Week in review (7/21 to 7/27)

The first F-35 built outside the United States takes shape in Italy; Airbus posts another job opening for its Mobile final assembly line; China's AVIC buys a German engine-maker; GE's purchase of the aeronautics unit of engine-maker Avio is approved; the Air Force sweetens the pot to retain pilots; and the end of an Air Force training program at a Navy base in Milton, Fla., were some of the aerospace stories of interest for the Gulf Coast region during the week.

Here's the week in review:


F-35
Lockheed Martin and the Pentagon are making progress in talks about the next two batches of F-35 fighter jets. That involves 36 planes to be purchased in the sixth production lot and 35 in the seventh. The number includes 60 F-35s for the U.S. military, and 11 for Australia, Italy, Turkey and Britain. Lockheed is building three models of the F-35 for the U.S. military and partners, Britain, Australia, Canada, Norway, Turkey, Italy, Denmark and the Netherlands. Israel and Japan are also buying the jets. Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center. (Post)

-- Assembly of the first F-35 built outside the United States is now underway in Italy west of Milan. The 22-building complex with more than a million square feet of covered space is jointly operated by Lockheed Martin and Alenia Aermacchi. The plant will build planes for the Italian air force and may eventually assemble planes for the Netherlands. It’s also committed to building wings. (Post)

According to AINonline, the rear fuselage for the first Italian-assembled F-35 was built by BAE Systems in Samlesbury, UK, the forward fuselage and wing by Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth, Texas, and the center fuselage by Northrop Grumman in Palmdale, Calif. The plant near Milan will put it all together at the final assembly line, much like workers in Mobile, Ala., will put together the A320 jetliners at Brookley Aeroplex.

-- Lockheed is looking toward the international community for sales to keep the F-35 program aloft in an age of sequestration. Over the next five years close to 50 percent of F-35 orders will come from international customers, according to Chief Executive Marillyn Hewson. In the pre-sequestration fiscal 2014 budget, the Pentagon plans to order more than 300 F-35s in all three variants in the next five years. (Post)

-- In Fort Worth, Texas, the 100th F-35, the first aircraft destined for Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Ariz., has entered the last stage of final assembly. The conventional takeoff and landing aircraft, AF-41, is scheduled to arrive at the base next year. Luke will eventually have 144 aircraft and will be the largest F-35 base in the world. (Post)


Airbus
Airbus Americas is looking for a quality conformance specialist for the A320 final assembly line being built at the Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, Ala. The successful candidate will work with the company’s quality project team in Hamburg, Germany. The successful candidate will be responsible for designing how quality inspections will be performed at Airbus’ first U.S. assembly line. Airbus broke ground in April on the $600 million A320 assembly line, which will employ 1,000 people when it reaches full annual production. (Post)

-- American Airlines took delivery of its first A320 family aircraft at a ceremony at Airbus facilities in Hamburg, Germany. Representatives from American Airlines, Airbus and engine-maker CFM International were on hand. American’s A319s will seat 128 passengers and is the first A319 to feature sharklet wingtip devices that improve fuel efficiency. Sharklets will be standard on all A320neo family. (Post)

-- RAK Airways of the northern Gulf emirate of Ras Al Khaimah said it's in talks with Boeing, Airbus and Bombardier about an order for at least 10 single-aisle aircraft to meet expansion plans. RAK is looking at the Boeing 737-800, Airbus A320 and the CSeries jet from Bombardier, and hopes to make a choice by the end of the year. (Post)


Corporate changes
China's Aviation Industries Corp. (AVIC) is buying Germany's Thielert Aircraft Engines GmbH and shifting the supplier's focus from military drones to private aircraft. Bloomberg reports that AVIC International Holding Ltd. plans to leverage Thielert's civil propeller-engine operations to capitalize on an anticipated private aviation boom. AVIC purchased Mobile-based engine maker Continental Motors for $186 million in April 2011 and also bought Minnesota-based planemaker Cirrus Aircraft. (Post)

-- The Federal Trade Commission OKd General Electric's purchase of the aeronautics unit of engine-maker Avio SpA, Italy's manufacturer of aviation propulsion components and systems for civil and military aircraft. GE agreed not to interfere with the development of a key engine component for United Technologies Pratt and Whitney, an aircraft engine maker that competes with GE.

The FTC had been concerned the $4.3 billion acquisition of Avio's aviation business from Cinven, a private equity firm that has owned Avio since 2006, would be anticompetitive. GE and Pratt and Whitney are the sole firms that make engines for the Airbus A320neo. The European Commission earlier this month also cleared the purchase. Airbus will be building A320neo jets in Mobile, Ala. (Post)


Military aviation
A salary up to $97,400 and a signing bonus of $225,000 may help the Air Force replenish
its fighter pilot ranks. The shortfall of 200 this year could grow to 700 by 2021 if something isn't done, officials said. The Air Force wants veteran pilots to make a nine-year commitment to fly fighters.

The problem is, many of them find the lure of being a commercial pilot hard to resist. The competition between the military and airlines for pilots promises to be fierce in the future as airlines seek out young talent to replace retirees. Boeing last year estimated a global need for 460,000 new commercial pilots over the next two decades.

Pilots from all branches are learning to fly F-35s at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., and Air Force pilots train on F-22s at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. Naval aviators have initial training in Florida at Pensacola and Milton. (Post)

-- A 19-year arrangement ended during the week when the last Air Force pilot finished his instrumentation test. Nearly 100 Air Force student pilots annually have taken the main phase of their flight training at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Fla., while a like number of Navy pilots have trained at Vance Air Force Base in Enid, Okla.

But the services decided to end the reciprocal agreement to save travel expenses and trim other associated costs. However, 18 Air Force instructors will continue to be based at Whiting to help train naval and Coast Guard students. (Post)

-- Lt. Col. Dorene Ross is the new commander of the 335th Training Squadron. Lt. Col. Bradley McAlpine relinquished command during a ceremony July 22 at the Roberts Consolidated Aircraft Maintenance Facility at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. (Post)


Space
Two congressmen are concerned NASA might award use of a Kennedy Space Center launch pad in Florida to a company that wants exclusive use. The two members of the House subcommittee that approves NASA budgets said Launch Complex 39A is a unique, tax-funded asset that should be available to multiple rocket launchers. SpaceX and Blue Origin are known to have submitted proposals. (Post)

The folks at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans and Stennis Space Center, Miss., are likely keeping a close eye on how this plays out. They are both involved in NASA and commercial space programs.

-- Astronauts at Johnson Space Center in Houston got a look at Boeing's CST-100 space capsule during the week. Boeing is one of the companies building spacecraft to fly astronauts to and from ISS. SpaceX and Sierra Nevada are also building them. (Post)


Shipbuilding/maritime
DDG 1001: Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pasacagoula, Miss., has delivered the final aft peripheral vertical launch system assemblies for the Navy's second Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyer, Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001), being built in by General Dynamics' Bath Iron Works in Maine. (Post)

Week in review (7/14 to 7/20)

A possible name change for EADS; an upward revision of numbers for Airbus; the crash of a second target drone in a week at Tyndall Air Force Base; delivery of an upgraded version of the Fire Scout unmanned helicopter to the Navy; kudos for an F-35 flight equipment team; the launch of the Navy’s second MUOS satellite; a target date to launch Orbital Sciences' cargo spacecraft; an update on a resort being built on Air Force property near Fort Walton Beach; and a change of command were some of the aerospace stories of interest for the Gulf Coast region during the week.

Here's the week in review:

Airbus
The European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co., or EADS, is considering changing the company's name to the Airbus Group. That's according to Reuters. The change would reflect the success of the company's commercial aircraft sales, two thirds of EADS revenue. The value of the commercial jet sales is expected to increase as airlines move towards more fuel-efficient models. Some of those jetliners will eventually be build along the Gulf Coast. Airbus broke ground in April on an A320 assembly line at Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

Airbus, by the way, has raised its order target for 2013 to more than 1,000 aircraft, compared with a previous goal of over 800, sales chief John Leahy told Reuters. That puts Airbus on course to beat its 2012 gross order tally of 914 aircraft. Airbus is trying to regain leadership of the $100 billion annual jet market after Boeing grabbed the top spot in both orders and deliveries last year. So far Boeing is winning this year's order race. (Post)

-- Why did Airbus opt to put that assembly line in Mobile? Airbus Americas Chairman Allan McArtor wrote that it all boils down to the relationship Airbus and Mobile had built over the years. McArtor wrote in a guest column for CNBC that Airbus felt Mobile and Alabama would be the ones to stand with the company and meet its needs.

The relationship goes back to the years when EADS, Airbus' parent company, was competing to build tankers for the Air Force. That contract eventually went to Boeing, but it started a relationship that eventually resulted in the A320 assembly line. The first Mobile-assembled A320 will be delivered in 2016. (Post)


Unmanned
Northrop Grumman delivered the first upgraded version of the Fire Scout unmanned helicopter to the U.S. Navy earlier this month. The new MQ-8C uses a larger airframe than the MQ-8B Fire Scout. But both aircraft share proven software, avionics, payloads and ship ancillary equipment.

