As an adviser to the Berlin air show, I was astonished by the apparent lack of knowledge about ILA2006 shown in "Farnborough 2006, Bigger, Better, More Insecure" (AW&ST June 26, p. 68). Yes, the Airbus A380 flew daily and attracted many spectators. But it was definitely not "eclipsed" by the fly-bys of the Messerschmitt Me-262. In fact, the daily MiG-29OVT flights were probably the highlight of the flying display, and it flew at Berlin for the first time outside Russia, a fact not mentioned in the AW&ST article.
The FAA is investigating the role of a reported engine problem in the aborted takeoff July 27 of a FedEx Express Boeing 727-200 trijet at Louisville (Ky.) International Airport. The aircraft either lost an engine or the crew shut it down, FAA official Les Dorr says. The 727 veered off Runway 17L before coming to a halt. No one was injured, and the aircraft reportedly showed no visual signs of damage.
Market Focus 14 Raytheon again seeks to sell off aircraft unit, to analysts' applause News Breaks 22 Boeing takes last order for 747-400, to end production in early 2009 23 Very light jets, other genav aircraft make news at AirVenture 2006 25 U.K. Hawk 128 jet trainer production deal slips World News & Analysis 28 FAA accelerates rollout of 'perform- ance-based' navigation procedures 30 Raptor-JSF gap beckons as USAF struggles to secure multiyear pact
Germany has deployed the first four Eurofighter Typhoons to the 74th Fighter Sqdn., its first operational unit to receive the aircraft. Prior German Typhoon deliveries have been to the 73rd Fighter Sqdn., the operational training unit.
After General Dynamics Corp. paid nearly $5 billion to acquire business jet builder Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. in 1999, Raytheon Co. began quietly exploring whether it could find a buyer willing to pay a similar premium for its general aviation business. It couldn't.
The U.S. recently granted Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control-Orlando (Fla.) permission to offer its helicopter-launched Hellfire II air-to-ground missile to international customers with a third "thermobaric" warhead option. Already used in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan by U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, the new metal-augmented charge warhead produces a sustained pressure wave. It is highly effective against personnel housed in enclosures, such as bunkers and caves, while producing minimal collateral damage.
Eurofighter Typhoon program officials are still expected to hand over the full contingent of fighters this year despite a break in deliveries. The four main partners, Germany, the U.K., Italy and Spain, briefly halted acceptance as the contractor dealt with flight-control software problems. Deliveries have now resumed and, according to a German government official, the anticipated total for the year should not be affected.
USAF has awarded Raytheon a $96-million pact for the sale of advanced self-protection integrated suites for F-16s to Greece. Raytheon won a $25.4-million contract modification to re-baseline the AIM-120D Amraam de- monstration development program.
Britain's Environmentally Friendly Engine (EFE) research effort is likely to get underway by the fourth quarter of this year, following European Commission approval of U.K. state aid for the program. The Rolls-Royce-led project will run until 2011, examining a broad range of technologies applicable to a "green" aero-engine. Bombardier, Smiths, HS Marston and Goodrich will likely partner in the program. EFE was one of six key technology-demonstrator programs identified by the government's Aerospace Innovation and Growth Team report in 2003.
Calling on French President Jacques Chirac, Thales is opting for a government-to-government sales approach for contacts in India's expanding defense and civil aviation markets. The move came after Indian press reports of Thales illegally using middlemen to win a contract to supply the Indian navy with six Scorpene submarines. Indian law prohibits use of middlemen in defense deals. Thales has sued the magazine; a hearing is set for Aug. 23.
It's been lampooned in a mock Pentagon briefing and scoffed at by doubters, but, either way, the concept of bouncing lasers off mirrors is moving forward this fall with a second phase of an ambitious plan to deploy a weapon to Iraq in as little as two years.
Arthur Pappas has become vice president-Chicago for American Airlines. He succeeds Bernard J. DeSena, who is retiring. Pappas was managing director for the airline's Los Angeles International Airport operations.
Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. has selected Meggitt Vibro-Meter to supply engine vibration monitoring equipment for its new Superjet 100 twinjet. The system will provide data for cold fan trim balancing and condition monitoring as well as vibration indication for the flight display. Separately, CMC Electronics was chosen by avionics supplier Thales to furnish its CMA-9000 flight management system for the Superjet 100.
