2017-02-08



F-15S & weapons
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In October 2010, talks that Saudi Arabia was negotiating a $30-60 billion arms package with the USA were made official with a full multi-billion request that included 84 F-15 Strike Eagles to replace the Kingdom’s Tornado strike aircraft and/or F-15A-D fighters, upgrades for another 70 planes, about 132 UH-60 Black Hawk utility and AH-64 attack helicopters, and armaments to equip them.

This article looks at those requests, their tie-ins, the issues that are part of these potential deals, and related follow-on requests. As is often the case with DSCA announcements, years can pass between the requests and the signed contracts, but these contracts have started to roll in, alongside other significant buys.

Quick Sales Summary



US Foreign Military Sale requests are required to be fairly public, beginning with US Department of State DSCA announcements. Even so, some contract disclosures and clarification can require the permission of the customer, and Saudi Arabia’s preference is not to give that. As such, items whose orders have not been publicly announced may be farther along in the process than the above chart indicates.

The Saudis are upgrading their air and missile defenses using American equipment, but that effort is covered in-depth in a separate article that looks at the entire Gulf Co-operation Council’s air and ballistic missile defense improvements.



Note that this dashboard does not cover American contracts that began before 2010, such as Saudi Arabia’s drive to upgrade its M1 tanks, or various Saudi Arabia National Guard sales initiated before the big October 2010 request. It also omits sales to Saudi Arabia from outside the USA, such as S-2000 AWACS aircraft from Sweden, advanced Eurofighter Typhoon fighters from Britain, etc.

Contracts & Key Events

2015 – 2017

Boeing on AH-6i

February 9/17: Boeing has been awarded $18 million to provide AN/APG-63(V) radars for Saudi Arabia’s F-15SA aircraft. The USAF contract covers three of the radars, and work completion is expected for March 2017. Riyadh recently commissioned the new F-15SA fighter jets in January, which feature updated avionics, active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars, and ASM-135 missiles.

December 9/16: Lockheed Martin will provide spare parts for the Royal Saudi Air Force’s F-15 Strike Eagle fighters. The $67 million USAF contract covers parts for Infrared Search and Track systems, Sniper Advanced Targeting Pods, and LANTIRN Extended Range navigation pods. Lockheed Martin has been providing sensor systems for the kingdom’s Boeing-made fleet since 1996.

October 4/16: Saudi Arabia is set to buy a further eight UH-60M Black Hawks in a $91 million US Army contract. The foreign military sale will see Sikorsky provide the medium-lift utility helicopters by December 2017. Back in February, Sikorsky and Saudi Arabian firm Taqnia Aeronautics began investigating the possibilities of producing Black Hawks in the kingdom as part of efforts to diversify their economy amid dropping oil prices.

September 22/16: Saudi Arabia’s Al Raha Group has successfully been awarded a USAF contract to provide support to the Saudi Arabian F-15 fleet. Valued at $355.9 million, Al Raha will provide comprehensive material management of unclassified spares, support equipment, and support services required to support base stand-ups and continued F-15 and F-15SA Royal Saudi Air Force flying operations. Work will be carried out both in Georgia, USA and in Saudi Arabia.

September 06/16: PKL Services have been awarded a $495 million USAF contract for work on the Royal Saudi Air Force’s F-15 fleet. The indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract covers maintenance, upgrade, and training of the Saudi Strike Eagle S- and SA-type fighters. Saudi Arabia has been flying the F-15SA since 2013, and features include improved performance and increased survivability at a lower life-cycle cost as well as two additional wing stations for increased payload and capability.

July 13/16: Boeing is to commence deliveries of the AH-6i Little Bird light attack/reconnaissance helicopter to the Saudi Arabia National Guard (SANG) at the end of the month. The Gulf Kingdom ordered 24 Ah-6is at a cost of $243 million in 2014 as part of a wider $25.3 billion helicopter deal which includes a number of AH-64E Apaches, Sikorsky UH-60M Blackhawks, and 12 MD Helicopters MD-530F. Derived from the AH-6 Little Bird, the latest version includes advanced technology from the AH-64E Apache.

November 17/15: The US State Department has cleared the sale of $1.29 billion worth of smart bombs to Saudi Arabia. The purchase will replenish supplies used in recent air strikes against both Iranian backed Houthi insurgents in Yeman and Islamic State forces in Syria. Details of the sale were posted by the Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) last Friday and follow last months shopping spree by the Saudis which totalled $11.25 billion. Last months sale included four multi-mission Littoral combat ships as well as various equipment and munitions which came in the wake of the US-Iranian nuclear agreement. Several Gulf nations made requests to the US to help modernize their military before they acquiesced to the deal.

October 21/15: The US State Department has approved the sale of up to four Littoral Combat Ship-based Multi Mission Surface Combatant Ships to Saudi Arabia, with these based on the Lockheed Martin Freedom-class LCS, as opposed to the Austal Independence-class. If lawmakers agree to the sale, a Foreign Military Sales contract can be drafted, with this likely to be signed early next year. The deal – potentially worth $11.25 billion – forms part of the Kingdom’s Eastern Fleet Modernization program.

The Gulf state also requested a significant quantity of US-manufactured weaponry to complement the new MMSC ships. This includes over five hundred RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles, 128 RIM-116C Block II Rolling Airframe Missiles to equip five new MK-15 Mod 3 SeaRAM air defense systems and 48 Block II GM-85 Harpoon missiles, along with eight launchers and five control systems. The request also covers eight MK-41 Vertical Launch Systems (capable of launching Raytheon’s family of Standard Missile munitions), .50 cal machine guns and five Oto Melara MK-75 Gun Systems, as well as sonar and communications systems.

