1. 1) LM's New Multi-Purpose HELLFIRE II Missile
(Orlando, FL., August 30, 2010) -- Lockheed Martin's [NYSE: LMT] multi-purpose
AGM 114R HELLFIRE II missile struck and destroyed a stationary tank target in its third
proof-of-principle flight test, a ground-launch test configured to simulate launch from an
unmanned aerial system (UAS). The R model, or "Romeo" missile, features a multi-
purpose warhead that enables a single HELLFIRE missile to cover all of the target sets of
the currently fielded laser-guided variants.
A team consisting of personnel from Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Army Joint Attack
Munitions Systems program office located in Huntsville, AL, conducted the test at Eglin
Air Force Base, FL. The missile, armed with a live warhead, was fired at a stationary
M60 tank located 6.4 kilometers downrange. Immediately before launch, test equipment
emulating an airborne UAS launch platform sent targeting data and warhead delay
selection commands for an armored target to the missile.
The missile was launched in lock-on-after-launch mode with a high trajectory to simulate
launch from a UAS. It used its inertial measurement unit and targeting data to fly to the
approximate location of the target before beginning its search for the laser signal
generated by the ground-based targeting laser. The missile acquired the laser spot and
struck the target within inches of the laser aimpoint.
"One of the most noticeable operational enhancements in the AGM-114R missile is that
the pilot can now select the type of lethality effects while on the move and without
having to have a pre-set mission load prior to departure, " said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Mike
Brown, HELLFIRE Systems product manager. "This is a big deal in insurgency warfare,
as witnessed in Afghanistan where the Taliban are fighting in the open and
simultaneously planning their next attacks in amongst the local populace using fixed
structure facilities to screen their presence. The AGM-114R is currently that 'one missile'
that can service all targets."
"The success of this flight test demonstrates that the HELLFIRE Romeo can defeat
HELLFIRE's toughest target; a heavily armored vehicle," said Ken Musculus, director of
Air-to-Ground Missile System programs at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control.
"It can fly to an area before acquiring a target, which enables a high-altitude platform to
strike targets behind it without additional maneuvering, and defeat a tank when it gets
there. We've worked closely with our customer to develop a next-generation all-in-one
HELLFIRE, and we're pleased that we're that much closer to getting it into the hands of
the Warfighter."

2. 1) Inmarsat Announces $1.2bn Investment in Next Generation Ka-band Satellite
Network
London: 6th August 2010 --[ASDWire]-- Inmarsat (LSE: ISAT), the leading provider of
global mobile satellite communications services, today announced that it has agreed a
contract with The Boeing Company ("Boeing") (NYSE: BA) for the delivery of three state-
of-the-art 702HP Ka-band satellites. The Inmarsat-5 constellation will enable Inmarsat to
provide a unique global high speed mobile broadband service offering.
With operations expected to start in 2014, Inmarsat-5 will support a next generation
global service, Global Xpress, which will target a $1.4bn incremental market opportunity
in VSAT services. Global Xpress will address the established, growing markets for VSAT
services in the Maritime, Energy and Government sectors, with further growth potential
in developing markets such as the Aeronautical sector. Global Xpress will deliver
seamless global coverage and unprecedented mobile broadband with speeds up to
50MB/s, to customer terminals from 20-60cm in size.
Inmarsat will target $500m of annual Ka-band revenues 5 years after global service
launch. Under a separate arrangement, Boeing has agreed to become a distribution
partner for both Inmarsat's Ka- and L-band services and has pre-committed to capacity
purchases representing more than 10% of Inmarsat's target Ka-band revenues in the first
five years after global service launch.
Inmarsat estimates that the total cost of Inmarsat-5 and Global Xpress will be $1.2bn
over 4.5 years, incorporating the fixed cost of the satellites, as well as the cost of
additional ground network infrastructure, product development, launch services and
insurance.
Andrew Sukawaty, Chairman and CEO of Inmarsat, said: "This is a new investment for
new growth. With the Global Xpress network, we will be the first operator to offer global
mobile broadband coverage, offering unparalleled speeds and bandwidth to customers
in remote locations around the world. Global Xpress will be faster and less expensive
than current Ku-band market offerings, delivered to smaller and cheaper terminals and
be the first offered on a seamless, global, end to end basis with high quality of service.
Picture 50MB/s services to a ship or aircraft and 10MB/s to an antenna the size of an
iPad (20cm).
Inmarsat-5 will also complement our existing global L-band services, allowing us to offer
unique hybrid packages using both networks, giving users unprecedented levels of
resilience and reliability in remote and harsh environments."
Rick Medlock, Inmarsat's Chief Financial Officer commented: "We expect the Inmarsat-5
programme to be largely funded from our internally generated cash flows and, with
significant available liquidity today, we see no immediate financing needs. In connection

3. with the Boeing contract, we are seeking Export Credit Agency financing support from
the US Ex-Im Bank, which could provide an attractive source of long-term debt. Given
the multi-year build phase and the strong free cash flow from our existing business, we
believe the peak impact on our ratio of net debt to EBITDA will be less than 0.5.
Furthermore, as a result of our investment in Inmarsat-5, we will move to a more
gradual replacement of our L-band network, resulting in a deferment of more than
$500m of our previously planned replacement expenditure over the next 11 years."
2) BAE To Support Special Operations MRAP Vehicle Program
(York Pennsylvania, August 2, 2010) -- BAE Systems has received delivery orders from the
U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command worth $170 million to produce 32 U.S. Special
Operations Command (SOCOM) Armored Utility Vehicles (AUV) and provide major
upgrades to existing vehicles. The U.S. SOCOM AUV is one of several Mine Resistant
Ambush Protected (MRAP) variants based on the RG33 family of vehicles.
To date, BAE Systems has produced nearly 350 SOCOM MRAP vehicles. In total, BAE
Systems has produced more than 6,400 MRAP vehicles to support urgent needs in Iraq
and Afghanistan and through nearly $5 billion in contract awards for the production and
service of MRAP vehicles to date.
Upgrades will be performed on nearly 250 SOCOM vehicles to incorporate new
independent suspension systems and other design improvements to ensure superior
mobility and performance over rocky and steep terrain. This work demonstrates how
BAE Systems' support and service capabilities are meeting the current and future
requirements to protect troops during combat missions.
"Upgrading the vehicles will provide our forces with the latest vehicle enhancements,"
said Ann Hoholick, vice president and general manager of New Vehicles and Amphibious
Systems for BAE Systems. "We will produce 32 new vehicles with the improvements
already built-in, so the entire fleet of SOCOM vehicles will be fully modernized and
upgraded."
The MRAP SOCOM vehicles are comprised of several unique features designed to meet
the robust requirements of the Special Operations Command, including a remote
weapon station, swing arm mount and a rear door assist.
Production preparations for the new vehicles is beginning at BAE Systems facilities in
York, Pennsylvania; Fairfield, Ohio; and Aiken, South Carolina, and at Spartan Motors
Chassis' facility in Charlotte, Michigan. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in March 2011
and run through July 2011.
BAE Systems has built more than 2,200 RG33 MRAP vehicles to date that incorporate

4. eight different variants, all of which have been successfully fielded in combat zones
across the globe. The unique adaptability of the base vehicle's design has allowed for
variants to include a Heavy Armored Ground Ambulance and an Armored Utility Vehicle.
3) US Army Developing “Nanomissile” for Launching Swarms of Smaller Satellites
Small is the new big. At least according to the U.S. Army who is developing a
Multipurpose Nanomissile system — the smallest orbital launch vehicle — for the sole
purpose of launching swarms of tiny satellites for various tactical missions. According to
Fox News, it stands at just a little taller than a basketball hoop, and the rocket’s
modularity could make it useful not only as a launch vehicle but potentially a missile
defense target, sounding rocket and hypersonic test vehicle as well. This move
reinforces the Army’s mission of developing cheap constellations of spacecraft that can
be easily replaced, as opposed to the Air Force’s MO of building a small number of very
expensive satellites. So, it’s a small world after all — well at least it is when it comes to
the U.S. Army. Welcome all thoughts and feedback.
4) No 'risk' from Iran's Russian-built nuclear plant: US
WASHINGTON, Aug 21, 2010 (AFP) - The United States sees no "proliferation risk" from
Iran's Russian-built first nuclear power plant at Bushehr that was loaded with fuel
Saturday, the State Department said.
The Russian involvement in the reactor, intended for civilian purposes, "underscores that
Iran does not need an indigenous enrichment capability if its intentions are purely
peaceful," State Department spokesman Darby Holladay told AFP.
"We recognize that the Bushehr reactor is designed to provide civilian nuclear power
and do not view it as a proliferation risk," he said.
The reactor, said Holladay, is "under IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)
safeguards and Russia is providing the needed fuel and taking back the spent nuclear
fuel, which would be the principal source of proliferation concerns."
A White House official stressed, however, that US views on the Bushehr reactor "should
not be confused with the world's fundamental concerns with Iran's overall nuclear
intentions, particularly its pursuit of uranium enrichment."
After more than three decades of construction delays, engineers on Saturday finally
began loading the Russia-supplied atomic fuel in the nuclear power plant in the
presence of UN inspectors.
Western nations led by Washington suspect that Iran's nuclear program masks a

