Military

USB to synchronous cable gives tactical radios IP data capabilities

By Noel McKeegan

04:23 January 17, 2008 PST

January 17, 2008 Enhancing critical battlefield communications by building on equipment already in operation, the Sealevel Systems ACC-188 USB Synchronous Interface Adapter enables tactical radios currently used by the US Armed Forces to interface to PCs and transmit IP based data. Read More

Aegis Open Architecture green lighted by U.S. Navy

By Kyle Sherer

16:02 January 13, 2008 PST

January 14, 2008 Lockheed Martin recently received final approval from the U.S. Navy to proceed with the integration and shipboard installation of the world’s first, fully-open architecture Aegis weapon system for a major surface warship. Aegis Open Architecture is a weapon system that can absorb frequent technology refreshes and upgrades in capabilities, both from new development and separate third party products. Read More

BATMAV System with AeroVironment's Wasp III Micro Air Vehicle achieves full rate production

By Noel McKeegan

21:31 January 8, 2008 PST

January 9, 2008 The United States Air Force BATMAV (Battlefield Air Targeting Micro Air Vehicle) program with AeroVironment's Wasp III Micro Air Vehicle has received approval for Full Rate Production. The Wasp is a portable, 16 inche (38 cm) long, rugged unmanned aerial platform designed for front-line reconnaissance and surveillance. Read More

First succesful Japanese test for the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

By Kyle Sherer

18:39 December 18, 2007 PST

December 19, 2007 The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System has been successfully tested for the 12th time in an exercise that marks the first occasion the system has been used by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. A Japanese Kongo destroyer launched a Standard Missile-3 Block IA missile, which engaged and destroyed a medium-range ballistic missile target fired from the U.S Navy’s Pacific Missile Range facility in Hawaii at a height of 60 miles above the Pacific ocean. Read More

Communications “Gizmo” to aid emergency response

By Jude Garvey

17:46 December 18, 2007 PST

December 19, 2007 It may look like just another remote-controlled toy truck, but this "Gizmo" has the potential to save lives in disaster response situations. Javier Rodriguez Molina, a 24 year old electrical engineering graduate student and programmer analyst at the UC San Diego's California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), is designing an advanced mobile, wireless communications machine that can venture into environments too dangerous for humans and collect and transmit critical information to emergency personnel. It is hoped that the design platform - which is will not be limited to its current toy-truck guise - can provide real-time assistance in emergency situations such as terrorist attacks, building collapses or hurricanes. Read More

iRobot announce new mapping payload for PackBot

By Emily Clark

22:28 December 12, 2007 PST

December 13, 2007 Known for an array of intelligent machines from home helpers to military aides, iRobot has just announced an upgrade to its PackBot with the addition of a Mapping Kit. They new payload is designed enhance the ability of soldiers to manage the dangers of search, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. Read More

Production begins on Boeing P-8A fuselage

By Kyle Sherer

21:33 December 12, 2007 PST

December 13, 2007 Boeing has started production on its P-8A Poseidon fuselage, the anti-submarine test plane that will replace the P-3 Orion. The first fuselage components were loaded into a holding fixture on the factory floor of the Spirit AeroSystems’ Wichita facility, in a ceremony that included U.S. Navy Personnel. Read More

QinetiQ awarded contract for Watchkeeper UAV evaluation

By Kyle Sherer

18:03 December 11, 2007 PST

December 12, 2007 QinetiQ has been awarded a five million pound contract by the UK Ministry of Defense to conduct a series of airborne tests and evaluations for the 800 million pound Watchkeeper UAV programme. The tests will be held over the next 18 months at ParcAberporth and the adjoining MOD Aberporth air range, and pre-flight activity environmental and electromagnetic compatibility testing will be held at QinetiQ operated facilities at MOD Boscombe Down. Read More

Lockheed Martin successfully tests Warrior Fightability & Training Programme

By Kyle Sherer

17:16 December 6, 2007 PST

December 7, 2007 Lockheed Martin has successfully tested its design for the Warrior Fightability & Lethality Improvement Programme (WFLIP), a new weapons system that uses advanced firing control to allow crews to engage moving targets while traveling. Read More

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Review (Xbox 360)

By Tim Hanlon

21:59 November 27, 2007 PST

It's official - World War II games are dead. Infinity Ward has brought the iconic Call of Duty series into the 21st Century with a flash-bang, giving Tom Clancy a run for his money with an epic depiction of modern war. Read on for a full review of what the guys at our video game blog, The Gamer Gene are calling a hot contender for Game of the Year. Read More

Active flow control technology allows Boeing to deploy munitions at Mach 2

By Kyle Sherer

18:58 November 27, 2007 PST

November 28, 2007 In a landmark demonstration, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force have used "active flow control" technology to deploy munitions from a weapons bay at twice the speed of sound. The MK-82 Joint Direct Attack Munition Standard Test Vehicle was released from a rocket sled at the High-Speed Test Track at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, representing the first safe release of munitions from a weapons bay at high supersonic speeds. Read More

Boeing achieves milestone in unmanned underwater vehicle recovery

By Noel McKeegan

18:00 November 26, 2007 PST

November 27, 2007 In a first of its kind operation,

Boeing has successfully demonstrated autonomous launch and recovery of a 21" Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) from a submarine. Read More

