Last week the House passed a provision in the fiscal 2013 defense appropriations bill to block the Obama administration from reducing the nation’s nuclear stockpile. The provision, which will eventually have to be reconciled with the Senate, points to a fundamental difference of opinion about how to manage the U.S. nuclear arsenal.
NEW DELHI — India will soon release a request for proposals (RFP) for 56 cargo aircraft for its air force to replace its aging fleet of Avros, according to a defense ministry official. The final approval for expanding the cargo fleet of the Indian air force (IAF) at an estimated cost of $2.5 billion was given at a meeting of the Defense Acquisition Council headed by Defense Minister A.K. Antony here July 23.
BEJING — A dozen V-22 Ospreys arrived via ship on Japanese shores July 22, but the aircraft will remain grounded until the U.S. Marine Corps receives the results of investigations into earlier accidents involving the tilt-rotor aircraft, which the service still expects by month’s end.
PARIS — Commercial remote-sensing satellite imagery providers DigitalGlobe and GeoEye announced they would merge in a cash-and-stock deal worth $453 million that would leave Longmont, Colo.-based DigitalGlobe operating the world’s largest fleet of commercial imagery satellites. Under the agreement’s terms, DigitalGlobe is offering 34% more than the July 20 closing price of $15.17 per share for GeoEye stock, the companies said in a July 23 conference call with investors.
EADS North America is considering proposing Eurocopter ’s X3 high-speed helicopter for the U.S. Army’s Joint Multi Role advanced rotorcraft technology demonstration
NEW DELHI — India’s third indigenously developed warship, the INS Sahyadri, has been inducted into the country’s naval forces. The warship, named after the mountain range along the western side of India, is equipped with an array of surface, sub-surface and air defense weapons for maritime security and anti-submarine warfare missions. It was commissioned in Mumbai by Defense Minister A.K. Antony on July 21.
With greater focus being directed on ship security in recent years, the U.S. Navy has developed technology that enables sailors and Marines to use their own cell phones as an early warning system.
After months of hopefuls sharpening their bids and building teams, a U.S.-wide competition to find sites to test UAV technologies in civilian airspace is about to begin. Officials expect the FAA’s request by the end of July or early August, with awards by the end of the year. Recent legislation requires the FAA to integrate UAVs into the civilian airspace by Sept. 30, 2015, and the six test sites are a key step toward that goal.
AIR FORCE Canadian Commercial Corp., Ontario, Canada (FA8252-12-D-0005) is being awarded a $71,259,135 firm fixed price, cost-reimbursable, no-fee contract to provide KC-135 and C-130 landing gear repair/overhaul items. The location of the performance is Heroux-Devtek Inc., Longueuil, Quebec, Canada. The work is to be completed by Oct. 12, 2016. The contracting activity is Air Force Global Logistics Supply Chain, Hill AFB Force Base, Utah.
NEW DELHI — The U.S. is showing keen interest in ballistic missile defense (BMD) cooperation with India. “That is an important potential area for our future cooperation ... I think BMD has great strategic importance and, therefore, the two governments should discuss that strategically before they discuss that technically,” said U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, who is visiting India.
WHO’S UP FIRST: Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is pleading for consideration of the fiscal 2013 defense authorization bill. McCain and Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) had hoped the Senate would take up the legislation before the August recess. But then Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he would first consider a cybersecurity bill on which Democrats and Republicans remain divided.
About 13% of the $6.7 billion the Pentagon is slated to spend between fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2017 for fighting improvised explosive devices is still up for grabs
The House passed a bill July 19 to provide $518 billion in Pentagon spending for fiscal 2013 that also blocks the U.S. from buying equipment from the Russian arms export firm Rosoboronexport.
SIM SLAM: The U.S. Air Force still does not have an enterprise-wide grasp on its virtual training and simulation efforts, congressional auditors say. The armed service has reorganized offices and undertaken various initiatives to enhance existing virtual training capabilities, but it has not designated an entity to integrate these efforts or developed an overarching strategy to align efforts and establish investment priorities, according to the Government Accountability Office.
Sikorsky plans to launch a second Entrepreneurial Challenge at this week’s AirVenture show in Oshkosh, Wis., citing the success of its first online competition to identify small, innovative companies that it can help incubate. The winner of the first challenge is Pankl Aerospace Innovations, a California-based company set up by Austrian automotive and aerospace manufacturer Pankl Racing Systems.
As Europe’s Seventh Framework research program enters its closing stages, the European Commission (EC) is looking for advanced air transport concepts as part of its sixth and final call for proposals. The EC also is seeking proposals for a high-speed aircraft flight-test program as well joint aeronautics research with Russia. The call closes in November.
TEL AVIV — Israel and the U.S. military have drawn similar conclusions about how to pick their cyber-warriors, although the Israelis appear to be establishing a lead in identifying and training their electronic special forces. The problem is a sports metaphor. It involves separating the erratic, eccentric superstar from the organized, focused genius. Both can be naturals. But only one can lead a team in solving a problem that requires many teams working in tandem.
NEW DELHI — The Indian government is soon likely to give final clearance for the $1.2 billion purchase of six additional C-130Js, after U.S. authorities approved New Delhi’s request to buy more of the airlifters, officials say. India also ordered six of the aircraft for the same price in 2007-08.
