The Advanced Defense Technology (ADT) database records defense contracts related to communications, radar, electronic warfare, smart munitions and sensors across platforms in the land, air, naval and space domains.

The value of defense contracts issued in the areas of communications, radar, electronic warfare, smart munitions and sensors has steadily grown since 2008. 2012 saw the value of contracts issued increase by over 6% year-on-year to over $83 billion. However, this is reflective of slowing growth as budgets are tightened on a global basis and theatres such as Iraq and Afghanistan see troop drawdowns.

Communications related contracts accounted for 52% of the total contracts. This compared to 59% in 2011 and is consistent with previous years that show communications contracts driving the bulk of contract activity. Platforms and systems in the air domain account for the majority of contracts in 2012 with 46%, followed by space-related contracts, which represented 28% of the $83 billion contracts related to communications, radar, electronic warfare, smart munitions and sensors.

Clients of the ADS service can access the full insight report as well as the Advanced Defense Technology database for additional defense contract data.

Also, don’t miss our regular column in Microwave Journal’s Military Microwaves.

See Defence iQ for more analysis on the defense industry, related news and events.

Asif

Despite the ongoing uncertainty with defense expenditure facing challenges and the threat of sequestration hanging over US companies there was positive news on the financial front as companies finished releasing results for the second quarter of the calendar year. Taking a snapshot of financial results and looking at quarterly revenue growth over the second and first quarters shows a turnaround with companies growing revenue as opposed to the quarter-to-quarter revenue declines observed after the first quarter of 2012.

There was also plenty of activity in August including new product launches, technology demonstrations and contracts as well as business acquisitions.

Amongst the business deals concluded in August, Mercury Computer Systems completed its acquisition of Micronetics, allowing the company to continue solidifying a portfolio of offerings that will now include RF capabilities. Meanwhile, BAE Systems signed a MoU with MASS to work on EW systems for the export market. The partnership is designed to offer customers electronic warfare training and data management, operational analysis, countermeasure development, mission data validation and mission evaluation.

There were also a number of announcements in the area of UAVs, with for example, an emphasis on developing secure communications. Northrop Grumman awarded Cubic Communications a contract to produce a new multiband digital data link system for the MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter which will feature the ability to transmit Ku- and C-band transmissions at the same time. Expanding the role of UAVs with the addition of weapons is also being actively pursued and Raytheon completed a successful warhead and guidance system test of its Pyros small tactical munition to validate the weapon's semi-active laser and GPS guidance modes.

In July one of the notable events was NETMA issuing a RfP to Eurofighter GmbH for the development of an AESA Radar (E-scan). Officials said the target is to have a contract by the middle of next year and to have an E-Scan entering into service by 2015. The contract would mean development of the radar would come early next year with Eurofighter and Euroradar, the Selex Galileo-led consortium supplying radars for the Typhoon. The other European fighter, the Saab Gripen NG aircraft is now flying with a SELEX Galileo Raven ES-05 AESA fire control radar installed.

In August, there was considerable activity for naval radar platforms that included Lockheed Martin submitting its final proposal to the US Navy to design, build, integrate and test the new Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) S-band radar and radar suite controller for the future DDG-51 Flight III class destroyer.

At the component level, Northrop Grumman demonstrated an 850 GHz integrated receiver under Phase 2 of the DARPA Terahertz Electronics program, setting a new performance record. Under Phase 1, the company had already developed a Terahertz Monolithic Integrated Circuit that operated at 670 GHz in 2010. In addition to demonstrating low-noise integrated receivers, the company also developed and tested LNAs and PAs. Meanwhile, M/A-COM introduced a 40W GaN-on-SiC transistor suitable for S-band military radar. Perhaps more importantly, M/A-COM was suggesting that the MAGX-002735-040L00 will provide an MTTF of 600 years or better based on HTOL RF accelerated life testing.

In conclusion, the summer period was arguably quite upbeat for the defense industry with financials looking positive and plenty of activity in terms of new product launches, technology demonstrations, contracts as well as mergers and acquisitions. Whether this momentum can be maintained as the year draws to a close will be dependent on how well companies are able or perhaps in some cases allowed to adapt to a changing environment and proactively seek out opportunities away from their traditional territories.

Clients of the ADS service can read the full reports:

Defense Electronics Industry Review: July 2012

Defense Electronics Industry Review: August 2012

Also, don’t miss our regular column in Microwave Journal’s Military Microwaves.

