SPACE S&T: Gen. Lester Lyles, commander of Air Force Materiel Command, outlines space science and technology (S&T) areas that are well funded - and those that are not.
RALPH ON REFORM: Ralph Nader, the Green Party candidate during the 2000 presidential campaign, believes the Pentagon needs acquisition reform but remains skeptical that it will happen. Nader points to efforts in the past and says, "It hasn't worked, as you might imagine. Acquisition reform has not met its stated goals of greater efficiency, faster weapons procurement." Would running the Pentagon more like a business help? "We'll, it's basically a corporate state," Nader says of the Pentagon.
While the Air Force is complying with a Space Commission recommendation to move AF Materiel Command's Space and Missile Systems Center under AF Space Command, the service doesn't agree that space programs of Materiel Command's Research Laboratory should be separated from the lab's other activities. The commission recommended putting all space-related technology directorates under Air Force Research Laboratory, implying that other AFRL functions would be split away.
Edward "Pete" Aldridge, under secretary of defense for acquisition reform, technology and logistics, gave a peek into the types of programs the Pentagon is favoring, now almost five months into its intensive review. "We've got to rationalize the weapons systems and the infrastructure consistent with the strategy that's being developed now by the Department of Defense," Aldridge said at an acquisition reform conference in Washington June 6.
General Dynamics announced it has completed its acquisition of Fort Worth, Texas-based Galaxy Aerospace Co. LP, for $353 million in cash. The acquisition gives the defense contractor two new product lines: the Astra mid-size turbofan business jet, and the Galaxy, the first aircraft in the super mid-size class. Galaxy was a joint venture of Hyatt Corp. and Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd., and is now a part of General Dynamics' Aerospace group, which includes Gulfstream Aerospace.
The Bush Administration should pump "a couple billion dollars extra" into missile defense programs, particularly for testing, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R.-Calif.) said June 7. "If we don't get the ... funding that we need, we're going to be in trouble on missile defense," said Hunter, who chairs the Armed Services Committee's military procurement subcommittee.
CAE of Toronto has been picked to supply visual systems for the Eurofighter EF2000 Aircrew Synthetic Training Aids program, a contract worth more than $170 million. The company, which provides simulation and control technologies for the aerospace, defense and forestry industries, will design, develop, produce, install and support complete visual systems for 27 simulation devices.
The nature of the targets prompted the Israeli Air Force to use F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter-bombers in an attack on Palestinian targets May 18, said David Ivry, Israel's ambassador to the United States. Ivry, speaking to a group of defense journalists June 7 in Washington, D.C., said the raid was aimed primarily at command and control buildings in the West Bank and Gaza Strip used by Palestinian police and Force 17, an elite guard unit of PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat.
(Editor's note: The following is excerpted testimony from the responses by Thomas P. Christie, nominated to be the Department of Defense's director of operational test and evaluation, to written questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee. He testified June 7.) Q. In your view, what are the major challenges that will confront the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation?
American Trans Air will be the first airline in North America to operate Boeing's Next-Generation 737-800 with advanced-technology blended winglets, Boeing announced June 6. The Indianapolis-based American Trans Air has 39 Boeing 737-800s with winglets on order. The airplanes are scheduled to be delivered between now and April 2003. The 737-800 winglets first made their debut in service last May with German carrier Hapag-Lloyd Flug (Daily, May 22).
Advanced Concept Technology Demonstrations (ACTDs) should become the standard method of introducing new technology into defense acquisition, according to Jacques S. Gansler, professor and Roger C. Lipitz Chair at the Center for Public Policy and Private Enterprise at the University of Maryland. "Think about Global Hawk, for example," Gansler said during a defense acquisition reform seminar in Washington, D.C. June 6. He pointed out that in only five years, Global Hawk went from initial concept to conducting operations in Portugal and Australia.
The Bush Administration's candidate to be the Pentagon's chief weapons tester has pledged to try to make testing more thorough and better funded if he's confirmed.
The U.S. Defense Department does not favor a NATO-only theater missile defense system, the department's chief spokesman said June 7. The comment came in response to a reporter's question in the wake of a NATO award of two contracts to study the feasibility of a layered missile defense system.
