Latest news with #ScottForney
Miami Herald
08-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
General Atomics Awarded U.S. Space Force Contract for Phase 2 of the Enterprise Space Terminal Program
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA / ACCESS Newswire / May 8, 2025 / General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced today that it has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Space Force (USSF) Space Systems Command (SSC) for Phase 2 of the Enterprise Space Terminal (EST) program. This Phase 2 contract award was issued through the Space Enterprise Consortium (SpEC) via an Other Transaction Agreement (OTA). The EST program is an enterprise optical communications solution to enhance mission effectiveness by providing resilient, high-capacity communication solutions for Department of Defense (DoD) space platforms operating primarily in beyond Low Earth Orbit (bLEO) regimes at crosslink ranges from 10,000 to 80,000 kilometers while maintaining the ability to operate in the LEO regime. "GA-EMS, under a Phase 1 contract award, leveraged its extensive Optical Communication Terminal (OCT) expertise to develop a design that can be efficiently scaled to deploy a mesh network enterprise of OCTs with capabilities to transfer large volumes of data between spacecraft and ground stations distributed across a wide spectrum of operational domains," said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. "We are excited to enter Phase 2 to advance our system design and begin the build and test of the OCT subsystems." Phase 2 will include lab demonstrations of OCT subsystems within a government provided test bed. GA-EMS will continue design and analyses activities to optimize the system designs. Testing results and analyses will then be presented during a Critical Design Review (CDR) at the end of Phase 2 period of performance. "The Phase 2 CDR will help inform the decision gate toward entering Phase 3 of the program, which will call for the assembly, test, and delivery of an integrated prototype OCT system for demonstration on a government provided test bed," said Gregg Burgess, vice president of GA-EMS Space Systems. "We look forward to delivering a robust, producible Optical Communication Terminal for the Space Force to ensure resilient space network connectivity for future National Security Space Architectures." GA-EMS completed the preliminary design of the payload support system, electrical hardware, laser terminal design, optical design and subsystem, thermal control, and command and data handling under the EST Phase 1 contract awarded in 2024. As prime contractor, GA-EMS has teamed with L3Harris for the modem subsystem and Advanced Space to provide performance modelling. SOURCE: General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems press release
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
General Atomics Awarded U.S. Space Force Contract for Phase 2 of the Enterprise Space Terminal Program
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA / / May 8, 2025 / General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced today that it has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Space Force (USSF) Space Systems Command (SSC) for Phase 2 of the Enterprise Space Terminal (EST) program. This Phase 2 contract award was issued through the Space Enterprise Consortium (SpEC) via an Other Transaction Agreement (OTA). The EST program is an enterprise optical communications solution to enhance mission effectiveness by providing resilient, high-capacity communication solutions for Department of Defense (DoD) space platforms operating primarily in beyond Low Earth Orbit (bLEO) regimes at crosslink ranges from 10,000 to 80,000 kilometers while maintaining the ability to operate in the LEO regime. "GA-EMS, under a Phase 1 contract award, leveraged its extensive Optical Communication Terminal (OCT) expertise to develop a design that can be efficiently scaled to deploy a mesh network enterprise of OCTs with capabilities to transfer large volumes of data between spacecraft and ground stations distributed across a wide spectrum of operational domains," said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. "We are excited to enter Phase 2 to advance our system design and begin the build and test of the OCT subsystems." Phase 2 will include lab demonstrations of OCT subsystems within a government provided test bed. GA-EMS will continue design and analyses activities to optimize the system designs. Testing results and analyses will then be presented during a Critical Design Review (CDR) at the end of Phase 2 period of performance. "The Phase 2 CDR will help inform the decision gate toward entering Phase 3 of the program, which will call for the assembly, test, and delivery of an integrated prototype OCT system for demonstration on a government provided test bed," said Gregg Burgess, vice president of GA-EMS Space Systems. "We look forward to delivering a robust, producible Optical Communication Terminal for the Space Force to ensure resilient space network connectivity for future National Security Space Architectures." GA-EMS completed the preliminary design of the payload support system, electrical hardware, laser terminal design, optical design and subsystem, thermal control, and command and data handling under the EST Phase 1 contract awarded in 2024. As prime contractor, GA-EMS has teamed with L3Harris for the modem subsystem and Advanced Space to provide performance modelling. Contact Information General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems Media Relations ems-mediarelations@ SOURCE: General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire
