The Kremlin is moving quickly to try to assuage concerns over its plan for majority ownership of merged elements in its aerospace industry, while further consolidation of state-owned airlines is also pending.
Major milestones loom for the Russian Regional Jet (RRJ), which should strengthen the industrial underpinning for the project and could lead to an expansion of the aircraft family before even the first prototype flies.
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems is protesting the claim that Northrop Grumman's Global Hawk AV3 has the most combat hours of any UAV. The veteran aircraft logged 200 combat missions and 4,200 combat hours before recently returning to the U.S. GA says it has three Predator As with more than 4,300 combat hours. Predators have accumulated a total of 130,000 hr. in combat and are flying about 5,000 hr. per month.
Airbus's decision on opening a single-aisle final assembly line in China could slip past mid-year. Top EADS officials hope to wrap up discussions on site location and intellectual property protection between June and September. Airbus would assemble four A320-family aircraft per month on the line.
A new FAA airworthiness directive for certain Boeing 777-200s calls for installation of a new washer between the lower wing surface and the jam nut of the sump drain valve assembly. The directive stems from results of the manufacturer's fuel system reviews and is aimed at preventing energy from a lightning strike on the bushing for the sump drain valve from arcing to the inside of the center fuel tank wall. This could lead to an explosion in the tank. The AD takes effect Apr. 13.
The European Commission has approved the Italian government's provision of 25 million euros ($29.75 million) in state aid to help Volare Airlines avoid bankruptcy.
THE TWIRLY BIRDS INDUCTED JIM AND JON KETTLES, both former U.S. Army helicopter pilots, during the Heli-Expo show in Dallas last month. They are sons of long-time member Joe Kettles, who made his first solo helicopter flight at the Army's Camp Wolters in 1958. The elder Kettles is the first general member to have two sons join the organization. Early in the 1970s, Joe Kettles developed an IFR-based, all-weather flight operations program at Petroleum Helicopters that is still used by the company in its support of Gulf Coast offshore oil operations.
There was a Pentagon-inspired detour during a Global Hawk's week-long stay in Australia last month. Usually the long-range UAV only pauses overnight for refueling and maintenance. But this time the high-altitude reconnaissance platform flew over Japan's southwestern Nansei archipelago, which includes the U.S. base on Okinawa, about 1,000 mi. south of Tokyo. Japan is looking at buying the Northrop Grumman product, as is Australia, to expand surveillance and intelligence-gathering capabilities.
Joan Bauerlein, the FAA's director of aviation research and development, has been named to receive the National Public Service Award from the National Academy of Public Administration and American Society for Public Administration. Bauerlein's organization has focused on fire safety and firefighting technology, crashworthiness, airport and runway safety, and weather research. She was cited for steering international collaboration in human factors research that led to the creation and testing of techniques to analyze aviation incidents and runway incursions.
Question: When does diligence in protecting national security actually harm national security? Answer: When a rule grounded in good intentions is applied to ridiculous extremes and thus threatens to disrupt the delivery of weapons needed to protect the nation.
Singapore Airlines' regional arm SilkAir is considering operating smaller aircraft to serve secondary destinations in India, China and Indonesia. SilkAir is said to be analyzing if the savings in purchasing 90-120-seat aircraft will offset the cost of pilot training, maintenance and reduced operating costs. Its fleet comprises seven Airbus A320s and five A319s, which seat 140-150 passengers.
The continued growth of commercial aviation markets in the Asia-Pacific region, led by China and India, is expected to push revenues for flight and technical training simulators to $844 million by year's end. "Companies that find new ways to develop next-generation systems or new methods of pricing aftermarket and training services should experience increases in market share," says a study by consultants Frost and Sullivan, which tracked the market growth.
Snecma is downplaying a challenge from Pratt & Whitney to muscle into the lucrative spare parts market for the popular CFM International CFM56-3 engine, which Snecma builds with General Electric.
Susan J. Mertes has been named director of aviation infrastructure for the Arlington, Va.-based Aerospace Industries Assn. She was director of federal relations and legislative counsel for the American Medical Group Assn. and had been an assistant City of Chicago corporation counsel covering aviation.
Ross Bogue has been named vice president/general manager for Boeing's 747/767/777 programs and the Everett, Wash., site. He succeeds Dan Becker, who plans to retire on Apr. 30. Bogue was vice president/general manager for Boeing Fabrication.
John Langevin has been appointed senior vice president/general manager of Jet Aviation's Teterboro, N.J., fixed base operation. He succeeds Michael Szczechowski, who is now senior vice president/general manager of aircraft management services in the U.S. Langevin was director of FBO services at Teterboro. Rogerio Marques has become vice president-marketing and sales and Luiz Gustavo Ribeiro marketing and sales manager for Jet Aviation in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Market Focus 11 JetBlue stock trading at premium, al- though loss seen for 2006 News Breaks 16 Inquiry boards being formed to de- termine cause of Proton M failure 17 Engine tests ramp up for A400M military transport 18 Soviet-era anti-satellite system seen as basis for satellite launcher 20 Pakistani airline takes delivery of the first Boeing 777-200LR 20 Snecma downplaying challenge from Pratt & Whitney on spares World News & Analysis
Mertz Hanberry has become finance director and treasurer and John Levell planning manager of Orlando, Fla.-based Meads (Medium Extended Air Defense System) International Inc. Both are on assignment from Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. Hanberry succeeds Collin Hiranaka, and Levell follows Ron Westbrook. Both have retired.
British defense technology company Qinetiq is attempting to arouse interest in unmanned aerial vehicles operation through a demonstration project at Parc Aberporth, Wales. The initial three-month program will showcase the utility of three classes of UAVs for commercial and government applications. Both rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft will be flown with 10-kg., 20-kg. and heavier air vehicles in a variety of roles. Potential missions include flood monitoring, pipeline surveillance, crop dusting, traffic management and coastal patrol.
Dassault Systemes of France is acquiring MatrixOne of Westford, Mass., a supplier of 3D modeling and product lifecycle management software, for $408 million. Boeing, Airbus and dozens of other aerospace and defense companies use Dassault Systemes software, including Catia.
Avian flu puts pilots and cabin personnel at risk of infection either in flight or during stops. In either case, treatment should be started within 48 hr. of exposure, although that could be difficult during layovers, warns the International Federation of Airline Pilots Assns. The group is calling on airlines to prepare plans for the potential pandemic. A report from the Finnish Pilots Assn.
Bruce Brody has become vice president-information security at Input, Reston, Va., and Paul Schmitz vice president of Input's Executive Program. Brody was chief information security officer, and Schmitz was federal sector vice president for Gartner's Executive Program.
Scott E. McHugh has been appointed senior vice president-business development for Houston-based Air Security International. He has been manag- ing director/CEO of Sky River Management and was the first federal security director of the Washington Dulles Region for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration. Steven M. Kellner has been named quality control manager for the Intelligence Div. He has been regional security and intelligence director/global intelligence manager with International SOS and was superintendent of intelligence for the U.S. Air Force.
