THE NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE has issued a ``request for information'' on industry's ability to develop a satellite architecture for the space segment of the FAA'S Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). The NRO wants industry's ideas about how to provide on-orbit command and control for geostationary satellites to augment the GPS system. The capability could be achieved by adding transponders at GPS L1 frequency (1575.42 MHz.) and one other fixed L-band frequency to currently planned satellites, or by developing new satellites.
Tony Hine, vice president/director of corporate finance of First Marathon Securities Ltd., has been named to the board of directors of Avcorp Industries Inc. of Vancouver.
Mark L. Gerchick has been named senior vice president/director of aviation services of APCO Associates of Washington. He was deputy assistant Transportation secretary.
Turkish and Boeing officials have started negotiations in Ankara for the possible purchase of F-15E aircraft. Turkey wants between 20-40 F-15Es and has set up special working groups in the Defense Industry undersecretariat and the General Staff to consider the project. The move is seen as a counterweight to Greece's interest in the aircraft. Greece is considering the F-15 in its search for new fighter aircraft, as well as the F-16 and Eurofighter. The fighter competition is part of a $4.8-billion defense modernization program announced by Athens.
With $100 million in President Clinton's Fiscal 1999 budget request for civil aviation security, each of the three competing explosives-detection gear manufacturers is predicting its second-generation system will win the lion's share of new business that will be up for grabs. That's assuming, of course, that Congress approves the Administration's spending proposal.
The Mirro-Clad is a nickel-plated cylinder designed for storing highly pure but corrosive gasses. The interior surface of plated nickel 200 is polished to a smoothness of 20 micro-in. The end closures are manufactured from Hastelloy C-22. They are secured to the vessel with external threads and a Viton seal. CP Industries Inc., Christy Park Plant, 2214 Walnut St., McKeesport, Pa. 15132.
James F. Pitts has been named vice president-engineering and manufacturing of the Northrop Grumman Corp. Electronic Sensors and Systems Div. (ESSD) in Baltimore. Pitts was vice president-avionics systems and has been succeeded by Robert W. DuBeau, who was director/executive manager of the Joint Strike Fighter program at ESSD. Robert H. Thompson, who was manager of advanced programs, has succeeded DuBeau.
The 1998 edition of Airline Pilot Test Kit is designed to prepare licensed pilots for the commercial airline screening process. The 92-page book contains practice tests covering subjects from vocabulary to spatial orientation, as well as tips for taking each test. The information in the book has been gleaned from debriefs of pilots. There also is a section on airline interview methods. AIR Inc., 1001 Riverdale Court, Atlanta, Ga. 30337-6005.
This fabric made from a blend of Lenzing FR and aramid fibers provides the moisture-wicking qualities of 100% aramid and the flame-resistance of Lenzing FR, which has a low oxygen content to reduce its combustibility. The Lenzing's fiber chemistry prevents its flame resistance components from abrading during processing, use or washing. The fabric complies with ASTM 1506 for minimal afterflame and charring and has an arc thermal protective value of about 4.0-5.0. Southern Mills Inc., 6501 Mall Blvd., P.O. Box 289, Union City, Ga. 30291.
Paul R. Kuhn has been named senior vice president-group operations of Charlotte, N.C.-based Coltec Industries, overseeing Chandler Evans Control Systems, AMI Aircraft Seating Systems and other subsidiaries. He was president of Chandler Evans.
Mickey Cohen has been appointed senior vice president-airline operations and Bob Young director of airline safety and compliance for Legend Airlines of Dallas. Cohen held the same position with Aloha Airlines, and Young was the city director of airline operations in San Jose, Calif.
Even the Queen is not exempt from the drive in the U.K. to cut costs by turning government services over to private contractors. In April, two aging Wessex HCC4 helicopters--employed by the Royal Air Force since 1969 to fly the royal family on official visits--will be replaced by a leased Sikorsky S76. The customized helicopter will be operated and maintained by charter operator Air Hanson, based in Blackbushe, England, under a 10-year contract. Privatization is expected to cut the U.K.
