China firms up order

China Aircraft Leasing Co. (CALC) firmed up its contract in December 2014 with Airbus for 100 A320 family aircraft. The order comprises 74 A320neo, 16 A320ceo and 10 A321ceo. Including this new order, CALC’s total backlog with Airbus stands at 140 A320 family aircraft. (Source: Airbus, 01/12/15) Gulf Coast note: The Airbus A320 final assembly line in Mobile, Ala., will open in the fall of this year.

Two Airbus jobs listed

MOBILE, Ala. – Airbus posted notices Monday for a final assembly line planner and delivery planner for its new A320 final assembly line being built at the Mobile Aeroplex. Both require at least nine months' training abroad, and both require at least an associate's degree with a bachelor's degree preferred and at least two years' experience, preferably with an international aviation company as an aviation planner/scheduler. For a complete list of Airbus jobs in Mobile, visit the Alabama Industrial Development Training website. (Source: al.com, 01/12/15)

Contract: Lockheed, $7M

Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded $7,085,000 for modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order 5500 issued against a previously issued Basic Ordering Agreement (N00019-14-G-0020). This modification authorizes two additional Engineering Change Proposals for air vehicle retrofit modifications to be incorporated into designated F-35 aircraft, and includes retrofit modification kits, installation, and labor. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (45 percent); Ogden, Utah (20 percent); Cherry Point, N.C. (20 percent); Yuma, Ariz. (5 percent); Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. (5 percent); and Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in March 2018. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 01/12/15)

Contract: Multiple, $2.5B

Eaton Corp., Raleigh, N.C. (W912DY-15-D-0003); Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc., Columbia, Md. (W912DY-15-D-0004); Schneider Electric Buildings Americas Inc., Carrollton, Texas (W912DY-15-D-0005); Siemens Government Technologies Inc., Arlington, Va. (W912DY-15-D-0006); Secure Mission Solutions LLC, Fairfax, Va. (W912DY-15-D-0007); Williams Electric Company Inc., Fort Walton Beach, Fla. (W912DY-15-D-0008); EPC Service Inc., Waipahu, Hawaii (W912DY-15-D-0009); Infotec Systems Corp., Summerville, S.C. (W912DY-15-D-0010); SEI Group Inc., Huntsville, Ala. (W912DY-15-D-0011); Spectrum Solutions Inc., Madison, Ala. (W912DY-15-D-0012) have all been added as awardees to previously announced (Aug. 25, 2014) $2,500,000,000, multiple-award, firm-fixed-price contract capacity for services necessary to perform the procurement and installation of utility monitoring and control systems, and similar services such as heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems, building automation systems, supervisory control and data acquisition systems and other automated control systems and electronic security systems and/or force protection measures worldwide. Funding and work location will be determined with each order with an estimated completion date of Jan. 11, 2020. Bids were solicited via the Internet with fourteen received. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville, Ala., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 01/12/15)

RS-25 has successful test

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- The engine that will power America's next great rocket to deep space had its first successful test Friday at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. The RS-25, formerly the space shuttle main engine, fired up for 500 seconds on the A-1 test stand, providing NASA engineers critical data on the engine controller unit and inlet pressure conditions. This is the first hot fire of an RS-25 engine since the end of space shuttle main engine testing in 2009. Four RS-25 engines will power Space Launch System that will lift the Orion space capsule on future missions. (Source: PRNewswire, NASASpaceflight, 01/09/15) Previous related

SpaceX launch successful

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – SpaceX had a successful launch of its Falcon 9 rocket this morning, but a planned attempt to vertically land the booster on a barge failed. The Dragon capsule is bringing 5,000 pounds of supplies to the International Space Station and its six astronauts. The company’s founder, Elon Musk, said the 14-story tall first stage of the rocket made it to the platform floating east of Jacksonville, Fla., but the booster came down too hard and broke apart. The company is trying the soft landing so the rocket can be re-used. (Sources: multiple, including AP via Yahoo News, CBSNews, NBCNews, National Geographic, 01/10/14) Gulf Coast note: SpaceX plans to test its newest rocket engine at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Previous

Airbus posts opening

MOBILE, Ala. – Airbus posted its first available position of 2015 for its A320 final assembly line being built at the Mobile Aeroplex. It’s for a quality services technician, responsible for implementing and monitoring quality management processes and procedures. For a complete list of Airbus jobs in Mobile, visit the Alabama Industrial Development Training website. (Source: al.com, 01/09/15)

Turkey to order four more F-35s

Turkey plans to buy four more F-35 Joint Strike Fighters from the United States, in addition to the two it had already ordered, according to the country’s defense ministry. Turkey has long planned to purchase 100 jets to replace its F-4 and F-16 fleet, but increasing costs hampered the acquisitions. (Source: AFP via SpaceDaily, 01/08/15) Turkey is one of the nine partner nations that helped fund development of the Lockheed Martin F-35. Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center.

