Page 76 – Defense Daily

Collins: Missile Defense ‘Magazine Depth Is Going to Be Crucial’

AURORA, Colo.–Iran’s missile and drone attacks against Israel last year and what DoD officials have often stated is a significant Chinese threat have led to Pentagon missile defense officials urging U.S. adaptations to take on daily attack waves.

On Apr. 13 last year, Iran launched 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles, and more than 120 ballistic missiles against the Golan Heights, while on Oct. 1, Iran launched 200 missiles against Israel–attacks which likely included the Fattah hypersonic missile, according to articles at the time.

During the Reagan era, “we set this missile defense system up back in the day against a small number of threats–[that] was what we thought was gonna happen,” U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Heath Collins, the director of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), said on March 5 during a panel at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Warfare Symposium here. “When we tested and designed, we thought a dozen, maybe a couple of dozen [missiles]. The sheer size of the volley–April was the largest volley of ballistic missiles ever seen in the planet until October.”

Missile defense “magazine depth is going to be crucial in the future,” Collins said. “The large volleys that we saw were just small percentages of the overall inventory that Iran could bring to bear, and so we also need to raise our game when it comes to magazine depth. As we start talking Golden Dome…the sheer depth of magazine is a problem–a cost problem, a scale problem–but it’s something we really have to get after, and it’s something that we’ve learned from the Israeli fight.”

On Jan. 27, President Trump signed an executive order for DoD to develop an “Iron Dome for America”–since renamed Golden Dome, a massive, likely multi-billion dollar project that will utilize space-based interceptors.

The executive order calls for DoD to submit “a reference architecture, capabilities-based requirements, and an implementation plan” for Golden Dome by the end of this month.

“Every [military] service has its own command and control system, whether it’s IBCS for the Army, CEC with the Navy, BMC3 or cloud based C2 for the Air Force and then C2BMC [for MDA],” Collins said. “We’ve gotta be able to integrate all those into a seamless weapons system that the commander of NORTHCOM [U.S. Northern Command] can fight.”

Northrop Grumman

[NOC] is the Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) contractor for the Army, RTX [RTX] for the Navy’s Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC), and Lockheed Martin [LMT] for MDA’s command and control, battle management and communications (C2BMC) system.

“Today, we’re very reliant on J-series messages on how we pass data between our players,” Collins said. “It’s how we pass data to the Israelis during the fight, but we’re also working at the fire control level an interface called the Joint Tactical Integrated Fire Control Standard, and we have demonstrated the ability to take sensors from different services and share the radar or the sensor measurement data with another command and control system through the initial instantiation we call the Joint Track Management Capability Bridge. Through that, we’ve tied an F-35 with a ship, and the ship’s been able to shoot off data from an F-35. That’s what’s gonna be at the core of IAMD [integrated air and missile defense].”

“The different target types require different sensors and sensor suites to provide 360 degree sensor coverage of the [United] States,” he said. “Depending on hypersonics, depending on ballistic missiles, we need to get the right sensor mix attached in there. We need the right C2 battle management construct, which does not exist today. We do need to work on that to be able to fight at the peer integrated level, but then we also need effectors.”

The latter could include new interceptors and non-kinetics, such as lasers.

Defense Watch: Sentinel Static Fire, Spartan Mace, Guam Challenges, Maven

Static Fire. The U.S. Air Force said that the service and Northrop Grumman conducted “a full-scale qualification static fire test of the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile [ICBM] stage-one solid rocket motor” on Thursday at Northrop Grumman’s site in Promontory, Utah. The company is building the LGM-35A Sentinel ICBM to replace the Minuteman III ICBM. “This critical milestone further validates the motor’s design and paves the way for the production and deployment of a safe, secure and reliable strategic deterrent,” according to the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center at Kirtland AFB, N.M. “This test confirms the accuracy of digital engineering models and brings the stage-one solid rocket motor closer to achieving full qualification. This achievement follows static fire tests of the second and third stages, showcasing clear momentum in the Sentinel program’s development…The test results are currently being analyzed by a team of experts from the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center and Northrop Grumman.” On Jan. 18 last year, the Air Force said that it notified Congress that Sentinel had breached Nunn-McCurdy guidelines, primarily due to construction design changes. The program has continued, but last summer DoD pulled Sentinel back from the engineering and manufacturing development stage, which the Pentagon had approved for the next generation ICBM in 2020.

