ATK Awarded $50 Million Contract for NASA's Advanced Concept Booster Development for SLS
NASA has awarded ATK a $50 million contract to complete engineering development and risk reduction tests as part of the Advanced Concept Booster Development for the Space Launch System (SLS). ATK's effort focuses on overcoming key technological challenges in developing advanced booster requirements for NASA's SLS program. Tasks within the scope of ATK's award include development of a lithium-ion battery-powered electric thrust vector control system; high-performance propellant; lightweight composite rocket motor case; and an advanced nozzle. All of these developments will culminate with an integrated booster static test firing of these technologies. All of these tasks use cost-saving processes and materials that reduce cost and help lower risk as NASA moves toward a higher-performing booster in the future.
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Shown is an artist’s concept of ATK's Advanced Concept Booster in support of NASA engineering and risk reduction tests as part of its Space Launch System (SLS) program.
Lockheed Martin awarded F-16 upgrade contract for the Republic Of China Air Force
Lockheed Martin was awarded a contract valued up to $1.85 billion by the U.S. Government to initiate the upgrade of 145 Block 20 F-16A/B aircraft for the Republic of China. This retrofit program will include the addition of an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, embedded global positioning, as well as upgrades to the electronic warfare and other avionics systems of Taiwan's F-16s. Lockheed Martin has upgraded more than 1000 existing F-16s for a combination of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) and international customers. Most recently, Lockheed Martin was named the prime integrator to upgrade the USAF F-16 fleet. Both new upgrade programs will be based on the F-16V configuration announced by Lockheed Martin earlier this year.
Dassault Falcon Aircraft Services–China launches in Shanghai
Dassault Falcon recently launched Dassault Falcon Aircraft Services–China, a dedicated program with Shanghai Hawker Pacific at Shanghai's Hongqiao International Airport. The program is staffed by a team of Dassault technicians with an average experience of 10 years on Falcon business jets and specifically trained for Falcon 2000EX EASy, Falcon 900EX, and Falcon 7X models. The team brings extensive, hands-on Falcon maintenance experience to Shanghai Hawker Pacific's facilities for support of local and transient Falcon aircraft. They will also provide an opportunity to transfer significant knowledge and maintenance experience to Chinese maintenance engineers in this developing market. The Shanghai Hawker Pacific complex features a 4000-m² facility for maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO). It was the first third-party MRO facility in mainland China and is a joint partnership with Shanghai Airports Authority.
Lockheed Martin-led team to develop new autonomous technology
The Office of Naval Research awarded a $13.5 million contract to an industry team led by Lockheed Martin to explore highly advanced autonomous technologies aboard an unmanned vertical take-off and landing aircraft. Under the contract, Lockheed Martin and a team of industry, government, and academic partners will develop a technology that will enable aircraft to operate under supervisory control. A human operator will interact with the system at a high level while low-level control is left to the automation. During this first, 18-month phase of the five-year effort, the team will demonstrate the capabilities of its Open-Architecture Planning and Trajectory Intelligence for Managing Unmanned Systems (OPTIMUS) architecture.
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Open-Architecture Planning and Trajectory Intelligence for Managing Unmanned Systems (OPTIMUS) is designed to be platform-agnostic, drawing from Lockheed Martin's experience with the unmanned K-MAX (shown) cargo resupply program and the combined teams' expertise in the fields of sensing, autonomy, and human-machine interaction.
Boeing receives $1.9 billion contract for 11 P-8A Poseidon Aircraft
The U.S. Navy awarded Boeing a $1.9 billion contract for 11 P-8A Poseidon aircraft, which will take the total fleet to 24 and bolster the service's anti-submarine, anti-surface warfare and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. This third low-rate initial production award follows two last year that totaled 13 aircraft. Boeing has delivered three of the production P-8As, which are based on the company's Next-Generation 737-800 commercial airplane, and the Navy plans to purchase 117 to replace its P-3 fleet. Boeing assembles the P-8A aircraft in the same facility where it builds all its 737 aircraft. The Poseidon team uses a first-in-industry in-line production process that draws on Boeing's Next-Generation 737 production system. Boeing's industry team includes CFM International, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Spirit AeroSystems, BAE Systems, and GE Aviation.
