Switzerland's civil aviation authorities are trying to determine why a Crossair Avro RJ went down near Zurich-Kloten during a nighttime VOR-DME approach. Twenty-four of 33 passengers and crewmembers were killed. Late last week, investigators were focusing on the conjunction of bad weather conditions, poor horizontal visibility and unavailability of an instrument landing system (ILS) at Kloten's 8,200-ft. Runway 28. All these factors may have contributed to the probable controlled-flight into terrain (CFIT) accident.
Airbus is scheduled to hire engineers and technicians in the U.S. to staff new engineering facilities set to be established soon in Wichita, Kan. The initiative results from the company's growing engineering workload tied to the A380 mega-transport's development, Airbus officials noted.
The U.S. House of Representatives belatedly cleared a $317.5-billion defense spending bill for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, including $11.7 billion for counterterrorism and homeland security programs, which are consolidated under a new appropriations title. The House bill, subject to negotiations with the Senate, would provide $7.9 billion for development and procurement of ballistic missile defenses (BMD).
The White House is fighting several budget actions in the House version of the Defense appropriations bill. For instance, the Administration is going to bat for Global Hawk in opposing a $50-million cut. Moreover, the White House wants Congress to restore the $441 million the House wants to take from missile defense. The reduction would delay several programs and effectively kill the Space-Based Laser and Space-Based Infrared System-Low constellation.
There is no disagreement that Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge has a daunting job. But is it made tougher by the Adminis- tration's insistence that he needs no legislative authority from Congress? Two veteran AW&ST editors discuss the pros and cons. Tom Ridge should have legislative authority to shift money--and lots of it--among the nearly 50 agencies he leads. That is the only way he can knock heads together and make people do what he says.
The committee looking for a chief operating officer (COO) for the FAA's new performance-based Air Traffic Organization may be closing in on its quarry. The panel interviewed six candidates a couple of weeks ago and found all candidates qualified. However, the recruiters have concerns about how well some applicants understand what they would be getting themselves into--a high-visibility job that is complex and still ill-defined. Money may not be a problem, as there are candidates willing to take pay cuts to serve their country.
US Airways President/CEO Rakesh Gangwal resigned Nov. 27 and will be replaced by the man he succeeded, Chairman Stephen Wolf. After 20 years in the airline industry and six years at US Airways, Gangwal will join an investment firm.
Raytheon Co. will develop and manage first-year production of the U.S. Army's Airborne Command and Control System for UH-60HL Black Hawk helicopters, under a $110-million contract.
Jumper says the conflict in Afghanistan and homeland defense have stressed the Air Expeditionary Force system of 10 rotating wings, but it has not yet broken it. ``We've had to reach forward to portions of the force structure that weren't supposed to deploy for another rotation or even two rotations in certain high-demand, low-density specialties,'' he said.
The Hungarian and Swedish governments have signed a memorandum of understanding permitting Hungary to lease 14 Saab/BAE Systems JAS Gripen fighters to meet a requirement for NATO-compatible combat aircraft. An offset accord linked to the 10-year lease agreement is to be concluded in December. The aircraft, to be delivered from 2004-05, will be the first to be delivered to a NATO nation. Sweden and South Africa have also ordered the Gripen.
The British government issued awards to two contractor teams for more-detailed, stage-two assessments of the U.K.'s Future Carrier Program. The $36-million contracts to consortia led by BAE Systems and Thales will last one year and lead to a downselect of a preferred supplier. The BAE System team includes Northrop Grumman and Rolls-Royce, while Lockheed Martin and Raytheon are partnered with Thales.
BAE Systems unceremoniously decided to terminate the Avro RJX product range and exit the regional jet market. By a quirk of fate, the British group's decision was announced 48 hr. after a Crossair Avro RJ100 crashed near Zurich (see p. 38), although this is not thought to be a cause-and-effect issue.
However, Jumper, an avowed advocate of advanced technology, expressed a more conservative tack with regard to Space Based Radar. Advocates of SBR envision a constellation of small satellites that can keep constant track of ground, and possibly air, targets. Jumper worries about a ``rush to failure,'' and points out that the immediate goal is to identify a combination of manned, unmanned and space systems that can provide the best ground moving target indicator (GMTI) radar picture to commanders.
Alitalia maintains it needs another infusion of capital to continue operations. The flag carrier's recently approved business plan involves recapitalization of 1.78 billion euros ($1.58 billion) and foresees profitability by 2003. However, competitors are concerned about compliance with the European Commission's (EC) strict rules on state aid. Alitalia expects to lose $300 million this year.
