Brad Herring has been named vice president-operations of Kellstrom Industries, Miramar, Fla. He was general manager of operations at GE Aviation Materials.
The NTSB, at the request of the State Dept., has dispatched a five-member team of investigators to Sudan to assist in the July 31 crash probe of a Russian-built MI-172 helicopter. The accident at New Site, Sudan, killed at least a dozen people, including the country's First Vice President John Garang.
Air Force program managers aren't saying how much the Space Based Infrared System (Sbirs) High missile warning constellation will cost, but it won't be pretty. They've filed a new 25% cost overrun--an earlier 25% notification went to Congress in 2001 and a 15% breach followed in 2004--bringing the program's total well above $10 billion and raising questions about whether USAF actually has the program under control. In May 2002, the Pentagon certified that the program's management was sound and no other viable alternatives existed.
A Harris Interactive poll of 500 disabled persons found that 84% of this group encountered obstacles at U.S. airlines, and 82% reported accessibility problems at airports. The poll was sponsored by The Open Doors Organization, a Chicago-based nonprofit company, in cooperation with the Travel Industry Assn. of America. The 2005 poll focused on the 500 air travelers who were extracted from a broad Harris sample of 50,000 travelers, says Open Doors' executive director, Eric Lipp. Open Doors is advising individual airlines where they stand in an accessibility ranking.
FIXED-BASE OPERATOR SIGNATURE FLIGHT SUPPORT has signed a new, 10-year lease with the Massachusetts Port Authority for operations at Boston's Logan International Airport and plans to build a 10,000-sq.-ft. general aviation terminal facility on the airfield. The building is scheduled for completion next year. Signature has been operating at Logan since 1967.
United Airlines reported improved operating results in the second quarter but slowed progress toward emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, while US Airways' operating profit was cut in half, even as it stayed on track to exit bankruptcy in the fall.
Senior U.S. policymakers need to develop new parameters to test directed energy weapons because existing rules are too limiting for systems like the Airborne Laser (ABL), according to an official in the directed energy community.
German airline Hapagfly (formerly Hapag-Lloyd Flug) is purchasing 10 new Boeing 737-800s with Rockwell Collins programmable audio video entertainment systems and has an option for systems on 10 more aircraft. The system provides overhead video on a 10.4-in. retractable liquid crystal display. It also provides passengers with 22 audio channels.
The EAA AirVenture 2005--at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wis., July 24-30--is an annual event that attracts pilots, aircraft and airplane lovers the world over to explore and salute general aviation. Transport Editor Frances Fiorino visited with air traffic controllers who orchestrate the arrival of up to 1,000 operations daily. Here, a controller shows her airplane-spotting techniques employed at the FAA's Fisk (Wis.) approach control "facility" (see p. 49).
International Space Station operators believe the orbiting laboratory is in good shape to handle another indefinite stretch without space shuttle resupply, after three spacewalks and a lot of internal hauling and stowing by shuttle Discovery astronauts. Discovery is leaving the ISS so mechanically sound and well stocked that managers are going ahead with plans to receive a paying space tourist when the next Russian Soyuz vehicle arrives in the fall, and to increase the crew size to three whenever the next shuttle arrives.
A new U.S. Bureau of Land Management unit designed to hit wildfires hard and fast appears to be delivering excellent results this summer. The BLM's Air Task Force (ATF) combines three Air Tractor AT-802 single-engine air tankers (SEATs; see photo), one helicopter and nine "helitack" firefighters into a team that can deploy to a fire within minutes.
The vulnerabilities of India's overtaxed airport infrastructure were prominently displayed by the worst rains to hit Mumbai in a century, knocking out the main runway at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport for eight days. The flooding was bad enough to close the facility completely on July 26-27, and only skeleton services were being offered through Aug. 3. Aside from the inconvenience and lost revenue, the chaos from this particular storm raised questions about how well India can cope with one of the world's fastest growing aviation industries.
CHINA EASTERN GENERAL AVIATION CORP. (EGAC) will acquire two Sikorsky S-76 helicopters to support offshore missions to oil platforms in the Bohai Bay area of northern China. Both aircraft will be equipped with enhanced ground proximity warning and health usage and monitoring systems. The S-76 has been operating in China since 1984. EGAC, based in Tianjin, is one of three largest offshore operators in the country. The Ministry of Communications flies two S-76s for offshore search-and-rescue missions.
