Proposed cuts in NASA's fiscal 2006 aeronautics budget could lead to a serious erosion of U.S. economic and national security, witnesses told House lawmakers on March 16. Over the past decade, funding for aeronautics research at NASA has declined by more than half, to about $900 million a year. For FY '06, the agency is requesting $852.3 million, $54 million less than the FY '05 budget. This level would decline another 20% over the next five years under current plans, as NASA diverts personnel and resources to fulfill its space exploration goals.
HELO DELIVERY: The first of 11 Agusta A109 Light Observation Helicopters worth $72 million will be delivered to Malaysia's military in November, said Abdul Aziz Zainal, the country's military chief. The remaining 10 aircraft will be delivered in stages in 2006. The helicopters were ordered in 2003. Although the Agusta A109s are designed for reconnaissance, Malaysia's military plans to fit them with rocket launching systems, the military chief said.
CONSOLIDATION: Federal civil agency acquisition training will be moved inside defense acquisition facilities, the White House Office of Management and Budget announced March 16. The Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI) will be relocated within the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) at Fort Belvoir, Va.
The U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman are coming to terms with cost growth in the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) program that has occurred during the transition to the larger RQ-4B model, according to Northrop Grumman officials.
Testifying before a House Appropriations subcommittee on Capitol Hill March 15, Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-Mich.) asked appropriators to fully support the Bush Administration's $3.6 billion fiscal year 2006 budget request for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Lockheed Martin, having completed the critical design review of the new radar for the Navy/Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft (DAILY, March 15), is beginning to build the first engineering design model of the radar, officials of the company said. Northrop Grumman will use two such models, as well as four preproduction radars, for qualification, reliability and flight-testing.
The head of Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Ships Systems unit on March 15 called on U.S. political and military leaders to establish a "national commitment" for future shipbuilding so that the industry can "right-size" itself and plan investments and training. "The future of shipbuilding in the United States requires a national commitment," Rear Adm. Philip A. Dur (USN-Ret.), Northrop Grumman corporate vice president, told reporters in Washington. "What we can't live with are constant changes and forecast requirements."
The U.S. Defense Department's Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system has made significant progress over the past year but needs to undergo more testing to prove it can defend against long-range ballistic missiles, the Pentagon's top weapons tester said March 15. "I don't think you can say the system is operationally ready today," said David Duma, DOD's acting director of operational test and evaluation.
STRIKE ENDS: Union workers who build the F/A-22 Raptor and C-130J Super Hercules at Lockheed Martin's Marietta, Ga., plant approved a new labor contract with the company March 15, ending a week-old strike. The walkout had come at a sensitive time for both aircraft, which are under threat of Pentagon cuts.
GETTING ADVICE: Senate and House Democratic leaders Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on March 15 announced the formation of a national security advisory group to advise congressional Democrats on defense and national security policy. Former Defense Secretary William J. Perry leads the group. "Although the Democratic leadership of the Congress is convening this group, we have made it clear to Dr.
Research and engineering firm Science Applications International Corp. of San Diego has completed its sale of communications software subsidiary Telcordia Technologies Inc. to Providence Equity Partners and Warburg Pincus for about $1.3 billion in cash, SAIC said March 15. The sale of Piscataway, N.J.-based Telcordia was first announced in November (DAILY, Nov. 19). "The sale will strengthen SAIC's balance sheet and better enable us to pursue more focused strategic initiatives," Ken Dahlberg, SAIC chairman and CEO, said in a statement.
As the U.S. Navy moves into buying practically all-new kinds of ships, the service is changing its contracting practices to try to control costs and budget better, but not as much congressional investigators would like, a new report said.
The U.S. Army is dropping plans to develop a mobile version of the Tactical High Energy Laser (MTHEL) but remains "very serious" about exploring directed energy weapons, a service official said March 15.
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program "could use more time to gain knowledge before moving forward," the Government Accountability Office said March 15, because "several program changes have made the original JSF business case unexecutable." It made a similar warning about the E-10A Multi-sensor Command and Control Aircraft, saying the program could move into production "before critical knowledge is acquired," which could lead to "costly changes later in the program."
As the Bush Administration continues its push for the acquisition of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) products, several trade associations affiliated with defense, information technology and NASA are asking Congress this year to permanently exempt COTS items from the Trade Agreements and Buy American acts.
Legislators and nonprofit government oversight groups are planning to confront U.S. Army officials this week on the legitimacy of the Future Combat Systems' acquisition process.
Indonesia's defense department has proposed a budget of 56 trillion rupiah ($6.1 billion) for next year, more than double the 22 trillion rupiah ($2.3 billion) approved for 2004. The proposal must be cleared by the National Development and Planning Board before being submitted to the cabinet for approval.
United Defense Industries Inc. of Santa Clara, Calif., will provide Stryker Add-on Armor kits to the U.S. Army under a contract amendment worth up to $90.6 million, the company said. The contract was awarded by General Dynamics Land Systems. United Defense will provide 289 full-vehicle Add-on Armor kits and spares to coincide with the delivery of the fourth brigade of Strykers to the Army. Initial contract funding is $30 million.
LAV MODIFICATION: General Dynamics Land Systems - Canada will build 39 LAV III Engineer vehicles equipped with various tools under a $9 million contract modification, the company said March 14. Deliveries will take place between October 2006 and July 2007.
IED RESPONSE: The Defense Department is finalizing a new technology to thwart improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and expects to rush it into use in Iraq using new authority that allows the DOD secretary to waive acquisition regulations, according to the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) said during a March 10 hearing that the anti-IED technology is being finished at the U.S. military's testing grounds in Yuma, Ariz.