See Defence iQ for more analysis on the defense industry, related news and events.

Asif

Recent defense industry developments center around future platforms with the US Navy looking ahead to the 2030s for a new fighter that could be unmanned. Other areas of focus included next generation systems underpinned by new technologies. The Strategy Analytics Advanced Defense Systems (ADS) service report, “Defense Electronics Industry Review: May 2012,” reviews significant defense industry news, including product announcements, milestones, contract activity and defense industry financial performance.

Even though the JSF has yet to make its operational debut, the US Navy is already looking ahead, issuing a Request for Information (RfI) for a new fighter, which could be manned or unmanned, to replace the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler in the 2030s. In the short term, unmanned platforms remain in focus also with Northrop Grumman announcing a deal for NATO's Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system which includes five Block 40 Global Hawk UAS. Elbit Systems was also active in Europe with a contract that will see the company supply UAS platforms over the next two years. Also in Europe, BAE Systems has begun testing technology to enable conventional aircraft to fly safely without pilots, including weather-avoidance and emergency landing systems.

New technologies will underpin these new platforms and the capabilities that they bring. For example, the Block 40 UAS platforms for the AGS program will utilize the Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program (MP-RTIP) ground surveillance radar sensor which uses active electronically scanned array (AESA) technology based using compound semiconductors like gallium arsenide (GaAs).  In other radar related news, Selex Galileo will begin delivering a new version of its Raven ES-05 AESA radar for integration with Saab's two-seat demonstrator for the next-generation Gripen E/F. Progress is also being made on the Euroradar Captor-E AESA for Eurofighter Typhoon where Cassidian is acting as design authority.

Other examples of semiconductor technologies underpinning the next generation of systems include the Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) electronic warfare program, which is providing opportunities for companies such as ITT Exelis. It will utilize AESA technology based around gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors. Cassidian is also using GaN technology for the electronic components that will be used for the German Armed Forces' new software-defined radio communications system (KommSysBw).

On the research front, TriQuint has been selected by DARPA to lead a development program focused on ultra-fast GaN switch technology for the Microscale Power Conversion (MPC) program. TriQuint is teamed with Rockwell Collins, the University of Colorado at Boulder and Northrop Grumman to create a new generation of RF power amplifiers that use contour modulation for very high efficiency performance that exceeds the capabilities of devices currently available.

GaN continues to play a large part in future defense systems and is also gaining traction in the commercial world. Strategy Analytics explored this technology in detail last week during IMS 2012 in Montreal, Canada. Our special panel session, “Where are the emerging RF market opportunities for GaN?” attracted over 130 participants and provided a great overview of where this technology is going. Thanks to Microwave Journal for working with Strategy Analytics to set up the event and a special thank you to Cree, Nitronex, NXP, RFMD, TriQuint and UMS and Nitronex for presenting such great insightful content.

Finally, laser weapons appeared to be once again in vogue. Northrop Grumman test fired the first product in its next-generation FIRESTRIKE™ family of high-energy, solid-state lasers demonstrating that the laser could burn through the skin and critical components of a target drone. Meanwhile, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) is looking to develop a solid-state laser weapon prototype for multi-mission capabilities aboard a ship.

Clients of the ADS service can read the full report here.

Also, don’t miss this month’s column in the Microwave Journal’s Military Microwaves.

Finally, I’ll be attending IQPC’s Military Satellites 2012 conference this week including a site visit to the headquarters of Surrey Satellite Technology to learn about micro and nano-satellite development from a leader in the global satellite market.

See Defence iQ for more analysis on the defense industry, related news and events.

Asif

The Advanced Defense Systems (ADS) service has just released, “Defense Electronics Industry Review: March 2012,” covering defense industry news including business events, product announcements, milestones and contract activity for the month of March.

Some highlights include Boeing delivering the first production P-8A Poseidon aircraft and also completing delivery of the U.S. Navy's first aircraft acquired through the F/A-18E/F and EA-18G Multi-Year Procurement (MYP) III contract. Meanwhile, Saab’s Gripen project looks to be on track with commitments from the Swedish Armed Forces for 60-80 Gripens in a future air force that will involve the upgraded Gripen NG (or Gripen E/F) configuration. Staying in Europe, the Rafale fast-jet from Dassault will be amongst the first European platform to be fielded with AESA radar capabilities. Thales confirmed that it delivered the first series-produced RBE2 radar with AESA to the Dassault Aviation facility in Mérignac, France.

