Photograph: BMDO also is working on a national cruise missile defense to protect the continental U.S. from weapons launched from submarines or surface ships. Researchers say there are three basic ways to attack the technical problems of detecting small and perhaps stealthy cruise missiles.
Lockheed Martin will become a super-giant in the electronic warfare field if its proposed acquisition of Northrop Grumman is approved. A decade ago, the several billion dollar a year EW market was divided among about a dozen medium-size suppliers, each with annual sales of $200-300 million. If the proposed acquisition is approved, Lockheed Martin will emerge with more than half of the EW market.
NATO has signed a special partnership agreement with Ukraine and inaugurated a new consultative council encompassing neutral countries such as Switzerland, Russia and other Eastern European countries, including Romania and Slovenia, whose quest for full membership in the alliance was put off for at least a year.
Italy's Finmeccanica have agreed to wide-ranging strategic cooperation between their defense businesses but stopped short of a larger merger. The two will form an equally owned joint venture encompassing missile and naval systems, ground-based radars and command and control systems (including air traffic control). In addition, GEC-Marconi will acquire a minority stake in Finmeccanica's Alenia Difesa Avionics. Alenia Difesa will acquire a minority interest in GEC-Marconi's Guns and Armored Vehicle business.
Peter Crole has been appointed president of CiMatrix, and Curtis Howes vice president-auto identification and John J. Arcari vice president-finance for its parent Robotic Vision Systems Inc., Hauppauge, N.Y. Crole was president/chief executive officer of Datalogic EMS. Howes was general manager of the Imaging Systems Div. of the Intermec Corp., Everett, Wash. Arcari was chief financial officer/treasurer of the LTX Corp.
SELECTED AERODYNAMIC MISSILE ARSENALS AND PROGRAMS Range (km.)/ Country Missile Payload (kg.) Type Guidance Status China HY-4 Sadsack 150/500 ASCM I, AR In service XW-41 300*/500* ASCM GPS* Proposal Delilah 2 385*/450* LACM I, GPS, IR* Under development
Photograph: Airbus Industrie is poised to launch the $2.5-billion A340-500/600 program. The ultra-long-range A340-500 is seen here in rendering. The European Commission, as expected, is threatening to penalize Boeing and McDonnell Douglas if they follow through with their merger as currently envisioned. According to U.S. experts, however, the merger clearly is a U.S. transaction and it would be ``contrary to reasonable expectations'' for the EC to take enforcement actions.
Geoff Smith has been appointed deputy chief executive of the Dowty Group, Abington, England. He was managing director of Messier-Dowty for the U.K. and North America.
The QS650 Ultrasonic Cleaning System fits on a counter-top and uses a specially formulated cleaning solution. The 2-KHz. QS650 is equipped with pulse width modulation circuitry that senses the cleaning load, solution level and voltage fluctuations, then makes adjustments to compensate. L&R Manufacturing Co., 577 Elm St., Kearny, N.J. 07032-3604.
Photograph: Captive flight tests using two Taurus prototypes have been carried out on German Tornados. Long-range, free-flight tests are set for this fall. Deliveries are planned for 2001-02. At the technological apex of export cruise missile technology is the stealthy, French-built Apache and its derivatives. While not a primary threat to the U.S. currently, it is an example of technology that will soon be on the market. An earlier French cruise missile export, the sea-skimming Exocet, is now in the inventory of scores of foreign countries.
Mike Terrett, chief engineer for the Trent 800 engine at Rolls-Royce Aerospace Group, has won a Silver Medal from the Royal Academy of Engineering in the U.K. Terrett was responsible for the design, development and certification of the 90,000- lb.-thrust engine, which powers the Boeing 777.
Martin V. Joyce, Jr., has been appointed to the board of directors of the Dynamics Research Corp., Andover, Mass. He is a vice president of A.T. Kearny Inc. of Boston.
Photograph: China builds the large, air-launched C-601 cruise missile (above) as well as the smaller C-801 Sardine with which Iranian pilots recently struck barges with two of three shots. Senior Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) officials have promised Pentagon leaders that they will have completed a list of the essential components needed to field a system to defend against cruise missiles by September. BMDO chief, Lt. Gen. Lester Lyles, wants to meet the deadline to influence 1999 budget considerations.
