Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
Industry competition and open systems are the cornerstones of the new philosophy adopted by the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) program, according to Joint Program Executive Officer Dennis Bauman. "We intend to do full and open competition on all the hardware development," Bauman said during a teleconference May 3. JTRS doesn't want to have a sole-source relationship with anyone, he said, and ideally will hold open competitions for hardware lots in each year of production.
NASA can't accomplish all that is on its plate with its current and projected budgets, and science at the agency is threatened as it bears the brunt, according to a new report from the National Academies' Space Studies Board (SSB). "NASA is being asked to accomplish too much with too little," the May 4 report says. "The agency does not have the necessary resources to carry out the tasks of completing the International Space Station, returning humans to the moon, maintaining vigorous [science] programs, and sustaining capabilities in aeronautical research."
Boeing over the next few weeks will be naming the leadership of its new combined space shuttle/space station engineering organization - one of the first steps in the company's plan to consolidate the work force in anticipation of moving personnel onto new systems such as the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) and Crew Launch Vehicle.