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The second production P-8A Poseidon aircraft is shown being delivered to the U.S. Navy in July.
Algae.Tec, Lufthansa agree to build biofuel production facility in Europe
Algae.Tec and Lufthansa signed a collaboration agreement for the construction of a large-scale algae-to-aviation biofuels production facility. The site will be in Europe adjacent to an industrial CO2 source. Lufthansa will arrange 100% funding for the project. Algae.Tec will receive license fees and profits from the project, which will be managed by Algae.Tec. As part of the agreement, Lufthansa commits to a long-term offtake agreement of at least 50% of the crude oil produced at an agreed price. The agreement forms the base for a long-term cooperation between Algae.Tec and Lufthansa for the industrial production of crude algae suitable for conversion into aviation kerosene and conventional diesel fuels.
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Algae.Tec’s Shoalhaven One algae production facility in Bomaderry, New South Wales, Australia, is shown.
Northrop Grumman, AgustaWestland team up for helicopter programs
Northrop Grumman Corp. and AgustaWestland signed a comprehensive teaming agreement to respond to anticipated requests for both the new U.S. Air Force Combat Rescue Helicopter and the U.S. Navy's program to develop a new "Marine One" presidential helicopter. A U.S.-built helicopter based on the AW101 platform will be offered by Northrop Grumman to meet these requirements. The agreement pairs Northrop Grumman's management and systems integration expertise with AgustaWestland's rotorcraft manufacturing and advanced helicopter design and development. The AW101 system offers both programs an optimum mix of capability to successfully bring the best possible new combat rescue helicopter to the USAF and the best possible new presidential Helicopter to the Navy-Marine Corps team.
General Dynamics team to build next-gen aviation subsystems
A General Dynamics C4 Systems-led team received a contract from the U.S. Marine Corps to build up to four Engineering Development Models and nine Limited Deployment Units of the Processing and Display/Sensor Data Subsystem (PDS/SDS) for Increment 1, Phase 2 of the Common Aviation Command and Control System (CAC2S). When built and fully operational, the General Dynamics system will deliver a real-time picture of events taking place at sea, in the air, and on land during a mission, enabling faster, more informed decision making for Marine Corps commanders and their staffs. The PDS/SDS is the aviation command-and-control enabler for three mission-critical air command and control organizations that support Marines on the ground. The Tactical Air Command Center provides airspace management, the Direct Air Support Center controls air assault and other airborne operations, and the Tactical Air Operations Center performs air surveillance and controls air-to-air fighter and air defense. The General Dynamics-led team includes Fulton, MD-based Raytheon Solipsys; Smartronix Inc., of Stafford, VA; Ternion Corp., of Huntsville, AL; and Engility of San Diego.
General Dynamics acquires Gayston's defense ops
General Dynamics acquired the defense operations of Gayston Corp., a privately held company that supplies precision metal components used in several munitions programs. Gayston's defense operations employ 187 people at a facility in Springboro, OH, which is optimized for aluminum impact extrusion manufacturing. Among its products, Gayston manufactures rocket motor tubes for the U.S. Army's Hydra-70 air-to-ground rocket program. It also provides liners and cartridges for 40-mm ammunition rounds and components for 60-120-mm mortar rounds to a variety of customers. The defense operations of Gayston will become part of Charlotte, NC-based General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products, a provider of high-performance weapon and armament systems, composite products, and heavy-duty off-road axle and suspension systems to the U.S. military, allied forces, and commercial customers.
Lockheed Martin building spacecraft For InSight Mars lander
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co. in Denver has been selected to build and operate the InSight spacecraft. The Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission, led by principal investigator Bruce Banerdt of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and managed by JPL. Targeted for launch in 2016, the InSight lander would reach the Red Planet later that year and land at Elysium Planitia, a large flat area near the planet's equator. The InSight lander will install a seismograph and heat flow probe into the Martian surface. By using sophisticated geophysical instruments, InSight will delve deep beneath the surface of Mars, detecting the fingerprints of the processes of terrestrial planet formation, as well as measuring the planet's seismology, heat flow probe, and precision tracking.
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An artist rendition of the proposed InSight lander is shown. InSight is based on the proven Phoenix Mars spacecraft and lander design with avionics from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory missions.
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