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July 26, 2023 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR, Other Defence

Lockheed, BWXT to build nuclear-powered spacecraft, engine

Lockheed is designing a spacecraft that can carry an experimental nuclear reactor engine and fuel developed by Virginia-based BWXT.

https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2023/07/26/lockheed-bwxt-to-build-nuclear-powered-spacecraft-engine/

On the same subject

  • Spanish startup Sateliot joins race for cheap space connections
  • Carahsoft wins IT contract with US Department of the Navy

    July 11, 2019 | International, Other Defence

    Carahsoft wins IT contract with US Department of the Navy

    Carahsoft Technology has received a blanket purchase agreement (BPA) to distribute Symantec software, hardware and maintenance services to the US Department of the Navy (DoN) and affiliated branches. The contract was awarded by the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific on behalf of the US DoN. Under the contract, Carahsoft and its authorised reseller partners will provide the above-mentioned services to DoN and the US Marine Corps, Navy and reserve components of each force. The company secured the BPA under the DoN's Enterprise Software Licensing (ESL) initiative, which is responsible for the management of enterprise commercial off-the-shelf IT agreements, assets, and policies. ESL seeks to consolidate, centralise and streamline IT acquisition and management processes. The BPA comprises five years of performance, including a one-year base ordering period and four one-year option periods. The contract will run until April 2024 and has a potential of $69.14m. Symantec Federal vice-president Chris Townsend said: “The navy's decision to expand its use of Symantec's Integrated Cyber Defense Platform throughout the enterprise aligns with Symantec's mission to consolidate and integrate assets on a common platform, driving down costs and complexity and creating a more secure environment. “This BPA will allow for more advanced cyber defence capabilities for the Department of the Navy, while providing a better value to the government agencies and taxpayers.” DoN and affiliated branches will have access to Symantec's Integrated Cyber Defense Platform and associated products and services, including advanced threat protection, along with security for email and networks, as well as information protection. Carahsoft Symantec team director Annie Marshall said: “Carahsoft and our reseller partners have supported the US Navy for 15 years, and we are proud to further simplify procurement across the entire navy through this BPA. “As the navy serves our nation, offering products from one of the leading cybersecurity vendors allows it to ensure that its personnel are operating in secure virtual environments, no matter the physical environment they operate in.” https://www.naval-technology.com/news/carahsoft-wins-it-contract-with-us-department-of-the-navy/

  • With shutdown over, Japan cleared to spend $2.15 billion on Aegis Ashore

    January 30, 2019 | International, Land

    With shutdown over, Japan cleared to spend $2.15 billion on Aegis Ashore

    By: Aaron Mehta WASHINGTON — The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced Tuesday that Japan has been cleared to buy a pair of land-based Aegis ballistic missile defense systems, the first Foreign Military Sales announcement since the end of a government shutdown that stalled the FMS process. The sale, worth an estimated $2.15 billion, would bolster Japan's existing sea-based Aegis capabilities. The island nation is in the process of increasing its missile defense capabilities, both through additional Aegis buys and through the co-development of the SM-3 missile with the U.S. Although not specified in the DSCA announcement, a government official confirmed these two systems are for Japan's planned Aegis Ashore sites, which are expected to be operational by 2023. Included in the potential package: two Aegis weapon systems, two multimission signal processors, and two command-and-control processor refreshes, alongside radio navigation equipment, ordnance, identification friend or foe systems, and construction services for six vertical launch system launcher module enclosures. Tuesday's announcement is the first DSCA notification to be posted since Dec. 18, just days before the longest government shutdown in U.S. history began. Speaking to reporters last week, Andrea Thompson, the U.S. State Department official who oversees the FMS process, said the shutdown was slowing down the process of clearing sales requests from foreign customers — notable, as the Trump administration has made increasing weapon sales abroad a key part of both its foreign policy and economic growth strategy. “There will be a bit of a bump — a gap, if you will — just because we haven't had the engagement with [Capitol] Hill” normally seen in the process, Thompson said then. “We'll be able to make up some ground, but I am a realist. We have to work harder if we are going to have the numbers we had last year.” Japan has recently spent heavily on American defense items. In September, the nation was cleared to spend $3.14 billion on nine E2-D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft, and in October it agreed to pay more than half a billion dollars for SM-3 missiles. In the recently released Missile Defense Review, the U.S. Department of Defense identified that working with partners in the Pacific — notably Japan and South Korea — is the “cornerstone” of American security in the region. “Japan is one of our strongest missile defense partners, and works together with the United States to strengthen cooperative missile defenses against regional missile threats,” the review states. “Going forward, DoD will work with allies and partners to prioritize these types of missile defense integration opportunities that contribute to more effective protection of the United States, its allies and deployed forces.” DSCA announcements do not mean sales are final. The announcement serves as notification to Congress about the potential sale, which can be vetoed by the Senate; once cleared, negotiations between the customer and contractor can lead to changed quantities or dollar figures from the original announcement. https://www.defensenews.com/global/asia-pacific/2019/01/29/with-shutdown-over-japan-cleared-to-spend-215-billion-on-aegis-ashore

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