Hard.Copy - 03 April 1998
ARTICLE CITATIONS GATHERED FROM COMMERCIALLY PUBLISHED JOURNALS AND NEWSLETTERS.Weldon Sees No Big TMD Increases In Subcommittee Markup. Aerospace Daily, Apr 02, 1998, p 1 According to Curt Weldon (R-PA), no major theater missile defense programs will receive additional funds in the FY999 defense authorization, but increases are likely for the MEADS program and lasers. BMDO Adds THAAD Tests Prior To Full UOES Funding Commitment. Aerospace Daily, Mar 30, 1998, pp 473-474 The US government will not commit full funding to buy 40 THAAD UOES until two more test flights are completed. The current plan only involves one flight test before the purchase of THAAD UOES, but the US government is rethinking this plan after four failures to hit a target. BMDO Slips Test Of Boeing Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle For NMD. Aerospace Daily, Mar 30, 1998, p 470 BMDO has delayed an upcoming intercept test of the Boeing exoatmospheric kill vehicle (EKV), to allow for more ground testing and modeling and simulation of the EKV's components. House Authorizes $147 Million TMD Plus-Up. Aerospace Daily, Apr 01, 1998, p 4 The House approved a $147m authorization boost to accelerate missile defense programs to counter an increased ballistic missile threat, particularly from Iran. USAF Official Outlines Options For Use In NMD Plan. Aerospace Daily, Apr 01, 1998, p 5 A USAF senior official presented alternatives for a NMD architecture, suggesting systems like an interceptor based on a Minuteman ICBM and an upgraded Milstar satellite system. BrigGen James K. Beale, the Air Force acquisition office's director of space and nuclear deterrence was not making a pitch for the Air Force, but simply laying out other options and tradeoffs for an NMD system. Missile Defense Riddled With Diverse Failures. Aviation Week & Space Technology. Paul Mann, Mar 30, 1998, pp 22-23 John E. Pike, director of space policy for the Federation of American Scientists and a longtime critic of BMD programs, commented, "You've got all these guys [on the Welch panel] that have actually been working on this thing for many years...who are basically saying that the plans coming down from the Congress and the White House aren't working, and cannot be made to work. They are experienced professionals who are tired of seeing competent engineers embarrassed by politicians in the White House and on the Hill." Pike pronounced Lyles' ability to impose reform severely limited. "Lyles doesn't pass laws," Pike observed. "In principle he can change contracts, he can renegotiate them. But in practice he could do so only with the greatest of difficulty, because of the contractors' political support on Capitol Hill, which is why we've gotten into this mess." Navy Begins Live Fire Track Tests For SLAM ER Missile. Defense Daily. Frank Wolfe, Apr 02, 1998, pp 5-6 The Navy said it successfully conducted a sled test of the Boeing-built Standoff Land Attack Missile Expanded Response (SLAM ER) missile last Friday at the Naval Air Weapons Center Lake, CA. Lyles: TAMD Roadmap Out Next Month. Defense Daily. Greg Caires, Mar 30, 1998, p 7 An "initial" version of the Pentagon's new theater air and missile defense (TAMD) systems "roadmap" is scheduled to be published in April. The roadmap is the first in what BMDO hopes will be an annual review of the Pentagon's air and missile defense efforts. It is being produced by the Joint Theater Air and Missile Defense Office (JTAMDO). Cosumano: Software Problem To Delay Next Boeing EKV Test. Defense Daily. Greg Caires, Apr 01, 1998, p 4 The first flight test of Boeing's exo-atmospheric kill vehicle (EKV), an interceptor that could one day be used by the Pentagon's National Missile Defense (NMD) system, will be delayed due to a software integration problem, although the exten of that delay is not yet known, according to BrigGen Cosumano, NMD program manager. STRATCOM Considers Changes To Nuclear Triad. Defense Daily. Vago Muradian, Apr 01, 1998, p 6-7 The US Strategic Command (STRATCOM), the joint command that oversees the nation's nuclear forces, is considering whether to change the current air-, land-, and sea-based nuclear deterrent, called the triad, according to the command's chief, AF Gen Eugene Habiger. Leaning On The Labs. Defense Daily, Mar 30, 1998, p 2 According to Director LtGen Lyles, BMDO plans a new initiative to work more closely with the Department of Energy's scientific assets including Oak Ridge, Lawrence Livermore, and Sandia National Laboratories. BMDO has not "used [the labs] as much" since it shifted focus from the Strategic