STOOD UP: The U.S. Air Force officially stood up a provisional Global Strike Command (AFGSC) at Bolling Air Force Base Jan. 12. The command will be temporarily located at the Washington, D.C., base, and headed by a provisional commander: Brig. Gen. James Kowalski. Kowalski will be responsible for helping identify a final location for the command and identifying manpower and resource requirements.
The U.S. Air Force has once again gone on the offensive to retain the combat, search and rescue (CSAR) mission following recent comments by Pentagon acquisition chief John Young that sparked further questions by the House Armed Services Committee (HASC).
ORLANDO, Fla. – NASA is planning wind tunnel tests of low-noise hybrid wing/body configurations as it pushes to enable the introduction of a new generation of highly fuel-efficient large aircraft as early as 2020. Boeing has been studying blended wing/body (BWB) aircraft for years, in the belief they could burn 20-30 percent less fuel than conventional tube-and-wing airliners because of the aerodynamic and structural efficiency of the flying-wing design (Aerospace DAILY, July 7).
FUTURE SHOCK: Directed-energy warfare may be taking another step toward operational status. DE Technologies was awarded a $6.9-million Navy contract to continue development of an offensive directed-energy warhead for the service’s compact rapid-attack weapon. Part of the project involves investigating technologies used for small-diameter shaped-charge warheads and will conclude with delivery of a shaped-charge design and liners for a full warhead development model.
PRODUCTION STARTS: Korea Aerospace Industries has begun final assembly of the first unit in the KUH helicopter program it is undertaking with Eurocopter. Rollout is scheduled for August.
SECOND GUESSING: Modus Operandi, a software and IT company, will furnish the U.S. Army with an information analysis system to help intelligence specialists predict enemy behavior on the battlefield. Identification of patterns in behavior is considered the key to disrupting operations. Data involving military events will be automatically extracted from native language texts. That is expected to significantly reduce manual processing of intelligence that slows military response time.
ORLANDO, Fla. Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) hopes to recover the spent first stage of its Falcon 1 launcher as early as the upcoming fifth test flight, says CEO and chief technical officer Elon Musk. The successful recovery of the used first stage is an important milestone for SpaceX, which is determined to reduce the cost of access to space in part by increasing the re-usability of rocket sections. The second stage also is designed to be recovered, though this is a more serious technical challenge, Musk says.
January 27-28, 2009 Sofitel Miami Miami, FL This in-depth, case study driven management forum will showcase Viable Strategies to Drive Meaningful Cost-Reduction and Improve Operating Efficiencies Learn more at www.aviationweek.com/conferences or call +1.212.904.4483. Click here to view the pdf
NAMING NAMES: President-Elect Barack Obama plans to nominate William J. Lynn III to be deputy secretary of defense, Robert F. Hale to be the DOD’s comptroller and chief financial officer, Michèle Flournoy to be undersecretary of defense for policy and Jeh Charles Johnson to be general counsel. The leader of the Senate, which will have to confirm the nominees, sounded a favorable response. “I am pleased with the high caliber of nominees for senior Department of Defense positions that the President-elect nominated today,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) says.
ISR WINGS: The latest increment of the U.S. Air Force’s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) transition involves redesignating the 480th and 70th Intelligence Wings at Ft. Meade, Md. — home to the National Reconnaissance Office — as ISR wings. The change broadens their scope beyond signals intelligence to include all elements of ISR for ground, air, space and cyberspace missions.
PRIME DIRECTIVE: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is allocating additional funding to support apprenticeships. During a visit to propulsion manufacturer Rolls-Royce in Derby last week, Brown announced that the engine company will take on a further 50 apprentices in addition to the 170 already planned for 2009. The cost of the further 50 will be met by the government. A further £140 million pounds ($212 million) is being made available to support apprenticeships, with the target to add 35,000 more places across industry.
