Michael Bowker has been appointed chief operating officer. Brian H. Harris has been appointed vice president for business development. Roscoe M. Moore, III, has been named executive vice president and chief strategic and technical officer. James D. Royston has been named president.
Next week, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center plans to fly the first operational mission of its Ikhana unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), mapping wildfires in the western U.S. using an infrared scanner built by Ames Research Center. The team plans a checkout flight on or around Aug. 4, then its first 24-hour fire mission Aug. 9, flying at 23,000 feet over as many as a dozen of the many fires that rage on in the western states at any given time during the fire season.
The launch of the Phoenix Mars lander from Cape Canaveral on a Delta II rocket has been postponed by a day to Aug. 4 because of the threat of severe thunderstorms on July 31 during fueling of the launcher's second stage. There are two liftoff options for Aug. 4. The first opportunity is at 5:26 a.m. EDT and the second at 6:02 a.m. EDT.
The U.S. Marine Corps has awarded Boeing a three-and-a-half-year, $18 million contract to provide additional ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) reconnaissance services to the Marine Expeditionary Forces (MEF).
As NASA begins to shift its focus from low-Earth orbit to exploration of the moon and beyond, the agency's next underwater spaceflight analog mission will simulate lunar-surface operations instead of activities on the International Space Station (ISS).
Alliant Techsystems (ATK), which is already developing the main launch abort system (LAS) motor under development for NASA's Orion crew launch vehicle, also will build the attitude-control motor for the LAS. Orbital Sciences Corp., the member of the Lockheed Martin Orion team responsible for the LAS, awarded ATK a subcontract worth about $70 million to develop and deliver the attitude-control motor.
Although NASA is making a concerted effort to implement an effective plan aimed at a smooth transition from the space shuttle program to the next-generation Constellation program, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says challenges lie ahead. NASA's good intentions could be thwarted by problems within the system: gap-funding suppliers (effectively keeping them on retainer until their future is determined), "obsolescent materials...managing the work force, disposing of property and equipment, and completing environmental cleanup," GAO says.
CEV OUTLOOK: House Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Chairman Mark Udall (D-Colo.), is concerned about the timeline for NASA's Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV), slated for introduction in 2015. Following the space shuttle's scheduled 2010 retirement, "this will leave a potential four to five-year gap," says Udall, "when the United States will be dependent on other countries to travel to and from the International Space Station." He suggests the administration address the issue with supplemental budget requests for fiscal 2009 and FY '10, to bridge the gap in coverage.
Japan will accelerate upgrades of its F-15J Eagles amid a reordering of priorities in response to a congressional move last week to maintain an export ban on the F-22 Raptor. The 200-odd F-15Js currently in service will operate for longer than previously planned, according to a budget plan that is evidently designed to buy time for a later Japanese push for F-22s.
JCAN TESTED: Northrop Grumman has integrated and tested its Joint Capability for Airborne Networking (JCAN) system for aeronautical and land vehicle applications, the company announced July 30. This new capability will enable mobile secure IP router network connectivity to airborne and ground platforms using existing legacy radios and commercial wideband data links, the company says. As part of a research project sponsored by the U.S.
The House Appropriations Committee (HAC) has provided an additional $23 million to restore climate sensors cut from the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) in its fiscal 2008 spending bill. When faced with cost overruns on the multi-agency NPOESS weather satellite program, the U.S. Air Force and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) cut back on sensors to meet satellite deployment deadlines.
At least eight components of the Lockheed Martin Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) have caused problems during the stealthy cruise missile's troubled past, contributing to the missile's 42 percent failure rate in recent months. All of the issues are being addressed and some of the involved systems are being fixed or replaced (see chart p. 2). The steady stream of issues, though, demonstrates a pattern of failures that traces back to the first lot of deliveries.
Eurocopter's hopes of supplying 197 helicopters to the Indian army may be fading, with the Indian government expected to call for retrials of Eurocopter's AS 550 C3 Fennec versus Bell's 407 despite Eurocopter having already entered into the final phase of negotiations.
JSF PARTS: The U.S. Navy awarded Lockheed Martin a $2.4 billion contract on July 28, to begin production of 12 F-35 Lightning IIs. The money will cover low-rate initial production (LRIP) parts, materials, and long-lead items. Six of the F-35s are conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) aircraft for the U.S. Air Force, while the other six are short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft for the U.S. Marine Corps. Work will take place in Fort Worth, Texas; El Segundo, California; and Samlesbury, England; and is scheduled to be complete by February 2011.
Boeing and the Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman team submitted their proposals July 30 for the space segment of the U.S. Air Force's multibillion dollar Transformational Satellite Communications System (TSAT). TSAT is considered by the Pentagon to be a critical part of its future communications network. The five-satellite array will replace current satellite communication systems with in-space laser links for higher bandwidth.
