The disruption in power and communications networks following the Japanese earthquake and tsunami have made satellites typically used for entertainment in the highly industrialized nation an important source of emergency communications in the disaster zone, when combined with ground equipment developed for rural areas.
Regarding “Training Turnaround” (AW&ST March 7/14, p. 42), I am a retired U.S. Air Force pilot and NASA astronaut with about 5,000 hr. in jet fighters and trainers, and I was a jet instructor pilot for more than three years. With all of this background, I never knew of anyone who lost control of an aircraft and flew into the ground due to a stall. For one thing, stall recovery and unusual attitude recovery were essential parts of pilot training.
Tom Cooper and Michael Moore have been appointed to senior vice presidents at TeamSAI of Denver. Cooper worked for Delta Air Lines, and Moore was an executive at Northwest Airlines and Timco Aviation Services.
The team that developed the Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto-GCAS) for the U.S. Air Force won the Aviation Week Laureate Award for Information Technology and Electronics.
It’s a simple idea: If your business jet has an empty seat, give it to someone who needs it—specifically, a cancer patient traveling to and from a treatment center. The gesture costs the aircraft operator nothing, but can save the patient thousands of dollars and considerable stress during a time of extreme personal hardship. That simple generosity took form in 1981 as the Corporate Angel Network—CAN.
A 143-sec. flight over the Pacific in May 2010 will be remembered as the moment the supersonic-combustion ramjet proved itself capable of powering a practical aerospace vehicle, crowning decades of research and winning the X-51A Waverider hypersonic vehicle team the Aviation Week 2011 Laureate for Achievement in Aeronautics and Propulsion.
Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO James Albaugh acknowledges that early Boeing 787-8s will be heavier than the specified maximum takeoff weight of 502,500 lb. when initial orders are delivered. “But I think we’ll be able to meet what our guarantees are,” he says. “I feel pretty comfortable that over time we’ll be able to get to [the specified range]. When that date is going to be, I can’t tell you.”
Elbit and Israel Aerospace Industries will jointly pursue a program to provide advanced training aircraft to the Israeli defense ministry. The joint company would handle the aircraft acquisition and support of the trainer aircraft. If a contract is awarded, Elbit says the joint venture would likely seek funding from capital markets to build the required infrastructure and buy training aircraft.
Steven Verhasselt, Wim Kuit and Norman Hecht have become senior consultants for the Air Cargo Management Group of Seattle. Verhasselt has been an aviation consultant in Hong Kong since 2003; Kuit has worked for Panalpine World Transport, Kales Airline Services and Emery Worldwide; and Hecht recently left a 37-year career at Pratt & Whitney, where he handled sales, aftermarket maintenance and strategic planning.
While carriers around the world are still enjoying strong growth rates and higher fares backed by global GDP growth, several factors may lead the industry into an overcapacity situation as soon as next year. These factors include uncertainty over the price of fuel, GDP development in key markets, markedly increasing delivery stream for new aircraft backed by a stronger than expected early order cycle and, not the least, the ambitious expansion in various pivotal markets planned for this summer.
The British Defense Ministry is considering extending the in-service period for the Nimrod R1 signals-intelligence fleet by at least three months to cover use in a no-fly zone over Libya that the United Nations Security Council approved on March 17. The aircraft were to be phased out this month.
Unmanned aircraft played a prominent role in many of the nominations for Laureates throughout the evening, so it was fitting that both recipients of the Philip J. Klass Lifetime Achievement Award were pioneers of the unmanned air vehicle (UAV) industry. Thomas J. Cassidy, Jr., and Abraham Karem were each credited for work that helped move UAVs from occasional roles on the sidelines to becoming essential assets in a variety of military operations. In presenting the awards, Aviation Week Executive Editor James R.
A couple of sometimes-maverick Senate Republicans are trying to move defense spending to the front of the appropriations line, but they are finding resistance near and far. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and John McCain (R-Ariz.), both of whom have a history of bucking their congressional caucus at times, have been echoing the Pentagon’s calls for passage of fresh fiscal 2011 legislative language so that the Defense Dept. can get on with better managing everything from the wars to paying its electricity bills (AW&ST Feb. 21, p. 28).
