Wilmington, Ohio-based ABX Air is pinning revenue improvement hopes on the delivery this year of five passenger-to-freighter converted Boeing 767s that are not connected to its line-haul service for DHL Express. The diversified air cargo carrier is seeking revenue enhancements after it reported Mar. 17 decreased earnings for the fourth quarter and for the year. Officials attributed the decline to failing to achieve revenue incentives under the hub and line-haul agreement with DHL, and it caused ABX Air's stock on Nasdaq to drop 1.22 points, or 15%, to $6.79 a share.
Jim Hnat, who has been general counsel, also will be senior vice president of JetBlue Airways. He was vice president/general counsel/assistant secretary. Joanna Geraghty has been appointed vice president/associate general counsel. She was director of litigation and regulatory counsel. John Harvey has been named senior vice president/corporate finance/treasurer and Rob Land senior vice president-government affairs/associate general counsel.
During the past decade, Israel has invested several billion dollars in a multilayered anti-ballistic defense system known as Homa, the Hebrew word for barrier. But, with the proliferation of new short-range tactical missiles and rockets, defense officials are plotting a strategy that includes adapting the Arrow anti-missile system and looking at new technologies for an array of threats.
France is on track to field land- and carrier-based strike versions of the new-generation Rafale fighter, although deployment of a full naval capability is likely to stretch out until the end of the decade.
Titanium is the ninth-most-abundant material on Earth. It is also one of the hardest and costliest to refine and process into the super metal used by the defense and aerospace industries. The reason is that most titanium raw material is made by the Kroll batch process, a repetitive energy- and labor-intensive method that hasn't changed much in the 60 years since it was first commercialized.
One million flying hours--and counting--have been logged by C-17 Globemaster III airlifters. That's the equivalent of one of the advanced cargo jets flying every minute of every day continuously for more than 114 years, according to Boeing, who supplied the math. An evacuation mission transporting injured U.S. troops from Iraq to Germany helped the aircraft reach the million-hour mark on Mar. 20. USAF selected that particular C-17 and its crew comprising active duty USAF, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve and Royal Air Force members to represent the entire fleet.
NASA engineers are digging in on the details of human exploration missions to the Moon and Mars, figuring out how to modify 40-year-old launch facilities in Florida for another 40 years of service, and simulating lunar reentry trajectories that will bring the planned Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) to the same landing site in the Western U.S. every time.
The Italian air force is proceeding with a plan to upgrade its fleet of HH-3F and AB212 helicopters for combat search and rescue missions. All HH-3Fs of the 15th Wing, which is based at Rome-Ciampino airport, are to be brought to the new standard that was developed by AgustaWestland. The upgrade features a night vision-compatible cockpit equipped with head-up displays, a new radio communication system with satcom capability and an upgraded self-protection suite with laser and radar warning receivers, and integrated chaff and flare dispensers.
The German navy this month is fielding the F124 Hessen, its third Sachsen-class frigate, as the service enters a critical phase of restructuring. Several new major equipment projects are moving forward, including the fielding of two U212A submarines. (Two boats are already in service.) The first four K130 Braunschweig-class corvettes are in production, and will be fielded next year. Navy chief Vice Adm. Lutz Feldt notes that securing parliamentary funding for major modernization efforts, such as the maritime version of the NH90 helicopter, is a priority this year.
Gone With the Wind? The concessions battle between Delta Air Lines pilots and management is heating up. The chief of the negotiating committee for the Delta unit of the Air Line Pilots Assn. told a U.S. Bankruptcy Court arbitration panel in New York last week that the union was unlikely to ratify an agreement, even if negotiators reach consensus. The airline is demanding $300 million more in contract concessions from its pilots. It also filed a Section 1113 motion that would reject the pilots' contract and enable Delta to impose its demands.
NASA says it received a "strong response" to its request for information on possible public/private venture-capital schemes to spur new technology for space exploration. Now the agency hopes to pick a partner by the end of April. Derived from Administrator Michael Griffin's experience as president and CEO of In-Q-Tel, a CIA entity set up to find new technology for the nation's spooks, the Red Planet Capital Fund already has an $11-million public-fund stake (AW&ST Feb. 20, p. 39).
