US military, technology, arms, tactics

[Rakesh]

https://twitter.com/sidhant/status/1546 ... Qpw4xfFk5Q ---> US F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet onboard USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier "blew overboard due to unexpected heavy weather in the Mediterranean Sea", says US Navy.

F/A-18 Super Hornet assigned to USS Harry S. Truman blown overboard due to unexpected heavy weather
https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/Press ... to-unexpe/
10 July 2022

[Rakesh]

Navy commander who misled families into drinking poisoned water given award upon retirement
https://taskandpurpose.com/news/navy-pe ... commander/
06 July 2022

[Pratyush]

https://www.defensenews.com/2022/07/13/ ... t-success/

The booster test phase for the AGM183A is over. With the missiles showing that they can be safely flown by B52 and be fired by them.

[Pratyush]

https://defence-blog.com/u-s-contractor ... destroyer/

It's a vertical take off and landing drone with configurable mission specific payloads.

[dnivas]

840 Billion budget approved. Insanity

[NRao]

Operational Fires Program Successfully Completes First Flight Test

DARPA’s Operational Fires (OpFires) program has successfully executed its first flight test at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The OpFires system achieved all test objectives, including first ever use of a U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) logistics truck as a medium-range missile launcher, missile canister egress, stable flight capture, and use of U.S. Army inventory artillery fire control systems to initiate the test mission. Lockheed Martin built the system, which includes a Northrop Grumman rocket motor, and conducted the test.

The test demonstrated integrated technology maturation of key enabling components including the first stage rocket motor, missile canister, and missile round pallet (MRP). The MRP is designed for use with the load handling system available on USMC and Army logistics vehicles, eliminating the need for a bespoke OpFires transporter erector launcher (TEL).

“This is a promising step toward a TEL on-demand capability for accurately firing medium-range missiles from highly agile, readily available logistics trucks that are already in both the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps inventory,” said Lt. Col. Joshua Stults, the DARPA program manager for OpFires. “Our successful agile hardware development approach prioritizes full-scale flight testing that will inform further design maturation this year.”

The primary goal of OpFires is the development and demonstration of a ground-launched two-stage propulsive system capable of employing hypersonic (greater than five times the speed of sound) payloads from ubiquitous U.S. military trucks (the Palletized Load System family of vehicles) that can penetrate modern air defenses and precisely strike time-critical targets. Compatibility with existing command and control, vehicles, logistics infrastructure, and operating environments ensures that OpFires is highly mobile and rapidly deployable.

“The OpFires program is a great example of how DARPA, in partnership with industry, is helping the Department of Defense facilitate rapid development and testing of advanced hypersonic technologies to accelerate the delivery of transformational warfighting capabilities,” said Michael White, principal director for hypersonics in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.

The OpFires program will complete an integrated system critical design review in 2022.

[NRao]

The US Army is facing a lot of challenges in recruiting. A few weeks ago they aloud kids that did not have high school diplomas to try out. Now:

Army cuts force size amid unprecedented battle for recruits

The Army is significantly cutting the total number of soldiers it expects to have in the force over the next two years, as the U.S. military faces what a top general called “unprecedented challenges” in bringing in recruits.

Army officials on Tuesday said the service will fall about 10,000 soldiers short of its planned end strength for this fiscal year, and prospects for next year are grimmer. Army Gen. Joseph Martin, vice chief of staff for the Army, said it is projecting it will have a total force of 466,400 this year, down from the expected 476,000. And the service could end 2023 with between 445,000 and 452,000 soldiers, depending on how well recruiting and retention go.

With just two and a half months to go in the fiscal year, the Army has achieved just 50% of its recruiting goal of 60,000 soldiers, according to Lt. Col. Randee Farrell, spokeswoman for Army Secretary Christine Wormuth. Based on those numbers and trends, it is likely the Army will miss the goal by nearly 25% as of Oct. 1. If the shortfalls continue, Martin said, they could have an impact on readiness.

..............

[Pratyush]

https://news.usni.org/2022/07/19/new-na ... classified

Navy Fleet Study Calls for 373 Ship Battle Force, Details are Classified

[NRao]

Navy Fleet Study Calls for 373 Ship Battle Force, Details are Classified

Need to wait. That number, of 373, was given to the author, by the USN. The report to Congress is classified and an update is coming out in the next few months.

[NRao]

War is, perhaps, the most misunderstood chaos in peace times:

Marines Pause Amphibious Combat Vehicle Operations at Sea After 2 ACVs Disabled in Heavy Surf

The Marines are keeping their Amphibious Combat Vehicles out of the water following a Tuesday training incident in heavy surf that disabled two ACVs, the service announced late Wednesday.

“The pause of waterborne operations will allow for an investigation into the incident and ensure the assault amphibian community can review best practices and procedures to remain capable, safe, and ready,” reads the statement from the Marines.

..............

[NRao]

Lockheed Military Space Boss: We Have ‘Opportunity to Expand Beyond’ GPS

uly 25, 2022 | By Greg Hadley
FARNBOROUGH, U.K.—Military and defense industry officials are proud to say the Global Positioning System of satellites has entrenched itself as the world standard of position, navigation, and timing.

But new threats—and some futuristic considerations—are leading some to think bigger than GPS when it comes to the systems that help undergird military operations and daily life.

“We’re at a time when we have the opportunity to expand beyond just that concept of a singular [medium Earth orbit] constellation,” Johnathon Caldwell, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin’s military space division, told Air Force Magazine in an exclusive interview at the Farnborough International Airshow. “There are opportunities to put different orbits into play, to provide greater resilience for the civilian applications and the military applications.”

...................

[NRao]

Navy’s Force Design 2045 Plans for 373 Ship Fleet, 150 Unmanned Vessels

By: Sam LaGrone
July 26, 2022 12:33 PM • Updated: July 26, 2022 1:23 PM

The latest plan to design a future force calls for a fleet of 373 manned ships, buttressed by about 150 unmanned surface and underwater vehicles by 2045, according to Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday’s update to his Navigation Plan for the Navy.

“In the 2040s and beyond, we envision this hybrid fleet to require more than 350 manned ships, about 150 large unmanned surface and subsurface platforms, and approximately 3,000 aircraft,” reads the NAVPLAN obtained by USNI News.
“Strategic competition with China is both a current and long-term challenge. Focusing our force design on 2045 will inform the most consequential decisions and investments the Navy needs to make in the critical decade ahead.”

