Carmen J. Palermo, vice president and chief scientist, Harris Corp., was elected chairman of the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) technical and operations council. He succeeds Samuel A. Musa, vice president, research and technology E-System. Robert J. Polutchko, vice president, technical operations, Martin Marietta Corp., was elected vice chairman. AIA product support committee elects 1995 officers:
At the dinner with Gorman and Deutch, Schlesinger also takes a few shots at the Clinton Administration's national security policy, saying, "There are many things wrong with national security policy in the U.S. Few have to do with the Department of Defense." Most of them stem from the White House's "remarkably elusive" foreign policy, which has been "all over the lot," Schlesinger says.
Martin Marietta and Lockheed have to decide precisely how to combine their space assets now that their merger plans have been approved by the Federal Trade Commission (DAILY, Jan. 12, page 51). The new Lockheed Martin will have four major space facilities: Lockheed Missiles and Space Co. in Sunnyvale, Calif., Martin Marietta Astronautics in Denver, and two Martin Marietta Astro Space plants, in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Martin Marietta Astro Space and Hughes Space and Communications Co. announced Friday they have each formed teams to compete for an upcoming contract for the next generation of Air Force Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites. Rockwell International has also formed a team and hopes to make an announcement in the next week or two, a spokesman said.
Ramesh L. Ratan, who most recently served as senior vice president, administration, chief financial officer and corporate secretary, Repligen Corp., was appointed executive vice president, corporate development and chief financial officer.
It's not likely all four facilities will be kept open. There's significant overcapacity at Sunnyvale and Denver-despite a move of Martin's recently-acquired Atlas launcher business from San Diego to Denver. And company employees don't see overcapacity jibing with Martin Marietta Chairman Norman Augustine's repeated statement that three full factories are better than six empty ones.
The U.S. Air Force will probably release a modification request, or MR, on Friday telling the six remaining Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS) competitors to make sure that they really have adopted commercial practices, which could effectively push announcement of a winner as late as early June, sources familiar with the program confirmed to The DAILY last week.
Berger G. "Bud" Wallin has been elected to the board of directors and named executive vice president for special projects. Patrick L. Thomas, formerly president of Milton Roy Co., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sundstrand, was elected executive vice president and chief operating officer of the company's industrial segment.
House Intelligence Chairman Larry Combest (R-Tex.), newly elected vice chairman of the Commission on Protecting and Reducing Government Secrecy, says he wants to "look at what is being newly classified and why...." If less truly sensitive information were classified, he says, it could be held with more tightly and at lower cost. According to the National Security Council's Information Security Oversight Office, the total of all classification actions reported in 1993 increased 1% to 6,408,688. The Defense Dept.
Top Defense Dept. officials hope to notify Congress today about the cancellation of AGM-137 Tri-Service Standoff Attack Missile (TSSAM) development, sources said Friday. Pentagon officials met late Friday to review the termination plans, which are still under wraps. Cancellation costs could be as much as $1.6 billion, according to one source.
HOWDEN FLUID SYSTEMS is the name of the company that was formed when FCD Corp., Hamden, Conn., was merged into Pneu Devices Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif., on Dec. 15, Howden said. FCD made hydraulic cooling units and environmental control systems, as did Pneu Devices. Howden Fluid Systems, also of Santa Barbara, supplies environmental control systems to the defense and aerospace industries. John H. McGrenery, formerly vice president of manufacturing of FCD, has been appointed president of Howden Fluid Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Howden Defense Systems.
HONEYWELL MILITARY AVIONICS, Minneapolis, said it has been chosen to provide upgraded central air data computers (UCADC) for use on Greece's Block 50 F-16 fighters. The company said yesterday that the $1.3 million contract further expands its UCADC presence internationally. The computer has already been selected for use on F-16s in Taiwan, Turkey and Singapore.
Democrats have appointed their 11 members to the House Science Committee's space subcommittee. Rep. Ralph Hall (D-Tex.), the panel's former chairman, will be ranking Democrat. Serving with Hall will be Democrats Jane Harman (D-Calif.), Tim Roemer (D-Ind.), Bud Cramer (D-Ala.), James Barcia (D-Mich.), James Traficant (D-Ohio), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.), Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.), Mike Ward (D-Ky.), and William Luther (D-Minn.).
