Having entered the elite club of nations capable of developing active radar-guided air-to-air missiles, China is now looking for additional integration platforms for its PL-12 missile, both at home and abroad.

If the remarkably smooth first year of service at Airbus A380 launch customer Singapore Airlines is any indication, the growing band of A380 operators can look forward to relatively easy introductions of the aircraft into their fleets. The enormous airliner is presenting special challenges, as expected, but getting the airframe and Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines into revenue service has thrown up no major surprises, the airline and its maintenance offshoot reported on passing their first anniversary of A380 service Oct. 25.

China will build a small turbofan to propel itself into the business of integrating and manufacturing complete civil aeroengines, probably the hardest part of the commercial aircraft sector to break into. The 7,100-8,800-lb.-thrust powerplant is aimed at a small business jet proposed by another newly formed subsidiary of Chinese aerospace conglomerate Aviation Industry Corp. of China (Avic). It could also be used for a small airliner.