Defense Watch

Defense Daily, Jan 29, 2007

The Latest Word On Trends And Developments In Aerospace And Defense

Homeland Housekeeping. The Senate Homeland Security Committee has added two subcommittees, Chairman Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I/D-Conn.) says. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) will lead the subcommittee on disaster recovery; Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) will chair the state, local and private sector preparedness and integration subcommittee. Meanwhile, Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) was chosen to lead the permanent subcommittee on investigations and Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) will lead the subcommittee on federal financial management, government information, federal services and international security.

Moving Up. The Senate last week unanimously confirmed Lt. Gen. David Petraeus to become the next commander of troops in Iraq. On Feb. 1, the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) will consider the more controversial nomination of the current Multi-National Force-Iraq Commander, Gen. George Casey, to be the Army's next chief of staff. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a member of SASC, says he is "skeptical" of the choice of Casey to replace Gen. Pete Schoomaker. SASC will hold a Jan. 30 hearing on the nomination of Adm. William Fallon to become the next Central Command commander.

War on What? After listening to President Bush's State of the Union address Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.), the ranking member of the House Armed Services seapower subcommittee, says he still doesn't understand the phrase "war on terror." Noting that terrorism is a type of warfare, Bartlett says, "That's like declaring a war on blitzkrieg," referring to the lightning-strike operations used by the German army in World War II.

SpaceX Update. The next launch of Space Exploration Technologies' (Space- X) Falcon 1 launch vehicle from Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific is now pegged for mid to late February, says Elon Musk, the company's CEO and chief technology officer. The company had hoped to conduct a static firing of the rocket this month, but is now holding off until next month after discovering an anomaly with the thrust vector control of the Falcon 1's second stage motor, he says. "In an excess of caution, we decided not to proceed with the static fire this month," says Musk. "The vehicle is now back in the hangar, where the stages are being de-mated for careful inspection." Musk says the Falcon 1 mission cannot occur earlier than mid to late February due to an upcoming Minuteman launch at Kwajalein. A fuel leak doomed the maiden flight of the Falcon 1, also from Kwajalein, last March.

Scanning The Horizon. Gen. Ronald Keys, commander of Air Combat Command, says he favors installing advanced electronically scanned array (AESA) radars on the service's fleet of F-15E Strike Eagle multirole fighters, which hovers around 220 aircraft, and on 178 F-15C Eagles that the service intends to keep flying even after its new F-22s are in place. At the same time, he says he is not sure that the Air Force could afford to incorporate AESA radars on any of its F-16 Fighting Falcons, or whether this would be wise given that the aging Falcons are due to be phased out in about 20 years and their replacement, the F- 35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), is scheduled to start entering the Air Force in large numbers next decade. "It might make sense for some of the [Common Configuration Implementation Program F-16s] or Block 50s," Keys says of the prospect of adding AESA radars to the Falcons. "They will be the last ones to leave." But keeping even those F-16s longer than currently planned would require performing a service life extension program (SLEP) to keep them flying, says Keys. And he is clear about where he prefers to see money spent. "I would rather buy a JSF than SLEP F-16s," the general says.

Doctrinally Speaking. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley has approved the latest revision of the Air Force Doctrine Document (AFDD) 2-2, Space Operations, the service announced last week. The new version incorporates significant changes to AFDD 2-2, which was last amended in 2001, based on recent operational experience, the service says. "Some of the highlights of the document include the definition of the space coordinating authority, the joint force air and space component commander's role as the supported commander for counterspace operations, and the responsibility of the director of space forces." the Air Force says. "The document describes space integration considerations for planners based on observations during recent military operations, and explains the space air and space operations center, which now operates as the joint space operations center" at Vandenberg AFB, Calif. More specifically, the service says, the revised document recommends a command-and- control construct for space operations that has been found to be extremely effective in recent operations.

Getting Aggressive. The Air Force intends to raise the number of F-15C and F-16 fighter aircraft permanently assigned to Nellis AFB, Nev., up to 24 each, creating a full squadron of each by 2011. Presently the base, home of the service's air combat training, hosts six F-15Cs in its 65th Aggressor Squadron and 11 F-16s in the 64th Aggressor Squadron. The aggressor units prepare U.S. and allied pilots for warfare by simulating foreign-made fighters and applying the known tactics of potential adversaries against them in mock combat. Under changes proposed as part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process, which the service is now implementing, the base will receive 18 additional F-15Cs, giving the 65th Aggressor Squadron a full complement of aircraft. Five additional F-16s will be relocated to Nellis as part of the BRAC changes, boosting the 64th Aggressor Squadron up to 16. The service is also assigning eight more F-16s to Nellis as part of a supplemental transfer, thus increasing the 64th Aggressor Squadron to full strength at 24 aircraft.