‘PEP’ Talk At Naval Group

03/04/2020

By Murielle Delaporte

French Naval Group, one of the key European military shipbuilders, announced last month that its Hervé Guillou, CEO of Naval Group since 2014  is retiring.

This is a key event within the world of military shipbuilding and competition, as Naval Group is a key player in the world of naval exports, a world where the Chinese and Russians have grown significantly in the past decade.

Fighting for the Survival of European Military Naval Capabilities

The game to win” is rather simple: no less than the very survival of European military naval capabilities is what it is all about in a market which has been undergoing a revolutionary shift in recent years.

Not so long ago, the market was dominated by European players.

Germany and France were indeed leaders on the global military ship export market holding respectively 40 % and 24 % of its total value according to a 2005 Rand Corporation report.

Today, in 2020, China and Russia are number one and number two in military shipbuilding with a production rate second to none : China builds one frigate per month and one submarine per quarter, while Russia currently enjoys a 17% growth rate in that field.

The reason for such a leap in capabilities and increasingly in export market share has to do with the consolidation of domestic industries, says Hervé Guillou, CEO of Naval Group since 2014 and currently on his way out.

Whereas Chinese, Russian or Korean shipbuilders merged into sole entities — South Korea just created a new champion by merging last month Daewoo and Hyundai — whereas only two companies have been sharing the US market for a long time, Europe is since 2018 more divided than ever with no less than twelve players.

(…)The Swedes and the Germans have divorced; the Germans are spread in three different entities and we separated from the Spanish. (…) 

When the Brazilian Navy recently proposed a bid for the acquisition of only four corvettes, twenty-two candidates showed up…, Guillou told the French Senate Commission on Economic Affairs on January 27th, 2020.

Warning that the naval shipbuilding in Europe could rapidly experience the same fate as the high-speed train industry, he recalled that the latter was built by four major European companies thirty years ago, which are today gone or way behind (in seventh position to) the Chinese, Korean and Japanese groups.

Indeed the comparison with the high speed train industry is a good one.  

The European Commission must soon decide (by April 17th) whether or not the acquisition of the French state’s share of ”Chantiers de l’Atlantique “ – of which Naval group owns 12 % — by the Italian Fincantieri respects Brussels’ anti-trust and competition laws. The same laws which, about a year ago, actually and unfortunately prevailed against the creation of a European rail champion much more capable to compete against the Asians.

Such a consolidation and battle against fratricidal wars have been the rallying call of Hervé Guillou ever since he became Naval Group’s CEO.

Europe needs to export about 40 to 60% of its military shipbuilding production in order to be able to sustain production for its own navies.

Because the European military naval domestic market represents only about 30% of the Chinese and American ones and about 50% of the Russian one, without exports it would be the end of a certain kind of sovereignty in naval capabilities.

Such sovereignty allows the French Navy to be present on five seas and ranking second behind the U.S. Navy in terms of the spectrum of capabilities, know-how and power projection it can display globally at any time.

A cooperation and interoperability valued in current operations such as Operation Inherent resolve against Daesh, which the French aeronaval group (GAN or ”Groupe aéronaval “) has been supporting from the outset.

Indeed ,”Mission Foch “ has just started on January 21st with the Charles de Gaulle and the GAN leaving Toulon for the Eastern Med.

Maintaining the right skills at a high level in the military is intrinsically linked to the same challenges industries face today as the temptation to go “Chinese” is omnipresent (on the commercial side of shipbuilding.

For example, Fincantieri is teaming up with China to build ocean liners in China.

Hervé Guillou has been focused on how best to meet this challenge throughout his mandate as CEO.

In his Senate testimony  he highlighted the challenge of managing Naval Group: ”It is a 400 year old company covering 400 different skills.

But in spite of his success in managing CEO, he must leave because of the imposed age limit of 65.

But his success is measurable: a 25% growth rate over the past four years, a 7.5% profitability rate, a 3.7 billion euros turnover with major gains in operational performance characterized by a diminution of shipbuilding time for frigates from 75 to 42 months and for corvettes from 65 to 29 months, etc.

