ABX Air Inc.’s board of directors rejected a $7.75-per-share offer made by ASTAR Air Cargo in a public expression of merger interest. James H. Carey, ABX board chairman, said “meaningful synergies” were possible in a merger but the board, advised by Goldman, Sachs & Co., could find no value transferring to ABX shareholders.
The Missile Defense Agency awarded an $80-million contract to Ground-Based Missile Defense prime contractor Boeing for planning work for the addition of sites in Eastern Europe to the system. Talk of adding a radar facility in the Czech Republic and 10 interceptors in Poland sparked ire from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who suspended the decades-old Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty in response to the planning. The contract with Boeing, $3.7 million of which are obligated, allows for detailed site preparation work, including architectural drawings.
Further deterioration of the dollar-euro exchange rate in the second half is expected to depress EADS revenues for the full year by up to 10%, based on 440-450 expected Airbus deliveries, the company says. Combined with a possible earnings hit from the A400M and other programs, it notes, this shows the continued need for streamlining, despite a burgeoning order book (see p. 27). EADS said Airbus orders nearly doubled to 680 aircraft in the first half, permitting the company to post €70 billion worth of new business—almost five times the first-half 2006 figure.
The White House is threatening to veto the Homeland Security Dept. appropriations bill being debated by the Senate because it calls for $2.2 billion more than the $34.2-billion budget request. Democrats say recent events justify the increased spending. They cite Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff’s “gut feeling” that the U.S. faces an increased terrorist threat this summer. There’s also the most recent National Intelligence Estimate—findings by the 16 U.S.
Barry Hofer has been appointed vice president-facilities and airport affairs for Northwest Airlines . He was vice president-financial planning and analysis and succeeds Jim Greenwald, who will be retiring. Hofer, in turn, will be succeeded by Terry Mackenthun, who has been managing director of financial planning and analysis.
Technical problems with the antenna included in the B-2 radar modernization program are likely to slow production of the system. House Appropriations defense subcommittee members propose a $100-million reduction from the $270.6-million request in the Fiscal 2008 budget, reducing the order from eight to three units. Also, $38 million is reallocated to beef up the radar development account.
Boeing's new X-48B, an unmanned blended-wing-body demonstrator, flew for the first time on July 20th at Edwards AFB, Calif. The 21-ft. wingspan, 500-lb. test vehicle climbed to 7,600 ft. and reached an airspeed of 70 kt. during a half-hour flight. Goals are to reach 10,000 ft. and 120 kt. by the end of the program. Researchers want to test stability and flight control at low-speeds during takeoffs and landings. Later, they will switch emphasis to look at the design's low-noise characteristics.
Separately, the EU and the U.S. agreed on a final design for the common signal to be used by their new Galileo and GPS IIIA satellite navigation systems. The design permits the L1F signal on Galileo, to go into service in 2012, and the L1C signal on GPS IIIA, expected to begin operation a year later, to use a multiplexed binary offset carrier waveform. The waveform will make it possible to track the signals with higher accuracy. The design is the outgrowth of work by joint working groups set up after an initial compatibility and interoperability agreement in June 2004.
Nine months into the job, L-3 Communications Holdings CEO Michael Strianese is executing on his pledge to be more cautious about making acquisitions. Not long ago, the company was known for its voracious buying appetite. But L-3 has made just two small deals during Strianese's tenure, adding companies with a combined $102 million in annual revenues. In an earnings call with Wall Street analysts July 26, he disclosed that L-3 had considered a number of other acquisitions during the second quarter--including two multi-billion-dollar properties--and took a pass.
Icelandair plans to begin flights to Toronto in the spring of 2008, adding to its service to Halifax, Nova Scotia, as it takes advantage of a new open skies accord between Canada and Iceland. The airline will offer 5-7 flights each day and aims to attract both business and leisure travelers to Iceland, where it operates from Keflavik International Airport. The flight to Iceland is 5 hr. from Toronto, and passengers can continue on to destinations including London, Paris and cities in Northern Europe.
