Air New Zealand’s Chief Financial Officer Rob McDonald praised the New Zealand government for new regulations on how charges are imposed at Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch international airports. He says the decision will result in tighter regulation and oversight of airport charges by the Commerce Commission and should reduce what ANZ says are overcharges that put pressure on air fares. ANZ promises to pass any cost reductions through to passengers in the form of lower fares.
The Russian government has finalized the setting up of a new state corporation encompassing most arms holdings. The group, called “Russian Technologies,” or Rostechnologii, will be headed by Sergei Chemezov, the former head of the Russian state arms trading monopoly Rosoboronexport. The business expects to have turnover of $15-$17 billion in 2008-09.
Emirates will be circling the U.S. on a pilot recruiting mission in December. The airline, which already employs 125 U.S.-based pilots—6.7% of its pilot workforce—has $30 billion of aircraft on order. It could soon replace Singapore Airlines as the largest operator of the Boeing 777, and says it needs more seasoned pilots.
Consolidation in the German air transport market is gaining speed as Lufthansa and TUI negotiate a merger of their low-fare subsidiaries. Germanwings and TUIfly would form the second-biggest low-fare carrier in the country behind hybrid Air Berlin. The parent companies have been talking behind the scenes for some weeks and a deal is likely soon, once some open questions are resolved. The resulting carrier would remain under the Germanwings umbrella, say sources close to the talks.
AMR Corp. is evaluating divestiture of its American Eagle regional carrier, the U.S.’s sixth largest airline in departures. Officials say Eagle could be spun off to AMR shareholders, sold to a third party or take another form of separation. The Eagle operation is connected to mainline American as a traffic feeder and operates independently with separately audited financial results. AMR Chairman and CEO Gerard Arpey says Eagle is fully capable of standing on its own. In 2006, Eagle operated 555,911 departures.
Two USAF instructor pilots and two student pilots ejected from a pair of T-6 Texan II primary trainers and parachuted to safety following a midair collision on Nov. 28 near the Alabama-Mississippi border. USAF is investigating and searching for the ejection seats.
AgustaWestland says the U.K. has contracted for Phase II of the Sea King Integrated Operational Support (Skios) flying hour support program. Skios parallels the IMOS program for U.K. Merlins, contracted in early 2006. Skios Phase II includes an aircraft availability responsibility for U.K. military search-and-rescue aircraft that provide around-the-clock cover for the U.K. and Falkland Islands. The contract is worth £470 million ($950 million) for the first five years.
Cliff Gunsallus has been named vice president-engineering for Kaman Aerospace ’s Helicopters Div., Bloomfield, Conn. He succeeds Mike Bowes, who has retired.
Hawaiian Airlines, in the largest single investment in its 78-year history, signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus and Rolls-Royce on Nov. 28 for up to 24 long-range widebodies. It intends to acquire six A330-200s and six A350XWB-800s with purchase rights for another six of each type. Hawaiian said it also may lease additional A330s as early as 2009.
Lockheed Martin aims to return to flight-testing of the F-35 this week, following a layoff due to a technical incident in May. Aircraft AA-1, an F-35A, was penciled in to return to the flight test program on Dec. 4. Flight-testing was halted following an “electrical anomaly” during Flight 19 on May 3.
U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. John Castellaw, deputy commandant for programs and resources, says the V-22 is performing as expected during its first deployment to Iraq. Ten of the tiltrotors were deployed in October via ship to the Anbar province in western Iraq, where much of the Marine Corps activity is concentrated. They are operating out of Al Asad Air Base there. “It’s been a long journey” to get the program up and running, Castellaw said at last week’s conference.
Dec. 10-11—Technology Training Corp.’s Space Security & Defense Conference. Caesar’s Palace Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas. Also, Dec. 13-14—Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Payloads Conference. Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina. Call +1 (310) 563-1223 or see www.ttcus.com Dec. 10-12—AVIC II China Helicopter Expo 2007. Beijing International Convention Center. Call +1 (805) 963-4095, fax +1 (877) 564-4878 or see www.heli-china.com.cn/en/
Michael Fichtner has become business development director for high-powered lasers in Europe and Matthew Philpott his counterpart in North America, for Intense Ltd. , Glasgow, Scotland. Scott Grayman has been named an account manager, based in New Jersey, for Intense-HPD laser diodes.