‘PEP’ Becomes the New CEO

The Cambridge dictionary defines a ”pep talk  “as” a short speech intended to encourage people to work harder or try to win a game or competition.”

This is exactly what is at stake beyond the current discussion about the change of CEO at the head of the leading European military naval industry, i.e. Naval Group.

“PEP” a.k.a. Pierre Eric Pommelet, is coming from Thales where he is the number 2 in the company, and is the French government’s selected successor to Hervé Guillou, who should normally be confirmed with a Presidential decree expected sometime in March.

If you thought navigating European industrial logics is complicated, try sorting out what is going on in each one of the twenty seven EU member states!

In the case of the ties between Naval Group and Thales, what is interesting is that the 2007 sealed partnership between the two companies (Thales owing 35% of Naval Group’s shares since 2011) could be described as a typical love-hate relationship, in which Thales sometimes chose to team up with another competitor to respond to a common bid. Hence, there is a certain nervousness among some French trade unions who perceive the supplier more as an enemy than an ally.

And hence the reassurance campaign which occurred recently to help differentiate the man from the company for which he is number two, while stressing his qualities as a true “man of the sea.”

The new 55-year old CEO will have signifianct challenges to meet in the five years he will lead Navla Group (with the possibility of another five year mandate but no more as the French state has rejected the possibility of being CEO pst 65) into the ”Reconquest roadmap 2019-2028 “ set by his predecessor.

The Guillou legacy can be summed up along three main axes. 

First,  there is the challenge of fulfilling in a timely and cost effectdive manner the  backlog orders by the French ministry of the armed forces.

This backlog includes: New smaller and better protected Frigates (FDI for”Fregates de défense et d’intervention “), 3rd generation nuclear submarines (SNLE 3G for ”Sous-marins nucléaires lancer d’engin de 3ème génération “), as well as the future successor of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (PA2 for ”Porte-avions 2 “).

Second, there is the challenge of managing and sustaining a diversified strategy of exports and ensuring a strong international presence.

Guillou estimates that the return on investment of exports is worth about 400 millions euros a year in terms of purchasing power for the French Navy (in other words, and as an example, a French frigate only costs 750 millions euros compared to 1 billion for a German one thanks to the exports).

Guillou succeeded to shape an impressive portfolio of new customers (India, Malaysia, Romania, etc), the key one being Australia with the ”Contract of the Century “ which is focused on co-developing twelve new submarines for the Royal Australian Navy in a brand new facility currently being built in Adelaide.

The co-development is focused on building a short-fin Barracuda, conventionally powered attack submarine, which is a derivative of the nuclear Barracuda attack submarine being built for the French navy.

This contract is considered by many observers as the key to success for Naval Group not only for exports, but for French and Australian sovereignties in this key area of naval warfare.

Third, the Australian relationship highlights the third challenge which is to drive continuing innovation, which has been a a trademark of the Guillou’s years.

Innovations in digital shipbuilding are a key path ahead, which the Franco-Australian working relationship will highlight as part of the innovation push in the years ahead.

And the innovation challenge is accelerating.

According to Naval Group, where you once needed two cycles of technology, you will need five to seven to be able to compete in the naval military business.

Tripling R &D in order to succeed and keeping going full speed on new technologies (renewable energies, 3D printing, C2 innovations ) are part of Guillou’s legacy being passed to Pommelet.

With exports abroad, and co-development with the Australians, there is also a need for enhanced European collaboration as well to ensure an effective way ahead. 

The tripling of R &D cannot be done without a strong European base and coordination to avoid redundancies and to enhance a healthy burden sharing among nations.

This was indeed one of the main motivations behind the joint venture Naviris initiated between Naval Group and Fincantieri by Guillou and his Italian counterpart Giuseppe Bono and which administrative board just held its first meeting on January 13, 2020.

