The Pentagon is honing at least part of its airborne electronic attack road map. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will be the “threshold” platform, say aerospace industry officials. That’s a surprise since there seems to be a dearth of antennas on the design. Moreover, electronic attack (EA) hasn’t been deemed compatible with stealth. The Defense Dept.-mandated electronic attack package would be integral to the F-35, but likely it would be added later in pods on existing aircraft.
Surrey Space Technology Ltd. says it has concluded a preliminary agreement to supply a third imaging satellite, Alsat 1b, to Algeria. A final agreement is expected by year-end. The company lost out to Astrium for the second Algerian spacecraft, after having won the first. SSTL also has been selected to supply a multispectral imager for the European Space Agency’s Earthcare satellite.
The Phoenix Mars lander footpad to the left of an apparent large block of water ice, which was cleared of topsoil by descent rockets, indicates the spacecraft literally touched down on top of the primary sampling objective of the mission near the Martian North Pole on May 25. A wider version, with more elements of the false-color mosaic, is above.
Arianespace says it has set June 12 as the new launch date for the U.K.’s Skynet 5C military communications satellite. The launch, which will also orbit the Turksat 3A commercial spacecraft, has been delayed twice.
Shelly Simi has become a communications strategist for business and general aviation for Jeppesen , Englewood, Colo. She was public relations counsel for Adam Aircraft Industries and had been vice president-communications for the General Aviation Manufacturers Assn.
SkyTeam alliance members Air France-KLM and China Southern hope to have their cargo joint venture up and running by year-end. The two parties signed a framework agreement in Istanbul during the International Air Transport Assn. (IATA) annual general meeting. Regulatory approval is still required. Air France-KLM would hold 25% of the venture, and the airline group would have a managing role, not just supervisory responsibilities.
Alenia North America is proceeding alone with its plans to assemble the C-27J Spartan Joint Cargo Aircraft in Jacksonville, Fla., after failing to reach agreement with Boeing on the business case for joint production of the intra-theater transport for the U.S. Army and Air Force and other potential customers. Alenia needs to break ground on a final assembly facility by year-end to begin deliveries in 2010. The site would employ around 200 people and be able to assemble 20 aircraft a year, says Alenia. Talks on incentives are underway with the State of Florida.
The U.S. House Science Committee last week approved a Fiscal 2009 NASA authorization bill that includes $1 billion to accelerate the Constellation program and boosts NASA’s top line to $20.2 billion, which is $2.6 billion more than President Bush’s request. Committee leaders praised the legislation as a bipartisan measure that sends a strong message to the next President’s administration on the importance of NASA. “I think we’ve laid out a great starting place no matter who the next president might be,” says Tom Feeney (R-Fla.), who represents Kennedy Space Center.
Foreign air travelers permitted to enter the U.S. without a visa will now have to fill out electronic registration forms at least 72 hours before they begin their trips. Under a new regulation, which goes into effect Jan. 1, foreigners not required to obtain U.S. travel visas—nationals of the 27 countries that are part of the Visa Waiver Program—will be required to obtain an electronic travel authorization.
David McMillan took over the reins of Eurocontrol on the first day of 2008—the year he believes will be “most pivotal” for the organization as it works to implement the Single European Sky (SES) initiative. The forthright McMillan met with Aviation Week & Space Technology editors in Washington to discuss major challenges ahead for Eurocontrol—including alignment with U.S. NextGen efforts, aviation’s impact on the environment and capacity constraints. Managing Editor James R.
Space Transport Inc., majority shareholder in Proton operator International Launch Services, has sold its shares to Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. The move will give the Proton prime contractor effective control of the venture, underscoring its growing role in the program.
Airports Council International says total airline passenger traffic in April saw a marked slowdown compared to the same month in 2007, although the world average for the past 12 months held steady at 5%. International passenger traffic, which in previous months bolstered overall results, grew by only 2%, while domestic traffic declined 5.4%. In North America, the largest domestic market, traffic was down 13% due to factors that include flight cancellations and route reductions.
The European Parliament and European Council face a busy few weeks as they try to bridge differences over airline emissions trading, with big implications for financially struggling airlines. Although several carriers within the European Union have embraced the idea of an emissions trading scheme to help curb the growth of carbon dioxide output, they say the devil is in the details. They see the latest European Parliament plan unveiled last week as problematic.
