The crystal ball is especially cloudy as this industry cycle begins its downward turn. It is hard to forecast the fortunes of one sector of the wider market when governments around the world are trying to save their economies from collapse. Call it momentum or inertia, the velocity aerospace has built up in the past four years should carry the industry past the middle of this year and perhaps into 2010. But what happens next in government and commercial markets depends on factors beyond the industry’s control.
Altair Gos NPO (Moscow) produced for nearly every Soviet ship-mounted surface-to-air missile (SAM) and missile-artillery system, including the Rif, Shtil, Klinok, Kashtan and S-300F Fort (SA-N-6). It continues to be the main integrator for naval air defense missile systems. Its recent products offered for export are the Gibka turret with Igla SAMs and the Rif-M.
Michael A. Taverna (Paris), Alexey Komarov (Moscow)
A pair of satellite purchases by domestic and overseas operators, both involving Thales Alenia Space, highlight the increasing integration of Russia’s satcom industry into the global marketplace.
1221 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10020, USA Tel. (212) 584-5100; Fax (212) 584-5300 www.sirius.com Sirius FM-1/-2/-3/-4 Direct broadcasting. Orbital location is 96° W. Each carries one S-band transponder. FM-4 is a backup. LS-1300 model. Launched 2000. Sirius FM-5 Under development with Space Systems/Loral using the company’s LS-1300 platform. Will carry an S-band transponder and operate from geostationary orbit. Launch scheduled for second quarter of 2009.
The air force is planning infrastructure improvements to its flight test ranges in preparation for state trials of the Sukhoi T-50 prototype for the country’s PAK FA next-generation fighter program. The T-50 is expected to fly by the end of 2009 and—notionally, at least—enter service in 2015. A meeting was held recently at the Ahktubinsk flight test center to discuss the infrastructure requirements. The defense ministry also continues to plan for a replacement for the Saki naval aviation training center in Ukraine.
2-8 Higashi-shinagawa 2-chome Shinagawa-ku Tokyo 140-0002, Japan Tel. (81-3) 5462-1350; Fax (81-3) 5462-0520 www.superbird.co.jp Superbird A Broadcasting, business services, Internet access, telecommunications, VSAT networks. Orbital location is 158° E geosynchronous. Carries three Ka-band and 23 Ku-band transponders. Launched 1992. 10-year design lifetime.
Russia’s aircraft industry is undergoing what seems to be endless restructuring, with practical results yet to be seen. Central to the restructuring is the establishment of the United Aircraft Corp. (UAC), sometimes referred to by its Russian acronym, OAK. Following a February 2006 presidential decree, it was hoped that the new corporate structure would be up and running in about a year, but by the end of 2008 the new corporation was still not fully established.
Laurence B. Winn, President, SpaceFarers Corp. (Tucson, Ariz.)
There is no shortage of skilled engineering labor in today’s market, nor will there be for the foreseeable future. Instead, the perception of a shortage is the product of poor judgment, as demonstrated so vividly and recently in the banking and automotive industries. In the past, individual engineering skill sets were uniformly applicable, differing among engineers only in degree of skill. Industry itself has created barriers to entry that did not exist 15 years ago and would not exist except for pure foolishness and bad behavior.
Air Force Aerospatiale SA365C (2) Antonov An-12 (1) British Aerospace Strikemaster Mk 89 (1) Cessna 421 (1) Fokker 100 (1) Gulfstream III (1) Gulfstream IV (1) IAR SA330G (2) Mil Mi-24 (1)
Engineers were in short supply once before during the post-World War II years. Many of us, now long retired, were pressed into “uncertificated” service as engineers during the 1950s because there was no other choice. Many aerospace programs were completed without a full complement of college graduates. In most cases, it was the military services that supplied the technical education.
General Dynamics has won an $18.5-million USAF Materiel Command contract to find environmentally significant materials, process and technology advances within the propulsion industrial base that will lead to the “ultimate green engine” for the Air Force. The service wants an engine that is designed and built with parts that do not corrode while in use and that does not employ or release hazardous materials during manufacturing or maintenance. Moreover, the engine’s operation is to have minimal environment impact on air emissions and noise.