5. weapons drive, a charge strongly denied by Tehran.
Russia's supply of fuel to Iran is the "model" that Washington and its P5-plus-one
partners -- permanent UN Security Council members Britain, China, France, Russia and
the United States, plus Germany -- have endorsed, Holladay said.
But he added: "It is important to remember that the IAEA's access to Bushehr is separate
from and should not be confused with Iran's broader obligations to the IAEA on this
score, as the IAEA has consistently reported Iran remains in serious violation of its
obligations."
In June, Russia backed a fourth round of UN sanctions against Iran over its uranium
enrichment program, the most controversial part of its atomic drive.
Iran says it is enriching uranium to power nuclear reactors so they can eventually
generate around 20,000 megawatts of electricity.
5) Galactic Super-Volcano in Action
(August 19, 2010) -- A galactic "super-volcano" in the massive galaxy M87 is erupting and
blasting gas outwards, as witnessed by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and NRAO's
Very Large Array. The cosmic volcano is being driven by a giant black hole in the galaxy's
center and preventing hundreds of millions of new stars from forming.
Astronomers studying this black hole and its effects have been struck by the remarkable
similarities between it and a volcano in Iceland that made headlines early this year.
At a distance of about 50 million light years, M87 is relatively close to Earth and lies at
the center of the Virgo cluster, which contains thousands of galaxies. M87's location,
coupled with long observations over Chandra's lifetime, has made it an excellent subject
for investigations of how a massive black hole impacts its environment.
"Our results show in great detail that supermassive black holes have a surprisingly good
control over the evolution of the galaxies in which they live," said Norbert Werner of the
Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology at SLAC Linear Accelerator Center,
who led one of two papers describing the study. "And it doesn't stop there. The black
hole's reach extends ever farther into the entire cluster, similar to how one small
volcano can affect practically an entire hemisphere on Earth."
The cluster surrounding M87 is filled with hot gas glowing in X-ray light, which is
detected by Chandra. As this gas cools, it can fall toward the galaxy's center where it
should continue to cool even faster and form new stars.
However, radio observations with the Very Large Array suggest that in M87 jets of very
energetic particles produced by the black hole interrupt this process. These jets lift up

6. the relatively cool gas near the center of the galaxy and produce shock waves in the
galaxy's atmosphere because of their supersonic speed.
The scientists involved in this research have found the interaction of this cosmic
"eruption" with the galaxy's environment to be very similar to that of the Eyjafjallajokull
volcano, which forced much of Europe to close its airports earlier this year.
With Eyjafjallajokull, pockets of hot gas blast through the surface of the lava, generating
shock waves that can be seen passing through the grey smoke of the volcano. The hot
gas then rises up in the atmosphere, dragging the dark ash with it. This process can be
seen in a movie of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano where the shock waves propagating in the
smoke are followed by the rise of dark ash clouds into the atmosphere.
In the analogy with Eyjafjallajokull, the energetic particles produced in the vicinity of the
black hole rise through the X-ray emitting atmosphere of the cluster, lifting up the
coolest gas near the center of M87 in their wake, much like the hot volcanic gases drag
up the clouds of dark ash. And just like the volcano here on Earth, shockwaves can be
seen when the black hole pumps energetic particles into the cluster gas.
"This analogy shows that even though astronomical phenomena can occur in exotic
settings and over vast scales, the physics can be very similar to events on Earth," said co-
author Aurora Simionescu, also of the Kavli Institute. In M87, the plumes of cooler gas
being lifted upwards contain as much mass as all of the gas contained within 12,000 light
years of the center of the galaxy cluster. This shows the black hole-powered volcano is
very efficient at blasting the galaxy free of the gas that would otherwise cool and form
stars.
"This gas could have formed hundred of millions stars as massive as our own Sun, if the
black hole had not removed it from the center of the galaxy. That seems like a much
worse disruption than what the airline companies on Earth had to put up with earlier
this year," said Evan Million, a graduate student at Stanford University and lead-author
of the second paper to be published about this deep study of M87.
The eruption in M87 that lifted up the cooler gas must have occurred about 150 million
years earlier, but a smaller eruption only about 11 million years earlier produced the
shock wave. The Chandra image was based on an observation lasting almost 7 days. X-
ray data from ESA's XMM-Newton was also used in this study.
The two papers describing these results appeared in the journal of the Monthly Notices
of the Royal Astronomical Society. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,
Ala., manages the Chandra program for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in
Washington. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory controls Chandra's science and
flight operations from Cambridge, Mass.

7. 6) Upgraded Surveillance Aircraft Arrive in Afghanistan
(August 23, 2010) -- Upgraded Desert Hawks - hand-launched, remote-controlled
surveillance aircraft which can record video footage day and night, sending it directly to
troops on the ground - arrived in Afghanistan this weekend.
The latest version of the Desert Hawk has been bought as part of a GBP3m Urgent
Operational Requirement to provide a further boost to the surveillance capability on the
front line.
The Desert Hawk's cameras have been upgraded, giving a huge improvement to image
clarity and stability. It also has a new wing design which improves its performance in the
hot and high conditions of Afghanistan.
The aircraft is just 91cm long, with a wingspan of 137cm, but it can fly for 90 minutes
with a range of nine miles (14km).
Desert Hawk is operated in Afghanistan by 47 Regiment Royal Artillery. It is light and
easily transportable by patrols, weighing about 3.7kg. It can be dispatched in ten
minutes and is virtually undetectable once it is in the air.
Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology, Peter Luff, said:
"Continuing to support this capability demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that
troops on the front line get the cutting-edge equipment to help them in the fight against
the insurgents.
"The improved Desert Hawk is a remarkable piece of kit. It provides a detailed picture of
what is happening on the ground for our troops, giving them an operational advantage
and keeping them safer."
Staff Sergeant Dan Gardner from 47 Regiment Royal Artillery, who recently used Desert
Hawk on operations in Afghanistan, said:
"Desert Hawk provides an eye in the sky that has become indispensable to troops on the
ground in Afghanistan.
"The fact that it is hand-launched and lightweight means we get a very quick and
thorough appraisal of the tactical situations faced on operations.
"It is used in a variety of roles, including reconnaissance and surveillance of troops and
patrols, and it provides valuable situational awareness to commanders of troops in
contact with the enemy."

8. Duncan Robbins, programme manager for mini-unmanned air vehicle systems at the
MOD's Defence Equipment & Support organisation, said:
"Recent technology advances have resulted in front line troops getting crystal-clear
imagery from the cameras now being introduced.
"General improvements in Desert Hawk 3 introduced by Lockheed Martin allow it to
operate more effectively in difficult conditions and provide our soldiers with greater
situational awareness in a timely manner.
"These air vehicles are essential in delivering highly flexible and responsive intelligence,
surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance [ISTAR] to soldiers on the front line."
Desert Hawk is one part of the range of ISTAR assets that are operated by the Royal
Navy, Royal Air Force and Army to support our forces in Afghanistan. The ISTAR aircraft
systems supporting troops in Afghanistan include:
--Sentinel aircraft and radar system which provides wide area detailed surveillance of
ground movements.
--Reconnaissance Airborne Pod for Tornado GR4, RAPTOR, which can read the time on
Big Ben in London from the Isle of Wight.
--Reaper, Desert Hawk and Hermes 450 remotely-piloted aircraft which provide tactical
levels of surveillance direct to troops on the ground.
The RAF's combat ISTAR assets like Reaper remotely-piloted aircraft and Tornado GR4
can provide detailed surveillance for ground forces but can also deliver an armed
response should it be required.
7) UK Awards LM $5 M for Desert Hawk III UAS
(Denver, August 24, 2010) -- The United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence awarded
Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] a $5.1 million contract for additional Desert Hawk III
unmanned aircraft vehicles.
Desert Hawk III's improved payloads maximize target detection and recognition by
providing 360-degree -- daytime and nighttime -- coverage in a common turret package.
These latest generation payloads also include a Lockheed Martin-developed navigation
system that delivers more refined target position information and superior image
stability to the troops.
Awarded by the MoD's Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) organization, the latest
contract calls for Lockheed Martin to deliver the Desert Hawk III air vehicles -- which as a
result of ongoing obsolescence management and technology advancements in this area

9. feature enhanced 360-degree infrared and 360-degree, 10-times zoom electro optics --
by Fall 2010.
"We are extremely pleased with the enhanced capability that these new payloads bring
to Desert Hawk III and the British Army," said Duncan Robbins, program manager for
mini-UAV systems, UK MOD DE&S. "Desert Hawk's latest enhancements allow it to
operate more effectively in difficult conditions and provide our soldiers with greater
situational awareness in a very timely manner."
"The battle-proven Desert Hawk III can operate in high winds, extended altitude and
extreme temperatures, making it very effective in areas such as Afghanistan," said Mark
Swymeler, a vice president for Lockheed Martin's Ship and Aviation Systems line of
business. "Unlike some other UAVs, it is extremely quiet and virtually undetectable
beyond 150 meters."
Equipped with steerable, plug-and-play imaging payloads, the Desert Hawk has provided
the British Army with greater situational awareness capabilities in Afghanistan since
2006.
The eight-pound Desert Hawk III features an open architecture environment and consists
of a light weight, hand-launched, ruggedized air vehicle with snap-on Plug and
PlayloadsTM, a portable ground station and a remote video terminal. The snap-on
payload capability allows a single operator to swap sensors on the air vehicle in less than
one minute to meet immediate and rapidly changing mission requirements.
8) Embraer Reveals Discussions on Partnership With Chilean Aeronautics Industry for
KC-390
(Sao Jose dos Campos, August 24, 2010) -- Embraer took part in a ceremony, today, in
Santiago, Chile, where the Brazilian and Chilean Defense Ministers signed a Declaration
of Intention for that country's participation in the program of the KC-390 military
transport jet. Based on this agreement, Chile's National Aeronautical Enterprise
(Empresa Nacional de Aeronautica - ENAER) becomes engaged in the discussions about
the development of the airplane and in supplying part of its structure. The declaration
also marks the beginning of negotiations regarding the future acquisition of six KC-390
aircraft to equip the Chilean Air Force (FACH).
"We recently received an unmistakable show of support for the KC-390 from the
Brazilian government, with the declaration of intention for an initial acquisition of 28 of
the aircraft by the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). We are very pleased to have Chile join is in
this program," said Orlando Jose Ferreira Neto, Embraer Executive Vice President,
Defense Market. "We have an excellent relationship with ENAER, and we hope to see it
grow even more via this partnership that not only reveals the high regard of the Chilean
government for the KC-390, which we consider to be a winning product, but also shows

