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.
ABU DHABI — Italian business aircraft manufacturer Piaggio and Selex Electronic Systems are working together to produce an unmanned variant of the P-180 Avanti executive turboprop aircraft.
ABU DHABI — The South Korean armed forces are looking to broaden their use of UAVs to increase surveillance on their northern neighbors. New “heavy” (HUAV) and “medium” (MUAV) unmanned systems are planned for purchase before 2020. Officials are also exploring the potential of more sophisticated and specialized systems after 2020, including aircraft that could conduct electronic warfare missions, according to Maj. Gen. Hwang Jong Soo, deputy chief of staff for force planning in the Republic of Korea army.
CONTRACTOR SUPPORT: Congressional auditors have found that U.S. combatant commands (Cocoms) and their components are not planning for the potential use of contractors in overseas combat theaters for functions beyond logistics. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) report shows that, despite more than a decade of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that saw unprecedented reliance on contractor support to the military, the Cocoms have only just begun to incorporate operational contract support into their planning.
AIR FORCE Northrop Grumman Corp., Rolling Meadows, Ill., (FA8538-13-D-0001) is being awarded an $11,067,296 firm-fixed-price contract for testing and repair of the F-15 aircraft electronic systems test set interface test adapters. The location of performance is Rolling Meadows, Ill. The work is expected to be completed by Feb. 10, 2018. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2013 through fiscal 2018. The contracting activity is 638 AFSC/PZAAB, Robins AFB, Ga.
AIR FORCE ACENT Laboratories L.L.C., Long Island, N.Y., (FA8650-13-D-2331) is being awarded a $48,500,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price contract for Enhanced Operability Scramjet Technology. The locations of the performance are Manorville, N.Y.; Sacramento, Calif.; Elkton, Md.; Laurel, Md.; West Palm Beach, Fla.; and Dayton, Ohio. The work is expected to be completed by Feb. 28, 2020. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2012. The contracting activity is Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
The U.S. Navy still has roughly 250 fix-it items left on the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS-1) USS Freedom to prepare it for its scheduled March deployment to Singapore, says a source aware of Freedom operations and maintenance. Most of the items are quarterly required contractor tasks for planned maintenance (PMS) work, the source says, and that work should be finished relatively quickly.
LONDON — Eurocopter is planning to retrofit the worldwide AS350B3e fleet with a modification to solve a tail rotor issue by August. The manufacturer, owned by EADS, says the retrofit, which involves the removal of chin weights fitted to the tail rotor assembly and the installation of a load compensator, will fix issues suffered by operators of the B3e variant of the Ecureuil single-engined light helicopter that was launched by the manufacturer at the 2011 Heli-Expo event.
BENGALURU — BAE Systems is busily working to restart the Hawk production line at Warton in the U.K., now that it has firm orders for 22 aircraft for Saudi Arabia and eight for Oman.
The FAA has issued a long-delayed solicitation for proposals to host six unmanned aircraft system (UAS) test sites across the U.S. , along with the agency’s proposed approach to addressing public concerns over privacy. Initially ignored by the FAA, concerns voiced by civil-liberties organizations that UAS operations at the sites could violate individuals’ privacy forced a lengthy delay in responding to the 2012 congressional mandate to establish the test centers.
Andrew Mellon Auditorium Washington, D.C. March 7, 2012 The Aviation Week Laureate Awards recognize individuals and teams for their extraordinary accomplishments. Their achievements embody the spirit of exploration, innovation and vision that inspire others to strive for significant broad-reaching progress in aviation and aerospace. Join us at this black tie dinner and celebrate the best of the industry’s best! www.aviationweek.com/events/current/lau/index.htm
With Congress preparing for a weeklong Presidents Day recess, lawmakers are predicting that come March 1, across-the-board budget cuts are going to take hold. “I think it’s going to happen,” Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, told reporters during a Feb. 15 Defense Writers Group breakfast. “Both sides are locked into positions that they can’t seem to get away from, and so I think we’re going to be forced into it.”
