Charles Brown has become CEO of the Flow International Corp.,Kent, Wash. He will succeed Stephen Light, who will be retiring. Brown was president/chief operating officer of the Pump, Pool and Spa Divs. at Pentair Inc.
Bell Helicopter Textron has appointed Jet Transfer as its new sales representative in Russia. Jet Transfer, which recently placed orders for Bell helicopters worth $10 million, is a subsidiary of Jet Group and is a major player in business jet charters and sales in Russia, says Alexander Yevdokimov, general director of Jet Transfer. In other news, Bell Helicopter Training Academy is offering the First Responder Helicopter Safety Program.
Chinese aerospace conglomerate Avic I plans to set up a regional airline in its home country and might buy a small one in North America. General Manager Lin Zuoming didn’t say whether the moves were related to the search for buyers for the ARJ21 large regional jet, which is set for rollout this year. The company says it has lined up financing for its bid to buy six Airbus plants in Europe, even though a sale to China is unlikely for political reasons and Airbus hasn’t invited Avic I to bid.
The U.S. Transportation Dept. faces a logjam of airline applications for the handful of China routes it will award this year, proving that despite a new air services agreement between the two nations, demand for flights still far outweighs supply.
India and Israel are expected to sign a $2.5-billion additional development agreement for Barak surface-to-air missiles to replace the Indian air force’s Russian-made Pechora fleet. The new missiles will more than double the range of the vertically launched Barak-8s now under development for the Indian navy. The draft agreement, which has been approved by India’s cabinet, is expected to be completed by next March, and follows an initial pact signed by the Indian Defense Research and Development Organization and Israel Aerospace Industries.
The FAA’s light-sport aircraft rule has the potential to significantly reduce the cost of learning to fly and buying a new aircraft by breaking down barriers that block access to entry-level aviation.
Malaysia has reacted to the fatal crash of one of its Sikorsky S-61s on July 13 by deciding to replace its fleet of 30 of the military helicopters. The government says it will call for tenders within a few months.
New, advanced APG-79 active electronically scanned array radars—capable of detecting small, stealth targets—that will equip Block 2 F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and the EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft are on the way. The U.S. Navy has approved full-rate production of 437 radar systems that will include wide-band communications and electronic attack. Moreover, engineers have routed the products of the electronic effects generator through the radar to produce a long-range jamming and false-target capability.
Intelsat’s Thales Alenia/Galaxy 17 spacecraft has become operational following its May 4 launch by Arianespace. The satellite is now located at 74.05 deg. W. but eventually will be moved to 91 deg. W. It serves North and Central America and the Caribbean.
Loel Fenwick, Vice President (Grumman Mallard Owners Assn. )
National Transportation Safety Board findings in the Chalk’s Ocean Airways Grumman Mallard crash (AW&ST June 4, p. 35) fail to mention the severe corrosion that investigators found in the accident aircraft. The findings also do not address the lack of operational specifications (e.g., a requirement to report impacts with waves and boat wakes greater than the airplane flight manual limits for the aircraft) or the effects of decades of operation in an ocean environment for which the aircraft may not have been designed or certified.
Red circles mark three of the galaxies astronomers at the California Institute of Technology believe are the most ancient ever observed, dating from just 500 million years after the Big Bang. Drawing on the thesis work of graduate student Dan Stark, the Caltech team spent three years surveying areas where gravitational lensing from nearer galaxy clusters—which bend light arriving from more distant sources—is predicted to be particularly strong. Those “critical lines” are shown as black curves in this Hubble Space Telescope image.
Karen Holbrook, who recently retired as president of Ohio State University, and John Wing, founder/chairman of Wing Aviation, have been named to the board of trustees of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University,Daytona Beach, Fla.
Air France-KLM said in a statement last week that it “confirms its intention to take an active part in the consolidation process in the air transport industry.” The statement goes on to say that “Iberia is an important player in air transport” and, “taken in the perspective of much-needed consolidation for the efficiency and profitability of the air transport sector, it is therefore quite normal for it to be examined amongst others.”
Eaton Corp.'s strategy of using aerospace to help diversify from an industrial conglomerate into a less cyclical corporation is starting to show results, and investors are taking notice. Shares in the Cleveland-based company topped $100 last week, up from about $65 a year ago, after Eaton reported second-quarter financial results that bested Wall Street's expectations.
