A transatlantic mating dance is under way as aerospace companies consider how to pair up to enter the upcoming competition for at least 350 advanced trainers for the U.S. Air Force. This T-X contract is likely the largest buy to come from the Air Force and, in an unusual twist, it is the U.S. companies courting foreign platform providers rather than overseas contractors chasing after stateside contractors.
The world has changed since a French-designed Exocet cruise missile fired by an Argentine navy Dassault-Breguet Super Etendard sunk the Royal Navy's HMS Sheffield during the war over the Falkland Islands in 1982.
For France and the U.K., it is a straightforward calculus: At a time of fiscal pressures, it makes sense to pursue unmanned aircraft programs cooperatively. But for other players, the implications of this move are troublesome and raise concerns about broader European defense industrial considerations. Europe's approach to meeting long-unmet unmanned aerial system (UAS) needs has become the battleground for these divergent views.
Even after the three surviving space shuttle orbiters have gathered a few decades of dust in their respective museums, mid-century spacefarers from around the Earth will be using tools and techniques for operating in space that were incubated on the historic U.S. spaceplanes.
If ever there was a time to pack carefully for a journey, it is now. NASA's shuttle era draws to a close with a final mission to the International Space Station (ISS) carrying enough supplies to keep the orbiting science laboratory fully staffed while U.S. cargo deliveries shift to emerging commercial providers.
MISSION: STS-135 International Space Station Utilization/Logistics Flight 7 (ULF 7), the 135th and final launch of the space shuttle program and the 37th to the ISS. ORBITER: Atlantis (OV-104), making its 33rd and final flight. Atlantis last returned from orbit on May 26, 2010, after the STS-132 flight to deliver Russia's Rassvet Mini Research Module 1 to the space station.
Though unlikely to go the way of the American cowboy, NASA's astronaut corps—a modern symbol for boldness and noble national achievement—could be corralled in Earth orbit until prosperity returns. Their path beyond the shuttle era stretches across a rugged political landscape clouded by a stale economy and dotted with warning signs of flat budgets ahead, or worse. In the near term, the ranks are dwindling as NASA prepares to pay Russia to launch astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) until a U.S. commercial crew transport is ready.
By demonstrating a robotic capability to refuel satellites not designed for on-orbit servicing, NASA hopes to use the final flight of the space shuttle to help launch a new industry in the U.S. intended to extend the operational lifetimes of geosynchronous spacecraft.
July 14—National Business Aviation Regional Forum. San Jose (Calif.) International Airport. Call +1 (202) 783-9000 or see www.nbaa.org July 17-19—Aviation Suppliers Association's 2011 Annual Conference. Washington Marriott at Metro Center. See www.aviationsuppliers.org
In one of his last policy speeches as U.S. defense secretary, Robert Gates railed against NATO members' unwillingness to pay their fair shares of the costs of the transatlantic security alliance. Importantly, his remarks went beyond the usual admonition to Europe to come up with more money, zeroing in for the first time on how NATO actually spends its limited defense resources.
It looks like Chinese airlines have dodged a bullet train, at least for now. The carriers have won a reprieve against extreme competition from fast rail on their premier route, between Beijing and Shanghai, with the railways ministry announcing fairly high fares for its imminent service.
VistaJet has ordered 10 Bombardier Global 8000 business jets, worth around $650 million. The Swiss business jet operator now has a $2 billion backlog with Bombardier.
Eurocopter's X3 makes its Paris air show debut. For Eurocopter, the X3 represents a potential forerunner to a generation of high-speed rotorcraft capable of replacing smaller regional aircraft. Other European helicopter makers also presented their visions for the future. And for commercial air transport manufacturers, overcast skies and daily downpours failed to dampen a surge in orders. Show coverage begins on page 24. Mike Vines/AW&ST photo.
A serious fuel fire during an acceptance test of a rocket engine destined to power one of two launch vehicles NASA is counting on for International Space Station resupply illustrates the fragility of U.S. civil space-access plans after the shuttle fleet retires.
Correspondent Christina MacKenzie's piece on strong demand for Airbus A400Ms elicited some tongue-in-cheek responses, including: Surely, the Russians won't buy . . . they're more interested in the Ukrainian An-70 which set the basis for the A400M. Besides, the An-70 has better performance stats.
Andrew Taylor (see photo) has been named executive VP-marketing for the Americas for Singapore-based BOC Aviation. He was senior VP-marketing at Boullioun Aviation and a founding shareholder of Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise, the predecessor of BOC Aviation.
Frank Pray has been appointed president and CEO of Germantown, Tenn.-based Intrepid Aviation. He was president and CEO of the Ireland-based AWAS aircraft leasing group.
July 3-8—University of Graz/Austrian Aviation Psychology's Fifth Annual International Summer School on Aviation Psychology. Graz, Austria. Call +43 (316) 380-5129 or see www.uni-graz.at/isap11 July 5—Canadian Business Aviation Association's Aviation Human Factors' Seminar. Westin Calgary (Alberta) Hotel. Call +1 (613) 236-5611, fax +1 (613) 236-2361 or see www.cbaa-acaa.ca/convention/cbaa-2011-1/aviation-human-factors-course
Should the French government supervise and endorse Air France-KLM's fleet planning? Are members of France's parliament entitled to determine the aircraft orders of the Franco-Dutch airline group? Is it basically a state-controlled enterprise? Such questions may seem to come from a 20-year-old annual report or political analysis of the airline industry's future. But the sensitive topic is being debated now, when Air France-KLM is preparing to finalize a major aircraft order.
New astronomical discoveries are emerging from the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (Sofia) airborne telescope, which completed its first phase of science flights on June 8.
With nearly all the attention at Paris focused on the emerging PW1000G and Leap powerplants for the Airbus A320NEO (new engine option), International Aero Engines (IAE) is quietly starting studies of new upgrades as part of long-term plans to help sustain the V2500 family into the next decade and beyond.
Despite its status as a shining example of international cooperation, the International Space Station has a harsh lesson to teach the five-member global partnership that built it: Unilateral decision-making can lead to chaos.
Meredith Siegfried, president of Tulsa, Okla.-based Nordam, is expected to be elected CEO when CEO Bill Peacher steps down at the July board meeting. Peacher will remain on the board as a financial consultant.
The U.S. Treasury Department is sanctioning Iran Air after finding the carrier a proliferator of weapons of mass destruction for providing material support and services to Iran's military, particularly the hard-line Islamic Revolutionary Guard. The U.S. accuses the airline of shipping military-related electronic parts and mechanical equipment, as well as raw materials, including titanium sheets. Iran Air also allegedly transported rockets or missiles on passenger aircraft, including to Syria.
