August 23, 1999

August 23, 1999

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HEADLINE NEWS

Russian Aerospace Wants To Come in From Cold

By MICHAEL A. TAVERNA

HEADLINE NEWS

Germany Mulls An-70 Spinoff

HEADLINE NEWS

Kosovo Conflict Spurred New Airborne Technology Use

By DAVID A. FULGHUM

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HEADLINE NEWS

Russian Aerospace Wants To Come in From Cold

MAKS '99 reveals more international ventures, a spurt in foreign arms sales and a new approach to restructuring

By MICHAEL A. TAVERNA

2829
HEADLINE NEWS

Germany Mulls An-70 Spinoff

Zhukovsky, Russia A consortium of German companies involved in a proposal to develop an airlifter based on the Russian-Ukrainian Antonov An-70 said here that a German Ministry of Defense evaluation considered the aircraft, the An-7X, to be superior to the A400M proposed by Airbus.
3031
HEADLINE NEWS

Kosovo Conflict Spurred New Airborne Technology Use

WASHINGTON If the Kosovo air campaign had lasted a few days longer, the U.S. Air Force would have introduced the new combat technique of using unmanned aircraft equipped with laser designators to pick out Yugoslav military targets. As an additional wrinkle, the unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) would have flown beneath cloud layers—which stymied many efforts to use precision weaponry—to direct laser-guided bombs after they were released by manned aircraft flying safely above the clouds, said the Pentagon’s top aviator in Europe, Air Force Gen. John Jumper.

By DAVID A. FULGHUM

3031
HEADLINE NEWS

Yugoslavia Successfully Attacked by Computers

WASHINGTON Offensive computer warfare, the black art that has replaced nuclear weapons and stealth as the U.S.’ most closely guarded secret, was first used as a precision weapon during the Kosovo conflict. While computer systems have been driven to failure with overloads of extraneous data and other brute-force techniques, the military has never before penetrated an enemy computer system and manipulated it to protect an attacking force, in this case NATO aircraft.

By DAVID A. FULGHUM

3435
HEADLINE NEWS

Plug Wrap, Procedures Led to IUS Failure

Cape Canaveral The failure of a Boeing Inertial Upper Stage during the Apr. 9 Titan IVB launch of a missile warning satellite here was caused when a thermal wrap and tape applied to a harness and connector prevented proper disconnection of a plug linking the first and second stages of the IUS, according to a U.S. Air Force investigation.

By Craig Covault

3637
HEADLINE NEWS

Space Shuttle Rescue Sought for Orion 3

CAPE CANAVERAL The Hughes Space and Communications Co. has asked NASA, on behalf of international insurance underwriters, to launch the shuttle on a commercial space salvage mission to capture the wayward Hughes Orion 3 communications satellite so astronauts can attach a new upper stage rocket motor to the stranded satcom.

By CRAIG COVAULT

3637
HEADLINE NEWS

Spectrum Astro, TRW To Design SBIRS-Low

WASHINGTON The U.S. Air Force has picked Spectrum Astro and TRW to design the Space-Based Infrared System-Low missile tracking satellite system, but it also is opening the door for losing bidder Lockheed Martin to remain in the program.

By ROBERT WALL

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HEADLINE NEWS

Iridium’s Future Up in the Air

WASHINGTON Iridium’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection buys the troubled venture some more time, but analysts say the company must move swiftly to survive. Company officials said the filing would not affect telephone and paging services in the $4.85-billion global satellite network.

By JOSEPH C. ANSELMO

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HEADLINE NEWS

Unexpected Jovian Radiation Hits Galileo

LOS ANGELES The Galileo spacecraft was hit by a burst of radiation on Aug. 12 and experienced several computer upsets, but recently loaded software automatically restarted command sequences, minimizing the loss of science data. The event shows that radiation at Jupiter is unpredictable.

By MICHAEL A. DORNHEIM

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HEADLINE NEWS

Japanese Recce Program Wary of FS-X Missteps

WASHINGTON The U.S. will assist Japan in its military satellite reconnaissance program, but will try to avoid the political travails of the FS-X fighter development when the U.S. dictated program decisions to the Japanese government. Recent discussions between Defense Secretary William Cohen and Japanese Minister of State for Defense Housei Norota addressed the issue of the satellite program.

By ROBERT WALL

August 161999 August 301999