BAE Systems Reports Revenues Up 9 Percent

[buglerbilly]

By ANDREW CHUTER

Published: 29 Jul 2010 09:06

Customer support and services revenues edged closer to accounting for more than half of BAE Systems sales in the first half of the year. The company reported total revenues for the period up 9 percent to 10.6 billion pounds and said support and services accounted for 49 percent of that figure

Chief executive Ian King singled out the "substantial presence" in the support and service sector along with BAE's position across what it calls its seven home markets across the globe as the basis for optimism for continued strong performance despite budget downturns in some global markets.

A company spokeswoman said support and services revenues for the year would remain around the 50 percent mark and be balanced by growth in Typhoon fighter revenues.

Full year figures for 2009 showed support and services accounting for 47 percent of revenues.

Typhoon production is continuing to boost BAE revenues. Group financial director George Rose told reporters at a pre-Farnborough briefing that Typhoon is approaching its production peak of 50 a year with deliveries of Typhoon's to Saudi Arabia also providing strong support growth.

A deal with Oman for Typhoon's is also expected to be signed within the next 12 months which will likely further boost the company's support activities in the Gulf region.

In its result statement, BAE said it was in discussions with the Saudi government on the next phase of the Saudi British Defence Co-operation program - primarily the support and sustainment of the Kingdoms Tornado strike aircraft fleet.

Timed to kick-in during 2012 BAE said the next phase of the deal with the Saudi's will place "greater emphasis on performance-based availability contracting," for the large Tornado force supported in-country by BAE.

In the results statement BAE said customer support and services was a "key differentiator" for the company in the defense and security services. BAE has contracts in the land, sea and air sectors in several global markets and is making further inroads into the homeland security and intelligence services businesses through its Detica operation.

The company's substantial support and services business in the U.K. could though be vulnerable to significant upcoming cuts in the U.K. defense budget.

A number of the big ticket platforms supported by BAE, like Tornado and Harrier fast jets, heavy armoured vehicles and warships, could be axed in the upcoming government strategic defence and security review being rushed through by the British government.

The upside for BAE is the British government is expected to contract out further services and support work to industry post the strategic review to secure greater efficiency and cut costs.

King, during a meeting with analysts earlier today said if there were reductions in fast jet numbers it would not happen overnight and with ongoing operational requirements could take up to five years to come through.

He said any reduction in fast jet numbers might also require additional spending on the Typhoon to improve its capabilities.

The company said in the results statement that its overall business in the U.K. remained sustainable but made the point that it only represented some 20 percent of sales in the first half. The remainder of revenues largely coming from its other home markets in Australia, India, Sweden, the USA, South Africa and Saudi Arabia

BAE continues to strengthen its support and services business globally. Earlier this month it completed the acquisition of the bulk of Atlantic Marine Holdings naval services and marine fabrication activities in the U.S. in a 235 million pound deal.

King, speaking prior to the Farnborough Air Show, said that ship repair and services already contributed $1 billion a year in BAE revenue even without the Atlantic Marine acquisition.

BAE has not released the revenues generated by the Atlantic Marine purchase. Added to its existing U.S. business in the sector, though, the acquisition makes BAE the U.S. Navy's biggest ship repairer.

Further acquisitions could be on the cards. King said during the early July briefing that BAE continues to look at merger and acquisition opportunities in the support and services sector.

BAE's U.S. operation has recently reorganized its business in order to bolster its burgeoning support and services offerings.

[buglerbilly]

By ARAB NEWS

Published: Aug 16, 2010 00:55 Updated: Aug 16, 2010 00:55

JEDDAH: BAE Systems intends to establish a military aircraft assembling plant in Saudi Arabia, according to Guy Griffiths, managing director international and a member of the company’s executive council.

Speaking to Arab News, Griffiths highlighted his company’s efforts in supplying Saudi Arabia the most modern air defense systems.

“We provided these systems through agreements signed between the Saudi and British governments,” he said, stressing the good cooperation between his company and Saudi Arabia during the past three decades.

“We have started training Saudis on Typhoon aircraft assembling at our plant in Warton in order to establish an assembling plant in the Kingdom shortly,” he said.

He noted the Kingdom’s efforts to train the national cadre. “During the past several years, the Saudi government has been making efforts to diversify its economy and establish new industries by providing advanced training to the national cadre.”

Griffiths added: “We have cooperated with this drive by providing the Saudi Royal Air Force and Saudi armed forces with qualified Saudi manpower of high standard, by giving them training in different industries and technical areas.”

He said BAE Systems had established large-scale projects to train Saudi manpower in defense-related industries. Griffiths said about 58 percent of the company’s 5,000 employees are Saudi.

“We are continuing our efforts to increase the percentage of the Saudi work force gradually by recruiting qualified graduates of Saudi universities and technical institutes,” he said.

“We train these graduates in the Kingdom as well as in the UK to make them well-qualified professionals in order to take up important positions at the company."

He said BAE Systems also works with local companies involved in the Economic Offset Program as well as with local investors, who wanted to improve the capabilities of the national manpower. “This has been appreciated by the government. It also strengthens our company’s competence and continuation in the Saudi market.”

Griffiths disclosed his company’s plan to recruit qualified Saudis to take up important positions, especially in manpower management. At present the HR manager in the company is a non-Saudi. “We are now in the process of training a group of Saudi employees to take up leadership and strategic positions in the company.”

He said the company adopts a modern and effective methodology for training its workers.

According to Griffiths, BAE has business in more than 100 countries and Saudi Arabia is one of its seven major markets. The company supplies a variety of defense, security and information systems for Saudi Arabia and increases its investment in the country.

Speaking about the company’s social responsibility initiatives, Mundir Mahmoud Tayeb, director of public relations, said BAE Systems wanted to carry out programs in harmony with the Saudi government’s strategic objectives and its efforts to build the capabilities of Saudis. He underlined the role of education and training in boosting progress and prosperity of any country. “Economic growth plays a big role in reducing unemployment,” he added. BAE Systems supports a research program after doctorate degree.

[buglerbilly]

Report: BAE Selling Some N. American Business

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Published: 11 Sep 2010 15:19

NEW YORK - BAE Systems, the world's top maker of military equipment, is selling some of its North American commercial aerospace business, The Wall Street Journal reported Sept. 11.

The auction could yield up to $2 billion for BAE, The Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter. The units collectively have about $200 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.

Among the units said to be put up for sale are one that makes aircraft-engine controls for General Electric Co. and a division that makes hybrid propulsion systems for buses and trucks.

Initial bids were expected to come in as early as next week.

Rival aerospace and industrial component manufacturers such as Rockwell Collins Inc., Woodward Governor Co. or Moog Inc., as well as private-equity firms such as Warburg Pincus, Carlyle Group and transportation-focused shop Greenbriar Equity Group LLC may be interested in some or all of the assets, according to The Journal.

[buglerbilly]

Sep 14, 2010

A "Black Eye" for the Pentagon's Watchdog: The Backstory of the BAE-Joint Strike Fighter Audit Report Withdrawal



The findings were troubling to say the least. In spring 2008, British Aerospace Enterprises, the U.K.’s largest defense contractor better known by its initials BAE, had been accused by the Pentagon watchdog agency of possibly losing classified information related to the world’s most expensive weapons program, the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).

This tale did not end here. Within the year, the report containing the allegations against BAE would end up circling back on the very agency that issued it: the Pentagon Office of Inspector General, which is currently headed by Gordon Heddell (Claude Kicklighter was the Inspector General at the time of the report's issuance). But the backstory of the controversial Pentagon Inspector General report was not publicly known until last week, when Senator Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, issued a report detailing how the Pentagon Office of Inspector General has failed to aggressively audit contracts.

To understand the significance of the Inspector General’s original finding requires some context: BAE had been struggling to rebrand itself as a trans-Atlantic company, to be known as being just as American as it was British, in order to win the trust of the Pentagon, one of its biggest clients and one that was especially wary of handing over sensitive information to foreign partners. Furthermore, BAE had also been tarnished by allegations that it had engaged in years of bribery of Saudi government officials in a huge 1980s arms deal with the Middle Eastern country. Being accused of losing classified information did nothing to alleviate the trust deficit.

BAE vehemently denied the Pentagon Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) findings, its then-spokesman Greg Caires saying, “We strongly disagree with the IG's suggestion that ... information may have been compromised in some unidentified way by unauthorized access at BAE Systems.”

On top of findings related to BAE the OIG’s report contained arguably equally troubling, yet less well-publicized findings that a little-known Pentagon agency had failed in its job to ensure that BAE was adequately protecting classified information. Questions about the effectiveness of the Defense Security Service (DSS) in overseeing contractors had been bubbling to the surface since a 2004 Government Accountability Office report—but this was the first real example of the agency’s inadequacy to come to light.

In its defense, DSS Director Kathleen Watson told the OIG that “DSS has a thorough and fundamentally sound facility inspection process which was only marginally diminished by the failure to systematically collect, analyze, and retain BAE’s required reports.”

Clearly the stakes were huge—and although defense weapons scandals today are usually relegated to the business pages of newspapers, this was among the more major stories of May 2008. POGO broke the story when we obtained the March 2008 IG report through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and The Washington Post, AP, Wired and other news outlets reported the story.

BAE, in particular, was pissed. That spring, the company “requested a meeting with the DOD IG to resolve what appears to us to be a misunderstanding of the underlying facts,” its then-spokesman told me. At least one meeting between the IG and BAE officials occurred over the summer of 2008, OIG employees have told me.

Then quietly, in October 2008, the report disappeared from the OIG’s website. On Friday, October 24, the OIG posted a letter from the day before. The letter, sent to the Defense Security Service, said the OIG report was being rescinded because of a lack of evidence to support its conclusion, including the finding that classified information may have been compromised.

“We appreciate the DOD IG’s thoroughness and willingness to reexamine this matter,” BAE's then-spokesman Greg Caires said in response to the news.

It was a massive turnaround. An Inspector General report that had slammed a Pentagon agency as well as one of the largest defense contractors had become a “black eye” for the Inspector General's office.

Red Flags Were Ignored

According to Grassley's report, it is “a rare and highly unusual action for any IG to withdraw an audit report.” A top OIG audit official is quoted in Grassley's report as saying that the F-35/BAE episode was a “black eye” for the audit office. (A second audit report was rescinded in early 2009, and that received significant attention from The New York Times since it began in response to a Pulitzer prize-winning investigation by Times reporter David Barstow into military analysts.)

“The ramifications of IG Heddell’s decision to withdraw this report cannot be overstated,” according to Grassley's report. “It had the potential of damaging the credibility of all OIG reports in the eyes of the whole department as well as defense contractors.”



What went wrong with the BAE report? Why did the Pentagon's top watchdog issue an audit where its conclusions were not fully backed up by evidence?