Last week, USNI News reported the service had delivered a classified force structure assessment to Congress that factored in the combatant commander requirements and a more detailed threat assessment – particularly in the Western Pacific. The NAVPLAN factors in the latest National Defense Strategy idea of “integrated deterrence,” partnering the Defense Department with other government agencies to compete with China and keep a military advantage over Russia as well as the emerging Joint Warfare Concept linking the services together in a conflict.

The NAVPLAN defines the overarching threats as the declining value of military deterrence, aggressive actions from the Chinese and Russians in contrast to international law and the speed of technological change.

Under that thought process, the 2045 fleet promotes ships with the flexibility to host higher-power weapon systems and sensors that can be quickly upgraded as technology changes.

“We will build future platforms with modernization in mind—hardware upgradeable and software updateable at the speed of innovation,” reads the report. “We must build adequate space, weight, and power intoour large long-life capital investments to support evolving sensors and weapons systems.”

The notional 2045 Navy calls for:

12 Columbia-class ballistic missile nuclear submarines
12 Aircraft carriers
66 Submarines split between fast attack and large diameter payload boats
96 Large surface combatants like the Arleigh Burke class destroyer and the emerging DDG(X) next-generation destroyer
56 Constellation-class guided-missile frigates
31 Large amphibious ships
18 Light amphibious warships to support to Marine Littoral Regiments
82 Combat logistics ships and auxiliaries
150 large surface and subsurface unmanned vessels that will act as sensors and as auxiliary magazines to the manned fleet

In aviation, the plan calls for a mix of 1,300 5th generation carrier aircraft with a family of Next Generation Air Dominance fighters and unmanned aerial vehicles, 900 “anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, to include helicopters and maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft” and 750 support aircraft.

The totals are a further tweak to the roughly 500-ship total Gilday said the service needed to meet its requirements during remarks at the WEST 2022 conference, co-hosted by AFCEA and the U.S. Naval Institute earlier this year. The round number is also largely in line with the Trump administration’s fleet plan then-Secretary of Defense Mark Esper issued late in 2020.

In line with a larger Defense Department drive, the Navy is crafting a concept of operations to conquer the vast distances in the Western Pacific with a network of sensors and shooters to find and attack targets. The Navy’s emerging Distributed Maritime Operations concept was refined last year during the Large Scale Exercise 2021. The idea for DMO is to have a fleet commander with direct operational control over several formations like a carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups to mass their power together over thousands of miles.

To keep the pace and cost of new ships to the fleet, the report doubles down on the Fiscal Year 2023 budget goals of cutting existing ships in the fleet, including aging Ticonderoga -class cruisers and relatively young Littoral Combat Ships. Removing both classes of ships from the fleet have been contentious in Congress, with legislators form both parties seeking to block the early retirements.

“The Navy must set a sustainable trajectory now to ensure we remain the combat-credible maritime force our nation needs in the future,” reads the report. “Retiring legacy platforms that cannot stay relevant in contested seas—and investing in the capabilities we need for the future—is essential for our national security.”

[NRao]

Pentagon Seeks Blended Wing Body Concepts for Possible New Cargo, Tanker Aircraft


Boeing developed a blended wing body design for the X-48 program, which built and flew a subscale demonstrator in 2007. NASA photo.

[NRao]

Future of US Navy Air Warfare (not USAF)

An hour and 40 minutes.

[NRao]

A few weeks ago, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) quietly unveiled a new high-speed missile program called Gambit. The program is meant to leverage a novel method of propulsion that could have far-reaching implications not just in terms of weapons development, but for high-speed aircraft and even in how the Navy’s warships are powered.

This propulsion system, known as a rotation detonation engine (RDE), has the potential to be lighter than existing jet engines while offering a significant boost in power output, range, and fuel efficiency.

The Gambit missile is just one of a number of programs placing a renewed focus on RDE technology, though for the most part, these systems have managed to fly under the media’s radar.

[NRao]

We are now entering the world of "6th Gen" in combat.

PNTAX provides a GPS-challenged operational environment to demonstrate new technologies, obtain direct feedback from Soldiers, and assess new and existing capabilities for future PNT {Position, Navigation, and Timing} solutions. This year’s event took place at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. It was a three-week experiment that assessed mounted, dismounted, and NAVWAR systems at nearly every domain level - air, land, space and cyberspace. We also assessed live fires capabilities in a live sky GPS-challenged environment.

This was an incredibly successful event. The CFT {Cross Functional Teams} assessed over 100 technologies and hosted 600+ participants from 70 different organizations from industry, academia, and the defense enterprise. PNTAX has helped the Army provide persistent, integrated, all-weather Assured PNT by emulating one of the most stressing threat scenarios we face.

[NRao]

Lighter, short vid

[NRao]

Collaboration with academia moving Army Aviation into the future

WICHITA, Kan. — The U.S. Army Aviation enterprise is collaborating with Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research to develop an Apache Digital Twin in a contract that kicked off with an event on July 29, 2022.

The Apache Digital Twin program follows the Black Hawk Digital Twin, which took an existing helicopter apart and scanned each part to create 3D models. It’s a laborious process. but one that is necessary to continue moving the aviation enterprise from its current 2D, document-driven engineering practices to the use of modern 3D digital engineering practices, to supporting the transition to Future Vertical Lift’s entirely digital design, and to sustaining the enduring fleet.

“We have to speed up the Army’s transition to 3D digital engineering practices,” said Maj. Gen. Walter “Wally” Rugen, director for the Future Vertical Lift Cross-Functional Team. “The aviation enterprise needs to start now establishing the processes, tools and training methods required to transition and cultivate a relevant workforce from the industrial age to the digital era.”

The Black Hawk and Apache digital twin programs will help:

* Provide the military with models and methods to increase the robustness of the supply base
* Create digital work instructions
* Train new engineers and maintainers in a virtual environment
* Create a pathway for exposure and training in digital engineering principles



Advanced sustainment practices leveraging innovative digital engineering will provide maintenance personnel the ability to identify, diagnose and repair faults more accurately and in less time thereby improving overall readiness of the operational fleet and significantly reduce operating and sustainment costs.

The virtual prototyping program drives new technologies into the enduring fleet while building the foundation for the future fleet. The Future Long Range Assault Aircraft, Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft and Future Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System programs view the virtual prototypes as a step toward eventual use of a digital twin and plan to incorporate its use as is feasible throughout the programs.

The open-systems architecture that the Army is developing for the future helicopters should be the primary driver of lower sustainment costs for the new aircraft. All three programs embrace the use of digital modeling and simulation. It’s one method to assist in rapid prototyping, while reducing testing timelines, acquisition risk and sustainment costs.

