The Shat-el-Arab
incident: Bluff or Coercion
There are some highly intriguing military issues pondering
over the 23rd March incident where two British boarding parties
were captured by Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps. Sofar
no explanation has been offered over this embarrassing incident
by an authoritative source in Britain.
Chlorine
Gas Attacks: Paradigm in Unconventional Terror
Last Friday's triple chlorine-gas suicide attacks that hit
Fallujah, Ramadi and Amiria, almost simultaneously, sent shockwaves
all over Iraq, raising the specter of further widespread use
of chemical weapons by terrorist groups in Iraq and the entire
region. The brutal attack by suspected al Qaeda suicide bombers
also sent a chilling message to Sunni tribal leaders who have
rebuffed the Islamic terrorists.
Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) and Gibbs Technologies will develop
a family of High Speed Amphibious (HSA) vehicles designed specifically
for military operations. The new vehicle will reduce the risk
of marines and Special Forces units by dramatically reducing
the sea-to-shore transition time. According to Rich Lockwood,
Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensor's vice president
for Mission Systems, "HSA minimizes that risk, allowing
forces to move safer and faster - and with capabilities that
make it a powerful asset in a net-enabled force."
The European Military Synthetic Training and Simulation Markets
earned revenues of $1.1 billion in 2006. Frost & Sullivan
finds estimates this market segment to reach $1.8 billion in
2015. "As European countries increase cooperation in joint
military training programs to promote improved training efficiency
and cost reductions in net-centric warfare (NCW) environments,
the markets for military synthetic training and simulation will
expand, " explains Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst
Marie-France Mann. "The switch to joint training will mean
that a series of networked simulation devices will need to be
procured even as current systems will have to be upgraded, networked
or replaced."
Lockheed Martin was selected by the FCS team to develop the
Centralized Controller to provide a single, hand-held device
to be used by warfighters of the FCS 'Unit of Action' (UA),
allowing them to operate and control various unmanned systems.
The controller will provide access to over 750 remotely controlled
assets within each brigade at any particular time. The potential
value of the Centralized Controller contract, which will be
finalized shortly and will run through 2014, is in excess of
$35 million.
Eurofighter Typhoon is moving a step forward to become a true
multi-mission fighter. By the end of March 2007 Eurofighter
GmbH, the aircraft manufacturer was officially contracted to
extend the capabilities of the aircraft beyond those already
delivered with Tranche 1, based on the Main Development Contract.
The next stage will focus on air-to-surface capabilities and
communication improvements.
L-3 Communications (NYSE: LLL) Integrated Systems (L-3 IS)
was selected by the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence (MoD)
to become the preferred bidder for a planned upgrade of the
RAF Nimrod R1 electronic reconnaissance aircraft fleet. L-3
IS was awarded a contract worth more than GBP 11.5 million ($21.7
million) to carry out the risk reduction studies for HELIX Assessment
Phase Stage 3, a major mission system upgrade to the capabilities
of the Royal Air Force (RAF) Nimrod R1 electronic reconnaissance
aircraft fleet.
Unattended Ground Sensors (UGS) developed as part of the Future
Combat System family of combat systems was recently tested by
the US Army in an urban warfare test and received positive after
action feedback from the troops. The US Army plans to introduce
UGS to the current force as a spin-out of FCS, as early as 2008.
Canada
Orders 36 Sniper Targeting Pods for CF-18s
Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) has received a Canadian MOD contract
of an undisclosed value, for 36 Sniper
Advanced Targeting Pods (ATP). Pods are to be Sniper ATP's
integrated on the CF-18 Hornet to provide full ATP capability
with no aircraft modifications and no operational limitations.
Deliveries will beginn in April 2007. The Canadian Forces are
the seventh operator of the Sniper. Other operators include
the USAF and US Air National Guards, as well as the air forces
of Norway, Poland, Oman, Belgium and the UK.
The growing threat of hit-and-run and suicide attacks on naval
vessels operating in littoral water is motivating the world
navies to equip their vessels with advanced, high performance
close-in defenses capable of repelling such attacks. Remotely
controlled gun turrets are among the systems considered for
this role. The US Navy is fielding the Mk 38 Mod 2, based on
the Typhoon weapon station developed by RAFAEL, while the German
Navy selected the Italian HITROLE system for its F125 frigates.
The Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center at
Picatinny has designed a new armor shield that improves the
protection for HMMWV gunners in combat situations. The system
includes a combination of steel, transparent armor windows and
rear-view mirrors configured to provide protection against rifle
fire and IED blasts, allowing the gunner to maintain a protected
posture while performing mission objective with full visibility
through the windows. The system was transformed from conceptual
design models to full-scale production in just six months. With
over 2,500 of the systems fielded, O-GPK is currently in mass
production at the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois. The plant
is expected to ship 7,500 kits by July 2007 and 20,000 by 2008.
