U.S. Air Force officials will have to abandon round-the-clock missile warning and space situational awareness operations if the proposed round of deep sequestration cuts take effect next month, according to Gen. William Shelton, Air Force Space Command chief. Shelton says that he would be forced to “reduce some missile warning and space surveillance 24/7 hour operations to 8/7 hour operations” if the cuts take effect.
FORWARDING HAGEL: On Feb. 12, the Senate Armed Services Committee voted 14-11 along party lines with Democratic support to forward the nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) to be the next defense secretary to the full Senate for a confirmation vote. But after a contentious committee discussion, including several requests to delay the vote, expect Republicans to attempt to place procedural hurdles in the way of a final vote.
LONDON — AirTanker, the private consortium that will provide the U.K.’s aerial refueling capability, will be able to charge the Royal Air Force (RAF) if RAF combat aircraft refuel from the tankers of other nations.
AIR FORCE Lockheed Martin Corp., Space System Co., Newtown, Pa., (FA8807-13-C-0002) is being awarded a $62,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for Global Positioning System III Space Vehicles 5 and 6. The location of the performance is Newtown, Pa. Work is expected to be completed by June 30, 2017. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2013. The contracting activity is SMC/GPK, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif. ARMY
If Congress continues to fund the government at fiscal 2012 levels for all of fiscal 2013, the U.S. Air Force’s plan for the block purchase of Space Based Infrared System (Sbirs) satellites is in doubt, according to an Air Force background paper.
The Indian navy’s interest in a long-endurance maritime surveillance UAV is seeing tremendous interest by vendors in Israel, Europe and the U.S., with the U.S. government clearing Northrop Grumman to conduct preliminary discussions with the Indian navy on the MQ-4C Triton. The Triton is the modified Global Hawk developed under the U.S. Navy’s Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) program. The company highlighted the platform and capability for the first time at the Aero India exposition last week.
LONDON — The U.K.’s Boeing CH-47 Chinook transport helicopter force is looking at how it will rebuild its “contingency capability” once combat operations in Afghanistan cease at the end of 2015.
BENGALURU — India has unveiled an updated design for its fifth-generation fighter concept, known as the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA). Representations of the fighter have changed often in the last few years. But the scale 1:8 model of the concept displayed at last week’s Aero India 2013 show in Bengaluru is understood to be the final airframe and platform with which the program will proceed.
Defense-based businesses with aerospace capabilities will start looking for potential merger and acquisition (M&A) opportunities for the commercial side of the business, a new report on industry M&A activity predicts. Continued growth in commercial aviation and contraction in defense budgets are expected to drive the trend, says Scott Thompson, U.S. aerospace and defense leader for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which just released its fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 M&A report for the aerospace and defense industries.
BENGALURU — Indian state-run defense company Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL) and Elop Ltd., a subsidiary of Israel’s Elbit Systems, have entered into a joint venture agreement to produce a surveillance system for naval helicopters. The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the Aero India show in the southern city of Bengaluru for combined production of the Compact Multi Purpose Advance Stabilization System (Compass).
The Senate Armed Services Committee will meet Feb. 12 at 2:30 p.m. to discuss what has become an extraordinarily controversial nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) for defense secretary. Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) intends to call for a panel vote on the nomination after the discussion.
Recent program shifts for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) could raise congressional concerns about foreign interest—or the lack of it—in the effort, according to the Congressional Research Service (CRS). The JLTV is being developed by the U.S. Army and Marine Corps as a successor to the stalwart high-mobility, multi-wheeled vehicle, or Humvee, that has been a staple for the services since 1985.
BENGALURU — BAE Systems is adamant that Boeing’s anti-ship missile, the Harpoon, can be part of the Eurofighter Typhoon’s weapons arsenal. “We are aware of that issue and the Typhoon can carry a Harpoon if a customer wants to integrate it. We have proposed, however, some novel alternatives other than the Harpoon,” Guy Griffiths, the group managing director of international business at BAE Systems, told Aviation Week Feb. 8 at Aero India.
LONDON — Helicopter MRO organization Heli-One has secured its first contract with the U.K. defense ministry — a deal to support the engines for the Royal Air Force’s Westland Puma Mk. 2 transport helicopters. The company, a subsidiary of helicopter operator CHC, signed the deal on Feb. 7 to provide logistic support for the Turbomeca Makila 1A1 engines fitted to the newly upgraded aircraft over the next 13 years. The deal is understood to be worth $80 million.
BENGALURU — Rockwell Collins is looking at expanding its sales outside the U.S. through more local partnerships in markets such as India. “Most of the U.S. aircraft that are supplied the world over are naturally equipped with our advanced avionics [equipment],” Jay Little, senior Asia Pacific director of marketing and strategy, tells Aviation week. “Besides providing to the original equipment manufacturer, we plan to sell this equipment directly to international customers.”
BENGALURU — Sikorsky has already pitched for the Indian navy’s initial requirement for 16 helicopters, but is not discussing publicly which rotorcraft it will propose for the service’s much larger follow-on program for 123 naval multi-role helicopters (NMRH).
U.S. administration officials are preparing to endorse a report that calls for revisions to the nation’s nuclear strategy and discusses the possibility of a one-third reduction to the arsenal, according to the Center for Public Integrity. The document does not call for immediate changes to the nuclear force; rather officials are seeking to negotiate further reductions to nuclear weapons with Russia. It also notes that President Barack Obama may preview the issue during his Feb. 12 State of the Union Address.