Australia will negotiate with the U.S. Navy to buy Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft following a government decision to grant initial approval for the A$4 billion ($3.5 billion) program. The aircraft are to partially replace Lockheed Martin P-3Cs due for retirement in 2018. Australia is looking to participate in development of the 737-based maritime aircraft, following its work on the airborne early warning development of the jetliner, which the country has also ordered. The Royal Australian Air Force also operates 737s as government transports. Like the U.S.
Paris airport authority ADP says it is investing €26 million to enhance international arrival and departure areas at the South Terminal of Orly Airport. Some facilities, including a common departure security checkpoint capable of processing up to 2,000 departing passengers an hour, compared with 1,500 now; 7,000-sq.-meter boarding concourse; new business lounge; and 5,600-sq.-meter baggage claim area, will be in service this summer. A new service and duty free area will open in May 2008.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) program to develop an integrated avionics system to help U.S. Army helicopter pilots land in brownout situations is aiming for a life-saving solution to a long-standing problem.
Francisco Hernandez has become worldwide director of sales for Universal Avionics products for Fairchild Corp. subsidiary DAC International Inc. , Austin, Tex. He was head of Universal Avionics sales for Latin America.
Britain’s Royal Air Force will equip several of its Nimrod MR2 surveillance aircraft with a Terma-supplied Enhanced Defensive Aids Suite to meet an urgent operational requirement to improve the MR2’s infrared self-protection performance. The aircraft routinely fly electro-optical surveillance missions over Afghanistan and Iraq. The RAF plans to start flight testing the system soon, following work with Denmark’s Terma to design and install the suite. The upgrade involves an under-wing modular countermeasures pod (MCP) on each side of the aircraft.
Airbus has formally rejected the bid by Chinese aerospace group Avic I to purchase the six plants that the European aircraft maker has put up for sale. Li Yuhai, Avic I’s deputy general manager, tells China Business News that the bid was rejected because it was late. Acceptance never seemed likely, however. Buying the six plants would have fitted perfectly with Chinese industry’s plans to adopt Western know-how and emerge as a competitor in building large commercial aircraft next decade—and that’s exactly why Airbus was always expected to reject it.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) plans to test millimeter wave X-ray technology and compare it with a backscatter X-ray system now being tested to screen passengers at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. TSA Administrator Kip Hawley says the agency plans to conduct a virtual “side-by-side” of the two advanced screening technologies, which can detect weapons and other contraband better than conventional X-ray machines now in use at airport security checkpoints.
The FAA plans to select an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast contractor by Aug. 30 from a field of three bidders, says FAA Administrator Marion Blakey. The prime contractors vying for the $1-billion contract include Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and ITT, all of whom have ADS-B specialists on their teams. The winning contractor will be expected to finance and build a nationwide network of ADS-B receivers to process data-linked GPS position reports from aircraft flying overhead. ADS-B will move the U.S.
Ron (Skip) Bradford has become product manager for inflation systems for the Survival Engineering Inc. subsidiary of Circor Aerospace-Aerodyne, Corona, Calif. He was operations manager for SEI.
Rolls-Royce reported a 17% increase in underlying profits to £380 million for the first half, on underlying sales of £3.75 billion (up 10%). Orders surged 34% to £35.1 billion. The company predicted earnings would rise for the full year, despite the weakening dollar and rising unit costs. It also forecast positive cash flow for the year, before cash injections for employee pension schemes are taken into account. It injected £500 million into the schemes in the first half and expects to transfer another £368 million by year’s end.
The House Appropriations defense subcommittee is trying to rein in the Air Force’s push to gain control of acquisition and operations of unmanned aerial vehicles. In its Fiscal 2008 spending bill, the committee “strongly cautions against” changes in existing UAV management structures. Before any changes are made, the committee directs the Pentagon to analyze the issue and brief Congress on its findings. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley proposed to assume executive-agency authority over all UAVs flying above 3,500 ft.
FedEx recently took delivery of the final Airbus A300-600F twinjet, marking the end of an era for the European pioneer. The freighter, the last of the line of the original A300Bs, has officially been withdrawn from the manufacturer’s product range, along with the shortened-fuselage A310.
Japan’s Selene lunar orbiters will be the first in a series of four advanced robotic Moon missions that should enrich human understanding of Earth’s nearest neighbor in ways that may extend far beyond its dust and deep craters.
