FORT WORTH, Texas - Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. plans to make slight changes to the outer shape of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter following a customary review of the aircraft's exterior mold lines. With the JSF "lines freeze" that occurred June 27, Lockheed Martin has decided to make the forward fuselage five inches longer than previously planned to ensure the JSF's avionics, sensors and other equipment fit comfortably inside the plane, company representatives told The DAILY in a recent interview at the plant here where the JSF is being developed.
Raytheon Co.'s Loiter Attack Missile (LAM), one of two missiles it is developing for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's NetFires program, completed its first flight June 17, the company reported. LAM and its sister weapon, the Precision Attack Missile (PAM), are intended to be fired vertically from a canister. The turbojet-powered LAM would fly a search pattern looking for targets, while the rocket-powered PAM would fly directly to a target.
EXCHANGE FLIGHTS: Russian test pilots and engineers may come to the U.S. as part of an ongoing cooperative program between Naval Air Systems Command and the Gromov Flight Research Institute (GFRI), NAVAIR says. A team of U.S. test pilots and engineers were in Russia from May 31 to June 9, in search of possible future engineering and flight cooperative programs between NAVAIR and GFRI.
MAGELLAN BUY: Aerospace supplier Magellan Aerospace Corp. of Toronto plans to acquire Haley Industries Ltd. for $2.15 Canadian per stock share, or 0.425 in Magellan shares for each Haley share. Haley produces magnesium and aluminum castings, primarily for the aerospace industry. Haley's board of directors will review the bid.
NEW DELHI - Visiting British defense secretary Geoff Hoon held discussions July 3 with George Fernandes, his Indian counterpart, aimed at concluding a sale on BAE Systems' offer of Hawk 100 advanced jet trainers (AJTs) to India. A senior Indian ministry of defense official told The DAILY that the discussions were "the last round" on the AJT deal.
SUPER HERCS: The government of Italy has accepted the first two of 10 stretched C-130J Hercules aircraft ordered for the Italian air force, Lockheed Martin said July 2. The C-130J "Super Herc" fuselages are 15 feet longer than the standard model. The aircraft are designated as CC-130Js by the U.S. Air Force. The aircraft will be ferried to Pisa, Italy, where they will be operated by the Italian air force's 46th Air Brigade. The Italian CC-130J configuration is among the most sophisticated yet developed for the aircraft, according to Lockheed Martin.
Credit analysts with Standard & Poor's removed United Defense International (UDI) from CreditWatch and affirmed the company's "BB-" corporate credit rating, according to a report released July 2. United Defense was placed on CreditWatch May 28 after the company announced plans to acquire U.S. Marine Repair Inc. (USMR) for $316 million (DAILY, May 30). The acquisition was financed with $16 million cash and $300 million borrowed from the company's existing credit facility.
SAR STUDY: NASA's DC-8 is one of five aircraft participating in the 2002 Soil Moisture Field Experiment (SMEX02), a NASA-funded activity done in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service. The aircraft is carrying the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. AirSAR will measure soil moisture and distinguish the type of vegetation being studied.
ARROW AGREEMENT: The State Department has approved Boeing's license for co-production of Israel's Arrow missile, according to a Boeing spokeswoman. The Boeing Co. applied for a license in January to cooperate with Israel Aircraft Industries, the prime contractor for the missile defense system (DAILY, Jan. 25). "The technical assistance agreement has been signed," says Marta Newhart, a spokeswoman for Boeing's international program. The Israelis wanted a U.S.-based manufacturer to increase production of the missile and promote possible foreign sales.
NO NUKE ROCKETS: NASA will not be exploring nuclear fission rocket technology as part of its $1 billion, five-year Nuclear Systems Initiative (NSI), according to NSI Program Executive Ray Taylor. NASA abandoned development of nuclear fission rockets in the 1960s. "We recognize now that in the ... perhaps not-too-distant future, the time will come to re-look [at] that area, but right now it's a fairly big bite to take to begin in earnest with nuclear-electric propulsion," Taylor says.
When the House Science Committee considers the Bush Administration's proposal to create a homeland security department, committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-N.Y.) plans to add language calling for an undersecretary for research and development. The bill, which the committee intends to consider sometime after the congressional July 4 recess, will give the undersecretary "a broad but clear mission and the tools he or she will need to carry it out," Boehlert said at a recent committee hearing on homeland security.