The upgraded Fire Scout responds to an urgent need to provide the Navy with increased endurance, range and payload. It has three times the payload and double the endurance of the MQ-8B, which currently operates on Navy frigates and in Afghanistan. The first deployment of the upgraded MQ-8 system with the MQ-8C Fire Scout aircraft will be in 2014. Fire Scouts are built in part in Moss Point, Miss. (Post)

-- An unmanned Air Force QF-4 target drone assigned to the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group crashed on the drone runway during take-off during the week, forcing the closing of U.S. 98 for a day. Target drones are equipped with a self-destruct charge powered by a short-life battery that takes 24 hours to fully deplete, and it was a matter of safety to close the road.

The crash occurred while a second drone was in the air. That drone, as planned, was destroyed by a missile over the Gulf of Mexico. The drones assigned to the 53rd WEG run about 100 missions each year and are used as targets for manned aircraft. Just a week earlier another QF-4, which will ultimately be replaced by QF-16s, was destroyed near Port St. Joe after it veered from its planned flight path. (Post)


F-35
Lockheed Martin was awarded a $70.4 million modification to a previously awarded advance acquisition contract to provide long lead-time parts, material and components required for the delivery of seven conventional take off and landing F-35 aircraft and one short take-off vertical landing F-35 for the government of Italy. (Post)

-- Lockheed Martin recently delivered the 100th Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS) for the F-35. It combines forward-looking infrared and infrared search and track functionality to provide pilots with situational awareness and air-to-air and air-to-surface targeting from a safe distance.

Lockheed Martin is producing EOTS under the seventh low-rate initial production contract. Components are made at the company's Ocala, Fla., and Santa Barbara, Calif., facilities. Lockheed Martin also makes the low observable window for the aircraft at the company's Orlando, Fla., facility. (Post)

-- One of the Air Force's newest aircrew flight equipment teams is now the Air Force's best. The 33rd Fighter Wing's aircrew flight equipment flight at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., was chosen the best in the Air Force in the small program category for 2012. The wing is the only unit to fly and train on the F-35A fifth generation fighter. (Post)

-- The first F-35B is now at Cherry Point Fleet Readiness Center East in North Carolina to undergo modifications. Workers will reinforce hinges on doors that allow the F-35B to take off and land vertically as part of the first modification to the jets. Such modifications are common once an aircraft joins the fleet. Lt. Col. Steve C. Gillette, of Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501, flew the F-35 unescorted from Elgin Air Force Base, Fla., to Cherry Point on July 9. (Post)


Space
The Navy's second Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellite was launched Friday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., atop an Atlas V. The system is a key step in providing enhanced satellite communications for the Navy and Department of Defense. MUOS is a next-generation narrowband tactical satellite communications system designed to improve beyond-line-of-sight communications for U.S. forces.

MUOS will provide military users 10 times more communications capacity over the existing system by leveraging 3G mobile technology, including simultaneous voice and data capability. Work on the core propulsion system for the MUOS, an A2100 satellite-based spacecraft, is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)

-- A measure to create a commission to look at consolidating Alabama's Marshall Space Flight Center and Mississippi's Stennis Space Center was withdrawn at the last minute Thursday. Rep. Donna Edwards, D-Md., who represents an area where Goddard Space Flight Center is located, was reportedly upset over cuts in programs managed by Goddard.

Her amendment would have directed the BRAC-like panel to study MSFC and SSC "to determine if their rocket-related activities should be combined in one location." The measure also directed the panel to look at moving Marshall's work to Stennis or Houston's Johnson Space Center. (Post)

-- Orbital Sciences' cargo spacecraft is set to make its first flight to the International Space Station in September. The Dulles, Va., company has a launch window between Sept. 14 and 19 for the Cygnus cargo ship. It will be launched atop an Orbital Science Antares rocket. Orbital was awarded a NASA contract to provide at least eight resupply flights to the ISS. The first stage Antares is powered by twin Aerojet AJ26 engines tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)


Bases
Construction crews are less than a year away from completing a resort in Northwest Florida being developed under an enhanced use lease (EUL) with the Air Force. The Holiday Inn Resort, slated to open in the spring of 2014, is being built on 17 acres of land on Santa Rosa Island owned by Eglin Air Force Base.

The land is used to perform telemetry testing by the 96th Test Wing. The developer will provide infrastructure for Eglin’s 96th Test Wing to install test monitoring equipment on the hotel’s roof that previously sat at ground level. The construction team is getting ready to pour the fifth floor sometime before August. (Post)

-- Col. Daniel J. Orcutt, former Strategy Division chief of the 609th Air Operations Center in Southwest Asia, received the guidon and command of the 505th Command and Control Wing during a change of command ceremony at Hurlburt Field, Fla., July 9. He took over from Col. Mustafa Koprucu. Maj. Gen. Jeffery Lofgren, the U.S. Air Force Warfare Center commander, presided over the ceremony. (Post)


Shipbuilding/maritime
Contract: Science Applications International Corp., McLean, Va., was awarded a $10.2 million modification under a previously awarded contract to exercise an option for services supporting Military Sealift Command's information technology ashore operations. Some of the work, 2.4 percent, will be done in Pensacola, Fla. (Post)

Workers: Ingalls Shipbuilding of Pascagoula, Miss., has applied for a $1.3 million Hurricane Katrina-related community development block grant to add a basic skills training annex to the nearly complete Haley Reeves Barbour Maritime Training Academy. (Post)

Week in review (7/7 to 7/13)

If you're interested in unmanned systems and robotics, this was the week for you. On Wednesday, history was made when an unmanned jet the size of a fighter landed on the deck of a carrier. The next day DARPA unveiled a robot designed to come to the aid of humans during natural and man-made disasters. But almost as a reminder that much work still needs to be done, another robot aircraft, this one a target drone, crashed in the Gulf of Mexico after it went haywire.

Welcome to the age of the Robo sapiens.

The story that grabbed a lot of headlines was the landing of a Northrop Grumman-built X-47B fighter on the deck of a carrier off the coast of Virginia. True, it's not the first time an unmanned aerial vehicle has landed on a moving ship. Northrop Grumman's unmanned Fire Scout helicopters have done so for quite some time now, and smaller unmanned aircraft have been caught in huge nets aboard ships.

But this was a plane that landed on the ship autonomously, using GPS navigation, a high-integrity network connection and advanced flight control software to guide itself through the turbulent air behind the aircraft carrier and onto the moving flight deck, just like generations of naval aviators have done.

The take away – and no doubt it was not lost on the new generation of pilots being trained by the Navy – is that the robot was able to perform what it takes a long time for a human to master. The X-47B was even able to determine on its own to abort a third attempted landing and return to Naval Air Statiaon Patuxent River, Md.

"It isn't very often you get a glimpse of the future. Today, those of us aboard USS George H.W. Bush got that chance,” said Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus about the landing by "Salty Dog 502." What's really remarkable is it was just this past May that the X-47B successfully performed a catapult launch from the same ship, CVN 77. (Post)

For the Gulf Coast, the landing was significant for several reasons, not the least of which is that Northrop Grumman builds portions of two unmanned aircraft, Fire Scout and Global Hawk, in Moss Point, Miss. In addition, one of the X-47Bs will eventually be put on display at Pensacola's National Naval Aviation Museum, according to the Pensacola News Journal.

This is also the region where naval aviators begin initial training and where pilots learn to fly the fifth-generation F-35, F-22 fighters. It's also where the military regularly flies unmanned systems, ranging in size from hand-held systems to plane-sized target drones. And the Gulf Coast is also the home of Florida's Institute for Human and Machine Cognition, a recognized leaders in robotics.

A team from Pensacola's IHMC will be going up against other top robotics teams in the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency Robotics Challenge in December at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla., with a final challenge a year later for the $2 million prize.

IHMC may be considered a team to beat by virtue of the initial stage of the competition. The IHMC team won first place in the virtual challenge, where the competitors' software programs were used in computer simulations (Post). IHMC beat 25 other competitors, scoring 52 of a possible 60 points – way better than the other teams. For the next part of the challenge, competitors will use the software in an actual robot. (Recent column)

That robot was unveiled Thursday (Story). Dubbed Atlas, it's a somewhat intimidating looking 6-2, 330 pound robot with a huge chest and extra-long arms designed to help with disaster response. Created by Boston Dynamics, its hydraulically powered and equipped with both laser and stereo vision systems. It will be used as part of the challenge where teams will compete to provide Atlas with a variety of moves that might be required in disaster response. IHMC will be getting its Atlas later this month.

But before we get too carried away about the robotic future, there was another event with a drone that reminds us a lot of work still needs to be done. A drone aircraft out of Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., plunged into the Gulf of Mexico near St. Joseph Peninsula State Park after it was destroyed by ground controllers.

Tyndall officials said the unmanned Air Force QF-4 target drone assigned to the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group was destroyed after it went "haywire." The Vietnam-era Phantom, converted to fly without a pilot, carries a self-destruct charge and was destroyed as it returned to base after a routine operation. That drone is being replaced by QF-16 drones, unmanned Falcon jets. (Post)

Stay tuned, readers.


