NEW DELHI – India’s counterterrorism force, the National Security Guard (NSG), will now get at least 500 more commandos, procure three transport aircraft and have a base in Mumbai and three other cities following last week’s terrorist attacks. Also, officials are eyeing an agency modeled on the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
LONDON – The fate of three BAE Systems Nimrod MRA4 trials aircraft should finally become apparent in the first quarter of 2009 with the conclusion of negotiations between the U.K. Defense Ministry and BAE Systems. Only nine MRA4 aircraft are currently under firm contract at the full production standard for the Royal Air Force, instead of the 21 originally planned when the Nimrod-based proposal was selected in 1996. The number of airframes has been repeatedly cut as a result of budgetary pressures.
The U.S. Marine Corps should cancel the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) and re-examine its decision to replace CH-46E helicopters with tiltrotor MV-22 Ospreys, a Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA) study says.
The first six-person crew on the International Space Station (ISS) will have much better power and life-support accommodations following the space shuttle Endeavour’s visit than was considered likely for most of the time the orbiter has been docked.
The U.S. Air Force is asking industry to explore options for quick delivery of a space-based missile warning system, a move which is likely connected to reports that the service’s newest ballistic missile warning satellite is failing in orbit. A broad sources sought notice was issued Nov. 24, and a more specific and classified request for information is expected Dec. 1.
MEETING CHINA: A Chinese space delegation will be in Washington Dec. 2-3 to continue space cooperation discussions with NASA. One U.S. objective will be discussion of Chinese participation in NASA’s Aeronet program, which uses ground sensors to collect atmospheric data that are used to calibrate sensors on atmospheric satellites. NASA also will raise with the Chinese a desire to obtain data from Chinese Earth observing spacecraft in exchange for similar U.S. data for environmental assessments.
The incoming Obama administration is going to have its work cut out for it in bolstering the nation’s defense at a critical time, according to a report by the Defense Science Board (DSB). “It has been more than two generations since the presidency transitioned with American troops engaged in significant combat operations – a deployment begun in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks,” the DSB says.
U.S. proponents of ballistic missile defense are hoping to make their point with lawmakers and the public through a documentary-style film, as concern lingers about lukewarm support for the $10 billion a year program.
PARIS – Airbus Chief Executive Tom Enders expressed apparent frustration over continuing development problems with the Airbus Military A400M airlifter at a dinner last week hosted by the French Association of Professional Air and Space Journalists. His comments come amid concerns over the full authority digital engine control (FADEC) software on the airlifter’s Europrop International TP400-D6 powerplant. Engine issues have pushed first flight well into next year (Aerospace DAILY, Nov. 25).
LISTEN CLOSELY: Despite their complaints about Pentagon acquisition, there are programs that Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Pentagon acquisition czar John Young like — C-17, C-130J, C-5 (despite earlier problems), EA-18G Growler, P-8 Multi-Mission Maritime aircraft and Small Diameter Bomb. And Young expects fewer flawed programs and protests in the future.
LOST SEAT: U.S. District Judge James Cacheris is considering a motion by space-tourism travel agency Space Adventures to drop a lawsuit by Japan’s Daisuke Enomoto charging that the Virginia firm stiffed him on a refund when he was bumped from a Soyuz flight to the International Space Station. The Japanese millionaire paid a reported $21 million for one of the extra Soyuz “taxi seats” brokered by Space Adventures, and argues the no-refunds clause in his ticket shouldn’t count.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicated new calendar listing.) Dec. 2 — Information Sharing Federations, “Trusted Domains, Partnerships and Relationships,” The Ronald Reagan Building, Washington, D.C. For more information go to www.afei.org
SPOOLING UP: Boeing restarted its CH-47 Chinook helicopter and V-22 Osprey tiltrotor fuselage lines at its Philadelphia plant on Nov. 26, after being notified by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) that it had met the requirements to return to production. Both lines were halted Nov. 21 when DCMA demanded corrective action following discovery of a plastic cap blocking a fuel line in a V-22 fuselage. “We may never know what happened,” Boeing says.
LUNAR LANDER: NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston plans to issue a draft request for proposals (RFP) for conceptual design work on the Altair lunar lander by mid-December, with a final RFP expected by late January 2009 and a contract award around Feb. 20. The contract “shall provide the necessary resources to conduct NASA-directed engineering tasks in support of evaluating vehicle conceptual designs, maturing the vehicle design, and developing the necessary products for System Requirements Review (SRR) and System Design Review (SDR),” NASA says in its announcement.
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
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has shed light on its rationale for sustaining a protest by ASRC Research & Technology Solutions (ARTS) over an award for NASA support services that led the space agency to reverse its original decision.
FLIGHT READY: NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland is investigating the best methods for monitoring a pilot’s brain activity to help them realize when their stress, fatigue or distraction levels are edging into dangerous territory. The studies are employing functional near-infrared spectroscopy, also know as fNIRS, and other imaging technology to measure blood flow in the brain’s cortex and the concentration of oxygen in the blood.
GETTING OUT: Northstar Aerospace plans to divest its non-core business, marshal its resources and focus on manufacturing gears, transmissions and related components, the company says. Assets for sale are Pratt & Whitney repair operation Northstar Aerospace Turbine Engine Service Group in Stroud, Okla., worth an estimated $15 million, and the remaining processing operations at Northstar’s Cambridge, Canada, site. No potential buyers have been named yet, representative Scott Langdon says, adding that the sale process typically takes months to complete.
FUSING TOGETHER: Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. of San Diego, California, plans to merge with Digital Fusion Inc. of Huntsville, Alabama, in an all-stock transaction. Kratos says the combination will enable it to capture a larger market share as a Defense Department and government prime contractor. Digital Fusion, Inc. is an information technology, research, engineering, and acquisition and business support services company focused on a wide range of disciplines.
FIRST DELIVERY: The first helicopter produced by Eurocopter at its Albacete plant in Spain is now in the hands of the Spanish defense ministry. The EC135 light twin was handed over on Nov. 26 for use by the Spanish army’s disaster response unit. One of two assembly lines for the EC135 — the other is at Eurocopter Germany in Donauworth — Eurocopter Spain plans to deliver more than 12 in 2009. Opened in 2007, the Albacete plant is also manufacturing rear fuselages for the Tiger and forward fuselages for the NH90.
