The Defense Department's fiscal 2007 budget request for research and development (R&D) is $74 billion, according to White House Science Adviser John Marburger, which is more than half of the government's entire R&D request for the year.
Gaylene M. McHale has been named vice president and program manager of large deck amphibious ship programs for the company's Ship Systems sector. Harry Miles has been appointed sector vice president of enterprise process development and quality.
The limitations of U.S. Air Force helicopters often pressed into search and rescue operations were underscored on Feb. 13, when a 40th Helicopter Squadron UH-1N "Huey" crew rescued an injured climber in Montana's Mission Mountain range. Although its primary mission is supporting Minuteman missile field operations, the unit also has logged 361 "saves" over several years.
DRS Technologies has received a $54 million contract to provide infrared sighting systems for U.S. Army combat vehicles, the Parsippany, N.J., company said Feb 15. The horizontal technology integration second generation forward looking infrared (HTI SGF) sighting systems will provide enhanced night vision capability to the Army's M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tank System Enhancement Package and M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) teams at the NASA Jet propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and at Lockheed Martin near Denver have shifted into final "approach phase" operations as they prepare for Mars orbit insertion March 10.
AIRCRAFT REPAIRS: Sikorsky Aircraft has been awarded a $97.5 million contract for the repair and overhaul of 10 components of H-53 helicopters, the Defense Department said Feb 15. If all options are exercised, the contract could be worth $219.2 million. The work will be done in Cherry Point, N.C., and Stratford, Conn. It is expected to be finished by February 2010. The contract was awarded by the Naval Inventory Control Point.
Bell Helicopter Textron is embarking on an aggressive four-year technology maturation program aimed at positioning the company to capture military business in the emerging vertical unmanned aerial systems market.
"We're on path to the finest Army aviation we've ever had," Army Gen. Peter Schoomaker said Feb. 15, but he also acknowledged it came at the price of major acquisition upheaval such as canceling the Comanche helicopter. Schoomaker, Army Chief of staff, told the House Armed Services Committee that "every cent" of the $12.6 billion Comanche effort was committed to upgrading other legacy helicopters.
PROVIDING SYSTEMS: Elbit Systems Ltd. said Feb. 14 that it has won a $32 million contract to supply unmanned turret systems, fire control systems and land systems to the Portuguese army. The contract was awarded by Austria-based Steyr, a part of the General Dynamics European Land Combat Systems Group, which is the program's prime contractor. The systems will be integrated into Steyr-built Pandur II 8X8 light wheeled armored vehicles, helping the Portuguese army to deploy quickly, the company said.
STRYKER REPAIRS: GM GDLS Defense Group L.L.C. of Sterling Heights, Mich., has been awarded an $18 million contract modification to repair Stryker Combat Vehicles, the Defense Department said Feb. 14. The work will be performed in Qatar and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2006. The contract was awarded by the Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command, Warren, Mich.
The Marine Corps Systems Command has chosen General Dynamics Corp.'s Armament and Technical Products unit to provide 3,858 radio-controlled Ground Mobile Electronics Counter Measure Systems to be used against improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The $289 million, competitive contract was awarded to General Dynamics after two offers were received. The jammers are headed for Iraq, where IEDs have become insurgents' deadliest weapon, and Afghanistan, where they are becoming increasingly prevalent (DAILY, Jan. 30).
Northrop Grumman Corp. received a contract in December for the presystem development and demonstration and initial design review for the E-10A Multisensor Command and Control Aircraft program, according to the Defense Department. The $280 million award, through May 2007, was made Dec. 23, 2005, but announced Feb. 13 by the DOD due to "administrative oversight and change of personnel."
CAE, which provides simulation and modeling technologies for civil aviation and military customers, said Feb. 14 that its revenue and net earnings improved in both the third quarter of fiscal 2006 and for the year to date. The Montreal-based firm reported that revenue grew from 257.5 million Canadian dollars to 276.6 million dollars for the three-month period ending Dec. 31, a 7.4 percent gain. The company posted net earnings of 17.6 million dollars for the third quarter of FY '06 after suffering a loss of 347 million dollars the year before.
PURCHASE: Moog Inc. said Feb. 14 that it has agreed to buy California-based infusion pump maker Curlin Medical LLC and two affiliated firms for $75 million. The purchase is expected to close in the first quarter of 2006. Moog makes precision control components and systems for commercial and military aircraft, satellites and space vehicles.
DATALINK THROUGHPUT: L3 Communications has won a $7.1 million contract from the Air Force to increase the production throughput of datalink systems that support the Predator, Global Hawk, MP-CDL, and TARS platforms, the company said. L3 said the work will reduce testing bottlenecks and supplier material shortages that are common to the systems. The work is set to be finished by June 2008. The contract was awarded by the Headquarters Air Force Research Lab, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Utah.
Democrats on the House Science Committee are highly critical of the Bush administration's fiscal 2007 budget request for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in a report on federal research and development (R&D) spending released Feb. 14.
The U.S. Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin Corp.'s Aeronautics unit a $136.4 million contract modification to convert the C-130J multiyear contract from a commercial-item deal to one that must meet regular military guidelines and scrutiny.
The U.S. Air Force has asked bidders for the Combat Search-and-Rescue (CSAR-X) aircraft program to amend their proposal documents to discuss how they would spend a proposed $849 million over five years, as well as improve the program's development and testing, an industry representative said. Answers are due March 27, three days before an expected review of the CSAR-X by top Pentagon acquisition officials as outlined Feb. 10 by Ken Krieg, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics (DAILY, Feb. 13).
