The below features blogs, articles, and other news from our event organizers and media partners.
SOF Week News
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The US Marine Corps (USMC) has been seeking autonomous and robotic ground capabilities to be operated by its soldiers worldwide and will test the Rheinmetall Mission Master SP UGV. Speaking to Shephard, Louis Harnois, director of business development at Rheinmetall Canada, explained that the USMC has witnessed demonstrations of the system and will conduct trials with the vehicle this summer.
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L3Harris Technologies is showing its VAMPIRE [Vehicle-Agnostic Modular Palletized ISR Rocket Equipment] display and the WESCAM MX-8 EO/IR system integrated on Vanilla Unmanned’s uncrewed aerial system (UAS) platform, as a way to highlight the multisensor operator experience, at this week's SOF Week 2023 show.
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The US government today approved a potential sale of 60 CH-47F Chinook helicopters and related equipment to Germany in a deal worth up to an eye-watering $8.5 billion.
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Ahead of delivery to U.S. partner Blue Tide Marine (BTM) for demonstration and training purposes, underwater capability provider JFD (Aberdeen, UK) unveiled its advanced fourman tactical diving platform, Shadow Seal (MK1D), showing a prototype model of the vehicle at the SOF Week convention.
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Curtiss-Wright’s Defense Solutions division introduced at the SOF Week show a new PacStar 400-Series tactical computing module – developed together with software developer REDCOM Laboratories – that aims at support of radio gateway services for modern and legacy radios.
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According to the Collins Aerospace announcement, the new OXYJUMP NG system uses the company's oxygen-pulse technology – already certified by one NATO country – to give users a smaller, lighter-weight option that automatically adjusts oxygen levels to enable longer mission profiles.
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The need to provide advanced solutions for dismounted soldiers has been pushing industry towards adding new capabilities to night vision optronics, with augmented reality (AR) playing a major role. AR can improve the situational awareness of soldiers and enhance protection by enabling faster target location and identification.
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Podcast
It's Special Operations Week in Tampa, as thousands of members of special forces and their families are taking part in conferences and other event downtown. Meaghan Keeler with the Global Special Operations Foundation says "Special Operations Forces Week" is expanding, with more events aimed at those in uniform and their families. Keeler says this year's events are expanding beyond the focus in previous years, which was aimed at businesses that wanted to do business with Special Operations Command.
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Podcast
On today’s program, Col. Stu Braden, USA Ret., the president and CEO of the Global SOF Foundation, discusses themes from this year’s SOF Week in Tampa including the renewed focus of the special operations community on great power conflict.
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Podcast
On this week’s Technology Report, retired Navy Captain Jason Salata, former spokesman for US Special Operations Command and the US Naval Special Warfare Command and now with the Provision Advisors public relations firm that oversees SOF Week’s media center, discusses key messages from US special operations leadership at this year’s gathering in Tampa, standout technologies from the show floor, and changes in the works for next year’s event to better connect companies with good ideas with program officials who can turn them into reality.
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