CUTTING BACK: The Swedish government is expected to announce further defense cuts in December. The air force believes it may lose one base, with 2-3 facilities to be cut throughout the military. “We are really looking at every establishment to get training and infrastructure costs down,” says air force chief Maj. Gen. Anders Silwer. Meanwhile, the air force is preparing for closer cooperating with neighboring countries, particularly regarding training.
FARNBOROUGH — Boeing has selected QinetiQ, the U.K.-based defense technology company, as its key technology partner on Vulture — the ultra-long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) concept proposed by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The $3.8-million first phase of the program will see QinetiQ participating in system definition and analysis as well as a review of system requirements. The challenge? To create a large, load-carrying UAV able to remain aloft for weeks on end (Aerospace DAILY, April 21, 22).
Technicians at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) will begin integrating a new descent camera into NASA’s 2009 Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) within the month, after completion of avionics testing. Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS) says its Mars Descent Imager (Mardi) is the first of four space-qualified cameras it will deliver to JPL for the MSL rover mission. Delivered earlier this month, the Mardi unit already has completed a contamination measurement test at JPL, with satisfactory results, according to MSSS.
Northrop Grumman is looking at other applications, including border surveillance, for its Vehicle and Dismount Exploitation Radar (VADER), now being flight tested under a U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency program. VADER is a podded active electronically scanned array designed to be carried under the wing of an unmanned air vehicle (UAV) to detect and track vehicles and individuals using synthetic-aperture radar imagery and ground moving-target indication (Aerospace DAILY, July 16).
RAFALE OFFSETS: Infotech Enterprises of India has concluded a preliminary agreement with Dassault Aviation to collaborate on activities related to India’s 126 aircraft Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) program. The agreement, which runs for five years and could involve engineering, defense and IT services, would be part of Dassault’s offset obligations with respect to the MMRCA, for which it is offering the Rafale fighter.
X-PLANE EXPLAINED: The U.S. Air Force has issued the designation X-54A for an experimental supersonic aircraft to gather sonic boom data, but don’t expect anything to fly soon. NASA says it supported an application by Gulfstream for an X-plane designation, but sees it as a placeholder. “NASA is not actively working with Gulfstream on this project and is not discussing cooperation,” the agency says. But it does not preclude future cooperation.
TESTING AMRAAM D: The U.S. Air Force is continuing a series of developmental flight tests of its Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) D after a recent program restructuring with Raytheon. The fourth shot is planned for this month. So far, one has gone awry due to the failure of a secondary power supply, though two have been successful against target drones, a Raytheon source says. AMRAAM D features the new electronics cards of its predecessor C7, a two-way datalink on the back end for updated targeting information and a conformal sensor on the front.
A high-level panel of top U.S. officials responsible for nuclear weapons development said the country’s related nuclear infrastructure is in “fragile” condition due to morale issues, scientific challenges and budget pressures.
FARNBOROUGH Serious discussions are underway over the potential purchase of the Eurofighter Typhoon by the Royal Air Force of Oman. The negotiations are believed to be at an advanced stage, with the aircraft being considered as a replacement for Oman’s Jaguar aircraft. It is not known whether the air force is looking at other combat aircraft types as an alternative to a Typhoon purchase.
FARNBOROUGH — The U.S. Air Force has given the nod to Raytheon to enter low rate initial production of its Miniature Air Launched Decoy (MALD). The deal, signed in June, includes 135-150 of the decoys, which are designed to spoof enemy air defense systems. Meanwhile, the company is continuing work on its MALD Jammer variant, which will provide close-in low-power jamming capabilities for the Air Force. Integration is funded for the USAF F-16 and B-52.
INFLUENTIAL MEETING: U.S. and European aerospace trade group leaders plan to hold an international forum on business conduct each year to mark progress over their cooperation and also plan strategy, according to a joint statement from the Farnborough air show in the U.K. They also have decided to organize an environmental summit in Paris this fall to coincide with an annual European industry conference.
ANOTHER GULFSTREAM: Israel Aerospace Industries is looking to add a third Gulfstream G550-based special mission aircraft to its inventory. Having already developed and fielded a signals intelligence and airborne early warning system, the company is now working on a ground moving target indicator version, the so-called MARS2, or Multimission Airborne Reconnaissance Sensor System. Development work is still underway, with a fielding not expected for a few more years.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says there will be a fiscal 2009 defense spending bill this year, although the appropriations process is in turmoil in the House and may lag further in the Senate.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. (Bold type indicated new calendar listing.) July 21-23 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ 44th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference & Exhibit. Connecticut Convention Center, Hartford.
