Lockheed Martin sold its 42% stake in Tusas Aerospace Industries to Turkish Aircraft Industries (TAI). TAI, a joint venture established in 1984, supports indigenous manufacturing capability for the F-16. The sale has met that goal and TAI has matured into a stand-alone company, according to Lockheed Martin. General Electric also is selling its 7% stake. In the 1980s and 1990s TAI produced 240 F-16s for Turkey and assembled 46 for the Egyptian air force.
I am pleased to announce a major launch for our Aviation Week Group. The new Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN) combines all of the news, insights and analysis of our publications with data, analytics and forecasts about companies, people, products, programs, technologies and fleets. AWIN delivers an integrated business tool for operating managers, planners, business developers, buyers and technical professionals across the aviation, aerospace and defense field.
Australian Defense Forces Maj. Gen. Maurie McNarn has been named director of the country's Defense Intelligence Organization. McNarn succeeds Frank Lewincamp, who will be named to another position. McNarn has been commander of the Training Command-Army.
In his annual congressionally mandated review of major Pentagon acquisition programs, the Pentagon's top test official takes aim at problems with several weapon systems, but notes that the ground-based missile defense system, long a target of criticism, appears to have the "technical feasibility" to shoot down missiles. The verdict stops short of saying the system can actually do the job, but the concession represents a bit of good news for a program that experienced a test failure last month and hasn't intercepted a target since October 2002.
Zurich and Geneva airports have started operational use of a Sensis Corp. Multistatic Dependent Surveillance (MDS) system for monitoring runways, taxiways and gate areas. Data are fused from the MDS system and surface movement radars to provide a display for controllers that is accurate within 10 meters. Park Air Systems provides the displays. MDS has a 1-sec. update rate.
Close on the heels of an announcement that permits domestic airlines to fly international routes, India's largest private domestic carrier, Jet Airways, is selling 20% of its equity (17.2 million shares) through an initial public offering in February; this would make it the first airline in India to figure on the stock exchange. Jet Airways plans to raise $342 million, mainly to buy new aircraft. Its 42-aircraft fleet consists of Boeing 737s and ATR 72-500s.
Ian Patterson has become vice president-aircraft sales, acquisitions and management for PrivatAir at Palm Beach (Fla.) International Airport. He was Mid-Atlantic sales director for Adam Aircraft.
The Spanish defense ministry received two additional Eurocopter AS532 UL Cougars for VIP missions. The aircraft, worth 33 million euros ($43 million) including training, support and spare parts, join four AS332 M1s and two AS332 B Super Pumas now in operation.
Boeing is starting to modify the first C-130 under the U.S. Air Force Avionics Modernization Program (AMP). The work at the San Antonio facility is supposed to stretch over more than 500 Pentagon C-130s. The program, however, had suffered cost overruns and then became embroiled in the controversy involving former Air Force acquisition official and later Boeing employee Darleen Druyun, because of charges she may have favored Boeing in the AMP competition. First flight of an upgraded C-130 is planned for early next year.
Some might say Airbus gambled on building a mega-transport. And some say there will be gambling on board the Airbus A380. Virgin Atlantic CEO Richard Branson last week declared his airline will offer casino gambling to its A380 customers. In addition, passengers will be able to get a makeover and recline in double beds, an option Virgin has already introduced on some of its Boeing 747s.
My cynical take on an end-of-year "rallying the troops" message: Listen up, faithful airline employees--you must understand that we in management feel very strongly that when it comes to sharing sacrifices our 15% pay cut, effective in 2005 (better late than never!) equals the previous $2.5 billion in annual wage and benefit cuts you so generously granted in 2003, plus the additional $725 million we are now seeking. Oh yes, almost forgot--about terminating your pension plans: Sorry about that!
Nicholas Burton-Taylor has become chairman of Airservices Australia. New members of the board of directors are Alice Williams, Phillipa Stone, David Forsyth, Christine Goode and Hank Meertens. Hisham El-Ansary has been named acting CEO. He succeeds Bernie Smith, who has retired.
