Aerostats for Poland. TCOM last week said it has received an Army contract worth over $600 million to provide the Polish armed forces its aerostat systems for airspace and surface reconnaissance. The Foreign Military Sale is through the Army’s Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Command and Control, and Counter Command and Control. Maryland-based TCOM said its platform is equipped with open architecture active electronically scanned array radar and electronic warfare capabilities for persistent, early warning and long-range tracking integrated into existing command-and-control systems. The contract was finalized after the Government Accountability Office rejected a protest by QinetiQ, Inc., challenging the award.
Collaborative Autonomous Logistics. Havoc, a developer of all-domain collaborative autonomy solutions, and Rune Technologies, a developer of artificial intelligence-enabled software for managing, tracking and predicting logistics across all echelons, are integrating their platforms to provide collaborative autonomous sustainment solutions. Havoc, on its drones, has integrated Rune’s TyrOS mission command platform, successfully demonstrating an end-to-end autonomous resupply mission last month in a live setting during xTech Overwatch’s Pegasus Charge III exercise in August at Fort Hood, Texas. “The joint capability integrates advanced distribution management with collaborative autonomy to synchronize autonomous platforms across domains, optimize supply routing in contested and denied environments, and reduce the cognitive burden on human operators to free them up to focus on the mission,” the companies said last week.
Honeywell Pays Up. Honeywell Aerospace has agreed to pay $2 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act that it failed to comply with cybersecurity requirements related to a Defense Department contract, the Justice Department said last week. Between April 2020 and December 2023, a Honeywell International Inc. business unit allegedly “submitted false claims for payment by failing to comply” with contractual and regulatory cybersecurity requirements specified in a National Institute of Standards and Technology” related to one of the company’s networks, the department said.
New Training Round. Lockheed Martin has said it conducted a second successful test of its new Joint Reduced Range Rocket (JR3), firing the training round from a HIMARS launcher during a demonstration at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. The JR3 is intended as a replacement for the current Reduced Range Practice Rocket, and the company said the recent test involved launching multiple rounds “demonstrating range, trajectory, accuracy and marking payload effects.” “The new all-up round and 24-rocket launch pod supports launcher crews training in different environmental conditions, enabling high-volume live fires,” Lockheed Martin said in a statement. “Built on mature rocket motor technology, our modular solution has a low-cost motor and adaptable payload for cost-effective, repeatable training cycles.” Another flight test is planned for later in 2026, according to Lockheed Martin.
Drone JV. Auterion and Ukraine’s Airlogix, which formed a joint venture earlier this year, have begun serial production of strike drones in Germany under a contract from the German government. The JV will deliver the Seth X medium-range strike system, and Anubis, a heavy strike system. Auterion is based in Arlington, Va., and has operations in Germany and Switzerland. The company develops and provides autonomy software and mission control computers for drone operations. Auterion was a winner in the first Gauntlet of the Pentagon’s Drone Dominance Program and is competing in Gauntlet II.
Karman Closes Deal. Karman Space & Defense last week said it completed its $94 million acquisition of United Kingdom-based missile component supplier Walker Precision Engineering, marking the California-based company’s first deal in Europe. Walker is being renamed Karman Space & Defense, Europe. The transaction was first announced in July (Defense Daily, July 20).
Arxis Deals. Arxis last week said it has completed its acquisitions of Schatz Bearing Corporation and StratEdge Corp., which combined are expected to add $40 million in sales in fiscal year 2027. Arxis, a portfolio company of Arcline Investment Management, designs and manufactures proprietary electronic and mechanical components for aerospace and defense, medical technology and specialized industrial markets. Schatz manufactures bearings used in commercial aerospace, defense and space applications requiring precise movement in compact spaces. StratEdge makes hermetic, high-frequency, and high-power ceramic packages for defense and space applications.
C-UAS Laser Use. Servicemembers with Joint Task Force Southern Border last month used the Army’s Multipurpose High Energy Laser system to defeat “three hostile unmanned aircraft systems” deemed a threat to U.S. military and Customs and Border Protection personnel, the Defense Department said in late August. The unmanned aircraft systems were thought to be used by drug cartels. AeroVironment supplies the laser system. The Army last week awarded the company a $465 million contract to produce and deliver dozens of its LOCUST X3 systems over the next few years (Defense Daily, Sept. 2).
Sensing the Indo-Pacific. Vantor last week said the Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific has awarded it a contract to deliver its Maritime Sentry maritime domain awareness solution in support of the Indian navy and regional partners in the Indo-Pacific region. Maritime Sentry identifies, and maintains a custody track of, vessels by applying artificial intelligence-enabled analytics to synthetic aperture radar and electro-optical satellite imagery. NIWC Pacific supports India, Australia and Japan through the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness initiative.
Seasats Order. Seasats on Sept. 4 announced it booked over $24 million in new orders for Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) procurement and Robot-as-s-Service (RaaS) contracts in one month for U.S. national security customers, including the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The company’s work focuses on its Lightfish solar-powered 11 foot-long USV. It noted under these orders some customers are acquiring vessels outright and others have Seasats operate and maintain USVs on their behalf to provide persistent sensor coverage as a service. The company said this amount of bookings in one month marks an “acceleration in the company’s growth” and role as a trusted provider of USVs to the government.
