Amid Pentagon belt-tightening, Boeing and Northrop Grumman are offering dueling proposals in an attempt to capture what limited funds the U.S. Air Force may have to modernize its fleet of airborne ground-surveillance (AGS) intelligence collectors.
USAF Maj. Gen. Noel T. Jones has been appointed director of U.S. Forces-Iraq within U.S. Central Command in Baghdad. He has been deputy chief of the Central Security Service of the National Security Agency, Ft. Meade, Md. Jones has been succeeded by Brig. Gen. Jim H. Keffer, who was deputy director for intelligence for U.S. Forces-Iraq. Brig. Gen. Scott A. Bethel has been named director of strategy, integration and doctrine/deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance at USAF Headquarters at the Pentagon.
Mexicana’s two affiliate airlines, low-cost Click and regional operator Link, both filed for bankruptcy protection last week just as the mainline carrier was formally granted protection by a Mexican bankruptcy court. The filings, which come a month after Mexicana’s application, also coincide with the introduction of the Mexican government into the mainline carrier’s restructuring, and the formation of a reorganization plan that, according to one insider, will drop all domestic services in favor of a trimmed down international network serving the Americas.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates may be trying to rein in defense spending before lawmakers sharpen their own budget knives, but academics from the University of Alabama at Birmingham say history and the 2012 race for the White House are working against him. “Historically, about a year or two before national elections you can see a fairly substantial increase in military spending,” says Assistant Professor of Sociology Casey Borch, who reported recently on 44 years of data surrounding nationwide contests.
Satellite manufacturers and launch providers think strong demand for new services, coupled with the availability of export credit agency financing, may largely compensate for an expected dip in replacement-satellite buys, helping to avoid a severe order downturn.
Brig. Gen. Robert Otto’s comment regarding intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, “Soon we’ll be swimming in sensors and drowning in data” (AW&ST Aug. 2, p. 24), is on the mark. Focusing on hardware (platforms and sensors) and software development while ignoring human factors engineering (HFE) and human-systems integration (HSI) issues will only exacerbate this problem.
Boeing provided its strongest indication yet that it will not re-engine the 737. CFO James Bell says a new engine would provide only a single-digit improvement in efficiency once the cost and weight gain from a new design are factored in, far below the 15-20% that airlines are likely to be seeking. “Our customers have not shown a real interest in a re-engined airplane,” Bell said. Meanwhile, Louis Chenevert, CEO of Pratt & Whitney parent United Technologies, predicted that Airbus will announce a re-engining of the A320 by year-end.
The Iranian military is undergoing a major enhancement of its technical prowess if the flurry of new weapons unveiled in recent weeks reflects actual capabilities rather than grandstanding.
The C919 is part of a broad Chinese government plan to advance the country’s technological base, with the bonus of reinforcing support for the Communist Party.
D. Balasunder has become managing director of the Bangalore Complex of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. He was general manager of the company’s Aerospace Div.
Embraer has secured a second foreign partner for its KC-390 military tanker/transport development progam, with the Colombian government signaling its intent to buy 12 of the aircraft. The agreement follows only a few days after Chile expressed its intent to take six of the aircraft. In both cases, the deals come with a commitment by Embraer to place KC-390 work with companies in those countries.
Two veteran international journalists have joined Aviation Week’s editorial team. Leithen Francis becomes the bureau chief of Aviation Week’s new Singapore bureau. He has extensive experience covering aerospace in the Asia-Pacific region, most recently as deputy Asia editor for Reed Business Information’s Air Transport Intelligence. Max Kingsley-Jones joins us as Aviation Week’s new senior air transport editor, based in London. He comes from Flight International, where he was deputy editor.
The European Union has added two Ghanaian airlines to its no-fly list. Meridian Airways and Airlift International have now been blacklisted, although the latter is only partly banned, with one aircraft still permitted to operate in the EU. The status of the carriers is due for review in November at a regular Air Safety Committee gathering.
Russian controllers are checking out three Glonass-M navigation spacecraft lofted from Baikonur Cosmodrome on a Proton M with a DM upper stage Sept. 3. The launch from Kazakhstan brings the navigation constellation to 26 satellites, including two in reserve. A minimum of 24 working satellites provide full worldwide coverage, while 18 cover Russian territory in full. The Russian space agency Roscosmos plans to orbit the next batch of Glonass-M satellites by the end of November, completing launch of the type.
China’s emergence as the world’s second largest economy plays out in many ways, including the possibility it will lead a fragmentation of the traditional Airbus and Boeing duopoly that provides airlines on all continents with most of their jets.
Boeing/Insitu says a small synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensor has been integrated onto the ScanEagle unmanned aerial system (UAS). The small sensor, made by ImSAR, is also being eyed for the Integrator, selected last month by the U.S. Navy for use on ships and on land. The SAR could be used to cue other onboard sensors, including the electro-optical/infrared system. Integration of the sensor is being funded by the manufacturers, who have not yet found a customer.
The Israeli air force will dramatically curtail the number of its fighters and, by 2030, half of its platforms will be unmanned, according to the IAF’s new road map.
European Union emissions allowance (EUA) prices rallied in August, driven by fears over the supply of United Nations emissions offset credits. EUAs for delivery in December 2010 closed at €15.30 ($19.48) per metric ton on Aug. 27, up from €13.78 on July 27, according to Platts’ assessments.
The Polish military is preparing for the arrival of its first upgraded Mi-17 and Mi-24 helicopters equipped with an advanced electronic warfare system to bolster self-protection capabilities in advance of the rotorcraft’s deployment to Afghanistan.
As Britain’s political leadership returns from its summer recess, a daunting task awaits them: a painful spending review that will have major implications for the country’s national security, including the nation’s defense industrial base.
Jeffrey Schloesser has become president of Wood Dale, Ill.-based AAR ’s Aviation Worldwide Services. He was director of U.S. Army aviation and had been commanding general of the 101st Airborne Div. and Regional Command-East in Afghanistan.
The first delivery of the Superjet 100 regional jet to Aeroflot is finally approaching and will inaugurate a period in which the Russian flag carrier will ramp up its commitment to domestically produced aircraft.
Lawrence Prior has been appointed executive vice president-service sectors for BAE Systems Inc. , Arlington, Va. He was president/chief operating officer of the ManTech International Corp.
You have to admire the way the Boeing Co. played down the latest delay to its new 787 jet. An announcement that first delivery would be pushed back several weeks to February 2011—the program’s sixth slip—came in the middle of a late-August night, when half of Wall Street was asleep and the rest was vacationing in the Hamptons.
