Raytheon Missile Systems has selected Aerojet to complete the development of the Throttling Divert and Attitude Control System (Tdacs) for the U.S. Missile Defense Agency's Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block IIA program. The solid-fuel Tdacs provides propulsion and maneuvering control for the missile's kinetic warhead once it has detached from the third-stage rocket, and is a scaled-up version of the system used on the SM-3 Block IB. With preliminary design review due by year-end, the development contract will extend through 2016.
Theodore J. Forstmann, a private investor who spearheaded the turnaround of Gulfstream Aerospace in the 1990s and then sold it to General Dynamics at an enormous profit, died at home in New York on Nov. 20 from brain cancer. He was 71. His firm, Forstmann Little & Co., teamed with Gulfstream veteran Allen Paulson to purchase the business jet builder from Chrysler in 1990 for $825 million. While many believed Forstmann would flip the Savannah, Ga.-based operation for a quick profit, he instead took a hands-on role, becoming chairman and CEO.
As 2011 closes out with uncertain prospects for U.S. defense spending, suppliers are understandably uneasy. The 2008-09 recession forced many to retrench. While those with commercial aviation accounts are benefitting from that sector's boom, the products and services of many small suppliers are so specialized that they may not.
Walt Fricke returned to the U.S. in 1969 in a bad way. The 19-year-old Army warrant officer's left foot had been severed, save for his Achilles tendon, when one of the rockets on his Huey gunship exploded as he was letting down into a hot LZ in Vietnam. The field doctors wanted to amputate, but he dissuaded them. Once stabilized, he was transferred to a hospital in Fort Knox, Ky., 600 mi. from his family and fiancee, Julie in Traverse City, Mich.
Derided just a few years ago as an ill-conceived concept unsuited for a mature market, a few North American legacy carriers are once again attempting to integrate low-cost operations into their mainline networks. The concept was most recently adopted by North American operators some 10 years ago, when so-called low-cost subsidiaries emerged as the apparent salvation for mainline carriers fixated on retaining leisure passengers after the lucrative business sector all but disappeared in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
Hawker Beechcraft Corp. (HBC) has filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a review of the U.S. Air Force decision to exclude it from the Light Air Support (LAS) competition to provide 20 light-attack/advanced-trainer aircraft to the Afghan air force. “HBC's exclusion from competing for this important contract appears at this point to have been made without basis in process or fact,” claims the Wichita-based company.
Negotiators on the FAA reauthorization bill are drawing campaign donations from opposite sides of a key labor battle. In talks to resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill, House Republican leaders are trying to kill an existing rule that makes it easier for airline employees to unionize. The GOP's top two leaders also happen to be among the top recipients of cash from the air transport industry, which wants to make it harder for their workers to organize. Majority Whip Rep.
Now what? In August, it seemed as if the U.S. Congress might finally be coming to its senses, putting together an agreement to force itself to reduce the massive U.S. budget deficit. But at the first opportunity for success, a bipartisan panel created to save lawmakers from themselves bolted, leaving the defense industry holding the bag.
Future aerial combat that pits the U.S. against advanced aircraft, missiles and air defenses—produced by what many defense officials contend are near-peer nations, such as China or Russia—could require more stealth aircraft than the U.S. can muster.
New high-resolution images of a massive star formation taken aboard NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (Sofia) aircraft demonstrate the power of flying a 100-in. IR telescope high above Earth to escape the dust- and pollution- laden troposphere.
American Airlines will power part of its new Airbus fleet with V2500s—an unexpected selection likely tied to the recent restructuring of International Aero Engines (IAE) and Pratt & Whitney's bold strategy to bolster sales campaigns of its geared turbofan on the A320NEO.
The champions of Asia's low-cost carrier (LCC) business model are now preparing to move into the premium segment, but their strategies will be very different. Indonesia's largest LCC, Lion Air, has applied for an air operator's certificate for a new premium carrier, which will fly Boeing 737s in a two-class configuration—economy and business—and will be branded Space Air.
The success of industry heavy-weights such as AirAsia, Jetstar and Lion Air will eventually crowd some of the smaller players out of East Asia's low-cost carrier (LCC) market.
Two countries on air safety blacklists are adopting performance-based navigation (PBN) to improve safety at terrain-constrained airports, ease airport congestion and provide fuel savings for airlines. Boeing Flight Services (BFS) is working with Indonesian carrier Lion Air, Indonesian airport operator and air navigation services provider Angkasa Pura I and Indonesia's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to introduce PBN at select airports, says BFS's director for navigation service, Charles Steigerwald.
While many airlines are hunkering down in the face of global economic woes, Hawaiian Airlines is taking the opposite approach. The carrier is accelerating its fleet growth as it looks beyond its traditional markets to tap into new long-haul opportunities.
Air New Zealand is planning a major shake-up of its international operations next year, and it will implement changes as quickly as possible to stem the flow of red ink from its long-haul business. The airline is scrutinizing its international services in a review it expects to complete in the first quarter of 2012. “All options are on the table,” including changes to routes, alliances and cabin configurations, Air New Zealand's general manager for international operations, Christopher Luxon, tells Aviation Week.
Why has loss of control in flight become the leading cause of fatalities in commercial aviation, and what can be done to prevent it? Senior Technology Editor Graham Warwick asks Randall Brooks (right), senior director of flight training for Opinicus; and Paul Ransbury, president of Aviation Performance Solutions. Both are members of the International Committee for Aviation Training in Extended Envelopes and the Upset Prevention & Recovery Training Association, which have a goal of reducing loss-of-control accidents through enhanced training.
Training and simulation technologies have evolved dramatically since the Pentagon purchased its last fast-jet trainer in the 1960s. This opens a world of possibilities for the U.S. Air Force with its forthcoming T-X to fundamentally overhaul how it prepares pilots for the F-22 and F-35. But the budget drama unfolding in Washington could mean the Air Force will find itself short of the money to take full advantage of these advances for a T-38C replacement in the near term.
A space-based infrared (IR) survey system is being proposed to NASA by Ball Aerospace as a low-risk, quick-start option to significantly speed up the rate at which potentially lethal asteroids can be discovered.
Even if the Libyan air force and air defenses failed to mount a robust challenge to the NATO-led air campaign over the country, coalition participants are finding lessons to draw from the experience.
Feb. 1-2—MRO Middle East 2012. Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Feb. 14-16 —Aerospace & Defense Technology and Affordability Requirements. Washington. March 7—54th 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.
The new global currency of the 21st century is innovation. In order for this currency to properly appreciate, developed countries will have to cast away some common misconceptions about what it means to do good research and technology (R&T).
Even with the F-22 on the ramp, if the F-35 program is delayed or killed, the U.S. and its allies will need more aircraft with a reduced radar signature or the ability to carry standoff weapons at a range to penetrate sophisticated air defenses. The other requirements for these improved legacy aircraft are the ability to carry conventional and directed-energy weapons, advanced electronic warfare (EW) capabilities and a price tag that is a fraction of a specialized stealth design.
Engineers on NASA's multi-purpose crew vehicle (MPCV) want to fly an ascent-abort test before sending their capsule around the Moon on the first flight of the heavy-lift Space Launch System (SLS) in 2017, according to Michael Coats, director of Johnson Space Center in Houston, where the Orion-based deep-space crew vehicle is managed.
