Lockheed Martin Corp. said July 2 it has been awarded a $175 million contract by Raytheon Co. for work on the navy's next-generation destroyer, the DD(X). In a statement, Lockheed Martin officials said the company plans to leverage its expertise in total ship systems engineering, command and control systems, Integrated Undersea Warfare (IUSW) systems, weapons control and phased array radars to help develop some of the proposed 11 engineering development models (EMDs).
ALCOA, Pittsburgh Veronica M. "Ronee" Hagee has been named chief customer officer. L.R. "Rick" Milner has been named to the new position of president, Alcoa Advanced Transportation Systems. AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MILITARY COMPTROLLERS, Arlington, Va. Thomas R. Bloom, director of the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, has been named president. AMERICAN TECHNOLOGY CORP., San Diego Carl Gruenler has been named vice president of military operations. CPI AEROSTRUCTURES, Edgewood, N.Y.
The Missile Defense Agency is slowing part of its boost-phase interceptor program because of financial and technical constraints, according to Defense Department officials. The kinetic energy interceptor (KEI) program had called for developing two test bed systems on similar schedules: one space-based, the other terrestrial or ground- and sea-based. If one system failed to meet expectations, MDA figured it would have an alternative available.
VOUGHT BUY COMPLETED: Aerostructure supplier Vought Aircraft Industries has completed its acquisition of Aerostructures Corp., which designs and builds airframe structures, the company said July 2. The company will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Dallas-based Vought. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The Carlyle Group and Italian aerospace giant Finmeccanica have agreed to buy FiatAvio, the aerospace business of the Fiat Group. The value of the company is estimated at 1.5 billion euros ($1.76 billion). The deal will be financed through a combination of equity and debt. A source familiar with the deal told The DAILY that Carlyle and Finmeccanica would offer $500 million in equity to pay for the acquisition. The remainder will be paid for through debt offerings.
Calling it "draconian" and "catastrophic," a Lockheed Martin executive on July 2 sharply criticized a move by House appropriators to cut next year's budget for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) nearly in half. Randy Bigum, Lockheed Martin's vice president for strike weapons, also criticized the House panel's report on the fiscal 2004 defense appropriations bill, which described "uncertainty" encircling the JASSM program's testing phase after two disappointing flight tests this spring.
PRAGUE - A tender for new supersonic fighters for the Czech air force could be launched in late 2003 or early 2004 under proposals due to be considered by the Czech cabinet next week. The Czech ministry of defense is to present several options to the government on July 7. They include a five- or 10-year "bridging solution" involving the acquisition of a dozen older fighters to ensure airspace protection beginning in 2005, when the country's fleet of Mig-21s is to be decommissioned.
The latest launch forecast from Futron Corp. predicts that 2003 and 2004 will see consistent increases in worldwide commercial launch activity, although "ominous" signs point to a slump in 2005. According to Futron's "best estimate" of the next 18 months, 23 commercial launches will take place worldwide by the end of this year, with 26 in 2004. This represents consistent growth from 2001, which saw the lowest number of commercial launches, 16, since 1994.
The House is expected to debate and approve the fiscal 2004 defense appropriations bill July 8. The House Appropriations Committee approved the legislation June 26 (DAILY, June 27), providing $4.2 billion for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, $132 million less than the Bush Administration's request, and $8.9 billion for missile defense, $193 million below the request (DAILY, June 25). Lawmakers may propose deeper cuts to missile defense when the full House takes up the bill.
Air Force Maj. Gen.-select Henry Obering will replace retiring Army Maj. Gen. Peter Franklin as deputy director of the Missile Defense Agency, MDA announced July 2.
Scaled Composites has filed an application with the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation, known as AST, to obtain a launch license for the first suborbital space flight of SpaceShipOne. Company founder Burt Rutan said he still hopes his reusable spacecraft will not have to be licensed like a rocket.
CONNEXION AGREEMENT: Connexion by Boeing has signed a service agreement with Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) to equip the carrier's long-haul aircraft with the company's broadband mobile satellite information service. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Service installations will begin in 2004 for SAS' 11 long-haul aircraft, Boeing said July 2, and the service may be expanded to other SAS aircraft. "This agreement ...
Lockheed Martin will deliver 156 precision-guided rockets to the U.S. Army under a new $30 million contract, the company announced July 1. The deal launches the first low-rate initial production phase in the 11-year-old development of the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS), which is planned to yield more than 100,000 rockets.
LONDON - The Eurofighter consortium has expressed confidence that all of the first Typhoon fighters to be delivered will meet weight requirements. Each of the first four production-standard two-seat Typhoons was weighed in preparation for delivery, and each beat the requirement. The June 10 weigh-in preceded the June 30 announcement that the Typhoon had successfully completed acceptance trials, and that the consortium could begin deliveries to the air forces of Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. (DAILY, July 1).
PRAGUE - Czech president Vaclav Klaus toured Aero Vodochody last week in a show of support for the troubled Czech aircraft manufacturer. Aero Vodochody's revenues are expected to plummet as it nears completion of an order for 72 L-159 subsonic fighters for the Czech air force. It is now banking on securing its first international order for the aircraft to ensure its future.
JOINING GALILEO: France's Thales Group has taken a 12 percent stake in Galileo Industries, the prime contractor for Galileo, Europe's planned satellite navigation service. Galileo, which would include a constellation of 30 satellites, recently got a green light from EU ministers to proceed (DAILY, May 28).
Northrop Grumman Corp. has begun exploring how the laser weapon know-how it recently obtained from its acquisition of TRW Inc. could improve the ships it builds, a Northrop Grumman official told reporters July 1. Wes Bush, president of Northrop Grumman's Space Technology unit, which includes the company's high-energy laser programs, said at a press briefing that Northrop Grumman has launched an initiative to explore the potential use of directed energy weapons for ships.
A new report from the General Accounting Office (GAO) endorses the U.S. Defense Department's plan to unify its Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) programs under a single joint office, while cautioning DOD not to allow new multi-mission requirements to outstrip funding. In an effort to integrate requirements and promote competition, DOD decided to merge the separate Air Force and Navy UCAV efforts under a single office scheduled to be in operation by the end of this year (DAILY, March 27).
Lockheed Martin hopes to implement a systems upgrade program for surface ships similar to the one it used to develop commercial hardware and software applications for the Navy's submarine fleet. The program would involve upgrading the baseline systems architecture used to run the Aegis Weapon System aboard the Navy's cruisers and destroyers and providing periodic spiral hardware and software upgrades.
The U.S. Navy closed a $91 million deal with Northrop Grumman to build 10 production units of a stealthy radar jamming system designed to defeat the latest surface-to-air missile threats, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) announced June 30. The low-rate initial production (LRIP) contract for the Improved Capability III (ICAP III) weapon system covers only the Navy's EA-6B Prowler fleet, but future orders are planned for the EA-18G, a likely successor to the Prowler. The system will be introduced to the fleet in early fiscal 2005.
The Pentagon's new Defense Safety Oversight Council (DSOC) plans to hold a July 17 kickoff meeting focusing on steps that can be taken immediately to reduce accidents in the Defense Department, according to documents obtained by The DAILY. Joseph Angello, the DSOC's executive secretary, wrote in a June 27 memorandum to council members that the meeting will scrutinize "your specific initiatives to reduce accidents and time lost due to injuries. The emphasis will be on actions that can be implemented immediately."
