The world's military forces will spend a total of $11 billion purchasing 6,000 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) through 2013, according to a new report by Forecast International Inc. U.S. companies will control more than half of this market's total value and will produce far more UAVs, ground control stations and payloads than any of their competitors, the report says. The leading firms are expected to be Global Hawk manufacturer Northrop Grumman and Predator manufacturer General Atomics.
LONDON - The Franco-German defense giant European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. (EADS), a major partner in the Eurofighter Typhoon multirole aircraft consortium, is blaming the British government for holding up a second production run of 236 aircraft, a delay it says could add to the program's final cost.
A recent report prepared by the deputy undersecretary of defense for industrial policy recommends that the Department of Defense (DOD) focus on new rotorcraft concepts and programs - including heavy-lift - to stimulate the U.S. rotorcraft industrial base.
ITT Industries completed its purchase of the Remote Sensing Systems (RSS) business from Eastman Kodak Co. for $725 million, forming its new Space Systems Division, ITT said Aug. 13. RSS supplies high-resolution satellite imaging systems and information services.
A classified National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) satellite is awaiting launch on a Lockheed Martin Atlas IIAS later this month from Cape Canaveral, Fla., as soon as possibly faulty transistors in the rocket's avionics are replaced.
NO SALE: Reinhold Industries Inc., a California-based manufacturer of heat-resistant composite components for rocket propulsion, has decided not to pursue a change-in-control transaction, such as a merger or sale, the company says. "Reinhold Industries has completed the review of strategic alternatives for maximizing shareholder value announced in September 2003 ... [it has] been working with its financial advisor, William Blair & Co.
ROBOT AGNOSTIC: Steven Beckwith, director of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), is "agnostic" on the subject of robotic versus space shuttle servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope. Although Beckwith at first favored shuttle servicing because of its proven track record, his view has been "shifting" recently, he says. While shuttle visits have been limited to 10 days and no more than five spacewalks, a robotic spacecraft could work on Hubble for weeks or months if necessary, Beckwith says.
Lockheed Martin Corp. has formed a network logistics enterprise to help the Department of Defense (DOD) meet its logistics needs through net-centric systems, said Scott Conover, senior manager for Lockheed Martin's Focused Logistics Enterprise. "The new group will consult with DOD leadership to understand what they're doing, and say, 'Here is what industry can do to help,'" Conover told The DAILY.
APACHE DEFENSE: The U.S. Army has signed a contract with BAE Systems Avionics Group to supply electronic warfare equipment and engineering and support for Greek Apache helicopters, the company said. The Helicopter Integrated Defense Aids System (HIDAS) counters, prioritizes, identifies and detects threats to Apache helicopters without crew intervention. The U.S. Army must produce the EW systems for the Greek air force because it is a foreign military sale. The HIDAS produces a comprehensive tactical picture with information from its multispectral threat warning sensors.
The Department of Defense (DOD) needs to develop a detailed implementation plan for carrying out its strategy to nurture a "space cadre," according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
LIVING DOCUMENT: A memorandum of agreement between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Navy's Military Sealift Command (MSC) is "a living document" that will change as needed to keep current with the times, U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Joe Paitl says. The Coast Guard and the MSC have established procedures regarding the inspection and certification of MSC's U.S. Naval fleet by the Coast Guard. The new MOA replaces one from November 1997 and will be reviewed at least every two years and updated based on feedback, regulatory and statutory changes and the national defense climate.
HOMELAND SECURITY: With a $6 million contract from the Department of Defense's Counter-Narcoterrorism Technology Program Office, Raytheon Co. will demonstrate an integrated systems approach for the defense of maritime domains, such as ports, shorelines and sea lanes, against maritime-based homeland security threats, the company says.
