DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: U. S. DoD Awarded Boeing A Contract To Enhanced Avionics Capability in Support of The VC-25A Platform

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: U. S. DoD Awarded Boeing A Contract To Enhanced Avionics Capability in Support of The VC-25A Platform

Source: K. V. Seth - DTN News + U.S. DoD issued No. CR-210-14 October 31, 2014

(NSI News Source Info) KOTTAKKAL, Kerala INDIA - November 4, 2014: Boeing Aerospace Operations, Inc., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has been awarded a $9,261,602 cost-plus-incentive-fee modification (P00212) to previously awarded contract FA8106-07-C-0001 for VC-25 Avionics Modernization Program. 

Contractor will subcontract support necessary to provide nonrecurring engineering services, and associated hardware, in support of research and development of enhanced avionics capability in support of the VC-25A platform. 

Work will be performed at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and San Antonio, Texas, and is expected to be completed by May 30, 2018. Fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $9,261,602 are being re-aligned at the time of award from funding previously obligated under the contract. 


Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity.

The Boeing VC-25 is the designation of a United States Air Force passenger transportation aircraft, a military version of the Boeing 747 airliner. The two modified Boeing 747s are designated VC-25A by the USAF.


The VC-25 is most famous for its role as Air Force One, the call sign of any U.S. Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. The two aircraft currently in U.S. service are highly modified versions of Boeing's 747-200B, with tail numbers 28000 and 29000. Although the Air Force One designation technically applies to the aircraft only while the President is aboard, the term is commonly applied to the VC-25s more generally. They often operate in conjunction with Marine One helicopters that ferry the President to airports in circumstances where a vehicle motorcade would be inappropriate.

*Link for This article compiled by K. V. Seth - DTN News + U.S. DoD issued No. CR-210-14 October 31, 2014
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*Photograph: IPF (International Pool of Friends) + DTN News / otherwise source stated
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS

DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News - Obama in Australia (Archive Video)

DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News - Obama in Australia   (Archive Video)

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by  K. V. Seth - DTN  News
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - August 23, 2013: President Barack Obama Kisses Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard On Arrival in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011.
Obama has fulfilled his promise to visit Australia after a long delay, arriving in the capital city of Canberra Wednesday afternoon for day and a half trip focused on renewing bonds with an exceptionally close U.S. ally. 

*Link for This article compiled by K. V. Seth - DTN  News
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*Photograph: IPF (International Pool of Friends) + DTN News / otherwise source stated
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS

DTN News: Boeing Gets $88.8 Million Air Force Deal

DTN News: Boeing Gets $88.8 Million Air Force Deal

*Source: DTN News / AP (NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, USA - September 2, 2009: Aerospace company Boeing Co. received an $88.8 million contract from the Air Force to provide logistics support for the VC-25A aircraft, the Pentagon said late Tuesday. Shares of the Chicago-based company fell 90 cents to close at $48.77.The mission of the VC-25A aircraft -- Air Force One -- is to provide air transport for the president of the United States. The presidential air transport fleet consists of two specially configured Boeing 747-200B's -- tail numbers 28000 and 29000 -- with the Air Force designation VC-25A. When the president is aboard either aircraft, or any Air Force aircraft, the radio call sign is "Air Force One". Principal differences between the VC-25A and the standard Boeing 747, other than the number of passengers carried, are the electronic and communications equipment aboard Air Force One, its interior configuration and furnishings, self-contained baggage loader, front and aft air-stairs, and the capability for inflight refueling. The VC-25A is capable of flying half way around the world without refueling and can accommodate more than 70 passengers. Accommodations for the president include an executive suite consisting of a stateroom (with dressing room, lavatory and shower) and the president's office. A conference/dining room is also available for the president, his family and staff. Other separate accommodations are provided for guests, senior staff, Secret Service and security personnel, and the news media. Two galleys provide up to 100 meals at one sitting. Six passenger lavatories, including disabled access facilities, are provided as well as a rest area and mini-galley for the aircrew. The VC-25A also has a compartment outfitted with medical equipment and supplies for minor medical emergencies. The first VC-25A -- tail number 28000 -- flew as "Air Force One" on Sept. 6, 1990, when it transported President George Bush to Kansas, Florida and back to Washington, D.C. A second VC-25A, tail number 29000 transported President Bill Clinton and former Presidents Carter and Bush to Israel for the funeral of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. The VC-25A will usher presidential travel into the 21st century, upholding the proud tradition and distinction of being known as "Air Force One". VC-25 aircraft are extensively modified B-747-200s with the basic airframe technology of the 1960s. The aircraft incorporates state-of-the-art avionics and communications equipment with Stage III compliant engines. Boeing is currently delivering B-747s throughout the world, so the logistics support base appears secure for the foreseeable future. With the continuing march of technology and the prestige attached to the U.S. Presidential airlift fleet, Air Force plans recommend a system review date of 2010. At this point, the aircraft will have been in service 20 years, and commercial operators will have retired their B-747-200s counterparts from front-line service. * Air Force One is managed by Tinker Air Force Base personnel from the Contractor Logistics Support Management Directorate. Tinker has managed Air Force One since the airplanes were originally delivered back in 1990. The directorate manages Air Force One's day-to-day issues like supply and logistics support, while at the same time ensuring the aircraft are maintained to Federal Aviation Administration regulatory standards. This support also includes engineering and technical support, production management, modification management, budget management and contracting. Programmed Depot Maintenance [PDM] is also managed by this directorate, but the work is contracted out to Boeing's Wichita, Kan., facility. PDM is performed on one of the two Air Force One aircraft every year. To comply with a recent FAA mandate, one aircraft was updated with a new Fuel Quantity Indicating System. Heavy maintenance, completed on that aircraft in December 2000, included installation of the Global Positioning System and Flight Management Computer System. These systems were added as part of increasing FAA mandates to help make the aircraft more efficient. The second Air Force One aircraft was compliant with the FAA mandate when it rolled out of PDM later in 2001. In the wake of the TWA Flight 800 explosion, the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board issued an Airworthiness Directive requiring anyone who maintains a 747 install a new FQIS with safety provisions that resulted from the TWA 800 investigation.

DTN News: Congress Drops Plan To Spend $550 Million On New Jets

DTN News: Congress Drops Plan To Spend $550 Million On New Jets

*Source: DTN News / Reuters (NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, U.S. - August 12, 2009: U.S. House leaders have dropped plans to spend $550 million in the Air Force budget on passenger jets used by lawmakers and senior government officials, officials said on Monday. An Air Force presidential aircraft, part of the fleet used by U.S. presidents, is pictured above the Statue of Liberty in New York, in this photograph released to Reuters on May 8, 2009. The House of Representatives reversed the move to upgrade the executive jet fleet after public criticism, opposition from other lawmakers and the Defense Department had said it did not need more planes that it had requested. "If the Department of Defense does not want these aircraft, they will be eliminated from the bill," Representative John Murtha, chairman of a House panel on defense appropriations, said in a statement. A spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she supports the decision. Before leaving for the August congressional recess, the House approved a Defense Appropriation bill for fiscal year 2010 that included $550 million for three Gulfstream jets and five military versions of a Boeing 737. The Pentagon's original request was $220 million to purchase one Gulfstream plane and three Boeing Co. aircraft. Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, said the four additional planes his subcommittee ordered would have replaced older aircraft that have safety and maintenance issues.

US President Barack Obama Day To Day Activities On April 29, 2009

US President Barack Obama Day To Day Activities On April 29, 2009

(NSI News Source Info) April 29, 2009: President Barack Obama arrives at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. , aboard Air Force One, Wednesday, April 29, 2009.

Obama Signs Sweeping Economic Stimulus Bill Into Law

Obama Signs Sweeping Economic Stimulus Bill Into Law

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - February 18, 2009: U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday signed a 787-billion-dollar economic stimulus bill into law in Denver, Colorado, calling it the first step to pave the way to long-term growth. The sweeping economic rescue package, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is designed to jolt the ailing U.S. economy by providing government spending and tax cuts for both individuals and businesses. U.S. President Barack Obama(C) signs the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Bill next to U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden(L) at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science February 17, 2009. Obama signed a $787 billion economic stimulus bill into law on Tuesday as global markets plunged on fears that the recession would deepen despite government action in many countries. "I don't want to pretend that today marks the end of our economic problems nor does it constitute all of what we have to do to turn the economy around," Obama said before signing the bill. "But today does mark the beginning of the end -- the beginning of what we need to do to create jobs for Americans scrambling in the wake of layoffs. "The beginning of what we need to do to provide relief for families worried they won't be able to pay next month's bills. "The beginning of the first steps to set our economy on a firmer foundation, paving the way to long-term growth and prosperity," the president said.

