The U.S. Transportation Dept. approved much of what the biggest U.S. airlines wanted regarding temporary waivers of dormancy standards for limited-entry international route authority (AW&ST Nov. 19, p. 63), but what it didn't go along with will prompt a flurry of paperwork in February and March. Carriers taking down capacity in reaction to the Sept. 11 attacks will be able to suspend service on such routes through Mar. 31 without losing their rights to them. The airlines had asked for relief through June 30, but the department noted that Mar.
Three U.S. and six Afghan anti-Taliban fighters were killed and 19 U.S. and 18 Afghan troops were wounded when a 2,000-lb. Joint Direct Attack Munition, dropped from high altitude by a B-52, hit about 100 yd. from their position. The incident is being investigated by Central Command officials. It could have resulted for a number of reasons, according to industry experts. High mountains can mask GPS navigation signals causing the weapon to stop correcting its flight.
The dataMate business unit of this company has brought out what it says is the industry's first program-as-need electronic lock, also known as a ``software lock.'' The device consists of a DB9 connector with an EEPROM housed in a overmolded case. Programmable by either the OEM or by dataMate, the electronic key can be used to enable software features, store electronic signatures, and provide such data as when a piece of equipment was made, its serial number or its original configuration settings.
Palestinian presidential guards inspect a Mil Mi-8 used by Palestinian Authority leader Yasir Arafat, in a Gaza City hangar damaged by Israeli forces early last week in retaliation for terrorist bombings. Seeking to strike key symbols of Palestinian autonomy, the Israelis attacked aviation facilities. Apache helicopters fired missiles at Arafat's heliport, while tanks and bulldozers launched an incursion to Gaza's international airport to tear up the runway.
Qualcomm Inc. has jumped on the satellite flight data bandwagon, proposing a system based on the Globalstar constellation of 48 low-Earth-orbit spacecraft to deliver flight and other data from aircraft to the ground. Its Globalstar Aviation Safety Communications System would transmit flight and voice recorder data in real time, and could provide video monitoring of cockpits and cabins. Air marshals also could use the system to communicate with their base, Qualcomm says.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, eager to expand his role in Central Asia, has offered to enhance ``nuclear cooperation'' with India, including offering it a limited ``missile shield.'' The offer came last month during a visit to Moscow by Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and follows on pledges that Putin made to Vajpayee during a visit to New Delhi in October to sell India more than 300 T-90 tanks, antitank guided missiles and kits of 140 Sukhoi Su-30 KI fighters for assembly in India.
Five top officials of their nations' International Space Station programs have received the 2001 Prince of Asturias Foundation Award for International Cooperation. The recipients are: W. Michael Hawes, deputy associate administrator for the space station with the NASA Office of Space Flight; Antonio Rodota, director-general of the European Space Agency; William (Mac) Evans, president of the Canadian Space Agency; Yuri N.
In a rare move, the National Transportation Safety Board recently dismissed a member of a technical panel investigating the January 2000 crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261. In a letter signed by John C. Clark, director of the Office of Aviation Safety, to Alaska Airlines' director of flight safety, Capt. Terry Clark, the NTSB said: ``We are withdrawing the invitation for Mr. Eiji Sugi to serve as a member of the Alaska Airlines Flight 261 Lubricating Grease Investigation Group, chaired by Dr. Joseph Kolly.''
At the Marine Corps base southwest of Kandahar, a pair of AH-1W Super Cobras circle over a CH-53 (right) and a CH-46 (left) as a UH-1 flies past. Marine air and ground patrols have interdicted supply, reinforcement and escape routes lines around the Taliban stronghold. The tightening noose, increasing defections and attacks by an ever- strengthening anti-Taliban force triggered negotiations to surrender the town and its Taliban garrison.
The Pentagon has managed to score successes on several of its key missile defense programs, including last week's intercept of a mock intercontinental ballistic missile warhead, but technical and funding hurdles are still slowing the pace of several critical projects.
Ralph Kaeding has become Singapore-based regional director for East Asia and Australia/Pacific and Bill Johnson Atlanta-based regional director for the Americas for Lufthansa Technical Training.
The timing of Pratt&Whitney Canada's plans to obtain Transport Canada approval of the PT6C-67D turboshaft engine for commercial and military UH-1 helicopters was incorrectly reported (AW&ST Nov. 26, p. 6). Approval is expected in February, followed by FAA certification later next year. The engine and installation kit are scheduled to be available in the second quarter of 2002. NavCanada's rate stabilization drawdown is C$75 million ($47.4 million), not $753.4 million, as reported in Airline Outlook (AW&ST Nov. 12, p. 15).
