The British government is examining whether there is a need for a national electro-optical satellite system and if the capability could be acquired using an “anchor tenancy” model. Various government departments, including the Defense Ministry, are users of Earth observation data. According to the BBC, an initial report could be submitted by year-end.
Technological advancements and market demands are petulant bedfellows: At one extreme, a new product can create a market where none existed, while at the other, a seemingly logical idea can fail to gain traction, stymied by lack of interest, cost concerns or something as simple as a poor sales pitch.
The NTSB and FAA hold divergent views on whether pilots of light aircraft require enhanced training and testing to safely operate advanced avionics that since 2005 have become standard on new piston aircraft. In March, the NTSB published the results of its five-year (2002-06) study comparing the safety records of aircraft with glass panels in the cockpit versus those with conventional analog-dial instrumentation.
The Senate is aiming for a vote this week on a revised FAA reauthorization bill, but with their August recess looming, both houses of Congress are starting to consider a further temporary extension of the FAA’s operating authority. Disagreements within the Senate over two airport-related provisions have been resolved, at least to the extent that a bill can be brought to the Senate floor, industry sources say.
General Electric’s GEnx-2B and CF34-10A engines for the Boeing 747-8 and Comac ARJ21 have each received FAA certification. The GEnx-2B, a derivative of the -1B powering the 787, entered the certification program in 2008, and started flight-testing on the 747-8 Freighter in February. It has since accumulated more than 2,100 flight hours, 1,100 cycles and 3,800 combined flight and ground-run hours on the 747-8. Despite signs of delays to the aircraft program, GE says entry into service is still officially scheduled for later this year with Cargolux Airlines.
Charles Schuler has become San Francisco-based Northwest U.S. sales manager for Emirates . He was director of strategy, business development and planning for the Americas for Air New Zealand.
Aug. 3-5—FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute’s Cabin Safety Workshop. Monroney Aeronautical Center, Oklahoma City. See www.faa.gov/data_research/research/med_humanfacs/aeromedical/cabinsafet… Aug. 16-19—National Defense Industrial Association’s 13th Annual Space and Missile Defense Conference and Exhibition. Huntsville, Ala. Call +1 (256) 382-5823 or see www.smdconf.org Aug. 16-20—Terrapinn’s Aviation Outlook Africa. BMW Pavilion Convention Center, Cape Town, South Africa. Call +27 (11) 463-6001 or see www.terrapinn.com/2010/aviationza
It’s Oshkosh time. More than a half million people—scientists, pilots, manufacturers, astronauts, enthusiasts and just about anyone with a passion for aviation—are expected to attend the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture 2010 show July 26-Aug. 1 to explore emerging technologies and glimpse the future of general aviation. What draws visitors each year to a usually sleepy airport in mid-America? “Oshkosh has become an aviation buffet,” says Tom Poberezny, who has served as president and chairman of the EAA since 1975.
Sikorsky will unveil an all-electric helicopter demonstrator, Project Firefly, at next week’s EAA AirVenture show in Oshkosh, Wis. The helicopter is a Schweizer-designed S-300C with a 200-hp. electric motor and lithium-ion batteries. Prototyping specialist Eagle Aviation Technologies modified the helicopter for the Sikorsky Innovations research organization. First flight is planned later this year after completion of ground tests.
Mauro Kern has become executive vice president-new programs for the airline market for Brazil-based Embraer . He was executive vice president-airline market and has been succeeded by Paulo Cesar Silva. Arthur Coutinho has been appointed chief operating officer and Antonio Julio Franco executive vice president-personnel planning and development. Franco was executive vice president-organization and human resources and has been succeeded by Hermann Ponte e Silva.
Israel is ready to deploy the first operational battery of its Iron Dome short-range missile defense system, a move that should address one of Israeli and U.S. military planners’ biggest concerns about potential escalation of violence in the region due to a rocket attack.
U.S. Air Force officials say signals from the newest GPS IIF satellite are operating within specifications, though there is a variation that officials are exploring. During initial testing, Germany’s national aeronautics and space center detected more residual errors than expected when combining the satellite’s L1, L2 and L5 signals, using a technique to detect sources of location errors. USAF officials say this variation coincides with the orbital period during the satellite’s noon and midnight turns, so it could be from thermal variations.