Grassley's staff found the following about this “extraordinary episode”:

•“Five separate internal DOD OIG reviews of this report failed to detect this blatant disconnect” between the audit's conclusions and the evidence to support them;

•“However, internal records indicate that on June 19, 2007—about 9 months before the report was issued, a senior Audit Policy Oversight official raised a red flag regarding the mismatch between the conclusions and the underlying documentation”; and

•Furthermore, “this internal red flag was followed by two similar BAE red flags in December 2007 and again in May 2008, raising identical concerns about the report.”

“It is hard to believe that these red flags never popped up on senior management’s radar screen,” according to Grassley's report, “especially on a report that had taken so long to publish.” The report took two and half years to complete. One of Grassley's gripes with the OIG in general is that it is taking too long to finish audits.

Grassley concludes that: “All the warnings were totally ignored.”

Some explanations were offered to Grassley by OIG officials, including that there was a breakdown in communications and a failure of employees to carry out some of their duties. However, according to Grassley's report, “the problem appears much larger than that. There was a breakdown in the audit quality control review process.”

Misplaced Accountability?

The embarrassing reversal was perhaps bound to sweep up some of the OIG employees who were involved with the audit. But this has appeared to have opened up another can of worms.

The OIG told Grassley's staff that three audit office employees were disciplined. All three were reprimanded: one received a five-day suspension, one retired, and another was transferred to another division.

But the OIG did not volunteer information about a fourth employee, Grassley's report says, and this one “appears to have taken the brunt of the blame.”

That employee was removed and demoted from the senior executive service-level position to GS-15 (both are high-level positions within the government's civil service scale).

“It seems like he was the only one who was harshly punished for what happened,” according to Grassley's report, “Yet he was not even an OIG employee when the F-35/BAE audit was published.”

The firing of this individual struck Grassley's staff as odd, since he was punished for a lack of action that a senior official should have taken.

No senior management officials were held accountable for the failures that led to the publication of the erroneous report, Grassley's report noted.

(Note: In April 2009, in a front-page Wall Street Journal article, three of WSJ’s top national security reporters said that “computer spies” stole sensitive Joint Strike Fighter information. Whether this breach was the same as that referred to by the Pentagon IG auditors has never been confirmed. Lockheed Martin, the top contractor on the JSF program, denied that classified information was stolen.)

-- Nick Schwellenbach


Photo 1: The Joint Strike Fighter. Credit: U.S. Navy photo/Chief Petty Officer Eric A. Clement.

Photo 2: Gordon Heddell, the Pentagon's Inspector General. Credit: Pentagon Office of Inspector General.

[buglerbilly]

BAE buys L-1's US counter terrrorism unit

BAE Systems, the Britiish defence company, is to buy the US counter-terrorism business of L-1 Identity Solutions for $295.8m (£188.7m) cash, extending its presence in America.

Published: 10:04AM BST 20 Sep 2010

The acquistion is part of a $1.1, $12-a-share deal by Safran, the French aero-engine and security equipment maker, to buy the rest of the US firm.

State-owned Safran wants the rest of L-1, including its identity and biometrics business which includes face and iris recognition software.

The sale is reliant on L-1 share-holders backing the BAE's cash deal.

L-1's counter terrorism business comprises of SpecTal, Advanced Conceprts and McClendon and has contracts with the US Government.

Defence cuts have triggered consolidation in the industry and seen big defence groups eying smaller companies specialising in cybersecurity, surveillance and intelligence.

[buglerbilly]

BAE SYSTEMS EYES DIVESTMENT OPTIONS

21 Sept 2010

BAE Systems has engaged Wells Fargo and JP Morgan to advise on strategic options with regard to its Platform Solutions business, including a possible sale. The New York-based business, which supplies defence and civil avionics systems and hybrid vehicle drive systems, is a pillar of BAE's Electronics, Intelligence & Support division, which accounts for a quarter of group revenue and profit.

[buglerbilly]

Trinidad and Tobago looks to terminate OPV programme

By Guy Anderson

22 September 2010

The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago has given notice that it wishes to formally terminate the GBP150 million (USD234 million) contract with BAE Systems to deliver three offshore patrol vessels (OPVs), leaving the UK group with the prospect of selling the nearly completed vessels on the world market.

BAE Systems confirmed the requested cancellation in a statement on 21 September, although it stressed that it will "seek to engage in commercial discussions" with the Caribbean nation to find an "equitable settlement". A spokesman for the shipbuilder said it remains hopeful that the contract can be salvaged.

The programme – which has previously suffered both cost and time overruns – was entered into by a former Trinidad and Tobago government and the UK's VT Group in April 2007. Ownership of the programme passed first to BVT Surface Fleet (a joint venture shipbuilding company created in mid-2008 by BAE Systems and VT Group) and subsequently to BAE Systems Surface Ships when BAE Systems acquired sole ownership of the venture in September 2009. When it pulled out, VT Group provided GBP43 million of capital to BAE Systems to compensate for cost overruns and delays in the programme.

The first of the three OPVs, Port of Spain, is currently going through final work before acceptance by the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard; the second, Scarborough, has completed sea trials with what was previously viewed as an October 2010 delivery date and work continues on the third, San Fernando, with a view to sea trials in November. BAE Systems stressed on 21 September that all work relating to the programme is continuing.

270 of 566 words
Copyright © IHS (Global) Limited, 2010

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems PLC – Business Update

(Source: BAE Systems; issued October 21, 2010)

Trading for the period has been consistent with management expectations at the time of the half-year results announcement on 29 July 2010.

Ian King, Chief Executive BAE Systems, said:

“BAE Systems has continued to perform in line with management expectations. We remain focused on our proven strategy that will deliver long term sustainable value for shareholders. The US defence market continues to generate substantial business opportunities and we have announced a number of strategic acquisitions in the period which will strengthen our customer support and services activities. And in the UK, the Strategic Defence and Security Review has given us the basis on which to adapt our plans.”

Key contract wins in the period:

-- $629m contract for the upgrade of 1,700 Caiman MRAP vehicles taking new orders for mine protected vehicles to more than $1bn for the year to date
-- $123m for further production of thermal weapon sights for the US Army
-- Approved to provide engineering and technical services to the US Army and other federal customers under a ten–year $16.4bn US government-wide contract called Rapid Response – 3rd Generation
-- Received a multi ship, multi option contract, with a potential value of $365m on 11 Arleigh Burke DDG-51 class destroyers
-- Continued to develop presence in Indian market; signed agreement with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to supply products and services worth over £500m to enable 57 Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer aircraft to be built under licence in India for the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy.

M&A activity in the period:

-- Completed $352m acquisition of Atlantic Marine which has naval sustainment operations at Mayport and Jacksonville, Florida, Moss Point, Mississippi, and Mobile, Alabama.
-- Completed acquisition of OASYS Technology LLC, a US manufacturer of electro-optical systems and sub-assemblies for an initial cash consideration of approximately $25m.
-- Announced definitive agreement to acquire L-1 Identity Solutions, Inc.'s Intelligence Services Group for cash consideration of $296m.

Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR)

-- The business is planned on conservative assumptions and although the detail behind the changes identified by the SDSR will take some time to refine, the removal of a number of uncertainties with regard to our UK business is welcomed.
-- BAE Systems has made allowances in its planning assumptions for possible changes and has accelerated efficiency improvements to both mitigate likely reductions in activity and to improve programme affordability for the UK customer.
-- Some modest impact on UK performance for 2010 is anticipated with a reduction in the Group’s financial planning assumptions resulting in an approximately one pence reduction in earnings per share, per annum, thereafter.
-- The Company will now work with the UK Ministry of Defence to address the detailed programme implications of the changes.

BAE Systems is a global defence, security and aerospace company with approximately 107,000 employees worldwide. The Company delivers a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. In 2009 BAE Systems reported sales of £22.4 billion (US$ 36.2 billion)

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

BAE boss plots a new course

Julian Kerr

From: The Australian October 23, 2010 12:00AM

SPECIAL REPORT

JIM McDowell's views on the current and future status of the domestic defence industry are worth consideration.

In his nine years as managing director of Australia's largest defence contractor McDowell, a straight-talking Ulsterman, has built up BAE Systems Australia (BAES) by acquisition and organic growth to a company employing more than 6000 staff and boasting an annual turnover of just under $1.8 billion.

Its defence interests stretch across air, land and maritime, and are now also extending into security and cyber security, as witnessed by a recent contract to replace the CCTV management system at Parliament House in Canberra.

McDowell says Australia's defence market is "medium sized in terms of absolute size . . . but, in terms of sustainable commitment and sustainable growth, it's very good, a great market to be in".

What industry is seeking from government -- any government -- is "consistency and visibility and long-termism which gives us good information with which to plan, solid work practices on which to execute, and an emphasis on output rather than input".

Conceding that this wish list could require some radical change, McDowell emphasises the importance to industry of Defence's Strategic Reform Program (SRP) which over the 10 years to 2019 aims to deliver efficiencies of about $20bn.

"I think there have been some not very sustainable decisions aimed at the low-hanging fruit in industry but we're right at the start of the program and there's time to get that right," he says. "If the SRP is approached properly it really should be an opportunity for industry because I fervently believe there are things that industry can do better than government.

"It's quite common to give industry deeper maintenance and to keep operational maintenance for the user. There may be some tactical or doctrinal reason for doing that but certainly from an economic sense it's inefficient; industry in most cases would do it better and cheaper. So we should be focused on getting some of those things on the industry side of the contract. I think the SRP process has a way to go before we look at things end-to-end and find the real efficiencies."

Recent concerns within industry about Defence's emphasis on COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) and MOTS (Military Off-the-Shelf) acquisitions "could be played out in a number of ways. It seems to me to be much more a statement of political intent rather than actual policy because so often it doesn't happen", McDowell says.

However, in seeking an armoured replacement for the ADF's 1300 Land Rovers it made sense to select one of the three entrants in the US Joint Light Tactical Program, in which Australia has invested $40 million, rather than a locally developed vehicle.

"Here we have a product in which Australia has had significant input into the design by paying some money and getting their people involved up front. BAE Systems Australia happens to be on two of the three (JLTV) teams and we will support the vehicle in Australia, but the thought of trying to develop a brand new vehicle for Australia and hope to export it seems to me to be a very big bet with the taxpayers' money."

BAES too does not escape criticism. Included in the company's 2008 acquisition of Tenix Defence was Tenix Toll Defence Logistics, whose contract for providing warehousing, maintenance and distribution services to the ADF then devolved to BAES.

"We have been, and rightly so, criticised by the customer for lack of innovation. We've got to prove that we can reduce cost and improve service," McDowell says.

BAES is heavily involved in maritime. It is the prime contractor for the two 27,000-tonne Canberra-class amphibious ships (whose hulls are being built in Spain) and prime contractor for the Anzac-class frigates, as well as manufacturing hull modules and supplying equipment, including the main gun, for the three Air Warfare Destroyers.

With 12 future submarines, 12 future frigates, 20 offshore combatant vessels, a support vessel and a strategic sealift ship included in the 2009 Defence white paper, McDowell sees a bright future for the company's shipyards at Williamstown in Victoria and Henderson in Western Australia. "Australia will never be as competitive as, say, Korea in building oil tankers, but with naval ships we can be, so long as we get the demand and utilisation managed properly by Defence, or industry or a combination of both.

