David G. Bronner has been named non-executive chairman of US Airways. He is CEO of the Retirement Systems of Alabama, which owns a substantial share of the airline company. David N. Siegel will continue as president/CEO.
The Airborne-DHL Worldwide Express merger--and the muffled but strong resistance to it--is raising a lengthening trail of questions as to the final outcome.
UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON RESEARCHERS, WORKING WITH the Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, have developed an improved interferometer for accurately determining the angle of arrival of radio frequency signals over a wide band of frequencies and signal-to-noise ratios, an essential electronic warfare task. For broadband coverage, most interferometric systems need a large "antenna farm"--typically two three-element linear phase interferometers. The university uses a single, wideband, hybrid multi-mode antenna.
In a deal that will drive Airbus from its fleet, All Nippon Airways is negotiating to buy 45 Boeing 737NGs worth up to $2.5 billion for deliveries beginning in 2005. The agreement will see the Japanese carrier replace 52 aircraft in its single-aisle fleet--25 Airbus A320s, two 737-400s and 25 737-500s. The replacements include some aircraft from ANA subsidiary Air Nippon. The majority of the replacements are to be 737-700s but will include other variants. CFM International will provide the CFM56-7 powerplants.
The White House appears to be moving full speed ahead on privatizing up to 850,000 federal jobs that it considers "commercial" in nature, with the goals of improving efficiency and saving money. For positions with counterparts in the private sector (janitorial services and computer network design come to mind), investigating the alternatives makes sense. Not so, however, when it comes to replacing the people who ensure the safety of our skies: air traffic controllers.
Keeping with tradition on Europe's A400M military transport, the decision on an engine is dragging on longer than anticipated. The politically charged choice--between Pratt & Whitney Canada and a team of Rolls-Royce, Snecma, and MTU--has seen Airbus in last-minute discussions over the powerplant.
Lufthansa Technik and Rolls-Royce are planning to set up a joint engine MRO venture in a move intended to reinforce the role of both players in the aeroengine aftermarket sector.
BIG BIRD The Air Navigation Commission (ANC) of the International Civil Aviation Organization is drafting a report on the impact of NLA (new larger aircraft), including the Airbus A380, on taxiways and runways of major international airports. According to an initial version of the draft, a majority of airports expects few problems in accommodating these transports, while a small number of facilities featuring closely spaced parallel runways faces major obstacles.
CARRYING A BIG STICK AGAIN? JAPANESE Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba has ordered a feasibility study on the introduction of the Tomahawk cruise missile. The country's constitution prohibits possession of offensive weapons, but Ishiba said the Tomahawk does not violate that policy because it would be used to destroy hostile long-range missile bases. However, Yasuo Fukuda, the chief cabinet secretary, said Ishiba's study is for the Japanese Defense Agency and is not being provided to the cabinet.
TORNADO ZAPPER Tornadoes could be stopped before they start with a blast of microwaves from orbit, according to a retired Johnson Space Center engineer. Lyle M.
The essays in the section "Reflections on 100 Years of Aerospace" highlighted many fulfilled dreams (AW&ST Mar. 24, p. 48). What young dreams will be fulfilled in the coming century? Some dream of Mars. Will we really go? For the foreseeable future, distance, radiation and dollars will comprise a barrier to interplanetary human travel, as much as the Pacific Ocean did to Conestoga wagons. These dreams won't be fulfilled.
This detector monitors fumes from aviation gas and jet fuel to warn of possible explosive levels in hangars, engine bays and overhaul shops. The detector senses when fuel fume concentrations present a danger of explosion, then can automatically turn on exhaust fans, or flood the area with outside air. It can also trigger warning lights and horns to evacuate employees from the area. The detector features twin factory-tuned infrared sensors that "see" through fuel fumes and smoke, as well as aerosol vapors and oily mists.
Canada's two leading aerospace/aviation concerns--Bombardier Inc. and Air Canada--will remain under considerable pressure as they restructure and firm up their finances. Bombardier is in the early stages of a major recapitalization program, while Air Canada is operating under bankruptcy court protection (AW&ST Apr. 7, pp. 18 and 58).
