• DARPA’s Prophecy project looks to stay a step ahead of virus evolution, something with strong public health relevance as well as defensive military uses. That’s good, because the US State Department’s new arms control compliance report shows that there is a lot we do not know about the world’s germ warfare programs.

• Research and Markets: The South African defense industry is expected to continue its consolidation trend, with fewer firms competing for more international business. No surprise, given its weak domestic market.

• F-35 flight tests suspended, due to issues with fuel-system software on all variants and with a door hinge on the Marines’ F-35B.

• At least one person on Cryptome thinks the Stuxnet worm is too sloppy to be Israeli malware, and that the “myrtus” aspect of it has a non-biblical explanation. Meanwhile, Iran blusters – and may be about to implement the accompanying social hack.

• Collateral Economy: US military’s 17 facilities in Maryland generate $36 billion annually in economic activity, according to a University of Baltimore report [PDF].

• Cleveland Rocks: Defense News reports that Cleveland Ship has bid for Northrop Grumman’s shipbuilding unit, which Bloomberg estimates to be worth up to $4.6 billion.

• Canada’s AirBoss-Defense gets $22 million worth of orders to supply CBRN protective boots and gloves to the US military.

• Up to $8 million to Kratos for IT and cybersecurity support for the US Navy’s Pacific region network.

• Slash and Burn: First review of UK military spending in more than a decade could lead to a 25% across the board cut. Meanwhile, the cost of replacing their nuclear deterrent is causing havoc with planning.

• WikiLeaks suspect transferred from detention in Kuwait to pre-trial confinement in Virginia – which could take a while.

• Germany’s current climate of fiscal austerity appears to have killed any subsidies to build a 6th Dolphin Class submarine for Israel, and may derail efforts to make Israel the launch customer for the MEKO CSL and its flexible payloads.

• Czeching for Missiles: Czech prime minister says US-funded early warning center in the country will be part of a NATO missile defense system, and are negotiating to host a related facility.

• Southern Exposure: The US is close to activating a partial missile defense system against Iranian missiles in southern Europe with a possible deal to put an X-band radar ground station in Turkey or Bulgaria, the Washington Post reports.

• Give Me Some Space: Canadian fighter jets intercepted 2 TU-95 Russian strategic bombers near Canadian airspace, the latest of 50 such incidents in the last 3 years, says Canadian defense minister.

• High-tech Dragon: China is turning to IT and other high-tech equipment to beef up its military capabilities, notes the country’s defense minister.

• Colombia’s 3rd CN-235 MPA maritime patrol aircraft arrives.

• South Africa buys Raytheon Paveway II laser-guided bombs for its air force.

• 1st South Korean KDX-III AEGIS destroyer passes combat system qualification trials.

• USN PDR approves Lockheed’s SEWIP Block 2 ship protection system design.

• Despite plans to spin off its struggling shipyard business, Northrop Grumman posted a healthy 81% increase in profits for the second quarter of 2010, compared to the same quarter in 2009. Northrop Grumman release.

• Going Nuclear?: US, South Korea hold naval exercises, involving 20 ships and submarines and 200 aircraft, despite North Korea’s threat to use its “nuclear deterrent.”.

• Is that a Missile in Your Pocket?: A senior Iranian military commander claims that the country has the capability to mass produce ballistic missiles. To see what ballistic missiles Iran might have, check out this Council on Foreign Relations backgrounder.

• Getting Kinky: According to an industry survey by AlixPartners, kinks in the global supply chain, such as the inability of OEMs to integrate Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers, will continue to hurt the global aerospace and defense markets.

• Word on the Street: A review by Dow Jones Newswires of Wall Street analyst finds a disappointing outlook for big US defense companies’ second quarter earnings due out this week.

• Overdue Fines: Five Republican US senators send a letter to Pentagon chief Gates chastising him for failing to deliver to Congress a report on China’s military capabilities due March 1 each year.

• Let the Sun Shine: Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, AZ joins other US military installations in building solar energy farm. See DID’s coverage of other solar projects.

• NATO chief proposes common funding pool for NATO missions and country-specific specialization in major weapon system procurement.

