The Latest Word On Trends And Developments In Aerospace And Defense
Nine For Fighting. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) last Friday filed for cloture to end gridlock on debating the defense authorization bill, which was held up last week over largely partisan scuffles regarding which amendments to consider. The Senate will vote Tuesday on cloture, and if the required 60 votes are cast, the bill’s managers hope to swiftly move to a final vote. Reid said all 51 Democrats will vote “yes” on the cloture vote, so it won’t pass without the support of nine Republicans. Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) said if the Senate does not pass the defense bill early this week, then the measure will not make it through conference committee, and then have its conference report voted on by both chambers, before Congress adjourns later this month. SASC No. 2 Republican Sen. John Warner (Va.) said there is “momentum on both sides to move to a conclusion.”
…On Your Earmarks. The SASC staff expected to reach agreements on 50 to 60 amendments by the end of this past weekend, Warner and Levin said last Friday. The goal, Levin said, is for the Senate to vote today on a unanimous-consent agreement dictating which amendments would be allowed for floor debate tomorrow morning and afternoon. Warner and Levin late last week worked with Sens. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) to figure out how to address a presidential executive order stating U.S. agencies must ignore earmarks included in bill report language but not in actual legislation. Many non-earmark-averse lawmakers oppose the order, and language in the Senate bill states earmarks in the defense bill’s report should be considered part of the bill. DeMint and Coburn–earmark critics–tried to remove that language that attempts to work around the executive order. The White House threatened to veto the bill over that same executive-order-avoiding language.
…Veto Tango. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued that veto threat Sept. 9 in a seven-page Statement of Administration Policy, which cites a litany of additional objections to the defense authorization bill the Senate is considering. They include the Senate’s attempts to add $430 million to the administration’s request to continue a second-engine program for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, add $96.9 million for the Air Force to expand the B-52’s flying hours, subtract $412 million for missile defense initiatives, delete the $61.2 million requested for the High Integrity Global Position System, and zero out the $23.3 million sought for the Reliable Replacement Warhead effort.
Alternate Flight Path. The Air Force’s Global Hawk UAV can provide an interim missile defense tracking capability until the Space Tracking Surveillance System (STSS) comes online in 2019, according to a Northrop Grumman study released last week. The company’s analysis center found that the aircraft would require some modification to perform the mission: elements of the Integrated Sensor Suite would have be removed to make room for a unique IR sensor capable of tracking a missile warhead. This sensor would track the ascending warhead post-boost phase, providing critical data on its path. For short-range missiles, the Global Hawk would have to be within 600 miles of the launch site; for medium-range or longer, the aircraft must be within 1,200 miles of the launch site. Using a scenario for Iran, the center found that seven to eight aircraft would be required to cover the area.
Automated AWACS. Boeing announced last week that it has completed mission system flight testing for Block 40/45 upgrades of the E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) fleet. Between April 2007 and July 2008, test aircraft were used to complete the System Design and Development program. The aircraft’s legacy mainframe computer has been replaced with an open system architecture. Improved computing power helps automate what is currently a manually intensive workload for AWACS operators. The Air Force is expected to make a decision on the next step–a Block 40/45 production contract–by the end of this year.
Bomber Pitch. A research paper published last week by Northrop Grumman’s analysis center advocates development of a next generation long-range strike system (NGLRS) by 2018. “The Quadrennial Defense Review concluded in 2006 that the Air Force should accelerate development and fielding of the NGLRS,” said Michael Isherwood, a senior analyst at the center. “Our paper identifies the many benefits that will accrue…if the Air Force pursues this strategy.” Northrop Grumman is currently the prime contractor for the B-2 stealth bomber, scheduled to remain in service until at least 2058; the company is also poised to compete for a next generation bomber contract. “NGLRS will be the first bomber since World War II designed primarily for conventional operations,” Isherwood explained. The 2018 bomber would also have the size and electrical capacity to provide options for non-kinetic and cyber operations, he said.
Electoral Prediction. JSA Research Aerospace and Defense analyst Paul Nisbet predicts a Republican victory in November’s presidential election, with the possibility that the Grand Old Party also makes gains in the congressional elections. So? “Contrary to some Wall Street musings, the political composition of Washington does matter for future defense spending,” Nisbet says in a recent note to clients. “Avowedly pacifist and civil liberties-oriented politicians vote to reduce funding, not increase it, regardless of the international environment. Combined with increasingly outrageous Russian conduct and awareness of China’s equally portentous military buildup, a Republican victory in six weeks would likely mean increased military appropriations for hardware and services that extends growth in sector fundamentals through 2013-14.”
…The China and Russia Factors. Nisbet believes both China and Russia will continue to challenge the interests of the United States’ allies, which will keep “geopolitics and defense stocks on the front burner.” He says if Russia continues on its present path, U.S. defense spending will increase nominally over the next five years to $750 billion, with spending aimed at “next generation ships, aircraft, space and technology productivity implements.”
Working The Budget. The Army FY ’10 -’15 program objective memorandum is wending its way through the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), says Army Under Secretary Nelson Ford at a Pentagon roundtable last week. The OSD process won’t be done until late October-early November. “There are 372 issues that PA&E [wants] analysis on. Only high-level issues get to me in Deputies Advisory Group meetings. These take place two or three times a week for a couple hours each,” Ford says.
…Making Choices. Ford says hard choices are coming. “The requests for things the Army can do is getting bigger rather than smaller. National interest in paying for those things will decline.” The service will have to focus on the essentials. “I think we’re going to have to figure our how to get more readiness for less money.” Reorganization is one way to save, as is the elimination of duplication, streamlining the training base and managing property more effectively. “I think that over time what we’ll see are tough decisions being made about whether or not to sustain existing capability, or invest in new capabilities and what those capabilities are. I think that’s where the friction points exist. You don’t want to give up an existing capability unless you’re pretty sure the capability you’re replacing is substantially better,” he says.
