By Pierre Tran

Paris – A 10-strong European consortium is launching a four-year, €18 million ($19.8 million) project to select a common chip foundry to build next generation infrared sensors for military applications, said David Billon-Lanfrey, chief strategy officer of Lynred, which leads the group.

The European Defence Fund is backing the project, dubbed High Efficiency Read-Out Integrated Circuit (Heroic), providing €18 million ($19.8 million) in a total project budget of €19 million, Lynred said in a Jan. 10 statement.

“One overall aim is to enable Europe to gain technological sovereignty in producing high-performance IR sensors,” Lynred said in the statement.

The project consortium comprises three infrared component makers, industrial partners and research institutes, with the project starting this month. The defense fund is part of the European Union’s bid to boost military capabilities of the 27 member states by investing in upstream technology.

The project is a cooperative approach which brings together three IR component manufacturers, namely AIM from Germany, Lynred from France, and Xenics from Belgium. These companies, which compete with each other in components for electro-optical military kit, have formed the project partnership to boost competitiveness of the European IR industry.

“The main goal of the Heroic project is to validate for our specific infrared use a common advanced CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductors) foundry. That foundry could come from players such as STMicroelectronics and X Fab,” Lynred said.

STMicroelectronics is a Franco-Italian company, while X-Fab is a Belgian company.

The project consortium includes four system integrators, namely Indra of Spain, Miltech Hellas of Greece, Kongsberg of Norway, and PCO of Poland.

There is a component provider, namely Ideas – a Norwegian integrated circuit developer, and two research institutes – CEA-Leti of France and University of Seville of Spain.

A New Generation of IR sensors

The European project seeks to deliver a new generation of IR components packed with  smaller pixels, to allow the detection and identification of targets at greater range, Billon-Lanfrey said.

A key aim is to reduce the size of pixels to five to eight microns from the present range of 10 to 15 microns.

The EU-backed project allows the three manufacturing companies to share a foundry – essentially a chip factory – based on advanced CMOS, to design and build components for more powerful IR sensors.

The manufacturers will each build a prototype IR sensor using the project’s foundry, once it has been selected and certified. That shared access is intended to allow building small numbers and meet specific needs, while seeking to secure a European supply chain.

European clients for IR components include Leonardo, Safran, and Thales, while U.S. contractors Raytheon, Lockheed Martin and L3 order infrared sensors.

There is early discussion on open access to IR components in the European supply chain, in the next stage for cooperation, Billon-Lanfrey said.

“The project’s main objectives are to increase access to, and dexterity in, using a new European-derived advanced CMOS technology that offers key capabilities in developing the next generations of high-performance infrared sensors – these will feature smaller pixels and advanced functions for defense applications,” Lynred said.

“Its commonly specified platform will allow each consortium partner to pursue its respective technological roadmap and more effectively meet the higher performance expectations of post-2030 defense systems,” the company said.

The present project marks the start of a European cooperative effort long sought by Sofradir, the predecessor to Lynred, formed in 2019 from the merger of Sofradir, which specialized in military IR components and its ULIS unit, which supplied civil applications.

Many years ago, there had been hopes of European cooperation between Sofradir,  IS2 – the then U.K. unit of the Italian company Selex, and AIM. Selex has since rebranded as Leonardo.

But the Brexit departure of Britain appears to have made it complicated for a U.K. company to take part in a project backed by the E.U.

“The Heroic project will provide new advanced electrical components for the next generation IR sensors,” the European Defence Fund said on its website.

“The project ‘High Efficiency Read Out Circuits’ (HEROIC) will enable European IR sensor suppliers to sustainably design the next generation of EU Read-Out Integrated Circuit (ROIC) for IR sensors for defence applications,” the fund said.

Rainer Breiter, AIM vice president of IR-Module programs, said, “We are looking forward to working together with our partners in this common approach to access the latest advanced CMOS technology.”

“Xenics sees the Heroic project as a cornerstone for its strategy of SWIR (short-wave infrared) development for defense applications,” Paul Ryckaert, Xenics chief executive, said,

The European IR sector has attracted attention in mergers and acquisition.

