Saab is anxiously awaiting the Swedish government's decision on joining the multinational Neuron unmanned combat aircraft program, expected by the end of November. Company officials view participation as important for its long-term prospects. Sweden has verbally committed to Neuron, but an intergovernmental dispute has held up funding to allow the country to become formally involved. To breach the disagreement between members of the ruling coalition party, a quick-turn study has been commissioned to examine alternatives.
The British Defense Ministry has short-listed three companies in its effort to rationalize support of air-launched weapons. The air-launched munitions integrated project team is awarding an availability-based contract to an industry prime for the final leg of its three air-weapons pillars. It already has partnering contracts with MBDA covering the Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile, Air-Launched Anti-Radiation Missile and Brimstone, and with Raytheon for the AIM-120 Amraam, plus the Paveway and Maverick families of weapons.
The U.S. Air Force has taken delivery of the first 100 of 410 KC-135s being modified by Rockwell Collins with the Global Air Traffic Management (GATM) cockpit. The upgrade not only corrects shortfalls in flight-deck equipment needed for current operations with air traffic control but prepares the aircraft for future mandates in Communication/ Navigation/Surveillance and Air Traffic Management, according to Brig. Gen. Bob McMahon, the director of logistics for the USAF Air Mobility Command.
Oneworld alliance chief executives last week made good on a recent promise to start growing the membership after several years of stasis, when they announced that Japan Airlines and Royal Jordanian Airlines would join, plugging two key holes in the group's network.
Raytheon Aircraft Co. has received FAA certification of the Beechcraft Premier 1A business jet. An upgraded version of the Premier 1, the 1A features a redesigned cabin interior, the addition of an integrated flight information system to the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics package, improved brake and anti-skid systems, a "lift dump on demand" control and lower landing approach reference speeds.
I am tired of the use of the derogatory term "legacy carrier" to refer to the major airlines that are in financial difficulty. They have route networks and demands placed upon them that industry coverage ignores.
Continental Airlines, which has been chosen by the U.S. Transportation Dept. over Delta Air Lines to operate daily nonstop flights between the U.S. and Argentina, plans to launch round trip service from Houston to Buenos Aires on Dec. 14. Continental is new to the market, unlike Delta, American and United. Delta operates daily round trips from Atlanta, into which it feeds passengers from more than 160 U.S. points. Originating its Houston-Buenos Aires flights at Newark, Continental will offer connections to 80 destinations beyond Houston.
U.S. and European officials say progress was made on recent open skies talks in the first meeting since negotiations stalled last year, although an agreement on cargo is lagging. In the cargo realm, so-called seventh-freedom rights, allowing one carrier to fly from the territory of another country to a third one, are at issue. The U.S. has seventh-freedom agreements with some EU members and wants a union-wide deal, says John Byerly, deputy assistant secretary of State for Transportation Affairs.
The crash of a Nigerian Bellview Boeing 737-200 killed 117 on board Oct. 22. The aircraft went down a few minutes after takeoff from Lagos, about 20 mi. north of the airport. The Pratt & Whitney JT8D-powered aircraft was headed to Abuja on a domestic flight. It was the first accident for Bellview, which operates four other 737s and two 767-200s. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched a team to aid in the inquiry. The black boxes have been recovered.
A combined air-and-land operation in Pakistan is the largest ever entrusted to NATO's new quick-reaction force and raises new questions about the utility of a similar force created by the European Union.
Eurocontrol, the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation, is developing a Web-based training package aimed at providing air traffic management personnel with information and education about environmental issues that face commercial aviation and air traffic management.
In another sign of offshoring on the rise in the aerospace industry, a pair of companies announced plans to open aircraft parts-manufacturing plants in the central Mexican city of Queretaro. Bombardier Inc. says it will invest $200 million to open a facility that is expected at first to make wiring harnesses for Bombardier aircraft, which undergo final assembly in Canada and the U.S.
Nasdaq has informed struggling Independence Air that its stock will be delisted in 90 days, unless publicly traded shares reach a minimum aggregate market value of $15 million. The airline's shares were trading for less than 20 cents last week, down from $1.50 a year ago and $10 early in 2004 when the carrier operated as a regional affiliate of United Airlines and Delta Air Lines.
The FAA has begun full operations of the Lockheed Martin advanced technologies and oceanic procedures (ATOP) system at its center in Oakland, Calif. ATOP eliminates many manual procedures and allows controllers of traffic over the Pacific Ocean to handle requests for route changes with greater flexibility. New York Center's ATOP system became operational earlier this year and a more advanced version of the system is expected to start operations in Anchorage next spring.
