Contract: MI Support Services, $13.9M

MI Support Services, Denton, Texas, is being awarded a $13,926,048 fixed-price-award-fee contract with cost reimbursable line items for program management, organizational and intermediate maintenance services for T-38 aircraft for the Companion Trainer Program for aircraft assigned to five locations. The locations of performance are Beale Air Force Base, Calif.; Holloman Air Force Base, N.M.; Langley Air Force Base, Va.; Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla.; and Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo. The Air Combat Command AMIC/PKCA, Newport News, Va., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 06/30/11)

Contract: Raytheon, $10.6M

Raytheon Co., Missile Systems Division, is being awarded a $10,573,352 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification for the Processor Replacement Program Foreign Military Sales software extension probability of weapon effectiveness. The location of performance is Tucson, Ariz. AAC/EBAC, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 06/29/11)

Near collision being probed

GULFPORT, Miss. - The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Board are investigating an incident this month over Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport where a single-engine plane and airliner were at the same altitude and just 300 feet apart. The near-miss happened June 19 between a Continental Express jet carrying 50 passengers and three crew and a Cessna 172 with a student pilot and instructor. FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the controller who was working with the aircraft when the incident occurred has been restricted from working air traffic until the FAA investigation is complete. (Source: Sun Herald, 06/28/11)

Vision drops five cities

Vision Airlines is dropping service to five of the two dozen cities it serves, citing lower than expected demand. Service is ending July 17 to Greenville/Spartanburg, S.C., Columbia, S.C., and Savannah, Ga., Huntsville, Ala., and Baton Rouge, La. Vision’s hub is at the Northwest Florida Regional Airport at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. (Source: Multiple, including USA Today, Cheapflights, Huntsville Times)

AFSOC gets new leader

HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. - Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel took over leadership of the Air Force Special Operations Command on Friday with the retirment of Lt. Gen. Donald Wurster. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz presided over the ceremony at the Freedom Hangar. Wurster took command of AFSOC in November 2007. Fiel comes to Hurlburt after serving as vice commander at the U.S. Special Operations Command in Washington, D.C. (Source: Northwest Florida Daily News, 06/24/11)

Eglin remembers Khobar

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - More than 100 people gathered Friday at the 33rd Fighter Wing Memorial at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., to honor those killed in the 1996 attack at Khobar Towers at Dharan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. The attach was on the evening of June 25, 1996. Just before 10 p.m., a car bomb exploded at the tower were members of Eglin's 33rd Fighter Wing were wrapping up a three-month deployment. The blast killed 19 airmen and wounded 105. Twelve of the men who died were members of the 33rd. A total of seven airmen from Patrick, Offutt and Wright-Patterson air force bases also were killed. (Source: Northwest Florida Daily News, 06/24/11)

Exports, STEM highlight Mississippi ranking

Among the states, Mississippi ranks No. 5 for export growth, according to the just-released Enterprising States 2011 study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Mississippi is also ranked 10th in cost of living, 11th in per capita income growth and higher education efficiency, and 12th in productivity growth and business birth rate. Mississippi is also ranked 20th in science, technology, engineering and math job growth as well as 20th in entrepreneurial activity. (Source: Tcp, 06/23/11) Study: U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Crash victims identified

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - The two victims of that plane crash today at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., have been identified. They are Col. (ret.) David A. Miles of Shalimar, Fla., and Thomas E. Lewis of Apalachicola, Fla. The Aero Club Beechcraft crashed around 4:30 a.m. into a grassy area next to the 46th Test Wing side of the runway at Eglin. The plane was owned by Eglin Air Force Base and rented to pilot through the base's Aero Club. (Source: Eglin Air Force Base, 06/23/11)

Fire damaged engine

An Aerojet AJ26 engine that will power the Orbital Sciences Corp. Taurus II launch vehicle was badly damaged in a fuel fire June 9 at Stennis Space Center, Miss. NASA is counting on the Taurus II/Cygnus and the Space Exploration Technologies Falcon 9/Dragon combinations to help resupply the International Space Station when the space shuttle fleet retires after the upcoming final flight of shuttle Atlantis. The AJ26 engine shut down prematurely after a fuel leak developed during a hot-fire acceptance test, and the leaking kerosene fuel ignited. The test stand at Stennis Space Center suffered only minor damage. A team of experts from Aerojet, Orbital and NASA is investigating the cause of the mishap and the extent of the damage to the engine. (Source: Aviation Week, 06/23/11) Previous story

Two killed in Eglin crash

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - An Aero Club Beechcraft crashed around 4:30 a.m. into a grassy area next to the 46th Test Wing side of the runway at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. A civilian pilot and civilian passenger were killed, according to an Eglin Air Force Base press release. The plane was owned by Eglin Air Force Base and rented to the civilian pilot through the base's Aero Club. The names of the victims have not been released. (Source: Northwest Florida Daily News, 06/23/11)

