Mil News Western Europe Military News

[muck]

Germany is looking to buy 8 more F-35's and 20 additional Typhoons. (Source 1, Source 2)

 

[PEMM]

Germany is looking to buy 8 more F-35's and 20 additional Typhoons. (Source 1, Source 2)

BTW I've noticed that Germany likes to buy in these kind of smallish batches, isn't it more expensive / unit?

 

[av405]

Germany is looking to buy 8 more F-35's and 20 additional Typhoons. (Source 1, Source 2)

Most outlets are reporting 8, but Bloomberg and MSN are reporting 10 additional F-35s.

MSN

 

[TheKiwi]

Two for spare parts when Germany inevitably doesn’t buy enough of those.

 

[muck]

BTW I've noticed that Germany likes to buy in these kind of smallish batches, isn't it more expensive / unit?

It's parliament micromanaging the armed forces.

 

[Mike1976]

It's parliament micromanaging the armed forces.

"€11,8B FOR WEAPONS OF WAR! SIND SIE VERRÜCKT!!!"

A handful of those messages on social media and governments go into full-on panic mode thinking it's automatic mass votes for the opposition.

Bite-sized chunks are more palatable to the general audience.

Many governments have done the same and imo it's due to lacking a clear vision on defence which leads to measures which are aimed at boosting confidence in the government rather than making the armed forces more effective past the "current thing".

"Flashfloods ... maybe a few more boats might come in handy"
"Every helicopter in the fleet is inoperable ... let's buy some more!"
"Oh russia has invaded Ukraine ... let's buy a few more F-35s"

And that's besides the results of lobbyists.

 

[Fluff]

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[muck]

Germany is inching closer towards ending its twelve-year-old moratorium on military conscription. Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius has commissioned plans to introduce a model akin to that used by Sweden. Under the proposed scheme, all men and women aged 18 would be called up for examination and offered bespoke career opportunities suited to their abilities and preferences. In the absence of a crisis, however, only those accepting their offer would actually be drafted into the armed services. It is hoped that this "glide path" into the military will increase the intake, with conventional recruitment methods undermined by the nation-wide shortage of labour. Whilst Pistorius's Social Democrats and the Greens have signalled support for the plan, their liberal coalition partner has so far rejected the idea. (Source, German)

The conscription bill has been introduced to the public, with some amendments to appease the liberals. The most important aspects:

• The German Armed Forces are to be increased in manpower and eventually comprise 530,000 troops.
• The active component is to be increased from 181,000 to 270,000 troops.
• The "active" reserve (reservists seconded to active units) is to grow substantially from 34,000 to 260,000 troops.
• The moratorium on conscription is ended, but for the time being the duty will be limited to collaborating in the examination process.
• All males will have to provide written documentation on their state of health and fill in a questionnaire on career opportunities. Failure to comply will result in a fine.
• If this mechanism does not increase the personnel intake as intended, a certain percentage of men will be compelled to serve after all.

(Source)

Some within the government coalition are still not happy with this bill; the opposition, on the other hand, has criticised it as being entirely insufficient. They want to return to the status quo ante 2011. And as the current administration is highly unlikely to win a second term, this bill should be seen as a mere interim stage to rolling out full-blown conscription once more.

 

[PEMM]

Engines for Finnish F-35's will be assembled by Patria in Finland.

Patria and Pratt & Whitney, an RTX business, have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) that covers the contractual framework for Pratt & Whitney F135 engine production and sustainment projects in Finland by Patria.

The agreement covers the assembly of F135 engines and components between 2025-2030, followed by a transition to F135 engine Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul and Upgrade (MRO&U) operations, beginning in 2030.

The needed assembly and maintenance lines will be built in Linnavuori, Nokia, in Finland. The direct employment impact of this MOA for Patria during this timeframe is estimated to be approximately 50 persons.

“This unique agreement between Patria and Pratt & Whitney on establishing capabilities for the F135 engines is another important milestone for Finland´s F-35 programme and Patria,” says Petri Hepola, Chief Program Officer, F-35 at Patria. “The collaboration of Patria, Pratt & Whitney, Finnish Ministry of Defence and Defence Forces has been productive and we at Patria are eagerly looking forward to continuing this journey and developing new capabilities together.”

“The F135 industrial opportunities offered to Finland will support the Finnish industry’s growth in 5th generation engine knowledge. Additionally, the capabilities delivered by these projects will contribute to security of supply for the defense of Finland and its NATO allies, while also expanding the F135 engine’s sustainment network,” says Chris Johnson, Vice President of the F135 Program at Pratt & Whitney. “We look forward to seeing Patria-assembled F135 engines powering sovereign Finnish F-35 fighter jets in the near future. The ultimate focus is a transition to a national depot capability in support of Finnish Air Force operational requirements for decades to come.”

Patria and RTX’s Pratt & Whitney sign agreement for production of F135 engines within Finland´s F-35 industrial participation programme | Patria

www.patriagroup.com

 

[Redav]

It's parliament micromanaging the armed forces.

Wish we had that

 

[muck]

Germany's parliament has authorised the purchase of two more F126 class frigates. (Source)

 

[BravoZulu]

Germany's parliament has authorised the purchase of two more F126 class frigates. (Source)

Good news but the design seems light in weaponry? Especially for an over 10,000t displacement the class seems woefully underarmed. Only 16 cells in the Mk41? It seems like following in the footsteps of the F125 class

 

[muck]

I think we discussed this before; for better or for worse, there's no correlation between size and armament in the current German naval doctrine. The ships are deliberately big to allow for a maximal degree of automatisation, endurance and crew comfort. For example, a lot of space is wasted (all sailors around here must pardon my choice of words) on crew accomodation built in accordance to merchant navy standards. The F126 class is intended to replace the F123 class and has about the same capabilities.

