RIDLEY PARK, Pa. - When the V-22 Osprey takes to the air again next month, the event will be treated as if it were the first flight of a new aircraft, according to Chief Test Pilot Tom MacDonald. "That makes us go through a much more detailed planning process and approval process," MacDonald said. "By doing it that way ... we're being incredibly safe and conservative. It'll be a simple flight."
MOSCOW - Sukhoi Design Bureau won the tender for Russia's fifth-generation fighter April 26 after its bid was approved by the government's commission on military industry. The decision came in a closed meeting chaired by Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov, and the result was announced by Iliya Klebanov, the minister of industry, science and technology. Sukhoi's team on the program will include MiG and the Yakovlev Design Bureau. MiG had presented its own design for the fighter.
A Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile successfully intercepted and destroyed an incoming tactical ballistic missile (TBM) target during an April 25 test, although a second PAC-3 failed to launch. The test was intended to be a simultaneous engagement using the first PAC-3 missile against a Patriot-as-a-Target (PAAT) TBM, and the second PAC-3 against a Storm II ballistic missile target. An investigation is underway to determine why the second missile didn't launch.
MARKET ALTERNATIVES: The U.S. military should consider some of MBDA's missile technologies to meet its needs, says company CEO Fabrice Brégier. "I don't pretend we are better than the major U.S. [defense] companies. But I believe we have technologies some of them don't have," he says. An example, he says, is the Meteor missile, a highly flexible, visual- and beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile. "I don't say 'buy Meteor off the shelf.' But at least ... be interested in the technology and ... see whether MBDA, together with a U.S.
MARKET ALTERNATIVES: The U.S. military should consider some of MBDA's missile technologies to meet its needs, says company CEO Fabrice Bregier. "I don't pretend we are better than the major U.S. [defense] companies. But I believe we have technologies some of them don't have," he says. An example, he says, is the Meteor missile, a highly flexible, visual- and beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile. "I don't say 'buy Meteor off the shelf.' But at least ... be interested in the technology and ... see whether MBDA, together with a U.S.
LACK OF INTEGRATION: The on-orbit technical problems that developed last fall in several Boeing satellites were the result of systems integration failures, according to a senior Boeing executive. The company didn't pay enough attention to integrating new technology into the 601 series and 702 series satellites, originally built by Hughes Space and Communications, he says. "The [cause of] those anomalies was driven by one thing, it was lack of good systems engineering. It was great technology ...
The Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) has announced it will consider the fiscal 2003 defense authorization bill in closed session May 7-10. The airland forces and readiness subcommittees will mark up the defense authorization bill May 7. They will be followed by the seapower, strategic forces and emerging threats subcommittees May 8 and the full committee May 8-10. The House Armed Services Committee indicated earlier that it will finish considering its version of the defense authorization bill May 1 (DAILY, April 2).
Private contractors and government officials will spend this week evaluating more than 3,000 industry proposals for the Army's next-generation Future Combat Systems program, according to a senior program official. Jerry McElwee, FCS program manager for the Boeing Co., said he hopes the downselect will be completed by May 6.
NASA is trying to determine what it would need to do to keep the space shuttle flying in case a replacement vehicle does not become available in 2012 as planned. Fred Gregory, NASA's associate administrator for space flight, testified before the House Science space subcommittee recently that he has told the shuttle program to assess what upgrades would be needed to keep the shuttle flying through 2020.
STUMP RETIRES: House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Chairman Bob Stump (R-Ariz.) says he will not seek re-election to the House in November due to unspecified "serious health problems." Stump, 75, has led the HASC since January 2001. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), the panel's No. 2 Republican in seniority, hopes to become the new chairman when Stump steps down at year's end. Hunter is "going to work hard to get it," a spokesman says. Another senior member of the committee, Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), who unsuccessfully ran for the chairmanship last year (DAILY, Jan.
JDAM TEST: Boeing's 500-pound MK-82 Joint Direct Attack Munition has been successfully flight tested at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Boeing announced April 26. The Air Force launched the MK-82 from an F-16 six miles from its target and at 20,000 feet. The JDAM flew to the target and made a direct hit, according to Boeing. The engineering, manufacturing and development phase of the 500-pound JDAM began in September 2000.
F-22 NEEDED: The F-22 shouldn't be cast aside based on the future promise of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, according to Air Force Secretary Jim Roche. "Personally, I distinguish between something that's flying and passing all its key tests compared to a viewgraph that looks really cute," Roche says. "The systems work is just now beginning on the F-35. It's at this stage of the plane that the baby looks cute as can be, [but the] terrible twos are coming." Although the JSF will be a "very good plane," he says, "the F-22 is here now. It's time to produce it.
JSF DELAY: The Dutch cabinet April 26 postponed a decision on whether to reaffirm its recommendation to parliament to join the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program. The delaying action follows two tie votes in the parliament on whether to reject the cabinet's recommendation.
