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.”
With the electromagnetic aircraft launch system (Emals) slated to be used on the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford CVN-78 tested and proven, and the ship’s dual-band radar (DBR) being put through its own paces, the spotlight of concern is now squarely on the carrier’s proposed new aircraft-landing arresting gear, says U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Thomas Moore, program executive officer for aircraft carriers. “The arresting gear now has most of my attention,” Moore tells the Aviation Week Intelligence Network.
The European Space Agency (ESA) and SES have signed a contract to design Europe’s first all-electric satellite platform, the Luxembourg-based fleet operator announced Oct. 15. Under the terms of the agreement, SES will serve as prime contractor for ESA’s Electra project, working with satellite builder OHB System AG of Bremen, Germany, to develop the small- to medium-sized spacecraft bus.
EXPORT RULES: The massive overhaul of the government’s export control system took effect Oct. 15, shifting items in key aerospace categories for aircraft and gas turbine engines to a new list of munitions controlled by the Commerce Department. The change is aimed at easing trade between the U.S. and its closest allies. These two categories alone represent $20 billion in annual exports, according to the State Department.
Avincis Group has formally launched its new Australian subsidiary, Bond Helicopters Australia, as an entrant in the highly competitive oil and gas market.
Top officials of China’s human spaceflight organization met counterparts from Europe, Russia and Canada during the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Beijing last month, pushing their agenda of international cooperation and receiving at least friendly hearings from some of the major space powers.
BEIJING — Japan has permitted Kawasaki Heavy Industries to supply Rolls-Royce with engine parts for the Royal Navy, providing another indication that Tokyo is relaxing its stance against military exports.
Aviation Week 2013 Military Fleet & MRO Forecast! The MRO Fleet, Forecasts and Data you need to accurately plan and strategize for the future. See for yourself with a free demonstration: AviationWeek.com/FleetMRO Aviation Week Intelligence Network Click here to view the pdf
LONDON — The British Army Air Corps (AAC) has withdrawn its last helicopters from Germany as the U.K. continues pulling forces out of the country. The final flight took place on Oct. 8, when 1 Regiment, AAC left their base at Gutersloh, Lower Saxony. The unit had been based at Gutersloh since 1993 flying the Westland Lynx and Gazelle helicopters. The Gazelle has since been withdrawn from Germany, leaving only the Lynx to carry out the last sorties in country.
U.S. Army, Navy and Other Procurements: Outyear Funding Decreases 2014-2017. Compares outyear funding estimates from fiscal 2013 request with fiscal 2014 request (then-year dollars in millions, ascending sort on outyear % change, cuts of 20% or greater). Click here to view the pdf
LONDON — Norway wants to purchase an extra six Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) in bid to speed the introduction of the aircraft into the country’s air arm. In its budget proposals for 2014, the Norwegian defense ministry is asking the country’s parliament for the funds to purchase an extra six F-35s for delivery in 2018, in addition to the 10-aircraft buy already approved. Four were ordered back in 2011 and the other six earlier this year. The new order would bring Norway’s purchases so far to 16 aircraft.
SAFELY UNSAFED: NASA’s Jupiter-bound Juno probe exited safe mode Oct. 11, according to a statement from the Southwest Research Institute (SWRI) of San Antonio, the institutional home to the principal investigator for the $1.1 billion NASA-funded mission to study the atmosphere, origins and evolution of Jupiter. “The spacecraft is currently operating nominally and all systems are fully functional,” SWRI reported. The spacecraft swung by Earth Oct. 9 as part of a gravity assist strategy to reach Jupiter on July 4, 2016.
LONDON — The Romanian government has signed a contract to purchase 12 General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons from Portugal. The sale, worth up to €186 million ($253 million), was finalized on Oct. 11 and will see Lisbon transfer nine former Portuguese air force F-16s and a trio of ex-U.S. Air Force aircraft purchased by Portugal to be upgraded and sold to Romania. The deal was signed by the two governments after authorization for the purchase from the U.S. Congress. Around €78 million has already been transferred to Portugal to begin the transaction.
The U.S. Navy is testing technology on Virginia-class attack submarines that could bring the same kind of situational awareness offered by commercial smart phones to submarine crews. The technology helps fuse Google Earth data and sub-specific computer platform needs to provide the same type of terrestrial awareness people have with smart phones to ship commanders patrolling undersea, as detailed in a recent article in UnderSea Warfare, the official magazine of the U.S. Submarine Force.
The U.S. Army made major cuts in its 2014 outyear spending plan, zeroing funding for 11 lines in its “Other Procurement” account, saving $1.6 billion. The U.S. Navy has made a similar sweep through its “Other” account, which includes many comparatively small-dollar items. (See charts pp. 6-11.) Looking at the outyear spending plans cut by 50% or more, the 2014 budget plan estimates spending at $539 million, down from the $3.3 billion estimated in the 2013 plan.
MOSCOW — The long-delayed retrofitting of the Kiev-class Vikramaditya aircraft carrier (formerly the Russian Admiral Gorshkov) finally seems to be over. The ship “will leave our waters and head for India on November 30,” Russian Vice Premier Dmitry Rogozin promised Oct. 14. The handover ceremony will take place in Severodvinsk—where Vikramaditya was retrofitted—on Nov. 16 during the visit of Indian Defense Minister A.K. Antony.
Ad Astra Rocket Co., developers of the Vasimr commercial solar-electric propulsion (SEP) system, is proposing launching a Space Plasma Laboratory (SPL) to the International Space Station that would address fundamental questions of solar physics while flight-qualifying SEP technologies to advance human exploration and take on other deep-space roles.
The christening of the aircraft carrier CVN-78 Gerald R. Ford is still on schedule for Nov. 9, although the U.S. Navy had indefinitely postponed the Oct. 19 ceremony for the DDG-1000 Zumwalt-class destroyer because of issues related to the federal government shutdown.
Lockheed Martin is designing a fix to address cracks found in one of four primary wing carry-through bulkheads on an F-35B ground-test article that was undergoing durability tests for a second life of service beyond 8,000 flying hours.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) Oct. 14 - 16 — 51st Annual SAFE Association Symposium, Grand Sierra Resort and Casino, Reno, Nev. For more information email to [email protected] Oct. 15 - 18 — Homeland Security 2013, Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, D.C. For more information go to www.idga.org/events.cfm?filter=1005/
Gregory Johnson, the newly named president and executive director of the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (Casis), hopes the International Space Station (ISS) can be a proving ground for a new type of commercial spaceflight just getting underway.
