The Latest Word On Trends And Developments In aerospace And Defense
Deficit Debate. Four senators want a forthcoming presidential debate to address proposals to reduce the national deficit. Sens. Joe Lieberman (I/D-Conn.), Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) send a letter to the Commission on Presidential Debates requesting the first officially sponsored debate between President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney address the recommendations of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. The commission, which met last year, was led by Erskine Bowles, chief of staff to former President Bill Clinton, and Alan Simpson, a former Wyoming Republican senator. “As part of this discussion, we believe that it would be essential to engage the candidates in a detailed discussion of their priorities for tax and entitlement reform,” the senators write to the debate commission July 31. “We hope that such a debate would begin a national discussion that results in a consensus that both of our major national parties can endorse to reduce the deficit and place our nation’s economy on a path to future growth.”
Sequester Rally. Pratt & Whitney and Sikorsky are planning a rally on Wednesday to highlight the threat they see posed by potential across-the-board Pentagon budget cuts that could kick in next year through the so-called sequestration process. Employees will gather at the companies’ West Palm Beach facility to “raise awareness of the critical contribution of the aerospace and defense industry make to the U.S. economy and to our national security as well as the threats caused by sequestration on the federal budget,” they say in a press release. They warn that the sequestration cuts, which lawmakers are trying to stop, would “delay the Next Generation Air Transportation System, threaten vital national security-related defense programs such as the F-35 and stall U.S. efforts to develop space programs in the wake of the shuttle program’s retirement.” The Aerospace Industries Association is helping to plan the event.
…Road Show. Wednesday’s event follows similar sequestration-related rallies held recently, including a July 30 event in Crystal City, Va., with defense contractors Northrop Grumman, Science Applications International Corp., and Salient Federal Solutions. Speaking at that Northern Virginia Stop Sequestration Rally, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) called for lawmakers to “come together, give up our respective orthodoxies and get something done for the American people.” Graham and Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) also held anti-sequestration events last week in states key to both the defense industry and the presidential race–Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, and New Hampshire.
US-Japan and F-35. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta touts the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter during a meeting press briefing with his Japanese counterpart, Satoshi Morimoto, saying Tokyo’s decision to purchase the Lockheed Martin-built aircraft is key to expanding ties between the two countries. “It will enhance the ability of our forces to operate together and it will ensure our dominance of the skies for decades to come,” Panetta says. Japan announced the selection of the F-35 in December over Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet and Eurofighter’s Typhoon as its next generation fighter jet. Japan plans to purchase 42 F-35s with delivery beginning on 2016. Japan, however, has warned it could scrap the plan if Lockheed Martin and the Pentagon cannot rein in its burgeoning cost.
Japanese Joyride. Morimoto, after meeting with Panetta Friday, was to fly in a V-22, a good publicity move for the Pentagon, which is trying to convince the Japanese public that the aircraft are safe. The U.S. Marine Corps deployed about a dozen V-22s to Okinawa last month, but under the condition they refrain from operations until investigations are complete into to recent accidents in Florida and Morocco. Panetta says that should be done within a month. The mishaps heightened concerns on the part of the Japanese government and Okinawa residents about the safety of the tilt-rotor aircraft.
Labor Contract. The Transportation Security Administration and the union representing its workforce of 44,000 screening officers have agreed to their first labor contract, which the American Federation of Government Employees says gives the workers more schedule flexibility and a more “family-friendly workplace.” The federal employees union says that “contrary to some of the misinformation circulating about TSA, an agreement will not adversely affect security; security related matters were strictly excluded from negotiations,” says Kim Kranak-Lambert, president of AFGE TSA Council 100.
What Next on Cyber? In the wake of the defeat in the Senate last week of a comprehensive cyber security bill, the outlook for further action on the measure this year is grim given how far supporters and opponents seem to remain apart, congressional and industry officials believe. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I/D-Conn.), one of the chief architect’s of the Cyber Security Act, says he and the bill’s other sponsors have already compromised and that now it’s time for the Republicans in opposition to spell out clearly the changes they would like in the bill.
DHS Review. The House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Management last week passed by voice vote the DHS Accountability Act (H.R. 5913), which calls for the creation of an independent advisory panel to conduct a top-to-bottom review of the management structure and capabilities of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The assessment, which will be done by an eight-member panel, will be due two years from the inception of the panel. “These issues of corruption, waste, duplication, and abuse of power are all symptomatic of deeply rooted flaws in the department’s management,” says Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the subcommittee. The bill has bipartisan support on the subcommittee.
…DHS Shortcomings. At the same time McCaul’s subcommittee was calling for a report on DHS accountability, his staff issued its own report on what it says are persistent shortcomings at the department in acquisition and contracting processes. The report doesn’t make any new revelations regarding the by now well known deficiencies in DHS’ acquisition oversight and relies on hearing testimony in 2011 as well as old reports by the Government Accountability Office and the DHS Inspector General for its evidence. Some of the report’s recommendations include having DHS reinstitute the Joint Requirements Council, which the department disbanded in 2006, to advise the Acquisition Review Board, recommend investments and harmonize investment strategies across DHS.
