TRUE TECH TRANSFER: The true mechanism through which American aerospace technology is being transferred overseas is our system of higher education, according to Joseph Rothenberg, former head of NASA's Office of Human Spaceflight. "I contend that [technology is] leaving the country through the education system," Rothenberg says. "There's a diminishing number of people graduating from universities ... in science and engineering who are staying in the country. There are a lot of international students ... and many of them now are returning to their home countries.
FIRST LOOK: NASA plans to release the first images from the Hubble Space Telescope's newly installed Advanced Camera for Surveys on April 30, according to the aerospace agency. The camera was installed by shuttle astronauts during mission STS-109 in March.
JSF DELAY: The Dutch cabinet April 26 postponed a decision on whether to reaffirm its recommendation to parliament to join the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program. The delaying action follows two tie votes in the parliament on whether to reject the cabinet's recommendation.
JDAM TEST: Boeing's 500-pound MK-82 Joint Direct Attack Munition has been successfully flight tested at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Boeing announced April 26. The Air Force launched the MK-82 from an F-16 six miles from its target and at 20,000 feet. The JDAM flew to the target and made a direct hit, according to Boeing. The engineering, manufacturing and development phase of the 500-pound JDAM began in September 2000.
Sukhoi Design Bureau won the tender for Russia's fifth-generation fighter April 26 after its bid was approved by the government's commission on military industry. The decision came in a closed meeting chaired by Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov, and the result was announced by Iliya Klebanov, the minister of industry, science and technology. Sukhoi's team on the program will include MiG and the Yakovlev Design Bureau. MiG had presented its own design for the fighter.
April 29 - May 1 -- National Defense Industrial Association presents 2002 NDIA-U.S. Coast Guard Innovation Expo, the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront, Baltimore, MD. For more information contact Angie De Kleine at (703) 247-2599 or email [email protected], or visit www.ndia.org. April 30 -- Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association presents Sky Forum 2002: Advancing the Future, the Waldorf-Astoria, 301 Park Ave., New York, NY. For more information call (800) 541-5981 or email [email protected].
STUMP RETIRES: House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Chairman Bob Stump (R-Ariz.) says he will not seek re-election to the House in November due to unspecified "serious health problems." Stump, 75, has led the HASC since January 2001. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), the panel's No. 2 Republican in seniority, hopes to become the new chairman when Stump steps down at year's end. Hunter is "going to work hard to get it," a spokesman says. Another senior member of the committee, Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), who unsuccessfully ran for the chairmanship last year (DAILY, Jan.
SPECTRUM ASTRO of Gilbert, Ariz., has completed the pre-environmental review of the military's Coriolis spacecraft and is continuing environmental testing, according to the company. Space vehicle environmental testing includes electromagnetic compatibility, thermal balance and functional testing. So far, the vehicle has completed acoustic testing, random vibration testing and separation and deployment testing, according to Spectrum Astro.
TECHNOLOGY BOOST: France soon will launch a satellite carrying technology the country hopes will boost its competitiveness in space telecommunications. The 2.4 ton Telecommunications Satellite for New Technology Experiments in Orbit (STENTOR) is slated to launch in July from the Kourou launch center in French Guiana. The satellite carries a host of new technologies, according to the French Technology Press office, including an active antenna and advanced thermal control and plasma thrusters. The government decided to build the satellite in 1994.
Facing an early June deadline for determining the U.S. military's electronic attack aircraft options, the number of manned aircraft that the Navy may buy to replace the Prowler is dropping, according to an industry official.
JSF VOTE: The Dutch parliament on April 25 produced a tie vote on whether to reject the cabinet's recommendation to join the Joint Strike Fighter program, the second such outcome this week. The issue now moves back to the cabinet, which is expected to decide April 26 whether to reaffirm its recommendation to participate in JSF.
Facing an early June deadline for determining the U.S. military's electronic attack aircraft options, the number of manned aircraft that the Navy may buy to replace the Prowler is dropping, according to an industry official.
An article in The DAILY of April 23 about Aviation Week&Space Technology Laureates for 2001 gave an incorrect rank for Gen. Lester L. Lyles, head of Air Force Materiel Command.
A second "space tourist" is slated to arrive at the International Space Station on April 27, according to NASA. South African Internet entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth is slated to arrive at the station at 4 a.m. as part of a Soyuz "taxi" mission, along with mission commander Yuri Gidzenko and flight engineer Roberto Vittorio. The mission, to swap out the Soyuz lifeboat, launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome April 25.
An article in The DAILY of April 23 about Aviation Week & Space Technology Laureates for 2001 gave an incorrect rank for Gen. Lester L. Lyles, head of Air Force Materiel Command.
TOKYO - Airbus Industrie soon will complete negotiations with Japanese companies about their cooperation on the A380 superjumbo airliner, Airbus CEO Noel Forgeard told reporters in Japan. The company is negotiating with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Fuji Heavy Industries for subcontract work on the program, and a final agreement could be completed within a month to six weeks, he said. The total value of the work will be about $1 billion, Forgeard said.
The Army, apparently spurred by the war in Afghanistan, is moving again on development of a mine detection system that would be carried by an unmanned aerial vehicle. It plans to issue a draft request for proposals on about May 30 for the Airborne Standoff Minefield Detection System (ASTAMIDS). ASTAMIDS has had technical and budget troubles in recent years.
First-quarter net income for United Defense more than tripled due to higher sales in the company's combat vehicle programs, company officials said April 25. Net income for the quarter rose from $5.1 million a year ago at this time to $19 million. First-quarter revenue rose 22 percent, from $292.1 million a year ago to $356.4 million this quarter.
Sikorsky, which had offered a military version of its S-92 helicopter to Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force, has withdrawn from the competition. This leaves EH Industries' EH-101 as the only entry to replace the Japanese navy's MH-53E minesweeper-transport helicopters. Sikorsky withdrew from the competition because work on the military version of the S-92 wouldn't be done in time for the navy's deadline, according to Mitsubishi Trading Corp., a Sikorsky sales agent in Japan.
The first production Eurofighter Typhoon for the Spanish air force (EdA) is taking shape on the EADS-CASA final assembly line at Getafe air base, where it is due for completion by the end of the year. It will be joined in June by components for the second.
Airbus Industrie soon will complete negotiations with Japanese companies about their cooperation on the A380 superjumbo airliner, Airbus CEO Noel Forgeard told reporters in Japan. The company is negotiating with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Fuji Heavy Industries for subcontract work on the program, and a final agreement could be completed within a month to six weeks, he said. The total value of the work will be about $1 billion, Forgeard said.
MADRID, Spain - The first production Eurofighter Typhoon for the Spanish air force (EdA) is taking shape on the EADS-CASA final assembly line at Getafe air base, where it is due for completion by the end of the year. It will be joined in June by components for the second.
While there still are plans for Global Hawk to have a signals intelligence (SIGINT) capability, the Air Force has not said what payload would be used on the aircraft, according to a Northrop Grumman official involved in the program.
While there still are plans for Global Hawk to have a signals intelligence (SIGINT) capability, the Air Force has not said what payload would be used on the aircraft, according to a Northrop Grumman official involved in the program.
The Bush Administration's policy coordinating committee (PCC) for space is ramping up after an activity lull that followed the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, according to an Administration source. Issues that are getting the close attention of the interagency panel include space transportation, commercial remote sensing, export controls and international activities, the source said late April 24 at a Capitol Hill space policy forum sponsored by Women in Aerospace. Some policy decisions could be made by year's end.