October 16/15: Saudi Arabia has signed a deal with the US for 320 PAC-3 interceptor missiles, with this following a DSCA request in July for 600. The new missiles will modernize the Saudis’ Patriot air and missile defense systems, with the request valued at $5.4 billion. The Saudi government is also reported to be pushing ahead with plans to acquire the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, along with the remaining 280 PAC-3 missiles. This news comes on the heels of reports earlier this week that the Kingdom is mulling a possible acquisition of Israeli short-range air and missile defense systems; these would complement the medium and long-range capabilities of the Patriot and THAAD systems.

The country has also requested nine UH-60M Blackhawk helicopters, along with auxiliary equipment, spares, and logistical support in a potential deal valued at $495 million. The Kingdom has already ordered a number of UH-60Ms, previously requesting 72 helicopters along with other US equipment. Other regional states have also ordered the Sikorsky helicopter, including Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

October 13/15: The Saudi Arabian National Guard will receive the first of twenty-four Boeing AH-6i armed reconnaissance helicopters in late June 2016, according to a report by Janes. The helicopters are being manufactured under a $234.7 million long-lead production contract awarded to Boeing in late 2013 and announced in August 2014, with Saudi Arabia the first customer for the type. Construction of the helicopters will begin in December. Saudi Arabia has been a loyal market for US helicopter manufacturers, with acquisitions including the UH-60L Black Hawk and AH-64D Apache.

2014

Sept 15/14: Hellfires. Hellfire Systems LLC, Orlando, FL, was awarded a $68.7 million to firm-fixed-price, foreign military sales contract modification to acquire 1,361 Hellfire II tactical missiles in containers and air-to ground missiles: model AGM-114R, AGM-114R-3, AGM-114P-4A, TGM M36E7, and ATM-114Q-6.

The countries involved in this foreign military sales contract are Iraq, Jordan, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. All of these countries are AH-64 Apache attack helicopter customers or prospective customers, except Iraq (AC-208B aircraft), and Jordan (AC-235 aircraft). DID looked into these designations.

The AGM-114P is generally used on UAVs like the Predator, where its 360 degree firing capability and tolerance of high altitude temperatures are welcome. These traits also make it suitable for fixed-wing aircraft.

There is no AGM-114R-3 – but there is an AGM-114R2 with a Height Of Burst sensor, which helps improve the base AGM-114R’s tri-mode anti-armor/ timed anti-structure/ fragmentation warhead.

The AGM-114Q model is a training round, with an inert mass that’s the same weight as the warhead. It’s used for live-fire training, where it creates less mess.

The TGM M36E7 corresponds to what the USAF would call a “CATM” – a training missile with the seeker head, but no rocket or warhead.

Estimated completion date is Nov 30/16. Work will be performed in Orlando, FL. US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the contract on behalf of its FMS clients (W31P4Q-11-C-0242, PO 0104).

Oct 1/14: Saudi Arabia. The US DSCA announces a Saudi Arabian export request for more PATRIOT PAC-3 missiles, with Lockheed Martin in Dallas, TX and Raytheon in Tewksbury, MA as the designated contractors to negotiate with. the contract could be worth up to $1.75 billion, on top of previous request and sales involving a $1.7 billion upgrade of PATRIOT systems to Config-3 status for PAC-3 missile use (q.v. Nov 30/11), high-end maintenance and re-certification contracts (q.v. Dec 23/11, Nov 28/12), and a national C4I system (q.v. Nov 26/12).

This time, they want to buy up to 202 PATRIOT PAC-3 Missiles with containers, and 1 Patriot as a Target (PAC-2 Guidance Enhanced Missile GEM Flight Test Target). They also want up to 36 Launcher Station Modification Kits, 6 Fire Solution Computers, 6 Patriot Automated Logistics Systems Kits, 2 PAC-3 Telemetry Kits, 2 Missile Round Trainers, 2 PAC-3 Slings, 6 Shorting Plugs, spare and repair parts, lot validation and range support, ground support equipment, repair and return, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, a Quality Assurance Team, and other US Government and contractor support.

“The proposed sale will help replenish Saudi’s current [PAC-2] Patriot missiles which are becoming obsolete and difficult to sustain due to age and the limited availability of repair parts. The purchase of PAC-3 missiles will support current and future defense missions…. Although [industrial] offsets are requested, they are unknown at this time and will be determined during negotiations between the KSA and contractor.”

Implementation of this proposed program will require 1 additional US contractor to travel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for a period of 3 years for equipment fielding and system checkout. Sources: US DSCA #14-43, “Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) – Patriot Air Defense System with PAC-3 Enhancement”.

DSCA: Saudis request PAC-3 missiles (202)

Sept 10/14: F-15S EW. BAE Systems, Nashua, New Hampshire, has been awarded a $7.7 million firm-fixed-price contract modification for a DEWS ECM engineering change proposal, on behalf of Saudi Arabia’s F-15SAs. DEWS links various sensors that track threats to its fighter, and coordinates defensive flares, chaff, etc. The main DEWS contract was announced on April 2/12, at $366.5 million for 70 systems, as part of the RSAF’s F-15S conversions.