…Weapon System Review.

Future nuclear command, control, and communications (NC3) is to share some commonality with other systems developed under the command, control and communications battle management (C3BM) effort of Air Force Maj. Gen. Luke Cropsey, the Air Force program executive officer (PEO) for C3BM, even though NC3 is a separate development under the Air Force PEO for NC3, Scott Hardiman, at Hanscom AFB, Mass. “Very early on, Gen. Cropsey’s team and Mr. Hardiman’s team realized that there needs to be synergies, and we need to have as much commonality as possible,” Air Force Lt. Gen. Andrew Gebara, the service’s deputy chief of staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration, said on March 5. “They routinely talk to each other, and they are not architecting anything that could not, at some point, be connected… Just last week, I believe, Air Force Global Strike Command did a weapon system review of NC3. There were C3BM teammates watching that. That commonality is very important, as we go to that future architecture, based on the threats that we see today.”

Bomber Close Air Support. Two U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortresses and two Italian Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon fighters practiced close air support missions with Italian troops on Friday in the SPARTAN MACE exercise, according to U.S. Air Forces Europe (USAFE). Under the U.S. Air Force Bomber Task Force (BTF) 25-2 deployment, the B-52s, escorted by the Eurofigher Typhoons, “entered an Italian military range near Sardinia Island, where they conducted simulated live bomb drops under the guidance of Italian Joint Terminal Attack Controllers,” USAFE said. “The mission reinforced coordination between air and ground units, refining precision strike capabilities in a complex training environment. The B-52s and aircrew are currently deployed with the 69th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron at RAF Fairford, England, where they are executing operations alongside NATO Allies and partners…SPARTAN MACE marks the tenth operation integrating U.S. B-52s with allied air and ground forces during this BTF 25-2.”

3-D Printed Carrier. HII said on March 4 that it installed the first valve manifold assembly built via additive manufacturing onto a future USS Enterprise (CVN-80) Ford-class aircraft carrier. The company boasted that using certified 3D-printed parts like this could accelerate construction by reducing lead times and improving manufacturing quality of critical components. This specialized assembly allows distribution of a single source of fluid to multiple points on a ship and is installed in a pump room on the carrier. The assembly is about five feet long and 1,000 pounds. HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding worked with DM3D Technology to manufacture the manifold body. HII next plans to install similar manifolds on the future USS Doris Miller (CVN-81)

NSMV V. TOTE Services LLC and Hanwha Phully Shipyard, Inc. marked the keel laying of the fifth and last of the National Security Multi-Mission Vessels (NSMV) on March 5. The NSMV program is designed to provide training for future American mariners and double as supporting humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions. The program was commissioned by the Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (MARAD). The first two NSMVs, the Empire State and Patriot State, have been delivered while the third is scheduled for delivery later this year. The companies boasted the Vessel Construction Manager acquisition model used in the program allowed all five vessels to have had their keels laid in the last 39 months. These vessels include advanced training facilities, fully equipped bridge, and accommodation for up to 600 cadets and 100 faculty.

Secret Guam Challenges. The Government Accountability Office on Feb. 28 published a classified report titled “Missile Defense: DoD Faces Support and Coordination Challenges for the Defense of Guam.” The office website notes this means it was determined it contains classified information so cannot be publicly released, but the listing lets Congress, agencies and the public know it exists.

Seahawks Down Under. The Australian Minister for Defense Industry on Feb. 28 announced the government awarded a $197 million contract to Sikorsky Australia for through-life maintenance of the military’s 23 MH-60R Seahawk helicopters. Pat Conroy, Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery, noted the investment will create 75 “well-paid jobs and support another 200 jobs for locals in Nowra, Australia. The company already employs 200 people at the facility. Conroy noted in a press conference Australia expects another 13 helicopters to be delivered by the end of 2026, which will also be serviced at the facility.

…Future U.S. Support? The ministry also said this funding is helping make Nowra a potential maintenance hub that could be used by the U.S. Navy for repair, overhaul and upgrade support. “This contract also means that if the United States Navy requires maintenance, repair overhaul, and upgrade support for their Sea Hawk helicopters in the Indo‑Pacific we can do that work here if needed,” Conroy said in a press conference. Previously in 2023 the Nowra facility completed the first deep-level maintenance of a U.S. Navy MH-60R.

