In a move that echoes past budget maneuvering, the U.S. Navy says it can't afford to keep developing an alternative engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
ThyssenKrupp Technologies and EADS have signed an agreement with BAE Systems for a joint acquisition of Atlas Elektronik, a Bremen, Germany, naval systems subsidiary that the British defense company was trying to unload. Under the agreement announced Dec. 30, ThyssenKrupp will hold 60 percent of Atlas while EADS controls the rest.
Lynn Brubaker has been named to the board of directors. Brubaker was vice president/general manager for commercial aerospace for Honeywell International.
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. (LMAC) is conducting laboratory tests of a new, electrically-based flight control system for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The Electrohydrostatic Actuation System (EHAS) uses six actuators that deflect the aircraft's horizontal tail surfaces, wing trailing edge flaperons and wing leading edge flaps. Both systems are controlled by signals transmitted from a triple-redundant computer network, which receives its power from two 270-VDC electrical generators and a stand-by battery.
Greece's air force will be provided long-lead tasks for the production of 30 F-16 aircraft under a $99.7 million contract awarded to Lockheed Martin by the U.S. government, the company said. The new order includes work on 20 single-place F-16Cs, 10 two-place F-16Ds, and an option for 10 more aircraft. The program's total value is $2 billion. Lockheed Martin's portion is $1.2 billion, the company said. The new aircraft will be added to the Greek air force's fleet of F-16s. The last of the aircraft will be delivered in late 2009.
The U.S.-German Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (Grace), a pair of satellites that have been measuring tiny shifts in the Earth's gravity below them since 2002, has detected an unusual aftermath of the deadly Indian Ocean earthquake of December 2004 - a one part per billion alteration in local gravity.
Courtney B. Banks has been named vice president of homeland security for the company's Intelligence and Information Systems business. Charles Keegan has been appointed director of strategic development, airspace management and homeland security.
SPARE PARTS: Milwaukee, Wis.-based Derco Aerospace Inc. said Dec. 27 that it will provide C-130 spare parts and technical assistance to the Belgium air force's fleet of 11 C-130 aircraft. Financial terms of the four-year contract were not disclosed. The agreement has an option for renewal in 2010. Derco is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.
AIR FORCE Raytheon Aircraft Co., Wichita, Kan., is being awarded a $29,279,853 firm fixed price contract modification. The supplies and services to be procured consist of ground based training system contractor logistics support for the Joint Primary Aircraft Training Systems. The work will be complete in December 2006. At this time, $9,193,996 has been obligated. Headquarters Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (F33657-94-C-0006/P00363).
The Federal Aviation Administration is inviting public comment on proposed new safety rules applying to crew and passengers on commercial space tourism flights. FAA published the proposed rules in the Federal Register on Dec. 29 and expects to receive final approval for them this summer. They are available at http://www.faa.gov. Comments are due by Feb. 27. Industry was invited to comment on earlier draft versions of the rules last February (DAILY, Feb. 14, 2005).
F-22 PRODUCTION: While F-22 Raptor aircraft advocates haven't declared victory yet, they're at least beginning to breathe again. Program budget decision (PBD) 720, issued by the Pentagon on Christmas Eve but then quickly rescinded for some last-minute changes, confirms F-22 production at 183 and instructs the U.S. Air Force to pursue a multiyear contract with Lockheed Martin. The document also kills the B-52 Stand-Off Jammer, the Air Force's attempted re-entry into tactical electronic jamming.
Russia's Rokot launch vehicle is cleared to fly again, following an accident investigation commission ruling that its Oct. 8, 2005, failure was caused by human error and didn't represent an inherent design flaw. The mishap doomed Europe's CryoSat ice measurement mission. Several corrective measures must be implemented before Rokot flies again, but a return to flight is expected in the second quarter of 2006 with Korea's Kompsat-2.
Donald Winter, a former Northrop Grumman Corp. executive, was sworn in as U.S. Navy secretary on Jan. 3, beginning a one-year hiatus from shipbuilding decisions involving one of the Navy's top two shipbuilders, according to a deal reached with senators. In his new position, Winter leads the Navy and Marine Corps and is responsible for almost 900,000 people and an annual budget of more than $125 billion (DAILY, Jan. 4).
The U.S. Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. an $8.4 million contract for the initial system development and demonstration (SDD) of the Marine Corps' CH-53 Heavy Lift Replacement (HLR) program which includes initiating preliminary design work, the Defense Department announced late Jan. 3.
The U.S. Navy has awarded the Boeing Co. a five-year, $995 million contract for the F/A-18E/F Integrated Readiness Support Teaming (FIRST) program, the company announced Jan. 3. The new multiyear award consolidates separate FIRST contracts and will be overseen by the Naval Inventory Control Point. Boeing's team provides spares and repairs, manages obsolescent parts, adapts new technology and provides integrated logistics support for the aircraft fleet.
Many Israeli Boeing 767s at El Al and other airlines will now be able to operate with Flight Guard systems to protect against shoulder-fired missiles now that the Israeli Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) has certified the Israel Aircraft Industries/Elta Systems Ltd. equipment.
The Bush administration continues to clamp down on dissenting ideas from the Pentagon as it puts the finishing touches on future spending and force structure plans. Defense industry officials and uniformed officers are expressing concern about the lack of informed debate.
FRIGATES UPGRADE: Spain's Council of Ministers said Dec. 23 that it has authorized the awarding of an EUR 88.9 million (USD $105.3 million), three-year contract to modernize the navy frigates Numancia and Victoria. The ships are the second and third of the six-ship Santa Maria class commissioned between 1986 and 1994. They are beginning the second half of their service life, which will end in 2025-2030. The ships will be upgraded to operate in modern operations scenarios and to be compatible with new ships now entering service or being built.
CUEING SYSTEM: BAE Systems has awarded Evans & Sutherland Computer Corp. of Salt Lake City a contract to upgrade the visual cueing systems on two full-flight simulators, Evans & Sutherland said. Financial terms were not disclosed. Each simulator will receive an EPX-500 image generator and an Environment Creation Tool, which will help add more airfields and training areas to a larger geographic area.
AMC-23: A Proton rocket successfully launched SES Americom's AMC-23 communications satellite from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Dec. 28 local time. Based on Alcatel Alenia Space's Spacebus 4000 model, the satellite will provide communications services throughout the Pacific Ocean region following a few weeks of in-orbit checkouts. The flight marked the seventh and final mission of 2005 for International Launch Services, a joint launch venture between Lockheed Martin and Russia's Khrunichev that offers launches on Russian Proton and U.S. Atlas rockets.
