Northrop Grumman is adjusting its schedule to support installation of the Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (Canes) system on U.S. Navy ships following a delay caused by a contract-award objection from Lockheed Martin, which later withdrew the protest.
U.S. NAVY Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc., Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded a $133,751,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee not-to-exceed modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-06-C-2222) for advance procurement of long-lead-time materials and pre-construction activities in support of Landing Platform Dock 27. Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Miss., and is expected to complete by June 2017. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
TOKYO — The Japanese defense ministry will decide on an engine for the UH-X utility helicopter within two or three months so manufacturer Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) can begin the detail design phase. The likely engine is the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) XTS2, a 940-kw (1,260-hp) derivative of the 660-kw TS1 turboshaft, itself an adaptation of MHI’s MG5 family, which was developed in 1987.
LONDON — After almost two decades in the making, NATO has finally awarded a contract to field an Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system. The alliance has signed a $1.7 billion contract to acquire five Northrop Grumman Global Hawk Block 40s to address an operational shortfall first identified during the 1991 Persian Gulf war and validated during last year’s Libya air campaign. An initial operational capability is due to be reached in 2016. The deal was signed during the meeting of NATO members’ heads of government in Chicago.
U.S. Navy officials are downplaying the recent failure of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS-1) USS Freedom to pass a special pre-ship-trial inspection, saying, among other things, that these types of reviews are more rigorous than before. But the Freedom has a checkered past when being subjected to tests and inspections, resulting in truncated sea trials and even a delayed entry into the Panama Canal.
UAV APPETITE: The U.S. Department of Defense spent $5.25 billion on unmanned aerial systems in 2010, with the U.S. Air Force taking the largest piece of the pie, according to consultancy Frost & Sullivan. “Most of the $2.42 billion the Air Force has earmarked for UAS spending in 2012 is for the procurement of the MQ-9 Predator,” the group reports. Fiscal 2011 government contracts awarded specifically for the U.S. military UAS market amounted to $3.78 billion. The biggest program winners included the ER/MP MQ-1 Gray Eagle, MQ-9, and RQ-4, Frost states.
MADRID — Airbus Military is working on a series of upgrades for the C-295 military airlifter, with winglets to undergo flight trials next year and flight testing with the Marte anti-ship missile to take place this year. For the winglets, “the design is already done,” with everything to be ready to fly by year-end, says Miguel Angel Morell, Airbus Military senior vice president and head of engineering. The concept was first developed for the airborne early warning version, but the company sees broader applications.
U.S. ARMY Alliant Techsystems, Inc., Plymouth, Minn., was awarded a $58,272,447 firm-fixed-price contract. The award will provide for the modification of an existing contract to procure Spider XM-7 networked munitions systems. Work will be performed in Plymouth, Minn.; Wilmington, Mass.; and Rocket Center, W.Va., with an estimated completion date of April 30, 2013. One bid was solicited, with one bid received. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Picatinny Arsenal, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15QKN-11-C-0126).
MADRID — Airbus Military is selling eight C-295s to Oman and expects to sign more deals in the coming months, as it anticipates booking potentially more than 30 new orders this year. After signing deals for only five light transports last year, Airbus Military has already secured more than 20 orders so far in 2012, notes Antonio Rodriguez Barberan, the company’s senior commercial vice president.
The U.S. Defense Department needs to spend less time and money identifying and buying existing equipment to meet urgent combat needs, says a recently released U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.
u.s. AIR FORCE Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., El Segundo, Calif., is being awarded a $51,284,530 cost-plus-incentive-fee contract for Multi Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program radar system development and demonstration, ECP-025, radar modification for Global Hawk Block 40. The location of the performance is Norwalk, Conn. Work is to be completed by March 2015. AMC/ESC, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (F19628-00-C-0100 P00233).
EDINBURGH — Selex Galileo hopes to build on its success in having its Aircraft Gateway Processor (AGP) included as baseline hardware in the U.S. Army-Boeing AH-64D Block 3 program to expand the customer base for the electronic warfare equipment.
DISPUTE VERDICT: Thales Alenia Space stands to receive a €53 million ($67 million) settlement fee by June 9 in a legal dispute with Globalstar. An arbitrator ruled in favor of Thales Alenia Space in a disagreement over a 2009 satellite contract between the operator and satellite maker. The settlement fee can still be avoided if both sides agree to other terms. Talks between the two parties are now underway.
GENOA — Italy is developing a new modular approach to countering improvised explosive devices (IEDs) that will employ a number of specialized vehicles based on the Iveco VTMM multirole medium tactical vehicle chassis. The concept is to operate a “train” of four vehicles, each of them providing a dedicated capability, to defeat or dispose of every kind of potential threat, from unexploded ordnance to mines or IEDs.
October 9, 2012 Amsterdam, The Netherlands Repair in New Generation Aircraft: Challenges and Opportunities Lightweight composites will soon rival metals as the primary material for airframes. Are you prepared? This event will highlight the latest developments, challenges and best practices in aircraft composite repair and maintenance technology. It will allow all of the key industry players to discuss best practices and share experiences. Register now! www.aviationweek.com/events/composites
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) may 21 - 24 — Environment, Energy Security & Sustainability Symposium & Exhibition, E2S2 is focused on providing participants with critial information and interaction on the challenges of the National Security Departments and Agencies, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, New Orleans, LA. www.ndiae2s2.com
NASA and SpaceX, the agency’s six-year-old Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program partner, stressed the experimental nature of the company’s bid to lift off early May 19 on the first U.S. commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station. The launch of the Falcon 9/Dragon rocket and spacecraft combination from the company’s launch complex at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is set for 4:55 a.m. EDT, during a nearly instantaneous launch window.
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) is assessing international interest in the ability to enable third-party payload integration on its Predator B unmanned aircraft after completing a proof-of-concept demonstration using company funds. A “sovereign payload” capability would allow payload providers and system integrators other than GA-ASI to develop their own control software and ultimately integrate payloads on to the Predator on behalf of specific customer countries.