10. our mutual interest in integrating the defense industrial bases of both countries."
The successful partnership between Brazil and Chile dates back to the '90s, when ENAER
began to stand out as a supplier of structures for the 50-seat ERJ 145 regional jet,
manufactured by Embraer. In 2008, the FACH ordered 12 Super Tucano airplanes by
Embraer for pilot tactical training missions, all of which have been delivered and are in
operation.
"We are very pleased and proud to see that the quality of the work done by our
personnel is being recognized, thus allowing use to participate in this new and relevant
program for producing an aircraft like the KC-390," satated ENAER's CEO, General Pedro
Bascunan. "Participating in the project brings benefits not only to Embraer and ENAER,
but also to both nations, by generating jobs and boosting industrial development. The
possibility of working together on the KC-390 program comes as an important
alternative for stimulating the manufacture of aeronautical structures in our facilities.
We are grateful for the interest show by Embraer in working with us, every time they
begin developing new aircraft, whether civilian, commercial, or military."
9) Sochi Summit Marks the Start of Russia's Return to Dominance in the Northern Tier
and the US Withdrawal.
The recently concluded Sochi Summit has highlighted the return of Russia to a
prominent, even strategically dominant, position in the Northern Tier, as the US
Administration of President Barack Obama accepts the change.
On August 18, 2010, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hosted in Sochi a summit on
the long-term posture in South Asia with the presidents of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and
Tajikistan. This was the second meeting of the four leaders. The previous meeting was
held in Dushanbe in the Autumn of 2009. The declared focus of the Sochi summit was
on efforts to stabilize the region in the long-term and jointly confront the spread of
narco-terrorism.
[Originally, the summit was to include also the acting President of Kyrgyzstan given the
centrality of the Fergana Valley to the crisis. However, with the growing instability in
Bishkek and the Kremlin's fury over the August 13, 2010, decision by the interim
Government to deprive former President Askar Akaev of his immunity status in violation
of signed agreements to the contrary and immediately after the same interim
government had invited Akaev to return and help stabilize Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan was not
invited to participate in the Sochi summit.]
Medvedev also held bilateral talks with each of the presidents. Medvedev told
Pakistan's Asif Ali Zardari that Russia was going to increase its assistance to Pakistan to
help deal with the floods.

11. "This is a severe disaster which caused many deaths and unfortunately brought great
damage. We mourn with you and are ready to provide assistance to the Pakistani
people. You can count on us," Medvedev said. A second Russian Il-76 cargo aircraft with
emergency relief was dispatched to Islamabad.
In the meeting with Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai, Medvedev hailed the marked
improvement in the bilateral relations. "There are all grounds to state major progress in
relations between the two countries," Medvedev noted. "Russia is ready to develop
economic ties with Afghan partners." (The key issues regarding Afghanistan were
discussed by all four presidents.) Medvedev's bilateral meeting with Tajikistan's
Emomali Rakhmon was pro forma only because Rakhmon was to stay in Russia for a
three-day official visit.
The summit plenary session focused on fighting terrorism and drugs spreading from
Afghanistan. Special focus was put on Russia's willingness to assume a greater role in
the dynamics of this volatile region. Medvedev emphasized that this was the second
summit of the four. "This is very good, this is a normal, working regional format, and the
more consultations we have the better it is," he said.
Medvedev articulated Russia's approach to the regional challenge. "We would like to
continue cooperating in fighting terrorism, drug trafficking and international crime.
That's why everything we discussed earlier could be continued, even though there is a
good political dialogue, it is very important to develop economic ties," Medvedev said. "I
hope that we will be able to continue discussing this issue now in terms of bilateral
economic cooperation and four-party cooperation in a number of projects."
Toward this end, Medvedev proposed to rejuvenate and modernize numerous bilateral
and multilateral social and economic projects in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Tajikistan
launched during the Soviet era. "Resolution of a number of social issues depends on the
extent to which we will be able to restart these [social and economic] processes,"
Medvedev explained. The Kremlin would like to focus first on a number of Soviet-era
projects in energy and social development that proved successful at the time. "I believe
it would be a good idea to revisit them so as to add momentum to economic
development and tackle a number of pressing issues," Medvedev argued.
In Afghanistan alone, Kremlin officials note, Russia is already involved in efforts to
refurbish more than 140 Soviet-era installations, such as hydroelectric stations, bridges,
wells, and irrigation systems. These deals are worth more than $1-billion. The summit
agreed that Russia would also spearhead the World Bank-sponsored program to vastly
expand the hydro-electric dams in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in order to supply surplus
electricity to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The summit also announced plans to build a
highway and a railroad from Pakistan to Tajikistan, thus connecting into the all-CIS
railway system.

12. In the plenary meeting, Karzai sought anew Medvedev's long-term help. "Afghanistan
will need the support of friends and from great countries like Russia," Karzai said.
In response, Medvedev noted that the Kremlin was interested in bolstering Karzai's
ability to sustain power after the US withdrawal in the context of the Afghan-Pakistani
peace plan. Addressing the problems of Afghanistan amounted to "discussing all
regional problems, including domestic ones", Medvedev noted.
The key to resolving the precarious domestic political situation in Afghanistan lay in
bolstering "the Kabul process" - the transfer of all responsibility for both the security
situation in the country and the international assistance to "the Afghan authorities".
"Russia fully supports Afghan efforts to restore civil peace in the country," Medvedev
said. Russia "naturally supports the Afghan government's fight against terrorism, and [is]
ready to provide any help needed to tackle the problem."
Medvedev stressed Moscow's apprehension that a Taliban return to power would
destabilize Central Asia entirely and threaten Russia's own security. Medvedev
reiterated that resolving Afghanistan's narco-terrorism problem required strong
international cooperation. "It's our common problem, a problem for all countries of the
region, and we must take consistent and coordinated actions," he said.
In response to specific requests from the other three presidents, Medvedev promised to
accelerate and expand helicopter -- especially Mi-17 and Mi-35 -- production in Russia in
order to make more helicopters available for export to the region. In a subsequent
meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced the possible delivery of 27
Russian Mi-17 helicopters to Afghanistan.
"We are talking about a couple of dozen helicopters with the relevant equipment. I
hope that in a month or month and a half there will be more clarity on the issue," Lavrov
said.
Lavrov explained that Russia was ready to deliver the first three helicopters for free in
order to address Afghanistan's urgent problems. The other 24 helicopters would be part
of the Russian dialog with NATO over cooperation in Afghanistan. "We handed our
proposals about how we would carry out the initiative to Brussels a few months ago. We
are now waiting for a definite answer from our partners," Lavrov said.
The summit also included expanded meetings with senior officials from the four
countries. These were Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Russian presidential aide
Sergei Prikhodko, director of the Second Asian department of the Russian Foreign
Ministry Zamir Kabulov and his deputy Alexei Dedov; Foreign Minister Hamrokhon Zarifi
and the State Adviser on Foreign Policy to the President Erkin Rakhmatullaev form
Tajikistan; Foreign Minister Zalmai Rassoul, the presidential national security adviser

13. Rangin Dadfar Spanta, the charge d'affaires ad interim in Russia Hafizullah Ebadi from
Afghanistan; and Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, First Deputy Foreign
Minister Salman Bashir, Deputy Foreign Minister Muhammad Haroon Shaukat, and the
Ambassador to Moscow Mohammad Khalid Khattak from Pakistan.
More than anything, the Sochi summit signified the return of Russia to South Asia as a
major power.
This was the beginning of implementation of the Kremlin's decision earlier this (2010)
summer to commit to long-term active involvement in the resolution of regional
problems and challenges. The Kremlin was concerned by the spread of drugs and narco-
funded terrorism, insurgency, violence and instability from Afghanistan via Central Asia
into the heart of Russia.
The Kremlin concluded that only a comprehensive plan which not only recognized the
imperative to resolve Afghanistan's security and governance problems, but also
addressed the issue of drugs-funded separatism, secessionism, and narco-terrorism at
the Heart of Asia and the Greater Black Sea Basin as a major policy issue, had a chance
of evolving into a tangible success.
Toward this end, the Kremlin embarked on a major initiative to secure long-term
international commitment to resolving Afghanistan's endemic narcotics problem, which
meant consolidating a stable form of governance and thus eliminating the consequences
of the region-wide narco-funded terrorism and destabilization.
On June 9-10, 2010, the Kremlin convened in Moscow the international Afghan Drug
Production: a Challenge to the International Community forum as the launch of the
international drive to resolve Afghanistan's long-term challenges. Senior officials from
all Central and South Asian states announced in the forum their governments' whole
hearted support for the Russian initiative. Thus, the Sochi summit should therefore be
considered the beginning of Russia's return to the region, significantly as a welcomed
major power leading the implementation of long-term policies.
In the aftermath of the summit, Russian presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko summed up
its outcome. The Kremlin's original objective was for the four presidents "to discuss the
issues in the political, trade, economic and other fields that are pressing for the
participants".
This objective was achieved, given that the presidents discussed and committed to "the
stepping up of regional cooperation in the efforts to assist the stabilization of the
situation in Afghanistan and on the Afghan-Pakistani border, with the participation of
authoritative organizations, such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and
Collective Security Treaty Organization".

14. Prikhodko's description of the summit outcome amounts to announcing anew Russia's
return to the region as a dominant power while virtually ignoring - but not challenging
or confronting - the United States.
Overnight on August 18-19, 2010, the United States reacted to the Sochi summit. Philip
J. Crowley, Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs, said that the US Barack Obama
Administration welcomed Russia's cooperation with Afghanistan and Pakistan in view of
the US own limited capabilities.
"Afghanistan and Pakistan are both countries with profound needs," Crowley said. "And
the United States cannot meet these needs by itself."
At the same time, Crowley explained, the Obama Administration has "a regional
strategy for both Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Russia can play an important role along
with other countries in the region. So we welcome this kind of interaction and we
welcome the international commitment by Russia and other countries that is
represented by this meeting," Crowley said.
The Obama Administration's reluctant and conditional welcome of the Russian return to
South Asia nevertheless constitutes a major shift in US policy.
As late as the early June forum in Moscow, US senior officials acknowledged
Washington's reluctance to commit to the eradication of Afghanistan's poppy cultivation
and narco-economy, as well as objection to Russia or anybody else assuming this role
for fear of engendering popular hostility and alienating the Kabul leadership.
However, with the US preparing to disengage from the region, and a Kabul-Islamabad-
Taliban arrangement on the future of Afghanistan all but inevitable, the presence of
Russia, given its commitment to fighting narco-terrorism and jihadism, no longer seems
so threatening.
Hence, while Crowley formally welcomed a Russian participation in implementing
Obama's regional strategy, both Moscow and Washington seem cognizant that no such
strategy exists.
Committed to disengaging from South Asia, the Obama Administration is suddenly
discovering that a long-term Russian commitment to cooperation with the region's
states might, after all, ameliorate the profound consequences of the US hasty
departure, and consequently even contribute to the Obama Administration's own
political interests.

