The U.S. Air Combat Command (ACC) is rewriting mission needs to codify and expand the close air support (CAS) role for bombers and other strike aircraft that emerged during wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. "We are building a concept of operations that will ensure that every one of our Air Force weapons-delivering aircraft will possess the capability to conduct close air support, and will be able to do so in the most demanding threat environments," said Maj. Gen. David A Deptula, ACC's director of Plans and Programs.
The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin Naval Electronics & Surveillance Systems-Undersea Systems a $13 million contract for seven AN/AQS-232 Airborne Mine Neutralization Systems (AMNS). The contract includes support equipment, shipboard containers, expendable neutralizer vehicles and training. Each of the seven AMNS systems to be delivered includes 10 unmanned, wire-guided, neutralizer vehicles called SeaFoxes. The SeaFox is lowered into the water by an operator aboard a heavy-lift MH-53E Sea Dragon helicopter.
CARRIER TRIALS: The newest and most advanced nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), has completed acceptance sea trials and is awaiting its July 12 commissioning, Northrop Grumman Corp. said May 29. The ship is the seventh Nimitz-class carrier built by the company's Newport News sector.
The House and Senate are advancing separate measures designed to make it easier for U.S. firms to export commercial communications satellites. The House International Relations Committee has approved a proposal by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) that would give the president the option to transfer export licensing from the State Department to the Commerce Department when the satellites are destined for NATO countries or major non-NATO allies.
SOLAR CELLS: United Solar Systems Ltd. of Auburn Hills, Mich., will develop new solar cell technology for spacecraft and airships for possible defense and homeland security applications, the company said May 28. The work will be done under an 18-month, $11.5 million contract from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., and has an additional $7.8 million option.
NEW DELHI - The Indian navy will buy at least 10 Barak missile systems from Israel's Rafael and Israel Aircraft Industries in the next five years for about $40 million each, according to a defense ministry official. The systems are designed to protect combat vessels against sea-skimming missiles and aircraft threats. They will join seven Barak systems already mounted on Indian warships, including the country's sole aircraft carrier, the INS Viraat.
A partial tally of the airlift effort for Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) details the massive build-up orchestrated by the Air Mobility Command (AMC) in 2.5 months. Although the build-up began in mid-November, AMC started counting on Jan. 1, or 77 days before the war began March 18. AMC's fleet of airlifters and chartered jets hauled more than 214 million pounds of cargo and nearly 276,000 passengers in support of OIF, according to new statistics provided to The DAILY.
CAE of Toronto has signed a 10-year agreement to provide flight training support services to all three armed services of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), the company said May 28. The contract is valued at about C$70 million ($51 million) based on expected maintenance and support needs, CAE said. It combines and extends three existing contracts, which include on-site maintenance of flight simulators and related training systems, engineering services, spares support, logistics management and instructor training.
DIGITALGLOBE, Longmont, Colo. Henry Dubois has been promoted to president, in addition to his role as chief operating officer and chief financial officer. L-3 COMMUNICATIONS, New York Claude R. Canizares, the associate provost and Bruno Rossi professor of technology at MIT, has been elected to the board of directors. LOCKHEED MARTIN COMMERCIAL SPACE SYSTEMS, Newtown, Pa.
MOSCOW - Soyuz spacecraft builder Energia confirmed this week that a failure in a descent control system was responsible for the off-target landing of a Soyuz capsule returning from the International Space Station on May 3.
The U.S. Air Force is eyeing a proposal to pour funds into a new program to dramatically improve the B-1B Lancer's existing electronic warfare system, despite complaints about the system's reliability and operational cost. So far in fiscal 2003, EDO Corp. has received $21 million to maintain and upgrade the B-1B's AN/ALQ-161, which is designed to detect and jam enemy radar emissions.
Electric Boat, a subsidiary of General Dynamics Corp., has been awarded a $24 million contract by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) for the Trident submarine conversion program. The contract calls for Electric Boat to procure and manufacture long-lead items for converting four Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) to a cruise missile configuration (SSGN).
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. is in line for a U.S. Air Force contract to move its Predator-B, or MQ-9, unmanned aerial vehicle into production and outfit it for such weapons as the Sidewinder, Hellfire and Joint Direct Attack Munition. The Reconnaissance System Program Office of the Air Force's Aeronautical Systems Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, said in a May 27 FedBizOpps notice that it plans "to award a contract on a sole source basis to" the San Diego company "for MQ-9 productionization and weaponization."
Talks between the United States and the United Kingdom over the waiver of trade restrictions could lead to a multilateral security agreement with other allies and key weapon system producers, according to Joel Johnson, vice president of international affairs for the Aerospace Industries Association. Johnson said he believes the U.K. and Spain, Canada, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany and Australia already have instituted sufficient security measures for safeguarding key defense technologies.
NEW FACILITY: BAE Systems opened a new office and prototype development facility in Los Angeles for its Integrated Solutions unit on May 28. The 150,000 square-foot facility includes space for developing and testing prototypes of its products, which include unmanned aerial vehicles and integrated aircraft avionics.
Although the future EA-18G electronic attack aircraft will look and fly much like the F/A-18F Super Hornet strike fighter, differences inside the airframe are emerging as a final design takes shape, U.S. Navy and industry officials said May 27. As a Milestone B decision awaits the program in October, proposals to alter the basic hardware and components are raising questions about how to balance developing the unique capabilities of each aircraft and harnessing the efficiencies of a common production line.
ENGINE WORK: Pratt & Whitney will integrate performance and efficiency technologies into a technology demonstrator engine under a $12.7 million, 39-month contract from the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command, the company said May 27. The technologies, which include lightweight component materials, could be used in new classes of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the company said.
The commitment by seven European nations to buy the Airbus A400M military transport could have a long-term negative impact on the market for U.S.-built C-17 Globemaster and C-130J Hercules transports, analysts say. "The impact is likely to be greater on [C-17 maker] Boeing than [C-130J maker] Lockheed Martin," senior military aircraft analyst Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group said. "As a strategic airplane, it comes close to the C-17."
The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. (EADS) is restructuring its defense division to create two new business units that will oversee work on defense electronics and communications systems, company officials said May 26. Formerly known as the Defence and Civil Systems Division, the new division will be called the Defence & Security Systems Division as of July 1.