Navy AI Test. The Navy on March 5 issued a Request for Information/Submissions for respondents hoping to be considered for participation in the DoD’s RAITE 25, a red/blue team test event for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and autonomy technologies on a cyber-physical range. RAITE is meant to provide academia, industry and government a real-time collaborative environment to test AI capabilities in terms of attacks and defenses to find technology gaps. Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (NSWC Crane), issued the RFI in support of the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO). NSWC Crane said this will require the combined effort of industry, academia and government experts “to bring innovative initiatives into the experimentation event to achieve definable specific outcomes.” RAITE began in 2023 and the 2025 event will support scenarios including multimodal data (computer vision, radar, e.g.), cyber-enabled AI networks (such as critical infrastructure), UxV collaboration and environment interaction, and for the first time use Large Language Model Test & Evaluation as a dedicated scenario.

DDG Voice Comms. Leonardo DRS, Inc. on March 6 announced it delivered the first next-generation Integrated Voice Communication Systems (IVCS) for Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. The computer-controlled telephone system provides ship-wide communications. It connects to a ship’s announcing system, shore telephone lines, radio communications and battle sound-powered telephone circuits, the company said.

C-UAS Demo. Allen Control Systems will demonstrate its Bullfrog counter-drone robotic gun system at this year’s Joint Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft System demonstration. Bullfrog is designed to defeat Group 1 and 2, and small Group 3 UAS autonomously using its passive machine vision detection technology integrated into an M240 machine gun turret to target low flying drones. The Texas-based company showcased its technology last August at the Defense Department’s Technology Readiness Experimentation—or T-REX—event at Camp Atterbury, Ind.

Expanding Partnership. Epirus and General Dynamics are looking to integrate the former’s Leonidas high-power microwave system aboard GD’s Tracked Robot 10-ton (TRX) combat vehicle to bring counter-drone and counter-electronic capability to highly mobile ground forces and to help secure borders and critical infrastructures, Andy Lowery, Epirus’s CEO, told Defense Daily last week. The companies have already done the design work for the full-scale integration where the TRX would be able to power Leonidas while driving along at 45 miles per hour in the vanguard of Army forces, “knocking systems offline, knocking down missiles, knocking off things in the front” to allow troops to more safely follow, he said. The companies have already demonstrated Leonidas on GD’s Stryker wheeled combat vehicle, and GD is considered a major investor in Epirus.

Constructive ADAIR Wingman. Top Aces Corp., which operates F-16 aircraft for air combat training, last week announced a proprietary artificial intelligence-powered autonomous constructive wingman for adversary air (ADAIR) training. The AI technology is supplied by Applied Intuition’s EpiSci unit and the constructive wingman was integrated by Coherent Technical Services into Top Aces’ F-16 advanced aggressor fighters. The open architecture Advanced Aggressor Mission System “hands-on throttle and stick interface allows Top Aces’ pilots to direct constructive wingman formations and maneuvers, coordinating them with the company’s F-16s to provide additional beyond visual range targeting challenges for 5th generation fighter pilots,” Top Aces said last week.

Leaving Antarctica. The Coast Guard’s Polar Star heavy icebreaker and crew on March 4 departed the Antarctic region after 65 days south of the Antarctic Circle in support of Operation Deep Freeze, an annual resupply mission to support the National Science Foundation at McMurdo Station. The icebreaker cuts a channel for resupply vessels. The Coast Guard’s lone heavy polar icebreaker departed its Seattle homeport last November and made stops in Honolulu and Sydney, Australia, before sailing to McMurdo Station.

GD Hikes Dividend. General Dynamics’ board last week increased the quarterly dividend nearly 6 percent to $1.50 per share payable May 9. The current dividend is $1.42 per share.

Maven Use Case. Contracting personnel working for a brigade subordinate to the Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command used a simulation of the Maven Smart System tool that uses computer vision to rapidly analyze imagery for potential targets to gain to gain situational awareness for planning contracting support of a warfighter exercise at Fort Bragg, N.C., in January and February, the Army said this month. “Maven provided continuous visual representation of contracted capabilities at the division and corps support area levels across all operational phases, including reception, staging, onward movement and integration, theater opening, theater distribution and theater sustainment, to fully support all aspects of the large-scale combat operations,” Lt. Col. Aditya Khurana, who helped oversee contingency contracting operations, said.

