The US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) has a central role in addressing the threat of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Their Research and Development Enterprise [PDF] is especially wide-ranging, covering everything from protective gear, to predictive and decision-support algorithms, to ScanEagle UAV variants that can monitor WMD levels, to co-operative non-proliferation programs, to development of new weapons like the Massive Ordnance Penetrator. Some of this work has even led to commercial spinoffs, vid. Sanofi Pasteur’s acquisition of VaxDesign and its DARPA/DTRA-financed MIMC model: an in vitro tool capable of predicting human immune response to specific bio-threat agents.

• US Supreme Court throws out lower court ruling that would have required Boeing and General Dynamics to repay $3 billion to the federal government for the cancelled A-12 Avenger fighter program.

• Does SpaceX have lessons to teach NASA? After it spends under $400 million to do what would have taken NASA around $4 billion, Congressional testimony says “yes!”, and SpaceX underscores its cost positions. Next step? Falcon 9 Heavy, which aims to challenge the current Boeing/Lockheed EELV heavy lift platforms on cost and payload.

• FLIR Systems, a supplier of thermal imaging and threat detection systems, agrees to pay $39 million to two former executives to settle litigation related to its 2004 acquisition of Indigo Systems.

• L-3’s Systems Field Support division gets contract worth up to $300 million to provide C-12 aircraft logistics support and maintenance to the US Navy and USAF.

• SAIC snags contract worth up to $85 million to provide fighter operational test and evaluation services at the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center.

• US Army honors the MQ-5B Hunter UAV as “the little program that could,” with a history going back to 1989. Hunters still serve on the front lines, and some are now armed with GBU-44 Viper Strike mini-weapons.

• Smiths Detection receives $30 million order to provide battlefield chemical agent detectors for the US DoD’s Joint Chemical Agent Detector program.

• China’s submarine buildup is creating pressure on Asian countries to improve their anti-submarine capabilities – and add subs of their own. Given the volume of Chinese shipping that must pass through narrow chokepoints in and around Indonesia, it’s not a good strategic trade for China.

• Crews for India’s ordered Scorpene diesel-electric submarines are due to begin training in France, soon. The goal is now delivery by 2015, with all 6 delivered by the end of 2018.

• Loose or broken bolts caused South Korea to suspend operations for its 3 type U214 subs through much of 2010, and into 2011. The problem was fixed, and contracts to build its next set of 6 more U214s continue.

“Go Ahead, Make My Day”

The US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) has undertaken an R&D effort to provide an integrated approach to combating weapons of mass destruction (WMD) known as the Research and Development Enterprise [PDF]. Their efforts are aimed at improving situational awareness about the WMD threat, controlling WMD materials and systems worldwide, reducing the threat to US troops, protecting the homeland, transforming the US nuclear deterrent, and controlling the threat of loose nuclear weapons in the world.

As part of this effort, DTRA awarded a contract April 18/11 worth up to $600 million to TASC in Chantilly, VA to provide advisory services to the agency’s effort in this area…

• Aero India 2011 exhibition takes flight.

• The USA OKs its next-generation SSBN-X nuclear missile submarines for Milestone A studies, to accompany missile compartment contracts already underway.

• Even as reports gather that China has tested Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles of its own.

• How did Northrop Grumman do in the fourth quarter? Depends who you talk to: Reuters | Wall Street Journal.

• Pentagon backs mergers and acquisitions among smaller defense suppliers, but not for the heavy hitters.

• DoD is requesting $7 billion less in FY 2012 than was forecast last year, according to a Bloomberg report.

• US Army wants more “Punisher” XM25 semi-automatic high-explosive airburst weapons for Afghanistan.

• US SOCOM forces stretched to the limit in Afghanistan, commander warns.

• Defense electronics contracts totaled in excess of a billion dollars in January 2011, according to Strategy Analytics.

• Greenbelt, MD-based Gryphon Technologies is adding 60 jobs and office space in Bloomington, IN, to accommodate its $26.6 million logistics services contract with the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division.

• Harris snags $9 million order to supply Falcon II 400-watt AN/PRC-150-C radios for the US Army’s Joint Biological Point Detection System [PDF] designed to identify biological threats on the battlefield.

