Hard.Copy - 23 January 1998
ARTICLE CITATIONS GATHERED FROM COMMERCIALLY PUBLISHED JOURNALS AND NEWSLETTERS.Raytheon EKV Sensor Flies In NMD Test. Aerospace Daily, Jan 20, 1998, p 85A BMDO tested a candidate exoatmospheric kill vehicle (EKV) sensor for possible use in a national missile defense system. The purpose of the test was to determine whether the EKV could identify and track a target. New Problems With THAAD Missile Further Delay Flight Test. Aerospace Daily, Jan 22, 1998, pp 99, 102 Due to malfunctioning parts, the THAAD missile flight test has been delayed. This was a critical test for the interceptor which has had four failed attempts in the past. After a review of the missile, it was determined that a malfunctioning communications transponder and a possible malfunction with THAAD's thrust vector control hardware were the sources of the delayed test flight. PAC-3 Flight Prep Checkout Delays Upcoming Flight Test. Aerospace Daily, Jan 23, 1998, p 108 The delay in the PAC-3 test is not due to software or missile hardware but to lengthy flight preparations, according to the Army. Yeltsin Gives Russian Space Agency Control Of Missile Industry. Aerospace Daily, Jan 23, 1998, pp 107, 109A President Yeltsin has assigned the responsibility of all strategic missile developments in Russia to the civilian Russian Space Agency. Long-Lead Time Buys May Be Needed Before NMD Deployment Decision. Aerospace Daily, Jan 23, 1998, pp 107-108 Some long-lead procurement decisions may need to be made a few months before the Clinton Administration is slated to make a decision in the year 2000 on whether or not to deploy a national missile defense. Washington Outlook: Skimping On Tests. Aviation Week & Space Technology. James R. Asker, Jan 19, 1998, p 21 A congressional watchdog report renews warnings that too few tests are planned for the NMD system. Of three flight intercepts slated before a fiscal 2000 deployment decision, only one will be an integrated system exercise, a GAO report cautioned. Even that one will not test some elements of the system. Nor will the integrated test evaluate the system's performance against multiple warheads and sophisticated countermeasures that might have to be defended against in wartime, or after an accidental launch. Turkey, Israel Deepen Industrial, Defense Ties. Aviation Week & Space Technology. John D. Morrocco, Metehan Demir, Jan 19, 1998, p 26 Turkey is pressing to become a cooperative partner on Israel's Arrow anti-tactical ballistic missile program as defense ties between the two countries continue to deepen. The blossoming partnership is a boon to the Israeli defense industry and government, whose right wing coalition is suffering the repercussions of worsening relations with the Arab world - while Turkey, which shares borders with Iran, Iraq and Syria, can now draw on Israeli military technology to bolster its strategic position. Israel's Arrow would be a major asset in Turkey's arsenal. Pentagon Calls NMD Sensor Test Flight Successful. Defense Daily, Jan 20, 1998, pp 4-5 BMDO, the Army, and the Air Force successfully flight tested a key NMD component last week. During the flight test, Raytheon's EKV sensor was able to identify and track a series of dummy warheads and target balloons in space. The EKV was launched aboard a reconfigured Minuteman II ballistic missile, called the PLV, from the Kwajalein Missile Range. A second reconfigured Minuteman II missile carrying the dummy warheads and target balloons launched from Vandenberg AFB about 20 minutes before the EKV sensor was launched from Kwajalein Atoll. Technical Problems Delay Next THAAD, PAC-3 Flights. Defense Daily. Greg Caires and Brian Shannon, Jan 22, 1998, pp 1-2 Two key BMDO programs are experiencing technical problems that will delay critical test flights. The THAAD missile's next test flight, originally scheduled for the week of March 23 has been delayed, as has the third test flight of the PAC-3 missile, until sometime in the third quarter of FY98. MEADS Highlights Rocky Path Of International Programs. Defense News. Eugene Fox; Stanley Orman, Jan 22, 1998, p 15 The authors of this article suggest that MEADS is a prime example of how the United States should not do business internationally. MEADS a trinational program has had funding problems that may affect other BMD programs, a structural pattern that allows the European nations with "a major say in its development, and guaranteed industrial participation with comparatively small financial commitment." The authors conclude that the US needs to find a better way to institute and maintain international development programs. Reporters Notebook: 'High Risk'. Defense Week, Jan 20, 1998, p 4 The General Accounting Office, GAO, released a report that concluded that the National Missile Defense, (NMD) program's schedule and technical risk is high. Pentagon Report Backs GAO Critique Of Airborne Laser. Defense Week. John Donnelly, Jan 20, 1998, pp 1, 6 A new study by the Defense Department's top weapons analysts "calls into question the operational effectiveness" of the Air Force's $11b Airborne Laser (ABL) system. Fifth Intercept Attempt For THAAD Program May Be Delayed Again. Inside the Pentagon. Daniel G. Dupont, Jan 22, 1998, p 6 The critical test of THAAD's interceptor has been pushed back to the end of March after some pre-flight checks turned up cause for concern. Naval TBM Defense Natures. Jane's International Defense Review. David Foxwell, Joris Janssen Lok, Jan 01, 1998, pp 28-30, 32-34 The USN's TBMD initiative - among several funded by the BMDO - have their critics. The USN's area TBMD capability, designed to counter TBMs such as the Scud and SS-21, will not be deployed until early next century and is only, some say, as capable as the Patriot system deployed during the Gulf War. The more capable but currently underfunded Navy Theater Wide (NTW) system yet to be developed, is designed to counter medium and long range TBMs, but cannot be properly tested without breaking the ABM Treaty.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