People News. The Senate last Thursday voted 53 to 43 to confirm Troy Edgar as Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. Edgar served during the first Trump administration as chief financial officer and associate deputy under secretary for management at DHS. U.S. Central Command in late February named Joy Shanaberger as its new chief technology officer, replacing Sky Moore, who is in the Navy Reserves and was mobilized to serve overseas. Shanaberger most recently served as a senior adviser in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Finally, Young Bang, who was principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics, and technology during the Biden administration, has been appointed chairman of the newly formed strategic advisory board of Safe Pro Group. Safe Pro develops artificial intelligence solutions focused on drone imagery processing using commercial unmanned aircraft systems to rapidly identify explosive threats.

Defense Modernization Caucus. Reps. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) and Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) will continue leading the bipartisan House Defense Modernization caucus for the 119th Congress, the lawmakers said this week. Wittman and Ryan, who both sit on the Armed Services Committee, said the group aims to “continue their efforts to advance the national security ecosystem through the integration and adoption of emergent technologies.” The two lawmakers launched the caucus last March, stating its goal is to serve as a “a driving force behind key policy and funding initiatives aimed at modernizing the U.S. Department of Defense and strengthening national security.”

Directed Energy. Parsons Corporation said on March 3 it has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center, Readiness Directorate to integrate its ZEUS 4 directed energy system onto the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV). The CRADA builds on Parsons’ previous work integrating the earlier ZEUS 3 capability onto Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles for the Recovery of Airbase Denied by Ordnance (RADBO) program. “Integrating a ZEUS 4 system on a JLTV enhances operational flexibility and mobility for the Air Force. It allows for rapid deployment in diverse mission scenarios while maintaining a lower profile than larger MRAP vehicles. Additionally, the JLTV’s advanced technology and lighter weight facilitate improved power management and better integration of directed energy capabilities, ultimately increasing overall mission effectiveness and adaptability on the battlefield,” Parsons said in a statement.

Social Science Research. The Office of the Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering is canceling its portfolio of social science research efforts “to ensure fiscal responsibility and prioritize mission-critical activities,” the Pentagon said on March 7. The move is expected to discontinue 91 studies and save $30 million in the first year, according to DoD. “This initiative involves focusing resources on technologies essential for maintaining a strong national defense, aligning with the administration’s commitment to efficient government and ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent wisely,” the Pentagon said. “Secretary of Defense Hegseth has emphasized the importance of equipping the American military with the tools and capabilities necessary to deter adversaries and maintain a strong defense. This initiative directly supports that commitment by prioritizing investments in areas like hypersonic weapons development, AI-powered systems for enhanced battlefield awareness, and strengthening the domestic military industrial base.” The Pentagon cited studies focused “on global migration patterns, climate change impacts and social trends” as examples of studies that will be scrapped.

Palantir Delivers Two More TITAN Intel Ground Station Prototypes To Army

Palantir [PLTR] on Friday announced it’s delivering the next two prototypes of the Army’s new intelligence ground station.

The latest update follows the delivery of the initial Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node (TITAN) system last August, with Palantir under contract to provide the Army with 10 total prototypes.

The first Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node (TITAN) prototype. (Photo Credit: US Army)

“TITAN is the Army’s first AI-defined intelligence system, and this delivery marks a new chapter in Palantir’s history bringing next-generation capabilities to America’s warfighters,” Palantir said in a statement.

Palantir beat out RTX [RTX] in early March 2024 to continue developing TITAN, winning a $178.4 million agreement to move forward on the prototyping program and to build the 10 systems for testing (Defense Daily, March 6 2024).

The first prototype arrived at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) in Washington last August, with the Army noting it would go through “rigorous testing and evaluation” (Defense Daily, Aug. 5 2024).

The two new prototypes are configured to a new hardware and software baseline as part of the prototype maturation phase of the program, Palantir told Defense Daily.

“There has been continuous, iterative feedback during this phase to rapidly improve the baseline for both hardware and software,” Palantir said.

The TITAN program is expected to deliver scalable and expeditionary intelligence ground stations capable of providing fused sensor data to weapons systems at the battalion level, with the Army describing the future system as “a crucial component to enable deep sensing and [shortening] the sensor-to-shooter loop.”

