MUNITIONS DROPS GROW: The U.S. Air Force dropped more than 1,700 munitions in 2006 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom compared to only 176 a year earlier, an increase attributable to better intelligence, says Lt. Gen. Gary L. North, the U.S. Central Command Air Forces commander. North cited cooperation between civilian populations, local militaries, and the U.S. military as one reason for better U.S. intelligence on insurgents.
In the wake of China's test of a prototype anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon in January, Sen. Jon Kyl is calling for increases to the Defense Department's budgets for space situational awareness and responsive space systems. "Space situational awareness and operationally responsive space are both in need of far greater resources and protection by the Defense Department," the Arizona Republican said during a March 8 event in Washington sponsored by the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Examining how effectively Iraqi Security Forces are trained, equipped and sustained will be the first project of the House Armed Services Committee's new investigations subcommittee, the panel's leaders said March 6. Rep. Marty Meehan (D-Mass.), chairman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee (O&I), and Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.), the ranking member, said they would evaluate U.S. plans and progress in developing Iraqi forces' capabilities.
NASA and prime contractor Lockheed Martin have completed the system requirements review (SRR) for the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle, setting the foundation for ongoing design analysis and systems testing, the agency announced March 7.
BMDS REVIEW: The Missile Defense Advisory Committee will meet behind closed doors March 21-22 in Washington. The group provides the Defense Department advice on all matters relating to missile defense, including system development, technology, program maturity and readiness of configurations of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) to enter the acquisition process. At this meeting, the committee will receive classified briefings by intelligence officials concerning estimated future developments.
The four-star chiefs of the U.S. Pacific and Korea combatant commands declared March 7 that the United States and its allies enjoy an overwhelming "overmatch" of naval and air forces in the region against any challenger, but the Korea commander noted concern with longer-term supplies of air-delivered munitions.
DISTANT VOLCANO: NASA's New Horizons probe is scheduled to return a trove of imagery from its Feb. 28 Jupiter flyby in the weeks ahead, but a view of a massive volcanic eruption on the close-in moon Io gives scientists a tantalizing preview of coming attractions. Collected at a range of 1.5 million miles, it shows the volcano Tvastar Catena spewing material 180 miles above the moon's north polar region.
SHADOW HEALTH: The U.S. Army's Aviation and Missile Command at Redstone Arsenal, Ala., has awarded Intelligent Automation Corp. (IAC) a contract to integrate its Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) technology onboard the U.S. Army's RQ-7A/B Shadow 200 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The system is intended to help reduce maintenance, support and turnaround time by directly linking the UAV's health status to ground maintenance personnel.
GOME-2: The Gome-2 spectrometer on Europe's Metop-A polar orbiting weather satellite has begun supplying geophysical products showing ozone and nitrogen dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere. The products, developed by German aerospace center DLR, are being released through Eumetsat's ozone satellite application facility, which generates, validates, archives and distributes timely and comprehensive records and predictions on ozone, trace gases, aerosols and surface ultraviolet radiation.
GPS UPGRADE: Raytheon Co. said March 7 that it will lead an industry team to compete for a $160 million contract to upgrade the next generation Global Positioning System Control Segment. The program will provide command, control, and mission support for current GPS Block II and III satellites, and support to existing and new interfaces. Two competitors are set to be chosen in late fiscal year 2007. The program is administered by the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif.
The U.S. Air Force risks further delay if it chooses to focus narrowly on the lifecycle costs issue in responding to the protests of its contract award of the combat, search and rescue (CSAR-X) helicopter program to Boeing, Government Accountability Office (GAO) General Counsel Michael Golden said in a March 7 interview shortly before GAO released a fuller report of its findings.
Most of the world's space agencies are teaming up with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in using their Earth-observing space assets to support protection of UNESCO natural and cultural heritage sites worldwide. The agreement is a centerpiece in a commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957, coming up March 21 at UNESCO headquarters in Paris. Paris event
FALCON 1: The second flight attempt for Space Exploration Technologies' (SpaceX) Falcon 1 launch vehicle is now set for March 19-22 from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, according to the latest update from company founder and CEO Elon Musk. The company had hoped to fly before the middle of the month until ground testing in late February uncovered a possible problem with one of the rocket's second-stage thrust vector control boards.
Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England confirmed March 6 that the Defense Department is demoting various aircraft requests as part of the $93.4 billion second supplemental request for fiscal 2007, possibly jettisoning the request's proposed Joint Strike Fighters and airlifters to pay for the troop increase in Iraq and other new needs like rehabilitating the military's medical system.
The world unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market should grow from $2.7 billion to $8.3 billion a year by 2015, a defense analyst predicted March 6. The U.S. is the dominant customer, accounting for 78 percent of spending now, but that will drop slightly to 70 percent as other parts of the world increase their spending, Steven Zaloga told an aerospace market forum presented by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and Teal Group. 'Big chunk of money'
TESTS COMPLETED: The Herschel infrared telescope has completed a series of crucial tests intended to verify the performance of its vital cryostat. The 2.5-meter high, 2-meter wide cryostat must keep Herschel's instruments at 1.7 K (-271.3 degrees Celsius) so they do not emit infrared signals that can interfere with telescope measurements. Following bakeout to remove residual water, the cryostat went through a simulated launch campaign followed by tests to monitor its behavior in ambient and deep-space conditions.
Without air power, NATO would have "lost" in Afghanistan over the past 12 months, the head of the British armed forces says. Air Chief Marshal Jock Stirrup, the Chief of the Defense Staff, made it clear to British politicians that air power - from combat aircraft to support helicopters - was a critical element of Afghan theater operations. Stirrup appeared March 6 before the British Parliament's Defense Committee to answer questions on force commitments and resources, including funding.
TANKER ANALYSIS: Congressional auditors have concluded that the U.S. Air Force's decision to include a passenger and cargo capability in its replacement refueling aircraft was made without required analyses, according to a March 6 report from the Government Accountability Office. Mandatory Air Force policy requires its organizations to use a formal capabilities-based approach toward evaluating capabilities that compete for scarce funds.
