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Archive for the ‘Aviation’ Category

The Army’s Future Tactical Uncrewed Aircraft System Program Achieves Two Major Milestones

Friday, September 13th, 2024

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. – The U.S. Army recently achieved two major milestones in the development of the Future Tactical Uncrewed Aircraft System Program, when the two competitors completed Modular Open System Approach (MOSA) conformance evaluations and flight demonstrations of their prototype aircraft.

The MOSA conformance evaluations were conducted in May, with Griffon Aerospace in Madison, Ala. and Textron Systems in Huntsville, Ala. Conducted collaboratively, the evaluation consisted of replacing the vendor prototype mission computers with a third-party surrogate mission computer and a mix of third-party and vendor software. Swapping the hardware and software allowed an independent assessor to measure the openness and modularity of the prototype systems to determine the extent to which MOSA objectives were satisfied. This MOSA conformance verification demonstrated early implementation of and alignment with required MOSA functional boundaries and will serve as a model for follow-on MOSA evaluations.

Following MOSA verifications, the FTUAS team executed flight demonstrations with both vendor prototypes at the U.S. Army Redstone Test Center (RTC), a subordinate command of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command. Griffon Aerospace and Textron Systems conducted multiple flights at RTC demonstrating key system characteristics including Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL), reduced acoustic signature, On-The-Move (OTM) command and control, rapid emplacement, system integration, and flight performance. Each vendor will continue prototype development, incorporate feedback and lessons learned, and deliver production representative prototypes for use in future Government-led testing at RTC ultimately informing the Army’s selection for a Tactical Uncrewed Aircraft System program of record.

FTUAS will provide Brigade Combat Teams (BCT) with an organic capability to conduct reconnaissance and surveillance operations that collect, develop, and report actionable intelligence, allowing the BCT commander to maintain dominance during Multi-Domain Operations.

FTUAS transformational capabilities include VTOL for runway independence, OTM command and control, and Soldier led, field-level maintenance. FTUAS’s Modular Open Systems Approach allows the system to keep pace with technology through rapid capability insertions.

The Program Executive Office (PEO) for Aviation at Redstone Arsenal, Ala. is responsible for modernizing the Army Aviation fleet of crewed and uncrewed aircraft to maintain the Army’s asymmetric advantage of peer adversaries in large scale combat operations. PEO Aviation’s Uncrewed Aircraft Systems Project Office is dedicated to rapidly fielding transformational UAS capabilities at echelon to Army formations.

Program Executive Office, Aviation

BAE Systems Awarded $4 Million from DARPA for Tactical Autonomy Program

Thursday, September 12th, 2024

Artificial Intelligence Reinforcement (AIR) program to advance autonomous air combat

MERRIMACK, N.H., Sept. 10, 2024 — The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded BAE Systems’ (LON:BA) FAST Labs™research and development organization a $4 millioncontract for Phase 1 of the Artificial Intelligence Reinforcements (AIR) program.

To overcome the fast-paced and uncertain environment that is inherent to air combat and presented a challenge for autonomous agents, the DARPA AIR program aims to advance dominant tactical autonomy for beyond visual range air combat missions. Autonomy solutions will be developed and demonstrated on F-16 testbeds.

“Generating reliable, consistent air combat performance requires a vast amount of data and rapid, robust testing cycles,” said Michael Planer, scientist and principal investigator at BAE Systems’ FAST Labs. “Using machine learning, we will train the models used to make dynamic decisions – ensuring that the Artificial Intelligence (AI) pilot is tested and trusted by human pilots.”

Under the AIR contract, BAE Systems will use machine learning (ML) to innovate simulation models of existing sensors, electronic warfare systems, and weapons within dynamic and operationally representative environments. ML techniques will also capture the underlying physics of aerial maneuvers and systems. The company will then create the processes needed to rapidly design, test, and deliver future iterations of AIR software products.

Work on the AIR program, which is part of BAE Systems’ autonomy portfolio, will take place in Arlington, Virginiaand Burlington, Massachusetts.

GAO Issues Summary of Armed Overwatch Reports

Thursday, September 12th, 2024

Last week the Government Accounting Office released “Special Operations Forces: Summary of Armed Overwatch Reports” which summarizes a series of previous reports on USSOCOM’s offer to acquire and field the OA-1K aircraft which they have selected for the Armed Overwatch role. This summary includes data from a restricted report entitled “Special Operations Forces: DOD Should Reassess Its Need to Acquire Armed Overwatch Aircraft, GAO-24-106993C, September 4” which is based on a classified study.

The initial plan was to field 75 of the AT-802U Sky Warden aircraft to conduct Close Air Support, precision strike; and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance missions. The aircraft were to be operated by Air Force Special Operations Command and organized into five squadrons, four operational and one for training.

