Saab To Start Flight-Testing Civil Missile Detector

The first customer for a new European-developed civil anti-missile detection system is about to start flight trials aboard one of the Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia aircraft that it is destined to enter service on this year.

By coincidence, the May 21 announcement by Saab Aviatronics came just hours after the potential threat to aircraft posed by man-portable anti-air weapons was thrust back into the limelight by the arrest in New York of alleged terrorists attempting to acquire Stinger missiles.

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Picatinny ‘rolls out’ new version of SPARK IED-defeat product

This year troops in Iraq and Afghanistan received improved technology to help them combat one of the greatest threats to Soldiers in theater.

Improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, have been responsible for approximately 40 percent of all US casualties in Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to Lt. Col. Karl Borjes, Product Manager for Improvised Explosive Device Defeat/Protect Force.

To help reduce this danger, Borjes’ office oversees technology programs, such as the Self-Protection Adaptive Roller Kit, or SPARK, which provides Soldiers products to mitigate and prevent effects of IED strikes.

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Lockheed Martin GPS III Team Successfully Completes Major Design Review Phase On Schedule

The Lockheed Martin team developing the U.S. Air Force’s next-generation Global Positioning System (GPS) spacecraft, known as GPS III, has successfully completed the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) phase, a major program milestone that allows the team to begin the Critical Design Review (CDR) stage.

Lockheed Martin, Newtown, PA., along with teammates ITT, Clifton, NJ., and General Dynamics of Gilbert, AZ., completed a comprehensive spacecraft segment PDR, which represented the culmination of 70 subsystem and assembly PDRs, executed over the past six months.

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Smart Wind Turbines to Switch Shapes

Today's wind turbines are like race cars with one gear. Slow off the line and crippled at high speeds, the turbines are effective at generating electricity only within a sweet spot of moderate wind speeds.

Scientists from Purdue University want to change this by creating intelligent wind turbines that shape-shift with the wind. These smart wind turbines would help maximize the amount of electricity generated by wind power while ensuring longer life spans for wind turbines.

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Boeing Wins $250M Special Ops Contract for ScanEagle ISR Services

Boeing announced today that it recently received a contract from U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services using the ScanEagle unmanned aircraft system (UAS). The contract has a potential value of $250 million.

Under the new agreement, Boeing and its subsidiary Insitu Inc. will operate, maintain and support ScanEagle systems for the Special Operations Forces Mid Endurance Unmanned Aircraft System (MEUAS) program for the next five years.

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Joint High Speed Vessel Milestone Reached

Austal has taken a significant step towards commencing construction of the US Department of Defense's next generation multi-use platform - the Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) - after successfully completing the Initial Critical Design Review (ICDR).During the ICDR, Austal provided a comprehensive summary of the critical areas of the JHSV design for US Navy approval. The successful completion of the ICDR means Austal is now proceeding towards the project's next critical milestone - the Final Critical Design Review.

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GPS Tracking Device records every second of vehicle status

Rocky Mountain Tracking, Inc. (RMT) has released to the public what may be the most innovative device yet, the Trac-King (GPS Tracking) device. The Trac-King is a convenient and portable-passive GPS powered by two AA batteries; the Trac-King is able to record up to 80 hours of continuous movement on a single battery cycle.According to RMT's president Brad Borst, "The Trac-King is one of the most inventive and user-friendly GPS devices on the market today, because of its design and incredible software functionality." The Trac-King is a more advanced version of the Tracking Key and 3100, which are passive devices that RMT has sold about 12,000 of over the past couple years. The Trac-King tracks every second, within a few meters accuracy, and records times, addresses, direction and speed of travel, and stop duration.

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Aircraft surface cavities could cut friction drag by 40%

Friction drag could be cut by 40% with aircraft surfaces that have small cavities with shaped orifices to affect turbulence mechanisms, say researchers.

The orifices would be designed to direct oscillated air across the aircraft's surface perpendicular to the relative wind. It is this redirected air flow that is believed to affect near-wall turbulence mechanisms and reduce friction drag.

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