The British government and industry are attempting to inject impetus into a joint strategic aerospace program by reshuffling top management, while the launch of possibly two demonstrator projects is eagerly awaited. The government last week announced it is setting up a leadership council to drive forward the recommendations of its Aerospace Innovation and Growth Team (AIGT) report.
To no one's surprise, a team headed by the Air Traffic Alliance (Airbus, Thales and EADS) will lead Europe into the 21st century with a makeover of its air traffic management system. It seems inconceivable that a team led by the premier civil and military aerospace companies in Europe could possibly have lost such a bid, and in fact no one has revealed if there was even another team bidding on the project. BAE Systems of the U.K., Indra of Spain and Selex Sistemi Integrati of Italy are also on the Sesame team that won.
India and Ukraine will cooperate in space research under a memorandum of understanding reached during a visit to Dnipropetrovsk by Indian President Abdul Kalam. The agreement renews a collaboration that dates to the Soviet-era launches of India's Aryabhat, Bhaskar-I and Bhaskar-II satellites as India's space program was getting under way in the mid-1970s.
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The European Commission is widening the scope of an inquiry launched in October 2003 concerning zero-interest state loans the Italian government has provided to national aerospace companies to help finance research and development. The review now encompasses every civil program financed since November 2002. The EC wants to determine if projects were eligible for the aid they received and if the loans have been repaid.
The market for turbofan engines is projected to generate $165.9 billion during the period 2005-14, when 53,514 engines could be manufactured, according to a study conducted by Forecast International. Growth in the new Very Light Jet segment of the business jet market is expected to continue during the period and Pratt & Whitney's PW600-series engine is poised to be the "major benefactor," according to Will Alibrandi, Aero Gas Turbine analyst.
Michael A. Dornheim (El Mirage Dry Lakebed, Calif.)
People have long dreamed of perpetual flight, and the tipping point was reached earlier this month when a solar-powered drone stayed aloft for 48 hr. It showed that enough energy could be stored during the day to fly the aircraft at night, for at least several days. All that's needed are small, near-term improvements in technology to tip this feat into flights lasting reliably for months. One application, albeit much harder, would be as a radio tower in the sky, giving line-of-sight access across a city.
The Swedish military wants to buy a tactical unmanned aircraft system to support its expanding European security commitment. The procurement initiative that should unfold in the coming months makes Sweden the latest of several European countries to enter a UAV renewal cycle. After having bought tactical UAV systems in the 1990s when those started to gain popularity with Western militaries, several countries--such as France, the U.K. and now Sweden--are looking for replacement systems that better fit future needs.
Airbus has raised list prices across its product line. The prices, which typically are above what airlines actually pay, increased about 3% on average. For the new A350-800, the list price has gone up to $158.6 million from $153.5 million. The most expensive aircraft, the A380, now commands a list price of up to $302 million.
L-3 Communications has received an order to provide two high-energy X-ray cargo inspection systems for use at New Bangkok International Airport in Thailand.
General Atomics has received a $30.8-million USAF contract for Predator ground stations, including two equipped to control multiple aircraft and six containerized digital control segments. U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan are limited to six orbits because there are only six "cockpits" available at Nellis AFB, Nev., from which the Predators are controlled during the combat operations. The company also captured a $72.7-million contract add-on for accelerated delivery of 17 MQ-1L Block 10 Predators, support equipment and spares.
Thales and EADS have concluded long-term cooperation deals with French defense R&D agency Onera and France's national science research organization CNRS, respectively--part of a growing trend in Europe toward integrating industry, government and academic research efforts. The Thales/Onera agreement will cover airborne systems, ground radar, weapon/missile systems, optronics and air traffic management. EADS and CNRS will work on materials and structural engineering, electronics and onboard systems.
Lufthansa Systems and Garuda Indonesia have launched Lufthansa Systems Indonesia, a joint venture to develop IT solutions for the airline industry in Southeast Asia. Garuda Indonesia will be the first airline in Asia to use new programs developed by Lufthansa Systems for inventory, revenue management, pricing, reservations, check in and crew deployment.
NASA settles--from the top--a touchy issue that has divided the panel overseeing its plans to start flying the space shuttle again. Administrator Mike Griffin says the shuttle Discovery will fly with existing thermal protection repair capabilities, regardless of whether it meets the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) recommendation of what is "practicable." "We're going to have to sign up to launch Discovery and Eileen Collins and her crew without having met that recommendation because we can't," Griffin tells the Space Transportation Assn.
The SaM146 engine being developed for Sukhoi's Russian Regional Jet could be offered for Bombardier's new C-Series transport line, which is having trouble finding an engine maker willing to fund the project, but it might run up against power limitations (AW&ST June 20, p. 29). Michel Dechelotte, Chairman/CEO of Snecma-Saturn engine venture PowerJet, which is developing the SaM-146, said in Paris that the engine will be certified at 17,500 lb.
The chances of nailing down contracts for demonstration/validation and operation of the Galileo satellite navigation system by year-end appear to be improving, although national rivalries that have threatened to derail the process continue to simmer.
Russian arms trade agency Rosoboronexport has signed a deal with Peru's air force to overhaul 13 Mil Mi-17 helicopters. The deal is estimated to be worth $18 million and paves the way for follow-on contracts for support and upgrade of other Russian-made hardware, including Su-22 and MiG-29 combat aircraft.
Sharp divisions that have opened up within the European Union since French and Dutch voters rejected the new EU constitutional treaty may force planners to scale back grand schemes for an expanded European space program, at least for now. The EU entered the space realm big time five years ago through a cooperation agreement with the European Space Agency and a white paper laying out a road map for future joint undertakings. The first of these, the Galileo satellite navigation system, is now in development (see p. 33).
Mattias Mountain has been appointed director of the Space Telescope Science Institute of Baltimore. He succeeds Steven V.W. Beckwith, who will end his term Sept. 1. Mountain was director of the Gemini Observatory, Hilo, Hawaii.
Craig E. Steidle has been appointed vice president-international affairs of the Washington-based Aerospace Industries Assn. He has been associate NASA administrator for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. Steidle will succeed Joel L. Johnson, who has resigned.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency/Boeing X-37 made its first captive-carry flight last week under the Scaled Composites White Knight carrier aircraft. Another captive-carry flight is expected before the first drop occurs.
A U.S. U-2S intelligence-gathering and surveillance aircraft crashed last week while attempting to land at the growing Middle East reconnaissance center at Al Dhafra AB, United Arab Emirates, after a mission to Afghanistan. The pilot was killed.
American Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways plan to augment their two-year-old code-sharing program with expanded service to and through key destinations in Japan. Cathay notified the U.S. Transportation Dept. in April that it would begin carrying American's U.S.-Japan passengers between Hong Kong, Nagoya and Osaka. Now, Cathay tells the department it plans to carry those passengers between Hong King and Osaka to connect with American flights between Osaka and Dallas/Fort Worth, beginning around Nov. 1.
AeroVironment is seeking to at least quadruple the endurance of high-altitude drones with its proposed Global Observer electric aircraft, and has already started flying a subscale demonstrator. The company intends for Global Observer to stay up for 7-10 days carrying up to 1,000 lb. of payload at 65,000 ft., operating as a fixed, near-space satellite for reconnaissance or communications relay. Unlike its recent Helios solar-powered aircraft, the proposed drone does not have solar cells, but is powered by fuel cells driven by liquid hydrogen.
