A high-power microwave weapon likely will be demonstrated first on a sophisticated variant of an unmanned combat aircraft, followed by introduction of an operational capability on the F-22A and F-35 stealth fighters. HPM weapons, which can disable enemy electronics and scramble computers, would come as an upgrade to the fighter's radar. However, the capability will emerge first as a dedicated payload for selected unmanned combat aircraft, says George Muellner, Boeing advanced systems chief.
Reporters who had to rely on a trans-Pacific telephone hookup to cover NASA Administrator Michael Griffin's visit to China last week may want to apply the technique closer to home. China denied visas to U.S. journalists who wanted to cover Griffin's tour of Chinese space facilities, some of them run by the Peoples Liberation Army. But access to government information can be just as tricky in Washington.
CONDUCT CODE: Resumption of International Space Station assembly apparently has spurred NASA to formalize the code of conduct that station crewmembers have been using since the first of them reached the orbiting facility on Nov. 2, 2000. The agency officially adopted the code last week, unchanged from its original published draft. "It was really just a crossing of tees and dotting of eyes," explained an agency spokesman.
In following the fighter road map set down through the Quadrennial Review (QDR), the U.S. Air Force is looking for ways to stretch out the usefulness of its F-16 fleet. Pointing out that the later Block 50 and Block 52 fleet of F-16s has capabilities relevant for current conflicts, Gen. Ronald Keys says the Air Force is looking to bring earlier block 40s into the same configuration. The service is to keep flying the aircraft - designed decades ago - until the replacement Joint Strike Fighter F-35s come online.
ARMY Datapath Inc., Duluth, Ga., was awarded on Sept. 21, 2006, an $181,163,653 firm-fixed-price contract for hub satellite communications trucks, satellite transportable terminals, associated spare parts, maintenance, and contractor field service representative support. The work will be performed in Duluth, Ga., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 30, 2007. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-06-C-G410).
AUSTIN RETIRED: The amphibious transport dock USS Austin (LPD 4) was decommissioned in a ceremony at Naval Station Norfolk, Va., on Sept. 27. As the first LPD-class ship built, Austin has been involved in many firsts through its service. The ship was involved in the nation's space program as the recovery ship for Apollo 12, and part of the recovery forces for Apollo 14 and 15.
The European Defense Agency is looking for industry help in assessing future needs to allow forces to operate effectively in a conflict zone contaminated by biological warfare agents. EDA notes that "member states must plan, equip and train their military forces to operate in the unique environment created by biological warfare agents and associated hazards within the framework of [European Security and Defense Policy] operations."
House and Senate defense authorizers are turning the screws on the Army's Future Combat Systems program and demanding "a comprehensive assessment" that will determine whether the program should continue as structured, be restructured or "be terminated."
Oct. 4 - 6 -- The Global Outlook for Carbon Fiber 2006, Sofitel Atrium Hotel, Budapest, Hungary. For more information call (207) 781-9630 or go to www.intertechusa. com/cf. Oct. 8 - 9 -- Modification and Replacement Parts Association's Sixth Annual Conference, Tempe, Ariz., Mission Palms. For more information call (480) 994-3353 or email [email protected]. Oct. 9 - 11 -- Association of the U.S. Army's Annual Meeting and Exposition, Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C. For more information call (703) 841-4300 or go to www.ausa.org.
EAGLE EYE BLIND: Homeland security appropriators are declining to inject more funds into Bell Helicopter Textron's Eagle Eye tiltrotor unmanned aircraft. Appropriations conferees late last week decided to fund only the Bush administration's $4.95 million request under the Coast Guard's Deepwater recapitalization program. Proponents, including some of the Texas delegation, had hoped for a congressional plus-up. Bell officials claim that speeding up development and deployment is only a matter of funding, despite a prototype's crash earlier this year (DAILY, July 28).
Rep. Charles Dent (R-Pa.) is urging Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to talk with the U.S. Air Force about expanding the Civil Air Patrol's (CAP) mission along the Mexican and Canadian borders. In a letter to Chertoff released Sept. 29, Dent urged the secretary to negotiate with the Department of the Air Force, which oversees the volunteer Air Force auxiliary.