Space
NASA is offering its expertise and test facilities to potential lunar-lander partners who might be able to help mount scientific missions to the Moon as early as 2018. A July 2 request for information seeks concepts for an industry-developed robotic lander for NASA and commercial missions. Responses are due Aug. 2.

NASA is proposing no-exchange-of-funds partnerships to private companies willing to put up funding for lander development. NASA is piggybacking on the Google Lunar X Prize, $30 million in prizes to teams that can land a robotic spacecraft on the lunar surface. Right now 22 teams worldwide are in the running, working against a deadline of Dec. 31, 2015. NASA has two facilities in the Gulf Coast region: Stennis Space Center, Miss., and Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans. (Post)


F-35
The Integrated Training Center at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., has trained the 100th pilot to fly an F-35. Maj. Robert Miller chalked up the milestone when he took to the skies above Eglin July 9. The joint service partners at Eglin have flown 2,292 F-35 hours and have 28 aircraft, the largest fleet of F-35s in the world. About 100 pilots and 2,200 maintainers will be qualified annually through the training system at the base. (Post)


Airbus
The U.K.'s easyJet firmed up an order for 35 A320s with currently available engines and 100 that will be powered by new, more fuel-efficient engines. EasyJet is the U.K.’s largest airline, carrying 55 million passengers a year. It’s also the largest A320 family customer and operator in Europe. (Post)


Airports/bases
Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport near Panama City, Fla., needs new hangars to lure a top tier aerospace company, according to Bay County Economic Development Alliance Director Neal Wade. He wants two hangars at a cost of some $30 million.

Wade said a couple of potential sources for funding are being worked. Airport Executive Director Parker W. McClellan agreed. He said that if one hangar opened, there could be 50 to 200 additional acres of property that could be developed.

Wade noted that in April, an aircraft maintenance company announced the opening of a 400,000-square-foot facility at Alabama's Dothan Regional Airport. The availability of hangar space was key, Wade said. (Post)

-- Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., got a tip of the hat from the Air Force's chief scientist, Mica Endsely. It was during a breakfast during the week that was hosted by the Air Force Association. National Defense magazine reported that Endsley said the future will bring many challenges to Air Force science and technology initiatives. She said the Air Force needs to look at how to better enable rapid innovation, prototyping and testing.

That's when Eglin was mentioned.

"I was down in Eglin a few weeks ago, and I saw where they're developing new munitions systems and new approaches," she said. "They're taking it out on the range right there, testing them, getting rapid data, and coming back and being able to iterate their product and their ideas very rapidly. That's the kind of thing we need to be doing,” she said. (Story)

-- Col. Jay Jensen, commander of the 403rd Wing at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss., is going to the Pentagon to be senior Air Force policy administrator for the Reserve Forces Policy Board. A new commander will take over the 403rd at the end of this month. The makeup of the 403rd is changing. (Post)

-- The National Naval Aviation Museum is now closed Mondays because of sequestration. The new opening days will remain in effect through September. The museum, which has no cover charge, is closed on Mondays because federal employees handle management of the museum. (Post)

-- Twenty-nine civilian positions will be eliminated at Naval Air Station Pensacola later this year. Another 15 will be eliminated at Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Fla. In Pensacola, jobs are being cut from force protection, command management and morale, welfare and recreation. The Reduction in Force will occur Nov. 30. (Post)


Air show
Although sequestration grounded the Navy Blue Angels from participating in the summer air show at Pensacola Beach, Fla., the show was held Friday and Saturday with an all-civilian lineup. The crowd was not as large as it is when the Blue Angels fly, but folks came out nontheless. The Blue Angels' home is at nearby Naval Air Station Pensacola. (Post)


Workforce/education
GE Aviation, which opened its Ellisville, Miss., plant in May, is now renting laboratory space in The Accelerator innovation center in nearby Hattiesburg, to train new employees to make components for jet engines. Two other new businesses are Vatican Capital, a private equity investment firm that moved to The Accelerator in March, and Radiance Technologies, which moved in at the beginning of the year. The Accelerator business incubator was developed by the University of Southern Mississippi. (Post)


Contracts
SRI International, Menlo Park, Calif., was awarded a $230 million contract for hardware, software, prototype systems, spiral software enhancements and installation training support for the Digital Video Laboratory III. Air Force Test Center/PZIE, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity.


Shipbuilding/maritime
Workers: The demand for jobs in South Mississippi's maritime industry is higher than ever. Huntington Ingalls, VT Halter Marine, both in Pascagoula, and Trinity Yachts in Gulfport are constantly seeking skilled workers for new projects. (Post)

Supply vessels: Edison Chouest Offshore of Galliano, La., will build more than 40 new vessels to meet demand for offshore oil and gas support in the Gulf of Mexico, the Arctic and Brazil. Most of the building will be done at Chouest's North American Shipbuilding in Larose, LaShip in Houma, Gulf Ship in Gulfport, Miss., and Tampa Ship in Tampa, Fla. (Post)

Contract: Raytheon Integrated Defense System, Portsmouth, R.I., was awarded $14.2 million for cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order #0004 under a previously awarded Basic Ordering Agreement for upgrading the AN/AQS-20A mine hunting sonar 3493-AS-780-9 configuration with a high frequency wide band forward look sonar and multi-function side looking sonar and associated components. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Panama City Division, Panama City, Fla., is the contracting activity. (Post)

Week in review (6/30 to 7/6)

NASA has traditionally been an organization where innovation is important, and that hasn't changed in an age where commercial companies are handling low-Earth orbit missions. The agency is focusing on deep-space missions, and innovation is important to that.

A project in Huntsville, which could eventually have implications for Stennis Space Center, Miss., and Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, is a case in point. NASA recently successfully tested a pressurized, 8-foot diameter cryogenic propellant tank made of composite materials.

That's important for the next generation of rockets and spacecraft needed for future space exploration. Cryogenic propellants are gasses chilled to subfreezing and condensed to form combustible liquids. Propellants such as liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen are used to provide the thrust needed for large rockets. Tanks traditionally have been made out of metals, but the tank tested at Huntsville's Marshall Space Flight Center is a potential game-changer.

Switching from metallic to composite construction could increase performance through a dramatic reduction in weight. A potential initial target application for the composite technology is an upgrade to the upper stage of NASA's Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket.

"This investment in game changing space technology will help enable NASA's exploration of deep space while directly benefiting American industrial capability in the manufacturing and use of composites," Michael Gazarik, NASA's associate administrator for space technology at NASA headquarters in Washington.

Boeing built the tank at its Tukwila, Wash. facility. NASA and Boeing are in the process of manufacturing an 18 foot-diameter composite tank that also will be tested at Marshall next year. (Story)

The Gulf Coast region is heavily involved in advanced materials work, notably at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss., and at Florida State University's High-Performance Materials Institute in Tallahassee, Fla. In addition, Michoud is where the Orion and core stage of SLS are being built, and SSC is where the engines will all be tested.

- Lockheed Martin delivered the third of four highly elliptical earth orbit (HEO) satellite payloads as part of the Air Force’s Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS). The SBIRS program, which provides improved missile warning capabilities, include four HEO payloads, four GEO satellites, and ground assets to receive, process, and disseminate the infrared mission data. SBIRS is an A2100 satellite-based spacecraft, and work on the A2100 core's propulsion system, which positions the spacecraft in orbit, is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)


Airbus/EADS
Syphax Airlines of Tunisia has confirmed its order to buy three fuel-efficient A320neo jetliners and three A320, all powered by CFM International engines. The list price of an A320neo is $100.2 million and the A320 is $91.5 million. The company announced plans to buy the planes at the recent Paris Air Show. Airbus broke ground in April on a $600 million A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

- EADS North America, Herndon, Va., was awarded a $12.9 million modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, option-filled contract for contractor logistics support for the Army's aviation assets. Work will be performed in Columbus, Miss. (Post) In addition to the Lakota helicopter plant in Columbus, EADS also has operations in Mobile, Ala.


F-35/training
Northrop Grumman won a training-simulation contract potentially worth $490 million to support the Air Force's next-generation air-combat virtual-training network. Northrop Grumman Information Systems of Herndon, Va., was awarded the follow-on support for the Combat Air Force Distributed Mission Operations and Integration program.

