Developments in armament and military industry in the Kingdom of Morocco

[The SC]

 

[The SC]

4 Heron Medium-Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial system (UAS) operated by Morocco in strategic, tactical, and homeland security missions. With the capability to conduct continuous operations for up to 45 hours at altitudes of up to 35,000 feet..

The multi-mission system of the Heron UAS is engineered to manage up to six different mission payloads concurrently, enabling the execution of complex intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions over varied terrains, including mountains, forests, jungles, swamps, maritime environments, or urban areas..

 

[The SC]

Sentinel-G2 belonging to the Royal Artillery

 

[The SC]

Morocco has always been interested in the products of the Emirati company EDGE
There is great cooperation in this regard..

 

[The SC]

Berlin, which intends to make Morocco a main ally in Africa and the Maghreb, wants to move up a gear by aspiring to a Defense agreement, of which the German Ambassador, Robert Dölger, gives us ample details..

https://www.lopinion.ma/Interview-a...n-accord-de-defense-avec-le-Maroc_a53186.html

* Morocco concludes its military deals only with countries that maintain stable positions, do not involve politics in the deals, and do not impose obstacles during the conclusion of the deals. The most that Morocco will do is attract German arms manufacturing companies to Moroccan territory and transfer technology, after which no foolish party or politician in Germany will be able to obstruct anything..

 

[The SC]

Confirmation of Morocco’s selection of the “SPYDER” medium-range air defense system\\

April 2024: The Spanish newspaper Zona Militar confirmed that the Czech Republic and Morocco had chosen the Israeli “SPYDER” air defense system to enhance their capabilities in short- and medium-range air defense, while Greece was negotiating the same system.

Thus, Morocco completed its layered air defenses after receiving the long-range “Barak MX” systems from Israel.

Most likely, Morocco has chosen the latest version of the SPYDER system, known as SPYDER All in One, which is integrated and specialized in accompanying military convoys to protect them from air threats.

The SPYDER system, produced by Rafael, is currently used by numerous military forces around the world and provides comprehensive air defense solutions against various airborne threats, including missiles, drones, aircraft, helicopters and tactical ballistic missiles. The system neutralizes threats through two families of interceptor missiles manufactured by Rafael: PYTHON and Derby.

Rafael recently introduced a new Spyder configuration – All in One, which integrates radar, electro-optical launcher, advanced command and control system, PYTHON and Derby interceptor missiles on a single platform. This configuration serves as an ideal air defense solution for both point defense and area defence, whether as part of a SPYDER battery or deployed independently with minimal operator intervention. During a recent test in Israel, the SPYDER All in One system successfully intercepted a drone in a complex operational scenario, achieving precise target interception.

 

[The SC]

Within the framework of the new dynamism witnessed by the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces, a deal was concluded for two Bell 412 EPI helicopters. This version is considered the latest of this prestigious family. The helicopters will be dedicated to ASW tasks, that is, submarine warfare.

 

[The SC]

The file of selling 4 MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones to Morocco has returned to the forefront again, after the US Congress announced its intention to reconsider the deal that had been approved by the administration of former President Donald Trump, and then the Biden administration stopped it for review.

SeaGuardian drones are among the newest and best military drones in the world, as they are distinguished by their exceptional capabilities for surveillance and reconnaissance, and the precise identification of targets, with the ability to target them at the same time. These aircraft have tremendous endurance, as they can fly for 40 continuous hours in various weather conditions, even in the most difficult ones.

Advantages of SeaGuardian drones:

Flying capacity of up to 40 continuous hours.
Equipped with Lynx multi-mode radar.
Possibility of automatic take-off and landing.
Advanced military capabilities for surveillance, reconnaissance, target identification and targeting.

The SeaGuardian deal is an important deal for Morocco, and will contribute significantly to enhancing its military capabilities and improving its ability to defend its security.

 

[The SC]

Unprecedented US-Moroccan military cooperation... AFRICOM may settle in the Kingdom!
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2024-05-06

The American Shelby Collum Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy revealed the possibility of the American AFRICOM Command (the Africa Division of the US Army) settling in Morocco by transferring some of its mechanisms and elements, in order to further strengthen military relations with the Kingdom and benefit from its important strategic location in West Africa.

