Distance Learning

Tysons corner, Virginia

“…BDM conducted mathematical analyses of missile trajectories, tracking, telemetry, re-entry heating, guidance and control, and targeting. 21 Other than test equipment, BDM built no hardware--an aspect of its business that would have great repercussions for Tysons Corner later on. From the beginning of the company's work at White Sands, it was involved with studies of ballistic missile defense--another aspect of its business that would have long-term consequences.…”

“…Indeed one of the first contracts awarded to BDM after it moved to Tysons Corner was to perform an independent check on a study just completed by the IDA. 29 In the early 1970s the entire concept of the FFRDC came under scrutiny and criticism by Congress, and the IDA, long accustomed to working in obscurity, suddenly found itself in the spotlight and having to defend its work. In 1971 the House Appropriations Committee criticized the Department of Defense's reliance on FFRDCs and specifically suggested an alternative of contracting their work out to private corporations.…”