"Industry consolidation may not be necessary if demand is handled better than it has been."

Although ASC was withdrawn from sale by the government during the global financial crisis, McDowell confirms his potential interest in the company if and when it is offered again.

"We'd have a look at it, a lot would depend on the terms for the sale. I guess the seller will be looking for a strategic buyer and not just a financial one. We probably fit that profile quite well.

"If you want to sell your submarine business, it's not just a financial investor you're seeking, you're also looking for someone who understands submarines, and obviously we'd have some expertise to bring to that."

BAES is close to completing the upgrade of 350 M113 armoured personnel carriers -- a contract inherited from Tenix Defence -- and McDowell sees the future in the land domain in through-life support and contract management of future product offerings from the worldwide BAES group.

In air, the company maintains the RAAF's BAES-manufactured Hawk lead-in fighters, the F/A-18A/B "classic" Hornets, RAN Seahawks, army Blackhawks, is a member of the AP-3C Alliance, and is awaiting the outcome of a tender to support the army's Chinooks. It is also awaiting official confirmation that it has won the RAAF's six-year interim basic flying training contract, and in June signed a memorandum of understand with Lockheed Martin that should ensure it gains the lion's share of maintenance on Australia's Joint Strike Fighters.

A less happy experience has been delays in the delivery of the BAES-developed electronic support measures element of the electronic warfare (EW) suite for the RAAF's Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft.

McDowell attributes the delays to a fixed-price development program "where we always underestimate, which is why we don't do them any more".

With EW suites increasingly integrated into platforms, McDowell anticipates EW opportunities for Australian industry becoming increasing limited to support. "We should all get together, work out the kind of capability required by Defence, and size our resources accordingly. I suspect that would mean around 120 EW specialists rather than 250."

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems Expands Global Cyber Security Capability with Acquisition of stratsec.net Pty Ltd

(Source: BAE Australia; issued Nov. 29, 2010)

CANBERRA, Australia --- BAE Systems has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire stratsec.net Pty Ltd, an information security company in the Australian and South East Asian region.

Operating from facilities in Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, stratsec.net Pty Ltd has been providing information security consulting and testing services to government and commercial customers since 2004.

The acquisition of stratsec will add capabilities and footprint in the growing area of cyber and intelligence.

“This acquisition supports our strategy to expand our existing information security services, knowledge and experience and is consistent with BAE Systems’ strategy to develop its cyber and security business in its home markets,” said Jim McDowell, Chief Executive of BAE Systems Australia.

This acquisition, which is conditional upon receiving regulatory approval, is due for completion by the end of 2010.

Peter Lilley, CEO of stratsec.net Pty Ltd, said that “The opportunity to be part of BAE Systems is excellent news for stratsec.net Pty Ltd, and our clients and staff. We will be able to accelerate our plans to add new cyber security capabilities, offering a wider range of services to clients and engage in a greater level of cyber-security research.”

BAE Systems is a global defence, security and aerospace company with approximately 107,000 employees worldwide. The Company delivers a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. In 2009 BAE Systems reported sales of £22.4 billion (US $36.2 billion).

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems to cut nearly 1,400 jobs in Britain

December 9, 2010 - 10:09PM

BAE Systems, the British maker of military equipment, said on Thursday that it was looking to cut almost 1,400 jobs in Britain following the government's decision to reduce defence spending.

"Following a detailed review of the implications of the UK government's Strategic Defence and Security Review ... BAE Systems has announced it has started consultation regarding potential job losses" at sites across Britain, the company said in a statement.

BAE Systems identified 1,397 positions set to disappear, including 668 at a site in Warton, Lancashire in northwest England.

© 2010 AFP

[buglerbilly]

BAE pays fine to settle Tanzania corruption probe

BAE Systems was ordered to pay a £500,000 fine and £250,000 costs to settle a long-running corruption probe into the sale of a radar and air traffic control system to Tanzania.


An Astute submarine built by BAE sailing into her home base of Faslane on the Clyde. Photo: ROYAL NAVY

By Jonathan Russell 1:15PM GMT 21 Dec 2010

The company agreed to pay the balance of a £30m plea bargain with the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to Tanzania in reparation for its part in the $40m (£28m) sale of the equipment.

The fine and plea bargain relate to one charge of failing to keep accounting records. No charges or prosecution were brought for corruption against BAE.

However Mr Justice Bean said it was “naïve in the extreme” to think that BAE’s agent in Tanzania, Shailesh Vithlani, was paid millions of dollars simply as a “well-paid lobbyist”.

BAE accepted that there was “a high probability that part of the $12.4m (it paid Mr Vithlani) would be used in the negotiation process to favour BAE”.

However, the prosecution said it was impossible to establish what Mr Vithlani had done with the money and that it was no part of the Crown’s case that any part of the money were improperly used.

The judge said he was “astonished” when the prosecution admitted this fact.

BAE said it was pleased the matter was now closed and said it was working on a method to make the payment to Tanzania.

The fine brings to end a proces started in February, when BAE agreed to plead guilty to "breaching its duty to keep accounting records" for the radar deal in Tanzania.

BAE also agreed at the time to pay a $400m fine to the US, after admitting to "defrauding the US" over the sale of fighter planes to Saudi Arabia and Eastern Europe."

As a result, the SFO and US Department of Justice ended their investigations into bribery and corruption by BAE.

Yesterday, the High Court judge presiding over the the settlement questioned the evidence and terms of the SFO's plea bargain with BAE.

Mr Justice Bean threatened to call a halt to the sentencing of BAE, questioning whether he could continue on the basis of the facts before him. Although he continued with the sentencing it was not before tearing into the evidence presented by the prosecution.

"My overriding feeling is that you cannot sentence with this evidence," Mr Justice Bean said. "The proposition that the Crown cannot prove to criminal standard that corrupt payments were made is one thing. To say that those payments were not properly used is another.

"There is a big gap."

The SFO's deal with BAE involved the company paying a £30m fine after pleading guilty to failing to keep proper accounting records. The accounting records relate to $12.4m paid to a "marketing agent" in Tanzania, Shailesh Vithlani, to facilitate an air traffic control deal with the country.

The evidence put before the court established a trail of payments made via offshore companies to Mr Vithlani. Roughly 97pc of the $12.4m fee was paid to a British Virgin Islands company described by BAE as a "covert" company. The balance was paid to a company called Merlin registered in Tanzania and described by BAE as "overt". Both companies were controlled by Mr Vithlani.

The court heard covert agents were hired by BAE in a number of circumstances; when it was illegal to employ them overtly; because of tax implications arising from the agent making undeclared payments to third parties; or to avoid "embarrassment and press interest" due to large fees being paid.

The normal limit on payments to covert agents was 20pc of the price of a contract. Because Mr Vithlani's fee was 30pc it was personally authorised by BAE's then chairman Sir Richard Evans.

Mr Justice Bean also questioned the terms of a widespread indemnity agreed between BAE and the SFO to preclude certain further prosecutions relating to the case.

Through cases such as BAE and earlier this year, Innospec and Robert Dougall, the SFO has tried to establish a precedent for plea bargaining in UK law.

In the Dougall corruption case, Judge Bean, the same judge sitting in the BAE case, turned an agreed suspended sentence into a prison term.

A £12.7m fine agreed with chemical company Innospec was branded "inadequate".

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems Receives Keys to Washington UK Site

(Source: BAE Systems; issued January 19, 2011)

WASHINGTON, United Kingdom. --- BAE Systems today received the keys to its brand new Washington munitions facility - and over the next two days all 350 employees will tour their future "home".

The workers will be bussed from nearby Birtley to view the new factory and comment on proposed plant layouts.

The new £75 million plant on the site of the old Dunlop factory in Washington will ensure even better supplies of ammunition to front-line troops while securing north east jobs. Beginning in March production will be transferred from Birtley to the new site and will be largely complete by the end of the year. Employees will make the move in batches over the same period.

A new high-tech 250 tonne forge has already been installed in the new factory and much of its new plant and equipment is already up and running at Birtley so that when production transfer takes place it will be as smoothly as possible and without interruption of vital supplies to the front line.

"These are exciting times for our people," says site boss Lee Smurthwaite. "All the Washington buildings are now complete and we want to get on with the move. We are taking employees round the new plant with their managers this week because we want their suggestions on layouts and workflow."

The move constitutes a remarkable turnaround since 2002 when Birtley was losing money and facing closure. The change is largely due to a revolutionary 15-year £2 billion partnering agreement called MASS (Munitions Acquisition - the Supply Solution), signed in August 2008 with the UK Ministry of Defence.

The agreement commits the MoD and BAE Systems to working together and has proven a great success, delivering increased supplies of ammunition on time to front-line troops. Birtley has doubled mortar bomb production and the new plant will have even greater capacity to meet the needs of the front line.

"Once the agreement was signed we looked at 21 potential sites for a new factory to replace Birtley, which goes back to World War One," says Lee. "Employees had a big say in this process and Washington was the best fit for both the business and our people, as it's closer to where most of them live. They requested a gym, drying rooms, internet access and a learning centre within their welfare block, so we have incorporated these into the building specification."

Birtley will be redeveloped for housing following its closure in summer 2012. The site, which has never handled explosives, makes empty shells for filling at a sister site in South Wales.

Colonel Andy Gibson, who heads the MoD's general munitions team, commented:

"Our troops require high-quality ammunition delivered in a timely fashion and the MASS contract between the MoD and BAE Systems is delivering just that. Schedule adherence has been consistently well above 99 per cent and we see this as a deal which is good for the tax payer, good for local jobs and most importantly, good for the front line."

MASS guarantees the MoD ceiling prices for ten years and includes incentives to make savings, which will be shared between the MoD and BAE Systems. There are penalty clauses for under-performance. It also provides for the development of new, better-performing and safer munitions.

The Washington plant will feature a modern forge run remotely from a control room. It will also carry out machining and treatments of large calibre tank, mortar and artillery ammunition using robotic machining cells and new, environmentally-friendly, paint and treatment capabilities.

Two more manufacturing sites are being transformed over a five-year period under MASS. The improved plants will result in energy savings of 18,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year, equivalent to the carbon footprint of 1,500 UK citizens.

[buglerbilly]

Chinook Contract Signed

(Source: Australian Department of Defence; issued March 1, 2011)

Minister for Defence Materiel Jason Clare today announced that Defence had signed a contract with BAE Systems to maintain the Army’s fleet of Chinook Helicopters.

The $20.9 million contract means that BAE will maintain and support the Chinooks over the next six years.

“Chinooks were an important part of the Defence Force’s response to the Queensland floods,” Mr Clare said.

“They transported the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and emergency service workers as well as food and shelters into places like Condamine.

“They have also been hard at work supporting our troops in Afghanistan in recent times providing logistical support and moving combat units into battle. None of this happens if they aren’t well-maintained.”

