The U.S. Missile Defense Agency chief recently gave Boeing the nod to disassemble its Airborne Laser from a ground-based lab and reassemble it on the 747-400 testbed.
TAM Brazilian Airlines has selected the CFM International CFM56-5B to power its fleet of 25 new Airbus A320- family aircraft. The airline also has options with CFMI to equip 20 more of the aircraft type.
As we close the books on 2005, on behalf of our Aviation Week & Space Technology staff, I would like to thank our readers and advertisers for your loyalty and support.
Astronaut Stephen Robinson stands on the space shuttle Discovery's robot arm during STS-114. Soichi Noguchi/JAXA Astronaut Leroy Chiao wears a Russian Orlan suit for an extravehicular activity during International Space Station Expedition 10. Salizhan S. Sharipov/Roscosmos Cassini image of the icy moon Dione, with Saturn behind and the rings below, seen almost edge-on. NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
Jeppesen, a Boeing company, and Airbus have agreed to make Jeppesen electronic flight bag software and data available on A320, A330, A340 and A380 aircraft. The two have been working for a year to make Jeppesen terminal charts and en route moving maps available on Airbus aircraft. Now airlines that fly both Boeing and Airbus aircraft fitted with Class 3 EFBs will be able to select Jeppesen software and data for both fleets.
Singapore has signed a deal with Boeing to buy 12 F-15SGs (previously designated the F-15T). The F-15 beat the Dassault Rafale earlier this year, after the Eurofighter Typhoon was knocked out of the competition early. Deliveries of F-15SGs are scheduled to take place in 2008-09. c
In a contract valued at more than $240 million, Korean Air will use the General Electric GEnx engines to power its fleet of 10 Boeing 787s. It holds another 10 options.
The SAS Group is selling 67% of repair and material provider SAS Component Group to Singapore Technologies Engineering for about 2.6 billion euros ($3.12 billion). The two also are discussing the sale of ST Aerospace's European operation to SAS Component.
Lockheed Martin plans to build a 400-ft.-long airship prototype that could provide the primary platform for ballistic and cruise missile defenses for the U.S. or a foreign battlefield.
Painting and photography are juxtaposed on this week's cover. Norm Siegel's gouache painting, "Catching the Ring," sits atop astronaut Soichi Noguchi's photograph taken during space shuttle Discovery mission STS-114. Our annual art and photography special issue features the winners from the Aviation Week & Space Technology Photo Contest and the American Society of Aviation Artists' Aerospace Art Awards exhibition. Cover design by the AW&ST Art Dept.
The European Court of Justice of First Instance has upheld a July 2001 ruling barring General Electric from acquiring Honeywell, which eventually caused the takeover to unravel. GE and Honeywell had asked the court to annul the decision, as it later did in a series of European Commission merger findings, including one in 2002 that struck down a 1999 ruling involving U.K. charter airlines Air Tours and First Choice (AW&ST Nov. 11, 2002, p. 24).
After five major cost overruns in as many years on its Space-Based Infrared Sensor High missile early warning system, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne says the Pentagon is holding the fourth and fifth geosynchronous satellites "hostage" until the first three prove their utility.
Braking is a puzzle in the Southwest Airlines runway overrun at Chicago-Midway airport on Dec. 8. The crew set the automatic braking selector to maximum, and told NTSB investigators the system activated after a firm touchdown. But later the captain flying the Boeing 737-700 noticed the aircraft was not decelerating normally and he and the copilot applied maximum manual braking. The flight data recorder (FDR) shows autobrakes and manual brakes provided high brake pressure throughout the landing roll. To confuse the issue, Southwest policy is not to use autobrakes.
47 PHOTO CONTEST BEST OF BEST 48 SPACE 51 GENERAL 54 CIVIL 58 MILITARY 62 WINNERS AND JUDGES 64 HONORABLE MENTION 108 ASAA ART AWARDS 122 ASAA HONORABLE MENTION Cessna seaplane beached on the sands of Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas, Florida. Edward Fisher, Atlantic Beach, N.Y.
Sales at aviation composite supplier Hexcel Corp. are up 10% from a year ago and Chairman/CEO David E. Berges thinks the civil aircraft industry's rebound is gathering strength. "This time we have [demand from] China and India and Eastern Europe," he notes confidently. Precision weapons and space systems contractor Alliant Techsystems also is posting healthy sales gains, but its chairman/CEO anticipates more challenging times. "We're not going into flush years for the Defense Dept. or NASA," says Daniel J. Murphy.
The Missile Defense Agency's chief says his confidence in a developmental--and recently troubled--system designed to protect the U.S. from ballistic missiles has increased after its first successful interceptor launch in more than a year.
The fallout from the crash of a DC-9 operated by Nigeria's Sosoliso Airlines on Dec. 10 has elevated to the highest political levels concerns over the lack of aviation safety standards in the country. The crash killed all but one of the 110 people on board. Most perished when the aircraft struck the runway on its approach to Port Harcourt from Abuja, although several died later from sustained injuries. Voice and cockpit data recorders have been recovered and sent to the British Air Accident Investigation Branch for review. The U.S.
Lufthansa German Airlines is expected to kick off a competition soon for 100-seat regional jets, to replace aging equipment in service and expand its fleet. Lufthansa's regional jet plans have been in flux since it canceled an order for 60 Fairchild Dornier 728JETs. But now it is expected to move into high gear, according to industry officials. The carrier is likely to issue a request for proposals in the coming weeks, with a fleet decision to be announced in May or June.
