Tiger, which flew for the first time late last month, is scheduled to be delivered in December. The Australian Army Aviation Corps is procuring 22 Franco-German Tigers valued at about 750 million euros ($932 million) under the Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program. The new version, powered by MTR 390 turboshaft engines, will carry 70-mm. rockets and Hellfire II air-to-surface missiles. Australia also selected specific sensors, communications systems and data links.
The FAA and Brazil's Centro Tecnico Aerospacial have issued airworthiness and production certificates for the Embraer 170. The European Joint Aviation Authorities is scheduled to issue its approval and the European Aviation Safety Agency is set to sign off on the 70-passenger, twin-engine jet this week. Embraer officials expect to deliver 53 170s this year, and have orders for 120. Airlines include Air Caraibes, US Airways, Alitalia, Swiss International and LOT Polish Airlines.
The proposed merger of Air France and KLM, the first major airline consolidation in Europe, is unfolding, raising some concerns on Wall Street and in academia.
Loss of pitch control after takeoff was cited by the National Transportation Safety Board as leading to the crash of an Air Midwest Raytheon/Beechcraft 1900D shortly after takeoff from Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, N.C., on Jan. 8, 2003. The accident killed all 19 passengers and two pilots in the airplane, which had departed Runway 18R en route to Greenville-Spartanburg (S.C.) International Airport. Flight 5481 was operating as US Airways Express.
Ailing Italian airline Gandalf has declared bankruptcy after a search for investors failed. The carrier was seeking 28 million euros ($35 million) to remain in operation. A commissioner will be appointed to oversee disposition of the airline to an investor or dispose of assets to pay debts, including slots at airports in northern Italy.
You can now register ONLINE for Aviation Week Events. Go to www.AviationNow.com/conferences or call Ryan Leeds at +1 (212) 904-3892/+1 (800) 240-7645 (U.S. and Canada Only) Mar. 8-9--European Transport Leaders Conference. Merrill Lynch Headquarters, London. Mar. 10-11--Toulouse Symposium. Toulouse (France) Congress Center. Mar. 25-26--Defense Budget Conference. Hyatt Regency Crystal City Hotel, Arlington, Va. Apr. 20-22--MRO USA/MRO Latin America/MRO Military. Cobb Galleria Centre, Atlanta.
At least two large aerospace companies and one U.S. Defense Dept. agency are betting that "zero point energy" could be the next breakthrough in aerospace vehicle propulsion, and are backing those bets with seed money for ZPE research. If their efforts pay off, ZPE-driven powerplants might enable Mach 4 fighters, quiet 1,200-seat hypersonic airliners that fly at 100-mi. altitudes as far as 12,000 mi. in about 70 min., and 12.6-hr. trips to the Moon.
Peter Amos, Chairman (SAE Committee A-6: Aerospace Actuation, Control and Fluid Power Systems, )
I believe John Sollner's assessment of aerospace hydraulic systems (AW&ST Feb. 9, p. 6) is somewhat out of date. In the 1970s and '80s, the U.S. Air Force and Navy and various aerospace companies performed extensive and successful development testing of 8,000-psi. hydraulic systems. This development testing included complete systems and various components.
General Electric and its partner Rolls-Royce plan to have the first production F136 alternate engines available in 2012 for the fourth lot of Joint Strike Fighters, solidifying an important milestone that had been threatened by propulsion funding cuts and potential schedule slips. The JSF alternate engine--Pratt & Whitney's F135 is the lead powerplant for the JSF program--had been jeopardized when inflation estimates for the JSF were raised. This funding shortfall was resolved in part with $440 million earmarked for development of the GE-Rolls F136.
Lockheed Martin has set up a new business unit that will seek a role in the new Moon/Mars efforts NASA is pursuing under President Bush's exploration initiative. Dubbed "Space Exploration," the Denver-based organization will be part of Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co. John C. Karas, formerly vice president for Atlas and Advanced Space Transportation, will head Space Exploration with support from Jay Honeycutt, vice president and special assistant for Human Spaceflight and Space Shuttle Return to Flight. Even before the new unit was created, Space Systems Co.
