Debate on the Senate’s version of the fiscal 2014 defense authorization bill is underway, and lawmakers are considering a long list of amendments, including one that proposes to limit the retirement of the A-10 Thunderbolt. The amendment, sponsored by Sens. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), would prevent the Air Force from retiring or placing the A-10 in storage until the F-35A is fully operational — a milestone that Air Force Chief of Staff Mark Welsh has said he hopes will happen in 2021.
Republican defense hawks in the U.S. Senate are proposing a major change to the 2011 Budget Control Act — an overhaul of its mechanism of automatic annual cuts known as sequestration —in what could be an early test of pro-Pentagon sentiment under nascent efforts to find a way out of Washington’s budget quagmire.
CYBERSECURITY RULE: Following high-profile cyber-pilfering of some U.S. weapons and defense data, the Pentagon has published a new rule that requires defense contractors to buttress cybersecurity in their unclassified networks. “We cannot continue to give our potential adversaries the benefits in time and money they obtain by stealing this type of information,” Pentagon acquisition czar Frank Kendall said Nov. 19. He said the new rule is just one of many “significant” follow-on actions after Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel issued a memorandum Oct.
After years of exercises preparing for such an event, the U.S. Navy is making good on its promise to provide aircraft, ships and other assets to help a partner in the Asia-Pacific region survive a major natural catastrophe.
DUBAI — Boeing and Sikorsky have formed Boeing Sikorsky International Services (BSIS), a joint venture to support Saudi Arabia’s military helicopter fleet. BSIS was launched at June’s Paris air show, with each partner holding a 50% share. It is providing logistics, supply chain management, maintenance, aircraft support and aircrew and maintenance staff training for Saudi Arabia’s growing fleet of helicopters purchased under the Foreign Military Sales program, and those that are already in service.
DUBAI — Boeing is beginning work in Saudi Arabia to convert the country’s existing F-15S Strike Eagles into new-generation F-15SAs. The first modification kits for the conversion have arrived at the Al-Salam Aircraft Company in Riyadh, Boeing’s partner on the conversion program, while three of the new-build F-15SAs are now conducting test flights in the U.S.
PARIS — European nations have agreed to create common standards for developing medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and to establish a community of European drone users that could support development of remotely piloted vehicles that could compete with U.S. and Israeli technology in the 2020-25 time frame.
DUBAI — Raytheon’s Talon guided rocket system looks set to re-emerge as a weapon option for the UAE armed forces, with the signing of a new deal with UAE aerospace firm Tawazun. Under the new agreement, signed at the Dubai air show on Nov. 19, Tawazun will integrate the weapon into the UAE armed forces’ existing rocket systems and deliver a training program.
A BQM-74 aerial target drone crashed into the guided-missile cruiser CG-62 USS Chancellorsville during a Nov. 16 radar tracking exercise, Navy officials say. The Chancellorsville recently was outfitted with the Advanced Capabilities Baseline (ACB-12) Aegis Combat System upgrade. The tracking exercise that led to the mishap was part of the ship’s Combat System Ship Qualification Trials (CSSQT), Navy officials say. CSSQT provides the opportunity to test and validate the ship’s combat and weapon systems performance, officials note.
The Italian air force (AMI) is planning to send an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance-capable Alenia C-27J Spartan tactical airlifter to Afghanistan to support the final months of Italian operations in the west of the country. The C-27J will be modified with a command-and-control mission system in the rear of the aircraft and an under-nose electro-optical system to support ground operations in theater.
The U.S. Air Force could cut up to 24 F-35As from its five-year spending plan if sequestration takes full effect in the coming years, Acting Air Force Secretary Eric Fanning says.
DUBAI — The British government’s efforts to help broker a deal to supply Typhoon fighters to the United Arab Emirates extend far beyond the Dubai air show. Changes to visa requirements and support for Dubai’s Expo 2020 bid form part of a comprehensive campaign to deepen defense ties between the Gulf state and the U.K.
DUBAI — Small but important orders for both the Hurkus turboprop trainer and the Anka MALE UAV are providing a critical business and confidence boost for Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI). Engineers there are preparing to commence the next set of complex programs, including the development of the country’s first indigenous helicopter and potentially fifth-generation combat aircraft to supplement the F-35 Joint Strike Fighters being purchased by the Turkish air force.
SENSITIVE PEOPLE: The U.S. offices of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Director of National Intelligence are “close” to finalizing a rule that could “greatly expand” the number of positions across the federal government deemed sensitive to national security — meaning those with a potentially adverse effect on national security but that do not require a security clearance, according to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
DUBAI — Italian business aircraft manufacturer Piaggio is at the Dubai air show to garner interest for its Hammerhead medium altitude, long endurance (MALE) unmanned air vehicle (UAV). The P.1HH Hammerhead, which is due to fly by the end of this year, is being displayed in mock-up form for the first time here following its official launch at neighboring Abu Dhabi’s IDEX defense exhibition last February. Europe’s largest MALE UAV, Hammerhead is a derivative of Piaggio’s distinctive Avanti twin-turboprop executive aircraft.
The Littoral Combat Ship (LCS-1) USS Freedom departed Singapore’s Changi Naval Base Nov. 16 for the final time as part of its first overseas deployment to the Western Pacific. Freedom has used Singapore as a logistics and maintenance hub since arriving there April 18. Though Freedom was able to participate in regional naval exercise, the ship’s transit and deployment were marred by system breakdowns, and the LCS was sidelined on and off throughout its time at Changi.
DUBAI — Airbus Military’s marketing plan for the A400M airlifter will move into a new phase as the aircraft makes its Dubai debut. The first delivery to a Middle Eastern customer — Turkey — is imminent, and could happen during the show, Airbus officials say. Airbus Military’s decision to bring the A400M to the Dubai air show for the first time is a reflection of the maturity of the program, says Ian Elliot, the company’s head of defense capability market development.
DUBAI — The Storm Shadow cruise missile will make its first flight on board a Eurofighter Typhoon during the Dubai air show, the Eurofighter Consortium tells Aviation Week ShowNews. The weapon, a mock-up of which appears beneath the wing of the full-sized Typhoon model in the static display at the show, has long been part of the manufacturer’s plans for the platform.
DUBAI — Boeing will fly a demonstrator of its P-8 Poseidon-based Maritime Surveillance capability in a Bombardier Challenger next year. Partner Field Aviation has begun modifying the business jet to carry a Selex 7000-series radar, mission system, electronic support measures (ESM) system as well as an electro-optical camera, which will turn the aircraft into Boeing’s Maritime Surveillance Aircraft offering.
DUBAI — Modernization of the Patriot air and missile defense system continues, with manufacturer Raytheon highlighting a new U.S. development contract worth $71.7 million and the completion of a series of test firings by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) But a contract secured in the Middle East has proved to be the catalyst behind recent refinements to the system, company officials said during the Dubai air show.
NEW DELHI — The INS Vikramaditya, a Russian-built aircraft carrier refitted for the Indian navy, will leave Russian territorial waters and head for India on Nov. 30 following a more than five-year delay, a defense ministry official says. The 44,570-ton, 284-meter-long (932-ft.) warship, a refurbished version of the Russian Kiev-class Admiral Gorshkov, is expected to take about two months to arrive in India after its Nov. 16 commissioning. It will be based in Karwar Naval base, in the southern state of Karnataka.
