[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 194 (Thursday, December 5, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6884-S6885]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        ARMS SALES NOTIFICATION

  Mr. RISCH. Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control 
Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain 
proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, 
the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be 
reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the 
notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the 
Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
  In keeping with the committee's intention to see that relevant 
information is available to the full Senate, I

[[Page S6885]]

ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications 
which have been received. If the cover letter references a classified 
annex, then such annex is available to all Senators in the office of 
the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                 Defense Security 


                                           Cooperation Agency,

                                                    Arlington, VA.
     Hon. James E. Risch,
     Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations,
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: Pursuant to the reporting requirements 
     of Section 36(b)(5)(C) of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), 
     as amended, we are forwarding Transmittal No. 20-0A. This 
     notification relates to enhancements or upgrades from the 
     level of sensitivity of technology or capability described in 
     the Section 36(b)(1) AECA certification 08-60 of August 1, 
     2008.
           Sincerely,
                                                Charles W. Hooper,
                                Lieutenant General, USA, Director.
       Enclosures.


                         TRANSMITTAL NO. 20-0A

     Report of Enhancement or Upgrade of Sensitivity of Technology 
         or Capability (Sec. 36(b)(5)(c), AECA)
       (i) Purchaser: Government of Italy.
       (ii) Sec. 36(b)(1), AECA Transmittal No.: 08-60; Date: 
     August 1, 2008; Military Department: Air Force.
       (iii) Description: On August 1, 2008, Congress was notified 
     by Congressional certification transmittal number 08-60 of 
     the possible sale, under Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export 
     Control Act, of 4 MQ-9 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), 3 
     Mobile Ground Control Stations, five years of maintenance 
     support, engineering support, test equipment, ground support, 
     operational flight test support, communications equipment, 
     technical assistance, personnel training/equipment, spare and 
     repair parts, and other related elements of logistics 
     support. These UAVs included AN/DPY-1 Synthetic Aperture 
     Radar/Ground Moving Target Indicator (SAR/GMTI) systems with 
     0.3 to 3 meter resolution. The estimated total cost was $330 
     million. Major Defense Equipment (MDE) constituted $50 
     million of this total.
       On November 18, 2009, Congress was notified by 
     Congressional certification transmittal number 09-60 of the 
     possible sale, under Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export 
     Control Act, of two unarmed MQ-9 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles 
     (UAVs), one (1) Mobile Ground Control Station, maintenance 
     support, engineering support, test equipment, ground support, 
     operational flight test support, communications equipment, 
     technical assistance, personnel training/equipment, spare and 
     repair parts, and other related elements of logistics 
     support. These UAVs included AN/DPY-1 Synthetic Aperture 
     Radar/Ground Moving Target Indicator (SAR/GMTI) systems with 
     0.1 to 3 meter resolution. The estimated total cost was $63 
     million. MDE constituted $36 million of this total.
       On December 17, 2009, Congress was notified by 
     Congressional certification transmittal number 0C-09 of the 
     possible sale, under Section 36(b)(5)(a) of the Arms Export 
     Control Act, of a performance upgrade of the AN/DPY-1 SAR/
     GMTI systems aboard the four MQ-9s UAVs previously notified 
     on transmittal 08-60 from 0.3 to 3 meter resolution to the 
     same 0.1 to 3 meter resolution of the two MQ-9s notified on 
     transmittal 09-60. There was no increase in cost of MDE for 
     this upgrade.
       This transmittal reports the addition of Major Defense 
     Equipment items beyond what was originally notified to 
     include:
       1. Retrofit of five (5) existing MQ-9A Block 1 Unmanned 
     Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to Block 5;
       2. Retrofit of two (2) existing MGCS Block 30;
       3. Addition of three (3) MQ-9A Block 5;
       4. Addition of eight (8) Multi-Spectral Targeting Systems 
     (MTS-B) AN/DAS-1A;
       5. Addition of eight (8) General Atomics AN/APY-8 Lynx 
     (exportable) Synthetic Aperture Radar/Ground Moving Target 
     Indicator (SAR/GMTI) Systems, with Maritime Wide Area Search 
     (MWAS) capability;
       6. Addition of two (2) Mobile Ground Control Station (MGCS) 
     Block 30, and;
       7. Addition of twenty-seven (27) Honeywell H-764 Adaptive 
     Configurable Embedded Global Positioning System/Inertial 
     Guidance Units (EGI) with Selective Availability Anti-
     Spoofing Module (SAASM) (24 installed, 3 spares).
       The retrofit, addition of aircraft, and inclusion of the 
     above listed MDE not enumerated in the previous notifications 
