The new Balston oil/water separator for contaminated air compressor condensate exceeds 10 ppm storm water regulations. The system offers hands-off operation--unattended 24-hr. operation is the standard. Control systems monitor and announce conditions. The system also offers low-cost processing and the lowest disposal cost. Operating cost is half that of competitive systems, according to the company. The system reduces waste volume by 98% while concentrating compressor lubricant for easy disposal. Whatman Inc., 100 Ames Pond Drive, P.O. Box 1262, Tewksbury, Mass.
Robert H. Fisher, who was vice president-finance/controller, has become interim president of Rockwell Electronic Commerce of Milwaukee. He succeeds Michael Caglarcan, who has resigned.
The classic Flex-Lite Aviator has become even more useful thanks to some design changes. It now has a brighter bulb, a reengineered pocket clip and a more efficient off/on switch. The light uses a precision-ground lens to put a prefocused, shadowless light beam anywhere you need it, and is considered a perfect safety backup for night flying. The body measures 5.5 in. long and has a 6-in. flexible vinyl covered neck. The case and head are black anodized aluminum. The light operates on two AA batteries. A deluxe version with a red lens is also available.
USAF Gen. (Ret.) Richard E. Hawley and Leo S. Mackay, Jr., have been appointed to the advisory committee of DFI International of Washington. Hawley was chief of Air Combat Command before retiring last year. Mackay is vice president-business development and strategic planning for Bell Helicopter Textron Inc.
Boeing fitted the propulsion system into the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing version of its Joint Strike Fighter candidate, the X-32B, in less than 4 hr. Both the X-32A conventional takeoff version and the X-32B now carry their flight-rated engines, according to Boeing. The X-32A's engine also was installed in 4 hr. in April. During 190 ground tests of the STOVL system, it transitioned between conventional and power-lift modes in as little as 1 sec. and typically 3 sec.
Compared to traditional outlets for buying and selling aircraft parts and services, few dollars are being spent on purchases in the electronic marketplaces, and, so far, no one is earning money. Forrester Research estimates that of the $500-plus billion in aerospace sales expected in 2003, only about $38 billion, or 7.6%, will come from e-commerce. Yet, the buy/sell function of business-to-business (B2B) Web sites is already considered a commodity transaction by many industry executives.
She's Just Another Navy Pilot, An Aviator's Sea Journal by Loree Draude Hirschman describes with candor this 27-year-old navy lieutenant's experience as the only female pilot in the USS Abraham Lincoln's S-3B Viking Antisubmarine Warfare Sqdn. during a six-month deployment to the Persian Gulf beginning in April 1995. This insightful account of breaking into the world of the male combat pilot is evenhanded and compelling.
A Minotaur launcher placed the Air Force Research Laboratory's MightySat II.1 spacecraft into a 340-mi. orbit on July 19 from Vandenberg AFB, Calif. The Minotaur is a combination of Minuteman 2 ICBM first and second stages and Orbital Sciences' Pegasus third and fourth stages.
David Prewitt has been appointed vice president-safety for Alaska Airlines. He was staff vice president-corporate safety and security for Trans World Airlines.
Available in many high technology polymer filters, Millennia eyewear protects against all popular lasers used in industrial and scientific applications. The one-piece wraparound polycarbonate lens provides temple-to-temple protection. The high-impact lens incorporate an audio-visual alert system which warns wearers when they are being lased so they can remove themselves from the beam path. Specific colors are maximized depending on use. A detachable retainer can be attached to the temple ends for use in active or warm environments.
Chris Anderson (see photos) has become general manager and Steve Froebe operations engineering manager of the Avtech Corp. of Seattle. Anderson was vice president-operations, while Froebe was a test engineering supervisor.
Cessna Aircraft retiree Russell W. Watson has won the National Aeronautic Assn.'s Frank G. Brewer Trophy, the U.S.' highest award in aerospace education. Watson was cited for 35 years of ``contributions to the advancement of aviation education as a developer and leader of innovative programs for national organizations.''