Mr Clare said the Chinook fleet was based in Townsville and BAE Systems Australia is working there with Army Aviation.

“BAE Systems Australia’s bid represented the best value for money,” Mr Clare said.

BAE Systems have been maintaining the Chinook fleet since 1995.

There are currently six helicopters in the Chinook fleet operated by the 5th Aviation Regiment in Townsville.

Since 1995 Chinook helicopters have been the Australian Defence Force’s deployable medium-lift helicopter capability.

(ends)

BAE Systems Wins Chinook Helicopter Maintenance Contract

(Source: BAE Systems; issued March 1, 2011)

TOWNSVILLE, Australia --- BAE Systems has been selected to provide Deeper Maintenance (DM) for the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) fleet of CH-47D Chinook helicopters.

Managing Director Jim McDowell said the decision underscored BAE Systems Australia’s record of success over the past 14 years as the DM provider for this critical battlefield and support aircraft.

The initial six-year performance-based contract, with options for up to 20 years, requires BAE Systems Australia to provide scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, repairs, engineering and logistics support services from its base in northern Queensland.

The initial $20.9 million contract will support a total of 23 jobs, mainly in Townsville.

Mr McDowell said: “It consolidates BAE Systems Australia’s reputation in this area, following its successes in December 2009 in winning support and maintenance contracts valued at $240 million for the Army’s Black Hawk and Navy’s Seahawk fleets.

“Successful conclusion of this contract, and the existing Seahawk and Black Hawk contracts means BAE Systems Australia will be well placed to provide future support for all ADF rotary-wing aircraft.

“Our solution will deliver to the ADF uninterrupted Chinook CH-47D support through to the end of the life-of-type of this aircraft in ADF service and the lowest possible transition risk for introduction of the Chinook CH-47F aircraft.”

Mr McDowell said the Chinook fleet is a critical capability heavily committed to active, high tempo military operations.

Since 1996, BAE Systems has provided a compliant, proven solution. Even though requirements have varied greatly during this period, our service has met or exceeded customer expectations.

Mr McDowell added: “More recently, we have demonstrated our ability to deliver significant efficiency improvements, cost-base reductions and reduced Time to Make Serviceable by the application of Lean methodologies.

“The efficiencies we have generated have leveraged our company-wide capabilities and demonstrated our commitment to support the ADF and the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) in its conduct of the Strategic Reform Program (SRP).”

BAE Systems is a global defence, security and aerospace company with approximately 107,000 employees worldwide. The Company delivers a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. In 2009 BAE Systems reported sales of £22.4 billion (US$ 36.2 billion).

-ends-

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BAE Systems Forges More Links In Australian Supply Chain for F-35 Project

08:42 GMT, March 7, 2011

AVALON, Australia | BAE Systems and Marand, a precision engineering company from the State of Victoria, signed a long-term agreement today on the supply of vertical tails for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter -- the largest, highest-value package of industrial work on the F-35 program in Australia.

The agreement is worth A$790 million of high-technology export business for the aerospace industry in Australia over the life of the program, with subsequent contracts being let yearly.

BAE Systems Australia will machine the vertical tail titanium components in Adelaide. Marand will be the in-country lead for the manufacture of the 722 vertical tail fins and will undertake final assembly of the titanium parts.

BAE Systems Group Managing Director - International Guy Griffiths said: "The BAE Systems team and Marand have worked together successfully on the F-35 for the past four years including the last 18 months on the vertical tails.

"This long-term agreement will bring more work into Australia. It underscores not only our confidence in the F-35 program but also in our continuing relationship with Marand."

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Industrial Partnership – Key Benefit of BAE Systems’ Commitment to Brazil

(Source: BAE Systems; issued April 12, 2011)

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil --- Mutually beneficial industrial partnerships will be central to the expansion of BAE Systems’ presence in Brazil, according to Alan Garwood, the company’s Group Business Development Director.

Speaking at the 2011 Latin America Aerospace and Defence (LAAD) show in Rio, Garwood says the world’s second largest defence and security company is keen to work more closely with Brazilian industry to transfer technology and skills. “The development of our presence in Australia, India, Saudi Arabia, the UK and the US is evidence of our commitment to creating indigenous defence capability in markets around the world,” he says.

BAE Systems is developing its business in countries which are committed to defence and security, welcome foreign investment and which posses a skilled workforce. “The economic strength and growing defence investment in Latin America makes it attractive to us,” adds Garwood.

In the last 12 months BAE Systems has made a joint proposal with the UK Government for the Brazilian Navy’s re-equipment programme. Elsewhere in Latin America, last year BAE Systems opened an office in Santiago, Chile, and secured a two year extended agreement with Chilean ship build and repair organisation ASMAR to support the country’s Type 22 and Type 23 frigates.

BAE Systems has its largest ever presence at LAAD 2011 and its ‘Home of Innovation’ exhibit highlights the company’s cutting edge defence and security capabilities. “Whether it’s the new Global Combat Ship or non lethal lasers to deter pirate attacks on commercial vessels, innovation is at the heart of what BAE Systems does,” comments Garwood. The company has a long history of developing some of the world’s most iconic technologies including Concorde and the Harrier Jet.

BAE Systems has had an office in Brasilia since 1998, which is headed by Ana Paula Cordeiro. In support of its growing Brazilian aspirations, the company has added two former Brazilian armed forces leaders to its local team. Antonio Burgos is the company’s Director for Military Affairs and Carlos Guimaraes its Director for Naval programmes.

BAE Systems’ Brazil office has previously provided support to the Brazilian Armed Forces for naval guns, radars and armoured vehicles. The company’s involvement with Brazil can be traced back to the Niteroi Class frigates purchased in the 1970s by the Brazilian navy from BAE Systems’ legacy business, VT Shipbuilding.

“These Niteroi frigates have served the Brazilian Navy well and the current naval modernisation tender comes at an interesting time for Brazil,” says Garwood.

“This purchase is not just about acquiring naval vessels,” he says. “In a broader sense it’s a significant opportunity for Brazil to develop its defence and security industry through the transfer of high end technology and skills. Key to Brazil’s global economic competitiveness will be further enhancing its manufacturing capability in added value industrial sectors such as these,” he concludes.

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New Independent Report Demonstrates Economic Value of Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing

(Source: BAE Systems; issued April 20, 2011)

LONDON, United Kingdom --– A new independent report produced by economic research companies Oxford Economics and GeoEconomics, has outlined the value of BAE Systems and its 9,000 suppliers’ advanced manufacturing and engineering operations to the UK’s economy.

Including its own staff and through its supply chain and induced employment, BAE Systems was found to support a total of 125,000 jobs throughout the UK in 2009. The company made a direct contribution to the UK’s Gross Domestic Production of £3.3 billion.

In providing leading edge equipment and services to the armed forces and customers in the security sector, BAE Systems also delivered £4.9 billion of goods and services in net exports and paid £653 million in taxes. In the same period, the company spent £4.1 billion with its UK suppliers and invested £900 million in research & development (R&D) activities, with an additional £56 million spent on skills and education programmes to support the science, technology and engineering sectors.

The report, ‘The Economic Contribution of BAE Systems to the UK in 2009’ identified that BAE Systems’ 42,360 employees were 85 per cent more productive than the national average, each contributing £78,175 to the UK’s economy in 2009, compared to a national average of £42,200.

By comparisons with staff numbers at other UK manufacturing and engineering companies, the report confirmed BAE Systems’ position as the largest manufacturing-based employer. The company was also found to be the country’s largest single private sector employer of professional engineers with 18,000 engineering staff in 2009.

The report showcased BAE Systems’ contribution to the knowledge economy and R&D sectors, with the company’s investment having the potential to boost the UK’s GDP by one per cent over 12 years. Additionally, through the businesses in its supply chain as well as indirect employment in local communities serving the workforce, BAE Systems’ operations created a further 12 jobs in the wider economy for every 10 people employed by the company.

The company’s strategy of investing in its people was also highlighted - in 2009 the company provided more than 97,000 days of training for its UK employees as well as providing large-scale support for education and training projects in the wider community.

Ian King, Chief Executive of BAE Systems said: "This report demonstrates the economic and social contribution made by thousands of skilled workers in the UK’s manufacturing and engineering sectors. We must continue to invest to build and maintain our nation’s competitive advantage.”

Click here for the report (52 pages in PDF format) on the Oxford Economics website.

http://www.oxfordeconomics.com/free/pdfs/BAE_Systems_Economic_Contribution.pdf

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[buglerbilly]

BAE Sells Remaining Share of Saab

By ANDREW CHUTER

Published: 8 Jun 2011 14:13

LONDON - BAE Systems has sold its remaining 10 percent holding in Swedish defense company Saab, ending the British company's 13-year involvement with the fighter jet and military systems supplier.

The British company has netted 152 million pounds ($249 million) for the sale of its holding in the Nordic region's premier defense group.

BAE originally acquired a 35 percent stake in Saab in 1998 on the back of an earlier deal to jointly sell the Swedish company's Gripen fighter in export markets. That arrangement eventually fell apart when the Gripen and the Eurofighter Typhoon, in which BAE is a major player, began going head-to-head in export competitions.

Since 2005, BAE has been gradually selling off its Saab holding. Last March, it sold just over 10 percent for 120 million pounds, and said then it would divest itself of the remaining holding in due course.

BAE retains sizeable interests in Sweden through its acquisition of armored vehicle maker Hagglunds and weapon producer Bofors.

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Engineering & Technology Skills Critical to Nation’s Defence and Security says Group MD

(Source: BAE Systems; issued July 12, 2011)

LONDON, United Kingdom --- The Group Managing Director of the country's largest engineering employer outlined plans today to develop and recruit hundreds of UK engineers, technologists and scientists for its cyber and intelligence and submarines businesses. The recruitment drive will ensure skills important to safeguarding the UK's defence and security are developed and maintained. P

lans were unveiled as part of BAE Systems' Skills 2020 strategy and programme aimed at ensuring the Company has the skills required to operate effectively in the UK into 2020 and beyond.

More than 60 graduates with a science, engineering, technology and maths background have already been recruited this year to support the growth of BAE Systems Detica, the Company's cyber and intelligence business. The majority of new recruits will be supporting projects that help to protect governments and industry from increasing numbers of sophisticated cyber-attacks as well as collating and analysing huge volumes of highly complex data. An additional 90 graduates are scheduled to start in the next couple of months with another 200 to be recruited in 2012.

In the Company's submarine business at Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, a further 200 skilled engineers and project managers are sought to work on the design and build of the successor submarine to the Vanguard Class which is currently scheduled to enter service in 2028. In May 2011, the UK Government gave approval for the early design phase for the submarine programme, leading to the current recruitment drive for additional electrical, mechanical and structural engineers and naval architects.

Nigel Whitehead, Group Managing Director, Programmes & Support at BAE Systems said: "According to the UK Commission for Employment & Skills, 45% of new UK jobs over the next decade will require a background in science, technology, engineering and maths. Action needs to be taken if this target is to be met. Through our Skills 2020 programme we will ensure we have the right skills to meet our customers' and the nation's needs."

