William T. Cerven of the University of Illinois is one of seven students to win regional 1997 Honor Undergraduate Awards from Sigma Gamma Tau, the National Honor Society of Aerospace Engineering. Cerven then was selected from among seven regional winners to receive the Ammon S. Andes National Award. The other regional winners are: Simon T. Gharibian, Syracuse University; John B. Kronebusch, Virginia Polytechnic Institute; Phillip J. Dellenger, University of Alabama; Brad W. Spickert, University of Kansas; Benjamin D. Baird, University of Oklahoma, and Ethan A.
As part of the research for these stories, Senior Military Editor David A. Fulghum became the only journalist to have flown on each of two key intelligence aircraft, the Navy's EP-3 and the Air Force's RC-135 Rivet Joint. He also conducted the first interviews with members of the Pentagon's Central Masint Office, formed in the aftermath of the 1990-91 Persian Gulf war to reorganize and preserve crucial strategic intelligence capabilities and redirect them to tactical missions.
Biggs Porter has been named vice president-business management and Judith W. Northup vice president-materiel operations for the Northrop Grumman Corp. Commercial Aircraft Div. in Dallas. Porter, who will assume his post May 31, will succeed Bill McMillan, who will retire. Porter has been vice president-finance. Northup has been director of manufacturing control systems/Vought Center director of manufacturing controls and industrial engineering.
Every Laureate Award winner--past, present and future--is automatically a member of Aviation Week's new Laureates Hall of Fame. To ensure that prior honorees receive the full measure of recognition they deserve, each future class of inductees will include both the current year's winners and a select grouping of legendary achievers from previous years. This year, the following have been selected for special notice. Their original citations are reprinted below: Michael Collins Director of the National Air and Space Museum
Air logistics has grown to about a $200- billion-per-year global industry, according to Boeing estimates. About $40 billion is airport-to-airport freight and express package services, representing 13% of world airline revenues, excluding Russian carriers. The remaining $160 billion involves ground distribution logistics, including pickup and delivery, consolidation, warehousing, inspection and order processing, according to David Pierce, regional director of cargo marketing for Boeing.
Jim Posey (see photo) has been appointed chief operating officer of Universal Technologies Inc., Estill Springs, Tenn. He was director of transformation for support contractor ACS at the Arnold (AFB) Engineering Development Center, Tullahoma, Tenn.
NASA flight controllers are maneuvering the advanced Goes-K weather satellite to its geosynchronous orbital position and checking out the spacecraft's systems following its launch from here on an Atlas 1. The satellite is to be positioned in an orbital slot at 105-deg. W. Long. as an orbital spare for the Geostationary Operational Environment Satellites 8 and 9. Those spacecraft have boosted the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's ability to forecast the movement of major weather systems such as hurricanes (AW&ST Apr. 14, p. 59).
Along-range camera that was built for the stealthy DarkStar unmanned aerial vehicle has successfully taken its first imagery from a special operations Pacer Coin PC-130 reconnaissance aircraft.
Rear Adm. Katherine L.H. Laughton (USN, Ret.) has become group vice president-systems automation and engineering of the ManTech Systems Engineering Corp., Fairfax, Va. She was commander of the Navy Space Command.
A new service at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport quickly shrink-wraps suitcases, golf clubs, skis and other items up to 8 ft. long in a durable 3-mil polyester covering prior to check-in. Cost is $3 per item. Aim of the process, which has a patent pending, is to prevent pilferage and damage while the items travel as unattended airline baggage, according to Joseph Amedson, president (fax 206-313-1950). Called Air Secure, the process leaves handles exposed and allows easy inspection by X-ray machines and contraband-sniffing dogs.
Rear Adm. Richard D. Williams, 3rd, (USN, Ret.) has been named vice president-special projects of DRS Precision Echo, Parsippany, N.J. He was deputy assistant chief of naval operations for expeditionary warfare. Capt. Donald A. Hempson, Jr., (USN, Ret.) has become vice president-programs of DRS Ahead Technology. He was senior logistics adviser to the assistant Navy secretary.
John Gauch has been named president of Sportsman's Market Inc., Batavia, Ohio, parent company of Sporty's Pilot Shop and Wright Bros. Collection. He was vice president-operations for Sporty's Academy and Eastern Cincinnati Aviation.
Thomas Moore has been promoted to executive vice president/chief operating officer from senior vice president-maintenance and operations of Atlantic Coast Airlines. Also promoted were John Cross to vice president from director of technical services and Angie Shermer to vice president from director of sales.
The U.S. Navy will fund production of five Bell/Boeing V-22 aircraft under a $402-million contract awarded last week that includes provision for another $49.7 million to build a second batch of five aircraft that would be delivered in 2000. Another seven would be delivered in 2001, followed by eight in 2002.
Donald L. Light (see photo) has become manager of business development for commercial remote sensing systems for Eastman Kodak Commercial and Government Systems, Rochester, N.Y. He was manager of the National Aerial Photography Program for the National Mapping Div. of the U.S. Geological Survey.
Charles A. Leader (see photo) has been appointed president of Hughes Information Systems, Reston, Va. He succeeds Wayne Shelton, who is to retire on May 31. Leader was president of Hughes Information Technology Systems and a senior vice president of the Hughes Aircraft Co. He will be succeeded by Tony Calio (see photo), who has been president of Hughes Information's Space Systems Div.
Robert H. Jenkins (see photo), president/chief executive officer of the Sundstrand Corp., Rockford, Ill., is now also chairman. He succeeds Don R. O'Hare, who has retired.
The 5-hr. extravehicular activity conducted Apr. 29 by U.S. and Russian crewmembers on the Mir station tested a new Russian Zvezda Orlan space suit and exchanged several hundred pounds of science instrumentation on Mir's exterior.
The Navy plans to cut procurement of the Joint Strike Fighter to 250 from 300, senior aviators said. The reduction follows a decision to cut each carrier air wing to 50 aircraft--14 two-seat F/A-18Fs, 24 single-seat F/A-18Es divided into two squadrons and 12 JSFs, not the 14 JSFs once planned. Meanwhile, the Navy is working on improving the weaponry for that smaller fleet of aircraft. The wish list includes a 700-naut.-mi.-range hypersonic missile.
Ranger 23, an EP-3E of Fleet Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron Two (VQ-2), recently took off on a 4-hr. Green Trainer flight from NAS Rota at 10 a.m.--that's a leisurely schedule compared to most surveillance hops, which, with pre- and post-flights included, means a working day of 12 or more hours. This flight took us to the island of Majorca and back at a distance no closer than 60 mi. from the North African coast. The training mission was flown with a full crew of 24 on board.
Rapid advances in technology, the end of the Cold War and the disappearance of the division between strategic and battlefield reconnaissance has driven the Pentagon to find a new way to manage some of its most critical intelligence.
John Lawson (see photos) has been appointed president-sales, Peter G. Edwards senior vice president-international sales and Bill Monroe vice president-Learjet sales in the U.S., all for Bombardier Business Aircraft of Montreal.
THE U.S. NAVY HAS AWARDED General Electric's F414 engine limited production qualification status, which means hardware can be procured for the first 27 production engines. These powerplants will be manufactured under the program's low-rate initial production phase. First F414 production engine delivery is scheduled for July, 1998. The engine powers the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
