[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 19, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2435-S2436]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        ARMS SALES NOTIFICATION

  Mr. CARDIN. 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

[[Page S2436]]

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 ask unanimous consent to 
have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. 
If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an 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,

                                                   Washington, DC.
     Hon. Benjamin L. Cardin,
     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. 24-0B. 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 18-40 of October 19, 
     2018.
           Sincerely,
                                                  James A. Hursch,
                                                         Director.
       Enclosure.


                         Transmittal No. 24-0B

     Report of Enhancement or Upgrade of Sensitivity of Technology 
         or Capability (Sec. 36(b)(5)(c), AECA)
       (i) Purchaser: Government of the United Kingdom
       (ii) Sec. 36(b)(1), AECA Transmittal No.: 18-40
       Date: October 19, 2018
       Implementing Agency: Army
       (iii) Description: On October 19, 2018, Congress was 
     notified by Congressional certification transmittal number 
     18-40 of the possible sale, under Section 36(b)(1) of the 
     Arms Export Control Act, of sixteen (16) H-47 Chinook 
     (Extended Range) helicopters; thirty-six (36) T-55-GA-714A 
     engines (32 installed, 4 spares); forty-eight (48) embedded 
     GPS inertial navigation units (32 installed, 16 spares); 
     twenty (20) common missile warning systems (16 installed, 4 
     spares); twenty-two (22) radio-frequency countermeasures (16 
     installed, 6 spares); nineteen (19) multi-mode radars ( 16 
     installed, 3 spares); nineteen (19) electrooptical sensor 
     systems (16 installed, 3 spares); forty (40) M-134D-T 
     miniguns, plus mounts and tools (32 installed, 8 spares); and 
     forty (40) M240H machine guns, plus mounts and tools (32 
     installed, 8 spares). Also included was communications 
     equipment; navigation equipment; aircraft survivability 
     equipment; initial training equipment and services; synthetic 
     training equipment; support package including spares and 
     repair parts; special tools and test equipment; aviation 
     ground support equipment; safety and air worthiness 
     certification; technical support; maintenance support; 
     technical and aircrew publications; mission planning system 
     equipment and support; project management and governance; 
     U.S. Government and contractor engineering and logistics 
     support services; and other related elements of logistics and 
     program support. The total estimated program cost was $3.5 
     billion. Major Defense Equipment (MDE) constituted $1.655 
     billion of this total.
       This transmittal notifies the addition of the following MDE 
     items:
       --Seventeen (17) Common Infrared Countermeasure (CIRCM) 
     Systems.
       --Seventeen (17) Limited Missile Warning Receiver Systems 
     (LIMWS).
       --Seventeen (17) Degraded Visual Environment Pilotage 
     Systems (DVEPS).
       Also included are Man-Portable Night Vision Devices. The 
     estimated total value of these new items is $162 million, but 
     their addition will not cause an increase in the total case 
     value. The estimated total case value will remain at $3.5 
     billion. Major Defense Equipment (MDE) will remain at $1.655 
     billion of this total.
       (iv) Significance: The proposed sale will enhance the 
     United Kingdom's capabilities to provide national defense and 
     contribute to NATO and coalition operations.
       (v) Justification: This proposed sale will support the 
     foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the 
     United States by improving the security of a NATO Ally that 
     is a force for political stability and economic progress in 
     Europe.
       (vi) Sensitivity of Technology: CIRCM is the next-
     generation lightweight, laser-based, infrared countermeasure 
     system for rotary-wing, tiltrotor, and small fixed-wing 
     aircraft across the Department of Defense (DoD). CIRCM 
     provides near-spherical coverage of the host platform to 
     defeat infrared (IR)-seeking threat missiles. CIRCM receives 
     an angular bearing hand-off from the Missile Warning System 
     (Common Missile Warning System (CMWS) or LIMWS) and employs a 
     pointing and tracking system that acquires and tracks the 
     incoming missile. CIRCM jams the missile by using modulated 
     laser energy, thus degrading the tracking capability ofthe 
     missile and causing it to miss the aircraft.
       LIMWS will protect aircraft from missiles by deploying 
     flares and by cueing laser-based countermeasure systems such 
     as the CTRCM. The LIMWS A-kit is backwards compatible with 
     CMWS. LIMWS maintains overmatch of quickly emerging threat 
     technology and tactics by providing increased detection 
     range, improved detection in clutter, and more agile 
     algorithms to rapidly respond to emerging Man-Portable Air 
     Defense Systems (MANPADS) threats. LIMWS utilizes IR-based 
     sensors to detect incoming missiles and unguided hostile 
     fire, fiber optic cables for high-speed data transmission 
     from the sensors to the system processor and implements 
     machine learning algorithms.
       DVEPS provides overmatch by providing increased situational 
     awareness to the aircrew in Degraded Visual Environment (DVE) 
     conditions such as brownout, allowing Special Operations 
     Aviation assets to execute missions in almost any 
     environmental condition. DVEPS utilizes using three-
     dimensional (3D) imaging technology. DVEPS produces imagery, 
     3D conformal symbology, and system alerts to aid pilots in 
     maintaining spatial awareness during and after transition 
     from visual meteorological conditions (VMC) to DVE 
     conditions. DVEPS includes a synthetic vision avionics 
     backbone (SVAB), light detection and ranging (LiDAR), 
     removable storage device, infrared camera, power distribution 
     unit, and inertial measurement unit.
       The highest level of classification of defense articles, 
     components, and services included in this potential sale is 
     SECRET.
       (vii) Date Report Delivered to Congress: March 12, 2024.

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