In the early 1990s, the U.S. Air Force seemed to be suffering an epidemic of fighter accidents. Class A mishaps -- incidents that cost at least $1 million or end up in loss of an aircraft -- were rising, and even lesser incidents were beginning to take a bite out of readiness.
Large market shares, a huge installed base of equipment and systems, and technology leadership across all of its core businesses combine to form a solid base from which Honeywell Corp. should be able to improve its financial performance during the next five years.
Israeli defense electronics manufacturer Elbit Systems Ltd. is a company to watch as a likely buyer while consolidation among lower-tier suppliers plays out in the U.S.
Capacity among U.S. airlines is expected to increase significantly, starting in the second quarter, and sustain an aggressive rate of growth through 1999.
British Aerospace's decision to merge with GEC Marconi has eased France's fears that its industry would be marginalized in the European consolidation race.
Until recently, consolidation of major systems integrators have largely overshadowed forces shaping how lower tiers of the aerospace supply chain will look in the future.
It may be months before there is a clear indication of just how hard the Boeing Co. and other aerospace contractors will be hit by the softening in Asi a/Pacific air traffic.
The seasonal character of the airline business and a set of special circumstances have induced Steve Lewins of Gruntal to lower ratings on stocks of six airlines.
Computer Sciences Corp.'s (CSC) legal maneuvering to evade the unwelcome advances of Computer Associates International Inc. (CA) in the first quarter cost the professional-services company $20.7 million, or 9 cents per share after taxes.
Thiokol Corp., which has virtually reinvented itself since the end of the Cold War, last week adopted a new name to reflect the company's strategic diversification during the last eight years.
Of the many smaller suppliers hammered during the aerospace industry's downturn in the early 1990s, Ladish Co. may represent one of the more dramatic turnaround stories.
Considering the sustained, healthy growth in domestic airline industry revenue (about 6.5% in March) and the relatively high load factors virtually all of the major carriers are enjoying, it should come as no surprise that many of the better managed regional operators also are doing extremely well.
Industry trendsetter Robert Crandall, who will step down as chief of American Airlines on May 20 (see p. 37), will be going out on a high note--a 2-1 stock split last week and first-quarter earnings that far exceeded anything Wall Street had projected.
In 1994, when a veteran Wall Street aerospace analyst forecast that Orbital Sciences Corp.'s stock price would climb to $50 a share within 3-4 years, some industry observers scoffed that his prediction was wildly optimistic.
Northwest Airlines and United Airlines, the U.S. carriers with the highest stakes in the troubled Pacific Rim, have adjusted to weaknesses brought by the Asian financial flu.
Current operating conditions for airlines are so favorable--healthy bookings, firm pricing, low interest rates, falling fuel prices--one might almost forget that commercial air transport remains a cyclical industry.
On first blush, it might seem that Northrop Grumman Corp. has the most to lose in the unlikely event that the company's proposed merger with Lockheed Martin falls apart (see p. 24).
A combination of powerful market forces for which little or no letup is in sight suggests there may be substantial upside in the stocks of selected, lower-tier aerospace suppliers--although pricing and productivity will continue as potential problem areas.
Some Wall Street analysts expect a growing number of aerospace/defense companies to implement a more rigorous coupling of executive compensation to stock-price performance.
Observers of the U.S. airline industry--not to mention investors--surely must wonder what it will take for Trans World Airlines Inc. to start earning a net profit.
Until last week, Computer Sciences Corp. (CSC) was considered one of the companies that would survive the consolidation that is gaining momentum in the federal services and information technology market.
Consolidation pressures, depressed Asian demand and uncertainties about how global alliances will be regulated are likely to be troublesome for Europe's major airlines this year, preventing most of them from matching their record 1997 financial performances, according to some British and German market analysts.
When Northwest and Continental airlines announced their proposed alliance last week (see p. 32), some industry observers quickly assumed the partnership--if approved--will trigger further U.S. carrier consolidation.
Despite Boeing's dominant position in the commercial aircraft market and its leading position in defense and space, a host of uncertainties surrounding the company's near-term business prospects prompted Standard&Poor's to revise its outlook for the troubled aerospace giant to ``negative'' last week.
