The Office of Naval Research Global (ONR Global) is looking to “improve understanding of conditions in the Indian Ocean, including validating satellite data on salinity, or salt, levels,” ONR officials say. Confirming satellite findings with actual field-level research is an area scientists have deemed essential to improving the Navy’s oceanographic models, officials note.
NEW DELHI — The Indian air force (IAF) may be within months of getting its intermediate jet trainer (IJT), which has been in development since 1999. The Sitara is being developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) for the IAF and the Indian navy. “The much-delayed Sitara IJT is likely to be operational this year . . . All efforts are being made by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. for achieving the final operational clearance by December 2014,” Defense Minister A.K. Antony says.
With the sting of recent reports blasting U.S. Navy surface ship maintenance programs still fresh, the service is fulfilling its stated commitment to make ship repair and improvements a priority. For example, the Navy allocated about $517.6 million in contracts and contract modifications to BAE Systems—mostly for such work on destroyers and cruisers—between January 2013 and January 2014, according to an Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN) analysis of Pentagon contracting data.
In observance of Presidents Day in the U.S., Aerospace Daily & Defense Report will not publish a Feb. 18 issue. Aviation Week Intelligence Network subscribers can visit www.aviationweek.com/awin for updates.
Bell and Boeing are studying a potential gunship capability for the CV-22 Osprey tiltrotor. The studies are part of a road map of capabilities for the aircraft, according to U.S. Navy officials. The idea is being looked at by Air Force Special Operations Command, according to Lt. Col. Eric Ropella, V-22 program manager for international programs, speaking at the Singapore air show on Feb. 13. “Afsoc is interested in that capability,” he said. “The Marines are not participating.”
NEW DELHI — India is developing a canister-based version of its Agni-V ballistic missile, which is expected to be inducted into the country’s armed forces in 2015. The Agni-V, an intercontinental, nuclear-tipped, three-stage ballistic missile, has already been successfully test-fired twice from a mobile launcher at Launch Complex 4 of the Integrated Test Range in the eastern state of Odisha.
Aviation Week Events - Defense Technology And Requirements March 4-5 2014 Hilton Arlington Arlington, VA -- Discover where priorities and opportunities exist beyond the FY2015 budget -- Gain insight into the programs and technologies that will receive significant funding -- Learn what policy changes may lie ahead Learn more and register at www.aviationweek.com/events/dtar
PARIS — A team of French aerospace manufacturers may have to renegotiate details of an €800 million ($1.08 billion) contract awarded by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) last year to build and launch a pair of high-resolution Earth observation satellites, after the companies failed to meet a Jan. 29 deadline for obtaining U.S. export licenses for some components that will be used to build them.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) is planning to make things much harder for teams that will compete in the finals of its disaster-response Robotics Challenge, now being planned to take place in the next 12-18 months. Teams competing in the Darpa Robotics Challenge (DRC) trials in December did better than expected, so the agency plans to raise the bar for the finals, requiring more robust performance from the robots in more difficult conditions. A $2 million prize is at stake.
NEW DEHLI — With an inordinate delay in the purchase of Dassault Rafale fighters and the development of its fifth-generation fighter, the Indian air force (IAF) is looking at boosting production of the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) to plug the gap of retiring aircraft.
U.S. Air Force contracting officers failed to properly validate costs when buying about $1.6 billion worth of spare parts for F119 engines for F-22 Raptors, a recent Inspector General (IG) report says. The Air Force Aeronautical Systems Center at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, awarded a $215.8 million cost-plus-fee service contract on Feb. 19, 2008, to Pratt and Whitney to establish a sole-source, 10-year, performance-based logistics business arrangement for sustainment of fielded F119 engines, the IG notes in its report.
BUDGET PREVIEW: Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is expected to preview the Pentagon’s fiscal 2015 budget request on Feb. 24, a week before the official release of the Obama administration’s budget plan to Congress, Reuters reports. Hagel is expected to use the announcement to outline the Defense Department’s priorities and challenges in budgeting for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, sources told the news agency.
BEIJING — The rover of China’s Chang’e 3 lunar mission is showing signs of life after almost being declared dead. Jade Rabbit, as the rover is known, is again receiving signals from the Earth, Chinese media report.
Boeing says it optimistic about finalizing deals with the Indian government for the sale of AH-64 Apache attack and CH-47 Chinook transport helicopters this year. Leanne Caret, vice president of vertical lift at Boeing Defense, told Aviation Week’s ShowNews that the company was working through the terms and conditions set by the Indian ministry of defense and had managed to hold the same contract prices on both aircraft for the last four years.
NASA’s Mars Odyssey spacecraft, already the longest-working spacecraft ever dispatched to the red planet, is maneuvering to take on a new task: global observations of seasonal variations in fog, clouds and surface frost in the thin atmosphere after sunrise. What’s more, the solar-powered spacecraft, launched in April 2001 as a $297 million, three-year mission, is forecast to function for another decade or so serving as a communications relay for other Mars spacecraft, just as it did for the Curiosity rover’s dramatic August 2012 landing.
Rafael is extending its Litening family of targeting pods for air forces looking to upgrade existing platforms. Litening 4, the latest variant of the pod, has gone through major enhancements in sensors, resolution, image processing and algorithmic processing capabilities. “Litening has transformed from a targeting pod into a much broader sensor pack that extends the aircraft and pilot’s capabilities, far beyond target acquisition,” says Yuval Miller, manager of Rafael’s Air and C4ISR division.
The U.K. Royal Air Force (RAF) has called a temporary halt to operations of its Airbus A330 Voyager refueling tankers after an inflight incident caused injuries to passengers onboard. Internet reports state that one of the RAF’s Voyager tankers, provided by the privately owned AirTanker consortium, rapidly lost altitude over Turkey while en route to Afghanistan supporting the U.K. Afghan air bridge on Feb. 9. The aircraft had 189 passengers and nine crew onboard. The rapid descent caused minor injuries to several passengers.
Electronic warfare and cyber, shipbuilding led by submarines, unmanned vehicles and long-range strike capabilities — all with a focus on the Asia-Pacific — are some of the military technologies the Pentagon will prioritize, according to a prepared speech Feb. 11 by its temporary No. 2 official.
U.S. Special Operations Command (Socom) is looking for “the next big thing,” the “game-changer” weapons system, which like the UAV today will become the indispensable tool of military victory tomorrow, according to a leading Pentagon official.
As the demand and costs for specialty metals used in high-end military manufacturing drops, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) is outlining possible changes lawmakers can make in current statutes requiring the use of domestic sources for those materials.
On the heels of last year’s humiliating third failure of the premier U.S. missile defense system during what was billed as a fairly simple flight trial, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is doubling down on the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) program by adding more than $4.5 billion to the Missile Defense Agency’s coffers from fiscal 2015-2019, according to Riki Ellison, chairman of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance.
