Vincent J. Corbo, president/chief operating officer of Hercules Inc., Wilmington, Del., has been appointed to the board of directors of Alliant Techsystems Inc. of Minneapolis.
The use of head-up displays continues to proliferate through the business jet community. The FAA has certified the Flight Dynamics HGS-2850 head-up guidance system for use on the Dassault Falcon 2000. Initially, Falcon 2000 pilots can fly Category-1 approaches manually and monitor Cat.-2 approaches flown by the autopilot. Additional features, including Cat.-3A capability and wind shear escape guidance, are to be certificated by year-end. Bombardier plans to offer a Flight Dynamics HGS on new Challenger 604s as well as a retrofit version for existing aircraft.
John Meyer has become director of sales and marketing for the Metal Bellows Div. of Senior Flexonics Inc., Sharon, Mass. He was aerospace marketing manager.
The FAA has granted parts manufacturer approval to BFGoodrich Avionics Systems for its Skywatch traffic advisory system. Skywatch was developed as a lower cost traffic advisory system for general aviation, helicopter and business aircraft. The system uses replies from the aircraft's Mode C beacon interrogations to calculate potential traffic conflicts. The information can be displayed on a late model WX-1000 Stormscope Weather radar and can provide aural alerts, but does not give advice on avoidance maneuvers.
Has decided to provide financial support for the MiG-AT advanced trainer, a joint venture of VPK MAPO of Russia and a group of French companies, led by Snecma and Sextant Avionique. During a visit by French President Jacques Chirac to Moscow late last month, representatives of the two governments signed a memorandum of understanding that provides for the financing of Larzac engines and Sextant nav/attack hardware to equip 15 preproduction MiG-ATs.
Officials of Northwest Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, which have been operating joint services for more than six years, laid plans last week to deepen and expand their global alliance.
David M. Bowman has become Boeing program manager for the MD-17 at the former McDonnell Douglas facility in Long Beach, Calif. He succeeds John Feren, who is with the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group in Seattle. Bowman was director of the McDonnell Douglas C-17 Nacelle/Engine Affordability Team.
As the Royal Air Force awaits the launch of the first of three new communication satellites in January to replace the current aging Skynet 4 constellation, industry officials express confidence that the U.K., France and Germany will soon approve a multinational follow-on program.
US Airways Group Inc.'s 4,800 pilots are expected to ratify a new five-year contract within the next two weeks, paving the way for the U.S.'s fifth-largest airline to purchase up to 400 new Airbus jets and embark on an aggressive growth strategy. Based on the tentative accord reached late last Tuesday night, Airbus agreed to extend US Airways' deadline for affirming the order, pending pilot ratification.
Here last week, Naumann broached a subject that no one at the Pentagon will discuss publicly--computer hacking as an offensive military capability. He says NATO's military committee is working on ``developing an information warfare capability.'' The committee has assigned the first task of developing an information warfare doctrine to the assistant director of military operations, a British admiral. ``This is an issue that goes far beyond a purely military sphere . . . so it needs a political framework,'' Naumann says.
Two existing independent software packages used for developing and controlling satellite systems are to be combined to form a new integrated software package. The new package will combine Lockheed Martin's Satellite Control System 21 software with the Spacecraft Command Language (SCL) software developed by Interface and Control Systems Inc. of Melbourne, Fla.
Have re-established contact with the Mars lander using an auxiliary transmitter after three days of silence, indicating the spacecraft is still operational.
The first squadron of JAS 39 Gripen multirole aircraft is set to be declared combat-ready shortly, as Sweden begins fielding elements of its Air Force 2000 concept for a fully integrated, digital air defense system. ``I am ready to declare the first squadron operational,'' Gen. Kent Harrskog, chief of the Swedish air force, told Aviation Week&Space Technology last month during the final days of a three-week-long combatreadiness exercise. The first Gripen squadron will include 17 aircraft based at F7 wing in Satenas.
As it moves forward with three new fighter programs, Lockheed Martin is developing virtual reality programming tools to cut its manufacturing costs, the fighters' serviceability costs and improve its development cycle times. The effort was prompted by stringent cost and cycle time goals that Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems (LMTAS) committed itself to under the 51-month concept demonstration contract for the U.S. Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program.
Integrated Technologies of Israel and Israel Aircraft Industries' Malat Div. are creating a joint venture to provide unmanned aerial vehicle services for the commercial market. The company plans to draw on Malat's experience with military UAVs to provide flight services and on-line sensor information to commercial customers. Target markets include firefighting, security and performing scientific measurements. ITI officials predict the commercial UAV market will generate $100 million in revenues during the next 10 years.
Kennedy Space Center has begun testing two new Infinity R/T computer systems on space shuttle mobile launch platforms. The systems were procured from Encore originally by McDonnell Douglas before its merger with Boeing and will now be used to support shuttle payload data acquisition and monitoring operations at Launch Complex 39. The systems have been customized to withstand acoustic and vibration loads during shuttle ignition and liftoff. Kennedy may order as many as six additional Infinity R/T systems, once the initial two complete launch trials.
The White House and Congress must redouble efforts against the mounting threat of ``loose nukes'' falling into illicit hands from the former Soviet nuclear complex, say former high-ranking Clinton Administration officials. They are calling for improvements to U.S. intelligence on nuclear smuggling, compliance with an unfulfilled 1995 U.S./Russian agreement for data exchanges on nuclear stockpiles and U.S. supply of advanced tracking equipment to the Russians.
To Continental Airlines after one of its officials in the Southwest Region said surveillance of the airline was being increased because of an ``abnormal amount of engine shutdowns in flight.'' Instead, an FAA official in Washington said heightened oversight of Continental's engine maintenance operations is the direct result of a nationwide increase in the number of agency inspectors available to do the job, not of concerns about the Houston-based carrier's maintenance practices.
Business travelers who want to follow their flight's progress can do so with a new software package called FlightTracker from TheTrip.com. FlightTracker produces a high-resolution topographical map that is generated from FAA radar data using Java programming language. Travelers will need a wireless modem. The connection is to http://www.thetrip.com . . . Engineous Software and General Electric are teaming on development of a collaborative optimization environment tool for Darpa's Rapid Design Exploration and Optimization (RaDEO) program.
Beginning with this issue, the Aerobyte column will run in the front of Aviation Week&Space Technology with the other news columns, such as Industry Outlook and Airline Outlook. The frequency of Aerobyte, which reports breaking news in the information technology industry, has been increased to biweekly from monthly.
The Command&Control Systems division of Hughes Aircraft Co. is as software-intensive as any in aerospace. More than half of its 1,500 employees are involved in software development, so it has been seeking better ways to find and retain computer scientists.
The recent midair collision of a U.S. Air Force C-141 and a Luftwaffe Tu-154 off the coast of Namibia tragically demonstrates that no transports--military or civil--should be operating in African airspace without traffic-alert and collision avoidance systems.
John J. Nokleberg has been named chief financial officer of the Teledesic Corp., Kirkland, Wash. He was a vice president in the global media and telecommunications group of Chase Securities Inc.
Natalie W. Crawford has been promoted to vice president/director of Project Air Force from associate director of Rand, Santa Monica, Calif. She succeeds Brent D. Bradley, who has been reassigned. Succeeding Crawford is C. Richard Neu.
