The defence industry briefing
The news, views and numbers you need to know about this month
News in numbers
£7bn
Expected shortfall in the UK's defence spending over the next ten years
13%
Growth of US arms exports in 2018, to a total of $192.3bn
$5.7bn
Italy's spending on defence procurement in 2018
$700bn
Expected FY20 defencebudget submission from the Pentagon
$22.1bn
Pentagon's FY18 budget for classified intelligence programmes
£1bn
Spending boost given to the UK MoD for 2018 and 2019 in the latest budget
7,000
Number of troops the US DoD is sending to the Mexican border
Quotes from the industry
“If we don’t all dogpile on this thing, were going to find ourselves behind in this great power competition in a very important space.”
Chief of Naval Research, Rear Admiral David Hahn, on artificial intelligence in defence.
"It is not moving fast enough. Of course, there is always an element of how fast you can get financing, building the brigades, building the roads. It’s a lot of work, but we need to be ambitious and we need to be very clear, in a military context.”
Lieutenant General Jan Broeks, director general of NATO's International Military Staff, urges European nations to resolve logistical issues to allow for more efficient movement of forces between countries.
"The announcement in the budget of an extra £1bn for defence doesn’t deal with the gap in the MoD’s budget. With the ongoing financial pressures, the MoD need to be clear about what equipment they will or will not be funding.”"
Meg Hillier, the chair of the UK public accounts committee, on the additional funding for the MoD announced in the 2018 Budget.
"We will bring every tool to bear against them in every corner of cyberspace.”
Howard Marshall of the FBI’s cyber division on a joint US and UK response to alleged Russian cyber attacks.
Around the world
China has announced a roadmap for building a stronger modern air force by 2035. The first step of the three-step plan envisions the creation of a strategic force that integrates aviation and space power, and strike and defense capabilities, as well as the integration of fourth-generation equipment by 2020.
Source: xinhuanet
The US DARPA has issued an urgent request for innovative proposals in counter-hypersonics. The Glide Breaker project will "develop an enabling technology critical for an advanced interceptor capable of defeating hypersonic vehicles", according to the agency. The deadline for proposals is 21 December.
Source: www.defense-aerospace.com
Germany has approved a funding boost of €5.7bn for major weapons programmes, including the procurement of up to 60 new heavy-lift helicopter from either Lockheed Martin or Boeing. The revised budget plan adds €326.5m to the 2019 military budget, which now stands at €43.2bn.
Source: Reuters
Dassault has withdrawn from the Canadian fighter jet competition citing concerns that interoperability and intelligence sharing requirements were too extensive. Dassault was planning to put forward its Rafale fighter jet for the project. The company's withdrawal leaves the F-35, the Eurofighter Typhoon, the Saab Gripen and the Boeing Super Hornet in the race.
Source: DefenseNews
NATO members including European nations and Canada have pushed back against accusations from US President Trump that they don't spend enough on defence. Sharing the burden of defence costs is expected to be a key topic at the NATO summit this week.
Source: Bloomberg
The Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) has invited Airbus to tender as the prime contractor for the European medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) UAV. The MALE programme is currently in the final stages of a definition study launched in September 2016.
Source: OCCAR
Share
Share this article