• Raytheon pays hefty fee of $490 million to acquire military cybersecurity firm Applied Signal after intense bidding war.

• Germany’s Wegmann Group acquires Siemens AG’s 49% stake in land vehicle leader Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co. KG (KMW). They will become the sole shareholder, pending regulatory and anti-trust approvals.

• Israel is reportedly deploying Merkava tanks equipped with “Windbreaker”/Trophy active defense systems to the Gaza border, in view of recent ATGM attacks and intelligence reports that Hamas has upgraded its anti-tank capabilities. The lessons from the 2006 war are at work.

• On the other hand, the Iron Dome rocket protection system for Israeli towns remains in storage, even though rocket attacks are increasing again.

• Australian media say Sikorsky’s MH-60R may have an edge over the NH90-NFH in Australia’s naval helicopter competition. Time will tell.

• Colombia sought aerial defense system from US to counter Venezuela, US documents from WikiLeaks show. Given Venezuela’s recent buys, that can’t be surprising.

• Patria’s deal with Sweden for at least 113 AMV 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers has survived legal challenges, and become a binding contract.

• US cautious about North Korean pledge to allow IAEA nuclear inspectors.

• BAE Systems snags $14 million US Navy contract to supply 4 AN/SQQ-32(V)4 minehunting sonar systems that are replacing the Raytheon-supplied AN/SQQ-32(V)3 sonar [PDF] currently employed aboard the MCM-1 Avenger Class minesweepers.

• DARPA launches programs intended to prevent cybersecurity Pearl Harbor.

• Harris gets $5.5 million USMC order for additional vehicular amplifier adapters for the Falcon III AN/PRC-117G wideband tactical radios.

• Up to $1.7 billion to CSC, Sparta, and General Dynamics for infrastructure and deployment services for the US Ballistic Missile Defense System under the MDA’s Engineering and Support Services (MiDAESS) program.

• Bolivia signs agreement with Iran to buy Fajr F.3 and S-68 training aircraft, 52-seat Iran-140 aircraft, and 4-seat helicopters.

• Debt Buyback: Northrop Grumman to purchase $2.1 billion in debt securities of its Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding and Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. subsidiaries.

• A Flare for Flares: ATK snags $71 million contract to supply aircraft-deployed LUU-2D/B visible light illumination flares and LUU-19B/B infrared energy illumination flares for battlefield operations.

• Can you hear me now?: ManTech receives a $68 million contract to build and deploy an expeditionary cell phone system for the US Army’s forward bases in Afghanistan.

• Midwest Research Institute gets $35.5 million order to supply a test system for chemical weapon contamination at the US Army Research, Development and Engineering Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD.

• Changing the Rules: The UK government plans to rewrite the rules governing defense contracts.

• Mexico’s “Blog Del Narco” has stepped into a media void as the go-to publication for Cartel War reporting, used as a source – and a tool. Welcome to the blogging dimension of information war.

• Going Green: US military turns to renewable energy to reduce vulnerability of fuel supply in Afghanistan. Read DID’s “Frontline Commanders Requesting Renewable Power Options” for more in-depth background.

• After a series of construction delays on the GBP 150 million contract, Trinidad and Tobago doesn’t want their 3 BAE OPV patrol vessels any more, even though 2 have finished sea trials. While BAE pursues negotiations with its customer, one observer thinks the US Coast Guard should take a look.

• NATO’s theater missile defense systems are slowly coming together, from ALTBMD to CAOC improvements, and could be upgraded for around EUR 200 million/ $268 million.

• Strategic Buy: FLIR Systems, a Portland, OR-based thermal imaging equipment maker, completes acquisition of ICx Technologies, a supplier of CBRNE sensing technologies, for $268 million.

• Training Wheels: L-3 receives a $91 million USAF contract to provide logistics support for the T-1A Jayhawk jet trainer.

• The Fighting Seabees: Navistar Defense snags $18.9 million contract to supply 38 International 5000-MV [PDF] heavy truck tractors to the US Navy Seabees.

• Northrop Grumman’s AMSEC gets $10 million contract to provide engineering and logistics support to the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Philadelphia.