Korean Destroyer Engines. GE Aerospace on Sept. 1 said it will supply 12 LM2500+G4 marine gas turbine engines for six South Korean KDDX next-generation destroyers. The turbines will be integrated into the ships’ full electric propulsion configuration in a way the company said “offers the ships superior operational flexibility and fuel economy, power for future growth, and optimal survivability/redundancy.” The company added it will satisfy the power needs of the first Korean Navy ship fitted with stealth-integrated radar while also armed with anti-aircraft and land-attack missiles. Each of the two engines per ship are also set to be enclosed by GE’s new lightweight composite enclosure that is 5,500 pounds lighter than the previous steel enclosure, being 60 percent quieter and offers 25 to 50°F degrees cooler wall temperatures while having the same footprint. Engine components will be built in Korea by GE Aerospace’s partner Hanwha Aerospace while the composite engine enclosure will be built locally by NRTEC in Busan. The LM2500+G4 engine currently also powers Italian, French, Egyptian, and Moroccan FREMM frigates and was previously selected for the U.S. Navy’s Constellation-class (FFG-62) program as well as to power the DDG(X) Land Based Test Site.
Regent Seaglider Flight. REGENT Craft on Sept. 2 announced its prototype Viceroy seaglider type vessel completed their first human-crewed flight, becoming the largest all-electric wing-in-ground effect craft to fly with people onboard. The test occurred at the company’s headquarters on Narragansett Bay, R.I., where it has a facility in North Kingstown, with a crew of two captains aboard. The Viceroy flew 1,956 feet at a height of 33 feet above water for 30 seconds. The company said this event provides validation of technology and marks the start of the program’s final stage of sea trials. The company aims for this class of vessel to fly at up to 180 mph for up to 180 miles with 12 passengers and two crew.
Super Hornet Engine Support. The Navy on Sept. 1 awarded GE Aerospace a five-year sole source $2.9 billion not-to-exceed/ceiling-price performance-based logistics contract for 17 F414 engine components for the Navy’s F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler aircraft. A spokesperson told Defense Daily that the engine is composed of six modules and five of them break into a further 17 subassemblies that the company is contracted to repair for all Navy Super Hornets and Growlers. This includes material replacement, repair, warehousing, transportation, program management, engineering and field support. The spokesperson added GE Aerospace is separately contracted to provide replacement parts and repairs for engine components beyond the 17 sub assemblies via an F414 Fleet Support contract. The work will be split between Lynn, Mass. (90 percent) and Jacksonville, Fla. (10 percent) with work expected to last through August 2031. Subsequent delivery orders under the contract will be funded via appropriate Navy fiscal year working capital funds. The spokesperson said this award reflects the company’s role in helping sustain F4140powered aircraft across their service life and that the engine has accumulated over five million flight hours while the company has helped sustain the engine fleet for over 20 years. “The engine’s modular architecture supports shipboard maintenance and component interchangeability, and its condition-based maintenance approach maximizes time on wing and availability,” the company said.
PAE IO To VA. Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Industrial Operations (PAE IO) Rear Adm. Todd Weeks on Aug. 20 visited the General Dynamics NASSCO Shipyard in Norfolk, Va., where the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5) was undergoing a Docking Selected Restricted Availability, overseen by Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center. Photos released by the Navy said Weeks also visited BAE Systems’ Norfolk Ship Repair facility in the area. While visiting, Weeks also spoke to crewmembers and staff at the shipyards.
Orca AI Office. Israel’s Orca AI established its first U.S. office at the Virginia Beach International Incubator in Virginia for its American subsidiary, Orca AI Defense. The company is headquartered in London and develops AI-powered maritime navigation technology focused on helping situational awareness, improving navigation and helping prevent collisions. Orca AI said its commercial platform has achieved Technology Readiness Level 9 status and is deployed on over 1,500 commercial vessels around the world. The company said it is also exploring pilot programs and strategic partnerships throughout the Hampton Roads region defense and maritime ecosystem to quicken technology integration.
NGJ-MB Expansion. RTX’s Raytheon on Aug. 27 announced the completion of a 17,000 square-foot expansion at its Forest, Miss., manufacturing facility to make it a hub for production, test and integration of the Next Generation Jammer-Mid Band (NGJ-MB) pods for Navy and Australian fighters alongside other airborne radar programs. Raytheon said the expansion was supported by a $50 million capital investment and they expect to create 100 high-skill jobs by 2028. After the expansion, the Forest site now sits at 445,000 square feet of manufacturing space.