“We work as a team inside [Program Executive Office] Aviation,” said Brig. Gen. Robert “Rob” Barrie, Program Executive Officer for Aviation. “We do it with industry, we do it with my colleagues [in the Army Aviation enterprise], but more importantly we do it with the entirety of our nation. What I see here at Wichita State certainly inspires me for our future, [and I understand and value] the importance of the work you’re doing here.”

Allowing the Army to manufacture parts and replacements that are hard to get or too costly for vendors to make will continue to reduce operational and sustainment costs for the enduring fleet models.

The U.S. Army is modernizing Army Aviation with transformational speed, range and lethality. The digital twin effort is an example of Army Futures Command’s unique approach to developing requirements through establishing partnerships with multiple organizations across the Army, industry, and academia.

The Future Vertical Lift Cross Functional Team, Aviation Program Executive Office, Aviation and Missile Center, and Aviation and Missile Command joined together to partner with Wichita State University to produce digital twins of current fleet helicopters. The role of the enduring fleet will continue to be an integral part of the future battlefield, and sustainment and modernization of that fleet remains a priority.

[NRao]

Nellis AFB Is The Epicenter Of The USAF’s Future

“Nellis Air Force Base is the center point of professionalism and excellence across the U.S. Air Force,” says Col. Scott “Manual” Mills, the Operations Group commander at the 57th Wing. Famously, Nellis sits at the northern tip of Las Vegas, Nevada, and for over half a century it has forged a reputation as being the “Home of the fighter pilot.” Out at the front gate, a large sign proudly makes this claim, which if you delve deeper, is totally justified when it comes to the USAF, if not the world.

“We hold ourselves to such a high standard,” says Mills. “We don’t accept anything short of outstanding.”

Nellis is unique. The base’s host unit is the 99th Air Base Wing, which provides base operations support for Nellis and the 2.9-million-acre Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR). The primary operations and test residents fall under the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center and the 57th Wing, which includes an Adversary Tactics Group, the USAF Weapons School, the USAF "Thunderbirds" air demonstration team, and the 414th Combat Training Squadron, which conducts exercise Red Flag. Then there’s the operational test element, which comes under the 53rd Wing, which is headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, but has broad operations at Nellis as it is at the center of testing all the latest air combat tactics and equipment for the USAF.

Official literature says the 57th Wing “provides advanced, realistic, and multi-domain training focused on ensuring dominance through air, space, and cyberspace.” So, people come here to be the best at many different things. “With respect to our influence across the Air Force, when someone has to deploy, where do they go to train? They come here to train against our adversaries, to train in the Nevada Test and Training Range [NTTR], which is unlike any other range space in the world,” Mills adds.

“The intent of the Weapons School is to create the best instructors in the Air Force, the most critically-minded thinkers, so that no matter what the problem set, not only can they accomplish that, but they can teach someone how to do it. The only way to get through Weapons School and the capstone WSINT [Weapons School Integration phase] is to use every bit of capability at their disposal. If you’d asked me 17 years ago what it took to get through this, I’d have said I’ve got to fly a great jet, and do perfect planning to make sure I avoid the threats. Ask me today, and the only way to make it through the first VULs [vulnerability periods, missions] to those final missions is to understand and use every single capability out there from every domain — they have to work together. That creates an incredible environment of learning and of teaching."

Mills calls Nellis a “melting pot of many subject matter experts.” Few are considered to be more important than the aggressors. These specialists are all about replicating enemy air force tactics — a mission that has endured for 50 years. Having flown T-38s in the early days, and used actual captured MiGs and Sukhois in the days of the “Red Eagles,” up until recently, they only officially flew F-16s. However, conscious of the advancing technologies fielded by China, a new squadron of aggressor F-35As has now been activated.

“Nellis has reached a turning point; we are focusing on that high-end training, that high-end fight,” says Mills of the 65th Aggressor Squadron. The aggressors represent a huge conglomeration of SMEs [Subject Matter Experts] that focus mainly on Russia and China — the 65th will focus on China — and we are talking about doctrine, training, and capabilities so that when they are flying, they are modeling the pacing challenge out there.”

Exercise Red Flag is probably what Nellis is most renowned for — one of the world’s most famous military air exercises. "Red Flag allows us and our allies to perform in scenarios to prepare us should we ever be called on to engage a peer-level adversary in combat. They will be able to lean on the experience they have built in this exercise and avoid making the mistakes during real-world situations,” says Col Jared "Jabba" Hutchinson, the 414th Combat Training Squadron commander.

"We'll continue to lead and learn in America's premier air combat exercise," Hutchinson continues. "Take good notes, pass your feedback, and build a winning team with confidence under fire, integrated leadership, and warfighter culture. Fly safe with sound aircraft-specific tactics, fight as core function teams, and win with mutual support as integrated teams."

It’s not just live-flying operations that make Nellis stand out. The 805th Combat Training Squadron, also known as the Shadow Operations Center–Nellis (ShOC-N), was rebranded in 2021 as the USAF’s Battle Lab, identifying emerging technologies that enable faster data and information transfer to operators. “The ShOC-N is critical to the Air Force’s drive to link information to sensors and shooters in real-time,” said USAF chief Gen Charles Brown at the time. “As our service continues to accelerate change, the revelations coming out of this battle lab will help our warfighters more quickly understand, share, decide and act, which will provide them a greater advantage on the battlefield.”

“Our facility is designed to experimentally work out how to get everything to work together,” says L. Col. John “Sox” Ohlund of ShOC-N. “Primarily we use live data from the NTTR, we add experimental battle-management aids from government partners. Ultimately, we experiment [with] how to use data and turn it into information that people can make decisions with. We shadow exercises and run experiments behind the scenes. We know that if we can interoperate with data we can make a decision faster."

"For example, we have found that we can take a current recognized air picture, and teach a computer to understand where the aircraft are, and then what to expect. We are maturing artificial intelligence to mean a machine can learn.”

This work is linked to the Air Force’s Advanced Battle Management System, or ABMS. While the approach to this kind of battle management is planned as being inter-service, a truly joint architecture is still a long way off. The U.S. Army has its own version, known as Project Convergence, while the Navy has Project Overmatch. “These are all trying to harness joint operations, individually,” says Ohlund.

Further explaining the ABMS principle is Lt. Col. Meera Daroy Noe, the Deputy Director for Cyber Warfare Operations and Senior Cyber Operations Officer for the Air Warfare Center at Nellis.

