Raytheon Co. successfully fired five Extended Range Guided Munition ballistic rounds from a gun on Oct. 23, the company said Oct. 25. The tests, at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz., showed that the propellant charge performed to expectations and achieved the predicted rocket motor ignition and burn rate, Raytheon said. The five-inch, rocket-assisted ERGM is aimed at allowing surface ships to provide fire support to on-shore forces.
UNDER CONSTRUCTION: The 100th center fuselage for a Eurofighter production aircraft is undergoing equipment assembly at EADS Military Aircraft's Manching, Germany, plant, the company said. The component will be part of the seventh Spanish single-seat fighter, EADS said.
Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka and NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Fincke returned to Earth on Oct. 23 after a six-month stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS), landing safely in Kazakhstan at 7:36 p.m. CDT.
Edgewood, N.Y.-based CPI Aerostructures Inc. has received an accelerated $7.1 million order from the U.S. Air Force under the T-38 Talon trainer aircraft program, the company said Oct. 25.
CLOSING THE GAP: Boeing is seeking international sales to fill a six-month gap in the production of the AH-64 Apache helicopter that is set to occur from March to September 2007, according to Al Winn, the company's vice president for Apache programs. "We do not want to shut the line down," Winn said at a press briefing held during the Association of the U.S. Army's annual meeting in Washington on Oct. 25. The gap is shrinking, Winn said, and the company has until the middle of next year to fill it completely.
The U.S. Army still awaits an official waiver from the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) that would allow it to buy nearly 6,000 MicroLight portable radios for dismounted soldiers, according to manufacturer Raytheon. OSD requires a waiver when a service wants to buy a radio system that is outside of the upcoming Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS), even if the system is JTRS-compliant. MicroLight is the radio for the Army's Land Warrior program, according to Raytheon (DAILY, Sept. 14).
Aerojet of Sacramento, Calif., has conducted a successful hot-fire test program for a nontoxic reaction control engine (RCE) that would use liquid oxygen and ethanol as propellants, the company said last week. The RCE is being developed for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Ala., for possible use in the agency's new space exploration initiative. The testing validated the use of the engine in steady state and pulse mode, meaning it could be used for ascent, on-orbit and re-entry operations, the company said.
BOEING DIVIDEND: The Boeing Co. will pay a quarterly dividend of 20 cents per share, the company's board of directors declared Oct. 25. The dividend is payable Dec. 3 to shareholders of record at the close of business on Nov. 12.
Australia is seeking an Australian company to provide combat systems engineering to support the country's Air Warfare Destroyer (AWD) program, the department of defense said Oct. 23. A request for proposals (RFP) for the combat system opens Oct. 25 and will remain open for about eight weeks. A contractor is expected to be appointed by March 2005. Australia issued an RFP for the navy's Air Warfare Destroyers last week.
The U.S. Navy plans to award a contract to demonstrate solid rocket motor technology for a projected submarine-launched intermediate range ballistic missile. The service's Strategic Systems Program Office asked industry for input on an SLIRBM in August 2003. In May 2004, it asked for detailed cost and technical information on development and production of a propulsion system for such a missile.
Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) has acquired Virginia-based high-technology information services company Presearch Inc., SAIC announced Oct. 25. SAIC is a research and engineering company providing information technology and systems integration. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems (J-UCAS) demonstration program plans to conduct final reviews of its two air vehicle designs in the summer of 2005, according to a program spokeswoman. The design reviews for the Boeing X-45C and Northrop Grumman X-47B are supposed to help pave the way for an operational assessment starting in 2007. Both companies recently were awarded contracts to continue their J-UCAS work (DAILY, Aug. 23, Oct. 14).
John Deere and robotics company iRobot have produced an intelligent unmanned ground vehicle named the Military R-Gator, which could perform dangerous missions, the companies said Oct. 25. The companies plan to begin pilot production of the R-Gator, which uses commercial, off-the-shelf technology, by mid-2005. Full production could begin by 2006, the companies said. The R-Gator is based on John Deere's M-Gator military utility vehicle platform, which is outfitted with iRobot's control and navigation and obstacle avoidance systems.
