TOULOUSE SHAKEUP As part of management changes begun in mid-July, the French space agency CNES will significantly streamline the command structure of its large Toulouse engineering center. Under the previous byzantine arrangement, the director of the center was not responsible for two of the facility's main activities--the development of orbital systems and basic space technology.
U.S. Northern Command is now the Pentagon's responsible agent for providing Defense Dept. assistance to civil authorities if wildfires overwhelm traditional firefighting resources.
Airline cargo maintenance, operations and crew training will likely draw closer industry scrutiny, now that the NTSB has determined the probable cause of the February 2000 crash of Emery Worldwide Airlines Flight 17 and issued 15 related safety recommendations.
NASA faces one hurdle in its proposed Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) mission that could be a showstopper--the biggest chemical-fueled U.S. launch vehicles available in the foreseeable future may not be big enough to get the probe into space for a nuclear-powered run to its target.
Tobin Treichel has been appointed vice president-tax of the United Technologies Corp., Hartford, Conn. He was vice president-finance of International Paper.
SLEIGHT OF HAND Pentagon acquisition mavens have worked their magic again to obtain improvements for U.S. forces through a foreign aircraft deal. A few years ago, they were able to finance a number of F-16 enhancements through the sale of Block 60 F-16s to the United Arab Emirates. These included a key electronic warfare upgrade that for the first time automatically followed polarity changes--instead of breaking lock--in the signals of radars that control modern Russian-made air defense missiles like the long-range SA-10 and SA-20.
Mike Croitoru has become manager of FlightSafety International's Cessna Learning Center, Wichita, Kan. He was manager of FSI's Learjet Learning Center, also in Wichita. Croitoru suceeds Dave Casperson, who will be retiring. Succeeding Croitoru is Craig Newell, who has been the Learjet center's director of training and director of standards. Jerry Mobley has been promoted to manager of FSI's Lakeland (Fla.) Learning Center from director of training. He succeeds Harry Kimberly, who has retired.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT CO. COMPLETED fabrication in Wichita, Kan., late last month of the 100th composite fuselage for the Premier I business jet. The all-metal wing will be assembled at the company's facility in Salina, Kan. A Raytheon official said the airplane would feature a number of "enhancements" to set it apart, including special Beechcraft logos on seat headrests and a commemorative decal near the cabin door to honor the 100th birthday of Olive Ann Beech. She co-founded the Beech Aircraft Co. with Walter Beech in 1932. Mrs.
The third FAA Runway Safety Report shows encouraging signs that government and industry efforts are aiding in reducing the rate, number and severity of runway incursions. The report, which tracks trends for Fiscal 1999-2002 at U.S. towered airports, indicated there were 1,480 runway incursions among 268 million operations. The findings included:
NAVY GEARING UP FOR BEAM WEAPONS U.S. Navy DD(X) next-generation destroyers will carry higher frequency S-band rather than L-band search radars. The move would sacrifice radar range in exchange for more precise targeting. However, as directed-energy weapons such as lasers are introduced to combat, the ability to accurately point a narrow-beam device will be at a premium. Long-range surveillance will be conducted by lower frequency radars on aircraft and larger ships.
Lt. Col. Gary Gagnon, headquarters squadron section commander of the Air Force Space Command has accepted the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award on behalf of his organization at Peterson AFB, Colo.
MARS EXPRESS CHECKOUT Engineers have successfully checked out a pair of key instruments on the European Space Agency's Mars Express probe, launched in June. Views of the Earth and the Moon taken on July 3 from a distance of 8 million km. showed the high-resolution camera, which will be able to distinguish details on the Martian surface as small as 2 meters wide, to be functioning correctly.
Ludwig Boelkow, German aviation pioneer and founder of EADS predecessor Messerschmidt-Boelkow-Blohm (MBB), died on July 25. He was 91. After finishing his formal studies in aeronautical engineering in 1938, Boelkow co-developed the Me-262 jet and then founded his own engineering company in 1948. The company became MBB after a series of mergers and was Germany's biggest aeronautical concern. Boelkow is credited with important improvements in helicopter technology and the German contributions to the Tornado and space programs.
