West Air Sweden signed a long-term lease with BAE Systems Regional Aircraft for another ATP freighter. Romaero near Bucharest is converting the twin turboprop to include a large freight door.
Fleet rationalization's impact on maintenance is evidenced by news in early April that American Airlines plans to layoff 500 more people from its Kansas City, Mo., maintenance base. In March, Northwest Airlines announced plans to remove from its fleet 30 DC-9s that were coming due for heavy maintenance. As a result, the airline furloughed 140 mechanics and said up to 800 more could be furloughed this year, 500 of whom probably will be let go around July 1.
NVision's ModelMaker Z laser scanner offers shiny surface scanning capabilities down to 8 microinches. Conventional laser scanners can have a hard time scanning shiny machined surfaces because the surface scatters the laser beam, confusing the sensor that records the position of the surface. The ModelMaker Z overcomes this problem with new features that change the laser intensity and camera sensitivity based on operating conditions. The ModelMaker is a portable laser scanner that is designed to capture complex 3D geometry with a high degree of accuracy.
AAR received a contract from the U.S. Air Force to overhaul certain augmentor module components on Pratt & Whitney F100 engines. The one-year contract has four one-year options, which if all are exercised, brings the contract value to $18.3 million.
LOT Polish Airlines awarded a contract to Goodrich for servicing its Embraer ERJ-145 wheels and brakes. The agreement includes heat sink refurbishment and exchange support, all of which Goodrich will do at its Hatfield, U.K., service center.
Gill's new TCT-1000 battery capacity analyzer is designed to simplify battery capacity checks for A&P mechanics because it automatically tests 12- and 24-volt lead-acid aircraft batteries. It doesn't require external power sources and is designed to be easy to operate. It features quick disconnect leads and adjustable current rating and digital over-temperature protection. A sensor within the device is designed to detect accidental reverse polarity and sound a horn to protect the user. Power leads stow in the unit when an A&P is not using them.
Despite initial deliveries of Eurofighter Typhoons to begin their replacement, further upgrades and technical support for the RAF's 130 or so Panavia Tornado F.3 air defense fighters are planned from a £25.5 million ($48.84 million) MoD Smart Acquisition contract with BAE Systems. The new F.3 Sustainment Program will integrate the latest air defense weapons, comprising Raytheon's beyond-visual-range AIM-120C-5 AMRAAMs, and MBDA's advanced short-range ASRAAM FOC2 into the Tornado's mission system.
Expect news to come out of Airbus' and Boeing's Global Aviation RFID Forum, which was scheduled for March 29 to 30. Ken Porad, Boeing's principal engineer for Reliability & Maintainability, said "FAA is expected to release the national policy memo authorizing the safe use of passive RFID devices." He said there's an expectation that FAA will have the memo, or at least a draft of it, to show the audience. Porad also revealed that Boeing and FedEx completed another 90-day in-service evaluation of passive tags onboard an aircraft.
Shark Pressure Washers' line of solvent-free parts washers are designed to automatically clean small engine parts, pistons, cylinders, gaskets and brakes. The SK-5 series washers have 16 directional nozzles to produce a flushing action. Similar to a dishwasher, parts are loaded into a 26-in. by 16-in. stationary basket and cleaned with jets of hot water and biodegradable detergent. The SK-5 washer comes in either 115V or 230V and can handle loads up to 500 lbs. Shark Pressure Washers, 4275 N.W. Pacific Rim Blvd., Camas, WA 98607.
Bombardier Aerospace now offers an engine upgrade for its CRJ700 aircraft. By upgrading the GE CF34-8C1 engines to the CF34-8C5 engines, operators should save 15% on maintenance costs over 15 years.
[Editor's Note: Don Collier, a former Air Transport Association executive and a long-time industry observer, outlines what he believes FAA does well and areas where improvement is needed.] Rulemaking
BAE Systems North America has been awarded a $21 million U.S. Air Force contract, through Air Armament Center HQ at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., to convert 17 retired USAF F-4E Phantoms to QF-4 Full-Scale Aerial Targets (FSATs), and to supply associated technical support. This award exercises the first of five annual options of a Lot 11 production contract. With all options, total contract value of Lots 10 to 15 could be $225 million.
Airbus finally unveiled on March 23 the maintenance companies that are part of its MRO network. The 11 include Air Canada Technical Services, Air New Zealand Engineering Services, EADS Sogerma Services, Iberia Maintenance & Engineering, Sabena Technics, SIA Engineering Co., Singapore Technologies Aerospace, SR Technics Switzerland, TACA Aeroman, TAP Maintenance & Engineering and TIMCO Aviation Services.
Lockheed Martin won a $7.3 million firm fixed-price U.S. Air Force contract modification to procure 14 line items of initial spares for Israel Air Force's F-16s. Work should be finished by December 2006.
U.S. scheduled airlines reported a combined net loss of $8.3 billion in 2004 and have lost approximately $31 billion in the past four years, according to statistics released in March by AeroEcon, a consulting company headed by former Air Transport Association economist David Swierenga. AeroEcon attributed the losses to skyrocketing fuel prices and the airlines' inability to raise fares. The International Air Transport Association estimates that the world's airlines lost $4.8 billion in 2004.
Eastman Chemical Co. introduced a methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) alternative, methyl propyl ketone (MPK), that is designed to be a low-density, non-HAP solvent for cleaning and surface preparation. MPK can replace MEK in hand wipes used for surface preparation of military and commercial aircraft. MPK is designed to evaporate more slowly than MEK, so wipes stay moist longer during cleaning. Eastman said if formulators want to achieve further volatile organic compounds reduction and faster solvent evaporation, MPK can be mixed with methyl acetate.
On March 10, 1996, the first MRO Conference & Exhibition was launched in Dallas. Ever since, it has played an integral role in the modern aviation MRO industry. Beginning April 19, 2005, Aviation Week is proud to present the 10th MRO, where Overhaul & Maintenance will be present as the official publication of the conference series.
IAE International Aero Engines selected Hamilton Sundstrand to manage accessory services, including total repair and inventory support, for its V2500 engines.
Monday, April 18 12:30 pm Golf Tournament Tuesday, April 19 9:00 a.m. Welcome/Opening Remarks 9:15 a.m. Keynote Speaker ADMIRAL VERN CLARK, Chief of Naval Operations 10:00 a.m. Military MRO Industry Overview and Forecast KEVIN MICHAELS, Principal, AeroStrategy DAVID PAULING, Asst. Deputy Undersecretary of Defense of Maintenance Policy, Programs and Resources 11:30 a.m. Streamlining MRO with Radio Frequency Identification
3M's HighJump Software customers who implemented its RFID compliance solution were fully operational by the Department of Defense January compliance requirements.
Taikoo (Xiamen) Aircraft Engineering Co. (TAECO) will start converting Boeing 747-400 passenger aircraft to freighters this year. It currently has contracts for 33 conversions through 2010.