Work will be performed at Nashua, NH, and is expected to be complete by Nov 30/18. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition, managed by the USAF Life Cycle Management Center at Robins AFB, GA on behalf of their Saudi client (FA8540-12-C-0013 PO 0008).

Sept 8/14: Support. Booz Allen Hamilton in McLean, VA receives a $43.3 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for services to support the Royal Saudi Land Forces: consulting, intensive management, logistics support, and contracting support within the United States. In addition, an office will be established in Saudi Arabia for local purchasing and local hires to sustain the fleet of M1A2S Abrams tanks purchased and sustained through the foreign military sales program.

Work will be performed in Saudi Arabia with an estimated completion date of Sept 8/17. Bids were solicited via the Internet, with 1 received by US Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD (W91CRB-14-C-0048).

April 29/14: SANG AH-6i. Boeing in Mesa, AZ receives a $234.7 million unfinalized contract covering 24 AH-6i armed scout helicopters, the initial spares package, and ground support equipment for Saudi Arabia. $115 million is committed immediately.

IHS Jane’s confirms that this is the AH-6i’s 1st sale, as Jordan has yet to make good on its Letter of Intent. The AH-6i Letter of Agreement for 36 machines was reportedly signed on Feb 13/12, but phases, numbers, and prices remained to be negotiated. This purchase appears to clarify comments from Lynn Tilton of MD Helicopters that the type’s initial order would be for 24, with more to follow. Beyond Saudi Arabia, Boeing is reportedly targeting AH-1 Cobra operators. Many of whom received daylight-capable surplus American aircraft at a discount, and they may not be able to afford a full replacement like the AH-1Z or AH-64E.

Work will be performed in Mesa, AZ with an estimated completion date of Dec 31/16. US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the contract on behalf of their Saudi FMS client (W58RGZ-14-C-0082). See also IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly, “Boeing awarded AH-6i contract for Saudi Arabia” | Aviation Week Farnborough, “Boeing Readies Saudi AH-6i, Eyes More Customers”.

24 AH-6i armed scout helicopters

Aug 19/14: SANG UH-60Ms. Sikorsky in Stratford, CT receives a $30.3 million contract modification for 12 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters, on behalf of the Saudi Arabian National Guard. All funds are committed immediately. This appears to be an initial award, with a follow-on to come that will modify the helicopters for Saudi use (q.v. March 25/13, Dec 20/13), and bring total SANG UH-60M sales to 24 of 72 requested machines.

The estimated completion date is Aug 31/17. Work will be performed in Jupiter, FL and Stratford, CT. US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the order on behalf of its Saudi client (W58RGZ-12-C-0008, PO 0072).

April 23/14: TOW me. Raytheon announces:

“An international customer signed an agreement with the U.S. Government for a foreign military sale (FMS) of tube-launched, optically tracked, wireless-guided (TOW) missiles to be supplied by Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) in a deal valued at approximately $750 million.

Raytheon plans to deliver nearly 14,000 TOW missiles to the customer over a three-year period beginning in 2015. A resulting order is expected to be executed by the U.S. government with Raytheon in the coming weeks.”

Do they mention the customer? No, they don’t. Are there any other customers with pending orders for “nearly 14,000 TOW missiles” (q.v. Dec 5/13)? No, there aren’t. The only question is whether this includes only the SANG, whose DSCA request involved 13,935 TOW missiles, or stands as a joint buy that also includes the Royal Saudi Land Forces. Sources: Raytheon, “International customer signs agreement with USG valued at $750 million for Raytheon’s TOW missiles”.

~14,000 TOW missiles

April 11/14: F-15SA. Boeing in St. Louis. MO receives a $9.9 million unfinalized contract modification for Royal Saudi Air Force F-15SA Training. The contract had an initial face value of $75.6 million, which brings the total to 84.5 million. The increase covers new activities within the contract’s original scope, including training in the USA, and maintenance and aircrew and academic training outside the USA.

Work will be performed until Aug 5/19 in St. Louis, MO; and at King Khalid Air Base near Khamis Mushayt, Saudi Arabia. The USAF 338th Security Assistance Training Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio in Randolph AFB, TX manages the contract on behalf of their Saudi client (FA3002-13-D-0012, PO 0005).

March 13/14: AH-64. Longbow LLC in Orlando, FL receives a $25.5 million FMS contract modification via the Royal Saudi Land Forces Aviation Command for initial spares, peculiar ground support equipment, integrated logistics support, management, and production line spares. Longbow, LLC makes the fire control radar used with the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter.

All funds were committed immediately. Work will be performed in Orlando, FL until June 30/16. The US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the contract (W58RGZ-06-C-0134, PO 0045).

Feb 10/14: Hellfires. Hellfire Systems, LLC in Orlando, FL receives a $157.4 million firm-fixed-price contract modification, exercising an option for FY 2014 Hellfire II missile production requirements that include foreign military sales to Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Indonesia. The Saudis are buying Hellfire missiles for their AH-64 and AH-6i helicopters.

All funds are committed immediately, using FY 2012 – 2014 budgets. Work will be performed in Orlando, FL, with an estimated completion date of Nov 30/16. US Army Contracting Command – Redstone Arsenal (Missile) at Redstone, AL manages the contract, and acts an an FMS agent for other countries (W31P4Q-11-C-2042, PO 0068).

