Jerry Caler has been named vice president-stations of Atlantic Coast Airlines. He was station director of US Airways' hub at Charlotte (N.C.) Douglas International Airport.
Malaysia Airlines has submitted a proposal to the Malaysian authorities for a 50% price hike on domestic fares, according to the airline. Apart from Indonesia, other Southeast Asian countries charge from 25-160% more for domestic sectors.
The 60-in.-dia. solid rocket motor for Boeing Delta IV Medium-plus boosters has completed its qualification program (see photo). The Alliant Techsystems graphite epoxy motors, designated GEM-60, will be used to augment thrust of a single Delta IV common booster core (CBC). Three versions of the Medium-plus booster for the commercial market are planned by Boeing, each distinguished by the number of SRMs attached to the CBC and the size of the second stage and payload fairing.
Boeing plans to lay off up to 900 employees at its Huntington Beach, Calif., facility in the next two years in a continuing effort to consolidate Delta launch vehicle production operations. Meanwhile, another Southern California company, Hughes Space and Communications, said it is searching for 800 engineers to support its new satellite orders, programs and payloads. Boeing is in the process of acquiring Hughes Space and Communications.
Investors and bankers got burned to the tune of $5 billion when the Iridium satellite telephone project collapsed. So does that mean they've given up on space? Hardly. If anything, investment capital has increased in space projects, especially those targeting red hot markets such as the Internet, broadband connections and multimedia content delivery. And Iridium's failure has been somewhat offset by the Internet revolution and the spectacular success of the direct-to-home satellite television industry.
PILOTS FOR REGIONAL AIRLINES and business aircraft soon will be able to review and practice operating Honeywell's FMZ-2000 family of flight management systems on a personal computer. FlightSafety International will provide the PC-FMS software, which will use authentic FMS aircraft code, for Honeywell.
Ronald C. Richman (see photos) has been promoted to vice president of the Manufacturing Div. of the Nordam Group, Tulsa, Okla., from general manager. Other recent promotions were: Donald R. Clark to vice president from general manager of Repair Div., Meredith Siegfried to manager of international operations for the Repair Div. from manager of strategic marketing development and Andrew Altendorf to vice president of World Aviation Associates from director of sales and marketing for the Manufacturing Div.
The erosion of the commercial satellite launch market has undercut one of the building blocks of the Defense Dept.'s Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program, but U.S. Air Force officials believe there still is sufficient demand to sustain deals with Boeing and Lockheed Martin to develop a family of launch vehicles.
The FAA last week said it wouldn't suspend Alaska Airlines from heavy maintenance operations but would continue ``stringent oversight'' of the carrier for 30 days.
NATO leaders are ``winning the argument over reduced budgets for defense in Europe,'' says the organization's Secretary General, Lord George Robertson, a long-time advocate of advanced military technology as Britain's minister of defense. ``There are very few countries now contemplating defense cuts and the majority of countries are actually reshaping their armed forces and indexing their expenditures to inflation or are involved in increases in defense expenditures,'' he said.
While being the only competitor in a particular marketplace might seem like an enviable position at first glance, Globalstar--the only one of the three low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite communications companies not to go belly up--would prefer to have some competition to keep its products on the cutting edge and its service providers sharp.
SMITHS INDUSTRIES' FOUR-DIMENSIONAL flight management system (FMS) has been certified by the FAA for an upgrade to the U.S. Air Force's E-4B Advanced Airborne Command Post. It is the first of the company's FMS military applications to receive FAA certification. The FMS is being used in USAF, U.K. and Spanish C-130s, and the Navy plans to incorporate it into the E-6 Tacamo aircraft. The FMS is based on technology used in the Boeing 737 and will be provided in the next-generation series technology.
ICAO has recommended its member states adopt a more ``commercial style'' in the management and operation of airports and air navigation services. Such a strategy would allow revenues to revert to aviation services, rather than be diffused to other government areas, according to an ICAO spokesman--citing Air New Zealand air traffic control services as one success story in commercialization.
China reaffirmed its major space capability June 25 by launching a geosynchronous orbit weather satellite on board a Long March 3 booster. The launch from the Xichang space center placed the Fengyun 2 spacecraft into a 130 X 22,400-mi. geosynchronous transfer orbit. The spacecraft was to fire its apogee kick motor to climb to a final position at 105 deg. E. Long. over Singapore. The spin-stabilized spacecraft was developed by the Shanghai Aerospace Technology Research Institute and follows the launch of a similar spacecraft in 1997.
In a reversal of fortune for Boeing, EVA Air of Taiwan became the second launch customer for the 777X series with its firm order for seven aircraft, plus seven options, worth a total of $3 billion. The order, signed on June 27 in Taipei, is for four 777-300X and three -200X aircraft. Because of EVA Air's concern about the -200X's takeoff performance, it signed an letter of intent (LOI) with Airbus for up to 12 A340-500/600s.
Managers of Europort Vatry--a new multimodal hub 100 mi. east of Paris--predict that charter airlines and courier operators will quickly be drawn to the all-cargo airport's ample space free of environmental constraints. ``We are not trying to compete against ADP [Paris airports authority] but offer all-cargo carriers a secondary hub as well as a genuine intermodal capability,'' said Marco Mingarelli, president of SEVE, Europort Vatry's management company.
Martin Sweeting, director of the Surrey Space Center and CEO of Surrey Satellite Technology at the University of Surrey, Guildford, England, has been elected a fellow of the Royal Society.
The U.S. Navy has successfully conducted the first engineering and manufacturing development test of the Standard Missile SM-2 Block IVA air and missile defense interceptor. The nonintercept test took place last Thursday at the Army's White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The purpose was to validate the missile's guidance controls, auto-pilot and aerodynamic performance. Seven more shots are planned in the next 18 months, after which the program will proceed to technical and operational evaluation in Hawaii.
Canada now offers access to a variety of travel resources through its full-service Internet portal, canada.com. By clicking on Travel Channel at the site, travelers may check travel specials, research a trip, check currency prices, or book air, hotel and car reservations. In addition, they may shop online, peruse travel literature and check weather reports.
U.S. and British airborne warning and control system aircraft were central elements of the twice-daily simulated ``war'' here at Maple Flag 2000, providing surveillance, warning and a complete picture of the air battle to flight crews and ground commanders. This Aviation Week&Space Technology editor flew on an E-3D AWACS with the Royal Air Force's 8th Sqdn., which served as a ``big eye-in-the-sky'' for an afternoon Maple Flag strike mission.
Paul H. Tate has been appointed senior vice president finance/chief financial officer of Kitty Hawk Inc. of Dallas. He was senior vice president-finance/CFO/ treasurer Atlantic Coast Airlines Holdings Inc., Dulles, Va.
An airship designed in the U.S. by former Russian lighter-than-air experts has received type certification from the FAA's Los Angeles Aircraft Office. The Aeros 40B nonrigid lighter-than-air vehicle is designed to carry advertising, surveillance systems or TV broadcasting equipment. With a length of 143 ft. and a gas volume of 88,500 cu. ft., it can carry a pilot and four passengers, according to Fred Edworthy, president of AerosFlightCam, a company subsidiary.
Atlantic Coast Airlines is using an automated job applicant screening process to conduct initial interviews and reduce workload on its human resources department. The capability, provided by Interim Assessment Services, allows applicants for ramp, check-in, flight attendant, mechanic and pilot positions to call a toll-free number for an automated prescreening evaluation. The airline places the 24-hr. number in its advertisements in local newspapers. A first tier of questions checks experience and availability.
