Hawaiian Airlines is taking steps to launch a regional subsidiary, and has signed a letter of intent to buy an unspecified number of turboprops. The carrier plans to eventually have up to six aircraft in the subsidiary. While the type is not being revealed yet, the carrier is bound by union agreements to restrict turboprop operations to aircraft with no more than 69 seats. Hawaiian says up to 50 seats is the right configuration for the routes it has in mind.
Rockwell Collins has joined forces with Boeing to develop a flight-deck upgrade for the 767 and 757 using 787 technology. Supplemental type certification is expected in the second quarter of 2014. This coincides with the start of deliveries of 46 new-build 767-300 Freighters to FedEx Express, the unidentified launch customer for the cockpit upgrade.
The benefits of satellite-based approaches, precision landing systems and autoland capability have all been recognized for years. But new initiatives to seamlessly link these technologies promise even greater gains in streamlining air traffic and improving low-visibility operations.
Dan Bennewitz has become chief operating officer and Jim Reinhart head of development and operations at Quality Technology Services, Overland Park, Kan. Bennewitz was VP of IBM Sales Model, and Reinhart has held executive roles at Genworth.
•“The aircraft goes beyond 2g—which is well within what it is designed to take. I can't say the same thing about the passengers.” —Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief test pilot Mike Carriker on the 787's flying display •“LauncherOne will go around the world in 80 min. It's actually 90 min., but I thought that sounded better.” —Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson, unveiling the new LauncherOne smallsat system •“There will be a 319NEO for all those people that don't want to buy the CSeries.”
Also on the Ares blog, Defense Technology Chief Editor Bill Sweetman writes about collaboration between Sweden and Switzerland on the new JAS 39E/F version of the Saab Gripen. Hardcore says: It is interesting to compare the cockpit to that of the F-35. They look nearly identical, but I bet there are differences on the inside. Super cruise has replaced info on max speed. A logical step, of course.
Dave Franson has been promoted to president from executive director of the Wichita Aero Club. New board members are: John Ek, publisher of the Wichita Business Journal; Sean Weaver, executive VP-assurance services at Allen, Gibbs & Houlik; Rod Wilson, Goodrich Interiors; Stephanie Harder, manager of community affairs and internal communications at Cessna Aircraft Co.; Kim Nussbaum, publisher of The Wichita Eagle and David Van der Wee, VP-marketing, business and general aviation for Pratt & Whitney Canada.
July 31-Aug. 9—Fatigue Concepts. Aircraft Structures for Safety Inspectors and Engineers. Larkspur Landing, Sacramento, Calif. See www.fatcon.com Aug. 7-10—Association of Unmanned Systems North America 2012 Exhibition. Mandalay Bay Hotel. Las Vegas. See www.auvsishow.org/auvsi2012 Aug. 13-14—Bombardier 2012 Safety Standdown Latin America. Grand Hyatt Sao Paulo Hotel. See www.safetystanddown.com
Three veteran space travelers are settling in on return visits to the International Space Station, after their Soyuz launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Air Show Videos Check out these and other videos in the digital edition of Aviation Week on leading tablets and smartphones or go to AviationWeek.com/Farnborough. Engine problems forced Airbus Military to pull its A400M from the flying display for the second year in a row. But Europrop insists issues with its TP400 will not threaten the airlifter's scheduled 2013 entry-into-service. Watch the A400M in action.
MTU Maintenance Hanover has announced the repair of its 3,000th International Aero Engines V2500. The V2500, which powers the Airbus A320 family, was delivered to International Lease Finance Corp.
When major manufacturers invest in a technology demonstrator, they are not on a fishing expedition, hoping a far-out idea will prove to be a winner. They are looking for near-term benefits from preparing technology for a smooth transition to product development.
Michael Rossell has been appointed director of International Civil Aviation Organization relations at Montreal-based Airports Council International. As the U.K.'s permanent representative at ICAO, he was first VP of the council from 2011-12.
I realize that dramatic cover art is part of the “new look” by which Aviation Week & Space Technology seeks to boost readership. But remember—aviation professionals read your magazine.
In the case of the Air France Flight 447 crash on June 1, 2009, it seems that at the end of the day—after all the discussions concerning the competence of the crew, the instrumentation presentation in the cockpit and the design of the sidesticks—one thing is certain: If either a Boeing 767 or 777 had gone through this same weather and had the same pitot malfunction, both aircraft types would have arrived at their destinations safely.
Absurdities reign in the capital as pundits and politicians face an almost certain triggering of the Budget Control Act's sequestration cuts come January. First is the notion from the White House that the commander in chief would stand by while automatic budget cuts “devastate” his military—in the words of President Barack Obama's own Defense Department chiefs.
ST Aerospace's Scandinavian facility, ST Aerospace Solutions, and its joint venture company, Madrid Aerospace Services, are partnering to provide landing gear maintenance service for the Airbus A320 family, A330s and A340, along with Boeing 737NGs, MD-80s and MD-90s. Under the alliance agreement, the two companies will market their landing gear maintenance and engineering services together, drawing on customer bases of their respective parent companies, ST Aerospace and Iberia Maintenance.
LH Aviation's LH-10 Ellipse (AW&ST June 25, p. 10) borrows heavily from two largely forgotten forebears: Jim Bede's BD-5 for the design, and Al Mooney's M-18 Mite for the concept. I wish the company more success than its predecessors. Denver, Colo.