Tyndall exercise to last several days

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- The 325th Fighter Wing early this morning initiated a wing-wide deployment exercise that will continue for several days. Designed to test the wing's ability to deliver combat air power, the exercise will evaluate the wing’s ability to prepare personnel, aircraft and support equipment for a simulated departure. Stage two of the exercise will measures the wing's ability to receive and operate the equipment and aircraft prepared during the deployment phase. The wing typically exercises a variety of situations six times a year ranging from hurricane preparations to emergency responses. (Source: 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs, 01/09/15) The 325th Fighter Wing's primary mission is to train and project combat power for F-22 Raptor pilots and maintenance personnel. Tyndall is near Panama City in Northwest Florida.

Two sites certified

Two industrial parks in Santa Rosa County, Fla., have been added to Gulf Power's "Florida First Sites" program. Northwest Florida Industrial Park at Interstate 10 and Santa Rosa County Industrial Park both were certified. Certification in the program means the sites have proper zoning, service to utilities and meet other qualifications that make them ready for development. Both sites are targeting aerospace along with other types of businesses. Another site, VentureCrossing in Bay County, Fla., was the first industrial site to complete the Gulf Power program. (Sources: Florida First Sites, Pensacola News Journal, Santa Rosa's Press Gazette, 01/06/15)

Orcutt picked for brigadier general

WASHINGTON -- Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel announced today that the president has nominated Air Force Col. Daniel J. Orcutt of Hurlburt Field, Fla., for appointment to the rank of brigadier general. Orcutt is currently serving as commander, 505th Command and Control Wing, Air Combat Command at Hurlburt. Orcutt's nomination was among 31 Air Force general officer promotions announced today. (Source: DoD, 01/08/15) Hurlburt Field is home of the Air Force Special Operations Command.

F-35 site, base changes announced

The Pentagon announced today the consolidation of some U.S. infrastructure in Europe, including the return of 15 sites to host nations. These actions from the European Reassurance Initiative will save the U.S. government some $500 million annually and will result in a slight decrease in U.S. force levels, according to DoD. The changes will impact bases in the U.K., Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Portugal. The Pentagon also announced the first U.S. F-35 basing in Europe will be at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom. The first aircraft are scheduled to arrive at Lakenheath in 2020. (Source: DoD, 01/08/15) Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center.

Global Hawks set record

SAN DIEGO – Northrop Grumman Global Hawks unmanned systrems in all its variants have flown more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission hours in one week than ever before. Global Hawks flew 781 hours from Sept. 10-16. The Air Force's RQ-4 Global Hawk flew 87 percent of the missions, while the Navy's Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Demonstration aircraft and NASA's Global Hawk hurricane research assets flew the rest. According to Mick Jaggers, Northrop Grumman’s Global Hawk program director, there are at least two Global Hawks in the air at all times providing ISR. The company's previous weekly flight record was 665 hours set in February. (Source: Northrop Grumman via GlobeNewswire, 01/07/15) Gulf Coast note: Global Hawks are manufactured at Northrop Grumman facilities in Moss Point, Miss., and Palmdale, Calif.

NAS Whiting wins award

MILTON, Fla. -- Commander Naval Installations Command selected Naval Air Station Whiting Field as the top shore installation in the Navy in its respective category Jan. 5. The award lauds the top Navy commands at shore for their installation management, program excellence and community outreach. CNIC oversees 11 regions comprising 69 installations worldwide, and the award recognizes a base's ability to meet CNIC and Department of Defense strategic initiatives. NAS Whiting Field competed in the less than 500 personnel category. The award comes with $170,000 award which the base can use to improve existing facilities. The award completes a sweep of the Navy-wide awards for Pensacola area Navy bases. NAS Pensacola earned top honors for entry in the category for more than 500 personnel. (Source: NNS, 01/07/15) Whiting Field is one of the Navy's two primary pilot training bases. The other is in Corpus Christi, Texas. It provides training for Navy, Marine, Coast Guard and Air Force pilots, as well as those of allied nations. It's the busiest air station in the world.

