The Latest Word On Trends And Developments In Aerospace And Defense
DDG Doings. House Armed Service Seapower subcommittee Chairman Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) is looking for more information on a potential Navy guided-missile destroyer referred to as the Future Surface Combatant (FSC) in a pre-decisional memo from the Pentagon acquisition chief. “We sent a letter to appropriate people in the Pentagon telling them we were disappointed that they would be discussing something and not coming to the folks who have to fund it, and the folks who have to explain it to the American citizens why we need it,” Taylor tells Defense Daily, adding he read about the proposed new ship in the press. There has been some Capitol Hill speculation that the new FSC would be the DDG-1000 destroyer with a different name.
…Making A List. Taylor reiterates to Defense Daily his support for buying more DDG-51 destroyers, saying his position is bolstered by a newly increased cost estimate for the DDG-1000s, which he wants the Navy to stop building. He says the DDG-1000 “is just an unaffordable platform…given that we’re going to continue to have about $14 billion a year…to deliver anywhere from 10 to 12 ships a year if we’re every going to get to a 313-ship Navy.” He spells out his views on the two destroyers (and other service vessels) in a press release on the “Future of U.S. Naval Shipbuilding” issued last Thursday. The new group ZumwaltFacts.info promptly distributed a “fact check memorandum” that takes exception with Taylor’s press release and touts the DDG-1000.
MRAP Lightening. The nascent Mine Resistant Ambush Protected All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) looks to be technologically possible, Brig. Gen. Michael Brogan tells House defense authorizers last Wednesday. Marine Corps and Army officials are sorting through industry proposals for the vehicle intended to have MRAP-like survivability with Humvee- like mobility, with a tighter turning radius, says Brogan, the program executive officer for the MRAP Joint Program Office. “We believe we have the technology today for MRAP ATVs,” he says. “It may be lighter, but it’s still 24,000 pounds, which is 10,000 pounds more than an up-armored Humvee. So it’s still a fairly significant, substantial platform.”
Slight Slip. The Navy has adjusted its development schedule for the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) unmanned aerial system (UAS) following delays resulting from an industry protest of the contract last year. The first aircraft will begin testing in fiscal 2012, Capt. Bob Dishman, Navy program manager for maritime UAS, says. The service’s original plan had flight testing slated for 2011. Low-rate production will now begin in FY-13, with initial operational capability in early FY-16–a slight slip from initial expectations of a 2015 IOC. Northrop Grumman won the $1.6 billion development contract in April with a Global Hawk-based offering. Lockheed Martin and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems had proposed a maritime version of the Predator UAS. The team protested the award to Northrop Grumman, but the protest was dismissed. The full fleet of 68 platforms are expected to be fielded by FY-19, Dishman said. A system requirements review conducted last month cleared the way to begin development, he added.
Drone Wish Lists. The Marine Corps is drafting a capabilities list for two potential unmanned aerial systems (UAS) programs, Maj. Thomas Heffern, an official with the service’s UAS Capabilities Office, says. The first, the “Group 4 UAS,” could be assigned electronic warfare, electronic surveillance and electronic attack missions and would be a follow-on to the EA-6B, Heffern says. Service officials currently envision 14-30 hours of operating time in a radius of 350-450 nautical miles and the capability to haul at least 1,500 pounds of payload. This system could be weaponized, Heffern added, and low noise at operating altitude is a priority. Vertical takeoff and landing could also be a requirement, he said. The Marines are also exploring a possible unmanned cargo lifter built to transport 1,000-6,000 pounds, travel up to 250 knots with a range of 300 nautical miles. Heffern said a tiltrotor may be the only acceptable option for the platform.
Future of F-35. Asked how he sees the Obama administration’s level of enthusiasm for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, Air Force Maj. Gen. C.R. Davis, the F-35 program manager, says that the outgoing administration left behind a “very strong case” for the program. “The F-35 has had probably the strongest support it’s seen in its history with the [Bush] administration,” Davis says during a teleconference with reporters. “They left a very strong case for the next administration to continue. Obviously, this administration is working its own priorities.” Fourteen aircraft are already in production, with another 17 slated to begin production with money that has been appropriated to date, Davis noted. Two of those aircraft have been purchased by the United Kingdom and one by the Netherlands, Davis says. “So the new administration is looking at funding levels from 2010 out.” The Air Force last week officially decided to beddown 59 F-35s at Eglin AFB, Fla. The decision allows for construction of facilities for a training site. The 59 aircraft provide an initial capability of one squadron each for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. The first aircraft is scheduled to arrive in March 2010 and the aircraft would continue arriving through 2014.