But based on a GAO report from last December, DoD directed SOCOM to justify their planned number of 75 aircraft and they have since dropped the number to 62, almost a full squadron’s worth of capability, but have claimed it is due to budgetary realities and not Congressional direction. To be sure, USSOCOM is a very expensive aviation force, but they haven’t had a dedicated ground attack capability, aside from AC130 gunships, since the Vietnam war.

Congress is still shrill about the program, under some sort of impression that we aren’t going to conduct anymore low intensity conflicts in the future. DoD has the same notion, relegating anything short of major theater war to just “countering violent extremist organizations.” This remains short sighted and requires systems intended for Large l-Scale Combat Operations (aka war) to be expended against threats which they are way overmatched against.

From the summary report:

RELEVANT GAO WORK

GAO issued two reports on the Armed Overwatch program and identified issues to support decision-makers in Congress and the Department of Defense.

Analysis of needs. GAO found in December 2023 that SOCOM did not complete analyses of its operational needs to justify its purchase of 75 Armed Overwatch aircraft. SOCOM reduced that amount to 62 aircraft in March 2024, but as of September 2024 had not completed these analyses.

Plans for divested aircraft. SOCOM plans to divest two ISR platforms. Subsequently, some personnel and resources from the platforms will be used to support Armed Overwatch. However, GAO found that SOCOM has not taken steps to plan for, or add, critical ISR capabilities provided by soon-to-be divested aircraft. Also, SOCOM has not addressed risks associated with the loss of these capabilities if the new aircraft does not provide them.

Operational challenges. Special operations commands identified logistical and operational challenges that could inhibit SOCOM’s ability to effectively deploy and operate the aircraft as intended. Users said that the Armed Overwatch aircraft may not meet their mission needs because of these challenges.

Based on these reports, GAO made seven recommendations to the Department of Defense to address challenges that face the Armed Overwatch program.

Of the seven recommendations, DoD has concurred on one and partially concurred on the other six.

Meanwhile, the Armed Overwatch program continues to slip to the right while we remain engaged with violent extremists around the world.

70 Years of Flight: The C-130’s Legacy, Future

Thursday, September 12th, 2024

ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AFNS) —  

Since its first flight Aug. 23, 1954, the C-130 Herculeshas proven to be one of the most versatile and active aircraft in the Air Force’s fleet, having carried troops and supplies from the tundra of Antarctica, to the deserts of the Middle East, to the tropical islands of the Pacific, and nearly everywhere in between. 
 
Robins Air Force Base, host of the C-130 70th Anniversary celebration, has played a key role in keeping the C-130 fleet not just flying, but equipped with the technology and modernizations that make it a critical component of the contemporary Air Force fleet.

“It’s the greatest airplane ever built, and it’s stained honorably with American blood, sweat and tears,” said Gen. Mike Minihan, commander of Air Mobility Command. “That airplane is a monument to everyone that flies, fixes, and supports it … From the assembly line, to the flight line, to the depot line, it’s the hands that touch it that make it so powerful.”

The Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex at Robins AFB is the central hub for depot maintenance and modernization of the C-130. With 12 different C-130 models spread across seven major commands and the Air National Guard, totaling 436 aircraft in the Air Force fleet, effective and efficient maintenance is vital to keeping the mission running – especially in an era of Great Power Competition.

“We’re the best at what we do here,” said Ben Stuart, 560th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron director of operations. “The first flight was in 1954, and we’ve been doing depot maintenance on C-130s at Robins since 1964.

We’ve got mission partners with the program office, engineering, the Defense Logistics Agency and Lockheed Martin,” Stuart continued. “That combination is what makes us the best in the business, and we have been doing it for 60 years. Nobody else in the world does the repair and overhaul work that we do here at Robins.”

Around 50 of the aircraft come through each year for maintenance, to include planned depot maintenance, unplanned depot-level maintenance like battle damage repair, and modifications.

While Robins does significant C-130 work on the installation, the scope of its mission does not stop at the gates.

The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s C-130 engineering team regularly receives Engineering Technical Assistance Requests, where in-unit maintenance teams run into issues they are not able to solve on station. In 2023, the AFLCMC team received almost 3,500 ETARs, many of which resulted in the aircraft being grounded. In responding to these, Robins AFB coordinates with the home units to find a solution. When needed, engineers will deploy to the aircraft’s location to resolve the issue, keeping the global C-130 fleet flying and active.

As the Air Force calls on its members to reoptimize for Great Power Competition, the C-130 is being prepared for its next chapter. The call for reoptimization, the emphasis on Agile Combat Employment and the challenges of the Pacific theater mean that the C-130 will need to continue evolving.

“To survive and operate in that environment, it will absolutely be on the backs of our C-130s,” said Michael Beasley, the Mobility Directorate C-130 Hercules division senior materiel leader and retired maintenance officer.