Palantir, whose team for TITAN includes Northrop Grumman [NOC], Anduril Industries, L3Harris Technologies [LHX], Pacific Defense, SNC, Strategic Technology Consulting and World Wide Technology, has previously described its TITAN solution as a “ground station that has access to space, high altitude, aerial and terrestrial sensors to provide actionable targeting information for enhanced mission command and long range precision fires.”

The 10 prototypes Palantir will deliver to the Army are split between five Advanced and five Basic variants of the platform.

The Army has previously said the “Advanced” version of TITAN is intended for heavier platforms such as tactical trucks and includes a space direct downlink capability, while the “Basic” model is designed for lighter platforms (Defense Daily, Aug. 31 2022).

The first prototype delivered last August was an Advanced variant, and the latest delivery includes one Advanced and one Basic vehicle, Palantir confirmed to Defense Daily.

The Army last August also released a Request for Information notice detailing a goal to transition the TITAN program into a production phase in fiscal year 2026, which could include awarding a contract worth up to $1.5 billion covering procurement of nearly 100 systems (Defense Daily, Aug. 20 2024).

Rapid Prototyping Key in NC3 Modernization

AURORA, Colo.–Rapid prototyping is key to the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command’s (SSC) approach to the modernization of strategic and tactical communications.

“We really are looking to award prototyping contracts and other contracting authorities to multiple sources to explore that best of breed capability, establish competition within industry, and drive down as much technical risk as we can–ultimately enabling low-risk and low NRE [non-recurring engineering] for those future development activities,” Col. Ryan Rose, SSC’s deputy director of military communications and positioning, navigation and timing, said during a Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3) panel at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Warfare Symposium here.

“ESS [Evolved Strategic SATCOM], Protected Tactical SATCOM-Resilient [PTS-R], MUOS, and Resilient GPS–all those programs are using this acquisition approach,” she said.

Boeing [BA] and

Northrop Grumman [NOC] have received rapid prototyping contracts for ESS, and SSC may choose one of them this year. Boeing and Northrop Grumman have also been in the running for a Space Force cost reimbursement contract that the service had planned to award last December to develop and build two PTS-R satellites (Defense Daily, May 24).

The 1990s-era Lockheed Martin [LMT] Military Strategic and Tactical Relay (MILSTAR) and Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellites, launched between 2010 and 2020, are to provide jam and nuclear-resistant strategic and tactical communications. For NC3 modernization, however, ESS is to replace MILSTAR and AEHF for the nuclear mission, while PTS-R is to replace AEHF for tactical communications.

Space Delta 8 at Schriever Space Force Base, Colo., operates MILSTAR and AEHF.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Andrew Gebara, the service’s deputy chief of staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration, said that NC3 has more than 250 nodes, and the Department of the Air Force controls about 75 percent of NC3, needed to ensure that nuclear forces are able to launch upon orders from the president.

“When you’re talking about the future of NC3…there are the current widgets; there are the replacement widgets for those widgets; and then there’s what I call NC3 Next into the future,” Gebara said during the NC3 panel. “We often think about how fast can we get to that future NC3 modern, completely replaced, fully new ecosystem. It’s not as simple as doing that because of the ‘no fail’ nature of NC3. There are many systems that are ‘bridge’ systems to get us to where we would like to go.”

“We are in the process of architecting out our new NC3 Next system for the future,” he said. “There are several stakeholders involved in that. A huge player is the U.S. STRATCOM [Strategic Command] NC3 Enterprise Center. Because we have 3/4 of the NC3 systems in the Air Force, our PEO [program executive officer] for NC3 is a huge part of that, and then we’re in constant communication with our teammates in the Navy and elsewhere to architect that.”

Air Force Maj. Gen. Ty Neuman, the director of strategic plans, programs, and requirements at Air Force Global Strike Command, suggested during the panel discussion that artificial intelligence will play a role in NC3 Next.

“The [current] architecture is HICS [Hardened Intersite Cable System] cables that are buried under the ground, over the air high frequency waves, SATCOM…and even voice and beyond line of sight capabilities,” he said. “As we think about what’s next for NC3 and what the architecture should look like, we are actually looking at the latest and greatest technology in AI [artificial intelligence]. How do we defend against and manage cyber attacks on our networks? How do we ensure, test, and verify that the comms signal from our decision makers to our shooters…is 100 percent each and every day, as our adversaries are finding ways to attack and disrupt that comms architecture? There’s still a lot of work to be done with that.”

