PAKISTANI ORIONS: The U.S. Naval Air Systems Command is awarding Lockheed Martin Corp.'s Maritime Systems and Sensors unit a $186.5 million contract modification for fabrication, integration and testing of seven P-3 Orion aircraft missions systems for Pakistan. The modification includes a fully capable Inverse Synthetic-Aperture Radar ISAR/SAR, electronic-support measures, an acoustic system, an electro-optical/infrared system, a communication system and an intercommunication system. The Foreign Military Sale also covers installation of P-3 mission systems.
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program made some key strides in 2006 - shoring up international support with important contract moves and retaining support in Congress and the Pentagon. But the aircraft still faces budgetary battles, analysts say, especially as the Air Force continues to hunt for more F-22 Raptors. "On JSF, the level of international participation acts as insurance against the U.S. canceling the program," said Ray Jaworowski, defense aircraft analyst for Forecast International.
Florida has not met 2005 defense realignment and closure (BRAC) requirements to relocate the U.S. Navy's East Coast Master Jet Base from Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, Va., to former NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville, Fla., according to the Defense Department's acting inspector general (IG).
The five agencies involved in the International Space Station say plans to launch initial European and Japanese elements to the orbital facility are on track, but acknowledge the schedule will be tenuous.
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency's (MDA) Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system scored a successful intercept Jan. 26 during its first test at the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii.
The U.S. Navy is exploring the use of commercial software for managing aviation spare parts inventory that some estimate could save several hundred million dollars annually. The Navy hopes that commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software can improve its Readiness Based Sparing (RBS) process, which identifies the best mix of spare parts required to keep a military system at its desired readiness level. The service has a roughly $10 billion annual aircraft spares inventory, so even a small percentage reduction could add up to significant savings.
Jan. 29 - 30 -- SMi: Future MRO in Civil Aviation, London. For more information call +44 (0) 20 7827 6000, fax: +44 (0) 20 7827 6001, email: [email protected]. Jan. 31 - Feb. 1 -- International Quality & Productivity Center's Air Dominance India 2007: "Shaping India's Future Aerospace Capacity," ITC Hotel Maurya Sheraton & Towers, New Delhi. For more information call +65 (67) 229-388 or go to www.iqpc.com.
FRESH START: The Pentagon has endowed the defunct Joint Common Missile, which was mired with fits and starts of support from the Army and Navy, with a new name for its rebirth in the fiscal 2008 budget. Both services are expected to include procurement funding in their upcoming spending plans for the Joint Air-to-Ground Missile, which will replace a host of existing programs, including air-launched TOW, Hellfire and Maverick missiles. JCM was terminated in the fiscal 2006 budget request. But supportive Pentagon civilians reviewed the program and moved it forward.
KEYS' 'MELTDOWN': The F-22 Raptor's "embarrassing success" has created a need for rapid modification of the fighter, says Air Force Gen. Ronald Keys, chief of Air Combat Command. ACC wants a stealthy "tactical target network" data link that can quickly pass key parameters on enemy targets without giving away its position. In initial exercises, the F-22 "was much better at [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] and absorbing signals than we had anticipated," Keys says. "There is capacity in there that we hadn't dreamed of.
WEIGHT WATCHERS: NASA will get its next comprehensive weight estimates on the Ares I rocket and Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle this spring after the system completes its ongoing system of systems requirements review. The Orion, which the Ares I will boost to orbit, is running about 3,000 pounds over its target of 50,231 pounds. The Ares I will be capable of delivering 58,000 pounds to low-Earth orbit for a lunar mission, which includes 8,102 pounds marked off as performance reserve.
NUMBERS SUFFICIENT: Senators opposed to the Bush administration plan to send an additional 21,500 U.S. troops into Iraq say it won't be enough based on the metrics of the new Army-Marine Corps counterinsurgency field manual. The revised manual, overseen by Lt. Gen. David Petraeus, the new commander in Iraq, calls for a ratio of one soldier for every 20 residents of a municipality. That formula calls for 120,000 U.S. and Iraqi troops to secure the 6 million residents of Baghdad - far more than the anticipated 85,000 troops going there. But retired Gen.
BETTER RADAR: Air Force Gen. Ronald Keys, chief of Air Combat Command, also wants to equip a core of the Air Force's least-old older aircraft with even better radar capabilities than the F-22's, but not including multisensor fusion. He looks to active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars, with a predicted range up to 250 miles and jamming capability, first on 220 F-15E Strike Eagles, next on 178 F-15C Eagles and, perhaps, "some of the F-16C super Block 50s." The F-16s "might make sense," he says.
EVALUATION CONTINUES: The Active Denial System, the Defense Department's first nonlethal directed-energy weapon, has been assigned to the 820th Security Forces Group at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., for an "extended-user evaluation phase" of the advanced concept technology demonstration. The 820th will incorporate the ADS into its training and exercise plan until mid-2007, officials said as they unveiled the potential weapon last week.
The Expedition 14 crew onboard the International Space Station (ISS) is preparing to perform three spacewalks in quick succession that will upgrade the Destiny Laboratory's cooling system and prepare the orbital outpost for further construction. All three of the upcoming extravehicular activities (EVAs) will be conducted from the U.S. Quest airlock in U.S. spacesuits. Expedition 14 Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria and Flight Engineer Suni Williams will perform a six and a half hour EVA on Jan. 31, another on Feb. 4 and another on Feb. 8.
CASEY CLEAR: U.S. Army Gen. George Casey, the outgoing commander of coalition forces in Iraq, should receive Senate blessings to become the service's next chief of staff, according to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.). He told reporters Jan. 26 that he knew of no opposition that would block Casey, whom President Bush nominated earlier this month to succeed retiring Gen. Peter Schoomaker (DAILY, Jan. 8). Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), who leads Republicans on the Armed Services Committee, raised doubt about Casey's nomination Jan.
Iran has converted a powerful ballistic missile into a satellite launch vehicle, according to Alaoddin Boroujerdi, chairman of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission. Aviation Week & Space Technology reports in its Jan. 29 issue that the 25-30 ton rocket could be a wolf in sheep's clothing to test longer range Iranian missile technologies during satellite launches. Aviation Week broke the story on its Web site Aviationweek.com Jan. 25.
TURKISH JSF: U.S. and Turkish officials have signed a memorandum of understanding to begin cooperation in the production, sustainment, and follow-on development of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. Similar memos previously were struck with the Netherlands, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, but still await signatures from Italy, Denmark and Norway. U.S. officials said Jan. 26 that they should be finalized by the end of February.
TANKER RFP: The U.S. Air Force is set to release the formal request for proposals (RFP) for the $200 billion KC-X aerial refueler competition on Jan. 30. The final RFP defines an integrated, capability-based, best-value approach, an Air Force statement said. "Along with cost and assessments of past performance and proposal risk, these factors provide the source selection authority with means to determine the best value between proposals of significantly differing capabilities and cost," the service said Jan. 26.
MORE ADVICE: There's more advice to the Pentagon to slow its plans to spend roughly $16 billion for the Maritime Prepositioning Force (Future) (MPF(F)) program. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) says the Defense Department has not developed a comprehensive management approach to guide and assess joint seabasing. In a report issued Jan.
