The impact of the recent International Association of Machinists strike at Boeing "pervades" the new aerospace industry quarterly statistics, says Aerospace Industries Association official David Napier, although it's a negative blip on an otherwise generally positive year. An IAM strike halted Boeing's aircraft production for most of September, prompting it to say its aircraft deliveries for 2005 will drop from 320 to 290 aircraft.
JLENS AWARD: Raytheon said Nov. 15 it was awarded a $1.3 billion contract modification from the Army for the system development and demonstration phase of the Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor System (JLENS). The Defense Department approved the SDD start in August. JLENS will provide over-the-horizon detection and tracking of low-flying cruise missiles.
In light of the estimated $5 billion budget shortfall facing the space shuttle program over the next few years, Boeing is considering merging elements of its shuttle and space station engineering work forces to save money and free personnel to work on new exploration-related systems. The total engineering work force for both programs numbers roughly 800 people, according to John Elbon, Boeing's International Space Station program manager.
The Surveilling Miniature Attack Cruise Missile (SMACM), a small, loitering missile being developed by Lockheed Martin, is being considered for government-sponsored testing, according to a company official.
DRS Technologies will develop infrared sensors for next-generation imaging systems to be used on future Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites, the company said Nov. 15. The satellites will be used to gather infrared and radar data to help improve routine weather forecasting and provide early warning of severe storms. The work is being done under an $8.2 million contract from ITT Industries on behalf of NOAA, which operates and funds the GOES satellites. Including options, the work could be worth up to $38 million, DRS said.
General Dynamics Land Systems said Nov. 15 that it has been awarded a $42 million delivery order to provide 59 refurbished U.S. Army M1A1 Abrams Integrated Management tanks to the Australian military. The order is the final part of a $70 million foreign military sales contract. GDLS will disassemble, overhaul and refurbish the Abrams tanks to a like-new condition. The Abrams tanks will replace Australia's Leopard main battle tanks.
A rollover problem with the U.S. Army's Stryker vehicle that caused two fatal accidents last year has been solved through better driver training, according to Col. Peter Fuller, the Army's Stryker Brigade Combat Team program manager. For protection against rocket-propelled grenades, Stryker vehicles in Iraq are equipped with slat armor that extends roughly one and a half feet from each side of the vehicle. Because of the extra width, Stryker drivers often have to swerve off roads to give other vehicles room to pass.
Earth imagery products and services provider Orbimage Holdings Inc. of Dulles, Va., said Nov. 15 that revenue climbed for the third quarter and nine months ending Sept. 30, but its net loss worsened over both periods. The company blamed the figures on delayed purchases by international customers due to industry consolidation.
AAI, Honeywell, General Electric and Lockheed Martin all recently captured Secretary of Defense Performance-Based Logistics Awards, the Aerospace Industries Association said Nov. 15. The new awards were developed by the Defense Department, AIA, and the Defense Acquisition University to recognize top achievements in performance-based logistics, which stress performance and outcomes rather than only a product or service.
Revenue grew a record 22.3 percent and net income climbed 9.4 percent for international defense electronics company Elbit Systems Ltd. in the third quarter of 2005. The Haifa, Israel-based company said Nov. 15 that revenue for the period ending Sept. 30 grew from $223.8 million to $273.6 million, while net income surged to $14.6 million from $13.3 million for the same period the year before.
ITT Industries will produce electronic warfare systems for special operations Army helicopters under a three-year contract from the Army's Technology Applications Program Office, the company said. The work will be performed by ITT's Avionics Division in Clifton, N.J. "Our proven modular systems solution increases the survivability of these rotorcraft, and even more importantly, our warfighters," Chris Bernhardt, president of ITT Avionics, said in a statement.
The Senate voted unanimously Nov. 15 to pass its $441.6 billion fiscal 2006 defense authorization bill, including authorization for another $50 billion for ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and a flurry of last-minute amendments affecting programs. The amendments were added by agreement of the bill's managers, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner (R-Va.) and Carl Levin (Mich.), the committee's ranking Democrat, minutes before the chamber passed the measure 98-0.
A four-year, $62.5 billion extension of the U.S. Army's Future Combat Systems helped drive up the acquisition cost of major defense programs by $65 billion, according to the latest Selected Acquisition Reports. The FCS program costs increased by 63.3 percent from $99 billion to $161.4 billion due to a program restructuring that added $54 billion and a four-year extension that added $8.3 billion, the SAR said. The last SAR reported that FCS costs had gone up $6.3 billion due to the restructuring, announced in 2004 (DAILY, April 15).
NO STUDY: The Senate late Nov. 14 approved a House-Senate conference agreement on the fiscal 2006 Energy Department appropriations measure, which excluded funding for DOE to study the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator. The House approved the bill last week (DAILY, Nov. 9), clearing it for President Bush's signature. Defense appropriators also have eliminated funding to study the nuclear bunker-buster, effectively killing the proposal for another year.
The U.S. Marine Corps' Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle program is preparing for its operational assessment in January 2006 as it continues adjusting to the budget cut levied against it in the Pentagon's December 2004 program budget decision. The PBD cut $1.5 billion from the EFV program through 2011, according to Col. Mike Brogan, the Marine Corps' EFV program manager. The production quantity over that time was reduced from 461 vehicles to 208 vehicles, he said, although the cut vehicles will be produced later in the schedule.
ORION SUPPORT: India is seeking logistics support for two leased P-3C Orion aircraft, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency told Congress Nov. 14. The proposed deal, which would have Lockheed Martin and Logistics Support International supporting the Lockheed-built planes, could be worth up to $133 million.
The first of Australia's Collins-class submarines is about to begin receiving a new tactical combat system and upgraded torpedoes, Australia's defense ministry said Nov. 14. The Replacement Combat System and Heavyweight Torpedo System will be installed over the next 12 months on the HMAS Waller, Defense Minister Robert Hill said. It will be ready to start sea trials in 2007.
NASA's Ames Research Center in California is considering two mission architectures for the first lander mission in the upcoming Robotic Lunar Exploration Program, according to RLEP Program Architect Sylvia Cox. Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., has primary responsibility for executing the 2010 lander mission, informally dubbed "RLEP 2" because it is the second in the proposed series of robotic lunar explorers that will precede the return of astronauts in 2018. The first RLEP mission is the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, scheduled for 2008.
RADA Electronic Industries Ltd., which produces avionics systems and electro-optic cameras for military and commercial customers, reported lower revenue and a net loss of $1.8 million for the first nine months of fiscal 2005. The Israel-based company said last week that revenue was $9.2 million, compared with $10.6 million for the same period the year before. The $1.8 million net loss followed a profit of $476,000 for the first nine months of 2004.
Two retired U.S. Navy admirals last week laid out cases for littoral-dominance capabilities in a possible military conflict with Iran or China, adding weight to the importance of the Littoral Combat Ship and other maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance programs under development.