GOOD DUTY: The U.S. Navy has decided where to base its 84 new all-jet Boeing P-8A Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft that will replace turboprop-powered Lockheed Martin P-3 patrol aircraft. Five standard and one fleet replacement squadron will be at Naval Air Station (NAS) Jacksonville, Fla. Four squadrons will fly out of NAS Whidbey Island, Wash., where the Navy also keeps its electronic attack fleet of EA-6Bs, EA-18Gs and EP-3Es. And three squadrons will operate from Marine Corps Base Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, and NAS North Island, Calif.
Boeing has seen a steady trickle of jobs leave its Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) unit since early 2008 while Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) experienced robust jobs growth last year. Now BCA will be a jobs loser in 2009.
NAVAL NET: DGA has contracted with EADS Defense & Security to supply a high-speed Internet communications system for French naval surface ships, aircraft and submarines. The €240-million award covers development and deployment of the Internet protocol network, modernization and digitalization of V/UHF assets and a five-year support package. The so-called Rifan 2 initiative will see the system installed on 116 vessels and 64 aircraft, including Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft, Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft and NH90 frigate helicopters.
UNDERSTANDING LIFT: The U.S. Air Force and Army may finally agree on the last of many iterations of the Initial Capabilities Document (ICD) for Joint Future Theater Lift (JFTL). This week, the Air Force will submit its ICD to the Army for review. Conflict between the two services has been ongoing — the Army wants a fully vertical JFTL, while the Air Force has been focused on a super-short takeoff and landing aircraft. But those issues “have been resolved” according to Bruce Tenney, associate director of the Army Aviation Technology Directorate.
HUNGARY’S GRIPENS: The Saab Gripen has been declared operational in the quick reaction alert (QRA) role by the Hungarian air force. Initially the Gripen will be operated alongside the MiG-29 Fulcrum, and will then replace it by the end of this year. The air force has 14 Gripen aircraft, 12 single-seat C-model aircraft, and two D-model two-seaters. The aircraft was formally declared operational in the QRA role at an event held at Kecskemet air base on Dec. 22.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicated new calendar listing.) Jan. 26 - 28, 2009 — 6th Annual Tactical Power Sources Summit, Hilton Alexandria Old Town, Alexandria, Va. For more information go to www.idga.org/us/tacticalpower
GO AHEAD: Boeing has formally received $234 million to begin production of the 6th Wideband Global Satcom satellite from the U.S. Air Force Space Command’s Space and Missile Systems Center. The order was placed in November 2007 by the Australian government as part of an agreement granting the Australian Defence Force access to the worldwide WGS constellation of communications satellites. At that time, the WGS network was limited to five spacecraft.
The U.S. Army is holding off on defining the scope of its Kiowa OH-58 life extension plan pending a decision on the currently stalled Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH).
The last scheduled flight of the space shuttle Discovery will carry a pressurized Russian module to help set up the International Space Station (ISS) for operations without NASA’s fleet of reusable orbiters. Planning for the flight, which probably will include Russian use of a commercial facility at Cape Canaveral to prepare the module for launch, comes as station managers start preparing to support a six-person crew on the ISS solely with Russian, European, Japanese and commercial spacecraft.
LANGLEY SUPPORT: NASA has picked Hampton, Va.-based firms Analytical Services & Materials Inc. and Analytical Mechanics Associates Inc. to provide support for NASA’s Langley Research Center. The blanket purchase agreements could be worth up to $100 million over five years.
URGENT UPGRADES: The British Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) (CVR(T)) continues to be the focus of urgent upgrades to meet operational requirements, despite its age. The British army has just begun to take delivery of the first batch of the CVR(T) with an improved engine, gearbox and drives, as well as more efficient radiator and air cooler. Operational experience in Afghanistan is behind the urgent requirement, which is being implemented by BAE Systems. The army’s Light Dragoons will be the first unit to begin training with the upgraded vehicles early in 2009.
ORLANDO, Fla. The U.S. aerospace industry is running out of time to solve the growing crisis in recruiting to replace its aging workforce, and government action is needed for the U.S. to maintain world leadership, according to Lockheed Martin Executive Vice President for Advanced Development Programs and Strategic Planning Frank Cappuccio.