On Hold. The Army is suspending a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) requirement for the Warrior unmanned aerial system (UAS) to speed the platform’s deployment to theater, where intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets are in high demand. The SAR requirement “will be deferred until a follow-on test event,” Army UAS Deputy Project Manager Tim Owings says. Chief Pentagon arms buyer John Young last month received an Army briefing on the new acquisition strategy. Young signed off on the plan to get the drones to theater faster, Owings says. Army officials “will not delay any procurement or delay the Warrior program to wait for [SAR]”, Owings says. The capability is “too important to the fight for us to delay and wait for payload development,” he adds. According to Owings, the SAR chosen by the service–General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ Lynx II radar–did not pass the full operational test for “certain critical components.” A revised competition led to selection of Northrop Grumman’s STARlite SAR instead. SARs provide long-range, wide-area surveillance capability that can penetrate clouds and deliver high-resolution imagery from longer ranges than electro-optical/infrared sensors.
Taking Control. As the Coast Guard assumes the role of LSI for its Deepwater program, it might appear that implementing open architecture into the various ship, air and shore-based systems might be quite challenging. Capt. Joe Vojvodich, C4ISR acquisition program manager, tells Defense Daily. ” What I would say is, it’s challenging, but I would see it as more opportunity. Under the old construct, we didn’t have the same opportunities to leverage…to improve, to update, to enhance, to ensure interoperability.
…Opportunity. “Now we have more opportunity for the commonality and interoperability and reuse. Putting that oversight and control back into the government is actually exciting,” Vojvodich adds. “It may be challenging, but with it comes a great deal of opportunity.”
Just The Facts. A memo from a new group calling itself ZumwaltFacts.Info is making the rounds of defense writers challenging Rep. Gene Taylor’s (D-Miss.) facts on DDG-1000. The memo states, “10 DDG-1000 destroyers would cost $4.5 billion less to operate and support than 10 DDG-51s.” Additionally, the memo points out that DDG-1000 will require half the crew of a DDG-51, thus “creating huge savings.” A link on the group’s website leads to comments from Navy and industry officials, a backgrounder on the DDG-1000 program, as well as links to other articles on DDG-1000. The site also offers membership and unpaid internship opportunities with ZumwaltFacts.Info, but no further information on who is behind the site.
Lightening The Load. ONR and MCCDC recently showcased concepts that will provide lighter load solutions for Marines. “Everything has to be lighter and we need to put the Marine Air Ground Task Force on a diet,” says Lt. Gen. George Flynn, Commanding General of the Quantico-based MCCDC. ONR’s Advanced Weapons Material technology has already reduced the weight of the Marine Corps’ 60mm and 81mm mortar systems by 30 percent while achieving an 80 percent reduction in fabrication costs and a 10 percent reduction in life cycle costs, ONR says. The annual joint meeting provides ONR and Marine Corps leaders with a dedicated forum for reviewing current programs and the opportunity to identify emerging S&T needs.
ITT Funds For NSWC. ITT will invest more than $10 million in connection with a 15,000-square-foot regional electronics repair and evaluation hub at the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) in Indiana, the company reports. ITT will begin hiring engineers, technical support staff and managers in April to staff its new southern Indiana facility. Once operational later this year, the facility will provide services related to the evaluation and component repair of electronic warfare equipment for the DoD, ITT says. The company’s investment at Crane NSWC marks the second major operation for ITT in the Hoosier state. The company’s Communications Systems headquarters in Fort Wayne employs 2,300.
Flying Off Into The Sunset. The Navy last month retired the last Lockheed Martin S-3 Viking from fleet service out the aircraft’s 35-year career. Development of the S-3 began in August 1969, and first flight occurred on Jan. 21, 1972. Sea Control Squadron 41 (VS-41), the S-3 training unit known as the Shamrocks and the first operational S-3 unit, received its first aircraft in February 1974. A total of 187 S-3s were built (eight test and 179 operational aircraft) between 1971 and 1978. Over its career, the Viking served with 18 Navy squadrons and accumulated approximately 1.7 million flight hours, the company says.
…So Many Missions. Several variants of the S-3 carried out a range of missions for the Navy. Seven aircraft were modified to US-3A Carrier Onboard Delivery aircraft. The ES-3A Shadow was designed for fleet electronic surveillance, replacing the EA-3B. Sixteen aircraft were modified to ES-3A configuration, and the first mission capable Shadow flew in May 1991, says Lockheed Martin. Development of a KS-3A tanker variant began in 1979. Although the KS-3A was never produced, it did prove the concept of “buddy tanking” (aerial refueling using a wing-mounted pod), which most S-3s later performed. At the height of combat operations during OIF, S-3 crews transferred nearly eight million pounds of fuel to coalition aircraft. The significantly improved S-3B was developed in the early 1980s to better detect quiet Soviet submarines, identify targets and carry standoff weapons, the company adds.
