The House Government Reform national security subcommittee has asked the General Accounting Office to look at whether there are any downsides to international participation in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, according to a subcommittee source.
Herley Industries Inc. will supply microwave components for the E2-C Hawkeye surveillance aircraft, the F/A-18E/F fighter and two missile programs, the company announced Jan. 7. Herley will supply components for the F/A-18E/F's fire control radar, senior vice president John M. Kelley told The DAILY. It will supply receiver components for the E2-C for surveillance and electronic warfare applications. The company will also supply microwave receiver components for the High Speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM) and the Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM).
New NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe begins a tour of agency field centers this week, stopping first at NASA's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., on Jan. 10. A visit to Houston's Johnson Space Center is slated for Jan. 17. O'Keefe plans to visit the agency's other field centers in coming weeks, according to NASA.
The ISTAR engine that could power NASA's X-43B hypersonic demonstrator by decade's end is actually three engines integrated into one, according to Project Manager Craig McArthur. "We're taking three propulsion systems - a rocket, a ramjet, and a scramjet - and we're coming up with one flowpath which answers the jobs for all three," said McArthur, who manages the ISTAR program at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
The Air Force has declared initial operational capability for an element of the projected Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) called the Mission Control Station (MCS), Lockheed Martin announced Jan. 7. The MCS, according to the company, is the first major phase to be fielded of the three increments of SBIRS, the network of missile-detecting satellites that is planned to succeed the current Defense Support Program (DSP).
A significant portion of satellite orders in 2001 went to U.S. manufacturers, according to Linda Williams, program manager for the technology management consulting firm Futron Corp. In 2000, the majority of satellite orders went to European manufacturers, Williams said. Another trend in satellite business last year was that more orders were placed for smaller satellites, Williams said.
Following congressional cancellation of the Defense Department's joint signals intelligence (SIGINT) program, the Pentagon is set to decide on a way ahead for airborne SIGINT payloads on a number of critical reconnaissance assets.
NASA TOUR: New NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe begins a tour of agency field centers this week, stopping first at NASA's Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., on Jan. 10. A visit to Houston's Johnson Space Center is slated for Jan. 17. O'Keefe plans to visit the agency's other field centers in coming weeks, according to NASA.
The recent decision by Lockheed Martin Corp. and TRW Inc. to stop funding the satellite service joint venture Astrolink International shows that big aerospace companies are rethinking their strategy of becoming satellite service providers, according to industry analysts. The satellite broadband market probably won't be permanently affected, they added. Instead of big companies funding multi-billion dollar satellite telecommunications systems with hundreds of satellites, smaller companies may emerge to provide service to regional niche markets, they said.
The ISTAR engine that could power NASA's X-43B hypersonic demonstrator by decade's end is actually three engines integrated into one, according to Project Manager Craig McArthur. "We're taking three propulsion systems - a rocket, a ramjet, and a scramjet - and we're coming up with one flowpath which answers the jobs for all three," said McArthur, who manages the ISTAR program at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
Elbit Systems Ltd. of Haifa, Israel, will supply avionics systems, equipment and logistics support for the ALX Super Tucano aircraft that Embraer will manufacture for the Brazilian air force, the company announced Jan. 7. The contracts for the equipment total more than $80 million, according to the company.
Private companies seeking to build arms and ammunition for the Indian military must be controlled by Indians, according to new government guidelines. India has followed up its decision to allow private participation in the defense industry by issuing guidelines aiming to ensure adequate security for arms and ammunition production. Domestic defense work was previously confined to government agencies. The provisions include retaining majority Indian shareholding in companies that have foreign investors, and controlling the sale of equipment.
The House Government Reform national security subcommittee has asked the General Accounting Office to look at whether there are any downsides to international participation in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, according to a subcommittee source.
The Philippine military, which was promised substantial U.S. military support in November, has expressed interest in acquiring unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as part of American foreign military assistance, according to Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.).
A significant portion of satellite orders in 2001 went to U.S. manufacturers, according to Linda Williams, program manager for the technology management consulting firm Futron Corp. In 2000, the majority of satellite orders went to European manufacturers, Williams said. Another trend in satellite business last year was that more orders were placed for smaller satellites, Williams said.
The Dec. 30 crash of an Air Force Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during routine operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom shouldn't have any adverse effect on the program, according to some military analysts. John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, said he believes the crash, while embarrassing, will "probably not" result in any programmatic changes. "I think that Global Hawk is basically early enough in the program that you would expect the problems that they have been having," Pike told The DAILY.
The recent decision by Lockheed Martin Corp. and TRW Inc. to stop funding the satellite service joint venture Astrolink International shows that big aerospace companies are rethinking their strategy of becoming satellite service providers, according to industry analysts.
BALL AEROSPACE&TECHNOLOGIES CORP.'s QuickBird satellite is providing the highest-resolution Earth imagery that is commercially available, according to the company. The imagery was made public in December by DigitalGlobe, the owner and operator of QuickBird, which provides two-foot panchromatic and 8.2-foot multispectral resolutions. QuickBird launched Oct. 18, 2001 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. (DAILY, Oct. 19). QuickBird consists of a Ball High-Resolution Camera 60 integrated with a Ball Commercial Platform 2000 bus.
The Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) has been elevated to agency status and will now be designated the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), the Pentagon announced Jan. 4. The new agency's mission areas will be roughly similar to those of BMDO, but elevation to agency status "recognizes the national priority and mission emphasis on missile defense," according to a Pentagon release.
SPACE SYSTEMS/LORAL will build the MBSAT communications satellite for Japan's Mobile Broadcasting Corp. (MBC). MBSAT will deliver digital multimedia services such as CD-quality audio, MPEG-4 video and data to mobile users in Japan. On-orbit delivery of the spacecraft is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2003, with service expected to begin in early 2004. According to Space Systems/Loral, MBC will deliver music, video and data to various kinds of receivers, including those in cars, ships, trains, handheld terminals, personal digital assistants and cellular phones.
