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Taking Responsibility in the Air Dimension: Rheinmetall at the Aerospace Trade Fair ILA Berlin 2024

June 3rd, 2024

Rheinmetall will once again be one of the exhibitors at the aerospace trade fair ILA Berlin in 2024. The traditional exhibition will take place from 5 to 9 June 2024, right next to the capital’s BER airport in Berlin-Schoenefeld. “Taking responsibility in dimension air,” will be the motto for the Duesseldorf-based technology group and present, amongst other things, cannon-based air defence solutions (stationary and mobile), reconnaissance capabilities in air and space, effective instruments for increasing the combat effectiveness of established systems (loitering munition) and the industrialisation of high technology for Germany.

The highlights of Rheinmetall’s trade fair presentation in 2024 include:

Air defence system Skyranger 30: Ground-based air defence has become increasingly important for Europe, particularly against the backdrop of the war in the Ukraine. Numerous EU and NATO members, including Germany, have opted for Rheinmetall’s Skyranger 30 mobile air defence solution. The system offers an ideal combination of mobility, protection, flexibility and precision to meet the growing demands of challenging threat scenarios in near surroundings and within closer ranges. At the ILA, Rheinmetall will be showcasing the Skyranger 30 turret on the Boxer 8×8 armoured vehicle with an integrated guided missile. With this combination, the Skyranger 30 is ideally suited to decisively encounter current and future threats.

Laser weapon demonstrator (LWD): A laser weapon system – complementary to tube weapons and guided missiles – is particularly suitable for scaled defence against drones, swarms of drones, attacking speedboats or guided missiles at a close and even closer range. With the appropriate performance, such a system could also be used in future to destroy supersonic guided missiles and rockets as well as mortar and artillery shells. The LWD, which Rheinmetall AG is presenting at the ILA together with its cooperation partner MBDA Deutschland GmbH, was integrated on the German Navy’s frigate 124 “Sachsen” from June 2022 to September 2023. During these trials, the demonstrator performed impressively in more than 100 test firings on board. In future, it shall be further examined at the Weapons and Ammunition Technical Centre (WTD 91) in Meppen with regard to its development potential and risk minimisation.

Airborne reconnaissance system LUNA NG: Operational experience from the war in the Ukraine shows the crucial aspect of real-time reconnaissance in command and control. The LUNA NG (Luftgestützte Unbemannte Nahaufklärungsausstattung: Airborne unmanned close reconnaissance equipment – Next Generation) was developed precisely for this purpose. In 2023, Rheinmetall delivered such a drone on behalf of the German government to Ukraine for its defence campaign. It is one of the latest systems for unmanned airborne reconnaissance, classification and detection of objects. Thanks to its aerodynamic, ultra-light and highly stable design, the LUNA NG can easily handle twelve-hour missions. Rheinmetall is presenting the drone at the ILA with its expansion stages for engaging targets and the capability for vertical take-off and landing (VTOL). The LUNA NG with glide bomb on display at the ILA is one of several possible configurations.

Loitering munitions: Loitering munition (LM) combines the characteristics of drones and guided missiles. It increases the ability of infantry units to reconnoitre targets over a long distance in a target area. The infantry units can then precisely engage these targets at a distance and in a timely manner, yet at a time of their choosing. Rheinmetall and UVision have agreed to cooperate in order to customise and market the Hero family of loitering munition in Europe. At the ILA, both companies will be showcasing Hero LM systems in various sizes for different missions, including the corresponding launchers.

F-35 fuselage centre section production: The F-35 Lightning II is currently the most modern and powerful fighter aircraft in the world. At its heart is the fuselage centre section, which connects various critical systems, including weapon systems, avionics, hydraulic and electrical systems. Rheinmetall is currently building a state-of-the-art production facility in Weeze on the Lower Rhine area, where at least 400 of these fuselage centre sections are foreseen to be manufactured on behalf of its U.S. partner company Northrop Grumman, starting in mid-2025. Inside its ILA stand, the Duesseldorf-based group will be presenting the industrialisation of high technology for Germany in the form of various models, the F-35 fuselage centre section, the factory and various workstations.

