Rep. J. Randy Forbes (R-Va.) said he expects the Defense Department and industry to gather for a "summit" of sorts on modeling and simulation (M&S) technologies later this year, he told The DAILY. Forbes, who has organized an M&S caucus in Congress to try to turn lawmakers' attention toward the technology development issue (DAILY, Feb. 7), said he does not foresee specific legislation this year for the business line. But he also wants to make sure Congress does not pass laws with unintended negative consequences on the nascent technology.
NEW DELHI - India has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation in space science and technology with Venezuela's ministry of science and technology. The MOU calls for long-term cooperation between India and Venezuela in space and includes the study of cooperative programs in satellites for space science research and remote sensing, studies related to space applications in telemedicine and tele-education, and human resource development.
Construction of the Javelin aircraft demonstrator prototype is on schedule, Aviation Technology Group (ATG) said March 7. The prototype is undergoing final assembly at ATG's research and development facilities, the company said. The first flight of the executive jet prototype is planned for "early 2005," the company said. ATG and Israel Aircraft Industries recently announced they have signed a cooperative agreement to design and build an advanced jet trainer based on the Javelin.
Norway-based Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSS) has signed a 43 million kroner ($6.9 million) contract with Orbimage Inc. of Dulles, Va., for data downloading and control of the OrbView-5 (Nextview 2) satellite, KSS said March 7. With options, the contract could be worth 199 kroners ($32 million) over a 10-year period.
The Pentagon plans to convene a high-level panel on March 8 to conduct a "status review" of the Air Force's Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle program, according to a Defense Department spokeswoman. No milestone decisions are expected to result from the Defense Acquisition Board meeting, formally known as an interim program review, the Air Force said March 7. The last such review occurred in December 2002. The Office of the Secretary of Defense received an informal update on the program in October 2003.
The top contractor for the Joint Common Missile (JCM) is insisting that it has taken steps to avert the kinds of potential cost and schedule overruns that the Defense Department is using to justify its proposal to kill the program.
DEFENSE OUTLAYS: Outlays for defense and nondefense programs have increased at about the same pace so far this fiscal year, about 7%, compared with the same period in FY 2004, the Congressional Budget Office said in its latest monthly budget review. By the end of fiscal 2005, CBO expects defense spending will be up by around 9% and nondefense spending by 6.5%. If the supplemental appropriations and other policies recently proposed by President Bush are enacted, the deficit for FY '05 will reach $394 billion.
The Global Information Grid Bandwidth Expansion (GIG-BE) program initially won't provide all of the quality-of-service features of the Defense Department's legacy telecommunications networks, but its capacity for transporting encrypted traffic will be about double, the Congressional Budget Office said. In a Feb. 28 letter to Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), one of the ranking Democrats on the Senate Armed Services Committee, the CBO said the GIG-BE eventually would provide about 10 times the encrypted capacity of a similar legacy network.
Raytheon Network Centric Systems, which is developing three ground vehicle sensors for the Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS), is adjusting to schedule changes and budget pressures caused by the Army's restructuring of FCS last year. As part of the July 2004 restructuring, most of the manned combat vehicles for FCS were pushed back two years to 2014, prompting Raytheon to try to "stretch out" its sensor schedules to match, according to Johnny Garrett, director of Raytheon Integrated Systems.
War costs should be in the baseline defense budget request, not in the supplemental request, Rep. Joel Hefley (R-Colo.), told Defense Department officials last week. Hefley, chair of the House Armed Services Committee's readiness subcommittee, said in a March 3 hearing that it's not clear why expenses such as military construction, modularity, procurement, recruiting and tuition assistance are being paid for, at least in part, by the supplemental. "Supplementals are supposed to be for surprise costs," he said.
March 7 - 8 -- 5th Annual Defense & Aerospace Investor & Corporate Development Conference, Hyatt Regency, Reston, Va. For more information go to www.srinstitute.com/cx554. March 7 - 9 -- 11th Annual Conference on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, "Platforms, Payloads & Opportunities," Hilton Arlington & Towers, Washington, D.C. For more information go to www.technologytraining.com.
AGREED: Titan Corp. says it has reached an administrative settlement agreement with the U.S. Navy that will allow it to "continue to bid, receive and perform on United States government contracts" in the wake of the company's guilty plea to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). In an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Titan pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $28 million for funneling money to an African presidential candidate, among other FCPA infractions (DAILY, March 2).
