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).
This Hubble Space Telescope image shows new details of a long-observed galaxy, revealing stars being formed as a result of a collision that took place more than 1 billion years ago. Astronomers have studied the "Black Eye" galaxy since the 18th century, but only in the 1990s were they able to make the detailed measurements that let them see that the interstellar gas in the outer regions of the galaxy is rotating counterclockwise from this perspective, while the stars are rotating clockwise.
Most of the air bases that underpin the U.S. Air Force's airlift network in Iraq have been brought back to life after more than a decade of disuse, a handicap amplified by some basic design flaws and the fact they were built as fighter bases and not for today's heavy-transport traffic. Military planners now refer to the network of bases in the region as "lily pads in the global war on terrorism."
As a software engineer who worked on the Hubble Space Telescope, I was dismayed by NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe's cancellation of the last space shuttle service mission to HST (AW&ST Jan. 26, p. 24). NASA's concern about the safety of manned spaceflight has swung from one extreme (ignoring the dangers of debris strikes on the shuttle) to the other (requiring the use of the International Space Station as a "lifeboat"). Will NASA require equally stringent safeguards for crews traveling to the Moon and Mars?
The U.S. Coast Guard is so alarmed by a series of 54 power-loss incidents on the Eurocopter HH-65 Dolphin helicopter that it will replace LTS-101 engines starting this summer. But Honeywell says its engines aren't responsible for most of the problems.
Robert Wall (Washington), David A. Fulghum (Washington)
The Pentagon wants to redirect money to protect helicopters and ground forces from the threats they face daily in Iraq. But Israeli officials with experience in similar situations say smarter tactics is the answer, not technology.
K. Kasturirangan, a member of the Indian parliament and former chairman of Indian Space Research Organization who first suggested the idea for India's unmanned lunar mission, Chandrayaan I, has won the Man of the Year Award from the Centenarian Trust. The trust recognizes academics and technology pioneers in its focus on fostering harmony between diverse communities.
Textron and Finmeccanica are holding high-level discussions aimed at expanding cooperation in the rotary wing arena, in a move that could have enormous repercussions for the helicopter sector. The discussions are said to be wide-ranging, with no definite plan yet decided. Industrial sources say items being considered include closer cooperation beyond the companies existing joint venture, Bell/Agusta Aerospace Co. (BAAC) and the outright sale of Bell activities to Finmeccanica.
Israel Aircraft Industries will supply advanced avionics for the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter. The Dhruv demonstrator features integrated avionics and a glass cockpit from IAI's Lahav Div. that includes an electronic warfare suite, day/night vision and targeting system. Lahav is to supply HAL with glass cockpits for the Indian armed forces requirements and the export market.
As a retired U.S. Air Force officer--B-52D electronic warfare aircrew member-- and Boeing software test engineer, I must respond to your editorial "Time for Tough Love at Scandal-Ridden Boeing" (AW&ST Dec. 22, 2003, p. 66). I was hired at Boeing in the midst of the B-52 modernization program as one who had experience in the airplane and in software. I helped conduct the laboratory testing of the software before it was flown.
James Geisler has been appointed vice president-finance and Gregory Hayes vice president-accounting and control for the United Technologies Corp., Hartford, Conn. They will succeed Stephen Page, who is scheduled to retire Apr. 14 as chief financial officer. Geisler has been director of financial planning and analysis, and Hayes has been controller.
USMC Gen. (ret.) John R. Dailey, director of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, has received the Williams Trophy from the Washington Airports Task Force. The trophy is awarded annually to honor leadership, vision and dedication in the application of aviation or space that has enriched quality of life. Dailey was cited for commitment and accomplishments in the field of aviation and space exploration that have yielded benefits for America and its military services, as well as for people in the rest of the world.
Projecting a shortage of space-to-Earth cargo capacity in 2006-10, NASA has given faltering Kistler Aerospace a $54.2-million boost to help it get its K-1 reusable launch vehicle flying. The agency has exercised some options on a 2001 contract under the old Space Launch Initiative (AW&ST Sept. 3, 2001, p. 69) that would give Kistler as much as $35 million before the first K-1 is completed, and another $19.2 million before it flies. The money would pay for data on 13 technologies in the two-stage, fully reusable launch vehicle, which can lift 10,000 lb.
The cost of making the space shuttle safe to fly again and keeping it that way is growing, as is the time it will take to do it. Administrator Sean O'Keefe tells the House Science Committee the shuttle probably won't return to flight until November, instead of September or October. Engineering issues with the foam insulation on the external tank must be cleared before flight to ensure it doesn't fall away during launch. Those issues are taking longer than expected.
In the low-intensity phase of the conflict in Iraq, medical evacuation helicopters are still hard at work, but few of the patients are traditional combat casualties.
I cannot believe that in your "Moondoggle" editorial you wrote about aerospace engineering and how the Mars race could help engineering (AW&ST Jan. 26, p. 58). With all your expertise, you apparently don't know anything more about the real world of American business than our congressmen. Nowhere does the program say the engineers have to be American. Our corporate culture rewards making the bottom line regardless of the consequences.
The proposed merger of Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines was ratified on Feb. 11 by the European Commission's (EC) competition directorate. The two carriers are required by the EC to relinquish up to 94 daily slots for 14 European city-pairs at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Schiphol airports to accommodate new entrants and avoid dominant market shares. According to EasyJet Chief Executive Ray Webster, the EC's approval is bad news for European consumers, because the merger could lead to market domination.
A Standard & Poor's analysis of US Airways' continuing difficulties concludes that the best solution is "acquisition by another airline or some form of close integration into a broader alliance." Analyst Philip Baggaley says long-term prospects are shadowed by the carrier's limited network and increasing exposure to low-cost competition.
Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) of the House aviation subcommittee says he knows of more than 100 airports interested in opting out of Transportation Security Administration passenger and baggage screening, and he wants a smooth transition for those that make the change. For starters, that means the TSA should come up with application procedures and approval criteria well before Nov. 19, the date set by Congress in November 2001 for the agency to accept applications, but nothing is in the works yet.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) effort to develop the Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II) is behind schedule and critical aspects of the plan are incomplete, congressional auditors report. In fact, the General Accounting Office's latest report on the program found that, as of Jan. 1, the TSA hasn't addressed seven of eight CAPPS II issues identified by Congress as key areas of interest, in part because the program is in a preliminary stage of development. But CAPPS II was supposed to be completed in November 2003.
The Russian armed forces have completed a second successful test of a new warhead for the SS-27 Topol ballistic missile. The warhead is reportedly powered by a supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet) capable of avoiding U.S.-designed anti-ballistic missiles. The previous test in 2001 showed the scramjet warhead was able to fly at high speeds in the upper reaches of the atmosphere.
The Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity should be taking direct-contact measurements of a bedrock outcropping this week, while on the other side of the planet its twin Spirit is making a beeline to a 200-meter-dia. crater in search of more fertile ground for discovery.
There appears to be a nascent fear in industry that regulators will "overreact" as they dissect "Druyun-gate"--the revolving-door controversy over the former Air Force acquisition official who went to Boeing despite deep involvement in deals such as the KC-767 tanker lease. While foot-stomping the need for aboveboard ethics rules compliance, Northrop Grumman CEO Ronald D.
