The history of the aerospace industry in the 20th century provides a good lesson for industries that are wondering what to expect in the 21st century. In the 20th century, breakthroughs in aviation created the opportunity to move people and goods efficiently over very great distances. As a result, the aerospace industry boomed, both in the U.S. and in other countries. Bill Gates has referred to aviation as the "World Wide Web of the 20th century." It was the aerospace industry that led the way to the flattening of the modern world.
Recognizing the political problems that a nuclear bunker-busting weapon presents, and the near impossibility of approval for its operational use, Washington-based researchers say the Defense Dept. is exploring a new approach. The Pentagon is looking at the feasibility of high-power microwave (HPM) bomb designs to attack deeply buried and hardened targets.
British politicians and industry executives are trying to forge a fundamental long-term Joint Strike Fighter maintenance and support partnership with the U.S. The British gambit aims to secure "sovereignty of operation" on its 80-150 Joint Combat Aircraft (JCA) requirement, for which it plans to buy the JSF. Ken Krieg, U.S. undersecretary of Defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, met earlier this month with Peter Spencer, the British procurement chief, and the JSF was high on the agenda.
Both the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japanese Aerospace Research Agency (JAXA) are working on small capsules to bring scientific samples and other high-value cargo back from the International Space Station once the U.S. space shuttle retires in 2010. Without the capacious shuttle cargo bay to return samples to terrestrial laboratories, the scientific value of the microgravity conditions on the ISS would be greatly diminished. ESA alone expects an annual down-mass requirement of more than 600 kg.
Air New Zealand has doubled its order for Boeing 787s by taking an additional two Rolls-Royce Trent 1000-powered aircraft in a deal valued at $260 million at list prices.
U.S. defense spending in Fiscal 2005 exceeded $500 billion, more than seven times that of its closest competitor. Trailing in a distant second was China, followed by Russia, France and Japan rounding out the top five big spenders. Militaries are investing in fewer new programs as their Cold War fleets age, and maintenance, repair and overhaul has emerged as a lucrative venture.
NASA has delayed the launch of a pair of cloud-observing satellites until Nov. 7. Calipso, jointly funded by French space agency CNES, and CloudSat, a cooperative effort with the Canadian Space Agency, were to be orbited by a Delta II booster from Vandenberg AFB, Calif.
The NASA Stennis Space Center in Mississippi is resuming space shuttle main engine (SSME) firing tests that were suspended in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. A 520-sec. SSME test Oct. 25 continued the certification of an advanced health monitoring system (AW&ST July 11 p. 56). Meanwhile, the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station are completing clean-up of minor damage from Hurricane Wilma, which struck on Oct. 24.
Northwest Cargo, the largest freighter operation among U.S. major passenger airlines, is adding its considerable capacity to the SkyTeam Cargo alliance, which includes Aeromexico, Air France, Korean Air, Delta Air Logistics, Alitalia and CSA. In 2003, without Northwest and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines participating, the alliance produced revenues of nearly $6 billion. KLM joined the alliance last year after its merger with Air France. Northwest's 8,700 daily cargo flights will boost capacity. Its 14 Boeing 747 freighters will improve services to East Asia.
Scientists are optimistic that ESA will approve a further two-year extension for the Integral gamma-ray observatory. Launched Oct. 17, 2002, for a nominal period of 26 months, the observatory's gamma-/X-ray and optical payload is already in an extended phase and is still making important discoveries. For example, working in combination with ESA's XMM-Newton X-ray observatory, Integral found the first direct evidence of X-ray emissions from the massive black hole at the center of our galaxy.
It's not easy being on top of the world. Sometimes there's nowhere to go but down. Just ask Aviall Inc., one of Wall Street's hottest aviation plays this year. Aviall, which sells aircraft replacement parts made by original equipment manufacturers, announced a 13% increase in third-quarter sales from a year earlier, to $334 million, and a 37% hike in earnings. The market's response: a sell-off that sent the company's stock price tumbling about 15%.
Top-ranking Royal Air Force officers were confronted with an unpalatable truth--billions of pounds short for combat aircraft maintenance--they faced cutting the Tornado GR4 fleet by 40%.
