Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Army Gen. Henry Shelton have told a key lawmaker that the federal government shouldn't turn over the 1755 to 1850 megahertz (MHz) band of the radio frequency spectrum to commercial users until comparable spectrum for the military is identified and made available.
Two top service officials said they expect no major force cuts to come out of the Quadrennial Defense Review. Department of Defense officials have said reductions in force structure would yield savings that could help offset the cost of modernizing weapons and equipment. Although the savings expected from force cuts might not materialize, the service leaders said they now plan to fund their modernization efforts by cutting low-priority programs and other cost-saving actions.
The most surprising thing about the Aug. 27 loss of a U.S. Air Force RQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle over Iraq, observers said, was that it has taken this long for one to be shot down by Iraqi forces. The UAVs have been flying in Southwest Asia since the mid-1990s.
An as-yet-unreleased study on the vulnerability of GPS (Global Positioning System) shows that satellite networks are vulnerable to disruptions from several causes, including intentional jamming and atmospheric effects, Aerospace Daily affiliate Aviation Daily reported. The study, by the Volpe National Transportation Center, makes several recommendations to lessen the impact of such events on the national transportation infrastructure.
After several years of delays, Hungary is expected to announce Aug. 31 what option it will pursue to upgrade its fighters to meet NATO standards. While several countries are offering lease options to the Hungarian military, a Hungarian newspaper reported Aug. 28 that the government has decided to lease 24 F-16 A/B aircraft from the United States. "It's not a done deal," said one source familiar with the U.S. offer. There are several competing offers on the table, the source added, and the Belgians are briefing the Hungarians this week.
The Army's Future Combat System (FCS) program plans to make unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) an indispensable part of a new kind of network-centric warfighting unit. "FCS is the heart of the transformed, network-centric Army," said Jim Walbert, director of science and technology at the office of the project manager for the Army's Objective Force, speaking in Washington, D.C. Aug. 28.
House Science space subcommittee Chairman Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) said Aug. 29 that he is making progress in his bid to boost foreign participation in the International Space Station program. During a mid-August trip to Italy and Ireland, representatives of those countries told Rohrabacher that they would consider making substantial contributions to the ISS over the next few years, the congressman told The DAILY.
The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) broke a string of bad luck early this morning with the launch of the first H-IIA rocket, marking the first time since July 1998 that a Japanese rocket has successfully reached orbit. The $71 million H-IIA launched from Tanegashima Space Center off Kyushu Island, about 620 miles southwest of Tokyo, at 4:00 p.m. local time on August 29.
A Northrop Grumman Corp. team hit a moving vehicle with a low-cost, precision weapon as part of a contract to develop an Affordable Moving Surface Target Engagement (AMSTE) for the Department of Defense. The test took place at the Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., test range, the company announced Aug. 29. The one year, $12 million AMSTE project is funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Air Force Research Laboratory. Raytheon Co. is also carrying out tests under the program, at China Lake, Calif. (DAILY, May 24).
Boeing's long-delayed three-stage prototype booster for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense Segment (GMDS) missile defense program is scheduled to have its first live-fire test Friday, Aug. 31, with another test planned in December. The test is "just to make sure the booster works," according to Boeing Spokeswoman Monica Aloisio. The missile will not attempt to intercept any targets. Launch will take place from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, after which the booster will land in the ocean.
Quantum Technologies Worldwide, Inc., of Irvine, Calif., will design, fabricate, test and supply large advanced hydrogen and oxygen tanks for the next generation Helios fuel cell prototype aircraft, under a contract from NASA and Helios builder AeroVironment. A Helios prototype recently set an altitude record during a flight over Hawaii, reaching 96,500 feet (DAILY, Aug. 15). The aircraft may help pave the way for long endurance, robotic aircraft that could perform some duties of satellites at a much lower cost.
Two Iridium replacement satellites will launch from Russia's Plesetsk launch center, according to Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. Iridium LLC and Motorola representatives visited Moscow on Aug. 29 and announced a contract with Eurockot which calls for the launch of the Iridium satellites in June 2002 aboard Khrunichev's Rokot launch vehicle. On Aug. 28, Federal Express delivered Iridium satellite mockups and testing equipment for joint testing with the launch vehicle and ground infrastructure in Plesetsk.