Nigel continued: "Our Company's recruitment of hundreds of engineers, technologists and scientists for our cyber and intelligence and submarine businesses demonstrates the long term nature of BAE Systems' UK operations in which we're proud to be investing."

BAE Systems employs 18,000 engineers in the UK, making it the country's largest employer of skilled engineers.

BAE Systems' Skills 2020 programme, launched in July 2010, encompasses all its UK education, skills and employee development and training activity as well as university liaison. Skills 2020 will ensure the company has the skills to compete successfully over the next decade and beyond. Skills 2020 demands concerted action in promoting science, technology, engineering and maths in schools, colleges and universities.

In the UK alone, the Company invests more than £79M per annum in education, training and skills related activities. This includes funding apprentice and graduate training programmes, schools liaison and university R&D programmes.

At any one time the Company has around 1,000 apprentices in training, with 95% in engineering training. The company was awarded an Ofsted Grade 1 outstanding for its apprentice training in 2010 and won the National Apprentice Award's Macro Employer of the Year award in June 2011.

BAE Systems works with more than 100 universities worldwide including 30 in the UK.

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[buglerbilly]

Reports: BAE Cutting 3,000 Jobs as Budgets Shrink

By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Published: 25 Sep 2011 08:37

LONDON - British arms manufacturer BAE Systems is to axe up to 3,000 jobs as European governments cut defense budgets, reports said on Sept. 25.


An RAF Eurofighter EF-2000 Typhoon takes off in March in Italy. British arms manufacturer BAE Systems will cut 3,000 jobs as European governments cut defense budgets, according to reports. (Giuseppe Bellini / Getty Images)

The job losses, which could be announced in the coming week, will focus on the company's military aircraft division based at two locations in northern England, Britain's Sunday Telegraph newspaper and Sky News reported.

A trade union described the move by BAE, which employs around 39,000 staff across the country, as a "hammer blow" to Britain's defense industry.

BAE is concerned about the time it is taking to secure export orders for the Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft as defense budgets are cut by European governments, the Sunday Telegraph said.

The Eurofighter is made by the four-nation European Aeronautic Defence & Space consortium, representing Germany and Spain, Italy's Finmeccanica and BAE.

In Britain, BAE has been hit by government cuts to public spending, which include a plan to shrink its armed forces and scrap key assets like its flagship aircraft carrier.

BAE said in a statement that it had "informed staff that we are reviewing our operations across various businesses to make sure the company is performing as effectively and efficiently as possible."

"As the outcome of this review becomes clear, we will, as always, communicate to our employees as a priority," it added.

The job losses are the latest blow for staff of the British manufacturer, which has cut more than 15,000 jobs over the past two years.

The defense giant said in July net profits fell 22 percent to £478 million (547 million euros, $740 million at current exchange rates) in the first half of the year on falling sales.

Ian Waddell, aerospace representative from the Unite trade union, said the union was seeking urgent talks with BAE to find out exactly where jobs were under threat.

"These job losses will be a hammer blow to the UK defense industry, which is already reeling with the consequences of the government's 'buy off the shelf' policy," he said.

Opposition Labour party defense spokesman Jim Murphy said the news was a "real knock for UK manufacturing."

[buglerbilly]

BAE faces fight from unions, councils and MPs over massive job cut plan

Loss of 3,000 aircraft manufacturing jobs caused by fall in orders, says defence firm, but critics demand a re-think

Martin Wainwright

guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 27 September 2011 21.19 BST


BAE says that a drop in orders for the Typhoon Eurofighter had forced its hand. Photograph: Rui Vieira/PA

Unions and MPs from all parties are opposing the threatened loss of nearly 3,000 aircraft manufacturing jobs, a move seen as a body blow to the UK's defence industry and to manufacturing in the north of England.

Councils in Yorkshire and Lancashire joined calls for a re-think by BAE Systems, which in July had given staff reassurances that previous redundancies had trimmed the firm – much the biggest player in the sector – to firmly competitive status.

But BAE said that reductions in orders from both the UK and overseas for its staple aircraft, the Hawk and components of the Typhoon Eurofighter and USAF-F35 combat jet, had forced its hand.

The biggest setbacks are likely to affect Warton and Samlesbury, in Lancashire, which face cuts of 843 and 565 job losses from workforces of 3,970 and 6,537, and Brough, near Hull, where 899 of the 1,300 staff have been given notice and where manufacturing would end after a straight run of 95 years.

The news shook the Labour party conference in Liverpool where Ed Miliband accused the government of "selling the defence industry down the river" following its review of spending on the armed services last year.

A government spokesman pointed to hundreds of vacancies for skilled aircraft engineers and fitters at Rolls-Royce and at Airbus, but these would struggle to offset both the northern BAE job losses and a further 655 posts due to go at smaller sites in Dorset, Surrey, Essex and Worcestershire, and at the company's headquarters in Farnborough, Hampshire.

The business secretary, Vince Cable, said: "This news will be a serious knock to the individuals and communities affected. My officials and the local teams from the department are already in touch with the company, local authorities and local enterprise partnerships, to make sure that everything possible is done to help those affected."

Lancashire sounded the most agonised warning, with about 20% of the UK's aircraft industry based in the county, and a ratio of six ancillary and supply jobs expected to be at risk for every one that would be lost at BAE.

The proposed cutbacks at Warton and Samlesbury would take the county's total job losses in recent months to 6,474, including 1,300 at the county council and 800 from Lancashire's police.

Ian King, chief executive of BAE Systems, is expected to meet government ministers to discuss help for staff facing redundancy, but he gave no initial ground to the protests.

King said: "Our customers are facing huge pressures on their defence budgets, and affordability has become an increasing priority. Our business needs to rise to this challenge to maintain its competitiveness and ensure its long-term future.

"Some of our major programmes have seen significant changes. The four partner nations in the Typhoon programme have agreed to slow production rates to help ease budget pressures.

"This will help extend our production schedule and ensure the production line stays open until we receive anticipated export contracts, but it reduces the workload at a number of our sites.

"On top of this, pressure on the US defence budget and top-level programme changes mean the anticipated increase in F-35 production rates will be slower than originally planned, again impacting on our expected workload."

His claim that the cuts would "put the business in the right shape" drew hollow laughs at the factory gates in Brough, where staff, union officials and the high-profile MPs David Davis and Alan Johnson said that had been said only in July.

The company had ended a round of previous redundancies, of about 200 people, announced a year ago, by telling staff that the plant was in shape to produce 12 Hawks a year and remain competitive.

Ian Waddell, national officer for Unite, said: "After days of speculation and rumours, our worst fears have been confirmed. It's a dark day for thousands of skilled men and women across the country and it is a dark day for British manufacturing. BAE Systems have dealt a hammer blow to the UK defence industry and Unite is determined to fight the cuts."

Tony Hammond, of the union Prospect, said: "When the country is crying out for highly skilled specialists to help kick some life into the economy, BAE is being forced to make job cuts because of the coalition's defence policies. The government is sleepwalking through a defence skills crisis of its own making."

Four staff outside the gates at Brough, who had more than 120 years' service between them, said that the way the news had emerged was "a disgrace".

Rob Trainor, a 52-year-old fitter, said: "Everyone believed in July that it was going to work. Then we hear that our jobs are going – via the TV news.

"There's very little else round here, so unless we win a change of heart, there go a whole lot more of Britain's skills."

The cuts at Brough affect all 60 apprentices, following in the footsteps of Trainor and colleagues such as Ian Gent, who worked on tailplanes for the earliest Mark 60 Hawks as part of his training.

The lost wages – from £10,500 for junior apprentices to about £42,000 for senior-grade fitters –could make a serious dent in the local economy. Brough is insulated as a favoured site for commuter homes, which will spread on to much of the factory site if the manufacturing area disappears.

BAE Systems will retain a specialist presence in its structural testing facility, which has some of the most sophisticated equipment supplied by the firm to military planes. The plant's runway is now closed and future components are to arrive by road.

[buglerbilly]

Ares

A Defense Technology Blog

What's Behind the Eurofighter Typhoon Slowdown

Posted by Robert Wall at 9/28/2011 11:01 AM CDT

When BAE Systems announced its latest round of planned layoffs — this one for 3,000 employees — it cited the slow ramp-up in F-35 production as one reason, and a decision to reduce the production rate by the core Eurofighter Typhoon buying countries. Chief Executive Ian King noted that a positive side effect of the slowdown is actually keeping the production line open longer, easing the time pressure to secure further orders in the export market.

The decision taken will see output drop to 43 aircraft per year at the end of 2012, from the current level of 53. The result is that, given current orders, the production line will remain open until at least the end of 2017.

One goal is to protect long-lead suppliers, rather than to ease the pressure on the main contractors — BAE Systems, EADS and Finmeccanica.

The new output level is not even the minimum sustainment rate for Eurofighter, so a further change may be possible to stretch the life of the line, if that is required.

The current backlog is for 268 aircraft, with 286 delivered.

[buglerbilly]

Radway Green Modernisation Will Improve Delivery of World Class Munitions

(Source: BAE Systems; issued September 29, 2011)

Interesting, the UK bought a whole bunch of Small-arms and Arty ammo from Overseas, Eastern Europe and South Africa, a few years ago, possibly 5-7 years ago for some of it.........it was and is largely crap, no longer used or issued.......they've had to revert to BAE for a lot of it just to ensure quality. What happened to Quality Control on the Overseas stuff is a whole different question...........

CHESHIRE, United Kingdom. --- British troops will benefit from improved delivery of ammunition, thanks to a new £83million munitions factory in Cheshire.

The new building, on the site of the existing Radway Green plant, was handed over to BAE Systems by builders Shephards today, witnessed by Minister for Defence Procurement Peter Luff MP.

It will have 50 per cent greater capacity than the existing factory and will be much more energy-efficient. One hundred and fourteen machines are being purchased or refurbished for the new facility, which will be fully operational in 2013. Radway Green small arms ammunition is already regarded as among the best in the world and the new plant will improve quality still further.

The modernisation of the Radway Green site is part of a £206million drive to overhaul the UK’s three major World War II vintage munitions plants, owned by BAE Systems.

The investment in the new plants is due to a 15-year £2billion partnering agreement called MASS (Munitions Acquisition - the Supply Solution), signed in August 2008 between the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) and BAE Systems.

The agreement commits the MoD and BAE Systems to working together and has proven a great success. Radway Green has more than doubled ammunition production since 2005, while at the same time meeting every major milestone in the drive to transform the factory. This echoes similar developments at Washington in the North East and Glascoed in South Wales, where production has been increased whilst facilities have been undergoing major change.

Charlie Blakemore, managing director of BAE Systems Global Combat Systems, commented: “The secret behind the success of MASS is partnering. By working closely together we are becoming more efficient. We are also rolling out the principles to key suppliers to streamline production still more.”