Fiber optic, high-bandwidth cables to replace the Minuteman III’s underground network of the copper wired HICS may allow a halving of the number of ICBM Launch Control Centers from the 45 now assigned to the three ICBM bases.

Gebara said that up until several years ago at least one feature of the old NC3 approach had a distinct benefit over computer-based communications.

“Say what you will about floppy disks, but they weren’t getting hacked,” he said.

DHS Wants To Take Counter-Drone Activities Nationwide

The Department of Homeland Security wants to expand its current research, developing, and operational activities around detecting, monitoring, and defeating threats from small drones across the U.S. to support mission requirements and is seeking feedback on potential environmental impacts of the proposal.

The department currently conducts research, development, testing, and evaluation of counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) technologies in some areas of the country and several of its components have authorities to operate these systems in certain areas such as airports, the nation’s borders, and to protect special events like the Super Bowl and presidential inaugurations. Widescale use of these technologies has not occurred, in part due to limitations on state and local authorities from operating counter-drone systems, and concerns about electronic interference with local infrastructure such as airport radar.

“The Proposed Action includes all elements related to the training, operation, maintenance, and use of C-UAS, including mitigation,” DHS said March 7 in a notice published in the Federal Register. “This would allow DHS to continue its current testing of C-UAS while also enabling DHS and its Components to use C-UAS in an operational setting to support mission requirements.”

Brandon Youngblood, a former Federal Aviation Administration official that led the agency’s C-UAS integration efforts, told Defense Daily that DHS is likely evaluating whether National Environmental Policy Act “considerations need to be assessed for the deployment of C-UAS technology at the national level,” adding that it could specific to radio frequency technology.

Counter-drone systems using RF-based sensors and effectors that could interfere with nearby electronic systems has been a concern limiting deployment of non-kinetic mitigation solutions.

The notice said current use of C-UAS by DHS is either ground- or vehicle-mounted.

Feedback from all interested parties will help DHS scope the environmental assessment, the department said, adding that law and other entities with “special expertise” regarding related environmental issues are invited to cooperate in preparing the assessment.

The comment period expires on April 7.

DARPA Launches Prototype USV Designed For Zero Sailors

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recently announced its No Manning Required Ship (NOMARS) program launched the first prototype unmanned surface vessel (USV) designed with no crew accommodations, USX-1 Defiant.

DARPA noted the NOMAS program “has built a ship designed to operate autonomously for long durations at sea,” according to a Tuesday DARPA statement. Construction of the Defiant was completed in February.

In 2022, DARPA chose Serco Inc. to build this NOMARS prototype. At the time, the vessel was expected to sail on a three-month test demonstration period (Defense Daily, Aug. 22, 2022).

DARPA now clarified the USV is 180 feet long and 240-metric-tons and is set to undergo “extensive in-water testing” dockside and at sea. It is scheduled to start its months-long demonstration at sea this spring.

The NOMARS program aims to demonstrate the reliability and feasibility of using a USV to operate autonomously for long missions at sea while expecting zero manning, even during replenishment operations. Other Navy USV test vehicles, like the Ghost Fleet Overlord vessels, are converted for unmanned operations. The Overlord USV can accommodate a small crew to override autonomy and monitor systems.

In December, DARPA noted it and the Navy successfully conducted the first test of a NOMARS program at-sea refueling with the experimental Overlord USVs Ranger and Mariner. In that event, one vessel had a receiving station representative of the system on Defiant while the other vessels carried a refueling mini-station custom-designed by Serco to send fuel (Defense Daily, Jan. 3).

At the time officials underscored no personnel aboard the receiving vessels were involved in operations. Defiant is due to test this refueling operation itself during the upcoming sea trials period in the spring.

DARPA’s latest announcement reiterated NOMARS uses a clean sheet design to challenge the traditional naval architectural models, “designing a seaframe (the ship without mission systems) from the ground up with no provision, allowance, or expectation for humans on board.”