According to Beasley, one of the biggest challenges in reoptimizing for GPC is the logistical hurdles that come with the change in area of responsibility.

Beasley spoke on how flights in the Middle East were often short range, only lasting a few hours, with less concern for fuel and range management.

Moving to operations in the Pacific, with major hubs often thousands of miles apart with nothing but ocean in between, that sentiment has changed.

“In the past we never had to worry about that, right? We’re just flying from Ramstein Air Base, (Germany), down to Iraq,” Beasley said. “We didn’t have to worry about that long term, or that margin at the end of the flight that says, ‘Man, I need to squeeze just another hour and a half out of this airplane.’ GPC has us thinking about how we can do that.”

From increases in engine power and efficiency, to new propellor technologies and weight reduction efforts, the modernization efforts of the C-130 are a series of upgrades that not only provide individual benefit but work in tandem to make the aircraft as effective as possible.

“We’re trying to squeeze out every bit of performance out of this airplane we can, because we know that we’re probably the bedrock of that ACE concept,” Beasley said. “Once we get everything in theater and we’re in the battle, what’s going to keep that battle alive are the C-130 tactical transports, getting that stuff from island to island.”

The C-130 has also seen a number of avionics upgrades aimed at increasing effectiveness in a connectivity-contested environment.

Two technologies being utilized are the Real-Time in Cockpit and Dynamic Retasking Capability systems. These allow the C-130 to receive key information from command-and-control communication systems, or C2CS, prior to entering a battle space and provides the ability to forward this information off to advance commanders. Not only does this increase the awareness of the air crew, but also acts as a force multiplier in expanding the reach of C2CS.

With 70 years of history as one of the most versatile and battle-tested aircraft in the Air Force fleet, the C-130 looks to enter its next era in the reoptimization for Great Power Competition – and just as Robins AFB has kept the aircraft flying the last seven decades, it will be sending out the aircraft to maintain air dominance for years to come.

By Patrick Sullivan, 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs

Cubic Awarded U.S. Air Force Production Order for Encrypted Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI)

Tuesday, September 10th, 2024

Delivering proven solutions for real-world operations, training and test

SAN DIEGO September 9, 2024 – Cubic Defense, the world’s leading provider of advanced air combat training, announced the first production order for its encrypted Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) upgrade from the U.S. Air Force. The modernization allows 4th Gen aircraft to train seamlessly with 5th Gen aircraft, enhancing the overall operational readiness for the Combat Air Force.

“ACMI delivers “Truth in Training,” allowing aircrew to perform mission exercises from anywhere while generating ultra-precise information on their performance.,” said Paul K. Averna, VP and GM, Advanced Training Solutions for Cubic Defense. “The successful completion of the System Security Upgrade (SSU) contract and the subsequent production order for encrypted ACMI is a testament to the expertise of our team and dedication to the warfighter.”

The first-ever production order for SSU kits marks a significant achievement for Cubic Defense. These kits represent a significant leap providing a vital capability to encrypt sensitive maneuvering data for a substantial percentage of the U.S. Air Force P5 pod fleet assets, ensuring that country-specific proprietary material can now be protected.


U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 389th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron. (Air Force photo by Daniel Asselta, www.dvidshub.net). Cubic’s P5 pod tucked under the F-15E’s wing.

Cubic was awarded the firm-fixed-price contract for the P5 Combat Training System (P5CTS) SSU program in 2022 and executed on ‘First Time Right’ engineering process. The team was able to complete software and firmware integration within two months. This was achieved through Environmental Stress Screening (ESS) testing without white wires or redesign. The team completed Factory System Integration Test (FSIT) and Physical Configuration Audit (PCA) in month nineteen of the program. The customer’s comment: “it was the smoothest FSIT I’ve ever witnessed.”

www.cubic.com/industries/training/air-combat

CAMCOPTER S-100 Obtains First Ever EASA Design Verification Report For Rotary Wing UAS

Friday, September 6th, 2024

Vienna, 5 September 2024 – The CAMCOPTER® S-100 received the first ever Design Verification Report (DVR) by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for a Rotary Wing Unmanned Air System (RWUAS).

The Design Verification Report (DVR) for the specific category of UAS operations was issued after a rigorous evaluation process, including 300 EASA observed flight hours proving airworthiness, safety and enhanced containment, as well as successfully demonstrating laser safety, cyber security features and HIRF (High Intensity Radiated Fields) resistance.

This EASA report enables the French Navy to issue a “Military Operational Type Authorisation” and facilitates the approval processes for S-100 flight operations in all EASA member states.

“Receiving the DVR is a significant milestone for Schiebel and a major step towards fully certifying the CAMCOPTER® S-100 UAS”, said Hans Georg Schiebel, Chairman of the Schiebel Group.