Hartzell Propeller's 78-in. three-blade propeller, for installation on Socata TB20 and TB21 aircraft, offers an inch of additional ground clearance. The company says the propeller improves takeoff acceleration by 6% and demonstrated slight climb improvements and cabin noise reduction during flight testing. Cruise speeds were unchanged with the TB20 (normally aspirated) aircraft, but improvements of several knots were seen with the TB21 (turbocharged) aircraft. Climb improvements of 40-100 ft. per min. were measured during TB21 flight testing.
Brussels-based Snecma Sabena Engine Services will overhaul South African Airways' Pratt&Whitney JT9D turbofans. The 10-year contract is valued at $300 million.
Gai-Tronics Corp. designed its Self-Monitoring and Reporting Technology (Smart) Emergency Telephones specifically to increase safety in public areas and facilities such as airports. The system performs continuous self-tests and issues reports on phone functionality and status. If a telephone is vandalized, a status report is received by the system operator and a maintenance person is dispatched. The units are virtually impervious to damage by weather, environment or vandalism.
The most powerful commercial television direct broadcast spacecraft ever launched and a new U.S. Air Force GPS navigation satellite are undergoing initial checkout in orbit following back-to-back Atlas-Centaur and Delta II night launches at Cape Canaveral. The missions involve nearly $350 million in booster and spacecraft hardware from Lockheed Martin, Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) and Boeing.
Paul J. (Pat) Hurley has become president/CEO of BAE Automated Systems Inc., Carrollton, Tex. He was vice president/ general manager of AlliedSignal Inertial and Sensor Systems, Redmond, Wash.
Jeffrey M. Corbin (see photo) has been named director of business development for Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co.-Michoud Operations in New Orleans. He held the same position for the division at corporate headquarters in Bethesda, Md.
Walter N. Bylciw (see photo) has been appointed executive vice president-military engine programs for Pratt&Whitney, East Hartford, Conn. He was senior vice president-F119 propulsion engineering and program management.
Western European, Nordic and Russian telecom satellite operators have agreed to a pair of strategic partnerships that will further consolidate the European satcom industry. In the first deal, Societe Europeene de Satellites (SES) will take a 50% share in Nordic Satellite Co. (NSAB), which operates three geostationary spacecraft with 52 transponders. The satellites--Sirius W, Sirius 2 and Sirius 3--are at 5 deg. E. and 13 deg. W. Long. The SES fleet includes nine active satellites; four additional spacecraft are under construction or awaiting launch.
DigiWx is the first automated weather reporting system to utilize hand-held digital display units for visual data. It is suited for private airfields, small public fields, including those with flight schools and FBOs, and the rotor market. DigiWx consists of an easily assembled 15-ft. tower. The system includes sensors that provide input for average and gust wind speed and direction, temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, density altitude, dewpoint and adiabatic condensation altitude. Data is accessible in a 5-10 mi. radius. Towers are available on a lease basis.
When special missions demanded rapid fielding of new technology without publicity--from spying on Eastern Europe in the 1950s to spoofing Yugoslav air defenses during the 1999 Kosovo air campaign--desperate operational planners have turned to the U.S. Air Force's low-profile Big Safari program for help.
Lance Gruner has become vice president-customer service delivery of Galileo Interational, Rosemount, Ill. He succeeds Gordon Wilson, who has been named vice president-sales and service. Gruner was vice president-call and network management of the American Express Business Travel Customer Service.
A survey of airline e-fares by the Transportation Dept. shows monumental disparities. Inspector General Kenneth M. Mead informed a Senate panel last week of one carrier's Internet offer of a last-minute $140 fare from Newark to New Orleans. Simultaneously, the carrier's regular Web site fare-search operation listed a $1,791 fare on that flight and $1,200 for a different itinerary, Mead testified.