15. 1) ICBM Test Launches Showcase Global Strike Capabilities of USA
(Barksdale AFB, La., July 29, 2010) -- Two Global Strike Command missile crews launched
Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile test vehicles June 16 and 30, respectively,
at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Missile maintenance and operational task forces from F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo., and
Malmstrom AFB, Mont., combined with the 576th Flight Test Squadron at Vandenberg
AFB to launch the missiles.
The launches give the crews a unique training opportunity to turn the launch keys that
send an actual missile rocketing into the sky, said Capt. Isaac Earnhart, the 341st
Operations Support Squadron missile combat crew commander..
The process is careful and deliberate, officials said.
"You don't get a second chance with an ICBM test launch," said Mr. Richard Serrano, the
576th FLTS instrumentation laboratory team chief. "You have to do it right the first time."
A successful launch is also a moment of pride for the missile maintenance team, said
Tech. Sgt. Robert Houck, the 341st MMXS missile handling team chief.
"It shows what we work on is still a vital weapons system," he said. "There's a certain
pride in ownership in knowing they put it together and watched it take off."
"Every flight test provides valuable experience to the crews and an evaluation of the
missile's accuracy and reliability in its intended operational environment," said Col. Carl
DeKemper, the 576th FLTS commander. "These launches are part of a continuous self-
assessment of our proficiency."
The final launch sequence begins years earlier, as pre-determined criteria are used to
carefully select a missile from the field and then transport it hundreds of miles to
Vandenberg AFB for processing by the 576 FLTS, said Capt. Douglas Carmean, the 576
FLTS chief of ICBM test operations.
"The process requires deposturing a missile on alert after months of detailed monitoring
and shipping the 60,000-lb. missile nearly half the length of the country," said Capt.
Earnhart, Malmstrom AFB's missile combat crew commander.
Once it has been transported, all missile components are individually inspected, test
equipment is installed and all components are reunited at the launch facility to once
again take the shape of a flight-ready missile, said 1st Lt. Jared Hostetler, the 341st
Missile Maintenance Squadron mechanical flight commander.

16. Teams from the operational missile bases come to Vandenberg and assemble the missile
as they would at their home bases, he said. The test launches validate maintenance
technicians' skills from the operational wings, he said.
Prior to the launch, members of the missile crew are certified by undertaking intensive
simulated test launches, Mr. Serrano said.
Launch day is like the Super Bowl to the missile community -- a rare opportunity to see
the pay-off all of the preparation, Captain Earnhart said.
Another Minuteman III launch is scheduled from Vandenberg Sept. 15, by a missile task
force from the 91st Missile Wing, Minot Air Force Base, N.D.
2) USA to Sell MK-48 Torpedo Conversion Kits for Netherlands
(Washington, July 29, 2010) -- The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified
Congress today of a possible Foreign Military Sale to The Netherlands of 40 MK- 48 Mod
7 Advanced Technology (AT) Torpedo Conversion Kits and associated equipment, parts,
training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $150 million.
The Government of The Netherlands has requested a possible sale of 40 MK- 48 Mod 7
Advanced Technology (AT) Torpedo Conversion Kits, 40 containers, support and test
equipment, spare and repair parts, weapon system support and integration, publications
and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S.
Government and contractor engineering and technical, and logistics support services,
and other related elements of logistics support. The estimated cost is $150 million.
This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the
United States by helping to improve security of a NATO ally which has been, and
continues to be, an important force for political stability and economic progress in
Northern Europe.
The sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the
region.
The Netherlands desire to upgrade its current stock of MK 48 Mod 4 torpedoes to the
MK 48 Mod 7 AT model. The Netherlands intend to use the MK 48 Mod 7AT Torpedo on
its Walrus Class submarines. The Netherlands has significant experience in maintaining
and supporting advanced torpedoes, such as the MK 48 Mod 4/4M and MK 46 5A(S)W
models, and the current infrastructure will require minimal updates. The Netherlands
will have no difficulty absorbing the MK 48 Mod 7 AT into its inventory.
Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any additional

17. U.S. Government or contractor representatives to The Netherlands. Contractor
Engineering and Technical Services (CETS) may be required on an interim basis for
installations.
3) THAAD Radar Performs Successfully in Missile Defense Test
(Tewksbury, Mass., July 26, 2010) -- The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)
radar built by Raytheon Company performed successfully in the latest integrated THAAD
flight test. The test, conducted by the Missile Defense Agency and Lockheed Martin,
(NYSE: LMT) THAAD prime contractor and system integrator, occurred at the Pacific
Missile Range Facility in Hawaii June 29, 2010.
The test marks the seventh successful intercept of a threat-representative target. The
THAAD radar, also known as the AN/TPY-2 mobile X-band radar, achieved all test
objectives: acquiring the target, discriminating the lethal object, providing track and
discrimination data to the fire control, and communicating with the in-flight THAAD
interceptor.
The fire control software, jointly developed by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, also
performed successfully, engaging the target and initializing the launch sequence.
"This test again demonstrates the exceptional performance of Raytheon's AN/TPY-2
radar as the critical sensor for the THAAD Weapon System," said Karen Kalil-Brown, vice
president, National & Theater Security Programs for Raytheon Integrated Defense
Systems.
The THAAD radar played a critical role in acquiring, tracking and discriminating the lethal
object in support of the low endo-atmospheric (inside the earth's atmosphere)
intercept. The test represents another successful demonstration of the performance of
the fully integrated THAAD system's radar, launcher, interceptor and fire control in its
tactical configuration.
The AN/TPY-2 is a phased array, capable of search, threat detection, classification,
discrimination and precision tracking at extremely long ranges.
THAAD is a key element of the Ballistic Missile Defense System, providing deployable
ground-based missile defense components that deepen, extend and complement the
system to defeat ballistic missiles of short to intermediate range. THAAD's combination
of high-altitude, long-range capability and hit-to-kill lethality enables it to effectively
negate the effects of weapons of mass destruction over a wide area.
4) Boeing Delivers 1st Super Hornet Featuring HAL Gun Bay Door

18. (St. Louis, July 26, 2010) -- Boeing on July 20 delivered to the U.S. Navy the first F/A-18
Super Hornet featuring a gun bay door manufactured by India-based Hindustan
Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
HAL manufactures the doors at its facility in Bangalore, India.
The gun bay door contract is the first military contract between Boeing and HAL. It is a
direct result of Boeing's industrial participation commitment to India, which includes
creating jobs with indigenous companies. The two companies also work together on
projects for the P-8I multi-mission maritime aircraft and for the commercial Boeing 777
airplane.
The Boeing F/A-18IN Super Hornet is a competitor in India's Medium Multi-Role Combat
Aircraft Competition. Thoughts
5) Germany Considers Defence Cuts
The German government is taking measures to cut costs where possible in order to
reduce its federal debt and consolidate the budget, with potentially severe
consequences for defence. A letter from the State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of
Finance has indicated the sums to be saved in the budgetary cycle of 2011 to 2014
amount to a total of EUR 4.3 billion (US $5.28 billion).
Programmes which may be affected include the EC655 Tiger (UHT variant) multi-role fire
support helicopter as well as the NH90 tactical transport helicopter, both produced by
EADS' Eurocopter division. The A400M Military Heavy Airlifter, the Eurofighter Typhoon,
and the Tornado Interdictor Strike Aircraft (IDS) are other Luftwaffe platforms that will
likely be impacted.
The A400M programme has been criticised by many high level officials, including
Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg. This project, in conjunction with
the NH90 transport helicopter programme and the Tiger attack helicopter programme,
has proved to be a source of growing frustration on account of excessive delays and
spiralling costs. Luftwaffe observers predict that the A400M order may be further
reduced on cost grounds, possibly resulting in one of the two planned wings being
closed.
The Eurofighter Typhoon fleet is unlikely to be extended beyond the 137 aircraft
contracted up to and including the Tranche 3A variant. As of March 2010, the Luftwaffe
had accepted only 48 into service.
A total of 85 Luftwaffe Tornados in both ECR (Electronic Combat and
Reconnaissance) and IDS variants are undergoing an upgrade in the latest phase of the
EADS Avionics System Software Tornado Ada (ASSTA) programme. However, this number

19. may now be reduced at a date sooner than previously expected.
The acquisition of the Medium Extended Air Defence System (MEADS) and the Herkules
Information Technology modernisation and outsourcing project are also considered
vulnerable in this current climate.
Of the 42 NH90s on order for the Luftwaffe, deliveries of the CSAR (Combat Search and
Rescue) variant were progressively cut back from 23 to just 12 helicopters. German CSAR
capability now rests with the Army’s upgraded Sikorsky CH-53GS heavy-lift helicopter.
The Luftwaffe hoped to field a CSAR capability by 2014, but with the specifics of the
Luftwaffe CSAR requirement now uncertain, it is possible the mission will remain with
the Army, leaving the Luftwaffe NH90s to operate in the conventional search and rescue
(SAR) and utility roles.
It has been decided to phase out the fleet of six Type 206A submarines, which would
focus the Navy’s submarine service on four Type 212A boats. The operation of 10 143A
fast attack craft is also under review.
6) France and Italy to Cut Defence Budgets
French media reports that a three-year cut of perhaps $5 billion is under consideration
for the defence budget. That is on top of the long-anticipated progamme review.
The French Defence Ministry is preparing for a reduction of 2 billion euros to 3 billion
euros in the best case and 4.8 billion euros in the worst over the next three years. The
actual figures will only be known in mid-June, when the prime minister’s office sends
out budget letters that set spending caps for each government department.
The Defence Ministry has experienced two years of budgetary buoyancy, with
equipment spending in 2010 set at 17 billion euros out of a total budget of 32.2 billion
euros, excluding pensions. The 33 billion euro budget for 2009 included 18 billion for
equipment.
In Italy, a 10 percent cut is additional to defence budget reductions executed in 2009 and
2010 and those planned for 2011. Maintenance and operations spending was already
planned to decline by 20 percent in 2011.
The Italian cuts package could threaten the Industry Ministry top-up funds long used to
protect defence procurement from dwindling budgets. The 10 percent cuts would affect
the Industry Ministry from 2011, which is when a number of funding streams from the
ministry for defence programmes terminate and require renewal if the procurements
are to be completed.
Funding for the Frecia (armoured vehicle) expires in 2011, yet funds are required

20. through to 2014. FREMM (frigates) funding from the ministry also expires in 2011 yet is
needed until 2016 or 2017. Eurofighter funds from the Industry Ministry expire in 2012
but are required until 2017.

