THIS WEEK IN MISSILE DEFENSE October 12 - October 18, 2019 THE WEEK IN BRIEF Click Here to Watch This Week in Missile Defense Video On Tuesday, the Army signaled it doesn’t want to buy any more Iron Dome air defense systems, and it’s planning to use the system differently than Israel. The push to be leaner will extend to the system. The Army plans to pull it apart and integrate it with air defense battle management systems. On Wednesday, the Army rethought its Indirect Fires Protection Capability (IFPC) program strategy. While much is up in the air, the Multi-Mission Launcher (MML) will not be part of the IFPC program. The effort to qualify the Miniature Hit-to-Kill (MHTK) missile for the launcher is now paused. Also on Wednesday, Northrop Grumman confirmed the Army contracted the company to deliver a 50-kilowatt laser. The Army will incorporate the solid-state fiber optic laser as early as 2021. The medium sized system will be able to silently engage all types of air targets without the need to reload. On Thursday, the Army received its first Hellfire and Stinger missile armed Stryker – bringing a new era of air and missile defense by killing drones, helicopters, and missiles. Its 30mm cannon, vehicle launched drones, and lasers represent a transition into the great power threat environment. Also on Thursday, the Army selected Raytheon to deliver six production representative units of the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS). The radar will replace the Patriot air and missile defense system’s radar as part of the service’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense System. Click here to read all of the headlines from the week. MDAA ALERTS Leading Edge of Missile Defense Last Friday afternoon, October 11, the Secretary of Defense, the Honorable Mark Esper, announced the follow on U.S. missile defense deployment to the September 26th Patriot Battery and Sentinel Radars deployment to Saudi Arabia, which now will be the most comprehensive missile defense... Click here to read more. MDAA WEBSITE UPDATES AND FEATURES Multi-Mission Launcher The Multi-Mission Launcher (MML) is a next generation ground-based air defense launcher and represents the first development of a major acquisition program by the government in more than 30 years. Developed by CMDS and AMRDEC of the U.S. Army, MML is designed to use existing interceptors... Learn more about the MML. Israel Israel is a very close ally for the United States and this position enables Israel to share some of the most advanced U.S. technologies. Geopolitics of the Middle East region and very hostile neighbors (technically Israel has been at war with Syria for decades) dictates the country to pursue and sometimes pioneer missile... a Learn more about Israel. FIM-92 Stinger The FIM-92 “Stinger” is a short-range man-portable air defense system (MANPADS). The stinger was designed to provide air defense capabilities to U.S. and allied troops when forward deployed and thus eliminate the immediate need for air support should an enemy aircraft threaten the troops. The FIM-92 Stinger served as... Learn more about the Stinger. MISSILE DEFENDER OF THE WEEK Lieutenant Colonel Russell Porter Grant LTC Grant received his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Signal Corps from the Georgetown University Army ROTC program in May 1993. He held various positions in the traditional National Guard and Army Reserve in Mississippi, South Carolina, and Colorado, where he became qualified as a Military Intelligence Officer. LTC Grant joined the Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) program of the Colorado Army National Guard in 2004 as the first S-2 (Intelligence Officer) with the newly created 100th Missile Defense Brigade (Ground-based Midcourse Defense). In the five-year period from 2004-2009, he provided daily intelligence products to the Brigade's Command, staff, and operational crews, including for two real-world North Korean ICBM test launches. From 2010 to 2012, LTC Grant served as Commander of the Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment for Joint Force Headquarters - Colorado while serving simultaneously as the Deputy J2 for the Colorado National Guard Joint Staff. From 2014 to 2016, he served as the Battalion Commander of the Colorado Army National Guard's Recruiting and Retention Battalion. He has been the Director of Alpha Crew, Missile Defense Element, 100th Missile Defense Brigade (GMD), since August 2017. LTC Grant holds a Bachelor's Degree in Language Arts from Georgetown University, a Master's Degree in International Business Administration from the University of South Carolina at Columbia, and a Master's Degree in Strategic Intelligence from the National Defense Intelligence College in Washington, DC. He is married to his wife of 21 years, Sari, and has two children: Sofia, a junior at the University of Colorado in Boulder, and Henry, a junior at Discovery Canyon High School in Colorado Springs. Click here to view the winners from the 2019 NORAD & USNORTHCOM Missile Warning and Defender of the Year. NEWS MISSILE DEFENSE NEWS How the US Army is building a hypersonic weapons business – 10/14/2019 – Defense News Here’s How Lockheed Sees Hypersonic Missile Defense Starting Off – 10/15/2019 – Investor’s Business Daily Raytheon Displays Missile Defense Radar Offering at AUSA Conference – 10/15/2019 – ExecutiveBiz Major missile defense command system heads toward a critical test – 10/15/2019 – DefenseNews US Army Signals Israel’s Iron Dome Isn’t The Answer – 10/16/2019 – Breaking Defense Here’s who will build the Army’s new missile defense radar – 10/17/2019 – DefenseNews Podcast: Thomas Karako on Israel and America’s Missile-Defense Partnership – 10/17/2019 - Mosaic Samurai Battery defends homeland, allies – 10/17/2019 – The Redstone Rocket Kamikaze Drones Could Deploy to Protect Patriot Missile Defense Batteries – 10/17/2019 – Military.com New missile-armed Stryker unveiled by General Dynamics – 10/18/2019 – Fox News THREAT NEWS North Korea poses one of ‘most concerning’ ballistic missile threats to US, says report – 10/14/2019 – Jane’s 360 Iran’s Expanded Missile Arsenal Presents Challenge for U.S., Saudi Arabia – 10/14/2019 – The Wall Street Journal Beijing’s nuclear-capable missile DF-41 ‘can level the whole New York City with a single strike’, Chinese media warns – 10/14/2019 – Daily Mail How Active Protection Systems Knock Down Anti-Armor Threats for Both Legacy and Future Combat Vehicles – 10/16/2019 – Breaking Defense OTHER NEWS Russia’s Putin Says Iran’s Missile Program Should Be Treated Separately to Nuclear Program: Arabiya – 10/14/2019 – Reuters Army-developed multimission launcher ‘off the table’ – 10/16/2019 – DefenseNews Technology Supports INDOPACOM Headway – 10/16/2019 – SIGNAL BAE Unveils RAVEN Countermeasure System For Military Vehicles – 10/16/2019 – Defense World 50-Kilowatt Laser Will Be a ‘Game-Changer,’ Company Says – 10/17/2019 – Military.com Russia says US diplomats approached missile test site, location of radioactive blast – 10/18/2019 – ABC US approves sale to South Korea of 120 AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air-missiles – 10/18/2019 – The Defense Post Laser Weapons On Stealth Jets: The Future of the U.S. Air Force? – 10/18/2019 – The National Interest Strategy & Policy – 10/18/2019 – Air Force Magazine U.S. Army will transform into multi-domain force by 2035 – 10/18/2019 – Defence Blog Pence, Erdogan meet; US bombs its former Syrian HQ; ISIS prisoners escape; US, Saudi may link air defenses; And a bit more. – 10/18/2019 – Defense One Stay Connected: ‌ ‌ ‌ 515 King Street, Suite 330, Alexandria, VA 22314 Unsubscribe [email protected] About Constant Contact Sent by [email protected] in collaboration with Try email marketing for free today!