INNOVATION: The U.S. Navy is establishing a Naval Innovation Lab to develop new ways to tackle emerging technology problems faced in the global war on terror. The assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, currently John J. Young Jr., will lead the effort. It is supposed to expand the current roles and capabilities of established requirements, as well as materiel development and acquisition commands, to better respond to new threats.
Marine Gen. Peter Pace was nominated by President Bush April 22 to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Pace would succeed Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, who is retiring on Sept. 30. Pace currently is vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Bush also nominated Navy Adm. Edmund Giambastiani Jr. as vice chairman.
Raytheon Co. is making a big push this year to spark foreign interest in its Surfaced Launched AMRAAM (SL-AMRAAM), now that two U.S. military services are close to acquiring the air defense system, company officials said April 22.
The Boeing Co. has been awarded its first production contract for the Small Diameter Bomb (SDB), the Defense Department announced late April 22. The low-rate production contract is worth $18.5 million and will provide the U.S. Air Force with 201 SDBs and 35 carriages. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2006, and the F-15E is to be the first plane to carry the small smart munition.
STAYING TRUE: Adm. Michael Mullen, expected to be the next chief of naval operations, says he will continue the Sea Power 21 concept laid down by Adm. Vern Clark, who retires this summer. "I intend to remain true to the vision," he tells senators. "We must continue to refine and accelerate Sea Power 21, particularly sea basing and ForceNet capabilities." According to Mullen, three challenges lay ahead for the Navy: the need to preserve current readiness, to build a Navy for the future, and to reshape the Navy's uniform and civilian manpower system.
Armor Holdings Inc. of Jacksonville, Fla., has been awarded a $31.1 million contract modification to provide add-on armor for U.S. Army heavy trucks, the company said April 22. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command. The work will be done in Phoenix, Ariz., and includes an option for additional quantities, the company said. The armor is to be delivered this year, and Armor Holdings said it will help support troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
WITHOUT GPS: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Special Projects Office plans to release two Broad Agency Announcements later this month for the Robust Surface Navigation via Signals of Opportunity (RSN) and Sub-Surface Navigation via Signals of Opportunity (SSN) programs. The goal of these programs is to extend geolocation and navigation capability to areas where Global Positioning System signals are inadequate or are being jammed. DARPA envisions the technology serving everything from aircraft to ground forces in urban interiors.
The U.S. Navy may have to increase its purchase of Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets if the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is delayed again or if aging Boeing F/A-18A-D Hornets prove less durable than hoped, a service official said April 21.
Orbital Sciences Corp. announced revenues of $167.1 million for the first quarter of 2005, a 10% increase over the same period last year, spurred by satellite and launch vehicle sales. The company's operating income for the first quarter was $12.2 million, compared with $14.2 million for the same quarter last year. Net income was $6.2 million, or $0.10 per diluted share.
An agreement to develop the Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) is expected to be signed by German officials within days, now that their parliament has given the go-ahead, industry officials said April 21.
Raytheon Australia will join Lockheed Martin on the Australian navy's Air Warfare Destroyer program as the domestic Combat System-System Engineer (CSSE), Robert Hill, Australia's defense minister, said in a statement. Lockheed Martin was tapped last year to provide the Aegis Weapon System for the three-ship program.
The U.S. Senate late April 20 approved a move sponsored by Georgia's two Republican senators to bar the Pentagon from spending funds included in the fiscal 2005 supplemental funding bill to kill the Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules program.
Raytheon Co. said it was awarded a $44 million contract to provide 42 of its ALR-67(V)3 radar warning receiver system for the U.S. Navy. The ALR-67(V)3, onboard F/A-18E/F carrier-based tactical aircraft, recently completed a successful initial deployment in Iraq, the company said April 20.
The Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus, a 71-member group advocating increased naval ship construction and fleet size, will push to boost the $6.3 billion fiscal 2006 shipbuilding budget by $984 million and is crafting legislation to limit Defense Department leasing of foreign-built ships to two years.
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. of Stratford, Conn., was awarded a $5.4 million contract modification for the fiscal 2005 Special Progressive Aircraft Rework of one VH-60N Executive Helicopter, which flies the U.S. president.
BODY ARMOR: Ceradyne Inc. said April 21 that it has received an $8.5 million order to provide its ceramic body armor system to protect "certain elite U.S. military personnel." The order is scheduled to begin shipping in June 2006 and be completed by March 2007, the Costa Mesa, Calif.-based company said. Ceradyne reported a similar $5.3 million order in February (DAILY, Feb. 18).
President Bush's nominee to be the next undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics pledged April 21 to work with Congress to address lawmakers' concerns about procurement integrity, program cost and schedule growth and industrial base issues.
Thales will provide simulators for Eurocopter Tiger helicopter aircrews under a 236 million euro ($306.8 million) contract from OCCAR, the European armaments agency. The contract calls for complete simulation facilities at the French-German Tiger training center in Le Luc, France, and four operational units in France and Germany. In all, the company is to provide nine full-flight mission simulators and nine trainers, as well as support systems. The contract has an option for another 11 simulators.
If shuttle Discovery's scheduled May 22 launch is delayed further, NASA could consider launching the orbiter up to a few days after the nominal cutoff date of June 3, according to shuttle managers. The June 3 deadline was dictated by the safety requirement that the shuttle lift off in adequate daylight to ensure high-quality pictures of the launch and external tank (ET) separation.
FCS WORK: General Dynamics C4 Systems will expand its command and control systems integration work for the Army's Future Combat Systems under a $75 million contract from FCS leads Boeing and SAIC, the company said April 21. The new work includes delivering the largest battle command software package for FCS.
Singapore has dropped the Eurofighter Typhoon from consideration in its next fighter aircraft program, leaving the French Dassault-built Rafale and the U.S. Boeing F-15 in the $2 billion, 20-plane competition. The same two jets were finalists in South Korea's recent competition for a new fighter, which the F-15 won. Singapore, which has slipped its final decision several times, now is expected to choose a winner in the second quarter of this year. The new planes will replace aging A-4s and F-5s.
Korea Aerospace Industries Co. (KAIC) delivered the first batch of wings and forward fuselages to Boeing for South Korea's F-15K fighters on April 18. The work is being done under a contract that KAIC signed with Boeing in May 2002.
