Today's Top News

Lawmakers may work on overtime sequester bill Sequestration cuts now under way could be halted if a deal is hammered out within a 26-day window. That's because the law requires an evaluation March 27, the date by which cuts must be made. Bipartisan discussions are going on now that could lead to sequester-fix legislation, said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich. Defense News (3/3)

Defense

• Sequester toll on firms may take months to tally
  Defense contractors may not see the effects of sequestration cuts for months, as federal agencies sort through which programs will be dropped or scaled back. But the effect is coming, says Pentagon Comptroller Robert Hale. Large weapons contracts, for example, "won't be canceled, but they will have to be cut back." NationalDefenseMagazine.org/blog (3/1), Air Transport World (3/1), The Wall Street Journal (3/3)     

• Overseas weapons sales, partnerships are at risk with cuts
  Sequestration cuts could delay exports of U.S. weapons and are causing nervousness among U.S. allies who worry that they will affect partnerships such as the purchase of the F-35 fighter jets. Training conducted jointly with other nations is expected to take a hit, as well. The cuts "could impact not only our readiness, but, frankly, the role that we would play with regards to the readiness of NATO, as well," former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said last month. Defense News (3/2)     

• Navy will implement delays, cutbacks within weeks
  The Navy within weeks will begin renegotiating contracts for submarines, defer deployments to some ships and shut down Carrier Air Wing Two. These are some of the cost-cutting moves it plans to make in response to sequestration. "These actions aren't final yet, but we've begun the process for them to take place," a Navy official said. "We're still holding out hope that sequestration will be fixed, or that Congress will pass a defense appropriations bill." Defense News (3/3)     

• Other News

• F-35 turbine blade problem deemed an isolated issue
  AviationWeek.com/AWIN First (3/1)     

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Commercial Aviation

• FAA will detail plans for sequestration this week
  The Federal Aviation Administration plans to announce details this week on measures to trim $600 million from its budget. The budget cuts are required by sequestration, which went into effect Friday. The FAA previously announced plans to furlough employees and close or cut back on operations at 160 towers. AVweb (3/3)     

• Law enforcement agencies turn to UAVs for solving crimes
  Law enforcement agencies across the U.S. are finding practical uses, such as solving crimes, for unmanned aerial vehicles. "The real utility of unmanned aerial systems is not the sexy stuff. It's the crime scene and accident reconstruction," said Ben Miller, a sheriff's deputy in Mesa County, Colo. Reuters (3/3)     

• Other News

• Air China signs agreement to buy 2 Boeing 747-8s
  Bloomberg Businessweek (3/2)     

Space

• Dragon capsule latches to space station in "brilliant capture"
  Space Exploration Technologies' Dragon capsule was successfully launched last week from a Falcon 9 rocket and berthed at the International Space Station to deliver its load of equipment and supplies. "That was a brilliant capture," NASA astronaut Kate Rubins said from Mission Control in Houston said after U.S. astronaut Kevin Ford grabbed the capsule after its two-day journey to the station. Florida Today (Melbourne) (tiered subscription model) (3/3)     

• Other News

• Radiation may have caused Mars rover software problem
  Spaceflight Now (3/1)     

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by AIA dailyLead® readers in the past week.

• White House details sequester's potential effect on each state (The Washington Post)

• Bombardier releases photo of Cseries with engines (FlightGlobal.com (U.K.))

• Sequester measures fail, cuts are set to begin (The Hill)

• Pentagon grounds all 3 variants of F-35 (Defense News)

• Boeing 787 proposal includes 3 layers of protection (Bloomberg Businessweek)

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

AIA News

• Urgent call to action – write Congress and the White House to repeal sequestration
  Because of the White House's and Congress' inability to reach a deal to reverse sequestration, the initial round of multibillion cuts to defense and non-defense federal agencies has begun. Although these cuts are now being implemented, it is not too late to repeal this bad policy and develop a balanced, bi-partisan solution to our nation's debt and deficit problem. Now is the time to reach out to your elected officials to communicate the urgent need to repeal sequestration. Go to the Second to None website to send a letter to your elected officials in Washington today.     

• AIA vows to continue fight against sequestration
  Aerospace Industries Association President and CEO Marion C. Blakey calls on Congress and President Obama to use the opportunity of extending the Continuing Resolution to reverse sequestration budget cuts as quickly as possible -- Sequestration cuts were never supposed to happen but were intended to hold the discretionary budget as a hostage to ensure a balanced solution to our nation's fiscal challenges. Read more.     

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