AESA technology was also in evidence as the US Army awarded contracts for the AN/TPQ-53 Firefinder Radar to Lockheed Martin worth up to $881 million with the base year and two option years yielding up to 51 systems. Raytheon was also involved in a number of radar contracts including efforts to improve C-RAM S&W (Counter Rocket Artillery and Mortar Sense & Warn) systems by producing a Ku-band radar.

Northrop Grumman was demonstrating its market leadership in the optoelectronics space with contracts and milestones around the company’s LAIRCM (Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures) and LITENING pod systems while communications contracts continued to be dominated by Harris in March.

Component technology development included DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) funded efforts resulting in TowerJazz and UCSD demonstrating a SiGe (silicon germanium) -based wafer-scale phased array. DARPA is also involved in a range of efforts looking at III-V-on-Silicon technologies. One of the efforts is the Diverse Accessible Heterogeneous Integration (DAHI) program which is launching the DAHI Foundry Technology effort to advance novel methods for combining a variety of devices and materials onto a single silicon chip.

On the III-V front, TriQuint released a 30W wideband GaN PA with high power and efficiency at GOMACTech 2012, providing another example of how GaN (gallium nitride) continues to cement a position as a key enabling technology for defense systems.

Overall, activity across radar, communications, electronic warfare and other systems remained robust in March from platforms down to components despite uncertainties, such as the countdown to sequestration in the US and general budgetary constraints in the global environ, that continue to dog the defense industry.

Clients of the ADS service can read the full report here

A review of defense industry activity in February included Israel’s Ministry of Defense opting to buy the Alenia Aermacchi M-346 jet trainer for the Israel Air Force in a deal worth around $1 billion. The contract involves Thor, the joint venture set up by Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd (IAI) and Elbit Systems Ltd, buying the thirty aircraft, maintaining them and then selling air time to the IAF.

This platform was chosen over the T-50 Golden Eagle, jointly developed by Korean Aerospace Industries Ltd (KAI) and Lockheed Martin with the IAF citing performance as one of the underlying factors. Perhaps another "minor" factor could be the rumoured expectation that there will be reciprocal procurements from Italy to include IAI AEW&C platforms as well as joint development of a new reconnaissance satellite.

Meanwhile with defense spending and budgets in the spotlight, Boeing announced that the company has completed delivery of 257 F/A-18E/F Super Hornet strike fighters and EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft to the U.S. Navy. Boeing was keen to emphasize that each aircraft was delivered ahead of schedule and within the contract budget over the 2007 through 2011 timeframe.

Boeing has also started production of the new Distributed Targeting System (DTS) for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet strike fighter as part of the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18E/F Network Centric Warfare Upgrades program. Other upgrades to the F/A-18E/F and EA-18G platforms are underway with Honeywell Defense & Space Electronic Systems set to provide 124 full rate production advanced multi-purpose displays for the Lot 35 F/A-18F and EA-18G aircraft. On the sensors front, Raytheon will be providing sensor system software and hardware support in order to update, improve, and enhance tactical capabilities while a separate contract calls for Raytheon to supply AN/APG-79 AESA radars.

Moving across the spectrum from platforms to components, Auriga Microwave was on the receiving end for SBIR funding from both the US Air Force and NASA. The former wants Auriga Microwave to develop a 20GHz SSPA for Satcom downlinks while NASA is looking for efficient GaN amplifiers for operation at X- and Ka-band.

If you are a clients of the ADS service, please click on the link to access the full report, "Defense Electronics Industry Review: February 2012"

In electronic warfare (EW) the US Army Contracting Command, MICC, Aberdeen Proving Ground awarded BAE Systems E&IS, Electronic Warfare - Information Dominance Systems (IDS) a contract for procurement of SIGINT Traveler Pod (T-Pod) Systems for the MQ-1C Sky Warrior / Gray Eagle UAS while ITT Exelis has successfully installed and tested an advanced self-defense electronic warfare system on F-16 aircraft operated by an international customer.

Looking ahead, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon joined forces to compete for a US Navy contract that will upgrade the fleet's capability to electronically attack anti-ship missiles.

Through its Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program (SEWIP) Block 3 upgrade, the Navy seeks to cost effectively enhance the electronic attack capability of its AN/SLQ-32 V(3) and V(4) EW systems to counter threat technology advances. All US aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers and other warships use the AN/SLQ-32 EW system.

