Although the situation between Boeing and the striking union representing much of the company's Delta rocket work force remains at a stalemate, some Delta employees have begun returning to work, according to a Boeing spokesman. "There are numbers of union-represented employees that are 'crossing the picket line' and coming back to work, which is a good thing for us because we want to retain their talents," Boeing spokesman Robert Villanueva said.
Raytheon Canada will build an integrated coastal surveillance radar network on the islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao for the Netherlands navy and coast guard of the Netherlands Antilles & Aruba (CGNA&A), the company said Nov. 28. The deal, worth about EUR 10 million (USD $12 million), includes long-term maintenance and training. The system mainly will be used for search and rescue and drug interdiction, and will also help combat illegal immigration, Raytheon Canada said.
A meeting of the European Space Council stressed the strategic importance of the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) initiative, the European Space Agency said Nov. 28. The council, made up of the ESA Council and the European Union Competitiveness Council, met in Brussels, Belgium. The ministers at the meeting stressed the need for an autonomous European Earth observation capability as well as GMES' role as the main European contribution to the worldwide Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), ESA said.
GROUNDBREAKING: Helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland is breaking ground on an expansion to its Philadelphia, Pa., facility. Scheduled attendees at the Nov. 29 ceremony include Giovanni Castellaneta, Italy's ambassador to the United States, Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) and Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.).
South Korea's military has created teams to battle cyber terrorism and defense industry espionage, the Korean Overseas Information Service said Nov. 28. The cyberspace team will focus on forensic computer work and other scientific methods, the country's Defense Security Command said in a statement. Foreign affairs and counterintelligence teams also have been expanded.
NASA has chosen Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., to build and launch the agency's next New Millennium spacecraft for roughly $50 million. Scheduled for launch in early 2009, the Space Technology 8 (ST-8) satellite will spend seven months validating advanced technologies in orbit for use on future NASA missions. The satellite features four payload experiments: a large, flexible solar array; a 40-meter (131-foot) deployable boom; high radiation environment electronics; and a thermal radiator.
The Pentagon is expected to decide next month whether the Air Force's Space Based Infrared System-High (SBIRS-High) program will be restructured or canceled due to cost overruns. The Defense Department plans to conduct a high-level review of the program Dec. 1, according to the Air Force. By Dec. 13, Pentagon acquisition chief Ken Krieg is due to determine whether the program will continue in its current form.
SDB RFP: The Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) Increment II, which is designed to destroy moving targets, is itself a moving target when it comes to the release date for its final request for proposals (RFP). The RFP was originally slated to come out around Nov. 4 but was delayed, first until about Nov. 21 (DAILY, Nov. 14) and now until between Dec. 1 and 7. The Air Force cannot release the RFP until the Office of the Secretary of Defense approves the acquisition strategy for SDB II, which is expected to draw bids from a Boeing-Lockheed Martin team and Raytheon.
(Editor's note: The following is excerpted from written responses by Delores M. Etter, nominated by President Bush to be assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, to written questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee. She testified Oct. 25 and was confirmed by the Senate on Oct. 28). Q: In your view, what are the major challenges that you would confront, if confirmed as ASN (RDA)?
DOD LEADS: Research and Markets, an Ireland-based consulting company, believes that U.S. government information technology spending will grow to $77.2 billion by fiscal 2010, from $60.5 billion in FY '05. The Defense, Homeland Security, Transportation, Energy, Justice and Health and Human Services departments offer the greatest opportunity for IT vendors, it says. This group accounted for 76 percent of federal business opportunity in FY '05.
President Bush on Nov. 22 signed into law bills containing NASA's fiscal 2006 budget as well as changes to the 2000 Iran Nonproliferation Act that would allow some U.S. payments to Russia in support of the International Space Station. The Senate on Nov. 8 agreed to the House's expanded version of changes to the Iran law that would allow NASA to pay to use Soyuz vehicles to reach the ISS, as well as set a hard Jan. 1, 2012, cutoff for funds flowing to Russia (DAILY, Nov. 10).
HERCULES SHOWS OFF: The nearly 8,000-mile flight of a Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules to the Dubai Air Show in the United Arab Emirates showcased the aircraft's capabilities, the company says. "The fact that this [U.S. Air Force] Reserve crew flew this 'delta to the desert' mission with payload speaks volumes about the performance capabilities of the C-130J," says Jack Crisler, the company's director for air mobility business development.
Raytheon's Complementary Low Altitude Weapon System (CLAWS) completed a successful operational test at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., and is ready for initial operational capability, the company said Nov. 22. The initial results indicate that CLAWS successfully hit all six targets and achieved all its test objectives during the three-day testing, Raytheon said.
The commercial helicopter sector of the U.S. aerospace industry is "doing quite well," said David Napier, director of the Aerospace Industries Association's Aerospace Research Center. "Last year, the commercial helicopter sector shipped a 19-year high of rotorcraft. We're ahead of last year," he told The DAILY. The sector had shipped 587 helicopters in the first three quarters of last year, but 705 this year, he said. "That's a pretty good jump.
The Department of Defense's Defense Acquisition Board won't make any final decisions concerning the future of the Joint Tactical Radio Systems program until after the DOD completes its fiscal 2007 budget request, according to a defense statement. "The details on the program are still being worked and will be decided as we complete the department's portion of the president's FY '07 budget," said a statement attributed to Ken Krieg, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics.
Nov. 28 - 29 -- SMi's Fifth Annual "Future of Unmanned Vehicles," the Hatton, London. For more information call +44 (207) 827-6000 or go to www.smi-online.co.uk. Nov. 29 -- National Defense Industrial Association's Missile Defense Quarterly Luncheon, Sheraton National, Arlington, Va. For more information call 703-522-1820 or go to www.ndia.org.
The Aerospace Industries Association and several member companies are providing the governors' offices of some states with a "toolkit" and briefings promoting local employment from foreign aerospace and defense work. The states also receive a draft letter to their congressional representatives urging Congress to reject any "buy American" legislation "that would restrict the nation's defense and aviation trade with key allies and commercial customers overseas."
CLOSER TIES: China's national space administration and the European Space Agency have signed an intergovernmental agreement for space cooperation. The deal will facilitate cooperation between ESA and China in several areas, including space science, Earth observation, telecommunications, navigation and microgravity research, ESA says. ESA and China already collaborate on some space missions, including the Dragon remote-sensing program, and ESA "looks forward to further cooperation with China and closer collaboration in ESA's space programs."
David C. Hurley has been named to the board of directors. Hurley is vice chairman of PrivatAir, a corporate aviation services company in Geneva, Switzerland.
THAAD CONTRACT: Lockheed Martin, prime contractor for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, expects to be awarded a U.S. government contract by the end of 2006 for an initial buy of production-version equipment, according to Tom McGrath, the company's THAAD program manager. The U.S. Army and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency are still determining how much equipment will be bought over the life of the program, McGrath says. McGrath also says that THAAD probably will be integrated with MDA's larger battle management system in 18 months to two years.