Firmly drawing up battle lines over the British government's forthcoming Aviation White Paper, a parliamentary committee has launched a highly critical attack on the government's approach to the environmental impact of commercial aviation. Taking a notably greener tack than the government, the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee describes the "proposed growth in emissions into the atmosphere by the aviation industry as unsustainable and unacceptable."
INSAT 3E LAUNCH SET India's latest communication satellite, Insat-3E, is in Kourou, French Guiana, for an Ariane5 launch by the end of August. Delivered July 15 by an An-124 transport, the satellite is bound for a final operational orbit at 55 deg. E. Long. Weighing 2,750 kg. (6,050 lb.) at liftoff, Insat 3E will carry 24 C-band transponders and 12 extended C-band transponders for spot-beam coverage in India.
RENEWING CAE Inc. received a five-year C$14-million ($9.9-million) contract renewal to train USAF crews on the Predator UAV. The Canadian company is to provide interactive computer-based training, classroom instruction, simulator training and live flight instruction. About 120 Predator operators per year are expected to train at Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field near Las Vegas.
CLIPPED WINGS Shipments of new general aviation aircraft in the U.S. decreased 10% during the second quarter compared with the same period a year ago. According to the General Aviation Manufacturers Assn. (GAMA), deliveries totaled 916 units and billings fell 22.6% to $2.83 billion from $3.66 billion a year ago. During the quarter, 664 piston-powered airplanes were delivered, along with 68 turboprops and 184 business jets. In the first six months of this year, overall shipments fell more than 13% compared with 2002 and billings plummeted 32.3%.
C/UAV? On completion of static tests, the AeroVironment-developed SkyTote vertical takeoff and landing UAV is set to begin tethered hover tests next month. The tests, to be conducted in Mojave, Calif., by the California-based company and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, are exploratory. The eventual goal is development of an unmanned cargo transporter for both military and civil environments.
International Space Station partners last week decided to put major decisions on hold until the space shuttle returns to flight, and to stay the course they set at their last agency-head conference in December.
DELTA-UNITED PARTING Delta Air Lines, which will be offering passengers frequent-flier benefits of its marketing cooperation with Continental and Northwest airlines, last week terminated its loyalty arrangement with United. Members of Delta's frequent-flier club may book award travel on United through Oct. 15 and United members, on Delta through Sept. 15. Reciprocal travel on both carriers must be completed by Feb. 29, 2004. The airport lounge access agreement between Delta and United has also been terminated.
COMMERCIAL KIBO Japan's cabinet-level Space Activities Commission (SAC) plans in 2-3 years to shift administration of Kibo, the $5-billion Japanese Experiment Module for the International Space Station, from the government to a commercial company. Recently delivered to Kennedy Space Center, Kibo is planned for launch in 2006 and to become operational the next year. Initially Kibo's administration will be handled by the Japan Aerospace Exploratory Agency (JAXA), the country's new all-encompassing space agency, which begins operations in October.
Adam Aircraft's A700 twinjet made a 50-min. first flight from Centennial Airport near Denver on July 27, powered by Williams International FJ-33 engines. Flown by Bruce Barrett and Glen Maben, the test mission consisted of stability and control, slow-flight and systems evaluations at altitudes up to 15,000 ft. The pilots reported good handling qualities and "excellent" stability and climb performance.
National Research Council Canada's Flight Research Laboratory is developing several technologies to improve human engineering and situational awareness for pilots in cockpits of the future. The laboratory, a division of the Canadian Institute for Aerospace Research, has been flight-testing three versions of attitude indicators to better understand the process of disorientation and what is needed to hone unusual-attitude recovery skills.
Since the first A-4 Skyhawk appeared on the ramp at Williams Gateway Airport two years ago, Advanced Training Systems International (ATSI) has flown hundreds of hours as "red air" for U.S. and Canadian forces, paving the way for broader commercialization of tactical training services.
Marilyn Devoe has been promoted to vice president-customer services planning from Western U.S. managing director for American Airlines. She succeeds Bella D. Goren, who has become vice president-reservations. Goren, in turn, has succeeded Lauri L. Curtis, who has been named vice president-flight service. Other promotions have been: Debra Hunter Johnson to vice president-human operations support from associate general counsel for employment and immigration law; and Danny Martinez to vice president-line maintenance from managing director of maintenance operations.
