The first aerospace prizes in NASA's Centennial Challenges program could be announced as early as this month, according to Program Manager Brant Sponberg. Modeled on 19th century navigation prizes and early 20th century aviation prizes, the Centennial Challenges program is aimed at stimulating industry to produce breakthroughs in technologies that support NASA's goals. The agency requested $20 million for the program in fiscal year 2005, but only received half that amount from Congress.
NO CRISIS: "We are addressing the inequities between the active [duty forces], Guard and Reserves regarding training, the way they are treated in theater, and when they come home, but the Guard and Reserves are not in crisis mode," says Secretary of the Army Francis Harvey. "We've equipped seven Guard brigades from our active brigade equipment," adds Army Chief of Staff Gen. Pete Schoomaker. "But inequities exist because the Guard and Reserves were our last options" for deployment.
FIGHTING FRAUD: In the wake of a procurement scandal that rocked the U.S. Air Force last year, the Navy is establishing a new Naval Acquisition Integrity Office (NAIO) to serve as the service's central point of contact on the issue. The NAIO also will coordinate the Navy's anti-fraud efforts and keep a database for monitoring procurement fraud.
ARWG PACKAGE: The Acquisition Reform Working Group, an umbrella organization representing several trade associations affiliated with defense issues, will release its 2005 legislative package on March 7. The legislative wish list, targeted to become part of the annual defense authorization and appropriations bills, represents industry's lawmaking suggestions. ARWG issues are expected to include limiting Buy American efforts, as well as easing Defense Department outsourcing.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) pressed Navy Secretary Gordon England on March 3 to explain why the Navy is looking at a sole-source shipyard strategy for DD(X) destroyer production when it argued against a similar situation years ago for submarines.
Navy Secretary Gordon England expects this week to approve a request to complete an environmental study on making the Mayport Naval Station near Jacksonville, Fla., a homeport for a nuclear aircraft carrier. The environmental impact study (EIS) would provide answers about making Mayport capable of hosting a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. The move comes as the Navy is proposing this year to mothball the 36-year-old, boiler-powered carrier USS John F. Kennedy while possibly maintaining Mayport as another East Coast nuclear carrier port.
AGREED: Titan Corp. says it has reached an administrative settlement agreement with the U.S. Navy that will allow it to "continue to bid, receive and perform on United States government contracts" in the wake of the company's guilty plea to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). In an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Titan pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $28 million for funneling money to an African presidential candidate, among other FCPA infractions (DAILY, March 2).
The U.S. Air Force plans to conduct a wide assortment of flight-tests for the Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) this year now that the stealthy cruise missile has returned to testing after a lengthy break, service and industry officials said March 4.
JSF DEFENDED: The U.S. Defense Department and Air Force seem unfazed by the Government Accountability Office's recent assertion that the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program has too much risk due to an "extreme" six-year overlap between development and production (DAILY, March 4). "We have every confidence in the Joint Strike Fighter program and its ability to provide the most effective technology in support of America's warfighters," DOD spokeswoman Cheryl Irwin says.
ORDERS UP: Sales, net income, and new orders for technical ceramic products provider Ceradyne Inc. of Costa Mesa, Calif., jumped in both the fourth quarter of 2004 and over the full year, the company said March 4. Fourth quarter 2004 sales grew 151.6% to $83.4 million and net income climbed 108.7% to $8.8 million.
War costs should be in the baseline defense budget request, not in the supplemental request, Rep. Joel Hefley (R-Colo.), told Defense Department officials last week. Hefley, chair of the House Armed Services Committee's readiness subcommittee, said in a March 3 hearing that it's not clear why expenses such as military construction, modularity, procurement, recruiting and tuition assistance are being paid for, at least in part, by the supplemental. "Supplementals are supposed to be for surprise costs," he said.
The Navy on March 4 said it successfully conducted a tactical guided flight-test of the Extended Range Guided Munition (ERGM) on Feb.16 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The unique test involved firing a Global Positioning System-guided projectile to a designated target more than 41 nautical miles away, detonating "well within the required accuracy requirement." The Navy said it was a "world record" for a precision-guided, gun-launched munition. Raytheon Co. is leading ERGM contracting.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) told Army Secretary Francis Harvey that the $117-billion Future Combat Systems (FCS) should be reclassified under more normal federal acquisition regulations. In a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing with the service secretaries on March 3, McCain said FCS still is budgeted as a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) item, which means the Army is "relieved of the obligation" of reporting costs and purchasing data to military auditors.