 

[PEMM]

Nammo Lapua signs a preliminary agreement for new 155mm artillery shell factory in Jyväskylä, Finland. Shell here meaning... the shell (not explosive). Finnish army loads the munitions in their own facility.

(google translate)

The defense industry company Nammo entered into a preliminary agreement for the construction of a new factory in Jyväskylä

The total budget for the new factory is 45 million euros.

Aerospace and defense company Nammo Lapua Oy has signed a preliminary agreement with Jykia Oy for the construction of a new production facility in Jyväskylä.

Nammo is significantly increasing the manufacturing capacity of 155mm grenade shells in Finland. The majority of the investment is aimed at a completely new factory that produces artillery grenade shells.

The total budget for the new factory is 45 million euros. The area of the new factory is approximately 7,500 square meters, and it will be built in Jyväskylä's Seppälänkanka industrial area.

Regarding the property, Jykia was selected as a partner.

"We are implementing the project as a partnership project, where Nammo is the tenant and Jykia has overall responsibility for the project. We do the design guidance together and the common goal is to find the best solutions," Jykia CEO Seija Takanen says in the press release.

Jykia is a real estate development company owned by the city of Jyväskylä and the municipalities of Laukaa and Muurami. Jyväskylä owns 85 percent of the company, Laukaa nine percent and Muurame six percent.

Nampo's new factory is scheduled to be ready for production use in early summer 2026. The factory will employ 25–30 people in the future.

Puolustusteollisuusyhtiö Nammo teki esisopimuksen uuden tehtaan rakentamisesta Jyväskylään

Uuden tehtaan kokonaisbudjetti on 45 miljoonaa euroa.

www-kauppalehti-fi.translate.goog

Finnish defense minister claimed some time ago that Finland is already top producer of 155mm shells in Europe, didn't mention numbers though.

 

[muck]

Belgium has ordered 20 Airbus H145M light utility helicopters. 15 will be flown by the armed forces, 2 (+3 options) by the police. (Source)

It seems like following in the footsteps of the F125 class

Incidentally, Diehl is now in talks to integrate the IRIS-T SLM air defence system into the F125 class frigate. It seems as though a true vertical launch system is out of the question due to requiring cost-prohibitive changes to the entire foreship, but the company says they could install two 8-cell launchers also used in the vehicle-borne variant. These would be able to be lowered below the deck surface when not in use. This solution would yield numerous advantages: The F125 class already carries a navalised variant of the TRML-4D radar also used by the IRIS-T SLM complex; and the missile's range is almost as good as an ESSM's, though at a much lower per-unit cost. (Source)

 

[muck]

A new framework contract has been signed for up to 123 Leopard 2A8. (Source, German)

Another order for 105 Leopard 2A8 was announced today. (Source)

In other news, Rheinmetall has just announced the largest order of the company's history. Germany will receive 155 mm artillery shells worth €8.5 billion, of which some batches will also be delivered to Ukraine, Estonia, Denmark and the Netherlands. (Source)

Should be about 4.2 million shells at current rates.

 

[BravoZulu]

The Italian Army’s New Exploration and Escort rotorcraft makes its international premiere

First and only all-new Western combat helicopter design with digitization, connectivity, sensor-fusion, information superiority and interoperability enabling a force-multiplier in multi-domain operations

The AW249 next generation exploration and escort helicopter had its international public premiere at Eurosatory (Paris 17-21 June) today during an official ceremony attended by representatives from industry, Italian Defence and international delegations.

The result of the strong collaboration between the Italian Ministry of Defence and Leonardo, the AW249 (designated AH-249A NEES - Nuovo Elicottero da Esplorazione e Scorta – known as the ‘Fenice’) is the only Western clean-sheet combat helicopter design, in development to meet stringent emerging operational requirements for the next 30+ years. It leverages capabilities and technologies not available elsewhere today, uniquely and ideally bridging a further gradual evolution of military vertical lift.

To manage a rapidly evolving scenario, the AW249 features a complete open architecture with significant further growth and system/capability adaptation to respond to the demanding market requirements. In addition to high performance (speed, range, power margin and payload, Hot&High conditions, manoeuvrability for unmatched nap-of-the-earth flight), core to the AW249 is its ability to be fully integrated and interoperable in the modern multi-domain battlefield (air-land-sea-space-cyber). The AW249 features an advanced large area display human-machine-interface and touch screen/gesture recognition devices in the tandem-seating cockpit and a highly sophisticated Leonardo-developed Battle Management System. Displays and a modern pilot helmet enable the crew to rapidly access critical information on flight, navigation and the mission provided by multiple sensing and advanced connectivity.

https://www.leonardo.com/en/press-r...helicopter-s-next-gen-design-and-capabilities

 

[muck]

In other news, Rheinmetall has just announced the largest order of the company's history. Germany will receive 155 mm artillery shells worth €8.5 billion, of which some batches will also be delivered to Ukraine, Estonia, Denmark and the Netherlands. (Source)

Magazine 'Der Spiegel' reports that yet another record-breaking contract for artillery shells is in the making. This one would go to a consortium by Diehl and Norway's Nammo and would cover shells worth €15 billion. The contract explicitely mentions Ukraine as a co-beneficiary. (Source) By the way, just to underscore the damage done by delaying important procurements: The article also mentions that Nammo's prices went up almost 15% from last year. Officially, this is due to licence payments and production upscaling costs.

 

[muck]

3266 Brimstone 3 guided missiles for Germany's Typhoons: Source

Took them long enough.

 

[Redav]

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