The global airline industry expects further bankruptcies and fundamental structural changes as the sector scrambles to find business models for the new high-operating-cost environment. Industry leaders gave a bleak outlook for the coming months at last week’s International Air Transport Assn.’s annual general assembly in Istanbul. The association counts 24 airlines that have gone bankrupt this year, and industry officials gathered here warn the worst is yet to come.
Air One is kicking into high-gear its long-haul plans in a bid to overtake struggling Alitalia and eventually become Italy’s top airline. With its ambition to take over Alitalia stifled, for now, Air One is ratcheting up the competitive pressure. Its latest move is a firm order for Airbus twinjet widebodies.
Harris Corp. said it will remain independent, ending weeks of speculation that the Florida-based defense communications and information technology company would be acquired.
Airborne directed-energy projects will move toward key full-scale tests during the next few weeks with the passing of milestones in the Advanced Tactical Laser and Airborne Laser development programs.
June 9-11—MIRCE-Mechanics International Symposium “Impact of Natural World on Machine Failures.” Woodbury Park, Exeter, England. Call +44 (139) 523-3856, fax +44 (139) 523-3899 or see www.mirceakademy.com June 14-17—International Air Transport Assn.’s 122nd Schedules Conference. Westin Copley Place, Boston. Call +1 (514) 874-0202 or see www.iata.org June 16-20—Eurosatory 2008 Defense Exhibition. Paris Nord Villepinte. Call +33 (14) 414-5810, fax +33 (14) 230-7088 or see www.eurosatory.com
The French armed forces have cleared the SIDM interim medium-altitude long-endurance UAV to enter the inventory. The SIDM, which has an autonomy of 20 hr. and can carry optical infrared and radar sensors, had been expected to be ready in 2006 but was delayed by problems, including issues related to the Israel Aerospace Industries flying vehicle. France has an urgent requirement to deploy the system, notably in the Afghan theater.
The International Air Transport Assn. is likely to suspend several members at the end of the year as the group tightens safety demands. The association already expelled some members at the start of the year when those airlines failed to undergo an IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) review. To maintain IATA membership, airlines are also required to pass the audit and be included on the IOSA registry by Dec. 31. The association says 25 airlines may fail to meet that deadline.
Turkish Airlines aims to double in size over the next five years and seeks to establish Istanbul as a major gateway between Europe and Asia. The airline’s ambitious plans are based on geographic location—it is in the middle of a vast population pool within a 5-hr. flying distance—and a 70-million-strong home market where it faces no strong competitor on domestic routes. The government-backed private airline is also enjoying the benefits of lower labor rates in Turkey and significant expansion opportunities at the country’s main airports.
The skilled labor shortage in aerospace is a problem that can be solved (AW&ST May 19, p. 50). All it takes is money and a commitment to your own citizenry. Pay local people well enough to have pride and prestige to get and keep “good jobs” and you will have your skilled workforce. You also need enough people with multiple skill sets to fill in during vacations or adjust to changing conditions, not the minimum. Make it worth their while because that is not happening.
Charlotte M. Lazar-Morrison (see photos) has been promoted to general manager from principal director of the Human Resources Div. and S. Scott Gustafson to associate general manager from principal director of the Space Based Infrared Surveillance GEO-1 Program for The Aerospace Corp. Bruce A. Bartos has been promoted to principal engineer and Jimmy W. Kane and Andrew H. Quintero to principal directors. Lazar-Morrison, Gustafson, Bartos and Quintero work at the company’s headquarters in El Segundo, Calif., while Kane is at the Chantilly, Va., office.
How much longer can the paradox last: airlines are going bust yet demand for aircraft remains strong? Aircraft makers are increasingly anxious about the financial turmoil shaking their customers and what it all means for them. At least one senior industry official says a sharp downturn in orders is inevitable. But so far, delays in deliveries and canceled orders due to bankruptcies are being offset by airlines looking for more aircraft, says Airbus CEO Tom Enders.
