Launch customer Lion Air of Indonesia is set to take delivery this month of the first Boeing 737-900ER following the aircraft's completion of FAA type certification.
The U.S. Army is expecting to again slip its announcement of a winning contractor for the Joint Cargo Aircraft program. The service previously said it would name a winner in May, though an announcement is now set for June; the announcement date has slipped repeatedly since last year. Industry officials suggest it is likely due to ongoing discussions between the Army and Air Force regarding roles and missions for operating the small supply transport.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Arianespace have agreed to jointly market launch services in a bid to bring more launcher capacity to bear in a tight commercial market.
Airbus expects to have further boosted aircraft production rates by year-end and could be ready to adjust both near-term and longer-range A380 plans as it gains experience building the aircraft under renewed processes.
Stanley R. Zax has been appointed to the board of directors of the New York-based Sequa Corp. He is chairman/president/CEO of the Zenith National Insurance Corp.
The private equity bid for Qantas Airways looks increasingly unlikely to succeed, with acceptances of the offer actually falling as some institutional shareholders choose to hang on to their stock. Since the bidders, including Texas Pacific, are no longer demanding 100% acceptance, many investors seem to want to remain shareholders to enjoy high private-equity profits without having to pay the usual management fees. The offer closes May 4.
Japan Airlines will boost service frequencies to China beginning in late May. Services between Tokyo Narita and Beijing will rise to 19 from 14 a week, with extra flights scheduled between Narita and Guangzhou and Nagoya and Tianjin.
FlightSafety International and Cessna Aircraft Co. have teamed to develop and implement a Mustang training program based on a pilot's proficiency level. Insurance companies have been "very receptive and supportive" of the 10-day program, says Mike Dudek, director of training at FlightSafety International's customer training facility in Wichita, Kan. FSI is Cessna's official training institution for the Mustang.
Harry L. Gregory has become director of the Aerospace/Defense Clearinghouse and a lecturer at the Universitry of Tennessee in Knoxville. He was senior vice president/general manager of aftermarket services for Rockwell Collins.
The British Defense Ministry is to retire its last Jaguar aircraft squadron almost six months earlier than previously planned. The type will be withdrawn from service Apr. 30, rather than in October.
The U.S. Navy's P-3s are set to receive a new round of equipment upgrades, but much of the operational focus remains on the crews serving as a vital airborne node and supporting troops on the ground with communications and long-range sensors. The P-3s have become a crucial element in the network for ground forces. When they first took on the role, crews were learning on the fly. Now equipment and procedures have greatly improved, according to P-3 crewmembers.
Jeff Butler has become staff vice president-station operations and Wendy Jones managing director of internal audit for Alaska Airlines. Butler was managing director of inflight operations, while Jones was internal audit manager.
An impending funding decision will underpin fundamental choices the U.K. government faces on its future space role, as it mulls partnering options, and amid calls that it replace a key agency. The government is struggling with the timetable for its comprehensive spending review, and elements of the package have now been delayed until toward year-end. Top-level figures for science funding are still expected around mid-year.
USMC Maj. Gen. George J. Trautman, 3rd, has been nominated for promotion to lieutenant general and deputy commandant for aviation. He has been commanding general of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Okinawa, Japan.
Night Vision Systems has been awarded a $139.3-million, fixed-price, five-year contract to build night-vision equipment for the U.S. Army, Air Force and Marine Corps. Vision System International took a $6.6-million add-on contract to provide Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing Systems for USAF F-15s and F-16s and Navy F/A-18s.
Singapore has ordered four Gulfstream 550 Conformal Airborne Early Warning (CAEW) aircraft to replace its four Grumman E-2C Hawkeyes. The first is due to arrive next year and the others by 2010. Israel has also ordered Gulfstream CAEWs.
Honeywell's Chairman and CEO David M. Cote was pleased enough with the financial results for first-quarter 2007 that he told analysts on Apr. 20, "We blew the doors off this quarter." Total sales were up 11% over a year earlier, earnings were up 27% and free cash flow soared to $458 million from just $117 million a year ago. In the aerospace sector, profits increased by 14% as business aviation sales showed the biggest gains over a year ago at 12% for new aircraft and 11% in the aftermarket, compared to 8% and 9%, respectively, for air transport.
MARKET FOCUS Boeing's fortunes looking rosy, though some are skeptical 10 NEWS BREAKS New NATS ATC tower at London Heathrow Airport 16 Iran displays Raad anti-ship cruise missile in military parade 18 Brazil's ATC cited as cause of crash in ExcelAire report 20 WORLD NEWS & ANALYSIS Post-shuttle life for Hubble if new hardware arrives, works as planned 22 NRO begins new optical spacecraft procurement 24
David A. Fulghum (Tokyo and Honolulu), Douglas Barrie (London)
Chinese efforts to modernize its airpower, coupled with North Korean missile developments, are triggering concerns about rapidly improving air-strike capabilities in the region. China's increasing offensive and defensive capabilities, identified by senior U.S. military officials and intelligence analysts, are spurring programs for advanced aircraft among their neighbors including India, Singapore, Australia, South Korea and Japan.
Marine Corps Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sees merit in the idea that the Air Force should have the lead in unmanned aircraft operations. If the Air Force provided the Army with UAV operators, that would "free up Army troops to do other things," he says, while avoiding creation of a separate Army corps of UAV operators and maintainers.
IN A SIGN THAT PRIVATIZATION OF AIR NAVIGATION CAN DELIVER services efficiently, Nav Canada plans to reduce its customer fees for the second year in a row. This year's proposed 3% reduction builds on a 1.8% cut for the previous year made on Sept. 1, 2006. Nav Canada CEO John Crichton said cost-cutting and a rise in air traffic make the reduced fees possible. Fees are only up 7% since they were instituted in 1999--or 13 percentage points below inflation, Nav Canada says. The agency is financed through publicly traded debt.
Mercer Management Consulting has signed a letter of intent to acquire the assets of Texas-based Cavok International Inc., which specializes in airframe maintenance and air carrier certification. The transaction is scheduled to close by May 15.