Douglas Barrie (Farnborough), Robert Wall (Farnborough), Michael A. Taverna (Farnborough)
London will decide in September where the ax will fall on defense as Europe’s main spenders come under ever-increasing pressure. Serious cuts and delays are inevitable as governments tighten belts. Liam Fox, the British secretary of state for defense, used the platform of the Farnborough air show to reiterate there was no option but change for the U.K. defense sector, for the ministry, the armed forces and industry.
The Brazilian air force has committed to buying at least 28 Embraer KC-390 military airlifters, with the goal of fielding the aircraft starting in 2016; previously, Brasilia had only agreed to funding the development of the airlifter. The formal contract is to be signed in the next two years, but the agreement in principle should help Brazil in its discussions to bring other countries and potential partners into the program. Meanwhile, Embraer says design studies indicate the maximum payload capability has increased to 23 from 19 metric tons, with a range of 1,400 nm.
The partnership between Boeing and Lockheed Martin to team for a new U.S. Air Force bomber has fizzled. “Rather than getting committed to a specific design, or a specific type of solution or a specific industry partnership, at this point in the process we need to step back and help work with the customer to help understand and define the requirements,” says Dennis Muilenburg, president of Boeing Defense, Security and Space Systems.
With the aviation industry focused on “greening,” electric propulsion technologies at EAA AirVenture 2010 promise to draw a large audience eager to learn more about this growing flight segment. Electric airplane prototypes will be on display at the show in Oshkosh, Wis. Manufacturers and developers will explain concepts and offer ground and flight demonstrations. Visitors also may attend forums during the week to learn about propulsion systems and the airframes, motors, fuel cells and batteries in development.
Upgrades to NASA’s Earth-observation satellite constellation urged in the 2007 decadal survey for the field should dramatically improve the ability to track volcanic ash from space.
Amy Cohn’s Viewpoint, “Fines for Delays Are Not Fixes” (AW&ST May 24, p. 66), misses a fundamental aspect of the air transportation system. There are in fact two systems. The elite receive a reliable, on-demand system, delivered with impeccable service by small jets at a premium price. For the rest of us, as Cohn points out, it is not possible to offer frequent, reliable flights coupled with excellent customer service and cheap fares.
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems is offering an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance package for Hawker Beechcraft KingAir 350s to domestic and international customers, a move clearly designed to cut into the hold L-3 Communications has on this work. Griffin Eye would build on work that GAAS did to outfit KingAirs for the Iraqi air force with the Lynx synthetic aperture radar.
Russia’s government has set aside 24.7 billion rubles ($810 million) for the first three years of construction at the planned Vostochny Cosmodrome as it moves to shut down space launch operations at the historic Baikonur Cosmodrome it leases from Kazakhstan (AW&ST June 28, p. 24). “I very much expect that Vostochny will become the first national cosmodrome for civilian use and guarantee Russia full independence of space activities,” says Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Filippo Bagnato (see photo) has returned as CEO of Toulouse-based ATR , which is an EADS-Finmeccanica partnership. He was CEO from 2004-07 and then was Finmeccanica’s executive vice president-technical, industrial and commercial development. Bagnato succeeds Stephane Mayer of EADS.
Macro Sensors’ series of high-temperature, rugged linear position sensors can be used in various military and defense applications such as fuel/oil-level monitoring, load leveling of artillery platforms and controlling flight surfaces of airplanes and rudder positions of aircraft carriers, tankers, ships and submarines. The HSTAR 750 series can withstand temperature spikes of 400F, according to the company.
In the fighter arena, activity—however hectic—is no guarantee of securing business, and the next few years will be critical to the Saab Gripen’s future.
Rod Holter (see photo) has become vice president/general manager of aircraft manufacturing of the Hawker Beechcraft Corp. , Wichita, Kan. He was vice president for Mustang, Single Engine and Outlying Facilities for the neighboring Cessna Aircaft Co. Other recent appointments are: Brian Howell to vice president-strategic aftermarket integration from business manager for Honeywell’s aftermarket team; and Wes Norris to vice president-Global Authorized Service Center Networks from vice president-Hawker Customer Relations in Little Rock, Ark.
Even though it is halting production Aug. 9-13, Piper Aircraft has increased its payroll and output substantially in the past year and says its PiperJet development program “is full speed ahead.”