Making sure this joint venture, which was in fact strongly opposed by Thales and Leonardo by fear of strengthening one against the other, does not remain an empty shell and  bring to life new projects such as the future European corvette should also be high on the agenda of Pommelet.

And this occurring within the Brexit European environment.

The new Fund for European Defense (FEDef) meant to help develop European autonomy in defense and space is being threatened to be cut by half (from 13 to 6 billion euros over a 2021-2027 period), in part because of Brexi.

But that is another complicated European story.

See our Special Report on Naval Group:

Morocco Begins Harfang UAV Operations

By defenceWeb

Morocco’s military has apparently taken delivery of three Harfang (Heron) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), a number of years after expressing interest in acquiring them from France.

According to Intelligence Online, the Moroccan military received the three Israel Aerospace Industries-built UAVs on 26 January. The aircraft will most likely monitor rebels in the Western Sahara.

They were apparently ordered in 2014 under a $48 million contract with France’s Dassault, which acted as the intermediary between France and Morocco. The Harfangs were previously used by the French military over Afghanistan, Libya, Niger and Mali, amongst others.

According to Defenceworld, the package includes the three aircraft as well as ground stations, spares and support.

News of Moroccan interest in the Harfangs emerged in 2014 when it was reported that the Royal Moroccan Air Force was evaluating the purchase of additional Heron 1/Harfang systems via France. The Harfang was produced by Airbus Defence and Space in cooperation with Israel Aerospace Industries.

The Heron-based Harfang is a combat-proven intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) system in the medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) UAV category with an endurance of over 20 hours. It is equipped with optronic sensors and radar, which ensure that missions can be carried out around the clock in all weather conditions.

The Harfang UAS has been successfully operated since November 2008 by the French Air Force. For three years (2009-2012), the Harfang was deployed in Afghanistan to support the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) troops. In 2011, Harfang was also deployed at the Sigonella base in Italy as part of the Harmattan operation conducted in Libya. More recently, the Harfang UAS was used in several French operations in the Sahel region in Africa, notably since January 2013 in Operation Serval in Mali.

This article was published by defenceWeb on February 12, 2020.

 

 

B-17 Pilots Train on DC-3 Flight Simulators

By Captain Peter Kuypers

When training on Sally B, there is a limit to what we can train to protect our four massive radial engines.

When flying with KLM I learned so much from training on a simulator and thought this could really work for us as well.

But there is no B-17 simulator anywhere, but luckily, there is one for Dc-3’s in the Netherlands.

Whereas the Dc-3 is only a two engined aircraft the similarities of operation are so very close.

With this in mind Andrew Dixon and I visited a simulator company in the Netherlands who operate a Dc-3 simulator and came back pleasantly surprised.

We have now begun to implement a modern training regime which will benefit all our pilots. We will still keep training on the aircraft as we have always done, this simulator is an extra which should give us more exposure to emergencies and make the pilots more proficient.

The company is “Multi Pilot Simulations” (www.mps.aero) who in daily life manufacture Airbus and Boeing simulators for the likes of Ryanair, Cathay etc.

Some time ago they manufactured a DC-3 simulator and Andrew and I got to fly it. I have to emphasize that this is a professional training tool and not a toy.

Although the DC-3 is a different aircraft it is still very similar in operation to the B-17 and can be used to train emergency procedures which are impossible to train on the aircraft.

The DC-3 weighs 26,000 lbs and has two radial engines each delivering 1200hp, the B-17 weighs 50.000lbs and has four 1200hp engines, the speeds are similar.

Someone asked me what it would be like to have two B-17 engines failing on the same side: well it is a bit like having one engine go on a DC-3.

With pilots who were not familiar on the DC-3 we even used Sally B checklists and procedures, more about this later.

We began the training with Andrew flying, myself as co-pilot plus another pilot manning the instructor station.

Soon after take-off in a heavy aircraft the left engine blew up and we had to work as a team to get it secured, the propeller feathered and very, very slowly climb away.