SPECTRUM ASTRO of Gilbert, Ariz., has completed the pre-environmental review of the military's Coriolis spacecraft and is continuing environmental testing, according to the company. Space vehicle environmental testing includes electromagnetic compatibility, thermal balance and functional testing. So far, the vehicle has completed acoustic testing, random vibration testing and separation and deployment testing, according to Spectrum Astro.
FIRST LOOK: NASA plans to release the first images from the Hubble Space Telescope's newly installed Advanced Camera for Surveys on April 30, according to the aerospace agency. The camera was installed by shuttle astronauts during mission STS-109 in March.
MISSILE THREAT: North Korea's development of ballistic missiles remains a "significant" threat to U.S. forces and allies on the peninsula, according to Army Lt. Gen. Leon LaPorte, President Bush's nominee to head the United Nations Command in South Korea. North Korea has more than 500 Scuds that can threaten the entire peninsula, and it continues to produce and deploy No Dong missiles capable of hitting Japan and U.S. bases there, LaPorte says.
TECHNOLOGY BOOST: France soon will launch a satellite carrying technology the country hopes will boost its competitiveness in space telecommunications. The 2.4 ton Telecommunications Satellite for New Technology Experiments in Orbit (STENTOR) is slated to launch in July from the Kourou launch center in French Guiana. The satellite carries a host of new technologies, according to the French Technology Press office, including an active antenna and advanced thermal control and plasma thrusters. The government decided to build the satellite in 1994.
XCOR AEROSPACE of Mojave, Calif., has acquired some assets of the Rotary Rocket Co., including full and exclusive rights to its technology. The company also acquired patent rights for reusable launch vehicle technologies and some equipment, the company said. XCOR plans to use some Rotary Rocket technology in its own vehicle and engine designs, and may license technology to other companies. "Our team has previous experience with these technologies and can rapidly incorporate them into our products," XCOR CEO Jeff Greason said in a statement.
MISSILE THREAT: North Korea's development of ballistic missiles remains a "significant" threat to U.S. forces and allies on the peninsula, according to Army Lt. Gen. Leon LaPorte, President Bush's nominee to head the United Nations Command in South Korea. North Korea has more than 500 Scuds that can threaten the entire peninsula, and it continues to produce and deploy No Dong missiles capable of hitting Japan and U.S. bases there, LaPorte says.
NEWSAT-USA, headquartered in New Jersey, has signed a transponder lease with iSkySat, an Atlanta-based company that provides worldwide Internet connectivity via satellites and land connections. The three-year contract is for a 36 MHz transponder on NewSat1, a C-band spacecraft located at 42.5 degrees east longitude over the Indian Ocean. iSkySat will use the capacity to deliver Internet connectivity and digital video to customers in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia.
FIRST LOOK: NASA plans to release the first images from the Hubble Space Telescope's newly installed Advanced Camera for Surveys on April 30, according to the aerospace agency. The camera was installed by shuttle astronauts during mission STS-109 in March.
April 29 - May 1 -- National Defense Industrial Association presents 2002 NDIA-U.S. Coast Guard Innovation Expo, the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront, Baltimore, MD. For more information contact Angie De Kleine at (703) 247-2599 or email [email protected], or visit www.ndia.org. April 30 -- Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association presents Sky Forum 2002: Advancing the Future, the Waldorf-Astoria, 301 Park Ave., New York, NY. For more information call (800) 541-5981 or email [email protected].
STUMP RETIRES: House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Chairman Bob Stump (R-Ariz.) says he will not seek re-election to the House in November due to unspecified "serious health problems." Stump, 75, has led the HASC since January 2001. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), the panel's No. 2 Republican in seniority, hopes to become the new chairman when Stump steps down at year's end. Hunter is "going to work hard to get it," a spokesman says. Another senior member of the committee, Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), who unsuccessfully ran for the chairmanship last year (DAILY, Jan.
F-22 NEEDED: The F-22 shouldn't be cast aside based on the future promise of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, according to Air Force Secretary Jim Roche. "Personally, I distinguish between something that's flying and passing all its key tests compared to a viewgraph that looks really cute," Roche says. "The systems work is just now beginning on the F-35. It's at this stage of the plane that the baby looks cute as can be, [but the] terrible twos are coming." Although the JSF will be a "very good plane," he says, "the F-22 is here now. It's time to produce it.
LACK OF INTEGRATION: The on-orbit technical problems that developed last fall in several Boeing satellites were the result of systems integration failures, according to a senior Boeing executive. The company didn't pay enough attention to integrating new technology into the 601 series and 702 series satellites, originally built by Hughes Space and Communications, he says. "The [cause of] those anomalies was driven by one thing, it was lack of good systems engineering. It was great technology ...
