AIRBUS GROUP had €264m net income on €13.3b revenues in 3Q14 vs. €445m on €13.2b in 3Q13, and has €765.4b backlog, up 12% from January 1; AIRBUS DEFENSE & SPACE earned €147m on €2.7b vs. €140m on €2.8b. CAE had C$42.9m net income on C$529.4m revenues in second quarter ended September 30 vs. C$38.3m on C$478.2m a year ago; Defense and Security business earned C$25.6m on C$209.1m vs C$25.2m on C$191.1m, and has backlog of C$2.4b vs. C$2.44b.
ONBOARD THE USS NIMITZ—The F-35C’s inaugural at-sea trials on the USS Nimitz have completed most testing points ahead of schedule, allowing for another aviation first during this deployment. Lt. Cdr. Ted “Dutch” Dykman conducted the first catapult launch in darkness using CF-03. He took off from the Nimitz at 6:01 p.m. local time, conducted a series of planned touch-and-go manuevers on deck and conducted the first arrested landing at night at 6:40 p.m.
U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work is making the Defense Business Board and deputy chief management officer for the Pentagon “an operational arm” under ongoing reforms to acquisition, business operations and technology efforts. Referring to a 20% cut to headquarters and upper management levels that Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel unveiled last year, Work said after the mandate was announced each agency or armed service was allowed to decide how to implement it.
The so-called “Third Offset,” a Pentagon strategy for pursuing and developing new military technologies to overcome the likes of China and Russia, could be formally unveiled on Nov. 15.
The so-called “Third Offset,” a Pentagon strategy for pursuing and developing new military technologies to overcome the likes of China and Russia, could be formally unveiled on Nov. 15.
While Wall Street continues to count the costs of U.S. defense investments in traditional contractors with established programs, Avalon Ventures is betting that Juliet Marine Systems’ new Ghost small-attack craft is worth the gamble. Resembling something akin to a sea-skimming F-117, the boat seems to answer a Pentagon need with features that appear to have caught top-ranking U.S. Navy eyes, says Kevin Kinsella, founder of Avalon, the effort’s chief investor.
While U.S. and Chinese military forces continue to spar in the Asia-Pacific region, now may be the best time for the countries’ political leaders to forge a better relationship, says a regional expert for the Center for Strategic and International Studies. That is because President Barack Obama is meeting this month with Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China, and the president of the People’s Republic of China.
LONDON – Airbus Defense and Space enjoyed increased orders in the first nine months of 2014, but the company says it is struggling to overcome delays in bringing new tactical capabilities to the A400M airlifter. Orders increased by 15% over 2013, to €8.23 billion ($10.24 billion) compared to €7.12 billion in 2013, but revenues were down slightly by 2.2%, Airbus Group CFO Harald Wilhelm told investors Nov. 14.
LONDON – The Swedish defense ministry has revealed evidence it believes conclusively proves that a foreign submarine violated its territorial waters in October. Imagery from underwater sensors, photographs taken from on land and a number of sonar echoes in the area have been closely analyzed and show that an underwater craft had been operating in the waters around the Stockholm archipelago, Swedish officials said Nov. 14.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) NOV. 17-19 — Mine Countermeasures, London, United Kingdom. For more information go to www.minecountermeasures.com/ NOV. 18-19 — International Fighter, Pestana Chelsea Bridge Hotel, London, United Kingdom. For more information go to www.international-fighter.com/
PARIS— The European Space Agency’s (ESA) 100-kg (220-lb.) Philae lander is sending back science data from the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, although its unexpectedly bouncy and protracted touchdown could ultimately limit the probe’s science return. Since deploying from the Rosetta orbiter Nov. 12 and alighting on the comet’s surface, the bulk of Philae’s 10 science instruments have swung into action, relaying the first in situ images and measurements ever taken from a comet’s nucleus.
GENERAL DYNAMICS LAND SYSTEMS-CANADA has $287m contract from Canadian government for enhanced surveillance suite for Canadian LAV III armored vehicles; deliveries will begin in December 2016. AIRBUS HELICOPTERS delivered final EC145 helicopter to Peruvian national police (PNP) in Nov. 13 ceremony in El Callao. Five EC145s have been delivered in less than one year since the PNP selection; first four have accumulated 800 flying hours.
/site-files/aviationweek.com/files/uploads/2014/11/asd_11_14_2014_flankerspecs.pdf Su-27 Flanker (See pp. 6-9 for full Flanker Program) Designation: Su-27S/SK, Su-27UB/UBK, Su-27SM/SMK/SM3 Name:
If U.S. Air Force planners thought a proposal to slow the pace of A-10 Thunderbolt retirements and arguments about maintenance personnel would win over opponents in Congress, they were wrong. The incoming chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona), vows, “This fight is far from over.” McCain and others contend the Air Force, which has said failing to cut the A-10 fleet will leave the F-35 fleet without enough maintenance personnel, is setting up a false choice.
LONDON—The U.K. defense ministry is mulling the addition of a bifilar rotorhead system to some of its remaining Westland Sea King helicopters to reduce the effects of vibration on the airframes. Details of the project were revealed by officials at the annual Sea King Symposium, held in Halifax, Canada, in mid-September but have only come to light in recent days.
While cyberspace and the Internet have created another world of opportunity for personal, business and military operations, the new digital realm presents a special set of challenges for U.S. Defense Department operators, according to the Pentagon’s latest cyberoperations manual.
The U.S. Army and other armed services are exploring how to sync their unmanned aircraft with the UAV needs of special operations units in an era of budget cuts, force reductions and a growing array of international challenges.
ZHUHAI, China— As China’s defense industry and armed forces roll out new weapons and technologies and continue the nation’s military transformation, some strong patterns are emerging, including an emphasis on counterstealth technologies.
/site-files/aviationweek.com/files/uploads/2014/11/asd_11_14_2014_Flanker6.pdf Definition: The Sukhoi Su-27, Su-30, Su-33, Su-34 and Su-35 are variants of a fourth-generation, Russian twin-engine fighter bearing the NATO codename "Flanker." They are built by the Sukhoi Design Bureau.
