Page 14 - Australian Defence Magazine July-August 2021

14 LAND FORCES 2021
JULY-AUGUST 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
monwealth decision in early 2022. Delivery to the ADF is expected in 2024.
Drones were also a major feature at the show and there was no shortage of announcements in this arena either. Or- bital UAV confirmed that it had exported its first UAV en- gine to one of Singapore’s largest defence companies.
The delivery came from an agreement signed a year ago for the design, development and initial low rate production of multi-fuel engines for UAVs. The initial contract and Phase 1 of the MoU was for the development, inte-
gration and supply of an engine system for
evaluation and acceptance by the customer.
The Fox completed flight tests just over a month before Land Forces at 40 per cent scale, involving the execution of short, controlled circuits at varying speeds and airframe configuration settings.
Innovaero has previously said it is looking at a “much broader market than just Australia” for the UAS. The two companies said they will also explore opportunities for In- novaero to participate in Insitu Pacific’s global supply chain.
“As part of Boeing, Insitu Pacific has extensive experience in autonomous systems technology projects in Australia and across the region, and we look forward to leveraging this experience to work with Innovaero on new opportunities,” Andrew Duggan, managing director, Insitu Pacific said.
“We are delighted to begin working with Insitu Pacific and Boeing on areas of mutual interest,” Innovaero Group CEO Simon Grosser said.
As expected, the two competitors for Land 400 Phase 3, the largest acquisition in Army’s history, dominated the floor of the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre as well as major announcements made before and during the show.
In the days prior, Hanwha Defense Australia (HDA) an- nounced a partnership with local engineering technology provider LEAP Australia to support the PTC Windchill product lifecycle management (PLM) software used for the
Redback Infantry Fighting Vehicle, which HDA is pitching for Land 400 Phase 3. The company also revealed an expanded partnership with CBG Systems for insu- lation technology on its Huntsman self- propelled howitzers, which it says will be expanded to Land 400 Phase 3 should it be successful on that program.
During the show, HDA signed an agreement with Tasma- nia-based Elphinstone, a family-run business that manu- factures equipment for the mining industry. Elphinstone will initially work on hull structure fabrication and ma- chining for the Redback vehicles.
“Elphinstone have been exporting heavy vehicles to re- mote locations across the globe for over 40 years, which also positions us well to work with Hanwha through this teaming agreement to expand well beyond Australia and the Defence sector alone,” Kelly Elphinstone, Executive Di- rector of the Elphinstone Group, said. “I am a firm believer that manufacturing remains viable in Australia.”
The South Korean giant also signed a partnership with Melbourne-based ANCA Engineering Solutions for the man- ufacture of an advanced suspension system for the Redback Infantry Fighting Vehicle. The in-arm system reportedly does not use torsion bars, which the company says allows more space for blast mitigation systems as well as a smoother ride.
Outside of the announcement that it will compete for Land 8710 Phase 1, Rheinmetall announced that it has chosen Cook Defence Systems to provide tracks for Rhe- inmetall’s Lynx KF41, on offer for Land 400 Phase 3. Cook Defence Systems is already supplying Rheinmetall with tracks for Lynx vehicles under construction for other customers, and similar TR40 tracks are in-service on the British Army’s next-generation AJAX vehicles being built by General Dynamics UK. ■
“Delivery of the first engine system to
our Singapore defence customer marks the
completion of a significant milestone within
the engine development program,” Todd Al-
der, CEO and Managing Director of Orbital
UAV, said. “The engine represents the latest innovations in UAV propulsion capabilities providing best in class perfor- mance to our customer. We are now working, under contract, on Phase 2 and confirming requirements and terms and con- ditions for Phase 3 of the program.
“I am pleased with the progress we have made with our customer diversification strategy over the past 18 months and our ability to deliver against the development program milestones we have set out.”
Meanwhile, Insitu Pacific and Perth-based aeronautical technology company Innovaero have signed an agreement to “strengthen and support the development of Australian technology” for uncrewed aerial systems (UAS).
The agreement will see Insitu Pacific provide its common architecture software and ground control solutions to en- able Innovaero to ‘rapidly progress’ development of its Verti- cal Take-off and Landing (VTOL) InnovaeroFOX UAS.
The Innovaero Fox has been purpose-built in response to the Navy’s call for a new generation of Intelligence Sur- veillance & Reconnaissance (ISR) and targeting capability for RAN ships. The Fox will be officially launched at the Avalon Airshow later in the year.
ABOVE: Hanwha signed Melbourne-based ANCA Engineering Solutions to manufacture the suspension system for the Redback IFV.
“I AM A FIRM BELIEVER THAT MANUFACTURING REMAINS VIABLE IN AUSTRALIA”
HANWHA DEFENSE AUSTRALIA