Bell Helicopter Textron in Fort Worth, Tex., is modifying the first of 27 OH-58D armed reconnaissance helicopters from the 1‑230th Air Cavalry Sqdn., Tennessee Army National Guard, under the U.S. Army’s Kiowa Safety Enhancement Program. Cockpit upgrades include new control display system hardware and software, improved master controller processor units, a new data modem and a Rolls-Royce 250-C30R/3 turboshaft engine featuring a full-authority digital engine control. Three aircraft are scheduled for completion this year, and the remaining 24 in 2009, according to Bell.
Biofuels face a hurdle as experts meet in Warsaw, this week to debate amending the long-established specification for jet fuel to allow the certification of alternative fuels. The aviation fuels subcommittee of standards body ASTM International is meeting June 3-5 to discuss whether the specification for Jet A should be opened up to include biofuels or limited to allowing coal-to-liquid (CTL) and gas-to-liquid (GTL) synthetic fuels to be used as alternatives to petroleum-based kerosene.
The Coast Guard is considering Northrop Grumman’s MQ-8B Fire Scout as a replacement for its scrapped vertical-takeoff unmanned aerial vehicle (VUAV). But officials say the unmanned rotorcraft’s radar needs to be upgraded before it’s a done deal. The Coast Guard halted work on Bell’s Eagle Eye VUAV last year and has been casting about for a replacement ship-launched UAV to extend the patroling reach of its new National Security Cutters.
Italy is on track to sign up for its first F-35 Joint Strike Fighter by the end of this month. Rome is also backing a multinational approach to crafting a five-year production contract, avoiding the pitfalls of annual purchasing. Italy will buy two Lockheed Martin F-35s for the initial operational test and evaluation phases of the JSF program. Partner nations the Netherlands and the U.K. will also take two each, in addition to the U.S. airframes earmarked for this phase.
The Assn. of Flight Attendants (AFA) on May 28 failed for the second time in six years to organize Delta Air Lines’ flight attendants, a union election that would have added about 13,000 members to its ranks. The AFA quickly announced intentions to file a formal charge of interference no later than June 6 with the National Mediation Board against Delta. The union believes Delta’s flight attendants will become AFA members upon a merger with Northwest.
Two air cargo accidents one day apart are highlighting the need to close the safety gap between passenger and cargo operations and implement improvements long sought by aviation authorities and pilots. On May 26, at 6:15 p.m. local time, a Moskovia Airlines Antonov An-12 crashed near Chelyabinsk Airport, located in Russia’s Urals region. According to preliminary data, the four-turboprop-engine aircraft had delivered cargo at the airport, then departed at 6:02 p.m. on a repositioning flight back to Perm, Russia.
South African Air Force (SAAF) JAS 39C/D Gripen fighters will soon be armed with European IRIS-T air-to-air missiles supplied by Diehl Defense of Germany, under a contract signed May 28, the company announced at the ILA 2008 aerospace exhibition in Berlin. The order from South Africa represents the second export sale of IRIS-T outside the six-nation consortium (Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Spain and Sweden) that developed the infrared-guided missile, says Diehl Defense executive Claus Gunther.
Raytheon and Lockheed Martin are taking very different design approaches as they compete to address the Missile Defense Agency’s growing concerns about tracking and destroying multiple targets, even decoys, lofted by ballistic missiles aimed at the U.S.
Larry Flynn has become senior vice president-marketing and sales for Gulfstream Aerospace , Savannah, Ga. He succeeds Raynor Reavis, who will be retiring. Flynn has been president of Gulfstream Product Support and of General Dynamics Aviation Services. He has been succeeded in the former position by Mark Burns, who was promoted from vice president-customer support. Sumi Fonseka has become general manager of Gulfstream’s London Luton Airport Service center. He was senior hangar operations manager at Gulfstream’s South Service Center, Savannah, Ga.
To understand the magnitude of the oil price tsunami that has hit the airline industry, consider two numbers: $3.8 billion and $18 billion. The first is the collective profit turned by U.S. passenger and cargo carriers in 2007. The second is the increased fuel bill they will face in 2008. At that rate, the industry would have to nearly quintuple its profit this year just to cover fuel expenses.
Lockheed Martin’s concept for a U.S. Missile Defense Agency Multiple Kill Vehicle (MKV) includes a large carrier system deploying many small capsules heading to their targets. The MKV program is designed to allow one interceptor to handle multiple ballistic missile targets, including warheads and decoys. Also, the University of Arizona’s HiRise camera captured an image of NASA’s Mars Phoenix lander about 20,000 ft. above the surface during landing May 25. NASA photo.
