Las Vegas might not be the optimum place to gamble on a startup carrier. But after only 17 months in operation, it appears that the bet is paying off for National Airlines and its risk-taking CEO and president, Michael Conway.
New stealth coatings for the B-2 have been shown to cut low-observable maintenance time by more than half while reducing the bomber's already small radar reflection and making it less vulnerable to low-frequency radar, according to tests completed for Northrop Grumman late last month.
With the use of GPS navigation so ubiquitous that it shows up in wristwatches and new cars, not to mention combat aircraft and precision guided weapons, it was inevitable that small, cheap devices to jam the satellite signals would follow. A 1-watt jammer can deny some kinds of GPS access out to 50 mi. But now Lockheed Martin researchers have developed an antijamming device that will first appear on the Air Force's Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile early next year--and not a minute too soon, they say.
Rozalie Schachter has been named president of Herley Wireless Technologies Inc., Lancaster, Pa, and Allan Coon president of its Microwave Products Group. Howard Eckstein has been promoted to senior vice president from vice president/general manager of the Space and Communications Group, John Kelley to senior vice president from vice president/director of corporate development and Mitchell Tuckman to senior vice president from president/general manager of General Microwave.
A U.K. government airport competition review has decided that BAA can continue to operate London's three largest airports--Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted. The private airport operator will continue to be subject to economic regulation, with plans for modifications to the current regulatory regime. In addition, the review permits airlines to trade takeoff and landing slots, but new ones would be auctioned off. The U.K. will forward its case for an open market in airport slots to the European Commission, which is reviewing the current policy.
David W. Shaw has become president of the BFGoodrich Co.'s Aviation Services Div., Everett, Wash. He was vice president/general manager of in-production business for the company's Aerostructures Group in Chula Vista, Calif.
Sherman Adams has been named chief operating officer/general counsel and Matthew Stasior chief financial officer of Toronto-based CharterHub Inc. Mike Aymong, John Bradley and Douglas Carty have been appointed to the board of directors. Aymong is executive vice presi- dent-sales, marketing and customer service of Group Telecom, and Bradley is one of its founders and chief scientist. Carty was senior vice president/chief financial officer of Canadian Airlines.
The U.S. Navy is interested in giving its fighters an all-weather bombing and reconnaissance capability with the prospect of such a system being fielded on the F-14 in the near future.
A pie chart on p. 90 in the Nov. 13 issue incorrectly reported the number of respondents to a PRTM/Aviation Week survey concerning who expects preferred supplier relationships to be strengthened by B2B activities. The correct response is 36%.
U.S. Navy Capt. (ret.) T. Ladson Webb, Jr., has become vice president-marketing and international operations for the Engineered Arresting Systems Corp., Aston, Pa. He was chief aviation officer for the Navy's Program Office for Aircraft Carriers.
Joe Hoffman (see photos) has been named president of the Phoenix-based Aviation Communications and Surveillance Systems unit of the L-3 Communications Corp. Other recent appointments are: Bill Pollak, vice president-sales and support; Don Schumann, director of airline and original equipment manufacturer marketing; Larry Clark, director of business and general aviation marketing; Tom Dooling, director of military and helicopter programs; and Jeff Quackenbush, director of customer support.
Sally Covington has been appointed director of marketing for Denver International Airport. She was vice president-marketing and student affairs at the Higher Education and Advanced Technology Center in Denver.
The $17-billion online travel market is hatching new ways to sell airline tickets that would put the old Asian ``bucket shops,'' known for deep discounts and block sales, to shame.
United Parcel Service plans to acquire 13 used MD-11s for conversion into freighters by Boeing. The aircraft are intended to expand the company's operations between the U.S., Europe and Asia. Including an option for 22 more MD-11s, the purchase could be worth up to $2 billion. Arch-rival FedEx, however, is proceeding with its acquisition of American Freightways, which specializes in next-day regional deliveries. The acquisition is part of a plan by FedEx to enlarge its North American ground-based distribution network to rival that of UPS.
Max L. Lukens has been named to the board of directors of Stewart and Stevenson Services Inc. of Houston. He is former chairman/president/CEO of Baker Hughes Inc. of Houston.
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board will locate its new training academy at George Washington University in Virginia, adjacent to the U.S. Transportation Dept.'s National Crash Analysis Center. The facility is scheduled to begin operating early in 2003. The NTSB will lease classroom and laboratory space from the university, and plans call for housing the reconstructed wreckage of TWA Flight 800 for training purposes. The airline's Boeing 747-131 exploded off Long Island, N.Y., in July 1996.
Facing the prospect of being marginalized as a top-tier prime contractor, Northrop Grumman executives hope to prove that two years of refocusing the company have put it in a position to be a major competitor for emerging Pentagon programs.
An Ariane 5 launched a 6,313-kg. (13,889-lb.) payload into orbit last week, setting a commercial payload record. The mission--the fourth for the heavy-lift booster since it entered regular service a year ago and Arianespace's 10th of the year--orbited PanAmSat's PAS-1R, the Amsat Phase 3D amateur radio satellite and two DERA technology satellites, STRV-1c/1d (AW&ST Nov. 6, p. 63). One other Ariane 5 launch--to orbit the Astra 2D, GE-8 and Japan's LDREX technology demonstrator--is set for Dec. 20. Two other Ariane 4 missions, Anik F1 on Nov. 20 and Eurasiasat on Dec.
Chuck Zimkas, chief operating officer of the Space Foundation of Colorado Springs, also will be president, and Chairman Jaime Oaxaca also will be CEO. They succeed Bill Knudsen, who was president/CEO before resigning.
European airlines have recognized the need to improve both internal and external communications efforts in the face of rising public concern about flight delays, environmental issues, labor unrest and high-profile accidents. Airline officials maintain they are doing their part to work on the areas that concern the public, but they have not been as effective as they could be in explaining the views of carriers to the various parties involved.
SITA and SAP plan to create a venture to provide business applications software services geared to the needs of small- and medium-size firms in the aviation industry.
Continental Airlines is using an ``e-learning'' computer infrastructure developed by Saba Software to organize, track and document its training operations worldwide. The system transfers responsibility for training to individual employees and their supervisors from a centralized group of instructors. It also monitors course prerequisites, completions and acquired competencies, and provides instant notification of gaps in regulatory compliance. Employees who complete training and a certification can put their new skills to work immediately without waiting for paperwork.
John Syslo has been appointed regional vice president of Kinetsu World Express USA's Chicago Air Perishable Gateway. Mike Arbunich has been named assistant vice president for the San Francisco Air Perishable Gateway.