21. 1) 6 New Boeing Super Hornets Join RAAF Fleet
(RAAF Base Amberley, Queensland, July 7, 2010) -- Six new Boeing [NYSE: BA] F/A-18F
Super Hornets arrived at Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Amberley on July 6,
expanding the RAAF's fleet to 11 next-generation, multi-role air combat aircraft.
The RAAF's first five Super Hornets arrived in Australia on March 26.
"With the arrival of these six new Super Hornets, we will continue to broaden our
training as we prepare to achieve Initial Operational Capability later this year," said
Group Capt. Steve Roberton, Officer Commanding 82 Wing, which includes the Super
Hornet and F-111 aircraft. "Our aircrews and support teams continue to be very
impressed with the Super Hornet's remarkable capabilities, performance and reliability."
Australia announced in March 2007 that it would acquire 24 of the advanced Block II
versions of the Super Hornet, all of which are equipped with the Raytheon-built APG-79
Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. Boeing will deliver Australia's 24th
Super Hornet in 2011. The first 11 were delivered ahead of schedule and on budget.
"The Super Hornet's proven technologies -- including its fully integrated AESA radar,
advanced sensors, two-engine design and network-centric data-sharing environment --
are providing the RAAF with a broad spectrum of new capabilities," said Carolyn Nichols,
Australian Super Hornet program manager for Boeing. "The RAAF Super Hornets enable
the two crew members to conduct simultaneous air and ground operations with
unprecedented situational awareness."
The Boeing Super Hornet is a multirole aircraft, able to perform virtually every mission
in the tactical spectrum, including air superiority, day/night strike with precision-guided
weapons, fighter escort, close air support, suppression of enemy air defenses, maritime
strike, reconnaissance, forward air control and tanker missions. Boeing has delivered
more than 430 F/A-18E/Fs to the U.S. Navy. Every Super Hornet produced has been
delivered on or ahead of schedule and on budget.
2) GBP189 M for New Equipment in Afghanistan Announced
(July 7, 2010) -- The Government is providing GBP189M from the Treasury Reserve for
new equipment for UK troops in support of operations in Afghanistan, Defence Secretary
Dr Liam Fox has announced today.
This additional funding will be used to buy a range of base protection equipment,
including surveillance equipment, communications equipment and logistics equipment.
It will enable UK forces to continue to increase the number of bases in theatre as the
force thickens in central Helmand, and to partner the Afghan security forces more

22. effectively.
Together with the GBP67M for the counter-improvised explosive device (C-IED)
campaign announced by the Prime Minister on 10 June 2010, this totals GBP256M
(GBP189M and GBP67M) of Reserve funding allocated to equipment since the beginning
of June 2010.
This extra funding will allow the Ministry of Defence to equip an increase in the number
of specialist C-IED teams and reflects the continuing move towards partnering the
Afghan National Army and Police and the thickening of our force across the area of
operations.
As the Secretary of State for Defence has made clear, countering the IED threat faced by
our forces in Afghanistan is a top priority for the new Government. He said:
"There are real challenges; the threat does not stand still and nor does our response.
"I will make sure that everything possible is done to ensure that our forces have what
they need to deal with this indiscriminate threat.
"They deserve nothing less. As I have seen during my visits they are doing fantastic work
in Afghanistan in support of the UK's national security."
The Secretary of State has also made it clear when looking to the future that when the
Afghan security forces have been sufficiently trained to take control, our troops can
withdraw:
"...our forces are making progress. In Helmand, the heartland of the insurgency, six
districts were under government control in 2008 - now 11 out of 14 are.
"We are also ahead of target in training the Afghan National Security Forces. As soon as
they are able to keep their country secure our forces can come home."
The equipment package for operations and pre-deployment training includes the
following:
-- Base equipment (GBP158M) including:
- secure communications systems;
- ground-based ISTAR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance)
systems to protect bases.
-- Dismounted Close Combat equipment (GBP19M) including:

23. - Osprey body armour and helmets;
- weapons systems including light and heavy machine guns and combat shotguns;
- weapon sights and night vision equipment.
-- Other (GBP12M) including:
- additional MAN logistics support vehicles modified for use in Afghanistan (equipping
existing vehicles to Theatre Entry Standard to allow them to deploy).
The C-IED equipment package announced by the Prime Minister on 10 June 2010
(GBP67M) includes:
-- Mastiff protected mobility vehicles;
-- remote-controlled vehicles;
-- specialist IED disruptive and exploitation equipment;
-- highly trained military working dogs.
These additional resources are aimed at dealing both with the IED threat of today whilst
looking to the future by partnering with the Afghans, to whom responsibility for security
will be transferred.
3) USAF Awards Raytheon $12.6 M HMIT Contract
(Farnborough, England, July 19, 2010) -- The U.S. Air Force has awarded Raytheon
Company (NYSE: RTN) a $12.6 million contract for Phase 1 integration and qualification
of the Helmet Mounted Integrated Targeting (HMIT) system for Air Force and Air
National Guard A-10C and F-16C Block 30/32 aircraft.
HMIT will be a "heads-up" system that displays crucial information in high-resolution
color imagery directly in the pilot's field of vision. Information displayed will include
weapons-cueing, targeting and situational awareness information, including data from
on-board and remote sensors. The system will track helmet movement to display
accurate imagery regardless of the direction the pilot's head is turned, and it will be fully
compatible with U.S. military-standard airborne night vision systems.
Raytheon Technical Services Company LLC (RTSC), the prime contractor, is teamed with
Gentex Corp. to produce the system, based on Gentex's Visionix Scorpion(tm) Helmet
Mounted Cueing System. The program includes five one-year production options, with a
potential total value up to $50 million.
"The HMIT contract is a natural extension of our work designing and integrating
advanced electronic display systems into fixed- and rotary-wing military aircraft," said
RTSC Customized Engineering and Depot Support Vice President Wayne Iurillo. "The
purpose of these new display systems is to give pilots the information they need, when

24. and where they need it, so they can accomplish their missions. We've proven we can do
that quickly, reliably and cost-effectively, with minimum downtime and minimal
modification to the aircraft."
4) Raytheon Awarded $55 M to Deliver TOW Missiles to Saudi Arabia
(Farnborough, England, July 18, 2010) -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) received a $55
million contract to deliver TOW (Tube-Launched, Optically-Tracked, Wireless-Guided) 2A
Radio Frequency missiles to the U.S. government as part of a foreign military sale to
Saudi Arabia's National Guard.
"TOW RF missiles are tremendous weapons because of their high mobility, rapid
response and close-fire support capabilities," said Jim Riley, Raytheon's vice president of
Land Combat. "This missile can give soldiers at the lowest tactical echelon immediate,
precision firepower."
TOW RF missiles include an RF transmitter added to the missile case and an RF receiver
located inside the missile. Since no launcher modifications were required for the
transition to wireless, this growth in capability is transparent to TOW customers.
"On today's battlefield, potential targets are hiding in caves, behind boulders or in the
mountains," said Shawn Ball, Raytheon's TOW international business development
manager. "TOW RF missiles are more than capable of taking out these kinds of targets.
The RF link enhances operations in urban environments by providing greater reliability
and precision performance."
TOW missiles are the most used precision heavy assault weapons in war today. Available
on more than 10,000 airborne and ground platforms, the missiles are used by 40
countries in combat operations around the world.
5) Committee Approves Hutchison Cosponsored Bill to Preserve America's Human
Spaceflight Capabilities
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
today unanimously approved legislation cosponsored by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
(R-Texas), Ranking Member on the Committee, to safeguard America's human
spaceflight capabilities while balancing commercial space investment with a robust
mission for NASA. The bill was sponsored by Committee Chairman John D. Rockefeller
(D-W.Va.) and cosponsored by Senators Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), David Vitter (R-La.) and
George LeMieux (R-Fla.).
"I am extremely pleased that we have been able to work out a bipartisan compromise
on the NASA Authorization legislation. It has been a long and very hard road to get
here," said Senator Hutchison. "We began more than four months ago with a new

25. proposal for NASA introduced by the President which I believe would have ended the era
of U.S. dominance in space exploration, threatened the use of the International Space
Station, and jeopardized manned space flight. This legislation approved today represents
a strong balance between the need for investment in new technology and the continued
evolution of the commercial market to take an increasing role in supporting our efforts
in low Earth orbit. This will allow for greater emphasis on funding the next generation of
launch technology needed to allow us to resume our role as explorers."
The NASA Authorization Act of 2010 addresses the following areas:
International Space Station (ISS)
The bill would extend full utilization of the space station through at least 2020. It would
ensure safe and effective operation, maintenance and maximum utilization of the space
station through a comprehensive report to Congress of essential systems, components,
elements, etc., on board or planned for delivery and installation, including replacement
parts needed through 2020.
Space Shuttle Retirement and Transition
The bill would authorize and direct NASA to fly the space shuttle Launch on Need (LON)
flight pending results of a required assessment of safe means of return for astronauts if
the shuttle is damaged or unable to return. The bill also would preserve space shuttle
capabilities through 2011 to complete the current manifest. It would also prohibit
termination of any contracts that would inhibit launching of the space shuttle.
Commercial Crew and Cargo Transportation Capabilities
The bill would direct NASA to continue the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services
Program (COTS) in support of providing cargo services to the space station and would
establish a requirement for the definition of milestones and minimum performance
objectives to be achieved before procurement authority is granted for crew
development capability.
Expansion of Human Space Flight Beyond the International Space Station and Low-Earth
Orbit
The bill would direct NASA to initiate development of a government-owned, NASA-
designed and operated " Space Launch System" (SLS) - a heavy lift launch capability - as
soon as practicable and would establish the end of 2016 as the goal for full operational
capability while allowing for modification and/or extension of existing contracts. The bill
would also require NASA to develop a multi-purpose crew transportation vehicle for use
with the Space Launch System.