The two-storey Rheinmetall stand at ILA Berlin 2024 is located at Dis G / 006. The renowned trade fair, which only opens its doors every two years, presents cutting-edge technology from all business areas of the international aviation industry. In 2022, it attracted more than 70,000 visitors.

Posted in Aviation, International, Press Release, Tradeshow | Comments Off on Taking Responsibility in the Air Dimension: Rheinmetall at the Aerospace Trade Fair ILA Berlin 2024

SIG NEXT: An Immersive Brand Experience & Products Launch Showcase

June 3rd, 2024

NEWINGTON, N.H., (June 3, 2024) – A commitment to innovation is more than simply designing new products and solving problems. Innovation is the unrelenting drive to do things differently, having the audacity to take an unconventional approach and leading with a fierce desire to forge a new path.

SIG SAUER is proud to present SIG NEXT, an industry first immersive product and brand experience unveiling the highly anticipated 2024 product offerings from SIG SAUER in pistols, rifles, optics and ammunition. SIG NEXT presents attendees with the rare opportunity to be the very first to experience new products, go behind the scenes, and on the range with SIG developers, engineers, ambassadors, and experts.

“SIG NEXT is the hallmark of innovation and advancements in products and technology; it will unquestionably be the ultimate showcase for content creators, influencers, and industry to experience the future of SIG, with SIG, at SIG,” said Tom Taylor, Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, Commercial Sales. “While the genesis of SIG NEXT was the platform for our product launches, we are hosting a complete experience and will give attendees unprecedented access to our products and inside our factories to see how we are using the very latest in automation and robotics to achieve unprecedented levels of innovation, quality, and precision.”

SIG NEXT will take off on Monday, June 24 – Wednesday, June 26, 2024 across various SIG SAUER New Hampshire locations including the SIG SAUER Academy, SIG Experience Center, the recently completed SIG SAUER Next-Gen Manufacturing Center, and the SIG SAUER Worldwide Corporate Headquarters.

The inaugural SIG NEXT event is invitation only, and SIG fans and followers are being given unprecedented access to join the event through the SIG SAUER social media channels @sigsauerinc. Experience SIG NEXT and the future of SIG along-side our guests to learn what’s new from SIG and why SIG is the global leader in small arms innovation.

For more information about SIG SAUER products visit sigsauer.com.

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Light Fighter Manifesto Volume III

June 3rd, 2024

In an age when the lines between conventional and unconventional warfare blur and the convergence of technology and tactics dictate individuals’ survival, the Light Fighter Manifesto emerges as a stark, indispensable source of information. Volume III offers 186 pages of 12 hard-hitting articles that delve into the topics reshaping the modern-day light fighter.

Topics include austere medicine, the art of survival with scavenger tools, the relentless skill of man-tracking, and the unforgiving truths of how terrain reshapes boundaries and war. It covers the grim realities of home defense, the lethal future of kamikaze FPV drones, the critical importance of communication strategies, the silent battles of cyber awareness, and the cold precision of sniping. As governments and regimes crumble and transform, being prepared is no longer a choice but an absolute necessity.

Pre-orders of Volume III can be purchased at lightfightermanifesto.org.

Posted in Disruptive Tech, Guest Post, Training | 4 Comments »

MATBOCK Monday: Kibisis 2-Day Pack

June 3rd, 2024

This bag is so special and versatile we named it the “Kibisis” after the mythical bag that the Greek demi-god Perseus carried Medusa’s head in. Our two-day assault pack, created to answer several requirements across the military branches and law enforcement. Some specific requirements were to hold more gear while remaining lightweight and water-resistant. The ability to hold a fully loaded helmet while remaining easily accessible and finally to have a smaller modular pouch with a shoulder strap that can be zipped on or off depending on the mission. The Kibisis is built to last and reinforced so it can also be jumpable making it one of the most versatile 2-Day assault bags on the market. 100% Made in the USA.