The U.S. Air Force announced late March 4 that it has ended the Boeing Co.'s 20-month suspension from space launch competitions, opening the way for the company to vie with Lockheed Martin Corp. for the next Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) contract, which likely will cover 18 to 24 launches and be awarded in 2006. Acting Air Force Secretary Peter Teets said plans for that contract will be ironed out over the next few months.
The Navy on March 4 said it successfully conducted a tactical guided flight-test of the Extended Range Guided Munition (ERGM) on Feb.16 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The unique test involved firing a Global Positioning System-guided projectile to a designated target more than 41 nautical miles away, detonating "well within the required accuracy requirement." The Navy said it was a "world record" for a precision-guided, gun-launched munition. Raytheon Co. is leading ERGM contracting.
The first aerospace prizes in NASA's Centennial Challenges program could be announced as early as this month, according to Program Manager Brant Sponberg. Modeled on 19th century navigation prizes and early 20th century aviation prizes, the Centennial Challenges program is aimed at stimulating industry to produce breakthroughs in technologies that support NASA's goals. The agency requested $20 million for the program in fiscal year 2005, but only received half that amount from Congress.
Integral Systems Inc.'s contract win of the Rapid Attack Identification Detection Reporting System (RAIDRS) program significantly boosts the company's U.S. Air Force business, according to Steven R. Chamberlain, chairman and CEO. In the last quarter, more than 50% of Integral Systems' business was already with the Air Force, and "that number's just going to keep going up," he said.
RECRUITMENT: Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, says he is "astounded" that the Army's unfunded priorities list includes $537.5 million for recruitment, retention and initial training. The Navy has identified a $20 million shortfall in its recruiting budget, Skelton says.
The U.S. Air Force plans to conduct a wide assortment of flight-tests for the Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) this year now that the stealthy cruise missile has returned to testing after a lengthy break, service and industry officials said March 4.
ORDERS UP: Sales, net income, and new orders for technical ceramic products provider Ceradyne Inc. of Costa Mesa, Calif., jumped in both the fourth quarter of 2004 and over the full year, the company said March 4. Fourth quarter 2004 sales grew 151.6% to $83.4 million and net income climbed 108.7% to $8.8 million.
BOMB BODIES: General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems of St. Petersburg, Fla., has been awarded an $89.7 million contract to produce MK80 series bomb bodies for the U.S. Army, the company said March 4. Production will include both inert and live bomb bodies in the 500-pound, 1,000-pound, and 2,000-pound case classes. The contract will be managed at the General Dynamics manufacturing facility in Garland, Texas. The work is set to be finished by July 2006. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Army Field Support Command at Rock Island, Ill.
INMARSAT 4-F1: The Inmarsat 4-F1 satellite is scheduled to launch March 10 aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla. The 15-minute launch window will open at 4:42 p.m. Eastern time. Built by EADS Astrium of Toulouse, France, Inmarsat 4F1 is a geosynchronous communications satellite weighing about 13,106 pounds (5,945 kilograms). It is the first in a new generation of satellites that will support Inmarsat's new Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN).
REVOLVING DOOR: Boeing Co.'s head lobbyist, Roselee Nichols Roberts, is returning to the House Science Committee's Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee. Roberts has been hired as a professional staff member and designee to subcommittee Chairman Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.). Previously, she was Boeing's director for legislative affairs, responsible for representing the company's interests to Congress for 17 years, including a decade with McDonnell Douglas Corp. before Boeing bought it.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) told Army Secretary Francis Harvey that the $117-billion Future Combat Systems (FCS) should be reclassified under more normal federal acquisition regulations. In a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing with the service secretaries on March 3, McCain said FCS still is budgeted as a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) item, which means the Army is "relieved of the obligation" of reporting costs and purchasing data to military auditors.
FIGHTING FRAUD: In the wake of a procurement scandal that rocked the U.S. Air Force last year, the Navy is establishing a new Naval Acquisition Integrity Office (NAIO) to serve as the service's central point of contact on the issue. The NAIO also will coordinate the Navy's anti-fraud efforts and keep a database for monitoring procurement fraud.