RECRUITMENT: Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, says he is "astounded" that the Army's unfunded priorities list includes $537.5 million for recruitment, retention and initial training. The Navy has identified a $20 million shortfall in its recruiting budget, Skelton says.
The U.S. Air Force announced late March 4 that it has ended the Boeing Co.'s 20-month suspension from space launch competitions, opening the way for the company to vie with Lockheed Martin Corp. for the next Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) contract, which likely will cover 18 to 24 launches and be awarded in 2006. Acting Air Force Secretary Peter Teets said plans for that contract will be ironed out over the next few months.
Integral Systems Inc.'s contract win of the Rapid Attack Identification Detection Reporting System (RAIDRS) program significantly boosts the company's U.S. Air Force business, according to Steven R. Chamberlain, chairman and CEO. In the last quarter, more than 50% of Integral Systems' business was already with the Air Force, and "that number's just going to keep going up," he said.
March 7 - 8 -- 5th Annual Defense & Aerospace Investor & Corporate Development Conference, Hyatt Regency, Reston, Va. For more information go to www.srinstitute.com/cx554. March 7 - 9 -- 11th Annual Conference on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, "Platforms, Payloads & Opportunities," Hilton Arlington & Towers, Washington, D.C. For more information go to www.technologytraining.com.
INMARSAT 4-F1: The Inmarsat 4-F1 satellite is scheduled to launch March 10 aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla. The 15-minute launch window will open at 4:42 p.m. Eastern time. Built by EADS Astrium of Toulouse, France, Inmarsat 4F1 is a geosynchronous communications satellite weighing about 13,106 pounds (5,945 kilograms). It is the first in a new generation of satellites that will support Inmarsat's new Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN).
REVOLVING DOOR: Boeing Co.'s head lobbyist, Roselee Nichols Roberts, is returning to the House Science Committee's Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee. Roberts has been hired as a professional staff member and designee to subcommittee Chairman Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.). Previously, she was Boeing's director for legislative affairs, responsible for representing the company's interests to Congress for 17 years, including a decade with McDonnell Douglas Corp. before Boeing bought it.
Raytheon Network Centric Systems, which is developing three ground vehicle sensors for the Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS), is adjusting to schedule changes and budget pressures caused by the Army's restructuring of FCS last year. As part of the July 2004 restructuring, most of the manned combat vehicles for FCS were pushed back two years to 2014, prompting Raytheon to try to "stretch out" its sensor schedules to match, according to Johnny Garrett, director of Raytheon Integrated Systems.
ARMY NEEDS: The U.S. Army is telling lawmakers that its unfunded requirements in the Bush Administration's fiscal 2006 budget request total $4.8 billion and include $33.5 million for overhauling Hellfire missiles, $183 million for Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below (FBCB2) situational awareness equipment, $227 million for night-vision devices and $544 million for Stryker armored vehicles.
BOMB BODIES: General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems of St. Petersburg, Fla., has been awarded an $89.7 million contract to produce MK80 series bomb bodies for the U.S. Army, the company said March 4. Production will include both inert and live bomb bodies in the 500-pound, 1,000-pound, and 2,000-pound case classes. The contract will be managed at the General Dynamics manufacturing facility in Garland, Texas. The work is set to be finished by July 2006. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Army Field Support Command at Rock Island, Ill.
SOLE-SOURCE: If the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) decides to buy its boosters from just one company, the agency most likely would keep the considerable savings within the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) program, says an Orbital Sciences Corp. official. Orbital Sciences is ramping up to build one booster a month for the GMD program. Lockheed Martin is producing a second booster for the MDA.
SUB MAINTENANCE: General Dynamics Electric Boat of Groton, Conn., will perform routine maintenance work on the USS Connecticut (SSN 22) Seawolf-class attack submarine under a $62.4 million contract modification awarded by the U.S. Navy, the company said March 2. Electric Boat will carry out a Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability consisting of repairs, maintenance work and alterations. The work will be done at Electric Boat's shipyard in Groton between April and December 2005. Electric Boat is a wholly owned subsidiary of Falls Church, Va.-based General Dynamics.