26. Rescoping and Revitalizing Institutional Capabilities
The bill would require a study to identify an approach for the most efficient use and
maintenance of NASA facilities and infrastructure, paying specific attention to
eliminating unneeded duplication or infrastructure. It would also prohibit NASA from
making any movement or termination of contractors or civil servants or any
reorganization or reduction in force for reasons other than cause, until Congress receives
the required reports and legislative authority to make such changes.

27. 1) The Royal Air Force of Oman takes delivery of its 1st NH90
(June 28, 2010) -- NHIndustries is pleased to announce the delivery on time of the first
batch of two NH90.multipurpose helicopters ordered by the Royal Air Force of Oman
(RAFO). The Certificate of Transfer of both helicopters occurred on June 23 on the Royal
Air Force of Oman base of MUSANA after a very demanding 2 months evaluation period
in severe operational conditions.
This initial delivery which marks the first delivery of an NH90 in the middle east will be
followed ahead of schedule, in July, by the acceptance process of the second batch of
NH90. These helicopters are supported by an integrated NHI/ RAFO maintenance team
who will operate for the 1st time in the NH90 world a specific maintenance tool: GLIMS
(Ground Logistic Information Management System).
The RAFO have up to now ordered 20 NH90 TTH in order to replace its fleet of ageing
AB205A/206/212/214.
The NH90 TTH chosen by Oman is to date one of the most advanced and versatile
version of the NH90. This NH90 fleet will cover a wide spectrum of missions from the
VIP transport, to troop transport and Search and Rescue missions round the clock in the
most demanding conditions.
This new generation helicopter combines a full composite airframe, an outstanding fly
by wire control system, with two powerful engines and an integrated mission system in
order to offer its customers the best level of performance of its class.
In addition, NHIndustries and its partner companies ensure the training of the crews and
the support of the Omani fleet in order to guarantee the highest level of availability.
The introduction of such an advanced transport helicopter in the middle east attracts
the attention of several countries in the region.
2) Malaysia Signs New Defence Contracts
The Malaysian government signed defence contracts valued at MYR341.79 million
(US$D106.77 million) at the Defence Services Asia (DSA) 2010 Exhibition and Conference
in Kuala Lumpur on the 20th April. It also issued several letters of acceptance and
letters of intent at the event.
A total of eight contracts were signed, the largest being an MYR128.5 million deal with
DCNS of France for the supply of Scorpene submarine navigation safety systems, combat
systems, sensors and periscope simulators.
The next largest contract was awarded to Russia’s Sukhoi for MYR100 million over three
years for spare parts, components and support items along with services and technical

28. assistance for the Su30MKM multi-role combat aircraft of the Royal Malaysian Air Force
(RMAF).
France’s TDA Armements SAS was awarded a MYR60 million contract for eight 2R2M
120 mm mortars and Malaysian company Difense Konsult won a MYR6.9 million
contract for the supply of 180 HK416 assault rifles for the Royal Malaysian Navy special
forces unit.
The other four contracts–totalling MYR46.3 million–were awarded to Malaysia’s SME
Ordnance (SMEO) for the supply of various ammunition rounds for the Malaysian Army.
The largest LoA for MYR1.6 billion was awarded to Eurocopter for 12 EC 725 Cougar
helicopters for the RMAF.
Malaysia’s DRB-Hicom Defence Technologies (Deftech) was awarded a MYR8 billion LoI
to develop, manufacture and supply 8x8 armoured fighting vehicles (AFV) for the
Malaysian Army. Deftech’s subsidiary company Defence Services was awarded a MYR97
million LOI for the supply of spares for the maintenance of the army’s 48 PT-91M tanks
and its 14 variant vehicles for a period of three years.
SMEO was awarded a RM213 million LOI for the five-year supply of small-arms
ammunition to the armed forces, police and other government agencies. The last
MYR12.4 million LOI went to Malaysian company System Enhancement Resources &
Technologies (SERT) for the supply of 18 105 mm gun towed vehicles.
3) THAAD Weapon System Achieves Lowest Endo Intercept to Date
(Dallas, TX., June 29, 2010) -- The Missile Defense Agency and Lockheed Martin
[NYSE:LMT] conducted a successful flight test of the Terminal High Altitude Area
Defense (THAAD) Weapon System today at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai,
HI. This flight test was THAAD's seventh intercept to date and proved the system's
ability to intercept a unitary target in the low endo-atmosphere.
There were many THAAD flight test program "firsts" accomplished during FTT-14,
including the lowest endo-atmospheric intercept to date; use of fielded THAAD ground
segment hardware and software from the THAAD production program; and the first live
mission to demonstrate automatic engagement coordination between THAAD and
Patriot.
In addition to Patriot, the flight test included participation by the C2BMC element. The
C2BMC reported situational awareness to combatant commander displays monitoring
the test.

29. Flight test objectives included demonstrating the integration of the THAAD Weapon
System; intercepting the target at a highly stressing angle due to the high pressure
environment of the endo-atmosphere; completing target acquisition and aimpoint
selection by the interceptor's seeker avionics flight software; and operating the radar,
fire control and launcher by U.S. Army soldiers during the mission.
"Today's successful low endo intercept further proves THAAD's mission flexibility and
capability," said Tom McGrath, vice president and program manager for THAAD at
Lockheed Martin. "The weapon system's success is much to the credit of the U.S. Army
soldiers' superior performance in executing this mission and their dedication to 100
percent Mission Success."
Since 2005, the program has completed 11 flight tests, with seven-for-seven intercepts.
THAAD is the only missile defense system with the operational flexibility to intercept in
both the endo- and exo-atmospheres to provide versatile capability to the Warfighter.
Two THAAD batteries have been activated at Ft. Bliss, TX. The first THAAD Battery (A-4
ADA Battery) was activated in May 2008. Soldiers from the battery recently completed
the Force Development Exercise and began Limited User Testing in May in preparation
for material release expected late this year. In October 2009, the U.S. Army activated
the second THAAD Battery (A-2 ADA Battery). Unit training for this Battery began earlier
this year.
A key element of the nation's Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS), THAAD is a
Missile Defense Agency program, with the program office located in Huntsville, AL. The
Agency is developing the BMDS to defend the United States, its deployed forces, friends
and allies against ballistic missiles of all ranges and in all phases of flight.
4) GD Awarded $14 M by US Army for 25mm and 30mm Ammunition
(St. Petersburg, Fla., June 29, 2010) -- General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems
has been awarded two contracts from the Project Manager for Maneuver Ammunition
Systems (PM MAS) at Picatinny Arsenal, N.J., for production of 30mm M789 High
Explosive Dual Purpose (HEDP) ammunition and Phase III development of 25mm
scalable fuze technology. The total value of the two contracts is more than $14 million.
The 30mm M789 HEDP is the primary tactical round of the Apache AH-64 helicopter,
widely used in Iraq and Afghanistan operations. The Apache's ability to provide accurate
air support with minimal collateral damage has led to increased use and volume
demands for M789 ammunition. In response to the increased demand, the U.S. Army
has contracted General Dynamics to establish a full-production capability for the M789

30. cartridge.
"Establishing a second, independent production line for the M789 eliminates potential
single-point production failure and gives the Army more resources to meet the growing
ammunition needs of the warfighter, quickly and efficiently," said Tim McAuliffe, vice
president and general manager of medium caliber ammunition for General Dynamics.
In addition, General Dynamics was awarded the Phase III development effort of the
Scalable Medium Cannon Caliber Airburst Fuze Development Study. General Dynamics
has successfully completed Phase I and II of the study. An essential overall objective of
this development effort is to create scalable fuze technology that provides a plug-and-
play capability for munitions ranging from 25mm to 50mm calibers.
The successful development of the 25mm fuze technology will provide the U.S. Army
Bradley Fighting Vehicle and U.S. Marine Corps LAV-25 with the capability to reach
targets in defilade via an airburst projectile. The technology also provides the ability to
detonate a projectile within a hard target by using a selectable or delayed point
detonation feature. The scalable technology has already been successfully
demonstrated across a variety of weapon platforms from 25mm to 40mm and has the
ability to be inserted in future platforms such as the Army's Ground Combat Vehicle.
"The advancement of scalable technology will allow the military to upgrade the
capability of their legacy systems while easily integrating onto future weapon
platforms," said Mr. McAuliffe.

31. United States – Russia Considering Joint Production of AN_124 Condor Heavy-lift
Transport Aircraft
The United States is considering a Russian proposal on the joint production of An-124
Condor heavy-lift transport aircraft, a Russian deputy prime minister said.
The An-124 was designed by the Antonov Design Bureau in 1982, and was produced in
Ukraine's Kiev and Russia's Ulyanovsk plants until 1995. Although there are no An-124s
being built at present, Russia and Ukraine have reportedly agreed to resume production
in the future.
"We have discussed a full-scale project, which includes the joint production of the plane,
setting up a joint venture, shared rights, sales to Russian and American customers - both
civilian and military - and the creation of a scheme for post-production servicing," Sergei
Ivanov told reporters in Washington.
The An-124 is similar to the American Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, but has a 25% larger
payload.
The aircraft has a maximum payload of 150 metric tons with a flight range of around
3,000 kilometers (1,864 miles).
An-124s have been used extensively by several U.S. companies. Russian cargo company
Volga-Dnepr has contracts with Boeing to ship outsize aircraft components to its Everett
plant.
United Launch Alliance contracts the An-124 to transport the Atlas V launch vehicle
from its facilities near Denver to Cape Canaveral.
Space Systems Loral contracts the An-124 to transport satellites from Palo Alto in
California to the Arianespace spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
According to Ivanov, the Pentagon has contracted An-124 planes for military transport
purposes until 2016.
"The An-124 planes, made during the Soviet era, have been used extensively in the
interests of U.S. customers. We are offering a full-scale project, rather than a simple
lease," Ivanov said.
Russia plans to manufacture a total of 20 An-124 aircraft by 2020 in accordance with the
state arms procurement program.
2) NGC Announces $184 M Advance Procurement Contract