• US CSBA rips “flawed logic” [PDF] of USA’s recent nuclear posture review. April 2010 backgrounders also include the related “Meeting the Challenge of a Proliferated World,” [PDF] and “Understanding the Threat of Nuclear Terrorism” [PDF].

• Russia places a military satellite, believed to be a Parus navigation and communications satellite, into orbit aboard a Kosmos 3M rocket.

• Lockheed gets $1.5 million to continue lightweight “Kinetic Energy Net” composite armor development, aims to replace metal in aircraft.

• Australia formally releases its solicitation for “AIR 9000, Phase 8” to buy naval helicopters: either the NH90 NFH or the MH-60R, decision in 2011.

• Japan opens 1st overseas military base in Djibouti, Africa, to combat pirates.

• Northrop Grumman delivers 3rd and last Airborne Laser Mine Detection System (ALMDS) pods to the U.S. Navy ahead of schedule, doesn’t discuss performance issues raised by US GAO.

• Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics beat analysts’ quarterly earnings estimates.

• USJFCOM, Northrop Grumman extend ISR research accord.

• UK, Afghan military engineers partner on 1st joint project to expand Patrol Base Rahim in Nahr-e Saraj to accommodate 300 Afghan and UK soldiers.

• US heavily reliant on China for supply of rare earth metals used in high-tech weapons such as radar, night vision devices, and smart bombs, GAO warns. GAO report [pdf] | Bloomberg | TechNewsDaily

• Foreign Policy magazine: “Time Is Of the Essence” to secure nuclear fissile materials around the world from terrorists. Meanwhile, Tehran’s own conference on nuclear proliferation isn’t reassuring many people.

• Fresh out of structural concerns, USAF F-15Cs with new APG-82 AESA radars will now shoulder 50% of the “air dominance” burden, to compensate for the F-22A’s production shutdown.

• US SOCOM cancels FBO solicitation for the Combatant Craft Medium Mk 1, which was supposed to replace naval special warfare’s Rigid Inflatable Boats.

• First 2 Romanian C-27J Spartan light transport aircraft land in Bucharest

• US governors, US reps send letter to Pentagon, USAF chiefs opposing USAF plan to take C-130 transport aircraft from the Air National Guard and Reserves to replace aging aircraft. Governors’ and US reps letters to Gates [pdf] | US reps letter to AF secretary [pdf] | Government Executive

• NSA Director Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander, who appears Thursday for a Senate confirmation hearing as the first head of the Pentagon new Cyber Command, wants overhaul of laws to unshackle US ability to conduct cyber warfare. New York Times | Associated Press | Washington Post

• Pacific shifts: ITT opening offices in Canberra, Australia and New Delhi, India.

• Rolls-Royce completes first 33t Kamewa Adjustable Bolted Propeller and MT30 gas turbine tests for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier.

• Iran buys nuclear enrichment gear through China’s Jinzhou Group.

• China buys 15 batteries of S-300 long-range anti-aircraft missiles for $2.25 billion from Russia. Reuters | RIA Novosti | Bloomberg

• New UK Military Aviation Authority, which grew out of Nimrod Review Report on 2006 crash of Nimrod XV230 sea control aircraft, kicks off with mandate to regulate military airworthiness.

• US DoJ is suing KBR for improperly charging the US Army for private armed security from 2003 to 2006 under the LOGCAP 3 logistics contract in Iraq. KBR says its hiring of private armed security was “reasonable, necessary and appropriate.”

• Frost & Sullivan: US Army purchases of VSAT communication capacity spurs VSAT providers revenues but prompts worldwide bandwidth shortage.

• Oman confirms its intent to buy Eurofighter Typhoons from Britain. Which is not a contract, but is a step forward.

• Thales’ new CAPTAS 4249 active/passive towed variable-depth sonar detaches and sinks during trials in the Bay of Biscay.

• AGM-154C-1 JSOW Block III glide bomb completes its first captive-flight test on an F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter, demonstrates Link 16 compatibility.

• France’s DCNS dangles the prospect of further international work in front of Indian Scorpene submarine manufacturing partner Walchandnagar Industries.

• Pentagon beefs up building security measures in aftermath of March 4 shooting. Washington Post | Associated Press

• Northrop Grumman promotes RQ-4 Global Hawk UAV in Asia.