The system will connect dissimilar combat-aircraft simulators, from fighters to refueling aircraft, to the same interactive trainer. The F-35 pilot-training center at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., one of the centers that will be connect to the Air Force's mission-operations training network. (Post)

- United Technologies Corp., Pratt & Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $134 million modification to a previously awarded advance acquisition contract. This modification provides for non-recurring and recurring sustainment, site activation and depot activation efforts in support of the Joint Strike Fighter F135 Propulsion System Low Rate Initial Production Lot VI. (Post)

- Lockheed Martin received a $12.7 million contract modification to supply the final batch of automatic backup oxygen supply (A-BOS) systems for the F-22 Raptor fleet. F-22 pilots are trained at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. (Post)


Bases
Col. Patrick Higby next month will become commander of the 81st Training Wing at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss. He'll be replacing Brig. Gen. Brad Spacy, who has been named director for logistics, installations and mission support for the European Air Force command at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, according to the Sun Herald. Spacy has been commander at Keesler since May 2012. Higby is currently deputy commander of the White House Communications Agency at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C. (Story)

- Over at Hurlburt Field, Fla., Col. Bill West took command of the 1st Special Operations Wing in a change of command ceremony during the week. West, a navigator, comes to Hurlburt from the 27th Special Operations Group at Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico. He succeeds Col. Jim Slife, who has headed the wing for two years. (Post)

At nearby Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Col. Christopher Riga took over as commander of the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) during a change of command ceremony. He's the group’s third commander since it moved from Fort Bragg, N.C., to its new 500-acre cantonment in Eglin Air Force Base. Riga replaces Col. Antonio Fletcher, who has served as commander of the 7th Special Forces Group for two years. (Post)

- Eglin Air Force Base's northwest gate will be closed beginning Monday because of manpower issues from civilian furloughs, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News. It will remain closed until the furloughs are lifted, said Lois Walsh, a spokeswoman for Eglin. That could mean September. An estimated 40,000 vehicles use Eglin's four gates each day. Of those, about 2,000 go through the northwest gate. (Story)

- Sequestration has hit the region’s base commissaries. In Florida, commissaries at Pensacola Naval Exchange near Corry Station and Eglin Air Force base are among 247 commissaries that will be closed on Mondays. The commissary at Keesler Air Force Base, Biloxi, Miss., will also be closed Monday.

About 148 other commissaries will close Tuesdays as well. The list includes Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Hurlburt Field and Tyndall in Florida, Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, Naval Air Station Columbus and Naval Air Station Meridian, all in Mississippi, and Naval Air Station/Joint Reserve Base New Orleans in Belle Chasse, La. (Post)

A feature story was published during the week in the Northwest Florida Daily News about the 4th Special Operations Squadron, which is getting a much-needed break after 12 years of nearly constant deployment. The squadron, which provides close air support for Special Operations ground troops, has been in high demand that whole time. Airmen have been deploying and coming home in two- or three-month cycles the entire time. (Story)


Airports
Sunil Harman begins work July 23 as Okaloosa County's new airport director. Harman, who has worked as Tallahassee’s aviation director since 2011, was chosen from 175 applicants. He will oversee Northwest Florida Regional Airport, Destin Airport and Bob Sikes Airport in Crestview. Harman replaces Greg Donovan, who left in March 1. (Post)

A proposed change to Okaloosa County’s land development code would prohibit private or residential airports from operating on the waterfront. The policy change also would restrict private airports to one of three zoning areas: agricultural, institutional or airport industrial park. County commissioners held the first of two public hearings on the change Tuesday. The second hearing is scheduled for July 16 in Fort Walton Beach. There's been some concern over helicopter sightseeing businesses adding to air traffic congestion. (Story)


Shipbuilding/maritime
Contract: Raytheon Integrated Defense System, Portsmouth, R.I., was awarded $14.2 million for cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order #0004 under a previously awarded Basic Ordering Agreement for upgrading the AN/AQS-20A mine hunting sonar 3493-AS-780-9 configuration with a high frequency wide band forward look sonar and multi-function side looking sonar and associated components. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Panama City Division, Panama City, Fla., is the contracting activity. (Post)

Week in review (6/23 to 6/29)

More F-35s arrive at Eglin Air Force Base; the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition wins an international competition; a company is chose for the Airbus powerhouse in Mobile; a candidate is picked to head up Okaloosa County airports; and command changes at area bases were among the items of interest to the Gulf Coast aerospace region during the week.

Here's the week in review:


F-35
Less than a week after getting its first Navy variant of the F-35, Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 101 received its second F-35C. The fighter arrived after a 90-minute flight from the Lockheed Martin production line in Fort Worth, Texas. VFA 101 will serve as the F-35C Fleet Replacement Squadron, training both aircrew and maintenance personnel to fly and repair the F-35C. (Post)

That F-35C was in the same formation that brought the U.K.'s third F-35 to Eglin. Flown by U.S. Marine pilot Lt. Col. Roger Hardy, the plane is designated BK-3. For the UK, the F-35 program involves more 500 British suppliers who are building 15 percent of each F-35 produced. (Post)

There was some good news for Luke Air Force Base in Arizona during the week. It will get three more squadrons of the F-35A. The 72 additional jets will give the base in Glendale six squadrons totaling 144 F-35As, more than any other Air Force installation.

All F-35A pilots will train at either Luke or Eglin, the location of the current schoolhouse for instructor pilots. The first three F-35A squadrons are scheduled to begin arriving at Luke next year. (Post)

A group of airmen at Eglin won a national award from the Air Force for work maintaining the new state-of-the-art equipment for F-35 pilots. The 10-person 33rd Operations Support Squadron's Aircrew Flight Equipment group received the Air Force's Outstanding Aircrew Flight Small Equipment Program award for their work in 2012. The crew maintains the helmet, flight jacket and g-suit for instructor pilots and students learning to fly the Air Force’s variant of the F-35. (Post)


Robotics
A team from the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition in Pensacola, Fla., took first place in the initial stage of the DARPA Robotics Challenge, coming out on top of a roster of 26 of the top robotics research groups in the world.

IHMC's team scored 52 out of a possible 60 points in the DARPA Virtual Robotics Challenge, a computer simulation using software that will power a real-life humanoid robot in the future. The robot had to get into a vehicle, drive to a disaster site, walk over difficult terrain and attach a hose to a spigot.

Members of the top nine teams, which includes MIT and the Jet Propulsion Lab, move on to the next competition, with the top six getting funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and a humanoid robot built by Boston Dynamics.

The next competition, using the robots, is scheduled for December 2013. The final challenge is set for December 2014, with $2 million in prize money at stake. IHMC has worked with NASA for years on multiple projects, including creating the algorithms to provide locomotion for a walking version of Robonaut2, the humanoid aboard the International Space Station. (Post)


Airbus
Airbus awarded Honeywell a $37 million powerhouse operation contract for the A320 final assembly line being built at Brookley Aeroplex. The project will begin in the fall and completed in mid-2014. It will be managed from the Birmingham branch of Minnesota’s Honeywell Building Solutions.

Honeywell will design and build, and through a 10-year service agreement operate and maintain the facility that will supply utilities to the assembly line. Ground was broken in April on the $600 million plant that will employ 1,000. (Post)


Space
NASA selected Healtheon Inc. of New Orleans to provide a high pressure industrial water line at Stennis Space Center in South Mississippi. The firm-fixed price task order has a total value of $29.8 million and a performance period of 530 days. Work is scheduled to begin in July. The water line provides cooling water and acoustic suppression to Stennis' B Test Complex, which will be used to test the core stage of NASA's Space Launch System in 2016. (Post)


Airports
Okaloosa County Administrator Ernie Padgett has recommended hiring Tallahassee aviation director Sunil Harman as the county’s next airports director. Padgett will present the recommendation to county commissioners at their Tuesday meeting in Crestview, Fla. Harman, who has worked as Tallahassee’s aviation director since 2011, was selected from an original pool of more than 100 applicants. Harman has spent more than 26 years in the industry. (Post)

Okaloosa County officials again are pursuing legal action against Vision Airlines, this time to recover almost $40,000 in unpaid fees. That’s for unpaid rent, fuel and utility charges that accrued while the discount carrier was flying out of Northwest Florida Regional Airport. In February, Vision paid the county $117,000 in overdue passenger facility charges. (Post)


Bases
A training center for Air Force security forces will be built in Fort Bliss, Texas. The Security Forces Ground Combat Training Center will train 8,500 students per year by October 2014 by consolidating regional training centers. One of the regional training center’s that’s closing is at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The final decision will be made after an environmental study is completed this summer. (Post)

Two maintenance squadrons, one at Eglin Air Force Base and the other at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., have been deactivated. The 33d Maintenance Operations Squadron (MOS) was inactivated June 13. The unit was the only military maintenance organization to house airmen, Marines and sailors in the Department of Defense's first of its kind for the F-35 program.

At Tyndall, the 325th MOS was inactivated June 20. The squadron provided key maintenance analysis data, flying and maintenance scheduling management and flight line operations oversight. The deactivations resulted from the Air Force's decision last year to reorganize maintenance support in part because of a lack of field-grade officers in the maintenance career field. (Post)

Area bases also had multiple change of command ceremonies. At Tyndall Air Force Base, Col. Charles Corcoran relinquished command of the 325th Operations Group to Col. Max Marosko. The 325th Operations Group is responsible for directing the flying and support operations for an F-22 Raptor fighter squadron, a training and support squadron, and an operations support squadron. (Post)

In addition, Col. Chris Weaver took over from Col. Paul Skala as commander of the 325th Medical Group. Skala leaves Tyndall to be the command administrator and director of medical support at U.S. Air Forces in Europe. The 325th Medical Group staff operates as an outpatient medical facility with family practice, pediatrics, dental, flight medicine and women’s health clinics. (Post)

Further to the west at Hurlburt Field, Fla., Maj. Jeffrey Johns took over the 801st Special Operations Aircraft Maintenance Squadron from Lt. Col. Felix Johnfinn. The 801st SOAMXS performs all equipment maintenance in support of worldwide special operations missions. It supports the CV-22B Osprey hybrid aircraft and MC-130H Talon II aircraft.

