Ivan A. Getting and Bradford W. Parkinson (see photos) have received the annual Charles Stark Draper Prize from the Washington-based National Academy of Engineering for their work to develop GPS. Getting is president emeritus of The Aerospace Corp. of Los Angeles. In the 1950s, he envisioned a system that would use satellite transmitters to pinpoint locations anywhere on Earth with extreme accuracy. Getting later worked to ensure the system was built. Parkinson was the Defense Dept.
The future of British Airways' Concorde operations is being reviewed in response to weak premium-passenger business. Airline executives last week acknowledged they "have discussed the retirement of Concorde," but stressed that no decision has been made. No similar review is being planned by Air France, Vice President-Marketing Bruno Matheu said. Both carriers, however, have declined to publish average load factors in an indication that supersonic services between Paris, London and New York could be seriously affected by the long-lasting economic downturn.
WORLD NEWS ROUNDUP 18 Midori II satellite transmits first images 19 Full-scale development of Cosmo-SkyMed system OK'd 19 Last signal for 31-year-old Pioneer 10 spacecraft WORLD NEWS & ANALYSIS 22 Satcom industry trims ambi- tions as weak market persists 24 Partners pull together to help Russia keep ISS stocked 33 USAF redefines boundaries of computer attack vs. Iraq 34 Researchers plan more tests for X-47A after first flight
Europe's Ariane 5 has been selected as the primary launch vehicle for Orbital Recovery Corp.'s Geosynch Spacecraft Life Extension System. Arianespace will orbit at least four SLES space tugs beginning in 2005. ORC recently signed an agreement with German aerospace center DLR to use its robotic capture tool concept (AW&ST Dec. 9, 2002, p. 23).
Douglas Barrie (London), Michael A. Taverna (Paris)
Germany's continuing economic difficulties are placing defense and space spending plans under renewed pressure--with cuts in both areas. All three air components of Germany's armed services are to suffer reductions as the defense ministry moves to trim more than $3 billion in potential expenditure over the next 10 years. Space research programs have also been squeezed by the parliament's budget committee.
It seems clear that Airbus and Boeing are at the same point in the evolution of aircraft design as racing yacht designers: They are refining minor imperfections of a perfect circle (AW&ST Jan. 20, p. 20). If Boeing wants to capture 100% of the commercial aircraft market, it should create a quiet (silent) airplane. Every commercial airport is restricted by the power of environmental groups. People will not tolerate aircraft noise, which limits the use and expansion of runways, and leads to lost airport revenues.
The U.S. Air Force plans to convert 10 C130s into special operations MC-130H Combat Talon II-like aircraft that are used to insert elite combat units and refuel special ops helicopters. The upgrade will be done in phases, with the C-130Hs first receiving most of the Combat Talon II kit, but not the terrain-following, terrain-avoidance radar. The aircraft will then undergo the C-130-wide avionics modernization program that should provide all C-130s with a modern and highly common cockpit--the new C130Js don't require the upgrade.
Japan's Midori II Earth observation satellite has transmitted its first images in real-time via the National Space Development Agency's Kodama data relay test satellite.
Also tapped for the Middle East are two USAF Global Hawk recon UAVs--air vehicles 3 and 6. They will be flown sequentially, starting this week, back to their base in the United Arab Emirates. Both will be equipped with the combination electro-optical, infrared and synthetic aperture radar payload. Air vehicle 7 was delivered to the Air Force Feb. 14 (see p. 58). It and air vehicle 1 will continue as test aircraft. Three of the long-range, high-altitude unmanned aircraft have crashed.
The seventh Global Hawk lands at Edwards AFB, Calif., on Feb. 14 following a flight from Northrop Grumman's fabrication plant at nearby Palmdale. As the unmanned aerial vehicle program's last advanced concept technology platform, No. 7 will be used for development testing and upgrade evaluations. A number of improvements incorporated into this version evolved from lessons learned during operational missions over Afghanistan, according to U.S. Air Force officials.
Robert P. Barker has been appointed president of the Cleveland-based Parker Hannifin Corp.'s Aerospace Group. He was vice president-operations for flight controls and hydraulic systems. Barker succeeds Steve Hayes, who is scheduled to retire later this year.