Photonis, a French manufacturer of IR components, said Dec. 15 it had agreed the acquisition of Xenics for an undisclosed amount.

A French private equity company, HLD, acquired Photonis in 2021, after the latter had attracted M&A attention from Teledyne, based in Thousand Oaks, CA.

The U.S. company had been ready to pay €425 million for Photonis, after an initial valuation of €510 million, sparking French political concern over acquisition of sensitive French military technology by a U.S. company.

Lynred is a joint venture held equally by electronics company Thales and aero-engine manufacturer Safran.

More generally, the EU is seeking to promote common industrial standards, as can be seen in European legislation on the adoption of a standard USB plug for charging smartphones. That forces Apple to drop its iPhone Lightning connectors in the EU market in two years’ time.

By Pierre Tran

Paris – A European project to build a future combat air system (FCAS) was as significant as the launch of Airbus, builder of commercial airliners some 30 years ago, a senior aerospace executive said Jan. 5.

“We are building in the domain of the protection of air and space over Europe, something along the lines of what was built for commercial aviation by Airbus 30 years ago,” Guillaume Faury, chairman of GIFAS, the French aerospace trade association, said at the new year press conference.

“That is the scale needed to resolve the problem,” he said.

Faury is also chief executive of Airbus, based in Toulouse, southwest France. Airbus, which builds the A320 jetliner, is the European rival to Boeing, U.S. builder of the B737 MAX single-aisle airliner.

Airbus and Dassault Aviation signed in December a contract worth €3.2 billion ($3.4 billion) for work on Phase 1B of the technology demonstrator for FCAS. A new generation fighter is at the heart of FCAS, estimated to be worth €80 billion-€100 billion and backed by France, Germany and Spain.

That contract was signed with the French procurement office, Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA), after months of tough negotiations between the Airbus Defence and Space unit and Dassault, respectively the German and French industrial partners.

Indra of Spain and Eumet, a Franco-German 50/50 joint venture for a new jet engine, were the other prime contractors on the Phase 1B contract.

“There is no guarantee on what happens next,” Faury said, in answer to a question on the outlook for Phase 2.

“We have just crossed a major milestone,” he said of the Phase 1B contract. “Personally, I am delighted with what’s happened. Now everyone will work to get it to work.”

The work on Phase 1B and an option on Phase 2 is worth close to €8 billion, the French armed forces ministry said in a Dec. 15 statement.

The Airbus Defence and Space unit, headquartered in Germany, had sought as much work as possible on the flight control system for the future European fighter, after the demonstrator was built, while Dassault wanted to maintain its prime contractor’s control on that critical work share, business website La Tribune reported.

Airbus DS, based in Manching, near Munich in southern Germany, works on the flight controls on the Eurofighter Typhoon. The Airbus unit had effectively sought joint control of the fighter project, which Dassault had refused.

The signing of the Phase 1B contract will allow the development of technology to get to Phase 2.

“We are not yet at Phase 2,” he said. “The construction of the Meccano set that allows us to make this Phase 1B is relatively irreversible. There is no credible alternative – in my opinion – to a collective approach.

It remains to be seen how the work will be shared out between Airbus and Dassault after the demonstrator is built, as real financial value will stem from production of the new fighter, which will eventually replace the Eurofighter Typhoon and Rafale.

The maiden flight of the fighter demonstrator has had to be pushed back a couple of years to 2029, due to delay in the Phase 1B contract.

The Door Is Open To The U.K.

Meanwhile, the French arms procurement chief, Emmanuel Chiva, told parliamentarians that cooperation with the British new fighter project could not be ruled out, said the minutes of a Nov. 30 meeting with the lower house National Assembly defense committee held behind closed doors.

“Cooperation with our British partners is important and has a future,” the DGA head said.

There has been the Brexit British departure from the European Union, he said, but there was Anglo-French cooperation through the Lancaster House agreement. There were highly capable people across the table who have never ceased to affirm willingness to cooperate in defense.

