The first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) is scheduled to lift off in the next few days from Kourou, French Guiana. Thereafter, an ATV is slated to be orbited every 15 months by an Ariane 5 heavy-lift booster and remain docked at the International Space Station for up to six months, indicating that Europe is more than ever a major space partner. This milestone is materializing just weeks after the Columbus laboratory was launched Feb. 7, giving Europe a long-overdue stake in the ISS. However, these achievements are not enough.
Joe Wilding has become a co-founder and senior vice president of Colorado-based AdamWorks . He was vice president-advanced development of parent company Adam Aircraft.
WC-130Js assigned to the Air Force Reserve’s 403rd Wing at Keesler AFB, Miss., received the last of 10 radiometers Feb. 15. The “stepped-frequency microwave radiometer” (SFMR), or smurf, is a novel sensor mounted below the WC‑130J wing to continuously and accurately measure the winds at the ocean’s surface directly below the aircraft. “The SFMR will be the biggest advance I can think of to improve hurricane intensity forecasts,” says Max Mayfield, former director of the National Hurricane Center.
Launch of India’s Chandrayaan-1 lunar orbiter will slip to June-July from April, “to ensure thorough and appropriate testing of various subsystems and the spacecraft to ensure the mission performance,” says the Indian Space Research Organization. The 525-kg. (1,155-lb.) lunar orbiter will carry 11 instruments, including two from the U.S. and one each from the U.K., Sweden, Germany and Bulgaria. The mission is aimed at understanding the chemistry and mineralogy of the lunar surface, and may provide better data on potential water ice in deep polar craters.
Honeywell Aerospace is moving 420 jobs in commercial avionics from its facility in the Phoenix area to Malaysia and Indonesia, company officials say. The jobs relate to communications and navigation systems.
Malaysian Airline System’s 2007 profit of 851 million ringgit ($266 million) appears to confirm the company has turned around its ailing business, which lost 136 million ringgit in 2006. Malaysian is warning of a harsh operating environment next year, when it expects 450 new aircraft will enter service in the Middle East and Asia.
January international traffic results may reflect the first signs of a slowdown, according to the International Air Transport Assn. (IATA). Passenger demand growth declined sharply to 4.3%, compared to 6.7% in December and 7.4% for all of 2007. European airlines had the weakest international growth of all regions at 0.3%, declining from 5.5% the previous month, while intra-European traffic remained “relatively strong.” Meanwhile, Latin America’s economies continue to drive the “sharp recovery” of the region’s airlines, which recorded 16.9% growth for the month.
Mokhtar A. Awan of Pakistan has become regional director for the Asia and Pacific Office of the International Civil Aviation Organization in Bangkok. He was Pakistan’s representative on the ICAO Council.
Don Berlin (see photo) has become senior corporate vice president of the Universal Avionics Systems Corp. , Tucson, Ariz. He was chief operating officer and has been succeeded by Paul DeHerrera (see photo). DeHerrera was vice president-marketing and product support and will be succeeded by Daniel Reida, who has been promoted from worldwide marketing director.
The Slovak air force has fielded 12 upgraded MiG-29s following a series of acceptance trials. The overhauled fighters feature an improved avionics package, new Western-produced navigation and communication equipment, as well as friend-or-foe transmitters that comply with NATO standards.
With regard to Craig Covault’s article “Moon Stuck,” questions come to mind:If the Moon is “so yesterday” as backers of alternate architectures claim, why do the Japanese have a probe orbiting it? Why is there interest in international missions as you reported in “Bandwagon” (AW&ST Oct. 1, 2007, p. 24)? Would a President who eschewed lunar missions be hailed as a visionary, or be caught in a public relations disaster when other nations landed and we did not? President Bush’s successor should be prepared to ask those questions about alternate architectures.
Agam Sinha, senior vice president/general manager of Mitre’s Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD), has received the Air Traffic Control Assn. ’s 2007 Chairman’s Citation of Merit Award. Winners are people who have added to the quality, safety and efficiency of air traffic control. Sinha has led research projects and programs for CAASD—a federally funded research and development center Mitre operates for the FAA. He was recognized for more than 30 years of work on initiatives to advance the National Airspace System.
NATS, the air navigation service provider in the U.K., says Farnborough and London City airports continued to show strong traffic growth of 12.3% and 10.2%, respectively, in January compared with the same month a year ago. The strongest European market growth to the U.K. was for flights from Poland, up 38.4% from January a year ago. Traffic between the U.K. and Switzerland and Norway recorded increases of 16.3% and 10.3%, respectively.
Underwriters say the recent string of satellite industry disasters, including last month’s in-orbit failure of Rascom-QAF-1, will not impact insurance rates or capacity, provided there are no further mishaps.
Iberia management intends to unveil a new cost savings road map this year, to replace the “Directors Plan” launched in 2005. That initiative led Iberia to curtail its domestic flights, focusing on Madrid operations, and traffic to feed the profitable long-haul routes. The strategy is paying dividends. Iberia last week announced 2007 results that included a €327.6-million ($485-million) net profit. The carrier this year is further curtailing some domestic capacity. But Iberia also faces a 10% increase in fuel costs this year.
The Czech Republic broke ranks with the European Union this week by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S., a first step toward participating in the Visa Waiver Program.
The shootdown of a defunct intelligence satellite (see p. 28), was “extraordinary” and “doesn’t set a standard of how you would do anything in the future,” says Col. Mike Carey, deputy operations director at U.S. Strategic Command, which oversaw the engagement.
The French defense ministry this year hopes to achieve important progress on two defense industrial initiatives: revitalizing exports and further improving program performance.
Robert Wall (Singapore), Douglas Barrie (Boscombe Down, England)
U.S. and European engine-makers are looking deep into their technology base to devise radical powerplant offerings for the next generation of unmanned aircraft, with the hope of providing a leap in performance that has eluded them so far. When it comes to development of high-end unmanned surveillance and combat aircraft, the technology focus has been on the airframe, payloads and command-and-control infrastructure. The propulsion system, for the most part, has been almost an afterthought.
Hassle, horror, hell. Those are some of the words associated with London Heathrow Airport in recent years, as security procedures and traffic disruptions turned the U.K.’s main airport into a nightmare even for premium passengers. Along with travelers, British Airways has also suffered under London Heathrow’s problems. The airport is the carrier’s main operating location; BA accounts for 41% of Heathrow flights.
Pratt & Whitney is poised to make a key decision on simplifying the configuration of the production version of the geared turbofan (GTF) following the successful outcome of compressor rig tests.
Matthew Ganz has been appointed president of the Boeing Phantom Works . He was president/CEO/general manager of HRL Laboratories. Ganz succeeds Bob Krieger, who has retired.
Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) is worried about minors hopping on an airplane without their parents’ permission and threatens to introduce legislation requiring “proof of age” before unaccompanied minors can board an airliner. The senior Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee cites the case last year in which an Alaska teenager booked a flight to visit someone she connected with on the Internet. “Young people are very capable of buying a ticket and disappearing. I just don’t think that ought to be possible,” Stevens told Transportation Dept. officials.
Mar. 10-11Technology Training Corp.’s Airborne Networks Conference. Harrah’s Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas. Also, Mar. 13-14—Unmanned Aircraft Systems. San Diego Sheraton Hotel and Marina. Call +1 (310) 563-1223, fax +1 (310) 563-1220 or see www.ttcus.com Mar. 10-14—UCLA Extension Winter Aerospace and Mechanical Course: “Airframe Stress Analysis and Sizing.” Los Angeles. Call +1 (310) 825-3344 or see www.uclaextension.edu