Miami Herald
16-04-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
General Atomics PERSES Waste Destruction System Scheduled to Destroy PFAS at Lake Elmo, Minnesota Site
On-Site, Industrial Scale PFAS and Other Organic Waste Destruction to Commence SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA / ACCESS Newswire / April 16, 2025 / General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced today that its commercial PERSES™ waste destruction system will be delivered to a Lake Elmo, Minnesota waste management facility to demonstrate the system's industrial-scale capabilities to destroy a variety of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) waste streams. GA-EMS was awarded a contract by Bay West LLC, an environmental and remediation company leading the research program funded by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) to deliver, install, and operate PERSES for multiple project demonstrations to destroy PFAS and PFAS contaminated waste media. The system will be at the Lake Elmo site for about 4 weeks and then removed to other sites for additional tests under different contracts. "Minnesota's government leadership, as well as states across the nation are actively implementing strategies to eliminate PFAS from the environment and mitigate the adverse effects these "forever chemicals" have on public health and safety," said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. "We are excited to bring the destruction power of PERSES to Lake Elmo as local, state, and federal government agencies continue to evaluate PERSES' capabilities to eliminate PFAS from a myriad of waste streams. We appreciate the efforts the Lake Elmo city council and local community have made to support this project and look forward to a successful demonstration program." In 2024, Bay West conducted testing at the GA-EMS full-scale testing facility in San Diego and provided ERDC results analysis to verify PERSES 99.99% and greater PFAS destruction efficiency in a variety of waste media from both government and commercial supplied sources. The delivery of PERSES to the Lake Elmo facility is the next step in the project to commence on-site, industrial-scale destruction of PFAS and other organic waste in media including Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF), landfill leachate, biosolid "sludge", soils and sediment, and granular activated carbon (GAC) and resin beads from filtration treatment systems. Bay West, LLC, a nationally recognized environmental consulting and remediation company headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, provides solutions to government and commercial enterprises to navigate complex environmental concerns and ongoing remediation challenges. ERDC is an integral component of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and helps solve the nation's most challenging civil and military engineering, geospatial sciences, water resources, and environmental sciences for the Army, DoD, civilian agencies and for the nation's public good. Contact Information General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems Media Relations ems-mediarelations@ SOURCE: General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems press release
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US-Israeli industry team pitches ‘Bullseye' long-range missile
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — General Atomics and Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems are teaming up to produce a long-range precision-guided missile for the U.S. market, the companies announced this week. The weapon, dubbed Bullseye, will be launchable from the sea, land and air, with the developers promising 'significant attack performance against high-value targets at an affordable price point.' 'We're getting lessons learned on cost reduction, and we'll build at least half the missile in the United States,' Scott Forney, President of General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems, was quoted as saying by Naval News. Development of the weapon was announced at the Sea-Air-Space 2025 conference in Maryland. The Bullseye missile appears to be derived from Rafael's Ice Breaker system, which has a 300-kilometer (186 miles) range. Unlike Ice Breaker, however, the new missile will be able to carry various warheads and propulsion systems, General Atomics said on the new product's web page. The weapon's makers also highlighted the 'very low observable' stealth characteristics, autonomous target recognition, and resilience in GPS-denied environments. Autonomous target recognition has been an area of concern for defense researchers but no comprehensive international rules yet exist on the level of human involvement that a weapons system must have. General Atomics bills the Bullseye as 'fully autonomous with man-in-the-loop decision back-up capability' on the company's spec sheet. The missile will also be equipped with 'advanced mission planning' and 'synchronized attack capability.' The new missile has reportedly reached Technology Readiness Level 8, with Rafael having already completed aerodynamics, engine, seeker and launch integration testing. The missile is compatible with jet fighters, light attack aircraft, helicopters, small maritime vessels and ground vehicles, the arms manufacturer said. Initial deliveries are slated for late 2025, General Atomics said. The partnership seeks to leverage Rafael's combat-proven missile technology—including systems like Iron Dome and Spike missiles—with GA-EMS's U.S.