Hellfire missiles

USMC LAV-ATs
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Feb 14/14: LAVs. The Canadian government announces a huge contract, and lets slip that it’s from Saudi Arabia in the footnotes. Mr. Fast led trade missions to the Saudi kingdom in 2012 and 2013, so he has cause to be pleased, but he may have missed the nuance that Saudi Arabia is generally reticent about its military buys. Even if it is a tremendously timely order for GDLS Canada, which will keep the plant and its supply chain open as US Stryker (LAV-III) purchases wind to a close:

“The Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade, and Danny Deep, Vice President, General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada, announced today a historic multi-billion dollar contract win for vehicles and associated equipment, training and support services. The announcement was made in London, Ontario, where the light armoured vehicles will be designed and manufactured and which will become the epicentre of a cross-Canada supply chain directly benefiting more than 500 local Canadian firms. This 14-year contract will create and sustain more than 3,000 jobs each year in Canada, with southern Ontario accounting for approximately 40 percent of the supply base.”

To clear up any confusion about jurisdictions: The contractor is General Dynamics Land Systems, which is an American firm subject to US government export laws and approval requirements. At the same time, the state-run Canadian Commercial Corp. handles all exports from Canadian firms, even if they’re subsidiaries like GDLS-Canada.

There’s no official corporate release yet, but General Dynamics has described the deal to reporters as $10 billion, which could rise to $13 billion if all options are exercised. That’s far bigger than Oct 4/07 and June 13/11 DSCA requests for new vehicles (total: about $1 billion) can account for. Nor do purchases for the Saudi Arabian National Guard make up much of the difference. GDLS-Canada announced a $2.2 billion deal on Nov 24/09 for 724 LAV-II 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers, in 10 different variants, which exactly matched a July 20/06 Saudi DSCA request.

The Saudis already had a substantial fleet of LAV vehicles in their military branches. It seems very likely that a support contract covering all Saudi LAV fleets going forward is a big part of this deal, along with all LAVs requested to date and perhaps more. It is possible for the Saudis to order vehicles as a Direct Commercial Sale, which still requires approvals but doesn’t require the same announcements, and would make the Saudis fully responsible for managing the buy. Sources: Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada, “Largest Advanced Manufacturing Export Win in Canada’s History” | Reuters, “General Dynamics Canada wins Saudi deal worth up to $13 billion”.

Huge LAV order, plus over a decade of support

Feb 5/14: LAV-AT SWORD. Raytheon in McKinney, TX receives a $16.3 million firm-fixed-price, foreign military sales contract for 22 modified improved target acquisition systems for the Royal Saudi Land Forces SWORD program, and 3 for the Saudi Arabian National Guard. A seemingly-related FBO.gov solicitation describes SWORD as:

” WITHIN THE FMS CASE, ON LINE ITEM 012 NOTE 36, SWORD DIRECTED THE PURCHASE OF LIGHT ARMORED VEHICLE-ANTI TANK (MOD) (LAV-AT(M)) WITH THE MITAS.”

LAV-ATs use under-armor TOW missiles, and improving them with ITAS modified for those vehicles delivers a lot of bang for the buck. Bids were solicited via the Web, with 1 received. Work will be performed in McKinney, TX, and the estimated completion date is June 30/15. Work will be managed by US Army Contracting Command in Warren, MI as the Saudis’ agent (W56HZV-14-C-0066).

2013

1st F-15SA flight and official rollout; Significant contracts for WCMD cluster bombs & JTE trainers; Slew of AH-64E helicopter contracts; Export requests for a new array of precision strike weapons, Full naval C4I systems, Mk.V Patrol Boats, thousands of TOW missiles; Boeing & Sikorsky team of up for long-term Saudi support.

TOW Launch
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Dec 20/13: SANG UH-60Ms. Sikorsky in Stratford, CT receives a $105.3 million contract modification to contract “to modify 8 UH-60M Black Hawk Helicopters to a General Service Configuration in Support of the Saudi Arabian National Guard.” The contract number indicates that these machines are purchases under the MYP-8 multi-year deal, which explicitly allows other countries to take advantage of American volume pricing. Essentially, they’re buying 8 UH-60Ms as an initial order under the Oct 20/10 DSCA request to export up to 72 machines.

One bid was solicited with one received. Work will be performed in West Palm Beach, FL and in Saudi Arabia. US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL acts as the Saudis’ agent (W58RGZ-12-C-0008, PO 0089).

8 UH-60Ms: initial order

Dec 19/13: F-15SA. Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Orlando, FL receives a maximum $8.8 million firm-fixed-price modification on an existing RSAF contract for AN/AAQ-33 Sniper surveillance & targeting pods (q.v. April 2/12). They’ll provide configuration support for compact multiband data link software and firmware on the RSAF’s F-15SAs, and handle various other support tasks involving the Sniper ATP.

Work will be performed at Orlando, FL, and is expected to be complete by November 2016. The USAF Life Cycle Management Center/WNKCB at Robins AFB, GA acts as the Saudis’ agent (FA8540-12-C-0012, PO 0004).

Dec 17/13: F-15 Sensors. Goodrich Corp. (now United Technologies’ Aerospace Systems) in Westford, MA has been awarded an $183 million firm-fixed-price unfinalized action within the Royal Saudi Air Force DB110 Reconnaissance System program. This modification changes the requirements to include in-country setup and installation, ground stations, and a pod survey study being produced under the basic contract, issued on April 13/12 for $183 million (see also May 31/12).

