National Defense articles from January 2003

National Defense archives from January 2003

Editor's corner.
January 1, 2003... An impending consolidation of the U.S. Marine Corps and Navy tactical aviation units has sparked a heated debate as to who really benefits from the combination of both services' tactical fighter squadrons. Top defense officials have touted the...

Those who defend us. (President's Perspective).
January 1, 2003... Just after the conclusion of World War I, the seeds of what became NDIA were planted to address the abysmal military preparedness with which U.S. forces entered that conflict. To this day, our purpose remains to advocate for a strong industrial...

Czech Republic's chem-bio unit in Kuwait. (Washington Pulse).
January 1, 2003... An elite 250-man military unit from the Czech Republic, specializing in nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) weapons defense, is on the ground at Camp Doha in Kuwait. The unit is participating in training and exercises in conjunction with...

Marines tell suppliers they'll be treated better. (Washington Pulse).
January 1, 2003... The chief of the Marine Corps Systems Command recently told contractors that it's time to stop "whining" about how badly SysCom treats them. "We have a reputation that SysCom is hard to deal with," said Brig. Gen. William D. Catto, during...

Former Polish official: military reform is slow. (Washington Pulse).
January 1, 2003... Although Poland was admitted to NATO in 1997, it has been slow to modernize its armed forces, said a former Polish defense official. Radoslaw Sikorski, director of the New Atlantic Initiative at the American Enterprise Institute, in Washington,...

JSF will be expeditionary, says aviation chief. (Washington Pulse).
January 1, 2003... At a recent industry meeting held by the Navy's International Programs Office, Lt. Gen. Mike Hough, deputy commandant for Marine Corps aviation, explained some of his goals for the Joint Strike Fighter program, including his hope that it will...

Errata.
January 1, 2003... In the article titled, "Modern Aircraft on the Way for USAF Traffic Controllers," (November 2002, p.42) the location of the manufacturing plant for the trainers was incorrect. The trainers are made in Grand Prairie, Texas. In the article...

The rise of the homeland security lobbyist. (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... The war on terrorism is spawning a whole new field of Washington lobbyists specializing in homeland security issues. The growth has been fueled by an expanding array of legal, legislative and regulatory matters arising from 9/11 and its...

FBI short on info-security specialists. (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... The FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center--established in 1998 as a focal point of assessment, warning, investigation and response to terrorist threats or attacks--is having trouble finding enough information-technology security...

Immunizing a building for chem-bio attacks. (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... Can a building be made "immune" to chemical or biological attacks? The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency seems to believe so. The agency awarded a contract to Bechtel, a major engineering and construction firm, to demonstrate whether...

Sharing information technology at airports. (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... Three elements of the emerging Homeland Security Department--the Transportation Security Administration, Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Customs Service--are cooperating on a plan to share information technology networks at more...

Department of Homeland Security trumps FBI? (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... A report released by the Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age recommended that the Department of Homeland Security take the lead in shaping domestic intelligence priorities. The study, co-sponsored by the...

Pentagon seeks to turn photos into 3-D models. (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... The Unisys Corporation's Global Public Sector, in Bell, Pa., has received a $1.23 million contract to conduct biometric research for the Defense Department. The Pentagon wants Unisys to improve the technology currently used to identify...

'Systemic approach' needed in anti-terrorism. (Security Beat).
January 1, 2003... Despite repeated emphasis on the importance of intelligence sharing, emergency responders are "still waiting for the adoption of a systemic approach to providing the intelligence that is so viral to preventing the next attack," said retired...

Flight simulator displays selected for F-35. (Tech Talk).
January 1, 2003... The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter training simulators will have advanced displays, designed to be compatible with a sophisticated look-and-shoot helmet system. The F-35 manufacturer, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, selected the SEOS...

Air-traffic controller voices made synthetic. (Tech Talk).
January 1, 2003... A dacel, an Australian supplier of air traffic-control systems has incorporated a text-to-speech technology--called rVoice--that simulates the voices of human controllers. The rVoice was developed by Rhetorical Inc., based in Scotland. The...

ROK fears North Korean ability to wage asymmetric warfare.
January 1, 2003... A buildup of conventional weapons by North Korea is a more immediate concern to its southern neighbor than a potential nuclear threat, South Korean officials said in Washington, D.C. "The threat of the conventional military power cannot be...

Joint Strike Fighter partners hope for industrial windfall.
January 1, 2003... For the eight international partners, involvement in the development of the U.S. Joint Strike Fighter program is an opportunity for their defense industries to compete for participation in the Defense Department's largest-ever acquisition...

Navy-Marine tac-air integration gets underway: as details of the consolidation come to light, operators raise wide-ranging concerns.
January 1, 2003... As the Navy and the Marine Corps prepare to merge their tactical aviation units, a debate is unfolding about the implications that the consolidation will have on the operational force. Top service officials tout the tac-air integration as a...

