Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. has demonstrated the capability to transmit maintenance faults to ground-based facilities using commercial Iridium satellite communications. Faults were artificially introduced into an F-16 during flight. These were isolated by the aircraft's reporting system and transmitted to maintenance personnel through the Iridium network, which is not limited by VHF/UHF line-of-sight restrictions common to radios. In addition, the experimental system can report the status of fuel, weapons and defensive countermeasures equipment.
The ``new'' Japan Airlines, which is in the process of enveloping domestic carrier Japan Air System, is changing its fleet strategy to match its new corporate identity. JAL said it will replace the three 563-seat 747-100SR (short-range) aircraft it operates on high-density, short-duration flights in city-pairs such as Tokyo-Sapporo with 777-300s. Boeing developed the -100SRs in a single-class layout specifically for the Japanese routes, which are among the world's most competitive shuttles.
Software developers in need of proven and documented numerical routines can check the latest version of the Numerical Algorithms Group's C Library, which contains more than 850 functions written in the C language. The Mark 7 update of the library has nearly 400 new functions and is comparable to NAG's Mark 20 Fortran Library (www.nag.com). New features include mesh generators and partial differential equation solvers for finite element analysis, tools for Monte Carlo simulations, and more curve and surface-fitting routines.
Last week's markup of a Fiscal 2003 Transportation Dept. appropriations bill for House floor action confirms that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is in for a rocky, uncertain autumn. Once Fiscal 2003 dawned Oct. 1 with no approved appropriations, the federal government began operating under a congressional continuing resolution that permits business as usual but bars major initiatives. Rival House and Senate transportation appropriations bills were ready but not scheduled for floor votes.
A precipitous spike in aircraft accidents during the past year has prompted U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command to provide pilots additional training and has triggered interest in upgrades to the organization's fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. AFSOC has seen its accident rates skyrocket to above 13.3 Class A accidents per 100,000 flight hours, with the fleet of MH-53 helicopters particularly hard hit.
China Eastern Airlines (CEA) recently selected avionics and in-flight entertainment (IFE) systems produced by Rockwell Collins for 20 Airbus A320 aircraft. In addition, CEA and Rockwell Collins formed a joint venture in which the aviation electronics company will provide maintenance, repair and overhaul services for commercial air transport avionics and IFE equipment throughout China. That includes systems made by Rockwell Collins, as well as by other original equipment manufacturers.
The war of words between the Pentagon and Boeing over resolving the long-canceled A-12 Navy attack airplane heats up again. So far the Defense Dept. has not made good on its threat to withhold contract payments to Boeing and General Dynamics to recoup the money it believes it is owed, but the threat itself is drawing a strong response from Boeing. The Pentagon wants the companies to pay up, even though the contractors are appealing the latest court ruling.
Richard Michaels has become vice president-sales for Flight Options of Cleveland. He was Midwest U.S. sales manager for the Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., Savannah, Ga.
Directed-energy technology is ready to be used as weaponry and, in a mature state, one device carried by an unmanned aircraft could attack each of 100 targets with 1,000 pulses of energy in a single sortie, says a former director of the U.S. Air Force's high-power microwave program. ``Except for the standard rifle, gun, knife or grenade, virtually all military equipment contains some electronics'' that are vulnerable to a large pulse of energy, wrote Air Force Col. Eileen M. Walling.
Startup of the AirTrain light rail system at New York's JFK International Airport, set for sometime in 2003, will be delayed indefinitely, pending progress of the NTSB's probe into the cause of a recent derailment that killed the train's operator. According to observers, during a test run of the three-car monorail about 8 tons of concrete ballast, used to simulate passenger load, apparently shifted, causing the train to veer into a concrete retaining wall.
Goodrich Corp. can now officially claim TRW Inc.'s former aeronautical systems business as its own. The two companies closed the $1.5-billion deal last week--at which point both Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's, a unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies, abruptly lowered Goodrich's credit rating. Goodrich initially will finance the acquisition with a bridge loan, which the company expects to repay using proceeds from bond and equity offerings, as well as the sale of non-core businesses.
