After much pressure from the White House to accelerate the competition for a new presidential helicopter, the U.S. Navy has requested more time. The move effectively delays a contract award for system development and demonstration until late this year, after the presidential election. The program had become "politically too hot to handle" in an election year, noted one involved industry representative.
Honeywell has filed a protest with the U.S. Coast Guard on the award of the HH-65 Dolphin re-engine contract to Turbomeca for the Arriel 2C2. The HH-65 is currently powered by the Honeywell LTS-101, and the company claims the request for information that led to the selection of the Turbomeca powerplant was misleading and incomplete. Honeywell said its bid met all of the requirements, but key factors in the final decision were left out.
The France-based Latecoere group's decision to acquire a stake in Corse Composites Aeronautique (CCA), a composite materials supplier, is unrelated to expectations that Latecoere will win a component supply order for the proposed Boeing 7E7, said Raphael Bolzan, Latecoere's senior vice president for marketing and international affairs (AW&ST Mar. 15, p. 13). The 7E7 components would be produced in Toulouse, he added. His statement was intended to forestall any misinter-pretation because Airbus' French arm also owns a stake in CCA.
WORLD NEWS ROUNDUP 18 NBAA's plan could help gen- eral aviation win back rights 19 Merger of Philippine airlines is called off WORLD NEWS & ANALYSIS 22 Congress may ease export controls on BMD equipment 24 Dollar/euro exchange rate endangers European profits 26 F/A-22, F-35 delays draw congressional attention 27 Britain's aircraft carrier acquisition strategy in flux 28 USAF, Navy to team on future weapons programs
European Union leaders were expected to approve a slate of antiterrorism measures at the EU's annual spring summit on Mar. 25-26. Naming a homeland security czar to coordinate antiterrorist actions and improving intelligence data-sharing were among the steps proposed. Also on the summit agenda was a proposal to end the embargo on selling arms to China.
Jim Banke has been appointed director of communications for the Colorado Springs-based Space Foundation. He was senior producer in the Cape Canaveral Bureau for Space.com.
Aermacchi is working toward a revised first flight of the prototype M346 advanced jet trainer, aircraft PO1, by mid-May. It had been set to fly last December, but a delay in the development of the flight control system, among other factors, led to the pushback. Prototype PO2 is scheduled to be flown by the second quarter of 2005, while a third, fitted with definitive landing gear (the PO1 uses gear borrowed from the AMX fighter-bomber), is slated to fly in mid-2006. The third prototype is viewed as representative of the initial production standard.
An Italian trade court has ratified Alitalia's proposal to acquire Gandalf Airlines, a bankrupt regional carrier, for 7.1 million euros ($8.6 million).
Military controllers are scheduled to finish in-orbit checkout of the newest U.S. Air Force/Lockheed Martin GPS IIR Global Positioning Satellite and put it in service by May, replacing an 11-year-old Boeing IIA model that has developed a problem with its navigation data system. The new spacecraft was launched into a 101 X 12,000-naut.-mi. transfer orbit on Mar. 20 from Cape Canaveral on a Boeing Delta II. A few days later the satellite's Thiokol Star 37 solid motor was fired to maneuver the spacecraft into its operational 12,000-mi.
BAE Systems and Finmeccanica have dropped plans to form a communications company as the two try to advance Anglo-Italian aspirations to craft a defense electronics alliance. After nearly a year of negotiations, the two have axed the third pillar of the "Eurosystems" joint venture to focus on a systems integration unit and an avionics business. While the two sides publicly suggest an agreement could be completed by midyear, company insiders admit it could well take until year-end, with merged business units only beginning operations in 2005.
Taiwan's China Airlines said its fiscal 2003 second-half profit was NT$1.8 billion ($54 million) on operating revenues of NT$76 billion. Sales were split almost evenly between passengers and cargo. The profits were attributed to "effective cost control" and an "aggressive marketing campaign" with discount fares.