The American Institute’s report, issued recently, stated that the relations between Morocco and the United States are strong from a military standpoint, and this is translated into many joint activities, such as the annual African Lion exercises, which are considered “the largest exercises of the American command in Africa.” Therefore, this The exercises are considered “a testament to the permanent security partnership between the two countries.”

The institute’s report indicated that the partnership between Rabat and Washington could be further strengthened, in light of the possibility of Morocco hosting “AFRICOM assets,” indicating the possibility of the United States transferring some of the “AFRICOM” military command equipment to the Kingdom of Morocco, noting that the main headquarters of this command is located In Stuttgart, Germany.

“African Lion” maneuvers

This comes in light of Morocco’s preparations to host the “African Lion” exercises in partnership with the United States of America, starting from May 20 to May 31, with the participation of the armies of many countries.

These exercises will be held, according to a statement issued by the Royal Armed Forces, in the regions of Agadir, Tan-Tan, Tata, Kenitra, Benguerir and Tifnit, with the aim of consolidating military cooperation between Morocco and the United States and enhancing exchange between the armed forces of the participating countries, with the aim of promoting peace, security and stability in the region.

Morocco is hosting these military maneuvers for the second year in a row, after the news that was circulated in the international press in 2022, about the possibility of transferring the training of the African lion from Morocco to another country, based on a request that was submitted by an American senator known for his pro-Algeria and Polisario Front positions. “Separatism, which confirms the difficulty of finding an alternative to Morocco, which was explained by the former commander of the US military command in Africa (AFRICOM), General Stephen J. Townsend, in response to a journalist’s question regarding media reports that spoke of the Pentagon’s intention to change the location of African lion training from Morocco to another country or countries in Africa, said, “Yes, we are thinking about that, because the Defense Budget Act for 2022, which was approved by Congress, It calls on us to diversify the places where the training is conducted, or perhaps to transfer part of the training or elements of it to other regions on the African continent.”

But in this regard, the American general emphasized what he called facts that must be mentioned, as he said, “Morocco has been the host of 18 training sessions for the African Lion, and it has a tremendous ability to do so. Its military capacity is very high, and it also has the infrastructure and training ranges and all of that. They ( “The Moroccans are great hosts.”

“We will continue to explore how to further diversify the African lion,” the then AFRICOM commander added, but emphasized in this context that “it would be difficult to find any country in Africa, I think, that can probably come close to what Morocco has been able to do over the course of 18 years.” “It will be difficult to find a country that can do that,” he said, stressing that AFRICOM looks forward to working with Morocco in upcoming exercises.

 

[The SC]

Assistant of the US Secretary of Defense on a visit to Morocco

Rabat - In implementation of the High Royal Instructions regarding the holding of the 13th session of the Defense Advisory Committee, the First Lieutenant General, Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces, Commander of the Southern Region, received today, Monday, at the General Command of the Royal Armed Forces in Rabat, the US Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Ms. Celeste Wallander, accompanied by Mr. Puneet Talwar, the American Ambassador to Rabat and the American military attaché accredited to Morocco, is heading an important military delegation on a working visit to Morocco from May 17 to 22.

A statement from the General Command of the Royal Armed Forces stated that the officials stressed, at the beginning of their discussions, the strength and sustainability of the distinguished ties and strategic partnership between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Morocco, highlighting that the two sides also expressed their will to further develop these long-standing relations, In the same spirit of friendship, mutual understanding and mutual trust.

The communication explained that the officials expressed their satisfaction with the outcome of bilateral military cooperation, which is a positive outcome translated into tangible achievements covering several areas, especially the conclusion of agreements and memorandums of understanding, equipment and acquisition of equipment, training and training, in addition to organizing multiple and joint armed maneuvers, similar to the “African Lion.” “which has reached its twentieth session.

* What is noted in the photo is the presence of the Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces, the commanders of the naval, air and land forces, and the Commander of the Royal Gendarmerie.

Morocco and the United States of America signed, today, Tuesday in Rabat, a road map related to military cooperation, which includes the directions that must be followed to implement the activities approved within the framework of the 13th session of the Moroccan-American Defense Advisory Committee.



On the air warfare side, the most important thing currently is the release of deals for heavy and tactical helicopters, refueling and transport aircraft, the Patriot, and the remaining missile deals (AMRAAM D, Jassm ER, and bombs, of course), and Why not a pleasant surprise regarding maritime surveillance aircraft, Anti-submarines systems, and electronic warfare aircraft (everything is possible with the security stakes of the 2030 World Cup and the global and regional security challenges).. Morocco needs deals in naval frigates and submarines..

