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Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Kratos to Provide Rocket Launch Products and Services for Ballistic Missile Defense Programs

Kratos Awarded $10.5 Million Task Order to Provide Rocket Launch Products and Services for Ballistic Missile Defense Programs

"...announced today it has been awarded a $10.5 million task order under its $100 million U.S. Army Multiple Award Prime Contract (MAC) for Theoretical Studies and Engineering Research (TSER). The Naval Surface Warfare Center Port Hueneme Detachment White Sands (NSWC PHD Det WS) utilizes the TSER contract to support various national security related customers, including the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Program...."

Reference: www.nasdaq.com .

Sunday, September 9, 2012

High-altitude nuclear burst. - the Wikipedia description

High-altitude nuclear burst. - the Wikipedia description

"...The only nations to detonate nuclear weapons in outer space are the United States and the Soviet Union. The U.S. program began in 1958 with the Hardtack Teak and Hardtack Orange shots, both 3.8 megatons. These warheads were initially carried on Redstone rockets. Later tests were delivered by Thor missiles for Operation Dominic I tests, and modified Lockheed X-17 missiles for the Argus tests. The purpose of the shots was to determine both feasibility of nuclear weapons as an anti-ballistic missile defense, as well as a means to defeat satellites and manned orbiting vehicles in space. High-altitude nuclear blasts produce significantly different effects. In the lower reaches of vacuous space, the resulting fireball grows much larger and faster than it does near the ground, and the radiation it emits travels much farther...."

Reference: wikipedia.org .

Friday, September 7, 2012

Missile Defense Agency chief Patrick O’Reilly not out yet

Missile Defense Agency chief out? Not so fast

"...A month ago, when President Obama nominated Navy Rear Adm. James D. Syring to head the troubled Missile Defense Agency, some folks thought that meant that Lt. Gen. Patrick O’Reilly, the current MDA director, would be out soon...."

Reference: www.washingtonpost.com .

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

The Rocket City will be the epicenter of missile defense expertise

Groundbreaking for Redstone Arsenal’s Von Braun IV Building to House Missile Defense Systems

"... work is officially underway to add a huge building to the Von Braun Complex on Redstone Arsenal. Military and political leaders say the new facility will make the Arsenal the epicenter of missile defense expertise in the world...."

Reference: whnt.com .

Friday, August 31, 2012

Raytheon awarded contract modification

Raytheon to Supply More Missiles - Analyst Blog

"...Raytheon Company ( RTN ) was awarded a $230.4 million contract modification from the Missile Defense Agency for a sole-source cost-plus-incentive-fee contract action. The addition to the contract consists of 14 Standard Missile-3 Block IA Missiles and 5 Standard Missile-3 Block IB Missiles. The total value of this contract modification is $230.4 million increasing the total contract value from $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion. Work on the contract will be done in Tucson, Arizona. Raytheon expects to finish work on the contract by September 30, 2014...."

Reference: nasdaq.com .

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Neil Armstrong passes

Neil Armstrong, first person to walk on moon, dies of complications from heart surgery

"...Neil Armstrong, the astronaut who with "one small step" from the Apollo 11 lunar module on July 20, 1969, became the first person to walk on the moon, died Saturday at 82...."

Reference: www.post-gazette.com .

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Barring budget accord, AZ could lose billions, see major layoffs, he tells Raytheon workers

McCain: Defense cuts will hit here

"...The cuts would be divided equally between defense and non-defense federal programs, though defense represents about 19 percent of the entire federal budget, McCain told a crowd of about 400 workers at Raytheon's plant complex near Tucson International Airport...."

Reference: azstarnet.com .

Space and Missile Defense Conference in Huntsville tout local missile work

Lockheed's Alabama missile programs touted as bright spot in gloom over defense budget

"...there was plenty to smile about as they outlined some of their programs during the 15th annual Space & Missile Defense Conference in Huntsville. Lockheed Martin is the third-largest defense and aerospace employer in the Huntsville-North Alabama area, with a "little over a thousand fired-up employees who are providing capabilities and services and programs to our warfighters..."