32. (Pascagoula, Miss., April 30, 2010) -- The U.S. Navy awarded a $184 million cost plus
fixed-fee advance procurement contract modification to Northrop Grumman
Corporation (NYSE:NOC) that will provide long lead materials for LPD 26, the tenth
amphibious transport dock ship of the USS San Antonio (LPD 17) class.
The funds will be used to purchase long lead time materials and major equipment in
support of the new ship, such as main engines and diesel generators and other
equipment including electrical switchboards, deck equipment and fire extinguishing
systems.
The work will be performed at the company's Gulf Coast facilities. This is the second
advance procurement contract for LPD 26.
"Northrop Grumman Shipbuilders are committed to building a high quality ship -- the
10th in this strong class of amphibs for the U.S. Navy," said Tim Farrell, vice president
and program manager of the LPD program for Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding-Gulf
Coast. "This procurement contract enables us to continue our focus on effective and
efficient supply chain management through the advanced purchase of essential material
that will help us meet our schedule commitments with our Navy customer."
The ten ships of the LPD 17 class are a key element of the Navy's ability to project power
ashore. Collectively, these ships functionally replace over 41 ships (LPD 4, LSD 36, LKA
113, and LST 1179 classes of amphibious ships) providing the Navy and Marine Corps
with modern, sea-based platforms that are networked, survivable, and built to operate
with 21st Century platforms, such as the MV-22 Osprey and the Expeditionary Fighting
Vehicle (EFV).
The LPD 17-class ships are 684 feet long, 105 feet wide and displace approximately
25,000 tons. Their principal mission is to deploy the combat and support elements of
Marine Expeditionary Units and Brigades. The ship can carry up to 800 troops and have
the capability of transporting and debarking air cushion (LCAC) or conventional landing
craft and EFVs, augmented by helicopters or vertical take-off and landing aircraft such as
the MV-22. These ships will support amphibious assault, special operations, or
expeditionary warfare missions through the first half of the 21st Century.
3) India and China’s water sector get $ 472 million from World Bank
Tuesday, 22 June 2010 22:07
The World Bank will lend India $372 million and China $100 million to help both
countries’ manage their water sector.
India will use $222 million for its coastal zone management project and $150 million for
the current Karnataka rural water supply project.

33. With the World Bank support, China will address the deteriorating water condition in
the Turpan Basin in easternmost Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.
India’s marine resource is said to be suffering from rapid urban industrialization, risking
the health of about 63 million residents in low-elevation coastal areas.
India’s coastal management program includes pilot investments such as mangrove
plantation, coral reef regeneration and sewerage and solid waste management in the
coastal states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal.
The Karnataka project is part of the bank’s longterm program to support local
government projects to build water supply systems in 4,166 villages. The project began
in 1993. The funding will enable the Karnataka project to include 1,650 more villages,
allowing four million people to access reliable water supply.
The Xinjiang Turpan water conservation project is expected to reduce groundwater
overdraft in the Turpan Basin while raising industrial and domestic water supply and
farmers’ income from irrigated agriculture.
Around 600,000 people inhabit the Turpan Prefecture, where farmers traditionally rely
on mountain rivers, or from the ancient Karez water systems for irrigation.
The area has been experiencing groundwater overexploitation caused by increased
water consumption brought about by rapid economic growth in recent years.
The bank and the local government will execute water-saving approaches, such as
evapotranspiration-based integrated water management system to assess, plan and
allocate water for consumptive use.
The project also includes construction of three reservoirs to upgrade flood control in
three main watersheds while increasing water supplies downstream and maintaining
minimum ecological river flows.
The project will also employ other water saving methods such as construction and
rehabilitation of the main canals, a switch from furrow to drip irrigation, land leveling,
canal lining and improved drainage systems.
Also, a 2,000-year-old Karez water supply system will be restored to continue providing
running water to the Turpan Basin.
Of the 1,237 ancient Karez systems that existed in 1957, only 300 still have running
water. The disappearance of these water systems has led to the degradation of the oasis
ecosystems in the Turpan Basin.

34. 4) As tiny U.A.E.'s water tab grows, resources run dry
Tuesday, 22 June 2010 21:09
By Reuters
DUBAI, June 21 (Reuters) - Driving along brand new highways with medians of lush trees
and manicured grass, one could easily forget the United Arab Emirates sits on a
sweltering desert coast with rapidly diminishing freshwater resources.
The Gulf Arab nation's oil income has allowed it to subsidize extravagant water use for
Emiratis, either those in gated communities sporting pristine pools and evergreen golf
courses or for farmers clinging to ancient irrigation practices.
Environmentalists warn the country, already reliant on costly desalination plants
powered by its lucrative fossil fuels, must cut consumption by its 8.2 million people or
risk depleting groundwater resources in 50 years.
"We need to convince them that water here isn't a free resource. It's not even a natural
resource, it's manmade. It is costly, and it has a big environmental impact," said
Mohamed Daoud of the state-run Environment Agency in Abu Dhabi.
But that is not an easy task in a country where billboards encouraging conservation
compete for space and attention with promotions for water parks, an indoor ski slope
and a famous dancing fountain.
Abu Dhabi, seat of the seven-member U.A.E. federation and the wealthiest of its
emirates, consumes 550 liters of water per person per day, Mr. Daoud said – two times
to three times the world average of 180 liters to 200 liters. Analysts say per capita water
use in the U.A.E. overall is roughly four times that of Europe.
To ease groundwater use, about 60 percent of consumption in the desert country, the
U.A.E. has invested heavily in desalination, producing 9 million cubic meters of water
daily at $18 million a day.
Desalination dependence is a luxury only oil-rich Gulf countries can afford. It requires
huge amounts of fuel and sea water. Dubai is completely reliant, while Abu Dhabi's use
more than tripled by 2007, the Emirates Wildlife Society said.
"The U.A.E. was a net gas exporter before 2008, but now it has become a net gas
importer," Ayesha Sabavala, of London's Economic Intelligence Unit said, citing
increased desalination and electricity production as the main cause.
Energy drain

35. Desalination is powered mostly by gas and, more rarely, oil – resources that
transformed the U.A.E. from a small pearl diving and fishing center into a financial hub
in half a century.
Alternatives like nuclear energy will take another 10 years at least, said Ms. Sabavala of
the Economist Intelligence Unit. Without alternatives, she expected desalination would
increase domestic demand for oil and gas, thereby decreasing exports.
Economist Eckert Woertz of the Gulf Research Center stressed the importance of finding
alternatives to future oil use quickly.
"That is such a high opportunity cost, because it (oil) is exported at $70 to $80 a barrel.
Why dump it into local plants for subsidized prices? That's crazy," he said.
More than six desalination projects are now being planned and are expected to add
over 4 million cubic meters a day. Yet storage problems mean much desalinated water is
never even used.
"Desalination plants continue producing the same amount per hour, 24 hours a day. So
what do we do with the excess water right now? We dump it in the Gulf," Mr. Daoud
said, adding that the state will develop a system to transport surplus to aquifers.
Beyond economic concerns, desalination dependence could also make the U.A.E. more
vulnerable in the event of regional strife, such as any United States-Iran military
escalation or Al-Qaeda strike.
"A desalination plant is a large factory sitting on the coast, something that you could
easily blow up with a bomb or a missile," Hady Amr of the Brookings Institute said. "You
could bring the country to its knees."
Costly customs
Glitzy skyscrapers and luxury villas are not the only culprits of water waste, which is also
a problem in agricultural areas including those relying on traditional practices.
Hours from Dubai, the U.A.E.'s hot desert sands stretch into the lush Hili oasis, where
Mohammed al-Thahri, 22, inspects canals that snake through his father' date palm field
and watches workers in nearby fields open chutes to flood their orchards.
Like the 100 other date farmers in Hili, the Thahris' wells are drying up, forcing them to
drill new wells to maintain a 1,000-year-old irrigation method of inundating fields by
water canals. They do not export or sell their dates, as they consume the entire yield
themselves.

36. "It wastes water," Mr. Thahri said, shrugging. "But these palms are from our ancestors,
it's our heritage. If we stopped raising them, it would be like abandoning our own
children."
Two-thirds of water consumption in the largest emirate of Abu Dhabi – home to the al-
Ain oases that include Hili – comes from agriculture. Farmers whose wells run dry are
given desalinated water at subsidized rates from the government.
These statistics rattle technocrats like Mr. Daoud trying to decrease wasteful
consumption among a citizenry accustomed to the government footing up to 60 percent
of their utilities bill.
But reducing subsidies to spur individual conservation efforts is not an option for the
U.A.E.'s ruling families.
"U.A.E. nationals have always been used to having these subsidies," the Economic
Intelligence Unit's Ms. Sabavala said. "Getting rid of them would be political suicide."
5) ITT Receives $53 M Order from the UK for Night Vision Goggles
Jun 21, 2010
(Roanoke, Va., June, 18, 2010) -- ITT Corporation (NYSE:ITT) has received a $53 million
order from the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence (MoD) for head-mounted night
vision systems (HMNVS) that provide ground-based soldiers with superior performance
during nighttime operations. To date, this is ITT's largest order from the United Kingdom
for night vision systems. The deliveries of the HMNVS will take place over the
customer's next five fiscal years.
"This recent order from the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence shows the high degree
of confidence the customer has in ITT and our ability to deliver Generation 3 night vision
technology," said Bruce A. Wald, vice president and general manager of ITT's Night
Vision & Imaging business. "Our Generation 3 solution is the first night vision technology
choice of our international allies to operate in challenging environments."
ITT has supported the UK MoD's HMNVS program since 2003 by providing these battle-
ready systems. In addition to the new systems produced at ITT's facility in Roanoke,
Virginia, ITT Defence Ltd. in Basingstoke, U.K. has also provided in-country, logistics
support to the growing fleet of HMNVS since 2005. They have converted nearly 2,000
HMNVS from dual-battery to single-battery configuration and provide expedited repair
to any systems requiring maintenance before, during or after deployment.
In addition to the faster repairs, ITT has increased its manufacturing capacity to meet
the requirements of the international market. The expanded capacity has enabled ITT to
deliver night vision technology to U.S. allies and coalition forces within 120 days after

37. receiving an approved export license from the U.S. Department of State.
The HMNVS is the MoD's variant of the AN/PVS-14, the ITT supplied night vision goggles
that are commonly used by the U.S. military and homeland security agencies. The
AN/PVS-14 is a lightweight, single-battery monocular goggle equipped with ITT's
Generation (Gen) 3 night vision technology, the most advanced night vision in the field
today. ITT's Gen 3 goggles provide the clearest, sharpest image available for soldiers
performing nighttime operations, giving them the advantage on the battlefield. ITT Gen
3 goggles last in excess of 10,000 hours, compared to the Gen 2 tubes that last
approximately 2,000 to 4,000 hours.

