Robert Peckham (see photo) has been appointed president/general manager of the Sea Launch Co., Long Beach, Calif. He has been head of marketing and sales.
Joseph H. Howell has become general manager of Stevens Aviation's Donaldson Air Park, Greenville, S.C. He was service manager for Raytheon Aircraft Services, Tampa, Fla.
Britain's long-term defense equipment program faces a multibillion-dollar shortfall, with combat aircraft acquisition and upgrade funding needs projected to double in the middle of the critical period.
General Electric's aviation operations expects 2006 revenue to reach a record $12.8 billion, up from $11.9 billion the year before. GE expects to increase by 50% the number of its engines in service through 2015.
Prickly issues continue to divide research universities and the U.S. government over export control regulations even as long-running tensions between federal agencies and academe have eased somewhat with recent developments.
USAF Maj. Gen. (select) Douglas L. Raaberg has been appointed director of plans and programs at Air Combat Command (ACC) Headquarters. He has been deputy director of operations at United States Central Command Headquarters. He will be succeeded by Brig. Gen. Jack B. Egginton, who has been commander of the 325th Fighter Wing of the Air Education and Training Command (AETC), Tyndall AFB, Fla. Egginton, in turn, will be succeeded by Brig. Gen. (select) Tod D. Wolters, who has been commander of AETC's 47th Flying Training Wing, Laughlin AFB, Tex. Brig. Gen. Thomas W.
Kevin Brown (see photo) has been promoted to senior vice president-finance and corporate development from vice president-corporate development for M7 Aerospace of San Antonio.
European aerospace executives and industrial policy makers should make it a priority to identify the root of the EADS-Airbus crisis, devise more realistic management rules and ensure that the chaos that prevailed in the past several weeks is never repeated. However, whether EADS's is capable of going beyond a mere reshuffling of management is in doubt. The six-year-old group's structure already looks outdated. Moreover, it continues to suffer from political interference, proving once again that old habits die hard.
A new French strategic plan, backed by a favorable public opinion survey, is expected to help convince whoever wins the upcoming presidential elections to maintain France's ongoing arms buildup. The three-year rolling plan, which was made public on July 6 and is expected to be updated on a regular basis, sets out top priorities for military planners through 2008, when the existing five-year defense spending agenda ends.
To some, the dismantling of aging aircraft is the main occupation at Evergreen Air Center's desert facility here. In fact, being a "boneyard" is only part of its work as a heavy maintenance center, mostly for wide-body aircraft.
Matrox Graphics Inc. has expanded monitor and graphics hardware support for its Graphics eXpansion Modules. The palm-sized external upgrades add multi-display support to a system by dividing the monitor output of a computer into separate displays. The original DualHead2Go now supports the graphics hardware already supported with TripleHead2Go, including add-in cards from ATI Technologies, Nvidia and SLI-configured systems. In addition to existing support for three monitors at a time, Matrox now covers two monitors at a time with wide screens and higher refresh rates.
Dick Christopher has been named Hawker program manager and Jim Williams as Beechcraft service director for the Donaldson Center facility for Stevens Aviation, Greenville, S.C.
With defense spending stagnating in Europe, BAE Systems has focused on growing its business outside the U.K. Last year, about 30% of the company's $28 billion in sales came from the U.S., making it by far the most successful European company to tap into the lucrative American defense market. But BAE's decision to sell its 20% stake in Airbus--and likely use the money to expand its defense business--has been called into question by a surprisingly low valuation of the commercial aircraft company.
A top Chinese space official has reaffirmed China's plan to launch a 20-ton space station following additional Shenzhou Soyuz-type manned test flights. The deputy designer of the Long March 2F booster program, Song Zhengyu, tells the official government newspaper, People's Daily, that the station is China's next major manned space development. A space station has led Chinese space planning for several years (AW&ST Nov. 12, 2001, p. 56).
Greg Thomas has been appointed director of supply chain services for the Tulsa, Okla.-based Nordam Group. He was vice president-supply chain at Garrett Aviation Services.
Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. might never win a sprint, but then again developing a combat aircraft is a distance race. Project definition for HAL's Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) began in the second quarter of 1987; almost 20 years later, the aircraft has yet to enter service. As an exercise in technology development, however, the program has been valuable, even if the learning curve has been dauntingly acute at times.
Taiwan-based Mandarin Airlines has signed a contract with GE Commercial Aviation Services (Gecas) to lease five new Embraer 190 and 195 jet aircraft now in Gecas's backlog. Both types will be configured for single-class service with 31-in.-pitch seats. The three Embraer 190s will have 104 seats and the two Embraer 195s, 116 seats. Aircraft deliveries are scheduled to begin in second quarter 2007. Mandarin's Embraers replace the Fokker 100s and 50s in use on domestic routes and will be used to develop short-haul markets in Asia.
Engine manufacturers face a conundrum: how to cut emissions when decreasing one main pollutant encourages the creation of another in the atmosphere. The two main gases at the heart of environmental concerns are carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides (NOx)--both contribute, directly or indirectly, to global warming. In the case of the latter, its impact on atmospheric chemistry is more complex.
Dubai Aerospace Enterprise has appointed Bob Johnson, former chief executive of Honeywell Aerospace, to run the new company, which was set up in February to manage phased development of an integrated aerospace cluster near Dubai.
Time is money is perhaps never more true than in the MRO realm, where turnaround time is golden. So it is no surprise that TriskAero, a British paint-curing company, says it's seeing its aerospace customer list grow, along with its bottom line, thanks to its speedy infrared technology paint cure.
I was shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of AW&ST Senior Engineering Editor Michael A. Dornheim on June 3. Mike was one of the main reasons I eagerly awaited every issue. He had a special talent for putting complex topics into simple terms that everyone would understand. I enjoyed his technical writings immensely. Thank you for the tribute to his many accomplishments. Even though he is irreplaceable, I hope you will continue his tradition of excellent engineering reporting.
It didn't take Norman Mineta long to find a new job. On July 24, after two weeks off, Mineta will become vice chairman of prominent communications consultancy Hill & Knowlton, operating in Washington. When he left office as Transportation secretary, Mineta explained the FAA's failure to propose a new, fee-based plan for raising Aviation Trust Fund revenues after Sept. 30, 2007, when current taxes and fees expire. It seems there is a considerable difference of opinion among the White House Office of Management and Budget, the Transportation Dept.
For a treaty designed to ease aircraft financing and offer ownership protection of an asset, particularly in developing countries, the Cape Town Treaty has had unintended consequences for some involved in buying and selling U.S. private and corporate aircraft.
