Turkey Looks Into Fifth-Gen Complement To JSF

Turkey's aviation industry has come a long way since it began building F-16 Fighting Falcons in the 1980s. Now it is confident that it can produce an aircraft in-country that will not only replace the F-16 but complement the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter in years to come.
Turkish Aviation Industries (TAI) has been working quietly on ideas for a fifth-generation fighter, dubbed the F-X, for several years, but 2013 represents a critical year in the decision-making process for the project. A $20 million two-year concept phase, started in August 2011, will end this September, and a meeting of Turkey's Defense Industry Executive Committee, which takes place at year-end, will define how the program will begin to take shape.
At the IDEF defense show in Istanbul last month, TAI displayed three potential single-seat design concepts for the aircraft: two conventional monoplane layouts, one with a single engine, not dissimilar to the F-35, and one with two engines, while the third featured canard foreplanes and a large delta wing. Each of the concepts features elements of design associated with fifth-generation fighter aircraft, such as faceted fuselages to reduce radar cross-section, internal weapons bays, super-cruise capability as well as advanced avionics and an active, electronically scanned array (AESA) radar system. Engineers have received input from Saab, which was drafted to consult on the program.
TAI officials suggest that the two single-engine concepts will have maximum takeoff weights (MTOW) of 50,000-60,000 lb., while the twin-engine version will have an MTOW of 60,000-70,000 lb. Diagrammatic drawings of the twin-engine aircraft show two weapons bays, one located between the air intakes that can house a pair of small short-range air-to-air missiles, and the other in front of the engines housing four larger missiles around the size of the AIM-120 Amraam.

NDM Secures Contract with ST Marine in Singapore

Stern slip Launch and Recovery System for the RSN Littoral Mission Vessels (photo : who)
NDM (Norwegian Deck Machinery) is proud to announce that we have signed a contract with ST Marine in Singapore for the supply of equipment for eight (8) vessels beeing built for the Siingapore Ministry of Defence (MINDEF).

The image above shows the slipway design for navy vessels. (image : NDM)


The vessels will be built at ST Marine’s Singapore Benoi Yard and are expected to be delivered from 2016 onwards.

The equipment is a stern slip Launch and Recovery System which will deploy and recover crafts from the ship.

Qnective Rolls out Secure Mobile Communications for Defence to Indonesia

Qnective Rolls out Secure Mobile Communications Solution to Indonesia
The Swiss company Qnective  (http://www.qnective.com) has received a major order for its software solution Qtalk Defense for 120,000 users. This will incorporate the building of a secure communications network for various military and governmental organisations in Indonesia by using the public mobile networks. Members of each of these organisations will be able to exchange encrypted voice and data with one another confidentially and without the risk of third parties eavesdropping. Qtalk Defense is set up on standard smartphones (Android, Blackberry, iOS, Windows). Investing in additional digital networks has been avoided by using the existing public mobile networks.
The geographical situation of Indonesia, a country with more than 17,000 islands, made it essential for the Indonesian government that the secure communications solution is using the existing GSM networks. Like this, little additional customer costs for new hardware or infrastructure were generated. These challenges were mastered by the design and implementation of Qnective's mobile software solution, Qtalk Defense. Qtalk Defense is running on commonly held Android, Blackberry and iOS devices.

Combined Arms Training at Townsville

An M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank from 1st Armoured Regiment prepares to move into a firing position along side an M113 Armoured Personnel Carrier and an Australian Light Armoured Vehicles (ASLAV) during a Live Fire Exercise. (all photos : Aus DoD)

Over the period of 9 May to 1 June 2013 Townsville based 3rd Brigade (3BDE) conducted a Combined Arms Training Activity (CATA) in the Townsville Field Training Area (TFTA) in order to prepare for Exercise TALISMAN SABRE in July and the progression towards the Brigade’s ‘Ready’ status in November.

The CATA focused on the conduct of high end mid-intensity Foundation War Fighting with a number of Battle Group manoeuvre activities and Live Fire Exercises, including a brigade level live fire as the final activity. The scenario within the activity allowed for Battle Groups to move through two different missions with the second providing an opportunity for live fire.

M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tanks from 1st Armoured Regiment move into a firing position during a Live Fire Exercise.