The U.S. Navy is soliciting industry for development and production of the Lightweight Hybrid Torpedo, intended to counter threats posed by diesel submarines in shallow water and littoral areas.
RMI TITANIUM CO., Niles, Ohio, said it will serve its expanding list of European customers by establishing a regional office and warehouse near Birmingham, England. It said the new facility will open next month and stock titanium products to meet the growing demand for just-in-time delivery from aerospace and industrial titanium markets. The move was made under a distribution strategy that began with part ownership in RMI's French distributor, Reamet SA, and the formation of the joint venture Permipipe AS of Norway.
Loral, TRW and Westinghouse are teaming to compete for the U.S. Army's Corps SAM next generation air defense system, intended to replace the Hawk missile system. Loral Vought Systems said yesterday that it will serve as the prime contractor and also be responsible for the weapon system module. TRW Data Technologies Div., Carson, Calif., will handle the battle management/command and control module, and Westinghouse Electric Corp.'s Electronic Business Group, Baltimore, will provide the sensor module.
The Defense Dept. wants new technologies that can foster joint operations or better integrate intelligence and surveillance assets, Deputy Defense Secretary John Deutch said Wednesday. "We need technology to find a more effective way to build our forces," Deutch said at a dinner sponsored by the Committee for Economic Development in Washington. The department also will rely on acquisition reform and infrastructure reductions, such as base closures, to get more bang for its buck, he said.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) took the first step yesterday towards licensing ventures that want to deliver satellite digital radio services with compact disk sound quality to automobiles and homes nationwide. At a meeting in Washington, the commission allocated spectrum in the 2310-2360 MHz band for satellite digital audio radio services (DARS). They also indicated the hope to move forward rapidly with the proposed service rules for satellite radio systems, which would be received by a small disk- shaped dish.
TRW CEO Joseph Gorman says he has no intention of bowing out of the space and defense market, despite the threat of bruising competition from the behemoth Lockheed Martin. "We've won a place at the table with consistently outstanding performance," Gorman said late Wednesday. "We will be a survivor."
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. U.S. satellite manufacturers have used their technical prowess to dominate commercial markets worldwide, with one very notable exception. They have yet to win a single new satellite contract from China, due in large part to political and trade frictions between the U.S. and Beijing. But they're not quitting.
NASA has given bidders until Feb. 24 to outline how they would develop the X-33 and X-34 reusable launch vehicle (RLV) demonstrators that may form the basis of a low-cost replacement for the Space Shuttle early in the next century.
LOCKHEED AERONAUTICAL SYSTEMS CO., Marietta, Ga., has completed delivery of 12 C-130H Hercules transports to the North Carolina Air National Guard. The planes are assigned to the 145th Airlift Group at Charlotte International Airport. They replace earlier "B" models that the group had operated for 23 years. Lockheed's 2,000th Hercules was delivered to the Kentucky Air National Guard in May 1992.
Russia will use a modified SS-25 ICBM to launch a 110-pound Israeli research satellite into polar orbit from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in March, according to a press report from Israel. The Associated Press reported yesterday from Haifa that the Gurwin-1 satellite, developed by the Space Research Institute at Technion University, will be launched on March 28. Named after a Florida philanthropist who contributed $1 million towards its construction, the satellite will test several components supplied by Israeli companies, according to the report.
FAA engineers reviewing electric grounding on General Electric aircraft engines have refuted nearly all the technical and recordkeeping claims made by an ex-GE employee in a whistleblower lawsuit against the company, according to the engineers' report, released yesterday by the Justice Dept.
U.S. Army scientists have demonstrated an artillery fuze that uses the Global Positioning System to allow soldiers to track the round in flight and determine its impact point. In a test last month at the Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz., the Sensors Application Branch of the Army Research Laboratory showed that an artillery round can receive GPS information and send it back to the gunner, who can then target the next round with great accuracy.
