The MathWorks has improved its mechanical simulation software, SimMechanics, to make it operate with real-time hardware-in-the-loop systems, which can give earlier evaluation and development of controllers and mechanical designs. The new version 2.0 can connect with the company's Real-Time Workshop to convert the SimMechanics block diagrams that represent the model into C code, which allows it to be run in the broader real-time test scenario. SimMechanics 2.0 also includes new models of mechanical devices and improved animation.
David A. Fulghum (Washington), Robert Wall (Washington)
The flow of exotic, advanced technologies out of U.S. workshops continues to ramp up in anticipation of conflict with Iraq. Planners also are taking steps to ensure that critical information gathered by satellites and other intelligence assets is fed immediately to tactical commanders, rather than risk having it missed by national intelligence agencies.
The U.S. military is relying heavily on commercial-off-the-shelf computer technology for the building blocks needed to realize the promise of net-centric warfare. One thing that aerospace/defense contractors and computer company military specialists say will be vital in net-centric warfare is mobile wireless communications for the relay of voice, video and, in particular, data. The increased operations tempo means U.S. forces will be moving rapidly while needing to stay linked to information networks.
Raytheon Co.'s Northeast Software Engineering Center attained a Level 5 software development rating, as defined by the Software Engineering Institute's (SEI) Capability Maturity Model. Raytheon learned lessons that have enabled it to offer new software with life-cycle costs that are 30% less than previously available, Network Centric Systems Vice President and General Manager Jim Carter said.
Feyzan Dalay (see photo) has become vice president-strategic/financial planning and development for Derco Aerospace Inc. of Milwaukee, a subsidiary of the Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. She headed the transition team that integrated Derco into Sikorsky's Worldwide Customer Service segment.
Inside North America, call Edith Roman Associates, Inc. at: (800) 223-2194; Fax (845) 620-9035. Outside North America call The Prospect Shop at: 020 8481 8730; Fax: 020 8783 1940
Pratt & Whitney has selected Ducommun AeroStructures under a $900,000 contract to develop the aft augmentor duct for the F135 propulsion engine for the F35 Joint Strike Fighter. The contract could lead to $200 million in U.S. and international sales.
After decades of raids on joint programs for funds, thereby dooming them, the Joint Staff is trying to ensure such projects--particularly those involving network-centric C4ISR--are protected and adequately funded, says Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "The glue that allows us to fight well is command and control, communications and ISR [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance].
US Airways reluctantly moved toward terminating the pilots' pension plan and renegotiating a replacement as the U.S. Bankruptcy Court authorized the carrier to seek creditor approval of its Chapter 11 reorganization.
Russian Satellite Communications Co. has selected Alcatel Space to provide payloads for two additional satellites. The C/Ku/L-band payloads, for RSCC's Express AM2/3 spacecraft, were initially supposed to be supplied by NEC, then Alenia Spazio. Alcatel had previously been selected to supply five RSCC satellites.
Moog Inc. has received a $12.8-million work order from BAE Systems Controls for flight control actuation systems on India's Light Combat Aircraft. First delivery is scheduled for 2004. Also, Tinker AFB, Okla., has awarded Moog Inc. two five-year contracts worth a total of $14.9 million, to perform repairs, overhauls and upgrades for the leading edge flap power drive units on F-16s.
Phillip Boughton has it wrong. Pilots and flight attendants are not the problem. The problem is the economy and large taxes on airlines by the U.S. government.The network carriers' profits were huge due to demand by business and leisure travelers before the rapid change of the economy.
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory will standardize on EDS' Unigraphics NX and I-deas computer-aided design, manufacturing and engineering analysis software. . . . On the prowl to improve its ability to nab "integrated battlespace" and "network-centric" contracts, Boeing has a definitive agreement to buy Conquest Inc., a D.C.-centric company specializing in systems engineering, software technology and enterprise architecture for the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance community.
USMC Brig. Gen. (ret.) Ralph E. (Chip) Parker has become executive vice president of CSI Aviation Services Inc., Albuquerque, N.M. He was commanding general of Marine Corps Bases Hawaii.
In a bid to quickly destroy elusive threats, U.S. Air Force researchers are considering the development of a category of weapons that would be lying in wait, ready to attack fleeting targets rather than having to wait for surveillance aircraft to detect them and call in a raid.
The FAA's recent Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) aims at harmonizing U.S. FAR Part 25 and European JAA (JAR-25) design standards for fuselage doors, hatches and exits on transport category aircraft. The rule outlines measures to ensure that fuselage doors remain secure at all times, and is expected to provide savings to manufacturers, who could avoid duplicate testing and reporting in meeting separate requirements. The NPRM stems from various transport accidents involving the opening of doors in-flight--including the Feb.
In response to Phillip Boughton's letter "Overworked, Underpaid" (AW&ST Dec. 2, 2002, p. 8), pilots are paid to perform a service that not everyone can provide. When the sky is blue, the wind is calm and there is unlimited visibility, anyone can basically go fly. Pilots are paid for the skill in getting an airplane safely to its destination by avoiding thunderstorms and in strong crosswinds and low visibility.
Senior management at AMR Corp. is convinced the company is facing a permanent shift in the airline revenue environment that will require significant cuts in labor and other costs if American Airlines is to survive.
A commercial remote-sensing order from the Pentagon's National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) could mean as much as $1 billion in business for two U.S. satellite operators over the next five years.
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The NTSB cited spatial disorientation last week as the probable cause of the Jan. 27, 2001, crash of a Raytheon Beechcraft King Air 200 (N81PF) near Strasburg, Colo. The board said the spatial disorientation was a result of the pilot's "failure to maintain positive manual control of the airplane with the available flight instrumentation."
Although it has not attracted major European and U.S. carriers, traffic at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) grew an encouraging 12.3% to 16.33 million passengers last year, making it the fastest growing airport in the region. The region's busiest airports have done well, evidence of Asia's relative strength, in contrast to weak performances at many European and U.S. hubs.
