France's Spot 4 Earth observation satellite is being readied for a crucial mission that aims to complete the recovery of the CNES space agency's imagery program from the loss of Spot 3 and serve as a bridge to the advanced-capability Spot 5. Scheduled for launch Mar. 20 on an Ariane 4 from the European spaceport here, the $590-million Spot 4 satellite offers measured improvements over its three predecessors but does not advance the Spot resolution capability of 10-meter panchromatic and 20-meter multispectral.
THE FAA PULLED ITS ARSR-4 long-range radar in Gibbsboro, N.J., off-line for repairs on Mar. 11 after an investigation into a dropout of radar data from Air Force One as the Boeing 747 flew south of New York on Mar. 10. The investigation found a crack in one of the ASRS-4's mounts that FAA officials said is unrelated to the data dropout. Radar and radio contact with Air Force One was maintained throughout the minor incident.
The Air Force may enlarge the F-22's weapons bay to allow it to carry more small bombs. It can now carry two 1,000-lb. bombs or four 300-lb.-class miniature munitions that are under development. The small bombs are expected to have at least 85% of the destructive power of a 1,000-lb. bomb. Gen. Richard Hawley, who heads the Air Combat Command, said changes could allow the F-22 to carry eight small bombs without altering the mold lines of the fighter. The modification is likely if USAF picks the F-22 to replace F-15Es and F-117s for long-range interdiction.
More organizations are using employee scheduling software to cut planning time. Sabena Airlines recently bought AD OPT Technologies ``Altitude Pairing'' program to schedule its crews, and the FAA will test workshift planning with the company's ShiftLogic program at the Fort Worth and Memphis air route traffic control centers. The software should reduce the amount of employee overtime.
BOEING HAS STRENGTHENED its ties with Russian titanium producer Verkhnaya Salda Metallurgical Production Assn. (VSMPO), signing a five-year contract for titanium billet, sheet and plate worth up to $200 million. The contract further solidifies the Seattle-based manufacturer's supply of the scarce, lightweight metal in a time of rapidly increasing transport production. A previous contract called for the delivery of 2,400 tons of titanium ingots to Boeing and its suppliers.
Sheet Metalworking Version 2.0 is a module for the Design for Manufacture and Assembly series. The software allows designers to estimate the costs associated with making a sheet metal part and to compare costs for alternative materials and processing parameters. The software comes with a customizable database of sheet metal types, allowing users to add specialized materials. Cost and time parameters can be examined for press setup and operation. Material and die costs also can be considered. Boothroyd Dewhurst Inc., 138 Main St., Wakefield, R.I. 02879.
FEDERAL EXPRESS WILL BE THE FIRST U.S. CARGO carrier to voluntarily install TCAS on its jet fleet and has selected Honeywell's TCAS 2000. Installation will start this year, and the company expects to have its fleet 95% equipped within four years.
As expected from what Chairman Peter Sutch described as the worst market in the airline's 52-year history, passenger counts and profits plunged at Cathay Pacific in 1997--but the airline still turned in a profit margin of 6.7%.
Real-time simulation of a desert battle that engaged 66,239 tanks, trucks and other fighting vehicles--the largest ever simulated war game--has aroused interest in exploiting the new tool for broader military training.
SWISSAIR LATE LAST WEEK FINALIZED an order for nine 380-seat Airbus A340-600 long-range transports powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 500s. First delivery is scheduled for the second quarter of 2002. Swissair's -600s will replace 747s and MD-11s on transatlantic routes and additional destinations in Africa and Asia. In addition, Sabena Belgian World Airlines, a Swissair affiliate, signed a contract on Mar. 12 covering 34 A320-family aircraft powered by CFM International CFM56 engines.
Richard D. Kenyon, manager of the Ft. Rucker Div. of DynCorp., has won the 1997 Army Aviation Assn. of America Materiel Readiness Award. He was cited for leading and implementing initiatives to increase the facility's aircraft component repair capability, improve local readiness and save millions of dollars.
NASA'S X-38 TESTBED made a successful first flight at Edwards AFB, Calif., on Mar. 12, after being dropped by the agency's B-52 carrier aircraft from 23,000 ft. and 175 kt. The 24.5-ft.-long X-38 is testing a design for an emergency return vehicle for the International Space Station that could be operational in 2003, and is a lifting body with a parafoil for final descent (AW&ST Nov. 11, 1996, p. 70). Engineers are studying a rip in the parafoil and twisted shroud lines at initial deployment. Next flight could be in May.
