Raw Intel

Americas The future USS Daniel Inouye completed builder’s trials after spending four days at sea off the coast of Maine last week, the Navy announced. The builder’s trials consist of a sequence of in-port and at-sea demonstrations allowing the Navy and the ship’s builder, General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, to assess whether the ship is ready for delivery. The vessel will return to sea early in 2021 to conduct acceptance trials, during which all systems will be inspected and evaluated before the Navy can accept delivery. The Inouye is a Flight IIA destroyer equipped with the Aegis Baseline combat system, intended to deliver quick reaction time, high firepower and increased …

Americas Northrop Grumman Systems won a $25 million contract modification, which adds scope for fabrication and installation support to retrofit the Delta System Software Configuration 4.0 capabilities, to include tactical targeting network technology and the beyond line of sight in the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft. Work will be performed in Dallas, Texas; Melbourne, Florida; Boulder, Colorado; Norfolk, Virginia (8%); Salisbury, Maryland; Ronkonkoma, New York (3%); and various locations within the continental US, and is expected to be completed in September 2025. Sikorsky won a $21.4 million modification, which exercises options to procure one CH53K containerized fligh…

The news isn't that they have 60-days to get out, the news is they've been allowed to operate here for two decades. Washington has revoked the US licence of one of China's biggest telecoms companies citing "national security" concerns. China Telecom must stop providing services in America within 60 days. Officials said the Chinese government's control of the company gave it the opportunity "to access, store, disrupt, and/or misroute US communications". This in turn could allow it "to engage in espionage and other harmful activities against the US", they said. China Telecom, which has provided telecoms services in the US for nearly 20 years, called the decision "disappoin…

Americas HMX-1 and the White House Military Office is testing the VH-92A at Joint Base Charleston this week. The military says this is part of operational testing for Marine Helicopter Squadron One. It is unknown how much longer the process will last. The new Marine One, also referred to as VH-92A, is the next-generation presidential transport helicopter being developed for the US Marine Corps (USMC). Scheduled to enter service this year, the VH-92A helicopter will provide safe and reliable helicopter transportation for the US president and vice president. Raytheon won a $35.9 million deal, which provides for the procurement of follow-on software system architecture and…

Americas Northrop Grumman won a $10.5 million contract modification, which adds scope to procure 55 Link 16 A-kits, to include 26 each for AH-1Z and UH-1Y production aircraft; two spares for AH-1Z aircraft; and one spare for UH-1Y aircraft, as well as one A-kit test stand for the Navy. The Naval Air Systems Command ist the contracting activity. The United States Marine Corps replaced the two-bladed AH-1W Super Cobra with the AH-1Z Viper, which features a new, four-bladed composite rotor system, performance-matched transmission, four-bladed tail rotor, upgraded landing gear and a fully integrated glass cockpit. The AH-1Z is equipped with an integrated advanced fire control…

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v8lmDX5bgFc/UuHSen27fhI/AAAAAAAAH04/WUIUmhEfNQw/s1600/McGinty_JJ.jpg Paul Vitello has a nicely done obit in NYT of a quiet hero from the Vietnam War. Mr. McGinty, who joined the service in 1958 directly after high school, was a drill instructor at the Marine boot camp in Parris Island, S.C., and a brig officer at the Norfolk, Va., naval base before volunteering for duty in Vietnam in 1966. “I didn’t want to be earning my pay guarding a bunch of AWOL sailors,” he told Edwin F. Murphy, author of the 1987 book “Vietnam Medal of Honor Heroes.” Mr. McGinty led one of four platoons in Company K of the Third Battalion, Third Marine Division, during a…

Americas L3 Communications Integrated Mission Systems won an $18.9 million contract, which provides non-recurring engineering and material to develop and qualify the degraded visual environment helmet mounted display and processor capability for integration into the Marine Corps MV-22B Osprey aircraft. The MV-22 Osprey’s mission for the US Marine Corps is the transportation of troops, equipment, and supplies from ships and land bases for combat assault and assault support. Work will take place in Texas, Illinois, California and Alabama. Expected completion will be in December 2024. The Brazilian Air Force (FAB) has announced a decision to reduce the number of KC-390 tran…

Americas Design West won a $21 million modification to exercise options to procure launch sequencers and associated kitted material in support of the MK 41 Vertical Launching System. This modification combines purchases for the Navy; and the governments of Finland, Australia, Germany, Norway, Canada, and the Republic of Korea under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) […]View the full article

Americas BAE Systems won an $18.7 million delivery order for Virginia Class submarine propulsors. This delivery order does not include options. The Virginia Class new attack submarine is an advanced stealth multimission nuclear-powered submarine for deep ocean anti-submarine warfare and littoral operations. Work will take place in Kentucky. Expected completion date is in April 2025. Northrop Grumman won a $12 million contract modification, which increases the ceiling to extend services and adds hours increasing the full-scale fatigue repair time to achieve the required simulated flight hours in support of E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft development. The Advanced Hawkeye f…