Designed as an alternative to total replacement of a liquid crystal display in computer or avionics system, these cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL) and harness assemblies are available for screens up to 18.1 in. The company says it is an approved supplier to numerous OEMs, and its line of CCFL products range in diameter from 2-6 mm., in lengths from 25-360 mm. The company can custom configure assemblies to include options such as power inverters, mounting grommets, end caps and connectors. JKL Components, 13343 Paxton St., Pacoima, Calif. 91331.
The Endeavour astronauts are to complete eight days of crew transfer, logistics and EVA operations at the International Space Station this week following their launch under unprecedented wartime security.
General Dynamics gained some credibility in its bid to sell the Pentagon on the Gulfstream V biz jet as a sensor platform. Joining Sweden and Japan, Israel bought three Gulfstream Vs as its ``special electronic mission'' aircraft. Israel will supply its own classified payloads. Industry officials here expect them to include a synthetic-aperture radar (SAR), a moving-target indicator and a suite that gathers electronic signals and communications intercepts. Meanwhile, some U.S.
Usually, when space people talk about their products, they emphasize the new stuff. But Kevin M. Bilger, who heads Lockheed Martin Space Systems' military space programs, took some pleasure in pointing to the DSCS A3 satellite during a recent walk-through of the company's cleanroom. An 8-ft. cube, the A3 was dwarfed by a 51-ft.-long Milstar II that was about to be buttoned up for a flight to Cape Canaveral. The Milstar represents the latest and greatest for milcom programs while the A3 will be 25 years old when it's launched in May 2003.
China helps make Dragonair CEO Stanley Hui an optimist about cargo traffic as his Hong Kong-based carrier brings a second 747-300 freighter into service. ``We've been fortunate in that our markets seemed to have bucked the general trend and are holding up solidly,'' he said. The converted combi is coming on line as Asian freight traditionally reaches a peak to serve the Christmas and New Year's holiday periods. More important, Hui expects Dragonair to benefit from China's entry into the WTO.
Gulfstream Aerospace has won a contract worth up to $206 million to supply and support three Gulfstream V business jet aircraft for the Israeli Ministry of Defense. They are scheduled to be used as special electronic mission aircraft. Toulouse, France-based Latecoere will produce airframe subassemblies and electric wirings for the newly launched Dassault 7X business jet.
Hartzell Propeller has completed Supplemental Type Certificate testing to certify a three-blade propeller for the Piper Cherokee 235, on the path to FAA approval and STC issuance. The FAA Designated Engineering Representative pilot who tested the three-blade, 78-in.-dia. constant-speed propeller for certification reported improved takeoff performance, according to Hartzell. During flight testing, the pilot also registered climb improvements of up to 100 fpm. with no loss in cruise performance.
Sagem's Sperwer-LE surveillance/attack drone made its maiden flight last week. The upgraded version has 12-hr. maximum endurance and operates up to 20,000-ft.-altitude, according to company officials.
NASA hopes to ask for proposals early next year to privatize the space shuttle (see p. 42), but Bush Administration insiders still see some big stumbling blocks to turning over the fleet. The idea is for the government to retain ownership of shuttle assets while industry operates them. Ultimately, that would lead to what NASA now terms commercialization, in which industry would own the fleet and NASA would be only one of many customers. Privatizing the shuttle by 2004 is considered ambitious, though.
Held hostage to national pride, Belgium intends to form a new carrier to succeed Sabena even though such an objective is at odds with the widely recognized need to consolidate Europe's fragmented airline industry. The government of Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt is supporting efforts to establish Delta Air Transport (DAT), Sabena's regional arm, as a viable airline flying the Belgian flag. However, the government has no plan to acquire a stake in the revamped carrier.
NASA managers and pork barrel politicians like to stress that money for space projects isn't spent in space, but on the ground. In addition to their manufacturing and systems work, Boeing and Lockheed Martin compete for the money to be earned on the ground in supporting space operations and selling services generated in space.
Although its commercial satellite business is struggling in a depressed market, Lockheed Martin remains a powerhouse in the space science arena. Its recent win of the 2005 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter contract reaffirmed the company's long-held dominance in planetary exploration, and it is a strong contender for the Next Generation Space Telescope. TRW leads a competing team to build NGST (AW&ST Oct. 15, p. 80).
