JSF DELIVERY: Delivery of the last of the original 12 development F-35s is in sight for Lockheed Martin. The final fighter, short-take-off-and-vertical-landing (Stovl) aircraft BF-2, is entering final finishing at Lockheed’s Fort Worth plant and is expected to be delivered to the U.S. Navy’s NAS Patuxent River, Md., test center by early August. BF-2 will be used for radar cross-section testing as well as Stovl flights and is the first F-35B to be fitted with the production-standard Pratt & Whitney F135 engine.
Key lawmakers in the U.S. House may have sliced $9 billion from President Barack Obama’s request for fiscal 2012 defense spending, while also adding millions for Army Abrams tanks and handing down steep cuts for an international missile defense system and the Navy’s purchase of Fire Scout rotary-wing UAVs. On June 14 the House Appropriations Committee (HAC) is scheduled to vote on a draft of the $690 billion defense spending bill for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.
A Delta II launch vehicle flying from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., lofted a U.S./Argentine spacecraft on the first leg of a three-year mission to map the salinity of the world’s oceans. The Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft lifted off at 10:20 a.m. EDT, and separated from the upper stage 57 min. later following a brief burn to circularize its polar orbit at an altitude of 408 mi.
The House Appropriations Committee is set to debate a draft version of the fiscal 2012 defense spending bill on June 14 that adds $100 million to encourage more competition on development of the future bomber. A report on the bill providing details of how the $649 billion total should be spent in the eyes of the defense subcommittee began circulating on June 9. Aviation Week obtained portions.
Northrop Grumman demonstrated the capability to integrate multiple payloads on its Firebird optionally manned aircraft in two weeks of flying during the Empire Challenge 2011 exercise at Fort Huachuca, Ariz.
LONDON — The Swedish government and opposition have formalized a compromise to keep JAS-39 Gripens operational as part of the NATO-led operation in Libya. As part of the deal between the opposition Social Democrats, who wanted to end the deployment, the government has authorized five Gripens to continue to operate from Sigonella, Sicily. The prior commitment included eight aircraft. The Gripens are being used for air-to-air missions and reconnaissance roles.
MESA, Ariz. — Boeing is looking to secure firm sales of about 50 AH-6i reconnaissance helicopters before the end of the year, says Mike Burke, the company’s global strike attack rotorcraft business development director.
The House Appropriations Committee’s markup of the fiscal 2012 defense budget calls for a $50 million cut in funding for research, development and testing of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), the U.S. Army/Marine Corps joint project to replace up to 50,000 Humvees starting in 2016.
LONDON — The Pentagon has awarded Lockheed Martin a $108 million contract for the second Dutch F-35. The two F-35As being acquired by the Netherlands are for testing and participation in the initial operational test and evaluation phase. The purchase has been politically contentious in the Netherlands, but a go-ahead to buy the aircraft as part of Lot IV production was given in April (Aerospace DAILY, April 22
APACHE: Taiwan will receive its first of 30 Apache AH-64D Block III helicopters next year. Taiwan is the first export customer for the Block III. The system will be smilar to the U.S. Army version, says Army project leader Col. Shane Openshaw.The Army is due to receive the first of 690 Block IIIs in November. Initial operational test and evaluation using 5-8 helicopters is planned for March or April 2012, with a full-rate production decision due in August.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) JUNE 13 - 14 — White Eagle Aerospace’s Short Course: “Directed Infrared Countermeasures,” Wingate by Wyndham Hotel, Oro Valley, Ariz. For more information call (520) 219-0526 or go to www.whiteeagleaerospace.com
TOTAL REDUX: Washington, and the U.S. public, must decide whether it needs both reserve components of the armed services and the National Guard — with the post-9/11 and post-recession atmosphere favoring the Guard, according to at least one expert speaking June 8 on a panel at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. “Do you need both a Reserve and a Guard,” wondered retired Gen. Ronald Fogelman, former USAF chief of staff.
SINGAPORE — Mongolia is about to modernize its air force and is working to bolster defense spending. The country’s defense budget accounts for 1.5% of gross domestic product, but “we’re debating in Mongolia now on making defense 4% of GDP,” Defense Minister Luvsanvandan Bold tells Aviation Week on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.
SEATTLE — With the core Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft development program settling down after a difficult development period, Boeing is looking to finish off the first round of customer deliveries and is starting to explore upgrade options.
BIG PAYOUT: Thales will make an initial payment of €170 million ($250 million) after losing a court case over a Taiwanese defense contract. The payment is roughly one-third of the total settlement amount. The company was appealing a verdict related to Taiwan’s purchase of six Lafayette-class frigates, but a French appeals court ruled against the company. Thales says that, as a result, it will make the disbursement as quickly as possible. The company had already taken an earnings provision for the deal, so will not see any further earnings impact.
As the possible requirements and expectations continue to grow for the proposed DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class Flight III destroyers, so is the concern among defense analysts and contractors that the U.S. Navy may once again be trying to pack too much into one ship. That is a particular worry for a ship that was chosen because it would be the fastest and most affordable way to deliver enhanced ballistic missile defense (BMD) capability with an upgraded Aegis defense system and, later, a new radar suite.
PALMDALE, Calif. — Early astronomical discoveries are emerging from the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (Sofia) airborne telescope which completed its first phase of science flights on June 8.
Goodrich will close one of its 10 landing gear facilities by the end of the year due to a decrease in work volume. The facility on Marble Avenue in Cincinnati primarily assembles and machines landing gear for military aircraft, but it also machines the gear for the Boeing 777. The 777 work will be transferred to Goodrich’s plant in Oakville, Ontario.
The next generation of strike and supporting unmanned surveillance, missile defense and electronic attack aircraft for the U.S. Air Force and Navy are being planned and prototypes tested. They have been designed as closely integrated elements to overcome the greatest emerging threats to the U.S. – “anti-access tactics and ... area-denial strategies,” says Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn in a discussion on the future of war and the defense budget.
Improvements for the Global Hawk Block 20/30 aircraft that will address deficiencies discovered during last year’s initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) phase are being designed for the high-flying unmanned aerial system’s platform and sensor payloads.
CIA Director Leon Panetta, the nominee to replace Robert Gates as defense secretary, sailed through a relatively cordial confirmation hearing in Washington June 9, but not before pledging to look at cost-sharing ideas that could put a crimp on contractors. His statement before the Senate Armed Services Committee was drawn out during an exchange with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who hammered away at the excesses of cost-plus contracting, drawing a chuckle from the nominee.