– Contains MATBOCK’s external water seal antenna ports that can be closed when not in use.
– A secondary pack for extra storage can also be unzipped and used separately.
– Side pouches with compression straps are large enough to hold a standard Nalgene bottle.
– Lightweight but durable construction.
– Jumpable pack with enough space to support your operations.

To find out more or to get a quote, email sales@matbock.com or check out www.matbock.com/collections/packs/products/kibisis-2-day-pack

Posted in Guest Post, Packs | Comments Off on MATBOCK Monday: Kibisis 2-Day Pack

Bioweapons Field Guide for Recovered Munitions to Fill Knowledge Gap

June 3rd, 2024

Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD — The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC) Chemical Biological Applications and Risk Reduction business unit, known as CBARR, provides field response for recovered chemical munitions all over the country and around the world. Sometimes bioweapons munitions turn up, too. Robert Malone, the CBARR Plans and Assessments Branch chief, has a plan for that, he is writing a field reference guide for recovered bioweapons.

“We’ve had a field reference guide for chemical weapons since the mid-1990s,” Malone said. “It’s called the U.S. Chemical Weapons and Related Material Reference Guide. But there’s not one for biological weapons and related material, and that has always surprised me, so I decided to do something about it.”

What brought this need home for Malone is what happened at a field operations site at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. Recovery team members encountered E-61 bomblets. “The CBARR project manager for this field operation, George Noya, came to me because he knew that I had done some extensive research on bioweapons some years back,” Malone said. “That provided me with some good background, but I also got help from a true CBC expert in this area, Chris Whalley, a Center subject matter expert in biological weapons.”

Malone and Noya went to Whalley’s office. Whalley was able to tell them what the item was, its delivery system, its potential agent fills, and he even had an unfilled example of one sitting in his office that they could hold and examine.

“That was enormously helpful to us, but then two things occurred to me,” Malone recalled. “First, why don’t we have this kind of detailed knowledge for the broad range of bioweapons in a form that can be shared? Second, Chris will retire soon, so how can we preserve that knowledge?”

DEVCOM CBC’s mission is to provide innovative chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNE) defense capabilities to enable the joint warfighters’ dominance on the battlefield and interagency defense of the homeland. It has programs with sources of seed money available to fund good ideas. Through the ‘Quick Empowerment leads to Successful Tomorrows’ program, or QUEST for short, projects of any size from $5,000 to $100,000 tied to the Center’s mission are considered. Applicants get ten minutes to pitch their ideas before the Center’s Innovation Council members, followed by five minutes for questions.

In 2023, Malone submitted his idea, made his pitch and was selected to receive a $22,000 grant to begin work on a concise, easy-to-use field manual. He pulled together a team of CBC colleagues which included Whalley plus Mindy Soethe and Andrew Bailey. Although they were frequently away performing field responses at CBARR’s many project sites, they were able to reach the 40 percent mark over the course of a year.

The manual, thus far, includes biological weapon types, the history of their development and use plus information on their likely prevalence. Compiling this data is a slow, meticulous process, but the team members believe that the usefulness of that data warrants the effort.

Malone and his team submitted a request for funding to finish the field guide and at QUEST 24 Pitch Day in April they gave their pitch to the Innovation Council. They were persuasive, the Innovation Council members gave them a QUEST grant of $25,000, enough to finish the job. As soon as they complete it, they will make it available to CBARR field teams as well as the rest of the Center.

By Brian Feeney

Posted in Army, CBRNE, Guest Post | Comments Off on Bioweapons Field Guide for Recovered Munitions to Fill Knowledge Gap

Introducing R&S GSACSM: The Most Advanced Communications System Monitoring Solution for Armed Forces

June 2nd, 2024

R&S®GSACSM helps armed forces maintain mission-critical communication links, ensuring mission success and personnel safety.

Munich, 29 May, 2024 – Rohde & Schwarz, a leading global provider of communications, information, and security solutions, has introduced R&S®GSACSM, a comprehensive software-suite designed to ensure efficient and reliable communications for military satellite communication (SATCOM) systems. With the increasing reliance on SATCOM for mission-critical communications and morale, welfare, recreation (MWR) services, R&S®GSACSM offers a powerful solution to maintain reliable and secure communication links, even in challenging operational environments.