HYPERSONICS VALUE: The U.S. Air Force has its eyes on hypersonic weapons or platforms, but the service leadership is far from being sold on the necessity of spending its money on those capabilities right now. Gen. Ronald Keys, commander of Air Combat Command, says the Air Force can get a great deal of capability out of its existing aircraft and weapons, and heavy hypersonic investment may not be worth the price. He also says there's still much to be figured out regarding control, sensor integration and other technical issues.
ANOTHER LOOK: The U.S. Air Force will take another gander at the possibility of developing an electronic warfare (EW) version of the B-52 -- initially dubbed the B-52 stand-off jammer (SOJ). But there's a caveat -- the service will be quick to again cancel any program that triples in price the way the B-52 SOJ did the first time around. And the service is looking at other EW options. One possibility is an EW version of the F-15, although the Air Force would be reluctant to use such a valuable air combat aircraft for the EW role.
GOOD FOR NOW: Final fiscal 2007 defense appropriations are in line with industry expectations, if not the Bush administration's request, and extend any major programmatic decisions at least until the FY '08 proposal coming in February, analysts say. The $436.5 billion result -- down 6 percent from FY '06 but 4 percent above the original request -- underpins defense fundamentals through the remainder of this calendar year, but expect volatility to gradually increase on budgetary decision rumors as February approaches, they say.
RESCUE 21: House and Senate appropriators have agreed to provide the requested $39.6 million for General Dynamics Corp.'s Rescue 21 program, which is modernizing U.S. Coast Guard communications capabilities, although they have concerns. Rescue 21 has had "repeated problems with software development, cost overruns and schedule delays," they note in their conference report, causing the Coast Guard to terminate the vessel subsystem portion of the contract.
ACQUISITION: Rockwell Collins is acquiring Anzus Inc., a private software developer focused on high-speed tactical data link processing and sensor correlation for U.S. and foreign military customers, including many in NATO. Based in Poway, Calif., the real-time data exchange specialist company was founded 20 years ago and has $12 million in annual revenues. Rockwell Collins will acquire all shares of Anzus for cash and the terms were not disclosed. About 50 Anzus employees will join Rockwell Collins, which now employs 17,000 people.
China's alleged use of lasers to illuminate U.S. reconnaissance satellites is heating up the debate in Washington on whether the U.S. should strive for greater space cooperation with China. A NASA team led by Administrator Michael Griffin is returning to the U.S. after a week in Beijing to open space cooperation talks.
The U.S. Navy on Sept. 26 awarded VT Halter Marine Inc. a $1.99 million contract for the ship detail design and construction, or Phase II, of the Missile Range Instrumentation Ship [T-AGM (R)] system, the support platform for the Cobra Judy Replacement (CJR) program. The CJR program provides the platform and systems to replace the aging USNS Observation Island (OBIS) platform, treaty monitoring and verification and collection of ballistic missile defense technical data.
SBSS VENDOR: Team leaders Boeing and Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. have chosen Semiconductor Technology Associates Incorporated (STA) of San Juan Capistrano, Calif., as the supplier of a key component in the optical sensor for the Block 10 Pathfinder spacecraft in the Space Based Surveillance System (SBSS). STA's charge coupled device (CCD) will collect images onboard the SBSS spacecraft. Boeing said the selection marks a key risk reduction milestone for the program, which is being restructured by the U.S. Air Force (DAILY, Sept. 22).
COAST GUARD C4ISR: Homeland Security appropriators in Congress are lamenting the state of the Deepwater recapitalization program's information technology modernization component, even though it has been spotlighted as a successful Deepwater upgrade. Intended to provide an automatic identification system (AIS) and access to the Pentagon's classified Secret Internet Protocol Router Network, the C4ISR design efforts is over cost and behind schedule, according to a Coast Guard report provided to appropriators in August.
F-117 WEAPONS: The U.S. Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin Corp. a six-year, $1.4 billion contract for the Total System Support Partnership (TSSP) II effort, which provides continued sustainment support for the F-117 weapon system. Solicitations began in December 2005 but negotiations weren't complete until last month. In recent years, anxious lawmakers have enacted provisions blocking the retirement of F-117 Stealth Fighter.