A full-scale pole model of Northrop Grumman's X-47B joint unmanned combat air system (J-UCAS) candidate inherits a number of design features, systems and technologies from the B-2 Spirit bomber. The J-UCAS, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and even Boeing's 777 airliner are only a few of many programs that have benefited from innovations traceable to B-2 development (see p. 56). Although the bomber program's acknowledged "firsts" range from all-composite skins to flush-mounted air data ports and active flight controls, many B-2-related advancements remain classified.
BAE Systems and VT Group are considering the possibility of a joint bid for Babcock International. The British Defense Ministry is encouraging the U.K. maritime sector to consolidate as part of its industrial strategy. All three companies are part of the Aircraft Carrier Alliance team established to address the British Royal Navy's future carrier program.
With the retirement this month of Gen. Lance Lord, head of Air Force Space Command, some in Washington say the service will have to turn to a heavy-handed officer as his successor, to right its troubled space program. USAF has yet to announce its choice, but there is speculation that the service will downgrade the position to a three-star post.
The U.S. Defense Dept. has postponed the purchase of five aircraft equipped with megawatt-class chemical lasers, keeping the program in technology demonstration status through 2008. The Airborne Laser has suffered schedule delays and cost increases since its first risk reduction and development contract was awarded in 1996. The speed-of-light weapon is designed to take out ballistic missiles in their vulnerable boost phase.
Cessna Aircraft Co. flew its upgraded Citation Encore+ for the first time on Mar. 22 from Rockwell Collins' facilities in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The twin-engine business jet is equipped with new Pro Line 21 avionics. The Pratt & Whitney Canada PW535Bs are fitted with dual-channel full-authority digital engine controls. Maximum takeoff weight has been increased by 200 lb. over that for the standard Encore. FAA certification is set for the fourth quarter.
A U.S. Marine battalion deploying to Iraq this spring will monitor insurgents hiding among civilians using methods honed by police departments to track gang activity. The system to be tested in Iraq combines a new device from Lockheed Martin with off-the-shelf technology, including cameras for surveillance and a database for collecting information such as known associates, body markings and addresses. The database is a customized version of one developed by the Chicago Police Dept. for anti-gang and counter-drug operations. Lockheed Martin's 8-oz.
The U.S. military perfected naval surface fire support, along with close air support, during World War II, says Bob Work, of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. Battleships and cruisers supplied general artillery support, the bombardment of area targets such as supply depots, with 8-in. and 16-in. guns. Direct support for troops engaged with enemy forces came from 5-in. guns.
The Pentagon is shifting resources from its unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) program to accelerate development of a next-generation bomber. The fate of Northrop Grumman's X-47B and Boeing's X-45C designs for the Joint Unmanned Combat Air System (J-UCAS) program is left in doubt by the decision. The U.S. Air Force dropped out of the J-UCAS program after allocating $304 million for it in Fiscal 2006.
British Airways is proposing to raise the retirement age of flight and cabin crewmembers from 55 as part of an effort to clear a 1-billion-pound ($1.73-billion) pension deficit. For pilots, the age would go to 60, and for cabin crew, 65. The change for cabin crew would be instituted in two stages, to 60 for five years, and then 65.
LynuxWorks received approval from the FAA for the reusability of its LynxOS-178 software by embedded system integrators and developers for avionics that involve safety-critical applications. Based in San Jose, Calif., LynuxWorks has been seeking the regulatory approval for nine months and received it in Advisory Circular AC 20-148 this month. Joe Wlad, director of product marketing, notes that there usually is a tight coupling between an operating system (OS) and its application.
The "parting of the ways" between the U.S. Air Force and Navy over the joint unmanned combat air systems (J-UCAS) program has triggered a surge in new competition and plans for large, long-endurance aircraft.
Russia's announcement in the early 1990s that it had deployed the 200-kt. supercavitating Shkval torpedo stunned Western intelligence agencies and prompted several NATO countries to begin development of a similar weapon. Supercavitation--surrounding an object with a bubble that allows it to travel at high speed--is now getting attention from the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa), which is jump-starting work to develop a supercavitating submarine that would travel at 100 kt. under water and still be stealthy.
The National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary 2005 statistics offer discouraging news: an increase in aviation accidents for scheduled airline and general aviation operations compared with 2004. And encouraging news: the total number of fatalities decreased.
