THE UPGRADED IAR 330 multirole helicopter made its first flight at IAR S.A.'s facilities in Brasov, Romania, on May 26. IAR is the prime contractor for the program to modernize the Puma helicopters which it built under license. Elbit Systems of Israel is providing new avionics and weapons systems. The extensively upgraded IAR 330 will be capable of performing antiarmor, close air support and reconnaissance missions, as well as acting as a transport.
Following up House action late last year, the Senate has adopted a get-tough bill to penalize Russian entities that sell ballistic missile technology to Iran, helping it to build its Shahab 3 and 4 missiles. Losing patience after granting the Administration five delays to allow diplomacy to work, senators voted 90-4 late last month to proceed.
A Chinese Long March booster set for liftoff late last week from Xichang is to carry a new $100-million U.S.-built communications spacecraft that will be operated by a Chinese telecommunications firm with corporate ties extending to the People's Liberation Army (PLA). The scheduled May 29 ChinaStar launch, planned since 1995, comes only about two weeks after the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to ban the further export of U.S. satellites to China for launch.
Researchers at the Washington-based Naval Research Laboratory have successfully demonstrated autonomous, real-time in-flight hyperspectral detection of airborne targets and military ground targets. Detection was followed by cuing of a high-resolution imager and target designation with pointing optics and a pulsed laser. The work, conducted as part of NRL's ``Dark Horse'' program, demonstrates potential capabilities needed for planned autonomous Uninhabited Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) operations, according to Thomas Giallorenzi, head of NRL's Optical Science Div.
James Giles has been appointed Bucks, England-based European regional director and Emmet Fletcher regional systems engineer for Analytical Graphics Inc.
Navy officials at the Pentagon say they have stopped requiring Air Force pilots assigned to EA-6B electronic warfare units to go through carrier landing qualifications. With the retirement of USAF EF-111s, a number of EA-6B units now have mixed Navy and Air Force crews. Carrier-qualifying has become a bottleneck in the EA-6B training squadron because the Navy simply doesn't have the aircraft to give the Air Force pilots the 50-80 flying hours they need to qualify.
Boeing has approved for use 6AL-4V titanium sheet products made by China's Baoji Non-Ferrous Metal Works, the country's largest titanium producer. The approval is the first for China to supply international aerospace titanium that meets exacting DMS 1592 requirements, according to Dennis Jones, quality manager for Trans World Alloys. Quality of the Baoji titanium sheet stock equals that of the best U.S. titanium mills, Jones said. The Gardena, Calif.-based company is marketing the product in the U.S.
German missile makers are moving several new multinational programs on which they have the lead into the development phase, as well as continuing technology demonstration work on a number of next-generation weapons.
The seasonal character of the airline business and a set of special circumstances have induced Steve Lewins of Gruntal to lower ratings on stocks of six airlines.
TAKING ADVANTAGE OF KEY CHANGES in the Wright Amendment, Continental Express plans in July to begin long-haul flights from Dallas' Love Field to Cleveland, creating direct competition in that market with American Airlines at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).
Emirates' decision to install multichannel personal televisions at every passenger seat in its fleet has proved more than a marketing gambit; it may be the only way to effectively communicate with and entertain Emirates' diverse range of passengers. The Dubai-based carrier has more than 55 nationalities among its staff and even more among passengers, according to chairman Sheikh Ahmed Maktoum. Since 1991, Emirates has invested more than $100 million in inflight entertainment, which also improves delivery of preflight safety and advisory messages.
Walter McCracken has been appointed operations manager for advanced electromechanical systems of Eagle-Picher Technologies, Joplin, Mo. He was vice president of the Enser Corp., Largo, Fla.
Despite delivery delays resulting from parts shortages and certification issues, Boeing continues to chalk up new 737 sales and now has achieved more than 900 orders for its next-generation 737 line. Recent orders from American Airlines and Delta Air Lines also confirmed that both carriers, although released from previous exclusive-provider contract provisions after European Union objections, will continue to buy Boeing. The 737 competes with Airbus' A320 family.
THE EUTELSAT W1 telecommunications satellite, valued at about $100 million, suffered significant damage during a fire at Aerospatiale Space and Defense Div.'s Cannes facilities. Eighteen technicians were exposed to toxic smoke in the company's anechoic chamber. The Eutelsat W1 was scheduled to be shipped to Kourou, French Guiana, on June 6 and to be orbited on July 10 by an Ariane 4 booster, with the Swedish NSAB Sirius 3 direct television spacecraft.
THE FIRST BOEING AH-64D APACHE HELICOPTER for the Netherlands made its initial flight May 13. Two days later, Boeing formally rolled out the aircraft at its Mesa, Ariz., production center for the Royal Netherlands Air Force, the first international customer to take delivery of an AH-64D.
B.J. HABIBIE, the former director of Indonesia's IPTN aircraft factory, has become the nation's president following the resignation of President Suharto in response to civil unrest over Suharto's economic policies. Rioting prompted Western aerospace firms to withdraw their European or American representatives from the country. Boeing pulled 47 support personnel from Jakarta two weeks ago.
Antarctica is a continent of extremes where rapid shifts in temperature, visibility, wind and snow conditions can turn a routine flight into a survival situation. Flight crews regularly pit their skills against this icy continent with virtually no assistance from navigation aids or en route radar. They face unpredictable weather, and when they land to take scientists to remote sites, there is the added danger of hidden crevasses.
Regional carrier American Eagle has begun scheduled, all-jet service from Chicago O'Hare to Cleveland, Cincinnati and Milwaukee using four 50-seat Embraer RJ-145s. Plans call for expanding jet service to Indianapolis, Columbus, Ohio, and Des Moines, Iowa, next month, and Eagle will introduce RJ-145 service to Duluth, Minn., Fayetteville, Ark., Montgomery, Ala., and Shreveport, La., this summer. About 60% of Eagle passengers landing at O'Hare transfer to American Airlines' flights, according to Eagle President Dan Garton.
Fairchild Dornier will invest about $850 million to develop an all-new family of 55-90-seat twinjets. In addition, it has launched the 44-seat 428JET, a stretched-fuselage derivative of the 32-seat 328JET. The U.S.-German manufacturer's initiative is backed by Switzerland's Crossair and Lufthansa CityLine, a regional subsidiary of Lufthansa German Airlines.
The U.S. Army plans to start tests in mid-summer of a hybrid electric retrofit of its High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (Hummer) for selected applications. Special operations forces and scout and reconnaissance teams could use the vehicle's battery-only ``silent mode'' which limits its infrared signature and shuts down all other unnecessary, noise-producing systems.
Antarctica--on average the coldest, driest, highest and most inaccessible continent--is a pristine frozen laboratory for scientists who are making discoveries not possible anywhere else on Earth. As a practical matter, the only access to most of the continent is by air.
Brian S. Kenyon has become vice president-finance and Jim Bogan chief safety officer of International Total Services Inc. of Cleveland. Kenyon was director of financial analysis for Signature Brands USA. He succeeds Robert A. Swartz, who has resigned. Bogan was director of customer service and station operations for GP Express Airlines.
