Cessna Aircraft Co.’s Citation XLS+ business jet, an upgraded version of the Citation Excel featuring Collins Pro Line 21 avionics, made its first flight this month at Rockwell Collins’ facility in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. In addition, the Pratt & Whitney powerplants are equipped with full-authority digital engine controls. The twin-engine jet has returned to Cessna’s headquarters in Wichita, Kan., for additional tests. FAA certification is tentatively scheduled for the first quarter of 2008, followed by initial deliveries in mid-year.
The Air Line Pilots Assn. (ALPA) has presented two Superior Airmanship Awards. One went to United Airlines Capt. Scott Stoops and First Officer Brad Loper for their efforts to avoid a runway collision at Chicago O’Hare International Airport on July 23, 2006. United Flight 1015, a Boeing 737-300 with 143 passengers and six crew, was departing Runway 27 when Stoops spotted an Atlas 747 approaching on Runway 14, which intersects Runway 27. Stoops and Loper quickly decided on an early takeoff to clear the 747—missing a collision by less than 100 ft. during the forced flyover.
George Torres has been named vice president-communications for the Launch Systems Group of ATK, Magna, Utah. He was head of media and community relations and internal communications.
Aviation Week sent surveys to 127 chief executive officers and directors of major U.S.-based government laboratories. More than 60% of the organizations responded to the survey. Non-U.S. data was provided by the Society of British Aerospace Companies, the AeroSpace and Defense Industries Assn. of Europe and the Aerospace Industries Assn. of Canada. The company/agency surveys were filed with a third-party firm, The Training Team of Phoenix, to collate survey responses and aggregate data for Aviation Week.
USN Rear Adm. (ret.) Daniel H. Stone (see photo) has become vice president of the unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) logistics operation of AeroVironment Inc., Monrovia, Calif. He was commander of the Naval Supply Systems Command.
The scope of a global inquiry into production of non-petroleum-based jet fuel is expanding to a variety of alternative energy sources, even as U.S. research confirms the practicality of processing coal and natural gas to produce synthetic commercial Jet A and the military’s JP-8.
A U.S. Navy E-2C Hawkeye operating from the USS Harry S. Truman crashed on Aug. 15 at around 11 p.m., with three crewmembers on board. The aircraft carrier was undergoing routine training operations about 150 mi. southeast of the Virginia Capes.
Imagine it’s 2013, and a cement factory in Dusseldorf is installing scrubbers on a smokestack, funded in part by carbon credits it sold to United Airlines, which needed the credits to fly to Europe. Meanwhile, a power plant is going up in Malaysia, partially paid for by KLM, which had to offset some of its excess CO2 emissions.
Nestled between two national nonprofits in the top tech rankings is Hamilton Sundstrand, a unit of United Technologies Corp. President David Hess says the technology challenges of his company are what attract and keep employees. “The lifecycles for our products tend to be a bit longer, perhaps, than a cell phone or automobile,” he says. “But the innovation required and their application is absolutely fascinating.”
When aerospace/defense leaders met July 4 in London to discuss workforce issues in the U.K., concern focused on growing the industry and assuring there are sufficient skills across the workforce to sustain innovation, design and systems engineering. Today, U.K. industry leaders are identifying their core competencies, and analyzing what workforce skills will be needed to fill critical gaps.
As a sign of how advanced avionics are finding their way into light airplanes, Aviat Aircraft Inc. of Afton, Wyo., is making the Forward.Vision EVS-100 enhanced vision system available as a $22,000 option on its 2,000-lb. Husky. The long-wavelength infrared system is not cryogenically cooled but will give a Husky pilot the ability to see black-and-white imagery at night of the scene ahead in a 40-deg.-wide field of view. Pilots will also be able to see animals on the runway. And the system has some capability to allow the pilot to see through snow, fog, haze and smoke.
AAI Corp. broke into the top-ranked companies of the 2007 Workforce Study by assuring each employee knows he or she is serving the soldier on the ground. “Our job is to attract the right people, the people who want to serve the soldier,” says CEO Fred Strader. “We are known as a place that is a tight-knit group of people who all have the same focus.” Strader says AAI tailors its corporate values and strategy to local and individual levels. That’s a key element in keeping the voluntary attrition rate at 4%.
