Indra's InShield to protect Spanish A400M Atlas

Indra's InShield has been selected to provide infrared countermeasure protection for Spain's A400M Atlas aircraft, the company announced Thursday.

The Indra system will protect the aircraft from surface-to-air missile attacks, the company said in a statement.

The Spanish Ministry of Defense contract for the characterization and verification of the first unit is worth about $4.4 million and will run until 2018.

System deployment is expected to begin in 2017 following testing and evaluation.

InShield, Indra's latest generation infrared countermeasure system, protects against attacks by MANPADS, relatively cheap and easily acquired by terrorist groups, that can be targeted when an aircraft is landing or taking off, the company said.

The system is activated when it receives a warning from the aircraft's missile detection array.

The countermeasure system then targets the head of the missile, where the guiding sensor is located.

A laser beam hits the missile's guidance system, confusing it and ultimately diverting the missile from its target, Indra said.

The system can divert multiple missiles simultaneously.

Sikorsky teaming with Turkey for T70 helicopter
Stratford, Conn. (UPI) Jun 16, 2016 - Sikorsky announced it is teaming with Istanbul and Turkish Aerospace Industries to produce the T70 utility helicopter based on the S-70i Black Hawk.

The agreement licenses Turkish Utility Helicopter Program contractor Turkish Aerospace Industries to build and deliver 109 T70s in the next decade, Sikorsky's parent company, Lockheed Martin, said in a statement.

T70 deliveries could begin as early as 2021 to the Turkish land forces, air force, gendarme, special forces, national police and forestry service, the company said.

TAI will also deliver an equal number of baseline S-70i Black Hawks for export to Sikorsky in the next 30 years.

Sikorsky and TAI are discussing a joint marketing team to support sale of those Black Hawks to markets in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, the company said.

Sikorsky will provide TAI with required engineering data later this year so it can stard up an assembly line and begin manufacturing, with the first five aircraft arriving in kit form for TAI assembly in 2018, the company said.

TAI will gradually increase its manufacturing scope.