Connecticut's two Democratic senators will push to cancel the U.S. Navy's recent contract award to build the next fleet of presidential helicopters to an international team led by Lockheed Martin Corp. Sens. Christopher Dodd and Joseph Lieberman will introduce the Senate version of legislation already introduced in the House by Reps. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.) and Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.). The senators plan to introduce the Senate version of H.R. 459 as soon as the Senate reconvenes Feb. 28.
LASER DELIVERED: BAE Systems Avionics delivered to Lockheed Martin the first laser system for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter's Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS) in Scotland on Feb. 23, Lockheed Martin said. BAE Systems Avionics, based in Basildon, England, is a subcontractor to Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin on the JSF program. The laser was delivered on schedule. The JSF EOTS laser system enables precision-range measurements and designates tactical targets for laser-guided weapons.
The Boeing Co. is considering changing its production strategy for KC-767 tankers to make the refueling aircraft more competitive for a potential U.S. Air Force acquisition program, company officials said Feb. 24.
ASW TARGETS: A Lockheed Martin Corp. subsidiary has entered into a joint venture with Granite State Manufacturing of Manchester, N.H., for a $14.9 million contract to manufacture the U.S. Navy's MK 30 MOD 2 Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Target System. The contract's total value could exceed $100 million. MK 30 targets are used on acoustic tracking ranges for crew training of ASW-capable surface ships, submarines, fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters.
In another blow to the Boeing Co. in the wake of the Darleen Druyun hiring scandal, the Government Accountability Office said Feb. 24 that the U.S. Air Force should recompete a portion of the C-130 Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) and should consider reopening the whole contract.
General Dynamics European Land Combat Systems has agreed with the government of Portugal on a $482 million (365 million euro) contract to produce 260 Pandur II eight-wheeled, all-wheel-drive (8x8) armored combat vehicles, the company said Feb. 22. Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeug GmbH, a General Dynamics company in Vienna, Austria, will serve as program manager and system integrator. Other General Dynamics European Land Combat Systems elements in Europe will also participate. Vehicle co-production will take place in Portugal.
Canada has decided not to proceed with the United States on a joint missile defense plan, the country's foreign minister said Feb. 24. Pierre Pettigrew said Canada would opt out of the multibillion-dollar scheme, putting an end to nearly two years of debate, according to press reports from Toronto. Pettigrew also said Ottawa would remain a close ally of Washington in the fight against global terrorism and continental security, the Associated Press reported.
A number of efficiency-enhancing tools developed under NASA's recently completed Advanced Air Transportation Technologies (AATT) project are being used today in busy airports, according to the agency.
GLOBAL FLYER: The Virgin Atlantic Global Flyer team is eyeing March 1 and 2 as possible dates when pilot Steve Fossett will attempt to become the first person to fly an aircraft around the globe solo without stopping or refueling. "Since we believe we are completely prepared, the takeoff will be on the first good day," the team said in a statement. Fossett will take off from Salina Municipal Airport in Kansas, cross into Canada, then pass over Newfoundland and cross the Atlantic.
General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems of Arlington, Va., has been awarded a $10.7 million contract modification to produce equipment for the Multi-Purpose Processor (MPP) submarine program, the company said Feb. 23. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Navy's Naval Sea Systems Command. The MPP allows submarines to process data collected by towed and hull sensor arrays.
The U.S. Navy has told lawmakers that it has $3.7 billion worth of equipment needs and other requirements that are not funded in the Bush Administration's fiscal 2006 budget request. In a letter accompanying the Navy's FY '06 "unfunded priority list," which was recently submitted to Congress, Adm. Vern Clark, chief of naval operations, wrote that the shortfalls exist despite funding increases that the Navy has received in regular defense budgets and in supplemental appropriations bills.
A consortium has been formed to develop the common operating system for the Joint Unmanned Combat Air System (J-UCAS) program, which will be capable of seamlessly functioning with both Boeing and Northrop Grumman's J-UCAS aircraft.
The private sector can help U.S. homeland defense by providing quick, commercially available software for information sharing and situational awareness, as well as near space-based sensors for tracking maritime security threats, the combatant commander in charge of U.S. homeland defense, Adm. Timothy J. Keating, said Feb. 23. But Keating, commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command and the U.S. Northern Command, also said it is "naive" to think that answers to information sharing and situational awareness simply can be bought.
The United Arab Emirates has awarded Rheinmetall Marine Systems of Germany a 4.5 million euro ($6 million) contract to supply and install its multi-ammunition softkill system (MASS) on four Baynunah-class multi-purpose missile corvettes that are under construction, the company said. The first MASS delivery is set for 2006. Each corvette will have a two-launcher MASS. MASS is a countermeasures system with decoys that protects ships from guided missiles.
Australia will spend $35 million on equipment to improve the fighting capability and safety of its army's infantry battalions, the Department of Defence said Feb. 22. The project is part of the army's Project Wundurra to monitor emerging technologies. The equipment is set to be delivered within 18 months.
NO SALE: NASA has canceled the proposed public sale of tires and main landing gear that have flown on the space shuttle. The agency had planned to make the items available for inspection at Kennedy Space Center in Florida later this month and open bidding on March 15. Instead, the sale is "cancelled due to withdrawal of property by NASA headquarters for future exhibits," NASA said.
Barbara R. Smith has been appointed chief financial officer. Simon Raab will begin sharing his CEO duties with President and Chief Operating Officer Jay Freeland in March 2006.
The Canadian government has awarded the Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Sperry Marine business unit a $9.7 million contract to supply advanced inertial navigation systems for its four Victoria-class submarines, the company said Feb. 22. Charlotte, Va.-based Sperry Marine will supply MK49 ring laser gyro (RLG) systems and new-generation navigation distribution systems for the subs. The systems will be installed in 2005 and 2006.
A group of congressmen is sponsoring legislation that directs nine federal agencies, led by the Labor Department, to form a task force for developing strategies to expand public and private aerospace job training programs. The Aerospace Industries Association on Feb. 23 endorsed the proposal, saying it would ask the federal government to address a "looming shortage of qualified workers in the sector." The average age of U.S. aerospace employees is older than 50, AIA said. In 2008, 27% of aerospace workers will become eligible for retirement.
Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) has reached an agreement with China Telecommunications Broadcast Satellite Corp. (ChinaSat) regarding the SS/L-built ChinaSat 8 spacecraft, whose delivery has been held up since 1998 by U.S. export licensing restrictions.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Air Force Space Command is eyeing the possibility of moving the satellite-tracking Space Control Center from its current location in Cheyenne Mountain to the command's headquarters at nearby Peterson Air Force Base, an Air Force spokeswoman said. "We're looking at options to meet new requirements, the best way to do business, and right now it's a proposed plan," Capt. Angie Blair said.
