Jacob Vistanetzky (see photos) has been appointed chief accountant of the Bedek Aviation Group of Israel Aircraft Industries. He held the same position at the Commercial Aircraft Group and has been succeeded by Eyal Nahum, who was director of finance at the Military Aircraft Group's Lahav Div. Doron Zakai has been named chief accountant of the IAI Systems, Missiles and Space Group. He was accountant of the Bedek Aviation Group's Engines Div.
Andrey Raschuk has become executive director of Aerosvit Ukrainian Airlines. He was general manager for the Pratt & Whitney-Paton joint venture in Kiev, Ukraine.
Don't even think about it. That's the advice to the White House from top House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Democrats, Jim Oberstar (Minn.) and Jerry Costello (Ill.), and two colleagues about the possibility that the Transportation Dept. will resume last summer's attempt to relax restrictions on foreign ownership and control of U.S. airlines. The House voted against relaxation 291-137 when the department's Fiscal 2007 appropriations bill was on the floor, and the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a similar provision 19-6.
NAVAERO'S CLASS 2 ELECTRONIC FLIGHT BAG IS MAKING INROADS with airlines. Virgin America plans a fleet-wide use of the "tBag" C2 2. As part of that carrier's contract, the company and its partner, Avionics Support Group of Miami, have obtained supplemental type certificates for the system on the Airbus A319, A320 and A321. It has teamed with Jeppesen, a Boeing company, to provide Class 1 and 2 electronic flight bags for airlines, as well as for government and military clients. An 8.4-in. color LCD is standard and a 10.4-in. display is available.
U.K. efforts to revamp military aircrew training are about to begin in earnest with the selection of the Lockheed Martin-VT Group team as the preferred bidder. The program is worth about £6 billion ($11.8 billion) over 25 years. The Ascent team, as the joint venture is known, was chosen to provide the ministry's Military Flying Training System (MFTS) over the Thales-led Sterling bid and the Vector team that included KBR and Bombardier.
Lufthansa and Air Malta have decided to code-share all 21 weekly connections between the island and Frankfurt and Munich. The deal gives Malta daily flights to Lufthansa hubs. The two carriers, which first announced in February they'd work more closely together, also will open frequent-flier services across the two networks. The agreement is part of a broader Lufthansa Group strategy to increase its involvement in Malta (see p. 13).
SAS Scandinavian Airlines is introducing a fingerprint system that identifies a passenger when baggage is checked, at the boarding gate and when baggage is collected at the destination. The system, developed by Precise Biometrics, involves no photos. It is in place at six airports and will be installed in five more this month.
Debut of Canada's new liberalized international aviation policy, Blue Sky, is launching a debate in the aviation community over how the policy will be implemented. The Canadian Airports Council feels vindicated as the policy appears to raise the status of airports as a partner in negotiations, a long-time goal. A council official says the document represents "marching orders" for negotiators to pursue open skies agreements. If a highly liberal accord is not achievable, negotiators are committed to work toward the next best arrangement.
Finmeccanica and Sukhoi have finally signed an agreement to formalize the involvement of Alenia Aeronautica in the Superjet 100 regional jet program. Alenia will take a 25% share in the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co., plus one additional share to give it more control. The shareholding reflects its investment in the aircraft family's development. Alenia and Sukhoi now plan to set up a joint company to market, sell and deliver the Superjet, as well as to provide after-sales support. Alenia will hold 51% of that venture.
Controversy continues to surround the Sept. 29 midair collision of a Gol Airlines Boeing 737 and an Embraer Legacy 600 business jet over the Amazon jungle. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Nov. 25 changed the command of the country's military-run air traffic control organization. The move may be seen as a way to douse the heated contention between military and civilian controllers over demilitarization of ATC.
European airlines flying to Asia through Russian airspace will see their costs reduced substantially, but not until 2010, under a compromise agreement between the European Union and Russia.
Russia delivered the first batch of two Sukhoi Su-30MK2 multipurpose dual-seat fighters to Venezuela last week. The aircraft are part of a 22-aircraft order that will see deliveries through next year.
