Stacie Suggs, who is a lead power conversion test engineer at Northrop Grumman’s Los Angeles-based Space Technology Sector, has received the Society of Women Engineers ’ Distinguished New Engineer award. She was recognized for her technical contributions as an expert in power-converter hardware, leadership in the SWE and outreach to the community. Suggs is responsible for all aspects of the test equipment process and is one of Northrop Grumman’s technical rotation program managers.
Hawker Beechcraft Corp. has received FAA certification of the King Air B200GT. The twin-engine turboprop business aircraft is powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-52 engines that can maintain 850 shp. to higher altitudes than the PT6A-42 engines that power the King Air B200. Maximum cruise speed increases by 20 kt. to 305 kt. Typically equipped price is $5.2 million.
DayJet, the on-demand air taxi service launched in Florida in September, is expanding its service network to 28 new destinations, including five cities in Georgia, three in Alabama and one in Mississippi. Travel to these points must begin or end at one of the company’s “Dayports” at Boca Raton, Gainesville, Lakeland, Pensacola and Tallahassee, Fla. DayJet is operating Eclipse 500 very light jets and charges $1-4 per seat per mile, depending on a passenger’s travel flexibility.
BAE Systems will increase the gross weight of its Herti surveillance drone in the production version to 750 kg. (1,650 lb.), from the 550 kg. of the test aircraft, to achieve a 20-hr. endurance. The Royal Air Force has used Herti operationally in Afghanistan this year. The drone is cleared to fly as high as 20,000 ft. but its cameras are optimized for 5,000-10,000 ft.
The Defense Dept. budget for Fiscal 2009, taking shape now at the Pentagon, will be the next to last crafted by the Bush administration, and the last that won’t be subject to the views of the administration that takes office in January 2009. The coming budget has another distinction: It will be the first in six years in which there is a realistic possibility that the costs of war in Iraq and Afghanistan will decrease by a meaningful degree. But indications are that in all other respects, the budget will embody business as usual, and that’s a shame.
Gerry Marsters and Mac Sinclair AeroVations Associates (Ottawa, Ontario)
Regarding your article “Predator Fallout” (AW&ST Oct. 22, p. 38), recent publication of the National Transportation Safety Board report on a Predator UAV crash in Arizona in April 2006 provides an opportunity to note that the Predator is not representative of unmanned aerial vehicles that eventually will have unrestricted access to civil airspace. Civil aviation regulators and standards organizations are developing a framework to use in certifying UAVs to civil aviation levels of safety.
The Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA’s) computerized air passenger pre-screening system—long delayed by technology difficulties and privacy concerns—is ready for testing again, but now there’s a money problem. Administrator Kip Hawley tells Aviation Week & Space Technology that the continuing wrangle between congressional Democrats and President Bush over most Fiscal 2008 spending bills, including the one that pays for TSA, has led to “unintentional underfunding” of the program, known as Secure Flight.
Icelandair will terminate service to Baltimore next year and add Toronto in its place. The carrier says that after several years of growth, it seeks to optimize its network and Toronto is seen as a more attractive destination. The Canadian city is a major hub and could drive other traffic to Icelandair, says the airline’s management. Icelandair will also increase service to London.
The Romanian government has contracted for seven C-27J airlifters. The €217-million ($318-million) deal has provisions for in-service support of the Alenia Aeronautics-built tactical airlifter. The package also includes a flight simulator to be located in Bucharest. Aircraft deliveries are to commence late next year. The C-27J customer list also includes Italy, Greece, Lithuania, Bulgaria and the Pentagon, with firm commitments for 117 aircraft.
Malaysia is expected to choose a supplier for radar surveillance aircraft within the next few months, finally ending an informal competition that has been running on-and-off for about a decade. An order for four aircraft is likely, for which the Saab Erieye, the Embraer EMB 145 regional jet, the Northrop Grumman E-2D Hawkeye and the Boeing 737AEW&C are competing.
Supersonic flight across the North Atlantic may be resurrected in 2014. Reno, Nev.-based Aerion Corp. has begun taking orders for its twin-engine supersonic jet that can carry up to 12 passengers and fly more than 4,000 naut. mi. at a maximum cruise speed of Mach 1.6. The company has secured letters of intent worth $1.5 billion from customers in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the U.S. The airplane is tentatively scheduled for certification in 2014. Aerion is attempting to recruit an OEM partner by 2008 to proceed with the program.