An M113 Armoured Personnel Carrier from the Armoured Cavalry Regiment transits to a new location.

Soldiers of 1st Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR) prepare to be air lifted by aircraft from the 5th Aviation Regiment at the conclusion of Exercise CATA. The aircraft involved are three MRH 90 Tapains, eight S70 Blackhawks and one CH-47 Chinook.

The Smallest Man Portable Missile Made By Rafael

The smallest man portable missile made by Rafael gives special unit’s capabilities they never had before. “Our Mini Spike missile attracts attention from many armies and special units that need that kind of firepower”  says Oron Oriol, Rafael’s executive VP marketing .

The mini-Spike missile system, the smallest member of Rafael’s electro-optically guided missiles, is the first implementation of an anti-personnel precision attack, wireless guided missile, designed for operation at the company and platoon level.

This man-portable missile system weighs about 12 kg, and comprises of a command and launch units facilitating target acquisition and wireless control for the missile, weighing 4 kg and missiles stored in a canister-launcher, weighing 4 kg each. Typically a soldier will carry the CLU and two missiles with other members of the unit carrying spare missiles.

The imaging sensor is located in the transparent bubble in the forward section , ahead of the electronics section, guidance systems and servos, warhead and rocket motor all packed into the

Israel Introduces 72m Mini-Corvette Design

The military version of SAAR S-72 mini corvette will be able to carry the latest weaponry required for a modern navy (image : Defense Update)

Israel Shipyards Introduces the SAAR 72 Mini-Corvette Design

Israel Shipyards is expanding the SAAR class of missile boats, extending the range from missile boats into ‘Mini Corvette’ class vessels. The new class is addressing the growing requirements of Israel and other nations in extending maritime control and sovereignty far from their territorial waters. Defense-Update reports from IMDEX 2013.

The Israel Navy is required to expand the security and responsibility over much larger area while doing that with an ageing  fleet of Saar 4, 4.5 missile boats and 5 corvettes. If only to maintain the numbers of boats in service, the Israel Navy will require several new vessels in the coming years. Many of these vessels are becoming obsolete – some of the oldest missile boats in service – INS Atzmaut (Independence) and INS Nitzahon (Victory) are reaching 35 years in service – an age considered the end of service life for such boats. Therefore, new platforms will be required in the near future. Through the years the Navy acquired 20 Saar 4/4.5 vessels, but the cash-strapped service could not afford to buy larger vessels, and, therefore limited the procurement of the larger Saar 5 corvettes to the three vessels built in the U.S. funded by Washington’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS).

DND Finalizing TOR for Acquisition of 12 Fighter Jets

To beef up the security capabilities of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Department of National Defense (DND) is finalizing the Terms of Reference (TOR) for the acquisition of 12 fighter jets from South Korea. 

DND Undersecretary Fernando said that the acquisition of fighter jets remains a priority. He also said that the TOR for the acquisition of 12 FA-50 fighter jets may be completed in a month. 

The TOR provides the details of acquisition to include the fighter jets technical features, price, payment scheme, and the time frame for the delivery of said equipment. 

Security officials are currently going through the details of acquisition, and likewise the government is hoping that negotiations with South Korea will begin soon. 

The government has allocated P18 billion for the acquisition of said fighter jets to beef up the capability of the Philippine Air Force. 

Meanwhile, DND chief Voltaire Gazmin also ordered to fast track the acquisition of 21 UH-I Huey helicopters which costs P1.26 billion. 

Test flights of Diamond DA42 with Thales I-Master demonstrate outstanding performance

Thales’s I-Master radar system has successfully completed flight
trials onboard a Diamond DA42MPP GUARDIAN aircraft.
Conducted in partnership with Diamond Aircraft Industries and Diamond Airborne Sensing at its facility in
Wiener Neustadt, Austria, the week-long trial covered different radar modes at a range of altitudes and
speeds. The demonstration included using the onboard payload to transmit full-resolution radar images
and electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) footage via a high-bandwidth line-of-sight data link to controllers at the
ground station.
The DA42MPP NG, with its de-icing TKS protection, is all-weather capable, enabling flight operations to
use the Thales I-Master radar to detect targets; these can then be identified by the EO/IR turret, which is
also mounted on the platform, before the footage is sent back to headquarters via line-of-sight datalink.
I-Master is an all-weather, lightweight payload that is easily installed in a standard 15-inch gimbal outline.
Its high-performance radar offers two modes: Ground Moving Target Indication (GMTI) and Synthetic
Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery.
GMTI is used to detect moving targets – from high-speed vehicles to targets moving at a walking pace. Its
360-degree capability can scan a wide area, such as deserts, savannah, borders and road networks, and
its use over time can help to build a ‘pattern of life’ situation awareness.

