Senior Arianespace officials said Jan. 7 that another heavier-lift Ariane 5 ECA, similar to one that had to be destroyed shortly after launch on Dec. 11, could fly in six months. The Ariane 5 ECA is an enhanced version of the company's baseline Ariane 5 launcher and features a new cryogenic upper stage and Vulcain 2 main engine. A report released Jan. 6 by an inquiry board investigating the Dec. 11 launch failure said the Vulcain 2's cooling circuit nozzle overheated after cracks developed in the nozzle's cooling tubes.
LAUNCH: The launch of NASA's CHIPsat and ICESat satellites has been tentatively rescheduled for Jan. 10, 11 or 12, according to CHIPSat builder SpaceDev. CHIPSat is intended to examine the gas that fills the space between stars, and ICESat is to gather data on the changing elevation of ice sheets. The launch of the satellites was postponed from Dec. 19 after a signal relay problem was found on the Boeing Delta II booster (DAILY, Dec. 19, 2002).
NASA is faring well so far as Senate appropriators try to cut billions of dollars from the remaining fiscal 2003 appropriations bills, a Senate Appropriations Committee aide said Jan. 6. With Republicans taking over the Senate, the Senate Appropriations Committee is revising the FY '03 NASA appropriations bill and 10 other FY '03 appropriations bills that were written under Democratic leadership. Senate Republicans want to reduce spending to lower levels favored by President Bush and the GOP-led House.
NEW DELHI - Pakistan plans to buy arms from Western nations and China under a multimillion-dollar procurement plan. The country's shopping list includes surveillance and information management systems and combat simulators. The procurement plan is being personally drafted by President Pervez Musharraf, according to diplomats based in Islamabad.
ARROW TEST: Israel conducted a successful multiple firing of the Arrow anti-missile system against computer-simulated targets on Jan. 5, according to the Israeli defense ministry. The test was the fifth of the complete system and the first in a series of tests designed to "evaluate the system's performance against the next generation of incoming threats," the ministry said.
TANKER WORK: Telephonics Corp. will provide the audio intercom system for the Boeing Co.'s 767 tanker/transport aircraft, the company said Jan. 6. The work includes systems for U.S. and international customers of the aircraft and is valued at more than $5 million, according to Telephonics, a subsidiary of the Griffon Corp.
NEW DELHI - India does not plan to follow China and mount a manned space mission soon, according to the head of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). "This is not the time to do it," said ISRO chief K. Kasturirangan, who said the returns from such a mission wouldn't make up for the financial and technological resources required to mount it.
The U.S. Air Force has agreed on the first self-imposed cuts to its future F/A-22 fleet, but will continue to seek ways to fund more aircraft within its $41 billion cost cap. To help address a cost overrun of up to $1 billion, the Air Force intends to buy 20 F/A-22s in fiscal 2003 instead of the previously planned 23 aircraft, a congressional source told The DAILY Jan. 6. More procurement cuts are expected in FY '04 and beyond. So far, the Air Force plans F/A-22 airframe cuts for the next two years.
The Pentagon is nearing the first contract decision in a quickened acquisition process for a single system intended to replace the military's airborne radios. The Air Force, as executive agent for the airborne cluster of the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS), will seek approval for the program's acquisition strategy later this month, according to industry and military officials.
After fixing some problems that plagued two previous flights in 2001, NASA's Ultra Long Duration Balloon (ULDB) program is preparing to make another flight attempt in Australia later this month. The disposable ULDB already has been shipped to Australia, according to NASA spokeswoman Betty Flowers. During two flight attempts in 2001, leaks forced controllers to bring the ULDB down early (DAILY, March 13, 2001).
Northrop Grumman has demonstrated a live data link between a modified Litening Extended Range (ER) targeting pod aboard a Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier and a ground station for a Pioneer unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the company announced Jan. 6. The modifications to the pod involved adding a data/video transmitter compatible with the Pioneer UAV, along with a commercial off-the-shelf transmit antenna. The changes to the pod took less than a month, according to the company.
MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) of Richmond, British Columbia, will deliver a new imaging and surveillance radar system for the country's fleet of CP-140 Aurora patrol aircraft, the company said Jan. 6. The work will be done under the CDN$200 million ($128 million) Imaging Radar System project, which will be done in four phases. Prime contractor MDA will complete the high-level design of the new system under the first phase, the company said.
The Army has awarded Raytheon Missile Systems a $265.8 million contract modification to further develop the capabilities of the XM 982 Excalibur precision-guided projectile, company officials said Jan. 6. Excalibur was identified in June as one of the programs to receive accelerated funding following the Defense Department's cancellation of the Crusader self-propelled howitzer program in May (DAILY, Aug. 8, 2002).
The Missile Defense Agency, which says it is fixing problems with the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) interceptor missile, plans to conduct three tests of the Lockheed Martin-built missile over about the next 16 months.
THE RIGHT PLACE: Lockheed Martin, following several big contract wins for the F/A-22 Raptor over the holiday season (see story on Page 7), remains one of the best-positioned defense companies for long-term growth, says senior aerospace and defense analyst Christopher Mecray of Deutsche Bank. "The company, simply put, is in the right place for today's spending priorities," he says. That should be confirmed in February, Mecray says, when the upcoming defense budget submission, which appears to fund all of the company's major programs, is released.
Although the State Department could fine the Boeing Co. and Hughes Electronics Corp. up to $61.5 million for allegedly committing 123 trade violations with China, it's unlikely the amount will be that high, according to industry analysts. Instead, the companies probably will work out a deal with the State Department that will include a lesser financial penalty, they said.
The FAA has granted a supplemental type certificate to Airship Management Services' (AMS) Skyship 600 airship equipped with a new Textron Lycoming outboard propulsion system capable of providing greater thrust and maneuverability.
GLONASS BOOST: The recent launch of three Uragan satellites is the latest step in Russia's effort to revitalize its ailing Glonass navigation system, which currently can provide data for as little as two hours a day. The satellites will join the existing seven operational satellites, plus another Glonass spacecraft undergoing on-orbit testing. Russia hopes to launch as many as 30 Glonass satellites through 2011, including older model Uragans, newer Uragan-Ms and Glonass-K satellites, which are expected to have an on-orbit life of up to 12 years.
REBUTTAL: Missile defense pioneer Bill Davis says that despite claims to the contrary, nearly nine out of 10 tests of hit-to-kill technology are successful when unrelated mechanical failures aren't calculated. Davis, the Pentagon's former deputy program director for missile defense, sent The Daily a two-page rebuttal to a paper published last month by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), which accused the Pentagon of inflating the historical success rate of its missile defense tests. The UCS says Lt. Gen.