• US commission grills US military, KBR over waste, drawdown of 100,000 contractors in Iraq. C-SPAN coverage | Panel members’ statements | Commission release | Washington Post | Business Week | CBS News

• Updates RE: the sinking of the Pohang Class corvette Cheonan.

• Japan tells US it is opposed to plan to move Futenma air station, home of about 2,000 US Marines, to a remote location on Okinawa island. Reuters | Wall Street Journal | Xinhua | AFP

• UK upgrading all its Army Lynx helicopters to Lynx 9A configuration for Afghanistan. Program includes engines from its successor, the new AW159 Wildcat.

• US Marines step back on Web 2.0 ban, will allow wider use. The US Army’s 82nd Airborne says that those tools really helped on the ground in Haiti [PDF].

• US coast Guard Commandant on the service’s C4IT strategic modernization plan.

• Would you like camelina oil with that Warthog? USAF tests bio-fuel driven A-10 Thunderbolt II. USAF Video

• UK report notes progress in Russia on securing weapons of mass destruction. Global Threat Reduction Programme report | MoD release

• $13.5 million order. For FLIR, the future’s so BRITE, they gotta wear shades.

• US Army will allow Sikhs to serve in turbans. Hey, it worked fabulously for the British…

• Feb 10: RF notes Tory shadow minister’s comment that Britain must be capable of acting unilaterally. Today: read Liam Fox’s full speech to the RUSI re: Britain’s coming defense review and challenges.

• Hollywood scriptwriters are preparing scenarios for the Cyber Shockwave exercise on Feb 16/10 involving top US government officials. The event is sponsored by industry and will be covered by CNN.

• France’s DGA procurement agency offers 2009 summary [ in French], says average program delays will be slightly longer.

• VCCT simulators improve convoy training, give US and allied forces an OODA loop advantage.

• Pros and Cons of Stryker wheeled APCs in Afghanistan. The Canadians know this debate well.

• Pentagon set to create a project office to manage “non standard” helicopter buys for allies – like Mi-17s for Iraq and Afghanistan.

• First flight of revamped German CH-53GA helicopter at Donauworth.

• Northrop Grumman delivers 1st AN/ZPY-1 STARlite radars for the Army’s Warrior ER/MP UAS under a $78.5 million contract.

• Northrop Grumman clarifies its SPQ-9B radar contract.

• General Dynamics awards an $18 million contract to Northrop Grumman to produce LRS-2000 rate sensor assemblies for US Army’s M1A1 Abrams tank.

• SAIC to develop integrated crew member simulators for the CH-47 Chinook and UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters under the US Army’s $17.5 billion STOC II contract vehicle.

• Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne hot-fire tests RS-68A upgraded engine for Delta IV rocket.

• VTOL UAV funding from… the State of Maryland.

• Iranian president warns Israel against pre-emptive attack.

• Japan and South Korea are demanding that North Korea return to talks to end its nuclear weapons program.

• Ike’s copy of Germany’s WW II surrender document up for sale – just $2.95 million.

Can’t do that anymore
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BAE Systems received a contract worth up to $20 million to support the US Air Force global monitoring for nuclear treaty compliance. The company will provide engineering, research, and program management services for the Air Force Technical Applications Center (AFTAC) at Patrick Air Force Base in Florida.

AFTAC operates and maintains a global network of nuclear explosion detection sensors called the US Atomic Energy Detection System (USAEDS). Once the USAEDS senses a disturbance underground, underwater, in the atmosphere or in space, the event is analyzed for nuclear identification and findings are reported to national command authorities through USAF headquarters.

AFTAC monitors compliance with the following nuclear testing treaties:

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency at Fort Belvoir, VA leads US Department of Defense efforts to stop the global spread, transfer, and usage of chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons of mass destruction.

Recently, they issued a $6.1 million contract to Dyncorp’s CSC Systems & Solutions, Inc. subsidiary in Alexandria, VA, to support the “International Counter Proliferation Program.” Work will be performed at Fort Belvoir, VA, and is expected to be complete by Aug 27/08. One bid was solicited on Jan 2/08, and 1 bid was received (DTRA01-02-D-0064).