SINGAPORE TECHNOLOGIES ENGINEERING (ST ENGINEERING) and Adam Aircraft have signed a letter of intent to form a strategic partnership that addresses the emerging very light jet segment of the general aviation market. ST Engineering would be responsible for engineering, logistics, maintenance and repairs supporting Adam Aircraft A500 piston-powered and A700 jet-powered airplanes. In addition, the agreement gives ST Engineering the option to invest up to $50 million in Adam Aircraft.
Britain may have yet to conclude the acquisition of a fifth Boeing C-17, or secure the contract for its long-running Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft, but this isn't stopping Defense Secretary John Reid from pointing out to the rest of Europe the need to improve airlift. Reid, attending an informal European Union defense ministerial meeting, issued a discussion paper on the need for more steps toward "sufficient airlift capacity."
The U.S. Air Force and Arnold Engineering Development Center have signed a 25-year lease with NASA to reopen and operate the National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complex (NFAC) at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. (see photo). The NFAC is the primary national asset for full-scale rotorcraft testing and will be used chiefly for U.S. Army rotorcraft research. The complex has two test sections: One is 40 X 80 ft. and capable of velocities up to 250 kt., and the other is 80 X 120 ft. for velocities up to 80 kt.
SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT CORP. HAS SOLD AN S-76C++ HELICOPTER to LG International for use as a VIP transport. Delivery is scheduled for 2007. The S-76C++ is the latest version to receive FAA certification and is powered by Turbomeca Arriel 2S2 turboshaft engines. The powerplants are 6% more powerful than previous versions of the Arriel and allow a gross weight increase of up to 450 lb. for Category A operations. The aircraft also features a new interior, a health and usage-monitoring system and a gearbox that reduces noise in the main cabin.
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Concepts for future long-range strike and long-range reconnaissance aircraft are merging. Some elements--well into a period of secret development--also appear to have received a big funding boost in the U.S. Air Force's most recent budget request.
Everett H. Pratt, Jr. (see photos) has been appointed vice president-business development for the Rolling Meadows, Ill.-based Defensive Systems Div. of the Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Electronic Systems Sector (ESS). He was vice president-radio frequency combat and information systems (RFCIS). Pratt has been succeeded by Gregory A. Schmidt, who was the division's vice president-engineering and manufacturing. Succeeding Schmidt is Carl R. Smith, who was director of systems engineering and engineering for RFCIS programs. Carl A.
Northwest Airlines and its pilots' group have reached a tentative agreement that splits regional aircraft flying into two parts. Under the agreement, the mainline carrier would operate jets starting at 77 seats, and a new subsidiary, SJET, would operate aircraft with 76 or fewer seats. Pay scales at industry competitive levels are proposed. The agreement would keep mainline carrier salaries at the level established late last year, when Northwest pilots accepted a 23.9% pay cut. The Northwest unit of the Air Line Pilots Assn. will review the agreement Mar. 14-17.
What? The International Space Station has ". . . returned far more value" than the B-2 or SR-71 (AW&ST Feb. 6, p. 6)? Recently I have come to question just what are all those things of "value," especially when looked at on a cost-per-item basis. I mean, did it take NASA to develop Velcro and freeze-dried ice cream? Two letters in a row said we must prepare to live on another planet. Yes, we tend to be "far out" here in the "far West," but it's time to come back to Earth financially.
The FAA has issued another airworthiness directive (2206-04-13), this one for Gulfstream IVs and Vs after all four Planeview (Honeywell Primus Epic system) displays went blank on one aircraft on Jan. 13 during a flight from Seattle to Philadelphia. The displays blanked or blinked for a matter of seconds, according to Honeywell. Gulfstream noted these aircraft also are equipped with head-up displays with enhanced vision (forward-looking infrared) and the pilots were able to continue flying safely during the only incident.
Thomas Juengling has become chief technology officer of Ceradyne Inc., Costa Mesa, Calif. He oversaw the company's research and development efforts in North America and at Ceradyne ESK Ceramics' laboratories in Germany.
Scientific evidence that global warming is melting ice at Earth's poles continues to stream out of NASA like fast-flowing glacial runoff, now that the agency's leadership has ordered political public affairs functionaries to lay off the spin. In the past two weeks NASA has reported dramatic melting in Antarctica, based on data from the twin Grace gravity probes it is operating with Germany (see p. 17). And a new Goddard Space Flight Center study synopsized in a NASA headquarters press release finds corresponding losses in Greenland.
