The Air Force has temporarily suspended L-3 Communications’ special support programs division (formerly known as the joint operations group) from receiving new federal contracts after finding that it improperly monitored e-mail traffic on the government’s computer network for its “own private corporate intelligence-gathering” purposes. The decision is pending the completion of a criminal investigation into the matter. According to a June 3 memo from the Air Force’s deputy general counsel, L-3 JOG “purposefully and intentionally” monitored the e-mails of its employee, other government contractors, and even US government employees, using US Special Operations Command’s computer network. The memo states that the company “has admitted to conducting the surveillance.” None of these actions were appropriate or adhered to the standards of ethical business conduct, states the memo. (Air Force memo) (See Reuters news wire service June 10 report)
The Air Force’s Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile is behind schedule and may significantly overrun its expected cost, which could partially explain why the service is reviving the hypersonic AGM-183 Air-Launched Rapid-Response Weapon.