The nonlethal Active Denial System (ADS), which shoots a radar signal that causes a burning sensation under the skin, is set for its debut in Iraq with the Army and Marine Corps, according to an ADS advocate. But defense officials are still trying to gain more distance in the weapon's use. Mikel Ryan, head of the Navy's mid-Atlantic area frequency coordination office, said May 23 that the Army and Marines each wanted seven vehicles outfitted and deployed with ADS there by now, but he's not sure at this point when it would happen.
The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said May 23 that he planned to hold "lessons learned"-type hearings into the Boeing Co.-Justice Department settlement that ends federal investigations into two procurement scandals. "I think it's appropriate that our committee hold hearings for the purpose of reviewing once again - not just for Boeing but for the industry - what took place and how it could be avoided," Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) told The DAILY.
TEXAS SWEEP: The Texas (SSN 775), the second submarine of the Virginia class, completed initial sea trials on May 17 and returned to port with a broom tied to one of its masts, signifying the Navy's traditional symbol of a clean sweep, according to the Naval Sea Systems Command. Delivery to the Navy is planned for next month. Texas is the first of the class to be delivered by Northrop Grumman Newport News (NGNN), which the Navy has quietly criticized for poorer waterfront operations compared with General Dynamics Corp.'s Electric Boat.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Atlantic Microwave Corporation, Bolton, Mass., is being awarded a maximum $49,000,000 firm fixed price contract for antenna for the Army. There were three proposals solicited and two responded. This is an indefinite quantity type contract with four one-year options. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Date of performance completion is May 18, 2007. Contracting activity is Defense Supply Center Columbus (DSCC), Columbus, Ohio (SP0920-06-D-7734). NAVY
U.S. Air Force officials are pressuring military satellite designers and program managers into "unhealthy compromises" by dictating that launch costs must be included in a spacecraft's total program cost, a space-industry executive said. To effectively reduce the per-satellite cost of using Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles, the service is dictating that "dual manifests will be used whenever possible," the executive said.
BRIDGE WORK: BAE Systems announced May 22 the award of a potential $4.8 million contract to its San Diego shipyard by Military Sealift Fleet Support Command for the USNS Bridge (T-AOE 10) mid-term availability (MTA) repair this summer. During a typical five-year maintenance cycle, which includes a dry docking period, T-AOEs undergo MTAs every 15 months.
COAST GUARD AEROSTATS: The U.S. Coast Guard is partnering with the Homeland Security Department's Science and Technology directorate and the department's Domestic Nuclear Detection Office to try out technology for some of their "thorniest" problems. Efforts include converting a tethered aerostat from only detecting airborne targets to a system that also can track ocean vessels and identify nuclear and radiological material, as well as aid in port and harbor surveillance and other maritime domain awareness, two rear admirals tell House Coast Guard authorizers.
NASA's aging network of antennas for communicating with spacecraft beyond low Earth orbit may not be able to keep up with future demand as the agency tries to fulfill its mandate to return to the moon and land astronauts on Mars, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
JASSM-ER B-1B: Lockheed Martin Corp. said May 22 that its extended-range JASSM conventional cruise missile system successfully performed its first development flight-test at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., recently. JASSM-ER is in Phase II development, which includes design and verification testing and culminates with flight-testing.
SCANNING MIRROR: European Space Agency engineers will decide during a final commission review at the end of July whether they can recover full use of a scanning mirror on the PFS spectrometer aboard the agency's Venus Express probe. Tests following the probe's arrival into final orbit around the planet on May 9 showed the mirror to be blocked at the calibration point, and hopes that the changing temperature regime might release it have not materialized.
The Pentagon's decision to cancel the Joint Strike Fighter's alternate engine program was a budget-driven decision and was not derived from comprehensive analysis, congressional investigators have told House and Senate defense authorizers.
MH-60R AVIONICS: Lockheed Martin Corp. announced May 22 that it received two production contracts from the U.S. Navy to complete the integration of sensor and avionics systems on 12 MH-60R multimission helicopters, and to begin integration work on 25 others. An award for $76.5 million goes to finish 12 MH-60Rs, which will be delivered by late 2008. Lockheed Martin received $31 million in 2005 to order major systems from suppliers.
The intelligence official responsible for coordinating information sharing among the gaggle of organizations responsible for fighting terrorism has ranked handling "sensitive but unclassified" (SBU) information right up with ensuring the privacy rights of the public in his priority list.
The space shuttle orbiter Discovery is undergoing processing on Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center this week following rollout to the pad May 19. The vehicle has received an initial clean bill of health for launch as early as July 1 with its modified external tank, but additional reviews remain.
PRODUCTION TOOLING: Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. has issued contracts with a pair of German firms to supply production tooling for the Russian Regional Jet. Fooke GmbH will supply portal milling machines for aluminum profiles, while Brotje Automation will provide CNC-controlled assembly stations for fuselage and wing assembly.
AIR FORCE Comtech Systems Inc., Orlando, Fla., is being awarded a $28,673,088 firm fixed price contract. This provides for the purchase of 184 troposcatter modem upgrade kits to support the Air Force, Army, and Marine Corps requirements. At this time, $5,401,890 has been obligated. Solicitations began in March 2006 and negotiations were complete in May 2006. The work will be complete by July 2007. Headquarters Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8539-06-C-0004).
ARMY Datapath Inc., Duluth, Ga., was awarded on May 12, 2006, a $72,995,911 firm-fixed-price contract for equipment and support services for portions of the joint network node network. Work will be performed in Duluth, Ga., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2007. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This was a sole source contract initiated on April 5, 2006. The Army Communications-Electronics Command, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-06-C-G205). NAVY
Shares in aircraft interiors supplier B/E Aerospace staged a slight recovery on May 22, but investors remained jittery over CEO Amin Khoury's connection to another company that has drawn attention for questionable stock option grants.
