A new open avionics standard developed by a government-industry consortium has been boosted by U.S. Army plans to develop open architectures for aircraft survivability systems and future vertical-lift aircraft. The Army Aviation and Missile Research Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC) has released a request for information to develop a prototype avionics platform based on the Future Airborne Capabilities Environment (FACE) standard published in January.
Washington is doing everything it possibly can to prevent Israel from attacking Iran on its own, says a former U.S. Air Force chief of staff. “We’re trying to force Israel to think about the consequences of war in the Middle East,” the veteran combat pilot says. However, if the mission were done by the U.S., the blowback on Israel and Arab partner nations would be far less.
Tokyo – Japan is moving into a large-scale upgrade program that appears to be enormously enhancing the air-to-air capabilities of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries F-2 fighter with an improved radar and advanced medium-range missile. The work is going ahead in two parallel areas: integration of the Mitsubishi Electric AAM-4B missile and an upgrade of the company’s J/APG-1 radar to the J/APG-2 standard.
AVIATION WEEK Laureate Awards 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!
Paris – The French air force will upgrade the intelligence-gathering capability of the Mirage 2000D through a program with Thales to modify the Astac tactical electronic intelligence pod for use on the fighter, enabling some of the combat aircraft to take on the role now assigned to the Mirage F1CR.
Singapore – Malaysia has too few military aircraft, but there is another problem that poses an even greater threat to the country’s defense capability – a dearth of military pilots.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) Feb. 27 - 29 — Defense Maintenance Sustainment Summit, Hilton Torrey Pines, La Jolla, Calif. For more information go to www.wbresearch.com/dms/ Mar. 5 — Speednews' Second Annual Aerospace Raw Materials & Manufacturers Supply Chain Conference, Beverly Hills Wilshire Hotel, Beverly Hills, Calif. For more information go to www.speednews.com/conferences
New Delhi – An Indian air force Mirage 2000 combat jet crashed in central India on Feb. 24. Both pilots ejected safely. Engine failure is suspected to be the cause of the crash, an IAF officer said. The crew was on a routine flight-training sortie. India last year signed a $2.4 billion deal with Dassault Aviation to upgrade 51 Mirage 2000s in the IAF fleet. The first set of aircraft are already in France for the project. The IAF has ordered an inquiry into the accident.
MUOS-1 LAUNCH: A United Launch Alliance Atlas V lifted off from Cape Canaveral on Feb. 24, carrying the U.S. Navy’s first Mobile User Objective System (MUOS-1), an ultra-high frequency communications satellite based on the Lockheed Martin A2100 spacecraft bus. The initial phases of the 3-hr. mission to get the big satellite into its geostationary transfer orbit went nominally.
Singapore – Anatoly Perminov, the former director general of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, has downplayed the prospect that Russia will have manned space missions to the Moon. In recent weeks, Roscosmos chief Vladimir Popovkin disclosed that Russian astronauts may land on the Moon in 2020. Perminov, who stepped down last year as director general of Roscosmos and is now deputy director general of the agency’s joint-stock company, Russian Space Systems, was dismissive when asked about the reports.
New Delhi – India’s defense research agency on Feb. 23 announced plans to develop electronic warfare technologies to help paramilitary and police forces across the country. G. Elangovan, the Chief Controller Research and Development (Avionics) at the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO), says a department for Low Intensity Conflict (LIC) was introduced for internal security due to rising incidents of violence in India.
The spacecraft-conjunction advisories put out by the U.S. Joint Space Operations Center (JSpOC) are inaccurate and less useful to prevent interference and collisions than the orbit data that satellite operators have started sharing among themselves, according to a top Intelsat executive who has helped set up the operator collaboration.
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
WASHINGTON – With a raft of recent reports warning about increasing Arctic security and commercial issues due to global climate changes, the U.S. Coast Guard is making the development of a new ice breaker a budget priority. But noticeably absent is any stated Pentagon budgetary focus on Arctic assets, despite a recent U.S. Navy-sponsored report warning of a need for more U.S. military-dedicated equipment for the region.
The deadline of Sept. 30, 2015, for integration of unmanned aircraft systems into U.S. civil airspace, set in the new FAA reauthorization bill, is expected to be met using ground-based sense-and-avoid (GBSAA), a Pentagon official says. Using ground radars, GBSAA will allow “routine access” to airspace for unmanned aircraft transiting between their bases and restricted areas used for training, says Steven Pennington, U.S. Air Force director of bases, ranges and airspace.
Singapore – Boeing is busy ensuring its international customers in need can secure U.S. Export Import Bank support, while also keeping an eye on the global economic situation and U.S. defense cuts. The CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Jim Albaugh, says there is no doubt that the European banks have less liquidity than they once had, but he adds that the Asian banks are coming in to help fill the void.
Special Operations Forces (SOF) could shoulder additional burdens due to the Defense Department’s new global strategies, a recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) report says. The Pentagon’s 2013 budget proposal makes SOF funding a bigger priority, and those forces can use the extra financial attention, according to the CRS report released earlier this month.