Also at Hurlburt, Lt. Col. David Byer took command of the 1st Special Operations Medical Operations Squadron from Lt. Col. Christopher Patrick. The 1st SOMDOS promotes and maintains the health of 8,000 active-duty, reserve, civilian personnel, and 22,000 beneficiaries.

Finally, Maj. James Cooper took over the 1st Special Operations Maintenance Squadron from Maj. Michael Campos. The 1st SOMXS conducts special operations airlift, helicopter air refueling and psychological operations throughout the United States, South America, Africa and Middle East. (Post)


Paris
It cost between $88,000 and $97,000 for Alabama officials to participate in the Paris Air Show, according to the Alabama Department of Commerce. That includes travel costs for seven officials, but most of the money was for the Alabama booth, graphics and set-up.

The Alabama delegation numbered about 90, and most participants were from cities, counties and companies who did not travel at state expense. Nineteen communities, economic development groups, and chambers attended. At least 20 other states had a significant presence at the air show, the department said, including Florida, North Carolina, Mississippi, South Carolina and Virginia. (Post)


Education
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Worldwide will continue to operate programs at two local schools. The Okaloosa County School Board approved an agreement with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Institutes at Choctawhatchee and Crestview high schools.

Ron Garriga, who will serve as the director of local program, said that for the upcoming school year Embry-Riddle expects to have 200 students enrolled and hopes the program's popularity will increase with more on hands-on learning. Under the new contract, 10th-, 11th- and 12th-graders at Choctaw and Crestview can enroll in a variety of college level courses in the aviation field as long as they have a 2.5 GPA and two teacher recommendations. (Post)


Contracts
Boeing of St. Louis, Mo., was awarded a $39.5 million modification to the contract for Joint Direct Attack Munitions. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/EBDK, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. … Pratt and Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., was awarded an $11.4 million contract for travel and relocation for 15 contractor engineering and technical services representatives for Air National Guard (ANG) (5); Navy (1), and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) (9) in support of the F100 engines on the F-15/F-16 (U.S. Air Force and FMS); and the JT9D and J52 engines on the C-9 (Navy) aircraft. One of the five ANG locations where work will be performed is in New Orleans. … Raytheon Technical Services Co. LLC, Indianapolis, Ind., was awarded a $10 million contract for the Joint Miniature Munitions Bomb Rack Unit. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/EBMK, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity.


Shipbuilding/maritime
Keel laying: Austal USA held a keel laying ceremony during the week to mark the start of construction on a new Littoral Combat Ship, the future USS Montgomery. (Post)

Contract: Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Bethpage, N.Y., was awarded a $19.4 million modification to previously awarded contract to provide engineering and production planning services for mission packages that will deploy from and integrate with the littoral combat ship. Ten percent of the work will be performed in Panama City, Fla. (Post)

Week in review (6/16 to 6/22)

Airbus racks up orders at the Paris Air Show and picks two people for its Mobile, Ala., operation; NASA shows the media its three-story, 165-ton vertical weld system in New Orleans; the first Navy F-35 arrives at Eglin Air Force Base; and the release of the final draft of a report analyzing the impact of F-35 training at Eglin were among the stories of interest to the Gulf Coast region during the week.

Here's the week in review:


Airbus/Paris
Aviation companies at the 50th Paris Air Show announced deals for about 1,460 aircraft over the show's four business days. The show's top aircraft sales performer was Airbus, but South American aircraft maker Embraer also racked up a lot of sales in the first two days of the show. Both companies are of interest to this region. Airbus broke ground in April on an A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala., while Embraer in March 2013 had a ribbon-cutting for its Super Tucano assembly plant in Jacksonville, Fla. (Post)

During the show, EasyJet said it will buy 135 Airbus single-aisle A320 jetliners, including 100 new engine option aircraft for $11.9 billion. EasyJet will acquire 35 current generation A320 aircraft for delivery between 2015 and 2017 under an existing option agreement, and 100 A320neo planes for delivery between 2017 and 2022 under a new deal. (Post)

The Lufthansa Group, meanwhile, firmed up a previous decision from March this year and signed for 35 A320neo, 35 A321neo and 30 A320ceo with sharklets. Lufthansa is the largest Airbus airline customer and operator in Europe. (Post)

International Lease Finance Corp. exercised options to purchase 50 incremental A320neo aircraft that were part of the agreement signed in April 2011 for 100 firm A320neo family aircraft. Deliveries of ILFC's neo aircraft are expected to begin in 2015. (Post)

With all that in mind, Airbus may increase A320 production by 19 percent by 2020 from 42 a month now to satisfy rising demand. That's according to Tom Williams, the Airbus executive vice president for programs. He said during the week that suppliers need to start thinking about a rate of 50 aircraft a month. (Post)

-- During the Paris Air Show, Honeywell and Safran publicly demonstrated the electric green taxiing system (EGTS) for the first time on an Airbus A320. The technology enables aircraft to taxi autonomously using its own electrical power, avoiding the use of the main engines during taxiing. (Post)

-- Meanwhile, in Mobile, Ala., Airbus chose two more people for its management team for the company’s new A320 final assembly line at Brookley Aeroplex. Mark Smith was named manager of health, safety and environment, and Darren Gates was named facilities manager. The company broke ground in April on its $600 million assembly line that will eventually have 1,000 workers. (Post)


Space
A machine for manufacturing the core stage of NASA's Space Launch System was shown to the media during the week at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The three story tall, 165-ton vertical weld center, where friction-stir weld tooling will be used to assemble the core stage of NASA’s Space Launch System. The 200 foot-tall core stage will store cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen to feed the rocket's RS-25 engines. Engines for the SLS are tested at NASA's Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Post)

-- Aerojet Rocketdyne, the company formed with GenCorp's purchase of Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne, promised the U.S. government $1 billion in savings over the next decade as a result of the deal. Aerojet Rocketdyne President Warren Boley told Reuters that the new company expected to double its revenues over the next five years from a current combined estimate of $1.7 billion. Aerojet Rocketdyne has an operation at Mississippi's Stennis Space Center. (Post)


F-35
Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 101 welcomed the Navy's first F-35C from Lockheed Martin Saturday at the squadron's home at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. VFA 101 will serve as the F-35C Fleet Replacement Squadron, training both aircrew and maintenance personnel to fly and repair the F-35C. The F-35C is a fifth generation fighter outfitted to land on a carrier. Once in the fleet, it will complement the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, currently the Navy's premier strike fighter. (Post)

 -- The final draft of a report analyzing the impact of the F-35 program on the communities surrounding Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., has been released. The report recommends that restrictions on flights that send air traffic over Valparaiso be lifted. The report also points out that the noise impact estimates across the board dropped by 2 to 3 decibels from the 2010 assessment. (Post)


Equipment/parts
ITT Exelis has been awarded a multimillion-dollar contract from Lockheed Martin to fabricate composite blade seal components for all variants of the F-35. This award will support production for LRIP 6 and 7 through 2015. Exelis has an operation in Panama City, Fla., that works with the Navy. (Post)

-- GE Intelligent Platforms of Huntsville, Ala., will supply Ethernet switches for the Navy's MQ-8 Fire Scout unmanned helicopters. The sole-source contract is for 15 RES-210 Ethernet switches for the Northrop Grumman-built Fire Scout. The Fire Scout can operate from land bases or a variety of surface ships. The GE RES-210 Ethernet switch is designed for harsh environments, such as on military platforms that are subject to high altitudes, vibration, shock, temperature extremes, humidity, and salt fog. Fire Scouts are assembled in part in Moss Point, Miss. (Post)

-- Raytheon Co. continues to exceed renegotiated delivery schedule requirements of the AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) to the U.S. Air Force following the renewal of contract payments in December 2012, a successful live-fire test and certification of a second rocket motor source. Nammo Group, the second AMRAAM rocket motor source based in Raufoss, Norway, was officially certified by the Nonnuclear Munitions Safety Board earlier this year. In 2010, Raytheon and Nammo began development and qualification of an alternative rocket motor for the AIM-120 AMRAAM. The live-fire test was performed in January 2013 at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. (Post)


Workers
At least 2,100 civilian employees at Florida's Tyndall Air Force Base and Naval Support Activity Panama City will be impacted when furloughs begin July 8. About 700 U.S. Department of Defense civilians work at Tyndall, with furloughs scheduled through Sept. 30. There are about 1,474 people at the Navy base who will be furloughed. According to the DoD, the cuts would reduce pay about 20 percent over the furlough period. (Post)

-- An explosion at UTC Aerospace Systems in Foley, Ala., Friday morning injured two workers, one seriously. The plant is the former Goodrich facility, which became part of United Technologies last year. The plant is on the north side of Foley, near the municipal airport. Reports indicated the injured worker was cutting metal or welding when the explosion occurred. (Story)


Contracts
The Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services, Madison, Miss., was awarded a $29 million multi-year contract for full food services, including providing personnel, supervision, and any items and services necessary to operate three full dining facilities, one flight kitchen, and one central preparation kitchen in support of organizational missions as needed. Work will be at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. The 81st Contracting Squadron/LGCB, Keesler AFB, is the contracting activity. (Post)


Shipbuilding/maritime
SCMF: The newly-founded Science Center for Marine Fisheries held its first meeting at the Thad Cochran Marine Aquaculture Center in Ocean Springs, Miss., Friday. Funded by the National Science Foundation and the University Cooperative Research Center, the SCMF utilizes academic, recreational and commercial fisheries resources to address urgent scientific problems limiting sustainable fisheries. (Post)

Contract: Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Training, Moorestown, N.J., was awarded a $9.9 million modification to previously awarded contract for DDG Modernization testing efforts associated with the Aegis Combat System and MK 59 Decoy Launcher System shipcheck studies onboard DDG 62. Two percent of the work will be done in Pascagoula, Miss. (Post)

Week in review (6/9 to 6/15)

For this region and the rest of the aerospace world, much of the focus in the coming week will be on the 50th International Paris Air Show. It begins Monday, and the first four days are exclusively for trade visitors. The last three days are open to the public.

