The British coalition government is approving an independent review of the evidence into a 1994 Royal Air Force Boeing Chinook helicopter crash that killed 29 people. A board of inquiry at the time found the pilot and co-pilot guilty of negligence, though this finding has increasingly been contested.
Did anyone at NASA realize the irony of Atlantis launching on May 14, 37 years to the day—almost to the same hour—that the last Saturn V lifted off from the same Pad 39A? What a sad confluence for the endings to the U.S.’s two best accomplishments in space. Killing the current manned spaceflight programtells the world our best days are behind us.
The British Army has begun operating an upgraded variant of the AgustaWestland Lynx, the Mk9A, in Afghanistan. A total of 22 Lynx helicopters are being modified to the Mk9A standard, the main element of which is the more powerful LHTEC CTS800-4N engine providing better hot-and-high performance. The Mk9As now deployed were recently ferried into the country via a Royal Air Force Boeing C-17, which was flown from Brize Norton air base in southern England to Camp Bastion in the Helmand region of Afghanistan.
Boeing’s order book continues to give evidence of why the company is boosting 777 production rates. It posted two additional unidentified orders this week, bringing its total net 777 orders to 31 for the year. That is the highest level since 2007, when it had a whopping 58. At this time last year, the market was so sluggish—Boeing had only 10—that it pulled back on production rates, a decision recently reversed. Of this year’s orders, only FedEx’s decision to take four freighters has a customer’s name attached; 34 are for unidentified customers.
“Let’s Make A Deal” (AW&ST May 17, p. 49) read like an air service article from the 1980s. The most fundamental exercise any airport can undertake to retain or grow air service is ensuring profitability for both the airline and community. The real threat of “de-hubbing” occurs, not just at the hub but at the spoke ends in smaller communities. Airlines cutting service do so at their own peril, and the loss of air service can cause a devastating blow to the current and future economy of a city.
The German government anticipates further delays in fielding its Tiger reconnaissance and attack helicopter owing to a hiatus in deliveries as Eurocopter fixes a systems wiring problem. Because of quality shortfalls, the German defense ministry says it has not received any Tigers from Eurocopter since December. Of the 67 that should have been delivered to date, only 11 have been handed over, and none is in a production configuration, a defense ministry official laments.
At a time when airlines are furloughing flight and cabin crew staff, Emirates last week announced plans to hire 3,000 cabin crewmembers this year to meet demands of a growing fleet and route network. Vice President of Recruitment Rick Helliwell says the airline, which currently employs 11,000 flight attendants, receives more than 5,000 applications per month.
Libano Miranda Barroso has been named director-president of Brazil-based TAM Linhas Aereas . He was interim president, following David Barioni Neto, and had been vice president-finance, management and information technology.
DCNS has begun cutting metal on the first of four submarines intended for the Brazilian navy. Delivery is expected to begin in 2017. Although the vessels are conventional, they are being acquired under a technology transfer agreement. Part of a broad defense and space cooperation agreement between Paris and Brasilia, the submarine collaboration is thought to be the decisive argument pushing Brazil to acquire France’s Rafale fighter to meet an advanced combat aircraft requirement.
David D. McBride has become director of the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center , Edwards AFB, Calif. He had been acting director, succeeding Kevin L. Petersen, who has retired. McBride was deputy director.
Jeremiah Farmer’s suggestion to have left Atlantis docked to the International Space Station (ISS) for use as a space vehicle or for storage is not practical (AW&ST May 10, p. 8; April 26, p. 16). The problems include a substantial increase in drag to the ISS assembly, potential damage to the orbiter thermal tiles from debris and the need to maintain a ground staff and communication links to support flights from ISS.
Singapore Airlines is cautious about expanding capacity despite reversing a first-half loss and reporting a S$216-million ($153-million) net income for the year ending March 31. The airline, which slashed capacity by 11% in the last financial year amid a global business downturn, will add just 2% capacity to its network in the year ending March 31, 2011. Chief Executive Chew Choon Seng says that while there was recovery in all sectors, including business class, the market remains fragile and yields are not back to pre-crisis levels.
Carolyn Corvi has been named to the board of directors of Continental Airlines . She was vice president/general manager of aircraft programs at Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
This year, Iberia Maintenance expects to complete 190 engine shop visits, 111 of them from General Electric CFM56s, with 60% of those from the parent airline and 40% from third-party clients. Iberia is forecasting that third-party clients will account for the other 79 engines—45 Rolls-Royce RB211s, 19 GE CF34-3s and 15 Pratt & Whitney JT8s. Overall, Iberia engines contribute only 27% of the powerplant shop’s total production, which has grown an average of 15% each year since 2006.
Cathay Pacific Airways and major shareholder Swire Pacific will sell their combined 30% stake in Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Ltd. (Hactl) in anticipation of the airline establishing a competing freight operation. When Cathay won a franchise to set up its own air cargo terminal at Hong Kong International Airport, it agreed to sell its stake in Hactl. Other Hactl shareholders will buy the Cathay and Swire holdings.
