President Barack Obama is nominating Ashton Carter to be the next undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics. If confirmed as the Pentagon’s acquisition czar, DOD said Carter would be the “point man in the difficult procurement decisions” that Defense Secretary Bob Gates told senators would begin with Obama’s fiscal 2010 defense budget request.
DROPPING DEFENSES: The market for U.S. defense electronics will be worth at least $59.512 billion from 2009-2018, according to consultants at Forecast International. But on an annualized basis, the market shows a steady decline over the next decade, from a high of $8.484 billion this year to $4.945 billion in 2018. This represents a 10-year drop of about $3.538 billion, or 41.707 percent from the market high, Forecast says.
FUELING TENSIONS: North Korea said it is looking to launch a supposed “communications satellite” for space research despite warnings from U.S. and South Korean officials that it would be deemed provocative and illegal. A spokesman for the Korean Committee of Space Technology said in an official news statement Feb.
Three months after formal talks began, negotiations between the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA) and Boeing at its Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) facility in Wichita, Kan., have broken down, and the union’s leaders began meeting Feb. 24 to discuss whether to ask members for a strike authorization vote.
Showing the Pentagon’s keen interest in deploying more – and more modern – tracked combat, assault and tactical vehicles to meet growing needs in Iraq and Afghanistan, those outlays gained more ground on the list of top DOD expenses for 2008. Contracts and modifications for those types of vehicles accounted for 10 percent of the top 21 Pentagon expenses in 2008, compared to 7 percent in 2007, according to an Aerospace DAILY analysis of data provided by the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting.
UNITED LIFT: The United Arab Emirates announced Feb. 24 that it has decided to buy 12 Lockheed Martin C-130Js and four Boeing C-17s. The UAE Air Force has been authorized to make the acquisition, although definitive contracts have yet to be signed, budgeting 4.3 billion dirhams ($1.17 billion) for the C-17s and 5.9 billion dirhams ($1.6 billion) for the C-130Js. Delivery is tentatively set for 2012-13. Lockheed expects further sales in the region, having recently concluded the sale of four C-130Js to Qatar.
PARIS – The Estonian government is paying around €2 million for 42 howitzers from the Finnish government. The 122mm 122H63s are intended to replace 105mm howitzers the Estonian government has in its inventory. The first dozen have already been delivered, with the rest to be handed over in the coming months. The 105mm howitzers were provided by Finland as part of an assistance package. Estonia says it plans to use the weapons to equip two artillery battalions for combat operations, as well as for training of artillery personnel in general.
TURKEY BONUS: Lockheed Martin has received a $797 million contract for 30 additional F-16 Block 50s for Turkey. The 14 single-seat F-16Cs and 16 two-seat F-16Ds, powered by General Electric F110-129 engines, will be manufactured by Turkish Aerospace Industries and begin deliveries in 2012 to fill the gap until the Turkish air force begins receiving its 100 planned F-35 Joint Strike Fighters. Including this latest deal, Turkey has ordered a total of 270 F-16s.
FLYING THE FLAG: The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) says its aircraft and personnel are preparing to deploy to Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., for the high-profile U.S.-led Red Flag air combat training exercise. No. 6 Squadron from RAAF Amberley is leading the Australian push with six F-111 jets, while a pair of C-130H Hercules from No. 37 at RAAF Base Richmond will transport equipment and personnel to the United States.
While fixed-wing aircraft spending still remains perched at the top of the list of leading Pentagon expenses, it is shrinking as a percentage of overall military spending, an Aerospace DAILY analysis shows. At the same time, fixed-wing aircraft contracts are becoming fewer and more expensive, according to the analysis of data gleaned from a federal contracting database released by the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting.
MIAMI, Fla. – U.S. officials at the 12th Air Force are hoping to move forward with plans this week with four Central American nations seeking to jointly collaborate on an aircraft modernization effort, according to Lt. Gen. Norman Seip, who leads the command. 12th Air Force interfaces with air forces in Central and South America. Seip is meeting with the regional air chiefs of Central America here during a Regional Air Chiefs Conference.
