The U.S. military UAV market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 10% between 2010 and 2015, says U.S. Military Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) Market Forecast 2010-2015, a new research report from Market Research Media. The report finds that the annual U.S. military UAV market will surpass $12.7 Billion by 2015.

Under the terms of the contract, URS will provide communications, operations and maintenance support, and design, development and sustainment services for Unmanned Aircraft System Operations Center Support (UASOCS) mission systems. This program provides critical data, voice interconnectivity and video relays to enable pilots and sensor operators to fly and control UASs from centers worldwide.

URS Corporation (NYSE: URS) is a leading provider of engineering, construction and technical services for public agencies and private sector companies around the world. The Company offers a full range of program management; planning, design and engineering; systems engineering and technical assistance; construction and construction management; operations and maintenance; and decommissioning and closure services. URS provides services for power, infrastructure, industrial and commercial, and federal projects and programs. URS Corporation has approximately 42,000 employees in a network of offices in more than 30 countries.

Webinar topics:

• Cloud Computing market overview
• Potential DoD Cloud Computing Applications;
• Cyber Network Defense - Sensor data storage, analysis, situational awareness, battlespace awareness, status of troops, missions, vehicles, weapons, supplies, autonomous (unmanned) weapons systems
• Storage/processing of tactical Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance (ISR) feeds
• Simulation and Visualization
• Mission planning and training
• emerging DoD cloud computing applications

Market Research Media will also host three webinar sessions on Tuesday, May 26th at 10:00 a.m., 12 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. The seminars will take approximately 45 minutes with an additional 15 minutes allocated for questions. Session topics:

• U.S. Federal Cloud Computing Market Forecast 2010 - 2015
• U.S. Federal IT Spending Forecast 2010-2015
• U.S. Federal Cybersecurity Market Forecast 2010-2015

A Caiman MRAP

BAE Systems received a contract modification worth $23.8 million for replacement and spare parts, instructor and maintenance support and other services for Caiman (MRAP) vehicles.

Replacement and spare parts include improved front seats, electrical connectors for towing and to retrofit door assist system safety strips on the Caiman vehicles. Spare and replacement parts deliveries will be completed through January 2010 and will help the Army units in Iraq maintain the estimated 2,850 Caimans. The contract also covers Caiman instructor and maintenance support services through September 2009.

The Caiman MRAP was designed in 2006 to fill the Department of Defense’s urgent need for vehicles to protect U.S. troops from roadside bombs, rocket propelled grenades and explosively formed projectiles. In 22 months of production, 2,868 Caimans were built. Caiman is one of the U.S. Army’s MRAPs operating in Iraq, boasts a 94 percent operational readiness rate and has helped soldiers survive roadside bomb attacks on numerous occasions.

Israeli Air Force AH-64D “Saraf”

DynCorp International (NYSE:DCP) has won a contract of the United States Army Aviation Missile Command (AMCOM) to support the Kuwait Air Force (KAF) with a Maintenance Augmentation Team (MAT) for its Apache AH-64D aircraft fleet. The firm-fixed-price contract is estimated at about $11.2 million for the first two years and will increase to more than $16 million if an option year is exercised to extend the contract through December 31, 2011.

DynCorp International will assist the Kuwait Air Force to achieve an operational rate of 75 percent for its Apache fleet. Responsibilities will include flight-test support, organizational and intermediate-level maintenance, quality-assurance support, application of engineering change modifications, aircraft reassembly, ground-support equipment operation and maintenance, program support, and sustainment of shop operations and procedures.

All work will be performed in Kuwait. DynCorp International currently maintains a fleet of F/A-18 aircraft for the Kuwait Air Force under contract with the United States Navy.

About DynCorp International
DynCorp International is a provider of specialized mission-critical services to civilian and military government agencies worldwide, and operates major programs in law enforcement training and support, security services, base operations, aviation services, contingency operations, and logistics support. DynCorp International is headquartered in Falls Church, Va.

About AH-64D
The advanced model, the AH-64D Apache Longbow, is equipped with an improved sensor suite and weapon systems. The key improvement over the A-variant is the AN/APG-78 Longbow dome installed over the main rotor which houses a millimeter-wave Fire Control Radar (FCR) target acquisition system as well as the Radar Frequency Interferometer (RFI). The elevated position of the radome allows detection and (arcing) missile engagement of targets even when the helicopter itself is concealed by an obstacle (e.g. terrain, trees or buildings). Further, a radio modem integrated with the sensor suite allows a D-variant Apache to share targeting data with other AH-64Ds that do not have a line-of-sight to the target. In this manner a group of Apaches can engage multiple targets but only reveal the radome of one D-variant Apache. Apaches that include all of the improvements of the Longbow Apache, with the exception of the Fire Control Radar are still designated as “AH-64D Apache Longbows”, as the radome is removable and interchangeable between aircraft.

The aircraft was updated with more powerful T700-GE-701C engines, and a fully-integrated cockpit. The forward fuselage of the aircraft was expanded to accommodate new systems. In addition, the aircraft receives improved survivability, communications, and navigation capabilities. Most existing capabilities of the AH-64A Apache are retained.

The first of the upgraded Block II Apaches was delivered to the US Army in February 2003. Block II includes upgrades to the digital communications systems to improve communications within the ‘tactical internet’.

Block III improvements, slated for 2008 onwards, include increasing digitization, the joint tactical radio system, enhanced engines and drive systems, capability to control UAVs, new composite rotor blade and landing gear upgrades. The new blades, which successfully completed flight testing in May 2004, increase the Apache’s cruise speed, climb rate and payload capability. The Block III System Development and Demonstration (SDD) contract was awarded to Boeing in July 2006.

A Cougar in an explosives test

Force Protection, Inc wins tender of the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence as the supplier for the Wolfhound Tactical Support Vehicle (Heavy) program. Force Protection, Inc has completed design work and built two prototypes based on its highly successful Cougar vehicle, carried out blast tests and mobility trials.

Two customized Cougar variants are already featured in major United Kingdom Ministry of Defence programs. The Mastiff 6×6 is in service with British forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. Deliveries of the Ridgback 4×4 began in August of this year. The United Kingdom Ministry of Defence has also recently ordered 24 more Mastiffs together with 14 Force Protection Buffalo route clearance vehicles.

Force Protection, Inc. is a leading American designer, developer and manufacturer of survivability solutions, predominantly ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled vehicles currently deployed by the U.S. military and its allies to support armed forces and security personnel in conflict zones. The company’s specialty vehicles, the Cougar, the Buffalo and the Cheetah, are designed specifically for reconnaissance, forward command and control, and urban operations and to protect their occupants from landmines, hostile fire, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs, commonly referred to as roadside bombs). The company also is the developer and manufacturer of ForceArmor™ an armor package providing superior protection against explosively formed projectiles (EFPs) now available for a wide range of tactical-wheeled vehicles. The company is one of the original developers and primary providers of vehicles for the U.S. military’s Mine Resistant Ambush Protected, or MRAP, vehicle program.