French engineers went in September to a site not far from London to test the steering for the new generation aircraft carrier, he said, while British engineers were testing submarine propulsion in a tunnel used to test hydrodynamics at a specialist DGA site at Val de Reuil, in Normandy, northern France.

Nothing should be ruled out, he said.

“In view of our excellent relations in armaments, let us take things in the order they come,” he said.

“Phase 1B needs to be completed on FCAS,” he said. “The more work goes ahead on the demonstrator, the more progress we make. We need a fighter jet and an air combat system compatible with our nuclear deterrence.

“To put it plainly, plans B, C or D cannot be compromised by the fact we are building a demonstrator. We have every interest in moving forward, which does not rule out  considering a merger of the two programs.”

The Eumet joint venture is composed of Safran Aircraft Engines for France and MTU Aero Engines for Germany, with ITP as the Spanish partner.

Other industrial partners on Phase 1B include FCMS, a German consortium composed of Hensoldt, Diehl Defence, Rohde & Schwarz, and ESG; the French unit of European missile builder MBDA; SATNUS, a Spanish consortium comprising Sener Aeroespacial, GMV, and Tecnobit; and Thales, a French electronics company.

By Robbin Laird

In my assessment of USMC transformation over the past twenty years, I highlighted the coming of the CH-53K as part of the next phase. “As the Marines work enhanced naval integration and expanded force mobility in dealing with the evolving strategic environment, the capabilities which the CH-53K brings to the force are not nice to have but a critical capability. And the new digital aircraft provides a solid foundation for evolution not only of the platform but for changes in concepts of operations as well.”[1]

Now the aircraft has entered its next phase, full rate production. This means that the CH-53K enterprise will be expanded to ramp up the supply chain and lead to production challenges by the prime contractor to meet the demands of full-rate production.

NAVAIR announced the new phase as follows in a press release dated December 23, 2022:

“The CH-53K King Stallion heavy lift helicopter has entered Full Rate Production (FRP) and its deployment phase, following a decision review by Frederick J. Stefany, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition.

“FRP occurs at the end of Low Rate Initial Production following a review assessing the results of Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E), Live Fire Test and Evaluation, production readiness reviews, risk, and affordability analyses.  On Dec. 21, the Acquisition Decision Memorandum was signed, authorizing entry of the CH-53K into FRP.

“FRP is an important milestone to the H-53 Heavy Lift Program Office (PMA-261), as it allows the program to proceed beyond LRIP and begin increasing procurement quantities, thereby gaining production efficiencies and reducing unit costs.

“We have successfully demonstrated the performance and reliability of this aircraft,” said Col. Kate Fleeger, PMA-261 program manager.  “With FRP we will continue to build on the strong manufacturing, sustainment and support that has been established for the CH-53K.”

“The Marine Corps continues to execute its transition from the CH-53E to the CH-53K and is on schedule to declare Full Operational Capability in FY2029. PMA-261 manages the cradle to grave procurement, development, support, fielding and disposal of the entire family of H-53 heavy lift helicopters.”

As an article published by the New Haven Register on December 27, 2022 noted:

“Sikorsky is currently producing the helicopters at a rate of four per year and has delivered two within the past month alone, according to a company spokeswoman. But with the Navy’s full rate production approval, the volume of helicopters produced will build over time to eventually reach 20 per year.

“The contract with the Navy calls for Sikorsky to build a total of 200 helicopters. Bill Falk, director of the Sikorsky’s CH-53K program said the Navy’s production authorization “stabilizes Sikorsky’s domestic supply chain and is a testament to our enduring partnership with the Marine Corps.”

“Sikorsky has more than 200 CH-53K suppliers across 35 states, including 44 in Connecticut. With the Navy’s approval of ramped up production, suppliers will be able to make purchases in bulk, which will create efficiencies that will drive down the overall cost of the aircraft for the U.S. military and international allies, according to company officials.”

Featured Photo: U.S. Marines with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron (HMH) 461 prepare for takeoff in CH-53K King Stallions at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, Aug. 16, 2022. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Adam Henke

[1] Robbin Laird, The U.S. Marine Corps Transformation Path: Preparing for the High-End Fight (p. 237), Kindle Edition.