Tuesday, August 31, 2010

DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated August 31, 2010

Source: U.S. DoD issued No. 785-10 August 31, 2010
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - August 31, 2010: U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) Contracts issued August 31, 2010 are undermentioned;
CONTRACTS
NAVY
Walsh Construction Co., Chicago, Ill., is being awarded a $131,103,000 firm-fixed price contract for construction of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Pacific Regional Center at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor. The work to be performed provides for and involves adaptive reuse of historic hangers and new construction on an historic landmark site. The diverse program includes marine biology laboratories, national data center, dive center, International Tsunami Information Center, Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, National Weather Service and administrative functions. Support functions include, but are not limited to, a visitor’s center with permanent and temporary exhibits, auditorium and conference center, library and information center, training rooms, cafeteria, and an occupational health and fitness center. Project includes site work, hazardous material abatement work, and incidental related work. The contract also contains one unexercised option which, if exercised, would increase the cumulative contract value to $131,862,000. Work will be performed in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and is expected to be completed by October 2012. Funds for this project are provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with eight proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity (N62742-10-C-1301).

http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2010/08/dtn-news-us-department-of-defense_31.html

DTN News: Aerospace/Defense Headlines - News Dated August 31, 2010

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources including latest updates Defense News, Aerospace/Defense Headlines - News & Yahoo
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - August 31, 2010: Comprehensive daily news related to Aerospace/Defense for the world of TODAY.
*Comprehensive daily news related on Aerospace/Defense for the world of TODAY.
Tuesday August 31, 2010
The American Legion Honors Armed Forces Servicemembers for Volunteer Efforts5:43 pm - Business Wire
Letter to Shareholders of AvStar Aviation Group, Inc.5:30 pm - Marketwire
Albany Engineered Composites to Support Boeing's CLEEN Engine Nozzle Program5:30 pm - Business Wire
UPDATE - Applied Signal Q3 profit beats Wall Street5:22 pm - at Reuters
http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2010/08/dtn-news-aerospacedefense-headlines_31.html

DTN News: PHI, Inc. Signs Contract For Ten AW139s

(NSI News Source Info) VERGIATE, Italy - August 31, 2010: AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is pleased to announce that PHI, Inc. has signed a contract for ten AW139 medium twin helicopters. These aircraft will be used to perform offshore transport missions. Emilio Dalmasso, Senior Vice President Commercial Business Unit, AgustaWestland said, “We are proud to add PHI to our growing customer base. PHI’s order further confirms the already impressive success of the AW139 as the best selling medium twin helicopter among major players in the offshore world marketplace. As the Oil & Gas industry evolves further and its requirements become more and more demanding, we are sure the AW139 will prove a tremendous addition to the customer’s fleet to maximize operational effectiveness enabling PHI to be primed for any challenge.”

DTN News: U.S. Arms Sales To Return To Normal Track: Taiwan Official

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON- August 31, 2010: A senior Taiwan official posted in Washington expressed welcome Wednesday to the U.S. government's recent decision to allow U.S. companies to sell Taiwan defense articles and services directly without having to create "arms packages." The U.S. Department of State confirmed Tuesday that it had notified Congress of its decision to allow U.S. companies to make commercial exports to Taiwan of defense services and articles to support and upgrade the island's existing air defense radar systems.
The latest sales, worth over US$100 million, will be carried out under a direct commercial sales (DCS) program between Taiwan and private U.S. companies, said the Taiwan official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

DTN News: Afghanistan TODAY August 31, 2010 - If Afghanistan Dissolves Security Firms, Guards Will Join Taliban, Some Predict

(NSI News Source Info) KABUL, Afghanistan - August 31, 2010: The Watan Group's trained fighting force of 2,000 men, armed with rifles and rockets, battles daily to secure the most dangerous roads in Afghanistan so that critical supply convoys can reach U.S. and NATO troops.
As many as 50 guards are killed in Taliban ambushes each month, during fighting so fierce that the Afghan army and police force often refuse to help, said brothers Ahmad and Rashid Popal, who own the Watan Group.