-based manufacturing expertise in Tupelo, Mississippi. It also highlights the continuing close ties between the two countries' defense establishments at a time when other traditional U.S. partners have been estranged.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bullseye Standoff Weapon Based On Israeli Cruise Missile Unveiled By General Atomics
General Atomics has officially unveiled the new Bullseye standoff precision-guided missile that it's now working with alongside Israeli defense contractor Rafael. The new weapon leverages Rafael's existing Ice Breaker missile and is being offered to the U.S. military and allies at a time when the Pentagon is increasingly focused on procuring affordable standoff weapons that can be rapidly produced en masse for future contingencies, especially in the Indo-Pacific theater. While a modular design able to be used or adapted for a variety of missions, General Atomics told TWZ it initially is aiming to sell the missile for maritime strike. The U.S. firm displayed a full-size mockup of the Bullseye at the Sea-Air-Space Conference, now taking place at National Harbor, Maryland. TWZ has multiple staff on the ground at the event. General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems Group (GA-EMS) today also announced the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, under which the American firm will be their partner and the U.S. prime contractor to manufacture the missile. General Atomics would build the missile at its site in Tupelo, Mississippi. The Bullseye missile 'will meet U.S. military specifications and will provide multi-platform launch capabilities from air, ground, and sea for strike mass at an affordable price point,' GA-EMS said in a media release today. The prominent panels on the top of the Bullseye may well be associated with its satellite communications system, which sends data from the missile to the operator and allows it to be reprogrammed in flight. They could also be part of a system for providing navigation in GPS-denied environments and other challenging scenarios. 'We are excited to work with Rafael to introduce Bullseye, a highly effective deep-strike missile,' said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. 'Bullseye will be built in the U.S. for delivery to U.S. military customers to support a variety of critical Department of Defense and coalition partners' precision-fires missions.' Forney added: 'By leveraging Rafael's extensive investment in the design, maturation and testing of a unique, modular missile, we can reduce risk and development costs and provide production-scale delivery of a highly capable, high-performance precision-guided missile at significant per-unit cost-savings.' 'As a company that has spent decades pushing the boundaries of precision-strike technology, we are proud to partner with GA-EMS on the Bullseye program,' said Yuval Miller, executive vice president and head of Rafael's Air & C4ISR Systems Division. 'By combining Rafael's combat-proven innovative fifth-generation missile technologies with GA-EMS's advanced manufacturing, assembly, integration and test expertise, Bullseye will deliver unprecedented accuracy, flexibility and affordability, giving warfighters a state-of-the-art missile system that hits its mark and adapts to evolving mission needs.' While today's GA-EMS media release didn't mention Rafael's Ice Breaker, the company's Scott Forney confirmed to TWZ ahead of Sea-Air-Space, that the new missile is 'leveraging the Ice Breaker program.' In terms of potential sales, Forney said that he personally unveiled the Bullseye missile to U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth last week and 'we have been previewing it with some of our senior customers across the Pentagon.' In terms of specifications, GA-EMS told TWZ that the Bullseye missile will have a length of just under four meters (13.1 feet) with a wingspan of just over two meters (6.6 feet) when deployed. This suggests that the dimensions are similar, if not identical, to the Rafael Ice Breaker. Depending on the payload, the Bullseye will weigh 'under 1,000 pounds,' according to Forney, and will be able to strike targets at ranges 'in excess of 300 kilometers' (186 miles). The missile is powered by a small jet engine and is considered to have low observable (LO) to the warhead, this will be available in two versions, weighing either 500 pounds or 250 pounds, both of them offering dual-use capabilities: combining the effects of a general-purpose high-explosive and a penetrating warhead. Forney added that the company wants to compete