Bill Bihlman has become an associate consultant in AeroStrategy ’s Ann Arbor, Mich., office. He has been manager of planning and analysis at the Conrad Hilton Resort, Punta del Este, Uruguay, and was a project engineer at then-Raytheon Aircraft.
The FAA reauthorization bill appears stalled in the Senate for at least the rest of this year, postponing showdowns with House lawmakers and the White House over policy issues that could lead to big changes for the aviation industry.
Brad Thomann (see photos) has been named senior vice president/chief operating officer and Greg Bowlin senior vice president-business and general aviation of Englewood, Colo.-based Jeppesen . Bowlin succeeds Kevin Collins, who has left the company. Thomann has been senior vice president-training for Jeppesen and chief operating officer of Alteon. Both companies are subsidiaries of Boeing Commercial Aviation Services. Bowlin remains senior vice president-rail, logistics and terminals.
Two hundred eighteen years after the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, it has become evident that the framers made a teeny omission in Article 1, Section 8: “Powers of Congress.” Everything in the section is set forth as something that Congress has the authority to do. Nowhere is there even a hint that there are things that Congress must do. In fact, Congress isn’t required to do anything at all, and, as a series of articles beginning on page 28 of this issue suggests, that is pretty close to what is happening with respect to the NASA, FAA and Homeland Security Dept.
The U.S. Air Force’s Arnold Engineering and Development Center (AEDC) and GE/Rolls-Royce are initiating a series of tests aimed at collecting data on the alternate F136 engine for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. The engine and afterburner have been installed in AEDC’s J-2 test cell and will undergo a variety of simulated flight conditions across a wide envelope of altitudes and Mach speeds.
Tiger Airways Australia took to the air on a revenue flight for the first time Nov. 23 from Melbourne Airport to Australia’s Gold Coast, bringing a new low-cost carrier into service. The airline will also serve Adelaide, Alice Springs, Canberra, Darwin, Hobart, Launceston, Perth and the Sunshine Coast out of Melbourne.
Australia’s new Labor government is likely to join Japan in seeking to overturn the U.S. ban on exporting the F-22 Raptor, although Canberra is far from deciding it wants to buy the Lockheed Martin stealth fighter. The government of incoming Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who won a landslide Nov. 24 election victory, is showing a commitment to the armed forces at least as strong as its predecessor’s, with a defense policy that calls for greater readiness for the Australian Defense Force (ADF), not cutbacks.
Australia has ordered three Boeing CH-47F Chinook helicopters, supplementing its six CH-47Ds, which may be candidates for rebuilding to F standard. The first of the new-build Fs will arrive in 2011.
Airbus this month plans to spell out what is necessary beyond the Power8 cost-cutting program for it to deal with the further decline in the dollar. Early signs are the next round of measures will be difficult, forcing cutbacks in areas previously viewed as sacrosanct. Airbus CEO Tom Enders signals that research and technology spending will have to be curtailed to generate needed near-term savings. Moreover, Airbus indicates it will be more selective in deciding development and product improvement investments.
U.S. Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne says he’d like to keep Lockheed Martin’s Marietta, Ga.-based F-22 Raptor production line open beyond Fiscal 2013, when the current multiyear buy will end. However, it is a “year-to-year” battle, he says, noting his approach on garnering F-22 funding is less aggressive than that of USAF Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley, who would like to see a new multiyear deal signed as soon as possible. Wynne gave a glimpse into the Fiscal 2009 budget now being formed at the Pentagon and expected on Capitol Hill in February.
Timothy P. Conway has been named director of automation engineering and special projects for Ladish Co., subsidiary Stowe Machine , Windsor, Conn. He was an engineering manager at Sterling Engineering Corp.