The Office of Government Commerce said of MASS in a June report: “There is hard evidence that partnering is facilitating the swift resolution of production problems and generating innovation in process and products.”

MASS guarantees the MoD ceiling prices for ten years and includes incentives to make savings, which will be shared between the MoD and BAE Systems. There are penalties for under-performance. It also provides for the development of new, better-performing and safer munitions.

The improved munitions plants will result in energy savings of 18,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year, equivalent to the carbon footprint of 1,500 UK citizens.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems Seeks to Jointly Develop a Naval Capability with Turkey


Concept of a Type 26 frigate for the Global Combat Ship programme.

Interview with Andrew Humphreys, BAE Systems’ VP for Southern Europe

09:54 GMT, November 11, 2011 BAE Systems has had a presence in Turkey for nearly 20 years. Its technological activities in Turkey including the production of naval radars, naval gun systems, torpedoes and mission systems. Mr Andrew Humphreys, Vice President, Southern Europe for BAE Systems Group Business Development (GBD), informed Defence Turkey (DT), a media partner of defpro.com, about the company’s capabilities, its strategy on cooperation in Turkey and upcoming opportunities of cooperation with the Turkey Armed Forces and Turkish defence industry.


DT: In terms of production, investment, export and international projects, how could you evaluate the improvements in figures in 2010? How do you assess BAE Systems’ position in 2011 and what are the company’s targets for 2011?

Andrew Humphreys: BAE Systems is a global defence and security company with approximately 100,000 employees worldwide. The company delivers a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and support services. In 2010 BAE Systems reported sales of £22.4 billion (US$ 34.6 billion).

The company is performing to plan in 2011 and one of the areas we are focusing on is how the business can enhance its international operations.


DT: BAE Systems made sound achievements in Turkey. Within this context, how do you assess the activities, performed over the years?

Humphreys: BAE Systems has had a presence in Turkey for approaching 20 years and we have a corporate office in Ankara. The company has a significant installed base in Turkey including: Naval Radars, Naval Gun Systems, Torpedoes and Mission Systems. In partnership through joint venture companies we also have Rapier Vehicles and the Rapier GBAD system.

We are keen to extend this by establishing partnerships and assisting in Turkey’s goal of becoming the world's 10th largest economy by 2023 and a net exporter of state-of-the-art defence equipment.


DT: It is well known that the Type 26 programme, referred to as Global Combat System (Ship), can be new opportunity for cooperation between UK and Turkey. Could you please inform us about this programme and BAE Systems’ contribution? What kind of collaboration is offered to Turkey?

Humphreys: The UK is very keen to establish a partnership with Turkey to jointly develop a naval capability. There are ongoing discussions at government, naval and industry levels to explore such possibilities.

One area we hope could provide an opportunity to work together is the Global Combat Ship (GCS) programme. Within this framework the aim would be to deliver warships designed to meet the demands of the maritime environment into the middle of the 21st century and beyond.

Such warships would be based on a core platform, developed by the partners, which can be tailored for specific equipment and systems integration to meet future customer requirements.

Such a venture would involve ships built in Turkey, with economies of scale created from a shared design and procurement process to reduce costs and deliver substantial through-life savings in training, maintenance and support programmes.

So, in summary, it is a highly collaborative programme with significant mutual benefits. The programme is in its initial stages and we very much hope that the UK and Turkey will choose to become international partners in the naval sector.


DT: Turkey’s FNSS Savunma Sistemleri (FNSS) has strengthened its position in global markets. How do you assess its activities?

Humphreys: I have been fortunate to visit FNSS’s Ankara operations on several occasions. Anybody visiting Gölbasi cannot help but be impressed with the capability and drive of the management team there.

We and the Turkish defence industry are truly proud of what FNSS has achieved. The agreement with the Malaysian government for the new 8x8 PARS armoured vehicle is a landmark for Turkish defence exports.

When I was last at FNSS the team demonstrated the Mobile Amphibious Assault Bridge, which I have to say is a very impressive example of skilled engineering technology.


DT: BAE Systems already has a strong track record of collaboration with Turkey through FNSS. Will a similar joint venture with a Turkish Company be considered in the maritime and naval business?

Humphreys: FNSS is a highly successful company and BAE Systems is proud to be the minority partner in that venture. It is a business model that has benefitted the Turkish defence industry.

It may be that such a model is equally applicable to other sectors of defence, for example, naval and air. However, at the moment we are keeping an open mind and really focusing on what Turkey’s needs are and how we can best support these.


DT: BAE has cooperated with Turkish companies in the past and is presently doing so. Could you please provide more information about your partnerships with Turkish defence industry?

Humphreys: As you say, through FNSS, we have a successful track record of partnering with the Turkish defence industry. At IDEF we announced an intention to hopefully partner with other Turkish defence companies.

It is too early to detail specifics. What I can say is that we are having positive discussions with interested parties. What I have learnt, from over 20 years’ working in the global defence industry, is that these things do not happen overnight.


DT: Could Turkey and Turkish defence industry be considered a strategic partner for 3rd markets exports?

Humphreys: Definitely, yes. Turkey is a key player in the global defence industry.

A cornerstone of any partnership we would aim to establish in Turkey is to address not only domestic needs but also how, through cooperation, we can jointly address third party markets. The success of FNSS in securing international business is an excellent example of this.

(Image: BAE Systems)

[buglerbilly]

Hero Marine Sues Defense Giant After Sniper Scope Fight

By Spencer Ackerman Email Author November 29, 2011 | 11:12 am



Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer is perhaps this country’s best-recognized war hero, a man who risked his life over and over again to save his buddies from a Taliban ambush. That’s why he’s the only living Marine to be awarded the Medal of Honor — the nation’s highest award for valor — for his actions in Afghanistan or Iraq. It’s undoubtedly one reason why the defense giant BAE Systems hired Meyer after he left the Corps.

Then, BAE considered selling high-tech sniper rifle scopes to the Pakistani military. Meyer objected, given Islamabad’s um, unambiguous relationship with the terrorists and militants based in Pakistan. Then he quit. Suddenly, Meyer’s former bosses at BAE started calling the war hero “mentally unstable” and a drunk.

That’s according to a lawsuit Meyer filed against BAE, which alleges that the defense behemoth blocked the retired Marine from getting a job with a competitor by slandering his character.

Things started to unravel earlier this year, BAE sought to sell advanced thermal optic scopes to the Pakistanis for their sniper rifles. That’s 100 percent legal, thanks to the U.S. government’s decade-long decision to sell the Pakistanis billions of dollars’ worth of military gear, in the hope of cementing Islamabad’s commitment to fighting terrorism. But BAE employee Meyer questioned whether the sale was responsible.

“We are taking the best gear, the best technology on the market to date and giving it to guys known to stab us in the back,” Meyer wrote to his supervisor, according to the Wall Street Journal‘s Julian Barnes, who obtained Meyer’s lawsuit.

When BAE didn’t heed him, Meyer decided to take a job with his old defense firm, Ausgar Technologies. But Meyer didn’t get the job. His supervisor at BAE, Bobby McCreight, allegedly e-mailed a Defense Department acquisition official to say Meyer was clearly traumatized from combat, “had a problem related to drinking in a social setting,” and even mocked Meyer’s forthcoming Medal of Honor award as his “pending star status.” The suit says an Ausgar official informed Meyer that he wouldn’t be rehired, thanks to the Defense Department official’s decision to pass McCreight’s assessment on to Ausgar.

This man who McCreight allegedly mocked. On Sept. 8, 2008, more than 50 insurgents ambushed Meyer’s patrol in Kunar Province. They held the high ground, firing rocket-propelled grenades, mortars and machine guns on Marines and their Afghan partners in what would become a six-hour battle. The barrage left at least four Marines and several dozen Afghans cut off from the rest of the patrol. Meyer’s response was to climb in a truck and descend further into the valley to rescue the team, under what his Medal of Honor citation describes as “heavy enemy fire” and “despite a shrapnel wound to the arm.” Meyer didn’t do that once. He did it five times, the citation reports, “in the face of almost certain death.” And that made Meyer the first living Marine to get the medal for his actions during the Iraq or Afghanistan wars.

It might be added that Meyer’s tour near the border with Pakistan might have given him a particular sensitivity to the risks associated with arming the Pakistani military. The U.S. commander in charge of eastern Afghanistan, Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, recently told reporters that those alleged U.S. allies help insurgents rocket U.S. troops on the border. It would seem that Meyer hasn’t stopped trying to save U.S. troops in danger.

BAE now has a massive P.R. problem on its hands — the latest of many. For years, officials in Britain and in America have investigated the firm on bribery and corruption charges. In 2010, the company agreed to pay a $400 million fine for violating arms control restrictions, and lying to federal officials about the BAE’s actions. That was followed up by an additional $48 million fine in 2011.

Spokespeople declined to comment on the lawsuit to the Journal. But the company, which makes everything from anti-ship microwave guns to stealthy killer drones to freaky invisibility cloaks for tanks, risks calling a war hero an exaggerator or a liar in defending itself. Good luck with that one.

Photo: White House

[buglerbilly]

BAE have imbeciles running their PR departments, arrogant and pushy in the face of reality.

The fact this sale is legal should have been enough for them.

The concerns Meyer's has voiced are legitimate and would be of concern to anyone who knows doodly about the reality of Pakistan's often besmirched relationship with the Taliban.

The fact he resigned is entirely up to him and his personal beliefs. To then attempt to besmirch him personally is both offensive and potentially illegal, if proven. Proving a whispering campaign is where it becomes difficult if not impossible.

To summarise, BAE should have STFU.

[buglerbilly]

MoH Recipient Meyer Sues Contractor

November 29, 2011

Military.com|by Bryant Jordan



A former Marine awarded the Medal of Honor for repeatedly racing into a firefight to try and rescue fellow Marines is suing defense giant BAE Systems, claiming the company ruined his chances for a job in the defense industry by claiming he was unstable and a problem drinker.

Former Sgt. Dakota Meyer filed the lawsuit Monday, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Meyer, who worked for BAE Systems earlier this year, claims in the court documents that BAE retaliated against him when he objected the company’s decision to sell high-powered sniper scopes to Pakistan. He also says his supervisor at BAE ended his chance at getting a job with another defense contractor by alleging Meyer had alcohol and psychological problems, the paper reports.

Meyer was hired by BAE in March. Not long after that he sent an email to his supervisor objecting to company plans to sell the scopes to the Pakistan military.

"We are taking the best gear, the best technology on the market to date and giving it to guys known to stab us in the back," Meyer told Bobby McCreight in the email, according to the Journal. "These are the same people killing our guys."

Meyer also claims in the suit that after resigning from BAE in May his supervisor thwarted his attempt to return to his former job at Ausgar Technologies, a defense contractor that hires veterans to train active-duty service members. At Ausgar Meyer helped teach U.S. troops to use thermal imaging to spot roadside bombs.

