HELO VIDEO: Cobham’s Brazilian subsidiary has secured its first major contract in Brazil to equip State Police helicopters with high-definition video surveillance downlinks to be used on helicopters in 12 cities during the 2013 Confederations Cup and the 2014 World Cup, the company says. The contract was developed with a local integration partner following the opening of Cobham’s Sao Paulo office in August 2012 and includes both airborne and ground-based equipment.
With projected costs dropping significantly for the U.S. Navy’s proposed Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR), the focus is now on the destroyer line slated to host the AMDR suite — the DDG-51 Arleigh Burke class. There are still questions and concerns, not only about the advanced Flight III versions of the ship being designed with AMDR in mind, but also the Flight IIA versions that marked the beginning of the restarted Burke line to develop and deploy more advanced Aegis Combat Systems meant for improved ballistic missile defense (BMD).
Despite congressional efforts to block the U.S. from purchasing equipment from a Russian-state owned weapons exporter, the Pentagon plans to purchase 30 Mi-17 helicopters from Rosoboronexport to equip the Afghan air force. The fiscal 2013 National Defense Authorization Act prohibits funding from being used to contract with Rosoboronexport. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) led efforts to pass the bill, citing that company’s involvement in selling weapons to Syria.
Recent Pentagon moves with aircraft in Asia are underscoring a heightened U.S. military focus on the region. The U.S. Defense Department sent a pair of F-22 Raptors to South Korea in late March to participate in military exercises there — a move that may be largely symbolic, defense analysts say. But it also carries operational importance that could help shape the electronic order of battle for the region, should the stakes reach that level.
LIVE FIRE: The guided-missile cruiser CG-62 USS Chancellorsville has completed its first Aegis Combat System live-fire test using the system’s newest Baseline 9 capability build, Aegis prime contractor Lockheed Martin said April 3. During the at-sea test scenario, Aegis successfully detected, tracked and engaged a medium-altitude subsonic target. Four additional live-fire exercises will be completed aboard the Chancellorsville before the ship’s Combat System Ship Qualification Trial events begin later this year.
TEL AVIV — Recent commercial satellite imagery provided by the Israeli satellite firm ImageSat International reveals that new construction activity has already begun at North Korea’s Light Water Nuclear Reactor at Yongbyon.
The U.N. General Assembly on April 2 overwhelmingly approved a new Arms Trade Treaty that is supposed to demand more accountability of nations over their foreign transfers and sales of light weapons, missiles, tanks and even ships to suspected terrorists, criminals and other groups under widespread suspicion of malfeasance or human rights abuses.
U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command (Navsea) completed the first-ever Air Defense Cruiser Aegis Baseline 9 combat systems upgrade for CG-62 USS Chancellorsville March 29. The upgrade was developed by Lockheed Martin and is part of the Navy’s Aegis modernization and cruiser-upgrade program, begun in April 2012 at BAE Systems’ San Diego Ship Repair Facility, and completed following combat systems testing and sea trials.
NEW DELHI — India has approved a plan to buy 30 billion rupees ($500 million) worth of night-vision equipment for its armed forces, a government official says. At an April 2 meeting of the Defense Acquisition Council, the highest decision-making body in the country’s defense affairs, Indian Defense Minister A.K. Antony approved the procurement of around 5,000 third-generation thermal-imaging and night-vision devices for the country’s Russian-origin T-72 and T-90 battle tanks and its BMP Infantry Combat Vehicles (ICVs), a defense official says.
LANGKAWI, Malaysia — UAVs would be the Maldives’ best choice for surveillance of its vast exclusive economic zone compared with manned aircraft, and the tiny nation is eager to hear from companies looking to do trials or research, says Brig. Gen. Ahmed Shiyam, head of the Maldives National Defense Force. Internationally renowned for its pristine natural environment, the Maldives faces a mammoth task in protecting it—920,000 square kilometers of ocean, dotted with 1,192 coral islands.
Pilatus Aircraft ended 2012 with its lowest sales total in at least five years, but a series of contracts for its military, trainer and special mission aircraft propelled the company to its strongest year ever in order intake and positions the Swiss airframer for growth. The company reported 2012 at 593 million CHF ($625 million U.S.), down from 781 million a year earlier and 688 million CHF in 2010. At the same time, though, orders totaled 2.67 billion CHF on the year, more than six times the 416 million CHF taken in during 2011.
PARIS — France’s council of ministers on April 3 appointed Arianespace CEO Jean-Yves Le Gall to head French space agency CNES. France is the chief stakeholder in Europe’s Arianespace launch consortium, which operates the Ariane 5 launch vehicle, the Vega light launcher and a European variant of Russia’s Soyuz rocket from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou. Arianespace also manages commercial Soyuz launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan through its Russian Starsem affiliate.
Analysts reacting to U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel’s first major policy speech say the dour remarks on future cuts and likely dramatic mission changes due to austere budgets were expected, albeit significant, for benchmarking the Pentagon’s approach to life under sequestration.
HOUSTON — Astronauts aboard the International Space Station, working with NASA’s Mission Control, expect to complete a major overhaul of the orbiting science laboratory’s Ku-band communications system to enhance scientific research activities by the end of next week.
COLORADO AEROSPACE: Two U.S. lawmakers from space-industry-heavy Colorado are standing up their own “working group” on aerospace export control reforms. After being part of the advocacy effort for loosening satellite-related regulations, the lawmakers say their new group will continue to look for more changes “that will help U.S. companies export their products and technologies to international customers while still protecting our national security interests.” The group will provide recommendations to Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet and Republican Rep.
The Pentagon has officially notified Congress of the potential sale of 60 Boeing F-15 Silent Eagles or Lockheed Martin F-35s to South Korea, as the country weighs these American options against the Eurofighter Typhoon for the forthcoming downselect in its F-X Phase 3 competition.
BAE Systems is volleying back against cost, capability and scheduling concerns raised this week in a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report on the U.S. Army’s Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) acquisition. The CBO estimates the GCV would cost the service $29 billion in 2013 dollars from 2014 to 2030 as it is currently structured.
Aviation Week MRO Military April 17, 2013 Atlanta, GA Reduce costs through partnerships and better forecasting, sustainment, and product support strategies Briefings will cover: -- GFY 2013 and 2014 budget reviews and their impact to MRO business -- Global defense sustainment market forecasts -- Industry perspectives on sustainment and sequestration
Surrey Satellite Technology U.S. LLC, a subsidiary of small-satellite pioneer Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. in the U.K., has opened a dedicated manufacturing and mission operations center in Colorado to handle its growing U.S. customer base. Located in Englewood, Colo., near Denver, the facility includes clean rooms for spacecraft and component manufacturing, customer-payload integration and electronics assembly. The center also houses engineering office space, test facilities and a control center for the spacecraft it produces.