SGI Israel is installing the largest graphics computer in that country for BVR Systems, an Elisra Group company specializing in defense training and simulation. The SGI Onyx 3800 visualization system will be used in a full-mission flight simulator for a two-seat F-16 fighter, and will be programmed with high-fidelity models of actual terrain, which are so large that they cross memory partitions. A likely use would be to rehearse ground attack missions.
The U.S. Air Force has put its new Litening infrared and laser-targeting pods into combat in Afghanistan on board older Air National Guard F-16s. The aircraft have an ability to pick up a laser illumination regardless of whether it was generated by a ground party or another aircraft. In addition to the new technology, airpower's success in Afghanistan was ``made very much better by the people on the ground [who are designating targets],'' said new Air Force chief of staff, Gen. John Jumper. ``We're wildly successful. I wish we could have done this in Kosovo.
Alcatel will sell 4.2%, or 7 million shares, of its stock in Thales, a move that will decrease its holdings in the defense electronics contractor to 15.8%. The move will contribute 270 million euros ($239 million) to the troubled telecom giant's bottom line while allowing the strategic partnership between the two firms to be maintained. Thales expressed satisfaction with the sale, noting that it would raise the percentage of shares on the market to 45%.
Geci International, a French engineering group, has launched a utility twin turboprop called Skylander and hopes to obtain FAA and European JAA certification in September 2004. Powered by 1,100-shp. Pratt&Whitney Canada PT6A-65Bs, the unpressurized Skylander will carry up to 19 passengers or 3 metric tons of freight. A maritime patrol version also is being planned.
Application of antitrust laws and regulations will play a key role in the U.S. aerospace/defense industry's continuing consolidation, as has been the case since the early 1990s. But the pattern of merger reviews by the U.S. Justice Dept., especially from 1994-97, probably runs counter to popular belief. Until regulators blocked the union of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman in 1998, the general perception was that government had a laissez-faire attitude toward proposed mergers. In fact, that remains the prevailing view in some industry circles.
Transatlantic industrial relationships are likely to follow an evolutionary, rather than revolutionary path for the foreseeable future. This means the potential for full-blown mergers uniting large U.S. and European prime contractors--a subject of much speculation--probably will remain a distant prospect, at best. More transatlantic acquisitions will happen, of course, but they are more likely to be small and medium-sized transactions. That is not to say some major players have never explored such a union.
Fred Buttrell, who was senior vice president-strategy and business development for Delta Air Lines, has been appointed president/CEO of Delta Connection Inc. He succeeds David Siebenburgen, who will retire but remain chairman of Delta AirElite Business Jets. Joe Kolshak, who was director of investor relations, has been named vice president-flight operations, for mainline Delta. He succeeds Dave Bushy, who will remain a Boeing 767 captain and be the airline's liaison to industry groups for pilot resource planning, training and recruitment.
The Senate has long been frustrated with Pentagon accounting problems and lack of transparency on where money is spent, and now the Defense Dept.'s inspector general has found new ammunition for lawmakers. Investigating an allegation that the Environmental Technology Laboratory mischarged costs to Advanced Sensor Applications Program, the IG indeed discovered that $1.6 million couldn't be properly accounted for. The project is a cooperative effort between the Defense Dept.
The U.S. Aerospace Commission and the Defense Dept. envision a number of near-term measures that could aid U.S. aerospace companies and enhance their long-term financial outlook. Pentagon acquisition chief Edward C. (Pete) Aldridge told the commission last week at its first hearing that two policies are being developed that could improve contractors' balance sheets. One is focused on helping companies eliminate excess capacity; the other is more directly related to profit policies.
U.S. heavy bombers have appeared in the Afghanistan conflict as little more than distant contrails, but the small force--primarily 18 Boeing B-1s and B-52s operating from Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean--has dropped most of the 4,700 tons delivered by the Air Force, which comprise 72% of the war's total.
Norman Mineta and Tom Ridge, whose workloads have mushroomed since Sept. 11, each in its way, are trying to do quickly what many aviation industry professionals would be impressed with if they can do at all. Mineta, the secretary of Transportation, and Ridge, President Bush's Homeland Security czar, outlined their immediate plans Nov. 27 at Aviation Week's homeland security and defense conference in Washington. For each, work will not be slowing down for the holidays.
