The device is conceptually safer, cleaner and more powerful than much larger, current nuclear systems that rely on fission, the process of splitting atoms to release energy. Crucially, by being “compact,” Lockheed believes its scalable concept will also be small and practical enough for applications ranging from interplanetary spacecraft and commercial ships to city power stations and, potentially, large aircraft.
Bombardier’s CSeries test fleet is rebuilding momentum and will soon be joined by the first aircraft to be configured with a full interior, marking two welcome developments for the hard-pressed Canadian manufacturer and its engine supplier, Pratt & Whitney.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is performing system checks on the first MRJ in preparation for a first flight due in the second quarter of 2015. Nearby in the same Nagoya factory building, MHI technicians have progressed far into final assembly of the second aircraft and started working on the third.
Raytheon’s win of USAF’s Three-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar competition has larger ramifications for rivals Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman
A design fault in the thermal system of the Soyuz Fregat upper stage is behind the botched launch of Europe’s first two fully operational Galileo navigation, positioning and timing satellites, which were deployed to the wrong orbit following their Aug. 22 launch from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.
Northrop Grumman falsified test data on a GPS-based navigation system used to guide U.S. military ships, missiles and aircraft, including Predator and Reaper unmanned systems, an employee of the aerospace giant claims in a lawsuit alleging the company cut corners and produced phony test results. In a September 2012 complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Utah under a federal whistle-blower law, Todd Donaldson alleges Northrop Grumman sold the LN-100 guidance system to the U.S.
Balfour Beatty, the owner of Blackpool Squires Gate Airport in Lancashire, England, failed to find a buyer for the facility by its deadline of Oct. 7. Commercial flight operations are now set to terminate on Oct. 15. Work is underway to ensure that general aviation and offshore operations can continue.
Galileo satellite prime contractor OHB System of Germany is assessing options for salvaging the first two satellites in support of the full Galileo constellation. Kristian Pauly, deputy program manager for Galileo at OHB, says in their current elliptical orbit the spacecraft’s Earth-view sensors see the planet as overly large at the orbit’s perigee, sending their Attitude and Orbit Control System (AOCS) into safe mode and rendering them intermittently inoperable.
The devastating two-week pilot strike at Air France has cost the airline around €500 million ($635 million), and a lot of the company’s strategic questions remain unanswered. French pilot union SNPL only ended the strike after Air France-KLM CEO Alexandre de Juniac agreed to drop a key part of his restructuring plan—growing low-cost carrier Transavia into a pan-European airline. What remains unsolved is how big Transavia France can become and how Air France can achieve cost cuts in its legacy operation.
A new study for the U.K. Space Agency said Britain appears on track to reach its target of representing 10% of the global space economy in 2030. But the 2020 goal remains “a challenging target, and would necessitate a significant acceleration in revenue growth over the next six years.” Indeed, the London Economics analysis last month said that to achieve the interim objective set by the Space Growth Action Plan for 2020, industry sales would need to grow by an average of 8.7% per year through then, even as increases in the past two years have slowed to 7.3%.
Giuseppe Orsi, the former president and CEO of Finmeccanica, has been given a two-year suspended prison sentence for false invoicing along with the former CEO of AgustaWestland, Bruno Spagnolini. The pair were found guilty in the corruption case relating to the sale of 12 VIP helicopters to the Indian government in March 2010. However, both men were acquitted of charges relating to international corruption.
Australian composites manufacturer Quickstep will close its U.S. facility and transfer the equipment to licensee Vector Composites of Ohio. The two companies have been working on qualifying Quickstep’s economical out-of-autoclave composites process for the Lockheed Martin F-35 program. Part of Quickstep’s business is to license its technology, which is based on using glycol to cure composites, achieving faster and more controlled changes in resin temperatures than are possible with autoclaves.
The French defense equipment agency DGA took delivery of the first of 10 modernized Dassault Rafale fighters for the nation’s navy Oct. 3. Upgraded to the current F-3 standard, the Rafales will replace Super Etendards as of 2016, when they will become the navy’s only strike fighters. Produced hastily to the F1 standard in the late 1990s in an effort to replace aging F-8 Crusaders, these 10 navy Rafales have been limited to superiority and air defense missions.
The French defense equipment agency DGA took delivery of the first of 10 modernized Dassault Rafale fighters for the nation’s navy Oct. 3. Upgraded to the current F-3 standard, the Rafales will replace Super Etendards as of 2016, when they will become the navy’s only strike fighters. Produced hastily to the F1 standard in the late 1990s in an effort to replace aging F-8 Crusaders, these 10 navy Rafales have been limited to superiority and air defense missions.
Around 353 Earth observation (EO) satellites are expected to be launched over the next decade compared to 162 in 2004-13, according to Euroconsult. This will result in $36 billion in manufacturing revenue globally, an 85% increase over the previous decade, the consulting company said Oct. 9. In 2023, the commercial EO data market is expected to reach $3.6 billion (for an 8% compound annual growth rate for 2014‑23). Asia, Latin America and Africa are expected to grow at over 10% each.
An article in the Oct. 6 issue (page 22) should have stated the cost increase of the F-35 to Norway is 5.58% and the first phase for an F-35 facility will cost $96 million.
Regional Pilot Constraints Several points in Capt. Lee Moak’s Viewpoint: “Pilot Shortage? No, It’s a Pay Shortage” ( AW&ST Sept. 15, p. 58) need clarification: •There is a pilot shortage. It has led to canceled flights, dropped routes, and what Moak mischaracterizes as attempts to “roll back safety regulations.” Regional airlines and our member carriers are experiencing high attrition levels.
