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.
The Marine Corps hopes to refurbish and return to service up to four more retired H-53 cargo helicopters on top of the three being refurbished now, according to Marine Col. Paul Croisetiere, Heavy Lift Replacement program manager. The Marines have a requirement for 160 heavy-lift CH-53s, but have only 148 in the current active inventory. Last summer the Navy and Marines took three H-53s out of retirement (DAILY, Aug. 29, 2005). The refurbishment takes 18-20 months and includes approximately 80 modifications to the aircraft.
Within the next two months the Navy is expected to award full-rate production contracts to Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky for 12 MH-60R helicopters. The MH-60R will replace the Navy's aging SH-60B and SH-60F helicopters, which currently share the submarine-hunter and surface-attack roles. Sikorsky provides the helicopter while Lockheed Martin performs system integration.
Members of a House Armed Services subcommittee questioned the realism of the Navy's shipbuilding plans during a hearing in Washington on March 30, with Chairman Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.) saying that the Navy is running a "high risk" of not being able to reach its goal of a 313-ship fleet. While members of the Projection Forces subcommittee expressed support for the 313-ship level, "the probability of us getting there is somewhere between red line and high risk," Bartlett said.
