The UAE’s F-16 Block 60 Desert Falcon Fleet

F-16F “Desert Falcon”

The most advanced F-16s in the world are not American. That distinction belongs to the United Arab Emirates, whose F-16 E/F Block 60s are a half-generation ahead of the F-16 C/D Block 50/52+ aircraft that form the backbone of the US Air Force, and of many other fleets around the world. The Block 60 has been described as a lower-budget alternative to the F-35A Joint Strike Fighter – and has been treated as such in countries like India and the Netherlands, as they contemplate their future fighter needs.

The UAE invested in the type’s development, and with that investment comes inevitable fielding, training, and equipping needs. This DID article showcases the F-16 E/F “Desert Falcon,” and offers a window into its associated costs and life cycle, including dedicated equipment purchases for this fighter fleet:

• The F-16E/F “Desert Falcon” [updated]
  
• Contracts and Key Events [updated]
  
• Additional Readings
  

Rapid Fire 2010-02-17: Super Tucanos for Lebanon?

• US SPAWAR awards up to $3.2 billion in contracts for DoD C2 software support.

• Back from driving LeMans, Lord Drayson picks up his British military reform agenda.

• EADS gets new offer from 7 member governments to save the A400M military transport plane program.

• US knows it wants a front-line LEMV surveillance blimp – but how to field one? RFP is now out.

• Russia’s 5th generation PAK-FA fighter makes its 2nd flight. And just how good could it be?

• Iran crushes popular protests using high-tech Chinese riot vehicles.

• US may help Lebanon field AT-6B Texan or EMB-314 Super Tucano counter-insurgency aircraft by 2013.

• P-8A Poseidon aircraft passes armed ground vibration tests.

• Fincantieri’s new US subsidiary hires former head of Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors.

• AeroVironment stock selloff: an overreaction?

• India to spend billions of dollars to upgrade military equipment.

• Tata Motors plans to bid on $75.8 million Indian Army light truck contract.

• US Army confronts challenge of aging helicopter fleet.

• Alion gets $71.8 million Seaport-E task order to support US Navy’s PEO Ships.

• Up to $46 million to URS for aircraft maintenance at Robins AFB.

• China to allow nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz [CVN 68] to make a port call in Hong Kong, despite decision to suspend military exchanges with the US over Taiwan arms sales.

• Top Taliban military commander captured in Pakistan, says top US official.

South Africa’s Denel Forced Into Strategic Shift

Base, Bleeding Out?

Back in July 2005 it was apparent India’s sanctions against Denel and possible disqualification from a $2 billion artillery contract could have a major effect on the South African defense firm as a whole. In August 2005, those sanctions came to pass, barring Denel from a contract it was likely to win and accelerating efforts already underway to radically restructure the firm.

CEO Shaun Liebenberg launched that shift in late 2005 with some frank discussion of the global defense market, and the position of small-medium players like Denel in it. At DSEI 2005 in London, UK, the outline of this new strategy was already apparent. Many of the products Denel is known for will no longer define the firm. But could it find a way to stanch the bleeding and survive in a globalized market?

And how has it done since?

• Denel’s Position
  
• Denel’s New Strategy
  
• Updates and Key Events [updated]
  

Virginia Class Sub Program Wins Acquisition Award

Virginia Block I-II
(click for SuperSize)

The SSN-774 Virginia Class submarine was introduced in the 1990s as a Clinton-era reform that was intended to take some of the SSN-21 Seawolf Class’ key design and technology advances, and place them in a smaller, less heavily-armed, and less expensive platform. The resulting submarine would have learned some of the Seawolf program’s negative procurement lessons, while performing capably in land attack, naval attack, special forces, and shallow water roles. In the end, the Seawolf Class became a technology demonstrator program that was canceled at 3 ships, and the Virginia Class became the naval successor to America’s famed SSN-688 Los Angeles Class. The Virginia Class program was supposed to reach 2 submarines per year by 2002, removing it from the unusual joint construction approach between General Dynamics Electric Boat and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding – but that goal has been pushed back to 2012 in progressive planning budgets.

In FY 2005 dollars, SSN-21 submarines cost between $3.1-3.5 billion each. According to Congressional Research Service report #RL32418, and the Navy is working toward a goal of shaving FY05$ 400 million from the cost of each Virginia Class boat, and buying 2 boats in FY2012 for combined cost of $4.0 billion in FY 2005 dollars – a goal referred to as “2 for 4 in 12″. In real dollars subject to inflation, that means about $2.6 billion per sub in 2012, and $2.7 billion in 2013. The Navy believes that moving from the current joint construction arrangement will shave FY05$ 200 million from the cost of each submarine, leaving another FY05$ 200 million (about $220 million) to be saved through ship design and related changes. “Virginia Block III: The Revised Bow” chronicles some of the significant cost-saving design changes underway to the Virginia Class Block 3 subs, which begin at SSN-784, the 11th ship of class.

How is the program doing? The good news is, they just won a major procurement award for their efforts…

10th Annual American Veteran Center Conference Starting!

“Killer Chick”

The American Office of the Secretary of Defense sent this on to DID, and we thought we’d pass it on to all of our readers in the Washington area. The American Veteran Center’s 10th Annual Conference begins today, and will take place November 8-10 at the Renaissance Washington Hotel. there is still time to register and attend.

