BAE Systems, having agreed to acquire Lockheed Martin's Control Systems business for $510 million, is now setting its sights on the U.S. company's New Hampshire-based Sanders operation, which is also up for sale. The moves are part of the company's emphasis on expanding its North American presence, where it already logs nearly $3 billion in sales. The acquisition of LMCS will bring the total number of BAE employees in North America to more than 20,000.
To meet expected strong demand for freighter aircraft, Boeing is studying a stretched version of its 747-400 freighter that will hold 36 standard 96 X 125-in. main deck pallets, compared with 30 for the -400F. The company also is working on the engineering necessary to convert 747-400 passenger and combi aircraft into freighters, an option that will become attractive as these aircraft age, Edgar said.
Microspheres 294, a new water-based micro-encapsulated epoxy, is designed to be preapplied to threaded fasteners. It provides an environmentally-friendly alternative to solvent-based materials. Its slurry contains no harmful elements that could evaporate and create pollution or damage the ozone layer. Once applied, the adhesive remains inert until such time as the shearing action of engagement to the mating part causes some of the capsules to break, allowing the adhesive to cure.
Raytheon Aircraft Co. has delivered the first four Harvard II primary trainers to the NATO Flying Training in Canada program, and is scheduled to deliver the remaining 20 airplanes by the end of the year.
Companies go to great lengths to protect themselves from lawsuits. A Kellogg's Corn Flakes promotion can earn you frequent-flier miles with American Airlines if you buy enough cereal boxes. Just in case, Kellogg's included some fine print specifying it is not liable if something happens on an American flight, says Esta Rosenberg of the FAA's office of chief counsel. Not clear is who would be liable for spilled milk.
The long-awaited trial of two Libyan nationals charged with the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988 over Lockerbie, Scotland, is set to start on May 3. A Scottish judge last week rejected a motion for a postponement from prosecutors surprised by defense plans to produce 119 witnesses. The trial is being held in the Netherlands under Scottish law.
This guide offers information about the advantages of thermoplastic polyurethane with specific detail of Stevens' in-depth technical support. TPU offers properties such as durometer range, excellent tear strength and elongation, and resistance to many substances such as hydrocarbons, chemicals, ozone, bacteria and moisture. TPU can be fabricated by die cutting, heat and radio frequency sealing, laminating and vacuum forming. A number of industrial uses such as fuel lines and aircraft passenger floatation vests are addressed.
Steven J. Nieuwsma (see photos) has been appointed vice president-engineering, Gregory S. Churchill vice president-business development and Ronald R. Hornish vice president-integrated applications and navigation systems, succeeding Churchill, all for Rockwell Collins Government Systems, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Nieuwsma succeeds Hornish and will continue as senior director of communications systems engineering. Bruce M. King has been named director of KC-135 programs. He was program manager for global air traffic management.
Eugene P. Conese, Jr., and Ralph D. Crosby, Jr., have been appointed to the board of directors of Ducommun Inc. of Los Angeles. Conese is president/CEO of Aero Capital, while Crosby is president of the Integrated Systems and Aerostructures Sector of the Northrop Grumman Corp.
Boeing's 757-300 will have special appeal to operators wishing to offer coach passengers increased legroom on long flights. Just recently, American Airlines announced that it had begun reconfiguration of its fleet with up to a 3-6 in. increase in seat pitch. That trend also will likely catch on with other carriers as a result of increased interest in passenger service following a year of delays and proposed actions by Congress to reduce incidents of passenger rage.
After withdrawing from some routes and increasing code-sharing with foreign partners, Air India--India's designated international carrier--has cut its fiscal 1999 loss by an estimated $35 million. But that has not stopped its marginalization on the world aviation scene. It is increasingly apparent that unless the Indian government makes the privatization of Air India, or the induction of a ``worthy'' strategic partner, a priority, there is little hope for the airline.
Striking machinist union members at Lockheed Martin's Fort Worth F-16/F-22 production facility approved a new, three-year contract last week and returned to work. The package provides a 3% pay raise in the first and second year and a 4% hike in the third year. Lump sum payments of $1,200 and $600 will be made in 2000 as a cost-of-living allowance (COLA), along with an immediate COLA raise of 15 cents per hour. The International Assn. of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) had sought a job security clause in the agreement, but failed to obtain it.
There's been an explosion of interest in Web-based and electronic marketplace activity for airlines and manufacturers in the past few months. Consider this sampling of recent news from the airlines: America West and TWA said they will use Sabre's Sales Manager as a tool to customize product offerings for passengers. Lufthansa AG, which has created a Lufthansa e-Commerce GmbH. as a spinoff Internet company, will use Chicago-based marchFirst Inc. to design its Web site, engineer its back-office architecture and create off- and online marketing campaigns.
After spinning off some of Philippine Airlines' most promising activities, brewing and tobacco tycoon Lucio Tan is trying to sell his 70% stake in the carrier for $800 million. The sum is eye-catching because Philippine Airlines (PAL) has been staving off bankruptcy for the last three years as Tan fought unions over pay cuts and layoffs, which grounded PAL in 1998.
Thom Degnan has become San Diego-based senior vice president-business development and Robert Jones and Mark Shlien managing directors for Europe and Asia, respectively, of Cidera Inc., Laurel, Md. Degnan was vice president-wireless investments for Qualcomm of San Diego. Jones has been Brussels-based director of European sales and marketing management for Global One, while Shlien has been head of competitive sales in Asia and the U.S. for Loral Skynet.
GE Capital Aviation Services has ordered 16 253-seat Airbus A330-200s and 10 additional 150-185-seat A320/A321s. GECAS' A330s, which will be powered by General Electric CF6-50E1 turbofans, will be delivered in 2002-05. The A320-series twinjets will be equipped with CFM International CFM56-5B engines. GECAS is taking delivery of an average 15 A320-series aircraft per year.
The International Electronic Countermeasure Handbook: 2000 Edition examines all types of protection systems in service worldwide--from missile approach and radar warning receivers, jamming systems and EC suites to naval and airborne decoy systems and expendables. Information on 37 new systems and features, updated data on individual companies and product descriptions are included. The book also describes known threats, providing details of missiles that can be launched from static and mobile ground-based sites, from ships or from aircraft.
Airbus Industrie's combined production rate for the two-engine A330 and four-engine A340 long-range commercial transports--which have nearly identical versions of common systems, flight controls and airframes--is about six aircraft per month (AW&ST Apr. 10, p. 55). Last year, however, the European consortium delivered 20 A340s, or less than an average of two aircraft per month, and an average four A330s per month.
The Kodiak Recirculating Chillers passed CE certification to sell and ship electrical equipment into the European Community. The chillers offer many standard features in a quiet, small package. Four different cooling capacities, 600, 1,100, 2,200 and 4,500 watts, are available with a variety of electrical, pump and controller options to customize the chiller. The Kodiak chiller line is well suited for many applications, among them machine tooling and industrial applications. Lytron can customize the unit to virtually any application.
Bill Johnson has become chief technology officer and Michael Merriken vice president-information technology for the Galaxy Scientific Corp. of Atlanta.
Missile defense and the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty are ablaze with political flames, engulfing the White House. From the United Nations to Capitol Hill, from the European Union to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), officials on all sides exchanged fire last week as President Clinton prepares for a Moscow summit on strategic arms. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan warned that the growing pressure to deploy national missile defenses (NMD) could trigger new offensive arms races, and undermine nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation. NMD firebrand Rep.