Defense Initiative toward theater and ballistic missile defense. Habiger: Despite Better Relations, Russia Remains A Threat. Defense Daily. Vago Muradian, Apr 02, 1998, pp 3-5 Russia is no longer an enemy of the US, but despite steadily improving relations, the country remains a threat because of its vast arsenal of nuclear weapons, according to the commander of US strategic nuclear forces, AF Gen Habiger. Nuclear Policy Battle Looms As NATO Expansion Nears. Defense News. Lisa Burgess, Mar 30, 1998, p 42 A coalition of 113 countries will request that NATO adjust its nuclear doctrine to better reflect the goals of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) during an April 27-May 8 NPT meeting in Geneva. Israel, Congress Press Pentagon For Added THEL, Arrow Funding. Defense News. Barbara Opall, Mar 30, 1998, p 52 Israeli defense officials and their supporters in Congress are pressuring the Pentagon to continue multiyear funding for bilateral cooperative development programs initially scheduled to conclude by 1999. Committee Proposes Missile Defense Fund Boost. Defense News. Lisa Burgess, Mar 23, 1993, p 10 Citing an accelerated threat to US allies, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Israel, from long range ballistic missiles, US lawmakers are seeking to increase Pentagon spending on theater missile defense by $147 million in 1998. India To Evaluate Strategic Defense Needs. Defense News, Mar 23, 1998, p 2 India will establish a national security council to conduct the nation's first ever strategic defense review, including evaluating India's stance on nuclear policy. BMDO Faces Conflicting Signals. Defense News. Lisa Burgess, Mar 30, 1998, p 8 Pentagon's Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) is finding itself squeezed between congressional demands to pick up the pace of development and an internal board's warnings to slow down or fail. US National Guard To Participate In Bio-Chem Defense. Defense News. Lisa Burgess, Mar 23, 1998, p 18 The Pentagon is calling on the National Guard to help local authorities in case of a terrorist strike involving biological or chemical weapons on US soil. Noting Russian Unease With Us Plans: Key General Sees NATO Expansions As Likely Problem For START II. Inside the Pentagon. Elaine M. Grossman, Apr 02, 1998, pp 1, 6-7 Air Force Gen Eugene Habiger, commander of the US Strategic Command, believes that a vote in the US Senate, later this month to extend NATO to Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic could undermine efforts to persuade Russia to ratify START II. Envoy's Comments On Nuclear Pact With N. Korea Creates Stir In South. Inside the Pentagon. Keith J. Costa, Apr 02, 1998, p 2 The comments of the US Ambassador to Korea that the US may consider replacing the nuclear reactors promised to the Communist regime, with conventional power plants has created controversy in South Korea. Under the Agreed Framework, North Korea agreed to freeze its nuclear programs and abide by the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, with the understanding that the US would help North Korea acquire two light-water nuclear reactors, and help supply the North Koreans with heavy fuel for heating and electricity production. Army General Takes Issue With Air Force NMD Proposal For Alaska Testing. Inside the Pentagon. Darcia R. Harris, Apr 02, 1998, pp 7-8 In a National Defense University Foundation breakfast, Air Force BrigGen James Beale, gave a presentation on the future NMD and alternatives that the Air Force is proposing. One of these suggestions according to Beale, "is to use launches coming out of Kodiak Island in Alaska." Beale also mentioned that this is being done cooperatively with the NMD JPO. However, according to Army BrigGen Joseph Cosumano, the Air Force did not necessarily have the support of the NMD JPO in regards to testing in Alaska. 'Risky Testing' Mars Hit-To-Kill Development. Jane's Defence Weekly, Apr 01, 1998, p 4 According to an independent review panel report commissioned by the US DoD (Welch Panel), the BMDO's program to develop hit-to-kill missile technologies is flawed by a risky testing strategy. In particular, the report said the planning and testing phases of these programs in insufficient to match the aggressive project schedules that are being attempted. "The general planning and execution of the THAAD and LEAP programs are inconsistent with the difficulty of the task," said the report. Moreover, the programs are also impacted by "inadequate design and fabrication discipline."
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