Eglin gets first F135 spare engine

Pratt and Whitney has delivered the first F135 spare engine to the U.S. Air Force at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., to support F-35 Lightning II training operations to begin this summer. Eglin's 33rd Fighter Wing is a joint unit with Air Force, Navy and Marine squadrons that will conduct F-35 training for their respective services as well as the eight F-35 program international partners. Lockheed Martin is scheduled to deliver the first F-35A aircraft to Eglin in the coming weeks. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. company. (Source: PRNewswire, 06/20/11)

Fire Scout lost over Libya

A Northrop Grumman-built Fire Scout was lost over the central coastal area of Libya while conducting surveillance operations, according to NATO officials. The MQ-8B lost contact with ground controllers Tuesday. The Fire Scout, built in part in Moss Point, Miss., is equipped with cameras and sensors and was monitoring pro-Kadafi forces when it was lost. The cause of the crash is not known. Last year Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., lost contract with a Fire Scout and it wandered into restricted airspace. Operators regained control. It was later blamed on a software problem. (Source: Multiple, including AFP via Space War, CNN, Los Angeles Times, 06/21/11)

Contract: Raytheon, $7.3M

Raytheon Co., Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., is being awarded a $7,318,143 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the High Speed Anti Radiation Missile Targeting System software upgrade two risk reduction study. Work will be performed at Tucson, Ariz. AAC/EBAS, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 06/20/11)

Contract: Raytheon, $36M

Raytheon Co., Tucson, Ariz., was awarded a $36,087,425 cost-plus-incentive-fee contract. The award will provide for M982 Excalibur 155mm precision engagement projectiles. Work will be performed in Niceville, Fla.; Tucson, Ariz.; Healdsburg, Calif.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Baltimore, Md.; Joplin, Mo.; McKinney, Texas; and the United Kingdom, with an estimated completion date of March 15, 2012. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Picatinny, N.J. is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 06/20/11)

U.S. to keep robotic edge despite cuts

U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense William Lynn said the U.S. will maintain its lead in unmanned robotic technology in the face of a $400 billion reduction in defense spending. Lynn said during the Paris Air Show that robotics and unmanned technology "is a key future" for the U.S. military. The U.S. will also seek to maintain a lead in cyber security and the capability to strike long-range targets, he said in a briefing. (Source: Bloomberg, 06/19/11) Gulf Coast note: The region is involved in both unmanned systems and cyber security.

Ceremony shifted back one day

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - The Air Force Research Laboratory's Munitions Directorate change of command ceremony has been pushed back one day to Tuesday at 2 p.m. at the Air Armament Museum. Col. Kenneth L. Echternacht, Jr., will relinquish his position as commander to Dr. John Wilcox. Maj. Gen.William McCasland, Commander, Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, will officiate. AFRL Munitions Directorate performs research on precision guidance, missile guidance and control, computational mechanics, smart sub-munitions, warheads, and explosives. (Source: Eglin Air Force Base, 06/20/11)

Lockheed launches new F-35 Web site

Lockheed Martin announced a new website for the F-35 Lightning II aircraft at the Paris Air Show Monday. The site provides the most up-to-date information on the F-35 program, including history, program updates, news, photos and videos. Lockheed Martin is developing the F-35 with its principal industrial partners, Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems. Pratt and Whitney's F135 propulsion system powers all F-35 variants. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 06/20/11) Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 training center.

Blue Angels performing again

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Nearly a month after the unsafe performance of a maneuver led to the grounding of the Navy's Blue Angels and a change in command, the team performs again this weekend at the Quad-City Air Show in Davenport, Iowa. The grounding was prompted by a maneuver where the F/A 18 Hornets passed too close to the ground. The team is now under the command of Capt. Greg McWherter, who commanded the group from November 2008 to November 2010. (Source: Pensacola News Journal, 06/17/11)

Hot air balloons gather in Foley

FOLEY, Ala. - The Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival is underway this weekend in Foley. It's the event's seventh year. The festival is held at the Foley Soccer Field on U.S. 98, and includes arts and crafts vendors, food tents, music and other attractions. The festival attracts about 60,000 visitors a year, according to organizers. Counts for the 2011 celebration were not available. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 06/18/11)

Contract: BAE Systems, $33M

BAE Systems Technology Solutions and Services Inc., Rockville, Md., is being awarded a $33,286,477 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to exercise an option for engineering and technical services and supplies for the design, development, integration, test and evaluation, maintenance and logistics support of communication-electronic platform, equipment, systems and subsystems in support of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division's Special Communications Requirements Division. Two percent of the work will be done in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Other work locations are Chesapeake, Va. (41 percent); Spring Lake, N.C. (22 percent); California, Md. (11 percent); San Diego, Calif. (10 percent); St. Inigoes, Md. (7 percent); Afghanistan (2.3 percent); Iraq (2.2 percent); Hollywood, Md. (1 percent); Fort Bragg, N.C. (1 percent); and Panzer Kaserne, Germany (0.5 percent). Work is expected to be completed in June 2012. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, St. Inigoes, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 06/17/11)