We looked at several types of propeller and propeller feathering failures and even engine fires.

When in the simulator (but also in a real emergency) you can get so busy that the brain gets overloaded making it difficult to recognize situations and to remember procedures.

Repeated training will help to cope with this.

I had an engine failure where I feathered the propeller but a short time later the prop came out of feather and I could not secure the engine which resulted in a shallow descent. I could not figure out what was happening, just pausing the simulator gave me some rest to find the solution which if it ever happens to me in real life should not be a problem.

Next was display flying combined with engine failures, this is not something you would like to do in the real aircraft as it is inherently dangerous due to the close proximity of the ground.

During this part we were surprised to see that if an engine failure was simulated during a shallow descent it was difficult to even notice that the engine is no longer producing power, the engine instruments do not give you a clue here. It is only later when trying to climb away from low altitude that life gets interesting.

Even CAA guidance about this does not tell the real story.

I know that this all sounds very exciting and even dangerous but that is what the training is for so we can cope in real life!

New Pilot Paul Szluha was next

My next session was with our new co-pilot Paul Szluha. Paul’s background is as an engineer and airline captain and before that, he was part of the engineering team on Sally B.

We decided to operate as if it was a B-17 using the Sally B procedures and checklist, this worked amazingly well.

We started with normal take-offs and landings with light winds and soon it was time to give Paul some crosswind landings followed by the dreaded engine failure just after take-off. We simulated many failures when suddenly we had an engine fire.

I was the flying pilot and Paul was doing the co-pilots duties when suddenly the fuel pressure dropped followed shortly by a red light on the instrument panel. This red light was the fire warning light due to a fuel leak causing an engine fire;

Paul did the emergency checklist and got the engine secured and the fire extinguished.

After more than 3 hours training it was time to go home, Paul you did a good job!

Elly has decided that we will keep using this simulator because the training value is essential to increases the safety of our flight training. I just hope that we will not have to put what we have learned into practice but if we have to, we are ready.

Editor’s Note: We met the Sally B team at a B-17 event in France in 2015.

We are partnered with them and urge our readers to support the Sally B in any they can.

http://www.sallyb.org.uk

This article is taken from Sally B News, Issue 57, Winter/Spring 2019/20

Sally B News issue 57

Northern Viper 20: Japanese SDF Trains with the USMC

The JGSDF conducted Northern Viper, a field training exercise with U.S. Marine Corps in Hokkaido from January 22nd to February 8th.

The participating forces include 4th Infantry Regiment, 5th Field Artillery Unit, 1st Antitank Helicopter Unit from the JGSDF, 4th Marine Regiment, Marine Aircraft Group 36 from U.S. Marine Corps.

The exercise was one of the largest scale ever conducted with U.S. Marine Corps in Japan.

Taking advantage of fine training environment in Hokkaido, the JGSDF and U.S. Marine Corps confirmed cooperation procedures for bilateral operations and developed the bilateral operational capability through the exercise.

Published by the Japanese Ministry of Defense in its March 2020 issue of Japan Defense Focus.

Sentry Aloha

This decades first Sentry Aloha exercise, Jan, 2020 at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.

Sentry Aloha provides tailored, cost effective, realistic combat training to the ANG and our DOD counterparts.

01.16.2020

Video by Staff Sgt. Joshua Halverson

128th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

COPE NORTH 20

03/03/2020

Exercise COPE NORTH 20 (CN20) is a Commander Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) sponsored multilateral field training exercise involving the United States Air Force (USAF), Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF).

CN20 involves large force employment Air Combat Exercise with Dissimilar Air Combat Tactics and a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise phase. Held from 12-28 February 2020 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, an Air Task Group from the RAAF involving F/A-18A Hornet, E-7A Wedgetail, KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker/Transport aircraft, as well as combat support and medical elements have deployed for the Exercise.

CN20 involves more than 2300 personnel and approximately 100 aircraft and aims to increase the combat readiness and interoperability of the USAF, JASDF and RAAF.