UH60M & CHINOOK F are already confirmed.....Now talking about what's new...

The million dollar question:
What did Morocco succeed in obtaining from the US to award American officers in charge of the deals with royal medals?

 

[The SC]

Signing of a security agreement between Morocco and Brazil

The Director General of National Security and Territorial Surveillance, Abdellatif Hamouchi, signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance bilateral cooperation and exchange experiences in the security field with Andre Agosto Passos Rodriguez, Director General of the Brazilian Federal Police.

This memorandum was signed, Tuesday evening, in the space hosting the National Security Open Days demonstration in the city of Agadir, on the sidelines of the working visit of the Director General of the Federal Police of Brazil to the Kingdom of Morocco.

This bilateral memorandum aims to frame and develop channels of joint cooperation between Moroccan and Brazilian security services, in particular, in the field of combating transnational organized crime, including preventing and combating illicit trade in narcotics and psychotropic substances, terrorism, trafficking in human beings and migrants, and illicit trafficking in firearms and ammunition. Explosives and their parts, money laundering, document forgery, and cybercrime.

At the operational and technical assistance level; The security memorandum of understanding between the two parties stipulates strengthening the exchange of experiences in the field of police training and capacity building, developing the exchange of information, technical means and technologies, as well as providing support in the field of joint research and investigations, as well as identifying permanent mechanisms for communication between the two sides.

This visit also constituted an opportunity for the Director General of the Brazilian Federal National Police to be briefed on the Open Doors experience organized by the General Directorate of National Security periodically, once a year, and alternating between the regions of the Kingdom, where he conducted a field visit to the various corridors of the space, and reviewed all the offers presented. For male and female citizens, he also reviewed the goals and objectives of this communication demonstration that embodies the concept of community policing.

This visit embodies the pivotal role that Moroccan security services have come to play within the international security cooperation system, through its position as a reliable partner capable of confronting growing security challenges, and as a regional pole for supporting bilateral and multilateral police cooperation with various countries of the world.

 

[The SC]

Its engines power the F-35 and F-22 fighters. Pratt & Whitney begins construction of its factory specialized in manufacturing aircraft engine spare parts in Morocco next Monday.

The Canadian company Pratt & Whitney is preparing to begin construction work on its factory specialized in manufacturing aircraft engine spare parts in the Medpark industrial zone in Nouaceur, Morocco, next Monday.

This project, whose investment exceeds 71 billion centimes ($71 million), will create 250 new job opportunities and integrate modern manufacturing techniques into the Moroccan aviation industry.

It is worth noting that Pratt & Whitney provides engines for many civilian aircraft such as the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 787, in addition to military aircraft such as the F-22 and F-35 fighters.

Pratt & Whitney said on its website that 16,000 customers use its engines. The company mainly focuses on the manufacture of jet engines for large aircraft, supplying engines to both Airbus (A300, A310, A300-600, A318, A320) and its competitor Boeing (707, 727, 737, 747, 767, etc.). Pratt & Whitney also equips Lockheed aircraft such as the F-15, F-16, F-22 Raptor and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter with its engines.

According to available information, Pratt & Whitney has already begun establishing its subsidiary in Morocco, since the beginning of April, through the United Kingdom. Pratt & Whitney Morocco will be piloted at launch by Canadian Marc-André Duclos, director of Pratt & Whitney Canada in Quebec, responsible for international manufacturing and transitions, as evidenced by his profile. On LinkedIn.

Duclos will be assisted in heading the new Moroccan company by Polish Alicia Kaleta, international director of human resources, who will serve as vice president of Pratt & Whitney Morocco.

Pratt & Whitney will have a lot to do: the engine manufacturer will thus be able to support Boeing's industrial ecosystem, strengthening its supply platform in dedicated industrial areas such as Midpark where, among other things, another American company, Spirit AeroSystems, specializes In aircraft fuselage manufacturing.

