The SlingShot vehicle antenna (top) and the manpack antenna (bottom). The lightweight system provides a BLOS capability to tactical VHF/UHF radios and can be used on the move. (Spectra Group)  There are more than 4,000 of Spectra Group's SlingShot satellite communications devices in service with the US Special Operations Forces (SOF), with more than 7,000 devices in over 24 countries currently in use, the company announced during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2022 annual convention in Washington, DC, in October.  SlingShot...

The Integrated Mission Planning and Airspace Control Tools from General Dynamics Mission Systems shown at AUSA 2022. TAIS is displayed on the left and AMPS on the right. The system will be hosted on the laptop, which is showing the TAIS display. (Janes/Giles Ebbutt)  General Dynamics Mission Systems (GDMS) has integrated the US Army's Tactical Airspace Integration System (TAIS) and the Aviation Mission Planning System (AMPS) into a single solution called the Integrated Mission Planning and Airspace Control Tools (IMPACT) and showcased it at t...

SFO Technologies and the DRDO have co-developed a high-energy laser system (pictured above) to track and neutralise hostile targets. (Janes/Oishee Majumdar)    Kochi-based SFO Technologies Private Limited has been collaborating with    the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop a high-energy laser system for the Indian Armed Forces.     SFO Technologies has partnered with the DRDO's Centre for High Energy Systems and Sciences (CHESS) to develop a 2 kW continuous wave or constant wave (CW) sing...

The Domo Tactical Communications SDR-M integrated into the Kägwerks DOCK-Lite chest mount. The cables emerging from the bottom are the antennas. (Janes/Giles Ebbutt)  Domo Tactical Communications (DTC), part of Codan Communications, has developed a new member of its MeshUltra internet protocol (IP) waveform (WF) family. The MeshUltra family is a range of mobile ad hoc network (MANET) coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (COFDM) WFs.  The new WF, launched at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2022 annual convention in...

A full-scale mockup of the Eurofighter EK was displayed at the ILA Airshow in June. Hensoldt and Rafael are to team up    on developing the podded jammer solution for the aircraft.  (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Hensoldt and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems are to offer a joint solution to Germany for the new airborne electronic attack (AEA) capability it seeks to field from 2028.  German and Israeli defence contractors signed a teaming agreement in Tel Aviv on 18 October, setting out to integrate Hensoldt's Kalaetron A...

The components of MAPS Gen II displayed at the AUSA 2022. (Giles Ebbutt)  Collins Aerospace, part of Raytheon Technologies, showcased its Mounted Assured Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (APNT) System (MAPS) Gen II programme solution for the US Army at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2022 annual convention in Washington, DC, held from 10 to 12 October.  Announced in September 2022, Collins Aerospace was awarded an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) production contract for the army's MAPS Gen II programme, with...

SonoFlash is on track to be fully qualified in 2024. (Thales)  The development of Thales' SonoFlash combined active/passive A-size sonobuoy is nearing completion as the system gears up for qualification trials in the coming months.  Speaking to media during a pre-Euronaval 2022 briefing on 11 October, Rozenn Thierry, head of Thales' SonoFlash programme, said the sonobuoy was on track to start qualification trials with France's Direction générale de l'armement (DGA) in 2023, with a view to delivering the first production units to the French Na...

The F222 Baden-Württemberg-class frigate of the German Navy is pictured here. An earlier variant of the R&S electronic solution can be seen on top of the vessel. (CPIZ Marine/Gottschalk)  Rohde & Schwarz (R&S) will launch its new naval electronic support (ES) solution at Euronaval 2022, which will be held from 18 to 21 October 2022 in Paris.  The solution uniquely combines radar electronic support measures (R-ESM) and communication ESM (C-ESM) into a single antenna, increasing reaction time and enhancing situational awareness, the company sa...

A US Army Ranger lies in the prone position, equipped with L3Harris's AN/PRC-163. (US Army Special Operations Command)  L3Harris Technologies unveiled a new mission module to support tactical radio communications, enabling handheld combat radios to tap into US Space Force's (USSF's) tactical satellite communications (satcom) network.  The mission module, rolled-out during the annual Association of the US Army (AUSA) 2022 conference in Washington, DC from 10 to 12 October, will let the company's AN/PRC-163 two-channel handheld combat radio con...

A view of the operations room of the RAN Anzac-class frigate HMAS   Perth  displaying Saab's 9LV Mk 3E.   (Commonwealth of Australia)  The next-generation sovereign combat management system (CMS) to be delivered by Saab to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) under an ‘Enterprise Partnering Agreement' (EPA) with the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) will be based on the company's 9LV CMS, a spokesperson for Saab told Janes in late September.  “In time, [this Australian CMS (AusCMS)] will be fitted to all RAN ship...

