ANXIOUSLY AWAITING: The crew of the International Space Station is anxiously awaiting the arrival of the space shuttle Discovery and its crew, currently scheduled for Friday, July 15, according to Flight Engineer John Phillips. "I'm very anxious to see them come up here, because we've had our assembly sequence for the space station on hold for about two and a half years," Phillips says. "So I'm looking forward to getting some new lab equipment ...
CHINA RISING: China and its military and economic ambitions will be the focus of House military authorizers this week as Congress looks at China National Offshore Oil Corp.'s proposed acquisition of Unocal Corp. The House Armed Services Committee, chaired by China critic Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), will host a hearing July 13 on the national security implications of the possible merger. Slated to appear are former CIA chief James Woolsey, U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission Chairman C. Richard D'Amato and Center for Security Policy chief Frank J.
A "significant" percentage of the U.S. military's pre-positioned tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles that would be used in a war with North Korea are not fully mission capable, but that's because the Defense Department is doubling its weapons inventory for such a conflict. The information came to light during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing June 30 in a dialogue between Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), the ranking committee Democrat, and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker.
General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products will provide the U.S. Army with 168 armor tile sets for Bradley Fighting Vehicles under a $37.8 million contract modification, the company said July 7. The tiles fasten to the outside of the vehicles to provide better protection from anti-armor munitions. Rafael Armament Development Authority Ltd. Ordnance Systems of Haifa, Israel, a General Dynamics partner, will share half of the production workload. The work will be directed from General Dynamics' Burlington Technology Center in Burlington, Vt. U.S.
The U.S. Defense Department's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is tweaking the design of the Navy's carrier variant (CV) to ensure the jet performs as planned. The CV's wing area will grow to 664 square feet, an increase of 40 square feet or 6%, to meet the plane's speed goals for landing on aircraft carriers, said Navy Rear Adm. Steven Enewold, JSF's program executive officer. The increase will be hard to notice, adding only a few inches to the wing's leading and trailing edges.
NASA's network of Earth-observing satellites has revealed that global ocean levels have risen at a more rapid pace over the past 12 years than in previous decades. Over the past 50-100 years, Earth-based tide gauges have shown ocean levels rising at a rate of 1.8 millimeters (.07 inches) a year, according to NASA. By contrast, satellite data gathered since 1992 has shown that the rate has risen to 3 millimeters (.12 inches) a year.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malayasia - Thailand has agreed to buy four Mi-17 multirole helicopters worth $140 million from Russia and 132 armored vehicles from China through barter trade agreements with both countries for Thai agricultural products. The Mi-17, known as the Mi-8MT in Russia, can carry cargo with its cabin door half-open or completely removed. The Mi-17 also can operate with just one of its two engines if necessary. The helicopter can carry up to 30 troops and will be used for transport and logistics missions, Thailand army chief Pravit Wongsuwan said.
Sweden has agreed to purchase three hovercraft for its military's amphibious battalion from England-based Griffon Hovercraft, the FMV Swedish Materiel Administration said July 6. The cost of the hovercraft was not disclosed. The air-conditioned hovercraft will be used to transport people and equipment regardless of water depth or icing conditions. The hovercraft has a capacity of about 11 tons and can carry up to 50 people as well as vehicles or containers. Its cruising speed while loaded is about 35 knots, and its maximum speed is more than 42 knots.
Elbit Systems plans to buy all of Koor Industries' holdings in Elisra Electronic Systems, which Elbit's president said marks a "significant step" in the consolidation of Israel's defense industry.
The United Kingdom Ministry of Defence has extended a contract with Italy-based Selenia Communications to support Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) equipment both ashore and on navy vessels, the company said July 7. The current four-year program was extended to a fifth and sixth year. Financial terms were not disclosed. The contract covers all IFF systems, antennas and associated equipment for Type 42, CVSG, LPD, and LPH platforms, as well as shore-based establishments at HMS Collingwood and the Land-Based Test Site, Portsdown.
