Kent Hollinger has been named vice president-technical support and Greg Cope director of airline sales for the Americas for the Fairchild Aerospace Corp., San Antonio, Tex. Hollinger was vice president-quality assurance and engineering for America West Airlines, while Cope was director of commercial product sales for Europe for Rolls-Royce.
The July 17 crash of an Alliance Air 20-year-old 737-200 at Patna Jaiprakash Narayan Airport--India's ninth accident involving the aircraft type in the past three decades--has rekindled concern about the country's air safety deficiencies. Flight CD7412 (Registration VT-EGD) departed at 6:50 a.m. (IST) from Calcutta's Netaji International Airport with 52 passengers and six crewmembers. Before reaching its final destination in New Delhi, it was scheduled to stop in Patna and Lucknow.
Air Technical Industries announced the development of a new high-density storage and retrieval system for handling any type of plate, sheet, plywood or cardboard flat materials. The system is capable of lifting up to 4,000 lb. of 48 X 96-in. materials to a height of 200 in., transporting it to the desired slot, and then unloading it into the live storage rack. It can retrieve one or more sheets or the entire stack, lower it and deliver it to a designated drop-off area. The top is equipped with a power roller conveyor for loading and unloading.
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft's asset management unit has concluded agreements to lease two BAE 146-300s to Aer Lingus, one BAE 146-200 to Germany's WDL and two BAE 146-200s to Qantas.
Walter Crawford has been named managing director of Ball Aerospace Global Communication and Video Solutions, Broomfield, Colo. He was president of the Airline and Marine Group and vice president/sales, marketing and operations of InterGame, Costa Mesa, Calif.
FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL IS SCHEDULED TO INSTALL a flight simulator this month at its new facility adjacent to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. The Level D device was built by FSI's simulation subsidiary near Tulsa, Okla., to train pilots flying the Galaxy Aerospace Corp.'s Galaxy business jet. Four of the aircraft are in service with customers. Plans call for obtaining FAA approval of the simulator in October, with training set to commence later that month, according to Galaxy Aerospace.
API Motion has a new optimized design for its 22-mm. brushless motor model 22BC. Both the 50-watt (long) and 15-watt (short) version have repositioned bearings and upgraded rotor balance that provide noise reduction with lifetime improvement. The motor's magnetic circuit gives a 40% motor constant increase for the long model. The short model is available with built-in drive electronics, allowing the user to drive this motor like a brush DC motor but with the benefits of brushless technology. API Motion Inc., 45 Hazelwood Drive, Amherst, N.Y. 14228-2096.
The MIG aluminum welding package contains the XR push-pull wire feeder with XR-Edge gooseneck gun and Invision 354MP inverter with built-in pulsing programs. The XR system can eliminate burnback, flaring arc starts, wire stubbing, erratic wire feeding and inadequate shielding gas coverage. Unique features include: all gear-driven drive rolls, smooth groove drive rolls, motor ramp speed control, a patent pending gas delivery system and a 45-deg.-angle gun head tube that rotates 360 deg. The 354MP has built-in programs for 4000 and 5000 series aluminum wire.
Boeing believes the freighter version of its proposed 747X Stretch has strong advantages over a planned Airbus A3XXF that will make it tough for Airbus to make inroads in the air cargo business.
Fluidic Systems PK2 and PK3 component metering systems were developed for low-pressure air spray application of aerospace two and three-part primers and top coats. The pressurized and cooled NEMA enclosure with safety pressure interlock switch helps ensure safe operation in hazardous locations. Easy-to-use controls eliminate programming. The pump-select control allows operators to run any of the metering pumps individually or in combination of two or three for purging or color changes, as well as the ability to change the A, B and C ratios from 1:1 to 50:1 on the fly.
The European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. is emerging as a world-class player with an aggressive business plan and global ambitions, including transatlantic partnerships. The merger of Aerospatiale Matra, DaimlerChrysler Aerospace (DASA) and Construcciones Aeronauticas (CASA), implemented on July 10, is a huge multinational undertaking as well as a formidable management challenge.
Rick Ianieri has been appointed vice president/general manager and M. Kirk Nelson manager of electronic warfare programs at the Defense Systems Div. of Wide Band Systems Inc., Rockaway, N.J.
Mark McDonald has been named presdent of AAR Cadillac Manufacturing, Wood Dale, Ill. He was general manager and succeeds Gary Schwach, who is now vice president-marketing of the AAR Manufacturing Group.
Bill Lange has been named senior vice president-maintenance and operations, and Bill Poniatowski has been promoted to senior director from director of maintenance for Atlantic Coast Airlines. Lange was acting senior vice president-technical operations.
R. Troy Croasmun has become national sales manager of Ameristar Jet Charter Inc. in Dallas. He was the regional sales manager of FedEx Custom Critical in Lexington, Ky.
If the goal of the proposed airline-run electronic-business (B2B) Web sites is to sell surplus inventory such as engine parts and rotables that are tying up capital and sitting on a shelf, then that makes sense as a business case, industry observers agree. But when airline executives start talking about using their Web sites to purchase those same parts and rotables--in essence, influencing the cost side of their business rather than the revenue side--the head scratching begins. For airlines, the simple concept of buying cheap off the Web isn't so simple.
American, Southwest and Continental airlines reported strong earnings in the second quarter as escalating fuel prices increased operating costs. The price of jet fuel for most airlines skyrocketed during the quarter, requiring increased cost-cutting efforts and forcing carriers to become increasingly aggressive in their campaigns to hedge fuel supplies. In some cases, the cost of a gallon of fuel jumped more than 75% compared with the first quarter of this year.
FAA CERTIFICATION OFFICIALS, THE AIRCRAFT OWNERS AND PILOTS Assn. (AOPA), representatives of 18 aircraft type club organizations and the Experimental Aircraft Assn. (EAA) are working together to improve the coordination process for issuing airworthiness directives (AD). Instead of being consulted late in the process, people possessing firsthand knowledge and expertise regarding specific aircraft will be included at the beginning of the AD drafting procedure.
Charles Nardello has become vice president-line maintenance control and hubs at Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Charlotte, N.C., for US Airways. Darryl Hartzell will continue as vice president-line maintenance outside of those hubs. Nardello was senior director of materials management, information and customer service.
In a sharp departure from long-established rules, the European Commission (EC) is evaluating the merits of a takeoff/landing slot free market that would facilitate the new entrants' access to congested airports. Such an initiative would ease constraints affecting European startup carriers and boost competition at major hubs such as London Heathrow and Paris Orly. EC Vice President and Transport Commissioner Loyola de Palacio is expected to propose a revised slot allocation policy in the next few months.
