Angelo D. Castellana and Luciano S. Rossi have been appointed senior vice presidents and Amit Datta vice president/chief technology officer of EG&G Inc., Wellesley, Mass. Castellana and Rossi were vice presidents in the office of the chief operating officer, while Datta was vice president of EG&G Sealol Inc.
American Airlines plans to begin building its new, 47-gate terminal this year at Miami International Airport despite renewed legal action by competing U.S. and international airlines to block construction. Dade County finances Miami airport upgrades through a rate structure that distributes costs among all airlines operating there, because county officials believe each carrier eventually will benefit from the capital improvements. The U.S. Transportation Dept.
The tiltrotor MV-22 medium transport and E-8 Joint-STARS long-range radar aircraft have joined the list of aircraft programs recommended for substantial cuts in the Pentagon's Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR).
ANALYTICAL GRAPHICS HAS ENHANCED its Satellite Tool Kit software suite with an addition called Coverage Module to speed up the qualitative and quantitative analysis of specific issues, such as the effect of a satellite failure on coverage of a specific area provided by a constellation. The Coverage tool allows 4-D analysis by displaying geometry over time. The intent is to allow satellite users to visualize the net effect of a series of constraints over time.
Russia's long-promised military reform is near a dead end, orphaned by a heedless Yeltsin government, Russian insiders charge. The overhaul must begin now and in earnest, they warn, to save Russia's democratic transformation and preserve the endangered political neutrality of Russia's armed forces. They predict that without major reform, the military will become the number one threat to the nation's security.
Charles V. Fulmer (see photo) has been appointed marketing and business manager of Teledyne Brown Engineering's Hastings Instruments, Hampton, Va. He was a marketing and business manager for the Robertshaw Corp., Knoxville, Tenn.
New world records for unmanned vehicles could be set as early as June when the solar-powered Pathfinder begins operations from Hawaii as part of the Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) program. The six-engine, 100-ft.-span flying wing will start flight operations from the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands on the island of Kauai, with a goal of reaching 65,000-75,000 ft. This will be the first attempt in a series of tests in Hawaii during the next several years, ultimately leading to an attempt at a record of around 100,000 ft.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has reached agreement with Lockheed Martin to build two new stealthy DarkStar UAVs. Look for an agreement on three more Global Hawks and a second ground station to be completed by the end of summer. The first aircraft in each new production series will be ready in about 18 months, DARPA officials say. DarkStar will carry the SAR developed for the canceled Navy A-12 attack aircraft, but no MTI.
Members of the new Star Alliance--United, Lufthansa, Air Canada, Thai International and Scandinavian Airlines System--plan to share facilities at Hong Kong's new Chek Lap Kok airport and purchase equipment and supplies jointly. The five carriers are waiting for the Hong Kong Airport Authority to issue pricing data before deciding what facilities they will share, according to Juergen Thomsen, Lufthansa's general manager for southern China, Hong Kong and Macau. The alliance is discussing expansion plans with other Asian carriers (AW&ST May 19, p. 27).
BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON has signed agreements with the Romanian government to buy a 70% stake in IAR S.A. Brasov and produce 90 AH-1RO attack helicopters for the Romanian armed forces at IAR Brasov. The purchase agreement and the contract for a specialized Romanian version of the AH-1W SuperCobra are contingent on approval of a manufacturing license from the U.S. State Dept. and endorsement of the purchase by Textron's board of directors. Bell officials said they expected no problems in obtaining either.
General Electric plans to stretch the development schedule of a 102,000-lb.-thrust version of its GE90 engine, indefinitely postponing certification of their powerplant for the Boeing 777-200X/-300X until the Seattle-based aircraft manufacturer finds ``solid'' launch customers for the aircraft.
Boeing and McDonnell Douglas received 54 orders for large commercial jet transports and delivered 77 aircraft during the first quarter of this year, compared with 25 orders and 42 deliveries for competitor Airbus Industrie, according to the U.S. Aerospace Industries Assn.