The competing industry teams working on the Air Force's Transformational Satellite effort are bracing for likely schedule slips as they await the final numbers on the fiscal 2006 budget cut to be levied by skeptical Capitol Hill lawmakers. House lawmakers have voted to cut the Air Force's $835.8 million FY '06 request for TSAT by $400 million, while Senate authorizers cut $200 million. The final scope of the reduction won't be known until the Senate finalizes its numbers and goes into conference with the House.
Alcatel Space will build the Thaicom 5 communications satellite for Thai satellite operator Shin Satellite Inc. to replace the aging Thaicom 1 and Thaicom 2, which are to be retired in 2008 and 2009. The contract covers delivery of the satellite, its launch and support for in-orbit testing. Thaicom 5 would allow Shin Satellite to expand its Ku-Band channels over Thailand and neighboring countries.
Congressmen are reconsidering the investment threshold and involvement that venture capital firms can have in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) recipient companies, many of which have answered the Pentagon's call for needed innovations.
United Defense's Ground Systems Division will provide seven Heavy Equipment Recovery Combat Utility Lift and Evacuation System (HERCULES) vehicles and spare parts to Australia under an $8.9 million contract, the U.S. Department of Defense said July 7. The work is to be completed by May 31, 2006.
Integrated Coast Guard Systems, the lead integrator for the U.S. Coast Guard's Deepwater recapitalization program, has reissued its call seeking suppliers that may have new technologies and product capabilities for the work.
Axsys Technologies, which supplies optical systems for the aerospace and defense markets, said it has revised its fiscal 2005 guidance upward due to its May acquisition of thermal imaging company Diversified Optical Products (DiOP). Its revenue guidance has been revised up by 15%, from $114 million to $131 million, and its operating income guidance has been revised upward by 24%, from $11 million to $13.6 million.
The U.S. National Guard Bureau is considering setting up joint squadrons of Army and Air National Guard forces to operate future light cargo aircraft, a key general said July 7. Army Lt. Gen. Steven Blum, chief of the bureau, said he is exploring setting up several joint units across the country to move people and cargo for homeland security and overseas deployments. One potential site is North Dakota, which is looking for new missions to replace the military aircraft it is slated to lose to retirement and relocation.
ManTech International Corp., which bought intelligence technology firm Gray Hawk in June, said July 7 that Gray Hawk won an $11.4 million contract from the Naval Sea Systems Command to provide modeling and simulation/tactical training applications for the Integrated Warfare Systems Program Executive Office. Under the nearly three-year contract, the ManTech unit will apply its interactive modeling and simulation to anti-submarine, anti-surface and anti-air warfare training, as well as to expeditionary, strike and electronic warfare training.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - A F-5 fighter aircraft that Indonesia bought from Israel in the 1990s and sent to California for an upgrade still is in storage because of a U.S.-imposed arms embargo and has racked up more than $1.8 million in storage fees. The aircraft was caught in the embargo established after Indonesia soldiers shot pro-independence protesters in East Timor in 1991.
Boeing Co. declined to comment on a report that airliners it sold to China contain microchips that the State Department has said have military applications and can't be sold to other countries. The Seattle Times reported July 6 that Boeing airliners sold to China between 2000 and 2003 contained the QRS11 chips, made by BEI Technologies. The inertial sensors help determine an aircraft's orientation in the air, among other things.
Raytheon Co. and the Boeing Co. have finalized a $60.8 million contract for Raytheon's "continued participation" on the Boeing-led P-8A Multimission Maritime Aircraft industry team. Under the system development and demonstration (SDD) contract, Raytheon will provide two upgraded APS-137D(V)5 maritime surveillance radars, contribute to related software design, and provide radar simulation for design labs and program reviews, Raytheon announced July 5. Before the formally negotiated contract, Raytheon worked under a letter contract.
The Titan Corp. announced July 6 that its Sea Fighter (FSF 1), the Littoral Surface Craft Experimental developed by a Titan-led team for the Office of Naval Research, successfully completed sea trials jointly required by the U.S. Navy and the American Bureau of Shipping.
