A test stand fire at the SpaceX facility in McGregor, Tex., shouldn't impact the latest scheduled launch date for the company's Falcon I commercial smallsat launcher, according to company founder and bankroller Elon Musk. A ground computer balked last month during acceptance tests of the Merlin first-stage engine, incorrectly registering low pressure in the fuel tank and boosting the helium pressurization system to compensate.
After entering the Chinese and Russian markets, German travel giant TUI is eyeing a partnership with an Indian travel firm, according to Chairman/CEO Michael Frenzel. He said TUI also will consider expanding its no-frills airline activity, following a 75% surge in operating earnings for the tourist division last year, to 362 million euros.
Arthur E. Johnson has been appointed to the board of directors of Delta Air Lines. He is senior vice president-corporate strategic development of the Lockheed Martin Corp.
David W. Zolet (see photo) has become Washington-based vice president-corporate business development for the Northrop Grumman Corp. He was vice president-homeland security within the Northrop Grumman's Information Technology Sector.
Elbit Systems has completed the acquisition of Israel Military Industries' Aircraft Systems Div., which builds weapon pylons and external fuel tanks for fighters. The deal is valued at about $7 million. Elbit's Cyclone subsidiary executed the purchase.
EADS is establishing a so-called blue-force tracking network for NATO troops in Kosovo and the Balkans under a 13-million-euro contract from the alliance's Consultation, Command and Control Agency. At first, the Interim Forces Tracking System will be extended to 142 vehicles, with up to 600 vehicles to be in the network this summer. To reduce operating costs, data are exchanged over a private radio network that NATO's Kosovo units operate. A satellite link is possible when the radio network isn't available.
Glenn J. Brown (see photo) has been appointed president/chief operating officer of Stevens Aviation, Greenville, S.C. He was vice president-aftermarket and customer service for corporate and regional aircraft for Rolls-Royce Engines.
Neelam Mathews (New Delhi), Michael Mecham (San Francisco)
Bringing the Boeing F/A-18 into play as a potential choice to fill India's requirement for a new multirole fighter is casting a different light on the traditional tension between India and Pakistan on the acquisition of new weapon systems.
With this issue, John M. Doyle joins the Washington Bureau of Aviation Week & Space Technology as congressional editor. Doyle comes to the magazine from Aviation Week's Homeland Security & Defense newsletter. Before that, he had a long career with the Associated Press in Washington, New York and South Bend, Ind. Doyle is a graduate of Fordham University, studied on the graduate level at New York University and was a fellow at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
TAP Portugal reported slightly higher than expected 2004 earnings, with a profit of 8.6 million euros. Earnings were depressed because fuel costs for the year were 72 million euros higher than expected.
European Automated Transfer Vehicles (ATVs) can begin sending tons of logistics supplies to the International Space Station as early as 2006, now that the U.S./Russian crew has outfitted the exterior of the ISS with the final communications and GPS antennas needed for ATV rendezvous and docking.
Rolls-Royce and Cathay Pacific have agreed to long-term maintenance contracts, worth some $770 million, covering the Trent 800 engines on the airline's Boeing 777s and Trent 500s on Airbus A340-600s.
Michael D. Griffin, Space Dept. Head, Applied Physics Laboratory (Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Md. )
While I appreciate the flattering article (AW&ST Mar. 21, p. 28) in connection with my nomination by President Bush to be the next NASA administrator, I would like to set the record straight in connection with my role in the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization's Clementine mission.
Kistler Aerospace hopes to begin commercial launch and reentry operations with its K-1 two-stage-to-orbit reusable rocket in the first quarter of 2007, targeting the International Space Station (ISS) resupply and Pentagon "prompt launch" markets as well as typical launch-services offerings.
Greg Geyer (see photo) has become vice president-operations/site manager of the Chandler, Ariz., facility of Crane Aerospace & Electronics. He was vice president-manufacturing operations for the Harris Microwave Communications Div. in San Antonio.
Airport expansions in Japan are making it easier for carriers to operate as they serve Asia's busiest national market. They also underscore how readily the Japanese adopt passenger-friendly security techniques and the latest in electronic gadgetry to improve airport operations. Two recent projects are outstanding in this regard: the new Central Japan International Airport (Centrair) in Nagoya, and Tokyo's busy Haneda airport (AW&ST June 14, 2004, p. 40).
The FAA continues to investigate a Feb. 19 incident in which a British Airways Boeing 747-400 with 351 passengers operated from Los Angeles to the U.K. with three engines. Shortly after takeoff, the No. 2 RB211-524 GH engine surged and the flight crew elected to proceed to the U.K. (AW&ST Mar. 14, p. 68). According to a BA official, the airline responded to the FAA's Mar. 10 letter of inquiry, which requested "various details on procedures and policy." Airline officials also met with the FAA in Washington late last month to discuss fallout from the incident.
The NTSB has good news: The skies are growing safer, with U.S. civil aviation accidents in the transport, air taxi and general aviation categories declining in 2004. Preliminary safety board statistics released last week show that the number of accidents dropped to 1,715 in 2004 from 1,864 in 2003. Total fatalities also decreased, to 635 from 695.
Delta Air Lines will contract out heavy maintenance of four aircraft types--Boeing 757s and 767s to Air Canada Technical Services of Vancouver and MD-88s and MD-90s to Avborne of Miami. The carrier said the outsourcing will reduce costs by 34%, saving a total of about $240 million over five years. It also will account for some of the 1,600-2,000 jobs that must be shed by Delta's Technical Operations organization as part of the elimination of 6,000-7,000 positions announced last September.
Leadership of the U.S.' military and intelligence space offices is undergoing its first major turnover since the Pentagon spearheaded a massive reorganization shortly after George W. Bush became President (see p. 50). As a leadership vacuum opens, some lawmakers are demanding a reorganization of those key offices, which guide billions of dollars worth of spending annually. This flurry of activity has left onlookers wondering what is ahead for the future of space asset management, particularly in the Air Force and at the secretive National Reconnaissance Office.
The U.S. Coast Guard is dropping the Bell/Agusta AB139 helicopter from its massive Deepwater modernization program in favor of upgrading existing Sikorsky HH-60 Jayhawks. The decision comes at a sensitive time for Sikorsky, which is still reeling from a January loss to a Lockheed Martin team to build the next fleet of presidential helicopters. AgustaWestland and Bell Helicopter Textron are prominent members of the winning team in that heated competition. Bell/Agusta officials are stunned by the decision.
Officials in the Pentagon's transformation office are already claiming success from their responsive satellite initiative because it has opened doors toward interagency collaboration and, possibly, the establishment of a foothold for small satellites, which could eventually carry a variety of government payloads. And all this before the first payload has lifted off.
BAE Systems also has formed an alliance with QinetiQ to identify wider commercial applications and business opportunities for its defense and aerospace technologies. The six-month agreement operates on a shared risk and rewards basis: QinetiQ is charged with identifying, validating and developing market-ready plans for 2-4 promising technology solutions, as well as helping to drive their initial commercialization.
