The Gripen International consortium has presented the Bulgarian defense ministry with a range of financing options to win that country's order for a new generation fighter that would replace aging, Soviet-era aircraft. This and other fighter replacement programs come at a time when the Gripen team is anxiously trying to secure the long-term viability of the fighter's production line in Sweden. Although there is still a backlog of activity, without wins soon the prospects for keeping the line open could dim.
The U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) failed in its master plan to recognize gaps in training capabilities in South Korea - including inadequate air combat training facilities - and the training of American forces and U.S. allies could suffer as a result, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says.
Pluto will no longer be considered the ninth planet discovered around Earth's star under a new definition adopted Aug. 24 by the International Astronomical Union.
Four of California's top five airports continue to use National Guard troops deployed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) to help with security two weeks after an alleged terrorist plot was foiled in London. Among the five airports, only Oakland International turned down help from the Guard.
GROWING SUPPLEMENTAL: The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), says the Republican-led Congress is looking at passing $70 billion in off-budget supplemental funding for the first several months of fiscal 2007. The amount would be $20 billion more than the Bush administration originally requested, and even $7 billion more than the Senate was eyeing after it recently tacked on $13 billion (as well as preapproved future reprogramming for another $6 billion).
Northrop Grumman is scheduled to roll out the updated "B" model of the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) on Aug. 25. Analysts say the U.S. Air Force is anxiously anticipating the new model - the service opted to wait longer for the delivery of a model that could carry heavier pods to increase the UAV's capability for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
The U.S. Marine Corps re-emphasized its support Aug. 23 of the MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft program and the service's helicopter deployment plan to bridge the gap between the Marines' current fleet and its MV-22 buildup. "The Marine Corps is fully committed to the MV-22 Osprey program," U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Scot Fazekas said Aug. 23. "This aircraft dramatically enhances the Corps' assault support capability and is a transformational combat multiplier."
The U .S. Navy next week will test autonomous latching and hoisting of unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) for recovery aboard the Sea Fighter test bed in a vital experiment of necessary, albeit unsettled, concepts and technology for the transforming service.
Lockheed Martin Corp., seemingly involved in every aspect of the U.S. ballistic missile defense system, sees missile defense as a growth sector of the defense industry and is eagerly courting foreign allies now for possible sales of various components, according to several executives who briefed reporters Aug. 23.
When a maintenance crew sucks 75 pounds of sand out of the tail of a U.S. Marine Corps Cobra helicopter tail section - which itself only weighs 150 pounds - then you know Iraq's desert conditions are taking their toll on the service's aircraft.
SpaceDev Inc. said Aug. 23 that the Defense Department's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has awarded it for Phase III of its Distributed Sensing Experiment program, and that it received $6.5 million of $29 million in total funding for the next stage. The company said more Phase III funding is expected next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. SpaceDev previously received at least $9.4 million, according to earlier announcements in the program.
KC-135 CONTROLS: The U.S. Air Force has awarded Boeing Co.'s McDonnell Douglas Corp. a $23.3 million contract to remanufacture KC-135 flight control surfaces, the Defense Department said Aug. 22. The work, to last three years, will finish six months beyond the expiration of the ordering period, according to the DOD.
The piggyback launch of twin NASA solar observation spacecraft from Cape Canaveral on a Boeing Delta II will be delayed from Aug. 31 to at least Sept. 18 to validate the strength of an Italian built second stage propellant tank. The Delta II second stage tanks are made by Alcatel Alenia Space in Turin, Italy. Launch will be delayed until October unless a potential problem with the hardware can be resolved by next week.
Insurgents continue to pour people, technology and other resources into Iraq from outside the country and border patrol remains a key part of counter-insurgency efforts, U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Michael Barbero, deputy director for regional operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Aug 23. Iran continues to send money, trainers and weapons into Iraq to fan the insurgency there, Barbero said during a briefing. "We know there have been crossing of the Syrian border by insurgents," he said.
FALCON AWARD: The Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has exercised a $14.6 million contract option with Lockheed Martin Corp.'s Aeronautics Co. to continue development and demonstration of the hypersonic technology vehicle portion of the Falcon program. The work will be performed in Palmdale, Calif., and will be completed in September 2008. The fiscal 2008 Air Force budget request puts greater emphasis on operationally responsive space systems, including Falcon (DAILY, March 17).
The Pentagon's 2006 master plans for overseas basing reflected changes in strategies and requirements that occurred since master plans were submitted to lawmakers last year, congressional investigators reported Aug. 22.
L-3 Communications has won a contract potentially worth $40 million to extend the service life of up to five U.S. Navy Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) vehicles by August 2008, the Defense Department announced Aug. 21. L-3 Titan Group's Unidyne division in Norfolk, Va., received the Navy's initial $16.7 million award for the Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) of LCAC 29 and 32, and the contract includes options for SLEP of LCAC 31, 48 and 33.
Three high-profile Senate Democrats, including two of the top minority members of the Armed Services Committee, on Aug. 22 promised more congressional oversight if Democrats take control of one or both chambers of Congress this November.
BAE Systems said Aug. 22 that a second 57mm Mk 110 Naval Gun system for the U.S. Navy's third Littoral Combat Ship will be delivered in September 2007, not the first quarter of 2008 as the company originally reported (DAILY, Aug. 17). The first system was delivered in March for the first LCS. BAE Systems has received two Lockheed Martin Corp. contracts for a total of three guns for the LCS program and an additional three gun systems for the Coast Guard's Deepwater program.
SATELLITE LAUNCHED: A Sea Launch Zenit-3SL lofted a dual-use communications satellite for South Korea from the company's floating pad late Aug. 21, using a Russian-built Block DM upper stage to insert the European-built satellite in its geosynchronous transfer orbit. Liftoff of the Ukrainian rocket came at 11:27 p.m. Eastern time from a spot near the equator in the Pacific Ocean at 154 degrees west longitude.