Diamond Aircraft's Diamond D-Jet, which was unveiled last week at EAA AirVenture 2006 in Oshkosh, Wis., has accumulated 30 hr. of flight time and is scheduled to enter service in 2008. The five-seat, single-engine jet is powered by one Williams FJ-33 engine. The D-Jet is priced at $1.4 million.
Rep. Ike Skelton (Mo.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, is asking President Bush to redress funding shortages to the Army's readiness accounts after reports that two-thirds of brigade combat teams in the operating force are unready. In a July 25 letter to Bush, Skelton says the White House Office of Management and Budget shortchanged the Army's requests for Fiscal 2006 and 2007. Skelton is asking for a full supplemental spending request to be submitted on the first day of the next fiscal year to address the issues. The Assn. of the U.S.
Eaton Corp. will provide flight safety components for the hydraulic system and specialized debris monitoring detection technology for Chinook engines and transmissions as part of its offering for the Air Force's Combat Search and Rescue-X procurement. USAF is buying 141 helicopters to replace aging Pave Hawks.
The FAA is accelerating the rollout of "performance-based" navigation for U.S. airspace, but airlines would like to see this move even faster. By freeing aircraft from dependence on ground-based navaids and allowing optimum routing with satellite guidance, this technique can save an airline tens of millions of dollars in fuel costs at a single hub airport. The airlines are so eager to reap the benefits, they want the government to let third parties help design the procedures.
Embraer and Korea Aerospace Industries will battle it out to supply Turkey with basic trainers. The companies were shortlisted for the bidding to provide 36 aircraft, with 19 options. Turkey wants local industry to be heavily involved. Embraer's bid is built around the Super Tucano, while KAI is believed to be bidding the KT-1. Turkey's requirement called for a tandem-seating arrangement, glass cockpit and single-engine turboprop.
Eclipse Aviation has received provisional FAA certification of its Eclipse 500 very light jet. Full certification--which will allow single-pilot VFR/IFR, day/night flight operations--is scheduled for Aug. 30. President/CEO Vern Raburn says plans call for the company to deliver more than 50 airplanes by year-end. Seven are under construction at the company's facilities in Albu- querque, N.M., and the company holds orders for nearly 2,500 airplanes worth about $3 billion. Raburn says production jets will receive new wingtip tanks that hold 19.5 gal.
European companies with an interest in space tourism may get a little boost from the European Space Agency (ESA), which intends to award three of them 150,000-euro ($190,500) grants and the knowledge of its launch-vehicle experts to advance their planning. Internal ESA studies have found a potential space-tourism market in Europe, and the agency's upcoming industry survey is designed to encourage its development.
After signing bilateral space agreements with France, Russia and Argentina, Algeria has now inked one with the U.K. A motivating factor on the British side was the failure of Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. to clinch a deal earlier this year for Algeria's Alsat-2 imaging satellite, after winning a previous award for Alsat-1. EADS was the eventual winner for Alsat-2, and the company is thought to have benefited from the French bilateral agreement, also signed earlier this year (AW&ST Feb. 6, p. 32).
Adam Aircraft has an order backlog worth about $1 billion for 412 airplanes, including 342 AdamJet A700s and 70 A500 piston-powered business aircraft. Company officials expect FAA certification of the A700 in six months, and plan to fly the first customer jet in December.
Vought Aircraft Industries completed down-bending load limit tests for the U.S. Air Force Global Hawk Block 20 wing last week, signaling progress since delays last year in designing the larger wing for the Northrop Grumman UAV. Engineers flexed the wing to 150% of its planned limit. Up-bending tests are to begin in September. Officials will then perform ultrasonic testing and take the wing to failure.
Pilot error has been linked by Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee to the crash of an Armavia Airbus A320 into the Black Sea May 3. All 113 people on board were killed. The aircraft was being flown on approach to Sochi airport at night in bad weather. At 1,100 ft., the airport controller contacted the crew to initiate a go-around because of low visibility. The crew did so, disengaging the autopilot and making a turn to the right. During the turn, the aircraft lost height, resulting in a ground-proximity warning alert.