“The Air Warfare center is chartered to serve Air Combat Command and combatant commanders to solve problems. Right now our main focus is to serve and help PACAF [Pacific Air Forces] with the problem set in the Pacific. Specifically the pacing challenge of China.”

The ABMS umbrella includes all kinds of important USAF capabilities, from mundane IT to communications to cyber warfare, and it is designed to synchronize these efforts. “I focus on advanced data sharing, advanced communications, and advanced sensing — this is all very digital-centric,” explains Noe. “Air Force commanders are slowly realizing that they need data-driven debriefs and decision making. So we are laying the foundation of the digital environment of how the future air force will operate.”

Referring directly to cyber, Noe calls it a “man-made domain in which we operate to affect the physical world.” She adds: “If I am planning a trip, I want to pick the best time to buy a flight at the cheapest rate. I can use a data-driven application on my smartphone that tries to predict a good time to buy. It’s the same when it comes to the military. Based on data-driven analysis you can present similar types of options. This means that to the left of a conflict we can prepare the digital environment. ABMS today is much about how the Air Force is organizing itself, more of a concept of how we will solve battle management problems.”

It’s clear that the many different entities based at Nellis have important relationships and important interactions, and they help inform each other by acting as a mini-high tech air force. Indeed, the assets at Nellis represent a coherent and highly advanced fighting force in their own right, one that is constantly fighting the next war, whether it comes or not. It's a remarkably centralized training and development ecosystem that is the envy of the world's air forces.

Nellis is the heartbeat of the modern U.S. Air Force. The subsequent features in this series will reveal more details of why this base in Nevada is one of the USAF’s most critical assets.

[NRao]

A-10 Warthog’s Tusks Are Being Sharpened For A High-End Fight

The U.S. Air Force’s greatest minds in the A-10 Thunderbolt II community are combining efforts in order to keep this tank-busting icon relevant for future high-end conflicts. The current work involves a number of different efforts including the integration of new stores and weapons, as well as the development of tactics to enable the A-10 to support modern fifth-generation fighters such as the F-35 during combat in high-threat situations.

“The big effort we are pushing for in the A-10 today is quick and simple modernization efforts to help the Air Force better posture to fight tomorrow,” says Maj. Kyle “Metric” Adkison, A-10 Division Commander at the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. “As long as the A-10 is in service, we want to develop it to help the Air Force successfully fight however we can. Today that means supporting fifth-gen fighters.” Proponents such as Adkison are keen to emphasize that the A-10 is much more than just an airframe and a 30mm gun. “It has 10 weapons stations, a very long loiter time, and a significant and robust austere capability to operate from highways and dirt strips, plus it doesn’t need lots of support infrastructure — so the overhead for us to affect the battlespace is low. Essentially, we can carry a lot of things that will help others achieve their desired effects.”

“The whole thing started when General Charles “CQ” Brown took over as the USAF Chief of Staff and put out his “accelerate, change, or lose” memo that said we need to start looking at problems from a different mindset,” explains Maj. Mason “Pinch” Vincent, an A-10 instructor pilot with the USAF Weapons School’s 66th Weapons Squadron. “People assumed it wasn't really an A-10 mission. We were doing constant deployments, guys were always in Iraq, or Syria, or Afghanistan, or flying out of Turkey, doing all that stuff, so we didn't really have time to take a look inwards and figure out how we contribute to this high-end peer fight outside of the close air support [CAS] world that we typically have trained to do.”

“We got a bit of a break and [got] the right guys in the room and started spitballing what it could look like. We are fortunate to be at Nellis where we can just walk across the street and talk to everybody from different platforms that are going to be executing these missions, and ask what do you need to help? One of the things that we found that you're always going to need more of is standoff weapons, and the A-10 it turns out is a pretty good candidate to provide these because we have a lot of weapons stations and if you combine that with the agile combat operations we’ve been training to [...] it made a lot of sense.”

Central to this A-10 enhancement effort is a plan for the integration of the ADM-160 Miniature Air-Launched Decoy (MALD), and the GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bomb (SDB), a 250-pound-class precision-guided bomb that can glide dozens of miles to strike its target. Testers are also looking at adding the AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) further down the road. “No one wants to spend billions of dollars on the A-10,” Vincent explains, “but if we can find ways to add capability and make platforms more survivable and more effective, then we are going to do this the best we can.”

“We didn’t want to look for anything that was brand new or was going to need people to spend money, time, or effort on something that was specific to the A-10, and we didn’t want to look at anything that had a long time horizon, because [we] don’t know what the future of the A-10 is going to look like. Something cheap, easily integrated, and has an immediate impact.”

“MALD was the easy button. It requires no software integration with the A-10, we can just hang it up, drop it, and it works. To bring it to the fight you just need lots of stations — which is what the A-10 has — we’re not limited by weight because it’s a lightweight weapon and we’ve got 10 pylons that we can hang MALD on.”

The A-10 will be able to carry up to 16 MALDs, the same quantity as the B-52, and an interesting comparison with the F-16, which can carry four. The store is designed to deceive, saturate and stimulate an enemy’s integrated air defense system (IADS). “We can launch MALD for it to perform pre-planned maneuvers.” This means the opposing force must sort through the MALD targets and try to ascertain if their presence is deception or a decoy — ultimately making the enemy targeting problem more difficult and therefore assisting the leading strike force.


MALD being fit-checked on an A-10C. Michigan ANG

“We took it to the A-10 community first to try and get them on board with this mindset shift,” Vincent explains. “We’re not going away from the A-10’s primary missions of CAS and combat search and rescue [CSAR], but this is something we can do before those missions are viable, helping the four-plus and fifth-gen guys conduct their missions effectively. Everyone understands the nature of this peer competition, you’re going to go to war with what you’ve got and we need what we’ve got to be as capable as possible. This is one of the ways the A-10 can help.”

While the idea of adding MALD to the Warthog was born at Nellis, the Air National Guard’s 107th Fighter Squadron at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Michigan led the initial integration effort, with the approval of the A-10 System Program Office (SPO) at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, to conduct initial fit checks. Maj. Adkison says the MALD plan has “a lot of buy-in” from the USAF community and that it is hoped it will enter flight testing in the near future.

SDB for the A-10 is further advanced and initial carriage tests have been flown in development test. The 422nd TES at Nellis should start live weapons releases this summer. Maj. Vincent says: “We can load four SDBs on each pylon, and we’ll carry between four and six of those Bomb Rack Units (BRUs) — so that's 16 to 24 SDBs on each A-10 with stations to spare.” A four-ship of A-10s would be able to carry an eye-watering 64 SDBs! Maj. Adkison says SDB is expected to be rolled out to the fleet in 2023.

