LONDON British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is warning that if the Afghan government fails to tackle critical issues such as corruption and improving its military performance then it will “have forfeited its right to international support.”
BINDING TIES: Europe’s and Russia’s main aerospace and defense research associations have inked an agreement to work more closely together. The respective association presidents, Pier Francesco Guarguaglini for the Aerospace and Defense Industries Assn. of Europe, and Alexey Fyodorov, for the Union of Aviation Industry In Russia, formalized the deal in Rome.
With two proposals in, the U.S. Air Force’s source selection for the 250-lb. Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB II) moving-target killer is under way, and this will be the first of potentially many fixed-price competitions the Pentagon says will come for major development contracts. Raytheon and a Boeing/Lockheed Martin submitted their proposals for the SDB II Nov. 5, and a winner is expected to be announced in May. Both contractors have been working under competing $150 million risk reduction contracts for 42 months.
South Africa has pulled out of the Airbus Military A400M airlifter program, abandoning its intention to buy eight of the type. South Africa ordered the A400M in 2005. Reuters quoted South African Defense Minister Lindiwe Sisulu as saying: “We have terminated the contract with Airbus but we’ve not terminated our quest to ensure we have the necessary capabilities. That is very clear.”
LOOKING OUTSIDE: L-3 Link Simulation & Training will supply its Advanced Helmet Mounted Display (AHMD) capable of simulating “out-the-window” computer generated imagery on F-16 Unit Training devices (UTD). The AHMD replaces existing flat panel equipment, allowing the pilot to view imagery across a 360-degree field of regard. The unit also supports night vision goggle training and incorporates F-16 symbology for the airplane’s HMD.
EFFICIENT THRUSTERS: Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology (GTI) will develop components to boost the efficiency of electric propulsion systems used on satellites and planetary probes. The work, funded under a $6.5 million grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (Darpa) Defense Sciences office, will center on demonstrating the use of non-propellant cathodes with Hall effect thrusters to reduce fuel consumption and allow spacecraft to remain in orbit longer.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) Nov. 9 - 10 — Defense Logistics, Crowne Plaza Hotel - St. James, London, London, U.K. For more information go to www.smi-online.co.uk Nov. 10 - 12 — SAE International’s Aerotech Congress and Exhibition, “Global Aerospace Solutions for a More Efficient Future,” Washington State Convention and Trade Center, Seattle, Wa. For more information go to www./sae.org/aerotech
With U.S. defense spending leveling off and the direction of a cash-strapped NASA in limbo, there is much talk these days about expansion into “adjacent markets” as aerospace and defense companies look for new ways to drive growth. That explains why Jim Maser, the president of United Technologies Corp.’s Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne (PWR), spent much of a meeting with Aviation Week editors last week talking about the company’s ventures into solar power, coal gasification and oil extraction.
CHINA MILSPACE: China’s air force continues to take an aggressive stance on space control, even as it opens a dialogue with its U.S. counterpart aimed at increasing transparency. In widely reported remarks, Gen.
MOOT POINT: What will the Pentagon’s upcoming Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) say in regards to unmanned aircraft and other remotely or autonomously controlled vehicles? Who cares, says a panel of industry heavyweights at Aviation Week’s A&D Programs conference in Phoenix last week.
DISTRIBUTED POWER: Efforts like the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (Darpa) recently announced award to the first person to identify the locations of 10 red balloons tethered in undisclosed U.S. locations (Aerospace DAILY, Oct. 30) illustrate the potential superiority of Internet communications and social networking over some traditional weapons platforms, according to new Darpa Director Regina Dugan.
AUTOMOTIVE NAVY: Qualified displaced auto workers in Detroit, Mich., will soon be receiving follow-up calls from the U.S. Navy to schedule interviews for various engineering positions as well as spots in Naval Acquisition Associates Program (NAAP), a two-year developmental program design to prepare mid-level professionals to transition to Navy acquisition careers. Naval Sea Systems Command had so much success with its first attempt to recruit out-of-work automotive professionals in April that it returned to Michigan in late October to do it again.
