Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

News, views and contacts from the global Army industry

Weekly Round Up 31 October 2014

Digital Magazine Replacing an Icon The era of the Humvee is coming to an end as the US Army plans to replace it with a vehicle better suited for today's combat situations. Grant Turnbull reviews the rise and fall of a military icon. > Get the app. > Click here to read the full article. Latest Companies Vitavox - Military Loudspeakers, Microphone Communications Systems and Handsets TATRA TRUCKS - Heavy-Duty Hi-Mobile Vehicles for Military and Peacekeeping Operations SurCom - Advanced C4ISR Surveillance Communications and Intel Products for Defence and Security Milan Box Corporation - Ammunition Container Boxes ELSIS - Military Power Supplies, Chargers, Inverters and Converters  Defence Technology forum on LinkedIn Join our Defence Technology forum on LinkedIn  NRI digital has launched a LinkedIn group to unite professionals involved in the defence and aerospace industry for the opportunity to network and discuss today's most important technologies and issues. Click here if you have a story to tell, a topic to discuss or just want to build contacts. Press Releases EID at INDODEFENCE 2014 EID will once again participate in the 2014 edition of INDODEFENCE, the International Tri-Service Defence Expo & Forum, that will take place in Jakarta, Indonesia, from 5 - 8 November 2014. EID to attend Expodefensa IV  EID will participate in Expodefensa IV, Feria Internacional de Defensa y Seguridad, that will take place in Bogotá, Colombia, from 29 - 31 October 2014. Oxley Win Prestigious 'Exporter of the Year' Award Oxley Group was the proud winner of the Exporter of the Year award at the recent CN Group Business Awards. Presentation of New Hybrid Product by IDE at the International Exhibition of Land Systems AUSA 2014  INTRACOM Defense Electronics (IDE) participated in the international exhibition AUSA 2014, one of the largest exhibitions in the world specialising in land systems, held in Washington DC, US from 13 - 15 October, 2014. Steatite Awarded Wave Relay® Reseller of the Year 2014 Steatite is celebrating its first year as an Authorised Reseller of the Wave Relay® suite of products after being awarded Reseller of the Year 2014 by Persistent Systems at the recent Partner Conference in New York. White Papers The Oerlikon Skyshield® Air Defence System – Countering the Threat From Above In contemporary conflicts, where the threat is often asymmetric, attacks can come at any time and any place - especially from... Caracal Light Ammunition (CLA) Product Range Caracal Light Ammunition (CLA) produces a range of diversified calibers and variants of small arms ammunition (SAA) for both military and special... Rugged Tablet PCs Suited to Australian Conditions Australia has a reputation for being a rugged environment, and the equipment needed to work in its remote locations and challenging conditions needs to be just as... STIM300 Inertia Measurement Unit STIM300 is an IMU consisting of three high-accuracy MEMS-based gyros, three high-stability accelerometers and three high-stability inclinometers in a miniature... What Makes Our Boot Better? Technical performance - this is more than just a tagline to us. It is our most important core... Features Straining 'hearts and minds' – the problem with private militaries Governments often recruit private military and security companies to bolster regular troops and support services, and they were used extensively in Iraq and Afghanistan. While considered a cost-saving measure in times of defence cuts, their use and accountability raises ethical questions and strains 'hearts and minds' relations, as occurred in the 2007 Blackwater Baghdad shootings. Latest In Defence – Digital training ranges and the Sikorsky S-97 Raider In this edition of Latest In Defence, Lockheed Martin develops a new type of live-fire training range; Sikorsky releases a simulation of how its futuristic S-97 Raider multi-mission helicopter could operate; and BAE Systems builds a new, improved – and bigger – version of its River class offshore patrol vessels for the Royal Navy. British Army and Bloodhound project set sights on 1,000mph speed record Next year, a team of British engineers led by Richard Noble aim to break the current land speed record with a jet and rocket-powered car called Bloodhound SSC. The team could smash the current record of 763mph, set in 1997, with a blistering 1,000mph run in South Africa. In a unique partnership, the British Army has joined with the Bloodhound project to make this dream a reality. The Putin effect – increasing armoured vehicle lethality with anti-tank missiles Russia's annexation of Crimea and the withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan has seen military planners are reassess their approach to future land warfare. Instead of fighting insurgents, western armies could soon come up against tanks or well-organised foot soldiers. It's for this reason – dubbed 'the Putin effect' by some – that several countries are looking to boost the lethality of their armoured vehicles to properly reflect these shifting strategic priorities. Ultra-light vehicles and armed drones: AUSA 2014 tech round-up The Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Annual Meeting and Exposition was held in Washington DC this week. Spanning three days, it's one of the biggest land warfare expos in the world with manufacturers keen to show off their latest products and military officials on the look out for new tech. If you couldn't make it, we've identified some of the most notable equipment on display this year. Projects THAAD Terminal High-Altitude Area Defence The THAAD terminal (formerly theatre) high-altitude area defence missile system is an easily transportable defensive weapon system to protect against hostile incoming threats such as tactical and theatre ballistic missiles at ranges of 200km and at altitudes up to 150km. Fly Eye Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Fly Eye is a mini unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed and built by WB Electronics to provide advanced aerial reconnaissance capabilities to military and special operations forces. Nirbhay Subsonic Cruise Missile India's first domestically developed long-range subsonic cruise missile Nirbhay has been designed and developed by Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO). Polaris DAGOR Ultra-Light Combat Vehicle DAGOR is a purpose-built, ultra-light combat vehicle designed and built by Polaris Defense, a division of Polaris Industries, to meet the light-mobility needs of light infantry and special operations forces. ICH-47F Chinook Multi-Role Helicopter ICH-47F Chinook is a next-generation, multi-role heavy-lift helicopter jointly developed by AgustaWestland and Boeing to replace the 40 CH-47C Chinooks in service with the Italian Army.