Obama signed the bill at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. He will then take a tour of the museum's installation of solar panels, according to a White House press release. The president is underscoring investments the spending plan will make in the "green" energy-related jobs by signing the bill in Colorado, a state its governor Bill Ritter described on Tuesday as "the home of new energy economy," news reports say. At the same time, the White House is launching a website at www.recovery.gov, which is supposed to help people find out how federal dollars are being spent, the pace of scheduled construction projects and whether any federal dollars are being wasted. Since early last week, Obama has turned to appearances throughout the country to sell his economic plans, hoping to sustain support and foster hope among Americans who are giving him high marks in opinion polls. The public backing for the president's economic plan is in contrast to the partisan atmosphere in Congress, where the stimulus bill was passed last week on votes split mostly along party lines. Republicans were nearly unanimous in opposing the stimulus bill, arguing that the bill is too wasteful. Aimed at saving or creating 3.5 million jobs over the next two years and ending the worst U.S. economic crisis since the 1930s, the bill will pump money into highway, bridge and other infrastructure projects, health care, renewable energy development and conservation. It also includes a 400-dollar tax break for most individual workers and 800 dollars for couples, including those who do not earn enough to pay income taxes. Meanwhile, it will provide aid to states so they can head off deep cuts and layoffs and will provide financial incentives for people to start buying again. In addition, it will increase unemployment benefits and food stamps, and subsidies for health insurance to help poor people and laid-off workers. Despite the massive spending plans, economists are warning that it takes time for the economy to recover. Obama also emphasizes that the bill will not produce a rapid return to economic health. So, part of Obama's message as he has traveled across the country is designed to lower expectations, according to local media reports. As another part of the government's economic recovery effort, Obama is scheduled to outline his plan to help struggling homeowners in a speech on Wednesday in Arizona, one of the states hardest hit by home foreclosures that are at the center of the nation's economic woes. Also, the government is not ruling out a second economic stimulus plan, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Denver. But there are no plans currently in the works for one, he stressed.

Obama Faces Tough Decision On Pricey Presidential Helicopters

Obama Faces Tough Decision On Pricey Presidential Helicopters

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON ― February 17, 2009: When President Obama returned today from Chicago, he arrived at the White House on Marine One - one of a fleet of presidential helicopters that is now 30 years old, new Marine One is supposed to take off next year. But, runaway costs threaten to ground the replacements.

Marine One is the call sign of any United States Marine Corps aircraft carrying the President of the United States. It usually denotes a helicopter operated by the HMX-1 "Nighthawks" squadron, either the large VH-3D or the newer, smaller VH-60N "WhiteHawk". Both are due to be replaced by the VH-71 Kestrel, a derivative of the AgustaWestland EH101. A Marine Corps aircraft carrying the Vice President is designated Marine Two.

Lockheed-Martin signed a contract four years ago to build 28 new helicopters for $6.1 billion. Numerous Pentagon-mandated changes have ballooned the price tag to $11.2 billion - meaning each of the new choppers would cost $400 million, or as much as Air Force One.

Defense analyst Daniel Goure argues the new Marine One must be able to completely protect the president.

The armored helicopter would be equipped with communications gear and defensive systems capable of fending off missiles and even the effects of a nuclear blast.

"The president will be able to do anything and everything he does on Air Force One or from the national command post in the White House," Goure says. "He can launch a nuclear war if that's what's required."

The Pentagon says it needs 28 of the helicopters because they have to cover the president everywhere he goes, usually three at each stop. This week there will be choppers in Chicago, Denver, Phoenix and Ottawa.But critics say the helicopters are the latest example of out-of-control spending - especially unaffordable in the current recession.

And Lieutenant Colonel Gene Boyer, who flew Marine One the day Richard Nixon resigned, says there's no way the government needs 28 of them.

"In this economy, I believe it's a foolish investment and going beyond 14 to 16 helicopters is absolutely ludicrous," Boyer says.The program is so far over budget the White House could pull the plug. But it could take years to build cheaper replacements and security officials warn in a post-9/11 world it's the wrong place to be cutting corners.

