Tye Brady, who leads the space systems engineering group at the Draper Laboratory, Cambridge, Mass., has become an associate fellow of the Washington-based American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Brady leads development of a next-generation planetary landing system designed to be capable of a safe and highly precise global landing.
Peter Bradfield has been named communications adviser to the U.K.-based Baltic Air Charter Association. He held similar positions with the Royal Aeronautical Society and European Regional Airlines Association. Honors And Elections
Eight months after the end of the highly publicized grounding of its EC225 heavy helicopter, Airbus has renewed its faith in the Super Puma design. The company hopes that the EC225e—e for enhanced—due to fly in 2015 will finally put the type's troubles to bed after the nine-month-long grounding caused by the failure of the bevel gear vertical shaft on two North Sea-based aircraft during 2012.
National security space involves more than situational awareness and putting spacesuit boots on the ground first. Some House Republicans concerned about Chinese and Russian prospects in space received a lesson from a member of their own party with long executive branch experience on how civil space can enhance national security by giving potential adversaries something else to think about.
Airbus is raising the production rate of its narrowbody line. The company plans to increase output from the current 42 aircraft per month to 46 by the second quarter of 2016. That move is to be preceded by an interim step up to 44 from 42 in the first quarter of 2016. Boeing plans to raise 737 production to 47 from 42 aircraft per month in 2017 and is weighing going to 52 units by 2018-19.
Peter Cutler has become vice president-customer support and Treg Manning vice president-sales and marketing for the new Airbus Helicopters Inc., Grand Prairie, Texas. Cutler will continue as vice president-government programs. Manning was vice president-commercial sales.
Thailand's Aerothai has launched initiatives that will mean major upgrades in all facets of its air traffic management (ATM) system—including the first steps toward a nationwide satellite-based navigation network.
Unlike the 1987 movie “Trains, Planes and Automobiles,” low-cost Latin American airlines Azul Linhas Aereas and VivaAerobus.com are connected by buses and aircraft. They also are based in countries with growing middle classes that are first and second in terms of potential market size.
A statistical technique for analyzing data from the Kepler planet-finder, based on the discovery that multi-planet systems are more common than once thought, has confirmed 715 new exoplanets orbiting distant stars, say scientists using the NASA-funded dataset. The “verification by multiplicity” results almost doubles the number of exoplanets scientists consider “confirmed,” including four planets only slightly larger than Earth that orbit in their stars' habitable zones, where liquid surface water is at least possible.
Flying the Piaggio P180 Avanti twin-turboprop pusher from the front seat is a unique experience, but taking control of the same Avanti using a sidestick and a virtual windscreen from a side-facing seat in the rear of the cabin is a rare treat indeed.
A Japanese H-IIA launcher lifts off Feb. 27 with the Global Precipitation Mission (GPM) Earth-science spacecraft onboard, setting up unprecedented coverage of rain and snowfall from a slot in the sun-synchronous “A-train” satellite constellation. Liftoff of the GPM “core observatory” came at 1:37 p.m. EST (3:37 a.m. Feb. 28 local time) from the launch site on Tanegashima Island in southeastern Japan, and the big rocket performed nominally.
Brian Oszakiewski has been become director of government affairs for the Washington-based General Aviation Manufacturers Association. He was legislative director for U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.).
After evaluating prospective assembly sites across the U.S. and Japan, Boeing has elected to place both the 777X wing fabrication and assembly sites at Everett, Wash., home of the current 777 and future long-range twinjet final assembly lines.
With its population spread across more than 17,000 islands, Indonesia faces costly infrastructure challenges in keeping its people connected. Low-fare airlines have quickly blossomed, linking major towns and cities but not many smaller settlements, so Indonesia is turning to its fledging aviation industry to find a way forward.
When I learned to fly in the 1960s, the instructors—quite routinely and, of course, without warning—threw us some nasty tricks such as switching off the engine and asking us to land wherever possible down to a few feet above a hastily found half-suitable field, putting us in deep stall, or in a spin with engine off. The command to the trainee flying was: “It's up to you, mate.” And all that, of course, occurred in flight, not in a simulator. I am truly curious: Does this sort of training still occur? I hope so. It was invaluable.
USAF Maj. Gen. Bart O. Iddins has been named commander of the 59th Medical Wing of Air Education and Training Command, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. He has been command surgeon at Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill. Iddins has been succeeded by Brig. Gen. Kory G. Cornum, who has been commander of the 81st Medical Group of Air Education and Training Command, Keesler AFB, Miss. Col. Keith M.
The State Department is trying to draft new policy on foreign sales of UAVs, and the outcome could provide a long-sought boost to U.S. industry. But industry should not bank on it soon.
Sam Harris has been named as managing director of JetLease Capital, Palm Beach, Fla. He was founder of Aviation Advisors Group and worked in aircraft financing for National City Bank and PNC.
Thomas P. Mendez, Jr. (see photo) has become vice president/controller of the Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Aerospace Systems, Redondo Beach, Calif. He was head of corporate accounting and financial reporting operations.
James R. Muhs has been appointed president/CEO FedEx Trade Networks, Memphis, Tenn. He was senior vice president of U.S. International, Global Planning, Engineering and Trade Services at FedEx Express.