Drone Deal? While Ukraine has signed drone deals with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Latvia, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway, the U.S. agreement with Ukraine in July was a first step–a statement of intent on future drone cooperation. Yet, analysts are looking for a final, possibly multibillion dollar, co-production agreement this month. Aiming to field drones with a maximum unit cost of $5,000, the Pentagon’s $1.1 billion Drone Dominance Program in March picked Ukrainian Defense Drones (UDD), the U.S. arm of Ukrainian drone builder F-Drones, to deliver 2,000 attritable, F10 first person view quadcopters. On July 31, F-Drones said that it had delivered all 2,000 drones to the U.S. military, as the F10 “became the first Ukrainian drone officially approved for export to the United States.” UDD is to invest about $18 million in a drone production plant in Holland, Ohio outside of Toledo, Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) said in June. Kaptur is the second ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee’s defense panel.
KC-135 Repairs. Ground strikes by Iran in the conflict that started Feb. 28 have damaged KC-135 Stratotankers, and the Air Force said on Sept. 1 that expeditionary depot maintenance unit (EDMX) personnel from the 76th Aircraft Battle Damage Repair Team made 206 repairs on three of the planes in three weeks, thus “enabling others to fly back to Tinker AFB, Okla., for comprehensive repairs and programmed depot maintenance.” Under the approach, EDMX patched fixes will become permanent repairs under that scheduled 5-year maintenance cycle. “This was the first wide-scale unit deployment since the aircraft battle damage repair program was revamped in 2006,” according to the 72nd Air Base Wing at Tinker. “In addition to battle damage repair, the EDMX units also specialize in recovering, modifying and repairing aircraft beyond field level expertise. Their skillsets encompass a wide array of proficiency such as program office directed modifications, major depot level structural repairs, belly landings, engine failure destruction, boneyard resurrections or crashed damaged disabled aircraft recovery incidents.”
Artillery Fuzes. The Army on Aug. 31 awarded Action Manufacturing Co. a $712.5 million contract for M739A1 point detonating/delay fuzes for artillery shells. Action Manufacturing was the sole bidder for the work, which includes manufacturing, inspecting, testing and packaging the fixes. Work on the deal is expected to be completed by the end of August 2031.
M1156 Kits. The Army on Sept. 3 also awarded Northrop Grumman an $862.9 million contract for M1156 precision guidance kits. The Northrop Grumman M1156 PGK is used to upgrade 155mm artillery shells with precision-guided capability. Work on the deal is expected to be completed by early September 2031.
Hanwha Visit. Hanwha Aerospace said on Sept. 2 it recently hosted a U.S. Army delegation, led by Army acquisition chief Brent Ingraham, at its defense production site in Changwon, South Korea. “The delegation toured the K9 production line, where K9MH systems are currently in production, and observed automated manufacturing processes such as robotic welding that support Hanwha’s high-volume, high-quality output,” Hanwha said in a statement. “The delegation also observed live mobility demonstrations of the K9MH and K9A1 as well as a demonstration of the Chunmoo multiple rocket launch system, and viewed the company’s broader land systems portfolio.” Hanwha Defense USA’s K9MH was recently selected for the Army’s Mobile Tactical Cannon-Wheeled rapid prototyping program, and the company has established a facility in Opelika, Alabama to support U.S.-based artillery platform work.
Mobile Mortar System. Global Military Products said on Sept. 3 it received a $12.9 million deal from the Army to deliver its Scorpion Light mobile mortar system for integration on Infantry Squad Vehicle-Utility platforms. “Designed to enhance expeditionary indirect fire capabilities, the next-generation Scorpion Light system delivers a highly mobile, digitally enabled mortar platform capable of rapid emplacement, autonomous targeting and precision engagement in support of distributed operations. The integration of advanced fire control architecture significantly accelerates the sensor-to-shooter kill chain, enabling faster target acquisition, digital fire mission processing, and rapid engagement of multiple targets with reduced crew workload and increased survivability,” GMP said in a statement. GMP has previously work with Army units to test the system with units and incorporate soldier feedback into Scorpion Light development, noting that at a Transforming in Contact 2.0 event with the 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment it demonstrated an ability to reduce time on target by over 85 percent.
Drone Unit Briefing. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) has led a bipartisan group of lawmakers, that includes Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) and Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), in requesting a briefing from the Army on the decision to eliminate the work of an experimental drone battalion within the 173rd Airborne Brigade. The lawmakers requested details from the Army by Sept. 21, to include whether this was a decision the service made or was directed by Pentagon leadership. “We have deep concerns that eliminating this specialized drone unit will limit our ability to learn from allies, particularly the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and hinder our efforts to modernize drone warfare at the speed necessary to compete on the modern battlefield. This specialized unit was a prudent response in a moment when the character of warfare is changing faster than a conventional formation’s ability to adapt,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter.
Mobile SCIF Network. The Defense Department has created the Secure Space Network, a system of 50 mobile Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIFs) distributed across the country to improve access to, and allow more vendors to work with the department on, classified projects. “We must make it easier for capable companies to contribute at every level of the mission,” James Mismash, deputy assistant secretary of defense for industrial base growth and director of the Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP), said Sept. 3 in a statement. “Industry has identified access to classified environments as a major barrier, and the Secure Space Network directly addresses that challenge by opening the door to classified work for more companies.” The rapidly deployable SCIFs will be positioned at military installations, OSBP’s regional APEX Accelerators, and other relevant locations.
