With revenues on the rise and more active government support for Russia's beleaguered high-tech and defense industries, aircraft engine makers hope to reverse the downward trend of recent years, though overcapacity remains a major problem. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has positioned himself as a proponent of the country's military forces and defense industries, has made clear that high-technology and military issues are top priorities for his government.
Barry Controls offers the cupmount family, a universal set of mounts that offer protection against severe shock and vibration. The Series 1000-4000 offer excellent vibration isolation characteristics at frequencies above 40 Hz. Designed for protection of sensitive electronic, electrical and mechanical equipment from high-impact shock, they are well suited for aircraft/missile electronics and racking systems. The series features a compact, low-profile design. The Barry Hi-Damp elastomer provides the highest damping and a temperature operating range of -67 to +300F.
A line of mounted abrasive wheels can be customized to fit inside aircraft seat tracks to remove dirt and debris from all surfaces simultaneously. These seat track cleaners feature multiple layers of reinforced non-woven cotton fiber and abrasive grains bonded into profiles that precisely match all inside track surfaces. Designed to fit into a standard grinder with a 0.4-in. mandrel, the cleaners work by fitting inside an opening and sliding down the track, applying light pressure to all surfaces. They even remove burrs and will not affect track geometry.
The grounding of the Concorde and suspension of its certificate of airworthiness is a stunning development for an icon of modern aviation. Perhaps the supersonic transport could be made safe to fly again. However, the cost of correcting its fatal flaw could easily be unreasonable.
Jason Sloan has become public relations manager and Tom Higgins chief people officer of Sun Country Airlines, St. Paul, Minn. Tammy Lee, who was director of public affairs, has been promoted to vice president-corporate affairs.
Platinum- and Palladium-clad wire and ribbon composites can eliminate the need for 100% precious metal in many applications to greatly reduce costs. They feature precious metal on the outside to provide characteristics such as weldability, conductivity, thermal stability and biocompatibility. Core materials can include titanium, tantalum, copper or silver, stainless steel, niobium, molybdenum, nickel and iron-nickel. Available in wire sizes from 0.002-0.375 in O.D. and in ribbon widths up to 1 in.
CAE WILL USE THE SAME SIMULATION software that drives the virtual cockpit graphical displays and aircraft systems logic on its full flight simulators for its new Web-based distance learning initiative. The use of common software will make it easier for users to work with other CAE training systems. With the Web as a medium, training will be available for flight and maintenance crews at multiple remote locations.
One of the shibboleths of the Internet is that government regulation will only stanch the ``freedom'' promised by electronic commerce. Perhaps online book sellers will be left alone, but no one expects an industry as concentrated, specialized and regulated as aerospace to establish a vigorous ``jets.com'' business environment without antitrust and regulatory oversight.
Lufthansa Technik has breached the U.S. airline market by forging a multiyear contract with Detroit-based carrier Pro Air for component supplier services. In addition to providing the airline with a substantial spare parts inventory, the agreement allows Lufthansa Technik to overhaul and maintain the majority of Pro Air's aircraft components.
The suspension of the Concorde's certificate of airworthiness raises the specter of Air France's and British Airways' fleets being grounded for months and even that the world's first and only supersonic transport may never resume scheduled service. French and British aviation officials tried to keep a positive outlook about the Concorde's fate late last week. But with the investigation of the July 25 crash still far from complete, the prospect for the aircraft's return to flight anytime soon was murky at best.
The Royal Australian Air Force's new fleet of C-130J-30s has been cleared by the Australian Defense Force Airworthiness Board for service in logistic transport and aeromedical roles with the 37 Sqdn., at the RAAF's Richmond base in New South Wales. Clearance for search-and-rescue, paratrooping, air drops and marginal airfield operations is to be achieved over the next two years. The RAAF has taken delivery of 12 C-130J-30s.
Michael Carpenter has been appointed president/chief operating officer of Raisbeck Engineering Inc. of Seattle. He was vice president of the Hexcel Corp. Structures Business Unit, Kent, Wa.
Kenneth E. Gazzola, executive vice president/publisher of Aviation Week&Space Technology (see photo), has been selected as a member of the National Air and Space Museum Board of Directors.The board's current focus is working to raise funds to build a new restoration, preservation and display facility at Washington Dulles International Airport in Fairfax County, Va.
Herbert J. Coleman, who retired from Aviation Week&Space Technology in late 1986 as Managing Editor-Bureaus, died in Northern Virginia on Aug. 13. He was 79. He died from complications with diabetes. Coleman joined the magazine in 1958 as a desk editor in New York. He was made London bureau chief in 1961 and remained there until 1977, when he returned to the U.S. as Washington bureau chief. He was promoted to his final position with the magazine in 1980.
Rolls-Royce Deutschland and the Snecma-led Turboprop International consortium, which submitted rival offerings to power the Airbus A400M airlifter, are preparing a proposal combining the BR710-TP and M138 turboprops. Although a common technical concept of a 10,000-shp. engine could be determined soon, the pricing and work-sharing arrangement have not been completed yet, according to Snecma executives.
Baumer Electric has released the OHDK 10. Approximately the size of a sugar cube, it is about one-eighth the size of its present counterparts. With true background suppression by triangulation, the sensor detects, regardless of color, texture or reflectivity while ignoring all background objects. It features a laser diode light source and produces a light spot of less than 0.2 mm. at 40 mm. from the sensor. The sensor self-adjusts for environmental changes. It has a sensing range of 20-100 mm.
3M Nextel 312 flame-stopping dot paper is designed to protect against fuselage burn through. Although thin as paper, it will not melt, burn or shrink when exposed to fire. The dots help to maintain the paper's integrity and flexibility even after organic binders burn off. The paper survives the FAA's 15 min. 2,000F firewall test without flame penetration. Tests also show that installing it in an airplane's fuselage can add as much as 5 min. ``escape'' time to a burning aircraft. At 2.3 oz. per sq.
Singapore Technologies Aerospace and iMerchants Ltd. are targeting the Asia-Pacific aerospace industry with the launch of an e-commerce portal called iShopAero.com. The site is due to go live in December and is characterized as buyer centric. It is to include requirements matching, price quotation, e-procurement, bidding and various types of auctions. The effort fits the strategy of Singapore Technologies Engineering, ST Aerospace's parent company, to develop e-commerce technologies.
Stephen M. Wolf, chairman of US Airways, has received the President's 2000 ``Celebrating Our Success'' Award from the Bethesda, Md.-based National Assn. of School Psychologists. He was cited for a series of articles he wrote on violence and the need for more mental health resources in schools, which appeared in the airline's in-flight magazine Attache.
The ``Mil-e-book,'' a portable electronic book for military applications, is being developed by a team of Kent Displays Inc., Honeywell Corp. and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. It is designed to meet the demands of soldiers in the field and offers several advantages over conventional electronic communications devices.
