Taiwan's army destroyed a tactical ballistic missile target and a cruise missile target during the first live firings of its Patriot Air and Missile Defense system at the Chiu Peng Test Range, Raytheon Co. announced June 20. The tests of the Patriot Advanced Capability Phase 2 (PAC-2) missile were conducted by the Republic of China army in two missions under operationally realistic and stressing conditions from multiple launchers, according to Raytheon, which produces the PAC-2.
India is planning to send a person into space by the year 2008, according to a top scientist with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). S.S. Balakrishnan, the deputy director of ISRO's launch vehicle program office, said the ISRO is planning to build a launch vehicle with the capability of sending a human to space. He said the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle - GSLV Mark 3, which is scheduled for launch in 2007-08, has been earmarked for the task.
JOSEPH E. SCHMITZ will be nominated to be the Department of Defense inspector general, the White House announced. He is currently the deputy senior inspector for the Naval Reserve Intelligence Program, a partner with the law firm of Patton Boggs in Washington, D.C., and an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center.
EDO Corp. will continue production of the Universal Exciter Upgrade receiver, the AN/ALQ-99 advanced jamming signal generator, under a $38.5 million contract it received from the U.S. Navy. The company also received a $3.2 million contract for the production of UEU subassembly spares. The UEU is carried under the wing pod of the Navy's EA-6B aircraft.
L-3 Communications' Link Simulation and Training division has been awarded a $10.3 million contract to begin low rate initial production of the U.S. Army's Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer - Aviation Reconfigurable Manned Simulator (AVCATT-A) program.
Latest studies by engine maker Rolls-Royce reveal a sharp upward swing in the predicted market, thanks to Asia's generally rapid recovery from recession and anticipated liberalization in Asian air travel. Needs are now estimated as 100,000 engines valued at $456 billion for large aircraft, regional and business jets over 20 years. Business jets alone are expected to account for 30,000 power plants, costing $50 billion.
Boeing has already engaged with Rolls-Royce, General Electric, and Pratt&Whitney about the engine needs for its 0.95-0.98 Mach Sonic Cruiser with the results of the deliberations likely to impact the aircraft's shape.
Navy Secretary Gordon England told a Senate panel June 20 that he would like to speed up development of the Joint Strike Fighter, which he considers a "very, very important platform" for the U.S. military.
Baikal-1, a reusable first-stage booster concept developed at the Khrunichev Space Center in Russia, made its international debut at the Paris Air Show. The booster is equipped with a pivoted wing, turbojet engine, retractable landing gear and an automatic flight and landing control system. Khrunichev's plans for the Baikal concept include twin- and quad-booster configurations for medium-and heavy-lift missions.
There are signs that Europeans are coming around to the idea of establishing a regional missile defense system, but they probably won't come around quickly or quietly, several missile defense experts said June 20 at a Washington conference.
Development of BGT Bodenseewerk's new IRIS-T short-range air-to-air missile is progressing, with the fourth free flight test program completed in April. The missile has been fired from the F-4F, F-16, and JAS-39, with further testing planned for launch from the F/A-18, Tornado, AMX and Eurofighter.
Lufthansa has agreed to become the international launch customer for Boeing's Connexion broadband inflight entertainment service, with plans to test the service on a single aircraft next year.
Longbow International, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp., has teamed with Bell Helicopter to develop the Cobra Radar System for the AH-1Z Cobra Helicopter. The radar system will complement the warfighting, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities of the helicopter, Northrop Grumman announced.
Elbit Systems Ltd., of Haifa, Israel, has been awarded an $18 million contract from the Italian Air Force to supply LIZARD Laser-Guided Bombs for AMX aircraft, the company announced June 19. The contract calls for delivery over a three-year period. LIZARD is a new-generation laser-guided bomb used for air-to-surface attacks of a variety of targets that are illuminated by a laser designator. The system features all-digital electronics and high accuracy and is compatible with a broad range of airborne and ground laser designators.
House Armed Services Committee ranking Democrat Ike Skelton (Mo.) announced June 19 that he will try to offer an amendment to boost defense spending in the fiscal 2001 supplemental spending bill by $2.74 billion, with some of the extra money intended to replace an EP-3E Aries II surveillance plane and rebuild Apache helicopters.
Northrop Grumman Corp. said June 19 it will comply with a request it received from the Department of Justice for additional information about its proposed acquisition of Newport News Shipbuilding.
Europe's go-ahead for the Italian Vega light space launcher could be an advantage in developing improved solid fuel boosters for Ariane 5. "Vega is a very interesting program," Snecma Group chairman&CEO Jean-Paul Bechat told Show News. "It could kill two birds with one stone - by working on that, we can also prepare the subassemblies and test the cost improvements required for the improved Ariane 5."
Israel's Defense Ministry is expected this week to exercise options to buy more than 50 Lockheed Martin F-16s. "The Israeli Ministry of Defense and senior executives at Lockheed Martin have reached an understanding that will lead the Israeli government to notify the U.S. government of their intent to exercise the option under the current [Letter of Agreement] for more than 50 F-16Is," a source told The DAILY during the Paris Air Show here.
Northrop Grumman Corp. has signed a foreign military sales contract to deliver an E-2C Hawkeye 2000 export configuration aircraft to Egypt, the company announced June 19. The contract adds the modification and upgrade of a sixth Egyptian E-2C - a former U.S. Navy E-2C airborne early warning and control aircraft - to a program previously awarded, and brings the value of the work to $163 million, according to the company.
A NASA-convened board investigating the June 2 loss of the X-43A hypersonic test vehicle is continuing to meet at the space agency's Dryden Research Center at Edwards, Calif., but so far has not found the root cause of the failed flight, NASA announced June 19. The X-43A, the first of three to be launched, was lost moments after launch when its Pegasus booster veered out of control, forcing flight controllers to blow it up (DAILY, June 5). The X-43A and Pegasus fell into a cleared Navy sea range off the coast of California.
Within the space of a week earlier this month, the LHTEC T800 turboshaft engine made initial flights after retrofit in two types of helicopter. On June 6, a Boeing/Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche attack helicopter flew for the first time on the power of a pair of -801 versions of the T800 at West Palm Beach, Florida. Six days later, two CTS800-4N variant engines powered an AgustaWestland Super Lynx 300 at Yeovil, England.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has appointed Anthony J. Tether director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Pentagon announced June 18. As director, Tether is responsible for management of the agency's projects for innovative research and development to provide advanced military capabilities. Tether has previous DARPA experience, having served as director of the agency's Strategic Technology Office from 1982 to 1986.
The unknown number of tactical nuclear weapons scattered throughout Russia is complicating efforts to verify their destruction, according to a report released this week by two institutes studying nuclear proliferation issues. Also, the destruction of those weapons may be slower than previous Russian reports have indicated, according to "Nuclear Status Report: Nuclear Weapons, Fissile Material and Export Controls in the Former Soviet Union," published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Monterey Institute for International Studies.
L-3 Communications of New York City and Thales Avionics of France finalized their joint venture agreement June 18 regarding the assets of L-3's Aviation and Communications&Surveillance Systems (ACSS). Under the agreement, which has been approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., Thales Avionics will purchase a 30 percent interest in the joint venture for about $72 million in cash. L-3 Communications will own 70 percent of the joint venture, to be called ACSS, and will manage its day-to-day operations.
