Bell Helicopter has waited a long time for a success to follow its best-selling single-turbine Model 407. The 427 light twin did not have instrument flight rules (IFR) certification, which kept customers away in droves. The follow-on 427i was IFR-certified, but the cabin was not big enough to attract operators, particularly the emergency medical service industry.
The Assn. of Asia Pacific Airlines reports member traffic remained soft through May. At 10.1 million passengers, the count was down nearly 15% from the previous year. International freight saw a year-on-year decline of nearly 19%. Members cut cargo capacity by 16%.
The Israeli and Italian space agencies have agreed to study a space-based hyperspectral sensor that could meet growing demand for systems capable of remotely mapping, identifying and classifying minerals, vegetation and other resources or distinguishing between different backgrounds and objects. If the nine-month study is conclusive, the two agencies will embark on a four-year €170-million ($239.7-million) development program. Israel plans to contribute aerial photography know-how from Elbit’s Venus superspectral camera.
Japan Airlines will have to reform its operation in return for a government rescue loan. Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano has all but confirmed that the government will bail out the money-losing company. Justifying his thinking, the minister describes JAL in terms of its value as a public service, rather than as a company operating in a competitive market. But government help would be available only if the airline agrees to restructure itself, he says.
John M. Doyle (Washington), Michael Bruno (Washington), David A. Fulghum (Washington)
So-called fighter gaps looming across the U.S. armed services are catching the attention of officials in Washington beyond just the battle over the F-22 Raptor. The head of U.S. Northern Command, the Defense Dept.’s combatant command responsible for North America, says he is looking for multirole aircraft to perform the varied missions required for protecting the homeland.
Middle Eastern network carriers are looking at further adjustments to their business plans as they recognize they can’t simply shrug off the sustained drop in traffic and yields. The situation is further complicated by the increased number of low-fare carriers putting downward pressure on prices. The situation is even causing some carriers to reconsider long-held business assumptions.
David A. Fulghum (Washington), John M. Doyle (Washington), Michael Bruno (Washington)
Washington is headed for a heated showdown on Capitol Hill over the Lockheed Martin-led F-22 Raptor after the House and a Senate defense committee tossed aside a veto threat from President Barack Obama last week over prolonging the program.
Deferral of an order for a second batch of six Saab Gripens is forcing the Thai air force to extend the life of some of its Northrop F-5E and F-5F light fighters. Seven of the 12 aircraft will continue in operation, the air force says. It has ordered six Gripens but has been unable to order more, because of a budget cut.
David L. Ryan (see photo) has been named vice president-business development of the Northrop Grumman Corp. ’s Information Systems Sector, Reston, Va. He was vice president-programs for the company’s Mission Systems Sector.
John Burke, vice president/program manager for EADS North America’s UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter, has received the 2009 Leadership Excellence Award from the National Defense Industrial Assn. ’s Huntsville, Ala.-based Tennessee Valley Chapter. The award recognizes Burke’s service to industry, his 28-year career in the U.S. Army and contributions to national defense.
The British government is to set up an Office of Cyber Security “to provide strategic leadership for and coherence across . . . departments and agencies.” A cybersecurity operations center is also to be established. The plans were part of the government’s first update of its National Security Strategy.
Kennedy Space Center crews plan to fill the space shuttle Endeavour’s external tank with liquid hydrogen July 1 to test repairs designed to fix a gaseous hydrogen leak that has forced two launch scrubs of the STS-127 mission to the International Space Station. Crews removed the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, where gaseous hydrogen boiling off is carried from the external tank into the flame stack at Pad 39A for burnoff, and sent its seals to Marshall Space Flight Center for inspection.
NASA has named two candidate $105-million missions for its Small Explorer Mission series that have a launch window of 2012-15. Lockheed Martin Space Systems is to build the payload and NASA Ames Research Center to conduct systems engineering and mission operations for the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph satellite, which will study the flow of energy and plasma between the solar surface and solar corona.
Airlines face a challenging future of higher, more volatile jet fuel prices. They can improve competitiveness and viability through optimizing fuel consumption. Doing so can save the industry billions of dollars annually, and usher in a sustainable, lower-emissions future.
