LONDON — The U.K. Royal Air Force’s (RAF) last five General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper unmanned air systems are nearing delivery. Five additional Reapers, out of 10 requested through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales program, were ordered from General Atomics in 2010 to double the size of the fleet and increase the number of combat air patrols mustered by Reapers over Afghanistan. The aircraft have been purchased as an urgent operational requirement.
BEIJING — South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff in November will consider a navy request to build three air-defense destroyers next decade, doubling its force of ships equipped with the U.S. Aegis system. The proposal is far from a done deal, however, because—even if it is backed by the military—it also will need government and parliamentary approval. The navy made the request to the joint chiefs of staff a year ago, local media report, citing military officials who add that the program is on the agenda for a meeting early next month.
NEW DELHI — As part of its offset obligation, Pilatus Aircraft Ltd. has linked up with Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL) to make electrical wirning harnesses for aircraft in India. The Swiss company entered into a $650 million contract with India in 2012 to supply 75 PC-7 Mk. 2 turboprop basic trainer aircraft to the Indian air force (IAF). The contract includes an integrated ground-based training system, a comprehensive logistics support package and a 30% offset obligation.
PROMISING MISSILES: The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) plans to award Raytheon a $3 billion contract for the production of up to 216 Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block IB interceptors, Reuters reports. MDA has told the company it will make the sole-source award when funds are appropriated. The three-year contract will cover production of up to 72 missiles per year, starting in 2015. The SM-3 missile is part of the U.S. Navy’s Aegis ballistic missile defense program.
NEW DELHI — Japan is aggressively promoting its amphibious US-2 to India as the Indian navy prepares to issue a request for proposals for an unspecified number of search-and-rescue (SAR) aircraft. India and Japan already have established a working group to study the possible export of the US-2, used by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.
The Obama administration’s “reset” of relations with Russia might be fleeting, considering a recently canceled presidential summit and ongoing disagreements over a slew of issues, but administration officials believe they still can negotiate with Moscow over further eliminating nuclear arms. “It is no secret there are issues on which we disagree. This does not mean we stop trying to move ahead in a step-by-step fashion,” said Rose Gottemoeller, acting undersecretary for arms control and international security.
Very-light-jet (VLJ) pioneer Vern Raburn has been named CEO and chairman of Titan Aerospace, a New Mexico-based start-up developing solar-powered, high-altitude, ultra-long-endurance unmanned aircraft. Titan is developing the Solara series of “atmospheric satellites,” aiming to fill the gap between conventional aircraft and spacecraft with solar-powered UAVs that can stay aloft at 65,000 ft. for up to five years.
Angola has become a significant client for Russian weapons, signing a batch of defense contracts valued at $1 billion during the visit of a Russian delegation headed by Vice Premier Dmitry Rogozin to Luanda last week, according to Russian news reports. The package would include 18 Sukhoi Su-30K fighters with associated weaponry, Mi-17 helicopters, small arms and light weapons, ammunition, tanks and artillery systems. Russia also agreed to build a production facility for small arms ammunition in Angola.
While the cost for completing Nimitz-class refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH) work was lower than expected, U.S. Navy officials want to do a better job of meeting deadlines. So far, RCOH work has “underran” cost targets, representing a “good return on investment” for the Navy and contractors doing the work, says Rear Adm. Thomas Moore, program executive officer for aircraft carriers. But meeting deadlines has been a different matter. “We haven’t delivered one on time,” Moore tells Aviation Week. “We haven’t met schedule.”
Europe’s Rosetta comet probe remains in a deep sleep as it winds through the coldest part of its trajectory through the Solar System to a year-long encounter with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, but ground crews are getting ready for its awakening next January, as it begins to move back toward the Sun.
The next two Falcon 9 v 1.1 launches must perform flawlessly for upstart rocket provider Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) to be eligible for certification to carry critical U.S. national security payloads as planned in its cooperative research and development agreement with the U.S. Air Force. The agreement calls for SpaceX to execute three successful Falcon 9 v1.1 launches, two of which are to be consecutive. The service also is assessing certain engineering and process data for the company to verify compliance with certification criteria.
Italian space agency ASI has awarded Thales Alenia Space of Rome and Compagnia Generale per lo Spazio (CGS) of Milan a contract to build the Multi-Element Telescope for Imaging and Spectroscopy (Metis) instrument, slated to fly on the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Solar Orbiter mission in 2017.
Critics and supporters of annual, automatic and widespread U.S. budget cuts known as sequestration are being handed a new arena and opportunity in which to reach a potentially decisive conclusion over its fate. The $1 trillion question for federal agencies and defense and budget hawks, of course, is whether to solidify or jettison sequestration for this fiscal year and beyond. Regardless of the outcome, it should be decided by the end of 2014.
As the U.S. Navy gets ready for the christening of the of the next-generation aircraft carrier CVN-78 Gerald R. Ford, the service is now diverting its programmatic attention to the next ship of the class, the CVN-79 John F. Kennedy. “The Ford is in the yard and in the testers’ hands,” says Rear Adm. Thomas Moore, program executive officer for aircraft carriers. “The principal focus now is: what can I do to get the 79 under contract?”
OMAN RISING: Oman is increasing its naval capabilities, with the recent acceptance of an ocean patrol vessel and live-fire test of the naval VL MICA missile. The Al Shamikh will be the first of three Khareef-class corvettes produced by BAE Systems for the Royal Navy of Oman. MBDA’s VL MICA missile intercepted and destroyed a sea-skimming anti-ship missile during the recent test at a French range in the Mediterranean.
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The European Space Agency (ESA) has awarded EADS-Astrium three contracts valued at a combined €414 million ($560 million) through 2014 for continued work on a midlife upgrade of the Ariane 5 rocket and to begin designing its successor, the Ariane 6. The first two contracts cover the continued development of the Ariane 5 Midlife Evolution (€106 million) and the sub-assemblies common to it and Ariane 6 (€278 million).
The U.S. Air National Guard has narrowed its search for an electronic flight bag solution for its fleet down from 24 commercially available touch-screen devices to two tablet computers, say officials with the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI).
NEW DELHI — Indian space officials say the country’s first Mars orbiter is still on track for launch on Oct. 28 and will not be affected by the U.S. government shutdown, which has forced mission partner NASA to halt most of its operations. “We are going ahead with the Mars Orbiter Mission as planned. There is no delay,” D.P. Karnik of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) tells Aviation Week. “The launch window will remain open till Nov. 19.”
