In regard to Norman Augustine’s Viewpoint article “A Race to the Bottom” (AW&ST Aug. 24/31, p. 57), there is one avenue of potential educational changes that I have not yet seen addressed. At most universities, nontechnical-related courses are required. Economics, humanities and other subjects that do not directly contribute to a technical education account for about two years in a 4-5-year degree program. How about replacing these courses with technical classes that will get typical high school graduates up to an acceptable technical standard?
How ironic! The FAA will now force airlines to train pilots the way most military air forces do: by mentoring junior pilots and instituting professional development committees (AW&ST Aug. 3, p. 40). The next bastion to come down should be the seniority list; there is no room in any cockpit for incompetent pilots.
Efforts to rebuild the Iraqi air force will take a big step forward this month when Cessna AC-208 Combat Caravans are cleared to start shooting laser-guided Hellfire missiles. Rebuilding the service was always a tall order, and the task is even more difficult now that the coalition advisers have less time than initially envisioned to complete their activities.
Lockheed Martin and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne (PWR) are developing a turbine-based combined-cycle propulsion system that could be flight tested in a Mach 6 demonstrator, filling the void left by the cancellation of the hypersonic Blackswift vehicle in 2008.
Space Systems/Loral has shipped Intelsat 14 (IS-14) from its factory in Palo Alto, Calif., to Cape Canaveral AFS for launch later this year on an Atlas V. With a hybrid C- and Ku-band payload for data, voice and video in fixed satellite services, IS-14 will replace Intelsat 1R at 315 deg. E. Long.
Meanwhile, Gates remains squarely on the fence about what to do in Afghanistan. “Two areas where it is clearly worse are in the north, particularly in Kunduz, and in the west, particularly in Herat,” says Defense Dept. spokesman Geoff Morrell. “But I know of no decision that would mark a clear change of strategy toward those areas.” Gates has expressed opposition to “a limited offshore, remote counterterrorism operation,” Morrell says. But the Pentagon chief is also concerned about placing too many U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
Boeing is preparing for an unprecedented wave of simultaneous certification tests on the 747-8 and 787 by using the extra time caused by delays to train, refresh and qualify a new group of flight-test engineers and pilots. Yet, at the same time, it is considering shedding administrative staff as part of wider layoff plans
Facing a spending freeze, the U.S. military is concentrating on maintaining its mostly legacy rotary-wing fleet, with upgrades and improvements driven by demands from combatant commanders in Afghanistan.
Efforts to expand the international footprint for the RQ-4B Global Hawk unmanned aircraft are starting to take hold, as purchases of the intelligence and surveillance system by Germany and NATO continue to move forward. Northrop Grumman this week is due to formally roll out the Euro Hawk—a Block 20 Global Hawk-based system being developed in conjunction with EADS to become Germany’s future signals intelligence platform to replace its Atlantic manned sigint aircraft.
NASA Ames Research Center has shifted the impact target for its Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (Lcross), which is set to slam into the Moon’s south pole at 4:30 a.m. PDT on Oct. 9. Instead of the smaller Cabeus A1 crater, the orange region to the left of M1 in this image (see arrow), Lcross will impact the larger main Cabeus crater. The change was prompted by new understanding of hydrogen concentrations in the Cabeus region following cross-correlations with the latest Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and Lunar Prospector data sets.
Life-cycle sustainment and support for the P-3 Orion got off to a flying start with the delivery of the first set of new production P-3 wings to Lockheed Martin’s launch customer, the Royal Norwegian Air Force. The company regards the wings as the cornerstone of its P-3 aircraft service life-extenstion program (Aslep). Under Aslep, the outer wings, center wing lower surface assembly, horizontal stabilizer, wing and horizontal stabilizer leading edges, and various filet fairings are replaced, and new alloys are used.
French defense ministry officials are scrambling to protect a breakthrough export sale to Brazil from fallout of a Sept. 24 accident in which two naval Rafale fighters were lost. According to the ministry, the Rafales were engaged in routine tests to readjust the catapults on the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to handle the heavier mission weight of the multirole Rafale F3 variant being introduced into navy inventory.
British Secretary of State for Defense Bob Ainsworth said last week any decision to provide more troops for Afghanistan in the short term will need to be taken in the light of the ability to have them adequately equipped. The ruling Labour government has been criticized for the perceived lack of adequate equipment provided to British forces
Oct. 11-14—Airports Council International-North America 18th Annual Conference and Exhibition. Austin (Tex.) Convention Center. Call +1 (202) 293-8500 or see www.aci-na.org/conferences Oct. 14-15—Technology Training Corp.’s Defense Finance & Cost Management Conference. Also, Oct. 19-20—Military Energy & Alternative Fuels Conference. Both at Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites, Alexandria, Va. Call +1 (310) 563-1210 or see www.ttcus.com
Boeing is testing the chaff and flare elements of the Royal Australian Air Force 737 Airborne Early Warning and Control self-protection system as it wraps up final evaluations before delivering the first two aircraft in November.
Engineers have finished installing TP400 turboprop engines on the first prototype of Europe’s A400M airlifter. They also have completed engine flight-test trials on board a C-130 flying testbed, moving the A400M a step closer to a planned year-end first flight. The test program at Marshall Aerospace totaled 54 hr. in 18 flights and 110 hr. of total engine run time.
Pratt & Whitney Canada Customer Service Centers Europe, a joint venture between PWC and MTU Aero Engines, has given Motorflug Baden-Baden recognized maintenance facility status to provide support for PTST and PW200 series engines. Motorflug is one of the largest helicopter repair stations in Europe. (Parmalee)
EchoStar is moving into broadband and Internet television and pondering its next step in mobile satellite services as it seeks to gain maximum leverage from its direct broadcasting and fixed satellite service assets.
Early this year, the USS John Stennis Carrier Strike Group deployed for the first time with a full complement of next-generation Seahawks—11 MH-60R Romeo and eight MH-60S Sierra helicopters. And judging by the 95% sortie completion rate during the 135 days at sea, the experiment in helicopter operations was a resounding success.
VT Group and BAE Systems last month signed a binding agreement covering the sale of VT’s 45% stake in their joint venture, BVT Surface Fleet Ltd. The shareholding is worth a total of £346 million ($553 million), but the deal also includes VT contributing £43 million into the capital of BV, leaving the cash proceeds from the disposal of the shareholding at £303 million. VT has suggested it could use the funds for acquisition purposes.
The new, heftier Boeing/U.S. Navy MH-60R Seahawk helicopter went to sea for the first time with its sibling, the MH-60S armed helicopter, early in 2009. The anti-surface, anti-submarine warfare aircraft is loaded with sensors, making it ideal for operating as a network node miles from a ship or in the littoral environment (see p. 48). Photo by Ted Carlson/Fotodynamics.
While the missile-defense spotlight is still on Obama’s decision to cancel plans for 10 silo-based interceptors in Poland in favor of a mobile, SM-3-based architecture, a less prominent European ballistic missile defense effort is having its own problems. And, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is not helping Lockheed Martin’s effort to push forward with the Medium Extended Air Defense System (Meads), a missile- and air-defense system that incorporates a 360-deg. radar and new, more-capable missile than today’s Patriot systems. Marine Corps Gen.
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) has awarded Lockheed Martin a Phase 3 contract covering a new series of flight tests of the Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft (ACCA), a heavily modified Dornier 328JET. AFRL says envelope expansion under Phase 3 is “planned for a 20-month effort.” Although retaining the wings and engines of the 328JET, the fuselage aft of the cockpit and the vertical tail represent new structural designs made of MTM45-1 composite materials fabricated using out-of-autoclave curing.
