PRAGUE - A stalled project to build a $20 million aircraft maintenance hangar at Ostrava airport in the Czech Republic will restart in a few weeks, according to the British-registered company behind the construction.
THE INSTITUTE FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, Fairmont, W.Va. Bradley C. Edwards has been named director of research. NORTHROP GRUMMAN ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS, Baltimore F. Suzanne Jenniches has been appointed vice president and general manager of the new Government Systems division. RADA ELECTRONIC INDUSTRIES, Netanya, Israel
The Sensor Fuzed Weapon (SFW) made its first appearance in combat only a week ago, but the Pentagon already plans to expand the capability of the anti-armor weapon's unique smart submunition, according to industry and government officials. A column of Iraqi vehicles moving south out of Baghdad was attacked April 2 by Air Force B-52s that dropped six CBU-97 SFWs.
The European Space Agency's Artemis satellite has achieved another successful inter-satellite link, transmitting data from the Japanese earth observation satellite Adeos II, ESA said April 7. ESA and the Japanese space agency NASDA performed a series of tests March 27-29 to demonstrate the system's performance and operational links between the Adeos II team in Tsukuba, Japan, and the Artemis Mission Control Facility in Redu, Belgium.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) urged defense officials April 8 to work with their counterparts at domestic agencies to see if General Atomics Predator unmanned aerial vehicles and other military technology could be used for border security.
PRAGUE - The Czech Republic will turn to the United States if talks with Britain over future Czech air defense fall through, according to a top Czech official. The Czech Republic recently opened discussions with Britain on bilateral cooperation to defend Czech airspace, one of several options defense officials here are considering. The country faces the prospect of having no supersonic aircraft cover after the first quarter of 2005, when its entire fleet of aging MiG-21s is due to be decommissioned.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The war in Iraq is showing "new and creative ways" of achieving U.S. operational objectives, Gen. Lance Lord, commander of Air Force Space Command (AFSPC), said April 8. In a keynote address to the National Space Symposium here, Lord said a prime example is the merger of Global Positioning System satellite guidance for munitions and stealthy platforms like the F-117.
B-1 crewmembers who staged a lightning raid April 8 on a suspected leadership target in Baghdad credited the aircraft's emerging flexibility as a close air support platform for the mission's apparent success. The bomber had completed its mission 12 minutes after receiving the target coordinates, unloading four 2,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) penetrators on a building near the center of the Iraqi capital.
Arianespace postponed the planned April 8 launch of its Ariane 5 booster after the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) requested "additional verifications on its satellite payload." Flight 160 is to carry India's INSAT-3A, provided by ISRO, and Galaxy XII, which Orbital Sciences Corp. built for PanAmSat. ISRO told Arianespace it needed additional verifications before the Ariane 5's cryogenic core stage was fueled. Details on the mission's rescheduling will be provided April 9, Arianespace said.
The U.S. Navy plans to triple research and development funding for strategic programs in the next fiscal year to develop future replacement systems and improve the performance of existing systems, a service official said April 8. The Navy's fiscal FY '04 budget request seeks $102 million for strategic R&D, up from $34 million in FY '03, said Rear Adm. Charles Young, director of strategic systems programs for the Navy, who testified before the Senate Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee.
NEW DELHI - An Indian air force MiG-21 crashed April 7 in Ambala, less than a week after an air force MiG-23 crashed in a residential area near Ludhiana(DAILY, April 7). An air force official said Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) recently upgraded the MiG-21 to the MiG-21 bis configuration. The official also said the crash was similar to the April 4 MiG-23 crash, as both aircraft went down in flames shortly after takeoff.
777-300ER: The second of two flight test Boeing 777-300ER (extended range) aircraft made its first flight April 6 from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., Boeing said. The airplane will be used for engine, systems, noise and stability and control testing. The first 777-300ER is scheduled to be delivered in April 2004.
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio is continuing radar signature testing of various sample items this week in an attempt to identify the mysterious fragment that separated from the shuttle Columbia while it still was in orbit.
LASER SATCOM: The Boeing Co. said it is teaming with Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. to develop laser technologies to speed satellite communications. The companies plan to market the technology to U.S. government agencies and suppliers, Boeing said April 7.
A payload for the Air Force's Space Based Infrared System-High (SBIRS-High) program that has been delayed several months while engineers track down an electromagnetic interference problem now is scheduled to be delivered to its host satellite in mid May, according to Col. Mark Borkowski, system program director for SBIRS.
Germany's April 7 announcement that it has begun sea testing a new class of diesel-electric submarines probably will quicken the pace of research in sophisticated sensor technology, according to a leading naval analyst. However, the submarines cannot rival nuclear-powered submarines in capability or mobility, said naval analyst Stuart Slade of Forecast International/DMS. "The nukes still rule," Slade said in an April 7 interview with The DAILY.
NEW DELHI - India announced it will test its long-range ballistic missile, the Agni-3, later this year. George Fernandes, the Indian defense minister, said the test launch for the 3,000-kilometer-range (1,864-mile) missile is overdue. He said India needs a long-range missile for nuclear deterrence. Sources in the defense ministry said the nuclear-capable Agni-3 largely is aimed at deterring China, and could strike deep inside that country.
NEW DELHI - Pakistan has agreed to sell the Super Mushak reconnaissance-trainer aircraft to Saudi Arabia. Four aircraft initially will be delivered, but more aircraft are expected to be sold to Saudi Arabia later. Pakistan has exported three such aircraft to Oman, six to Syria and 25 to Iran, and is looking for more buyers.
