February 2023 News Global Defence & Security Industry - Military |
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According to C. Todd Lopez, from the U.S DoD, an intelligence-gathering balloon, most certainly launched by the People's Republic of China, is currently floating above the United States, the Defense Department announced on Thursday 2 February evening.
Mack Defense has been awarded a contract to design, build, and deliver trucks for the prototype and testing phase of the U.S. Army’s Common Tactical Truck (CTT) program, as Army Recognition already announced on February 1. The prototypes will be tested and evaluated to determine the final requirements for the next generation of trucks to ultimately begin modernization and replacement of the Army’s fleet of approximately 35,000 heavy tactical trucks which perform a wide range of combat logistics, support, and service support missions.
According to various media, U.S. President Joe Biden said he is planning to speak to President Zelenskyy about future military aid packages. Two U.S. officials briefed on the matter told Reuters on January 31 that the U.S. is preparing to offer Ukraine a $2.2 billion military aid package which is expected to include GLSDB Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bombs for the first time as well as other munitions and weapons.
Belarus is modernizing Soviet-made artillery systems, which are in service with its armed forces. It is also changing the system of combat training of its missile and artillery troops, proceeding from experience of the war in Ukraine, the Vayar military information agency said citing Colonel Ruslan Chekhov, Missile and Artillery Troops Commander of the Belarusian Armed Forces.
According to Defense Studies on February 2, United Defense Technology, the Thai distributor of Nexter (France), has released pictures taken on January 11, 2023, of the delivery of the first 105mm LG1 Mk.III towed light gun, 6 systems out of 12 systems for the Royal Thai Army that has arrived in Thailand.
The Belarussian armed forces have started independent use of the Iskander missile systems received from Russia, the Belarusian Defense Ministry said: “Belarussian servicemen have started fully independent operation of the Iskander tactical missile system”. “Belarussian servicemen underwent training in the Russian Federation. After completing their theory course, the artillerymen underwent hands-on training on Belarusian military grounds.”
Rheinmetall has just won two new contracts in the indirect fire ammunition domain. An international customer has ordered propellant charges worth around €40 million from Rheinmetall Denel Munition, the Group’s South African subsidiary. Another customer, a NATO state, has placed an order with Rheinmetall Denel Munition for its tried-and-tested Assegai 155mm ammunition. This order is worth around €17 million. The Assegai family of artillery ammunition can be fired from any NATO STANAG-compatible artillery system, including the PzH 2000 self-propelled howitzer.
According to information published on the Danish website "OLFI" on February 1, 2023, Denmark plans to purchase 20 decommissioned Leopard 1A5 Main Battle Tanks that are stored in the German company FFG. These Leopard 1A5 tanks could be repaired and returned to service and then sent to Ukraine.
According to French newspaper Le Monde, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu made this announcement at a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksiy Reznikov. Lecornu said that the transfer of 12 CAESAR self-propelled howitzers would be financed from a EUR 200 million fund that was approved by the Parliament: part of the €200 million from the special support fund “will allow us to give 12 additional CAESARs to Ukraine”, Sébastien Lecornu declared.
According to topwar.ru, in the near future, France will transfer a Ground Master 200 (GM200) radar system to Ukraine, without specifying the model (MMA, MMC?). French Minister of the Armed Forces Sebastien Lecornu wrote about this on social networks.
On January 31, 2023, the European Defence Agency (EDA) launched a new project to establish a safe communication extension for NATO Generic Vehicle Architecture (NGVA) in terms of functional safety. The project, which will run over 24 months with a €3,5 million budget, is the first step in a series of Safe NGVA projects that eventually aim to develop and test physical demonstrators in relevant environments in the second and third phases.
Saab has received an order from the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration for the continued support of the Swedish Armed Forces’ Ground Based Air Defence (GBAD) systems. The order value is approximately SEK 170 million and the order was booked in Q4 2022.
On January 27, 2023, the U.S. Army announced four Other Transaction Authority agreements to Mack Defense, Navistar Defense, Oshkosh Defense, and the American Rheinmetall Vehicles/GM Defense team totaling $24.25 million. The contractors will provide three prototypes of each variant for the Common Tactical Truck, or CTT, family of vehicles. They will also provide digital designs to go with each variant and a design study for a wrecker. Sam Tricomo, Program Executive Office Combat Support & Combat Service Support, reports.