He claims Ausgar, as well as the Defense Department program officer who approves the hiring, wanted him back, but that McCreight contacted a DoD program manager alleging Meyer was “mentally unstable" and "had a problem related to drinking in a social setting," the Journal quotes the lawsuit as stating.

Meyer initially filed a lawsuit for defamation against McCreight.

The paper said Meyer declined through his attorney to comment, and that neither the Pentagon nor the Marine Corps was aware of the lawsuit.

BAE told the paper it would defend itself against the allegations but it was also clear the company did not want to be seen as denigrating the Medal of Honor recipient.

"Although we strongly disagree with his claims, which we will address through the appropriate legal process, we wish him success and good fortune in his endeavors," BAE spokesman Brian J. Roehrkasse told the paper.

Meyer was awarded the nation’s highest award for valor in September at the White House.

In September 2009 Meyer, then a corporal, repeatedly drove a Humvee into the site of an ambush to try and rescue his fellow Marines and Afghan allies. Five times he and fellow Marine Staff Sgt. Juan J. Rodriguez-Chavez pulled out wounded Afghan troops, and then went back in.

By the time they found the Marines they were already dead.

Meyer and Rodriguez-Chavez joined the fight in direct violation of orders to stay put. Rodriguez-Chavez was awarded the Navy Cross for his actions that day.

© Copyright 2011 Military.com. All rights reserved.

[buglerbilly]

Via Soldier Systems blog.............well balanced review of the situation with caveats..........

I’ve Got Better Things To Write About But…

December 1st, 2011

I’m going to briefly discuss this whole Dakota Meyer lawsuit with BAE that is all over the internet. I guess I have to say something since I received a slew of emails from readers with links to the story. I have read the news articles and I have to say that I will probably be a dissenting opinion because I’m not going to be vilifying anyone here. These are just the facts as I see them and facts, we all are short of.

First off, I need you to do something for me. This issue isn’t about Dakota Meyer, Medal Of Honor recipient. This is about Dakota Meyer, the guy. And once you take the MoH out of the equation, this isn’t even news. He didn’t work for BAE when he was a MoH Recipient so it isn’t even an issue. He didn’t even receive the award until September. All of this went down prior to his award.

I willingly admit that I know Bobby McReight and while we aren’t BFFs he has always been a straight shooter and a level headed guy to me. I haven’t seen any actual statements by Mr McReight yet, just hearsay. Dakota Meyer, I don’t know. I hear he is a great guy, from a lot of people. Not sure if any of them actually know him tho.

The issue is actually with OASYS, a business unit of BAE. They manufacture Thermal Sights and we have written several times about them. The US military has purchased thousands of these scopes for use in identifying IEDs. This isn’t any special new high-tech here that our troops don’t have. It’s hard for me to get upset with OASYS for having the audacity to build a better mousetrap. The current standard issue thermal sight, the PAS-13, dates from the mid-90s. It’s big, eats batteries, and is heavy. On the other hand, the OASYS SkeetIR and UTM are a fraction of the weight, size and cost. But at 15 years on, they should be.

I’m not even going to bother with the ethical issue of demonstrating these thermal sights to Pakistan. Despite things you are reading on the internet, all BAE did was ask for a marketing license to temporarily export (ie take into and bring out of Pakistan) the sights. They haven’t sold anything yet. In fact, selling anything to a foreign government is a long arduous process and usually the sale never even happens.

I am a little perplexed by the content of one of the emails used in the lawsuit. According to CNN.com, Meyer wrote to his supervisor, “I think that one of the most disturbing facts to the whole thing is that we are still going forth with the PAS-13 optic and issuing these outdated sub-par optics to our own U.S. troops when we have better optics we can put in their hands right now, but we are willing to sell it to Pakistan.” While we don’t have the entire email to put this statement into context, it seems as if Meyer doesn’t realize that the PAS-13 is built by BAE’s competitor Raytheon or that the US has already fielded OASYS systems.

Additionally, the (non)hiring story we are hearing in the news makes ZERO sense. According to a Foxnews report, Meyer left Ausgar to go to work for OASYS. When his relationship with OASYS (BAE) soured he tried to go to work back at Ausgar but they wouldn’t hire him because of statements by BAE.

Anyone else who’s ever held a job in the commercial sector see any red flags here? Seriously? They didn’t hire him because the company that he just left said something bad about him? And then, they told Meyer what they said about him and that it was their reason for not rehiring him? And on top of that, they included it in an email? It’s an unwritten ethical rule that you NEVER share comments about a prospective employee made during background checks. Way to go Ausgar for violating trust. Not only that, but don’t you take another company’s comments with a grain of salt? Sounds like Meyer’s issue is with Ausgar and not BAE. They made the decision not to rehire him. Whether or not the decision was made based on bad info, the decision was theirs which begs the question. Is there some other reason they didn’t rehire him?

We’re only hearing Dakota Meyer’s side of this story. Remember, this is a lawsuit. No one has presented BAE’s side of it and it’s really hard to determine the truth with a single point of view. Although I don’t believe Dakota Meyer brought this issue to the national stage, someone did. Someone who has an agenda. You’ve got to figure out what that agenda is. And, I’ll have to say, since this is a lawsuit, at this point, Dakota Meyer is certainly benefiting from all of the press. BAE? Not so much.

And one final issue. Dakota Meyer the MoH recipient is having zero trouble finding employment. In fact, we’ve even featured him on these very pages. He ain’t starving, so whatever went down, it hasn’t wrecked his life. I certainly hope that those things weren’t said about him if they aren’t true and I hope he deals with whatever happened, but it’s hard from me to feel any sympathy here considering the facts we have seen so far.

I think this is a great place for me to stop and let you guys discuss this amongst yourselves. I don’t have a stake in it one way or the other, so have at it. Just please, don’t make stuff up. Links to external sites with facts are great.

[buglerbilly]

Hero Marine Drops Lawsuit Against Defense Giant

By Spencer Ackerman Email Author December 15, 2011 | 5:51 pm



It turns out Dakota Meyer won’t sue his former employer for smearing his reputation after all. Barely two weeks after the first living Marine to win the Medal of Honor since Vietnam filed suit against defense giant BAE Systems, BAE announced late Thursday that they had settled their dispute “amicably.”

“BAE Systems has the highest respect for Sgt. Dakota Meyer, who exemplifies the qualities that make the men and women of our armed services the best in the world,” BAE said in a statement. “We owe him and the many thousands of others who have served and sacrificed for our country our deepest thanks.”

The terms of the settlement were not mentioned in the statement. BAE spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said they’re “confidential.” Meyer’s lawyer, Thomas Nesbitt, declined to discuss them as well.

Meyer claimed in his lawsuit that his old BAE supervisor, Bobby McCreight, disparaged Meyer’s mental health and his sobriety to a Defense Department official, which resulted in a competing company declining to hire him. Meyer further claimed that his dispute with McCreight arose from Meyer’s dissatisfaction at the prospect of BAE selling advanced rifle sights to the Pakistani military, which Meyer distrusts.

The lawsuit was a P.R. disaster for BAE, one of the world’s leading defense corporations. Roehrkasse said there had been “a lot of erroneous information” put out about the case. When asked if BAE was implicitly conceding any of Meyer’s allegations, he said he “can’t comment beyond what we’ve said in the statement.”

For his part, McCreight denied Meyer’s charges — strenuously. “Mr. Meyer’s accusation of retaliation has been fabricated,” lawyers for McCreight alleged in a motion before a Bexar County, Texas court this month, “and added to this lawsuit to gain publicity.” McCreight, who describes himself in the filing as a mentor to Meyer, further said he encouraged Meyer to share his concerns about the prospective Pakistan sale to BAE higher-ups.

But the issue would appear to be moot. In the statement, Meyer said he was “gratified” to learn that BAE “did not ultimately sell and does not intend to sell advanced thermal scopes to Pakistan.” He will drop his lawsuits against both BAE — which he said performs “important work… to protect the men and women of the U.S. military” — and McCreight.

It is not clear from the statement what compelled Meyer to change his mind. The lawsuit was not primarily about the scope sale, but rather about the slander and retaliation charges. Those go unmentioned in the statement.

Meyer’s public image took an unexpected hit this week when McClatchy alleged that some of his exploits in Afghanistan resulting in his Medal of Honor were exaggerated or fabricated. Both the White House and the Marine Corps ardently defended Meyer on Thursday.

Meyer did not return a message seeking comment. His attorney, Nesbitt, was “not at liberty” to discuss the terms of the lawsuit, Nesbitt said.

Photo: White House

[buglerbilly]

Via Soldier Systems blog...........

Dakota Meyer Drops Suit Against BAE

December 16th, 2011

Yesterday, Dakota Meyer has reached an accommodation with BAE Systems’ OASYS business unit and dropped his suit against both them and former supervisor Bobby McReight. We are happy to hear that this has been worked out. Reading through court filings by both parties this looked to be a situation that would have bloodied the noses of all involved. It’s a shame that it ever came to this. Dakota Meyer is an American hero and looks to have a bright future ahead of him. Additionally, OASYS builds some of the best IR technologies available and we hope to see them continue along this path for the foreseeable future.

BAE provided this statement:

ARLINGTON, Virginia – Sgt. Dakota Meyer and BAE Systems OASYS have resolved their dispute amicably. Sgt. Meyer has filed a dismissal of the case today with the court. The following statements have been issued reflecting closure of this matter:

Sgt. Dakota Meyer:

“I went to work for BAE Systems OASYS because of my great respect for the important work it does to protect the men and women of the U.S. military.

BAE Systems has demonstrated its support for veterans and their families through its generous contributions to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation and many other ways.

During my time there I became concerned about the possible sale of advanced thermal scopes to Pakistan. I expressed my concerns directly and respectfully. I am gratified to learn that BAE Systems OASYS did not ultimately sell and does not intend to sell advanced thermal scopes to Pakistan.

BAE Systems OASYS and I have settled our differences amicably. I also have made the decision to not go forward with litigation against Bobby McCreight. I wish the best for Bobby and a successful future supporting our troops.”

BAE Systems OASYS

“We are pleased that we reached closure in this matter.

BAE Systems has the highest respect for Sgt. Dakota Meyer, who exemplifies the qualities that make the men and women of our armed services the best in the world. We owe him and the many thousands of others who have served and sacrificed for our country our deepest thanks.

BAE Systems, Inc. is proud to have an established track record as a trusted and responsible partner to our many U.S. military and intelligence community customers. Our more than 40,000 employees, including many thousand veterans, come to work every day focused on meeting the needs of those who serve. We are committed to continuing the vital work we do to support our customers in accomplishing their mission.

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems wins JIEDDO role

19 December 2011 - 15:19 by the Shephard News Team



BAE Systems has announced that it will support the US Department of Defense (DOD) in its counter-Improvised Explosive Device (IED) work as part of a new contract worth $900 million. The company will participate in a series of bids for task orders over the next five years for a new indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity support contract for the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) programme.

JIEDDO works to counter terrorist and other organisations from using IEDs against US forces. The new contract will see BAE Systems and a team of subcontractors provide a range of services in support of JIEDDO’s efforts, including research, analysis, training, operations support and the sustainment of information technology.