STABILITY: The global launch industry has settled into a fairly stable rate of 60 to 70 launches a year, Futron Corp. says in its latest white paper, "The Space Launch Industry: Recent Trends and Near-Term Outlook." The paper, released Oct. 21, looks at the space launch activity over the next 15 months. "While the United States and Russia continue to lead the world in the number of noncommercial launches, China has made steady progress and has distinguished itself from the pack," Futron says. For 2005, Futron predicts the U.S.
The Airborne Laser aircraft, YAL-1, was rolled out of its hangar at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., to prepare for a return to flight testing in coming weeks, according to the Missile Defense Agency. Flight trials will include airworthiness testing of recent modifications to the aircraft. Photo courtesy Missile Defense Agency.
EA-18G REVIEW: A preliminary design review (PDR) for the U.S. Navy's EA-18G began Oct. 19 and was completed Oct 22. The Navy is expected to take days or weeks to analyze information presented at the review by the Boeing Co., the prime contractor for the electronic attack jet. As expected, the review's completion coincided with the start of production of the forward fuselage in St. Louis, Mo. (DAILY, Sept. 27).
Several of NASA's low-cost Discovery space science missions are facing cost overruns and technical challenges, according to Andrew Dantzler, acting director of the solar system division in NASA's Science Mission Directorate. One such mission is Deep Impact, which will send a large copper projectile into a comet to reveal its internal composition and structure. The Deep Impact spacecraft has been shipped to the Kennedy Space Center, Fla., according to Dantzler. The program has run into cost overruns, he said.
Orbital Sciences Corp. reported increases in revenue, operating income, net income and free cash flow for the third quarter of 2004. The Dulles, Va.-based company last week reported revenues of $171.7 million, up 33 percent for the same period last year. Operating income was $14.3 million, compared with $11.2 million in 2003, and net income was 11.4 million, compared with a $30.2 million net loss in the same period last year.
ENGINE MARKET: The turboprop engine market is expected to remain strong from 2004 to 2013, with 9,538 engines expected to be produced at a total value of $7.8 billion, according to Forecast International analysts. "In most cases, the military will continue to favor turboprops for the high lift they provide, and turboprops are also ideal for most hot-and-high altitude operations as well as transport to rural areas with short runways," says David Franus, Forecast International senior analyst for power systems.
MORE PARTNERS: Lockheed Martin-led Team US101 has added 16 suppliers in Florida to its team vying to build the next presidential helicopter fleet, the company said Oct. 22. The team is competing with Sikorsky in a hotly contested effort to replace the fleet. "...As an excellent example of Lockheed Martin's corporate commitment to the US101 program, two of our Florida-based operating companies - Aerostructures, and the Simulation, Training & Support business unit - are also supporting Team US101's efforts to win the Marine One competition," Stephen D.
ENGINE WORK: General Electric Aircraft Engines will produce commercial parts for several engine lines used in U.S. Navy and Air Force aircraft, the Department of Defense announced Oct. 21. The $444.9 million contract calls for parts for the T64, T58, TF39, TF34, F118, F404, T700, F110 and F101 engine lines. The work is expected to be completed by July 30, 2005.
WORK RESUMES: A stop-work order has been lifted on the U.S. Army's Joint Tactical Radio System Cluster 5 after the Government Accountability Office denied a JTRS Cluster 5 protest. The Army awarded a $295 million system development and demonstration contract to General Dynamics in July (DAILY, July 20). Competitor ITT Industries protested, but the GAO denied the protest on Oct. 20, allowing work to resume "immediately," the Army's Communication Electronics Command Acquisition Center says.
HUYGENS: The Cassini-Huygens Probe mission team is focusing its attention on the upcoming release of the Huygens probe, which will dive into the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan. Release is scheduled for Dec. 24. Due to uncertainty over the gravity of Saturn's moon Iapetus, Huygens will be released twice as far away from Iapetus than originally planned, according to Andrew Dantzler, acting director of the solar system division in NASA's Science Mission Directorate.