NASA has selected the next two missions in its Small Explorer (SMEX) program, the aerospace agency announced July 2. The first mission, to be launched in 2005, is the Explorer for Spectroscopy and Photometry of the Intergalactic Medium's Diffuse Radiation (SPIDR). SPIDR will map the filaments of hot gas that make up half the normal matter in the nearby universe.
FEWER PEOPLE: As the Navy faces a growing gap between the number of personnel it has and the number it needs, the service wants to concentrate on building platforms that require fewer people to operate, according to Vice Adm. Mike Mullen, the deputy chief of naval operations for resources, requirements and assessments. Personnel shortfalls are one of the top items on the Navy's unfunded list, Mullen says. "They're our most important resource, they're our most expensive resource." Investment in new technology would help solve this problem, he says.
NAVAL AIR STATION PATUXENT RIVER, Md. - Delta will be the first commercial airline to install on its fleet the arc fault circuit breaker (AFCB) jointly developed by the Navy's Aging Aircraft Integrated Product Team (AAIPT) and the FAA. Two versions of the breaker have been developed for transport-sized aircraft - one by Eaton Aerospace, and another by Hendry Telephone Systems. The Eaton version has completed flight tests. Having two versions, which use different detection algorithms, will help ensure a healthy manufacturing pool, according to the Navy.
KERNAN RELEASED: Army Gen. William F. Kernan is being released "with great regret" from his assignment as Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic, the Defense Department said July 2 in an announcement widely expected since the department first announced changes to the Unified Command Plan in April. After Kernan leaves his command in October, the deputy SACLANT will assume day-to-day operations of NATO until the alliance decides on a new command structure, according to the Pentagon.
LAUNCH DELAY: Lockheed Martin has delayed the first launch of its Atlas V booster to allow the engineering team to repeat tests on the vehicle umbilical retract systems, the company said July 2. The Atlas V was slated to carry the HOT BIRD 6 satellite to space July 29. That will be rescheduled for early or mid August, pending range availability.
NEW DELHI - Pakistan and the United States will conduct their first joint tri-services exercises later this month, including their armies, navies and air forces. The exercises are slated to be larger than the joint Indo-U.S. defense exercises held May 15-18, and would be located around Jhelum, Kharian and the Sonmiani naval range, about 20 miles from Karachi.
DYNCORP, Reston, Va. Emory L. Chenoweth, (Ret. Capt.), has joined the firm as director of special programs, Navy. HONEYWELL, Morris Township, N.J. Lawrence A. Bossidy, chairman of the board, has announced his retirement. David M. Cote, president and CEO, has assumed the additional title of chairman of the board. PEMCO AVIATION GROUP, Birmingham, Ala. Phillip M. Panzera has been chosen to head the company's Manufacturing and Component Group. SEQUA CORP., NEW YORK, N.Y.
Raytheon announced July 1 it expects to take an additional charge to complete two engineering and construction projects in Massachusetts. The projects are related to the company's obligations to complete certain projects as a condition of selling its engineering and construction business to Washington Group International in July 2000. After the sale, WGI filed for bankruptcy protection and has since restructured its operations.
Wall Street analysts gave mixed reactions to the $7.8 billion merger of Northrop Grumman and TRW, with most analysts affirming their ratings for Northrop while downgrading those for TRW. Aerospace and defense analysts with Standard & Poor's affirmed their "BBB-" corporate credit rating for Northrop Grumman following the July 1 announcement (DAILY, July 2).
Austria's July 2 decision to buy the Eurofighter aircraft is a defeat for the U.S.-made F-16, but still leaves room for American-made weapons, according to U.S. sources. While Austria opted for what the government there calls a "European" program, the Raytheon Corp. already has been in preliminary discussion to sell its AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) and AIM-9 Sidewinder to Austria, a company spokeswoman told The DAILY.
SPACE POST: Former NASA employee Ken Monroe has joined the staff of the House Science space subcommittee, where he will oversee the space shuttle program. Monroe worked at Kennedy Space Center, Florida, for 17 years: 11 for NASA and three each for TRW and Rockwell International. He most recently was a senior program manager for product development at Qwest Communications.