First flight of the F-22 Raptor is expected to be delayed 2-3 weeks to provide Lockheed Martin-Boeing engineers with the time they need to fix a leaking aircraft fuel tank and a faulty APU/auxiliary generator oil system. According to program officials, Raptor's first flight probably will not occur until mid-June. ``We are an event-driven program, not a time-driven one, and we will not fly until the proper tests have been performed and the aircraft is ready to fly,'' Thomas Burbage said. He is F-22 program vice president and general manager.
Boeing dismissed last week's European Union objections to its planned merger with McDonnell Douglas, saying there is no fundamental restrictive effect on competition.
U.S.-Russian Mir logistics coordination and execution of the Atlantis shuttle Mission 84 resupply have given the two countries a new foundation on which to base future work on Mir and joint assembly of the new International Space Station. The Mission 84 flight and exchange of astronaut Michael Foale with Jerry Linenger involved far more preflight coordination of problem issues and repair-related logistics on Mir than have the previous shuttle docking flights.
The Air Force chief of staff was particularly animated about two subjects during congressional hearings last week: cutting F-22 production and the pending court-martial of 1st Lt. Kelly Flinn, the first female B-52 pilot. Gen. Ronald Fogleman is upset because he thinks there are aspects of each issue that aren't widely understood. Fogleman had volunteered a long-term reduction in the F-22 program. Then he was surprised when Defense Secretary William Cohen suggested early production cuts as well (12 aircraft).
RAYTHEON E-SYSTEMS RECENTLY DELIVERED to the U.S. Navy the first E-6B, a Tacamo aircraft modified to also carry out the U.S. Strategic Command's Airborne Command Post (ABNCP) mission. The E-6B will expand the basic Tacamo mission of providing reliable strategic communications with submerged ballistic missile submarines. The added ABNCP capability was made possible in the mid-1980s, when the Navy decided to upgrade the Tacamo fleet from EC-130s to the E-6, a modified Boeing 707.
Installation of cargo compartment fire detection equipment, use of upgraded flight data recorders and the elimination of explosive mixtures in aircraft fuel tanks are paramount safety issues that need to be addressed and resolved by the FAA, according to the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board.
The French team of Eurocopter and Intertechnique will attempt a record nonstop flight between the New York area and Paris of a single-engine helicopter (AW&ST May 19, p. 17). The Eurocopter AS 350B3 will be refueled inflight with an Intertechnique system, five times while en route from Teterboro (N.J.) Airport to Le Bourget Airport, beginning on June 6. The Ecureuil will be modified so that oil can be added to the engine en route and will be equipped with HF and VHF radios, plus a GPS navigation system.
The way is now clear for full privatization of Lufthansa German Airlines, following the upper house of parliament's approval on May 16 of a bill authorizing the sale of the 35.7% of Lufthansa shares still in state hands. Lufthansa was partially privatized in 1994.
CONSTELLATION COMMUNICATIONS INC. HAS SELECTED Raytheon E-Systems as prime contractor for the ground segment of its low-Earth orbit (Leo) satellite system. The contractor team includes Northern Telecom, Texas Instruments, L-3 and Scientific Atlanta. The initial phase will use 12 equatorial satellites to serve 100 countries in the tropical belt that lack terrestrial phone and data service. A later expansion is planned to provide global service.
Senior British Airways officials say the airline's request to transfer its Paris operations from Charles de Gaulle to Orly is not settled as far as they are concerned, despite a negative ruling by French aviation authorities. The airline is still dissatisfied with security arrangements at Charles de Gaulle--Algerian carrier Air Algerie has been allowed to resume operations at a check-in counter next to BA's after a two-year ban due to terrorist concerns (AW&ST May 5, p. 34 ). BA is awaiting the ruling of a French high court to a formal protest that the airline lodged.
