Rapid Fire May 31, 2012: Defining Unmanned Missions

* Northrop Grumman is pitching a fleet of 3 to 5 modified Global Hawks Block 30s to Canada. The call it “Polar Hawk”. It’s a good thing Microsoft is not in charge of their branding: “Global Hawk Cold Proof Starter Edition” doesn’t have the same ring to it. * RAND came up with methodologies to determine the future role and missions of UAVs. * IAI sales for Q1 2012 are up 5% from a year ago to $894M. Its backlog reached $9.7B. Exports and military sales represent 80% and 76% of total sales respectively. * BAE Systems to consult employee representatives on potential job cuts across the UK. * Romania is looking at used F-16s from Portugal or the Netherlands. * Peter W. Singer at the Brookings think tank attributes counterfeit electronic parts to contractor cost cutting rather than China.