Tools For Bending, Inc. has introduced a new line of disposable wiper die tips for rotary bending of thin wall tubing used in aircraft-component forming operations. Wiper dies prevent wrinkling and tube deformation during forming. Production rates may show improvement because tooling setups don't need to be changed during tip replacement. Replaceable tips are available in aluminum bronze and alloy steel, in 13 sizes ranging from 1 in. to 3 in. outside diameter. Tube groove has polished mirror surface with 180-deg. tube containment.
With a workforce of more than 4,000, 13 joint ventures and two more in the works, SIA Engineering Co. (SIAEC) is working to win business by expanding its capabilities -- ultimately aiming to become the No.1 MRO operation in Asia. The company's 330,000 sq. ft. of space in two hangars can handle commercial transports up to the Boeing 747. In addition, SIAEC offers 23 back shops and an engine test cell with 150,000-lbs. thrust capacity -- more than enough for any engine in service or planned for service.
Rockwell Collins named Kelly Holland manager, media relations, passenger systems. She previously was manager, media relations, for Gulfstream Aerospace.
Airlines and parts suppliers heeding the call to mark parts permanently with a standard ATA Spec 2000 code now have a low-cost way to do so. Alhambra, Calif.-based Marking Methods, Inc. has developed the SM2000 system, an electro-chemical etch system for permanently marking both airframe and engine parts. SM2000 creates a permanent mark for cradle-to-grave traceability by applying a machine-readable, 2-dimensional data matrix code as specified by Spec 2000. Unlike other methods of permanent marking, the process does
South African and Russian defense contractors will offer major upgrades to operators of veteran Dassault Mirage III and later Mirage F1 fighters, following a joint agreement reached last year. Main signatories to the agreement were South Africa's state-owned Armaments Corp. agency (Armscor) and its Russian equivalent, Promexport (since combined with Rosvoorouzhenye, to become Rosoboronexport).
Praxair Surface Technologies and its TAFA Inc. subsidiary have completed a $34 million expansion of TAFA's Indianapolis, Ind., powder-coating facility. Expansion includes two new atomization systems.
With the ever increasing pressure to reduce aircraft downtime, airlines are loathe to have an aircraft out of service long enough for a full D check to be accomplished, which is one of the reasons more and more carriers are going to a schedule of phased C checks that include D check elements. But the demise of the traditional D check also is a function of aircraft age and the retirement/grounding over time of older equipment.
Boeing announced Dec. 18 that it completed -- within budget and ahead of schedule -- major upgrades of the U.K. and French E-3 Airborne Early Warning&Control System (AWACS) fleets under contracts totaling $274 million. The RAF's seven E-3D Sentry AEW.1s were retrofitted with Radar System Improvement (RSIP) kits, plus installation of GPS/INS for dramatic improvements in positioning accuracy.
Southwest Airlines has selected Lufthansa Technik for a consulting project aimed at improving its maintenance management. The goal is to optimize maintenance of its entire fleet and identify ways to reduce costs. The carrier plans to adopt as much as possible of LHT's maintenance program at its Dallas center.
Fairchild Fasteners named Olivier Jarrault chief operating officer-U.S. operations. Jarrault previously was senior vice president and vice chief operating officer. Also, Fairchild Fasteners announced the retirement of its executive vice president, Robert E. Edwards. He previously was president and CEO of Special-T Fasteners, which Fairchild acquired in 1998 for $46 million. Edwards will continue as a member of the board of the Fairchild Corp.
Japan Air System (JAS) placed an order with Thales Avionics for 74 extended-storage quick-access recorders for installation on JAS' fleet of Boeing/ Douglas 777, MD-81/87 and MD-90; and Airbus A300-600 aircraft. Thales is the new name for Thomson-CSF Sextant.
Pratt&Whitney Aftermarket Services signed a three-year agreement with Pegasus Aviation to provide engine maintenance for the leasing company's JT8D-powered aircraft. Value of the contract is approximately $33 million. P&W's Columbus Engine Center in Georgia will perform the work.