Domingo Urena-Raso will be named the new head of Airbus Military, industry sources have told Aerospace DAILY. Urena-Raso will replace Carlos Suarez at the helm of the division that is in charge of the A400M military airlifter program as well as the multirole tanker/transport aircraft, among others.
Selling Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) to Israel continues to be an uncertainty-plagued proposition, with the most difficult funding and advanced capability issues still to be worked out between Tel Aviv and Washington. U.S. hesitations over allowing the installation of Israeli-made electronic surveillance and warfare systems in the JSF may postpone the planned delivery of the fifth-generation stealth jet beyond the target date of 2014, senior defense officials told The Jerusalem Post. Davis speaks
SATELLITE DEBRIS: The Joint Space Operations Center is now tracking about 700 pieces of debris resulting from the Feb. 10 collision of a decommissioned Russian communications satellite and an operational Iridium spacecraft (Aerospace DAILY, Feb. 12). Prior to the collision, which took place over Siberia at an altitude of 790 kilometers (491 miles), operators there were tracking about 18,000 objects total.
The U.S. Marine Corps is exploring the use of simulated battlefield conditions to improve its infantry performance, including shooting at moving targets. The Marine Corps Warfighting Lab at Quantico, Va., plans to use simulation techniques to study a number of infantry skills, including coordinating close air support; understanding all aspects of activity on the battlefield; the effect of heavy equipment and exertion on individuals’ decision making; and hitting a moving target.
QUICK SALE: The U.S. Army has purchased three standard commercial Model 407 light helicopters from Bell for conversion into prototypes for the armed configuration to be supplied to Iraq. Awarded “on urgency,” the contract is worth $7 million. Army Aviation & Missile Command will fit the single-turbine helicopters with the sensors, weapons and survivability equipment specified by Iraq, which plans to buy 24 armed 407s, to ensure the helicopter meets requirements. The Army’s canceled ARH-70 Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter was a heavily modified 407.
AIR FORCE The Air Force is awarding a cost plus fixed price contract to Lockheed Martin Corp., of King of Prussia, Penn., for $25,579,895. This contract action is for the procurement of six Low Frequency Instrumentation Consoles and one Radio Frequency Instrumentation Console. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 526 ICBMSG/PKA, Hill Air Force Base, Utah is the contracting activity (FA8204-09-C-0005). NAVY
South Africa’s Denel is carrying out aerodynamic load and seeker evaluation tests of its A-Darter imaging infrared-guided air-to-air missile, now in development. A three-shot test campaign began Feb. 13 using the Denel OTB test range. The first shot was intended to examine missile maneuverability and airframe behavior under high-G stresses. Tests of the A-Darter imaging infrared seeker are also being carried out in parallel to the airframe firings. Seeker performance is being evaluated using ground and airborne test rigs.
A few allied defense ministers appear to be helping the new administration of President Barack Obama increase pressure on other NATO members to ramp up their combat contributions. The allies, deep in Afghanistan operations themselves, are echoing criticisms long voiced by U.S. national security officials. British Defense Minister John Hutton on Feb. 23 continued his campaign criticizing many NATO allies over an apparently inadequate response to force needs in Afghanistan.
NASA managers are assessing the danger if a tiny space shuttle engine valve were to crack and cause a leak of highly flammable gaseous hydrogen in the aft section of a space shuttle orbiter during ascent, and may slip the next shuttle mission until April. One of the valves failed during the most recent flight, triggering an engineering investigation that could force a slip in the STS-119 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) until after the next Russian Soyuz mission to the orbiting outpost.
2008 Pentagon Fixed-Wing Aircraft Expenses 2008 Pentagon Fixed-Wing Aircraft Expenses Contractor Number Of Contracts Or Modifications Total Amount Of Contracts And Modifications Average Per Contract Or Modification Lockheed Martin 506 $7,866,956,899 $15,547,346 B
