As the Pentagon and Obama administration look for more ways to whittle away at costs and budget requirements, the U.S. Navy is touting the need for continued surface warfare improvements. “Despite the current tenuous fiscal environment and the ever-changing political landscape of the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, our ships are relevant, credible sources of combat power throughout the world,” says Rear Adm. Thomas Rowden, Navy surface warfare director, in a recent blog.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), were presented with a challenge at the start of 2012: get their parties to agree to cut $1.2 trillion from the budget and deal with a series of tax extensions. Failing meant a likely recession caused by inaction, and election-year inertia only raised the stakes.
LONDON — Chinese interests continue to build up their aerospace portfolios, this time in the U.S. helicopter market with the purchase of light helicopter manufacturer Enstrom. The Michigan-based helicopter manufacturer, which has been producing helicopters since the late 1950s, was acquired by the Chongqing Helicopter Investment Co. (CQHIC).
LONDON — Cassidian and Northrop Grumman have completed the first flight of the Euro Hawk UAS since its delivery flight to Germany in July 2011. The Euro Hawk, now fitted out with its Cassidian-developed ISIS integrated signals intelligence payload, departed Manching airbase in Bavaria at 10:36 a.m. on Jan. 11 and returned six hours and two minutes later.
It is a yardstick often cited, given to market timing and not always related to profits. Nonetheless, Boeing is on track to win the orders “race” in 2012 and the title of “world's biggest aircraft maker.”
Terry Twigger, CEO of U.K.–based aerospace company Meggitt, has announced his retirement. Twigger, who has served as CEO for 12 years, will step down at the company’s next annual general meeting on May 1 and will be succeeded by Stephen Young, who has been finance director since 2004. In a statement, the company said Twigger will “continue at the company as an employee and provide support to the board and Stephen Young until his retirement on June 30.”
China has declared its Beidou satellite navigation system fully operational, although the service remains limited to the Asia-Pacific region. The operating office says it is “accelerating” construction of the system but repeats its long-standing commitment to achieve global coverage by about 2020; no possible earlier date is mentioned.
LONDON — The U.K. Ministry of Defense is deciding on the future of a loitering munition that it has spent more than £200 million ($320 million) developing. According to the U.K. National Audit Office (NAO), the Fire Shadow, being developed by the U.K. Team Complex Weapons initiative and led by MBDA, has successfully completed a series of trial firings at a test range in Sweden. But the defense ministry halted a plan to send the weapon to Afghanistan in March because of what the NAO described as “system maturity.”
HOMELAND SECURITY: U.S. congressional researchers say that as deficit-reduction efforts push down federal spending, Congress may pay more critical attention to homeland security funding. In fiscal 2012 appropriations and the 2013 budget request, 30 federal departments, agencies and entities received annual homeland security funding outside of the Homeland Security Department, amounting to 48% of annual homeland security funding. Recipient departments included not-so-obvious choices like NASA and Housing and Urban Development.
TEL AVIV — Huge cost increases are looming over the widely publicized Israel-Italian M-346 jet trainer deal. In the purchase of new military aircraft, overall life cycle costs are often overshadowed by the more immediate price per unit, as customers and governments focus on the tangible dollars going out the door now. But such a myopic focus has a way of haunting governments later. The trainer deal is the latest example.
FORT WORTH — The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) is preparing for a three-day flight of its Ion Tiger experimental fuel-cell-powered unmanned aircraft. In 2009, the 37-lb. Ion Tiger flew for just more than 26 hr., powered by a compressed-hydrogen fuel cell and carrying a 5-lb. electro-optical/infrared payload.
The convergence of three U.S. budget showdowns in March is not the apocalypse, says a defense analyst, but it is a mess, will produce bad decisions, and carries the risks of creating costly contract problems for major programs and disruption and hardship on the Pentagon’s civilian employees for years to come.
FORT WORTH — NASA has selected eight technology demonstrations for Phase 2 of its Environmentally Responsible Aviation (ERA) project to reduce the fuel burn, noise and emissions of commercial aircraft that could enter service by 2025. The eight integrated technology demonstrations (ITDs) include active flow control to cut drag, stitched composites to save weight, ultra-high-bypass engines to save fuel, fuel-flexible combustors to minimize emissions and redesigned flaps and landing gear to reduce noise.
MUOS DELIVERY: Lockheed Martin has finally delivered the waveform needed to fully utilize the Wideband Code Division Multiple Access capabilities offered by the new Mobile User Objective System narrowband communications satellites. The waveform, which is roughly one year late, is needed to allow soldiers, including those on the move, to access voice, data and video communications from various terminals. Though the waveform has been delivered, the capability will not be deployed until the terminals, which are late, are approved for use by the National Security Agency.
Boeing is considering lessons from giant retailers such as Walmart or Amazon, starting with a new approach to dealing with suppliers aimed at simplifying contract negotiations and lowering pricing for parts, according to company executives.
U.K. based engineering and aerostructures company GKN Aerospace has appointed a new CEO for its engine systems business, formed by the takeover of Sweden's Volvo Aero. Michael McCann will become CEO of GKN Aerospace–Engine Systems, while his former role of senior VP-business development and strategy for GKN Aerospace will be filled by Charles Paterson.
LONDON — Rising costs have pushed the U.K.’s A400M transport buy and its aerial refueling tanker to the top of a list of overspending military programs compiled by the National Audit Office (NAO).