Royal Australian Navy Amphibious Task Group to Benefit from OSI’s T-ACT Solution

OSI's Tactical Asset Control and Tracking System (photo : OSI)

OSI Maritime Systems is pleased to announce the provision of an advanced command, control and situational awareness system to the Royal Australian Navy Amphibious Task Group.
OSI's Tactical Asset Control and Tracking System (T-ACT) will be equipped on two mother ships and 12 landing craft. Designed for close C2 between the mother ships and landing craft, T-ACT will leverage information gained through the use of Warship-AIS, and support the coordination of assets in overt and covert tactical situations.
"T-ACT is at the heart of small craft operations. It provides advanced navigational and situational awareness capabilities to the small craft, and the direct transfer of detailed and safe plans from command," said Jim Davison, director sales and marketing.
"The system provides much operational efficiencies: small craft crews can easily receive, en route, changes and amendments to planned routes, messages and other data. T-ACT is designed to significantly reduce the small craft Coxn / Commander workload and improve operational capability beyond line-of-sight."
T-ACT has a proven track record, performing in a variety of scenarios from maritime interdiction through to port security and high-speed littoral operations. Successes include the use of T-ACT by the UK Royal Navy Fisheries Protection Squadron (FPS), the inclusion of the system in maritime security for the 2010 Winter Olympics, and more recently the 2012 Summer Olympics.

A400M and C295W to be Pitched to NZ

The eventual retirement of the RNZAF’s C-130Hs will see Airbus Military pitch the A400M and newly-launched C295W to the New Zealand government.
Announced at its annual briefing to trade media, Airbus Military said while it views New Zealand as a longer-term proposition, it is confident the two aircraft could fill the gap to be left by the ultimate retirement of the RNZAF’s five C-130Hs and indeed enhance the nation’s airlift capabilities.
Airbus Military was upbeat about the potential its new products could offer, and will embark on initial discussions within an undisclosed period, believed to be in the nearer-term to seed the products as potential candidates.
One observer at the briefing noted the C295 could also provide a pragmatic solution to New Zealand’s future maritime patrol needs when the Orions fall due for replacement. Airbus Military is offering the C295W as both a tactical airlifter and maritime patrol aircraft.
The last of the RNZAF C-130Hs to undergo a 15-year life-extension was re-delivered only in February this year, five years later than expected, under a program that was originally approved in 2003.

Philippines to Receive Riverine Patrol Boats from US

The Philippine Navy (PN) is set to receive six riverine patrol boats (RPBs) from the United States in August under a US Navy (USN) Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contract.
A Silver Ships riverine patrol boat (RPB) on trial in the United States.1513348A Silver Ships riverine patrol boat (RPB) on trial in the United States. (Silver Ships)
According to an official at manufacturer Silver Ships, a contract was signed with the USN in September 2011 and the boats were completed a year later. However, delivery was delayed until early May this year due to "non-availability of marine transport".
Although the boats are capable of open-water operations, they will be used primarily in shallow waters. They have a length of 40 ft, a beam of 10 ft 8 inches and a draft of less than two feet.

The boats feature a centre console configuration and a bow ramp to permit egress of embarked troops during beaching operations. They have three weapon mounts - two forward and one aft - for machine guns and grenade launchers as well as ballistic protection.

OSI Maritime Systems Signs Contract to Deliver Integrated Navigation Systems to DSME for Indonesian Navy Type 209 SSK Program

OSI Maritime Systems (OSI) is pleased to announce the signing of a contract with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), South Korea.
As part of the program, DSME will build three Type 209 diesel submarines (SSK) for the Indonesian Navy.  Under the terms of the agreement, OSI will deliver three Integrating Navigation and Tactical Systems, including ECPINS-W Sub software.