R&S to supply its SOVERON HR radios to Portuguese Armed Forces. (Rohde & Schwarz)  Rohde & Schwarz (R&S) will deliver its software-defined radios (SDRs) to the Portuguese Army.  According to an R&S announcement on 13 October, the company has entered into a partnership with EID to deliver its SOVERON HR (handheld radios) to the Portuguese Army, as part of EID's Dismounted Soldier Communications System solution.  EID was unable to provide details regarding its Dismounted Soldier Communications System at the time of publication.  SOVERON HR is a...

Shown here is the RCV-L vehicle from QinetiQ North America and Oshkosh Defense at AUSA 2022. The US Army has been using these robotic vehicles for various tests. (Janes/Ashley Roque)  The US Army is moving forward with plans to host a Robotic Combat Vehicle – Light (RCV-L) competition and will likely release a draft solicitation by early 2023, according to the Director of the Next Generation Combat Vehicles Cross Functional Team, Brigadier General Geoffrey Norman.  Several army leaders provided reporters with an RCV-L update on 11 October at...

MQ-1C Gray Eagle. (General Atomics Aeronautical Systems)  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) unveiled a new variant of its venerable Gray Eagle unmanned aerial system (UAS) at the annual Association of the US Army (AUSA) 2022 conference held in Washington, DC, from 10 to 12 October.  The new variant, dubbed the Gray Eagle 25M (GE-25M), was specifically designed to be highly upgradable and adaptable to meet the growing slate of current and future threats, company officials said in a 10 October statement. The unmanned aircraft's...

The headquarters on the move (pictured above) is one of the final components of Project Currawong. It is a mobile version of the integrated battlefield telecommunications network system, integrated into the Australian Army's Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicle. (Boeing)  Boeing has completed development of the final components of the integrated battlefield telecommunications network (I-BTN) system that it has been developing for the Australian Defence Force (ADF) under the Australian Department of Defence's (DoD's) Joint Project (JP) 2072 P...

The US Marine Corps participated in Exercise 'Cold Response 2022' in Arctic Norway. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  With the establishment in late September of the Pentagon Arctic Strategy and Global Resilience Office and continued investment by the US Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force in higher-latitude operations, questions are being raised about the US Army's commitment to develop a greater regional presence there.    “The army isn't investing in Arctic capabilities,” Bryan Clark, Hudson Institute senior fellow, told   Janes  on 3 O...

The French 2023 defence budget details a requirement for 55 Satcom stations for Syracuse IV. Pictured is the Syracuse 4A satellite. (Thales Alenia Space)  The French military will procure a large number of satellite communication (Satcom) ground stations for the Syracuse IV constellation in 2023.  According to the French Armed Forces 2023 defence bill (Projet de loi de finances des Armées 2023 - LPM année 5), announced on 5 October, the French military will acquire 55 Satcom ground stations for the Syracuse IV constellation.  The French Army...

US Army First Lieutenant Ethan Nelson from 1st Battalion, 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, pulls security alongside North Macedonia soldiers during Exercise ‘Saber Junction' in Hohenfels, Germany. (US Army National Guard)  US Army officials working to develop the service's tactical data mesh concept are increasingly exploring capabilities to further integrate joint and coalition forces, to increase interoperability in current and future conflicts.  Programme officials with the army's Program Executive Office Command,...

The Lockheed Martin AN/TPQ-53 counter-battery radar system. (Lockheed Martin)  Programme officials at Lockheed Martin are exploring the development of a multimission variant of the AN/TPQ-53 counter-fire radar as part of a larger effort to introduce a slew of technology and capability upgrades into the legacy ground radar platform.  Company officials are exploring potential “digital enhancements” to the AN/TPQ-53, including the possible multimission variant, as a way to fulfil the growing demands of the international market for the counter-fi...

The Stryker Leonidas technology demonstrator. Epirus and GDLS tested this high-power microwave capability against swarms of aerial drones. (GDLS)  Epirus and General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) are unveiling a Stryker combat vehicle outfitted with the Leonidas high-power microwave (HPM) system at this year's Association of the US Army (AUSA) conference.    Scott Taylor, GDLS's director of US business development, spoke with  Janes  about the Stryker Leonidas technology demonstrator on 29 September ahead of the annual confere...

WS operators, UAV operators, and missile operations personnel will be unified in a new branch in the Indian Air Force. The air force said that this will cut training costs and increase core competencies across these specialist roles. (United States Air Force)    The Indian government has approved the creation of a new branch for weapon systems (WS) personnel    in the Indian Air Force (IAF).   In a statement on 8 October, India's Ministry of Defence (MoD) said that the “creation of the WS branch would entail unification of...