As the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) looks for ways to increase air surveillance over U.S. territory, high-altitude airships eventually could become part of the U.S. air defense system. Under a proposed advanced concept technology demonstration, or ACTD, the Army and NORAD are requesting funds for a single airship to serve as a demonstration vehicle, according to NORAD officials. If successful, the new program could lead to a network of airships used to monitor possible air and maritime threats to U.S. territory.
A comprehensive business case must be made before NASA or private contractors can move ahead with plans to develop commercial reusable launch vehicles, according to the Futron Corp. Futron, a Bethesda, Md.-based technology management consulting firm, is studying potential markets for NASA as part of the agency's Second-Generation RLV program. The study will be released in mid to late 2002, Futron officials said. Those markets include public space travel, space manufacturing, space product promotion and space solar power, according to the firm.
Deployment of a second battery for Israel's Arrow missile defense system could be delayed by up to a year due to environmental concerns, according to Arieh Herzog, the director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization.
Aviation Week&Space Technology magazine has named its laureates for 2001. Each winner received a Laureate Trophy at April 16 ceremonies at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. The laureates are: * Commercial Air Transport: American Airlines Chairman Donald Carty and Vice Chairman Robert Baker, for their response in the wake of the Sept. 11 hijackings.
Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine has named its laureates for 2001. Each winner received a Laureate Trophy at April 16 ceremonies at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. The laureates are: * Commercial Air Transport: American Airlines Chairman Donald Carty and Vice Chairman Robert Baker, for their response in the wake of the Sept. 11 hijackings.
The recently restructured Space Based Infrared System-Low (SBIRS-Low) program intends to have Northrop Grumman Corp. and Raytheon Co. fly their sensor designs in a competition at least once, according to the Missile Defense Agency. The flight tests are part of MDA's plan "to maintain at least two payload contractors well into the development phase so as to have production options in the long term," the agency wrote in a statement responding to questions.
As the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) looks for ways to increase air surveillance over U.S. territory, high-altitude airships eventually could become part of the U.S. air defense system. Under a proposed advanced concept technology demonstration, or ACTD, the Army and NORAD are requesting funds for a single airship to serve as a demonstration vehicle, according to NORAD officials. If successful, the new program could lead to a network of airships used to monitor possible air and maritime threats to U.S. territory.
NEW DELHI - By 2007, the Indian National Satellite System (INSAT) will operate 251 transponders, a senior Indian Department of Space official told Aerospace Daily. The official added that the INSAT-4 series would have seven satellites, INSAT-4A to INSAT-4G, with INSAT-4D as a spare. INSAT is one of the largest domestic communication satellite systems in the Asia Pacific region. Currently, INSAT-2C, INSAT-2dT, INSAT-2-3E, INSAT-3B and INSAT-3C are in operation.
Northrop Grumman, which is seeking to acquire TRW Inc., announced April 22 it would not sign a confidentiality agreement with TRW to see company financial information due to what it calls several "onerous restrictions" contained in the agreement. TRW offered to provide non-public information to outside companies, but the offer was contingent on those companies signing a confidentiality agreement.
April 19, 2002 The Boeing Co., Wichita, Kan., is being awarded a $13,998,779 cost-plus-award-fee contract modification to provide for contract change proposal for the C-130 Avionics Modernization Program. This is for a test schedule change and deletion of AN/ALQ-157 jammer system requirement. At this time, $119,688 of the funds has been obligated. The Boeing Co. will perform this effort at its facility in Long Beach, Calif. The Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (33657-01-0047, P0010).
PANAMSAT CORP. has signed a 15-year transponder lease agreement with the Eternal Word Television Network, the world's largest religious media network. The agreement consists of one 36 MHz C-band transponder on the G1-RR satellite, for U.S. domestic distribution of the network's programming. PanAmSat operates a network of 21 satellites with 870 transponders.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is widening his scrutiny of a possible Air Force lease deal for 100 Boeing 767 aerial refuelers. McCain, a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), sent letters April 17 to congressional budget director Dan Crippen, Defense Department Inspector General Joseph Schmitz and White House budget director Mitch Daniels asking for their views on the potential lease, including how it would compare cost-wise to a purchase and other options.
BMD EUROSKEPTICISM: The U.S. is unlikely to win over its European allies on the need for a homeland ballistic missile defense (BMD) system, according to Colin Gray, who recently studied the issue as European director of the National Institute for Public Policy. Europeans are resistant because they have a different worldview than most Americans, he says. For instance, while the U.S.
DATADIRECT NETWORKS of Los Angeles has supplied four S2A 6000 Silicon Storage Appliances to NASA's Goddard Spaceflight Center, Md., to distribute and accelerate satellite imaging and data analysis information.
COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS: Even though the military has not activated the Civilian Reserve Aircraft Fleet (CRAF) for years, the Air Force has issued contracts to participating commercial carriers to supplement military airlift capabilities, according to Air Force Gen. John Handy, the commander-in-chief of Transportation Command and the commander of Air Mobility Command. Commercial carriers participating in the CRAF program are required to support Department of Defense airlift requirements during times of war or in the case of emergencies.
HONEYWELL will provide two Range Safety Tracking Systems at the Kodiak Launch spaceport complex in Alaska under a $13.5 million contract from the Alaska Aerospace Development Corp. The systems, which will enable flight control officers to monitor space-bound vehicles and destroy ones that go off course, will become operational in 2003. The Honeywell system is mobile and can be transported in a C-17 or shipped by land or sea. Each system consists of a mobile control center van and two trailer-mounted tracking antennas.
In a make-or-break deal for the F-15 Eagle production line, the Republic of Korea announced April 19 it has selected the Boeing-made fighter over the French-made Rafale. Four companies responded to South Korea's original request for proposals: the Boeing Co. with the F-15K, a variant of its F-15 Eagle; Sukhoi of Russia with the Su-35; Dassault of France with the Rafale; and the Eurofighter consortium with the Typhoon (DAILY, Oct. 3). The $4 billion competition for 40 fighters, dubbed F-X, was delayed several times.
CR/W CONSORTIUM?: As Canard Rotor/Wing (CRW) technology matures, the Boeing Co. might form a consortium to further its commercial advancement, according to Steve Bass, program manager for Boeing's Dragonfly CR/W unmanned aerial vehicle (DAILY, April 13). "I would say that that [a consortium] would certainly not be out of the question for the future," Bass says.
SIX D INC., of Honolulu, has been licensed by NASA to market an image compression technology developed by the aerospace agency. NASA's DCTune technology allows still images to be compressed without a perceptible loss of image quality.
EXPONENTIAL GROWTH: Having won several important missile defense contracts in Europe over the last five years, MBDA's sales revenues will nearly double by 2005, according to CEO Fabrice BrEgier. In an interview with The DAILY last week, Bregier said his company, created through a consolidation of several British, Italian and French missile manufacturers, will grow from a 2 billion euro company ($1.78 billion) at the end of 2001 to a 4 billion euro company ($3.56 billion) by the end of 2005. "We are, in all of our programs, still in the development phase," Bregier says.