Jaime S. Martorell has been named vice president-business development for Rockwell International, Seal Beach, Calif. He was president/chief executive officer of the Indala Corp.
In the wake of the 50-seat EMB-145 twinjet's growing success in the regional transport market, Embraer is considering the merits of an expanded product range. The proposed EMB-135 would retain the EMB-145's fuselage diameter and have 37 seats arranged in three-abreast cabin configuration. The stretched EMB-170 would require a wider fuselage to increase capacity to 70 seats, in a four-abreast configuration (AW&ST May 12, p. 50). The envisioned EMB-170 would compete with Canadair's newly launched RJ Series 700 and Aero International Regional's (AIR) proposed AIR-70.
Honeywell and GEC-Marconi Avionics plan to market their HUD 2020 head-up display system for commercial transports. The HUD 2020 is FAA certificated on the Gulfstream 5 and G-4SP heavy-class corporate jets and is approved to Category 2 approach standards. As envisioned, the commercial transport version of the HUD 2020 will be configured for retrofit and forward-fit applications. The Boeing 737 is likely to be the first target, although other transport types will be considered.
The AE3360HW is a wideband, six-channel communications recorder that can store up to 3 hr. of data on an ST120 Super-VHS video cassette. It can record across a bandwidth of 0-500 KHz. The recorder has a seventh channel for recording a timecode and other ``housekeeping'' data. The unit measures 6.9 X 8.8 X 20 in. Two can be installed side-by-side in a standard 19-in. rack. Avalon Electronics Ltd., Langhorne Park House, High Street, Shepton Mallet, BA4 5AQ, England.
The U.K.'s new air traffic control center at Swanwick in southern England, already more than a year behind schedule due to earlier software integration problems, is facing a further delay of nearly a year or more. National Air Traffic Services officials said the revised in-service date of March, 1998, will not be met. Recent tests of the system have indicated additional features are required and more time is needed to train ATC operators.
With threats of dismissals and a legal challenge of the three-day strike begun by cabin crew workers last week. Nearly 70% of the airline's flights at London Heathrow were canceled on the first day of the strike, which is expected to cost BA tens of millions of dollars in lost revenues. BA was working to restore some services by late last week. But the airline faces the prospect of further disruptions by members of the British Airways Stewards and Stewardesses Assn. who rejected a pay deal accepted by a smaller, breakaway union.
Andrew W. Palowitch has been named chief executive officer of the Energy Compression Research Corp. of San Diego. Company founder Oved Zucker has become chief technology officer and president of the Technology Development Group. Palowitch was vice president-corporate development of Oceaneering International Inc.
Next Generation Duct is a flexible material made of polyester film with nylon rod reinforcement that is 30% lighter than the current Ultra Light aircraft ducting. NGD is available in several diameters and features threaded connections to make coupling easier, although taping is still required to seal connections. Options include elongated diameter inserts for restricted areas, Y and T connects, reducers and custom lengths. Flexfab Horizons International, Flexfab Div., 1843 Gun Lake Road, Hastings, Mich. 49058-9628.
The Sigmaflex 2 Multi-Axis Measurement System is designed for quickly checking the critical dimensions of turbine engine blades. The system, which comprises a personal computer, a computer numerically controlled (CNC) controller, workholders and gauging probes, works by simultaneously taking X and Y coordinates at a measurement point and comparing them against nominal values. As many as 20 dimensions can be measured in a single pass. The system also can be easily reconfigured for different blade types.
Ernie Johnson has been named president, Ronald P. Zimmerman senior vice president-marketing and business development and Paul Rohr vice president-sales, all of Leach International North America, Buena Park, Calif. Johnson was vice president/general manager, Zimmerman vice president-sales and marketing and Rohr Western U.S. sales manager. James Cearns has been promoted to vice president-solid state sales and marketing from director of international marketing and power management products for the Leach International Corp.
Masahiko Kurono, director of the Civil Aviation Bureau of Japan's Ministry of Transport, has been promoted to deputy transport minister, succeeding Minoru Toyoda. Yukio Kusunoki has been named bureau director.