SATCOM plays a crucial role in transmitting various data types from deployment areas to headquarters via geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) satellites. Ground-based deployable SATCOM stations in different configurations are utilized by the armed forces to transmit video files, voice data, and other crucial information from operational areas to headquarters. Ensuring uninterrupted communication is of paramount importance for these transfers, and R&S®GSACSM provides early warning of potential communication failures, ensuring uninterrupted and failure-free communication.

R&S®GSACSM combines various features, including classic spectrum analyzer functions, 24/7 trapping systems, advanced signal detection, and signal analysis and classification. The software-suite ensures reliable monitoring of communication quality and identification of operational impairments. It addresses the challenges of non-standardized SATCOM systems, evolving industry activities, mission-critical communication links, and growing interference from sources such as jamming, incorrect frequency/alignment, and natural interferences. By providing automatic configuration and error detection capabilities, R&S®GSACSM helps armed forces maintain reliable and secure communication links, even in the face of these challenges.

R&S®GSACSM from Rohde & Schwarz is a powerful and reliable tool for military SATCOM systems, enabling them to maintain reliable and secure communication links, even in challenging operational environments. By providing early warning of potential communication failures and identifying impairments during operation, R&S®GSACSM helps armed forces maintain mission-critical communication links, ensuring mission success and personnel safety.

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Wreaths Across America Radio Round Table Celebrates Women in Military Service

June 2nd, 2024

Tune in on June 12 at 1 pm EST to hear stories of resiliency, purpose, and success.

COLUMBIA FALLS, Maine, and ARLINGTON, Va. — May 30, 2024 —Wreaths Across America Radio proudly announces the upcoming round table celebrating women in military service. This discussion will air onWednesday, June 12, 2024, at 1 PM EST – Women Veterans Recognition Day – and can be heard exclusively on Wreaths Across America Radio, available on the iHeart Radio app, TuneIn, the Audacy app and www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/radio.

The discussion will focus on women in service, highlighting their contributions throughout history to national security through military service. It will also touch on issues and opportunities unique to women veterans and the history of the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act.

The guest panelists listed below will be interviewed by Phyllis Wilson, retired United States Army Chief Warrant Officer Five and President of the Military Women’s Memorial, and Karen Worcester, Wreaths Across America’s Executive Director.

Distinguished panelists:

JoAnne S. Bass, Retired Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force and Honorary Board Chair, Military Women’s Memorial Foundation. CMSAFBass served in the highest enlisted level of leadership in the Air Force and, as such, provided direction for the enlisted force, representing their interests, as appropriate, to the American public and to those in all levels of government. She served as the personal adviser to the Chief of Staff and the Secretary of the Air Force on all issues regarding the welfare, readiness, morale, and proper utilization and progress of more than 600,000 Total Force Airmen. Chief Bass was the 19th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force to be appointed to and serve in the highest noncommissioned officer position in the Air Force. She was also the first woman to hold the highest senior enlisted rank in any United States military branch.

Octavia Harris, Command Master Chief, U.S. Navy (Ret.). She is a Subcommittee Chair, Secretary of Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services and the former Chair, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee on Women Veterans. Additionally, Harris is a member of the Secretary of Human and Health Services Advisory Committee on Women and Children and the NAACP Armed Services and Veterans Committee member. In 1994, the combat prohibition ban was lifted, and Harris became one of the first enlisted women to serve aboard a combatant warship. She served aboard USS Nimitz (CVN 68), her Command Master Chief Petty Officer (CMDCM) sea tour was aboard USS Pinckney (DDG 91), and her last tour was as CMDCM of Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, leading 10,000 men and women in support of the command’s vision and mission. She served for 30 years, mentoring hundreds of Sailors, and still uses her military training to help sexual assault survivors today. Additionally, Harris is the Texas Ambassador for the Military Women’s Memorial.

