BVR SYSTEMS LTD., Givatayim, Israel, signed a teaming agreement with an unnamed Southeast Asian partner to market, sell and service BVR's Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (CMI) system. Sales in the Southeast Asia region have been a "substantial source" of BVR's gross revenues during the past six years, the company said.
Crane Co., Stamford, Conn., moved to block BFGoodrich's planned acquisition of Coltec, contending that the deal represents a breach of contract by Coltec. Crane said it holds a written agreement with Coltec that for a period of three years, Coltec was obligated to notify Crane if Coltec was approached by any third party regarding a merger or other business combination. The BFGoodrich-Coltec deal was announced Nov. 23, but Crane said it sent proposals to Coltec on Sept. 28 and again on Nov. 20.
Israel Aircraft Industries was granted an injunction against joint venture partner BVR that enjoins BVR from interfering with a contract signed with the German Air Force. IAI said the Tel Aviv District Court ordered BVR to refrain from trying to exclude IAI's MLM Div., developer of the debriefing system, from the contract, and to refrain from engaging a foreign company under its supervision to fulfill the contract.
The U.K.'s Naval Bases and Supply Agency (NBSA), which provides logistic support to the Royal Navy, signed a partnering agreement with Matra BAe Dynamics UK Ltd., the Ministry of Defense reported. The MOD said the ten-year arrangement is part of the move by the MOD to work more closely with industry, and will provide a framework through which the NBSA will be contracted to assemble and test the weapons made by Matra BAe Dynamics, beginning wit the Block 2 Sea Wolf missiles.
Lockheed Martin has won the U.S. Air Force's competition to demonstrate the powered Low-Cost Autonomous Attack System (LOCAAS), which is intended to strike a variety of targets, including enemy air defenses and ballistic missile infrastructure.
The Phoenix unmanned aerial vehicle has entered operational service with the British Army. John Spellar, under secretary of state for defense, said the event follows "successful conversion training by both 32 and 39 Regiments Royal Artillery and the use of the system in exercises, where it performed well. Phoenix will provide an important new surveillance and target acquisition system for the British Army."
Despite a small decline over the past two years, the U.S. maintains its predominance as the world's leading military power by a large margin, according to a new study by Britain's Royal United Services Institute. Based on complex mathematical calculations, its newly issued "Index of Martial Potency" is designed to measure the ability of individual nations to use their armed forces to influence events beyond their own borders.
The Starstreak air-to-air missile, built by Shorts Missile Systems of Belfast, U.K., has completed a test series for the U.S. Army involving six firings from an AH-64 helicopter. The tests, at the Army's Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz., were conducted between late October and mid-November and represent the second part of an Army-funded program to evaluate the Starstreak. "In each of six firings, Starstreak successfully hit the target within a few seconds at ranges of between 2.5 and 5 km," according to Shorts Missile Systems.
The Pentagon's top requirements board late Monday approved the Navy and Marine Corps requirements for a vertical take-off and landing unmanned aerial vehicle without changes, officials said yesterday. The document calls for an initial operational capability to be deployed by late fiscal 2003, with full operational capability reached in fiscal 2005. The VTOL UAV will replace the aging Pioneer UAV that the services currently use.
Pacific Aerospace&Electronics Inc., Wenatchee, Wash., has engaged investment banker BancBoston Robertson Stephens, headquartered in San Francisco and Boston, to advise it as it explores potential acquisitions. BancBoston recently helped Pacific Aerospace with a high-yield financing transaction related to its acquisition of U.K. aerospace manufacturer Aeromet International plc (DAILY, July 2).
WYMAN-GORDON CO., North Grafton, Mass., filed an application to list its stock on the New York Stock Exchange. Pending final approval, the company expects to begin trading on or about Dec. 18. Wyman-Gordon currently has about 36.5 million shares traded on NASDAQ.
A special task force called on President Clinton yesterday to issue an executive order requiring a review of U.S. information warfare policies and plans. The group, which includes five former directors of central intelligence, said in a report released by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies that the presidential review should take a top-down look at government organizations responsible for information warfare, information security, security policy and prevention of cyber crime.
BRITISH AEROSPACE Defense Systems won a $15.2 million contract to enhance the British Army's Ptarmigan area communications systems. The three-year General Purpose-Trunk Access Port (GP-TAP) program will create a standard interface between Ptarmigan and other U.K. and NATO communications systems, allowing digital interoperability, BAe said. Small, remotely deployed detachments also will be able to connect directly to a main Ptarmigan network.
Raytheon has selected the Broach multi-warhead system as the main warhead alternative to the 500-pound BLU-111 for the AGM-154C unitary variant of the Joint Standoff Weapon. Broach, developed by British Arerospace's Royal Ordnance, competed against kinetic energy warhead designs from Lockheed Martin, Matra BAe Dynamics and Rafael. The U.S. Navy left the choice largely up to JSOW prime contractor Raytheon, with instructions to pick the one that best meets requirements.
Greece has picked the combination of the Swedish Erieye radar and the Brazilian RJ-145 aircraft to become its future Airborne Early Warning and Control system. The RJ-145/Erieye defeated two U.S. competitors, the Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeye and the Lockheed Martin C-130J with the APS-145 Hawkeye radar system, Greek government officials said yesterday. The contract is worth over $500 million, according to the Greek government and Ericsson. The first aircraft is scheduled to be delivered to Greece in three years.
The Pentagon's Defense Science Board cited the possibility of shortfalls in the propulsion industrial base for future intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine launched ballistic missiles. "There is the potential for significant gaps in propulsion buys" for ICBMs and SLBMs in future years, a DSB report said.
NASA's Space Shuttle Endeavour is scheduled to land at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., tonight after a historic mission of unprecedented complexity that left the International Space Station up and running in the orbit it will occupy - with reboosts - for the next 15 years. Touchdown at KSC's Shuttle landing strip is scheduled for about 10:56 p.m. EST, bringing the crew of five NASA astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut home after 11 days, 19 hours and 20 minutes in orbit.
Europe could decide early in 1999 on its future direction and role in satellite-based radionavigation, and the U.S. appears "cautiously optimistic" that the European Union will continue to rely on the Global Positioning System or a system based on GPS. But Europe is insisting on development of an international Global Navigation Satellite System Convention on Liability, a concept the U.S. rejects.
December 10, 1998 The Boeing Company, Seattle, Wash., was awarded on Dec. 9, 1998, a $15,903,419 face value increase to a firm-fixed-price contract to provide for contractor logistic support through September 1999 for the C-32A aircraft. Expected contract completion date is Sept. 30, 2005. Solicitation issue date was May 3, 1996. Negotiation completion date was May 3, 1996. Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center, Tinker AFB, Okla., is the contracting activity (F34601-96-C-0605-P00015).
December 7, 1998 Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems, Orlando, Fla., is being awarded a $6,304,022 face value increase to a cost-plus-award-fee contract to provide for test and engineering services to integrate the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) onto the B-2 aircraft. This effort supports the JASSM engineering and manufacturing development program. Expected contract completion date is May 2002. Air Armament Center, Eglin AFB, Fla., is the contracting activity (F08626-96-C-0002-P00040).
