CAE will provide training services for U.S. Air Force Boeing KC-135 tanker aircrews, taking over from FlightSafety International, which has held the contract since 1992. The company’s U.S. arm has been awarded a nine-month base contract worth $20 million, with nine one-year options taking the potential value to more than $250 million. FlightSafety protested the selection in September, but the U.S. Government Accountability Office ruled in CAE USA’s favor and the contract finally was awarded earlier this month.
HOUSTON — Space shuttle program managers have delayed Discovery’s tanking test from Dec. 15 to no earlier than Dec. 17, after unusually cold and windy weather at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center slowed efforts to complete the installation of temperature sensors and strain gauges around four small cracks on the external tank.
HURST and ARLINGTON, Texas — The Northrop Grumman/Bell Helicopter Fire-X demonstrator has arrived in Yuma, Ariz., in preparation for its first unmanned flight by year’s end, Bell Helicopter CEO John Garrison says. The aircraft, which retains the ability to be piloted, was ferried to Yuma last week from Bell’s Xworx facility in Arlington, Texas, says Charles Shepard, director of technology business development for the rapid prototyping unit.
LONDON — The British defense ministry is examining how to keep supporting front-line troops while reducing the required manpower. The Center for Defense Enterprise (CDE) is calling upon industry for ideas. The U.K. is following the U.S. lead, where interest in unmanned logistics supply has been on the rise. The organization says it is “seeking novel and innovative solutions to enable [the ministry of defense] to maintain logistic distribution capacity whilst reducing the number of personnel involved in a re-supply operation.”
BAD ANTENNA: Skyterra-1, earmarked for the Lightsquared hybrid mobile satellite system, has encountered a deployment issue with the spacecraft’s L-band antenna that could threaten startup of the high-speed, coast-to-coast satellite/terrestrial wireless service. However, both Lightsquared and manufacturer Boeing Satellite Systems are downplaying the importance of the event for the time being. Boeing says Skyterra-1, which was launched on Nov.
WHEELER ISLAND, India — India’s launch of the Agni-II Prime missile—an advanced variant of the Agni-II—failed just moments after liftoff Dec. 10 from Wheeler Island, falling into the sea off the coast of Orissa. Indian officials announced that there was a trajectory deviation immediately after liftoff and that a detailed analysis is in progress.
For Alicia Sanchez, U.S. military acquisition is just a game. As the “games czar” for the Pentagon’s Defense Acquisition University, Sanchez is responsible for developing and deploying computer games and simulations that hone acquisition skills.
DONE DEAL: Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) have ratified a three-year contract with Pratt & Whitney that includes plans to close its two maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operations next year. The contract includes an immediate 3% pay raise for 3,400 IAM members and 2.5% increases in 2011 and 2012. Also covered are a $2,000 one-time ratification bonus and increases in pension benefits.
UAV SALES: U.S. unmanned aircraft exports are on the rise. Norway has ordered AeroVironment RQ-11 Raven hand-launched UAVs for delivery early next year in a deal worth $4.9 million. The U.K. is to double its fleet of General Atomics MQ-9 Reapers to around 10 air vehicles in a move expected to cost more than a $210 million. And Japan is expected to decide by year’s end whether to order between three and five Northrop Grumman RQ-4B Global Hawks.
SPACE ODYSSEY: NASA’s Mars Odyssey mission will establish a new record for operations at the red planet of 3,340 days on Dec. 15. Since maneuvering into orbit on Oct. 24, 2001, Odyssey has made wide-ranging scientific contributions, including readings of elevated hydrogen at the Martian poles as well as surface radiation measurements. The hydrogen readings led to later confirmation of vast amounts of frozen water in the Martian subsurface. Odyssey’s longevity surpasses that of NASA’s Mars Global Surveyor, which operated in orbit around the planet between Sept.
