by ordering three 6,000-ton anti-air warfare frigates. The ships were ordered Dec. 20, from Odense (Denmark) Steel Shipyard Ltd. for delivery in 2010-12. They will join two 6,300-ton Absalon-class flexible combat-support ships built by the same yard from 2003-05.
Smuggling and terrorism are among threats Israel's navy confronts in protecting the nation's coastline. Suicide boat attacks, in particular, are an ever-present concern, one that could have devastating consequences for sailors and ships. Is a fishing boat that strays into a restricted area harmless or a deadly explosion waiting to happen? Safely determining the nature and intent of sea-borne confrontations is driving Israel's navy to test the benefits of unmanned surface vehicles (USV).
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency achieved a milestone last month with the launch of two Orbital Express demonstration vehicles on board an Atlas 5 rocket. The Orbital Express is an ambitious program even for Darpa, which envisions a post-2010 future in which orbiting vehicles shuttle through space servicing, resupplying and reconfiguring satellites.
The first live intercept of a ballistic missile in Europe is scheduled to take place in October, on the NATO Missile Firing Installation (Namfi) on Crete. The announcement, by Hellenic Army Maj. Gen. George Tsartsaris, Namfi's commander, comes at a time when Namfi is courting nations outside NATO to use the range. "We are upgrading our facilities, and this includes the option to conduct live intercept firings in the context of theater ballistic missile defense," Tsartsaris says.
An old salt in maritime issues, Rep. Gene Taylor (D-Miss.), new chairman of the House Armed Services Committee's Seapower and Expeditionary Forces subcommittee, has come to power at a time when the U.S. military, industry and even the nation seem poised for strategic change in addressing fleet assets. Fresh from talks with the Navy secretary and other top government officials, not to mention a slew of congressional hearings, the Democrat from Bay St.
The Netherlands plans to start fielding the first version of its future Dismounted Soldier System by early 2009, initially equipping 7,000 frontline troops. A final choice of subsystems and technologies will be made by the end of this year, followed by a contract award in early 2008, program officials say.
The Tactical Leadership Program's most recent flying course, held in January and February at Florennes, saw the participation of 34 fighter aircraft from nine nations, including for the first time two new Eurofighter Typhoons (from the British Royal Air Force) and two air force-version Dassault Rafales (from the French air force).
U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command officials say the Hunter-Viper Strike weapon system, which combines the workhorse Hunter unmanned aerial vehicle and the Viper tiny precision munition, are proving lethal but not too lethal during operational tests and evaluations at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. Northrop Grumman's Viper Strike weighs 44 lb. and is 36 in. long--less than a quarter the size of the smallest guided bomb--making it ideal for avoiding civilian deaths during urban combat. The warhead weighs just 2.3 lb.
The case is in hand--if only the Navy will act this year--to choose nuclear propulsion for the next-generation cruiser, the CG(X). Specifying an integrated nuclear powerplant would reduce the Navy's dependence on fossil fuels. A nuclear CG(X) makes sense because of an impending peak and subsequent decline in oil production during the ship's life, the strategic danger of relying upon imported oil, and the need to reduce competition--or conflict--over oil with major consuming nations like China.
The French air force will acquire a new capability this year to counter enemy air defenses, employing tactics pioneered during the multinational Tactical Leadership Program exercise held in January and February.
Thales Nederland has launched a coastal surveillance and security derivative of its frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) family of covert surveillance radars. Called Seaker, the radar is designed to detect terrorists, smugglers, illegal immigrants or enemy special forces in a coastal environment. Seaker is based on the company's Squire FMCW radar for land surveillance, says product manager Albert Stegeman. Squire is fielded by multiple countries in Europe and the Middle East. It is sold by Thales or, in the case of U.S.
India's maritime surveillance capabilities are being severely stretched as the country's economic boom dictates a greater command of the seas by its navy. Government and military officials are looking to upgrade the navy's fleet of surveillance aircraft with the goal of extending their operational range and ability to respond to a variety of threats. Plans are underway to acquire manned and unmanned aircraft as well as advanced navigation gear and weapons systems.
Three years after it was cobbled together using old patrol boats, the new Iraqi navy is making another attempt to rebuild its forces. In September, Iraq signed an €80-million ($105-million) contract with Italian shipbuilding group Fincantieri, to build four boats that will be the navy's operational backbone.
FEATURES drones down under 22 Australian funding of U.S. Navy's BAMS program has a price: higher-performing UAVs. power play 24 India's navy is extending maritime surveillance to safeguard country's sea trade. ready to roll 25 Crash program is underway to develop a new generation of armored vehicles for U.S. troops. tailor-made 28 U.S. Marine Corps touts the comfort and mobility of Modular Tactical Vest for body armor.
The British Royal Navy's newest destroyer, HMS Dauntless, was launched on Jan. 23. The vessel, the second of six Type 45 destroyers that have been ordered by the Navy, will enter service early in the next decade. Type 45 destroyers are designed for anti-air warfare operations and local-area fleet defense.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) wants to develop fake black ice to literally trip up the enemy in Iraq and Afghanistan, while using an instant reversal agent to keep U.S. soldiers and their allies on firm footing. Darpa declined to discuss details, such as whether polymer ice is one of its more fanciful ideas or something with real near-term potential. A Jan. 16 request for proposals states that there is an immediate need for methods to deny enemy transit by messing with their traction.
Thales Nederland has teamed with General Dynamics Canada to propose a key combat systems upgrade for Canada's 12 Halifax-class frigates, built between 1987 and 1996. The team will build its bid around Thales-NL's Tacticos Net Centric combat management system, Thales officials said.
January was a bad month for U.S. Army robots. On Jan. 9, the Pentagon announced that two of the four aerial drones planned for the Future Combat Systems family of networked vehicles would be abandoned to save money. Two weeks later, FCS program manager Brig. Gen. Thomas Cole said one of the four ground robots would go, too. The Armed Reconnaissance Vehicle, he added, was being downgraded to a research program. The Army's grand vision of humans and robots working hand-in-mechanical-claw on the future battlefield seemed to be in some jeopardy.
The Swedish Defense Materiel Administration has awarded BAE Systems an SEK100-million ($14.1-million) contract for a new phase in the next-generation Archer artillery system. Archer is a self-propelled artillery gun that relies on a commercial off-the-shelf chassis, and a crew of three, compared with 6-10 for most artillery systems. BAE says the gun's lethality is equivalent to 4-6 traditional artillery systems.
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The U.S. Navy late last year began using a handheld biometrics device to identify sailors on commercial vessels during counter-drug and counter-terrorism interdictions, according to the Defense Dept.'s Biometrics Task Force, which displayed the technology at Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Assn. West 2007 in San Diego.
