Timothy Decoursey (see photo) has been promoted to assistant manager of FlightSafety International's Learning Center in Columbus, Ohio. He was a flight engineer at American Airlines.
The Israel Defense Forces have for the first time used the Iron Dome anti-rocket system in an operational setting. The IDF says the system was used to intercept a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip on April 7. The Israeli air force struck the launch site soon afterward.
Washington-based Aviation Suppliers Association has named four executives to its board: Richard Levin, managing director of the A.J. Levin Co.; David J. Susser, president and chief executive of Seal Dynamics; Brent Webb, president of Aircraft Inventory Management & Services; and Mitchell Weinberg, president of International Aircraft Associates.
Pulling no punches, Zhihang Chi, vice president and general manager for North America for Air China, told the audience at the Phoenix International Aviation Symposium yesterday that China does not have open skies with the U.S. because it doesn't need it. That is because most Chinese cannot obtain U.S. visas, leaving frequencies unused. Although the U.S. is the top desired country of destination for Chinese, only 1% are able to visit.
Finally, one lesson emerging from the drawn-out KC-135 tanker replacement duel is for the Pentagon to be a sharper customer by setting spending limits and prioritizing requirements. According to Shay Assad, director of procurement and acquisition policy at the Pentagon, this disciplined approach worked (see p. 29). “We knew what our requirement was,” he says.
It would behoove reader Capt. Clyde Romero to understand that the OH-6 he favors was actually designed and flown before the OH-58, which he is so quick to condemn (AW&ST Feb. 28, p. 8). The criteria on which to judge a weapons system's obsolescence should include, but not rely wholly on, the age of the airframe. The simple truth is that by virtue of very different mission capabilities, the OH-6 is able to pick its threat environment and have fixed-wing strike on tether 90% of the time—the OH-58 does not have this luxury.
AeroStrategy predicts that the parts manufacturer approval (PMA) market will experience “robust” growth of 15% in 2011, and it expects it to reach $665 million in 2015, with penetration of 3.4%. But the consultancy also notes that leasing companies, which historically have been slow to warm up to PMA parts, will continue to provide a major barrier to growth of the alternative components sector.
Boeing Network and Space Systems (N&SS) is banking on a raft of new business and product initiatives, acquisitions and upcoming contract decisions to reverse successive years of revenue declines.
The Russian air force has begun taking delivery of Yakovlev Yak-130 military jet trainers after a nearly year-long hiatus that followed the May 2010 crash of one of the first four aircraft built. On April 6, five aircraft arrived at the air force's training center in Borisoglebsk, part of first batch of 12 trainers ordered by the military and assembled at the Nizhny Novgorod Sokol plant.
While I agree with your editorial that the U.S. needs a plan In Libya, the idea that we needed to act is debatable (AW&ST March 28, p. 58). Now that we have acted, we need to avoid the mistakes of the past. Mission creep is already showing up. The “No-Fly Zone” apparently now includes attacking forces on the ground and possibly supplying weapons to somebody (not quite sure who) on the ground.
Paul Jonas (see photo) has been hired by Wichita State University's National Institute for Aviation Research as director of the Environmental Test Labs and Special Programs, succeeding interim Director John Laffen. Jonas was an engineering director at the nearby Hawker Beechcraft Corp.
As industry strives to develop advanced technologies faster and cheaper, faculty and students at academic institutions are proving to be valuable resources. Collaborative projects are taking students beyond their academic curriculum to help industry with rapid prototyping while developing a future workforce. The collaboration is becoming more significant as pressure on research funding increases, with graduate and undergraduate students taking on a growing role in maturing technologies and building prototypes.
When aircraft makers shifted from cutting output to ramping up production, there were underlying concerns within the industry that elements of the supply chain could crumble under the quick reversal. It now seems as if those fears may be realized. In the past year, both Airbus and Boeing took abrupt U-turns, ramping up production to pre-crisis levels. And the dust hasn't settled yet—Airbus, having boosted narrowbody output twice, is now considering a further jump to 42-44 aircraft per month from 40.
Pratt & Whitney will stick to its original cost-cutting plan when it submits proposals for the next batch of fighter engines, despite procurement uncertainty over the F-35B short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing (Stovl) variant.
Competing national and industrial interests have long roiled Europe's space community. The European Union is now trying to bridge those differences in the hope of maximizing what the region derives from its space spending.
James A. Hunter has joined Arent Fox of Washington as government relations director. He was director of government affairs at the General Aviation Manufacturers Association and a former top aide to U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) on transportation, aviation and homeland security issues.
Amy Butler (Sunnyvale and Los Angeles AFB, Calif., and Washington)
After nearly 15 years of development work, more than eight years of delays and billions of dollars in cost overruns, the first of the U.S. Defense Department's new early missile warning satellites is finally poised for launch. The Space-Based Infrared System (Sbirs) geosynchronous (GEO) satellites will provide a new generation of IR sensors designed to detect ballistic missile launches—including “dim,” short-range boosts—faster than today's Defense Support Program (DSP) constellation.
Anthony Smith has been appointed vice presidentsales and marketing for TECT Power, Fort Mitchell, Ky., succeeding Doug Schoulthies, who will become director of contracts and compliance. Smith worked for BAE Systems, Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., Rolls-Royce, General Electric and Timken.
More than a year after Airbus Military A400M customers and industry broadly agreed on new contract terms for the European transport aircraft program, both sides have finalized the actual wording of the deal. In the meantime, the seven core A400M buying countries have decreased their orders to 170 aircraft from 180, with the U.K. and Germany reducing their purchase plans. Malaysia is looking to buy four aircraft. The new contract deals with several years of program delay and cost overruns.
After decades of the U.S. enjoying the advantage of spaceborne cameras to find targets or danger spots, adversaries have now become adept at hiding from electro-optical satellites, either by operating underground, beneath jungle canopies or by being camouflaged to the hilt.
Kelly D. Reich has been promoted to vice president of product support of Wichita-based Cessna Aircraft Co.'s customer service organization, and Peter J. McKernan to director of sales and program administration for Cessna Service Parts and Programs. McKernan, who has worked for Cessna since 1981, succeeds Reich, who has been with the company for 15 years.
Pratt & Whitney President David Hess's surprising disclosure that China's Comac is expressing interest in a version of the geared turbofan for its C919 regional jet adds new weight to the momentum behind Pratt's single-aisle engine strategy. A year ago, the PW1000G-series engine had established itself, thanks to its selection by Bombardier for the 110-130-seat CSeries, by Mitsubishi for the 70-90-seat MRJ and by Irkut for the 150-seat-plus MS-21. But none of those programs—at least, not yet—are the big prize.
Less than two weeks ago, the issue of aging aircraft and metal fatigue seemed to be settled, with a final rulemaking last November that culminated decades of research and regulation spurred by a stunning accident in Hawaii. Then a Boeing 737-300 fuselage ruptured, potentially exposing cracks in the accident prevention efforts.
Since Congress can always overrule itself, and presidents come and go, there is no such thing as the “last word” in Washington. But amid the cacophony, key voices can emerge to settle an issue, whether through a presidential proposal or congressional action. For long-term defense budget making, the decisive moment might have come last week in the guise of House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan's proposal for fiscal 2012 and beyond, and another related offering by Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers.
Jeffrey D. Grant (see photo) has been named vice president and general manager and Robert V. Burke vice president and deputy general manager of Northrop Grumman's Space Systems Div. Grant succeeds David M. DiCarlo, who is retiring after 36 years with the company. Grant joined Northrop Grumman after a 21-year career with the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Burke was the division's vice president of civil and military systems.