Reference: al.com .

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Iran prepares with upgraded missile

Iran unveils new missile, starts air defence site

"...President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi attended a ceremony at which officials unveiled the fourth-generation Fateh 110 short-range missile, with a range of about 300 km (180 miles), and other upgraded hardware...."

Reference: www.reuters.com .

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

X-51A missile test fails

Third test flight of X-51A hypersonic missile ends in failure

"...Wright Patterson AFB has confirmed in an official press release that Tuesday’s test of the Waverider X-51A unmanned hypersonic missile has failed...."

Reference: www.gizmag.com .

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Missile Integration Technician Salary at Redstone Arsenal, AL - National Salary Trend from Indeed

Missile Integration Technician Salary at Redstone Arsenal, AL - National Salary Trend from Indeed

"...Average Missile Integration Technician salaries for job postings in Redstone Arsenal, AL are 3% lower than average Missile Integration Technician salaries for job postings nationwide...."

Reference: www.indeed.com .

Monday, August 13, 2012

Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System Unitary rockets contract awarded to Lockheed

Army awards $353 million to Lockheed for rocket system known as '70-kilometer sniper rifle'

"...The Army has awarded a $353.2 million contract for the seventh production lot of Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System Unitary rockets to Lockheed Martin.
..."

Reference: al.com .

Automatic military budget cuts will be devastating for workers

Budget cuts would affect 10,000 jobs at Lockheed Martin

"...A Huntsville defense industry giant is predicting a coming wave of automatic military budget cuts will be devastating for workers, bad for America's security, and cruel to families.

Lockheed Martin Vice President Dennis Cavin said for people who work in the defense industry, the coming wave of automatic defense cuts would be devastating. ..."
Reference: www.waff.com .

Friday, August 10, 2012

New Missile Defense Agency director picked

Obama picks new Missile Defense Agency director


Rear Admiral James D. Syring

"...President Obama has nominated Navy Rear Admiral James D. Syring for appointment to the rank of vice admiral and for assignment as director of the Missile Defense Agency, at Fort Belvoir. ..."

Reference: www.washingtonpost.com .

Friday, August 3, 2012

Stop wiggling your missile while you are on the job!

Pentagon’s War on Porn Spreads to Missile Defense Machines

"...The Missile Defense Agency’s executive director, John James Jr., has warned his staff against “inappropriate” use of the agency’s servers — specifically, “accessing websites, or transmitting messages, containing pornographic or sexually explicit images.” As every visitor to such websites knows, they risk “the introduction of malware or malicious code.”..."

Reference: www.wired.com .

Monday, July 23, 2012

Still no corrective action for Lt. Gen. O’Reilly

Missile Defense Agency awaits ‘corrective action’

"...On Tuesday afternoon, our colleague, Craig Whitlock, asked DOD spokesman George Little whether Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta had “been briefed on that report? And, does he still support Lt. Gen. O’Reilly’s position there?”..."

Reference: www.washingtonpost.com .

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Von Braun 4 (IV) complex to break ground in Fall at Redstone Arsenal

Turner Universal to Build Von Braun Complex, Phase IV Missile Defense Agency Administrative Building at Redstone Arsenal

"...In addition to the Von Braun Missile Defense campus, the project at Redstone Arsenal includes design and construction of a multi-story, 225,000-square-foot administrative facility for the Missile Defense Agency (MDA). Turner expects to break ground this fall. ..."

Reference: www.marketwatch.com .

Pentagon building missile-defense radar station at a secret site in Qatar

Pentagon Bulks Up Defenses in the Gulf

"...The Pentagon is building a missile-defense radar station at a secret site in Qatar and organizing its biggest-ever minesweeping exercises in the Persian Gulf, as preparations accelerate for a possible flare-up with Iran, according to U.S. officials...."

Reference: wsj.com .

