Christopher Ellender (see photo) has been appointed senior regional sales manager for product support sales at Gulfstream Aerospace's facility in Luton, England. He headed global aircraft sales and acquisitions for FirstFlight.
Embraer is starting 2012 with a slight year-on-year drop in the value of its backlog, after a year in which commercial aircraft deliveries increased slightly but executive aviation saw another decrease. The Brazilian aircraft maker ended 2011 with 99 executive aviation deliveries, down from 144 the year before. Phenom, Legacy and Lineage deliveries suffered declines. On the regional jet front, deliveries were up to 105 units from 100. The company closed out the year with 249 E-Jets in its backlog, roughly equal to the 250 at the start of 2011.
Sikorsky is hoping to set a procurement precedent by assembling an industry team to fund the construction of prototypes that would support a Pentagon decision to launch full-scale development of a new armed scout helicopter. The team of 35 suppliers is providing 25% of the unspecified cost of building two prototypes of the high-speed, coaxial-rotor S-97 Raider. Sikorsky is providing the remaining 75% from its research and development funds.
Testing has proved the effectiveness of crucial landing technology for China's third lunar exploration mission, says CAST. The mission, to be called Chang'e 3, is aimed at making advances in a wide range of technologies, says CAST, listing them as soft landing, surveying the surface by rover, “survival on the lunar surface,” communications for long-distance monitoring and control, and direct injection into a lunar transfer orbit. The landing systems that have lately completed their tests have functions such as braking and obstacle avoidance, says the manufacturer.
Olivier Mazzuchelli has been appointed CEO managing director of Hamburg-based Spairliners. He was sales director-regional fleets at Air France-KLM's engineering and maintenance operation.
Stephen Myall has joined Baines Simmons, Camberley, England, as a consultant on its Isle of Man registry team. He was an airworthiness surveyor with the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority.
When Congress returns from its holiday recess, the world's largest business association would like to see House Republican leadership yield on a labor issue that is preventing passage of the FAA reauthorization bill. U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Donohue, a proponent of the NextGen air traffic management system, last week said Congress needs to pass the FAA bill that has been stalled for more than four years. The FAA's current operating authority expires Jan.
It was a straight-in nighttime approach to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport's Runway 9R. The Learjet was at 2,400 ft., 6 mi. out. That put the pilots below the glideslope, but with ceiling and visibility unrestricted, winds calm and all instruments in the green. Piece of cake. Unless, that is, you had never before been in a cockpit nor at the controls of any airplane. And the whole world was watching. Oh, and a million bucks were on the line.
Lufthansa Technik has increased its stake in AirLiance Materials to 100% from 50.2% after purchasing its partners' shares of the Chicago-based company that provides surplus parts services. United Airlines and Air Canada previously held 49.8% of the joint venture the three companies formed in 1998. The companies did not disclose the acquisition price. AirLiance fits much better with Lufthansa Technik's core business than it did with its former partners, and sees growth in the parts business—especially through global sales.
The letter from Bill Ketchum advocating space-based solar-power generation (AW&ST Jan. 2, p. 10) sounded disturbingly familiar. I responded to a very similar proposal that appeared in AW&ST with a previous letter to the editor a few years ago.
The most daunting challenges the European Space Agency will face in 2012 could come from the organization's closest partners, and even from within its own ranks. In November, ministers from ESA's 19 member nations will meet to set priorities for the agency's next multi-year spending plan, tackling tough decisions on major programs that hinge on support from NASA and the European Union while debating projects of special interest to individual ESA member states, many of which are grappling with their own funding woes.
Although it seems that old military helicopters never die, a top Army aviation official thinks the Black Hawk, Chinook, Apache and Kiowa Warrior will all be put out to pasture by 2040. As the Army considers its vision for aviation in 2030, upgrades are not a part of the picture. “We should not plan for the Apache Block 40,” says Maj. Gen. Anthony Crutchfield, head of the Army's Aviation Center of Excellence.
Kerry Lynch (Washington), Michael Bruno (Washington)
The U.S. Air Force might be turning away from Hawker Beechcraft's T-6 trainer, but Mexico is rolling out the red carpet and company representatives hope the move could lead to a long relationship for the embattled Wichita manufacturer south of the border.
The next-generation battlefield—whether high- or low-intensity—may not appear less busy to the unaided eye, but the number of soldiers and airmen immediately involved and in danger will shrink significantly. Instead of troop-carrying helicopters, manned reconnaissance and close air support aircraft, the battlefield and the air over it are going to be thickly populated with a few heavily armored manned vehicles, a lot of robotic ground vehicles, airborne standoff weapons and both unmanned strike and reconnaissance aircraft, say Israeli and U.S. officials.
Jerry Hogge has been appointed senior VP-business development for McLean, Va.-based Qinetiq North America. He was VP-strategy and business development for Science Applications International Corp.
NASA bigwigs want to be in Cape Canaveral to watch Space Exploration Technologies launch its first Dragon capsule to the International Space Station (ISS) on Feb. 7. The problem is, the Obama administration expects to present its budget request Feb. 6, so officials are undecided about whether to spell out NASA spending details in Washington or from Florida. As is often the case, the Falcon 9 rocket launch may slip. To allay NASA safety concerns and meet the Feb.
William Johnson, chief scientific and technical adviser for human factors in aviation maintenance for the FAA, has received the Whittle Safety Award from the International Federation of Airworthiness.
Jan. 31- Feb. 2—MRO Middle East 2012. Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Feb. 14-16— Defense Technology and Affordability Requirements. Arlington, Va. March 7—55th Annual Laureate Awards. Washington. March 13-14—Innovation Supply Chain Showcase. Orlando, Fla. April 3-5—MRO Americas 2012. Dallas. April 3-5—MRO Military Conference & Exhibition. Dallas. April 23-25—NextGen Ahead: Air Transportation Modernization. Washington. May 8-9—Civil Aviation Manufacturing. Charlotte, N.C.
For six decades, America's military strength has helped preserve a relatively stable Asia-Pacific environment. However, in recent years Beijing has rapidly modernized its military with aspirations of supplanting the U.S.'s position. If present trends continue, China's growing capabilities may help it win a bloodless victory so the regional balance of power tilts in Beijing's favor as it is increasingly able to deter U.S. forces from entering the region, coerce neighboring states, or—should conflict ensue—win a rapid victory.
Airbus has added to its A320NEO firm order backlog, with Mexico's Volaris signing for 30 of the aircraft (in addition to 14 classic A320s). Additionally, Spirit Airlines has confirmed its deal for 45 of the reengined A320s is now also firm, boosting the backlog for the aircraft family to more than 1,270 aircraft.
The biggest problem with creating an anti-electronics attack missile is to control the electromagnetic interference (EMI) created by its directed-energy warhead that could affect actuators, flight controls, onboard computers and communications of the vehicle that carries it, say airborne electronic attack specialists.
A multibillion-dollar annual market for space tourism and launch services could emerge within the next five years, projects suborbital spaceflight hopeful XCOR Aerospace, which aims to begin flight tests of its first Lynx reusable launch vehicle by year-end.