Ralph L. Richardi has been appointed senior vice president-customer service for American Airlines. He succeeds Daniel P. Garton, who is now executive vice president-marketing. Richardi was vice president-operations planning and performance and has been succeeded by Robert C. Cordes. Garton succeeds Michael W. Gunn, who is retiring. Cordes was vice president-St. Louis hub and will, in turn, be succeeded by C. David Cush, who has been vice president-international planning and alliances. Robert E. Olson has been named vice president-corporate planning.
Having completed the bulk of development for the baseline Cooperative Engagement Capability system, Navy officials are slowly ramping up production to proliferate the network throughout the fleet. One of the biggest challenges developers faced for the emerging airborne application was bringing the 3,200 lb. of CEC equipment used in a ship (USG-2) down to a size that can be packaged into the E-2C Hawkeye. Prototype equipment was tested in 1995 on a P-3, but the installation had to be much smaller for the E-2C.
This month, Cessna Aircraft Co. plans to lay off 400 workers at its facilities in Wichita where Citation-series business jets are built. The furloughs will be ``across the board'' and affect management as well as production line employees. The reduction in force is part of Cessna's effort to realign weaker production schedules for 2003-04, according to the company.
BAE Systems will produce laser warning receivers for the ATK Integrated Defense Co. under a $3.1-million contract. The receivers are slated to be installed in more than 3,000 U.S. Navy and Air Force helicopters and transport aircraft.
The first of 10 Airbus A330-300s ordered last week by Lufthansa German Airlines is scheduled to be delivered in 2004. The 295-seat long-range twinjets will be operated between Germany and Africa, the Middle East and North America.
GKN Aerospace has won $14.4 million in contracts from Pratt & Whitney to produce components for the F135 engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. GKN will manufacture fan inlet cases, inlet guide vanes, nozzle static structures, front compressor cases, blade finishing and lift fan containment cases.
Matthew Tucker has become station manager at Reno (Nev.)/Tahoe International Airport for Southwest Airlines. He held the same position at Midland/ Odessa, Tex.
The NTSB has concluded that fatigue cracks caused the wing failures of both firefighting airplanes that crashed this year--a Lockheed C-130A near Walker, Calif., and a Consolidated-Vultee PB4Y-2 near Estes Park, Colo. In a related move, the FAA issued an airworthiness directive on the C-130A last week. Both investigations are still underway as the agency tries to determine why the cracks started and how they were able to propagate to a critical length without being detected.
The Missile Defense Agency wants to launch a concept technology demonstration of a lighter than air (LTA) airship that could stay aloft up to a month, fly at 70,000 ft. and carry a multimission payload. The demo is designed as a stepping-stone to an operational high-altitude airship that could deploy from the U.S. to locations overseas. The prime contractor role is limited to U.S. companies, and the team must have a demonstrated LTA capable of operating above 60,000 ft.
The team NASA assembled to find out what happened to the Comet Nucleus Tour (Contour) spacecraft last month has started work, with a mid-October deadline for at least a preliminary report (AW&ST Aug. 26, p. 68). But Chief Engineer Theron M. Bradley, Jr., and his team are likely to have a problem writing a coherent report, since the best evidence of what happened to the probe comes from a classified Defense Support Program (DSP) early warning satellite. A DSP infrared sensor detected an explosion 48 sec. into the 50-sec.
At least five Navy systems deployed for possible combat in Iraq aren't up to snuff, the Pentagon's operational test and evaluation chief, Thomas Christie, complained on Aug. 1. But Navy Secretary Gordon England retorted last week, ``Operational considerations sometimes dictate that we establish an early operational capability to meet warfighting needs. . . . The risks were evaluated and considered acceptable.'' Christie expressed concern about three systems on the F/A-18E/F--the ATFLIR targeting system, Sharp reconnaissance pod and a classified system.
AirTran is starting a regional jet feeder operation, AirTran JetConnect, set to begin Nov. 15 using CRJs operated by Air Wisconsin. Initial service will be on short-haul routes to AirTran's Atlanta Hartsfield hub currently served by AirTran. The carrier hopes the regional operation will expand to additional markets. AirTran would then refocus its operations to longer-haul flights with its Boeing 717 and DC-9 fleet.
