NEW DELHI - India's sole military aircraft manufacturer, state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), says it will produce 12 Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighters a year between 2004-2017, and the licensed production will cut the aircraft's cost. HAL Chairman Nalini Ranjan Mohanty told The DAILY April 11 that Su-30s built under the $4.6 billion program will cost about $22.5 million each, versus the current import price of about $37.5 million each.
The Defense Department will probably have to offer European militaries some kind of offset arrangement if they agree to purchase a mix of C-17 and C-130J transports aircraft instead of developing the A400M, according to a U.S. aerospace industry expert. Joel Johnson, vice president of international affairs for the Aerospace Industries Association, said it would make "make good economic sense" for individual European militaries to purchase a mix of C-17 Globemasters and C-130J Hercules transports instead of developing the A400M.
SHUTTLE DOCKED: Space Shuttle Atlantis docked with the International Space Station at 12:05 p.m. EDT April 10, making it the 13th shuttle mission to the station, according to NASA. Astronauts on the STS-110 mission will conduct four spacewalks to install a station truss segment and perform other tasks.
NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson believes the U.S. military must put greater emphasis on developing interoperable systems if it expects to successfully fight as part of future military coalitions. "I hope the guys spending at the Pentagon will have a big poster on the wall that says, 'Interoperability,'" Robertson said at a press briefing for defense writers in Washington April 10. Without interoperable systems, "you could have coalitions of the willing, but the incapable," he said.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Even as the Air Force builds its case to save the over-budget Space Based Infrared System High (SBIRS High), Peter Teets, the undersecretary of the Air Force for Space and head of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), is considering an alternative program.
The U.S. Marine Corps has decided to join the Air Force in a multiyear procurement of Lockheed Martin C-130J-based aircraft. The Marine Corps plans to buy 24 KC-130J tankers, or four a year from FY '03 to FY '08, according to an April 4 memorandum to the Air Force from Paul Schneider, the Navy Department's principal deputy assistant secretary for research, development and acquisition. The Marine Corps is buying KC-130Js to replace its aging KC-130s.
Although satellite-guided munitions, unmanned aircraft and other new technologies have many advantages over older systems, they still have weaknesses that could be exploited by an enemy, according to Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Lexington Institute. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee at an April 9 hearing on military transformation, Thompson said satellite-guided munitions provide "pinpoint accuracy" but rely on signals that in some cases can be jammed with just 20 watts of power.
The National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) is facing "huge" challenges as it transforms itself to respond to homeland defense needs, according to the agency's director. Speaking at a symposium in Falls Church, Va. April 9, Air Force Lt. Gen. Jim Clapper (retired) said many of these challenges revolve around reorienting NIMA to a domestic focus.
Although satellite-guided munitions, unmanned aircraft and other new technologies have many advantages over older systems, they still have weaknesses that could be exploited by an enemy, according to Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Lexington Institute. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee at an April 9 hearing on military transformation, Thompson said satellite-guided munitions provide "pinpoint accuracy" but rely on signals that in some cases can be jammed with just 20 watts of power.
The Boeing Co. has named its Australian subsidiary Hawker de Havilland as the latest member of its Sonic Cruiser development team, the company announced April 10. Hawker de Havilland will contribute its expertise in advanced materials, including composites, to the Sonic Cruiser, Boeing's proposed advanced airliner capable of flying at speeds up to Mach .98.
The Boeing Co. has named its Australian subsidiary Hawker de Havilland as the latest member of its Sonic Cruiser development team, the company announced April 10. Hawker de Havilland will contribute its expertise in advanced materials, including composites, to the Sonic Cruiser, Boeing's proposed advanced airliner capable of flying at speeds up to Mach .98.
The market for undersea warfare equipment will generate about $13.7 billion from 2002 to 2011, according to an April 9 report by Forecast International/DMS Inc. Customers will increase spending on UW products from $1.4 billion this year to $1.6 billion in 2003, according to the report, "The Undersea Warfare Market." However, sales will start to decline after 2003, according to senior naval analyst Stewart Slade, the report's author.
Even as the Air Force builds its case to save the over-budget Space Based Infrared System High (SBIRS High), Peter Teets, the undersecretary of the Air Force for Space and head of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), is considering an alternative program.
Even as the Air Force attempts to centralize its space acquisition programs, problems still loom for the Space Based Infrared System High (SBIRS High) and Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM), according to Gen. Ralph "Ed" Eberhart, head of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and Air Force Space Command. "[The] SBIRS program is in a certain amount of trouble," Eberhart said, speaking April 9 at the 18th National Space Symposium here.
H-92 IMPROVEMENTS: The first H-92, a military variant of Sikorsky's S-92, has returned to flight testing after being fitted with major structural enhancements, including an extended main rotor shaft, a redesigned electrical system and a lighter tail structure. These improvements will be fitted to all future S/H-92 helicopters, according to Sikorsky.
Lufthansa Technik AG and LHT Acquisition Corp. have completed their tender offer for shares of Hawker Pacific Aerospace stock, the companies announced April 9. Lufthansa Technik, of Hamburg, Germany, announced its intention to acquire Hawker Pacific Aerospace of Sun Valley, Calif., last month (DAILY, March 13). The company formed LHT Acquisition Corp. to handle the tender offer.
of Salt Lake City, which builds customized input technology solutions for the consumer market, said its Smart Cat touchpad has been selected by Bradford Engineering as a control device for the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) Video Drawer used on the International Space Station. The MSG is used to conduct microgravity experiments, which require an enclosed environment. The Smart Cat requires no finger pressure, which will allow the astronauts to wear gloves when conducting experiments. The MSG is slated to be delivered to the station's U.S.
Raytheon hopes its Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), which will be formally turned over to the FAA next year, eventually could become a one-stop global satellite navigation system for users around the world. WAAS corrects and enhances Global Positioning System (GPS) signals by comparing them with position information from ground stations and two satellites in geosynchronous orbit.
LOCKHEED MARTIN SPACE SYSTEMS of Sunnyvale, Calif., is testing NASA's Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF). The company received SIRTF's Cryogenic Telescope Assembly, which includes its scientific instruments, from Ball Aerospace of Boulder, Colo., and has integrated it with the Lockheed Martin-built spacecraft.
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Vern Clark has given the go-ahead to consolidate the Navy's helicopter fleet from seven models to two, a move that is intended to make maintenance, logistics and training more efficient, according to Rear Adm. Michael McCabe, director of the service's air warfare division. The Navy will restructure its helicopter forces around two "linchpin airframes," the Sikorsky MH-60R and MH-60S, McCabe testified April 9 before the Senate Armed Services seapower subcommittee.
SHUTTLE DOCK: Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to dock with the International Space Station on April 10, according to NASA. Atlantis launched April 8 on an 11-day mission to install a key segment of the station's truss.
Lufthansa Technik AG and LHT Acquisition Corp. have completed their tender offer for shares of Hawker Pacific Aerospace stock, the companies announced April 9. Lufthansa Technik, of Hamburg, Germany, announced its intention to acquire Hawker Pacific Aerospace of Sun Valley, Calif., last month (DAILY, March 13). The company formed LHT Acquisition Corp. to handle the tender offer.