CYBER-INSPECTIONS: The Pentagon’s new director of industrial policy, Brett Lambert, suggests administering Defense Contract Audit Agency-type inspections at companies to assess their cyber-preparedness. Speaking at Aviation Week’s A&D Programs conference in Phoenix last week, Lambert said there is a need to get companies to volunteer more information about preparations for being attacked in cyberspace. The issue has been highlighted by the revelation that federal agencies and U.S.
Masten Space Systems, fresh from a million-dollar win in the NASA-sponsored Lunar Lander X-Prize Challenge, hopes to use its vertical-takeoff-and-landing rocket technology to launch a commercial enterprise by the middle of next year. Dave Masten, founder and CEO of the five-year-old Mojave, Calif., company, said Friday the company will use the $1.15 million it won by taking first place in the Level 2 lander competition and second place in Level 1 to upgrade its Xoie (pronounced “Zoey”) vehicle for higher and faster flight (Aerospace DAILY, Nov. 4).
STADD SENTENCED: Courtney A. Stadd, who served as NASA chief of staff and White House liaison under former Administrator Sean O’Keefe, has been sentenced to three years probation, six months of electronic monitoring and a $2,500 fine for breaking ethics laws, according to a report from the Associated Press. Stadd was convicted of violating federal conflict-of-interest law in directing some $9.6 million in agency funds to a consulting client (Aerospace DAILY, March 9). U.S.
The German defense ministry has ordered a surveillance system to provide added protection to its military bases and semi-permanent camps, as its deployed military units in Afghanistan increasingly are coming under attack. Rheinmetall is leading a group that also includes Thales’s German arm and Diehl BGT Defense. A prototype system is to be installed at the military base in Meppen Germany and is slated to be operational on July 1, 2010.
SHOOTING ELECTRONS: “The first shot fired in a conflict is no longer a bullet. It’s an electron,” argues Stephen Hogan, vice president of Northrop Grumman Information Operations and Electronic Attack. The company is pitching the U.S. Navy its bid for the Next Generation Jammer, and Northrop believes a win could mean “hundreds of millions of dollars” in revenue. The Navy should choose up to four competitors for technology maturation contracts in the first quarter of 2010. A downselect is eyed for 2011, when the Navy is expected to award two technology demonstration awards.
Engine issues continue to factor into more U.S. Army aviation mishaps that any other aircraft part or system, according to an Aerospace DAILY analysis of service data. Engine-related accidents and incidents also continue to be the most costly. The Army identified engine problems in 707 mishaps between Jan. 1, 2008, and July 28, 2009, according to data provided by the Army Combat Readiness/Safety Center (USACRC).
CHINESE HANDSHAKE: The Bolivian government has concluded a memorandum of understanding with China Great Wall Industry Corp. (CGWIC) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to prepare the way for construction and deployment of a Bolivian telecom satellite, Tupac Katari. CGWIC would supply and launch the satellite under an in-orbit delivery arrangement and the ITU would help provide a suitable orbital slot.
MORE JUICE: Battery-maker Saft has announced a 120 million euro ($180 million) capital increase to help build two new U.S. plants, including a Jacksonville, Fla., facility that will be dedicated to lithium-ion batteries for aerospace and defense applications. The increase will be funded through a rights issue priced at 21 euros a share that will be open until Nov. 19. Half of the Jacksonville plant will be funded by the U.S. Energy Dept. under an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act application approved in August.
IRIDIUM BID: Thales Alenia Space has picked Ball Aerospace to be its partner in the event the Franco-Italian contractor is selected to provide Iridium’s next-generation satellite system. Ball says it would assemble, integrate and test spacecraft for the program. Thales Alenia is vying with Lockheed Martin for the program, which is to be awarded towards year’s end. Ball also will advise Thales Alenia on potential civil and military hosted payload opportunities.