Work will be performed at Westford, MA, and is expected to be complete by July 23/21, which is a year ahead of the April 2012 announcement. It appears as if they’ve kept the price stable, but adjusted some terms. DID is investigating. A July 10/12 Goodrich release cited the Saudi order as 10 dual-band reconnaissance pods per the Oct 20/10 DSCA request, 5 ground stations, and “extensive training and logistics support.” The USAF Life Cycle Management Center/WINK at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH acts as the Saudis’ agent (FA8620-12-C-4020, PO 0013).

Dec 5/13: TOW missiles. The US DSCA announces Saudi Arabia’s official request for export clearance to buy 1,750 portable TOW anti-armor missiles for the Royal Saudi Land Forces. The request includes up to 1,000 BGM-71E TOW-2A missiles with a nose spike to help defeat advanced armor and fortifications, 7 TOW-2A test missiles, 750 BGM-71F TOW-2B Aero missiles with longer range (>4 km) and a top attack mode, and 7 TOW-2B test missiles. they’re also requesting containers, spare and repair parts, support equipment, tools and test equipment, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment,and other US government and contractor support.

The estimated cost is up to $170 million, but the Saudis will need to negotiate a contract with prime contractor Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, AZ. Saudi Arabia already operates TOW missiles, and they won’t need any additional personnel in country. The Saudi National Guard also submitted a request for TOW missiles today, but it was far larger at over 13,000 missiles and up to $900 million. Sources: US DSCA, 13-52.

DSCA request: TOW missiles

Nov 27/13: F-15SA. Boeing in St. Louis, MO receives a $15.5 million firm-fixed-price contract modification for “disorientation recovery function capability on the F-15SA aircraft”. In English, if the plane is behaving in a way that suggests the pilot has lost control via G-force blackout or other causes, and isn’t receiving ongoing input from the pilot, an autopilot is engaged to right the aircraft. As they say, the ground always has a PK of 1.0.

$2.4 million is committed immediately. Work will be performed in St. Louis, MO and will be complete by Feb 2/15. The USAF Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH acts as Saudi Arabia’s managing agent (FA8634-12-C-2651, PO 0021).

Nov 20/13: Navy. The Royal Saudi Navy’s core currently consists of French Al-Riyadh (Lafayette) and Al-Madinah Class frigates at the high end, and older US-built Badr Class corvettes and Al-Sadiq Class patrol boats at the low end. The Saudi Naval Expansion Program II will shape the Kingdom’s next set of buys, and discussions have ranged from American LCS frigates, to full-size DDG-51 Aegis destroyers capable of ballistic missile defense. They could turn to options like Spain’s Navantia (F100 family), if they wish to buy Aegis ships from a source other than the USA. The Saudis are also evaluating France’s new FREMM frigates, which could offer missile defense capabilities of their own, and share some commonalities with their existing Al-Riyadh Class.

October statements by Saudi intelligence chief Prince Bandar bin Sultan may have said that the kingdom was hoping to make a major shift away from the United States, but at this point, they can’t really do that for their C4I systems. The Saudis’ installed and committed C4I base is one reason. In addition, the US Navy is still the pre-eminent force they need to cooperate with in the Gulf, so they need C4I interoperability. Ships are another matter. Sources: Reuters, “Lockheed sees more clarity on Saudi naval buy in next months” | UAE’s The National, “Challenges in the Middle East for US defence companies“.

GCCS-J
click for video

Nov 19/13: Navy C4I. The US DSCA announces an official Foreign Military Sale export request from Saudi Arabia for C4I system upgrades and maintenance, aimed specifically at Saudi Arabia’s naval forces, at a cost of up to $1.1 billion. “The RSNF will use the upgraded C4I system to provide situational awareness of naval activity in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea…. and keep pace with the rapid advances in C4I technology to remain a viable U.S. coalition partner in the region.” The request includes:

Global Command and Control Systems – Joint (GCCS-J). A November 2012 announcement from Raytheon referred to a $600 million Direct Commercial Sale contract for a “national, strategic C4I system, providing capabilities for joint service coordination.” GCCS-J is what the US military uses for that purpose, and the US military has service-specific variants of it. Saudi Arabia has effectively financed other countries’ upgrades before, and a big contract could help DISA implement some of the GCCS-J changes it wants. Starting with moving GCCS-J off of SPARC-chip computers and onto Intel chip computers. DISA also wants to migrate the software from Windows into plug-ins for the Agile Client framework (Java NetBeans, NASA’s WorldWind, plus VMWare’s Gemfire), while migrating web client capabilities into the Joint Command and Control Common User Interface (JC2CUI, uses the Ozone Widget Framework). If the Saudis help to develop a system with 1 or more of these migrations, the impact will be felt by the US military.

Air Defense System Interrogator (Ultra Electronics’ ADSI), which provides tactical data link forwarding, and interfaces between a very large set of tactical data links, radar interfaces, and electronic intelligence interfaces.

Combined Enterprise Regional Information Exchange System (CENTRIXS) and follow-on systems. Looks like there will be a CENTRIXS-SA soon, enabling text and web communication with the US Navy and other CENTRIXS-equipped nations like Britain.

109 Link–16 Multifunction Information Distribution System Low Volume Terminals (MIDS-LVT)

Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) hardware.

Commercial Satellite Communications (SATCOM).

Commercial High Frequency (HF) and Ultra High Frequency/ Very High Frequency (UHF/VHF) Radios, including HF Voice and Data, HF Sub-Net Relay (SNR), Commercial HF Internet Protocol (IP)/SNR.

Global Positioning System (GPS) gear.

Plus communications support equipment, information technology upgrades, spare and repair parts, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, and US Government and contractor support.

