Boeing has won two design contracts worth a total of almost $7 million for vertical takeoff and landing concepts--one dual-rotor and one quad-rotor (see below)--for the Joint Heavy Lift program. The company's Phantom Works is proposing the advanced tandem-rotor helicopter (ATRH) for the low-speed category (160-200 kt.) while Bell Helicopter Textron and Phantom Works are teaming on the QuadTiltrotor (QTR) as a high-speed (250-kt.-plus) entry. The designs will be refined over 18 months.
The 15th Reconnaissance Sqdn., which carries the major combat load for Predator unmanned aircraft in Iraq and Afghanistan, will soon begin splitting into multiple units--reserve, active duty, Air National Guard, special operations and, perhaps one day, even homeland defense. But it won't be fast enough to alleviate the pain of sustained operations on the limited number of aircrews that fly them and operate their sensors.
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The swell of activity to realign German aerospace and defense business is likely to lead to fewer, but stronger companies and could reshape EADS by giving the aerospace giant a broader portfolio.
USAF Brig. Gen. (select) Paula G. Thornhill has been named principal director of special plans for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs in the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs at the Pentagon. She has been special assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Brig. Gen. (select) David E. Price has been promoted to director from deputy director of financial management/comptroller for headquarters of the Air Force Materiel Command, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
Bill Boulton has won the Distinguished Volunteer Pilot Award from the Washington-based National Aeronautic Assn. for his work with Angel Flight Inc. in Oklahoma. This group provides free air transportation to needy patients who must travel for medical reasons. Boulton has flown more than 150 flights, spending 2,000 hr. transporting patients needing help. He also pays for all costs out of his own pocket. Stephan Fopeano of Los Angeles won the Distinguished Volunteer Award.
Greek officials aren't giving up yet on the beleaguered flag-carrier Olympic Airlines. The airline is signaling it will appeal a European Commission ruling that would force it to pay back government loans that the EC deemed illegal state aid. Moreover, the York Capital/Olympic Investors group that was looking to buy the airline says it hasn't abandoned hope. While there's concern over the financial setback the EC ruling--if it stands--would bring, it doesn't necessarily mean the privatizing initiative will die, says a representative for the potential investors.
AAR Corp.'s sales increased 22% to $200 million, and its income soared 109% to $5.3 million, in the fiscal quarter ended Aug. 31. The aircraft maintenance and services company said its sales in Asia rose 45%.
Dassault Aviation says it is negotiating its first business jet sale in China, for which it is currently certifying its entire Falcon line. The company considers China to be a strong potential market, although one that will "only develop over time." Separately, the company's third and last Falcon 7X flight-test aircraft took to the air as the ultra-long-range bizjet remained on target for late-2006 certification. The unit, equipped with a production standard cabin interior, will be used for noise testing.
A National Research Council independent committee of air traffic control specialists and other aerospace industry veterans is calling for a reorganization of the Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO) integrated product teams, an increase in staffing and more collaborative research with overseas institutions. Collaborative projects, funded by U.S. and foreign governments, would define operational concepts for global implementation of a modernized air traffic management system. The idea is to keep systems compatible, with common standards and aircraft equipment.
Have you ever dreamed of flying in a MiG-29? Floating in zero gravity? Or feeling the pressure of G-forces in a dogfight? Many of you have had these experiences, but many more only dream of them.
Kuwait's first private carrier, Jazeera Airways, is planning to launch service on Nov. 16. It will operate 30 weekly round trips to Dubai, Damascus, Amman, Beirut and Bahrain. The carrier expects to increase round trips to 75 weekly to include Egypt, India and Southeast Asia destinations. Jazeera has placed a firm order for four Airbus A320s and four options, which will be powered by CFM56-5Bs. Two A320s are scheduled for delivery by November and two in 2006.
Meanwhile, another pair of stock analysts say concerns about possible cuts to the F/A-22 and Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) jets in the Pentagon's Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) may be overblown. S.G. Cowen & Co.'s Cai von Rumohr and Jay Khetani say cancellation of the pricey F/A-22 is unlikely because the aircraft already is in initial production. They also think the QDR will reaffirm the need for U.S. air superiority to counter China's growing military capabilities. And, while budget pressures could force the U.S.
Ryanair anticipates its passengers will fly for free, once ancillary revenues have picked up to compensate for the income shortfall. "We have another 40 euros ($48) to go," CEO Michael O'Leary said at the World Low-Cost Airlines Congress in Amsterdam, referring to the carrier's average yields. "It's our vision that the actual flight will be free."
Telenor has contracted with Orbital Sciences Corp. for the delivery and launch of a new communications satellite. The 24-transponder K u-band unit, Thor II-R, is to be delivered in 26 months and launched by an International Launch Services Proton rocket, subject to the conclusion of a launch contract.
The government is in talks with Boeing and Lockheed Martin to determine how to transfer the former's work on a multibillion-dollar contract to develop secret imaging satellites to Lockheed Martin for a quick turnaround, according to sources familiar with the issue.
Europe's Neuron unmanned combat aerial vehicle program could receive a seventh partner. Dassault Aviation Chairman/CEO Charles Edelstenne says Belgium is due to sign on by year's end, in time for industrial involvement in the Dassault-led endeavor. Sweden is also expected to be on board by December, joining France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Greece in the undertaking, which has posted the goal of having a demonstrator flying by 2010.
The Italian government is set to sign up for the U.S. Navy's P-8A Multimission Maritime Aircraft by year-end and, with it, could commit the country to buying new airborne early warning aircraft. Italy remains the Pentagon's last prospect to bring in a foreign partner for the MMA's systems design and development phase. Australia and Canada had contemplated partner status, but withdrew owing to budget problems. Both are still likely customers for the aircraft, however. In the interim, they've opted to extend the life of their P-3-based maritime patrol fleets.
The National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) has completed a $3-million upgrade to its crash dynamics laboratory and now has the ability to operate the facility for up to 18 hr. a day. A major part of the upgrade was installation of an MTS accelerator sled that is capable of replicating any type of crash pulse at speeds up to 50 mph. with a 1,500-kg. (3,307-lb.) payload. According to NIAR, the sled can be adjusted for impact peak profiles up to 65g.
FedEx Corp.'s revenue rose 10% to $7.7 billion in the fiscal quarter ended Aug. 31. Net income increased 3% from the same period a year earlier, to $339 million.
China is clearly a big driver in the future aircraft market, with suppliers offering only slightly different perspectives on how big it really is. In Rolls-Royce's estimation, there is a market for 2,300 new aircraft in the next two decades, 52% of them widebodies. That's almost twice the global average, the engine maker noted at the Aviation Expo in China.
The Pentagon is planning to earmark new funds beginning in Fiscal 2007 to increase the number of Army intelligence officers--many specializing in human intelligence--by 5,000 in five years, says Letitia Long, the top resources official working for the undersecretary of Defense for intelligence. She notes that the Navy and Marines are also adding to their human intelligence rosters, although the Air Force has more work to do.
Robert Huggins has become director of federal systems for Atlanta-based ILC. He was director of the government sales team for the Harris Corp.'s Network Support Div.
David M. Davis has become senior vice president-finance/controller for Northwest Airlines. He succeeds Jeff Putnam, who has resigned. Davis was chief financial officer of Houston-based Kraton Polymers and had been executive vice president-finance/CFO of US Airways.