The Obama administration has taken the position in Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty follow-on negotiations with Russia that the issues of missile defense and nuclear weapon reductions should be dealt with independently, according to the State Dept. “We’ve made no final decisions regarding basing missile defense in Europe, which will be based on an assessment of the threat to the United States and its allies,” a spokesman told reporters at headquarters June 22. “If that threat disappears, that will affect our decision on the need to move forward with missile defense.”
London is in trouble with Brussels over its legislation regarding whether an aircraft is exempt from value-added tax. Last week, the European Commission announced it has “formally requested the United Kingdom to amend its legislation governing the VAT exemption for transactions related to aircraft, since it is based on criteria different from, and inconsistent with, those employed in the VAT Directive.” The U.K. now has two months to put its legislative house in order with regard to VAT, or the EC may refer the matter to the European Court of Justice.
Bigelow Aerospace’s planned Sundancer orbital habitat will use a green thruster system powered by hydrogen and oxygen generated by the spacecraft’s environmental control and life support system from its occupants’ sweat, urine and waste water. Orion Propulsion Inc. of Huntsville, Ala., completed the qualification test program for Sundancer’s Forward Propulsion System, which will provide attitude control for the inflatable habitat. When fully inflated, Sundancer will measure 28 ft. long, with a 21-ft. diameter and encompass more than 6,000 cu. ft.
Will heads roll at Boeing Co.? Speculation is rife after the sixth delay to the 787 jet’s first flight embarrassed company leaders and called into question whether the program’s dysfunctional management has really been fixed (see p. 24). Airlines and investors are seething about the slip after being assured throughout the Paris air show that the wide-body jet was expected to fly by June 30. Morgan Stanley now estimates first deliveries of the 787, originally set for May 2008, could slip into 2011.
Republic Airways Holdings is on the verge of transforming itself into an airline company that suddenly must become concerned with selling its own seats and paying for its own fuel.
The United Arab Emirates has submitted final technical requirements for a 60-airplane purchase of the Rafale fighter. Dassault Aviation officials say the document signifies basic agreement on the specifications with the objective of closing the deal by year-end. The UAE is seeking improvements already ordered for the most advanced version of the standard Rafale, including active electronically scanned array radar, Damocles targeting pod and enhanced OHF forward infrared search-and-track system and missile warning receiver.
British Airways will go forward with its all-premium Airbus A318 service connecting London’s financial center with New York, despite a sharp drop in premium traffic. The service is scheduled to begin Sept. 29, and ticket sales started June 23. The airline has purchased two A318s for the London City-John F. Kennedy International Airport service and is configuring the cabins with 32 business-class seats and Internet connectivity.
A specification for alternative jet fuel produced using the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process has been approved by the fuels subcommittee of standards organization ASTM International. Once approved by ASTM and accepted by the FAA, synthetic paraffinic kerosene (SPK) derived from biomass, coal or natural gas via the FT process will be able to be mixed with oil-derived Jet-A fuel in blends up to 50%. Approval of sustainable biofuels, called bio-SPKs, is expected to follow in 2010.
For the third year in a row, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) has failed to persuade colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Committee to work on this year’s defense bill in public. The committee has traditionally closed its mark-up of the annual defense policy bill to the public and press, it says, to enable free discussion of classified information.
Thales Alenia Space has been contracted by Orbital Sciences Corp. to build nine pressurized cargo modules for NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program, intended to resupply the International Space Station using private services through 2015, when the Ares I/Orion shuttle follow-on is planned to be ready. The modules will be carried on board OSC’s Cygnus spacecraft.
Bell Helicopter expects certification of its Model 429 light turbine twin by the end of June. Aviation Week & Space Technology pilot Douglas Nelms visited Bell’s commercial helicopter plant at Mirabel airport, near Montreal, to fly the 429, which is aimed primarily at the emergency medical service market and features a cabin large enough to accommodate two stretchers and four technicians (see p. 42). The 429 is powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada PW207s. Yves Beaulieu photo.