Staying with EW, the team of ITT Exelis and Boeing has successfully successfully demonstrated multiple critical technology elements, including digital beam-forming, mid band and high band power amplifiers as part of the U.S. Navy Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) program’s technology maturation phase.

The digital beam-forming technology demonstrated recent advancements made in broad band electronically steerable antenna arrays which have come through the use of AESA technology in the radar field. As discussed during the Strategy Analytics webinar, “AESA Radar Trends: Fast-jets and Beyond” AESA technology is starting to extend beyond radar into EW and communications applications and the NGJ program is one example.

Another aspect discussed in “AESA Radar Trends: Fast-jets and Beyond” is the move towards GaN-based technology and NGJ program again affirms our prediction that GaN technology will become a pivotal technology for future generations of radar, communications and EW systems.

Other developments in the first month of January 2012 included Harris Corporation reporting several communications contracts. In the weapons area, MBDA was awarded the FLAADS Demonstration Phase Contract by the UK Ministry of Defence to develop the SEA CEPTOR naval air defence system. Finally, in radar applications, Raytheon received additional contracts for maintenance of the COBRA DANE radar facility while Elta Systems anticipates the first sale of its developmental system as Airbus Military completed initial flight test activities on an AEW&C derivative of its C-295 medium transport.

To read more about defense industry events in January, see Defense Electronics Industry Review: January 2012 which covers defense industry news for the month of January, covering radar, electronic warfare, weapons systems and communications. The report also looks at microwave, optoelectronic and other components discussing business event, product announcments, milestones and contract activity.

Despite the uncertainties as budget cuts loom over the industry, there was continued activity across all areas including contracts, business transactions and technology development in the closing month of 2011.

On the business front, there were also a number of business acquisitions in December with Raytheon acquiring two companies to further extend Raytheon's capabilities to defend against sophisticated cybersecurity threats facing customers in the intelligence community, DoD and commercial organizations. General Dynamics sold its holdings in UAS Dynamics to partner Elbit Systems of America while also completing its acquisition of Force Protection. Back in Europe, a MoU was signed between Cassidian and Alenia Aeronautica to jointly investigate the potential cooperation in the field of MALE UAS and UCAV platforms. Safran and Thales signed a preliminary agreement to form a joint venture to develop and market new electro-optical equipment for the defense market, and Thales also acquired US-based Tampa Microwave to complement Thales’s existing product portfolio and expand its capabilities in the wideband SATCOM domain.

Contract activity remained robust with Lockheed Martin involved in the Aegis program and for the continued contractor engineering technical support (CETS) services in support of the Egyptian AN/TPS-59(V)3E and M34 radar sets. Raytheon booked $320 million in new contract awards related to its AESA radar programs for domestic and international customers while the Missile Defense Agency awarded Raytheon a contract to provide two AN/TPY-2 radars to the U.S. Army as the radar component to the THAAD missile defense system. Raytheon also announced $50 million worth of contract bookings related to its electronic warfare business and was also prolific in the weapons sector with contracts for the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA as well as multimillion-dollar contracts for the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) and contract awards the Phalanx, SeaRAM and Land-based Phalanx weapons systems as well as the NATO SEASPARROW surface missile systems.

In the area of communications and navigation, Northrop Grumman announced a follow-on contract by the U.S. Navy to provide integration and laboratory test support for the LN-251 embedded GPS/fiber-optic inertial navigation system on the new CH-53K Super Stallion helicopter and is also working with ITT Exelis to compete for the U.S. Army's new vehicle-mounted, software-defined radio, the Mid-Tier Networking Vehicular Radio (MNVR), which replaces the cancelled Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) Ground Mobile Radio. Meanwhile, Rockwell Collins received an order for more than 20,000 additional Defense Advanced GPS Receiver (DAGR) units for use by the U.S. Armed Services and Allies, while BAE Systems has received a contract to design, install and test onboard radio communications and network capability for the U.S. Navy’s new DDG 113 and DDG 114 destroyers.