Friday, July 13, 2012

Rooftop missiles approved for Olympics

Judge OKs rooftop missiles during London Olympics

"...the British army will be putting a battery of high-velocity missiles on the roof. The defense ministry says the missiles, capable of shooting down a hijacked aircraft, are a key piece in the elaborate jigsaw of security for the London Olympics, which start July 27. ..."

Reference: yahoo.com .

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Raytheon awarded missile interceptor contract ($636m)

Raytheon awarded $636m contract for missile interceptor

"...TUCSON - Tucson-based Raytheon Missile Systems has been awarded a $636 million contract to provide a vehicle capable of intercepting a ballistic missile in space...."

Reference: www.kvoa.com .

MDA Director Gen. Patrick O'Reilly bullied staff (report says)

MDA Chief O'Reilly Abuses Staff, Internal Report Says

"...Lt. Gen. Patrick O'Reilly, director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, regularly bullied and screamed at his staff and mismanaged his office, and recommends "corrective action." ..."

Reference: www.spacenews.com .

Thursday, July 5, 2012

A list of Nike missile sites (US)

A list of Nike missile sites (US)

"


... a list of Nike missile sites. This article lists sites in the United States, however the United States Army also deployed Nike missiles to Europe as part of the NATO alliance, with sites being operated by both American and European military forces. U.S. Army Nike sites were also operational in South Korea, Japan and were sold to Taiwan.

Leftover traces of the approximately 265 Nike missile bases can still be seen around cities across the United States. As the sites were decommissioned they were first offered to federal agencies. Many were already on Army National Guard bases who continued to use the property. Others were offered to state and local governments while others were sold to school districts. The left-overs were offered to private individuals. Thus, many Nike sites are now municipal yards, communications and FAA facilities (the IFC areas), probation camps, and even renovated for use as Airsoft gaming and MilSim training complexes. Several were completely obliterated and turned into parks. Some are now private residences. Only a few remain intact and preserve the history of the Nike project. The missile sites are listed by the state in which they are located. The vast majority of the installations were combat ready launch facilities. Each site listing contains information concerning a particular site...."

Reference: wikipedia.org .

Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War (Vintage, Book, Amazon)

Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War (Vintage)Wernher von Braun

Michael J. Neufeld, curator and space historian at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, delivers a brilliantly nuanced biography of Wernher von Braun, Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War (Vintage).

Chief rocket engineer of the Third Reich and one of the fathers of the U.S. space program, Wernher von Braun is a source of consistent fascination. Glorified as a visionary and vilified as a war criminal, he was a man of profound moral complexities, whose intelligence and charisma were coupled with an enormous and, some would say, blinding ambition. Based on new sources, Neufeld's biography delivers a meticulously researched and authoritative portrait of the creator of the V-2 rocket and his times, detailing how he was a man caught between morality and progress, between his dreams of the heavens and the earthbound realities of his life.


Reference: Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War (Vintage)

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Kauai, Hawaii, target missile launch and intercept

Raytheon missile to be assembled in Huntsville destroys target in 2nd successful test

"...In today's test, a target missile was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility, on Kauai, Hawaii, at 4:15 a.m. CDT and flew northwest over the Pacific Ocean. The USS Lake Erie Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense ship detected and tracked the missile with its onboard AN/SPY-1 radar, according to MDA. The crew used Lockheed Martin's second-generation Aegis BMD 4.0.1 weapon system to launch the SM-3 Block IB missile toward an intercept.
..."

Reference: al.com .

Friday, June 15, 2012

Coal miners fire missiles during clash over jobs

Replacing pickets with missiles: Spanish mining protests grow violent

"...Striking coal workers blocked roads with burning tires and fired missiles at police to stop them breaking up protests in northern Spain on Tuesday, officials from the recession-hit country said. While some miners have remained underground for 23 days, thousands of others in the northern provinces of Asturias and Leon set tires alight..."

Reference: msnbc.msn.com .