There will be no principal contractors involved with this proposed sale. Acquisition and integration of all systems will be managed by the U.S. Navy’s Space and Naval Warfare Weapons Command (SPAWAR), and implementation will require the assignment of 14 U.S. Government and contractor representatives to Saudi Arabia for 10 years to support network design, acquisition, implementation, installation, and integration efforts. Sources: DSCA 13-44.

DSCA: Full naval C4I backbone

Oct 15/13: Weapons. The US DSCA announces Saudi Arabia’s formal export request for a variety of weapons that will equip its F-15SA fighters. Note that this list is in addition to the weapons mentioned in the main October 2010 request, and could be worth up to $6.8 billion in total:

400 AGM-84L Harpoon Block II missiles, which add GPS to the missile’s radar targeting. They can be used against land targets as well as ships.

40 Harpoon CATM.

20 ATM-84L Harpoon Exercise Missiles.

650 AGM-84H SLAM-ER cruise missiles. This Harpoon variant adds IIR terminal guidance to GPS navigation, and extended-range wings that let it hit land and sea targets 250 km away. South Korea’s F-15Ks already deploy it. The US Navy uses its AGM-88K successor, which they consider to be their most accurate strike weapon. The Saudis already deploy MBDA’s stealthy, long-range Storm Shadow cruise missile from their Tornados, so they may be less impressed, but SLAM-ER will definitely add punch to the F-15 fleet.

40 CATM-84H Captive Air Training Missiles (CATM), with seekers but no motor.

20 ATM-84H SLAM-ER Telemetry Missiles for test shots.

4 Dummy Air Training Missiles. Sometimes you just need similar weight & form factor.

60 AWW-13 Data Link pods. Pilots can receive text, data, and photos from various sources, and can also use it to communicate with the SLAM-ER in mid-flight.

973 AGM-154C Joint Stand Off Weapons (JSOW). This stealthy 2,000 pound glide bomb uses GPS for navigation and IIR guidance for terminal guidance.

10 JSOW CATM.

1,000 GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bombs (SDB). These 250 pound JDAM variants can be carried 4 to a rack. GPS guidance and pop-out wings give them decent range and accuracy, and their design makes them more effective against hard targets than their weight would suggest.

36 SDB Captive Flight and Load Build trainers.

Containers, mission planning, integration support and testing, munitions storage security and training, weapon operational flight program software development, transportation, tools and test equipment, spare and repair parts, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, and other forms of U.S. Government and contractor support.

The principal contractors will be Boeing in St. Louis, MO (Harpoon, SLAM-ER, SDB); Raytheon in Indianapolis, IN; and Raytheon in Tucson, AZ (JSOW). If contracts are negotiated, they’ll need to negotiate the addition of approximately 2-4 additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to Saudi Arabia. Sources: US DSCA 13-49, Oct 15/13.

DSCA: Precision strike weapons request

Oct 15/13: Support. The US DSCA announces Saudi Arabia’s export request for 3 years of support services to its Ministry of Defense from the US Military Training Mission (USMTM) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. They’re responsible for identifying, planning, and executing US security cooperation training and advisory support. The estimated cost is up to $90 million, no contractors are involved, and no additional personnel will be needed. Sources: US DSCA 13-53, Oct 15/13.

Oct 3/13: A maximum $181 million not-to-exceed contract modification lets Saudi Arabia buy 2 KC-130J transport and tanker aircraft under the US umbrella deal, along with associated non-recurring engineering support. It’s just a small part of the 25-plane, $6.7 billion request (q.v. Nov 9/12).

Work will be performed at Marietta, GA, and is expected to be completed by April 2016. This contract is 100 percent foreign military sales for Saudi Arabia. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/WLNNC, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8625-11-C-6597, PO 0177).

2 KC-130Js

Sept 26/13: Industrial. Boeing’s Al Salam Aircraft Corp. joint venture in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia receives a $33.1 million firm-fixed-price contract related to the F-15S to F-15SA upgrade program. The contract is all about getting the company ready to carry out the demanding Phase II program, and includes setting up the facility, developing manufacturing plans and schedules, and readying automated performance reporting tools.

During Phase I of this upgrade, 2 F-15S fighters will be converted to F-15SA status at the Boeing facility in St. Louis, MO. Following successful completion of the initial phase, production will resume under Phase II at Alsalam, to complete the remaining 68 aircraft.

The firm has experience with F-15s, and has been providing Programmed Depot Maintenance to the Saudi F-15C/D/S fleet since 2002. The initial phase is expected to be complete by Dec. 31/15, with overall contract completion on Dec 31/19. The USAF Life Cycle Management Center/WWKA at Robins AFB, GA, acts as the Saudi FMS agent (FA8505-13-C-0014). See also: Alsalam Aircraft Corp History | Video.

JTE
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Sept 9/13: JTE. Northrop Grumman Amherst Systems in Buffalo, NY received a $219.1 million firm-fixed and cost-type contract from Saudi Arabia for its Joint Threat Emitter (JTE). They’ll supply 1st article and production units, associated drawings, retrofit kits, provisioning, and software. $44 million is committed immediately.

This contract was a competitive acquisition, with 2 offers received by the Saudis’ agent: the USAF Life Cycle Management Center/PZZK at Hill Air Force Base, UT.

