The Army Corps of Engineers selected five contractors to present their design-build proposals for the expansion of the National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, announced museum officials. This is the second phase of the request-for-proposal process for the museum’s fourth building, which is scheduled for opening in late 2015, according to the museum’s Aug. 8 release. The five contractors are: Whiting-Turner Contracting of Greenbelt, Md.; M.A. Mortenson Construction of Minneapolis; Turner Construction of Washington, D.C.; Hensel Phelps of Chantilly, Va.; and Archer Western/Butt Construction of Chicago. They have until Oct. 2 to submit their proposals; the construction contract is scheduled for award in late 2013, states the release. The planned 224,000-square-foot hangar would house aircraft from the Presidential gallery, including President Kennedy’s Air Force One, the research and development gallery, including the XB-70 bomber prototype, as well as vehicles from the space gallery, among others. (Dayton report by Rob Bardua)
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.