31 Jan 07. A Boeing-led team is preparing a response to a Request for Proposals (RFP), released on Jan. 26, from the U.S. Department of Defense for system design and development of its Airborne and Maritime/Fixed Station Joint Tactical Radio System (AMF JTRS). Boeing and its best-of-industry teammates — Rockwell Collins, Harris, L-3 Communications, BBN Technologies, Northrop Grumman and Milcom Systems Corporation — have supported the AMF JTRS pre-system design and development phase since 2004. The Boeing team expects to respond to the RFP within 45 days, as required. Contract award is anticipated to occur by July 2007. “Our best-of-industry team offers a low-risk, low-cost solution that leverages Boeing’s market-leading experience in network-centric operations,” said Leo Conboy, Boeing AMF JTRS program manager. “We have already successfully demonstrated the key networking capability and many of the legacy waveforms needed by the warfighter.” (Source: ASD Network)
26 Jan 07. Fiat’s chief executive yesterday said the group’s Iveco truck division could be interested in mergers or acquisitions, particularly in North America, but that any deal would have to be worth the “pain and suffering” of the merger process. The comments by Sergio Marchionne follow thecollapse this week of MAN’s hostile bid for Scania amid continued expectations of consolidation in the truck industry. (Source: FT.com)
31 Jan 07. Department of Defense and Norway Sign Joint Strike Fighter Agreement. Norway has signed the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) production, sustainment, and follow-on development (PSFD) memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will govern the cooperative program arrangements for the next phase of the Joint Strike Fighter program.The signing ceremony took place in Oslo, Norway, Jan. 31. In a ceremony at the Norwegian Ministry of Defense Minister Anne-Grete Strom-Erichsen added her signature to the agreement already signed by the United States, The Netherlands, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Turkey. The United States was represented by U.S. Ambassador Benson Whitney. This MOU provides a framework for future program efforts in production and beyond, and will extend cooperation beyond the current system development and demonstration agreement between the United States and the other eight JSF partner nations.The remaining partner nations, Italy and Denmark, are expected to sign the JSF PSFD MOU in the near future.
30 Jan 07. Raytheon Company will highlight its technology solutions that integrate advanced sensor and weapon systems for multi-role fighter aircraft at the inaugural Air Dominance Conference the firm is sponsoring Jan. 31- Feb. 1 as it intensifies its focus on India as a strategic market. According to Walter F. Doran, Asia regional executive for Raytheon International, Inc., a long-term partnership approach in India with private and public-sector companies would be preferable to a buyer-seller relationship.
29 Jan 07. Patria, Datactica Launch Sensor Center. Patria Industries, Finland’s biggest defense systems corporation, has formed a joint venture with software house Datactica to establish a Sensor Systems Center of Excellence (SSCE) here that will focus on functional intelligence, security surveillance and command-and control systems. The Tampere-based Datactica is the smaller of the two defense partners. Founded in 1999, the company specializes in developing software for sensors, especially target tracking and recognition to provide detailed images and situation analysis. Patria has described the SSCE venture as a “long-term cooperation” with export markets in mind. “The competencies of Patria and Datactica complement each other, and our cooperation enables us to offer ever more comprehensive and cost-effective solutions in sensor technology, data fusion and signal processing, for example, to the Finnish Defense Forces’ projects,” said Patria Executive Vice President Jukka Holkeri. The SSCE, whose goal is t