WorldSpace Italia and Fiat have agreed to install and distribute digital audio radio systems (DARS) on Fiat automobiles. It is the first auto agreement signed by the WorldSpace affiliate, which wants to introduce DARS service in Europe by late 2008, using WorldSpace’s Afristar satellite. The radios will be factory installed and offered on the aftermarket.
Honda Aero Inc. is scheduled to begin production of the HF120 jet engine (see photo) in 2010 following construction of a new headquarters and production facility in Burlington, N.C. Company officials say the $27-million facility will be on 90 acres adjacent to Burlington-Alamance Regional Airport and feature 58,400 sq. ft. of manufacturing space, an 8,000-sq.-ft. test cell and 36,000 sq. ft. for administrative offices. The factory will be the primary production site for engines developed and marketed by joint venture company GE Honda Aero Engines.
Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. will develop the Operational Land Imager (OLI) instrument for the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) under a $127.9-million contract awarded by NASA. Ball will develop and build one flightworthy version of the visible and near-infrared instrument. The company also will test, deliver and support the instrument for five years after its estimated July 2011 launch, with five one-year options for extensions.
ATA Airlines parent Global Aero Logistics has taken a giant step forward in a move to take over World Air Holdings—the parent of North American Airlines and World Airways—although the merger is worrying pilots at the three carriers. The shareholders of World Air voted almost unanimously in favor of the takeover, which still must be approved by the U.S. Transportation Dept. Meanwhile, the respective pilot unions warn Global they will not tolerate any efforts to move personnel between the three carriers.
Union leaders at Safran’s Sagem Communication Div. have asked Francis Mer, chairman of the company’s supervisory board, to review plans to spin the division off into subsidiary companies. The plans, announced by Safran Chairman/CEO Jean-Paul Bechat in early June, were likely to be reviewed at a board meeting on July 19. As in a similar reorganization at Sagem Defense & Security, put in place on July 3, the new structure would facilitate alliances in areas that lack sufficient economies of scale to be competitive, Bechat said (AW&ST May 28, p. 46).
Reliance in the field on precision-guided munitions is driving ground commanders to require more awareness of the status of GPS satellites orbiting overhead, says Sam Coffman, director of the Army Futures Center. He says the need for ground units directing fire to have better insight into the health of various GPS satellites is critical for future ops, and he supports the concept of having space-trained officers at the right hand of ground units.
Persistence pays off, especially for launch customers. Japanese carriers pay a lot of attention to little things. Some cost airlines money, others are annoying to passengers. Complaints about the “big bang” sound of toilet seats dropping prompted Boeing to introduce a hydraulic dampener on the 777 so lids lower slowly. All Nippon Airways, launch customer for the 787, wanted squirters so pilots could clean windshields by running the windshield wipers, just as car drivers can. Boeing resisted, but ANA insisted.
The FAA has certified the turboprop-powered, 10-seat Quest Kodiak STOL utility aircraft. Sandpoint, Idaho-based Quest Aircraft Co. has a three-year production backlog for the Kodiak.
It looks like it’s finally a good time to be a U.S. legacy airline again. Carriers are cashing in on strong demand, fueling optimism about the crucial summer travel season. Second-quarter results show Delta bouncing to a healthy profit just a few months after emerging from bankruptcy, while American has managed to increase its earnings despite weather headaches. Continental also saw solid gains. Only low-cost giant Southwest has bucked the trend so far, with a significant slide in profits.
While huge sums are devoted to the Air Force’s strike systems, including the F-22 and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, not enough attention is being placed on developing intelligence, surveillance and recon capabilities to support them, says USAF Maj. Gen. (ret.) Tim Peppe, a top business development official at Northrop Grumman. “There is not a whole hell of a lot of money realistically” going into ISR, he told an audience at the Precision Strike Assn.’s annual summer symposium in Virginia Beach earlier this month.
Democrats are learning that a majority in Congress doesn’t mean getting their legislation passed—quickly, at any rate. The Fiscal 2008 defense authorization bill, approved by the House in May, is tied up in the Senate, where Democrats are trying to use it as the vehicle for changing U.S. strategy in Iraq. When an amendment setting a timeline to begin troop withdrawal failed, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) pulled the legislation off the Senate floor.