In addition to MALD and SDB, the 422nd TES is working on a host of other projects for the A-10. “We just finished a night signature evaluation to assess how easy it is to detect A-10s at night,” Adkison explains. “We have also completed some work on the AGR-20 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System [laser-guided rockets] with assistance from BAE Systems to fully integrate these into the A-10. We initially employed them with rules of thumb, but with full integration, we got a lot more information on the specifics of the rocket and we’ve been able to increase our effective range by over 50 percent. We’ve also developed new tactics including employing the rockets against moving boats.”

The “Green Bats” in conjunction with their guard and reserve counterparts in the Air National Guard/Air Force Reserve Command Test Center at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona are also managing a number of other initiatives including full Link 16 datalink integration rather than via the SADL, or Situational Awareness Data Link, as well as new ARC-210 Gen 6 radios and jam-resistant GPS.

The Conversion Fuel Tank (CFT) is a modification of the A-10’s existing large ferry fuel tank that has fewer restrictions including a higher g-loading, which means it can be carried on combat missions. This will increase loiter time and reduce air refueling needs as well as increase the A-10’s already robust austere capability. In addition, the High Resolution Display System (HRDS) will provide the A-10 with a modern glass cockpit. The jet’s current multifunction displays limit the effectiveness of the Litening targeting pod in terms of image size and pixel count. HRDS will present the pilot with a far larger image from the pod.

HRDS will also enable digital maps to be modified dynamically in flight, including the use of line-of-sight plotting. “Our mission planning suite allows us to plot out threat systems and assess what we need to utilize terrain to mitigate threats,” Adkison explains. “It means we can figure out what altitude we need to fly at to avoid them. With HRDS maps we will be able to do that in real-time during the fight. It will be so valuable to be able to work out things like where you can safely hold when you are working with isolated personnel or a Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC).”

Still, the most prevalent threat facing the A-10 community is the USAF itself, which repeatedly attempts to retire the Warthog from its inventory. Indeed, in 2013, the operational test force was almost completely shut down, which was then reversed when Congress overturned plans to retire the A-10.

At least for the next few years or so, the A-10's existence appears to be safe, albeit in potentially dwindling numbers. Meanwhile, those close to the popular Warthog are working in every way possible to maintain the type's close air support legacy and mindset while also preparing it for a high-end fight.

[Rakesh]

https://twitter.com/sidhant/status/1546 ... Qpw4xfFk5Q ---> US F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet onboard USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier "blew overboard due to unexpected heavy weather in the Mediterranean Sea", says US Navy.

F/A-18 Super Hornet assigned to USS Harry S. Truman blown overboard due to unexpected heavy weather
https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/Press ... to-unexpe/
10 July 2022

Navy salvages Super Hornet that blew off USS Harry Truman in the Med
https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-nav ... n-the-med/
09 Aug 2022

[NRao]

HH-60W Driving Overhaul Of Air Force’s Search And Rescue Playbook

The U.S. Air Force’s first two Sikorsky HH-60W Jolly Green II Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) helicopters arrived at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, in April ahead of formal Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E), which is being led by the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC). Their arrival came at a turbulent time for the eagerly-awaited “Whiskey,” being shortly after a decision to curtail the new helicopter’s procurement was included in the FY23 budget that was published in late March.

The USAF’s weary HH-60G Pave Hawk CSAR helicopter fleet has long been in need of recapitalization after decades of heavy operational use, yet the decision would leave the USAF with just 75 HH-60Ws. This is well short of the originally-envisaged buy of 113 HH-60Ws, and also of the existing 99-strong fleet of HH-60Gs. USAF leadership says it wants to curtail Jolly Green II procurement due to the changing threat environment from advanced adversaries such as China. Congress has since come back and demanded a targeted fleet size of at least 85 helicopters be included in the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act.

“We got our first two HH-60Ws in April,” said Lt Col Keith “Donk” Craine, commander of the 88th Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES) and Director of the CSAR Combined Test Force (CTF) at Nellis. “These are actually the first two HH-60Ws off the production line and the bulk of the Developmental Test [DT] was completed with them. They are heavily instrumented, but eventually that equipment will get pulled out to make them more operationally representative, and more useful for the Nellis community.”

Nellis is an extremely important location for USAF CSAR. The 88th TES sits under the CSAR CTF, with Det 1 of the 413th Flight Test Squadron (FLTS) also resident to conduct DT. “We are all in the same buildings,” Craine explains. “We share office space and sorties and get early looks on new capabilities for that tactical view.”

“The CSAR CTF is the umbrella organization for conducting both developmental and operational testing for the HH-60G, the HH-60W, the Guardian Angel weapons system – which is Pararescuemen, Combat Rescue Officers and Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape [SERE] experts, as well as isolated personnel.”

Nellis also features an operational CSAR unit in the form of the 66th Rescue Squadron (RQS). “The 34th Weapons Squadron [WPS] is across the street too,” says Craine. “They run the Weapons Instructor Course for HH-60 and HC-130, so we are close with them and frequently fly Weapons School syllabus sorties.”

The first flight of the HH-60W took place on May 17, 2019, and DT was primarily undertaken at Duke Field, Florida, by the 413th FLTS, with the small 88th TES Det 2 also in situ to provide early operational feedback throughout.

“The biggest change in the “Whisky” is that we are replacing some very tired and worn-out HH-60Gs that have been put through the wringer in Iraq, Afghanistan, and across the globe in the last 20 years. We are seeing a large increase in the amount of maintenance required in order to keep them flying. So we now have an aircraft in the HH-60W that when we schedule it, we can count on it being ready to fly. Most significant from an operational standpoint is a modern cockpit. In the HH-60G, we have round dials and gauges, but now we have a cockpit with four multifunction displays, modern communications, and a data link capability which will allow us to integrate better with the rest of the Combat Air Forces [CAF].”

I expect this fall we are probably going to fly a large number of sorties with the Weapons School. “We expect there’s going to be pretty significant changes in what the syllabus looks like moving from the HH-60G to the HH-60W and so we are going to help them develop that syllabus and take advantage of the new capabilities.

Craine says Nellis has grown a more robust footprint of HH-60Ws as of July when it started full-scale aircrew conversion training. The first two helicopters actually arrived earlier than expected, but with DT complete they could be released to Nellis three months early. A third aircraft was delivered in June, with one per month from then onwards until the end of the year. The first two at Nellis are the only examples the test units will actually receive. The remainder will be assigned to the WIC, but they will all be shared.