At a recent AVIATION WEEK executive roundtable in Brussels, European Parliament Member Peter Liese—usually a voice of reason when it comes to debating airlines’ role in curbing carbon emissions—told the gathering of thought leaders, “We have to take care that we don’t kill the industry.” Let’s hope the majority of Liese’s colleagues and members of the U.S. Congress are capable of making the same enlightened observation, and soon (see story, p. 24).
Thales Alenia Space has been selected to build a new telecom satellite for Cairo-based Nilesat. The 3.2-metric-ton spacecraft, Nilesat 201, will carry 24 Ku-band and four Ka-band transponders and will be launched in February 2010. Arianespace will be the launch provider, according to Egyptian sources. Nilesat officials say its two existing units, Nilesat 101/102, also supplied by Thales Alenia, are both fully booked as strong demand in the Middle East and North Africa taxes existing capacity.
USAF Maj. Gen. Philip M. Breedlove has been nominated for promotion to lieutenant general with assignment as commander of the Third Air Force, U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Ramstein AB, Germany. He is vice director for strategic plans and policy of the Joint Staff at the Pentagon.
Less than two years ago, it was easy to speculate on the emergence of a completely new economic model for airlines. Analysts and bankers were monitoring low-fare carriers’ two-digit traffic growth and healthy profitability while expressing concerns about legacy airlines’ struggle for decent financial results.
Emirates can finally look forward to delivery of its first A380. Airbus is to hand over the first A380 to the biggest customer for the aircraft, on July 28, at Airbus’s Hamburg facility. The aircraft will begin service to New York soon after. The delivery also will put into service the GP7200 engine, which is built by the Engine Alliance joint venture of General Electric and Pratt & Whitney.
Canadian and European Union negotiators say they are making progress toward a single open skies pact that would replace 19 bilateral agreements. One negotiator predicts an agreement will be in hand by fall. The objective of talks, which began last November, is creation of an open aviation area where direct services would be permitted from any point between Canada and EU nations. A U.S.-EU Open Skies agreement took effect in March.
Regarding Daniel Dugan’s response to my Mar. 24 letter, my suggestion to reconsider an extended buy of V-22s to replace CH-46s and CH-53s was a plea to keep an open mind when more promising alternatives seem to be on the horizon.
Boeing has put its hat into the ring as a potential competitor for the U.S. Air Force’s Next-Generation Unmanned Aerial System (NG-UAS) program, which aims to field a Predator and Reaper replacement by 2015 that is more maneuverable and survivable than today’s systems. USAF expects to issue a request for information from would-be NG-UAS contractors soon. The service says it wants a solution that incorporates technologies that are proven in an operationally relevant environment by 2010.
Air travelers avoided taking 41 million trips in the past year and the U.S. economy took a $26.5-billion hit as a result, according to a Travel Industry Assn. (TIA) survey of 1,000 people. The survey was conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates and The Winston Group for TIA. Half of the respondents said the air travel system was likely to improve in the near future. The problem cost U.S. airlines $9 billion in revenue, hotels $6 billion and restaurants $3 billion, the survey found.
U.S. government spending on information technology systems and services is forecast to grow at 3.9% per annum over the next five years, compared to 7% during the past 20 years. Total IT spending is expected to reach $87.8 billion by 2013, up from $71.9 billion in 2008, according to the latest five-year forecast by Input, a market intelligence and analysis company in Reston, Va., that focuses on the federal IT sector.
Frank Morring, Jr. (Kennedy Space Center and Johnson Space Center)
The crew of the space shuttle Discovery should wrap up a busy International Space Station assembly mission this week, but their on-time launch May 31 left a mess on the ground that has cast a shadow over the future launch schedule for the shuttle and perhaps even its follow-on vehicle.
David E. Beaman has been promoted to manager from deputy manager of the Reusable Solid Rocket Booster Project within the Shuttle Propulsion Office at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center , Huntsville, Ala.
Anne Lambert has been appointed director of government and European affairs for U.K.-based NATS . She was the U.K.’s deputy permanent representative to the European Union in Brussels.
