Fernando Pinto has been elected president of the Assn. of European Airlines. He is chief executive of TAP Air Portugal. Pinto succeeds Vagn Soerensen, chief executive of Austrian Airlines.
An Okinawan judge has ordered the Japanese government to pay 3,881 residents living near the U.S. Air Force Kadena AB $27.2 million to settle a noise complaint case. The suit was brought by 5,541 residents who sought $154 million. The U.S. has agreed to pay half the awarded amount, and Japan, the balance.
Steve Fossett's solo flight around the world springs from a remarkable achievement in aircraft design that far exceeds the range performance of any other jet aircraft.
Replacement of the Royal Air Force's aging VC10 and L-1011 Tristar tanker-transport aircraft is edging closer, following the British Defense Ministry's final selection of the AirTanker consortium as its preferred bidder. This process took 13 months, and the two sides now face contract negotiations. AirTanker is led by EADS, with partners including Rolls-Royce, Cobham, the VT Group and Thales. The Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) program will see the Airbus A330-200 converted for this role.
GARMIN HAS INTRODUCED A NEW PERSONAL DIGITAL ASSISTANT with 12-parallel-channel Wide Area Augmentation System receiver to aid a pilot in navigating an aircraft. And, on land, the same device can be used in automobiles to provide directions to destinations. The iQue 3600a displays Jeppesen terrain and U.S. obstacle databases when connected to a special cradle that can be mounted on the yoke of a general aviation airplane. The unit can be hooked to a remote antenna in the cockpit.
David R. Beachley has been named media relations manager for the Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. He was a senior analyst for Denver public relations agency LeGrand Hart.
Hainan Airlines will outfit the eight Airbus A319s it committed to buying late last year with CFM56-5B engines at a cost of $90 million. Aircraft deliveries are to take place between 2005 and 2007. Hainan also took options for 12 more A319s. Hainan selected Rockwell Collins to provide avionics, including the WXR-2100 Multiscan Hazard Weather Detection System, for the Airbus aircraft and six Boeing 737NGs.
The two-year-old Homeland Security Dept. is in for what usually besets federal agencies at a far more advanced age--"a comprehensive review of [its] organization, operations and policies." So promises the newly confirmed secretary of the department, Michael Chertoff, who makes clear to the House Appropriations Committee his aversion to the "stovepipe solutions" endemic to his organization, cobbled together as it was from so many previously separate agencies.
Hamilton Sundstrand won a $250.4-million Air Force contract to acquire 5,400 types of spares, including secondary power systems and airborne generators, for at least 11 types of aircraft.
The key issue affecting whether the space shuttle can return to flight as early as May 15 is "closure to the engineering analysis" that validates post-Columbia accident changes to the hardware. "The engineering work is all coming to a nexus," says Wayne Hale, shuttle deputy program manager and overall head of the shuttle Mission Management Team (MMT). "But there is a considerable amount of 'turbulence in the system' as engineers try to decide . . . if we have done enough analysis," Hale said.
U.S. Government Accountability Office wants the Pentagon to make a new business case for the U.S. Air Force F/A-22 and joint service F-35, which now are expected to demand a future investment of more than $240 billion.
World News Roundup 16 Iraqi air force pilots flying three overhauled C-130s 17 First test of India's Agni III missile due this year 17 Franco-Russian flight testing planned for SaM146 turbofan for RRJ 18 EADS, Alenia Spazio form joint venture for ISS operation World News & Analysis 20 EU intention to lift China embargo leaves industry with tough choices 22 USAF wants to be Pentagon's UAV manager; plan worries Army, Navy
Jennifer Pollino has been named senior vice president-human resources of the Goodrich Corp., Charlotte, N.C. She was president of the Troy, Ohio-based Aircraft Wheels and Brakes Div. and has been succeeded by Brian Brandewie. He was vice president/general manager for business acquisition and product development for the Aerostructures Div., Chula Vista, Calif.