Cargolux is buying two more Boeing 747-400 freighters to help fill capacity needs and bridge the period until it takes delivery of the 747-8, for which it is a launch customer. The additional 747-400Fs could be the last to come off the production line, with deliveries slated for July 2007 and July 2008.
France's influence in Europe has been weakened significantly in the last few years by the course of events as well as by a lack of judgment and political mistakes. National defense--and European defense--are no exceptions to this decline, and are being increasingly questioned by would-be policy-makers, think tanks and public opinion. In simple terms, the country's largely outdated military policy needs a full-scale review and, ultimately, a major overhaul.
Capt. Kenneth Udcoff suggests Washington Dulles International Airport is an acceptable alternative to Reagan Washington National Airport as it is "easily accessible to travelers" (AW&ST Feb. 20, p. 10). Are you kidding? It costs about $50 for a taxi downtown and the cheaper solutions take way too long. In contrast, within minutes of arriving at National I'm riding on a cheap Metro ticket on my way to the Mall. There's no comparison, unless you're going to build a high-speed dedicated rail link from Dulles to Union Station.
The Arab Satellite Communications Organization's first fourth-generation spacecraft, Arabsat 4A, is likely to be declared a total loss, according to industry officials. They said options to boost the spacecraft to geostationary orbit have been found unfeasible because of the low perigee and poor inclination at which the satellite was left by an International Launch Services Proton M launcher on Mar. 1 (AW&ST Mar. 6, p. 16).
David Hughes (Washington, Brussels and Maastricht, Netherlands)
The upcoming ADS-B demonstration in Indonesia includes a new business model that may prove interesting to other nations as this type of technology begins to make greater inroads in Asia, North America and Europe.
HONEYWELL SEES CONSIDERABLE LEGS FOR THE SALE of its software-only upgrade to EGPWS, the Runway Awareness and Advisory System (RAAS). This provides audio alerts to warn pilots of a possible error, such as turning onto the wrong runway, by simply reminding the pilot of the name of the runway onto which he is turning. The RAAS system is not mandated, but runway safety is a high priority with regulatory authorities in Europe and the U.S., and many airlines and airports see preventing runway incursions as a key objective.
Britain and France signed a memorandum of understanding last week, to have their defense ministries work together to develop a common baseline aircraft carrier design. The pact covers the demonstration phase.
Chile-based LAN Airlines is continuing to expand in Argentina. LAN Argentina, a subsidiary that began service last year, increased its capacity nearly 50% during the quarter ended Dec. 31 and still managed to achieve load factors of nearly 75%. The Buenos Aires-based operation plans to serve 10 destinations with 14 aircraft by year's end. Merrill Lynch analyst Michael Linenberg predicts LAN Argentina will reach $300 million in revenue and breakeven status this year.
Jim Hamant has been named vice president-product production and distribution and David Schoen vice president-technology development for Bethesda, Md.-based Iridium. Hamant was engineering manager at Orbital Sciences, while Schoen was vice president-technology development for Orbcomm.
SES Global has issued a 650-million-euro, inaugural, five-year, 4% bond as part of a 2-billion-euro medium-term note program. Initially pegged at 500 million euros, the issue was increased after strong investor reaction.
The U.S. NTSB is recommending the FAA require a terrain awareness and warning system be installed on all U.S.-registered turbine-powered helicopters seating at least six passengers. The recommendation stems from the Mar. 23, 2004, night crash of an Era Aviation Sikorsky S-76A++ into the Gulf of Mexico about 70 naut. mi. southeast of Galveston, Tex. All eight passengers and two pilots were killed. The NTSB determined the probable cause was the flight crew's failure to identify and arrest the descent into water.
Three months after losing telemetry with its Hayabusa asteroid mission, the Japanese space agency JAXA has reconnected to it and is methodically warming up its systems in preparation for the start of its return to Earth early next year.
The City of Chicago is interested in exploring the leasing of Midway Airport to a private entity for revenue development. The city was behind an amendment adding Midway to a bill in the Illinois State Senate that extends tax exemptions to a lessor if the city were to engage in a lease.
