FAA ORDERED repetitive inspections and eventual replacement of the aft strut insulation blankets on next-generation 737s with improved blankets. The agency said the order is intended to prevent damage to the blankets, "which could result in exposure of the lower surface of the strut to extreme high temperatures, consequent creation of a source of fuel ignition, and increased risk of a fuel tank explosion and fire."
February 8, 1999 BOEING and the U.S. Defense Dept. have agreed to share cost to define the architecture for the Joint Tactical Radio System, with the government putting up about $1.5 million. A Boeing-led consortium is scheduled to define a baseline architecture and management plan by May 1.
ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD. of Israel was selected to upgrade Croatia's MiG-21 fighters, the company said yesterday. Elbit will act as the prime contractor, working with Israel Aircraft Industries and other companies in Israel, Croatia and Romania.
February 10, 1999 Lockheed Martin Corp., Marietta, Ga., was awarded on Feb. 9, 1999, a $6,429,931 face value increase to a firm-fixed-price contract to provide for three lots of Out of Production Parts in support of the F-22 aircraft. Expected contract completion date is Dec. 31, 1999. Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is the contracting activity (F33657-97-C-0030-P00005).
Patriot missiles are in Turkey and Saudi Arabia to protect those countries from possible attacks by Iraq, the Pentagon's spokesman said yesterday. The missiles were deployed to Turkey last month at the request of the country's leaders. On Monday, Iraq threatened to attack Turkey because the country has hosted coalition air forces enforcing the northern no-fly zone over Iraq.
LOCKHEED MARTIN received an order for 18 more F-16A/B Mid-Life Update (MLU) kits for the Belgian Air Force. The order, received Jan. 22, is valued at $46 million. Delivery is scheduled to begin in March 2002 and be completed in June 2003. The kits will be installed by SABCA in Belgium. The buy increases Belgium's order to 110 kits, and total program orders to 360.
France has completed the consolidation of its aerospace and defense industry with the partial privatization of Aerospatiale and its merger with private defense electronics group Matra Hautes Technologies.
Christopher W. Hansen has been appointed senior vice president of the Washington, D.C. operations and has been appointed to the Executive Council. William H. Lawler has beeen named vice president and general manager of business development for the Military Aircraft and Missiles Systems Group based in St. Louis. Judith Muhlberg has been named vice president of Communications.
The House Armed Services Committee and House Science Committee are creating a virtual reality hearing room for future high-tech hearings, says HASC R&D Subcommittee Chairman Curt Weldon (R-Pa.). The room, located in the Rayburn House Office Building, will be set up so that members can pipe in virtual reality demonstrations of technology from anywhere, Weldon says. "I want to make R&D real for the members," he says.
John Foster has been promoted to director of Materials for the Northwest Operations. Randy Harper has been hired as director of Materials for the Midwest Operations located in Ottawa, Kans. Priscilla Kadi has been named director of Materials for the Southwest Operations located in Tucson, Ariz. Melissa Vernier has been promoted to director of Materials for the Southeast Operations in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
Jacques Rossignol has been named executive vice president. Jean-Max Puech has been named head of the Strategy and Planning Division. Jerome Paolini has been named head of the International Business and Communications Division. Philippe Berterottierre has been named director of Sales. Yvette C. Hubbel has been named director of Marketing at Arianespace Inc. in Washington, D.C.
Foreign launch operators will provide stiff competition for U.S. launch companies because they are more concerned about obtaining revenue than about profit margin, says Gale Schluter, Boeing vice president-general manager, Expendable Launch Systems. "We must be careful not to shift too much of the launch costs to the customer," because it could drive them abroad. "Everybody in the business needs to work together to find a proper balance of risks among the government, insurance providers, launch providers and satellite providers."
The satellite sector could be a $170 billion market by 2007, with about half of the growth coming from satellite technology applications that do not exist today, says Omar Jaffrey, a director at Merrill Lynch.While satellite remote sensing and other applications are growing, some $140 billion of the 2007 estimate will come from satellite communications. That will include about $40 billion from direct-to-home; $30 billion from mobile satellite services; $40 billion from multi-media applications, and $8 billion from satellite digital radio applications.
Program management specialist Robbins-Gioia brings two possible outcomes to the table when it starts work for a customer, according to President and Chief Executive Officer John Gioia - "Get you where you planned to go or find you have a disaster early and cut your losses."
The Joint STARS program is back on track after "Herculean efforts" to fix production problems that caused severe backlogs a year ago, according to Air Force Brig. Gen. (select) Robert H. Latiff, system program director. Aircraft refurbishment is slightly ahead of schedule and recent exercises have demonstrated that JSTARS aircraft and crew are ready for wartime demands, despite being a high demand/low density asset.