DTN News: Mexico - The Arrest of La Barbie

(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - August 31, 2010: The arrest of a former enforcer for a Mexican drug-trafficking organization will be a public relations coup for the Mexican government even though it will do little to quell the violence in the country.
The Mexican Federal Attorney General’s Office (PGR) confirmed that members of the Federal Police detained former Beltran Leyva Organization top enforcer, Edgar “La Barbie” Valdez Villarreal. Several Mexican media outlets have reported that the operation that netted Valdez Villarreal took place outside of Toluca, Mexico state, while others have reported that the operation actually took place near the Morelos and Guerrero state borders.
Federal Police had reportedly launched an operation to capture Valdez Villarreal on Aug. 9 at a luxury condominium complex in the Bosque de Las Lomas neighborhood of Mexico City but missed him by a few hours, indicating that the Mexican government was close to capturing him for some time before his arrest. The arrest of such high-profile and public figure in the Mexican drug-trafficking scene is a huge success for the Mexican government on both a tactical and public relations level.

DTN News: U.S. Air Force Eagles Soar For Last Time At Hickam

(NSI News Source Info) JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR - HICKAM, Hawaii - August 31, 2010:
Pilots from the 199th Fighter Squadron, Hawaii Air National Guard, completed their last training mission with the F-15 Eagle from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii Aug 25.
The HIANG is upgrading to the F-22 Raptor, a fifth generation fighter, and received their first two Raptors in July.

DTN News: UK's Most Powerful Submarine Joins The Navy

(NSI News Source Info) LONDON, U.K. - August 31, 2010: The UK's most powerful attack submarine, HMS Astute, has been welcomed into the Royal Navy today in a commissioning ceremony overseen by the boat's patron, the Duchess of Cornwall.
The commissioning pennant is raised on HMS Astute [Picture: LA(Phot) A J MacLeod, Crown Copyright/MOD 2010]HMS Astute, which officially becomes 'Her Majesty's Ship' today, is quieter than any of her predecessors, meaning she has the ability to operate covertly and remain undetected in almost all circumstances despite being fifty per cent bigger than any attack submarine in the Royal Navy's current fleet.
The latest nuclear-powered technology means she will never need to be refuelled and can circumnavigate the world submerged, manufacturing the crew's oxygen from seawater as she goes.
http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2010/08/dtn-news-uks-most-powerful-submarine.html

Monday, August 30, 2010

DTN News: BAE Systems Awarded Contract $629M For MRAP Survivability Enhancements

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, USA - August 30, 2010: BAE Systems Tactical Vehicle LP, Sealy, Texas, is being awarded a $628,999,998 firm fixed priced delivery order #0009 under previously awarded contract (M67854-07-D-5030) for the procurement of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle Engineering Change Proposal for enhanced sustainability and safety of 1700 Caiman Multi-Theater vehicles (CMTV).
The sustainability includes: CMTV Chassis, Caiman Underbody Survivability Kit, CMTV Integration Recon, Kuwait; CMTV Training and Integration Support, Kuwait, Commercial Off The Shelf Manual (Operator and Maintenance), New Equipment Training package (Operator New Equipment Training and Field Maintenance New Equipment Training, CMTV Integration Manual, CMTV Deprocessing Kit, CMTV Authorized Stockage List, CMTV Prescribed Load List, and CMTV Battle Damage Assessment and Repair.

DTN News: China To Stage 4-Day Naval Drill In September

(NSI News Source Info) BEIJING, China - August 30, 2010: Chinese Naval Fleetwill hold live-ammunition naval exercise in the Yellow Sea in the beginning of September, the Chinese Defense Ministry announced on Sunday in a statement.The drill will be staged this week from September 1 to September 4 in the sea between China and the Korean peninsula and will come ahead of a parallel U.S.-South Korean joint naval exercise.

DTN News: US Official Condemns Rabbi Ovadia Yosef's Comments

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, USA- August 30, 2010: A United States State Department official condemned Rabbi Ovadia Yosef's comments about PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
"We regret and condemn the inflammatory statements by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef," American State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said. He continued that they are "not only deeply offensive, but incitement such as this hurts the cause of peace. As we move forward to relaunch peace negotiations, it is important that actions by people on all sides help to advance our effort, not hinder it," said Crowley.