The HH-60W is a derivative of Sikorsky’s UH-60M, but this is a new airframe, with parts that do not exist on any other H-60, as Craine explains. “One of these is the fuel tanks. We have 4,300 lbs of fuel that we can carry internally – that’s almost twice the internal fuel capacity of any H-60. It means we have the performance of the UH-60M but about 250 nm of range, which gives us around 10-15 minutes in the terminal [rescue] area. We also have aerial refueling capability, plus the HH-60W has active vibration control that reduces crew fatigue, making it much easier to fly.”

Explaining the benefit of operating at Nellis, Craine says: “We have everything from the ability to fly at high altitude through to brown-out landings in the desert. Another important factor is the targets we can use. We can fire at 360-degrees even with the .50 cal gun. That’s pretty unusual. But the most important thing is our ability to work with so many different types here. We have the 422nd TES right here, and we have the 556th TES that flies General Atomics MQ-9s. It means we have experts from all communities, and conversely, they can also see what we can do.”

The CSAR CTF is not just about the hardware, it also includes a Combat Rescue Officer, two SERE specialists, and five Pararescuemen. The Guardian Angel division is currently combining DT and OT to take a deep look at new kits and Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs).

“Our newest division is Isolated Personnel, which we stood up after the annual CAF Weapons and Tactics Conference [WEPTAC] earlier this year,” explains Craine. “There’s a lot of focus on platforms, but ultimately the most important part of the recovery process is the isolated person themselves. If they're not actively participating in the recovery, it makes our job significantly more difficult.”

“Previously, we have approached it from an equipment standpoint; the radios, things like that, and we haven’t looked at the TTPs to make them more effective, make it easy for us to find them, but conversely very difficult for the adversary to find them behind enemy lines. A lot of our TTPs have been in place since Vietnam, so it’s something we’ve started dipping our toes into because we’ve been using outdated, or not fully vetted, TTPs in a lot of cases. We are therefore making a full pass on all of this.”

“There’s also an equipment element to this. Some units are still flying around with the old PRC90, which is a Vietnam-era radio. So, feedback on the next-gen survival radio is one thing we are involved in. We have prioritized reliability, ruggedness, and battery life.” Many aircrews around the world carry smartphones, but Craine underscores that their utility in day-to-day life may not translate into military operations. “Ejecting at 400 kts means you need a rugged radio. A smartphone may not survive that process. It certainly can’t be immersed in water for hours on end. So, touchscreen phones lack certain capabilities – even though survival apps might seem advantageous. Honestly, I’d rather know exactly where an isolated person is faster, so I can go rescue them before they need any of that other stuff.”

The CSAR CTF at Nellis is taking modern personnel recovery into a new generation on several fronts, not just the HH-60W itself. While the USAF wants to look at how it will pluck endangered isolated personnel to safety in highly-contested environments, it must also ensure it has the right means at its disposal in the immediate future. That’s the role of the Nellis CTF that Craine leads.

Of the intent to cut procurement to 85 aircraft, Craine acknowledges that it will clearly have an impact on USAF CSAR capacity. “The HH-60W will give us much improved capability, but the reduced numbers mean that we will have to lean more heavily on our international and joint partners to make sure we cover this wide-ranging and enduring mission set.”

[NRao]

For true geeks only, an hour long:

[NRao]

F-22 Raptor Being Readied For AIM-260 Missile By ‘Green Bats’ Testers

"The Raptor has a huge amount of resources going into its modernization right now to ensure it continues to be the cornerstone of air superiority for the next decade-plus,” says Maj. Kevin “Renegade” Autrey, the lead F-22 Raptor operational test pilot at the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES) “Green Bats,” stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Autrey is presiding over one of the busiest periods ever when it comes to enhancements for the Raptor, with some remarkable new capabilities coming down the track.

“Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall says the Raptor is the air dominance solution until Next-Generation Air Dominance [NGAD] comes online. The threat is becoming increasingly advanced and our answer to that is modernizing the Raptor in a few different ways,” says Autrey. It’s not just the Raptor that is a focus for the “Green Bats,” in fact, the squadron’s fighter modernization efforts are wide-ranging and comprehensive.

“We’re making sure all the different fighter platforms — at the “4-2-2” we’re focused on the fighters — are fully integrated so that if a conflict kicks off, all the pieces fit together seamlessly,” adds Lt. Col. Brent “Sword” Golden, commander of the 422nd TES. Teamwork and networking aircraft and ground systems, command and control – all known as integration – is a key theme that runs through high-end warfighting throughout the modern U.S. Air Force.

Golden’s squadron is part of the 53rd Wing, which is actually headquartered at Eglin AFB, in Florida. The 422 is a tenant at Nellis under the 53rd Test and Evaluation Group. “The Department of Defense and the USAF are putting a lot of money towards fighter modernization — aircraft like the F-35 and the F-22 — and we are looking to facilitate that modernization here at the 422.”

The 422nd TES operates approximately 60 jets – A-10s, F-15Es, F-16s, F-22s, and F-35s. It also has a Command and Control (C2) division composed of Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs), Air Battle Managers, and Weapons Directors. Its co-location with the USAF Warfare Center at Nellis is no coincidence. This is all about keeping both equipment, networks, and operators at the leading edge of capability.

A tantalizing artist’s impression of a modernized F-22 released recently by the head of Air Combat Command Gen. Mark Kelly alluded to what the future looks like for the Air Force’s most capable air-to-air fighter. The F-22’s biggest-ever enhancement program is known as the Raptor Agile Capability Release (RACR). The philosophy behind RACR is that approximately once a year the Air Force will upgrade the jet’s software and sometimes make minor internal hardware changes using rapid prototyping and rapid fielding acquisition authorities.

“The idea is that if we can modernize the Raptor on a yearly cycle, we can get [the] capability to the warfighter on a faster pace than we have seen in the last decade,” explains Maj. Autrey. The first phase of RACR is Release 1, known as R1, which sets the field for future updates as the major hardware and software enabler for the subsequent R2 enhancement and beyond.

The R1 test design was divided into three phases. Phase 1 included early operational test support to developmental testing and operational testing with early, non-fielded capabilities. Phase 2 included dedicated operational testing during mission trial events, and Phase 3 is post-fielding monitoring. R1 developmental testing was completed on August 16, 2021, encompassing a total of 263 sorties and 308 flight hours. During R1’s Phase 1 Force Development Evaluation (FDE), operational test aircraft accumulated 286 sorties and 332 flight hours. Phase 2 FDE operational testing started in August 2021, and included three offensive and two defensive counter-air mission test events on the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR).

