It is not vibration per se that is the enemy of airplanes and spacecraft. It is the stripping and loosening of bolts over the long term that does the damage to satellites, engines and avionics racks.
French plans to go ahead with an antiship/reconnaissance upgrade for the Dassault Rafale fighter and ensure timely air force service entry signal the government's willingness to boost the aircraft's export potential. However, the extent of that support is unclear.
General Electric has successfully completed initial tests of its CT7-8C in which the performance of the engine's new power turbine was evaluated. The powerplant, which demonstrated over 3,100 shp., is being developed for some versions of the Sikorsky H-92 helicopter. The -8C engine will significantly enhance the "hot/high" operating characteristics of the aircraft (AW&ST June 23, 2003, p. 30).
Spectrum Astro, the privately held spacecraft manufacturer that has sent its products as far as Mars and the comet Borrelly, is applying finishing touches to a state-of-the-art factory here that would put it in the same league as its largest competitors--even as its colorful founder is trying to sell the whole shebang and cash in on 16 years of work.
USAF Col. David B. Pistilli has been named commander of the 89th Communications Group, Andrews AFB, Md. He was chief of the Business and Visual Information Systems Branch in the Directorate of Communications and Information at Air Mobility Command Headquarters, Scott AFB, Ill.
After a one-year delay due to problems with its Ariane 5 booster, Europe's Rosetta comet rendezvous mission--the first ever to orbit and land on a comet--is poised for launch.
Delta is limiting the size of its Boeing 777-200 fleet. The carrier will sell the two -200s it deferred for delivery from the first to the second half of 2005. Three -200s slated for delivery in 2006 will either be sold or traded for other Boeing aircraft types. The sale is expected to reduce costs by about $300 million through 2005. Delta will not be accepting deliveries of 737-800s in 2005. Eleven will go on the selling block, and the remaining eight have been deferred for delivery in 2008.
James McQueeney has been named vice president-materiel for Gulfstream Aerospace, Savannah, Ga. He was vice president/general manager of Gulfstream's Oklahoma City and Mexicali, Mexico, facilities.
Russia says it is close to concluding a deal with India to complete its long-stalled Glonass satellite navigation system--raising questions about future collaboration of India and Russia in Europe's Galileo program. The deal has been under discussion for several months under a framework cooperation agreement signed last November (AW&ST Nov. 17, 2003, p. 23). Indian leaders maintained a low profile, probably due to Galileo discussions. But Rosaviakosmos chief Yuri Koptiev predicted a full agreement would be signed "within 2-3 months."
Richard F. Wallman has been named to the board of directors of Houston-based ExpressJet Holdings. He retired in July as senior vice president/chief financial officer of Honeywell International Inc.
Air Canada unions' rejection of equity investor Trinity's pension plan could derail the mainliner's restructuring efforts and exit from bankruptcy protection. In January, Trinity Time Investments became a 31% stakeholder in the airline for C$645 million ($491 million). That investment, however, is contingent on several factors, including reaching an agreement by Mar. 1 on how the carrier's C$1.5-billion pension deficit is to be funded (AW&ST Nov. 17, 2003, p. 71).
European travelers are enjoying an abundance of low-fare, no-frills air transportation options, and the prob- ability of this becoming an ongoing boon seems to be secure. Undoubtedly, pioneers such as Ryanair and EasyJet will continue to benefit from robust growth while new entrants will serve to boost the demand, according to French officials. The assertion, based on a market survey unveiled this month by DGAC French civil aviation authority, contrasts sharply with France's traditionally conservative air policy.
United Airlines has asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to extend from Mar. 8 until June 30 the period in which its management has exclusive rights to file a reorganization plan for its emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. June 30 has been the carrier's target date for emergence itself, and a spokesman for the carrier said this hasn't changed. But filing a reorganization plan as late as June 30 would push an exit back several months, probably into the fall. US Airways emerged from Chapter 11 more than three months after it filed its reorganization plan.