     will result in a net increase in MDE costs of $180 million 
     and non-MDE cost of $138 million. These notifications 
     represent the entirety of Italy's MQ-9 program, which will 
     now increase in value from $393 million to $711 million.
       (iv) Significance: As Italy continues with its plans to 
     develop a robust MQ-9A fleet, it has requested additional 
     aircraft. Enhancement of Italy's MQ-9A aircraft will provide 
     strike capability to augment intelligence, surveillance, and 
     reconnaissance (ISR) capability. The proposed sale increases 
     Italy's capability to participate in Europe and NATO security 
     operations and supports the foreign and national security 
     policies of the US by enhancing the ISR and strike capability 
     of a major ally.
       (v) Justification: Italy is a major political and economic 
     power in NATO and a key democratic partner of the United 
     States in ensuring peace and stability around the world. 
     Italy requests these capabilities to provide for the defense 
     of deployed troops, regional security, and interoperability 
     with the United States.
       (vi) Sensitivity of Technology:
       1. The MQ-9A Block 5 Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) is 
     UNCLASSIFIED. The highest level of classified information 
     required for training, operation, and maintenance is SECRET. 
     The MQ-9A Block 5 is a Medium Altitude, long-endurance (MALE) 
     remotely piloted aircraft that can be used for surveillance, 
     military reconnaissance, and targeting missions. Real-time 
     missions are flown under the control of a pilot in a Ground 
     Control Station (GCS). A datalink is maintained that uplinks 
     control commands and downlinks video with telemetry data. 
     Line-of-Sight (LOS) communications is enabled through C-Band 
     datalink and Beyond-Line-of-Sight (BLOS) communications is 
     enabled through Ku-Band Satellite Communication (SATCOM). 
     Control of the aircraft and payload are done through direct 
     manual inputs by the crew or through preprogrammed mission. 
     Preprogrammed missions are planned and uploaded by the pilots 
     via the GCS and are executed through the control of an 
     onboard suite of redundant computers and sensors. Payload 
     imagery and data are downlinked to the GCS. The pilot may 
     initiate pre-programmed missions once the aircraft is 
     airborne and lands the aircraft when the mission is 
     completed. Pilots can change preprogrammed mission parameters 
     as often as required. When operated BLOS, aircraft control is 
     given to other strategically placed Ground Control Stations--
     permitting remote split operations (RSO). The MQ-9A Block 5 
     is designed to carry 850 pounds of internal payload with 
     maximum fuel and can carry multiple mission payloads aloft. 
     The MQ-9A Block 5 will be configured for the following 
     payloads: Electro-Optical/Infrared (EO/IR), Synthetic 
     Aperture Radar (SAR), Electronic Support Measures (ESM), 
     Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), laser designators, and various 
     weapons packages. The MQ-9A Block 5 systems will include the 
     following components:
       a. The Ground Control Station (GCS) can be either fixed or 
     mobile. The fixed GCS is enclosed in a customer-specified 
     shelter. It incorporates workstations that allow operators to 
     control and monitor the aircraft, as well as record and 
     exploit downlinked payload data. The mobile GCS allows 
     operators to perform the same functions and is contained on a 
     mobile trailer. Workstations in either GCS can be tailored to 
     meet customer requirements. The GCS, technical data, and 
     documents are UNCLASSIFIED.
       b. The Raytheon Multi-Spectral Targeting System-B (MTS-B) 
     integrates electro-optical (EO), infrared (IR), laser 
     designation and laser illumination capabilities to provide 
     detection, ranging, and tracking capabilities specifically 
     for high-altitude applications. This advanced EO and IR 
     system provides long-range surveillance, high altitude target 
     acquisition, tracking, range finding, and laser designation 
     for the Hellfire missile and for all tri-service and NATO 
     laser-guided munitions.
       c. The AN/APY-8 Lynx Block 20 Synthetic Aperture Radar and 
     Ground Moving Target Radar system provides all-weather 
     surveillance, tracking and targeting for military and 
     commercial customers from manned and unmanned vehicles. The 
     AN/PY-8 Lynx Block 20SAR/GMTI radar system and technical 
     data/documents are UNCLASSIFIED.
       d. The Honeywell H-764 Adaptive Configurable Embedded 
     Global Positioning System/Inertial Guidance Unit (EGI) 
     contains the Force 524D GPS Receiver card with Selective 
     Availability Anti-Spoofing Module (SAASM). The Force 524D is 
     a 24-channel SAASM based GPS receiver with precise 
     positioning service capability built upon Trimble's next 
     generation GPS technology. The Force 524D retains backward 
     compatibility with the proven Force 5GS while adding new 
     functionality to interface with the digital antenna 
     electronics to significantly improve anti jam performance. 
     The host platform can select the radio frequency of digital 
     antenna electronics interface. In the digital mode, the Force 
     524D is capable of controlling up to 16 independent beams.
       (vii) Date Report Delivered to Congress: December 4, 2019.

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