Loral Space&Communications has started commercial operations in two new markets as it continues to expand its fixed satellite service network. Known as the Loral Global Alliance, the network includes Loral Skynet, Satmex, Loral Skynet do Brasil, EuropeStar and Stellat.
Adroit Systems Inc. of Bellevue, Wash., plans to begin testing a new choke nozzle for its pulse detonation rocket engine late this month as part of its development program for the propulsion technology that offers greater performance and simpler design for both air-breathing and rocket propulsion.
The first prototype of Northrop Grumman's Firescout vertical take-off and landing unmanned aircraft crashed on Nov. 4 during testing at the Naval Air Warfare Center, China Lake, Calif. The cause is believed to be a faulty radar altimeter that read zero while the aircraft was coming in to land but was still in hover. A second prototype is nearing completion and will be used to reduce risk for the Navy and Marine Corps development program.
A Northrop Grumman-led team is one of the first industry partners picked by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to develop a concept for a quiet supersonic aircraft that is expected to lead to military and civilian spin-offs.
Trans World Airlines Inc. has received an acquisition offer from Global Airlines Corp. This is the second such attempt by Global to purchase TWA. The New York-based carrier last week offered to pay $3.75 a share, or $298 million, for St. Louis-based TWA. In trading last Wednesday, TWA's stock closed at $1.86 a share.
David Robb (see photos) has been named president, Stephen R. Thompkins executive vice president/corporate secretary/general counsel and Don Berry vice president-safety and security, all of Express One International of San Antonio.
Lt. Gen. (ret.) Donald L. Cromer (see photo) has joined the board of directors of Universal Space Network Inc., Horsham, Pa. He is the retired president of Hughes Space and Communications and commander of the Space Systems Div., Air Force Systems Command, at Los Angeles AFB.
A bold plan to build a satellite telecommunications network to serve the African continent is likely to be finalized by the end of the year, according to officials close to the project.
Scandinavian Airlines System is set to begin services between Copenhagen and Washington in May, the first step in the carrier's plans to expand its intercontinental operations. It plans to begin with five flights a week, building to a daily service by the end of the summer.
NAV CANADA HAS COMPLETED factory acceptance of the Canadian Automated Air Traffic System, developed by Raytheon Systems Canada Ltd. CAATS will be installed in seven Canadian area control centers. Flight acceptance testing has just been completed. CAATS will provide controllers gate-to-gate management services, and is designed to be able to transition from an ATC to air traffic management (ATM) environment as the system is modernized. It consolidates flight data, radar, weather and other operational information on controller workstations.
Joseph R. Wright, Jr., and Michael B. Alexander have been named to the board of directors of the Titan Corp. of San Diego. Wright is vice chairman of Terremark Worldwide Inc. and president of Terremark Communications. Alexander is former chairman/CEO of AverStar.
William Tolbert has been named senior vice president/global program manager of the Transportation Business Group of CH2M Hill of Denver.He was president/CEO of the Meneren Corp.
Curt Blake has been appointed to the board of directors of SpaceDev Inc., Poway, Calif. He was chief operating officer of the Starwave Corp. until last year.
Jouve Data Management and CommerceQuest said they will partner to form a secure, Internet-based technical and inventory data delivery system for airlines and their suppliers. Jouve, a subsidiary of Paris-based Jouve Group S.A., markets AirGTI application program software to meet Air Transport Assn.'s Spec2000 and 2100 standards, which are commonly used by airlines in computerized supply chain transactions. JDM also has developed AviationZone.net as an Internet platform for electronic data transfers.
Harry Gann, a longtime aviation historian and photographer, died on Oct. 30. Gann joined the Douglas Aircraft Corp. in the early 1950s and worked as a mechanical designer on the control systems of such aircraft as the A4D, A3D and F3D. However, Gann is more noted for his prodigious memory for aviation facts and lore, and his photographs of McDonnell Douglas military and commercial aircraft. Gann became director of information at Douglas and later historian. He retired from McDonnell Douglas in 1992, but went on to be curator of the U.S.
The Clinton Administration's notional space launch cooperation deal with North Korea should be modified to offer Pyongyang satellite services instead of satellite launches, non-proliferation mavens say.
The New York-based CIT Group/Capital Finance concluded a firm order for 35 Airbus A320-series and 15 A330 twinjets it had optioned in July. Last week's contract brings CIT's Airbus orders to 80 aircraft.
Lt. Gen. (ret.) David L. Vesely (see photos), former U.S. Air Force assistant vice chief of staff, has been appointed president of Veridian's Systems Development and Applications Sector, Arlington, Va. Robert A. Pattishall has become president of the Advanced Engineering Analysis Sector. He was director of the National Reconnaissance Office's Advanced Systems and Technology Directorate.
Oman has ordered an undisclosed number of Mistral air defense missile systems from Matra BAe Dynamics, a subsidiary of the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. and BAE Systems. The Sultanate becomes the 25th country to order the short-range missile and the first in the Middle East to acquire the Mistral 2--a Mach 3, 6-km. fire-and-forget version introduced earlier this year (AW&ST July 31, p. 72).
Look for the Pentagon to try to ``harmonize'' the reconnaissance demands of the intelligence agencies and the Defense Dept. in the upcoming Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). Says a senior military official with close involvement in the far-reaching reevaluation, ``There is a need for rationalization of the requirements process.'' There continues to be overlap between the intelligence systems the military builds and those produced specifically for intel agencies, he points out. But at the same time, the official warns not to expect too much from the review.
Gen. (ret.) Dennis J. Reimer, a former U.S. Army chief of staff, has been appointed to the board of directors of DRS Technologies Inc., Parsippany, N.J. He is director of the National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism in Oklahoma City.
Loral Space&Communications posted improved revenues and earnings for the third quarter, dispelling some of the negative image generated by Globalstar a week earlier (AW&ST Nov. 6, p. 33). Because of lagging satellite sales, reported revenues were down, to $293 million, compared with $347 million a year earlier. But pre-tax earnings were up 18% to $42 million, while bookings rose 33%, to $719 million. The net loss of $97 million, or 33 cents a share, was smaller than expected.
Two companies that have developed competing systems which integrate airbags into seat belts are moving closer to certification and introduction of their products. The systems developed by AmSafe Inc. of Higley, Ariz., and BFGoodrich Aerospace's Aircraft Evacuation Systems Div. use hybrid gas generators derived from automotive applications to inflate airbags and reduce the risk of fatal head injuries in a survivable crash (AW&ST June 14, 1999, p. 224).