Airbus, Boeing set delivery records

Airbus increased its deliveries in 2014, setting a new company record, a source at the European planemaker said Tuesday. The Airbus Group subsidiary beat its 2013 peak of 626 deliveries. An Airbus spokesman would not comment on orders or deliveries ahead of the annual news conference Jan. 13. (Source: Reuters, 01/06/15) Meanwhile, Boeing set a record in 2014 for commercial airplane deliveries and orders, the company said Tuesday. Boeing delivered 723 commercial airplanes last year, breaking a company record for the second consecutive year. (Source: Chicago Tribune, 01/06/15) Gulf Coast note: Airbus is building an A320 family final assembly line in Mobile, Ala., that will open this year.

Contract: Exelis, $8.4M

Exelis, Inc., Colorado Springs, Colo., has been awarded an $8,446,234 modification (P00580) to previously awarded contract F19628-02-C-0010 for system sustainment. Contractor will sustain the infrastructure of the C-6 radar to include the weapon system management & engineering; field service team; radome maintenance; and requirements definition, analysis, and modeling. Work will be performed at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2015. Fiscal 2015 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $8,446,234 are being obligated at the time of award. Space and Missile Center, Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., is the contracting activity. (Awarded Dec. 29, 2014) (Source: DoD, 01/06/15)

SpaceX delays launch

SpaceX canceled its early morning rocket launch of a Falcon 9 and its Dragon capsule to the International Space Station, citing a last minute malfunction. NASA said the SpaceX team at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., had detected an "actuator drift," causing the launch to be scrubbed. The next possible launch time is Friday. The launch included a plan to have the launch vehicle land vertically on a platform on a barge-like vessel in the Atlantic Ocean, east of Jacksonville, Fla. The problem was with the second stage, not the stage that will land on the platform. (Source: multiple, including Los Angeles Times, CNN, 01/06/15) Previous

Army tests safer hoist rescue

FORT RUCKER, Ala. -- Scientists and engineers at the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory at Fort Rucker recently tested a device that may make hoist rescues less risky. The Enroute Care and Airworthiness Division, using an HH-60M, Army medic, rescue basket and crach dummy, tested an anti-rotational device designed to reduce the potential for an uncontrolled spin of a stretcher being lifted to the helicopter. After data collection and analyses, a decision is to be made to verify whether the anti-rotational device allows for a safer and more efficient hoist mission. (Source: U.S. Army, 12/18/14)

SpaceX rocket launches Tuesday

SpaceX and NASA are scheduled to launch a Falcon 9 rocket from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Tuesday to bring supplies and equipment to the International Space Station. It's the first such mission to the ISS since Orbital Sciences rocket blew up in Virginia Oct. 28. If all goes according to plan, the Dragon capsule will dock with the ISS later this week. SpaceX will use this mission to test a procedures to salvage and reuse rockets. This mission has an intriguing twist. After the Falcon 9's first stage is jettisoned, SpaceX will relight the booster rocket's engines for a series of burns, attempting to land it upright on a 300-foot by 170-foot bargelike vessel in the Atlantic Ocean, some 200 miles east of Jacksonville, Fla. The landing test has no impact on the resupply mission. (Source: Orlando Sentinel, New York Times, 01/04/15) Gulf Coast note: SpaceX plans to test its next generation engines at Stennis Space Center, Miss. SSC is also where the AJ-26 engines used in the failed October launch of an Orbital Sciences rocket were tested.

Third MUOS launches Jan. 20

The third Mobile User Objective System satellite is scheduled to launch from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Jan. 20. The MUOS satellite is designed to improve secure satellite communications for mobile U.S. forces. Five of the Lockheed Martin MUOS satellites will eventually be launched to form the constellation. Two MUOS satellites launched in 2012 and 2013 are already providing communications capability from their orbits 22,000 miles above Earth. Ultimately, the constellation and network will extend narrowband communications availability past 2025. (Sources: ExecutiveGov, 01/05/15, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command Public Affairs, 12/30/14) Gulf Coast note: Work on the propulsion system for the A2100 satellite-based spacecraft is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss.