Page 2 - Aerotech News and Review, Aug. 4 2017

Briefs
Remains of WWII soldier from Massachu- setts are identified
The Pentagon says it has identified the remains of a long-lost Massachusetts combat veteran killed at Pearl Harbor.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said the remains of Navy Yeoman 3rd Class Ed- mund T. Ryan were being returned to his family in Wilbraham, Mass., for burial with full military honors.
Officials said burial is scheduled for Aug. 2 in Arlington National Cemetery.
Ryan was 21 and assigned to the USS Oklahoma when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft on Dec. 7, 1941.
The Oklahoma also took multiple torpedo hits and quickly capsized. Ryan was among 429 crew- men who lost their lives.
Scientists used DNA analysis and dental records to identify the remains. AP
U.S. bombers fly over South Korea after North’s 2nd ICBM test
The United States flew two supersonic bombers over the Korean Peninsula July 30 in a show of force against North Korea following the country’s latest intercontinental ballistic missile test.
The B-1 bombers were escorted by South Ko- rean fighter jets as they performed a low-pass over an air base near the South Korean capital of Seoul before returning to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, the U.S. Pacific Air Forces said in a state- ment.
It said the mission was a response to consecutive ICBM tests by North Korea this month. Analysts say flight data from the North’s second ICBM test, conducted July 28, showed that a broader part of the mainland United States, including Los Ange- les and Chicago, is now in range of Pyongyang’s weapons.
“North Korea remains the most urgent threat to regional stability,” said Gen. Terrence J. O’Shaughnessy, Pacific Air Forces commander. “Diplomacy remains the lead. However, we have a responsibility to our allies and our nation to show- case our unwavering commitment while planning for the worst-case scenario.”
“If called upon, we are ready to respond with rapid, lethal, and overwhelming force at a time and place of our choosing,” O’Shaughnessy said.
The United States often sends powerful war- planes in times of heightened tensions with North Korea. B-1 bombers have been sent to South Korea for flyovers several times this year in response to the North’s banned missile tests, and also following the death of a U.S. college student last month after he was released by North Korea in a coma.
The Hwasong-14 ICBM, which the North first tested July 4, is the highlight of several new weap- ons systems Pyongyang launched this year. They include an intermediate range missile that North Korea says is capable of hitting Alaska and Hawaii, and a solid-fuel midrange missile, which analysts say can be fired faster and more secretly than liq- uid-fuel missiles. AP
Iran says U.S. Navy fires warning shots near its vessels
Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard said July 29 a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier fired a warning shot in an “unprofessional” confrontation with Iranian vessels, the official IRNA news agency reported.
IRNA quoted a statement from the Guard as saying that the USS Nimitz and an accompanying ship came near an Iranian oil offshore platform in the Persian Gulf and a helicopter from the ship hovered near vessels manned by Iran’s elite Revo- lutionary Guard.
The report said the confrontation took place July 28 and the U.S. Navy ships left the area fol- lowing the encounter.
The U.S. Navy’s Bahrain-based 5th Fleet had no immediate comment.
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The incident comes after a U.S. Navy patrol boat fired warning shots near an Iranian vessel that American sailors said came dangerously close to them during a tense encounter.
Iran and the U.S. frequently have run-ins in the Persian Gulf, nearly all involving the Revolution- ary Guard, a separate force from Iran’s military that answers only to the country’s supreme leader. In January, near the end of then-President Barack Obama’s term, the USS Mahan fired shots toward Iranian fast-attack boats as they neared the de- stroyer in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian forces view the American presence in the Gulf as a provocation. They have accused the U.S. Navy of unprofessional behavior, especially in the Strait of Hormuz, the mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a third of all oil trade passes by sea. AP
Air Force won’t pay for towns’ water con- tamination costs
Air Force officials say they won’t reimburse three Colorado communities for millions of dollars spent responding to water contamination caused by toxic firefighting foam previously used at a military base.
The Gazette reports Security, Widefield and Fountain’s water districts will likely have to pay $11 million of the $12.7 million tab expected by the end of 2018.
Air Force Civil Engineer Center officials say the Air Force does not have the authority to re- imburse communities for the cost of dealing with environmental contamination issues.
Firefighting foam used at Peterson Air Force Base for decades seeped into the Widefield Aqui- fer, making well water in southern El Paso County unsafe to drink.
The Air Force has pledged $4.3 million in aid, most of which is being spent on bottled water and filters. AP
Navy seeks tool to detect devastating mineral in concrete
The U.S. Navy is working to develop a new high-tech gadget that can quickly identify whether a debilitating iron sulfide mineral exists in con- crete, the same problem that’s plaguing thousands of Connecticut homeowners with crumbling foun- dations.
The Navy began last year seeking small busi- nesses that could invent a device to quickly detect the substance pyrrhotite in concrete. Three firms were recently selected.
U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, a Democrat whose districts includes many of the affected towns, says the Navy’s efforts have been independent of the state’s and the congressional delegation’s efforts to help the homeowners. He says the Navy is a large consumer of concrete and wanted to make sure its structures are sound.
He says the device could be helpful in getting a better handle on Connecticut’s problem. AP
Airbus profits lag amid engine issues, military challenges
Airbus’ first-half profits took a hit amid ongoing problems with its A400M military transporter and engine problems for its A320neo, and deliveries are down though orders are on the rise.
The company said July 27 that sales in the sec- ond quarter fell but were stable overall in the first half at 28.7 billion euros ($33.4 billion) compared with 28.8 billion euros for the same period last year.
Net income dropped to 1.5 billion euros from 1.76 billion in the first half last year.
CEO Tom Enders said “we are facing chal- lenges due to ongoing engine issues,” notably on the A320neo, blamed on supplier Pratt & Whit- ney. Airbus maintained its full-year forecast of delivering more than 700 planes but says it de- pends on engine makers meeting commitments
to fixing problems. AP
Northrop Grumman beats second quarter
forecasts
Northrop Grumman on July 26 reported second- quarter net income of $552 million.
The Falls Church, Va.,-based company said it had profit of $3.15 per share.
The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of nine analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $2.84 per share.
The defense contractor posted revenue of $6.38 billion in the period, also topping Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $6.21 billion.
Northrop Grumman expects full-year earnings to be $12.10 to $12.40 per share.
Northrop Grumman shares have risen 14 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has increased 11 percent. The stock has climbed 20 percent in the last 12 months. AP
Raytheon tops second quarter forecasts
Raytheon on July 27 reported second-quarter net income of $553 million.
The Waltham, Mass.,-based company said it had profit of $1.89 per share. Earnings, adjusted to ex- tinguish debt, were $1.98 per share.
The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of nine analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.74 per share.
The defense contractor posted revenue of $6.28 billion in the period, which also topped Street fore- casts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $6.23 billion.
Raytheon expects full-year earnings to be $7.35 to $7.50 per share, with revenue in the range of $25.1 billion to $25.6 billion.
Raytheon shares have risen 19 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has increased 11 percent. The stock has risen 25 percent in the last 12 months. AP
Russia says four military police battal- ions deployed to Syria
Russia’s defense minister says four battalions of Russian military police are currently deployed in safe zones in Syria.
Russia and Iran, both supporters of Syrian Presi- dent Bashar Assad, and Turkey, which backs reb- els fighting Syrian government forces, agreed on a plan in May to establish four “de-escalation” zones in Syria, pressing Assad’s air force to halt flights over designated areas across the war-torn country.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Russian news agencies July 26 that the four battalions are now operating in the safe zones. The chief of the Russian General Staff last week mentioned mili- tary police in just one zone and did not give any numbers.
Russia has supported Assad’s offensive against Islamic State militants since 2015, and sent the first battalion of military police to Syria in December. AP
U.S. Navy fires warning shots near Iran ship in Persian Gulf
A U.S. Navy patrol boat fired warning shots July 25 near an Iranian vessel that American sailors said came dangerously close to them during a tense en- counter in the Persian Gulf. Iran’s hard-line Revo- lutionary Guard later blamed the American ship for provoking the incident.
The encounter involving the USS Thunderbolt, a Cyclone-class patrol ship based in Bahrain as part of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, is the latest con- frontation between Iranian vessels and American warships.
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