Gerard A. (Duke) Dufresne (see photo) has been appointed vice president for Airborne Early Warning and Electronic Warfare Systems for the Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Integrated Systems Sector (ISS), Bethpage, N.Y. He succeeds Philip A. Teel, who is now corporate vice president/president of the Ship Systems Sector. Dufresne was vice president/deputy of ISS' Air Combat Systems, El Segundo, Calif.
World News Roundup 18 London terror attacks have limited effect on air transportation 18 Vickers Vimy recreates 1919 nonstop transatlantic flight 19 Privatization of German ATC provider faces delay due to early election 20 Boeing Wedgetail program will move to mission systems flight tests 20 James Stockdale dies, was Medal of Honor winner, naval aviator, POW Cover Story 28 Deep Impact controllers to set trajec- tory for possible second comet visit
Modeled on low-cost domestic airlines in the U.S. and Europe, four-year-old Gol Linheas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. has captured 27% of the fledgling passenger market in Brazil. Gol--Portuguese for "goal," a play on the immense popularity of soccer in Brazil--was started by the Aurea Group, Brazil's leading bus transportation company. This year, the airline plans to increase seat capacity by 50%, adding 13 planes to its all-Boeing 737 fleet for a total of 40 aircraft.
The conclusion of two mergers--one big, one small--is expected to further consolidate Europe's satellite industry while maintaining multiple sources of supply for institutional buyers. On July 1, Alcatel and Finmeccanica concluded long negotiations to join their space manufacturing and service activities in a move intended, among other things, to reduce overcapacity and fragmentation in the commercial satellite market.
You can now register ONLINE for Aviation Week Events. Go to www.AviationNow.com/conferences or call Lydia Janow at +1 (212) 904-3225/+1 (800) 240-7645 ext. 5 (U.S. and Canada Only) Oct. 18-20--MRO Europe. Estrel Hotel & Convention Center, Berlin. Nov. 8-10--MRO Asia, Suntec City, Singapore. Nov. 14-16--A&D Programs & Productivity Conference, Phoenix. PARTNERSHIPS Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Seminars:
The Mexican navy has taken delivery of two Eurocopter Panther helicopters, part of a contract for two aircraft plus eight options concluded in 2003. The Arriel 2C-powered Panther, the military version of the Dolphin, will be used for coast guard, search and rescue, surveillance, drug enforcement and troop transport.
Andrew J. Schickling (see photos) has been appointed principal director of Navy Space Systems at The Aerospace Corp., El Segundo, Calif. He was principal director of the Space Based Infrared System High Space Segment. Kevin M. Severin has been promoted to principal director of the Network Systems and Services Subdivision in El Segundo from director of the Technology and Architecture Dept. At the company's office in Chantilly, Va., Kevin D. Bell has been named principal director of the Concepts and Applications Directorate, and John E.
Mike Bonds has been named senior vice president-human resources and labor relations for Continental Airlines, succeeding Michael H. Campbell who retired at the end of 2004. Bonds was vice president-human resources.
The Pentagon is considering dropping its goal of maintaining a force capable of fighting two major overlapping conflicts and adopting, instead, a requirement that calls for readiness to fight only a single war at a time.
Another small fry has come under the protection of a big fish in Japan's airline market. Star Flyer, a startup in Kita-Kyushu on Kyushu Island, says All Nippon Airways has taken it on as a regional carrier. Star Flyer expects to begin operations next March using Airbus A320s when a new Kita-Kyushu airport opens. The offshore airport will have a single 2,500-meter (8,200-ft.) runway and will replace a facility that is difficult to approach because of surrounding hills. Star Flyer's initial flights will be to Tokyo.
To submit Aerospace Calendar Listings, Call +1 (212) 904-2421 Fax +1 (212) 904-6068 e-mail: [email protected] July 19-21--International Aviation Safety Management Symposium. Mitre Center for Advanced Aviation System Development, McLean, Va. Call +1 (703) 983-3562 or see www.mitrecaasd.org/safety July 25-27--Institute for Defense and Government Advancement's "Nanotechnology for Defense." Georgetown Conference Center, Washington. Call +1 (800) 882-8684, fax +1 (973) 256-0205 or see www.idga.org
Edmond J. Thomas has become technology policy adviser and a partner in the Washington law firm of Harris, Wiltshire and Grannis. He was chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology at the Federal Communications Commission.
A low-fare airline that has captured more than one-quarter of the passenger market in Brazil is setting its sights on Mexico. Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes and several Mexican partners have unveiled plans to create a low-cost domestic airline in Mexico based on Gol's model. Financial details, and regulatory licenses and routes, still need to be worked out, but Gol says it hopes the yet-to-be-named airline could begin flying in the second quarter of 2006.