Airbus got the headlines rolling when its A350 had its maiden flight Friday, guaranteeing headlines just as air show participants arrive. The plane, which like the Boeing 787 uses a lot of lightweight composite materials, took off from Toulouse-Blagnac airport for a four-hour flight that included flying over the Pyrenees.

The wide-body A350 is expected to show up at the Paris air show, possibly Friday. It has A350 and XWB written on its belly so folks on the ground will have no doubt what it is. The Gulf Coast has ties to the A350. It's powered by twin Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines, tested at the Rolls-Royce outdoor facility at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

The A350 competes with Boeing's 787 and 777, and so far there are over 600 orders for the A350. Airbus hopes to have the plane certified for commercial flight in 12 to 13 months. (Post)

On the eve of the show, Boeing raised its estimate of global demand for aircraft in the next 20 years by 3.8 percent to 35,280 planes. It also upped the value by 7 percent to $4.8 trillion. Pushing the numbers up are demand in the Asia-Pacific region and low-cost carriers.

Airbus estimated in its last forecast in September that from 2012-2031, demand for new airliners would total 28,200 worth $4 trillion. Boeing says that from 2013-2032, demand in the segment for medium-range airliners with a single aisle, typically supplied by the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320, would total 24,670 aircraft worth $2.29 billion.

Airliner sales, particularly for single-aisle planes like the A320, are of high interest to this region of the country. Airbus broke ground in April on a $600 million final assembly line for A320s at Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

This region and the states with a piece of this region are well-represented at the Paris Air Show. A four-member delegation from Northwest Florida is led by Florida’s Great Northwest. They have meetings scheduled with 14 aviation companies to discuss the benefits of operating in Northwest Florida. The group is coordinating efforts with Enterprise Florida, the state’s economic development organization, which has meetings with more than 40 companies. (Post)

Alabama leaders, economic development specialists and local officials from around the state are also attending the show in hopes of expanding Alabama’s aerospace footprint. The delegation from Alabama will meet with more than 20 companies, some who already have a presence in the state and others they hope to recruit. The Department of Commerce says more than 300 aerospace and aviation companies and organizations operate across Alabama. One of the most high profile is the Airbus assembly plant that is being built in Mobile. (Post)

Mississippi also will have a delegation at the show. The seven-member group includes Gov. Phil Bryant and the Mississippi Development Authority. The delegation has meetings set up with dozens of companies to discuss expansion opportunities, including some suppliers for the Airbus jetliner assembly line. (Post)

One of the events at the Paris Air Show that’s bound to get attention – it has in the past – is the Sunday reception on the Seine hosted by the Aerospace Alliance, an organization that helps market Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi’s aerospace activities.


Airports
In Alabama, the Mobile Airport Authority has launched discussions with two firms to develop as many as 215 acres at Brookley Aeroplex, where Airbus is building its $600 million final assembly line. The two firms are Baltimore-based Cordish and teammate Mobile-based JMG Realty. Brookley, a former Air Force base, now hosts aerospace and other companies. The authority envisions a total build-out of the aerospace hub that nearly doubles commercial space to 6 million square feet, creates a net increase of more than 4,000 jobs and houses as many as 10,000 employees. (Post)

- Year-over-year passenger traffic at the Mobile Regional Airport increased five percent to more than 191,000 by the close of April. Bill Sisson, executive director of the Mobile Airport Authority, said several economic development successes, including the Airbus final assembly line project, have raised the regional airport's profile but are not solely responsible for the uptick in traffic. According to the authority's data, traffic has increased incrementally each month in 2013, and the airport is on track to record a landmark year for enplanements. (Post)


Space
GenCorp, owner of rocket engine maker Aerojet, has been given the thumbs up from the Federal Trade Commission to buy Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne from United Technologies. The FTC ended its 10-month look into the matter after the Defense Department urged the $550 million purchase be OKd.

Both companies make rocket engines for spacecraft and components for military missile defense systems. They are also the only main suppliers of a high-performance liquid rocket propulsion system that the military uses for missile defense.

Rocketdyne has an operation at Stennis Space Center, Miss., where Aerojet tests its AJ-26 engines that power Orbital Science's Antares launch vehicle. The Rocketdyne operation has had different owners in the past. It was once owned by Boeing. (Post)

- NASA's Orion crew module, which will sit atop the launch vehicle in NASA's Space Launch System program, has passed its static loads tests. Engineers at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., built a 20-foot-tall static loads test fixture for the crew module with hydraulic cylinders that slowly push or pull on the vehicle.

The fixture produced 110 percent of the load caused by eight different types of stress Orion will experience its test flight in September 2014. Orion also was pressurized to simulate the effect of the vacuum in space, allowing engineers verify repairs made to cracks in the vehicle's rear bulkhead found during pressure testing in November.

Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans, builds Orion and the core stage of the Space Launch System, and Stennis Space Center, Miss., tests the AJ-26 and RS-25 engines that will be used to boost the SLS rockets. (Post)

- J-2X engine No. 10002 was tested during the week on the A-1 Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center, Miss. The 60-second test signals the start of a series of firings to collect data on performance of the engine that will power a stage of the launch vehicle in NASA's Space Launch System. (Post)


F-35
Air Force Col. Todd Canterbury assumed command of the 33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., from Col. Andrew Toth as the week drew to a close. Canterbury, a former Thunderbird demonstration pilot, was executive officer for the Deputy Commander United States Forces Korea, United Nations Command, Seoul, South Korea, prior to his arrival at Eglin.

Also on Friday, Marine Col. Arthur Tomassetti retired during a ceremony in the Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron -501 F-35B Hangar. Tomassetti has been with the F-35 program for almost 15 years and flew all three variants of the F-35. (Post)

- Israel's Elbit Systems-Cyclone delivered its first advanced composite component for the F-35 center fuselage made by Northrop Grumman. The component delivered is one of 16 parts to be manufactured by Elbit Systems-Cyclone under a seven-year agreement with Northrop Grumman. Northrop Grumman is a principal member of the Lockheed Martin-led F-35 industry team. (Post)

- There were two contracts awarded during the week in connection with the F-35 program. Pratt and Whitney Military Engines of East Hartford, Conn., was awarded a $648.8 million modification to a previously awarded contract to extend the F135 System Development and Demonstration contract period of performance. The modification includes the procurement of two spare flight test engines and additional spare parts to support the F-35 Flight Test Program. (Post)

In addition, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded a $104.7 million modification to a previously awarded contract for the procurement and delivery of 83,169 Xilinx field programmable gate arrays for the Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy and the governments of Italy, Turkey, Australia, Norway, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Denmark. These FPGAs are required for the manufacture of the low rate initial production Lot VII through full rate production Lot III Joint Strike Fighter aircraft. (Post)


Bases
ATK and Finmeccanica's Alenia Aermacchi successfully completed the first phase of ground and flight tests of the MC-27J multi-mission aircraft. A roll-on/roll-off gun system pallet was installed and tested on the Spartan airlifter.

The tests at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., demonstrated the ability of the C-27J to host the self-contained, modular pallet utilizing ATK's GAU-23 30mm cannon in a side-firing configuration. The tests were designed and certified by the U.S. Air Force and deemed successful by Air Force Special Operations Command. (Post)

- Lt. Col. Patrick Godfrey assumed command of the 325th Communications Squadron from Lt. Col. Wayne Wisneski during a change of command ceremony Thursday at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. The 325th Communications Squadron provides the 325th Fighter Wing and 29 associate units with advanced communications, computer and information management systems, air traffic control maintenance systems, postal and visual information support and communications security. (Post)


Unmanned
Northrop Grumman was awarded a contract to support the Navy's integration onto an unmanned surface vehicle the AQS-24A Side Look Sonar System. The AQS-24A and its predecessors airborne minehunting search systems have been used by the Navy for 28 years.

The AQS-24A is primarily towed from the MH-53E helicopter, but has been tested from USVs since 2002. The Naval Surface Warfare Center in Panama City, Fla., is among the Navy bases that have jointly developed an 11-meter USV that launched, recovered and towed the AQS-24A. (Post)


Contracts
Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., was awarded a $534.8 million contract for AMRAAM Production Lot 27. Fifty one percent of the production effort is Foreign Military Sales (AIM-120 C7s for Oman and Saudi Arabia). Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/EBA, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. … Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Fla., was awarded a $9.9 million delivery order against a previously issued basic ordering agreement for JASSM Common Unique Planning Component software. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/EBJK, Eglin, is the contracting activity.