• South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak lays out a 3-step process for reunification of the peninsula. It is not a return to his predecessor’s anti-American “sunshine policy,” and includes a reunification tax to begin preparing for the massive costs of either peaceful reunification, or regime collapse.

• China set to test DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile. USA finishes first test of the supersonic GQM-163 Coyote High Diver, which may help simulate those attacks for defensive systems.

• Exit, Stage Left: US Defense Secretary Gates plans to retire next year before the presidential election season heats up, after serving in the position since 2006.

• Canada’s frigate replacement program slammed as late and over budget – and it hasn’t even started yet.

• Lots of Green: DoD spent $29.8 billion on environmental cleanup from 1986 to 2008, but still hasn’t cleaned up Fort Meade, MD, and 2 other US military bases, according to a GAO study due out this week.

• Checking under the Hood: SAIC gets a DLA contract worth up to $241 million to provide logistics support for US military vehicle maintenance depots, including the Anniston Army Depot in Anniston, AL, and the Red River Army Depot in Texarkana, TX.

• Russian completes the MiG-31BM modernization program to enhance its interceptor fleet.

• Private Security, No Thanks: Afghan President Karzai said his government will disband private security companies that operate in his country within 4 months, a deadline that leaves NATO unsure how it will fill the personnel gap, the Washington Post reports.

• Good Morning, Vietnam: Is US attempt to strengthen ties with Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries to counter China a mistake? Wall Street Journal | Christian Science Monitor | Center for Research on Globalization.

• Chasing Butterflies: DARPA awards GE-led team a $6.3 million contract to develop butterfly-inspired nanostructured sensors to detect dangerous warfare agents and explosives.

• Taranis Rex: Named for the Celtic god of thunder, the GBP 143 million Taranis stealth unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) was unveiled by manufacturer BAE Systems.

• US Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan says US pullout will mean more use of security contractors in Iraq.

• Border Dispute: Canada’s CGI extends $920 million offer to buy US defense IT firm Stanley until Aug 2/10 due to delays in US regulatory approvals.

• Austal prepares to lay the keel for JHSV-1.

• Finding the Formula: Cosworth, a UK-based company that supplies Formula 1 racing car engines and electronics, is providing the UK military with technologies to improve counter-IED vehicle design.

• AnaptysBio to develop antibodies for sensors to detect bioterrorist attacks [pdf] under DARPA contract.

• ManTech continues to provide technical and engineering support to the US Naval Undersea Warfare Center Keyport Division for naval range acoustic test programs under a $19.5 million contract.

• Critics question the timing of the NY Times story on Afghanistan’s potential $1 trillion in mineral wealth – and the course of the war – but not the story’s facts. The Times’ James Risen defends his story, and says he’s been on it for some time now thanks to contacts in the geological survey teams.

• CSC gets SeaPort-E order worth up to $135 million to support Navy’s PEO Aircraft Carriers, which is responsible for managing the design, development, construction, modernization, and lifecycle of US Navy aircraft carriers.

• BAE signs a deal to use Iveco’s SUPERAV 8×8 amphibious wheeled APC as the basis for the US Marines’ upcoming MPC competition. That doesn’t look like good news for BAE’s own SEP; Patria Oyj & Lockheed announced an AMV MPC entry in 2007...

• India’s Samay Live reports tough conditions attached to use of Pakistan’s new F-16s...

• LOGIR guided 70mm rocket test goes well, moving the USN/ROK effort closer to joining a crowding field of offerings.

• SAIC snags follow-on contract worth up to $49 million to support video processing capability of USAF DCGS, a globally networked ISR system.

• Russia moves to keep up, with new President-S helicopter active protection system to defeat portable anti-aircraft missiles. Irony alert: most of the missiles likely to threaten Russian helicopters these days are Russian designs.

• Environmental Tectonics wins $38 million contract to supply 4 USAF research altitude chambers to study pilots’ reactions to high-altitude flight.

• Up to $16.6 million to IntelliScience to supply digital imagery analysis systems to Defense Threat Reduction Agency for WMD detection.

• Honeywell gets $4.6 million US Army contract to develop micro-grid technology to provide power in remote locations and improve efficiency of existing generators.