Thales has secured a contract to provide a GM400α long-range air-surveillance radar (pictured) to the Royal Malaysian Air Force. (Thales)  Thales has secured a contract from the Malaysian Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) to provide a long-range air-surveillance radar to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).    A spokesperson for Thales told   Janes   on 12 December that the company will provide its Ground Master 400 Alpha (GM400α) radar to the RMAF.   The radar will be installed in the coastal town of Bintulu, located in the ce...

The upgraded Hamina-class missile boats have been comprehensively equipped for their size and are capable of monitoring and countering air, surface, and underwater threats. (Finnish Navy)    The Finnish Navy's Hamina-class fast attack craft (FAC) mid-life upgrade (MLU) and modernisation programme has officially concluded and all four vessels have been returned to    active duty.   A ceremony to mark the milestone was held at the Finnish Navy's base in Turku on 12 December, the service announced the same day.  The Hamina-cla...

The army's newly converted Foxhound Command Variant is undergoing basic tests before the remainder of the selected Foxhound vehicles (up to 50) are converted into a command platform by manufacturer GDLS. (Crown Copyright)  The British Army's newly converted Foxhound Command Variant is undergoing basic field tests with the 7th Light Mechanised Brigade Combat Team, according to the army on 12 December.  The tests are being undertaken by the brigade to provide direct user feedback on the vehicle's new capabilities, thereby enabling the UK Minist...

The components of Lockheed Martin's SIMRES geo-pairing system include a player unit, a helmet sensor, and a weapon sensor mounted on the barrel of an Airsoft weapon that was being used for demonstration purposes. (Giles Ebbutt)  In response to the US Army's search for an alternative to its existing laser-based line-of-sight (LOS) tactical engagement simulation system (TESS), Lockheed Martin has developed a geo-pairing system that reflects the true ballistics and effect of terrain and demonstrated this during the Interservice/Industry Training...

Aegis Ashore is a four-storey deckhouse and launch tower, which will provide a static home in Romania and Poland for the SPY-1D(V) radar, SM-3 missiles, and other systems taken from the US Navy's BMD ships. (Missile Defense Agency)  The US Navy (USN) is scheduled to officially accept the Aegis Ashore site in Poland by mid-December, according to Rear Admiral Douglas Williams, the acting director of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA).  “The navy will formally accept Aegis Ashore Poland into their inventory on December 15,” Rear Adm Williams told...

The air force's new C3 vehicles are based on a military variant of the Volkswagen Crafter, also in service with the Portuguese and Bangladesh army in an ambulance role. (Abicon AB)  The Swedish Air Force has received new command, control, and communications (C3) vehicles to bolster its tactical mobility.  The vehicles are based on a military variant of the Volkswagen Crafter and are meeting an urgent requirement for light, robust, and highly modular C3 platforms, according to an announcement by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV...

The Airsoft surrogate Glock pistol that Thales Training and Simulation has integrated into its Gladiator laser-based TESS. There are no additional attachments to the basic form factor. (Giles Ebbutt)  Thales Training and Simulation unveiled new capabilities for its live and indoor training systems at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2023 in Orlando.  The main addition to the company's Gladiator tactical engagement simulation system (TESS) is a laser-capable surrogate pistol, enabling those who...

Saab has integrated a UAV capability into its instrumentation systems. Pictured is the UAV with Saab's integrated computer card, laser detector from a dismounted harness, and laser small arms transmitter displayed at I/ITSEC 2023. (Giles Ebbutt)  Saab has developed additional capabilities for its live tactical engagement simulation system (TESS) and is eyeing new opportunities both in Europe and elsewhere, company representatives said during a briefing at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2023 i...

MASA's SWORD constructive simulation displayed at I/ITSEC 2023, with a general situation picture at the top, a range of KPI choices (bottom left), and the new web-based analytics dashboard (bottom right) showing crew states in different formats. (Giles Ebbutt)  French firm MASA has continued to refine its widely used SWORD constructive simulation system and outlined the latest developments at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2023 in Orlando.  Enrico Raue, MASA business development director, tol...

Rohde & Schwarz has officially been named as the chosen vendor for the Bundeswehr's multibillion-euro digital radio programme. The company has already delivered units to the Bundeswehr, which are based on the SVFuA dual-channel, multiband radio (pictured in the vehicular variant). (Rohde & Schwarz)  Rohde & Schwarz (R&S) has officially been named as the chosen vendor for the German Bundeswehr's major Combat Net Radio (CNR) programme, the company announced on 7 December.  In December 2022 the Bundeswehr signed a multibillion-euro contract with...

