SECRETARIAL WORK: U.S. Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James, who was confirmed for the post by the Senate on Dec. 13, says she will get personally involved in monitoring progress of the Air Force’s top procurement programs. During a Jan. 9 town hall meeting, James said she is “going to look to get involved with some of these big programs and do program reviews.” Among the top procurement priorities for the Air Force are the F-35, Long-Range Strike Bomber and KC-46 refueler.
Specialists from the U.S. Army’s Edgewood Chemical Biological Center are slated to depart for the Mediterranean later in January aboard the MV Cape Ray to destroy chemical weapons from Syria. Sea trials for the mission have already begun. The U.S. reportedly has never disposed of chemical weapons aboard a ship before. Leased to the U.S. Navy for the operation, the 650-ft. roll-on/roll-of ship is part of the U.S. Maritime Administration’s (Marad) ready reserve force.
Manned and unmanned aircraft promise to give Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) more flexibility and punch than initially envisioned, says Vice Adm. Tom Copeman, commander of U.S. Naval Surface Forces. “On a ship under $400 million, you have the same aviation capability as a DDG [destroyer],” Copeman noted Jan. 6 during a media roundtable about the initial Western Pacific deployment of LCS-1, the USS Freedom. “You have a lot of capability other than just what the mission package said.
U.S. lawmakers have stalled the Air Force’s on-again/off-again, multibillion-dollar efforts to field upgraded avionics and navigation systems for its aging C-130s.
ABOARD THE USS LAKE ERIE — There is something about a U.S. guided-missile cruiser (CG) or destroyer (DDG) equipped with an advanced Aegis combat system tailored especially for ballistic missile defense (BMD) that sends quite a message to partners and potential foes alike, Navy officials say.
A concept for constructing satellites from building-block “satlets,” under development for the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa), could allow a spacecraft to be assembled quickly around the payload for a specific mission or service, says developer NovaWurks. Instead of integrating the payload into a large satellite bus that provides the required mechanical, propulsion, power, thermal, communications, processing and other functions, the spacecraft would be assembled around the payload by connecting multiple satlets together.
The global aerospace and defense sector should see revenue growth of 4-6% in calendar 2014, with high single-digit or low double-digit growth in commercial aerospace outpacing ongoing declines in defense, according to Deloitte’s 2014 Global Aerospace and Defense Industry Outlook.
LONDON — U.S. military investigators have begun examining the wreckage of a U.S. Air Force Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter that crashed into a marsh in Norfolk, U.K., killing four airmen.
The Norwegian government could fine AgustaWestland if two of the company’s former executives are found guilty of corruption charges related to a deal for VVIP helicopters in India.
Bristow Group has taken delivery of the first two Sikorsky S-76Ds, configured for offshore oil support, initially for services in the Gulf of Mexico. Delivery of the first VIP-configured helicopter is imminent, with emergency medical service (EMS) and search-and-rescue (SAR) variants to follow.
The global aerospace and defense sector should see revenue growth of 4-6% in calendar 2014, with high single-digit or low double-digit growth in commercial aerospace outpacing ongoing declines in defense, according to Deloitte’s 2014 Global Aerospace and Defense Industry Outlook.
C-130 aircraft from the UK's Royal Air Force have helped deliver much-needed military equipment to Iraq to assist those in the north of the country combating ISIL extremists.
LONDON — South Korea has selected Rafael’s Spike NLOS (Non-Line Of Sight) missile as the primary weapon for its new fleet of AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat helicopters. Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) made the announcement on Jan. 3. The decision on the primary weapon comes a year after Seoul selected the Wildcat over the Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk in a $560 million deal announced in January 2013.
The U.S. Navy’s SSBN ballistic missile submarine fleet anchors the country’s nuclear deterrence future, but the nation needs to maintain the force structure and it cannot rely solely on those subs, a recent Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA) report says.
LONDON — A committee of U.K. Parliament members (MPs) is urging the government to produce a fully developed strategy for the armed forces as it begins to work on a 2015 Strategic Defense and Security Review (SDSR). Publishing its report on Jan. 7, the House of Commons Defense Committee said the 2010 SDSR and the National Security Strategy (NSS), published the same year, had been governed not by any “strategic vision” but simply the objective of reducing the country’s budget deficit.
LONDON — The Czech government has approved the sale of 28 surplus L-159 light attack aircraft to the American aviation service company Draken International. The aircraft, which have been in storage since 2006, were part of a larger order for the type made during the 1990s. But since the introduction of the Saab JAS-39 Gripen, some 36 of the L-159s, also known as the Advanced Light Combat Aircraft, have sat in storage, with the Czech government offering the aircraft to numerous nations without success.
UAV BOOST: The Pentagon is speeding UAV and Hellfire missile deliveries to Iraq under the existing foreign military sale with the country, according to a Defense Department spokesman. “We’re expediting delivery of 10 operational ScanEagles for part of the original purchase, as well as an additional four nonoperational ScanEagles, which will be sent to help facilitate maintenance of the original 10,” Army Col. Steven Warren told reporters Jan. 7. According to Warren, officials anticipate an additional 48 Raven surveillance UAVs will be delivered in the spring.
Less than a month after announcing a headcount reduction and restructuring in its European operations, Airbus Group also is making changes in its North American arm. Sean O’Keefe, once the head of EADS North America (renamed Airbus Group), is stepping down from his post. Allan McArtor, chairman of Airbus Americas, will assume the role of CEO of Airbus Group in North America, with oversight of operations in the U.S., Canada and Latin and South America.
The U.S. Army is accelerating plans to cut its active-duty ranks so budgeters have more money to buy new weapons and systems, the service’s chief of staff reaffirmed Jan. 7.
Recent ballistic missile defense (BMD) tests prove that the latest operational generation Aegis combat system and missiles aboard the guided-missile cruiser CG-70 USS Lake Erie can do those missions, says the ship’s commanding officer. “No more tests are required for the 1B [standard missile] or for the 4.0 [Aegis system],” Capt. John Banigan tells the Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN). “While it’s not finalized, it’s just a matter of paperwork. It is operationally effective.”
Jerry DeMuro has been appointed the next president and CEO of BAE Systems Inc., following the retirement of Linda Hudson. DeMuro, a former executive with General Dynamics, will take over on Feb. 1, the company announced on Jan. 7, succeeding Hudson, who announced she would step down in August. DeMuro will be appointed as an executive director of BAE Systems plc in the U.K. and will serve on the company’s executive committee as well as on the board of the U.S. side of the company.
Less than a month after announcing a headcount reduction and restructuring in its European operations, Airbus Group is also making changes in its North America arm, tapping Airbus Americas Chairman Allan McArtor as CEO of Airbus Group in North America. McArtor will have oversight of operations in the U.S., Canada and Latin and South America, and is taking over for Sean O'Keefe, once the head of EADS North America (renamed Airbus Group), who is stepping down from his post.
Timing is everything, and the chronology of signatures President Barack Obama provided on Dec. 26, 2013, to a couple of aerospace-and-defense-related laws has lowered and reformed a key tax benefit that contractors were receiving under certain awards from the federal government. Under the Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA) of 2013, federal reimbursement of certain contractor salaries applied to cost-type contracts has been capped at $487,000 — down from more than $952,000 under an automatically adjusted regulatory formula before the new law.