Gulf Air is jointly owned by the governments of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Qatar, and Bahrain and began operations from a base in Bahrain. Under an agreement that gave each state an area of responsibility, its aircraft were registered in Oman, crew training took place in Qatar, its headquarters were located in Bahrain and its maintenance carried out in Abu Dhabi. That was how the government of Abu Dhabi came to build the Gulf Aircraft Maintenance Co. (GAMCO), and to this day retains a 60% share of the company while Gulf Air holds 40%.
Aviall won 10-year worldwide aftermarket parts distribution rights for Honeywell hydromechanical controls products used on Rolls-Royce Model 250-series engines and Honeywell LT101-series engines. Aviall will be responsible for aftermarket parts sales, marketing, order administration, warehousing and product distribution.
Intercontinental Jet Corp. named James Andrews Learjet crew chief and William Wass to its Learjet team. Andrews was lead program manager for Learjet and Citation at Bizjet International; Wass most recently was lead mechanic for Learjet and Citation for Bizjet International.
Northrop Grumman's Integrated Systems Sector won a five-year, $9.4 million USAF contract to develop ``predictive failures and advanced diagnostic software'' for legacy aircraft, including F-16s, F-15s and C-130s.
Avolo, an independent business-to-business Internet exchange, established a new office in Vancouver, Canada. Avolo.com Technologies, Ltd. will handle the development of critical Java programming. Eventually, it will expand to include other Avolo development projects, encompassing other emerging technologies. Sarah Samphire will head the operation.
The U.S. Marine Corps Bell Helicopter Textron AH-1Z and UH-1Y joint upgrade programs reached a significant milestone Dec. 5, with the first flight of the prototype AH-1Z (Z1) at the company's Fort Worth, Texas, facility. USMC is seeking some 80% commonality for its two H-1 programs, which both feature the same twin GE T700 turboshaft engines, gearboxes, 2,625-shp transmission systems, bearingless four-bladed all-composite main and tail rotors, EFIS cockpits, and hydraulic and electrical systems.
iBASEt has released Solumina 2.5, the latest version of its maintenance manufacturing process management software. New version includes parallel and alternate work instruction paths with built-in decision points, an operation flow diagram tool, the ability to track units and corresponding data individually within an order, and several new configuration features that facilitate future upgradability.
Pratt&Whitney Aftermarket Services won a 10-year fleet-management contract from Japan Air System for the airline's PW4158-powered A300-600R aircraft. The agreement covers 44 engines and has an estimated value of $360 million. The work will take place at Eagle Services ASIA Pte Ltd., a Pratt&Whitney/SIA Engineering Co. joint venture.
Rolls-Royce delivered Nov. 30 the first of 40 Pegasus Mk 107 turbofans, ordered in December 1999 for installation in RAF Harrier GR.7 V/STOL fighters. The $500 million contract included options to upgrade a further 86 engines, for the RAF's first-line inventory of 64 Harrier GR.7s, plus reserves. With 23,800 lbs. thrust instead of 21,500 lbs. for takeoff, and full-authority digital engine control (FADEC), the Pegasus 107 is more than 10% more powerful than the GR.7's current Mk 105 engines.
Dassault Aviation named Gerald Goguen senior vice president, customer service; Terrence Bacola president of its Midway Aircraft Instrument Corp. subsidiary; and Ed Barker, vice president of purchasing for Dassault Falcon Jet, Little Rock, Ark. Bacola previously was vice president and general manager of Midway; Barker was director of material for Dassault Falcon Jet.
Over the past century there have been several occasions when Portugal could have been crushed -- but it never has been, and it's the same with its national airline. TAP Air Portugal is among Europe's smallest flag carriers. Aside from one Boeing 737-300, the rest of its 34 aircraft are all Airbus, comprising five A310s, four A340s, seven A320s, 15 A319s and two A321s.
