Eric Alden (see photo) has been named director of customer support for Eaton ’s Irvine, Calif.-based aerospace operations. He was manager of strategic planning and new business development.
Amy Butler (Washington), Graham Warwick (Washington), Andy Nativi (Genoa)
As the F-35 testing program ramps up this fall, Lockheed Martin and Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) partner nations are in the midst of a complicated balancing act to iron out the pricing of the fighter before the Pentagon steps in with a stabilizing multiyear purchase beginning in 2014. Based on the most recent data available, the Pentagon estimates the cost of the conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant to be $49.5 million. The short takeoff and vertical landing (Stovl) version is expected to cost $69.3 million and the carrier variant, $64.5 million.
Marc Ugol has become senior vice president-human resources of the UAL Corp. , parent of United Airlines. He was senior vice president-human resources of Constellation Energy.
JSF partner nations the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway are long-standing members of the F-16 European Participating Air Forces (EPAF) group, but they will soon be making decisions about ordering the next-generation fighter.
The French air force has qualified the Rafale F3 multirole standard, which will give the fighter a naval, reconnaissance and nuclear attack capability. The first aircraft built to F3 standard will be delivered in early 2009, although not all of the associated weapon systems—AM39 antiship missile, Reco next-generation recce pod and ASMPA nuclear cruise missile—will necessarily be ready by then. Rafales already in service will be retrofitted to F3 standard.
The letter “Bad Side of Engineering” (AW&ST June 9, p. 10), blaming system engineering for the ills of the aerospace industry, strikes a raw nerve. It obviously comes from someone who, for three decades, has failed to see the real source of the problem. System engineering, like any other tool, will meet expectations if used properly.
Frank Brown (see photo) has become Washington-based vice president-Navy programs for the Raytheon Co. He was director of special systems for advanced programs for Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz.
China has begun a six-month feasibility study for its planned large commercial aircraft, even though the country and its aircraft industry are committed to building it. The study agenda will include technology, after-sales service, the likely production run and project financing.
Lon Pringle has been appointed director of the Atlanta-based Georgia Tech Research Institute ’s Signature Technology Laboratory (STL). He was its chief scientist.
Kuwaiti leasing company Aviation Lease and Finance Co. (Alafco) has closed a deal with Saudi Arabian Airlines for the sale and lease of 17 Airbus and Boeing narrow- and wide-body aircraft. As part of the deal, Saudi Arabian will buy eight Boeing 787-9s, with delivery slated for 2014-15—a portion of the transaction that is valued at $1.6 billion. The Saudi carrier has agreed to lease another four 787-9s for a 12-year period, with operations to start in 2012. It also is leasing five Airbus A320s for an eight-year period starting in 2009.
TAP Portugal is the latest carrier to begin flight trials toward offering inflight cell phone and BlackBerry-type data services. The airline has teamed with OnAir to test the feature on an Airbus A319.
The fatal midair collision of two EMS aircraft over the very hospital primed to treat their airborne patients is galvanizing safety officials to reduce risks in medical transport operations. According to the NTSB, 14 emergency medical services (EMS) accidents occurred last year, six of which involved fatalities.
NASA’s nuclear-powered Cassini probe to Saturn is moving into a two-year-long follow-on mission that will give the spacecraft’s science team an opportunity to study Saturn’s rings with sunlight passing directly across their plane during the Saturn equinox in August 2009.
British Airways is due to flesh out its plan to grow its OpenSkies transatlantic subsidiary, after giving the business a healthy boost with the acquisition of French all-business class airline L’Avion. The £54-million ($108-million) deal is still expected to close this month, giving OpenSkies three daily flights between Paris-Orly and the New York area, says Dale Moss, managing director of OpenSkies. The two carriers were already code sharing.
Nav Canada is planning an ambitious deployment schedule for new GPS-based air traffic control technology, bringing fuel-saving and safety benefits to major intercontinental air routes that are currently beyond radar range.
The Indonesian transport ministry has grounded five small airlines that is says failed to meet safety standards. Helizona, SMAC, Asco Nusa Air, Tri-MG Intra Asia Airlines and Dirgantara Air Service have three months to improve, or risk losing their air operator’s certificates.
Karl Kettler says the free market concept does not apply to the airline industry today because it was subsidized by the government and uses facilities built for the airlines by the government (AW&ST June 23, p. 13).
Several of Europe’s low-fare carriers are dramatically reversing course on key elements of business plans in an attempt to keep from falling victim to the ongoing airline crisis. So far, they have managed to avoid the bankruptcy fate of so many others.
Xi’an Aircraft has rolled out its MA600 turboprop as China bids for a bigger share of the global regional aircraft market. The MA600 is an MA60 with upgrades designed to widen the appeal of the 50-60-seater. These include a Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 integrated flight deck. First flight is expected in September, leading to service entry in late 2009. China hopes to sell 300 MA600s over 10 years, in competition with the ATR 42 and Bombardier Q300. Xi’an is developing the 70-seat MA700 to compete with the ATR 72 and Q400.
USAF Col. (ret.) Michael R. Gallagher (Hillsboro, Ore.)
Southwest Airlines’ work with Naverus to develop time- and fuel-saving approaches promises to end the frustrating scenic tours currently flown to most airports, dictated by antiquated air traffic control procedures and pilots who have become too content to push buttons in automated cockpits than sharpen the skills they acquired earning their wings. I only regret Southwest is shy about the 1-mi. final approaches used by Qantas. Hitting a low key position at 1 mi. and 300 ft.
Adm. Mike Mullen, the head of Central Command, recently returned from a trip to Israel and says the consequences for the U.S. of an Israeli strike on Iran would be “difficult to predict.” He demurred on whether the U.S. might be forced to intervene if Israeli forces attack, noting that “opening a third front would be extremely stressful on us.” Mullen says his trip was planned long before rumors of a possible pre-emptive Israeli strike began circulating.