Japanese spending on space programs will rise 1% in the government's fiscal 1998 budget plan, with major portions to fund an improved H-2 launch vehicle, technology development and Earth-observation satellites. Total spending is to rise to $2.83 billion spread among five ministries and agencies, but the bulk of it--$2.15 billion--will go to the National Space Development Agency (NASDA).
The Model 1203-300 nonexplosive actuator has been qualified for use on Lockheed Martin's Earth Observing System AM-1 satellite. The actuators will be used for deploying high-gain antennas and solar arrays. All 372 spools used in testing were fired successfully. The test articles also were subjected to thermal cycling of -70C-130C and random vibration to 19.4 gravity root mean square, as well as thermal vacuum testing. G&H Technology Inc., 750 W. Ventura Blvd., Camarillo, Calif. 93010.
This new line of indexable insert drilling systems are designed for machine tools that drill horizontally or vertically. They are available to fit BW and BWS drills which use C, S or W-style indexable inserts. The new inserts have an optimized cooling supply and chip removal, high system rigidity and improved clamping to the drill holder. Widia North America, 4701 Marburg Ave., P.O. Box 92950, Cincinnati, Ohio 45209.
Melvin G. Goodweather has been appointed senior director of congressional affairs for Airbus Industrie of North America, Herndon, Va. He was director of congressional relations for the United Tech- nologies Corp.
The financial crisis that began spreading over East Asia last summer occurred as some of the region's fastest-growing nations were taking their first steps toward what they hoped would be their own aerospace manufacturing identity. The shock wave from the downturn is likely to put the industry in a reflective mood as it gathers this week in Singapore for the region's most important air show, Asian Aerospace '98.
This active matrix liquid crystal diode flat panel display has a viewing angle of 160 deg. both horizontally and vertically and supports resolutions of up to 1,280 X 1,024 pixels. The wide-on-wide viewing technology virtually closes the gap between viewing angles of LCD and conventional cathode ray tube displays. The plug-and-play monitor is also available in a ruggedized version. Aydin Displays, 700 Dresher Road, Horsham, Pa. 19044. Circle 164 on Reader Service Card
Users of DTN Weather Center service now have the option of receiving Thor Guard lightning alerts, which provide warnings before strikes. The Thor Guard equipment monitors electrostatic values in the atmosphere of a radius of up to 15 mi. Color-coded danger screens range from an ``all clear'' to a ``red alert.'' The system also tracks the number of lightning strikes over a user-defined radius of as far as 15 mi. Data Transmission Network Corp., Embassy Plaza Building, 9110 W. Dodge Road, Suite 200, Omaha, Neb. 68114.
Carl Chance has become aviation correspondent in Wichita, Kan., for the Beth- esda, Md.-based Wingspan Air and Space Channel. He was vice president of public television station KPTS in Wichita.
Peru has awarded Harris Corp.'s RF Communications Div. of Rochester, N.Y., a contract to provide 22 redundant multimode very high frequency (VHF) radios to Corpac, the Peruvian civil aviation authority. The radios will replace analog ground-to-air radio systems at Jorge Chavez International Airport in Lima and at other selected sites in Peru. A competitive contract was managed by UNOPS, a United Nations project management organization, on behalf of Corpac. The UN affiliate also conducted evaluations.
The AV-16504D is a compact disk/digital video disk audio/video reproducer unit designed for aircraft environments. The line replaceable unit is designed to have a mean time between failure of 50,000 hr. and can be configured with up to 32 channel-hours of audio or up to four independent DVD video streams each with four language channels. The unit can automatically detect and play virtually any CD-based audio or DVD video media. The unit can accept a combination of up to four CD players or DVD reproducers.
INDONESIAN PRESIDENT SUHARTO has designated B.J. Habibie, Indonesia's minister of research and technology and head of its IPTN aircraft factory, as his choice to become the country's next vice president. The choice is to be confirmed by the electoral assembly next month.
The V0603/V0805/V1008 Series of SMT miniature wire-bound ceramic chip inductors are designed to close inductance tolerances and feature high Q values and low d.c. resistance. A total of 189 part numbers are available in the series' three footprints. Tolerances of 2, 5, 10 and 20% are offered. The inductors are available with solder or gold terminations. Vanguard Electronics Corp., 1480 W. 178th St., Gardena, Calif. 90248-3277.