The U.S. Air Force's top civilian leader chided uniformed officers and Lockheed Martin officials for a lack of attention to details in the F/A-22 program. This failure, he asserted, resulted in fewer stealthy fighters that the service will be able to buy under the congressional spending cap--276 instead of the 339 planned earlier.
Mar. 10-11--European Transport Leaders Conference. Landmark Hotel, London. Mar. 12-13--Toulouse Symposium. Toulouse (France) Congress Center. Mar. 27-28--Defense Budget Conference. Holiday Inn, Rosslyn, Va. Apr. 15-17--MRO 2003 & MRO Latin America. Broward County Convention Center, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. May 6-8--Aerospace Defense & Finance Conference. Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York. May 14-16--Homeland Security Summit & Exposition. Hyatt Regency Crystal City, Arlington, Va.
The investigation to determine the probable cause of Iran's worst air disaster--the Feb. 19 crash of an Ilyushin IL-76MD--picked up pace last week after strong winds and fog hampered recovery teams' initial attempts to reach the mountainous crash site.
Snecma-EADS venture SMA has contracted with India's National Aerospace Laboratory to supply its Jet A fuel diesel engine for NAL's Hansa 4 light aircraft program. The first SMA SR305-230 engine, certificated by the FAA in 2002, will be delivered later this year, and series production of the four-seat all-composite aircraft is slated to begin in late 2004. The SR305-230, in which Renault is also a partner, was picked to power a mini flying testbed to verify avionics and other onboard systems for the Light Combat Aircraft and other new Indian air force programs.
Republic Airlines, a new sister carrier to Chautauqua Airlines, has accepted a $7.8-million tax incentive package from the state of Kentucky and selected Louisville International Airport as the site of a corporate headquarters, crew base and primary maintenance facility.
The European Space Agency (ESA) is assessing the failure of an item it supplied for International Space Station science applications to see how it can be restored to service. The Microgravity Science Glovebox was launched on the shuttle Endeavour last June as part of a barter agreement for ISS services with NASA, including launch of ESA's Columbus orbital laboratory originally scheduled for October 2004. The glove box, installed in the U.S. Destiny Lab, is used for a variety of combustion, fluid, biotechnology and microgravity experiments.
The Polish government will be ready to sign a deal for 48 F-16 fighters from Lockheed Martin Corp. in April, according to a Polish Press Agency report last week. The government was planning to commit to the buy as well as to a so-called framework offset agreement on Feb. 28, but talks hit a snag. "We have to negotiate offset agreements within 60 days from signing," Deputy Defense Minister Janusz Zemke said.
The Transportation Security Administration says the child-friendly screening program it's had on trial at Denver International since October has been so successful, it's likely to be implemented at 429 U.S. airports, although no specific date has been set. The TSA launched the program in an attempt to make the process more pleasant and understandable for young people. Screeners talk to children and give them a smiley-face sticker to distract them as they go through the metal detector.
Wings from this Altair high-altitude UAV, photographed by Alan Waide at Gray Butte, Calif., will be placed on a Predator to increase altitude and range performance, one of a number of improvements slated for the aircraft (see p. 48). The insert photo shows the X-47A UCAV during its first flight at China Lake, Calif. Northrop Grumman photo by Bruce Wartlieb.
U.S. tensions with France and Germany, in particular over Iraq, are expected to have long-lasting consequences as Washington reassesses its international links. The recent rift indicates "a long-term diminution of traditional, law-based alliances," such as NATO, in favor of ad hoc coalitions, says the chief of the State Dept.'s political-military shop, Gregory Suchan. But that trend will create its own challenges. For instance, it is hard to formulate technology-export policy within arrangements that rely less on longstanding relationships, Suchan notes. The U.S.
Unmanned aircraft left an indelible mark on three recent conflicts, Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan, and they are already a staple in operations over Iraq; but, to trigger explosive growth in sales and use, they must find missions in expanding market areas such as homeland defense and communications.
These are very scary times in our country. Our civil liberties are being threatened in the name of security, and now Stephen J. Cabot (AW&ST Feb. 3, p. 62) proposes taking away some labor rights because airlines are "part of an essential industry."
The prospects of war in Iraq and concern over how long and how big it might be are giving airline executives the jitters. "People don't want to be stranded," said Air Canada President and CEO Robert A. Milton, describing an unease shared by other CEOs of the Star Alliance who gathered here last month to welcome Asiana Airlines as its 15th member.