As a reminder, Morocco pledged to establish in the Kingdom no less than 120 suppliers for the American aircraft factory. In addition to the Boeing Apache helicopters, the new American arrival may also have designs on the military industry in which Morocco intends to position itself. The terms of cooperation in this regard, between Washington and Rabat, may be modified in the future, in the context of future contracts: for example, moreover, Raytheon Technologies, a shareholder of Pratt & Whitney that won in July 2021 the contract to supply aircraft engines F-16 Viper fighter for Morocco. The contract, valued at more than $212 million, was for Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 propulsion engines designed by Raytheon. Manufacturing and assembly of these engines is expected to be completed in East Hartford, Connecticut by the end of June 2025. In August 2022, Raytheon Technology Corporation was also awarded a modified contract worth approximately US$133 million to refurbish engine units for certain types of Boeing and General Dynamics fighters, including Including F-16 fighters operated by the Moroccan Air Force. The contract provided for the remanufacture of the engine unit of the Pratt & Whitney F100 turbofan family, including versions F100/PW-100 /-200
/-220/-220E/-229/-229EEP, for partner countries of the FMS (Foreign Military Sales) program.

 

[The SC]

According to a statement from the Royal Court
Today, King Mohammed VI approved a number of projects, including:

“ A draft decree to create two defense industrial acceleration zones, which aims to provide industrial zones to embrace industries related to defense and security equipment and mechanisms, weapons and ammunition systems.”

https://www.hespress.com/__trashed-116-1375240.html


Producing, exporting and achieving self-sufficiency are priorities
But manufacturing will also include long-range surface-to-surface missiles
Air defense ammunition
Armored and armored vehicles
And of course, drones of all kind

Currently, the focus will be on heavy ammunition that depletes quickly, such as air defense ammunition (20/23/30/35 mm ammunition, air defense missiles), heavy ammunition (120/125/105 mm), and artillery ammunition (152/155 mm of all types). , short/medium/long-range rocket ammunition, mortars, heavy machine guns, after which other industries such as vehicles, electronics, vehicles...

 

[The SC]

PULS system in Moroccan camouflage



One SkyTracker pod = 6 pods ready to launch

One battery can fire 18 to 36 Loitering munition drones in extreme cases..

 

[The SC]

After news of Morocco’s interest in it, the Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol plane was spotted during the “African Lion 2024” exercises.

The Poseidon aircraft, which is considered the most powerful maritime patrol aircraft in the world, participated in the maritime part of the African Lion 2024 maneuvers, where it was accompanied by Moroccan F-16 fighters over the Moroccan coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The plane was greatly admired by the Moroccan leadership, and Morocco may contract for it soon.

The Moroccan Navy intends to acquire two P-8A Poseidon armed maritime patrol aircraft.

In 2022, reports emerged about Morocco seeking to acquire the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. The Spanish newspaper “Defensa” said that the Royal Moroccan Navy has launched a tender to acquire two armed maritime patrol aircraft with the aim of developing the Kingdom’s capabilities in the field of anti-submarine warfare (ASW), intelligence and surveillance (ISR), and electronic reconnaissance (ELINT), in order to secure the exclusive economic zone and exploit the existing oil and mineral wealth. Off the Atlantic coast.

The Boeing P-8A Poseidon is a multi-mission maritime patrol aircraft with the following capabilities:

• Anti-submarine warfare (ASW): It can track and attack submarines using torpedoes and sonar devices.

• Anti-Surface Warfare (ASUW): It carries Harpoon anti-ship missiles and is capable of countering surface threats.

• Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR): It collects intelligence information and carries out surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

• Search and Rescue: Participates in marine and coastal search and rescue operations.

The aircraft is designed to operate in harsh marine environments and has the ability to fly at high altitudes of up to 41,000 feet and at speeds of up to 490 knots. It is also designed for low-altitude missions and has proven its capabilities in supporting humanitarian missions and search and rescue operations.

The P-8A Poseidon shares 86% of its components with the 737NG commercial aircraft, providing significant economic advantages in production and support.

The Boeing P-8 Poseidon plane includes a nine of the gathering devices, the monitoring and the early preparation High sensitivity to punish the rituals connected to a calculator to direct the pyramids towards the rhetoric.

The P-8A Poseidon has additional fuel tanks at the rear to achieve wider ranges. The Boeing P-8A Poseidon carries 5 internal suspension points and 6 external suspension points and is armed with the following:

Bombs:
• Free drop bombs.
• Deep attack bombs to hit submarines: depth charge bomb.
Torpedoes:
• Raytheon Mk.54 anti-submarine torpedoes may carry other torpedoes.
Rockets:
• AGM-84 Harpoon
• AGM-65 Maverick
• AIM-9 Sidewinder
• AIM-120 AMRAAM
• Marine mines