Lockheed Martin has begun work on a $6.6 million study contract to develop military computer systems capable of performing cognitive tasks such as deduction, reasoning and learning. Lockheed Martin received the two-year contract for the Polymorphous Computing Agent Architecture (PCAA) program in September 2004. The program is sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as part of its Architectures for Cognitive Information Processing program.
NEW DELHI - India's Defence Research and Development laboratory has called for a national policy to induct indigenous missile systems - such as the Prithvi, Trishul, Akash and Nag - into the military as soon as they are ready. India is focused on refurbishing its stockpile of missiles, but India's military often shops around for international alternatives even after domestically developed systems are ready for use.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Composite Technology Research Malaysia (CTRM) has secured a $32 million contract to manufacture and supply composite panels to Goodrich Aerostructures Group for V2500 engines.
The United States and Russia have signed an agreement to help control the spread of man-portable air defense systems, or MANPADS, President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Feb. 24 in Bratislava, Slovakia. "We agreed ... to combat MANPADS," which terrorists could use to shoot down commercial airliners, Bush said in a press conference with Putin that came as Bush was wrapping up a tour of Europe.
Defense contractor EDO Corp. reported $536.2 million in revenue for 2004, up 16.4% from 2003 and a company record. Net earnings were $29.1 million, up 96.3% from the $14.8 million reported for 2003, the company said. "This has been a very successful year, in which we have surpassed all of our major financial goals, and have converted our revenue growth into a substantially improved net income," James M. Smith, EDO's CEO, said in a statement.
Anteon International Corp. of Fairfax, Va., has been awarded a five-year, $350 million contract to design and install live training ranges (LTR) and digital multipurpose battle area complexes for the U.S. Army, the company said Feb. 23. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Army Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation.
The U.S. Air Force said Feb. 24 that it will follow a recommendation from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to hold a competition for the second phase of the Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) program. The Air Force said it expects to award a contract for the second phase, also known as Increment 2, in early fiscal 2006. Increment 2 calls for giving SDB the ability to hit moving targets.
Northrop Grumman completed its part of the U.S. Army's Extended Range/Multi-purpose (ER/MP) unmanned aerial vehicle fly-off at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., on Feb. 18, and competitor General Atomics is set to begin its demonstration flights Feb. 28. Northrop Grumman is offering the Hunter II UAV, based on the Israeli Heron UAV. The company brought three Hunter II demonstrators to Libby Army Airfield at Fort Huachuca and began flying demonstrations for Army officials on Jan. 31 (DAILY, Feb. 2).
The V-22 Osprey has received the go-ahead to undergo an operational evaluation (OPEVAL), a key test phase that is now slated to begin in "mid-March or so" and last four to five months, a program spokesman said late Feb. 24.
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.