“We have fielded R1 – we completed our operational testing in the fall of 2021. Right now we are full steam ahead with R2 and about to begin testing R3 this summer,” says Autrey. The first jets in operational squadrons have already started receiving the R1 upgrades. One of the major differences between jets that are pre-RACR and those that are now upgraded to R1 is the addition of an open-system architecture and a Multifunctional Information Distribution System-Joint Tactical Radio System (MIDS-JTRS) terminal that finally enables the Raptor to fully use the standard Link 16 datalink protocol, including transmitting the Raptor’s datalink ‘picture.’ For its entire service life, the Raptor has, with a few exceptions, only been able to share the precious data it collects with other F-22s. R1 also includes Mode 5 IFF [identification friend-or-foe], which is a huge step forward for the Raptor in terms of combat identification.

The big headline for R1 is that it prepares the Raptor for JATM – the secretive new AIM-260 Joint Air Tactical Missile, designed to give U.S. fighters a new edge in air combat. “We are in the middle of getting ready for live-fire tests this summer, part of a huge joint test effort between the operational testers at Nellis, and the developmental testers at Edwards AFB, California. The JATM program is completely dependent on RACR-standard, and the F-22 needs R1 and R2 – to an extent – to shoot JATM. That’s everything from integrating the missile into our software, the indications we see in the cockpit, the information we can share with the missile, and the way we interact with the missile from a targeting perspective. There’s a lot of new technology in JATM that is much more advanced than our current [AIM-120 AMRAAM] missile’s technology.”

R2, which is now entering operational testing, includes a lot of JATM software, which is important as the USAF develops the pilot/vehicle interface. R3 will expand the Link 16 envelope with message sharing between allied forces and some upgrades to existing sensors.

The F-22 is also getting an Infra-Red Search and Track (IRST), which is a passive sensor that can track targets at long ranges. IRST is a notable omission from the jet’s current arsenal. “It’s going to be a podded solution,” explains Autrey. “The IRST is a way to get out of the RF [radio-frequency spectrum] fight; it’s another means to a single-ship kill-chain, and it’s got a lot of attention. The technology in the IRST is very impressive. The IR kill-chain we’ve demonstrated in the Department of Defense is extremely hard to get right, and we are putting a lot of time and attention into ensuring the pod is value added to the warfighter.” The War Zone recently revealed images of an F-22 flying with the pods during testing. “The pods are going to be configured to ensure the F-22 retains its stealth capability,” Autrey confirms.

Despite the list of improvements coming down the pipe for the Raptor, the long-held desire for the F-22 pilot to be able to wear a helmet-mounted cueing system still remains “not a hard defined requirement,” according to Autrey. While systems have been tested in the past, he confirms it is on the wishlist. “We are looking at whether we can exploit the open-system architecture in R1 to add a commercial off-the-shelf helmet capability sooner. The problem we have always run into with the helmet is having a truly two-way interactive helmet that can cue or point the AIM-9X missile. That requires extensive software changes. A one-way data stream, where the jet puts some of its information into the visor, is a potentially quicker solution and is something we are looking at right now.” Autrey confirmed that the Raptor test community is looking at three possible helmet solutions, and explains that the need is there because the threat already has that capability.

Of the two F-22s on the 422’s books that have been regularly photographed flying out of Nellis sporting new coatings, Autrey would only comment that these jets are wearing experimental materiel solutions. “We are just trying to see if it’s easier to maintain sustainability and reliability of the aircraft,” he said.

The sheer amount of ongoing operational test work for the F-35A means that this is the most numerous fighter on the books of the “Green Bats.” Maj. Robert “Dawg” Belz has flown the F-35 since 2017 and he confirmed that, like the F-22, the F-35 is now on a path of continuous upgrade. “At the 422 we are between six months and two years ahead of what the warfighter gets. The Continuous Capability Development and Delivery [C2D2] called for a new Operational Flight Program [software improvement] every six months for the F-35. We’ve stretched that out to about a yearly cycle, and we feel that’s a good pace.”

It’s not only the fifth-generation fighters that are subject to this succession of rolling upgrades. Maj. Matthew “Juice” Russel confirmed that the F-15E Strike Eagle is now engaged in what’s known as Continuous Development and Improvement [CD&I], which should mirror the iterative software processes being seen on the F-35 and F-22. “The aim is to produce new OFPs that get updated as fast as possible — think of smartphone-type software updates.” He also commented that the capabilities afforded by the F-15E’s new Eagle Passive/Active Warning Survivability System (EPAWSS) “let us get a bit closer to the high-end fight and use weapons such as the GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb and AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile [JASSM].”

Bringing all of these lines of improvement into a technological melting pot is what Exercise Black Flag is all about. “Efforts in the test world feed heavily into Black Flag,” comments Lt. Col. Golden. “One of the main focuses is to bring together the disparate lines of effort in the 53rd Wing into a focused event.”

One of the primary efforts in the latest Black Flag exercise held in May out of Nellis was addressing automated long-range kill chains and how to ensure the technologies that support them are operationally ready and relevant. In January, at the annual Combat Air Force [CAF] Weapons and Tactics Conference (WEPTAC) held at Nellis, the 422nd TES presented Watchbox and Tactical Radio Application eXtension, or Trax, two data translation and routing tools that significantly speed up the data transfer from sensor to shooter.

“In the latest Black Flag, we generally looked at long-range threats,” commented Maj. Theodore, “CINC” Ellis. The 53rd Wing used automated intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) reporting, automated intelligence collecting, and various means of sending data using automation, essentially removing the need to have a human in the loop on the decision-making side. “This approach removes delays and human error using Watchbox and Trax. There’s a human in the loop, but just watching and monitoring the system. The system is smartly allocating assets and weapons to target sets.”

“A single intelligence hit in a database during our Weapons School Integration phase normally could take 25 to 30 minutes before it is passed to a shooter on Link 16,” commented Maj. Ridge Flick. “Now we’ve shortened the timeline through automated means to anywhere from 40 seconds to four minutes, and removed the errors associated with humans transposing information from one system to another.”

Black Flag in May was used to test automated intelligence reporting using Watchbox and automatically disseminated the reporting to six separate ground nodes and two Link 16 networks using Trax. The testing proved combining machine-to-machine communication and automated intelligence reporting enables significantly shorter kill chains.