“By removing the human element from all ship design considerations, the program intends to demonstrate significant advantages, to include: size, cost, at-sea reliability, greater hydrodynamic efficiency, survivability to sea-state, and survivability to adversary actions through stealth considerations and tampering resistance,” the agency statement continued

DARPA also argued that, depending on testing, scaled production of this vessel could efficiently and cost-effectively deliver a distributed USV fleet beyond the current Navy USV development efforts.

Runway Size, Long-Range Fuel Delivery, and Signature Considered by USAF in NGAS AoA

AURORA, Colo.–As the U.S. Air Force finishes an Analysis of Alternatives for the Next Generation Air Refueling System (NGAS)–a possibly stealthy tanker to replace the Boeing [BA] KC-135, the service is considering runway size, fuel carriage for long-range missions, and the need for tanker stealth.

“On the air refueling side of the house, we’ve done a lot of work on Analysis of Alternatives for NGAS,” Gen. John Lamontagne, the head of Air Mobility Command, told a panel on Wednesday at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Warfare Symposium here. “That work–most of that–has been submitted to OSD. We’re following up with a couple finishing touches over the next month or two. It effectively looks at sort of the tradeoffs between how big does the runway need to be, how much fuel can you deliver at range, and signature management for how far when you go forward into the threat environment—and the tradeoffs across those three.”

Former Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter said in December that the service has been doing the

NGAS AoA in tandem with its analysis of the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program (Defense Daily, Dec. 10, 2024).

The Air Force paused a decision on manned NGAD in early December to let the incoming Trump administration have its say on the program’s future.

Former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said in January that the manned NGAD would require more than $20 billion extra in research and development (Defense Daily, Jan. 13).

Army Approves Collins Aerospace’s MAPS Gen II For Full-Rate Production

The Army has approved moving the newest version of the Mounted Assured Positioning Navigation Timing System (MAPS) capability, built by Collins Aerospace [RTX], into full-rate production.

The update coincides with continuing to field the MAPS GEN II anti-spoofing and anti-jamming capability and nearing an initial operational capability milestone, with Collins Aerospace confirming to Defense Daily it has delivered more than a thousand units to the Army so far.

MAPS Gen. II. Photo: Collins Aerospace.

“Through close coordination with our customer, we’ve met the modernized fielding requirements for MAPS while reducing production costs,” Sandy Brown, Collins Aerospace’s vice president and general manager for resilient navigation solutions, said in a statement. “MAPS GEN II is a critical part of the DoD’s modernization goals and will provide the warfighter with trusted access to Assured PNT when they need it most.”

The Army in September 2022 awarded Collins Aerospace a five-year, potential $583 million deal to deliver the new MAPS GEN II capability, and placed an initial $68.6 million delivery order (Defense Daily, Sept. 9 2022).

Last August, Army awarded its fourth MAPS GEN II order to Collins Aerospace covering 1,212 devices for Army units, 400 systems for the Marine Corps and another 29 for “client and platform integration” on Army watercraft, according to the service’s Project Manager for Positioning, Navigation and Timing (Defense Daily, Aug. 9 2024(.

Collins Aerospace also provided the first generation of MAPS technology, which was equipped on over 60 Stryker vehicles in Europe, before receiving a deal in October 2020 to begin developing the next iteration of the technology.

The Army has previously described MAPS as an anti-jamming capability designed to allow soldiers to continue operating seamlessly in GPS-contested environments, as well as “allowing multiple users to access an assured GPS signal, and other sources of PNT, from one central point.”

MAPS Gen II capabilities are set to be integrated on Abrams tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, Paladin self-propelled howitzers, Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, Humvees and new platforms such as Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles, Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense systems and the Indirect Fire Protection Capability, according to the Army.

“It gives U.S. Army forces the ability to move, shoot and communicate, and distributes PNT data to multiple clients on a single platform, eliminating redundant GPS receivers and antennas,” the Army said in a statement announcing the full-rate production decision.

Collins Aerospace noted its MAPS Gen II solution consists of its NavHub-100 navigation system and Multi-Sensor Antenna System-100, which it said “supports multiple mission sets including combat, artillery fires, air and missile defense, ship-to-shore and contested logistics.”

U.K. Administered Fund For Ukraine Contracts With Anduril For Loitering Munitions

The United Kingdom Ministry of Defence on said an international fund it manages to provide military equipment to Ukraine will acquire nearly $39 million in loitering munitions from Anduril Industries.

