The French Interim Tactical UAV System (SDTI), which is to be used by French land forces beginning in mid-2004, completed its acceptance flight test campaign, UAV maker Sagem said Jan. 12. The system performed validation flights in an airspace shared with civil and military users of the Istres test center in the south of France, the first time this has been done in France, the company said. During the flights, the UAVs delivered high-resolution images, including ones of the flooded Rhone delta.
Honeywell's aerospace business has acquired the United Kingdom's Hymatic Group, which builds environmental control systems for the aerospace industry, the company said Jan. 12. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. "The acquisition of the Hymatic Group is an excellent technology fit with our existing environmental control systems product line," Russ Turner, president of Honeywell Engines, Systems & Services, said in a statement. "This acquisition expands our presence in Europe and brings our business closer to our customers in the region."
HORNET WORK: Herley Industries of Lancaster, Penn., will build microwave hardware for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet 's Automatic Carrier Landing System, the company said Jan. 12. Herley is teaming with Sierra Nevada Corp. on this system under a $2.4 million U.S. Navy contract.
U.S. Army officers this month will brief Acting Army Secretary R.L. Brownlee on a plan to outfit the service's helicopters in Afghanistan and Iraq with the most effective missile protection devices, an Army spokesman said Jan. 12. Brownlee "has received an initial back-brief at this point and he has said, 'Okay fine, go back and finish and then come back and brief me again,' and they're in the process of doing that right now," said Maj. Gary Tallman.
NEW DELHI - Indian scientists will use a new Israeli space telescope to prepare themselves to receive and analyze data from India's own astronomical satellite, Astrosat. India plans to launch the Tauvex telescope for Tel Aviv University on the GSAT-4 spacecraft, scheduled for launch in 2005 (DAILY, Sept. 16).
A key Senate panel announced Jan. 12 that it will hold a hearing in early February to examine the future of manned and unmanned missions to Mars, an issue that has grown significantly in prominence in recent days. The hearing by the Senate Commerce Committee's space panel is expected to take place Feb. 2 or Feb. 3, a congressional source said.
The Aegis weapon system is on track to help defend against ballistic missiles by the end of 2004, according to a representative of prime contractor Lockheed Martin.
The National Composite Center (NCC) of Ohio and its partner Mutual Tool and Die Inc. have created Vector Composites Inc. to market composite components to the military and to the defense and commercial aerospace industries. Vector will offer the NCC's Rapid Fiber Preform process, which can create complex shapes at reduced costs, according to NCC. The company will pitch its composite products for unmanned aerial vehicles, commercial aircraft and other systems, the center said.
After falling in 2002, worldwide civil helicopter sales have rebounded in 2003 and are expected to total $18.7 billion over the period from 2003 to 2012, according to a new study by Forecast International. Deliveries over the next decade should rise from 934 units in 2003 to a 10-year high of 970-975 in 2004-2005, before falling off steadily to approximately 925 annual shipments in 2012, according to the forecast. The study projects total shipments of nearly 9,500 commercial helicopters from 2003-2012, including 3,600 piston-powered models.
The first Remote Minehunting Vehicle (RMV), part of the AN/WLD-1 Remote Minehunting System (RMS), will be delivered to the Navy this July on the destroyer Momsen (DDG-92), Lockheed Martin business development analyst Dan Sullivan said Jan. 12. The rest of the RMS already is on the ship, he said at a media briefing in advance of the Surface Navy Association's Jan. 13-16 symposium.
NUKE PUSH: An Energy Department official is signaling he intends to exploit a new law repealing a ban on research and development of new, low-yield nuclear weapons. In a Dec.
Correction: A story in the Jan. 6 issue of THE DAILY incorrectly reported some details concerning the Navy's Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Last July, the teams headed by General Dynamics' Bath Ironworks, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon were awarded $9-10 million each for preliminary design contracts for the first ship of the class. The Navy will buy one LCS in fiscal 2005, two in fiscal 2006, three in 2008 and four in 2009. In May, the Navy will award a final design and option for construction contract to one or two of the industry groups.
Goodrich Corp. and Raytheon Company signed a teaming agreement to work together on the Navy's Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), Goodrich announced Jan. 9. Goodrich will be the lead manufacturer of composite structures and components for Raytheon's "Team LCS."
Jan. 20 - 22 -- Network Centric Warfare 2004, "Meeting the Challenges of Warfare in the Information Age," Sheraton National Hotel, Arlington, Va. Call (800) 882-8684, fax (973) 256-0205, email [email protected] or go to www.ncw2004.com. Jan. 21 -- PSA Winter Roundtable, "Global Military Strategy in Support of Precision Strike," Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, Va. Contact Dawn Campbell, (703) 247-2590, email [email protected] or go to www.precisionstrike.org.
HILL SHUFFLE: Democrats on the House Science Committee are getting new leaders for the new year. Texas Rep. Ralph Hall, who has been the committee's ranking Democrat, recently announced he will become a Republican. Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.) will replace Hall as the committee's top Democrat. Rep. Nick Lampson (D-Texas) will succeed Gordon as ranking Democrat on the space and aeronautics subcommittee. It is expected that Reps.
IN-HOUSE: A main reason mid-tier defense subcontractors are merging is to bring key technologies in-house, for cost savings, says Jon Kutler, president of Quarterdeck Investment Partners. "Prime contractors want to deal with fewer suppliers, and ones that have more value added to them, that provide a range of capabilities. This requires consolidation," Kutler said. A recent example is FLIR Systems' recent acquisition of Indigo Systems (DAILY, Jan. 8).
SITUATIONAL AWARENESS: Sikorsky Aircraft's top priority for product improvement in coming years will be developing systems that help prevent pilots from losing situational awareness, which has long since overtaken mechanical failures as the number one cause of helicopter accidents, according to company president Steve Finger. "Our biggest focus has to be on the biggest cause of safety issues, which is controlled flight into terrain and loss of situational awareness," he says.
MOSCOW - Russia will lease the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan through 2050 for $115 million a year, according to an agreement signed during Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Kazakhstan Jan. 9. Russian media reports say the agreement is a compromise between initial proposals from both countries for the lease. Documents released Jan. 9, which is the tenth anniversary of Russia's Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, include green lights for a number of joint programs between Khrunichev and Kazakhstan.
