EG&G INC., Wellesley, Mass., won a five-year, $39 million contract through its Services division from the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren, Va., for technical, engineering and management services to support development of a Trident Submarine missile fire control systems, as well as other activities.
RAYTHEON SYSTEMS CO., Lexington, Mass., won two contracts totalling $28 million from U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command for work on the Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) program. The first contract, worth $17.5 million, is for engineering support and includes an option that could bring the value to $47.6 million. Work will be performed at Raytheon's Tucson, Ariz., facility. The second contract, worth $10.4 million, is for 10 ordnance alteration kits and related support equipment to allow the RAM Mk.
Competitors in the first phase of development of the powered Low Cost Autonomous Attack System will receive $1 million contracts before the government picks one for the rest of the 48-month advanced technology demonstration.
The role of the Pentagon's Defense Technology Security Agency in deciding on the export of dual-use technology has made it "the joke of the interagency [review] process," a senior official of the agency told Congress yesterday. Peter M. Leitner, senior strategic trade adviser a DTSA, told the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee that most cases are approved outright based on the "meager information" contained in license applications.
After two fruitless attempts this week to launch the Resurs O1 civil remote sensing satellite with a Zenit-2 rocket, Russia's Strategic Rocket Forces had better luck orbiting two military reconnaissance satellites on older Soyuz-U rockets launched back to back.
The U.S. Air Force plan to complete at least 183 flight test hours with the F-22 fighter before two more are put on contract in December is on track after the first few weeks of flight testing, according to Lt. Gen. George Muellner, the AF's top acquisition officer.
RADA ELECTRONICS INDUSTRIES LTD., Herzliya Pituach, Israel, reached an agreement with Boeing Enterprises to extend the due diligence period related to a potential Boeing investment in Rada. The period has been extended from the end of the second quarter to July 15. In March, Boeing said it would invest $10 million to acquire 42% of Rada's future outstanding shares of stock.
Litton Industries posted a 12% rise in earnings in its 1998 third quarter, with help from improved results in the defense and commercial electronics units. Litton earned $46.8 million in the quarter, up form $42 million in the same period the year before. Sales remained relatively flat at $1.1 billion.
The chairman of the special House committee investigating whether national security was compromised when a report on a failed 1996 Chinese satellite launch to Chinese officials without clearance, refused yesterday to commit the panel to an investigation of what happened to a U.S. encoded circuit board that was missing in the wreckage. The device is used to control satellites. Chairman Christopher Cox (R-Calif.) said, "On that point, there has been no decision."
Boeing is talking with three Japanese companies - Mitsubishi, Kawasaki and Fuji - about possible participation in main wing production for the 717 airliner. A contract was awarded to a Korea's Hyundai, but Boeing Commercial Airplane Group president Ron Woodard suggested that if demand warrants, one of the Japanese companies would be a candidate for additional work.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) said yesterday after a lengthy closed hearing in which government technical experts testified that "it is clear there were some serious problems with how U.S. companies interacted with Chinese launch service providers." Shelby said in a statement that the panel discussed assessments of the potential transfer of technical information by U.S. satellite manufacturers to Chinese aerospace companies as well as reports previously withheld from the investigation by Attorney General Janet Reno.
Avidyne Corp. and Trimble Navigation Ltd. signed a joint marketing and support agreement for general aviation situational awareness products, focusing on creation of a central flight information display product for the general aviation marketplace.
The second attempt to launch a Zenit-2 rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome was scrubbed yesterday because of an unresolved problem with the rocket's azimuth targeting equipment. A 24-hour delay after the first launch attempt was aborted on Tuesday proved insufficient to resolve the problem, and launch managers decided to remove the rocket from the pad and replace faulty elements in the assembly and checkout building. A new launch date was tentatively set for June 29 or 30.
Lockheed Martin will perform wind tunnel tests on its Joint Strike Fighter at the National Aerospace Laboratory wind tunnel in the Netherlands this August, the company announced. Scale model tests will be conducted at the lab's 9.5-by-9.5 meter low speed wind tunnel. The Netherlands is participating in the JSF development program as an associate partner. The government has made $75 million available for Dutch companies to use in pursuing technologies applicable to JSF prototypes being designed by Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
Raytheon Systems Co., Lexington, Mass., received a $10.5 million contract option from the German Federal Office for Defense Technology Procurement for modifications of the Breguet 1150 "Atlantic" maritime patrol aircraft operated by the German Navy. The company said a total of 16 aircraft will be modified over the next two years. Raytheon was selected in November 1995 for the original firm, fixed-price contract for the development phase. Under the series production phase, it will provide 16 navigation kits, with 14 being installed in Germany by a field team.
The U.S. National Security Agency has declassified algorithms related to the Fortezza PC card, used for encryption, to allow development of lower-cost commercial systems that could be used to handle sensitive but unclassified information. The release is restricted to the Skipjack 80-bit encryption algorithm and the 1024-bit Key Exchange Algorithm (KEA), the NSA said yesterday. The source code for both algorithms was declassified, a requirement for development of alternative systems. Both new hardware and software products are being sought.
Dassault's proposed Falcon supersonic business jet could fly nonstop 4,000 miles at a cruise speed of 1.8 Mach, carrying eight passengers, according to Chairman Serge Dassault. Dassault, presenting the design concept to operators of the current, subsonic, Falcon business jet, said that noise-suppression technology would allow the aircraft to satisfy current Stage 3 requirements, and that it could fly from typical corporate airport runways.
Boeing Space Transportation is studying whether it will be possible to build a substitute propulsion module for the International Space Station from existing Space Shuttle components as a relatively inexpensive way to replace the Russian Service Module if Moscow fails to deliver the critical piece of hardware, NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin told Congress yesterday.
The U.S. has extended a letter of offer to Singapore for eight AH-64D Apache helicopters, but not the accompanying Longbow fire control radar. The deal, which would be worth $620 million, would include 216 laser- guided Hellfire II missiles, four spare Hellfire launchers, 9,120 Hydra-70 rockets, two spare T700-GE-701C engines, two spare Target Acquisition Designation Sight (TADS) systems and avionics, and electronic warfare equipment. Singapore is one of several non-NATO countries cleared to buy the helicopter but not the radar.
With Senate Majority Leader Tent Lott (R-Miss.) committed to clearing the fiscal 1999 defense authorization bill before next week's congressional recess, the Senate yesterday resumed consideration of the Armed Services Committee - approved bill with the focus on funding U.S. operations in Bosnia.
The first Rolls-Royce powered A330-300 made its debut flight yesterday, marking the beginning of a flight test schedule that will result in type certification by yearend. The aircraft flew in Airbus livery from Toulouse for four hours and 30 minutes.
European Union competition authorities have approved Snecma's takeover of Messier Dowty and its acquisition of the landing gear overhaul business of Messier Dowty's owner, Britain's IT Group. The EU said the French state-owned engine company's purchase of Messier, authorized June 19, poses no threat to competitive conditions in Europe's landing gear industry since airlines have significant buying power in the sector.
Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems won an engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) contract from the U.S. Air Force for the Common Configuration Implementation Program (CCIP) for the F-16C/D. CCIP, the company said, will provide avionics upgrades to Block 40 and 50 F-16s, with a key element being a common hardware and software avionics configuration for the two blocks.
The Senate Armed Services Committee, after an executive session Monday night, declined to report to the Senate the nomination of Florida State Senator Daryl L. Jones as Secretary of the U.S. Air Force, a committee spokesman said. As of yesterday, he said, Jones had not been called for another appearance before the committee, which would be the next step in the confirmation process.