Neelam Matthews (New Delhi), Douglas Barrie (London)
India and the U.K. intend to ink this week the industrial contract covering the purchase of 66 BAE Systems Hawk advanced jet trainers, following the recent signature of a memorandum of understanding covering the sale. The two governments okayed the MOU Mar. 20, paving the way for final contract closure, in a deal estimated to be worth $1.5 billion.
So-called low-fare carriers have become all the rage in Asia, and the Civil Aviation Administration of China is keeping up with the times. It's ready to approve applications to run them, so long as it understands what the applicant has in mind.
Over the last few years, I have noticed a shift in your editorial policy to favor the growth of low-service carriers. These junior companies are cherry-picking the only profitable stations served by the majors while providing none of the continuing service necessary for a comprehen- sive air transportation system. If you find it innovative that these carriers have limited infrastructure, junior employees, low wages, poor benefits, and preferential treatment by banks, suppliers and local governments, then your staff is shortsighted.
Robert S. Tyrer has been appointed to the board of directors of the New York-based EDO Corp. He is president/chief operating officer of the Cohen Group and a former Defense Dept. chief of staff.
For a nation that builds a lot of offshore runways, another 20-30 years of sinking for Kansai International Airport in Osaka Bay is a dim prospect, but that's the prediction. Built on a man-made island with a sea-footing that has been described as firm as mayonnaise, Kansai has been sinking ever so slightly since it opened in September 1994. The owners report it has dropped 12.18 meters (39.95 ft.) since it opened.
Alitalia's daily nonstop service between Washington Dulles International Airport and Milan Malpensa is set to start Mar. 28--the only nonstop transatlantic service to Italy from the U.S. capital, according to the airline. Alitalia will operate Boeing 767s on the route.
The FAA is considerably more optimistic about U.S. airlines' prospects this year than it was in 2003, but considerably less certain about how growth will play out. Presenting the agency's 2004-15 aviation forecast Mar. 25, John Rogers, policy and plans director, predicted annual growth of 4.6% in capacity, 4.8% in traffic and 4.3% in passenger volume, up from year-ago estimates of 3.6%, 4.1% and 3.9%, respectively.
Anticipating that passenger traffic in the U.S. will rebound this year to levels not seen since the peak of congestion and delays four years ago, the Transportation Dept. is implementing new ways to keep flights moving.
EADS' businesses in Russia will be coordinated by Moscow-based OOO EADS, which was formed last week. The European group's Russian Technology Office reportedly is evaluating more than 40 research and technology cooperation projects.
U.S. civil aviation accidents increas-ed in 2003 to 1,864 from 1,820 in 2002. The majority occurred in general aviation and air taxi operations, according to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) preliminary data for the year. General aviation accidents increased to 1,732 from 1,713, although the accident rate of 6.71 per 100,000 flight hours is relatively unchanged from 6.69 in 2002. The aviation sector operated 25.8 million flight hours in 2003, and its 351 fatal accidents accounted for 626 of the total 695 deaths for all of civil aviation in 2003.
In a move to attack the "high-cost culture" of the U.S. launch industry, the aggressive new SpaceX commercial rocket company is enlisting the help of Pratt & Whitney to take market share away from Boeing for commercial and military geosynchronous orbit missions. The SpaceX Falcon rocket project will specifically target Boeing, by offering the SpaceX Falcon V booster for 60-70% less than Boeing can fly its Delta II and newer Delta IV Medium Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle, said Elon Musk, SpaceX chairman and CEO.
Bringing to an end months of speculation, BAE Systems has announced that Dick Olver is to succeed Sir Richard Evans as chairman on July 1. Olver is to resign as deputy group chief executive of oil giant BP to take the reins at BAE. Evans retires from the BAE board on July 1. Numerous candidates had been touted as being in the running for the position, including at least one senior American industrialist.
If the Air Force reopens competition for a new tanker, EADS North America will be ready with "an Americanized product [with] manufacturing, assembly and integration activities here in the United States," according to Ralph Crosby, chairman of the unit. Lockheed Martin and Raytheon are among the companies EADS has considered for a teaming arrangement. "All the details will be rolled out as soon as the competition is announced," Crosby said, arguing that EADS' position is far stronger than two years ago.
