The French government has released its 2007 budget request which allots 15.9 billion euros ($20.1 billion) for military procurement, and more money could be coming. With elections looming next year, the defense ministry says it may be able to funnel another 4 billion euros into modernization accounts. The money represents unspent funds in previous fiscal years.
While the Pentagon kicks around how to beef up its forces and presence in Africa, U.S. Marine Corps H-53E helicopters continue to provide vital coverage to the continent's Horn region, says Lt. Gen. John Castellaw, deputy commandant for aviation. Under a special task force established for the region, the helicopters are carrying equipment, providing force protection and being used for medevac missions, Castellaw said Sept. 26 after a Marine Corps Aviation Association dinner.
The Air Force and Army failed to properly analyze its aircraft simulator deals before letting the contracts, and funding issues have caused delays in the program, says a September report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Rocketplane Kistler (RpK) has signed Andrews Space Inc. as a strategic partner on its entry in NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program after parting ways with Orbital Sciences Corp.
The chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee wants the government to test unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as potential watchdogs of U.S. fisheries. "We've asked that they be tested in Alaska to determine whether or not they can play a significant role in maritime boundary enforcement in protecting our fisheries," Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) said Sept. 28 at an aviation subcommittee hearing. The panel was exploring the impact of UAVs and small commercial air taxis, known as Very Light Jets (VLJ), on the national airspace.
Some 2,500 space professionals from around the world gather Oct. 2-6 in Valencia, Spain, for the 57th International Astronautical Congress, which comes amid a flurry of activity in orbit and beyond that could set the tone for space cooperation for generations. Hard on the heels of NASA Administrator Michael Griffin's historic visit to China, top U.S. and Chinese space officials are scheduled to present updates on their programs at "late-breaking news" gatherings designed to supplement the more formal sessions.
DEAD SIGNAL: The L1 signal on a Lockheed Martin GPS IIR satellite in orbit went dead for just more than 5 hours on Sept. 4, according to officials at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo. Officials determined the L1 High Powered Amplifier failed, and reinitiated the signal from a redundant system on the spacecraft. Each of these satellites broadcasts a pair of L band frequencies, L1 and L2, which provide precision ranging and timing data to users around the globe. Air Force officials say the shift to a backup system "avoided significant user impact."
The U.S. Air Force has completed site acceptance testing for the second AN/TPS-77 L-band ground radar at its Pacific Alaska Range Complex (PARC), and is mulling a possible requirement for a third radar in the region, according to radar manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
The Bush administration gets higher marks for its space exploration program than for meeting citizens' health care needs, coping with disasters, or fighting the war on terrorism.
SPECIAL ATTENTION: The European Defense Agency (EDA) and European industry are starting to draw up a list of technologies that need special attention to ensure a healthy European technology and industrial base. Moreover, EDA's steering board called for more industrial consolidation, greater sharing of work, and setting up centers of excellence that are spread throughout the European Union. The panel also called for "less dependence on non-European sources for key defense technologies."
The U.S. Marine Corps remains on track for a June operational date for the MV-22 Osprey and, despite reports of proposed funding delays, is also dedicated to a fiscal year 2012 operational start for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, says Lt. Gen. John Castellaw, deputy commandant for aviation. The Marines had a recent summit meeting with contractors Boeing, Bell and Rolls-Royce to "close seams" on any logistics issues, Castellaw said Sept. 26 after a Marine Corps Aviation Association dinner.
Smiths Aerospace said Sept. 27 that Lockheed Martin's VH-71 presidential replacement helicopter program awarded it a contract to supply the new large-area cockpit display system for the future presidential helicopter fleet. The contact is worth more than $20 million. The displays will be manufactured by Smiths in Michigan and the United Kingdom, with deliveries beginning in 2006.
RULES OF ENGAGEMENT: French defense officials say the United Nations has issued common rules of engagement that will apply to all forces in the expanded Italian-French led U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon. The rules of engagement were among the demands laid down by France for committing to the U.N. mission.
Executives from Lockheed Martin Corp., BAE Systems and Israel's Rafael Armament Development Authority Ltd. are banking on the market for naval unmanned surface vehicles to take off like unmanned aircraft did, and they believe they are ahead of the competition with their Protector USV, they said at a Sept. 27 demonstration.
Gen. Kevin Chilton, head of U.S. Air Force Space Command (AFSPC), has asked a team to take a clean-sheet look at what kind of space surveillance architecture the command will require in the future. Shortly after assuming leadership of AFSPC, Chilton convened a "focus day" to take a "broad-brush look at what we're doing in the space surveillance area," he said during a briefing at the annual Air Force Association conference in Washington Sept. 26.
The "usual" list of companies stand to benefit from the pending, initial fiscal 2007 defense supplemental account, including General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, ITT, ATK, Oshkosh and Armor Holdings among others, according to a UBS analyst. In addition, Boeing will enjoy a "windfall" for extra C-17s, CH- 47s and AH-64 helicopters (DAILY, Sept. 25). Still, programs receiving the largest funding out of the $70 billion supplemental include Humvees, M1 Abrams and the Army's families of medium and heavy tactical vehicles.
The U.S. Air Force Air Mobility Command (AMC) is putting together an overall plan for how its airlifters and supporting fleet mesh with military transportation needs. "We're working on a total force plan," AMC Commander Gen. Duncan McNabb said Sept. 25 during a briefing at the Air Force Association's annual conference in Washington. The plan - called the Air Mobility Command Roadmap - will show what plane goes where and for what purpose, McNabb said.
The U.S. Air Force should be able to field a next-generation bomber by 2018 as planned as long as the service tweaks existing technology and platforms and keeps the program funded, says Gen. Ronald Keys, commander of Air Combat Command. "We have to take what we have - F-22...UCAS - all of that technology," Keys said Sept. 27 during a briefing at the annual Air Force Association conference in Washington. Keys said he has budgeted "a lot of money" for the bomber.
