The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has denied a protest from U.S. Aerospace, a small California-based firm, claiming that it was inappropriately rejected from participating in the U.S. Air Force’s $35 billion KC-135 replacement competition. This clears the way for the Air Force to continue reviewing bids from Boeing and EADS North America; a downselect is expected as soon as the end of November.
KOCHI, INDIA — The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) plans to double its assets and personnel gradually, with a proportional beefing up of infrastructure. The ICG has formally commissioned a new station at Murud Janjira in Maharashtra. The station had been set up and activated in June 2010 as part of the strengthening of Joint Coastal Patrolling (JCP) off Gujarat and the Maharashtra coast.
The Stuxnet cyberworm – now claimed by Iran’s government as proof of U.S. efforts to derail its peaceful nuclear program – is a formidable piece of code, a senior U.S. Homeland Security Department official says. “The capabilities and sophistication of Stuxnet [should] not be underestimated,” says Sean McGurk, acting director of the department’s national cybersecurity and communications integration center and former director of control systems security.
ICBM SUPPORT: Northrop Grumman Corp. has awarded Lockheed Martin a $106 million contract to develop the next-generation Reentry Field Support Equipment (RFSE) for the U.S. Air Force’s Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) system. Under the 58-month contract, awarded in July but announced Oct. 6, Lockheed Martin will deliver two sets of RFSE. Production of an additional 10 sets for deployment to all operational Minuteman III wings will be performed under a follow-on contract. Northrop is the prime ICBM integrator.
LOS ANGELES — Lockheed Martin is hoping for additional U.S. Air Force funds to continue evaluating the X-55A Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft (ACCA) now that the low-cost transport has completed its latest flight-test phase.
LOS ANGELES — Aerospace workers as well as city and state officials rallied Oct. 5 in Southern California as part of nationwide moves by EADS North America aimed at showcasing the proposed KC-45 tanker for the U.S. Air Force contest — and the jobs they say it will support across the country. The rally, one of several orchestrated in a parallel operation countering a similar series of meetings held by competitor Boeing, was hosted in Irvine by Parker Aerospace. Parker would be a major supplier on both the KC-45 and Boeing’s proposed KC-767 program.
Flir completed its acquisition of sensing-technology company ICx on Oct. 5 for a total purchase price of $268 million, the companies announced. The deal concludes a process that began in August, when Flir initiated a tender offer for all outstanding ICx shares. The tender offer expired on Oct. 1, and the acquisition closed on Oct. 5.
PARIS — Iridium Communications has finalized an agreement with French export credit agency Coface that will clear the way for provision of a $1.8 billion credit facility to finance the space segment of its Iridium Next constellation.
The U.S. Army is expecting to announce the winner of a contract to develop the Enhanced Medium-Altitude Reconnaissance Surveillance System (Emarss) by the end of the year, says Lt. Col. Mike Zuvanich, program director. The program is designed to field 36 Emarss aircraft, all to be based on the Hawker Beechcraft Kingair 350ER; the competition is to handle integration of the mission systems. Total life-cycle cost of the system is expected to be more than $1 billion, Zuvanich says.
IAF TRAINER: Hawker Beechcraft says an Indian Air Force decision on the replacement for the troubled HPT-32 Deepak 2 trainer is expected in the “coming months.” The company’s T-6C military trainer will be evaluated by IAF officials in field trials beginning Oct. 11. The initial deal calls for 75 aircraft, but companies have said it could be around 104 total. Competitors include Embraer, EADS, Grob, Pilatus and others. The indigenously designed HPT-32 was grounded for a long period starting in July 2009 after several reported fatalities and engine failures.
The U.S. could face a 12-month gap in backup Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite coverage, crucial to predictions of severe weather , starting in April 2015 as a result of accumulated delays in GOES-R spacecraft procurement and instrument development, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) warns.
An Oct. 1 DAILY story on the NASA reauthorization mischaracterized Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ (D-Ariz.) position on adding an extra flight to the space shuttle program. Giffords supports the flight, but opposes the “unfunded mandate” in the Senate reauthorization bill that would keep the shuttle program active beyond that flight, at an estimated cost of $140 million per month, through the end of Fiscal 2011.
LONDON — Selex Galileo has secured the latest contract for the mechanically scanned radar on the Eurofighter Typhoon, even as discussions between government and industry continue over development of an active electronically scanned array radar to replace it. The €200-million ($277-million) contract would cover Captor-M production for the 88 fighters that are part of the Tranche 3A contract. Deliveries of the aircraft are slated to take place in 2012. Selex also recently secured the contract for the Tranche 3A self-protection suite.
PRAGUE — The U.S. space policy debate in Washington is reverberating around the world, leaving companies in Europe and elsewhere unsure of their best strategies for the changing marketplace.
HOUSTON — NASA has awarded Lockheed Martin a six-month, $13-million contract extension for the integration of International Space Station cargo onboard the space shuttle, as well as deliveries using Russian, European and Japanese craft.
BEIJING — South Korea will begin exploratory development of the Korea Attack Helicopter project, intended to create a home-grown replacement for the army’s AH-1S Cobras and Hughes 500MDs. An allocation of 19.2 billion won ($17 million) will pay for the work.
FINNISH MLRS: The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress on Sept. 29 of a possible $100 million foreign military sale to Finland to upgrade two dozen M270 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, as well as associated parts, equipment and logistical support. Finland already has M270s. The prime contractor would be Lockheed Martin. “Finland will use this equipment to modernize its armed forces by expanding its existing architecture to counter threats from potential attacks,” the agency said in a public statement Sept. 30.
NEW DELHI — As part of the growing U.S.-India partnership on transnational crime and criminal investigations, U.S. FBI experts concluded a five-day law enforcement exchange with the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, with a focus on interview and interrogation techniques.
NEW DELHI — Lack of commonality in aircraft models has made inventory management a grueling task for the Indian Air Force, Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik tells AVIATION WEEK here on the IAF’s 78th anniversary. Steps are being taken to bring obsolescence levels (50% of equipment is outdated) down to 20% by 2014-15. “Air defense is the most critical,” he says.
PRAGUE — A unit of Swedish Space Corp. (SSC) has space-qualified a high-performance “green” propellant on the main Prisma satellite, demonstrating the technology’s promise for cost and time savings in preparing satellites for launch. One potential use of the technology is “preloaded satellites,” fully fueled and ready for launch on need.