Put Down That Knife. Calling a $200-plus million cut to production procurement for the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye a “high risk” move that will put U.S. jobs and global security at risk, Northrop Grumman and its 280-member supplier team is calling on congressional leaders to restore the funding, the company reports. The reduction in funding jeopardizes the building of production aircraft initially planned in FY ’09 and FY ’10, the company says. Northrop Grumman just completed Operational Assessment with its two E-2D Advanced Hawkeye SD&D aircraft and the company is on schedule with the three pilot production aircraft.
…Potential Damage. “We have major concerns about the jobs impact and here’s why. Northrop Grumman and its 280 suppliers will make their final E-2C Hawkeye deliveries this year, as well as transfer our two SD&D aircraft to Patuxent River Naval Air Station. During this critical transition to LRIP, a reduction in the number of aircraft the Navy had planned to produce has dramatic consequences. This will increase the unit cost to the Navy by approximately 20 percent. It will mean a loss of 350 jobs across our supplier base in 38 U.S. states beginning in the first quarter of 2009. This loss will erode the highly skilled workforce, particularly in the state of Florida, that has been dedicated to this program for decades,” says Program Manager Jim Culmo, vice president of Airborne Early Warning and Battle Management Command and Control Programs. “Getting these critical skills back once they are gone is going to be extremely challenging.”
No More Oversight. The Navy’s Top Management Attention (TMA) team for surface ships and aircraft carriers announces that 11 items no longer require TMA oversight, the Navy says. The 11 successfully resolved initiatives have progressed past the 75 percent solution implementation stage and are sufficiently funded for completion. These topics will be monitored by the team until they are completed and implemented fleet wide. The TMA team is comprised of military and civilian professionals from NAVSEA and across the Navy specializing in operations, maintenance, training and analysis. It tackles the Navy’s most chronic and difficult engineering challenges for surface ships and aircraft carriers, the Navy adds.
First Fellow. Retired Army Lt. Gen. James Dubik joins the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) as its first Senior Fellow. “General Dubik will be an excellent asset to ISW,” ISW President Kimberly Kagan says. “His expertise on Iraq’s Security Forces will contribute to ISW’s robust research program on the conflict, especially as the United States and Iraq implement their new security agreement in 2009. In his role as a Senior Fellow, Dubik will conduct research, write, and brief. His focus areas include Multi National Security Transition Command-Iraq and the Iraqi Security Forces, ways to improve U.S. and allied training of indigenous security, and counterinsurgency doctrine. In June 2007, Dubik took command of MNSTC-I. He retired in September 2008.
Paper Call. The MILCOM 2009 technical committee asks authors from industry, academia and the military and government to electronically submit abstracts of their technical papers by Feb. 15. Themed around “The Challenge of Convergence,” MILCOM 2009 will be the premier forum to generate breakthrough solutions for next-generation military and government communications. Tracks for unclassified or classified papers include: communications and networking techniques and technologies, securing, managing and using networks, systems perspectives, futures: next-steps and looking ahead. MILCOM 2009 is co-hosted by General Dynamics C4 Systems and MITRE. For more information: http://www.milcom.org.
Annual Exercise. The two-week Exercise Cobra Gold is underway through Feb. 17 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The U.S. Army, Pacific (USARPAC), with support from U.S. Pacific Command, U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet, U.S. Marine Forces Pacific, U.S. Air Force Pacific, the Royal Thai Army, Navy, and Marines as well as contingencies from the militaries of Singapore, Indonesia, and Japan. This is the 28th annual U.S./Thai exercise promoting regional stability and security. The exercise is designed to promote regional peace and security, and will consist of tactical exercises as well as humanitarian and civic assistance projects. This dynamic exercise will take place simultaneously throughout Thailand.
New Rating. General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada has achieved a Maturity Level 3 rating on the Software Engineering Institute’s (SEI) Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) scale for its Engineering, Design and Development (ED&D) organization. CMMI Level 3 focuses on the existence and use of a standard engineering management process and the integration of activities across the entire engineering organization.”CMMI Level 3 is a significant achievement for our organization,” says Sridhar Sridharan, senior vice president of General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada. “It demonstrates our commitment to providing the highest quality engineering work in the products we build for our customers.” The CMMI standard provides a maturity framework for improving processes that organizations use to develop and deliver products for customers.