38. 1) Watchkeeper UAV Nears Service-Entry with British Army
The Watchkeeper Tactical UAV for the British Army will start UK trials after Easter this
year and is due to enter service with the British Army later in the year. It will then be
deployed to Afghanistan in early 2011 and will fully replace the Hermes 450 by April
2012.
The Watchkeeper system is very mobile and not restricted by icing conditions. It has
automatic take-off and landing capability and its GMTI/SAR and EO/IR payloads will
provide all weather sensing. In addition, changed conditions software will enable
Watchkeeper to detect IEDs. Force Protection is now seen as a key UAV role in-theatre.
The Hermes 450 UAV that will be replaced by Watchkeeper, is currently operated
on four task lines in Afghanistan and this will soon increase to six. Over 25,000 flight
hours have so far been flown by the UAV in-theatre. It has a range of 150 kilometres and
an endurance of 14-16 hours. It can reach an altitude of 16,000, but normally operates
at around 10,000.
As well as the Hermes 450, the British Army also operates the Desert Hawk 3 mini-UAV
in-theatre, in 12 detatchments. This UAV has a range of 15 kilometres, an endurance of
60 minutes and is also proving to be a valuable tactical asset.
2) UK Agrees on Defence Contracts Before Election Campaign Starts
Prior to the announcement of the general election on the 6th April, the British
Government has reportedly signed or agreed to at least nine key defence contracts,
valued at more than $3.8 billion.
The British Army gets the ASCOD2 vehicle to meet the FRES-SV light armoured scout
vehicle requirement and the Fire Shadow loitering munition, which is due to be
operational in-theatre in 2012.
The Royal Air Force will receive three Rivet Joint signals intelligence aircraft to replace
its Nimrod R.1s and long-lead items for the purchase of additional Chinook helicopters,
but the A400M airlifter fleet will be reduced to 22 aircraft (down from 25).
In addition, a Hawk advanced jet trainer support deal, valued at around £120 million
was announced, as was the upgrading of the Brimstone air-to-surface precision effects
weapon.
The Royal Navy will start development of the new Type 26 frigate (formerly known as
the future surface combatant, or FSC) and will receive the fifth and sixth Astute-class

39. nuclear-powered attack submarines.
Also, a 15-year partnering agreement with Babcock International to support Royal Navy
submarines and surface warships has been agreed.
The UK Parliament has now been dissolved, pending the general election on the 6th
May. With a strategic defence review promised by whichever party wins the election, it
may be some time before any other UK defence projects get approval.
3) New Plan Revealed for Advanced European Jet Pilot Training Programme
Speaking at the 9th Annual Defence IQ Military Flight Training (MFT) Conference,
Colonel Kris Dewilde, Chairman of the Advanced European Jet Pilot Training (AEJPT)
Programme Group from the Belgian Armed Forces, informed a large audience of the
latest plans for the future military pilot training system of the Consortium of European
Nations.
The Pre-contract MOU was signed in 2008, with a planned duration of four years until a
development contract was to be let. However, under a recently agreed strategy, an RFI
(Request for Information) has been issued with answers to be received by the 15th
March 2010. Following this, a meeting with industry is planned for the 14th April and an
analysis of the RFI replies will be carried out from April to July.
An RFP (Request for Proposals) could be issued by October 2011 and a development
contract by January 2014. IOC would then follow in 2017, with FOC in 2020. A new
management structure is being developed and the participating nations would be
required to make a decision, when the RFP is released, on whether they stay in the
programme or leave. No observer status (as is now the case), would be permitted. It
was thought that OCCAR might act as the contracting agency.
The currently participating nations are Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Greece, Italy,
Portugal, Spain and Sweden. Germany and the Netherlands currently have observer
status and Switzerland also has a possible interest.
The cost share will depend on the numbers of students trained per nation. A maximum
of 167 student pilots, plus 10 WSOs (Weapon Systems Operators) are planned to be
trained per year and aircraft will be based at 1Northern and 1 Southern European base
under current plans, but no decision has yet been made on their locations.
The new management group will develop a business model, consider competitive issues
and establish a legal framework. A medium to high level of outsourcing is considered
likely, but budget approval will be crucial to the future of AEJPT. Many military flight

40. training experts at the MFT conference were sceptical that a consensus, backed by firm
funding, would ever be achieved by the European nations.
4) Companies Make Major Steps Forward in UAV Innovation
The market for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) continues to grow, with military
leaders recognising their huge potential in modern warfare.
Teal Group recently predicted that the value of the UAV market will reach over $80
million (£53 million) in the next 10 years. Annual expenditure will go up from $4.9 billion
currently to $11.5 billion over the coming decade.
"With striking examples in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the most significant catalyst to this
market has been the enormous growth of interest in UAVs by the US military, tied to the
general trend toward information warfare and net-centric systems," said Teal senior
analyst Steve Zaloga, one of the authors of the new 400-page study by the company.
"UAVs are a key element in the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR)
portion of this revolution and they are expanding into other missions as well with the
advent of hunter-killer UAVs," he added.
The report predicted that the US would account for over three-quarters of the
worldwide research, development, testing and evaluation spending on UAV technology
over the next 10 years. The country will also contribute 58 percent to procurement
expenditure, it forecasted.
"We expect that the sales of UAVs will follow recent patterns of high-tech arms
procurement worldwide, with Europe representing the second largest market, again
followed very closely by Asia-Pacific," Zaloga continued.
$1bn UAV Investment
There have been some major innovations coming from UAV developers of late.
Helicopter-maker Sikorsky is working on creating a Black Hawk pilotless aircraft that can
carry troops. It could be the next great aerial innovation for the US armed forces after
the unmanned drone.
Sikorsky is investing $1 billion in the project to develop the Black Hawk UAVs, which
would be operated by two, one or no pilots. This would increase the number of journeys
it would be able to undertake and reduce the risk to US personnel.
The company launched a new technology development organisation, Sikorsky
Innovations, at the beginning of February, which will oversee the progress of the UAV
project, among others. It intends to have a model of an unmanned Black Hawk ready

41. this year, with the aim of introducing it by 2015.
However, Chris Van Buiten, director of Sikorsky Innovations, stressed that the challenges
in developing the aircraft would not only be technical, but also cultural. "Pilots are not
going to give up that seat easily," he explained.
Lockheed Martin and Kaman Developments
Another company that has been working hard on introducing an unmanned military
helicopter is Lockheed Martin. The firm has teamed up with Kaman Aerospace
Corporation and they have demonstrated the capability of their UAV, the Unmanned K-
Max, to resupply troops at forward operating bases in Afghanistan.
This month, the companies conducted a series of test flights in subfreezing
temperatures at the US Army's Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. Testers were able to
pilot the aircraft by remote control over both line-of-sight and satellite-based beyond
line-of-sight data links.
"We met or exceeded the requirements within the scheduled three-day timeframe of
the demonstration," said Dan Spoor, aviation systems vice president at Lockheed
Martin's Mission Systems and Sensors facility in Owego, New York.
"The system performed a rigorous set of cargo resupply scenarios as programmed,
allowing the ground-based operator to monitor progress, and make adjustments to
aircraft positioning only when requested by the Marine Corps for demonstration
purposes," he added.
5) British Naval Chief Demands Investment for Future Defence
The most senior serving officer in the British Royal Navy has insisted that Maritime
defence forces should be considered a priority in any future spending plans.
Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope spoke at the International Institute of Strategic Studies
during which a debate emerged regarding Britain's upcoming strategic defence review,
which is expected to follow the nation’s general election.
After both the chiefs of the army and air force outlined their respective visions,
Stanhope countered inferences that less focus should be paid to the procurement of
aircraft, vessels and aircraft carriers.
“[The Navy has] a vital role to play in delivering this country's defence and security into
the future, in delivering choices for the government, as much as in delivering firepower
when required.”

42. He added: "It's not about tanks versus jet fighters. It is about deciding where the
balance of investment should lie, judged against this country's vital national interests,
and the ambition this nation sets, both for itself and for defence."
"We can get land forces where they need to be, and then support them: combat air
support, helicopters, logistics, medical, you name it. And we are there to recover those
forces too."
Aside from standard protection for expeditionary land forces, Stanhope cited several
recent and vital operations that had been achieved primarily through the efforts of the
Navy, including the suppression of rebel forces in Sierra Leone and reconnaissance
missions in Afghanistan to chase Taliban fighters. He said it had also been instrumental
in intercepting a total of £70million worth of illegal drugs making its way to British
shores last year, and that the current threat of piracy in African waters warranted a
focus on the fleet.
Days earlier, former army chief General Sir Richard Dannatt stated that each of the
three defence chiefs agreed on "80 to 85 percent" on the future of Britain’s armed
forces.
"If you want agile forces, able to be tailored for a special mission, if you want them to be
sustained and supported from a position of security, then maritime forces can make an
important contribution."
The admiral also pointed to the possibilities of conventional wars being fought between
states in the quest for resource ownership.
"Competition between powerful states is already a feature of our post-Cold War world,
as we shift from the uni-polar dominance of the United States to multi-polar influence
and power. Competition for resources can only exacerbate the situation. We would be
wrong to assume that states will no longer wage war."
In the past week, UK oil firms began drilling near the Falkland Islands, raising fresh
tensions with Argentina.
6) US and UK Move Forward with Military Space Systems
Both the United States and the UK have been working to improve communications and
intelligence capability using space systems.
This year will see four "first of" Department of Defense (Dod) satellites launched, deputy
undersecretary of the Air Force for Space Programs Gary Payton announced last month.