A string of procurement choices by the Pentagon—including an American KC-X platform, a stunted buy of Italian airlifters and a defunct Italian Marine One airframe—exemplify how difficult it can be for foreign designs to earn the right to fly in U.S. livery.
The U.K. suffers from the heaviest taxes on flying in the world, its airport infrastructure is decaying, and its planning process to revitalize air transport is appallingly difficult. As a result, the country’s leading airport, Heathrow, continues to head toward secondary hub status in Europe. Yet, the coalition government is failing to properly address strained capacity at Heathrow Airport and beyond. The question on many minds is: What will come first, a new government or a proper aviation policy?
Mark Busalacchi has joined the Lee County Port Authority , Fort Myers, Fla., as director of properties. He came from JetBlue Airways, where he handled properties, contracts and airport affairs at 15 airports in the Midwest and Western U.S.
As major manufacturers fight for their definition of what future 100-200-seat, single-aisle aircraft will look like, they at least have the advantage of talking to an industry that has access to low-interest loans and financiers impressed with the discipline airlines showed in bouncing back from the global recession.
I take exception with your editorial “The Broken Branch of Government” (AW&ST Feb. 14, p. 58). In this indictment of Congress, you speak of “Congress’s dereliction of duty” and refer to “the newly empowered tea party adherents” in a pejorative way. Excuse me, but this Congress was elected by citizens—and this includes tea party members—to be responsible and negate the recklessness of the executive branch and previous Congress.
The ongoing temporary extensions of the FAA’s budget and authorization are taking a toll on the agency, officials say. The FAA is halting most new certification activities until Congress passes a fiscal 2011 budget, now not expected until at least early April, if at all. Flight Standards Director John Allen says most travel and hiring also are on hold. “We’re waiting to find out what kind of budget we’ll have before we turn that spigot back on,” he says.
Adrian Friend has joined Esri UK of Aylesbury as strategic account manager for Ministry of Defense customer Intelligence Collection Group. Formerly a major in the Royal Engineers, Friend was the lead geospatial representative within the ministry’s Security Policy and Operations Div.
The Israeli navy has intercepted a Liberian-flag vessel, the Victoria, believed to be carrying C-704 anti-ship missiles from Iran to Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. The vessel was heading to Egypt, but Israeli officials say they don’t believe Egyptian officials knew of the arms shipment, which also included 60- and 120-mm mortar shells. “These are strategic weapons. If Hamas gets its hands on them, they would seriously damage strategic infrastructure at sea and at shore,” argues Israel navy chief Brig. Gen. Rani Ben-Yehuda.
The FAA is about to take major steps in two long-running projects that will update its core air traffic control systems and form an essential base for the NextGen modernization program. The agency is set to begin replacing the main operating system at the largest terminal control facilities under a new agreement with Raytheon, with work under way at the first of these sites. Meanwhile, the FAA is preparing to give the final go-ahead for nationwide deployment of the new en route system that has been developed by Lockheed Martin.
Indeed, airlines are “Over A Barrel” again (AW&ST March 7/14, p. 24). With the many invisible factors that impact jet kerosene prices, the only hope for stable jet fuel prices will be if the U.S. Air Force succeeds in developing synthetic jet fuels and producing them in quantity at a reasonable price. Does anyone know the estimate for synthetic jet fuel per barrel?
Michael Kimman next month is scheduled to become vice president-information technology for the SkyTeam alliance in Amsterdam. He joins the airline partnership from KLM, where he is vice president/chief information officer.
Chinese leasing companies are close to venturing into speculative aircraft orders as the next stage in their development. Lessors are already making inquiries with manufacturers but, as mostly new companies still feeling their way, they are reluctant to commit to the distant delivery dates that are available. The global aviation industry is already getting used to names such as ICBC Leasing, CDB Leasing, Bank of Communications Leasing and Dragon Aviation Leasing.