Your Mar. 17 editorial incorrectly claimed that President Bush is "a former Air Force Reserve fighter pilot." He dodged the Vietnam War draft by having his father get a billet for him in the Texas Air National Guard, where he failed to make more than 50% of his required musters and often flew with a safety pilot. That kind of record would have had anyone without connections kicked out of the ANG. This braindead draft-dodging coward has dragged America into a war crime for which he and his team should be prosecuted.
Prof. J. Barry Andrews has become chairman of the Materials Science and Engineering Dept. within the School of Engineering at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
In the run-up to the battle for Baghdad, U.S. Marine Corps AH-1W Cobra attack helicopter pilots have been able to hone their urban combat skills in recent skirmishes, exercising new tactics and employing new tools that could prove critical in providing air support in the heavily populated capital city.
Northrop Grumman researchers have revealed an unmanned strike and reconnaissance aircraft concept--designed to fly from U.S. Navy aircraft carriers--with what appears to be about double the wingspan of a demonstrator that flew six weeks ago. Barring the Navy's release of requirements for its unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV), however, nobody knows for sure what the aircraft's dimensions, payload, range or powerplant will be.
This line of mounted cotton wheels for seat track cleaning removes dirt, gum and soda from inside surfaces of seat tracks, using a single tool, eliminating the need to replace the tracks. The wheels are made from multiple layers of non-woven cotton fiber and abrasive grains that are pressed and bonded into mounted wheels profiled to match interior surfaces of tracks. Maintenance personnel can clean the inside of a track using a standard grinder with a 0.4-in. mandrel.
U.S. and foreign airlines have met the U.S. government's Apr. 9 deadline for installing reinforced cockpit doors in slightly more than 10,000 transport aircraft, but the airlines and government disagree on how much this cost. FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey said costs totaled $250 million while Air Transport Assn. CEO James C. May estimates it will come to $325 million.
To execute one of the most dramatic air operations of the war against Iraq, the Pentagon called on some of its most sophisticated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance tools. The rescue of Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch from a hospital in Nasiriyah involved elements from each service and was planned and executed in only a few hours. "Emotions were running pretty high, especially knowing [from television footage] how they treated our POWs," said a pilot involved in the raid.
The company offers rebuild services for all makes and models of machine tool spindles, whether foreign or domestic, belt-driven, geared or motorized. There are three services centers in the U.S.--Ohio, Michigan and Georgia--that provide rebuild services for all makes of spindles: Chiron, Fadal, Hitachi Seki, Mori Seiki, Okuma, Toyoda, Daewoo, Brothers, Makino, Niigata and Ewag. All rebuilds are run off to original specifications, with each spindle signature electronically measured and recorded for future reference.
Fiat has picked the bid team of Carlyle Group and Finmeccanica to negotiate purchase of its aerospace arm, FiatAvio. Carlyle added state-owned Finmeccanica in the final stage of the bid process to make its tender more palatable to the Italian government, which insisted on having a local industrial partner. Earlier government insistence on obtaining an equal equity share for an Italian partner had scuttled a joint bid by Finmeccanica and Snecma, but this time Rome agreed to a minority holding--a decision roundly criticized by opposition parties.
COST-EFFICIENT TITANIUM? Titanium Metals Corp. has been selected by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to receive $12.3 million in government funding over the next four years to lead a program to commercialize the "FFC Cambridge Process." This method, developed by Derek Fray and others at the University of Cambridge, represents a potential breakthrough technology in the process of extracting titanium from titanium-bearing ores.
John M. Bingham has been appointed vice president-sales of Cirrus Design, Duluth, Minn. He was vice president-Americas of Rolls-Royce & Bentley Motor Cars.
AS THE AVIATION INDUSTRY CONTINUES TO ADOPT Internet Protocol (IP) technology for networking wireless communication on board commercial aircraft, network security is drawing increasing attention. Areas of concern for both air traffic control and business applications are data security and access control to prevent unauthorized use. After Sept. 11, 2001, the need to protect controller-to-pilot data link communication is getting a new look. Springfield, Va.-based Computer Networks& Software Inc.