NASA has selected two teams to conduct detailed feasibility studies for sending a mission to explore Pluto and the Kuiper Belt - although the space agency says it won't happen without money from Congress. The selected investigations are:
Russia and India have pledged to cooperate on development and production of new weapon systems, including a fifth-generation fighter, a multi-role transport aircraft and air defense systems. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov said the agreement, signed on June 6 in Moscow, was truly "ground breaking," according to Aviation Week&Space Technology, an Aerospace Daily affiliate.
MOTOROLA, which manufactures equipment for the Iridium satellite network, said the National Security Agency has certified its Type 1 Iridium Security Module for the new Motorola Satellite Series 9505 portable telephone. The ISM is intended to protect voice communications at security level up to, and including Top Secret.
KAMAN AEROSPACE-built SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters for the Royal New Zealand Navy have arrived in Auckland. The helicopters, the first two of five planned for the navy, will undergo checks and adjustments before being offered to the Ministry of Defence. A formal handing-over ceremony is scheduled for late July at Whenuapai Air Base.
Lawmakers announced June 6 that they plan to revive the dormant House Aerospace Caucus and use the group to push for increased federal funding for aerospace research and development. Other priorities of the caucus will include reversing the erosion of the aerospace industrial base and reducing congestion in the civil transportation system, said Rep. Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), who is co-chair of the caucus with Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio).
INTEGRAL SYSTEMS, INC., of Lanham, Md., has been awarded a contract by Boeing Satellite Systems to develop an integration and test system for a new Boeing spacecraft project. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. The system will offer a database-driven environment that will control both the spacecraft models and the associated ground test equipment, and will be based on Integral's EPOCH 2000 telemetry and command and control software package. Integral's Integration and Test division will deliver a
L-3 COMMUNICATIONS of New York announced its EMP Systems division, located in Simi Valley, Calif., has been awarded a contract by the Swedish Space Corp. (SSC) for a 13-meter remote sensing satellite data reception and telemetry, tracking and control antenna system. The new S/X-band autotracking antenna will be located at Esrange, SSC's Space Operations Center near Kiruna in northern Sweden. "The EMP Systems antenna will be an important addition to SSC's capability to satisfy a steadily growing
The board of directors of Newport News Shipbuilding has unanimously reaffirmed its recommendation that its shareholders tender their shares to General Dynamics, which is seeking to acquire the company. The company announced June 6 that the board is waiting to hear from the Defense Department and the Justice Department about the General Dynamics offer and a rival offer from Northrop Grumman Corp. A company press release said the board took no position on the
BALL AEROSPACE&TECHNOLOGIES CORP. of Boulder, Colo., is responsible for developing and integrating the flight system for NASA's Deep Impact program, which intends to blow a hole in comet Tempel 1 so scientists can study the material inside (DAILY, May 25). The flight system includes the flyby spacecraft, the impactor spacecraft and three science instruments, including telescopes, cameras, and spectrometers for analyzing the comet's interior. Deep Impact is slated for launch in
UNIVERSAL SPACE NETWORK, INC. (USN) of Newport Beach, Calif., and its partner, Frontier Technology, Inc., (FTI) of Goleta, Calif., have been awarded a $100,000 grant by the California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency. USN and FTI will match the grant and use the money to integrate FTI's scheduling optimization system into USN's satellite operational control network. The resulting prototype system could provide a way to schedule thousands of satellite communications contacts each day from
CRAY INC. of Seattle announced it has received a $3.3 million order for a Cray SV1ex supercomputer system and related services from Government Micro Resources of Manassas, Va. The contract with GMR calls for a 32-processor supercomputer to be installed in the second quarter of 2001 at the NASA Ames Research Center facility at Moffett Field, Calif. The system will support research aimed at improving the safety and durability of aircraft and aerospace vehicles. Ames officials will run computational
The U.S. government must adopt a "new way of thinking" about its allies if it wants to ensure efficient joint coalition operations, said Jacques S. Gansler, professor and Roger C. Lipitz Chair at the Center for Public Policy and Private Enterprise at the University of Maryland. Gansler, who served as under secretary of defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics from 1997 until January of this year, made his remarks at a defense acquisition reform seminar in Washington, D.C. June
