[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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