The DVR process was set in place by EASA at the end of 2021 and aims at ensuring safe drone operations in Europe.

US Army Selects Sierra Nevada Corporation as Lead System Integrator for its High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System

Tuesday, August 27th, 2024

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army selected the Sierra Nevada Corporation as the lead system integrator for its High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System today. The initial award on the 12-year indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract is $93.5 million, with an overall ceiling of $991.3 million. HADES will provide transformational increases in speed, range, payload and endurance for Army aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.

“This is a great day for the continuing effort to modernize the Army’s aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance collection strategy,” said Mr. Doug Bush, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology. “The thoughtful and disciplined execution of the HADES program strategy will deliver the transformational capabilities we need for the Army’s next-generation aerial ISR aircraft.”

“HADES is the centerpiece of the Army’s long-promised aerial ISR transformation strategy,” said Lt. Gen. Anthony Hale, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-2. “HADES allows the Army to fly higher, faster and farther, which directly impacts our ability to see and sense deeper, delivering an organic capability in line with the Secretary of the Army’s number-one operational imperative – deep sensing.”

With higher airspeeds and longer endurance, HADES will facilitate aerial ISR coverage for a much larger geographical area and will facilitate global deployment within days instead of the current transitional period of several weeks. This will adversely affect adversaries’ ability to plan and maneuver.

The Army began shaping the HADES program in 2020 to replace the legacy turboprop aircraft fleet currently comprised of the Guardrail, Enhanced Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System, and Airborne Reconnaissance Low aircraft, which have been in service for more than four decades. HADES prototypes will be the first Army-owned large-cabin business jets utilized for aerial ISR platforms.

“I am very proud of the entire HADES team, along with our intelligence, aviation and contracting enterprise partners, who have worked diligently to ensure that the Army delivers a new aerial ISR collection capability that meets the Army’s 2030 operational imperatives,” said Brig. Gen. David Phillips, Program Executive Officer, PEO Aviation. “HADES will allow our formations to see and sense farther and more persistently, providing an asymmetric advantage over our adversaries in large-scale operations and multidomain operations.”

As the Army transforms to meet an uncertain future, HADES is one of the many modernization capabilities that will help ensure that the Army of 2030 is ready and able to fight and win when the nation calls.

First EagleEye Radar Comes Off the GA-ASI Production Line

Friday, August 23rd, 2024

New High-Performance Multi-Mode Radar Tailored for MDO

SAN DIEGO – 23 August 2024 – On July 31, 2024, the first EagleEye multi-mode radar came off the production line of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI). The new radar is a high-performance system that delivers high-resolution, photographic-quality imagery that can be captured through clouds, rain, dust, smoke, and fog at multiple times the range of previous radars. EagleEye will be a “drop-in” radar enhancement for the U.S. Army’s current Gray Eagle Extended Range Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) and is part of the initial configuration for the new Gray Eagle 25M (GE 25M) UAS. The Army National Guard has ordered 12 GE 25Ms.

“The EagleEye radar has improved range and multi-mode performance, which is tailored to the deep sensing capability required for Multi-Domain Operations (MDO),” said Jeff Hettick, GA-ASI vice president of Agile Mission Systems. “We look forward to delivering the EagleEye to our U.S. Army customer in the near future.”

Earlier this year, GA-ASI announced the development of a new Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) antenna and associated software for EagleEye, which will increase range and deliver significant mode enhancements. The radar’s increased range and optimized multi-mode performance allow the aircraft to operate well outside the Weapons Effects Zone of most threat systems, adding a layer of survivability that supports the Stand-Off survivability with Stand-In effects of long-range sensors, which is a key component of the Gray Eagle 25M being developed for the U.S. Army.

EagleEye is a multi-mode radar that builds on years of pioneering expertise by GA-ASI. Using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), EagleEye enables operators to look in detail through atmospheric conditions that might obscure a purely visual sensor. And for the first time on the Gray Eagle platform, EagleEye delivers radar-based Full-Motion Video (FMV) capability called “Video SAR,” which enables live visual tracking of moving targets — even during heavy cloud cover. As part of the EagleEye development, GA-ASI has improved target detection range using real-time Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) software that runs on board the aircraft.

The EagleEye radar performs Moving Target Indication (MTI), detects changes, builds stripmaps, and yields other precise insights to analysts, commanders, and operators using industry-standard data formats. With its Maritime Wide Area Search (MWAS) mode, EagleEye also provides a dedicated maritime MTI mode for tracking and targeting vessels. This further supports the MDO mission set of the U.S. Army, particularly in support of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM). The same mission is a focus for Europe, Africa, and the Middle East where there is an increased need for maritime reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition, which is critical to achieve information dominance and overmatch.