NEW DELHI - A high-level Iranian delegation led by the country's deputy defense minister will visit Pakistan Aug. 5-10. Military ties between the two countries are expected to get a boost during the visit. The Iranian delegation is expected to negotiate a buy of an unspecified number MFI-17 Mushshak aircraft, and also has expressed interest in buying Pakistan's Al Khalid tank.
BUY: Finmeccanica of Italy bought Marconi's Strategic Communications defense communications business for 614 million euros ($602 million), London-based Marconi announced Aug. 2. Proceeds from the sale, a combination of cash and debt assumption by Finmeccanica, will be used to reduce Marconi's debt, the company said.
SPACE TEXTILES: The European Space Agency's Technology Transfer Network is studying how technology developed for the harsh environment of space could improve textiles, fiber products, clothes and textile manufacturing equipment here on Earth. Network officials recently met in France with representatives from 53 European and Canadian textile companies to brainstorm new uses for space products, and ESA is considering sponsoring studies and working groups to further the work.
Technical problems led to a decision to delay integrating Boeing's Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) on the F-22 Raptor, according to Brig. Gen. William Jabour, the Air Force's program executive officer for fighter and bomber programs.
Aviation Week Group writers received six of the 16 awards given at this year's Farnborough International Air Show, more than any other publication. Aviation Week & Space Technology's Jim Ott was named Aerospace Journalist of the Year by the Royal Aeronautical Society (DAILY, July 24). Other awards include: * Paul Richfield of Business & Commercial Aviation, the Messier-Dowty Award for best airshow submission.
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has decided to build a sea-based X-band radar for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system, ending a critical debate over what radar would be used in the "contingency" capability that is supposed to be operational by 2004.
DAB REVIEW: The Army's long-troubled armed reconnaissance helicopter, the RAH-66 Comanche, is set to go before the Defense Department's Defense Acquisition Board later this month, according to Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. John Keane. The Comanche program, which recently underwent its fifth restructuring, "is a solid program," Keane says. E.C.
Aug. 6 - 8 -- DPMO and USJFCOM presents 2002 DOD Personnel Recovery Conference - A National Imperative. Hyatt Regency Crystal City, Arlington, Va. 22202. For more information call Christina Buck at (703) 247-9478 or email [email protected]. Aug. 7 - 9 -- Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association presents 2002 Annual Satellite Conference and Expo. Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nev. For more information go to www.sbca.com.
NASA's new financial management system will be adopted progressively by its 10 centers, rolling out first at Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama and Glenn Research Center in Ohio before becoming the agency-wide standard by June of next year. This "modular" approach is one of the key differences between NASA's current attempt at financial standardization and previous failed attempts, according to Patrick Ciganer, the agency's program executive officer for integrated financial management.
Congress has provided $200 million in its recently passed fiscal 2002 supplemental appropriations bill for the Coast Guard to speed delivery of Lockheed Martin C-130Js and other new aircraft under construction, according to a Senate Appropriations Committee source. Lawmakers approved the funding because the Coast Guard needs the aircraft to help fulfill its homeland security role, which has increased since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the source said.
Lockheed Martin has agreed to pay the U.S. government $2.1 million to resolve allegations that a former company unit mischarged for Trident Missile Program contracts, the Justice Department announced Aug. 1. Tactical Systems Division improperly charged the Navy's Strategic Systems Program on a series of Trident service and material contracts from 1988 through 1996, at a time when it was owned by various defense contractors, the Justice Department said. Lockheed Martin acquired the company after that period, when it acquired Loral Corp.
Northrop Grumman plans to use a company-funded Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as a testbed for a number of new technologies and applications, including potential homeland security uses. The new aircraft would be an advanced technology demonstrator (ATD) version of the high-altitude, long-endurance UAV. Long-lead procurement will begin this year, and the company expects the vehicle to be completed in 2004.
FLIR Systems Inc. will deliver eight Star SAFIRE II multisensor infrared surveillance systems for the Mexican navy's fleet of CASA C-212-200 aircraft, the company said Aug. 1. The contract, worth about $5.5 million, contains options for the purchase of up to 12 additional Star SAFIRE II systems. The systems will integrate with the aircrafts' Fully Integrated Tactical Systems (FITS), which provides upgraded radar and FLIR imaging capability, the company said.
The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. (EADS) announced Aug. 1 it has assumed control of operations at the Oostkamp, Belgium plant previously owned by Siemens N.V. The plant, located near Brugge, supplies high-frequency modules for radar and communications systems manufactured by EADS for use in several defense programs, including the Eurofighter Typhoon.
Aerospace and defense industry officials testified before Congress earlier this week that changes in the tax provisions of U.S. export law could cost the industry thousands of jobs and millions of dollars. Congress is debating repealing the Foreign Sales Corporation/ Extraterritorial Income Exclusion Act tax provisions of the U.S. tax code because of a ruling from the World Trade Organization in January, which said the tax provisions amounted to an illegal export subsidy.
Aerojet reported first firing of a variable-thrust solid rocket motor designed for use in such tactical missiles as the Precision Attack Missile (PAM), under development by Raytheon Co. for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). All objectives of the test of the flight-weight motor were met during the 50-second firing at Aerojet's facility in Sacramento, Calif., the GenCorp Inc. company said. The test was conducted July 24, Bob Keenan, Aerojet business development manager, said in a telephone interview.
Adm. James Ellis, commander of U.S. Strategic Command, told a Senate panel Aug. 1 that the nuclear arms reductions recently agreed to by the U.S. and Russia will not weaken America's deterrent capability in the absence of a national missile defense system.
SHUTTLE NEWS: NASA plans a briefing Aug. 2 to detail plans for resuming space shuttle launches, the aerospace agency said. Shuttle flights have been grounded while engineers study tiny cracks found in liners inside the fuel lines of all four shuttle orbiters (DAILY, July 17).
The first flight of the Marine Corps' Dragon Warrior unmanned aerial vehicle has been delayed due to concerns about the aircraft's engine, according to a spokeswoman for the Marine Corps Warfighting Lab. The Dragon Warrior, a small UAV intended for urban reconnaissance, was to make its maiden flight on Aug. 12 (DAILY, July 12). "It won't be possible to meet the August 12 date," said Jenny Holbert, a spokeswoman for the Lab.
TRW AERONAUTICAL SYSTEMS will supply the drive system for the weapons bay doors on the Joint Strike Fighter under a $21 million contract from Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Integrated Systems sector. The first hardware is scheduled to be delivered in 2004. Northrop Grumman, a member of the Lockheed Martin JSF team, is responsible for integrating the center fuselage and weapons bay door drive systems.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) Aug. 1 withdrew legislation challenging an Air Force proposal to lease four Boeing C-40 transport planes after he ran into resistance from key senators. The Department of Defense, meanwhile, has asked Congress to free $37.2 million in fiscal 2002 funds so the Air Force can begin to lease the C-40s, military variants of the commercial 737-700. The reprogramming request would take the money from the CV-22 tiltrotor aircraft program, as DOD said the Air Force does not need the CV-22 money for two more years.
The Defense Department plans early next year to demonstrate the use of chemical point detectors onboard the RQ-1B Predator unmanned aerial vehicle, according to Pentagon documents.
