The $441.6 billion fiscal 2006 defense authorization bill that the House passed late May 25 includes a last-minute provision that would codify the content requirements of the Buy American Act, a move that could affect acquisition agreements with U.S. allies. "This amendment would sweep away the current waivers of the Buy American Act that have been carefully negotiated with our strongest military partners, and I am afraid will invoke retaliation if they are upheld," Rep. Thomas Davis III (R-Va.) said on the House floor, speaking against the provision.
Boeing said its response to Pentagon officials earlier this week concerning the department's "show cause" letter and the possible termination of its billion-dollar Joint Tactical Radio Systems (JTRS) Cluster 1 program contract "is a first step toward developing a realistic plan for moving forward" with the program. "The response Boeing delivered to the government carefully reviewed all of its concerns and addressed them in a detailed and forthright manner," the company said in a statement released late May 25.
Establishment of the Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., for the first time allows control of U.S. military space assets by a single entity, according to the Air Force.
AgustaWestland has been awarded a 194 million pound ($355 million) contract by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence to upgrade its military's Apache AH MK1 helicopter's sighting and targeting system, the Anglo-Italian company said May 25. The upgrade involves Arrowhead, the U.S. Army's Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensor. The M-TADS Electronic Display and Control and the Improved Helmet and Display Sighting System also will also be fitted to the U.K.'s 67 Apaches, the company said.
The House on May 25 approved a provision to direct the defense secretary to provide Congress by the end of the year a sustainment plan for the existing U.S. Navy MHC-51 class mine countermeasures ships. Lawmakers further agreed to codify the content requirements of the Buy American Act as stated in Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement Part 225, as well as encourage the Defense Department to buy lithium-ion cells, batteries and associated manufacturing technologies that are made in the United States.
RECAPITALIZATION: Curtiss-Wright Corp. of Roseland, N.J., has completed the recapitalization of its common stock and Class B stock into a single class of common stock, the company said May 25. The company's stockholders approved the recapitalization on May 19. Each share of common stock now has one vote in corporate governance matters. The single class of common stock began trading under the symbol "CW" on May 25 on the New York Stock Exchange.
JAVELIN PRODUCTION: The U.S. Army has awarded a Raytheon-Lockheed Martin joint venture a $95 million contract to produce the Javelin anti-tank weapon system, the companies said May 25. The joint venture will produce 120 command launch units and 1,038 missiles. The Javelin is in full-rate production. The weapon system is being used by the U.S. Army and Marine Corps, as well as Australia's military, and has seen extensive use in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The U.S. Navy is looking to award dual contracts to Northrop Grumman Corp. and General Dynamics Corp. to have each build a lead DD(X) destroyer simultaneously in the hopes that the service can compete the shipbuilders for a future round of DD(X) orders. Meanwhile, the Navy also is considering boosting the number of Flight 0 orders for its Littoral Combat Ships (LCS), John J. Young Jr., the assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, told reporters at the Pentagon May 25.
Spacehab has entered into a nonreimbursable Space Act Agreement with NASA to develop and test a miniaturized mass spectrometer that could help monitor air quality and toxicity levels aboard manned spacecraft, the company announced May 25.
FINANCIAL IMPROVEMENT: The U.S. Navy has awarded BearingPoint Inc., a business consulting and systems integration firm, a contract worth up to $107.6 million to assist with the implementation of the Navy's financial improvement plan, the company said May 25. McLean, Va.-based BearingPoint will help the Navy document business processes, test financial systems and sample financial data.
Yuval Yanai, senior vice president and chief financial officer, has resigned. Ran Maidan will replace Yanai as chief financial officer, effective Sept. 1. Maidan currently is chief financial officer of the Elisra Group.
Metal Storm Ltd. said May 25 that it will sell its ProCam Machine LLC business to Monroe Machined Products Inc. of Seattle, and will reposition itself as a "systems integrator" to sell its innovative electronic ballistics technology. Metal Storm, which is headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, and has an office in Arlington, Va., bought the precision-machined parts company in late 2003, saying the buy would help it get a strategic position in the U.S. defense market (DAILY, Dec. 12, 2003).
HELO WORK: Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. has been awarded a $24.8 million contract modification for the production and delivery of 12 MH-60R Multi-Mission helicopters, the company said May 25. The work will be done in Stratford, Conn., and is expected to be finished in April 2006. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md. awarded the contract.
The Air Force's space surveillance network is remotely observing orbital rendezvous missions such as DART and the XSS-11 mission to gauge its ability to detect possible threats to satellites, according to an Air Force official.
MOSCOW - Khrunichev Center said May 25 that it has signed a contract with Russia's defense ministry to conduct research, development and flight-testing of the Angara launch vehicle.
The U.S. Air Force's Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) program is gearing up for several key activities to promote the development of an extended-range version (JASSM-ER) of the stealthy cruise missile.
Lockheed Martin C-130E aircrew training simulators have been given a Level C certification, allowing the Air Force to train pilots on all tasks up to the final check flight, the company said May 25. The simulators are located at Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark. The certification was given by the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command. Simulators are categorized from A to D, with Level D the highest. In a Level D simulator, a pilot can earn a rating without ever flying the aircraft.