The JTE is a mobile multi-radar system that radiates at realistic power levels, reacting to attempted jamming, employing IFF technologies, and tracking pilots’ reactions to its own efforts. It can simulate Anti-Aircraft Artillery radar systems, and Surface-to-Air missiles up to modern high-end threats. The goal is to train combat aircrews to defeat or avoid integrated air defense systems (FA8210-13-C-0001). Sources: Pentagon | NGC, Joint Threat Emitter (JTE) | USAF, “Joint Threat Emitter transmits signals for attack training”.

Aug 23/13: Support. The US DSCA announces an official Saudi request to continue support and services for Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) aircraft, engines and weapons, to include contractor technical services, logistics support, maintenance support, spares, equipment repair, expendables, support and test equipment, communication support, precision measuring equipment, personnel training and training equipment, technical support, exercises, deployments and other forms of Government and contractor support.

The estimated cost is $1.2 billion, but the time period isn’t clear. There is no prime contractor, and no new deployment of support personnel required.

DSCA request: Aircraft support

Aug 20/13: WCMD. Textron Defense Systems in Wilmington, MA receives a $640.8 million modification to a firm-fixed-price contract for 1,300 “cluster bomb units.” The Oct 20/10 DSCA request was much more specific – these are GPS-guided “CBU-105 Sensor Fuzed Weapons.” They spew out BLU-108 rods, whose attached tuna-can shaped smart sub-munitions can target tanks and vehicles before blowing a formed projectile through their roofs. The Saudis haven’t agreed to the Convention on Cluster Munitions; indeed, its only Mideast parties are Lebanon and Iraq, and it has very few adherents in Asia.

The 2010 request was buried within the larger $30 billion F-15SA purchase, but the Saudis also placed a June 13/11 request for another 404 of them. If that contract is signed, it could add another $355 million to Textron’s balance sheet.

Work will be performed at Wilmington, MA, and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2015. This contract involves foreign military sales (FMS) for Saudi Arabia. FMS funds in the amount of $410,218,248 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/OO-ALC/EBHKA, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (FA8213-12-C-0064, PZ 00001).

July 18/13: Rockets. General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products Inc. in Williston, VT receives a $67.5 million firm-fixed-price, option-filled, foreign-military-sales contract order from Saudi Arabia for 70mm Hydra rockets, warheads and related parts. The rockets are most frequently used on helicopters, and can also be used on qualified fixed-wing aircraft, if the right launcher is added. The addition of guidance sections like APKWS, DAGR, etc. can even turn them into laser-guided precision weapons.

Work will be performed in Camden, AR, and the US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL acts as the Saudis’ agent (W31P4Q-10-C-0190, PO 0136). The cumulative total face value of this contract is $1.025 billion, but previous orders have been on behalf of the US military.

July 17/13: F-15SA. Boeing subsidiary McDonnell Douglas Corp. in St. Louis, MO receives a maximum $75.6 million firm-fixed-price and cost-reimbursable contract, in order to update Saudi training and reflect the F-15SA’s new features. Elements like fly-by-wire are significant changes, to give just one of several examples. That means updated courseware, revised initial training for new pilots, and differences training for RSAF pilots moving over from other F-15 models.

Work will be performed until July 19/19 in St. Louis, MO, and King Khalid Air Base in Khamis Mushayt, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This is a sole-source acquisition, using FY 2011 international funding. Under Foreign Military Sale rules, the customer is the USAF’s Security Assistance Training Squadron. More specifically, Saudi Arabia’s agent is the Air Education and Training Command Contracting Squadron/LGCI (International Contracting Flight) at Randolph AFB, TX (FA3002-13-D-0012).

Mk.V & RHIB
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July 10/13: Patrol Boats. The US DSCA announces [PDF] Saudi Arabia’s formal export request for 30 Mark V patrol boats, 32 foredeck-mounted 27mm guns, spare and repair parts, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, and US government and contractor support. The estimated cost is up to $1.2 billion, but exact prices for the boats and support will depend on contract negotiations with the principal contractor, who hasn’t been picked yet, though USMI is a potential builder. Implementation of this proposed sale will require an additional 3-4 U.S. Government and contractor representatives to Saudi Arabia over a period of 7 years, to provide support and warranty work during delivery of the boats.

The Mark Vs are best known for their use by SEAL teams in the USA (Mk.V SOC), and have been used to launch and recover small UAVs. They are also used independently of the SEAL teams by the US Navy. Buying them creates a fast-moving armed force that can protect critical infrastructure in the Arabian/ Persian Gulf, and has the on-board guns to destroy Iranian “Boghammer” fast boats in a clash. They can also be used in efforts like Saudi operations around Yemen, which made significant but under-reported use of naval interdiction.

The DSCA says that this purchase represents an upgrade and modernization over the RSNF’s existing small patrol boat fleet. Note that the RSN’s 9 Al Sadiq Class boats, built in the early 1980s by Peterson, offer about 10x the Mk.V’s displacement, and include weapons like anti-ship missiles. They don’t sound like the boats the Mk.Vs will replace.

DSCA request: Mk.V Patrol Boats

July 2/13: AH-64E. Boeing in Mesa, AZ receives a $15.4 million firm-fixed-price contract modification as part of its AH-64E purchases. The customer is confirmed as Saudi Arabia, with a cumulative total face value of $50.6 million for this one contract. US Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, AL acts as the Saudi agent (W58RGZ-12-C-0113, PO 0004).

July 2/13: AH-64 support. Boeing in Mesa, AZ received a $109.5 million firm-fixed-price contract modification “for services in support of the Royal Saudi Land Force Aviation Command.” The exact uses for these funds are unclear, as the RSLF operates 12 older AH-64D Apache helicopters, while also buying new AH-64Es. The contract itself, however, seems to be associated with new AH-64Es.

