The U.S. defense budget is about 15 percent too low to sustain the military's current mission, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Kenneth Oscar said yesterday. Oscar said during a Capitol Hill panel discussion that the military needs to replace its huge inventory of aging weapons systems to remain the global force that it is, but that the defense budget is "probably about 15 percent off" from the level needed for modernization. Middle ground seen as likely
Federal acquisition rules should be changed to allow defense contractors to earn a "reasonable profit" in the development stage for weapon systems and reduce the temptation to enter the production phase prematurely, according to Philip Coyle, the Defense Dept.'s former director of operational test and evaluation. Current rules often force contractors to wait until procurement to make a decent profit, which encourages the companies to move into production before weapon systems are ready and increases the number of costly repairs that must be made,
Globalstar, the struggling satellite communications group, announced Monday it posted a $3.8 billion loss in 2000 and is now seeking new operating strategies to survive, Aerospace Daily affiliate AviationNow.com reported. Sales of the consortium's satellite phones grew minimally last year as the company posted $3.7 million in revenues, far short of its debt-heavy operating expenses, Globalstar said. The company has launched 48 low-orbiting satellites to offer wireless telephone service anywhere in the world.
Defense and aerospace contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. announced yesterday it has completed the purchase of all tendered shares of Litton Industries Inc. common and Series B preferred stock after receiving the required U.S. and international governmental and regulatory approvals for its $5.1 billion purchase of the shipbuilder and electronics maker. Northrop Grumman is assuming Litton's $1.3 billion in public debt as part of the deal, the company announced.
Years after adopting its "faster-better-cheaper" (FBC) philosophy meant to cut program costs and lead to more space missions, NASA has failed to fully define what FBC means, according to the space agency's Inspector General. A new IG report says "NASA has neither defined FBC nor implemented policies and guidance for FBC ... documenting FBC definitions, policies and guidance will facilitate communication to program/project managers and contractors and strengthen accountability for program results."
CAE of Toronto has completed its purchase of BAE Systems Flight Simulation and Training of Tampa, Fla., the company announced yesterday after obtaining all the necessary approvals for the deal. It will rename the company CAE USA Inc.
AEROJET has been awarded a $5.18 million contract modification by the Air Force Space&Missile System Center to refurbish 10 additional Minutemen II Stage 2 solid rocket missiles for use as first-stage motors on Hera-class missiles. The Hera missiles are used as missile defense target missiles and space launch vehicles.
Lockheed Martin completed another successful intercept test of the Patriot PAC-3 missile interceptor over the weekend, the company announced. The test was conducted by Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control - Dallas, the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization and the U.S. Army and took place at the White Sands Missile Range, N.M., on Saturday. It was the seventh consecutive successful intercept test, according to Lockheed Martin.
CUBIC DEFENSE SYSTEMS has been asked to supply nine additional Ground Collision Avoidance Units to the Canadian military for use as spares on CC-130 cargo aircraft.
Acquisitions and mergers in the defense industry, a loss of skilled defense workers and the challenges of doing business in the international marketplace are the vital issues that have to be addressed for U.S. firms to continue to succeed, according to Northrop Grumman vice president William Forster. While spending may increase for missile defense, the U.S. defense budget will remain essentially flat in the immediate future, barring a major crisis, he said.
Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems, Orlando, Fla., is being awarded a $82,955,239 firm-fixed price contract to provide for production of 5959 Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser (WCMD) Tail Kits. These kits correct for the effects of wind on dispenser type cluster munitions (Sensor Fuzed Weapon, Gator and Combined Effect Munitions). The locations of performance are Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems, Orlando, Fla. (73%) and Lockheed Martin Assembly Services, Americus, Ga.(27%). Air Armament Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.
Bell Helicopter Textron, Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded on Mar. 27, 2001, a $22,543,679 firm-fixed-price contract for 17 TH-67 helicopters for use as instructional aircraft at the U.S. Army Aviation Center, Fort Rucker, Ala. Work will be performed in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada (73%), and Bristol, Tenn. (27%), and is expected to be completed by May 31, 2002. Deliveries are to begin September 2001 and end May 2002. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This is a sole source contract initiated on Oct. 6, 2000. The U.S.
Rep. Solomon Ortiz (D-Texas), ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services readiness subcommittee, is considering seeking the top spot on the procurement subcommittee, a spokeswoman said yesterday. "He's seriously considering it, but he's just as seriously considering staying on readiness," Ortiz spokeswoman Cathy Travis told The DAILY. Ortiz' congressional district contains few defense contractors but several military bases, including Corpus Christi Naval Air Station and Naval Air Station Kingsville.
Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control and a team of international aerospace and defense companies - most of them European - have formed Team Janus to compete for the pending NATO Theater Ballistic Missile Defense (TMBD) feasibility study, Lockheed Martin announced yesterday.
McDonnell Douglas Corp., St. Louis, Mo. was awarded on Mar. 29, 2001, a $336,000,000 fixed-price-award-fee contract to provide for support and sustainment spares for the F-15, KC-135, B-1B, B-52, and the E-3A aircraft. Work is expected to be completed by November 2008. Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Ga. is the contracting activity (F09603-00-D-0025).
The U.S. Air Force has begun deploying the APG-63(v)1 radar in its operational F-15 airplanes. The radar's components are largely supplied by Raytheon and are installed by Boeing, the Boeing Co. announced yesterday. The (v)1 is an upgrade to the Raytheon APG-63 and APG-70 radars, which are out of production. It includes a new transmitter, receiver, data processor, low-voltage power supply and signal data converter, and provides a tenfold increase in radar reliability while increasing system capacity for further growth, according to Boeing.
Raytheon Co., Tucson, Ariz., is being awarded a $119,232,022 modification to firm-fixed-price contract N00024-00-C-5399 for the production and procurement of the 48 FY01 Standard Missile-2 Block III/IIIA All Up Rounds (AUR's); 75 Block IIIB (AUR's); 80 Block IIIB ORDALT kits; 40 AN/DKT-71A Telemetric Data Transmitting Sets; section level spares, shipping containers and handling equipment. This contract combines purchases for the U.S.
Northrop Grumman Corp., Bethpage, N.Y., is being awarded a $50,146,557 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-97-C-0147) to exercise an option for one E-2C aircraft, all non-recurring engineering, and French unique administrative services for the Government of France under the Foreign Military Sales Program. Work will be performed in Bethpage, N.Y. (80%); St. Augustine, Fla. (15%); Rolling Meadows, Ill. (3%); and Dallas, Texas (2%); and is expected to be completed by September 2003.
Raytheon Co., Raytheon Electronic Systems, Andover, Mass., is being awarded an $11,967,610 firm-fixed-price contract for PATRIOT Missile System radar repair parts. Work will be performed in Andover, Mass., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2002. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This is a sole source contract initiated on Oct. 11, 2000. The U.S. Army Aviation&Missile Command, Letterkenny Army Depot, Chambersburg, Pa., is the contracting activity (DAAH17-01-C-0003).
Intelsat, the international communications consortium, is looking to buy a next-generation broadband satellite system as part of its strategy to address global Internet demand. In a request for proposal issued yesterday, Intelsat said it hoped to award a contract by this fall for one geosynchronous Ku/Ka-band satellite with options to buy up to four more spacecraft. Launch is targeted to occur in 2004, Aerospace Daily affiliate AviationNow.com reported.
Sunshine Aero Industries, Inc., Florala, Ala., is being awarded a $5,074,417 fixed price with economic price adjustment type contract for jet fuel. Work is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2002. Funds will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. The Defense Energy Support Center, Ft. Belvoir, Va., is the contracting activity (SP0600-01-D-0111).
The Boeing Company's Phantom Works now will foster innovation in support of all business units, not just defense and space components, Boeing said yesterday.
How much the U.S. lost in military secrets due to a Navy EP-3E's emergency landing in China Sunday will depend on how much data and equipment the aircrew was able to destroy before landing and how long the plane stays in Chinese hands, experts said yesterday. The EP-3 is one of the U.S. military's most important electronic intelligence-gathering assets, providing information on how other countries are using the electromagnetic spectrum, said Christopher Bolkcom, an aerospace analyst with the Congressional Research Service.
Australian defense chief Peter Reith launched an unusually partisan attack on the opposition during the weekend while defending the government's ambitious new Defense White Paper and its spending plans, provoking a sharp rebuke from opposition leaders and, say some Australian defense commentators, diminishing his credibility in the debate.
The Marine Corps' new AH-1Z Super Cobra helicopter will soon begin an extensive series of flight tests at Patuxent River Naval Air Station in Maryland. The first AH-1Z helicopter arrived at Pax River on Saturday, and the tests are scheduled to last through November of next year. Ground turns will begin next week, with data flights scheduled to start the week of April 16th. A typical flight duration will be 1.5 hours. April 16th start