Jan. 7-10—46th American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ (AIAA) Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit. Grand Sierra Resort Hotel, Reno, Nev. Also, Jan. 23‑24—AIAA Strategic and Tactical Missile Systems Conference. Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, Calif. And, Mar. 31-Apr. 3—Sixth U.S. Missile Defense Conference and Exhibit. Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, Washington. Call +1 (703) 264-7500, fax +1 (703) 264-7551 or see www.aiaa.org
Citing a “much more orderly and disciplined factory,” Boeing’s new 787 general manager says the first aircraft should achieve “power-on” next month and be ready for first flight by the end of March, keeping the company on a revised schedule that anticipates first deliveries late in 2008. In his first public comments since assuming control in October, Pat Shanahan reported last week that the basic design of the standard-sized, 250-seat 787-8 is now “100% complete,” although the airplane is still overweight. By how much wasn’t specified.
Regarding your article “Staying the Course” (AW&ST Oct. 29, p. 52), benefits to legacy carriers from increased international capacity will be short-lived if they continue to ignore the lessons taught by the low-cost carriers on domestic routes. A quick sampling of fares for mid-week, extended-stay, no-holiday, round-trip Los Angeles-London shows the lowest legacy economy (EY) fare to be about $800 while the lowest business-class fare is about $7,100. The average EY fare is about $1,400, while the average BC fare is $8,600.
Britain’s House of Lords Science and Technology Committee is calling on aviation regulators to increase the legal minimum for seat pitch on passenger aircraft to “at least 28.2 in.” The present minimum is 26 in., though most airlines already exceed 28.2 in.
The International Air Transport Assn. is seeing worrying trends in airline safety—particularly a move by some carriers to lower qualification requirements as they struggle to fill pilot seats. The demand for 17,000 pilots per year is 3,000-3,500 above what training programs can accommodate, notes Juergen Haacker, IATA’s director of operations safety. The first signs of trouble from that shortfall are emerging as some airlines are offering captain positions with flight time requirements 50% below accepted minimum levels, he asserts.
EADS achieved dry contact between its new aerial refueling boom, which was designed for the Australian Multi-Role Tanker Transport and for its bid for U.S. Air Force work, and an F-16 receiver aircraft. During the Dec. 10 test, the aircraft were flying at about 27,000 ft. and achieved two separate contacts, says Paul Meyer, Northrop Grumman’s KC-30 vice president. An Airbus A310 is serving as the test platform for the new Aerial Refueling Boom System. Both the Australian tanker and the design pitched by prime contractor Northrop Grumman for the U.S.
Capt. David Barioni Neto has become CEO of Brazilian airline TAM . He was vice president-operations and succeeds Marco Antonio Bologna, who is now a special adviser to holding company TAM Empreendimentos e Participacoes. Capt. Fernando Sporleder, Jr., is now vice president-operations.
William Carty (see photo) has become general manager/vice president of the systems support group for the Northrop Grumman Corp. ’s Technical Services Sector, Herndon, Va. He was the sector’s vice president/controller.
Robert Wall (Haifa, Israel), David A. Fulghum (Haifa, Israel)
Helicopter pilots could see new levels of information, even when flying at night, from an ongoing project at Elbit Systems. The so-called Jedeye system builds on more than three decades of effort the company has put into helmet-mounted sight technology for helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. Jedeye, the Joint Dual-Eye Sight System, is essentially a helmet-mounted sight that provides much greater field of view along with other features. For the moment, helmet weight and center of gravity preclude applications in fighters.
Two years after it purchased a forging operation in Poland, Ladish says it will build a new investment casting foundry in Mexico to help meet soaring demand for aircraft titanium components and capitalize on the growth of aerospace manufacturing in that nation. The company is considering several locations for the 55,000-60,000-sq.-ft. plant and expects it to be operational in 2009 or 2010. Ladish has stated that it does not plan any layoffs at its existing investment casting foundry in Albany, Ore.
Donald Coates has been named director of development of the Challenger Center for Space Science Education , Alexandria, Va. He was the annual giving officer.
Snecma has begun the core engine test campaign for its planned Silvercrest line of business jet powerplants. For Snecma, Silvercrest represents a new business area, and the core demonstrator is supposed to yield not just important test data, but also show potential customers the engine maker is serious about getting into the business jet market; regional jet applications are also seen as possible, although for now they are not the primary target.
Finmeccanica has raised the financial guidance for the current fiscal year. Its projection for earnings before interest and taxes are now at €1.1 billion ($1.6 billion), up from the prior €950-million to €1-billion estimate. The revenue projection remains at €13.5 billion. The company optimistically states that free operating cash flow will be positive, not just neutral. Finmeccanica had already raised its financial forecast for 2008. The company also reaffirmed intentions to spend €3 billion on acquisitions.