MOVING AHEAD: Boeing Chairman and CEO James McNerney, who heads President Barack Obama’s Export Council, is touting limited-but-real progress in the administration’s export licensing reform and growth initiatives, but already some are suggesting that far more will have to be done to double U.S. exports by 2015. McNerney tells an American Enterprise Institute audience that “the administration has notably advanced the discussion” and that Washington is sending the right signals now.
TALKING TURKEY: Maintenance, repair and overhaul provider Turkish Technic is considering expanding into the military aircraft maintenance business, perhaps taking over maintenance for the Turkish air force. Yasin Ozer, a company sales executive, says most of those repairs are made in Ankara, and “we hope to steal some of that work.” He assumes that “90% will be for the Turkish air force,” but speculates that it could include military aircraft for such countries as Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) DEC. 15 — The Wings Club Luncheon featuring Gary Kelly, chairman, president & CEO of Southwest Airlines, The Yale Club, New York, 212-867-1770. For more information go to [email protected]
53rd Annual Laureates Awards AVIATION WEEK’s annual Laureate Awards brings together distinguished professionals to celebrate individuals and teams for their outstanding contributions. These achievements are exemplified by a spirit of exploration, innovation, and vision. They encourage others to strive for significant broad-reaching progress in aviation and aerospace. Inspire and be inspired. For information or questions please call Angela Smith at +1.202.383.2314 or email [email protected]
LONDON — Anticipating growth in military spending, Embraer intends to create a separate defense and security division to manage its activities in that area. Current CFO Luiz Carlos Aguiar will serve as president of Embraer Defense and Security. In announcing the move, he notes that the company’s “defense and security business, whose income will surpass R$1.5 billion [$873 million] in 2011, will be strengthened over the coming years, not only in terms of meeting Brazil’s requirements but also with respect to exports.”
Hackers, foreign governments and criminal organizations may not be the primary threats to U.S. and coalition cyber networks as it becomes more apparent that, just as in conventional intelligence, the most damaging cyber leaks tend to be from trusted insiders.
FORT WORTH — The U.S. Marine Corps is moving ahead to approve the new four-bladed AH-1Z attack helicopter for international export after receiving approval late last month for full-rate production, according to officials at prime contractor Bell Helicopter.
SOUND OFF: U.S. senators could debate and decide the fate of the Obama administration’s New Start nuclear arms reduction treaty this week, as Republicans face both internal and external pressure to advance the U.S.-Russian deal. Late last week, moderate Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) announced her support for ratification of the April treaty after declaring that the two countries should address tactical nuclear weapons — New Start, like its predecessors, affects only strategic nuclear weapons.
BIG SHOT: In a Dec. 10 demonstration, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) set a world record by conducting a 33-megajoule shot of its Electromagnetic Railgun at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Va. This is about half the muzzle energy required for a fully capable 200 nm.-plus weapon system with almost 20 times the range of conventional ship guns. A second phase of the railgun effort, proposed to start in 2012, would increase muzzle energy and firing rate for transition to an acquisition program, ONR says.
LONDON — New figures released by the European Defense Agency (EDA) show a deteriorating level of financial commitment by member states to defense even before the latest austerity budgets were passed this year. In figures released Dec. 9, the EDA shows that defense spending is eroding not just compared with gross domestic product (GDP), but also as a share of government expenditure. In 2006, countries spent 1.78% of GDP on defense, but that dropped to 1.67% in 2009.
FEDERAL IT: New White House changes to information technology procurement rules may mean more opportunities for industry but also tougher going for smaller companies struggling with bidding costs. “There are costs associated with bidding, so more frequent bids mean higher costs,” says Deniece Peterson, manager for industry analysis at the Input consultancy. The acquisition changes announced last week also might further solidify agency preferences for using large multiple-award task-order contracts.
LOS ANGELES — Boeing has won a one-year, $5.29-million NASA study contract to study advanced airliner concepts under the agency’s Environmentally Responsible Aviation (ERA) project.