The AVC conference is one of the largest annual gatherings of decorated military combat veterans, and will host some of the greatest heroes of WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Iraq/Afghanistan. It features 3 days of speaker panels, wreath laying ceremonies at the World War II, Korea, and Vietnam memorials and an awards banquet. The conference also features salutes to Medal of Honor recipients and service members wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some of the participants include:

Git Rockin’ 2007 Prepares to Amp Up

Vicki Golding

Government Information Group will host GIT Rockin’ 2007, government IT’s 2nd annual battle of the bands that showcases the alter egos and talents of professionals from across the government information technology community. The finalist bands were chosen in a “blind panel” judging, and had to include two members of the government IT community (government and vendor executives were both eligible to participate).

Proceedings will be kicked off by Australian-born Specialist Vicki Golding of the D.C. National Guard’s 257th Army Band, winner of the 2006 Military Idol competition. The selected GIT Tockin’ bands and their affiliations include:

• The DISA-Peering Act (Verizon Business at DISA, Unisys at TSA, Canadian Army Special Ops for the JTF at DISA HQ, USMC for the JTF at DISA HQ). Our favorite band name;
  
• The Groove (EMC Software, Formatta Corporation);
  
• The Moogly Blues Band (VDOT, VITA);
  
• Outta Scope (NIH, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, DOD/State Department, WTEC) Does this band go to 11?; and
  
• Tacocat (AT&T Government Solutions, Perot Systems Government Services, Skjei Telecom)

The event will be hosted on Thursday, Oct 18/07 at the State Theater in Falls Church, Virginia. Tickets are $20 each, with an event maximum of 800 tickets. Proceeds from all ticket and band voting sales will be donated to the United Services Organization of Metropolitan Washington (USO-Metro). Git your tickets here.

USMC Upgrading its AAV7s With M36E3 Thermal Sights

AAV7s, Somalia

The Upgraded M36E3 Thermal Sight System is designed to improve the USMC’s AAV7 “Amtracs” amphibious vehicles; as Military Aerospace & Electronics notes, the Amtracs don’t have thermal sights. Instead, the current system employs image intensifier (aka. “starlight scope”) technology that amplifies existing light and has a range of less than 1 km (0.6 miles). Nor do current sights provide the ability to see through smoke, fog, sand or other obscurants to visible light.

The work-in-progress Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle will include far superior optics, but the Marines can’t wait that long. With Amtracs being pressed into service as armored personnel carriers far inland in theaters like Iraq, that’s a serious handicap. The replacement AAV7A1 day/night sight must provide daylight as well as nighttime sighting ability to detect targets to 4.7 km/ 3 miles, recognize targets to 2.5 km/ 1.5 miles, and identify targets at 700 m. See full solicitation specifications [HTML | MS Word].

It would appear that procurement in earnest is now underway…

As Army C4ISR HQ Moves, Maryland Sees Business Opportunities

In the wake of the USA’s Base Realignment And Closure (BRAC) 2005 process, Aberdeen Proving Ground is preparing for an influx of new personnel – including Team C4ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance) from the U.S. Army’s Fort Monmouth.

To help Maryland’s business community understand and capitalize on these future changes at APG, the Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO), the Tech Council of Maryland (TCM) and APG will jointly host the event “Aberdeen Proving Ground: Current and Future Capabilities for Business Opportunities.” Co-sponsored by the Greater Baltimore Tech Council, the event is designed to highlight new collaboration and commercialization opportunities for businesses, government agencies and academia.

$9.2M for US-Canadian Border Patrol Station

Small business qualifier Bristol Design Build Services LLC in Anchorage, AK received a $9.2 million firm-fixed-price contract for design and construction of a Department of Homeland Security border patrol station in Sumas, WA. Work is expected to be completed by June 30, 2008.

Bids were solicited via the World Wide Web on Oct. 12, 2006, and 5 bids were received by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Seattle, WA (W912DW-07-C-0005).

UAE Announces Deals at IDEX 2007

Defense Update covers the UAE’s IDEX 2007 show, which ended last Thursday. IDEX is the premier Middle East arms exhibition, and one that is growing in both size and global prominence given regional spending trends. During the show, the UAE Armed Forces announced that it has signed deals with worth over 1.34 billion Dirhams (currently about $360 million) with local and international companies. The UAE’s defense procurement process is widely respected, and carries influence beyond its borders. Announcements included:

• A Memorandum of Understanding with EADS for 3 aerial tankers; EADS says it’s the A330 MRTT selected by Australia & Britain, and bidding for the USA’s $20-30 billion KC-X Phase 1. The contract was finally signed in February 2008, and deliveries are expected to begin in 2011.
  
• DHS 390 million for 48 Agrab (Scorpion) 120 mm mobile mortar systems (MMS). The Agrab consists of a Singapore Technologies Kinetics (STK) 120 mm Super Rapid Advanced Mortar System, mounted to the rear of a BAE Systems OMC RG-31 Mk5 4×4 mine-protected vehicle fitted with a new 3-person fully enclosed cab.
  
• DHS 343 million to GAMCO of Abu Dhabi to support the United Arab Emirates’ various BAE Hawk trainer versions
  
• DHS 240 million (currently about $65 million) in communications equipment from Harris;
  
• DHS 228 million to DynCorp International to support their unique F-16 E/F Block 60 “Desert Falcon” fighters
  
• DHS 127 million for 12 fast patrol boats from Abu Dhabi Ship Building Company
  
• DHS 18 million for 10,000 pistols from local firm Caracal
  
• A shortlist for their advanced trainer competition: Aermacchi’s M-346, BAE’s Hawk 128 LIFT, and the Korean Aerospace/ Lockheed T-50 Golden Eagle

See Defense Update’s article for more.