The National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) in Wichita, Kan., is using its human factors laboratory to compile a report to determine if existing information supports higher insurance premiums charged to general aviation pilots over the age of 60. The program is part of an aging pilot study by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Assn. to assess whether the higher premiums are justified. Alex Chapparo, director of the lab, says the research is focusing on documentation regarding age-related changes in sensory, cognitive and motor abilities.
NASA is investigating whether test data--that perhaps could have warned of the shuttle Discovery's external tank debris problem months before launch--was too narrowly interpreted. Although the data was viewed as within specification, questions are being raised about whether it should have been elevated for broader assessment by other safety levels outside of the Michoud, La., assembly facility.
The Russian airline sector is poised for major change, with two large airlines joining forces to form a more powerful carrier. As part of the realignment, management of St. Petersburg's airport also is in flux, along with the operation of some of the Russian government's executive aircraft fleet.
Boeing is selling its fabrication plant in Arnprior, Canada, to Arnprior Aerospace Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Consolidated Industries Inc. of Cheshire, Conn. Terms were not announced. Consolidated is an operating affiliate of American Industrial Acquisition Corp., a closely held firm that has manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Canada and four European countries. The sale fits Boeing's drive to focus on large-scale integration tasks for Boeing Commercial Airplanes and spin off manufacturing operations. Arnprior's 370 employees are expected to be retained.
Why and how did Air France Flight 358 end in a fireball and black smoke? A 35-member, multinational investigation team immediately set out to find the answers. On Aug. 2, the Air France Airbus A340-313 (F-GLZQ) departed Paris Charles De Gaulle (CDG) Airport at 1:32 p.m. local time bound for Toronto with 297 passengers and 12 crewmembers. The flight--which had a 3:53 p.m. EDT estimated arrival time--proceeded uneventfully.
In a deal worth a potential $2 billion, Northwest Airlines says it will power the 18 Boeing 787s it has ordered with the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000. The contract includes Rolls' TotalCare maintenance package. It is the third 787 engine deal for Rolls--in competition with the General Electric GEnx--following orders by All Nippon Airways and Air New Zealand.
Anthony A. Viotto has been appointed executive vice president/chief financial officer and Shane Eddy has been named vice president-customer service and product support/deputy chief service officer for Bell Helicopter Textron of Fort Worth. Viotto was vice president-business management integration for the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., also in Fort Worth. Eddy was executive director for commercial helicopter programs.
The air navigation service providers (ANSPs) in the U.K. and Spain are forming a joint venture to develop a new air traffic management system that can be used in their respective nations. Partners National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and Aeropeurtos Espanoles y Navegacion Aerea (AENA) will initially collaborate to develop the Sistema Automatizado de Control Transito Aereo (SACTA) to manage air traffic operations in Spain. The system will also be capable of handling future requirements in Britain.
Capt. Allender is on the button with his comments about the new P-8A needing to have a more realistic mission profile (AW&ST July 25, p. 6). Yes, the ability to loiter at medium level will be important in some tactical situations, but any new Maritime aircraft that wants a serious ASW role must also have the capability to spend extended periods down in the localization levels, invariably below 5,000 ft.--and sometimes down below 1,000--where the data from sensors such as MAD might be needed for a final attack solution.
The European Commission has given approval for EADS to acquire Nokia's professional mobile radio (PMR) business. The proposed sale, announced in April, has been under anti-trust scrutiny. A central element of the deal is the Tetra-based secure communications system used by security forces. The commission determined the sale would not "significantly impede" competition. By acquiring the PMR activity, EADS will be able to compete more effectively, according to the commission.
Daniel J. McClain (see photo) has become corporate director of media relations for the Northrop Grumman Corp. at its Los Angeles headquarters. He succeeds Frank Moore, who is now director of communications for the company's Information Technology Sector, McLean, Va. McClain was director of communications for Northrop Grumman's Space Technology Sector, Redondo Beach, Calif.
