09 Jan 12. Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc. announced the launch of its new Defense Solutions business group, the Defense and Aerospace market’s largest supplier dedicated to Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) and open standards solutions. The new Curtiss-Wright Controls Defense Solutions (CWCDS) organization, headquartered in Ashburn, VA, integrates the business operations of the Company’s former Electronic Systems and Embedded Computing business units. The new organization fortifies the Company’s ability to serve burgeoning opportunities for open-standards-based rugged computing, subsystem development and system integration in the Aerospace and Defense market. CWCDS combines the unmatched system engineering, programmatic expertise, system packaging and subsystem development of the Electronic Systems unit with the advanced COTS module design, thermal management, lifecycle maintenance and COTS subsystem development leadership of the Embedded Computing unit into a larger, streamlined and more agile business operation.
09 Jan 12. ARINC Incorporated has formed a new subsidiary, ASES LLC, doing business as ARINC Aerospace. The new company will specialize in the modification, modernization, upgrade and maintenance of aircraft for the military, government, and commercial marketplaces. ARINC Aerospace assumes most of the operations of ARINC’s former Aerospace Systems Engineering & Support (ASES) business unit. Michael A. Young, who led the ASES division as Vice President for the past eight years, has been named Vice President of the new company. Approximately 500 ASES employees will also be transferred. ARINC Aerospace will have two divisions: Aircraft Integration, Modification, & Maintenance, and Aircraft Logistics & Sustainment.
05 Jan 12. Katsav adds Camero-Tech to defence portfolio. The Israeli firm SK Group, owned by Samy Katsav, has acquired provider of radar imaging systems, Camero-Tech, it was announced on 4 January. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed by either firm. (Source: Jane’s Defence Industry)
10 Jan 12. Combitech, a subsidiary of defence and security company Saab
(STO:SAABB), is growing with the acquisition of consulting firm Sörman Information AB. The acquisition provides Combitech with a more complete range of services, benefitting the company’s existing and prospective customers. Combitech, a technical consultancy that is an independent subsidiary within the Saab Group, has signed an agreement to acquire Sörman Intressenter AB, parent company of Sörman Information AB (Sörman) – a consulting firm that provides services and solutions within qualified technical information management. The acquisition is part of Combitech’s strategy to expand its range of services and grow in the Nordic consultancy market. Following the acquisition of Sörman, Combitech will have an annual turnover of approx. SEK1.1bn and 1,100 employees.
14 Jan 12. Telecom startup LightSquared is asking for an investigation of a possible conflict of interest by a member of an advisory board that has already warned against its technology because of interference with the global positioning system. LightSquared, which needs government approval of its high-speed wireless technology by the end of the month to keep its major partner on board, lodged its probe request with NASA Inspector General Paul Martin late Wednesday. The petition charges that Bradford Parkinson, sometimes referred to as the father of GPS, serves as vice chairman of the National Space-Based Position, Navigation, and Timing Advisory Board while also a director for Trimble Navigation Ltd, which makes GPS equipment and has been a vocal opponent of LightSquared’s network. Lightsquared said Parkinson may have violated a federal conflict of interest law and ethics regulations. (Source: Reuters)
14 Jan 12. AirBorn Inc., a Texas-based manufacturer of electronic components and provider of value-added solutions for multiple industries, announced the acquisition of AESCO Electr