Frederick L. Ricker (see photos) has been appointed vice president and deputy for programs, David L. Ryan vice president/program director for the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System, James M. Myers vice president-sensors and payloads and Stuart T. Linsky vice president-satellite communications, all for the Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Space Technology sector, Redondo Beach, Calif. Ryan has been succeeded by Myers, who in turn has been succeeded as vice president-satellite communications by Linsky.
Production of Japan's largest indigenously developed defensive system, the F-2 close air support fighter, validates Japan's ability to produce source code for the aircraft's fly-by-wire control system. It also has given Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) hands-on experience in working through difficult composite design and production problems that will serve it well as it undertakes the commercial assignment of producing composite wingboxes for the Boeing 787.
Overstretched communications lines to ground units supporting NATO missions in Afghanistan and other external theaters of operation will soon receive a welcome boost from a new French military communications satellite.
NASA's Kennedy Space Center has approved Zero Gravity Corp. for use of the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) runway for shakedown flights Nov. 5-6. The private company will demonstrate its ability to operate the 15,000-ft. runway, its airspace, air traffic control and hangar facilities as a base for commercial simulated microgravity aircraft flights. The company will employ its Boeing 727 primarily to fly teachers who can use the experience of repeated parabolic loops to simulate about 30 sec. of zero-g, lunar or Mars gravity to assist in classroom presentations.
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The Washington-based Air Transport Assn. and FAA have named members of the winning team for the FAA-ATA Nondestructive Testing "Better Way" Award. The award was established to recognize a team of government and airline industry individuals who developed and applied a technology, technique, process or policy to advance inspection or testing of aircraft structure, aircraft components or aircraft systems.
U.S. astronauts will still be able to conduct long-duration missions on the International Space Station under an amendment to the five-year-old Iran Non-Proliferation Act (INA) adopted by the House last week. The Senate passed a similar measure Sept. 21. Under a compromise worked out by the House, Senate and White House, the Senate is expected to pass the House version and send it to President Bush for his signature. Without the amendment, NASA would have been blocked from using the ISS after its original agreement with Russia expires in April 2006.
Southwest Airlines, which will launch service in Denver on Jan. 3 (see p. 44), will add 49 flights in 42 city-pairs, some current and some new, on Nov. 12 and Feb. 5. The carrier continues to take delivery of Boeing 737-700 aircraft and faces several months of less-than-optimum aircraft utilization because it had to suspend operations at New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. Eight of the new flights will involve New Orleans, which Southwest says is its top-priority city for expanded service.
Seattle-based Horizon Air has converted seven options for Q400 turboprops into firm orders and added five more in a deal valued at $294 million at list prices. Deliveries are set for the fourth quarter of 2006. In addition, Caribbean Aircraft Leasing will acquire three Q300 turboprops. Deliveries are set for the second quarter of 2006.
The U.S. Air Force is said to be backing off its earlier plan to persuade senior Pentagon leaders to buy 381 Lockheed Martin F/A-22s, enough to round out 10 squadrons and provide airframes for attrition reserve. Seeing a budget crunch on the horizon, the Air Force is now considering a push for about 300 Raptors, higher still than the 180 already in the budget. Meanwhile, top Pentagon leaders are considering the fate of the Joint Strike Fighter, also manufactured by Lockheed Martin, in the Quadrennial Defense Review. Under then-Chief of Staff Gen.
USAF Gen. Lance Smith, the deputy chief of U.S. Central Command, will take over U.S. Joint Forces Command based in Norfolk, Va. He also will be supreme allied commander of transformation. Lt. Gen. Daniel P. Leaf has been appointed deputy commander of U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii. He has been vice commander of Air Force Space Command, Peterson AFB, Colo. Maj. Gen. Loyd S. Utterback has been named deputy commander of Pacific Air Forces, Hickam AFB, Hawaii. He has been commander of the Second Air Force, Air Education and Training Command, Keesler AFB, Miss.
The industry consortium slated to build NATO's airborne ground surveillance equipment has completed a 22-million-euro ($26.5-million) study to coordinate development of the total system with that of the radar. The results last week went to NATO as part of a meeting of national armaments directors. The Alliance Ground Surveillance project is supposed to yield a mixed fleet of Airbus A321s and Global Hawk UAVs fitted with a modular synthetic aperture radar. Most of the program activity has been focused on coordinating industrial efforts.