Shipbuilding/maritime
NSC: Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Miss., received a $76.8 million contract from the U.S. Coast Guard to purchase long-lead materials for Kimball (WMSL 756), the company's seventh National Security Cutter (NSC). (Post)

Week in review (6/2 to 6/8)

There were a lot of stories of interest to the Gulf Coast aerospace region during the week. Among them: Airbus may build even more A320s each month after the fuel-efficient A320neo is introduced; an F-35 in California notched a first by firing an air-to-air missile, and Eglin Air Force got two more F-35s during the week for a total of 25; additional acreage was purchased as a buffer around Eglin Air Force Base; Stennis Space Center is fabricating a huge part to allow it to begin testing the RS-25 that will power the first stage of the Space Launch System; the Mobile Airport Authority gets a new chief by the end of this month.

Here's the week in review:


F-35
Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., home of the F-35 training center, now has a fleet of 25 F-35s with the arrival during the week of two F-35A variants. The Air Force now has 12 F-35As, the Marine Corps has 11 and the United Kingdom embedded with the Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron-501 has two F-35Bs. The Navy will get its first two F-35C variants in the coming weeks. (Post)

Out in California at Edwards Air Force Base, an F-35A completed the first in-flight missile launch of an AIM-120, paving the way for targeted launches in support of the Block 2 capability later this year. The F-35A is designed to carry a payload of up to 18,000 pounds using 10 weapon stations. It features four internal weapon stations in two weapon bays, and can also utilize an additional three external weapon stations per wing if required. (Post)

Meanwhile, up in Maryland at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Squadron Leader Jim Schofield became the first Royal Air Force pilot to complete a vertical landing of an F-35B short takeoff and vertical landing late last month. Schofield said the F-35 has revolutionized STOVL flying. He said that with the press of a button, the aircraft transforms to STOVL mode and the plane can take off or hover hands-off. (Post)

The F-35 will reach operational milestones in 2015 for the Marine Corps, 2016 for the Air Force and 2019 for the Navy, according to details formally provided to Congress. Those are the dates that F-35 will achieve initial operational capability, the point when the services have enough planes on hand to go to war if needed. (Post)


Bases
The state of Florida bought a 20,850-acre buffer zone to help protect Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., from any development that could interfere with its missions. The land, on the eastern side of Eglin in Walton County, was bought for $12.5 million. Florida committed $10.2 million, the federal government $1.75 million and Eglin $550,000. Bases across the country face encroachment issues as developments spring up and threaten military missions. (Post)

U.S. Air Force weapons experts will brief industry June 25 and 26 on fuze technology research efforts. The Fuze Technology Days event near Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., will enable government and industry to discuss research and development efforts in fuzing technology. The event is at the University of Florida Research and Engineering Education Facility adjacent to Eglin. (Post)

A sergeant with the 33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., was awarded the Bronze Star during the week for his service during his nearly year-long deployment in Southwest Asia. Senior Master Sgt. Jamie Jordan oversaw maintenance for the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing at Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates from March 10, 2012, to Feb. 28, 2013. (Post)


EADS/Airbus
Airbus could increase narrow body aircraft production once a revamped version of its A320 medium-haul jet enters service in late 2015. That’s according to Tom Williams, a senior executive, who said at a media briefing that Airbus could wind up building 44 planes per month. Airbus and rival Boeing are both expected to unveil orders at this month's Paris Air show. Airbus is building a $600 million final assembly line for the A320 family of jets in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

Allan McArtor, chairman of Airbus Americas, was in Mobile to talk about the opportunities presented by the new Airbus assembly line being built at Brookley Aeroplex. He visited B.C. Rain High School, site of the county’s new Aviation and Aerospace Academy, then later was at a dinner for 100 Black Men of Greater Mobile. Airbus announced postings for its first manufacturing related positions. (Post)


Space
Stennis Space Center, Miss., is building a new 7,755-pound thrust frame adapter for the A-1 Test Stand to enable testing of the RS-25 engines that will provide core-stage power for NASA's Space Launch System. NASA will begin testing the engines that were used to power the Space Shuttle in the fall of 2014.

Each rocket engine type requires a thrust frame adapter unique to its specifications. On the test stand, the adapter is attached to the thrust measurement system. A rocket engine then is attached to the adapter, which must hold the engine in place and absorb the thrust produced during a test, while allowing accurate measurement of the engine performance.

NASA and the Lockheed Martin Test Operations Contract Group team worked together in designing the new adapter, and communicated closely with Jacobs Technology welding and machine shop teams to make sure what was being designed actually could be built. The adapter is slated to be finished and installed on the stand in November 2013. (Post)

A former Diamondhead, Miss., business admitted making false statements on concrete-stress tests on jobs at Stennis Space Center. Robert C. Miller, doing business as Gulf Cities Testing Laboratories LLC, pleaded guilty in behalf of the company in U.S. District Court. (Post)


Airports
Veteran economic developer Roger Wehner will take over as executive director of the Mobile Airport Authority later this month. Wehner replaces Bill Sisson, who in April was named president of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce. (Post)

A United Airlines flight bound for Houston made an emergency landing Friday at Mississippi’s Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport after a tire blew out as it took off from the airport. No injuries were reported to the 50 passengers and three crew members. (Post)


Education
Groundbreaking is expected before the end of the month on a $2.5 million aviation training center at H.L. “Sonny” Callahan airport in Fairhope. Faulkner State Community College, Enterprise State, Baldwin County Public Schools and the Fairhope Airport Authority announced plans for the 15,000-square-foot aviation center in February. (Post)


Shipbuilding/maritime
Contract: Huntington Ingalls of Pascagoula, Miss., was awarded a $3.3 billion contract for construction of five DDG 51 class ships, one in each of fiscal 2013-2017. (Post)

Ship names: Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced the next three joint high speed vessels will be named USNS Yuma, USNS Bismarck and USNS Burlington, and two littoral combat ships will be named USS Billings and USS Tulsa. The JHSVs will be built by Austal USA in Mobile, Ala., and so will Tulsa. (Post)

Launch: Austal USA launched its third Joint High Speed Vessel, USNS Millinrocket, a 338--foot aluminum catamaran. (Post)

Week in review (5/26 to 6/1)

The latest edition of the annual Gulf Coast Aerospace Corridor book is now available. You can download the PDF for free, or if you want a printed version you can order one at cost from a print-on-demand service.

The 96-page book by four current and former reporters - I'm one of them - highlights aerospace activities in the region between Southeast Louisiana and Northwest Florida along the Interstate 10 corridor. There are chapters on the region's role as an aerospace showcase, space activities, unmanned systems, military aviation and more.

More than a dozen underwriters supported the project, making it possible to provide the PDF free of charge and the printed version at cost. Also this year, a benefactor will be providing printed books to the Okaloosa County STEMM Center for teachers with aviation-related programs. We hope to get additional books to more teachers throughout the region during the year.

To dowload the book, visit the Gulf Coast Aerospace Corridor website and click on the link. You can either get the entire book or individual chapters.

Now for the week in review:


Airbus
The chief executive of Airbus parent EADS says the company will sell more than 800 aircraft in 2013, beating its initial target by more than 100 units. That’s what Tom Enders told shareholders. His words come less than three weeks before the Paris Air Show, traditionally a robust ordering period for Airbus, which broke ground in April on a $600 million final assembly line in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

Mobile's Airbus plant is spurring some activity in Pensacola, Fla. The Florida Department of Transportation is offering Pensacola International Airport a three-year, $11 million grant for infrastructure improvements. Mayor Ashton Hayward said the airport needs apron space to draw the aerospace sector to the airport. (Post)


Expansion
Huntsville, Ala.'s Cummings Aerospace now has an office in Niceville, Fla., to leverage opportunities at Eglin Air Force Base. Cummings Aerospace was established in 2009 as a defense contractor specializing in missiles. It has about 45 employees in Huntsville and Orlando and now one in Niceville. The company founder expects to have at least a dozen workers in Niceville by this time next year. (Post)


Space
3-D printing is getting a lot of attention. In a story in Armed Forces Journal, Lt. Cmdr. Michael Llenza says 3-D printing, where items are printed layer by layer from powdered ingredients, could mean ships will be able to make their own parts insteaad of pulling into ports.

Last week NASA said it's given a grant to a company working on a 3-D food printer. It could transform the way astronauts eat in space. Next year, a 3-D printer is scheduled to arrive at the International Space Station. It will produce the first parts ever made off planet Earth.

Earlier this year a J-2X engine with a 3-D part was tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Pratt & Whitney crafted the part with a 3-D print method called Selective Laser Melting to make the exhaust port cover. (Post)


Unmanned
NASA and Northrop Grumman will continue a partnership that involves using Global Hawks to track hurricanes. The unmanned aircraft, typically associated with the military, have been used on missions to investigate how hurricanes develop and to monitor their progress. Northrop's renewed agreement will run through April 30, 2018, and requires NASA to share the cost of operating the drones with Northrop, in exchange for being allowed to use the drones jointly. NASA this year is using a second Global Hawk in the program. Global Hawks, by the way, are built in part in Moss Point, Miss.


