The Czech and Polish air forces could be trading in their fleets of geriatric MiG-21 fighters for modern F-16s in the near future if their governments decide to accept a Pentagon offer to lease the aircraft. Czech Defense Minister Vilem Holan is in Washington this week to discuss the offers with Pentagon officials. Even though sources close to Holan say the Czech decision could be made as soon as this week, some industry sources say a Polish decision could come first.
G. David Low is leaving NASA to join Orbital Science Corp.'s Launch Systems Group in Dulles, Va. Carl J. Meade (Col.,USAF) is leaving NASA to join Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Palmdale, Calif., as X-33 deputy program manager.
LITTON INDUSTRIES said James H. Frey has been named to head strategic planning for all operations of the company. Frey, 57, has been president of Litton's Itek Optical division in Lexington, Mass., since 1988. In his new position as a vice president of Litton Systems Inc., he will lead a continuing company assessment of core technological and market strengths and evaluation of potential markets.
ROCKWELL INTERNATIONAL's Command and Control System Div., Richardson, Tex., beat out Raytheon for the U.S. Army's Single Channel Anti-jam Man Portable (SCAMP) terminal, the Pentagon announced Friday. Rockwell was awarded a $25.7 million firm fixed price contract for the battery-powered satellite communications ground terminal. The initial contract calls for production of 120 systems, with delivery to be completed by Dec. 23, 2002, the Pentagon said. SCAMP will operate via MILSTAR satellites.
Newport News Shipbuilding Company, Newport News, Virginia, is being awarded an $18,348,886 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-93-C-2102 for advance planning and material procurement for the Extended Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (EDSRA) of USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by September 1996. Contract funds in the amount of $14,980,819 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
The U.S. Navy on Saturday lifted flight restrictions on its F-14 fighters after a 72-hour standdown that commenced Feb. 22 following the third crash of one of the type in a month. The most recent F-14 crash was in the Persian Gulf. Both crewmen were rescued. Meanwhile, Pacific Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Brent Bennitt on Sunday called for a standdown of all Pacific Fleet aircraft squadrons after an EA-6B Prowler crashed off the coast of California. All squadrons have been directed to hold a 48-hour safety standdown before March 5.
Alliant Defense Electronic Systems, Incorporated, Clearwater, Florida, was awarded on February 16, 1996, a $16,418,699 fixed price incentive contract to provide for development and production of 314 pieces of common munitions equipment to perform test and reprogramming of Joint Direct Attack Munitions, Joint Stand Off Weapon, and Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser. Contract is expected to be completed October 2000. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. There were 41 firms solicited and 5 proposals received.
Boeing Co. reported it has started assembly of one of the wings of the F-22 fighter, moving toward first flight slated for May 1997. After Boeing completes assembly and inspection of both wings in September, they will be shipped to Lockheed Martin in Marietta, Ga., where they will be mated to the F-22 fuselage. Boeing is building the aft portion of the fuselage and will deliver the first aft fuselage structure in July 1996.
ISRAEL'S RAFAEL is in line for production of up to 54 additional AGM-142 missiles for the U.S. Air Force. The AF's Aeronautical Systems Center, Eglin AFB, Fla., said in a Feb. 23 Commerce Business Daily notice that the work will take about 32 months and that deliveries will begin in fiscal year 1998. Included in the follow-on production contract, ASC said, will be spare parts and priced options for a Captive Air Training Missile (CATM) and a Dummy Air Training Missile (DATM).
The Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) Program Office plans an April 1 release of requests for proposals for the Program Definition and Risk Reduction (PDRR) phase of the effort. The office said in a Feb. 26 Commerce Business Daily notice that two contracts - or one or none - could be awarded for the two-year PDRR job. At the end of PDRR, the government could choose one contractor for the next phase, engineering and manufacturing development (EMD). It could also proceed with both in END, or neither.
NASA managers were organizing an investigation board yesterday to probe Sunday's loss of the Tethered Satellite System to a broken tether, and impounding data from the Space Shuttle Columbia for members of the board to use in their deliberations.