Americas The Pentagon launched Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Data Acceleration (ADA) initiative, goal of which is to rapidly advance data and AI dependent concepts, like joint all-domain command and control. Speaking virtually to the opening of the Defense Department’s Artificial Intelligence Symposium and Tech Exchange, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen H. Hicks said DOD’s operators must come to trust the outputs of AI systems; its commanders must come to trust the legal, ethical and moral foundations of explainable AI; and the American people must come to trust the values DOD has integrated into each of its applications. Northrop Grumman has successfully flight demo…

Americas Boeing won a $29.4 million order, which procures various parts and quantities for main and nose landing gear critical components retrofit kits in support of F/A-18A-D aircraft modification efforts. F/A-18 Hornet became the nation’s first all-weather fighter and attack aircraft, and was designed for traditional strike applications such as interdiction and close air support without compromising its fighter capabilities. The F/A-18 A-D is employed in Marine Corps fighter attack squadrons, US Navy and Marine Corps Reserve squadrons, the Navy Flight Demonstration Team (Blue Angles), and various other fleet support roles. Work will take place in Missouri and is expecte…

Americas Northrop Grumman Systems won a $75.5 million contract for the Global Hawk RQ-4 UAV. The contractor will provide multi-country aircrew and maintenance training consisting of program management support, courseware modification and development, pilot training, sensor operator training, and airframe and ground maintenance training to support the US government and Air Force Security Assistance Training international partners’ mission objectives. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) funds will be obligated at the time of task order award. The RQ-4 Global Hawk is a high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system with an integrated sensor suite that provides intelligence,…

Sponsored: Cyber security firm CyberCatch will host a free webinar on November 18 to review current threats and soon-to-be-required compliance requirements. View the full article

A tethered unmanned aircraft system (UAS) by TCOM was field-tested during the U.S. Army’s first armored “Transforming in Contact” (TiC) 2.0 combat training center rotation at the National Training Center (NTC), Fort Irwin, on November 3, 2025. The deployment, using the Mastodon Beast+ ground system, was part of Rotation 26‑02 and aimed to evaluate emerging […]View the full article

Americas Sikorsky won a $29.5, which procures logistics support analysis and products resulting from production engineering changes and diminishing manufacturing sources and material shortages to include technical publications, logistics support analysis and logistics product data in support of CH-53K aircraft production and fielding. The Super Stallion can be fielded from amphibious assault ships for the transportation of personnel and equipment. Estimated completion date is in December 2022. Work will be performed in Connecticut and the US. Northrop Grumman won a $245.8 million contract modification, which provides for the exercise of five option contract line items to…

Americas The US Air Force’s 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron has started to paint their WC-130J Hurricane Hunters back to the original shiny gray paint scheme and the first repainted aircraft returned back to Keesler Air Force Base on April 5. “Prior to 2007, the squadron’s aircraft all had glossy gray paint, which was used on weather reconnaissance aircraft, primarily for its durability, longevity, and efficiency,” said Lt. Col. Erik Olson, 53rd WRS director of operations. Martin Defense Group LLC won a $15 million deal for the development of an Amphibious Vehicle for Unmanned Surface Mobility (AVUSM). This contract provides for technology development and maturation…

I know everyone is busy and all ... but you need to keep an eye on the usual problem areas. You would think one war in Europe at a time would be enough, but you should never underestimate the Serbs. As with most of us who were on active duty in the 1990s, I have more than a passing interest in the former Yugoslavia - and invested my quota of effort in its wars. Later in my career I later served in NATO with Slovenes, Croatians, and N. Macedonians. I've vacationed a few times in Slovenia and Croatia. One of my daughters has studied, twice, in Serbia. I keep an eye on it ... and thankfully so are some smart people in The Pentagon. The Balkans is always on the edge and has b…

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $42.1 million contract modification, which exercises an option to procure ancillary mission equipment in support of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Lot 16 production aircraft for the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Foreign Military Sales customers, and non-US Department of Defense participants. Work will take place in Texas. Estimated completion is in December 2024. Sikorsky won a $37.7 million modification, which adds scope to procure 1,026 various spare parts for the CH-53K low rate initial production configuration aircraft. The CH-53K is the United States Marine Corps’ (USMC) heavy lift replacement for the CH-53E. The CH-53K comes with 63% fewe…

Americas L3 Technologies won a $20.7 million deal for the Manned/Unmanned Teaming hardware and technical and engineering support for the Apache attack helicopter. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. The US Air Force carried out its first test of the rappelling system on the new MH-139A helicopter on October 6. During the mission, special operators successfully rappelled out of a hovering MH-139A at Eglin Air Force Base. Middle East & Africa Israel’s Elbit Systems announced that that it was awarded a contract valued at approximately $25 million from the Finnish Ministry of Defense to supply radio communications systems to the Finnish Army. The con…

Americas United States Force in South Korea, is being outfitted with newest AH-64 Version 6 (V6) helicopter. “The upgraded aircraft integrates modern technology for both the aviator and maintainers in our battalion,” Capt. Timothy Luchs, D Company commander, said. “For our maintainers, the new systems onboard allows them better diagnostic capability and decreases the downtime of the aircraft. While for the aviator, AH-64E provides an overall increased situational awareness with an upgraded sensor suite, level 4 manned-unmanned teaming, and an upgraded drive system which is a vast improvement over the Delta variant of the model.” The US Air Force is passing targeting info…