U.S. military science and technology (S&T) officials are focusing on force protection measures, mainly against roadside bombs plaguing coalition forces in Iraq, as well as stronger, more reliable networks to disseminate the information new sensors and systems provide combat personnel, a panel told senators on March 9.
Key U.S. lawmakers and a congressional watchdog agency expressed concern March 9 that Pentagon spending on unmanned aerial vehicles is mushrooming without adequate coordination. Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee's tactical air panel, suggested that duplication has become a serious problem, partly because each service is acquiring UAVs without consulting the other services. He estimated there are 19 operational UAVs and another 17 under development, many of which seem to perform the same missions.
Joseph Alhadeff, David Hoffman and Richard Purcell of TRUSTe of San Francisco; D. Reed Freeman Jr. of Claria, Redwood City, Calif.; and John Sabo of Computer Associates International Inc., Herndon, Va., have been named to the Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee.
ACQUIRED: Telephonics Corp. has bought defense analysis, engineering and simulation company Systems Engineering Group of Columbia, Md. SEG will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Farmingdale, N.Y.-based Telephonics, which provides communications and command systems. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Although the margin growth for Boeing's Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) will start dropping to high single digits in the next few years, its earnings won't be affected, Boeing interim President and CEO James Bell said March 9. Boeing's IDS revenues for all of 2004 grew 11% to $30.5 billion, compared with $27.5 billion in 2003, about a 10% margin increase. IDS revenue is expected to reach about $32.5 billion in 2005 and increase another 7% in 2006, Bell said during the company's most recent earnings report (DAILY, Feb. 3).
COOLERS DELIVERED: Netherlands-based DCN has delivered the final two of six seawater/freshwater coolers for the British navy's Astute-class nuclear-powered attack (SSN) submarines, the company said. Financial terms were not disclosed. The coolers were ordered in 2001 by prime contractor BAE Systems Marine Ltd. of Glasgow, Scotland. Nuclear-powered subs use the coolers to dissipate waste heat from the nuclear power plant and auxiliary cooling circuits. Britain's Ministry of Defence ordered three Astute-class subs from BAE Systems Marine in 1997.
The Government Accountability Office has warned the U.S. Navy about the vulnerability of the planned Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) to large enemy warships. "Because the Navy focused the surface warfare threat and requirements analysis exclusively on small-boat swarms, the risks posed by larger surface threats when the LCS operates independently from nearby supporting U.S. forces have not yet been assessed," GAO investigators said in a report sent last week to the leaders of the House and Senate armed services committees.
Analytical Graphics Inc. (AGI) of Exton, Pa., was awarded two new patents in February by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, the company said March 7. One is for methods of "determining obscuration of sensors that are mounted on a spacecraft" and the other is for analysis of three-dimensional orbit maneuvers, the company said.
BUSH KEEL: Northrop Grumman Corp. on March 8 said it lowered the final keel section of the George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) aircraft carrier into place. The 700-ton lower bow unit was joined to the other keel sections in the Newport News, Va., dry dock and completes the length of the carrier, which is as long as the Empire State Building is tall. The ship is the second aircraft carrier to have the new bulbous-bow design that provides more buoyancy to the forward end of the ship and improves hull efficiency, the company said. The George H.W.
MODERNIZED: Lockheed Martin has completed the early installation of components to improve launches at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., the company said March 8. The PC-based equipment, installed 30 days earlier than required, will improve safety operations management and post-flight analysis of launch and range operations, the company said.
Now that the U.S. Air Force has lifted its sanctions against Boeing in the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program, the company hopes it may be able to avoid layoffs among its Delta IV personnel if it fares sufficiently well in the upcoming "Buy 3" round of launch assignments.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - A new command center at Cheyenne Mountain here gives military officials better tools to deal with post-9/11 threats, according to Adm. Timothy J. Keating, commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command.
The U.S. Army general in charge of United States and United Nations forces in South Korea asked Congress on March 8 to continue support for modernizing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities there. "Our intelligence transformation efforts are focused in three critical areas: improving our warning posture, modernizing legacy C4I architectures and sensor suites and improving our ability to discern intent," Gen. Leon J. LaPorte told the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC).
SUBCOMMITTEE LEADERS: The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation announced its subcommittee leadership appointments March 8. For the aviation subcommittee, Conrad Burns (R-Mont.) will chair with Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) as ranking member. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) will lead the science and space subcommittee with Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) as ranking member.
Spurred by combat injuries suffered by U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is starting a program to develop realistic-looking prosthetic arms that would be controlled by a person's nervous system.
Northrop Grumman Corp. of Los Angeles has awarded Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based Rockwell Collins a four-year, $49.6 million contract to provide avionics upgrades for 18 E-8C Joint STARS aircraft, Rockwell Collins said March 7. The upgrades will allow the aircraft to meet Communication, Navigation, and Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) requirements, the company said.
