COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The commander of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command expressed concern on Jan. 24 about cost and schedule troubles in Air Force space programs, saying they have a negative effect on Army capabilities and reduce the confidence of Pentagon officials in Army programs.
Basic research by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would benefit from a package of science and technology competitiveness bills being introduced in the Senate, the legislation's sponsors said Jan. 25. The three-bill package, known collectively as the Protecting America's Competitive Edge Act, seeks to revitalize science and technology education in the nation's schools and universities and also encourage corporate investment in basic research and development. Provisions of the measures would:
PREDATORS: General Atomics-Aeronautical Systems Inc. of San Diego has been awarded a $41.4 million contract by the U.S. Air Force to build five Predator B MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicles, the Defense Department said Jan. 25. The contract includes associated equipment such as initial spares, ground support equipment, pack-up kits, and Ku SATCOM antennas. The work is set to be finished by March 2008.
France is buying itself until the end of 2006 to finally determine whether to collaborate on a future aircraft carrier program with Britain. A potential deal between London and Paris appeared close to unraveling as the two haggled over costs, but the sides hammered out an agreement on Jan. 24. Under the deal, France is willing to pay 100 million pounds ($178.7 million) in three installments for design rights for the ship, with a further 40 million pounds ($71 million) earmarked for the development phase.
The Defense Department's Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) will advocate a two-war combat capacity for the U.S. military that depends on several variables such as duration of conflict and partnering with allied countries, and it will spawn eight "road maps" afterward to complete strategic planning not finished in the QDR but outlined by senior Pentagon officials, according to an Army advisor to the QDR effort.
Several countries have agreed to work with French armaments agency DGA on common specifications for a next-generation surveillance satellite ground segment.
Deputy Commerce Secretary David Sampson reaffirmed America's commitment to promoting the civilian use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) around the world during a speech in Washington Jan. 25. "President Bush is committed to providing GPS to the world," Sampson said at a GPS forum sponsored by the Space Enterprise Council. "We have a stable policy environment that promotes commercial uses of GPS, and we are constantly upgrading the system to deliver better performance."
NASA has added a second grant to promote development of Deformation Resistance Welding (DRW), bringing to more than $2 million the amount it has invested in perfecting the advanced technique. The U.S. agency added $870,000 to the $1.3 million it has already spent on DRW, which is a way to join dissimilar shapes and materials such as metal tubes, solids, sheet metal and other tubes. The technique is particularly valuable in applications that use hollow members to make structures for transportation, stationary and fluid-handling hardware.
The Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO) is having greater input into the research budgets of NASA, FAA and other JPDO-participating agencies, according to Acting Director Robert Pearce. Established in 2003, the JPDO is drawing up plans for moving to a next-generation air transportation system (NGATS) by 2025 that will be capable of handling expected increases in U.S. air traffic. The office includes representatives from FAA, NASA, the Department of Defense, and the Commerce and Homeland Security departments.
George B. Hull has been appointed to the U.S. Air Force Scientific Advisory Board. John M. Klineberg has been named chief executive officer. Thomas L. Wilson is being replaced by Klineberg.
General Dynamics on Jan. 25 reported strong earnings and revenue growth in the fourth quarter of 2005, with revenue increasing 13 percent and net earnings surging 20.8 percent. Revenue for all of 2005 also climbed 11 percent, while net earnings increased 19 percent. Fourth-quarter '05 revenue was $5.8 billion, compared to $5.2 billion for the same period in '04. Net earnings jumped from $336 million in the fourth quarter of '04 to $406 million a year later.
Richard Gilbrech has been named director of Stennis Space Center, Miss. He has served as deputy director of the agency's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., and deputy director of NASA's Engineering Safety Center. G. Scott Hubbard has accepted a position at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, Mountain View, Calif. Hubbard is currently center director at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Tom Darcy has been named executive vice president for strategic projects. Mark Sopp has been appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer.
Samuel Coleman, director of supply chain management for Patriarch Partners Management Group, an investment fund, will provide supply chain support. Peter Hokanson has been named chief financial officer. Randy Kesterson, chief operating officer, has left the company. David Langenhuizen has been appointed general manager of operations. Andrew Logan has been named chief technology officer. Robert Rene, chief executive officer, has left the company.
