Jeffery L. Turner, the CEO who transitioned Wichita-based Spirit AeroSystems from a onetime Boeing subsidiary into the industry's largest independent airframe maker, says he will step down early in 2013. He is 60. The board of directors has convened a search committee that will identify internal and external candidates for his replacement.

While there is general acceptance of the trend toward more-electric aircraft, few can predict the near- or even mid-term debut of electrically propelled vehicles, let alone one that could be capable of Mach 4-plus.

Many anticipated that the Persian Gulf carriers would follow their initial investments in Europe's struggling airlines by picking up more shares. But a little more than a year after they entered the scene as stakeholders, the Middle East carriers are disappointed by the results to date.

As part of its long-term high-speed transport vision, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is studying the potential development of a hypersonic flight experiment (Hytex) aircraft to demonstrate Mach 5 cruise capability.

Latin America should be one of the world's aviation bright spots.

India has made no secret of its hypersonic ambitions whether aimed at high-speed weapons, sub-orbital passenger transport or as a stepping stone to space. Now, key tests are set to begin for a technology demonstrator that could unlock some of these possibilities.

Parker Aerospace, a major supplier of fuel system nozzles to the gas aero-engine industry, has opted for vertical integration with one of its biggest customers by forming a joint venture with GE Aviation. The partners plan to establish Advanced Atomization Technologies (AAT) in Clyde, N.Y., a town of 2,500 halfway between Syracuse and Rochester, to develop and manufacture all fuel nozzles used in General Electric and CFM commercial engines or their military equivalents. Terms were not disclosed.

The Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (Speea) underscored its displeasure at the rate of progress in contract talks with Boeing Commercial Airplanes last week by seeking National Labor Relations Board intervention, even as the manufacturer made what it calls “significant improvements over our initial offer.”