The Latest Word On Trends And Developments In Aerospace And Defense
Danzig On DDG. What does Richard Danzig, former Navy secretary from 1998 to 2001, think of the service’s new path for the next-generation DDG-1000 destroyer? Congress recently endorsed plans for the Navy to build at least one more DDG-1000 and also gave the service money that could be used for its new plan to restart the older DDG-51 line. “I think it’s very attractive to think our way through a next generation of destroyers,” Danzig, a senior campaign adviser to Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.), said last week after a breakfast with reporters. “[My beliefs that] we need to get the requirements straight and limited [for defense programs] apply particularly strongly with regard to that next generation [of destroyers]. Fortunately, we have some very good capabilities out there in the present generation of destroyers.” He declined to say if his comments amount to a cautious endorsement of the current destroyer plans.
Tanker Tie? Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), a backer of Northrop Grumman’s bid for the Air Force tanker contract, said he’d support a dual buy for contested competition–an idea proposed by House defense authorizers but decried by supporters of tanker bidder Boeing. “I’m not against that…it may be one way to get the thing moving,” Sessions said about the dual procurement idea, which he has examined. “I think it has much to commend it. But I think we need to be sure we’re getting a competitive bid. We can’t just split the buy. The taxpayers would take a huge hit.” He noted the recent acknowledgement from the Pentagon that Boeing’s bid in the recently canceled tanker contest was 25 percent more expensive than Northrop Grumman’s.
On Target. Lockheed Martin last week announced the first delivery of its Gunship Multispectral Sensor System (GMS2) to Boeing for integration onto the AC-130U Gunship. The system is scheduled for three additional unit deliveries by the end of the year. The Air Force recently awarded Lockheed Martin an $80 million follow-on contract for 12 production units and related support, according to a company press statement. GMS2 consists of a large-aperture, a midwave infrared sensor, two image-intensified television cameras, a near-infrared laser pointer, and a laser designator/rangefinder.
Preparing for Takeoff. The Lockheed Martin Lightening II F-35B short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) variant has begun undergoing modifications that will lead to STOVL- mode flights early next year, the company announced last week. The F-35B has undergone handling-qualities tests and engine-power transitions, extended its retractable fuel probe, and opened and closed the doors associated with its STOVL propulsion system. The tests validated computer modeling and simulation predictions and moved the aircraft a step closer to vertical flight early next year, according to a Lockheed Martin press statement. The F-35B now begins a 12-week modification period for system evaluations, calibrations and software and hardware updates–including installation of the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine. The test plan calls for transition to vertical flight operations early next year.
New Intel IT Policy. A new policy from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) changes how the intelligence community and the entire federal government will build, validate and approve information technology systems, according to the agency. The policy requires common security controls and risk-management procedures–a unified approach to enhance collaboration. Intelligence Community Directive 503 covers a lot of ground, but two key details stand out: There will be a single certification and accreditation process, which means all systems must follow the same authorized security requirements. Systems managers, the policy adds, should accept security risks when necessary to yield a decision advantage from timely and accurate intelligence, ODNI adds. Those measures will make it easier for the intelligenct community to adopt cutting-edge technology. They also foster reciprocity as well as information sharing. If one intelligence community element certifies a system or major application, then others in the community can trust that it is secure without spending more time and money to duplicate tests. Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell signed the directive Sept. 15.
Navy Gets New Sub Rescue Vehicle. The Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System’s (SRDRS) Rescue Capable System (RCS) replaced the Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle Mystic (DSRV-1) as the Navy’s deep-submergence submarine rescue asset Sept. 30. Mystic and the DSRV program began deactivation Oct. 1, the Navy says. SRDRS is a rapidly deployable rescue asset that can be delivered by air or ground, installed on pre-screened military or commercial vessels of opportunity via a Ship Interface Template, and mated to a distressed submarine within a 72 hour Time to First Rescue period, the Navy adds.
Lasing Away. NAVSEA’s Directed Energy and Electric Weapon Systems program office successfully completed a series of atmospheric propagation tests using existing low power laser systems at the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii in August, the Navy says. Over four weeks, Navy scientists executed more than 500 shots using a low power laser system to test how lasers behave in the maritime environment. During the testing, Navy experts beamed a laser more than several nautical miles across the ocean from PMRF to various targets on land, in the water and in the air, the Navy adds. “I am very pleased with the tremendous success of this testing,” says Capt. David Kiel, program manager of NAVSEA’s Directed Energy and Electric Weapon Systems Program Office. “The data gathered during this testing period will be used to build an aggressive test plan to determine all safety, environmental, and operational requirements for testing lasers at Navy maritime ranges.”
Tracking Readiness. On Oct. 1, the Navy’s surface fleet transitioned to the new Defense Readiness Reporting System-Navy (DRRS-N), a web-based management system providing Navy and Joint Commanders continuous access to unit and group level capability-based readiness assessments, the the service said. DRRS-N is a major shift in readiness thinking and reporting, moving the focus from reporting unit resources and training to assessing and managing force capabilities. Using a suite of applications, the program provides leaders and force managers a much more robust package of tools and information to aid in crafting rapid responses to emerging crises while also providing greater ability to assess operational risks. “DRRS-N will enhance operational decision making processes by providing accurate, near real-time information about combat readiness to our operational commanders,” says Rear Adm. Rich O’Hanlon, Deputy Chief of Staff for U.S. Fleet Forces Operational Readiness and Training.
Just In Time For The Holidays. iRobot rolled out two small prototype robotic systems last week at the Modern Day Marine expo: the 310 with a manipulating arm turret and the 320 with an enhanced optical suite. An iRobot representative tells Defense Daily the company cut the battery weight in half on the 310, and it can be removed from the platform with no tools. To access the system’s electronics, an operator would just have to flip the robot over, take off the composite plate and remove eight screws. In fact, both models can be quickly taken apart and put back together. “It can be broken down and assembled on site,” the iRobot rep says. Both the 310 and the 320 prototypes on display last week at Quantico were operated using a Xbox controller. The company rep adds that the 320 model has gone through a series of user tests.
The Q. BAE Systems will complete its first production article for Q-sight in November and will be ready to begin taking production orders for delivery in spring ’09, a company spokeswoman tells Defense Daily. Q-sight is a helmet-mounted display for helicopter pilots. It is also being considered for V-22 gunners, using the company’s Remote Guardian System, Dan Riffee, business development for BAE, tells Defense Daily. The Q-sight displays critical flight information and gives pilots a “head up and eyes out” capability, he adds. BAE is doing active flight testing with Bell Helicopter and DoD.
…Safe Landing. BAE and AgustaWestland last year filed a patent application for the Low Visibility Landing (LVL) technology. The technology designates a helicopter landing zone simply by having the pilot look at a point on the ground and pressing a button. It allows the pilot to continue to fly the helicopter in the reduced visibility situations in the effects of the helicopter’s rotorwash, says the BAE spokeswoman. The LVL technology creates a 3-D image in the pilot’s helmet-mounted display. The technology can also be used with a radar that scans the area and the collected data is compared with a digital record of the landing area from a database. A synthetic view of the landing zone then appears in the pilot’s helmet-mounted display, showing any new obstacles, she adds.