USAF Brig. Gen. Kay C. McClain, director of force management policy/deputy chief of staff for manpower and personnel at the Pentagon , is among nine officers who have been nominated for promotion to major general. Others are: Robert H. McMahon, director of logistics at Air Mobility Command (AMC) Headquarters, Scott AFB, Ill.; William J. Rew, commander of ACC’s 57th Wing, Nellis AFB, Nev.; Kip L. Self, commander of AMC’s USAF Expeditionary Center, Ft. Dix, N.J.; Larry O.
Following a remarkably productive brainstorming session, FAA and industry leaders are vowing to tackle a wide range of action items within the next 60 days in an effort to reduce the risk of runway incursions and wrong-runway takeoffs.
The credit market meltdown that roiled the world’s financial markets last week may have a silver lining for aerospace and defense (A&D) companies looking to make acquisitions. They’re going to see less competition from private equity firms and, as a result, an easing of stratospheric valuations that have sent many prospective buyers to the sidelines.
Technology to detect radiation has progressed, says Army Lt. Gen. William Webster, deputy commander of the U.S. Northern Command. During the most recent Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa., detectors picked up radiation from a fan entering the premises and handheld detectors guided officials to the fan’s location. Upon questioning the fan, officials discovered she recently underwent radiation therapy for breast cancer and was still carrying residual amounts of the substance.
Less than a decade ago, aviation’s main environmental offense was noise around airports, and the victims were people who lived or spent a lot of time in these areas. Now the concern is greenhouse-gas emissions everywhere airplanes fly, and the victims are, potentially, everyone in the world. Our coverage of aviation’s Green agenda, beginning on p.
Avidyne Corp. and S-TEC Corp. are working on an FAA supplemental type certificate to retrofit the Alliant Integrated Flight Deck they developed onto a Cessna Conquest II twin-engine turboprop. The Alliant cockpit, which includes Avidyne Envision integrated avionics and S-TEC’s digital flight control system, already has STC approval on the King Air 90 and 200 series aircraft. The Conquest II installation includes two 10.4-in. primary flight displays and a multifunction display that can show CMax electronic approach charts and airport diagrams.
Transport Canada has certified the Hawker Beechcraft Premier IA business jet, bringing to 44 the number of countries that have approved the airplane, which is an upgraded version of the original Premier I. The first Premier I was delivered in 2001 and 135 were built before production transitioned to the Premier IA in 2005. More than 200 Premiers are in service worldwide, according to Brad Hatt, president of commercial sales for Hawker Beechcraft Corp. In other news, India’s InterGlobe General Aviation Private Ltd.
Northrop Grumman has delivered to Lockheed Martin the initial software needed to perform manufacturing checkout of the first F-35B Joint Strike Fighter, the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing variant. The company also has delivered software modules for functional tests of sensors (radar, electronic warfare and communications/navigation), for downloading of maintenance information and for in-flight detection and pilot notification of problems that can affect safety of flight.
Swedish aviation officials are still gathering information after a Nordic Airways MD-83 apparently came under fire while departing Sulaimaniyah, Iraq, for Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport. Iraqi officials deny an incident occurred and have suggested the pilots may have mistaken bright ground lights for a projectile. But Swedish officials who spoke to the pilots aren’t convinced. They note that the flight crew report is clear, and it states the aircraft was at 4,500 ft. when the pilots saw a light coming from behind, which then arced down about 1,500 ft.
The Aerospace Corp., Mitre Corp. is a nonprofit research-and-development company chartered to work in the public interest. The organization focuses on systems engineering, information technology, operational and enterprise modernization.
Doug Morris has been appointed acting interim chief financial officer of Aerosonic Corp., Clearwater, Fla. He has been controller and succeeds Gary E. Colbert, who has resigned.
Regarding your article “Leveling Off” (AW&ST July 30, p. 44), how could there be a recruiting/attrition problem with young pilots working their way toward the dream job? The dream job no longer exists. Traditionally, young pilots were willing to put up with grueling work rules and sub-poverty pay scales, because these were necessary stepping-stones toward the majors.
