QinetiQ has received a $2.9 million contract to build a baffle for the European Space Agency‘s Airbus-built Euclid space telescope. The baffle is a black cylindrical structure and is built to prevent stray light from entering into the telescope’s optics, QinetiQ said Sept. 30. ESA led the development of the Euclid mission with Thales Alenia Space Turin in an effort to probe the “dark energy” that some […] More

Raytheon and Poland-based technology firm WB Electronics have formed a team to pursue the Polish military’s air and missile defense system development contract. The companies seek to develop a combat simulation and training software for the Shield of Poland AMD competition, WB Electronics said Friday. They also agreed to collaborate on finding potential technology export […] More

A new MarketsandMarkets report rorecasts the maritime security market to reach $20.87 billion in value in 2019 at a compound annual growth rate of 8.4 percent over the next five years. The firm said Thursday that the awareness of maritime threats, regulations, standards and international trade practices, as well as the globalization of maritime security operations will drive the market. The report also listed Kongsberg, Northrop […] More

Paul Kahn, formerly president and CEO of Thales‘ operations in Canada, has joined Airbus Group as president of the aerospace and defense conglomerate’s business in the U.K. He will succeed Robin Southwell, who has left Airbus after a nearly 10-year career there, and be responsible for Airbus Group’s relationships with the British` government, armed forces and industry, Airbus said Wednesday. “Paul comes from […] More

Iridium Communications has completed a series qualification tests on a new design Spectrolab and Mitsubishi Electric developed for the solar panel arrays that will be fitted to the Iridium NEXT satellites. Iridium said Tuesday the design consists of four panels that span approximately 30 feet and generate at least 2 kilowatts of power via triple-junction solar cells. Scott Smith, Iridium chief operating […] More

A new Research and Markets report forecasts that the value of the electro-optical market will grow from $11.76 billion in 2014 to $14.03 billion in 2020 at a compound annual growth rate of 2.98 percent. The market research firm said Monday that growth is attributed to ongoing upgrade and replacement projects in the defense, homeland security and aerospace […] More

MarketsandMarkets has released a new report that projects the air traffic control equipment market to be worth approximately $5.5 billion in 2020. The report, which analyzes the market’s growth by geography and country between 2014 and 2020, indicates that the air traffic market will double in value over the next 15 years, MarketsandMarkets said Thursday. Airport construction projects […] More

A MicroMarket Monitor report forecasts the North American security and surveillance radar market to be worth up to $2.03 billion in 2019, a compound annual growth rate of 4.64 percent over the next five years. The market research firm said Sunday that the region would keep its status as the top spender on security and surveillance radar systems, […] More

The small unmanned aerial vehicle market is projected to grow by the end of 2019 at a 22 percent compound annual growth rate to a total market value of $582.2 million, according to a recent MarketsandMarkets report. The six-year global forecast on the small and man-portable UAV market classifies the technology based on trends, propulsion, payload, application, region […] More

Iridium Communications is set to produce antennas for the NEXT constellation in large volumes following completion of the first five flight main mission antennas. Thales Alenia Space built the antennas to handle the transmission of data between Iridium customer devices, Iridium Communications said Monday. “The main mission antennas are a critical component of each satellite, and […] More

Iridium Communications and Thales Alenia Space have completed a test call of the L-band hardware and associated software for the Iridium NEXT constellation, demonstrating end-to-end call flow through satellite, ground and public switched telephone networks. Iridium said Tuesday the milestone validates the Iridium NEXT system’s capabilities for satellite communications as the companies prepare for the first launch next year. “Placing […] More

NetApp Inc. has been awarded a $28 million contract to provide computer equipment for the Australian Defense Department under a Thales-led project, CRN reported Thursday. Steven Kiernan writes defense personnel will gain access to classified domains using a single device through the government’s Next Generation Desktop program. NetApp will supply computer, networking and storage equipment […] More