Hub 2000, a new, $860-million automated sorting facility to be built at Louisville (Ky.) International Airport, will replace the main express hub operated there by United Parcel Service (UPS). Scheduled to open in 2001, the 2.7-million-sq.-ft. building would increase capacity to 300,000 packages per hour from the current rate of 165,000. It would feature advanced automation for reading labels and transmitting Customs information for international shipments.
Bruce Ashby has been appointed senior vice president-planning, Thomas A. Fink vice president-purchasing and Donna Paladini Atlantic regional director of customer service, all of US Airways. Ashby was vice president-financial planning and analysis. Fink was treasurer and Paladini director of dining and cabin services.
The U.S. Air Force's Space Battlelab is launching innovative, pragmatic demonstration projects that range from placing hyperspectral imagers on top of Pikes Peak to using a commercial telescope for tracking objects in geosynchronous orbit. All are aimed at quickly determining the potential military utility of existing equipment and technologies, but applied in new ways to help the warfighter immediately.
Gail Philip Anderson has been promoted to senior vice president from vice president-human resources of the Ray- theon Co. Other recent promotions were: Shay D. Assad to senior vice president from vice president-contracts; Thomas D. Hyde to senior vice president/general counsel from vice president; Robert W. Drewes to vice president from corporate director of procurement and manufacturing; and David L. McPherson to senior vice president from executive vice president of Raytheon Systems.
China has selected Raytheon to install radar for Shanghai's new Pudong International Airport. The $8.7-million contract includes a terminal surveillance radar with a monopulse secondary surveillance radar. The system is scheduled to be delivered this year and installed in 1999. In addition, China plans to offer tenders this summer for area control radar systems in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou--the country's three busiest airline markets.
OptiMil is a computer numerical control milling and drilling optimization device. It monitors metal cutting conditions and adjusts the feed rate in real time to the maximum allowable level. The add-on device can be connected to virtually any CNC machine. It also monitors tool wear and detects if a tool breaks. When strong resistance is felt, OptiMil reduces the feed rate and also can stop the machine. Omat Control Technologies Ltd., P.O. Box 34272, Jerusalem, Israel 91341.
The DX-1 is an ultrasonic thickness gauge for measuring corrosion in such objects as pipelines, storage tanks and pressure vessels. It also can be used to gauge the thickness of castings, plastics and thin metals by accessing only one side. A high-speed scan feature allows a user to examine an area for the thinnest reading. The DX-1 has a measuring range of 0.025-19.999 in. and a resolution of 0.001 in. Dakota Instruments, 155A Dubois St., Santa Cruz, Calif. 95060.
The impending arrival of U.S. commercial imagery systems with resolutions as sharp as 1 meter promises to revolutionize the remote sensing market, but France's CNES space agency and its commercial affiliate, Spot Image, are dubious about the market prospects for such systems.
Latin America is emerging as a very important market for U.S. aerospace/defense contractors, some of whom expect to use arms sales primarily as door-openers to a much broader array of possible civil business opportunities. Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Venezuela are all considered potentially prime customers. Central America represents a small revenue base for U.S. companies now, but business-development executives think even that could improve dramatically in the next 3-5 years.
Officials from the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, locked in a feud about long-distance, interstate airline service from Dallas' Love Field, are scheduled to appear at a preliminary hearing this month before a state district court judge in Fort Worth. The officials have been meeting in an attempt to reach a compromise regarding expanded use of Love Field, which remains subject to restrictions imposed in 1979 by the Wright Amendment. But the controversial issue may have to be settled in court if an agreement cannot be reached soon.
The market supplement in the Jan. 19 issue of Aviation Week&Space Technology incorrectly identified the venue for the FIDAE '98 aerospace exhibition. It will be at Los Cerrillos Airport in Santiago, Chile, on Mar. 23-29.
Boeing is urging NASA to reconsider plans to spend $750 million to spur development of a next-generation reusable launch vehicle (RLV), saying the money would be better spent on space shuttle upgrades that could significantly lower the cost of operating the four orbiters and enable them to fly for another three decades.
The PRL-432 and PRL-433 are dual-channel Emitter Control Logic (ECL) Interface Adapters designed for use with high-speed recording instruments in satellite image transmission applications. The PRL-432 is a dual-channel clock and data recorder playback adapter. Each channel has a triax 124-ohm differential ECL input and SMA complementary ECL outputs for driving 50-ohm loads terminated to -2 volts. The PRL-433 is a dual-channel clock and data recorder record adapter.
