A reorganization at General Electric that merges its current 11 business units into six, and that is intended to speed growth and profitability, will yield a new chief for the operation that includes the Aircraft Engines component, a company spokeswoman said. The reorganization, announced June 23 and set to become effective July 5, will give GE the following new businesses: Infrastructure; Industrial; Commercial Financial Services; NBC Universal; Healthcare; and Consumer Finance.
Northrop Grumman Corp.'s AN/AES-1 Airborne Laser Mine Detection System, which the U.S. Navy calls the first new technology to be applied to mine warfare since the advent of sonar, received Navy approval June 15 for low-rate initial production. The approval came after a Milestone C review and allows for integration aboard U.S. Navy H-60-series helicopters. The system uses a LIDAR - light detection and ranging - blue-green laser to locate subsurface mines.
Pratt & Whitney has achieved European Aviation Safety Agency validation on its newest engine, the PW6000, the company said June 23. This is the first validation of an "all new" engine since the EASE was established in September 2003, the company said. "Achieving EASA validation is a significant milestone, granting the PW6000 program the authority to operate throughout the 25 EU [European Union] member states," Steve Heath, president of Pratt & Whitney Commercial Engines, said in a statement.
INCREASE: Senate subcommittee authorizers are moving toward approving $1.1 billion for the Coast Guard's Deepwater recapitalization effort in fiscal 2006. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee's Coast Guard subcommittee, chaired by Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), authorized the amount June 23. Senate appropriators already have approved $905.6 million, closer to the Bush Administration request of $966 million.
A member of the House Armed Services Committee called June 23 for reviving the development of space-based lasers for missile defense. Rep. John Hostettler (R-Ind.) said that lasers offer more precision and speed than other weapons and that fielding them in space would provide the ultimate "high ground" to defend the United States against ballistic missile attack. Such technology also has the potential to protect U.S. satellites, he said.
Thales will supply 26 AN-490N airborne tactical navigation (TACAN) interrogators for naval NH90 helicopters, along with logistics and training support, under an agreement with NATO. Nine systems are for French navy NH90s, with the rest for Italian navy helicopters. The TACAN systems, which are navigation aids that give pilots distance and azimuth information, are scheduled for first delivery in September and are to be fully operational by early 2007.
LONDON - While still heavily committed to operations around the world, Britain's Royal Air Force is quietly undergoing changes aimed at sharpening its teeth while making it leaner and more cost effective.
The U.S. Marine Corps is on its way to buying 122 Cougar Joint Explosive Ordnance Disposal Rapid Response Vehicles for itself and the Army, according to the vehicle's manufacturer, for $87 million. Force Protection Inc., which builds the ballistic and mine-protected vehicles at its facility near Charleston, S.C., previously had not announced the full value of the contract, awarded May 13 by the Marine Corps Systems Command (DAILY, May 17).
SEA LAUNCH: A Zenit-3SL rocket delivered the Intelsat Americas-8 communications satellite to geosynchronous transfer orbit after lifting off from Boeing's Sea Launch platform at 14:03 GMT June 23. Early data indicates the spacecraft is in good condition.
Senate lawmakers moved to send NASA's fiscal 2006 appropriations and authorization bills to the floor of the Senate for a vote during separate markup hearings on Capitol Hill June 23. The Senate Appropriations Committee endorsed the $16.4 billion FY '06 NASA appropriations bill that was marked up by the Commerce, Justice and Science subcommittee earlier this week (DAILY, June 22). The bill includes $250 million to continue preparations for a space shuttle mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
The proposed DD(X) destroyer is the U.S. Navy's "bridge" to the CG(X) destroyer and a major technology development program, and the futuristic ship will have several advantages over the current DDG-51 class of destroyers, especially in the littorals, admirals said June 23. Without the DD(X), "we will not have the capability to dominate the maritime theater and air missile defense of the future," Vice Adm. Joseph Sestak, deputy chief of naval operations, told reporters. But he continued, "are there other areas you can help mitigate that? Absolutely."
The Joint Common Missile (JCM) has achieved several recent technical and political victories, giving prime contractor Lockheed Martin hope that the program will continue in some form despite being targeted for termination by the Pentagon. Rick Edwards, director of tactical missiles at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, said June 23 that all 17 JCM subsystems have successfully completed their preliminary design reviews (PDRs), keeping the program on track for a system-level PDR June 29-30.
TAIWAN DEFENSES: Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems will provide Taiwan with "elements of a missile and air defense capability" under a $752 million contract, the Department of Defense said June 23. The system includes an Ultra High Frequency phased array radar integrated with identification-friend-or-foe beacons supplied by Taiwan; two Missile Warning Centers; and communications and interfaces architecture, "consistent with United States government restrictions," the DOD said.
MOVING: Intelsat General Corp. has consolidated its headquarters in Bethesda, Md., from Washington, D.C., the satellite networking services company said June 22. The move puts all its employees under one roof in Maryland to "better serve our customers and increase our overall productivity," IGC President Susan Miller said in a statement. The company is a subsidiary of satellite communications provider Intelsat Ltd.
Democratic lawmakers and panelists at a Capitol Hill event on June 23 said there is a need for data addressing the perceived drain of U.S. science and technology jobs to other countries. "No person or organization known to me has any credible way of forecasting what science and engineering sectors of the U.S. economy will look like in 2010 or 2012," Michael Teitelbaum, program director of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation said at a workforce roundtable sponsored by Democratic members of the House Science Committee.
House appropriators made clear June 22 that they expect a single Deepwater recapitalization plan from the U.S. Coast Guard by July 14 so that congressmen and senators can work out a fiscal 2006 budget this summer when they meet in conference. The Coast Guard commandant said he got the message and would relay it to Bush Administration officials, including the White House Office of Management and Budget and the Coast Guard's parent agency, the Homeland Security Department.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security released a request for proposals June 21 for an off-the-shelf medium-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle system to patrol the U.S. border with Mexico. The UAV system will patrol the area within 25 miles of the U.S./Mexico border, extending from Yuma, Ariz., to El Paso, Texas. Responses to the RFP are due by July 19 and DHS expects to be operating the system no later than October.
Col. James "Jay" DeFrank (USAF-Ret.) will become executive director, Research & Analysis, effective July 18, leading the new enterprise from the foundation's Washington offices.
Alliant Techsystems (ATK) recently successfully demonstrated the XM25 advanced airbursting weapon system using developmental ammunition, the company said June 22. The XM25, when fielded, will fire a high explosive, air-bursting 25mm round capable of striking enemies hidden behind walls or inside buildings or foxholes, ATK said. The system does not require impact to detonate, but uses a laser rangefinder to measure the distance the round has traveled to detonate it at a precise point in the air.
SAFARI: A $14 million airplane initiative is expected to lead to a request for proposals in September, the U.S. Coast Guard commandant said June 22. Speaking to House appropriators, Adm. Thomas Collins said the service is working with the Air Force's Safari program to develop a small, slow, manned aircraft for surveillance. Rep. Harold Rogers (R-Ky.), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee's homeland security subcommittee, helped push the initiative last year.
ROBOTS: The U.S. Navy's explosive ordnance disposal program has received approval for full-rate production of the Man Transportable Robotic System, which revolves around Foster-Miller Inc.'s Talon IV and iRobot's PackBot. An acquisition review board granted full production for the system May 31, the Navy announced recently. The military plans to buy 960 systems, with the Army getting 461, the Marine Corps 205, the Navy 154 and the Air Force 140.