NetJets Inc. has agreed to purchase 50 AirCell ST 3100 satellite communications systems from Iridium Satellite LLC for its Raytheon Hawker 400XP light business jets, Iridium said Aug. 5. The systems will provide worldwide data and voice services to Netjets on the ground and at all altitudes through Iridium's 66 low-earth orbiting satellites. The satellite phone systems will be installed into the 400XPs before their retail delivery at Raytheon Aircraft Services in San Antonio, Texas.
The U.S. Air Force's B-2 Spirit bomber is expected soon to achieve key milestones for improving its stealth and radar technology, sources said Aug. 13.
SPACE TRIP: Russian Federal Space Agency sources have confirmed that a St. Petersburg business executive is likely to be the next "space tourist," flying in October to the International Space Station on a Soyuz TMA-5. Sergei Polonsky, 32, is president of Stroimontazh, a major Russian construction firm. He passed a cosmonaut preparation course in Star City in September 2002. Polonsky has had to pay an estimated $14-15 million for the trip. A final decision on the flight is due this week at the meeting of a state commission to approve the Soyuz crew.
The organization of the intelligence community remains at the forefront of congressional scrutiny this week as several House and Senate committees continue to explore the implications of the 9/11 Commission's report on the nation's defense intelligence agencies. Lawmakers will return to Washington to continue a series of hearings on the recommendations from the commission, formally known as the National Commission on the Terrorist Attacks Upon America.
Aug. 16 - 19 -- 2004 Space and Missile Defense Conference and Exhibition, Missile Defense: Deployment and Beyond, Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama. For more information go to www.ndia.org. Aug. 23 - 26 -- Joint ADL Co-Lab Implementation Fest 2004: Achieving the Military's Needs Through ADL, Holiday Inn Select UCF, Colorado, Fla. For more information contact Patrick Rowe at (703) 247-9471 or go to www.trainingsystems.org/events.
NEW APPROACH: The Pentagon's Office of Force Transformation (OFT) is trying to bring "a new business model and a different approach to risk" to military space, according to OFT Director Vice Adm. Arthur Cebrowski (USN-Ret.). "What we've said is, let's stand this whole thing on its head and start by focusing at the tactical and operational levels of war with a different business model," Cebrowski says. Because of advances in information technology, capability per kilogram put in orbit is "absolutely soaring," he says.
ASC REVAMPING: The U.S. Air Force's Aeronautical Systems Center (ASC) is revamping itself to improve the way it acquires, modernizes and sustains aircraft. To streamline the organization, ASC is replacing more than 40 separate acquisition system program offices with seven acquisition wings and groups that will focus on combat support systems, fighters, long-range strike, mobility, reconnaissance, special operations forces and training systems. Lt. Gen.
JASSM LEADERSHIP: The Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) is getting a new leader. Dale Bridges, who has been with the U.S. Air Force-led program for more than five years, most recently as program manager, is leaving to take a technical leadership position with the 46th Test Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. He is being replaced by Col. Jim Geurts, who has overseen several area attack systems, including the Sensor Fuzed Weapon and the Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser.
Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-N.Y.) will take the helm of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence as acting chairman in the wake of Rep. Porter Goss' (R-Fla.) nomination for director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The House leadership this week asked Boehlert to step in for Goss on an interim basis until a decision is made on a temporary or permanent replacement.
SENTEL CORP. has awarded General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, a contract to provide the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center in Fallon, Nev., with unmanned aerial vehicle training support. General Dynamics will provide the Aerostar UAV systems and various payloads licensed from Aeronautics Defense Systems, Ltd., in Israel. Mission operations and support personnel will also be provided. Training support will begin in September 2004 and last at least six months.
CAE has sold Japan Airlines International a CAE-built Boeing 777-200ER full-flight simulator, the company said Aug. 9. The contract is valued at $16 million. The simulator is set to be delivered in spring 2006. The simulator will be equipped with a CAE Tropos visual system, which gives pilots visual cues through advanced real-time lighting and shading, enhanced weather effects, and satellite imagery.
