Issue 9 Jan 2009.indd - Ministry of Defence

4 news
NEWSREEL
Building work
is on the up
PILING work at the site
of the new building
– Neighbourhood Five
– at DE&S headquarters
at Abbey Wood has been
completed ahead of
schedule. Preparation
of the site for the next
stage is beginning,
including removing
waste to be broken
down for hardcore at
another construction
site. Foundations are
set to be constructed in
the New Year including
the concrete slab
as base of the new
building.
UORs top £1bn
THE latest estimate
for Urgent Operational
Requirement spending
for 2008-09 is around
£1 billion. This falls
comfortably within
spending predicted in
autumn 2007, according
to Minister for Defence
Equipment and Support
Quentin Davies.
Typhoon fl ies in
FIFTY ONE Typhoon
aircraft had been
delivered to the RAF by
the end of last October,
according to fi gures
released to Parliament.
Forty-nine of them have
entered operational
service, 34 in the
forward fl eet available
to front line commands
for operational and
training. By that date
the fl eet had fl own
24,236 hours.
TriStars work on
THE RAF’s fl eet of
TriStars, currently
providing the airbridge
between the UK and the
Gulf region, is expected
to complete up to 11,560
fl ying hours for each
of the next six years
before the aircraft’s
out of service date
in 2014-15. The VC10
fl eet completed 9,940
from October 2007 to
September 2008 and is
expected to complete
9,260 in each of the next
three years, reducing
then to an out of service
date of 2014.
RAF takes on ASTOR
Sentinel aircraft will carry the
new all-weather capability
THE STATE-OF-THE-ART
Airborne Stand-Off Radar
(ASTOR) ground surveillance
system – which can spot ground
targets from more than seven
miles up – has been accepted
into service by the RAF.
The new £860 million system
reached its in-service date on
19 November and will provide
a new all-weather intelligence,
surveillance, target acquisition
and reconnaissance capability
from the Sentinel R1 aircraft.
ASTOR has been described
as ‘a unique and technologically
advanced capability’ by Quentin
Davies, Minister for Defence
Equipment and Support. A crew
of five on the aircraft will be able
to detect and recognise moving,
static and fixed targets at standoff
range.
Information is transmitted in
near-real time to commanders
on the ground, enabling rapid
tactical planning and efficient
cueing of other sensor and
attacks systems such as the
Reaper unmanned aerial
vehicle.
Bill Chrispin, leader of DE&S’
ASTOR IPT, said acceptance
into service with the RAF was
the initial stage in the roll-out
of an entirely new capability
for the UK Armed Forces. Full
operating capability is expected
within two years.
“Only through a strong
working relationship between
the MOD and the prime
contractor, Raytheon Systems,
has ASTOR matured into what
we see today,” he said.
“No 5 Squadron at RAF
Waddington has risen to
the doctrinal and training
challenges of this dynamic
platform, and is now well set to
face the future challenges.”
James Klein, vice president
Left: a Sentinel
R1 aircraft during
trials over the
Mojave desert
Below: the clarity
of ASTOR imagery
will be vital to
commanders on
the ground
of Raytheon’s Mission Systems
Integration business added:
“We are confident ASTOR will
be a critical asset, providing
the actionable intelligence
necessary to help protect British
and coalition forces worldwide.
“Raytheon is excited to see
ASTOR enter service. This
world-class capability is the
product of great teamwork with
the MOD, 5 Squadron, and our
industry partners.”
Other companies involved
in the project include L3
Com IS (system integration
and design authority), Lucas
Aerospace (electrical systems),
Messier Dowty (landing
gear), AgustaWestland
(doors), Marshalls (tactical
and operational level ground
stations), BAE Systems (defensive
aids), Selex (radar components),
and Rolls-Royce Deutschland
(BR710 engines).
MOD praised for agile response to new threats
THE MOD continues to respond well and adapt
to emerging threats to get the right kit to troops
as quickly as possible.
“When it comes to delivery of equipment
for our forces we should never be complacent,”
said Quentin Davies, Minister for Defence
Equipment and Support. “We always look to
make improvements and build on the progress
we have made.”
Mr Davies was replying to the National Audit
Office report on December 18 on major projects
in 2007-08, which looked at 20 out of 350 projects
worth more than £65 billion.
“We continuously adapt to emerging threats,
something the report acknowledges, procuring
new equipment for urgent operational use in
Iraq and Afghanistan,” he said.
The report acknowledges cost growth and
time delays in projects that pre-date reforms to
defence acquisition are not a complete reflection
of progress being made.
The National Audit Office added it recognises
the complexity of defence acquisition and rapidly
changing operational environments that defence
procurement operates in. The MOD said it was
good the report acknowledged decisions MOD
had taken in the light of changing priorities.
� Equipment successes in 2008: Page 13.