6 Correspondence 7 Who's Where 8-9 Market Focus 11 Industry Outlook 13 Airline Outlook 15 In Orbit 16-17 World News Roundup 19 Washington Outlook 53 Contrails 55 Classified 56 Aerospace Calendar 57 Contact Us
Mark V. Hurwitz, Principal Investigator; Michael Sholl, Project Manager (CHIPS, Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California-Berkeley )
In "Smallsats Grow Up" (AW&ST Dec. 8, 2003, p. 46) you quote SpaceDev founder and CEO Jim Benson, as saying the Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer satellite bus (CHIPSat) was built for $4.9 million under a two-page commercial fixed-price contract. As of December 2003, the cost of the contract with SpaceDev had risen to nearly $7.4 million, and the documentation ran to dozens of pages.
Two startup operators, Poland's Air Polonia and France's Axis Airways, are soon to inaugurate scheduled services to Charleroi Brussels South Airport. A Belgian government official made the announcement shortly after the European Commission's (EC) ruling against state subsidies provided to Ryanair by Charleroi (AW&ST Feb. 9, p. 37). The move is also an indication that growth of low-cost carriers is a sustainable trend in southern Belgium.
Prospects for a major European satellite-based broadband program, along the lines of the Galileo satellite navigation system and Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) network, have been given a boost with the launch of a French high-speed Internet project.
The apparent decision by NASA to restrict future space shuttle flights to the space station orbit is shortsighted at best, and a disgrace at worst. NASA cannot curl up because it now realizes (after 40 years) that manned spaceflight is not as safe as airline travel.
James Bilbro has been elected president for 2004 of the Bellingham, Wash.-based SPIE-The International Society for Optical Engineering. He is assistant director/chief technician for optics at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. Other new officers are: vice president, Malgorzata Kujawinska, professor of applied optics at the Warsaw University of Technology and head of the Optical Engineering Div. at its Institute of Micromechanics and Photonics; secretary, Paul F. McManamon, senior scientist for infrared sensors for the U.S.
With the second shift of U.S. Air Force expeditionary units complete and an Army rotation imminent, planners and operators in Iraq look at what they learned, prepare to pass that knowledge to their replacements (one of the most difficult tasks any military organization faces) and grapple with how the new mixture of forces can keep its enthusiasm alive and its focus on long-term missions intact.
The Italian Civil Protection Dept. has acquired three more Bombardier Aerospace 415 amphibians, boosting its fleet to 16 aircraft. Originally, Italy bought 14 Bombardier 415s, but lost one during the 2003 firefighting season. The new aircraft are to be operational in time for the 2004 campaign, starting this spring. The 415s are to be operated by a private company, Sorem, that has a permanent cadre of 22 crews, increased by an additional 11 during the summer.
The European Union may foot 10% of the public outlay for a new Soyuz launchpad at Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana--in what would be its first investment in the launcher sector. The European Space Agency member states already agreed on Feb. 4 to release 82.7% of the 223 million euros ($285 million) in government funding earmarked for the 344-million-euro project (AW&ST Feb. 9, p. 34). Italy, Austria and other nations would pay the difference.
Has Song hit a sour note? In January, new Delta chief Gerald Grinstein ordered a stem-to-stern strategic review of the mainline. As a result, low-cost carrier Song's plans for a full rollout in January came to a halt. At a meeting with analysts this month, Delta President Frederick W. Reid tried to stanch the flow of rumors that Song was fading. He admitted Delta was in "the midst of a profound, fundamental and truly irreversible series of changes" but was "not sure I understand where the notion of Song's growth slowing has come from.
If the bureaucrats at the FAA have their way, the great American tradition of going to the airport and enjoying a sightseeing flight around town and country will become a thing of the past. The agency seems determined to strip this right from the people in the name of increased safety. But while the proposed National Air Tour Rule would provide little or no additional safety benefit to the public, it would put hundreds of sight- seeing flight operators out of business.
NASA and the Russian Aerospace Agency have decided not to break up two-man International Space Station crews to accommodate an astronaut's medical needs, and so have changed plans for replacing the Expedition 8 crew currently on board. Astronaut Edward Michael (Mike) Fincke and Cosmonaut Gennady Padalka will be the Expedition 9 crew, with launch scheduled for Apr. 18. Earlier, NASA had tapped Leroy Chiao to replace William S. McArthur as commander of Expedition 9 after McArthur was diagnosed with a "temporary medical issue" (AW&ST Jan. 19, p. 390).