A two-month RFID pilot program at Madrid-Barajas International Airport's Terminal 4 was able to track 99.7% of bags, according to France's IER, which ran the program. IER's system prints and encodes bag tags and then reads the labels as they pass through three separate areas equipped with RFID readers and encoders.
Boeing researchers say they have completed flight tests of the company's Automated Aerial Refueling program that demonstrated an unmanned air vehicle's ability to autonomously maintain a steady station behind a tanker aircraft as it flies a refueling orbit. The idea is to give UAVs greater combat radius and loiter time over the battlefield. It also could shorten the kill-chain by keeping armed aircraft close to where targets may appear.
Members of the Airbus A380 flight test team have won the Aero-Club de France Golden Medal, for development and flight-testing of the A380. Honored were: Claude Lelaie, senior vice president of Airbus's Flight Div.; Jacques Rosay, vice president/chief test pilot; Fernando Alonso, vice president of the Flight Test Div.; and test flight engineer Gerard Desbois.
A Beechcraft Premier IA flies over eastern Kansas. In the past five years, Raytheon Aircraft Co.'s twin-engine business jet has gained a foothold in the crowded entry-level segment of the market. The latest version, with upgraded avionics capability and a new passenger cabin design, reinforces the airplane's appeal to buyers looking for speed, comfort and economy (see p. 56). John Dibbs photo.
Air Berlin's order of 75 737-700/-800s, valued at $5.1 billion, represents the biggest single 737 order in German aviation history and Boeing's most significant win there since Airbus emerged as a major competitor.
NEXT YEAR'S EUROPEAN BUSINESS AVIATION CONVENTION & Exhibition will be held May 22-24 in Geneva. To accommodate growth, the show will take place in two facilities in 2007--Hall 6 and Hall 7--at the Geneva Palexpo facility.
USAF Maj. Gen. (select) Paul A. Dettmer has been appointed assistant deputy chief of staff for intelligence at USAF Headquarters at the Pentagon. He has been vice director for intelligence for the Joint Staff. Brig. Gen. Ronnie D. Hawkins, Jr., has been named deputy chief of staff for communications information systems for the Multi-National Force-Iraq, U.S. Central Command in Baghdad. He has been commander of the Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools of Air Education and Training Command, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
NASA is ready to announce major new findings about the presence of water currently emerging onto the surface of Mars. If confirmed, this would increase the possibility that microbial life could have existed recently or possibly exists now on the Martian surface. The potential seepage of ground water onto or near the surface has been a key area of investigation by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft (AW&ST Nov. 27, pp. 53-55).
France has contracted with EADS Defense & Security Systems and Thales to rebuild the armed forces strategic information and communications network. The six-year €70-million ($92-million) project, known as the PSP, will entail creating a shared network for the general staff and the national reconnaissance office, and ensuring interoperability with NATO forces that would enable France to take over an allied strategic command.
New Zealand has found a way around the aircraft industry's habit of winning contracts with competitive prices and then "charging like the Light Brigade" for spare parts: it's bought an extra NH90 transport helicopter from Eurocopter simply as a source of spares. The helicopter--or, rather, the set of parts needlessly assembled as a helicopter--works out to be NZ$10 million ($6.8 million) cheaper than buying the same parts separately, the Defense Ministry told a parliamentary committee Nov. 23.
The very light jet is an idea whose time has come for both Embraer and CAE, which are venturing into the small-jet training arena for the first time. Under an agreement signed in October, Montreal-based CAE (which holds a 49% stake in the joint venture) will design and build an undetermined number of Level D full-flight simulators for the Embraer Phenom 100/300 very light and light jet line. The Brazilian manufacturer, which has a 51% stake, is developing a customized training program for pilots, mechanics and air dispatchers.
Finnair has exercised its last four options for Embraer 190 aircraft, which will bring its fleet to 20: 10 Embraer 170s and 10 190s. Two aircraft will be delivered in 2008 and two in 2009 under the deal valued at more than €100 million ($132 million). The first 190, part of the original purchase made in 2005, should be delivered this month. The aircraft largely serve as feeders to the carrier's long-haul routes.
