* Is the FY12 defense authorization bill loaded with earmarks even though it’s not supposed to? We’ll see what actually comes out of conference in the final text of the bill sometime this week, possibly later today.
* Lockheed Martin hopes to conclude F-35 LRIP lot 5 negotiations with the Pentagon by early next year, within a $4B fixed-price-incentive (firm target) (FPIF) modification to a previously awarded advance acquisition contract (N00019-10-C-0002) announced by the government last Friday.
* General Dynamics’ CEO Jay Johnson is ready for more acquisitions.
* The Defense Acquisition University replaced the old Performance Based Logistics (PBL) with the Product Support Management (PSM) toolkit.
* US Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division Commander (NAWCAD) gave its team and innovation awards last week. Among the recipients, the team in charge of the successful first launch of an F/A-18E using EMALS; the team that completed qualification testing of a 50/50 JP-5 biofuel blend for use in naval aircraft; and the people that got the USMC its first unmanned cargo helos.
* France’s NH90 “Caiman” NFH naval helicopter enters service [in French], will begin deploying on Horizon Class frigates in spring 2012.
* Boeing’s GISP/GSP support partnership with C-17 heavy transport jet operators around the world is recognized with an award.
* My Bell 407, or Yours? BAE Systems has joined with the Bell Helicopter veterans at AVX to offer a super-fast Bell 407/206L derived compound helicopter UAV as the US Navy’s MRMUAS. Their biggest competition will be Northrop Grumman/Bell’s MQ-8C Fire-X, a more straightforward Bell 407 derivative.