From integrating and testing the latest AIM-260 air-to-air missile on the F-22, to rolling software upgrades, integrating assets as cohesive warfighting teams, and evaluating them all in realistic large-force exercises, the 422nd TES really is the heartbeat of the leading edge of the Air Force. Its location at Nellis ensures it neatly feeds into the training at the Weapons School, makes use of the USAF’s most advanced threat-replication systems, and the wealth of other pioneering entities that make Nellis such an important venue for the modern U.S. Air Force.

[NRao]

For geeks:

[Pratyush]

Haven't seen the video. But given how the Israelis broke the Arab SAM network during the second half of the October war. The Syrian SAM network during the 82 clashes. The way US led coalition broke the Iraqi air defence grid.

It stands to reason that the S400 can be broken as well.

[NRao]

Although both defeat the system, there is a difference between "breaking into" and "beating".

Also, what works against the S-xxx, will also work against any other radar system.

Cat-n-mouse

[Rakesh]

Air Force Official: U.S. Needs New F-35 Engine To Prevent ‘Stagnating’
https://www.flyingmag.com/usaf-official ... stagnating
15 Aug 2022

Advanced engine industrial base at risk of ‘collapse,’ Air Force says
https://www.c4isrnet.com/air/2022/08/16 ... orce-says/
16 Aug 2022

GE Says New Engine for F-35 Possible by 2027, but Not on STOVL Version
https://www.airforcemag.com/ge-new-engi ... zw.twitter
10 Sept 2021

[NRao]

Aug 19, 2022

With development underway on the Navy’s next-generation fighter, currently known simply as F/A-XX, the very makeup of America’s seaward branch may be resting on its still-forming wing roots. Among the long list of capabilities that the Navy would like to see this new fighter field, there’s one that may literally dictate the relevance of America’s most expensive warfighting platforms for decades to come: the Navy’s fighters are in serious need of a big boost in range.

[NRao]

PDF, 28 pages long:

NAVY AVIATION VISION 2030-2035

[NRao]

A fun model jet project, 10 minutes long:

[NRao]

Must have taped this next to a swimming pool!!

[Manish_P]

What about our Chinooks ?

US Army grounds workhorse Chinook helicopter

The US Army has grounded its fleet of workhorse H-47 Chinook helicopters, an icon of US wars from Vietnam to the Middle East, after several experienced engine fires, the Army said Tuesday.

The move will leave some 400 of the well-armed, heavy-duty Chinooks out of service owing to what engine-maker Honeywell described as "suspect O-rings" used in some of the aircraft that did not meet its specifications.

"The Army has identified the root cause of fuel leaks that caused a small number of engine fires among an isolated number of CH-47 helicopters and is implementing corrective measures to resolve this issue," said Army spokeswoman Cynthia Smith.

[Rakesh]

What about our Chinooks ?

Depends on which model of Chinook is being affected here.

India has received one of the latest models. Will have to look up if the engine is different.

[Manish_P]

What about our Chinooks ?

Depends on which model of Chinook is being affected here.

India has received one of the latest models. Will have to look up if the engine is different.

I think the issue will have been well sorted when the time comes to upgrade our fleet

No impact on IAF Chinooks due to US grounding of helicopter fleet

“IAF Chinooks are flying as before…they have not faced any issues. From what we know, the US grounded its Chinook fleet after a few instances of engine fires due to fuel leaks took place in some choppers that had undergone engine overhauls and maintenance,” an official said on Wednesday.

“The US choppers that underwent the engine overhauls were apparently fitted with some new components or parts,” another official said.

[NRao]

The topic of China as a source for anything, within the Armed Forces, is a very, very serious topic.

I am assisting a friend of mine to get his company certified for cybersecurity, and it is something. Not only has he to get his company certified, but also ensure that EVERY company his company deals with is also certified!! Closed system.

DOD Stops Deliveries of New F-35s Over Material Sourced from China

Sept. 7, 2022 | By Amanda Miller
Lockheed Martin said it is “developing mitigation plans” after the F-35 Joint Program Office announced Sept. 7 that it has stopped delivery of new fighters upon learning that a component relies on material from China.

The material in question is an alloy in a magnet in the F-35’s turbomachine. The turbomachine “integrates the functionality of an auxiliary power unit (APU) and an air cycle machine (ACM) into a single piece of equipment,” according to Lockheed Martin. “When the turbomachine acts as an APU (combusted mode), it provides electrical power for ground maintenance, main engine start, and emergency power. It also provides compressed air for the thermal management system during ground maintenance.”

Lockheed Martin said three F-35s are ready for delivery but on hold. Its spokesperson did not name the airplanes’ customers.

Sourcing the Chinese material is “potentially in non-compliance” with the U.S. Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement, according to a statement by the Defense Department’s F-35 Joint Program Office.

Honeywell, the turbomachine’s maker, notified Lockheed Martin that it had been “informed by their lube pump supplier for the turbomachine that one of their suppliers has been using alloy sourced from China in their magnets,” according to Lockheed Martin.

Lockheed Martin and the JPO said the magnet doesn’t transmit any information. It doesn’t “harm the integrity of the aircraft, and there are no performance, quality, safety, or security risks associated with this issue,” according to the JPO. The F-35s already in service will “continue as normal.”

The JPO said it “temporarily paused acceptance” of new F-35s after learning that the contractors had found a U.S. source to replace the Chinese alloy.

Lockheed Martin said it’s “doing everything possible to gather the facts” on the source of the material, and the JPO said “investigation is underway” into “causal factors … and to establish corrective action.”

The Defense Department’s use of Chinese materials for key technologies and acquisition programs has become an increasing source of concern and legislation in recent years. And in 2019, U.K. media outlets reported that a Chinese-owned company was making circuit boards for the F-35.

[Vayutuvan]

https://www.mobilityengineeringtech.com ... ries/46598

Navy Gets Integrated Multi-Mission Laser Weapon System
September 14, 2022

Lockheed Martin delivered to the U.S. Navy a 60+ kW-class high energy laser with integrated optical-dazzler and surveillance (HELIOS), the first tactical laser weapon system to be integrated into existing ships to provide directed energy capability to the fleet. Integrated and scalable by design, the multi-mission HELIOS system will provide tactically relevant laser weapon system warfighting capability as a key element of a layered defense architecture.
...

[Rakesh]

B-21 Raider Will Be Rolled Out In Early December
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/b ... y-december
20 Sept 2022

[Rakesh]

Flying Saucer Appears On U.S. Aviation Intelligence Office Logo
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/f ... ffice-logo
26 Sept 2022

An official flying saucer-adorned aviation intelligence unit logo has appeared drawing significant interest and speculation online.

[Cyrano]

Rotors + wings to make drones move like sci-fi stuff !
Not mil yet but very impressive