The Iraqi air base known to Americans for 15 years as Tallil is, and always has been, named Ali Base by Iraqis. It was an important target for U.S. strike aircraft in 1991 and was quickly occupied in 2003 by coalition troops, becoming their major air base in southern Iraq. It seems it was incorrectly labeled Tallil on Defense Dept. maps. "It's a bit of a mystery," says Lt. Gen. Walter Buchanan, 3rd, chief of U.S. Central Command Air Forces. "We don't know why. . . ." Now the home of the Iraq air force's new C-130 unit, it has been renamed Ali Base by Maj. Gen.
Deep Impact scientists suspect that comet 9P/Tempel 1 has a fluffy makeup that is held together more by gravity than by the cohesiveness of its materials, based on early data from the flyby and strike of the body that kicked up more material than most imagined. The flyby spacecraft and its instruments are in excellent shape after the close pass by the dusty comet. Later this month, controllers will fire thrusters to target an Earth flyby in January 2008, to prepare for a not-yet-approved extended mission, possibly to the comet Boethin.
German low-fare airline DBA faces an uncertain future following majority owner Hinrich Bischoff's decision to pull out of the company this month. DBA bought back Bischoff's 64% stake after only four contentious months involving bitter disputes about union influence and operational standards. The move leaves the company without a financially powerful backer, but Chairman Hans-Rudolf Woehrl insists that this will not affect day-to-day operations.
The Boeing Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft development program will move to mission systems flight tests later this year after completing the basic aircraft performance and flight phase of the evaluation program in California and Arizona.
After waiting out bad weather and a bad part, the Vickers Vimy replica of the first airplane to fly nonstop across the Atlantic has recreated that 1919 flight. Above, the aircraft crosses into Ireland on July 3, just before landing safely on a golf course at Clifden.
THE NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSN. (NBAA) WILL HOST the first Asian Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (Abace) Aug. 9-11 in Shanghai. The purpose of Abace is to place a focus on business aviation in Asia, which is a potentially strong market not only for new airplanes, but also for products and services associated with owning and operating business aircraft in the region. According to the NBAA, more than 40 exhibitors will attend the show. More information can be found at www.abace.aero.
Another round of export control issues has put Boeing in line for fines of up to $47 million for alleged Arms Control Act violations. The State Dept. says Boeing delivered 96 737s to foreign customers starting in 2000 that contained microchips with military applications and, therefore, are subject to export control. At issue is Concord, Calif.-based BEI Technologies' QRS-11 gyrochip, used in the 737's Thales navigation system. The same chip is used by Airbus and others. The State Dept. told Boeing to stop but Boeing disputed its authority to act.
Continuing its effort to reduce Europe's reliance on offshore space hardware, the European Space Agency awarded Saab Ericsson Space two contracts to develop Application Specific Integrated Circuits for future agency programs. ESA wants a Cole chip ASIC that combines a Leon2-FT Sparc processor with bus interface support protocols to handle spacecraft processing/control and to control mass memories and payloads. Saab will also develop a 700,000-gate SpaceWire remote terminal controller for scientific instruments.
UNITED STATES Editor-In-Chief: Anthony L. Velocci, Jr. [email protected] Managing Editor: James R. Asker [email protected] Assistant Managing Editor: Michael Stearns [email protected] Senior Editors: Craig Covault [email protected], David Hughes [email protected] NEW YORK 2 Penn Plaza, 25th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10121 Phone: +1 (212) 904-2000, Fax: +1 (212) 904-6068 Senior News Editor: Nora Titterington
The slump in spaceflight continues, with only 25 orbital launches worldwide through June. That matches the lackluster pace of 2004, which also saw only 25 orbital missions through June and the lowest launch rate overall since 1961 (AW&ST Jan. 31, p. 18). According to Britain's Airclaims consultancy, the bulk of the payloads continues to be carried by three rockets that date their heritage to the dawn of the space age--Soyuz, Proton and the Delta II. Those vehicles serve both government and commercial operators.
Despite its protracted and problem-plagued development, Britain's Nimrod MRA4 represents a tribute to one of aviation's most historic airplanes (AW&ST June 13, p. 94). It has been nearly 56 years since the maiden flight of the de Havilland Comet 1. Although the world's first jet transport was plagued by its own problems after entering service in 1952, the modified Comet 4 became the first transatlantic jetliner in 1958. In another guise, the basic Comet 4 airframe entered service as the Nimrod MR1 maritime reconnaissance aircraft in 1969.
Separately, Thales' D-HUDS head-up display is being flight tested on an A340-600 transport. The system, which has been approved for installation on all Airbus fly-by-wire models, is said to be the first using LCD screen technology to be employed on a commercial transport. The D-HUDS will subsequently be installed on an A380 ultra-widebody and a narrow-aisle unit to complete overall fleet certification.
