from strictly :

Sagem Wins French Government Contract for Version 5 of the SLPRM Mission Planning System for French Combat Aircraft

In late December 2009, French defense procurement agency DGA announced the contract award to Sagem (Safran group) for the development and supply of SLPRM V5, including three years of system maintenance services.

The SLPRM (Système Local de Préparation et de Restitution de Missions) mission planning and debriefing system, developed for the Rafale omnirole fighter, is a key to efficient mission planning and debriefing.

It is used on different combat aircraft deployed by the French air force and navy, and supports all stores configurations. SLPRM integrates the latest Rafale F3 standard, as well as the latest guided air-to-ground weapons, including the ASMP-A nuclear cruise missile, Scalp conventional cruise missile and AASM modular air-to-ground weapon, developed and produced by Sagem, along with the Reco-NG optronics reconnaissance pod.

SLPRM V5 will feature new software, especially for the mapping function, plus an optimized, scalable architecture. It can run on a laptop computer, for simplified maintenance.

The SLPRM V5 contract was awarded within the scope of France’s economic stimulus plan, enabling this upgraded version to be delivered ahead of schedule to the French air force and navy.

Sagem is also prime contractor for the mission planning system used by army helicopter crews, MPME (Moyens de Préparation de Missions pour Equipages d’hélicoptères or helicopter crew mission planning module). Both systems, SLPRM and MPME, are currently deployed by French forces in combat operations in Afghanistan.

Sagem is a high-tech company in the SAFRAN Group. It is a world or European leader in solutions and services in optronics, avionics, electronics and critical software for the civilian and military markets. Sagem is the European No. 1 and worldwide No.3 in INSs for aeronautic, naval and land applications. It is also the worldwide No.1 in helicopter flight controls and the European No.1 in optronic and tactical UAV systems. Present across the globe via the SAFRAN Group’s international network, Sagem and its subsidiaries employ 6000 people in Europe, South East Asia and North America.

http://www.shephard.co.uk/news/5126/

More about SLPRM:

http://www.sagem-ds.com/pdf/en/D381.pdf

@Jwcook

How are Rafales present export prospects in a nutshell ?.

cheers

Here is a podcast talking about rafale chances on international markets :

http://iagblog.podomatic.com/player/web/2010-01-15T06_02_44-08_00

http://www.aviationtoday.com/michel_merluzeau_bio.html

Some background info about michel merluzeau interview :

http://iagblog.podomatic.com/player/web/2010-01-15T06_02_44-08_00

Michel Merluzeau Bio
CEO
G2 Solutions
[email]mmerluzeau@g2globalsolutions.com[/email]

Michel Merluzeau is the CEO of G2 Solutions, an aerospace consultancy based out of Kirkland, Washington.

Prior to joining G2 Solutions, Michel spent over seven years at Frost & Sullivan’s Silicon Valley headquarters in California as principal analyst. In addition, he spent three years at the Frost & Sullivan European headquarters in London, England, directing a core group of consultants and analysts. Michel’s projects ranged from complex end-user surveys to new product launch strategies, regional market entry programs, and acquisition strategies.

Furthermore, Michel has been involved in numerous forecasting and analysis projects for civilian and military markets including fighter, transport, regional and business aircraft as well as helicopter markets.

A graduate of the University of Provence in France, Michel is also a regular speaker at the Speednews Defense Supplier conference, Frost & Sullivan Competitive Intelligence conferences, and several Avionics magazine conferences. Mr. Merluzeau is regularly quoted in leading publications and media outlets such Avionics magazine, Aviation Week & Space Technology, Investors Business Daily, Los Angeles Times, San Jose Business Journal, Aviation International News, Journal of Electronic Defense, San Antonio Business Journal, CNN Money, Defense News, ABC News, Canal Argent, Flight International, AviationNow.com, Denver Post, National Defense Magazine, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post and Jane’s Defense Weekly.

But the AESA radar wasn’t available or was it demonstrated? And how could have Dassault have delivered it on time? ESA doesn’t mean the emissions can’t be detected either. What about a Typhoon flying silent using DASS and PIRATE and Rafale uses its radar?

It was nor available nor demonstrated just as Gripen NG new AESA radar until recently. I guess development price was included in the bill. Remember that the older rafale korean campaign was offered with an AESA radar.

ESA detection can be detected as well but that would be probably more difficult. Anyway I was thinking of track while scan capabilities or faster scan rates which might be useful not to loose track of several foes. ESA is also inherently more resistant to jamming I think.

PIRATE isn’t a plain IRST but dual band imaging IRST/FLIR and can do both. The main advantage I see for the OSF is that it is a multisensor suite which can perform multiple tasks simultaneously (tracking multiple targets and tracking and IDing a priority target).