AASM TESTED: French armaments agency DGA has completed the third and final qualification firing of the AASM precision weapon in infrared seeker mode. The firing, from a Mirage 2000 fighter, took place at very low altitude 16 kilometers (10 miles) from the target, which was 80 meters off the coordinates transmitted before drop. The weapon was able to strike the target with metric-level precision — ten times better than the basic GPS-guided weapon currently in service — despite the small number of landmarks needed to correct the trajectory, the DGA said.
CUTTER COMING: The U.S. Coast Guard’s second National Security Cutter, the Waesche (WMSL 751), is almost two-thirds complete and will be christened in Pascagoula, Miss., on July 26. In preparation for its July 12 launch, the ship was painted and the MK 110 57mm gun was installed. Command-and-control equipment also was loaded onto the ship and is currently being hooked-up in preparation for electronics light-off later this year.
LOCKED OUT: Congressional auditors are siding with the U.S. Army against L-3 Communications over a contract protest after the armed service rejected L-3’s bid for optical sights with mounts on M16A2 rifles, M16A4 rifles and M4 carbines. In a July 14 bid protest decision, the Government Accountability Office decided it was L-3 that failed to identify how its locking nut was to be tightened — and not Army Materiel Command’s (AMC) error — that led to poor results during live-fire testing.
ITALIAN OFFER: The Italian air force is offering up the possibility of Singapore using its main training base at Lecce in southern Italy, should the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) select the Alenia Aermacchi M-346 for its advanced trainer program. The Singaporean air force is now down to two contenders, with the BAE Systems Hawk failing to make the final cut. The Korean Aerospace Industries T-50 is the other remaining contender. Singapore wants to procure an integrated training capability, including up to 20 aircraft, simulators, and support.
HORNET BODY: Northrop Grumman said July 18 that the first Boeing F/A‑18F Super Hornet shipset for the Royal Australian Air Force will be delivered in April 2009 for final assembly at Boeing’s facility in St. Louis, Mo. A subcontractor to Boeing, Northrop is responsible for design and production of the two-seat F/A‑18E/F’s center/aft fuselage section and twin vertical tails. In the first international procurement of the Super Hornet, Australia is purchasing 24 F/A-18Fs to replace its 40-year-old F-111s by 2010 as precision-bombing aircraft.
FULL PLATE: In the second half of 2008, Orbital Sciences Corp. expects to carry out approximately 15 space missions and missile launches, including the orbiting of three commercial communications satellites, two missions with Pegasus and Minotaur rockets, the launch of an Orbital Boost Vehicle (OBV) missile interceptor for the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, the deployment of a scientific satellite for NASA, and the launches of “numerous” target vehicles.
NEW FACE: After a management shakeup late last week at Boeing’s beleaguered aerial refueling tanker team (Aerospace DAILY, July 15), the new program manager says he’s “standing by” the company’s 767-200LRF solution for the next competitive round. Dave Bowman, the former C-17 program manager, says that the Pentagon’s operational concept for using the new refuelers hasn’t changed and will still drive operators to the smaller Boeing solution.
WEAPONS GANG: ATK, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman are forming a team to pursue the creation of dual-role weapons capable of striking aerial and ground targets. Executives from the companies said they do not yet know how the work will be distributed. The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory has contracted with Boeing for basic technologies like a warhead and control systems for the Joint Dual-Role Air Dominance Missile. And the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is said to be starting a program in this area that may become classified.
ROCKETING AWARDS: Raytheon said it received a $156 million U.S. Army award for Patriot Configuration-3 radar upgrade kits and related engineering and technical services for Kuwait, and another $38.5 million contract to upgrade Patriot missiles for South Korea. The first contract funds upgrades for 64 Korean Patriot Advanced Capability-2 missiles to Guidance Enhanced Missile-Tactical, or GEM-T, configuration, providing better capability against ballistic and cruise missiles, aircraft and remotely piloted vehicles.
The White House and Democratic-led lawmakers are battling over legislators’ attempts to broaden oversight over intelligence community (IC) contractors, including banning use of private sector interrogators, regular reports on IC outsourcing and requiring ongoing cost assessments and congressional reporting.