Europe's Smart-1 lunar probe has reached its final observation orbit around the Moon, permitting the start of orbital observations. The probe was nudged into orbit by its pioneering plasma thruster system, after a one-year voyage from Earth. During the journey, Smart-1's Snecma/Fakel PPS 1350 thrusters logged more than 4,600 hr., more than previously recorded for a space electrical propulsion system.
The FAA is moving to upgrade flight recorders in order to improve the quality and quantity of accident data collection and, ultimately, build safer skies. The agency's proposed rule, published Feb. 28, calls for "stronger" cockpit voice and flight data recorders, says FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey. Enhancements would require adoption of new recording technology, and an increase in the length and frequency of data gathering--all to ensure retrieval of vital information that will prevent a recurrence of incidents and accidents.
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John G. Denison has been appointed CEO of ATA Airlines. He has been co-chief restructuring officer and was executive vice president-corporate services/chief financial officer for Continental Airlines.
Intelsat's revenue rose 23% to $283.4 million in the last quarter of 2004, but the company posted a $55.1-million net loss, thanks to an $84-million charge to write down the value of the IA 7 satellite that was damaged in November. For the year, Intelsat recorded a $37-million net loss, compared with income of $181.1 million in 2003. Revenues rose 10% to $1.04 billion.
A 25-year-old British man has pleaded guilty to conspiring to blow up an aircraft. Saajid Badat, it was alleged during hearings leading up to his trial in London, had links to Richard Reid, who is now imprisoned in the U.S. Reid tried unsuccessfully to use an explosive device concealed in his shoe to destroy an aircraft while on a flight to the U.S. in late 2001. Badat decided not to go ahead with a planned attack.
Melbourne's airport has installed 17 air-testing machines at its south terminal following a Feb. 21 suspected gas leak that prompted an 8-hr. closure. The event hit Virgin Blue especially hard, forcing it to cancel more than 100 flights over two days that affected 14,000 passengers.
FAA OFFICIALS RECENTLY OUTLINED A SOON-TO-BE-RELEASED Version 7 of the Operational Evolution Plan (OEP) to 200 government and industry officials at an annual gathering to review goals of the 10-year program to expand national airspace system capacity and improve efficiency. The focus remains on relieving pressure at congested airports with new runways, procedures and technologies, as well as airspace redesign.
Two F136 prototypes are reaching static-test milestones under a General Electric/ Rolls-Royce still-evolving, 10-year-old project to produce the second engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The GE/Rolls fighter engine team just completed required tests on a carrier version and a conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) F136 in an altitude test cell at the GE Transportation plant near Cincinnati. Additional engineering tests were slated for last week, as were final power calibrations followed by borescope inspections.
Senior Air Force officials are petitioning the Pentagon's civilian leadership to name the service as the Defense Dept.'s executive agent--setting requirements and standards as well as guiding development--for unmanned aerial vehicles as part of an effort to expand its core missions beyond the "silk scarf" force of manned aircraft.
The U.K. Civil Aviation Authority says it is closely monitoring British Airways' investigation into a Feb. 19 incident involving a BA Boeing 747-400 that flew from Los Angeles to the U.K. with three engines. According to the airline, the flight crew shut down the No. 2 Rolls-Royce RB211-524GH engine, following a surge during takeoff. The crew, in conjunction with engineering support staff, then decided to continue the flight. Initially the intent was to fly to London, but fuel issues required the crew to divert the flight to Manchester. An FAA spokesman said the U.S.
A new generation of mobile satellite communication services tuned largely to broadband applications is poised to become available with the launch of the first Inmarsat-4 satellite this week. The spacecraft is set for launch from Cape Canaveral on Mar. 10 on board a Lockheed Martin/International Launch Services Atlas V 431 series vehicle--the first use for this variant of the Atlas V. The Series 431 comprises a 4-meter-dia. fairing, one Russian Energomash RD-180 oxygen/kerosene first-stage engine and three Aerojet solid rocket boosters.