On the technology development front, Cassidian introduced the Spexer 2000 Coastal which uses AESA radar technology to provide a multi-tasking and multi-mode capability for wide-area protection of coastlines, maritime infrastructure and harbors against asymmetric threats. Both Raytheon and the ITT Exelis and Boeing Team completed wind tunnel tests for their respective offerings for the Next Generation Jammer, while Lockheed Martin launched a Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System Plus (GMLRS+) rocket in a test at White Sands Missile Range, NM. Finally, Northrop Grumman & TriQuint are collaborating on a DARPA contract through the Microscale Power Conversion program. Northrop Grumman will conduct research on high-efficiency transmitters with GaN Class E power amplifiers in conjunction with RF wideband contour modulation and sub-banded switching supply modulation. The objective of the program is to develop innovative RF power amplifier designs that incorporate supply modulation and control enabled by novel power switch technology. TriQuint Semiconductor will work on GaN and related process technologies.

The latest ADS monthly review includes coverage of European Microwave Week in Manchester, UK where TriQuint launched a family of reflective GaN-based SPDT (single pole double throw) switches. Operating at 10-40 W over 6-18 GHz, the switches allow designers of defense, aerospace or high-performance commercial systems to use much smaller semiconductor devices in many applications where the only alternative previously option was to use larger, heavier electromechanical devices.

Scalability is another feature often talked about when discussing AESA radar capabilities, and where the STARlite demonstrates lightweight, small sized solutions, the other end of the scale is amply demonstrated by Raytheon’s involvement in the Cobra Judy Replacement program Raytheon has completed the shipboard installation of the Cobra Judy Replacement program's X- and S-band antennas onto the USNS Howard O. Lorenzen. These massive active phased-array antennas weigh more than 500,000 pounds and comprise an estimated 20,000 T/R modules. Northrop Grumman also demonstrated the AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) system to senior Department of Defense leaders at the Pentagon as well as the Highly Adaptable Multi-Mission Radar (HAMMR), which is a derivative of the Defense Department's Ground Based Fighter Radar (GBFR).

BAE Systems was involved in multiple activity on the EW front including an announcement that the company will begin full-rate production of the U.S. Navy AN/ALE-55 fiber-optic towed decoy, an RF airborne countermeasure designed to protect the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet from radar-guided missiles. Meanwhile, Italian electronics specialist ELT Elettronica has developed a dedicated command-and-control (C2) system that improves EW capabilities in a network-centric environment and simultaneously resists cyberattacks. The Loki ELT/950 NSM (networked system manager) coordinates and exploits passive and active networked sensors and continuously checks network security.

In the area of smart weapons, Northrop Grumman will provide personnel for expanded operations of Counter-Rocket, Artillery and Mortar (C-RAM) sense-and-warn systems in Afghanistan and Iraq, while ATK has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Navy for a third lot of LRIP Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missiles (AARGM). Meanwhile, the French air force and Naval aviation began operational deployment of the infrared terminal guidance version (SBU-64) of the Hammer IR AASM modular air-to-ground weapon. Developed and produced by Sagem (Safran group), the Hammer AASM is a family of air-to-ground weapons, comprising a guidance kit with an infrared imager in the nose cone, along with the standard hybrid GPS / inertial guidance systems.

Harris led the field in terms of announcements for the communications sector, with the company’s Falcon III AN/PRC-117G radios being selected both by US and international customers. Meanwhile, Boeing announced that it has successfully demonstrated high-data-rate transmissions between a FAB-T system and a test terminal for the AEHF satellite. This was one in a series of development tests that are demonstrating extended data rate voice, text and data communication with a FAB-T unit.

Meet Strategy Analytics at EUROPEAN MICROWAVE WEEK 2011

We'll be there from Monday 10th - Wednesday 12th October

European Microwave Week is here again and this year Strategy Analytics has three days covered.

On Monday and Tuesday you have opportunities to meet with Asif Anwar* or Steve Entwistle** when the subject for discussion is entirely open for your choice ranging perhaps from questions of alternative strategies facing your company to the prospects for technologies and products emerging at this year's event. Arrange Meeting

On Wednesday you are invited to register for The 2011 Defence and Security Forum*** at which Asif Anwar will be presenting his paper "The Impact of Budget Constraints on Future Defense Technology Investment" during the 12:30 'Lunch & Learn" session.  Asif will ask you to consider his assertion that ... despite current global economics ...

"... the desire for technology differentiation will lead to continued opportunities in emerging electronic platforms supplemented by a focus on upgrading existing capabilities." 

We therefore invite you to click here to arrange meetings and/or register for The 2011 Defence and Security Forum.

*** Organised by Microwave Journal and the EuMA

* Asif Anwar is Director of Strategy Analytics' Advanced Defense Systems service

** Steve Entwistle is Vice President of Strategy Analytics' Strategic Technologies practice.

Steve Entwistle