The components of the CAE-led partnership SVT solution demonstrated at I/ITSEC 23. The modified weapon (top) and the virtual range with instructions displayed on a screen (bottom). (Giles Ebbutt)  The CAE-led partnership developing the Soldier Virtual Trainer (SVT) demonstrated its solution at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation, and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2023 in Orlando.  The SVT is an immersive trainer using virtual, mixed, and augmented reality that will provide individual training in three areas: weapons skills develop...

EW officers monitor a simulated test in the Central Control Facility (CCF) at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. The CCF is used to oversee EW mission data flight-testing. Portions of their missions are likely to expand under the new Air Force Cyber Command. (US Air Force)    Members of the trilateral security co-operative between Australia, the UK, and the US (AUKUS) have agreed to kick off    collaborative development of advanced combat technologies, with an eye towards commonality and interoperability, beginning with electroni...

The Green Ammo E-blanks M249 version displayed at I/ITSEC 2023. (Giles Ebbutt)  Norwegian firm Green Ammo has continued to develop its electronic blanks technology and introduced several enhancements.    Speaking to   Janes  at Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2023 in Orlando, Steffen Botten, Green Ammo chief operating officer, said that the system software had been improved and there was now an inertial measurement unit (IMU) embedded in the bolt to monitor weapon movement. The sof...

US Army 125th Intelligence and Electronic Warfare (IEW) Battalion, Electronic Warfare team, trained 25th Infantry Division soldiers on the V-MAX jamming backpack during the ‘Super Garuda Shield 23' exercise in September. (US Army)  As the US Army works toward revamping its force by 2030, it hopes to capitalise on new technologies such as warfare on the electromagnetic spectrum and tackle the complexities of training soldiers to operate in the unseen world.  The army wants to expand training on weapons that jam, suppress, and dominate the ele...

The new Collins Aerospace Arcus image generator displayed at I/ITSEC 2023. (Giles Ebbutt)  Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, has developed a new image generator (IG) called Arcus and launched it in November at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2023 in Orlando.    Lance Moss, product programme manager, synthetic environments for Collins, told   Janes  that Arcus combines the capabilities of Epic Games' Unreal Engine with Collins proprietary rendering and processing tools to prov...

Vrgineers' new carbon fibre, lightweight XTAL 3 CAVU mixed reality HMD utilises a streamlined architecture to improve performance. ( Vrgineers)  Vrgineers has developed a new version of its mixed reality (MR) XTAL head-mounted display (HMD) and displayed it for the first time at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC 2023) in Orlando.  Marek Polčák, the company's CEO and co-founder, told Janes that while there was little room for improvement in virtual reality (VR) HMD technology, there was still scop...

Damen Naval marked the official start of the construction phase of the Type 126 frigates programme with a steel-cutting ceremony on 5 December. Pictured (from left to right): Damen Shipyards Group's CEO Arnout Damen and Lürssen CEO Friedrich Lürssen. (Damen/Felix Matthies)  Damen Naval held a steel-cutting ceremony for the first Type 126 multi-purpose frigate on order for the German Navy at NVL Group's Peene-Werft shipyard in Wolgast, Germany, on 5 December.  Netherlands-based Damen Shipyards Group was awarded a EUR4.6 billion (USD5 billion)...

BISim is working to increase the AI capabilities of its VBS software, which is in widespread use. (Bohemia Interactive Simulations)    Bohemia Interactive Simulations (BISim) is continuing to expand its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities and is seeking to develop a more visualisation-agnostic capability, Pete Morrison, BISim's chief commercial officer, told   Janes  at I/ITSEC 2023 in Orlando.   “We're focusing on AI and in particular how we can enable our customers to train for the next Ukraine,” Morrison said. He...

The UAE has requested to purchase SRC's tripod-mounted AN/TPQ-50 counter-fire radar, currently operated by the British Army and US Army. (Janes/Patrick Allen)    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has requested to purchase 18 manportable AN/TPQ-50 Lightweight Counter Mortar Radars (LCMRs)    from the United States (US).   The proposed sale is estimated to be valued at USD85 million and will include, in addition to the AN/TPQ-50 radars, 107 mm high-explosive rockets (for contiguous US testing only); computer digital military lap...

Cubic has overcome the challenge of simulating the use of combustible charges and the recoil-assisted breech in its M777 155 mm howitzer simulator solution. An M777 is shown here in action with US forces. (US Army)  Cubic Defence is expecting a low rate initial production (LRIP) contract for its 81 mm mortar solution from the US Army, and has secured an interim 105 mm Light Gun simulator contract from the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD). The company has also made progress in developing its indirect fire simulation solutions, according to represe...