Lourdes Tiglao, Executive Director, Center for Women Veterans, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Air Force Veteran. Tiglao serves as primary advisor to the Secretary on Department policies, programs, and legislation that affect women veterans. In addition, she oversees the Center’s activities, which include monitoring and coordinating VA’s administration of health care, benefits, services, and programs for women Veterans; serving as an advocate for cultural transformation (both within VA and in the general public) in recognizing the service and contributions of women veterans and servicemembers and raising awareness of the responsibility to treat women veterans with dignity and respect.

“Through our partnership with the Military Women’s Memorial, we are committed to sharing the stories of resiliency, purpose, and success so that future generations of women understand the opportunities available to them through military service,” said Jeff Pierce, Director of Broadcast and Media Partnerships, Wreaths Across America. “We are grateful to be joined by this distinguished panel of veterans who continue to serve our nation, communities and their fellow veterans.”

For a complete list of programming and to tune in to Wreaths Across America Radio, please visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/radio. The station can also be heard on the iHeartRadio, Audacy, and TuneIn apps.

Posted in For the Ladies, Media, Press Release, Veterans | Comments Off on Wreaths Across America Radio Round Table Celebrates Women in Military Service

Soldiers Assess New Technologies at Fort Leonard Wood

June 2nd, 2024

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — The Army Futures Command Maneuver Support Battle Lab is winding down this year’s Maneuver Support and Protection Integration eXperiments event, commonly referred to as MSPIX, after assessing 16 emerging technologies from May 6 to 23, 2024, at locations across Fort Leonard Wood.

According to Kyle Henry, MSBL Experimentation Branch chief and one of the key organizers of the event, MSPIX puts the latest tools in the hands of Soldiers while also giving capability developers and the science and technology community credible and validated operational experiment venues for their conceptual and materiel development.

Soldiers from Fort Leonard Wood; Fort Bliss, Texas; and Fort Riley, Kansas took part in the assessments.

“Soldier touchpoints early in the capability design process are key to influencing the end product and its ability to support the end user, U.S. Army Soldiers. Key stakeholders are invited to observe the assessment, including the (Maneuver Support Center of Excellence) regiments and members of the (protection warfighting function) community,” Henry said.

Jarret Ellis, an MSBL engineer, said it is crucial to get Soldiers involved in the development of technologies early on to make sure new equipment being issued meets their current needs.

“When these private industry companies come out with technology they think will be helpful, the Soldiers can point them in the right direction,” Ellis said. “A lot of times, the people developing the equipment are not Soldiers in the field — they are from academia, engineers and scientists. MSPIX brings the groups together.”

Soldiers from Army Engineer; Military Police; and Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear backgrounds participated in this year’s assessments, Henry said.

On May 15, Soldiers from the 16th Brigade Engineer Battalion at Fort Bliss and the 50th Multi-Role Bridge Company, based on Fort Leonard Wood, were at training area 224 to get their hands on a drone programmed to find subsurface explosives in real time by performing aerial surveillance.

The Soldiers were handed instructions on how to setup the Airborne Ground Mines Detection System, calibrate the software and prepare the unmanned aircraft system to sweep a designated area. After the Soldiers performed the steps, the drone took flight over the training area while sending data back to a computer the Soldiers were monitoring.

“Today we are assessing a means to detect explosive hazards. We are working on detecting threats that are buried or partially buried that could kill Soldiers and destroy equipment,” Ellis said. “This is one of the first looks we have had at something that is UAS-borne that could potentially detect hazards without putting Soldiers into the threat.”

Henry said the AGMDS was one of the technologies he was personally most excited to see in action this year. The others were the robotics for engineering operations and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear sensors in robotic platforms.

“The REO provides standoff and autonomous terrain shaping. The CSIRP is an unmanned and autonomous area reconnaissance that relays information to mission commanders,” Henry explained.

Next year’s MSPIX focus areas will include, according to Henry, wet-gap crossing, situational understanding and protection decision support, obscuration and camouflage and toxic industrial materials site assessment.

By Melissa Buckley, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

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