Bob Bernicchi has been named managing director of maintenance engineering for Alaska Airlines. He was director of MD-80 and Boeing 737-200 fleet engineering.
Donald Sealey has been appointed vice president-corporate audit of Hawaiian Airlines. He was director of recruiting for Resources Global Professionals in Indianapolis and was a senior executive with ATA, United and Delta airlines. Pilialoha Wang has been promoted to senior director of cargo sales and service from manager of cargo sales for Hawaii, Australia and Tahiti.
The Air Force has been twice stymied in starting an airborne tactical jamming program using the B-52 for long-range electronic attack. Now USAF says it can't meet the 2012 deadline, set with the Navy, to field a capability. But electronic warfare (EW) veterans say new technologies are emerging from the black world that could meet the deadline--if USAF changes its outlook. The B-52 was thought to be necessary because it alone could provide enough power to generate low-frequency, high-power jamming beams. No longer.
Brenda R. Manuel has been named assistant NASA administrator for its Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity. She had been acting deputy assistant administrator for equal opportunity programs and director of the Discrimination Complaints Div.
When Democrats take over the Senate Armed Services Committee in January, a pair of newcomers will bring additional firepower to two key areas: running the Navy and investigating fraud and waste in government. Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Jim Webb of Virginia are among 10 new senators--eight Democrats, one Republican and one independent--to be sworn in next year as members of the 110th Congress.
Pentagon-watchers who count their experience in decades have long marveled at the military services' ability to weather political storms. Sometimes by deflection, sometimes by deception, sometimes with a little help from Congress, they have managed over the years to dodge or minimize the effects of many policies handed down by their civilian secretaries, or by the Defense secretary's office, that they truly didn't like. Try as he might, no less an operator than Vice President Dick Cheney, when Defense secretary under President George H.W.
The Center of Excellence for Composites and Advanced Materials (Cecam) at Wichita (Kan.) State University will conduct a technology assessment of the airworthiness of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for the FAA. The goal is to address development standards for certification. The FAA is responsible for integrating UAS vehicles into the National Airspace System.
Timothy J. Winter (see photo) has become vice president-market for the Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Baltimore-based Electronic Systems Sector. He was director of naval and missile defense.
A $125-million upgrade is underway at Sri Lanka's Weerawila, 162 mi. south of Colombo, that will make it the country's second international airport. When completed at the end of 2009, it will tackle two million passengers a year and become the first airport in the country to accommodate the Airbus A380. It will have a 13,200-ft. runway and provide parking space for 14 aircraft, according to H.M.C. Nimalsiri, director general at civil aviation and CEO, Civil Aviation Authority Sri Lanka.
Taking a leaf out of Darpa's book, the British Defense Ministry this week is launching a technology challenge. The ministry is asking entrants to develop a robotic system capable of identifying and monitoring a diverse set of threats in an urban environment.
The Chinese-European Space Agency Double Star mission will be extended for an additional nine months, following approval of funding by the ESA science committee. The twin satellites, launched in December 2003 and July 2004, received a 17- month extension last year. The extensions are intended to allow Double Star to work in tandem with ESA's Cluster mission, which recently was stretched to December 2009; the upcoming NASA Themis mission; and NASA's new Stereo system, which was launched late last month (AW&ST Oct. 30, p. 35).
Thales has opened a facility near Paris to increase synergies with public universities and research institutes. It is to house 500 people and is located next to Polytechnique, France's prestigious engineering school, and near the Saclay complex operated by the Atomic Energy Commission CEA.
The past year's squeeze on frequent-flier awards means it's time for the Transportation Dept. to consider a rulemaking to loosen things up. That's one conclusion of the department's inspector general's office following a review of airline customer service since 2001. Surveying 15 airlines--13 Air Transport Assn.
Protests against Brazil's detention of the pilots flying the Embraer Legacy business jet involved in the Sept. 29 midair with a Gol Airlines 737 are intensifying. Following the midair, Gol Flight 1907 crashed in the Amazon rain forest, and all 154 people on board were killed. The Legacy jet landed safely but its pilots were detained and their passports confiscated.
After much negotiation and fine-tuning, the U.S. Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) has awarded Boeing a two-year, $674-million launch-capabilities contract for the company's Delta IV Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program. The contract is to sustain the company's EELV launch operations at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., and Cape Canaveral AFS, Fla. "This was extraordinarily complicated to get through, and so we're very pleased to have reached agreement with Boeing," SMC Commander Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel says.
A significant increase in narrowbodies and growth in turboprops is likely to slow the introduction of regional jets across much of Asia, except in China. But while the passenger market is in a state of flux, the region is expected to see strong growth in secondary freight operations, particularly in India, where rising income levels are spurring retail operations to rely on air freight for quick shipments. As a result, air freight is beginning to make a mark against road and rail shipping.
In a more politically than economically important move, Spanish flag carrier Iberia will start daily flights to Gibraltar. The service between Madrid and the British enclave on the Iberian Peninsula is set to begin Dec. 16. A 141-seat Airbus A319 is being used to service the route.
It's now official. Lockheed Martin has been awarded a $1.046-billion contract add-on to provide the U.S. Air Force with 23 F-22s and one replacement test aircraft as part of the Lot 6 full production contract. Work is to be completed by February 2010.
Samuel D. Wyman, 3rd, has been named vice president and USCG Vice Adm. (ret.) Terry Cross director of homeland security programs for EADS North America, Arlington, Va. Wyman was a member of The Spectrum Group and was president of the Harris Corp.'s Microwave Communications Div. Cross was USCG vice commandant.
Indonesia will buy six Sukhoi fighters to add to its two Su-27SKs and two Su-30MKMs, Air Force Chief of Staff Marshal Herman Prayitno says, looking forward to the creation of a full squadron. The fighters are part of a $1-billion deal that also includes two Kilo submarines, five transport helicopters and four attack helicopters, with deliveries from 2007-10, the Antara news agency reports. A Russian loan will pay for the equipment.
The Canadian air force has ordered four EDO Corp. AN/PLM-4 flight-line test units for $2.4 million. The test units simulate enemy radar signals and allow pilots to verify that their aircraft's self-defense electronics are working properly.
Letters 10 Who's Where 11 Industry Outlook 15 Airline Outlook 17 In Orbit 19 News Breaks 20-23 Washington Outlook 25 A European Perspective 68 Close Up ........................................77 Classified ........................................79 Contact Us 80 Aerospace Calendar 81
London and Washington are exploring British ambitions to provide greater technical input into the nonnuclear payload and systems of any Trident-based successor to the country's nuclear deterrent.
Johannes Bussmann has been appointed senior vice president-aircraft component services and Andreas Heizner senior vice president-aircraft overhaul for Lufthansa Technik in Hamburg. Bussmann was vice president-marketing and sales, and succeeds Uwe Mukrasch, who is now chief executive of human resources and information management. Heizner was president/CEO of Lufthansa Technik Philippines in Manila. He succeeds Andreas Meisel, who has become general manager of Ameco Beijing.
MARKET FOCUS Moog stock success helps price realize its upside potential 12 NEWS BREAKS Boeing Delta II launches modernized GPS satellite 20 Officials try to downplay concerns over acquisition of Aero Vodochody 21 Royal Malaysian Air Force orders eight MB-339CM trainer aircraft 22 WORLD NEWS & ANALYSIS Lebanon fighting produced information warfare coup for Hezbollah and Iran 26 Fusing of mission systems key to fighter's combat effectiveness 28
