Dodd, Lieberman Announce Major Defense Investments for Connecticut

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) announced today that Connecticut will receive major federal defense funding, pending approval of the Fiscal Year 2010 Defense Appropriations Bill.  On Thursday, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved billions of dollars for Connecticut’s defense industry that, if passed into law, will provide vital support for the state’s businesses and thousands of jobs for Connecticut workers.

 

“The Defense spending bill has the potential to deliver a significant win for Connecticut’s economy and the highly skilled men and women working day in and day out to keep our nation safe,” said Dodd.  “The inclusion of this funding for Connecticut’s defense industry is a vote of confidence in our state’s ability to produce cutting-edge, high-quality equipment, aircraft, vessels and vehicles.  I will continue fighting to ensure that these critical funds are included in the bill that reaches the President’s desk to ensure that our military remains the best-equipped in the world.”

“This bill will provide the resources our service members need to fight and win our nation’s wars,” Lieberman said.  “Moreover, it will make sure that Connecticut workers continue to build the tools our military needs to defend our freedoms around the world.  

Funding in the Defense Appropriations bill will be used for military equipment, ranging from ground vehicles, aircraft, and naval ships to various advances in technology development and troop protection.  The following towns and projects will be funded through the defense appropriations:

Groton (Electric Boat)

• $3.9 billion for VIRGINIA Class attack submarine program
• $495 million for the research and development of a new class of Ballistic Missile Submarines
• $6 million for the development of the Common Command and Control System Module to upgrade the technology on all U.S. Submarines and lower operating costs
• $5.5 million for the development of the Future Dry Deck Shelter to carry a Swimmer Delivery Vehicle for Special Operations Forces personnel to deploy from submarines

Stratford (Sikorsky)

• $2.5 billion to purchase 125 Black Hawk helicopters for the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy
• $555 million to continue development of the CH-53K Heavy Lift Helicopter for the U.S. Marine Corps
• $140 million to fund the Air Force Search and Rescue Aircraft

Middletown (Pratt and Whitney)

• $10.4 billion to develop and procure 30 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft, powered by F135 Pratt & Whitney engines
• $2.5 billion to procure 10 C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft, powered by F117 Pratt & Whitney engines
• $560 million for the F-22 Raptor Modernization Initiative.  The F-22 is powered by F119 Pratt & Whitney engines
• $5 million to develop the Advanced Affordable Engine Turbine for the next generation utility and attack helicopter.  This program is designed to reduce the costs and increase horsepower, fuel efficiency and reliability of the new engine, which is being developed by Pratt & Whitney

Norwalk (Norden Systems)

• $50 million for Multi-Platform Radar Technology Improvement Program to continue development of an Air Force Wide Area Surveillance Radar.  This radar will provide the warfighter with an unsurpassed battlespace management capability, able to track both ground targets and incoming cruise missiles

Danbury (Goodrich)

• $5 million for the Terahertz Spectrometer project to develop a highly accurate detection system for hazardous materials such as explosives, chemical agents and biological warfare agents

West Hartford (Goodrich Pump and Engine Control Systems)

• $9 million to develop Universal Control Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) Systems for Black Hawk, Chinook, Apache and Armed Reconnaissance helicopters
• $2 million for Split Discharge Variable Delivery Pump for military aircraft, which will significantly increase mission time and fuel efficiency in military aircraft

Windsor (AeroGear and Infinity Fuel Cell)

• $2 million for AeroGear to complete the Legacy Aerospace Gear Drive Re-engineering program, which has generated the technology to design and produce gear and gear boxes for military aircraft
• $1 million for Infinity Fuel Cell to continue the Navy’s Re-Generative Fuel Cell Back-Up Power project, which is developing a solar-powered, modular, grid-independent Regenerative Fuel Cell power generation system

Torrington (Fuel Cell Energy)

• $4.5 million for Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell Demonstrator to display the stationary fuel cell’s ability to provide electrical power in a grid-independent, highly-efficient, environmentally clean, and cost-effective manner at the Naval Submarine Base New London

South Windsor (Goodrich/Pioneer Aerospace)

• $2.4 million for the Aces 5 Ejection Seat, which is used in almost every Air Force aircraft, including the F-22, F-15, F-16, F-117, A-10, B-1 and B-2, and soon the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter

Bloomfield (Kaman)

• $4 million to develop an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle that could be used to resupply soldiers deployed under combat conditions
• $3 million to develop the Composite Main Rotor Blades for Special Forces Command, which will improve the safety, reliability, performance and survivability of existing “Little Bird” aircraft, as well as reduce costs and maintenance of the helicopters

Bridgeport (DRS Power)

• $3.4 million for the Fan Coil Assembly of the Future project to design, build, and test of a variable speed Fan Coil Assembly for Navy Ships

New Haven (Yale New Haven Health System)

• $4 million to develop a National Center for Integrated Civilian-Military Medical Response and Homeland Defense to develop and implement an appropriate emergency response model for the nation

Hartford (University of Hartford)

• $2 million for Projectile Unmanned Aerial Systems project to develop and test a hybrid unmanned aerial system projectile for the U.S. Army

Simsbury (Ensign Bickford)

• $3 million for the development of Reactive Armor to better protect our troops against enemy attacks from Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosions and Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) attacks

Stonington (L-3 Chesapeake Sciences)

• $4 million for the TB-33 Thin Line Towed Array system to provide increased sensor capabilities for U.S. Submarines

Wallingford (Z-Medica, ASG Technologies, Proton Energy)

• $1 million for Z-Medica to continue fielding an advanced clotting agent to the U.S. Marine Corps called QuickClot to instantly treat traumatic wounds incurred in combat
• $3 million for ASG Technologies to develop the Radar Product Support System which will improve the lifecycle planning and increase business process efficiencies associated with the AN/SPS-48E radar upgrades aboard naval surface vessels
• $3 million for Proton Energy to continue development of the Field Deployable Fleet Hydrogen Fueling that will develop a 65-100 kg/day hydrogen generator for military vehicle refueling

Farmington (University of Connecticut)

• $3 million for the University of Connecticut Improving Soldier Recovery from Catastrophic Bone Injuries project enabling a multidisciplinary team of biologists, material scientists and orthopedic surgeons to develop a highly integrated and iterative research environment to identify a limited number of promising bone repair strategies. 

Waterford (Sonalysts)

• $2 million for Sonalysts to develop a Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell for Underwater Vehicles and assist with the development of a hybrid fuel cell – lithium ion battery power system that combines the advantages of each to create an ideal solution for mobile power applications. 

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