Australian Department of Defence

February 27, 2020

Audit Office Calls on France to Boost UAV Fleet – With Caution

03/02/2020

By Pierre Tran

Paris – France should reach agreement on a European project for a medium-altitude, long-endurance drone, while keeping close budgetary watch and ensure military needs were met, the national audit office said in a Feb. 25 report.

That report was published just a few days before Airbus presented March 2 to the armed forces ministry an analysis and mitigation of risk for the company’s budget request of an estimated €7.1-€7.2 billion ($7.9-$8 billion) to build a MALE drone.

That presentation reflects lessons Airbus learnt on building the A400M, a transport plane which led to some €10 billion of charges for the company. Airbus seeks a binding agreement to freeze requirements, which would be “set in stone,” a source said.

The ministry should “maintain strategic European interest, promptly conclude an agreement with partner nations and companies on a MALE drone program, financially manageable and meeting operational requirements,” said the NAO, an independent office.

That European UAV carries “strategic” significance as the project would allow “cooperation, test the solidity of ties with our partners, particularly Germany, consolidate the European defense industrial and technological base, while taking part in the construction of European defense,” the report said.

The UAV project offers a replacement for a fleet of General Atomics Reaper, which is due to be retired from service between 2032-2036, the report said.

However, close scrutiny was needed due to difficulties surrounding the project.

A distinct set of French and German requirements has led to delays and costs seen to be unacceptable by the partner nations, and cast doubt over successful conclusion to the project, the report said.

A positive outcome to the project, which will receive €100 million of funding from the European Union, will serve as a test, the report said.

France, Germany, Italy and Spain are partner nations for the UAV project.

The report carried a reply from the armed forces minister, Florence Parly, who agreed to the audit office’s recommendations.

The cost of ownership was a key factor, she said. Negotiations over the European UAV were due to be concluded by the end of 2019 and a contract signed by mid year.

Ownership of a highly effective operational capability, essential to freedom of action of French forces, and cost control were highly important, she said.

“It would be difficult to envisage in 2028 the French forces not having equipment as capable as that which is already on the market,” she said.

The audit office gave a scathing report of fumbles in French policy which led to failure to build a European aerial unmanned vehicle and costly dependence on US kit, namely an urgent operational requirement for the Reaper, which has cost some €800 million and is subject to what the office sees as strict rules.

“France has been slow in drawing conclusions on the importance of drones in modern military operations,”  the report said.

“The combined consequences of disaccord between companies, lack of forward thinking by the forces, and policy switches by the authorities have led to damaging and expensive consequences, and an extended operational life of aging equipment.

“It has also led to the acquisition of American equipment under constraining and restrictive conditions.”

A key “cultural” factor was the importance of the pilot for the air force, the report said.  Divergent needs of air force and army, competition between companies, and diplomatic twists led to a failure to draw on French technology and European cooperation, the report said.

There has been a lack of strategic thinking and medium term planning, slowing a pooling of equipment and a consistent approach to acquisition, the report said. The report contrasts the lack of French drones with greater capability flown by UK forces.

France has increased spending on drones since 2015, but that investment remains limited in view of the potential in terms of effectiveness and cost, the report said.

Meanwhile, there has been turbulence in the delivery of tactical and mini drones.

Thales, an electronics company, will deliver the Spy Ranger mini drone in the first half of the year, executive chairman Patrice Caine said Feb. 26 at a news conference on financial results.

That delivery is late, as the company had been due to ship the first drone system last year. It was not clear what has delayed shipment, but a new date had to be agreed.

Thales won that deal in December 2016, displacing Airbus Defence and Space, which supplied the Drac mini UAV and pitched its SkyGhost as replacement.

Meanwhile, a Patroller built by Safran, an aerospace and engines company, crashed Dec. 6 on a flight to test the tactical UAV ahead of delivery to the army.

