USAF Maj. Gen. James N. Soligan has been named incoming chief of staff at U.S. Joint Forces Command, Norfolk, Va. He will succeed Maj. Gen. Jack Holbein, Jr., who will be retiring. Soligan was deputy chief of staff at United Nations Command and U.S. Forces Korea, Yongsan Army Garrison, South Korea.
USN Rear Adm. (ret.) Jeffrey Cook (see photo) has been appointed vice president/chief technology officer for the Information & Electronic Systems Sector of BAE Systems North America, Nashua, N.H. He was director for research and development and had been vice commander of Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md.
MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSN. operate nearly 10,000 aircraft, with business jets weighing less than 29,999 lb. the most popular type. According to the NBAA, members flew their jets an average of 425 hr. in 2002; utilization of piston-powered aircraft averaged 292 hr. while turboprops flew an average of 328 hr. Helicopters flew 216 hr. in 2002. Flight departments reported having an average of 2.2 aircraft.
WORLD NEWS ROUNDUP 18 A400M engine selection plan draws fire 18 Galex ultraviolet telescope propelled into orbit 19 First preproduction prototype SJ30-2 business jet crashes WORLD NEWS & ANALYSIS 24 Agreement on agenda to re- solve Ariane 5 problems 25 Governments push satellite makers to merge 26 Russian Soyuz to the rescue of space station 27 Gyro failure puts Hubble on thinner ice 38 Unmanned X-45C will offer increased size and range
Most of Elliott Sclar's assertions about NavCanada in "Privatizing ATC Is a Bad Idea" are untrue (AW&ST Apr. 14, p. 90). *NavCanada user fees have gone up and down but there has never been a "massive" increase. Even when the forthcoming increase is implemented, the fees will still be lower than when NavCanada took over the air traffic control system in 1996. The user fee passed on to the passenger will, on average, remain lower than the air transportation tax it replaced.
Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers' District Lodge 776 approved a three-year contract Apr. 27 with Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. in Fort Worth. The pact includes incremental wage increases, improved retirement benefits, and changes to medical and prescription drug plans. Workers, who had been on strike since early April, returned to the F-16 production line Apr. 28. An LMAC official said the strike will not adversely affect delivery schedules for the fighter.
General Electric's GE90-115B for the Boeing 777-200LR/300ER is the first of a new generation of engines being designed and tested to tougher standards that should enable operators to move beyond the current limitations governing extended twin-engine operations overwater.
Air Canada has locked in its $700-million in secured debtor-in-possession financing through GE Corporate Financial Services. Separately, discussions with the airline, a bankruptcy court-appointed monitor and union leaders concerning labor costs began last week.
Raytheon is carrying out modifications to its AIM-9X imaging-infrared guided missile to allow it to be carried internally on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Initial requirements were for the short-range missile only to be carried externally. The modifications also will allow the missile to be used in a lock-after-launch mode.
Ronald Hays has become chief financial officer of the Maritime Telecommunications Network, Miramar, Fla. He was CFO for BellSouth's Venezuelan subsidiary, Telcel CA.
The central role Airbus played in the decision by Air France and British Airways to end Concorde operations became fully apparent last week, with the press reporting comment attributed to Airbus Chief Executive Noel Forgeard that he would not support any initiative to see the aircraft operated by another airline. Virgin Atlantic Airways chief Richard Branson has been campaigning to be allowed to acquire and operate the BA aircraft. BA Chairman Lord Marshall, in response, said on Apr.
The FAA's proposal to require an easily triggered, uninterruptible hijack mode for airline transponders has drawn near-unanimous opposition. U.S. carriers and other organizations that could face the requirement say its advantages are exaggerated, its compliance schedule unrealistic and costs understated.
Kenneth Sunshine has become chief financial officer of Aurora Flight Sciences, Manassas, Va. He was senior vice president-finance/treasurer of the Orbital Sciences Corp.
American Airlines Capt. Roy I. Steele (Arlington, Tex.)
The top 45 executives of American Airlines were reported to be enrolled in a special fund that shields portions of their pensions from creditors in case the airline goes through a bankruptcy filing. While this is not a new idea for the airline executive, news of the fund was kept under wraps until a required filing the day after American employees were asked to vote to give up a significant portion of their wages. Does anyone wonder why employees mistrust management of the airlines?
Britain is considering shaving the number of Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft it purchases as part of a wide-ranging defense review. Such a move could have far-reaching ramifications for the four-nation program. The outgoing chief of the Defense Staff, Adm. Sir Michael Boyce, confirmed that preparation of the Defense White Paper included examining several so-called legacy systems in order to potentially reduce acquisition numbers. The government plans to publish the document during the third or fourth quarter of 2003.
In the Mar. 31 issue, you published two letters explaining how simple and obvious it will be to avoid future disasters similar to that of the space shuttle Columbia. Bill Ketchum proposed that we develop and build "an orbital turnaround operations facility with a capability for on-orbit maintenance," and Ray Peterson suggested taking two "Gemini capsule-sized lifeboats in the cargo bay."
Richard E. Moore has been named director of information technology for the Keystone Helicopter Corp., West Chester, Pa. He was Northeast U.S. director at Contemporary Technologies Inc., New Castle, Del.
Eighteen years after a London-bound Air-India 747 exploded over the North Atlantic about an hour before landing, killing all 329 people on board, two Sikh separatists went on trial last week in Vancouver. Canadians and Indians made up the bulk of the passenger list on the June 23, 1985, flight, which originated at Toronto and was headed for Bombay via London and New Delhi (AW&ST July 1, 1985, p. 29). The two accused, Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, have opted for a trial by judge.
AIRBUS WINS IN CHINA China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group (CASGC) is expected soon to conclude an order for four Airbus A330s, 16 A319s and 10 A320s. The 30 commercial transports are scheduled to be operated by China Southern Airlines, Air China, China Eastern, Hainan Airlines and Sichuan Airlines, CASGC President Li Hai said. Since Jan. 1, Airbus has concluded firm orders covering 137 aircraft in an indication that the market is not lifeless despite the gloomy airline industry environment.
Michael K. Moore has been named vice president-marketing and sales for Tag Aviation USA of San Francisco. He was vice president-aircraft acquisition and sales.
Poland is slated to become the first export customer for Raytheon's AGM-145 Joint Standoff Missile. The country recently signed a memorandum of agreement to buy a small number, fewer then 150, of the glide missiles to arm the 48 F-16s it's acquiring. Warsaw wants to buy the AGM-145C, the penetrator version that comes equipped with the BAE Systems Broach multistage warhead.
EASYJET SLOT SHORTFALL On July 1, EasyJet will begin serving Paris-Toulouse, one of France's busiest city pairs. However, the British low-cost carrier could not schedule more than four flights per day so as to retain scarce takeoff/landing slots for four daily flights to Nice.
Steven R. Bower has become senior vice president-finance and administration and James B. Fischer vice president-finance of Hitco Carbon Composites Inc. of Los Angeles. Bower was corporate controller for parent SGL Carbon Group, Wiesbaden, Germany. Fischer was chief financial officer of Ogden Atlantic Design.
GERIATRIC GAS STATIONS The Pentagon is to decide in the coming days whether to approve or nix the proposed lease of 100 Boeing 767-200 refueling planes. The lease is estimated to cost $17 billion, $21 billion if the Air Force buys the planes after six years. Adding in support costs pushes the price tag to almost $30 billion. But the service will still have to deal with some extremely old aircraft.