The Pentagon gives a cumulative total face value of $394.9 million for this one contract. US Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, AL acts as the Saudi agent (W58RGZ-12-C-0089, PO 0006).

June 20/13: Boeing-Sikorsky. With the Saudi government tipping sharply toward a very American helicopter fleet, Boeing (AH-6i, AH-64D/E) and Sikorsky (UH-60) have formed the Boeing Sikorsky International Services (BSIS) 50/50 joint venture to compete for Saudi support, maintenance & repair services. For Saudi helicopters bought under the huge Oct 20/10 announcements, those contracts will be passed through the US government as part of its Foreign Military Sales process.

Both firms have strong roots in the kingdom, and both are already performing maintenance service for the Saudis’ small AH-64 and UH-60 fleets. Boeing also supports research and community projects, and is involved in partnerships that address Saudi educational goals as well as industrial development. Sikorsky began later, in the early 1990s, and has been involved in a pair of Saudi upgrade programs as well as standard support work.

The Saudis have been willing to outsource their extensive maintenance and support contracts to 3rd parties, but firms like BAE have also demonstrated that original manufacturer’s with compelling offerings can capture a very profitable aftermarket business. BSIS makes it that much harder for outsiders to win, and strengthens the firms’ negotiating positions. Boeing | Sikorsky.

June 7/13: AH-64E. Longbow LLC in Orlando, FL receives a $39 million firm-fixed-price, foreign-military-sales (FMS) contract modification from Saudi Arabia, buying AH-64 mast mounted assemblies; the fire control radars that go inside them; and related support equipment.

The Pentagon says that the cumulative total face value of this contract is $333.3 million, but it’s a FY 2006 contract that far predates Saudi AH-64E buys, and involves just part of the helicopter.

Based on DID’s tracking of announced contracts, the Saudis have committed $339 million to their AH-64E buy so far, using several contracts. US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the contract on behalf of its Saudi client (W58RGZ-06-C-0134, PO 0042).

May 22/13: AH-64E. Boeing in Mesa, AZ receives a $69.2 million firm-fixed-price, foreign-military-sales contract modification for Saudi Arabia’s Apache Block III aircraft and associated parts and services. The US Army reports the total cumulative value of this contract so far as $259.4 million; when other known Saudi contracts are added, contract value to date is somewhere between $296-300 million. Given Saudi AH-64E export requests for up to 60 helicopters, and known helicopter prices, this is just a drop in the bucket.

US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the contract on behalf of its Saudi client (W58RGZ-12-C-0089, PO 0008).

May 22/13: AH-64E. Boeing in Mesa, AZ receives a $14.3 million firm-fixed-price, foreign-military-sales contract modification for Saudi Arabia’s Apache Block III aircraft and associated parts and services. The US Army reports the total cumulative value of this contract so far as $35.2 million. US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL manages the contract on behalf of its Saudi client (W58RGZ-12-C-0113, PO 0003).

May 8/13: AH-64E. Boeing in Mesa, AZ receives a $26.1 million firm-fixed-price, foreign military sales (FMS) contract modification covering AH-64E training and support in Saudi Arabia.

The Pentagon says that the cumulative total face value of this contract is now $216.2 million, which almost exactly matches the announced $216.5 million total of all contracts with this designation – many of which were unattributed. The Army seems to be using specific contracts for specific export customers (W58RGZ-12-C-0089, PO 0007).

April 30/12: F-15SA Rollout. Boeing formally rolls out the 1st F-15SA fighter, in a St. Louis ceremony. Boeing.

March 25/13: Saudi. Sikorsky in Stratford, CT receives a $49 million firm-fixed-price contract. This modification will provide engineering and configuration services to 4 utility helicopters for Saudi Arabia. The contract number indicates a MYP-8 purchase, and the amount indicates that there’s an accompanying base helicopter order still to come. There are ways that could be done outside the purview of standard contract announcements.

Work will be performed in Stratford, CT with an estimated completion date of Dec 31/16. One bid was solicited, with 1 bid received by US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W58RGZ-12-C-0008).

Saudi Arabia: 4 UH-60Ms?

March 14/13: F-15SA, subtraction edition. The Pentagon announces the removal of $456.2 million from the $4 billion contract to develop and test F-15S to F-15SA conversion kits, install 4 initial kits, and produce 68. The revised not-to-exceed amount is now $3.544 billion.

Schedules and other elements are unaffected – see Nov 2/12 entry for the full listing (FA8505-12-C-0001, PO 0004).

F-15SA: 1st flight
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Feb 20/13: 1st flight. The F-15SA’s maiden flight takes place at Boeing’s St. Louis, MO facilities, and goes as planned. The F-15SA flight test program will include 3instrumented F-15SAs operating from Boeing facilities in St. Louis, MO and Palmdale, CA.

The Saudi F-15SA is the first F-15 model with full fly-by-wire controls, something that was standard on F-16s decades ago. That change makes flight testing more important than it might be for another F-15E variant like Korea’s F-15K, or Singapore’s F-15SG. Which may also explain why 1st delivery will take place about 2 years after 1st flight, in 2015. Deliveries are expected to finish in 2019. USAF.

F-15SA first flight

Jan 3/13: Saudi? Boeing in Mesa, AZ receives an $18.4 million firm-fixed-price contract modification “to procure Apac

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