British Airways plans to change the number of its flight from London Heathrow to Washington Dulles International Airport. Flight 223 has been delayed or canceled a number of times recently because of unspecified security concerns by the U.S. A British Airways official said passengers have faith in the safety and security of the airline, but advanced bookings on the Boeing 747 are sparse. As a result, after Mar. 28, Flight 223 will become Flight 293.
Cost-cutting measures and the airline industry's gradual rebound should allow Swiss International Air Lines to reduce losses this year, but the carrier's weak financial condition persists, according to company officials. In 2003, the airline posted an operating loss of $392 million on $3.25 billion in revenues--down from a $774-million loss incurred in 2002. Switzerland's airline still faces difficult challenges despite carrying 10.6 million passengers last year and achieving a 78% load factor on long-haul routes.
USN Adm. (ret.) Robert J. Natter has been nominated for the board of directors of United Defense Industries Inc., Arlington, Va. He was commander of Fleet Forces Command and Atlantic Command.
A multinational investigation team will seek to determine why a Raytheon Beech King Air 200 carrying Boris Trajkovski, president of Macedonia, crashed on Feb. 25 in mountainous terrain 50 mi. south of Sarajevo, Bosnia. The twin turboprop was en route to Mostar. All nine passengers and crewmembers were killed.
Randy Moore (see photo) has been named executive vice president/general manager of Kollsman Inc., Merrimack, N.H. He succeeds Roger Sutherland, who has resigned. Moore was vice president/general manager of Kaman Aerostructures, Bloomfield, Conn.
The inaugural test flight of a Near-Space Maneuvering Vehicle (NSMV) "V-Airship," a 46 X 175-ft. blimp, was scrubbed last week, a victim of rain and high-altitude winds. A joint USAF Space Battlelab/JP Aerospace team had planned to launch the V-shaped airship from the Pecos County/West Texas Space Port near Fort Stockton, and fly it to 100,000 ft. MSL (AW&ST Jan. 19, p. 417).
Singapore is starting down a path to several critical fighter aircraft choices that could significantly alter the shape and operational scheme for one of Asia's premier air forces.
A multiyear, phased reorganization of Lockheed Martin's space business appears to be paying off as the company chalks up wins in both civilian and government competitions. Its experience is a snapshot of the sometimes painful rebuilding process many aerospace companies are undergoing to ensure they can compete in today's global markets.
Pressed by Congress for cost estimates on Bush's Moon/Mars exploration plan, NASA releases some figures to back up its pretty but imprecise "sand chart" that purports to demonstrate there's no hidden cost "balloon" in the plan (AW&ST Jan. 26, p. 22). According to the Library of Congress' Congressional Research Service, NASA assumes it will cost $64 billion in Fiscal 2003 dollars to land humans on the Moon in 2020.
USAF Col. (ret.) Glenn Moses has become Washington-based director of government relations for FlightSafety International. Ron Vinson has been promoted to Hurst, Tex.-based director of maintenance standards from assistant director of maintenance training standards.
Russia is thought to be pursuing development of a scramjet-powered aerodynamic terminal stage for intercontinental ballistic missiles, in part as a response to U.S. missile-defense efforts. A test launch was carried out during the Security-2004 strategic exercise, with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin guardedly alluding to a trial in comments on the exercise.
An unexplained fire gutted an Indian booster production plant, killing or severely injuring some workers and raising questions about safety procedures. India's domestic satellite-launching program will continue on schedule despite the Feb. 23 fire at the Solid Propellant Space Booster Plant at the Satish Dhawan Space Center.
USN Rear Adm. (lower half) William D. Crowder has been named commander of Cruiser Destroyer Group 2, Norfolk, Va. He has been director of the Naval Operations Group in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations at the Pentagon.
