A Boeing Delta III rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral AFS, Fla., at 7:05 a.m. EDT yesterday, delivering its 9,480-pound dummy payload into orbit after launches in 1998 and 1999 sent one satellite into the ocean and one into a useless orbit. "Today, Delta III flew the same flight profile as the mission last year, allowing us to compare data from both flights on an event-by-event basis," said Gale Schluter, vice president-general manager of Boeing Expendable Launch Systems. "This success confirms our confidence in Delta III."
Lockheed Martin Systems Integration-Owego, N.Y., said it has won an $88 million contract for the first seven low-rate initial production (LRIP-1) SH-60R multi-mission helicopters for the U.S. Navy. The program involves upgrading SH-60Bs to the SH-60R configuration. The improvements employ commercial off-the-shelf technology and several new sensors. The SH-60Bs were first delivered in the 1980s and are being remanufactured and upgraded.
HONEYWELL has entered into an agreement Rohde&Schwarz, the Munich-based electronic communications manufacturer, to market and support a secure anti-jam communications transceiver for a range of military aircraft. The radio is resistant to all forms of jamming threats while operating on a variety of waveforms, Honeywell said.
The Defense Dept. says it opposes the way a House bill would structure a new commission to assess the threat from electro-magnetic pulse attacks and their possible effects on civilian and military infrastructure. "The creation of a commission composed primarily of members appointed by the secretary of defense would set a precedent that effectively puts DOD in charge of civil, as well as military, EMP assessments and recommendations," DOD said in an "appeal" to the fiscal 2001 defense authorization bills now before a House-Senate conference committee.
Pat Doyle has been elected as controller and chief accounting officer. Mike Gaines has been elected vice president, finance. Ken Heintz has been elected vice president, mergers and acquisitions. Pamela Hymel was promoted to vice president, human resources.
Boeing won a $10.4 million contract for low-rate initial production of the U.S. Navy's Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing Systems (JHMCS), and is slated to deliver 37 of the systems by 2002 for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. "Entering low-rate production is a tribute to the dedicated efforts of people in the Air Force, Navy and on our contractor team," said Boeing JHMCS Program Manager Stephen Winkler. He said the system, which boosts pilot combat effectiveness while reducing workload, should translate into greater mission success rates.
THE FOUR CLUSTER SATELLITES - Salsa, Samba, Rumba and Tango - now in their final orbit and flying in tetrahedral formation - are ready to enter the scientific commissioning and operation phase, the European Space Agency said yesterday. The first two were launched July 16, and the second two were launched Aug. 9.
Following the start of flight development by Agusta earlier this year of the first of 15 EH101 AW 520 Cormorant search and rescue helicopters ordered for the Canadian air force, details have emerged of their planned deployment when they enter CAF service in 2001. The first unit to receive the Cormorant has been nominated as No 442 Transport&Rescue Squadron in 19 Wing at Comox, British Columbia, which has been operating four tandem-rotor Boeing CH-113A Labradors on west coast SAR roles for many years.
Boeing and MD Robotics, a subsidiary of Canada's MacDonald Dettwiler, inked a teaming agreement to support the operational phase of the International Space Station project, creating a "shared vision" for ISS collaborative support. "MD Robotics and Boeing are actively working together on several projects and this agreement is a natural progression of providing goods and services for the operational phase of ISS," said Brewster Shaw, Boeing ISS VP and general manager.
Intelligence analysts see potential U.S. adversaries developing the intercontinental ballistic missiles they lack today by following the same "stepping stones" that led to existing ICBMs, using domestic and imported technology and expertise to advance their short-range capability with better propulsion systems and materials despite international efforts to control missile technology proliferation.
George Kourpias, has been elected to the company's Board of Directors. Kourpias is the former international president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM).
Frustrated with what they saw as a lack of progress on potentially key issues, an Egyptian delegation left Washington late last week after what sources close to the group said was an unproductive, two-day technical review of the crash of EgyptAir Flight 990. The Egyptians were said to have left the meeting feeling that points of contention brought up several months ago have not been resolved, and that more recent developments haven't been probed enough.
Michael Devirian, former manager of Space Science and Microgravity Flight Experiments, has been appointed as manager of the Orgins and Fundamental Physicis program at NASA's JPL.
Joe Ethier, manager of Business Development for BFGoodrich Avionics Systems, was recently recognized by the Niagara Aerospace Museum for his contributions to flight safety and avionics development.
Anthony Cordesman, senior fellow for strategic assessment and former codirector of the CSIS Middle east program, has been appointed holder of the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy.
The U.S. Army will for the first time begin testing its prototype airborne Army Battle Command System (ABCS) in a complex warfighting scenario experiment that involves 4,000 of its soldiers and 1,500-2,000 support personnel, while it moves closer to making choices for its new objective force structure.
Rene I. Beauchamp has been named vice president-government business development. Beauchamp will assume responsibility to plan, organize and execute marketing programs directed toward all present and potential U.S. military and government customers.
New Zealand yesterday said it has cancelled Project Sirius, a $243 million effort by Raytheon Co. to upgrade the country's fleet of P-3K maritime patrol aircraft. "We're not surprised by the announcement but certainly disappointed," said Raytheon spokesman David Shea. The development followed Australia's decision two days earlier to halt work on Project Wedgetail, a $1.3 billion Boeing program to field six early warning and control variants of the 737-700 (DAILY, Aug. 22).