Call It Off. Asia Pacific Defence and Security Exhibition (APDS 2008) organizers are calling off the Nov. 11-13 event. A major issue is that the exhibition was being targeted by a highly organized and violent protestor campaign, with a history of focusing on similar high profile events. Public safety issues and security risk levels eventually persuaded the organizers to decide to cancel this year’s event. “Naturally, we are very disappointed,” organizers said. “However, there is clearly the potential to pursue the interest from these international firms in a different format.”
Top Award. Madeleine Albright, the 64th U.S. Secretary of State, will receive the 2008 George Catlett Marshall Medal, the highest award presented by the Association of the United States Army. The annual award goes to an individual who has exhibited selfless service to the United States of America. The award is to recognize her lifelong contributions to international diplomacy, national security, exemplary public service to the nation and her commitment to the highest American ideals. The association’s Council of Trustees will present the award Oct. 8, at the George Catlett Marshall Memorial Dinner, the final event of the three-day AUSA Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C.
Next HEMTT. Oshkosh will recapitalize 292 Heavy Equipment Mobility Tactical Truck A4s under a more than $82.6 million contract. HEMTT A0 and HEMTT A2 variants will be returned to Oshkosh, stripped to the frame rails and completely rebuilt to meet the specifications of the new HEMTT A4. Improvements include a fully air-conditioned and armor- ready cab, more powerful drivetrain, improved suspension, safety improvements and other structural changes to make installation of add-on-armor in the field quicker and easier. The work will be done by April 2009.
Grand Marshall. Retired Adm. Edmund Giambastiani, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, is named Grand Marshal of 64th Annual Columbus Day Parade Oct. 13 on Fifth Ave. in New York. “Admiral Giambastiani has devoted his life to the service of the United States, and we are grateful and delighted that he has agreed to lead our annual celebration of Italian-American heritage and achievement,” said Louis Tallarini, president of the Columbus Citizens Foundation, who announced the selection.
The 5,000. Navistar Defense LLC announces it completed its 5,000 International MaxxPro Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle Sept. 10, a little more than a year after initiating production in August 2007. Production ramped up swiftly to more than 500 units per month beginning in February 2008. In addition to producing MaxxPro, Navistar received contracts to provide spare parts, service, training and other support to keep the vehicles in theater and mission-ready. Archie Massicotte, president of Navistar Defense, said, “The U.S. military called on the Navistar family to support those who protect and serve our country and we did what was necessary to fulfill our duty. It’s been a true privilege to build a vehicle that safeguards our troops, as well as those we call family and friends.” Navistar recently received a contract for the International MaxxPro Dash, a lighter version of the Category I MaxxPro, which offers increased mobility and parts commonality. To date, Navistar has been contracted to produce a total of 6,044 MaxxPro variants.
Roll Out. Navy officials this week will roll out the LCS ASW mission package at a ceremony in San Diego. The event will take place Sept. 19. This summer, NAVSEA held a similar event at NSWC Dahlgren for the surface warfare package. Last year, the Navy unveiled the mine warfare package. The ASW package includes the MH-60R, Fire Scout VTUAV, and two unmanned 11-meter RIBs. The Navy will hold a demonstration of the unmanned surface vehicles during Friday’s roll out.
As The Sub Force Goes…So Goes The Navy. The Navy is adapting the acoustic stimulation and trainer architecture of the Submarine Multi Mission Team Trainer (SMMTT) for surface fleet anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training, NAVSEA says. The capability will be available to the fleet beginning with the fiscal year ’11 ACB. The Surface Anti-Submarine Warfare Synthetic Trainer (SAST) is based on the SMMTT development concept and will provide operators of the SQQ-89A(V) 15 ASW combat system the ability to conduct the realistic training scenarios to hone ASW warfighting capabilities. SMMTT uses the All World Environment Simulation, which provides range-dependent, element-level stimulation of the sonar system using full spectrum targets and tactical ocean models. SMMTT uses an embedded tactical system with an interface designed to insulate the simulation/stimulation from changes in the tactical hardware and software.
Share Better. The House Homeland Security Committee’s Democratic staff says in a new report that the Department of Homeland Security needs to shift its approach for information sharing with state, local and tribal law enforcement to one of distributing open source intelligence, which will ensure that these authorities get timely and actionable information. The 39-page report, Giving a Voice to Open Source Stakeholders: A Survey of State, Local & Tribal Law Enforcement, says DHS’ current method of sharing information with local law enforcement is to provide them with security clearances to increase their access to classified intelligence. However, the report says “this approach, all too often, prevents information from being shared with the cops on the beat–the people best-positioned to detect suspicious activities or uncover a terrorist cell.” DHS’ efforts to exploit open source information lag behind those of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the CIA.
New SBI Test Site. Acknowledging that there was too much concurrency in the virtual fence component of the Secure Border Initiative (SBI), Customs and Border Protection. this summer identified a new site to do actual field testing of the SBInet system. The site, located in Playas, N.M., will allow SBInet to do formal system qualification testing in an environment similar to that of the actual deployment environment, Ralph Basham, commissioner of CBP, tells the House Homeland Security Committee. “As observed by the GAO (Government Accountability Office) earlier this year, the plan for TUS-1 had been to construct the towers that would house cameras and sensors, while concurrently carrying out system integration testing,” Basham says, referring to an initial stretch of border in Tucson, Ariz., that was to be the site of the initial installment of the electronic fence. “We recognized the additional program risk associated with conducting concurrent activities and managing an aggressive schedule.”