Classic military jet fighters up for sale

By Noel McKeegan

17:27 November 26, 2007 PST

November 27, 2007 Looking for a Christmas present for the aviation enthusiast who has everything? H&H Auctions has announced that it will offer eight jet-powered De Havilland Venoms and Vampires in a rare sale by tender. A Vampire fighter, two Vampire trainers and five Venom fighter/bombers in operating condition are available for purchase individually or as a collection along with enough spare parts and auxiliary equipment to fill four 40-foot containers. The Bournemouth based historic aircraft were acquired from the Swiss Air Force by aircraft and car enthusiast Don Wood and have performed at extensively at airshows throughout Europe under the title "Source Classic Jet Flight". Read More

Solar Powered RFID tracking system roll-out

By Noel McKeegan

18:02 November 19, 2007 PST

November 20, 2007 Lockheed Martin subsidiary Savi Technology has begun deploying solar-powered Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) readers and signposts, saving energy and negating the need for installing electrical infrastructure in remote areas. Read More

First-of-its-kind dual missile test intercepts targets in space

By Kyle Sherer

16:39 November 17, 2007 PST

November 18, 2007 Raytheon's Standard Missile-3s have successfully intercepted and destroyed ballistic missiles outside the Earth’s atmosphere, the first time a Navy has ship demonstrated simultaneous engagements against such targets in space. Read More

Lockheed Martin tests guided missile impervious to GPS jamming

By Kyle Sherer

23:03 November 5, 2007 PST

November 6, 2007 Lockheed Martin’s Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) has achieved all its test objectives in Unitary rocket Phase II product qualification test flights at White Sands Missile Range. The tests verified the missile’s ability to perform in a GPS jamming environment at long range – an essential feature for air strikes in close proximity to friendly troops, or with a low collateral damage threshold. Read More

New GPS satellite operational

By Noel McKeegan

15:01 November 5, 2007 PST

November 6, 2007 The fourth in a series of eight modernized Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites that will deliver new capabilities to military and civilian users has been declared fully operational. Launched from Cape Canaveral October 17 as part of the Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M), the new GPS IIR-17M satellite features increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti-jamming capabilities for the military, and a second signal that will provide civilian GPS users with an open access signal on a different frequency. Read More

Laser Shot announces Personal Weapon Simulator partnership

By Kyle Sherer

01:03 October 29, 2007 PDT

October 29, 2007 Firearms and training systems specialist Laser Shot Incorporated has collaborated with Bohemia Interactive to deliver a Personal Weapon Simulation version of Virtual Battlespace Two (VBS2) software, which includes precise laser and live-fire hit detection, multiple shooter hit detection, camera field-of-view vehicle attachments and After Action Review integration. Read More

New software provides rapid 3D modeling of large urban environments

By Noel McKeegan

18:07 October 22, 2007 PDT

October 23, 2007 Sarnoff Corporation has unveiled a new software solution that automatically builds accurate 3D site models of large urban environments in less than a day. MapIt!™ software utilizes aerial imagery and Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) to generate a continuous large-area 3D site model. This information can be used to provide military units and intelligence analysts with critical site data for an urban area as large as 800 square kilometer in around four days as opposed to the 40 to 60 days required for current urban modeling techniques. Read More

BAE Systems wins contract for Mortar Stowage System

By Darren Quick

20:24 October 17, 2007 PDT

October 18, 2007 BAE Systems has won a US$13.9 million contract to supply its M326 120-mm Mortar Stowage System to the U.S. Army. The hydraulic lift system is designed for loading 300-pound mortar tubes out of humvee trailers - freeing up the 3-4 soldiers normally required for the task and facilitating faster firing and movement of the weapon. Read More

Dual-Cockpit Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System delivered to the U.S. Navy

By Noel McKeegan

20:06 October 17, 2007 PDT

October 18, 2007 Boeing has delivered the first factory-installed, dual-cockpit F/A-18F Super Hornet Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) to the U.S. Navy. The system allows the flight crew to rapidly acquire and designate a target simply by looking at it and the new two-seat variant extends this capability to both crew members. Read More

DSPCon launches portable, high-speed data acquisition recorder

By Darren Quick

05:12 October 11, 2007 PDT

October 11, 2007 DSPCon has launched the DataFlex-500TM, a portable, high-speed data recorder designed for field-testing of jet engines, turbine pumps, combat vehicles and precision weapons systems. The unit, weighing less than 22 lbs., features real-time playback, display and analysis, and provides a sustained, continuous recording speed of up to 256,000 samples per second. Read More

"All-environment" visibility solution for helicopters successfully trialled

By Noel McKeegan

06:39 October 8, 2007 PDT

October 8, 2007 Helicopter pilots are often faced with demanding environmental conditions that make navigation difficult and lead to grounding of the aircraft as the only safe option – fog, cloud, rain and snow along with flying over featureless terrain or “brownout” conditions caused by dust all present problems for pilots, particularly when landing. International defence company QinetiQ has developed and successfully flight trialled a solution that integrates a range of imaging technologies into a single system with the aim of expanding the operational envelope of the aircraft under these circumstances. Read More

Boeing-led test successfully intercepts target missile

By Darren Quick

07:18 October 4, 2007 PDT

October 4, 2007 The Boeing Company, working with industry teammates and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, has successfully completed a missile defense flight test resulting in the intercept of a target warhead to demonstrate the capability and reliability of the nation's only defense against long-range ballistic missiles. Read More

EA-18G Growler project delivered on time, under budget

By Loz Blain

05:31 September 26, 2007 PDT

September 26, 2007 Despite early concerns, Boeing has delivered its new EA-18G Growler carrier planes to the U.S. Navy on time and under budget. Closely related to the F/A-18F Super Hornet, the Growler is specially equipped with tactical jamming pods, self-defense missiles and high-speed anti-radiation missiles to suit its electronic warfare purposes. Read More