OBAMA ON TOUR: Many Republicans spent last summer touring the nation’s military towns talking about the prospect of sequestration. Now President Barack Obama is on the sequestration circuit, planning to stop at Newport News Shipbuilding on Feb. 26. The Virginia congressional delegation’s response: It’s about time. “While the president speaks in Newport News at the shipyard, five American aircraft carriers sit idle, capturing the stark reality of the readiness crisis that hasn’t waited until March 1 – it has already begun,” says Rep.
Fifteen Republican senators are asking President Barack Obama to withdraw the nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) to be secretary of defense. The senators, led by John Cornyn (Texas), are rejecting Hagel based on his support for the legitimacy of the current regime in Iran, his thoughts on Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and his performance during his confirmation hearing.
The Pentagon spent years studying how to navigate the effects of budget cuts on its industrial base. Now, cuts are likely to be imposed on the Defense Department, which will have little ability to manage them, officials fear.
ABU DHABI — Saab officials say they are open to ideas about additional expansion in the Middle East following the successful creation of a new subsidiary in the United Arab Emirates. The Abu Dhabi Advanced Radar Systems (ADARS) was formed by Saab in partnership with the UAE defense holding company Tawazun earlier in February with the express purpose of developing new radar systems for the Middle East market. But Micael Johansson, Saab’s senior vice president for electronic defense systems, says the opportunities don’t just end with radars.
BENGALURU — Thales’ joint ventures in India are structured to give the French conglomerate an edge when competing for defense contracts in the country. The company’s managing director for India, Eric Lenseigne, says Thales recently announced two major joint ventures with Indian companies: Bharat Electronics Ltd. and Samtel. Thales has capped its stake at 26%, in line with India’s foreign ownership laws for defense companies. But Lenseigne says this also means that the work these Indian joint ventures do qualifies for offsets.
ABU DHABI — The UAE military has debuted a super-heavy multiple launch rocket system fitted to an articulated transport vehicle. The Multiple Cradle Launcher is a 10-wheel trailer fitted with four unguided rocket-launching cradles. The system, which was developed for the UAE army, was produced by Jobaria Defense Systems over three years in the UAE and delivered to the army last year.
ABU DHABI — The Iraqi navy is interested in buying the Bell UH-1Y Huey to protect its shoreline and critical oil installations. According to Steve Schultz, director of international business development at Bell Helicopter, the Iraqi navy has a requirement for between six and eight utility helicopters. A decision is likely later this year. “The Iraqis only have a small coastline, but they have a lot of energy facilities to look after,” said Schultz, who hopes a navy purchase could spur interest in other branches of the Iraqi military.
NEW DELHI — India will take a “second look” at its policies on defense production and procurement to lessen reliance on imported weapons and avoid controversies such as the bribery scandal surrounding the AW101 helicopter deal with Finmeccanica subsidiary AgustaWestland. Defense Minister A.K. Antony is urging defense forces to transform their approach of relying on imports to meet operational requirements and instead give priority to indigenization in the defense sector.
SERVICES RENDERED: Wall Street analysts continue their downgrading of U.S. aerospace and defense stocks, with SAIC one of the latest to be named. Analysts Robert Stallard and Steven Cahall of RBC Capital Markets tell investor clients that SAIC and other service providers will be on the losing end of so-called sequestration budget cuts in years to come.
ABU DHABI — MBDA has received the first export order for its naval Simbad-RC missile system. The company would not disclose which navy had ordered the system, which uses the Mistral IR-guided missile, but said the system would be installed on a fleet of patrol vessels, each one equipped with two Simbad-RC turrets. According to MBDA, the first prototypes are in production and the system qualification is scheduled for 2014. Initial deliveries will take place in 2015.
In early talks on the forthcoming fiscal 2014 budget request, the U.S. Air Force is proposing to close the book on Northrop Grumman’s Global Hawk franchise, canceling the ground surveillance variant. The so-called Block 40 aircraft, built on the high-flying Global Hawk platform, is, at least for now, being proposed for termination to pay bills for higher-priority programs for the service, according to multiple program officials.
Lifted by its F-35 Joint Strike Fighter work, Lockheed Martin pulled ahead of Boeing in Pentagon awards for fixed-wing aircraft in 2011, according to an exclusive Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN) analysis.
ABU DHABI — United Arab Emirates defense holding company Tawazun has quoted prices to BAE Systems to potentially provide key structural components for the Eurofighter Typhoon.
AWIN, National Institute For Computer-Assisted Reporting
Click here to view the pdf Pentagon's Leading Fixed-Wing Aircraft Contractors For 2011 Pentagon's Leading Fixed-Wing Aircraft Contractors For 2011 No. Contractor Number Of Contracts Or Modifications Total Amount Of Transactions Average Per Transaction
ABU DHABI — A UAE investment firm and a Serbian defense company are partnering to create a coastal defense missile system. Emirates Advanced Research and Technology Holdings (Earth) and Serbian defense company Yugoimport SDPR are planning to work together to produce the Advanced Light Attack System (ALAS), a wire-guided, ground-launched missile being developed to deal with small vessels and land targets.
ABU DHABI — The United Arab Emirates (UAE) military is set to become the first operator of the new General Atomics Predator XP unarmed UAV. The deal was announced unexpectedly by UAE officials at the IDEX defense exhibition in Abu Dhabi on Feb. 18 as part of a 5.2 billion dirhams ($1.4 billion) series of contracts. Additional contracts are expected to be announced in the coming days.