DTN News: US To Impose New North Korea Sanctions - Official

(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - August 30, 2010: US President Barack Obama will sign an executive order on Monday mandating new financial sanctions on North Korea, senior administration officials say.
The sanctions will hit three North Korea state-owned entities and one individual, targeting the trade in arms, luxury goods and narcotics.
The new sanctions come after the sinking of a South Korean warship in March, in which 46 sailors died.
North Korea has denied responsibility for the sinking.Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced last month that US sanctions against North Korea would be expanded.
The US has tried to drive international efforts to stop North Korea's efforts to build nuclear weapons.
http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2010/08/dtn-news-us-to-impose-new-north-korea.html

DTN News: Iraqis Say War "Not Ending" Despite U.S. Drawdown

(NSI News Source Info) BAGHDAD, Iraq - August 29, 2010: U.S. President Barack Obama's message this weekend that Iraq would "chart its own course" may have been welcome news for war-weary Americans, but it has fuelled anxieties about the future among Iraqis.
"The war is not ending. The war against terrorism continues here," Nuri al-Moussawi, a 51-year-old Baghdad resident, said. Obama said on Saturday the end of U.S. combat operations on Tuesday, and a fall in U.S. troop numbers to 50,000, helped fulfil a promise he made during the 2008 presidential campaign to end the 7-1/2-year war launched by his predecessor, George W. Bush.
But the failure of Iraqi leaders to form a new government almost six months after elections, and persistent attacks by insurgents, have done little to instil confidence among Iraqis.

DTN News: Indonesia TODAY August 29, 2010 - Volcano Quiet For 400 Years Erupts In Indonesia

(NSI News Source Info) JAKARTA, Indonesia - August 29, 2010: A volcano in western Indonesia spewed hot lava and sand high into the sky early Sunday in its first eruption in 400 years.
Government volcanologist Surono, who uses only one name, said Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province started rumbling a few days ago and the minor morning eruption had mostly stopped.
It sent sand and ash up to a mile (1.5 kilometers) high but lava only moved near its crater. It caused no major damage and "only dust covered plants and trees," he said.
He said Mount Sinabung last erupted in 1600, so observers don't know the volcano's eruption pattern and are monitoring it closely for more activity.
http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2010/08/dtn-news-indonesia-today-august-29-2010.html

DTN News: DTN Logos And Colour Variations

(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - August 29, 2010: The DTN Design, Styles & Logos along with verbiage are associated with Defense-Technology News, Defense News and affiliated blogs respectively.
http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2010/08/dtn-news-dtn-logos-and-colour.html

Sunday, August 29, 2010

DTN News: Pakistan TODAY August 29, 2010 - Double Whammy, Operations Against Islamic Militants And Floods Swamp Fresh Town

(NSI News Source Info) KARACHI/PESHAWAR, Pakistan - August 29, 2010: Pakistan town submerged amid fight to rebuild levees and second story Security forces stormed an army intelligence office in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday and freed two people who had been taken hostage by escaped militant prisoners, officials said.
First....Floodwater has submerged a town in the southern province of Sindh, and threatens another being used as a key staging post for flood relief workers.
Second story....PESHAWAR, Pakistan – Security forces stormed an army intelligence office in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday and freed two people who had been taken hostage by escaped militant prisoners, officials said.
There were no fatalities in the operation and the militants surrendered, said Liaqat Ali Khan, a top police official.

DTN News: Hong Kong TODAY August 29, 2010 - Hong Kong Rallies Demand Justice In Manila Bus Tragedy

(NSI News Source Info) Hong Kong- August 29, 2010: Tens of thousands of people marched in Hong Kong Sunday to demand answers from the Philippine government over the deaths of eight Hong Kong tourists in a bus siege in the Manila last week. Despite assurances and apologies from Philippine officials, anger remains among residents here.
Residents dressed in black and white walked in silence from Victoria Park in eastern Hong Kong island to the Central business district.
Some carried banners demanding the Philippine government investigate the botched attempt by police to rescue hostages held by a gunman on a tourist bus in Manila last Monday. Eight Hong Kong tourists were killed and several others wounded in the rescue attempt.
There were concerns that the protest would only stoke racial tensions in the city, where more than 100,000 Filipinos work, mostly as domestic helpers. But the rally ended peacefully.
Earlier in the day, an interfaith prayer service was held at the central business district, where most helpers congregate on their Sunday day off.
Eman Villanueva, vice chairman of the Filipino Migrant Workers' Union, downplayed those concerns.