The US military has a dominating presence in the world. Having such a mighty army equipped with ultra-modern equipment and fighting battles beyond its shores, obviously costs heck lot of money. And with the US economy in doldrums, slash in defence spending have been announced and there has been a telling effect on many programmes.

This was noticeable at the annual convention and exposition of the Association of United States Army (AUSA) 2013 which was held from October 21 to 23 in Washington DC. While the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and solutions providers were aggressive in their marketing, however, at the convention animated conversations revolved around budget cuts. The US Department of Defense has put in place sequestration and the Pentagon has to walk a tightrope financially considering that it has to downsize its projected budgets by nearly $500 billion over the next decade. This will certainly impact defence equipment manufacturers who now will have to increasingly look at other lucrative markets.

While the OEMs look elsewhere, the US Army will have to downsize its manpower from the 4,90,000 soldier threshold to about 4,25,000 as per the US Army Chief of Staff, General Raymond Odierno. Alongside, the US Army Secretary John McHugh described in harsh detail the impact deep funding cuts from sequestration had on the Army in this first year alone and warned that the painful reductions will continue. Sequestration has cost the Army $1.7 billion in just the first year, he said, resulting in hundreds of vehicles and thousands of communications systems out of service for lack of maintenance and soldiers unable to train. McHugh said an early estimate of the financial cost of the shutdown was $150 million and 485 acquisition programmes impacted negatively.

General (Retd) Gordon R. Sullivan, AUSA President, commented, “AUSA and senior Army leaders, with budget challenges at top-of-mind, have crafted another world-class professional development experience that benefits our Army, our industry partners and the American people by keeping key audiences informed about how our Army is truly “globally responsive and regionally engaged’.” The theme for this year’s professional development forum was: “America’s Army: Globally Responsive, Regionally Engaged.”

Ground combat vehicle programme at risk

One of the programmes that is likely to be hit, according to US media, is the ground combat vehicle (GCV), a replacement to the Bradley, which is being developed by BAE Systems and General Dynamics.

The Puma military fighting vehicle, built by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) of Munich, Germany, would be the ideal replacement for the M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, KMW spokesman Kurt Braatz who cited credible and official data to back up KMW’s claim – provided by the Congressional Budget Office.

The company’s display included a cross-section of a Puma hull that had sustained a direct hit by an anti-tank mine during a field test. While the floor of the vehicle was slightly bowed and showed a scar from the explosion, Braatz said, the Puma remained intact and operable.

KMW also displayed the Puma’s unmanned turret – equipped nearly completely with US-manufactured gear. The two weapons – a 35mm cannon and .50-calibre machine gun – are made by ATK Inc. A US division of Meggitt Defense Systems built the ammunitionhandling system. Moog Inc. built the turret system.

Rotorcraft fleet replacement

Two of the four major players for the possible replacement platform for the Army’s fleet of ageing rotor aircraft strove to make their respective cases during AUSA. The impetus for the two companies – Bell Helicopter Textron and Sikorsky Aircraft – came from an October 3 announcement by the Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC) which named them and two other firms – AVX Aircraft and Karem Aircraft – as the four finalists to develop suitable aircraft. (AVX and Karem Aircraft did not participate actively in the annual meeting.)

Under the AMRDEC directive, the four companies will have nine months to refine and develop their designs. Each must produce a demonstrator aircraft by the summer or fall of 2017.

Bell Helicopter Textron strove to demonstrate that the V-280 Valor tiltrotor aircraft, it is developing jointly with Lockheed Martin and other companies, would meet the Army’s needs. It can be configured as a high-endurance transport or a high-performance attack platform, with the potential to replace the UH-60 Black Hawk or AH-64 Apache someday.

Sikorsky Aircraft offered a distinctly different aircraft into the contest, unveiling its new name – SB-1 Defiant which it is developing jointly with Boeing and other corporate partners. Defiant closely resembles a conventional helicopter in looks and performance. The stark difference is its coaxial dual-rotor design. Running in counterrotation to each other, the two large rotors would allow the aircraft to move with twice the manoeuvrability and speed of conventional helicopters, said Sikorsky spokesman Frans Jurgens.

Lighter body armour

With body armour adding between 35 and 40 pounds to the loads soldiers must carry into combat, it stands to reason that Army leadership is pressing its industry partners to develop better systems. While no one really expects to see soldiers sporting camouflaged versions of Tony Stark’s ‘Iron Man’ suit anytime soon, companies believe they are making significant inroads. Saint-Gobain, a longtime provider of ceramic plates used in a wide array of the Army’s body-armour packages, believes the future lies in development of non-carbide materials that are lighter in weight than the current carbide-based ones.

Boeing conducts live fire tests of HEL MD laser

Boeing announced that it would conduct live fire tests of its HEL MD (high energy laser mobile demonstrator) tactical laser by the end of 2013. HEL MD is a tactical laser programme designed to defeat rockets, mortars and small unmanned aerial vehicles.

AM General present family of light tactical vehicles

America’s most experienced designer and builder of light tactical military vehicles, AM General, presented several offerings from its diverse family of light tactical vehicles and training operations. They included the blast resistant vehicle–off road (BRV-O) joint light tactical vehicle; the ground mobility vehicle 1.1 (GMV); the modernised HMMWV chassis and the on/offroad light tactical vehicle simulator.

UTC Aerospace Systems wide range on display

The company exhibited a wide range of technologies and solutions from laser warning systems applications for land platforms and helicopters to products for guidance and navigation control. Small UAS was presented along with multiple UAS applications, including cloud cap technology TASE gimbals and piccolo autopilots. Sensors Unlimited short-wave infrared (SWIR) cameras were on display, including a hand-held variant, all providing the benefits of being able to see through obscurants such as fog, haze and smoke.

Elbit’s cutting-edge solutions

The company presented an array of cutting-edge solutions designed to enhance the capabilities of the US armed forces. Elbit Systems of America’s innovative solutions for land vehicle refurbishment and upgrades and aviation services caught the attention of the attendees at AUSA.

Motorola showcases secure mobility innovations

A leading provider of mission-critical communication solutions and services for enterprise and government customers, Motorola showcased its secure mobility innovations. Paul Mueller, Vice President, US Federal Government Markets Division, Motorola Solutions, said “As missions and budgets change, today’s Army requires mobile communication and computing solutions that can be used in multiple military operations and environments. Motorola Solutions works closely with the Army to ensure we are developing solutions that meet its needs as they continue to evolve.”

That in a way kind of sums up the thinking of the manufacturer and end-user – get bang for the buck.