…Of Course, a Mention of TSA. The report also says that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) needs to improve its processes for establishing technology requirements and develop a strategic approach to multi-year planning efforts. The report says this last recommendation would enable industry to better plan its investments and boost their willingness to “expend their own capital in order to advance the state of technology if they understood there would be a definitive market in which to compete.”
Luke AFB F-35. The Air Force selects Luke AFB, Ariz., as the location of the F-35A pilot training center, the service says last week in a statement. The base will receive 72 aircraft for a total of three fighter squadrons. “Our selection for F-35 training ensures the long-term viability of our mission of training the world’s greatest fighter pilots, which we’ve been doing at Luke for seven decades,” 56th Fighter Wing commander Air Force Brig. Gen. JD Harris said in a statement. Aircraft will begin to arrive at Luke AFB between late 2013 and mid-2014, according to the Air Force. Lockheed Martin develops the F-35 and the A variant is the Air Force’s conventional takeoff and landing variant.
Boeing 702MP. Boeing completes shipment of the second of four 702MP satellites for customer Intelsat S.A., the company said Aug. 1 in a statement. The Intelsat 21 satellite will be carried into orbit by a Sea Launch AG Zenit 3SL rocket. Sea Launch says the launch is scheduled for mid-August. Intelsat 21 will replace Intelsat 9 and will provide high-capacity video service to media customers in Latin America and the Caribbean.
More MAFFS. The U.S. Forest Service receives two more Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems (MAFFS)-equipped C-130s to assist with fires in the Rocky Mountain region, Army officials say. The two aircraft, from the 302nd Airlift Wing, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Peterson AFB, Colo., will supplement the two C-130s from the California Air National Guard’s 146th Airlift Wing, currently operating from Boise Air Terminal, Idaho. 153rd Air Expeditionary Group commander Air Force Col. Jerry Champlin says in a statement he expects a high potential for lightning as a low pressure system begins moving through the area. MAFFS is a joint Defense Department and Forest Service program designed to provide additional aerial firefighting resources when commercial and private air tankers are no longer able to meet the needs of the Forest Service.
Changes. Tomorrow, the Army’s first female four-star, Gen. Ann Dunwoody, transfers command of Army Materiel Command (AMC) to Gen. Dennis Via at AMC Headquarters in Huntsville, Ala. Dunwoody retires Aug. 15 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. Via has served as the AMC Deputy Commanding General since May 2011.
…Time Hack. On Aug. 1, AMC celebrated 50 years as the key player in support of the DoD global supply chain. AMC has a presence in all 50 states and 144 countries and is the single largest employer of civilians in DoD, the command says in a fact sheet. The command says: “If a soldier shoots it, drives it, flies it, wears it, communicates with it or eats it, AMC provides it.”
The Billionaire And The Bell. U.S. philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has offered to lead an expedition to recover the bell of the U.K. battle cruiser, HMS Hood, sunk in 1941 by the German battleship Bismarck. Allen’s operation would include his private yacht Octopus, an ROV and be supported by Blue Water Recoveries Ltd, which specializes in the search and investigation of shipwrecks. The Hood sank with the loss of 1,415 men. Only three survived. If recovered, the bell would be displayed as part of a new exhibition hall at the Royal Navy Museum in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard slated to open in 2014. Portsmouth was Hood’s homeport. The sinking of the ship nicknamed “Mighty Hood” caused Winston Churchill to order the Navy to: “Sink the Bismarck.” The wreck, officially a war grave, was discovered in 2001.
Military Historian Dies. Sir John Keegan, military historian and columnist for the U.K. Telegraph newspaper, has died at 78. From his first major book, The Face of Battle, in 1976, to 2009’s The American Civil War, Keegan influenced military thinkers and interested readers with his clear and accessible writing. The Telegraph praised his ability to “touch souls and stir consciences.” Keegan was well known in the United States, among other things becoming a visiting fellow at Princeton and invited to brief then-president Bill Clinton at the White House during the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Normandy campaign of World War II.
New Offices. Cobham officially launches into the Brazilian market, opening a new subsidiary in São Paulo. Cobham do Brasil Ltda will provide a basis for Cobham Tactical Communications and Surveillance to develop relationships and a foundation for active engagement with customers and partners in the public and private sectors. The new office allows Cobham develop its relationships and partnerships with the nation’s Tier 1 and Tier 2 distributors and customers. This supports the Brazilian defense strategy for indigenization of key technologies in the security and defense market, the company says. Cobham’s core communications technology can provide market leading capabilities for both tactical and strategic security infrastructures.