NASA researchers are using remote-sensing technology aboard airplanes and satellites to help California vineyards measure grape ripening rate, disease incidence, soil drainage and fruit quality, the aerospace agency said Aug. 28. NASA began using remote sensing technology at the Mondavi winery in 1993, to track the phylloxera infestation that was affecting northern California.
Formal arms control agreements take too long to negotiate and are not an effective way of adjusting strategic forces, according to J.D. Crouch, the new assistant secretary of defense for international security. "There's a sense that [arms control agreements] will not allow us to make the kinds of adjustments to our own forces ... in the time frames in which we need to make those decisions," Crouch told reporters Aug. 28 during a roundtable discussion at the Pentagon.
Indian defense officials have been left shaken by Russian comments that Indian Air Force MiG-series aircraft have been crashing because the air force is buying low quality spare parts. Media reports from Moscow quoted a senior MiG Corp. official as saying that New Delhi has been creating conditions for frequent crashes by buying spares of doubtful quality from former East Bloc countries.
Poland signed a $212 million contract with European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. to buy eight C-295 transport aircraft for the Polish air forces to replace aging Antonov An-26s. Deliveries are slated to begin in 2003 and end in 2005, according to EADS. The company beat out Lockheed Martin-Alenia Aerospazio's C-27J and Antonov's An-32 from Ukraine.
Two groups of U.S. senators have sent the secretary of defense letters reflecting different positions on whether a proposed merger of General Dynamics and Newport News Shipbuilding would affect competition in the nation's shipbuilding industry. Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics both have tendered offers to buy Newport News Shipbuilding. A decision is pending.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)is working on an agreement with the European Association of Aerospace Industries and the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation for joint ventures in areas like air traffic control, airports and civil certification of aircraft. "We had two steering committee meetings and the next one will be in Brussels. The effort will be speeded up," said C.G. Krishnadas Nair, the outgoing chairman of HAL.
Today's maiden launch of the H-IIA launch vehicle marks the renewal of an aggressive effort by Japan to stake a claim in the competitive world launch market currently dominated by heavyweights such as France's Arianespace or Boeing and Lockheed Martin of the United States. At press time, launch was scheduled for 1:00 p.m. August 29, from the Yoshinobu launch pad at the National Space Development Agency's (NASDA's) Tanegashima launch center off Kyushu Island.
LOCKHEED MARTIN has begun a joint test program with the U.S. Air Force and Army to validate the C-130J-30 for paratroop airdrop operations. The tests are being conducted by the Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate at Fort Bragg, N.C., and are being flown out of Pope Air Force Base, N.C.
GOVERNMENT MICRO RESOURCES, INC., and CRAY, INC., have been awarded a contract under NASA's Scientific and Engineering Workstation Procurement (SEWP) program to provide computers for NASA and other agencies and contractors. The contract is an Indefinite Delivery&Indefinite Quantity contract in the High Performance Supercomputer Class and is available to all federal agencies and approved federal contractors. The companies said it has a maximum value of $4 billion.
HMS Ark Royal, the Royal Navy's flagship aircraft carrier, rejoins the British fleet Aug. 29 after completion of a major two-year refit and service trials in the North Sea. Costing 147 million pounds ($205 million), the refit was done by Babcock Engineering Services (BES) at the company's Rosyth shipyard in Scotland.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of the Philippines has asked the Congress to approve a 31 percent increase in next year's defense budget, according to press reports from Manila. According to reports from the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Arroyo has asked for about $1.1 billion for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). About $200 million will be earmarked for the AFP's modernization program to upgrade the military's aircraft, warships, weaponry and fighting skills.
Rep. John Spratt (D-S.C.), a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, said Aug. 28 that he hopes to offer an amendment on the House floor to redirect money in the fiscal 2002 defense authorization bill from missile defense to other weapons.
Japan's Ministry of Education and Science will merge the nation's three space-related agencies - the National Space Development Agency, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science and the National Aerospace Laboratory - by about 2003. The Space Activities Commission, which administers Japan's space programs, will remain as an independent committee.
