LOCATIONS
LAND
10 Apr 13. Smiths Detection has completed a new Training & Service Center for the Americas as part of an on-going investment in its U.S. headquarters in Edgewood, Maryland. This major facility will greatly improve product training and service capabilities for customers and boost the economy of both Edgewood and the state. The 10,400 square foot Center is dedicated to educating and servicing customer from around North, Central and South America. Product training and service will focus on the full range of Smiths Detection’s CBRNE (chemical, biological, radiation, nuclear and explosives) and X-ray technologies. (Source: Yahoo!/BUSINESS WIRE)
11 Apr 13. Sikorsky Aerospace Services (SAS) announced in-country warehousing of spare parts in support of Brazil’s S-76® and S-92® commercial helicopter operators. Powerpack – Sikorsky’s long-standing Brazilian representative – will manage inventory operations through the country’s special customs system known as Deposito Especial (D.E.). This is the first Sikorsky Forward Stocking Location (FSL) in Brazil. The warehouse is centrally located in the city of Rio de Janeiro where more than 80 percent of Sikorsky helicopters operating in Brazil are concentrated. SAS is the aftermarket business of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. (UTX). (Source: Yahoo!/PRNewswire)
04 Apr 13. The Old War Office: To be Sold? Articles in the Daily Telegraph (28 Mar 13) and the Financial Times (4 Apr 13) indicated that the Old War Office is to go on the market for a possible £100m. An announcement about the sale of the 270,000 sq ft property is said to be “imminent”. The seven floor building, with 1,000 rooms, was built a century ago and will probably be converted into an hotel.
Comment: In July 2001 the MoD produced a splendid booklet giving the history of ‘The Old War Office Building’. In the Foreword to the booklet, the then Defence Secretary said of the building: “no-one can fail to be impressed by its imposing Edwardian Baroque exterior and splendidly restored rooms and stairways.”. The present Defence Secretary apparently has no qualms about ‘selling the family silver.’ (Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 13/15, 15 Apr 13)
MARITIME
10 Apr 13. India’s third Talwar-class ship conducts final sea trials. INS Trikand (F50), the Indian Navy’s third Talwar-class warship, has started final state sea trials in the Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad, Russia, Yantar shipyard spokesman Sergei Mikhailov has said. Mikhailov was quoted by RIA Novosti as saying that INS Trikand had successfully completed workup trials in March and the final sea trails is expected to run through the end of this month. In July 2006, a $1.6bn contract was awarded by the Indian Ministry of Defence to Russia to build three additional Project 1135.6 Talwar-class frigates, INS Teg (F45), INS Tarkash (F46) and INS Trikand (F50). The three additional frigates will be deployed with existing warships of the same class, INS Talwar (sword), INS Trishul (trident) and INS Tabar (axe), to support Indian Navy operations. INS Teg, the first frigate of the class, was deployed in June 2012 while the second ship, INS Tarkash, was handed over to India on 30 December the same year. (Source: naval-technology.com)
12 Apr 13. Secretary of the Navy Names Multiple Ships. U.S. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today the names of seven ships: three joint high speed vessels (JHSV), the USNS Trenton, the USNS Brunswick and the USNS Carson City; an amphibious transport dock ship (LPD), the USS Portland; two littoral combat ships (LCS), the USS Wichita and the USS Manchester; and an ocean-class auxiliary general oceanographic research (AGOR) ship, the R/V Sally Ride. Joint high speed vessels are named for small American cities and counties that embody American values. The future USNS Trenton (JHSV 5), named in honor of New Jersey’s capital city, will be the fourth ship to bear this name. Simila