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.
PROGRESS FLIES: The latest unmanned Russian supply vehicle for the International Space Station, ISS Progress 33, launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 2:37 p.m. EDT, reaching its preliminary orbit and deploying its solar arrays and antennas nine minutes later. The spacecraft is due to dock at the station’s Pirs compartment at 3:23 p.m. May 12, at which point the Expedition 19 crew will begin unloading its 2.5 tons of food, fuel and supplies. ISS Progress 32 undocked from the station May 6 at 11:18 a.m. filled with trash and other discarded items.
RESTRUCTURING COSTS: The U.S. Army’s preliminary cost estimate for expanding the force to 547,400 by fiscal 2013 was $70.2 billion. That amount would pay not only for personnel, but also operations and maintenance, procurement and military construction costs. But the Army is well ahead of schedule, according to congressional auditors, and is expected to reach its end strength goal by the end of FY ’10 (Sept. 30, 2010). The stumbling economy is responsible, at least in part, for the accelerated numbers, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
CANES: Lockheed Martin is teaming with General Dynamics, ViaSat Inc., Harris Corp. and American Systems to pursue the U.S. Navy’s Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES) program, which will consolidate and reduce the Navy’s afloat information systems networks. In late 2009, the Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence will pick two teams for system design and development on the common computing environment portion of the contract. A single prime contractor will be chosen in 2011.