The contract is with Anduril’s U.K. office and includes Altius 600M and 700M suicide drones that are tube-launched from ground, air, and sea-based modes. The MoD said that the “attack drones” will “tackle Russian aggression in the Black Sea.”

Ukrainian forces have previously used kamikaze drones launched from unmanned surface vessels in the Black Sea to strike Russian land-based air defenses.

The new loitering munitions and related launchers and spare parts will be delivered to Ukraine during the coming months, the MoD said.

The International Fund for Ukraine is administered by the MoD and is overseen by an executive panel that includes representatives of five European countries and the U.K., and takes contributions from international partners to rapidly acquire priority military systems for Ukraine.

Altius 600M weighs up to 27 pounds and has an endurance over four hours. The 700M weighs up to 65 pounds, can carry warheads as heavy as 33 pounds, and can stay aloft for more than two hours, Anduril says on its website. The systems also have autonomy capabilities and modular payloads.

Britain’s Defence Secretary John Healy visited Anduril’s offices in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. Healey also met with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday.

National Security Space Association Pushes for Doubling of Space Force Budget by FY 2030

The National Security Space Association (NSSA) believes that the U.S. Space Force (USSF) budget should more than double from the $29.4 billion requested in fiscal 2025 to $60 billion by fiscal 2030.

In a new paper, NSSA said that Space Force should devote the increase to all mission areas and the Trump administration’s Golden Dome missile defense effort.

“To deter or, if necessary, win a conflict that begins in or extends to outer space, the president and Congress should dramatically increase the USSF and USSPACECOM [U.S. Space Command] budgets across the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-2030 Future Years Defense Program (FYDP) while concurrently requiring greatly improved efficiency and effectiveness in the stewardship of scarce national resources,” the paper said. “This includes increasing the USSF’s budget from roughly $30 to $60 billion per year, in a stair-step manner. Wise investment of these funds will unleash the power of the U.S. space industrial and technology bases.”

“Moreover, it will facilitate the application of billions of additional dollars of private capital already driving the growth of the U.S. commercial space industry responsible for some of the greatest technological advancements since the Apollo landings on the Moon,” NSSA said.

Such a budget increase for USSF is not out of the question, given the elevation of the world’s richest man and SpaceX founder Elon Musk to President Trump’s inner circle, the creation of USSF during Trump’s first term, and the statements by defense officials on the space threats posed by China.

For example, at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Warfare Symposium in Aurora, Colo., on Tuesday, Brig. Gen. Anthony Mastalir, the head of U.S. Space Forces-Indo Pacific, said that the 100 or so personnel he has now are an insufficient number.

“When we’ve done all of the mission analysis, now about 10,000 hours…you’re looking at a headquarters size of somewhere between 400 and 500,” he said. “That doesn’t get us to 24/7 [operations]…I’m talking steady state operations.”

“When you think about some of the critical missions we’ve moved to space– space-based MTI [moving target indication], PWSA [Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture], Link 16 from space–none of these are gonna be ubiquitous at the onset,” Mastalir said. “We’re gonna need Guardians tasking these systems and understanding what the priorities and objectives are at the combatant command level and being able to integrate those with the global provider.”

The NSSA report said that, while the Space Force was “born ‘lean,'” it must transition to a larger, “warfighting” military service.

“I would venture to say that most joint warfighters don’t truly understand all of the space dependencies, for example, to achieve a PK [probability of kill] on an LRASM [Long Range Anti-Ship Missile],” Mastalir said on Tuesday. “So when you see an environment in the space domain that’s degrading because the adversary is taking shots at you, and now you no longer have the blue space at 100 percent, you have to be able to model that degradation and report back to those other commanders and say, ‘Hey, your JASSM, your LRASM, it may close, but not during these hours so when you go back to your planning cell, and we’re planning that strike, we need to shift it, if you want the PK to close on that particular target. If the space component doesn’t bring that to the joint force, who’s gonna bring that?”

“That’s something that the Guardians have to get after, and I’ve been working a lot with a number of different organizations that are currently building those models, but we have to get them into the theater so that the warfighters have access to that data,” Mastalir said.

Lockheed Martin [LMT] builds the AGM-154A JASSM and AGM-154C LRASM cruise missiles.