Raytheon Aerospace Company, Madison, Wisconsin, was awarded on February 16, 1996, an $87,039,542 modification to a firm fixed price contract for funding of the fifth year for contractor logistic and maintenance support of the Army, Army Reserve, and National Guard fixed wing aircraft fleet. Work will be performed at various beddown sites worldwide and is expected to be completed by September 30, 1996. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. There were 18 bids solicited on July 31, 1990, and one bid received.
Dutch industrial machinery manufacturer Stork NV emerged yesterday as a potential buyer of Fokker's electronics, military equipment and aircraft maintenance units, all healthy, but Fokker and the Dutch government are still trying to find a buyer for the entire company. Stork's chief executive officer, Johannes Hovors, a member of Fokker's supervisory board, confirmed Stork's interest and said the chances of a Fokker-wide deal have gotten worse during the past week.
A ROYAL AIR FORCE Tornado GR-1 based at RAF Brueggen near the Dutch border crashed yesterday in Germany, marking the ninth British military aircraft accident in eight weeks. The pilot and navigator escaped with minor injuries. RAF officials say "every crash is completely different," with no particular pattern emerging.
Boeing Defense and Space Group, Seattle, Washington, is being awarded an $84,700,000 face value increase to a firm fixed price contract to provide for integration and installation of Radar System Improvement Program systems into seven E-3D Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft. The work will be performed at Boeing Defense and Space Group, Seattle Washington (55%) and Westinghouse Electric corporation, Baltimore, Maryland (36%). Contract is expected to be completed February 2001. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
Bath Iron Works Corporation, Bath, Maine, is being awarded a $27,648,122 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-96-C-2800 for Lead Yard Class Services on the DDG 51 Class AEGIS Destroyers. Work will be performed in Bath, Maine, and is expected to be completed by December 1996. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
BOEING PRESIDENT PHIL CONDIT is set to take over day-to-day control of the company April 29 when Frank Shrontz, chief executive since April 1986, steps down, the company announced yesterday. Condit, 54, has been president and a member of Boeing's board of directors since August 1992.
Major aerospace political action committees for the most part stayed out of presidential politics in 1995, but what they did contribute went to the candidates considered the front runners at the time, an examination of Federal Election Commission filings indicates.
Hughes Georgia, Incorporated, LaGrange, Georgia, was awarded on February 22, 1996, a $9,478,080 modification to a firm fixed price contract to exercise the FY '96 option for 110 Bradley Fighting Vehicle System TOW 2 Subsystems. Work will be performed in LaGrange, Georgia, and is expected to be completed by June 30, 1998. Of the total contract funds, $592,380 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. There were two bids solicited on November 4, 1993, and two bids received. The contracting activity is the U.S.
General Electric Company, Aircraft Engine Business Group, Lynn, Massachusetts, is being awarded a $12,749,925 modification to a firm fixed price contract to exercise the FY '96 option for 25 Longbow 701C installed engines. Work will be performed in Lynn, Massachusetts, and is expected to be completed by December 30, 1997. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This is a sole source contract initiated on July 8, 1993. The contracting activity is the U.S. Army Aviation and Troop Command, St. Louis, Missouri (DAAJ09-94-C-0044).
The Pentagon's budget request for fiscal years 1997-02, due to be released next Monday, is going to show "positive change" that will mean earlier real growth in procurement, a senior official from the Office of Management and Budget said yesterday. The changes between the new budget submission and the out-year planning included with last year's FY '96 submission will be "mostly in a positive direction," Gordon Adams, OMB's director for national security and international affairs, said during a conference in Arlington, Va.
Russia gave Italy's Aermacchi the first slug of R&D money for its joint Yak/AEM-130 advanced jet trainer project with Yakovlev, along with a pledge to buy up to 200 aircraft in spite of promises of a fly-off between it and the rival MiG-AT. According to Aermacchi, the initial funding was accompanied by a government commitment to buy between 150 and 200 of the definitive Yak/AEM- 130 aircraft for the Russian air force, "despite the announced fly-off between this aircraft and its competitor."
Slovak jet engine manufacturer Povaske Strojarne is gearing up to begin full-rate production of its DV-2 turbofan engine following a recent Slovak Cabinet decision to fund the program. "They have agreed to provide SK 226 million (about $7 million) from the government's National Property Fund to start production," said Jaroslav Duris, a spokesman for the company in Povazska Bystrica.