with 'something like the Joint Strike Missile' (JSM) in terms of range, but to offer a 'significantly' lower cost. Produced by Kongsberg of Norway, the JSM appears very similar to the Bullseye, with the same overall length, stealthy features, and an imaging infrared seeker giving it very precise targeting capability that cannot be jammed using RF countermeasures while in the terminal phase of flight. The Bullseye missile is a highly modular design and, while the initial sales opportunities are likely to be for the air-launched version, the weapons will also be suitable for launch from sea and ground platforms. Forney said that, while GA-EMS is 'going hard for the air-launched opportunities,' the missile can also be canister-launched from a Mk 41 Vertical Launch System or an MLRS, for example. At this point, Forney thinks there's a particular demand in the United States for an air-launched missile that can be used against maritime targets, and he thinks the Bullseye would be 'a perfect opportunity' for the U.S. Navy, bearing in mind that service's current lack of anti-ship weapons in this class. The maritime target set is also well suited to the missile's baseline seeker technology, which is directly leveraged from the Ice Breaker. According to Rafael, the Ice Breaker 'utilizes an advanced, all-weather, electro-optical imaging infrared (IIR) seeker,' which includes 'scene-matching algorithms and Automatic Target Recognition (ATR).' Rafael's Yuval Miller told TWZ that the Israeli company considers the Bullseye to be a 'fifth-generation missile,' in that it's able to make its way to the target even in a GPS-denied environment throughout the entire flight, and also to survive against different types of threats. Its survivability will be aided by a sea-skimming flight profile for anti-ship strike missions, as well as being able to fly low around ground terrain. TWZ was the first to report on the existence of what was then a still-unnamed air-to-surface missile in the works at General Atomics, back in January of this year, during the Surface Navy Association's main annual symposium. At that point, GA-EMS offered a rendering of the new weapon, then referred to simply as the 'Strike Missile.' This was a notably slab-sided design with an air-breathing propulsion system and a single ventral intake. At that point, no other details were offered about the missile's size, performance, or other specifications. Presumably, the rendering was intended simply as a placeholder, since the mockup unveiled today appears to be almost identical to the Ice Breaker. Leveraging this existing technology makes a lot of sense for GA-EMS, in terms of being able to get the weapon to market quickly. This factor also recognizes the considerable and growing interest, especially within the U.S. military, in new air-launched strike munitions, particularly ones that are cheaper and easier to produce than existing designs. The Bullseye is very clearly aimed at this market segment, with the U.S. military now deeplu interested in acquiring new air-launched strike munitions that can be produced readily at scale, and economically, while also still offering useful standoff range. Fielding weapons in this class is increasingly seen as vital for providing sufficient strike capacity in future conflicts, especially high-end ones like a fight in the Pacific against China, and allowing for the relatively rapid replenishment of stockpiles. The war in Ukraine, in particular, has dramatically highlighted the need for extensive weapons stockpiles, especially in the case of long-range effects, and having the industrial capacity to rapidly ramp up production of such munitions when required. One prime example of these kinds of efforts is the Enterprise Test Vehicle (ETV) project, run by the Air Force and the Pentagon's Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), which is seen as being a potential stepping stone to new, lower-cost cruise missiles. General Atomics is not one of the four companies to have received an ETV contract — Anduril Industries, Integrated Solutions for Systems, Inc., Leidos subsidiary Dynetics, and Zone 5 Technologies are those that have. With that in mind, it perhaps makes more sense that, at first, GA-EMS is looking to pitch its Bullseye most aggressively for potential U.S. Navy contracts. Should this be successful, it could open the door to many other unique and combat-proven weapons from Israeli manufacturers being brought to the U.S. market. Key examples would include the Delilah and Rampage standoff missiles, and the Rocks air-launched ballistic missile. The Spike anti-amor missile, notably, is already in the U.S. inventory. At this stage, Rafael has already performed aerodynamics, engine, seeker, launch integration and testing, GA-EMS, although it's not entirely clear if this refers to the original Ice Breaker or the 'Americanized' Bullseye. Regardless, the U.S. firm says that further testing is now being scheduled 'for flight qualification and to prove operational readiness.' However, with missiles potentially ready for delivery starting in late 2025, should the U.S. military order the Bullseye, in whatever form, it could get its hands on operational examples of the missile sooner rather than later. Contact the author: thomas@
