29 octobre 2019 | International, Aérospatial
By: Valerie Insinna
WASHINGTON — In the early morning hours of Oct. 27, the U.S. Air Force's X-37B spaceplane landed at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida after a record-breaking 780 days in orbit.
What was the Boeing-made plane doing in space for the two years it spent circling Earth? On that point, the Air Force is characteristically elusive, describing the X-37B's activities as “on-orbit experiments” in a news release.
“The X-37B continues to demonstrate the importance of a reusable spaceplane,” Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett said. “Each successive mission advances our nation's space capabilities.”
According to the Air Force, the unmanned spaceplane is unique because it allows scientists to test experimental technologies in space for long periods of time.
One of those technologies confirmed to be on board the X-37B is the Advanced Structurally Embedded Thermal Spreader, or ASETS-11, created by the Air Force Research Laboratory to “test experimental electronics and oscillating heat pipes in the long duration space environment,” the service said in 2017.
“This program continues to push the envelope as the world's only reusable space vehicle. With a successful landing today, the X-37B completed its longest flight to date and successfully completed all mission objectives,” said Randy Walden, head of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office. “This mission successfully hosted Air Force Research Laboratory experiments, among others, as well as providing a ride for small satellites.”
X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle Mission 5 ended at 3:51 a.m. after the spaceplane landed on the runway of Kennedy's shuttle landing facility on Sunday. That mission began Sept. 7, 2017, when the X-37B took off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket — marking the first launch of the X-37B by Elon Musk's space company.
So far, the X-37B has spent 2,865 days on orbit cumulatively over its five missions, with four of those missions extending past the 270-day on-orbit duration requirement to which the plane was designed.
The Air Force plans to launch a sixth mission in 2020 out of Cape Canaveral.
The service has two X-37Bs, which Walden characterized as “workhorses” during a Oct. 24 event, according to Breaking Defense. When asked whether the Air Force should buy additional spacecraft or execute a follow-on order, Walden was noncommittal.
“The data is still out,” he said, adding that the two existing X-37Bs are “doing quite well.”
10 mai 2021 | International, Terrestre
Anglo-German armored vehicle-maker Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land has signed a deal with the British Defence Ministry to upgrade Challenger 2 main battle tanks.
19 novembre 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Terrestre
By: Jen Judson WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin-owned Sikorsky's President Dan Schultz is set to retire at the beginning of 2021 and Paul Lemmo, the company's current vice president of integrated warfare systems and sensors, will take over the role, according to a Nov. 18 Lockheed statement. The bench will shift within Lockheed with Jon Rambeau, the current vice president of C6ISR, taking over for Lemmo. Gregg Bauer, vice president for undersea warfare, will assume Rambeau's role. “Just recently the president of our Sikorsky business, Dan Schultz, announced his decision to retire at the beginning of 2021,” Stephanie Hill, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, said in the statement. “Dan has had a tremendous impact to Lockheed Martin and I'm grateful for his contributions.” Schultz joined Lockheed in 2006. Before assuming his current role at Sikorsky, he was the vice president and general manager of ship and aviation systems. Schultz served in the U.S. Marine Corps and was the program manager for the Joint V-22 Osprey tiltrotor program, according to his company biography. Lemmo “built a broad career” that spans more than 30 years at Lockheed Martin, Hill said. “I'm proud of Lockheed Martin's focus on talent development which allows for smooth and seamless transitions and ensures we continue to support our customers' missions without disruption,” Hill said. Sikorsky is in the midst of two major helicopter competitions with the U.S. Army — the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) and the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA). Sikorsky has partnered with Boeing in the FLRAA competition and in both efforts the company is competing head-to-head with Bell. https://www.defensenews.com/land/2020/11/18/heres-whos-taking-over-as-sikorskys-president/
30 mars 2022 | International, Terrestre, C4ISR
The Department of Defense announces the pre-release of the following Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) topic: Department of the Army A224-007: “Tactical Battlefield Recharger (TBR)” Full topic descriptions and instructions are available on DSIP at https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/login and at https://rt.cto.mil/rtl-small-business-resources/sbir-sttr/. IMPORTANT DATES: March 30, 2022: Topic pre-releases April 26, 2022: Topic opens, begin submitting proposals in DSIP May 3, 2022: Topic Q&A closes to new questions at 12:00 p.m. ET May 17, 2022: Topic closes, full proposals must be submitted in DSIP no later than 12:00 p.m. ET