If you haven't heard of TransDigm Group Inc. don't feel bad. Most of Wall Street hasn't woken up to the niche aircraft parts supplier either. Just two analysts cover the 13-year-old company, which went public on Mar. 15.
Virginia's Norfolk International Airport has landed seasonal direct charter service from the U.K.'s Kent International Airport, about 78 mi. east of London. U.K. tour operator Cosmos Holidays will use sister company Monarch Airlines to fly between Norfolk and Kent from May to October 2007 to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown. Monarch will operate a charter flight every Wednesday using either an Airbus A330 or a Boeing 767, says Norfolk Airport Executive Director Ken Scott.
Tibet is getting a lot of attention. Daily train services now bring tourists into the country, which is under the political control of China. China Southern Airlines is joining the queue, opening daily services from its base in Guangzhou to Lhasa, with a stopover in Shangri-La. Lhasa has been a favorite destination of Airbus and Boeing over the years because at 12,000 ft. above sea level it has one of the world's highest airports. China Southern's flights will last through the summer tourist season.
Guardian LP Services has ordered nine Beechcraft Premier IA business jets for charter operations. The first two airplanes are already operating from Ontario Airport in Southern California. Guardian LP conducts charter flights on behalf of Sentient Jet Inc., a private jet membership company based in Norwell, Mass.
U.K. space industry executives are applauding a decision by the house of commons science and technology committee to order a thorough review of British space policy. The industry had warned that the country risked losing jobs and valuable know-how if it didn't reverse existing spending trends, especially in Earth observation and satellite communications.
Tassili Airlines of Algiers, Algeria, signed a contract valued at $10 million with Bombardier Aerospace to purchase four 74-seat Q400 turboprop aircraft. The airline plans to operate the aircraft initially to transport oil field workers, and, within the next few years, on domestic and international scheduled service. Q400 deliveries are expected to begin in the third quarter of 2007.
Andreas Pappas of the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency is among recipients of awards from the Defense Standardization Program Office for contributions to the Defense Dept. during the last fiscal year. He led an effort on UHF satellite communications waveform standards and technology insertion to mitigate tactical satellite shortfall. His group was credited with efforts to provide systems enhancements that will more than double the present UHF satcom systems capacity.
THE GENERAL AVIATION ISSUES CONFERENCE IS scheduled for Sept. 17-19 in Denver, Colo. The first conference dedicated to discussion of issues facing the general aviation industry, the event will focus on legislative and operational challenges and serve as a forum for debate on topics affecting the industry, pilots and airports. It is being hosted by the National Business Aviation Assn. and other general aviation organizations. More information is available at www.nbaa.org.
James W. Grace has been appointed director of sales for the XLLink Communications System product line of the Wingspeed Corp., Concord, Mass. He was principal program manager for commercial data link products/programs at Rockwell Collins, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Oscar Rodriguez and Ernesto Rodriguez have become regional sales managers for Latin America and Europe, respectively, for Lycoming Engines, Williamsport, Pa.
Terry MacManus and Raymond J. Siegel have been named to the board of directors of Inventory Navigation, Tempe, Ariz. MacManus is CEO of Rotable Asset Management and was an executive with Team Aer Lingus and the AAR Airframe and Accessories Group. Siegel is co-founder of New York-based Global Securitization Services.
Joe Fragola, the lead risk and reliability expert on NASA's Exploration Systems Architecture Study, has received the agency's Public Service Medal for his "extraordinary effort" as part of the study. The ESAS team evaluated development options, including the design for the Crew Exploration Vehicle, which would return humans to the Moon, and on to Mars. Fragola is vice president of Valador Inc., Herndon, Va.
The French army is preparing its Sperwer tactical unmanned aerial vehicle fleet for operational use and first overseas deployment. But there are growing concerns within the service about the lack of a clear long-term road map for unmanned reconnaissance.
While anticipation is growing for U.S. and European low-cost carriers to start transatlantic operations, it's actually traditional U.S. network carriers that are grabbing the role of international LCCs, thanks to dramatic cost reductions, a new analysis shows. The continued strengthening of transatlantic yields has enticed carriers on both sides of the ocean to add capacity, with total seats this summer nearly matching the 2000 peak. Unlike in 2000, however, U.S. carriers reached the level with new, leaner cost structures.
The recent Commentary--"TWA Flight 800: Let's Close the Book" (AW&ST July 10, p. 45)--carries the question from the Coalition of Airline Pilots Assn.: "What variable is assigned in the risk matrix algorithm to determine that a cargo pilot's life is worth less versus a passenger pilot's life?"
Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary continues his argument against taxing industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, citing IATA data that show air transport contributes just 2% of CO 2 emissions in the European Union, compared with 22% for road traffic and 39% for power generation. He proposes that the "sensible way" to approach the issue is not to impose a tax, but encourage the kind of investment Ryanair has made in its new Boeing 737-800s. O'Leary claims those aircraft have 50% less emissions on a per-seat basis, 45% lower fuel burn and 45% less noise.
NASA's Cassini Saturn orbiter will return to the north pole of Titan for additional radar surveys, but program scientists are convinced the spacecraft's cloud-penetrating sensor found lakes of liquid methane there during a July 22 flyby. Radar returns from the area (see image) show several well-defined dark patches--indicative of an extremely smooth surface--with features that appear to be channels carved by liquids flowing into them.
Boeing officials are planning a test of their Laser Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) against a target moving 40 mph.--the fastest to date--within the next month. The Navy is discussing with industry the possibility of procuring laser-guided weapons optimized against moving targets. A likely competitor would be the Paveway II, which is dual-sourced to Lockheed Martin and Raytheon.
THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HAS PASSED the "Good Samaritan" bill to protect volunteer disaster relief workers and nonprofit organizations from lawsuits. The bill includes pilots, who often offer their aircraft and services to transport patients and donated organs during federally declared emergencies. More than 2,000 volunteer flights to the Gulf Coast occurred following Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.
Australia plans to decide by mid-2007 whether it will cooperate with the U.S. Navy to determine requirements for a high-altitude surveillance unmanned aircraft as part of the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance project. The Australian government recently decided to engage in formal discussions with the Pentagon about working together to define terms of potential cooperation.
AgustaWestland has secured a deal with Mexican air taxi operator Aerolineas Ejecutivas for five helicopters, with options on a further 37. The Mexican carrier is ordering two A109 Power, one each of the A119 Koala, Grand, and AW139. Aerolineas Ejecutivas was appointed as an authorized AgustaWestland service center in February.
Tom Ridge, former U.S. secretary of homeland security and governor of Pennsylvania, has been appointed to the board of directors of Iridium Satellite, Bethesda, Md.
Jeffrey E. Bauer (see photo), an aerospace engineer and project manager at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards AFB., Calif., has received Unmanned Vehicle Systems International's 2006 Catherine Fargeon Award for leadership of the recent Access 5 project. Access 5 was a NASA-led consortium of several government agencies and private industry that facilitated the development of certification criteria for unmanned aircraft and procedures to allow them to operate safely in the same airspace with piloted aircraft.
