Sailors from the United States and four other countries are practicing seamanship and battle skills during a 17-day exercise off the coast of Brazil, the Defense Department said. The Atlantic Ocean phase of the annual UNITAS 47-06 exercise began Oct. 16 and continues through Nov. 1. Sailors from Uruguay, Argentina, Spain, and host nation Brazil are also taking part. The Pacific Ocean portion of the exercise was held off South American's west coast last summer.
Australia's navy, army, and air force began a pair of military exercises on Oct. 31, the country's defense ministry said. Exercise Dugong, which focuses on mine warfare, will continue until Nov. 18. Exercise Sea Eagle, which stresses amphibious training, will be held until Nov. 11. Exercise Dugong involves four coastal mine hunters, two auxiliary minesweepers, clearance diving units and other mine warfare experts from Australia's navy, as well as explosive ordnance specialists from the country's air force.
COMPLETED: Goodrich Corp. has completed its acquisition of Sensors Unlimited, the company said Oct. 31. The $60 million cash deal includes a 39,000-square-foot leased facility in Princeton, N.J. Sensors Unlimited produces short-wave infrared technology and indium gallium arsenide imaging technology for the military, telecommunications and other markets.
BOEING DIVIDEND: Boeing's board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of 25 cents per share, the company said Oct. 31. The dividend is payable Dec. 2 to shareholders of record as of Nov. 11.
The student-built SSETI Express satellite has suffered an electrical power failure that has rendered it inoperable and cut short its mission. Before going dead, SSETI (Student Space Exploration and Technology Initiative) Express deployed three microsatellites, two of which are confirmed to be alive and well. Had its mission continued, SSETI Express would have taken pictures of the Earth, functioned as a radio transponder and served as a test bed for various designs, including a cold-gas attitude control system (DAILY, Oct. 31).
The Government Accountability Office last week denied protests filed by CherryRoad Technologies and EDS against the U.S. Army for awarding its Army Knowledge Online (AKO) portal contract to a team led by Lockheed Martin.
GOES-R: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has awarded program definition and risk reduction contracts for the Geostationary Operational Enviro- nmental Satellite (GOES) system, GOES-R, to Boeing Satellite Systems, Lockheed Martin Space Systems and a team consisting of Northrop Grumman and Raytheon. The six-month contracts are worth $10 million each.
BOEING TANKERS: Although the U.S. Air Force's tanker modernization plans remain up in the air, Boeing officials say they are making progress meeting foreign orders for their KC-767 tanker, a modified version of the 767 commercial aircraft. The second of four KC-767s for the Italian air force is receiving its tanker modifications near Naples, Italy, and the first of four KC-767s for Japan's air self-defense force is getting its tanker modifications in Wichita, Kan., Boeing officials say. The first KC-767 for Italy is in flight tests.
The U.S. Navy announced late Oct. 27 that Japan has agreed to base a nuclear U.S. aircraft carrier, allowing the USS Kitty Hawk to come stateside and possibly clearing the way for the USS John F. Kennedy's retirement. Japan has long opposed basing a nuclear carrier in its ports, but a rising China, and the dwindling number of conventionally powered U.S. aircraft carriers, apparently helped change Japanese leaders' minds.
FIVE YEARS: NASA will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the International Space Station on Nov. 2, the date when the first ISS crew arrived at the orbital outpost in 2000. The result of a 16-nation partnership led by the United States, the ISS is the largest international space project in history and the largest spacecraft ever assembled, according to NASA. Twelve crews have lived on the station, including current Expedition 12 crewmembers Commander Bill McArthur and Flight Engineer Valery Tokarev, who are preparing for the first spacewalk of their mission on Nov. 7.
Curtiss-Wright Controls and Parker Hannifin Controls System Division will provide the Weapons Bay Door Drive System for Boeing's P-8A Multimission Maritime Aircraft, the companies said. Curtiss-Wright will provide the rotary actuators, angle gearboxes, torque shafts and electronic control units. Parker Hannifin will provide the power drive units, up-lock mechanisms and system integration.
The request for proposals for the next phase of the Global Positioning System III program will be released by the Air Force in December or January, with a contract award to follow by the spring of 2006, according to GPS Program Manager Col. Al Ballenger. The launch of the first GPS III spacecraft is planned for 2013. The Air Force requested $87 million for GPS III in fiscal year 2006. The request is slated to rise sharply to $237 million in FY 2007 and continue to grow until it reaches $1.4 billion by FY 2011 (DAILY, Feb. 7).
Advanced technology products producer ITT Industries said Oct. 27 that its net income surged 72 percent in the third quarter of 2005. Revenue and sales also grew 16 percent, while third quarter revenue for the firm's Defense Electronics & Services segment jumped 28 percent.
President Bush on Oct. 28 submitted to Congress a package of $2.3 billion in budget rescissions, and a request to reallocate $17 billion of already appropriated Hurricane Katrina funds, to speed spending to relief efforts on the Gulf Coast.
The Senate Oct. 27 quietly passed its version of the fiscal 2006 Coast Guard authorization, calling for "targeted" acceleration of the Deepwater recapitalization program for which it approved up to $1.2 billion in spending. "The committee is supportive of examining whether such a 'targeted' acceleration of specific assets might be possible and the potential cost savings it would yield," said the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee's report accompanying the policy bill.
FUTURE COMING: The U.S. Army's Future Force Warrior (FFW) effort will "spiral out" a slew of new technologies this fiscal year for ground troops to use, says a senior military official.
FCA ROLE: Although the Boeing Co. does not make the kind of small transport that the Army is seeking for its Future Cargo Aircraft (FCA), the company is exploring whether its expertise in other areas would still allow it to play a role in the program. Raytheon and EADS are teamed to offer either the C-235, the C-295, or a mixture of both. Global Military Aircraft Systems, a joint venture of L-3 Communications and Italy's Alenia, is offering the C-27J Spartan. The Army is expected to release a request for proposals for FCA by early November.
F-16 PURCHASE: Greece's government is seeking to buy 40 F-16C/D Block 52+ aircraft and related equipment and services from the United States, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said last week. The DSCA notified Congress of the possible foreign military sale on Oct. 25. The purchase could be worth up to $3.1 billion.
