Sunday, October 6, 2024
Freed from the constraints of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and driven by a desire to cut costs, Pentagon missile defense officials are looking to develop common components for the ground- and sea-based systems now in development, Missile Defense Agency Director Lt. Gen. Ronald Kadish said today.
The Senate Armed Services Committee will meet this week to decide whether it will offer an amendment to the fiscal year 2003 defense authorization bill that would stave off the Bush administration's proposed cancellation of the Army's Crusader artillery weapon at least until the service completes an analysis of the cancellation, Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) said today.
The Army announced today that a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missile successfully intercepted a mock ballistic missile during an operational test held on Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Marine Corps Headquarters has created a new office to be the advocate for ground combat operational and budget issues, according to a message sent today to all Marine Corps commands.
Lockheed Martin today received a $500 million modification to its contract for the development and demonstration phase of the Air Force's Advanced Extremely High Frequency system.
The Navy and Marine Corps are running spot checks on the use of government travel charge cards that have been widely abused throughout the Defense Department, resulting in $62 million in charges written off as bad debt.
On June 14, when the U.S. commitment to the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty ends, the Bush administration will be freer to push allied nations toward greater involvement in the development of missile defense technologies, a senior Pentagon official said this week.
A Pentagon official said today that the new strategic forces agreement the United States and Russia are negotiating would likely be submitted to Congress and the Russian Duma for approval even though the Bush administration does not consider the document a traditional arms control treaty that requires congressional consent.
The Defense Threat Reduction Agency has chosen three contractors to build up to four test beds at U.S. military sites that will be used to develop and field systems that can detect and defeat unconventional nuclear weapons, such as dirty bombs. DTRA is pursuing the project along with the National Nuclear Security Administration.
The Missile Defense Agency will ask Congress for permission to reprogram $13 million into the Space Based Infrared System Low program in fiscal year 2002 as part of a recent program restructuring aimed at corralling costs and getting the effort back on schedule, an MDA official said today.
The Missile Defense Agency is expected soon to announce plans to restructure the Space Based Infrared System Low program and consolidate competitors working on the space-based missile tracking system under TRW's leadership, according to industry and defense officials.
The Missile Defense Agency today announced a $425 million contract award for the development of an alternate booster for the ground-based national missile defense program.
The Pentagon will attempt a more difficult intercept test of its national missile defense system March 15, the official in charge of the Defense Department's missile defense programs told House lawmakers today.
The Pentagon's top policy official today defended the creation of a new Office of Strategic Information as necessary for coordinating policy on the various information operations now carried out by the Defense Department.
Recent cost and schedule problems that led to a restructure and delay of the Space Based Infrared System Low may lead to alternative fielding approaches but do not dim top-level Pentagon support for the developmental missile tracking system, senior defense officials said last week.
The $10 billion war contingency fund the Bush administration is asking Congress to approve as part of the Defense Department's fiscal year 2003 budget request is a "real soft spot" that will likely be raided by Congress to pay for other defense programs, the chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee said today.
Next Friday (Jan. 25), the Navy will test the ability of a modified Standard Missile-3 to acquire and track a ballistic missile target in the fourth in a series of flight tests the service is carrying out as it develops a sea-based missile defense system, according to a Navy spokesman and industry sources.
A Defense Science Board task force charged with recommending improvements to the Pentagon's limited national missile defense program will hold its first meeting next Wednesday (Jan. 23).
Saudi Arabia's restrictive social codes and its indirect support for terrorist groups may lead the United States to leave Prince Sultan Air Base and set up flight operations in another country in the region, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said today.
Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said today the agreement between the Air Force and Boeing to lease up to 100 tanker aircraft "is not a done deal," adding that Europe's Airbus Industries should be given a chance to bid for the deal that could be worth $26 billion.