BAE Systems North America has agreed to purchase Alphatech for $88.4 million, BAE Systems said Sept. 28. Alphatech specializes in intelligent systems, multi-intelligence fusion and image and signal processing for the Department of Defense and other government intelligence agencies. It employs 322 people and is headquartered in Burlington, Mass.
The Netherlands has requested Secure Mobile Anti-Jam Reliable Tactical Terminals (SMART-T) and M998A1 Humvees, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress Sept. 28. The Netherlands is seeking seven SMART-Ts and seven Humvees for a total contract value of up to $71 million, DSCA said.
The first flight test for the U.S. Missile Defense Agency's revamped Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system has been delayed slightly by a congressional funding cut, according to Defense Department officials. The test had been scheduled for December but now is planned for sometime in the January-March quarter of 2005 because the FY '05 defense appropriations act, without explanation, trimmed $30 million from MDA's $834 million request for THAAD, the DOD officials said Sept. 29.
The NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) has made 12 Phase 1 awards for six-month studies beginning in October. The proposals selected include work on moon-based infrared telescopes, large swarms of picosats, a lunar space elevator, and redesigning living organisms to survive on Mars. A complete list of winning proposals and abstracts is available on the Web at http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/topstory/2004/0930niac_phase1.html.
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency's Airborne Laser (ABL) program plans to order more iodine for the ABL's kill laser because the current batch has not performed properly in testing, possibly due to excessive moisture in the chemical, an MDA spokesman said late Sept. 28.
The U.S. Department of Defense plans to hold a fleet induction ceremony of the Tomahawk Block IV Cruise Missile on Sept. 29 at the Pentagon. The assistant secretary of the Navy and Raytheon officials will be on hand for the rollout of the missiles. The Tomahawk Block IVs were approved for initial operating capability in May and a full-rate production contract was awarded to Raytheon Missile Systems in August. The contract provides for the production of up to 2,200 block IV missiles over five years.
COMPLETED: Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.'s acquisition of Schweizer Aircraft Corp. is complete, the company said Sept. 27. Schweizer, based in Elmira, N.Y., specializes in the light helicopter, reconnaissance aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicle markets. Schweizer will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Sikorsky. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
SpaceDev's "Dream Chaser" suborbital spacecraft could serve as a hypersonic testbed for NASA, according to company founder and CEO Jim Benson. The piloted Dream Chaser is derived from an existing X-Plane concept and has an altitude goal of about 100 miles (DAILY, Sept. 21). It would be launched vertically by a single hybrid rocket motor the company is developing for the SpaceDev Streaker, a family of small launch vehicles intended to deliver small satellites to orbit.
EADS Space and VITROCISET of Rome have signed a memorandum of understanding to study aerospace collaborations and initiatives including telecommunication, navigation, and launches, EADS Space said Sept. 27.
An estimated $9.5 billion will be spent on key land- and sea-based electro-optical (EO) systems over the next 10 years, according to a new report from Forecast International (FI). Systems will be produced rapidly over the next few years to meet the demands of deployed military forces, FI said Sept. 27. Night-vision technology for surveillance and targeting missions have been placed on a fast track for production and procurement, according to FI research analyst Andrew Dardine.
COLLABORATION: Twenty-eight major companies have combined to form the Network Centric Operations Industry Consortium to recommend a unified approach to "enable sensors, communications and information systems to interact within a global network centric environment," the consortium said Sept. 28. "Today marks the beginning of an unprecedented collaboration," Carl O'Berry, chairman of the consortium's executive council, said in a statement. Founding members include BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon.
The overall space tourism market is promising and could generate revenues of more than $1 billion a year by 2021, Futron Corp. said Sept. 28 in its new Space Tourism Market Study. The study, based on a Zogby International poll of affluent Americans commissioned by Futron in 2002, surveyed customer demand for suborbital and orbital space tourism. "Suborbital space tourism will generate the largest demand, with the potential for 15,000 passengers and $700 million in revenues per year by 2021," the report says.
The U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command intends to issue a draft request for proposals for the Army's Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) by about Oct. 15. The LUH program office will host an industry day on or about Oct. 22, and the response date is Nov. 26.
In the latest reaction to U.S. Navy budget plans, Sen. John Breaux (D-La.) and a bipartisan delegation of congressional members urged President Bush to reconsider a proposed reduction in the number of ships slated for construction in fiscal year 2006. In a Sept. 28 letter, the lawmakers argued that the Iraq war has required the highest naval deployment since World War II and underscores the need to expand the sea power fleet.
FLEET SUPPORT: The U.S. Navy has awarded the fleet maintenance division of Alexandria, Va.-based VSE Corp. a five-year contract to provide technical and engineering services that could be worth more than $1 billion, the company said Sept. 27. VSE will support the Naval Sea Systems Command's repair, overhaul, alteration and maintenance of ship systems under the indefinite quantity, indefinite delivery, multiple award contract, the company said.
The U.S. Defense Department's Joint High Power Solid State Laser (JHPSSL) program is on track to demonstrate 25-kilowatt solid-state lasers in December, according to program representatives. Three designs devised by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon will be tested in laboratory settings, according to the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), a key player in the effort to develop electrically driven lasers.
General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products' (GDATP) Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) 70mm guided rocket successfully completed its fifth flight test earlier this month, the company said Sept. 28. The Sept. 10 test was the latest in a series that began in 2002 during an advanced technology demonstration (ATD) project to demonstrate the basic design's effectiveness over the operational range.
San Diego-based Titan Corp. has elected David Danjczek as corporate vice president for compliance and ethics, the company announced Sept. 28. Lockheed Martin had planned to acquire Titan, but called off the deal in June after it was delayed by Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission probes into alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by company consultants (DAILY, June 28). Titan reported a second-quarter loss of $66.6 million for the second quarter of 2004 due to expenses from the investigations (DAILY, Aug. 5).
MEADS International, the industry joint venture developing the tri-national Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS), announced Sept. 28 that it has been awarded a $3 billion contract for the next phase of the program. Under the design and development (D&D) contract, MEADS International will finish designing and integrating the system, whose major pieces include a battle management system, a launcher, the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile and fire control and surveillance radars.
A Lockheed Martin team has been awarded a $45 million contract by the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center at Robins Air Force Base, Ga., to repair C-130 Hercules transport aircraft, the company said Sept. 28. The indefinite quantity, indefinite delivery contract includes the repair of wing spar caps on the C-130s. The work will be done under the Unprogrammed Depot Level Maintenance program, the company said.
AEHF TEST: Northrop Grumman has completed electrical testing of the uplink phased array antenna for the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) military communications satellite program, the company said Sept. 28. The antenna directs radio frequency beams electronically rather than by moving reflectors mechanically. AEHF is expected to deliver 10 times greater total capacity and channel data rates six times higher than that of Milstar II communications satellites.
The U.S. Army's Low Cost Interceptor (LCI) program has scheduled its first flight-test for the summer of 2005. During the short hot launch (SHOTL) test, the interceptor's motor will burn for a few seconds, propelling the vehicle a few kilometers.
