[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 55 (Wednesday, March 22, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17191-17193]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05828]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

[Transmittal No. 21-0J]


Arms Sales Notification

AGENCY: Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Department of Defense 
(DoD).

ACTION: Arms sales notice.

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SUMMARY: The DoD is publishing the unclassified text of an arms sales 
notification.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Neil Hedlund at 
[email protected] or (703) 697-9214.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 36(b)(5)(C) arms sales notification is 
published to fulfill the requirements of section 155 of Public Law 104-
164 dated July 21, 1996. The following is a copy of a letter to the 
Speaker of the House of Representatives with attached Transmittal 21-
0J.

    Dated: March 16, 2023.
Aaron T. Siegel,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN22MR23.004

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Transmittal No. 21-0J

REPORT OF ENHANCEMENT OR UPGRADE OF SENSITIVITY OF TECHNOLOGY OR 
CAPABILITY (SEC. 36(B)(5)(C)), (AECA)

    (i) Purchaser: Government of France
    (ii) Sec. 36(b)(1), AECA Transmittal No.: 13-40

Date: June 27, 2013
Military Department: Air Force
    (iii) Description: On June 27, 2013, Congress was notified by 
Congressional certification transmittal number 13-40 of the possible 
sale, under Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, of sixteen 
(16) MQ-9 Reaper Remotely Piloted Aircraft; eight (8) Mobile Ground 
Control Stations; forty-eight (48) Honeywell TPE331-10T Turboprop 
Engines (16 installed and 32 Spares); twenty-four (24) Satellite Earth 
Terminal Substations; forty (40) Ku Band Link-Airborne Communication 
Systems; forty (40) General Atomics Lynx (exportable) Synthetic 
Aperture Radar/Ground Moving Target Indicator (SAR/GMTI) Systems; forty 
(40) AN/DAS-1 Multi-Spectral Targeting System (MTS)-B; forty (40) 
Ground Data Terminals; forty (40) ARC-210 Radio Systems; forty (40) 
Embedded Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation Systems; and 
forty-eight (48) AN/APX-119 and KIV-119 Identify Friend or Foe (IFF) 
Systems. Also included were spare and repair parts; communication, 
test, and support equipment; publications and technical documentation; 
airworthiness and maintenance support; site surveys and bed down 
planning; personnel training and training equipment; operational flight 
test; U.S. Government and contractor technical and logistics personnel 
services; and other related elements of logistics support. The 
estimated cost was $1.5 billion. Major Defense Equipment (MDE) 
constituted $765 million of this total.
    On July 26, 2018, Congress was notified by Congressional 
certification transmittal number 18-0B of the retrofit of MQ-9s to 
become weapons capable, and the inclusion of one hundred (100) GBU-49 
Enhanced Paveway dual mode

[[Page 17193]]

GPS and laser guided bomb kits comprised of MXU-650 Air Foil Group 
(AFG) and MAU-210 Enhanced Computer Control Group (ECCG); two hundred 
(200) FMU-152 fuzes; six hundred fifty (650) AGM-114R Hellfire 
missiles, with active warheads; forty-five (45) AGM-114R Hellfire 
training missiles, without active warheads; and six (6) Hellfire 
Captive Air Training Missiles. The retrofit and inclusion of MDE not 
enumerated in the original notification resulted in the total notified 
cost of MDE increasing to $975 million. The total notified case value 
increased to $1.71 billion.
    On November 22, 2019, Congress was notified by Congressional 
certification transmittal number 19-0P of the retrofit of four (4) MQ-
9A Block 1 to exportable MQ-9A Block 5; the addition of four (4) MQ-9A 
Block 5; and the addition of fourteen (14) Embedded GPS/INS (EGI) with 
GPS Security Devices. The retrofit and inclusion of MDE not enumerated 
in the original notification resulted in the total notified cost of MDE 
increasing to $1.055 billion. The total notified case value remained 
$1.71 billion.
    This transmittal reports the addition of up to five (5) Mobile 
Ground Control Stations (MDE). Also included are additional ARC-210 
Radios Systems (non-MDE). The inclusion of MDE not enumerated in the 
original notification will result in the total notified cost of MDE 
increasing to $1.0875 billion. The total notified case value will 
remain at $1.71 billion.
    (iv) Significance: This notification is being provided to report 
the inclusion of MDE and non-MDE articles and services not previously 
notified. Their inclusion represents an increase in capability over 
what was originally notified. The proposed articles and services will 
provide France's MQ-9 program with the equipment necessary to support 
capabilities that France is already employing.
    (v) Justification: This proposed sale will support the foreign 
policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve 
the security of a NATO ally which is an important force for political 
stability and economic progress in Europe.
    (vi) Sensitivity of Technology: The MQ-9A Mobile Ground Control 
Station (MGCS) enables a pilot to operate, in real-time, a long-
endurance, medium altitude Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) that can be 
used for surveillance, military reconnaissance, and targeting missions. 
A data link is maintained that uplink commands and downlink video with 
telemetry data. The data link can be a Line-of-Sight (LOS) C-Band 
communication or Beyond Line-of-Sight (BLOS) Ku-Band Satellite 
Communication (SATCOM). Aircraft can be handed off to other 
strategically placed ground control stations.
    The highest level of classification of defense articles, 
components, and services included in this potential sale is 
UNCLASSIFIED.
    (vii) Date Report Delivered to Congress: August 4, 2021

[FR Doc. 2023-05828 Filed 3-21-23; 8:45 am]
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