According to the company, the work will be conducted at offices in Northern Virginia and at a number of military sites overseas. The contract will extend BAE Systems ongoing support to JIEDDO, as the company has provided similar types of services and expertise to the agency since 2006.

[buglerbilly]

Australia’s Biggest Titanium Aerospace Manufacturing Operation for SA

(Source: BAE Systems Australia; issued Jan. 16, 2012)

ADELAIDE, Australia --- In a collaborative arrangement with the South Australian Government and Rosebank Engineering, BAE Systems has announced that Australia’s biggest advanced aerospace components manufacturing and treatment operation will be built in South Australia.

As part of the initiative, Victorian-based Rosebank Engineering will set up an operation at Edinburgh Parks, South Australia for the first time.

The new facilities will make some of the world’s most advanced aerospace components in two facilities run by BAE Systems and Rosebank Engineering. The BAE Systems facility will specialise in machining parts and the Rosebank Engineering facility will provide specialised treatment and metal finishing services.

While making Joint Strike Fighter parts for the F35 Lightning II program will form a large part of the new operation, the facilities will also have the capability to manufacture large-scale components to support commercial aircraft, commercial industries and other defence projects.

Rosebank General Manager Craig Butler said: “The opportunity to participate in a program of this scale would have been impossible for an Australian SME without the significant technical assistance provided by BAE Systems, and the guidance provided by the South Australian Government on establishing business in their State.”

BAE Systems Chief Executive David Allott said: “By Rosebank Engineering and BAE Systems coming together to build these world-class facilities a significant capability gap in Australian aerospace manufacturing will be bridged.

“This agreement will create new jobs within the state and demonstrates the South Australian Government’s long-term commitment to becoming a high-tech manufacturing leader with an important role in the JSF supply chain over the next 20 years.”

The machining capability will be the second of its kind in the world and will house a machine designed to produce long thin-wall aerospace titanium components up to five metres long.

The matching metal processing and finishing facility will be designed from the ground up to incorporate the latest aerospace metal treatments, waste minimisation and energy-saving technologies.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

1,500 BAE jobs threatened at Portsmouth shipyard

Defence group launches review that could end shipbuilding on south coast

Dan Milmo and Nick Hopkins

guardian.co.uk, Sunday 22 January 2012 18.49 GMT


Portsmouth's naval docks where the defence giant BAE Systems currently employs about 3,000 people. Photograph: Andy Drysdale/Rex Features

Bye bye what's left of Vosper shipbuilding.......................:cuckoo

Trade unions and politicians have urged BAE Systems to clarify the future of its Portsmouth shipyard after the defence group launched a review that puts at least 1,500 jobs under threat on the south coast.

The UK's largest manufacturing employer is mulling the closure of its shipbuilding operation at Portsmouth, which accounts for about half of the 3,000 BAE staff employed at the site. The rest work on services, maintenance and upgrades of the Royal Navy ships also based there.

According to union and Whitehall sources, the shipbuilding side of the business in Portsmouth is most at risk from "restructuring" by BAE, which would allow the more profitable servicing unit at the dockyards to continue. The defence group has appointed LEK Consulting, a management consultancy, to review the future of its shipbuilding and ship maintenance arm, which also includes two sites on the Clyde, at Scotstoun and Govan.

Prospect, the union that represents 300 BAE workers at Portsmouth, said it feared the company would announce the closure of the shipbuilding side of the business. "There are so many rumours and reports about what is going to happen and that is unfair on all the workers," said John Ferrett, a Prospect official.

The GMB union's Gary Cook said there was only a few years' work left at Portsmouth, although the firm could benefit from export orders for the Type 26 combat ship, which is being built for the Royal Navy but is also aimed at foreign buyers of frigates. "The UK is very well placed because we have a reputation that is second to none, with a highly skilled and motivated workforce," said Cook.

The Unite union warned that "critical skills" could be lost. Ian Waddell, a Unite national officer, said: "Workers and their families at the Portsmouth shipyard will be deeply worried."

News of the threat to BAE's Portsmouth operation comes before publication on Wednesday of growth figures for the UK economy, which many analysts expect to show a small fall in output in the final three months of 2011.

Mike Hancock, Liberal Democrat MP for Portsmouth South, where the yard is sited, said BAE appeared to be playing a game of brinkmanship. "I think this is a shot across the government's bows by BAE, saying that if you don't give us work we will shut the shipbuilding side of things," he said. Hancock added that closing the shipbuilding operation would have a "catastrophic" effect on the area.

Workers at the 500-year-old Portsmouth dockyard – where the Tudor warship the Mary Rose was built – have been building hull sections for the HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carriers but are not guaranteed to get the Type 26 work.

Penny Mordaunt, Conservative MP for Portsmouth North, said she was "deeply concerned" by the threat of job losses.

If the shipbuilding is wound down, the Ministry of Defence will have to bear costs that could run into hundreds of millions of pounds under an agreement the MoD signed with the company in 2009. This guaranteed BAE a minimum of £230m a year in shipbuilding and support work over 15 years. The agreement can be cancelled at any time but the MoD would be "liable for remaining industry closure costs and compensation to BAE Systems for their lost investment".

In 2010, the cancellation cost was estimated to be £630 million.

Prospect said BAE appeared to be laying the groundwork for the closure of the shipbuilding yards when it announced two months ago that it was separating the service and support work into a different business. "They disaggregated the two sides, having spent three years before that bringing them together. It seemed to us that they were separating all the profit-making parts from the loss-making parts."

A BAE spokesperson said: "As part of our business planning activity, we are reviewing how best to retain the capability to deliver and support complex warships in the UK in the future. This work is ongoing and we will keep our employees and trade union representatives fully informed as it progresses."

Defence cuts have already forced BAE to cut 3,000 jobs at its military aircraft operations. The group employs 100,000 people and has significant presence in the US, which accounts for about half of its sales.

The MoD is set to axe up to 60,000 military and civilian posts in the next eight years, and is in the process of a second round of a redundancy programme that was launched last Spring.

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems to Begin Work at Radford Army Ammunition Plant

(Source: BAE Systems; issued January 24, 2012)

RADFORD, Va. --- The following statement was issued today from Dave Herr, president of BAE Systems Support Solutions, regarding the U.S. Army’s operating contract for the Radford Army Ammunition Plant in southwest Virginia:

“BAE Systems is pleased and honored to be selected to manage, operate and maintain the Radford Army Ammunition Plant. The Army has reaffirmed its May 2011 decision to award the contract to BAE Systems. The Government Accountability Office has also rejected a protest by the incumbent, allowing the Army to lift the stop-work order.

"We look forward to beginning the transition. Our team is eager to provide the customer and community innovative ideas and cost-effective solutions, along with our proven track record of safe and secure facility operations. BAE Systems is also excited with the opportunity to partner with the Army, local government staff, and Radford’s highly skilled and dedicated workforce.”

BAE Systems Support Solutions, based in Rockville, Md., provides a range of services to meet needs in readiness and sustainment and operational support across the land, aviation, maritime and C4ISR domains, supporting the U.S. Department of Defense and federal agencies. Support Solutions is also a leading non-nuclear ship repair, modernization and conversion company, serving the U.S. Navy and other maritime customers.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

New Team to Boost Local Access to Global Supply Chain

(Source: BAE Australia; issued Feb. 1, 2012)

SYDNEY, Australia --– BAE Systems has announced the formation of a specialist team charged with identifying more opportunities for Australian firms to secure work within its global supply chain.

The company’s new Global Access Program (GAP) team will work closely with existing and new local suppliers, especially Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), to help identify and capture a range of opportunities.

The GAP team will also support development and continuous improvement activities with SMEs, provide advice around regulatory issues and act as a single point of contact into BAE Systems global supply chain.

The announcement follows the signing of a supply chain agreement in 2011 and annex between BAE Systems Australia and the Federal Government at the Pacific 2012 exhibition in Sydney today.
The Government is providing financial support for the GAP initiative.

David Allott, Chief Executive of BAE Systems Australia, today also confirmed that Steve Wynd had been appointed as General Manager of the Global Access Program team.

“A 24 year veteran of the Australian defence industry, Steve has a wealth of experience and is the right person to expand our activities in this area,” Mr Allott said.

He said that more than 50 Australian companies had already secured contracts within BAE Systems global supply chain, with a total value of over $30 million.

“There are several promising opportunities on the near horizon, including significant work within the global F-35 Joint Strike Fighter manufacturing program.

“Already, Victorian precision engineering company Marand has secured a long term deal with our global company potentially valued at nearly $800 million over the next 20 years to supply vertical tail components.

“Six other SMEs across Australia are also currently delivering a series of qualification contracts that, if successful, will ultimately lead to securing up to $300 million of work to provide advanced componentry for the JSF’s Electronic Warfare systems.

“Our new GAP team will be building on these programs and looking to identify others that can open more doors for more Australian companies into our worldwide network.

“It should also be noted that in 2011 BAE Systems Australia subcontracted $863M worth of work to over 2,400 suppliers, 83 per cent of whom are based here in Australia,” Mr Allott concluded.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

BAE Systems Signs New Contract for ESSM

(Source: BAE Systems Australia; issued Feb. 2, 2012)

BAE Systems Australia has been awarded a $31 million contract by Raytheon Missile Systems of Tucson Arizona for the continued production of Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM) components. This contract takes the value of the ESSM business awarded to BAE Systems Australia to more than $370 million and will guarantee continued production work in Australia until the end of 2014.

BAE Systems Chief Executive, David Allott said the latest contract highlighted the continued export success of the ESSM.

“The Australian Government’s decision to participate in the collaborative development of the ESSM has not only delivered a world-leading ship self-defence capability but has established Australian Industry as an integral part of the global supply chain for advanced missile systems,” he said.

Developed under a collaborative program between Australia, the United States, Canada and other NATO Nations, ESSM protects our warships against anti-ship missiles.

BAE Systems Australia developed the algorithms for the ESSM enhanced home-all-the-way guidance mode, which provides a local area defence capability for the missile. All missile performance analysis supporting the integration of the ESSM into the ANZAC class, the first non-US implementation of ESSM, was also undertaken by BAE Systems Australia.

BAE Systems Australia’s Weapons Systems business in Melbourne is the lead Australian ESSM sub-contractor to Raytheon Missile Systems. BAE Systems Australia, ADI Limited, Hawker De Havilland and other members of the Australian Industry Defence Network (AIDN), have designed, developed and manufactured many of the flight control and guidance elements of the missile.

The ESSM program, along with the Nulka Active Missile Decoy program, has established BAE Systems Australia as the leading capability provider of guided weapons and autonomous systems in Australia.

Preliminary work has begun on the development of a Block II upgrade embodying a new dual-mode seeker and enabled for a planned follow-on kinematic upgrade. As prime contractor Raytheon Missile Systems anticipates ESSM Block II will be required for initial operating capability by 2020.

-ends-