President Obama Greets Military Personnel At Andrews Air Force Base In Maryland

President Obama Greets Military Personnel At Andrews Air Force Base In Maryland

(NSI News Source Info) February 11, 2009: President Barack Obama greets military personnel and their families before boarding Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2009. Obama will hold a town hall style meeting about the economy in Fort Myers, Fla., before returning to Washington. President Obama headed for Air Force One after greeting Air Force security forces who are being deployed to Iraq. The president was at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, about to begin a trip to Florida to push his economic recovery plan.

Obama Taking First Air Force One trip As President

Obama Taking First Air Force One trip As President

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON — February 6, 2009: Suffice to say, President Barack Obama likes his new ride. Before taking off today on Air Force One for his first trip as president, Obama told reporters traveling with him that the plane is "spiffy" and showed off his new crew jacket with his name stitched on it.

"It's pretty nice," he told House Democrats tonight in Williamsburg, Va., in an after-dinner speech. "Thank you for giving me a reason to use Air Force One." The president spoke after a 31-minute maiden voyage on the specially outfitted 747 that will be his airborne home and office for the next four years. U.S. President Barack Obama speaks to reporters during his first flight aboard Air Force One February 5, 2009. Obama was traveling to Williamsburg, Virginia, to speak at the House Democratic Issues Conference. Moments before taking off from Andrews Air Force Base, Obama visited the press cabin in the rear of the plane to show reporters his Air Force crew launch jacket, his name stitched on the breast. "What do you think about this spiffy ride?" he asked reporters. "It's not bad." It's the kind of impression the massive blue-and-white plane makes wherever it goes. Obama said he'd been a guest on the plane with former President George W. Bush — though he couldn't recall on which of the two identical 747s in the Air Force's presidential fleet. Before his inauguration, he also flew from Chicago to Washington on one of the fleet's smaller jets. But it wasn't called Air Force One then — the moniker is used only when the president is on board. Obama was clearly impressed finally to have the full experience. The helicopter ride from the White House to Andrews Air Force Base also got the nod. "Very smooth, very impressive," Obama said, adding that the view is "spectacular." "You go right over the Washington Monument and then you kind of curve in along the Capitol," he remarked. The flight from to Williamsburg, Va., was a brief one. Just time enough for an onboard meal of a cheeseburger and fries, according to aides. The purpose of his maiden journey outside Washington was to push his economic rescue package through Congress, a telling choice for a president who took office at a time of deep economic uncertainty. "He's saying that he's willing to go anywhere and talk to anybody in order to get a recovery and reinvestment plan that moves this economy forward," press secretary Robert Gibbs said. Departing from the South Lawn, Obama broke from tradition as he boarded Marine One, the presidential helicopter. He seemed to stun the Marine standing at attention by reaching out to shake his hand. The Marine obliged, shaking the president's hand before returning to a steady salute. Then at Andrews, Obama climbed the stairs and headed straight on the plane — without the traditional wave to onlookers. As for other recent presidents, George W. Bush's first flight as president may sound familiar. Two weeks after his swearing-in, and following the bitter 2000 recount battle, he went to a resort near Pittsburgh to talk to skeptical Democratic lawmakers. The subject was his tax cuts. For Bill Clinton, the first flight was to Detroit for a televised town hall meeting, a format seized on during the 1992 campaign. Calling on the first questioner, Clinton said: "I suspect this is going to be about, well, 'It's the economy, stupid."' In 1989, Bush's father, a former Navy pilot, took his first Air Force One trip as president to the Norfolk Naval Base in Virginia. Long before his son's notorious "Mission Accomplished" speech, Bush spoke on an aircraft carrier — about wasteful military spending. Ronald Reagan, at 69 the oldest man to assume the presidency, took a more leisurely approach. His first out-of-town trip was by helicopter to a restful weekend at Camp David in Maryland. His maiden Air Force One trip was to California — and a restful weekend at his ranch in the Santa Ynez mountains. Presidents invariably reveal their personality on board. The garrulous Clinton would restlessly roam the jet, chatting with aides and reporters or sitting down to play hearts. The younger Bush usually stayed put up front and hardly ever saw the press compartment; aides had warned him offhand remarks there could cause trouble. It's an open question whether Obama will continue visiting reporters as his administration hits the inevitable turbulence. Also unclear is when the new M&Ms will arrive. Air Force One has long stocked boxes with the presidential seal and facsimile signature. But stewards said those bearing the new president's signature are still likely months from arriving.