Snecma has completed a first round of bench tests on a technology demonstrator intended to improve operating costs and dispatch reliability of the M88 engine that powers the Rafale, and determine the feasibility of developing a 9-metric-ton thrust version of the powerplant with lower weight and fuel burn. The tests, to be followed by performance and endurance trials in the coming weeks, investigated steady-state performance of potential 75-kN. and 90-kw. versions, at full throttle with afterburn.
Singaporean low-cost carrier Tiger Airways has leased two new Airbus A320s in an agreement with Bellevue, Wash.-based Boullioun Aviation Services. The year-old carrier plans to operate the A320s to Southeast Asian destinations. Both aircraft, which are being delivered this month, are equipped with V2500-A5 engines and will have 180 seats in single-class configuration.
The German military has signed a 488-million-euro ($634.4-million) private finance initiative for NH90 helicopter flight training with Helicopter Flight Training Services. The group comprises CAE, EADS' Eurocopter, Rheinmetall Defense Electronics and Thales, each with 25% share. Work will start this month and will focus on designing four NH90 full-mission simulators and three training centers. The operational phase will commence in mid-2008 and run 14.5 years.
The FAA's Fiscal 2006 budget, due to go to Congress early next month, will reveal much about how the agency intends to handle funding for its newly developed plan to deal with the coming wave of air traffic controller retirements. This year, Fiscal 2005, the FAA tells Congress it expects to hire only 435 controllers as 695 leave, and it thinks overall attrition will free up money to pay for "a significant portion" of the hires. Next year is another story.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was probably too busy cutting the defense budget and worrying about pre-election violence in Iraq to pay much attention to Airbus's A380 rollout extravaganza (see p. 20), but European politicians had him on their minds anyway. Rumsfeld slammed Germany and France in the pre-Iraq war days as "old Europe," and the comment obviously left a deep impression. In his laudation of the A380, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder couldn't help but note that the mega-transport was built in "the tradition of the good, old Europe."
James E. Fuller has become chief of staff for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration. He was principal liaison to the chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
The Turkish defense ministry and Alenia Aeronautica are aiming to sign a contract before year-end for the acquisition of 10 military variants of the ATR 72. Following a prolonged selection process, the ministry announced Jan. 19 it had selected the ATR 72 to meet its maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) requirement.
Boeing has awarded Alcatel a contract to define preliminary architecture for the U.S. Air Force's planned GPS III satellite navigation system, and to study compatibility and interoperability with Europe's Galileo satnav network. The award follows a U.S.-EU agreement on GPS and Galileo last June.
The U.S. Navy's second run at an operational evaluation for the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor may be delayed as program officials resolve a gearbox problem. Since last year, pilots have experienced a series of fault indications with the prop-rotor gearbox that have now caused the operational evaluation squadron, VMX-22, to suspend flying. Two sources have been identified for the fault in the gearbox.
Lt. Gen. Rick Hillier has been promoted to general and appointed chief of the Canadian Defense Staff, effective Feb. 4. He has been chief of the Land Staff. Hillier succeeds Gen. Raymond Henault, who has been named chairman of NATO's Military Committee in Brussels.
The 50-ft. Canadian Orbiter Boom Sensor System, which will be used by the shuttle Discovery crew to inspect the vehicle's wing leading edges and belly tiles, is to be integrated in the orbiter's payload bay by this week in preparation for the shuttle's scheduled return to flight in mid-May.
The Russian air force is starting to re-evaluate its long-term fighter aircraft needs, and there are indications it could move away from its previous ambition to field only a single type, now in development with Sukhoi. The air force's current fighter plan for the future is based around the PAK FA requirement, development of which is being carried out by Sukhoi with its T-50 design. This is a Su-27 Flanker-size aircraft, with a first prototype tentatively slated to fly in 2007.
