The House Appropriations Committee added $64 million to the Bush Administration's fiscal 2003 request for the Arrow missile defense system to help establish U.S. co-production of the Israeli missile used in the system, according to Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee.
NEW DELHI - An inquiry has been ordered into the June 25 crash of a MiG-23, which occurred in the northern Indian state of Punjab, near the border with Pakistan. Squadron Leader Rajesh Dhingra, a spokesman for the Indian air force, said the aircraft's pilot, Lt. Bharat Kumar, escaped with minor injuries but the aircraft was destroyed.
The recent success of tests of the sea-based missile defense system is paving the way for accelerated acquisition and deployment of a layered missile defense system, according to Air Force Lt. Gen. Ronald Kadish, the head of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA).
MISSILE SALE: Canada is seeking to buy 12 SM-2 Block IIIA Standard missiles, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress June 25. The Canadian navy plans to install the missiles on Destroyer-class ships for defense against air and cruise missile threats. The total value of the sale could be as high as $19 million, according to DSCA.
NASA's Nuclear Systems Initiative (NSI) is heating up on several fronts as the agency works to reopen old product lines on nuclear power systems for interplanetary probes, and explore new technologies that can better extract power from nuclear reactions. NASA's fiscal year 2003 budget calls for nearly $1 billion to be spent on the NSI in two major areas - developing radioisotope power systems, and fission/power/propulsion research.
The House Appropriations Committee has approved a deep cut in the Army's fiscal 2003 request for the Brilliant Anti-Armor (BAT) Submunition, citing cost and performance problems with the Northrop Grumman anti-armor system.
A comprehensive study by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) released June 25 urges the U.S. government to accelerate its cooperative program for securing nuclear weapons and materials in Russia. "The United States should accelerate its bilateral materials protection, control, and accounting program in Russia to safeguard small nuclear warheads and special nuclear materials, particularly highly enriched uranium," the report says.
The winner among four aerospace and defense companies bidding for TRW Inc. will be determined by what approach senior TRW executives take to increase shareholder value, according to a leading aerospace analyst. Paul Nisbet, senior aerospace and defense analyst with JSA Research of Newport, R.I., told The DAILY June 25 he doesn't expect a bidding war to develop between the four companies hoping to acquire TRW.
NEW DELHI - The Indian air force has begun receiving deliveries of its long-delayed Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fourth-generation, multirole fighters from Russia. A senior Indian ministry of defense official told THE DAILY that two of the 32 contracted Su-30 MKI aircraft were received at Pune on June 25. The unassembled aircraft were sent on a cargo aircraft from Irkutsk in Siberia.
The Department of Transportation announced June 25 it has awarded a multibillion contract to a team led by Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman to modernize the Coast Guard's ships, aircraft and communications systems. The $11 billion contract, which could be extended up to three decades, includes $5.91 billion for operation, maintenance and sustainment for a total cost of $16.95 billion.
Raytheon Co. projects the production of 350 to 400 more AN/ALR-67(v)3 radar warning receiver systems after receiving a $33 million Navy contract for additional production of the systems for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The production will run "probably over the next five or six years," said Raytheon spokesman Ron Colman. The contract, awarded June 10, brings to $268 million the amount the company has received to date for production of the system, which detects threat radar emitters and thereby enhances the survivability of aircraft carrying it.
The Senate has endorsed an ongoing Air Force study aimed at developing a strategy to sustain the U.S. space launch industrial base. The Senate June 21 approved an amendment to the fiscal 2003 defense authorization bill urging Air Force Undersecretary Peter Teets, the Defense Department's acquisition executive for space programs, to report the study's conclusions to Congress "at the earliest opportunity practicable." Sens. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.) and Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) proposed the amendment.
PALOMAR PRODUCTS INC. will provide the Mission Intercommunications Systems to the Boeing Co. for Australia's Wedgetail 737 Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C). Palomar has developed an audio and data distribution system that uses the latest digital signal processing and network technology, the company said. Palomar also will provide the intercommunications systems to Thales Systems Canada for the Canadian CP140 Aurora Communications Management System. The CP140 Aurora is a long-range maritime patrol aircraft.
With a final decision on Austria's fighter selection expected by mid-July, the Defense Department's Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) believes the competition is a "long shot" for the U.S.-made F-16, even though it says the United States has the most financially competitive offer.
DATA TRANSFER: The European Space Agency's Envisat spacecraft, the largest satellite build to monitor the Earth's environment, has transferred a terabyte of data, ESA said. A terabyte of data is equal to the text contained in about one million books, according to ESA. Envisat transmits its data through the Data Dissemination System (DDS), a satellite-based network that includes two Ku-band uplink stations and 20 receiving stations located throughout Europe.
NASA's Aqua spacecraft has started sending its first data and engineering images back to Earth, spacecraft builder TRW Inc. said June 24. Five of Aqua's six instruments have begun producing data, TRW said. Those instruments are the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder; the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit; the Humidity Sounder for Brazil; the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS (AMSR-E); and Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System. The AMSR-E has provided a global map of sea surface temperatures, TRW said.
AVIATION POST: Former FAA attorney Holly Woodruff Lyons has joined the House Transportation aviation subcommittee as counsel, the committee announced June 21. The subcommittee oversees all aspects of civil aviation. In addition, congressional aide Charles Ziegler has been named deputy chief counsel and parliamentarian of the full Transportation Committee, whose jurisdiction includes the Coast Guard. Attorney Raga Elim has been appointed special counsel to committee Chairman Don Young (R-Alaska).
NEW DELHI - India plans fast-track serial production of the indigenous anti-tank Nag missile, following two successful tests on June 21. The tests were the 43rd and 44th flight tests of the missile, which the Indian ministry of defense said is a third-generation system with "fire and forget" and top-attack capabilities. The missile will be mounted on the Advanced Light Helicopter, which went into serial production earlier this year.
RADAR CONTRACT: Raytheon Co. will continue building ALR-67(V)3 radar warning receiver systems for U.S. Navy F/A-18E/F aircraft under a $33 million contract, the company announced June 24. The Lot 4 production award is the second option to the full-rate Lot 2 contract, which began in July 2000. This award, from the Naval Air Systems Command Patuxent River, Md., calls for the delivery of 28 warning receivers. Deliveries are slated to begin in June 2004 and are expected to be complete by January 2005.
In a ceremony held at the Pentagon June 24, Italy officially joined the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, pledging about $1 billion to the system development and demonstration (SDD) phase of the program.
BAE Systems North America is content to remain a major subsystems supplier in the growing areas of space and missile defense systems, but would consider making an acquisition to improve its position in those sectors, company president and CEO Mark Ronald said June 24. "In missile defense, we think we have some things we can add, but we can't be a major player at the moment, and that's equally true in space," Ronald said in an interview with The DAILY.
Since arms export sanctions were lifted against India and Pakistan last year, the U.S. State Department has approved a number of export licenses to India. So far, none has been approved for Pakistan. According to recently released notifications to Congress, the licenses approved for India span a wide array of military equipment, including remote operating sensor vehicles, aircraft engines, and military aircraft equipment.
Northrop Grumman has again extended its tender offer to exchange $53 of company stock for each share of TRW Inc. stock. The offer, which was scheduled to expire June 21, will be extended to June 28, company officials said in a June 24 statement. Nearly 3.3 million shares had been tendered as of 5 p.m. June 21, officials said. Of these, 563,436 shares are subject to guaranteed delivery. The tendered shares must be validated by TRW's transfer agent, Northrop Grumman said.