Ok with this

from strictly :

– Brazil and UAE look good for Rafale.
– Kuwait chief staff air force is very pro-Rafale.
– In Switzerland , the Rafale is on top of the technical selection.
– F18 is the leading contender in India.
…

http://iagblog.podomatic.com/player/web/2010-01-15T06_02_44-08_00

http://g2globalsolutions.com/review/

full article rafale order :

France’s DGA Awards Multi-year Contract for 60 Rafales

(Source: defense-aerospace.com; published Jan. 18, 2010)

France has awarded Dassault the fourth multi-year order for 60 Rafale F3 combat aircraft, which will be delivered from 2015. (© Dassault Aviation-K Tokunaga)
PARIS — The French Ministry of Defence on Dec. 31, 2009 awarded Dassault Aviation a multi-billion euro, multi-year production contract to deliver 60 Rafale F3 combat aircraft. These aircraft will be delivered beginning in 2015 with the new active antenna radar and enhanced self-protection suite.

This latest order, approved by the defense ministry’s Ministerial Committee on Investments on Nov. 12, covers 50 aircraft for the French air force and 10 for the French navy. It also includes an option to upgrade a number of French navy Rafale F1s to the latest F3 standard, as well as spare parts, support equipment and related services.

This order brings the total number of Rafales ordered by France to 180, out of a planned total of 286 aircraft: 228 for the air force and 58 for the navy. However, the French MoD retains the option to order 9 additional aircraft so as to return the program to the nominal number of 295 aircraft.

Related contracts have also been awarded to Snecma for the aircraft’s M-88 engines and to MBDA for its weapons.

A spokesman for DGA, the French defense ministry’s directorate-general of armaments, confirmed that the order was awarded on Dec. 31, 2009 but declined to state its value. Dassault Aviation declined to comment.

Deliveries on this order, known as Commande Globale n° 4 (Global Order n° 4) and authorized under the 2009 budget, are scheduled to begin in 2015, according to Parliamentary reports, at an average rate of 10.5 aircraft per year. This leaves some flexibility for Dassault to increase the production rate in the event that one of the anticipated export orders materializes.

As of the end of 2009, Dassault had delivered 82 Rafales (54 for the air force and 28 for the navy), of which three have been lost in accidents. Deliveries in 2010 are due to total 11 aircraft (8 for the air force, 3 for the navy), and will bring the total number of Rafales delivered by end 2010 to 93.

In parallel, the French air force is gradually introducing the latest F3 standard aircraft, which will be capable of all planned missions and which will carry additional weapons including the AM-39 Exocet anti-ship missile and the Reco NG reconnaissance pod. The F3 version was qualified by the air force in July 2008, and will equip the 7th Fighter Wing’s first operational squadron at Saint Dizier air base by mid-2010.

Here is a “radio” interview with defense specialists about ongoing export campains starting with brazil.

They support the view that with the gripen Brazil would be a more active proponents and that would come at a cheaper price but on the other hand it won’t be able to compete with the rafale capability wise. Itcomes “well behind” the rafale and F18…

http://iagblog.podomatic.com/player/web/2010-01-15T06_02_44-08_00

@Cola :

owever, the trouble is that those same posters seconds later come with similar Dutch evaluation figures and equally abstract Singaporean “second” place, although Rafale fell behind EF in actual performance.

At least the dutch eval xas done by an independent country and is way more recent.
Secondly I think you have an over-simplistic definition of performance. An aircraft design is always a compromise in capabilities…The typhoon might be a little bit faster with a higher T/W ratio but on the other hand the rafale can carry more payload, futher, with a better weapon system for multirole missions.

So the question you should ask yourself is which set of capabilities is more relevant ? If you look the recent past conflicts and potential future conflicts for the next decade you can understand that being multirole is the key factor. A nato coalition would master the sky easily against Iran or Syria. Then like for kosovo or iraq the main threat would be SAM and the main duty air to ground.
If the Typhoon failed in singapore it was because it could not mach rafale or the F15 multirole performance even taking into account future potential development.
So the story with the F16 is fine although no one is quoted and I am unsure it is true but to believe that the Typhoon would win the eval only on AtA capability is utter non sense. AtG is always forgotten when it represents almost 100% of actual war missions.

@Sancho78,
look the point here is AA evaluation, not multirole capabilities. In 2004, EF didn’t have any whatsoever, so it’s largely pointless comparing it to Rafale in multirole context, isn’t it?

And the rafale was not even operational in its multirole variant…The promised AESA radar was not even developed…So the same could apply to the rafale.

Besides today the rafale program is widening the gap : a fully funded and ordered upgraded version with the last advances in radar technology and optronics, upgraded engines etc…Given the pace of technology and considering that there is a approx a ten years gap of development between the two aircrafts you can easily understand that in its current form the typhoon cannot simply compete. It is already true for a rafale F3 (in terms of multirole capabilities offered to an airforce) it will be even more true with a rafale F3+…AA missiles and LGBs is a little bit short for an aircraft that price.