Austrian Airlines is facing uncertain times, after the airline said it expects a big loss for 2005 and CEO Vagn Soerensen told the board he will not extend his contract beyond next year. Soerensen, a 45-year-old former SAS Group executive, said the reasons for his decision were of a purely private nature. After 20 years abroad, he wants to return to his home country, Denmark, with his family.
Eiichiro Sekigawa, an aviation journalist and author whose knowledge of Japanese aviation history made him an invaluable contributing editor to this magazine for more than 25 years, died on Oct. 18 after a long battle with cancer. He was 79. "Seki," as he was affectionately known by the magazine's staff, was born in Kyoto and attended Kyoto University. His earliest employment was with the Kyoto municipal government, but he soon found his calling in aviation journalism.
Chalmers H. (Slick) Goodlin, a Bell test pilot who, because of a pay dispute, forfeited his chance to become the first man to break the sound barrier, died Oct. 20 of cancer at home in West Palm Beach, Fla. He was 82.
As an aircraft mechanic at US Airways, I have seen firsthand the results of cost-cutting. All airline CEOs should take to heart the article about maintenance at American Airlines (AW&ST Oct. 10, p. 56). When a financial crisis hits an airline, cost-cutting comes first. The first target is almost always aircraft maintenance, with the thought that we'll catch up later. While this may provide quick cash, it creates problems that are more expensive to fix.
All Weather Inc. is upgrading local aviation facilities at Phu Bai Airport in Thua Thien Hue Province, Vietnam, with a Series 900 Automated Weather Observation System (AWOS). The system is part of a larger plan to expand the airport's ability to handle more tourist and trade traffic for Hue. AWOS features dual wind sensors that use ultrasonic technology to provide continuous operation during inclement weather as well as laser ceilometers that simultaneously detect and measure cloud height up to 25,000 ft.
Single-class business carrier Eos has begun operation of its New York JFK-London Stansted route. The airline is using Boeing 757s in a 48-seat cabin configuration. The move is to be followed by an all-business operation between Amsterdam and Houston flown by Privatair for KLM. The six weekly flights will use a new 737-700 in a 44-seat configuration.
Former Senate staffer Winslow Wheeler, known for his sometimes renegade views, suggests the Senate Appropriations Committee's attempt to publicly rein in President Bush's defense spending is more sleight of hand than good budgeting. The panel's defense subcommittee claimed in a press release it cut $7 billion from the president's budget request. But Wheeler notes that the subcommittee shifted several procurement, research and operations and maintenance items that would usually be in the Title X budget into Title IX.
News Breaks 18 USAF developing unmanned helicopter for spraying insects 18 Iran joins space club with launch of multinational payload 19 AW&ST's Japan-based contributing editor, Eiichiro Sekigawa, dies 20 Obituary for X-1 test pilot Chalmers H. (Slick) Goodlin World News & Analysis 22 New Pentagon study could spell doom for C-17, C-130J production 24 USAF space programs in crosshairs during Fiscal 2006 budget talks
Maver Mayuga, product research and development officer for Philippine Airlines, has been elected president of the McLean, Va.-based World Airline Entertainment Assn. for the 2005-06. He succeeds Kent D. Craver, manager of onboard product marketing and research for Continental Airlines. Other new officers are: vice president, Dee Brady, inflight entertainment programming manager for British Airways; secretary, Sue Pinfold, director of business operations for Spafax; and treasurer, Sylvia Arndt, director of interactive software engineering for Panasonic Avionics Corp.
Boeing is promoting the 747 Advanced well ahead of the next evolution of its 787 in terms of product launch, in part because the engines for the mid-size twin haven't evolved enough to allow for a sensible stretch version. This year, Boeing hopes to launch the 747 Advanced, a stretched update of the 747-400 seating 50 more passengers, with multiple customer orders. "We are pretty confident," says Randy Baseler, Boeing Commercial Airplane's vice president for marketing.
Italian defense budget cuts will hit pending procurement, with planned maritime and airborne early warning aircraft acquisition efforts likely delayed. The defense ministry's mid-year ambitions to secure 21 billion euros ($25.2 billion), has already been thwarted, with the proposed budget now at 19.5 billion euros. There will be more budgetary discussions that could see this further reduced to 17. 5 billion euros.