Aerospace commission report light on details: blue-ribbon study criticized by its own members for lack of specific solutions. (Analysis).
January 1, 2003... A high-level panel chartered to propose ways to make the U.S. aerospace sector more competitive in the global marketplace delivered a set of recommendations that, critics said, are unlikely to result in concrete action to help the industry. ...

Submariners want larger role in joint expeditionary combat.
January 1, 2003... The submarine force is seeking to redefine its role in the U.S. military arsenal. The robust firepower and intelligence-gathering capabilities available on submarines, officials said, make them valuable players in joint expeditionary...

USJFCOM steps up efforts to organize combined ops.
January 1, 2003... The U.S. Joint Forces Command is placing new emphasis on helping unified combatant commanders find better ways to organize multi-service units. The United States has nine unified combatant commands, which are composed of forces from more...

Army's Future Combat System shakes up procurement culture.
January 1, 2003... The Army soon will be soliciting industry bids for the next phase of the Future Combat System, a program that not only is unusual for its unorthodox approach to combat vehicle development, but also is managed by an aerospace firm, the Boeing...

Army logistics: changes ahead in force structure, maintenance.
January 1, 2003... A panel of senior Army officials in charge of reforming the service's business practices concluded that up to 100,000 logistics-related jobs could be realigned, in order to free up soldiers for war-fighting duties. In anticipation of...

U.K. defense researchers pick U.S. partner: Washington-based Carlyle group to seek investors for London's new military technology firm.
January 1, 2003... The United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence has chosen a U.S. firm--the Carlyle Group--as a strategic investment partner for its QinetiQ Group plc, a spin-off of the former Defence Evaluation and Research Agency. DERA--one of Europe's largest...

Future Tactical Truck to expedite transportation: Army garnering support for what could be a $3 billion vehicle program by 2006.
January 1, 2003... The Army wants to consolidate its various lines of tactical trucks into a single family of vehicles. The next-generation trucks would be modular--so they can be reconfigured for an assortment of combat missions--and would incorporate the latest...

Hybrid-electric vehicles not yet ready for the battlefield.
January 1, 2003... More than 20 years after the Army first experimented with hybrid-electric vehicles, none has been fielded yet. But as the Army increasingly is compelled to lower fuel consumption and improve the overall performance of its tactical trucks, a...

A-12 termination sets harmful precedent for defense programs. (Viewpoint).
January 1, 2003... After more than a decade of litigation, the Department of Defense continues to seek vindication for its inappropriate use of a fixed-price contract and its faulty management of the $5 billion A-12 stealth aircraft research and development (R&D)...

Tactical airlifter marketed to Coast Guard, Air Guard.
January 1, 2003... Representatives of a joint venture of Italy's Alenia Aeronautica and Lockheed Martin Corp. are courting potential U.S. customers for the C-27J Spartan tactical lift aircraft. The prime target buyers are the U.S. Coast Guard and Air National...

New division focuses on small businesses. (Government Policy Notes).
January 1, 2003... Today's defense industrial base is markedly different from the industry that supported the military of a generation or even a decade ago. Dual use, homeland security and cyber security technologies--combined with a 10-year trend of mergers and...

Defense department. (Brass Tracks).
January 1, 2003... Air Force Maj. Gen. Arthur J. Lichte has been promoted to the rank of lieutenant general with assignment as vice commander for U.S. Air Forces in Europe, at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Lichte was director for plans and programs for the Air...

Industry. (Brass Tracks).
January 1, 2003... Greenhorne & O'Mara Inc., of West Palm Beach, Fla., has appointed Frank R. Finch to the post of senior vice president for its Resource Management Group. Greenhorne & O'Mara also named Colin Visiting as the new vice president for its...

AFEI elects new board of directors. (NDIA News).
January 1, 2003... The Association for Enterprise Integration (AFEI), an affiliate of the National Defense Industrial Association, recently elected a new board of directors, incorporating representatives from America's leading defense and technology firms. ...

Women In Defense opens chesapeake bay chapter. (NDIA News).
January 1, 2003... Members of the newest chapter of Women In Defense, an affiliate of the National Defense Industrial Association, recently held a luncheon in Lexington Park, Md. Established in late 2002, the chapter serves more than 60 WID members in...

Helping Coast Guard enhance port security. (Women in Defense).
January 1, 2003... The U.S. Coast Guard is conducting a security review of the nation's critical commercial and military seaports. "With more than 25,000 miles of navigable waterways and over 350 ports, the nation's maritime system presents one of our greatest...

NDIA events & Calendar.(National Defense Industrial Association)(Illustration)(Calendar)
January 1, 2003... Chapter events JANUARY 8 San Diego Monthly Luncheon San Diego, CA FEBRUARY 12 San Diego Monthly Luncheon San Diego, CA 14 Greater Los Angeles Chapter West Coast Dinner Beverly Hills, CA 24 Rocky...