Safran chief executive Philippe Petitcolin said Feb. 27, the Patroller would enter into service in 2021, business website La Tribune reported. The cause of the crash — faulty subsystems — was quickly identified, the report said.

Flights are continuing, with a pilot on board the Patroller while the unmanned systems are tested.

Safran signed up in 2016 to ship the Patroller in 2018, offering its UAV against the Thales Watchkeeper, which had been selected by the UK.

Safran pitched its Patroller partly on the strength on its 85 percent French content, while Thales had pledged to boost French content on Watchkeeper to 30 percent from 10 percent.

The source for the Spy Ranger photo:

Spy’Ranger Mini Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

 

UK Participates in Exercise Cold Response 2020

According to a story published on the UK Ministry of Defence website on February 25, 2020, UK participation in Cold Response 2020 is one of the largest UK engagements in this year’s exercise regime.

A Naval task group made up of four Royal Navy vessels; HMS Albion, HMS Sutherland, HMS Echo and RFA Lyme Bay have set sail this week to Norway in one of the largest UK deployments in 2020.

They will join a force of more than a thousand Green Berets who have been in Norway over recent weeks mastering Arctic survival, movement and combat skills in Norway ahead of the larger multinational exercise.

Exercise Cold Response is a Norway-led, large-scale exercise that will boost Allies’ ability to operate together in extreme sub-zero conditions. The UK will exercise alongside the USA, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway. Around 14,000 personnel will participate in total.

After Norway, the UK is the largest contributing nation in terms of the number of personnel.

This year marks the first of a decade-long training programme the Royal Marines have committed to with their Norwegian counterparts. Each year, around 1,000 Royal Marines will travel to Norway to test their skills hundreds of miles inside the Arctic Circle where temperatures drop as low as -30oC.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said:

“This decade will see the Royal Marines test their expert cold weather combat skills and build rock solid partnerships with our allies in the High North.

“The shifting landscape and increased strategic competition of the Arctic region will create future threats. But our forces will be ready to respond wherever they emerge.”

Training preparations for Exercise Cold Response 2020 begin on 27 February with the main field exercise itself, in which the thousands of multinational troops will simulate a high-intensity combat scenario, starting on 12 March and running through to 18 March.

The UK will be deploying over 2,000 personnel for the exercise, of which around 1,250 will be from the Lead Commando Group with the rest supporting the Naval task group led by HMS Albion and the Joint Helicopter Command air group.

The Joint Helicopter Command group is made up of the Commando Helicopter Force’s Merlin Mk4 aircraft and Wildcats, RAF CH-47 Chinooks and Army AH64 Apaches.

Lieutenant Colonel Innes Catton, 45 Commando’s Commanding Officer, said:

“45 Commando Royal Marines are the UK’s mountain and cold weather warfare specialists.

During Exercise Cold Response, we will be working alongside our NATO allies to give our adversaries hell from the sea.

“As the UK’s Lead Commando Group and poised to deploy on operations around the world, 45 Commando will be the ‘tip of the NATO spear’ during the exercise and we will strike the enemy using small, lethal teams on amphibious Commando raids, reminiscent of our World War Two Commando forebears.

“We have a long history of operating in the Arctic and remain at the forefront as experts in combat in one of the world’s harshest environments.

“On Cold Response, commandos will continue to confront the challenges posed by ever-evolving threats and work on developing small-team tactics as part of our Future Commando Force evolution.”

While on Cold Response, HMS Sutherland will be adopting Anti-Submarine Warfare duties. Throughout the exercise, the frigate will conduct a wide variety of serials including gunnery and boarding operations, maintaining and enhancing her readiness for future tasking.

HMS Sutherland’s Commanding Officer, Commander Tom Weaver Royal Navy said:

“This period of integrating with our NATO partners as part of a wider task group presents us a wide range of opportunities. My crew will be ready to meet the harsh conditions of the arctic region, and are looking forward to honing their warfighting skills alongside our allies.”

The featured photo: 45 Commando Assault Engineers prepare charges to conduct ice demolition training in northern Norway.