Bases
Col. Alexus Grynkewich assumed command of the 53rd Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., from Col. David Hicks during the week. Grynkewich was the vice commander of the 57th Wing at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., prior to his arrival at Eglin. Hicks will transfer to North American Aerospace Defense Command, Peterson Air Force Base, Colo. (Post)


Contract
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., was awarded a $435.3 million modification to a previously awarded contract to procure four CH-53K System Demonstration Test Article aircraft. Two percent of the work will be done in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. (Post)


Shipbuilding/maritime
Sea lions: Four young sea lions stranded on California beaches have a new home at the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in Gulfport, Miss. More than 1,000 sea lion pups have been abandoned on California beaches since January, more than three times the usual number. (Post)

Shipyard: Private equity firm Littlejohn & Co. of Greenwich, Conn., now has an ownership stake in Gulf Coast Shipyard Group, which owns Trinity Yachts and TY Offshore shipyards in Gulfport, Miss., and New Orleans. (Post)

Research lab: The first new building at the Gulf Coast Research Lab in Ocean Springs, Miss., since Hurricane Katrina in 2005 has opened. It’s the $1.2 million Field Studies Building. (Post)

Week in review (5/19 to 5/25)

First flight of Triton.
Navy photo courtesy Northrop Grumman

Aerospace stories of interest to the Gulf Coast region during the week included the Navy Triton's first flight; more orders for A320 jetliners; the selection of a general contractor to build a facility in Mobile, Ala., that will train Airbus workers; hiring of an Airbus customs manager; a subcommittee's rejection of another BRAC round in 2015; the selection of three Gulf Coast bases for installation awards; the move of two Air Force squadrons from Eglin to Hurlburt Field; and the selection of a company to do renovations at the B-2 test stand at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

And here's one more aerospace item I want to tell you about. Next week the Gulf Coast Reporters' League, of which I'm a member, will publish the third edition of "Gulf Coast Aerospace Corridor 2013-2014." The annual highlights aerospace activities in the region between Southeast Louisiana and Northwest Florida. The digital version is free.

This year, the printed version of the book will be provided to a group of STEM teachers in a pilot program, thanks to a benefactor in Pensacola, Fla. The authors, who all have children and grandchildren, want to make sure students in the region understand the opportunities here. We also want to thank our underwriters – more than a dozen this year – for making this book possible. I'll provide more details next week.

Now for your week in review:


Unmanned
The Navy's MQ-4C Triton unmanned surveillance aircraft completed its first flight during the week. It was at Northrop Grumman's Palmdale, Calif., facility. During the 80-minute flight, the Triton reached an altitude of 20,000 feet.

Triton will provide maritime and littoral data collection in the Navy's Asia and Pacific regions. An adjunct to the manned P-8A Poseidon, it will fly missions for 24 hours at altitudes greater than 10 miles.

Flight tests will continue in California for the next several months before the team transitions the aircraft to Patuxent River, Md., in the fall. Central fuselage work is done in Moss Point, Miss., on all the Navy's Tritons. (Post)

-- Earlier this month I told you that Germany pulled the plug on the Euro Hawk surveillance aircraft. The concern was over flight clearance issues. Now Deutsche Welle during the week reports that Germany's decision won't have an impact on NATO's surveillance program.

NATO plans to use five Global Hawks Block 40 type for its Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system. Both Euro Hawk and the AGS drones use the Northrop Grumman-built Global Hawk airframe.

The AGS aircraft are scheduled to be used by 2017 and stationed in Sicily. Fourteen NATO states are involved: Bulgaria, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and the U.S. (Story)


Airbus
Air China has ordered 100 Airbus A320 family aircraft worth $8.8 billion at list price, 60 for the airline itself and 40 for subsidiary Shenzhen Airlines. In addition, AirAsia could buy another 50 planes as it targets expansion in India. Five months ago the Malaysian carrier added 100 jets to its order book to lift total purchases to 475 planes. Airbus broke ground last month on an A320 assembly line at Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, Ala. (Post)

Meanwhile, Airbus Americas named Christopher Johnson customs manager for that $600 million plant. He joined the company May 20. Johnson will be responsible for securing and improving the Toulouse, France-based planemaker’s customs activities in the United States. (Post)

A lot of folks will eventually work at that assembly line, 1,000, in fact. And they have to be trained. Mobile's Rod Cooke Construction was chosen as general contractor for the Alabama Aviation Training Center at Brookley. The $6 million, 35,600-square-foot facility is for the Alabama Industrial Development Training program. It will train potential Airbus employees. The project is slated for completion by March 2014. (Post)

While on the subject of workers, the vice president of operations for ST Aerospace Mobile spoke to members of the Aviation and Aerospace Advisory Council Thursday. They were holding their quarterly meeting at the STA Mobile site.

Bill Hafner told them that collaboration with the Alabama Industrial Development Training program and aggressive development of diversified career paths will be the key to STA Mobile's longevity as it grapples with an aging workforce.

The council was formed to identify and address skills gaps and working to meet the needs of the state's growing aerospace sector. (Post)

In one final Airbus-related item -- well, kind of Airbus-related -- Alabama's aerospace, automotive, health care and financial industries are the focus of a 44-page section in Delta's Sky magazine in June. It will reach the millions who fly the airliner. Sky's "Profile" section highlights a state or city each month, and this is the first time Alabama has been featured. The section has 22 pages of ads and 22 pages of editorial. Gov. Robert Bentley said the timing is ideal since aerospace leaders from around the world will be flying to Paris in June for the 50th annual International Paris Air Show. (Post)


Bases
The House Armed Services' Readiness Subcommittee opposes the Pentagon's request for a base realignment and closure round in 2015. The panel approved language in its portion of the fiscal 2014 defense authorization bill precluding the Defense Department from using FY 2014 appropriations for a BRAC round. Subcommittee Chairman Rob Wittman, R-Va., said further review would be required before the committee could consider endorsing a new BRAC round. (Post)

-- Three bases in this region are among five that won the Commander in Chief's Annual Award for Installation Excellence. The 2013 award winners are the U.S. Army Garrison Fort Rucker, Ala.; Naval Support Activity Panama City, Panama City, Fla.; and Keesler Air Force Base, Biloxi, Miss. The other winners are Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., and Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime, Columbus, Ohio. (Post)

-- Two Air Force squadrons moved to a new hangar by running about 15 miles. More than 50 people from the 9th Special Operations and the 1st Special Operations Maintenance squadrons ran a relay to carry their official flags from their hangar at Eglin Air Force Base to their new home at Hurlburt Field. The move reunites all 1st Special Operations Wing squadrons under one roof. About 400 people and eight MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft relocated. (Post)

-- Changes to local military flight procedures at Eglin Air Force Base may mean less noise on the ground. The changes include raising minimum flight altitudes over populated areas. The commander of the 96th Operations Group at Eglin said his primary concern was safety and carrying out the Air Force’s mission, but added that the new policies also should help make things quieter. (Post)


Space
Sauer Inc., of Jacksonville, Fla., won a $6.5 million NASA task order to renovate the B-2
rocket test stand at Stennis Space Center, Miss. The project should be finished in 10 months. The B-2 stand, originally built to test Saturn rocket stages, is being renovated to test NASA’s new Space Launch System core stage in late 2016 and early 2017. (Post)

-- Sierra Nevada, a Colorado company developing the Dream Chaser spaceship to take astronauts to the International Space Station, is testing landing-related elements at NASA facilities. A flight simulator at the Langley, Va., facility is being used to simulate what it would be like to land Dream Chaser.

The company has also delivered a Dream Chaser engineering test craft to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in California to test the craft's nose strut, brakes and tires. Lockheed Martin will assemble the composite structure for the first space-bound Dream Chaser at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. (Post)


Contract
L-3 Communications, Madison, Miss., was awarded a $53 million contract for logistics services support of the TH-57 aircraft fleet. Services to be provided include repair and/or overhaul of aircraft, engines, avionics and related components. Work will be performed at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Milton, Fla., and is expected to be completed in June 2014. (Post)


Shipbuilding/maritime
Workers: About 33 Indian guest workers filed a lawsuit against Mobile, Ala.-based Signal International claiming they were tricked out of money and forced to work in barbaric conditions at the Pascagoula, Miss. facility. (Post)

JHSV: USNS Choctaw County, the Navy's second Joint High Speed Vessel, completed acceptance trials earlier this month in the Gulf of Mexico. The Austal USA-built JHSV is an all-aluminum, non-combat catamaran transport ship. (Post)

Contract: L-3 Global Communications Solutions, Victor, N.Y., was awarded an $8 million delivery order to acquire Hawkeye III Lite tri-band antennas and Hawkeye diplexer kits. Work will be performed in Panama City, Fla., and is expected to complete by September 2013. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, Panama City is the contracting activity. (Post)

Academy: Classes should be underway at Ingalls Shipbuilding's Haley Reeves Barbour Maritime Training Academy by the end of summer. The academy is meant to provide a skilled workforce and will help Ingalls expand its 2- to 4-year apprentice program to about 1,000 students. (Post)