Seven farmers have sued Tokyo's Narita airport for 14 million yen ($106,000) for its decision to cut more than 500 trees at a Shinto shrine about 4,000 ft. from the southern end of the airport's recently opened second runway. The farmers, who worship at the shrine, say loss of the trees--which they consider sacred--has caused them mental anguish. Shintoism, the religion indigenous to Japan, includes the cultic devotion to natural forces such as trees and mountains.
The multinational IRIS-T short-range imaging infrared air-to-air missile has recorded its first seeker-guided kill, with the destruction of a Mirach 100 target drone at a range in Sardinia. Prime contractor Bodenseewerk Geraetetechnik announced the results of the Mar. 14 firing, last week.
Developing Boeing's proposed Sonic Cruiser at a price airlines can afford will require major breakthroughs in materials technologies and manufacturing processes that currently do not exist, according to senior officials at Vought Aircraft Industries.
Antenna shapes and capabilities are taking on a whole new look as researchers race to apply novel technologies to meet expanding aerospace needs. Among the more noteworthy prospects are conformal arrays for aircraft, a lightweight origami-like fold-out antenna for space radar that could reach a diameter of 150 meters (490 ft.), and inexpensive but directional antennas about the size of a hockey puck. These and other developments were spotlighted at the Institute of Electrical&Electronics Engineers' Aerospace 2002 conference here.
ESA has expressed concern about apparent NASA moves to indefinitely postpone the first flight of the X-38 demonstrator. The X-38 is a precursor for the crew return vehicle, an International Space Station lifeboat threatened by station cost overruns. Agency officials said the mission, initially set for 2002-03, has now been rescheduled for 2005, but has yet to be manifested on a shuttle flight. ESA has already delivered all hardware items under its responsibility, and insists that the project go ahead as planned.
Bryan Moss, vice chairman of Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., will ``indefinitely postpone'' his retirement that was planned to occur this month, according to the company. Gulfstream has ``a number of worldwide opportunities'' where Moss can contribute to the company's growth, said company President Bill Boisture.
EADS' EUROCOPTER division has opened a subsidiary in Santiago, Chile, its third in Latin America after those in Brazil and Mexico, to provide sales and maintenance of its aircraft and pilot training. Eurocopter executives say the Santiago subsidiary has been responsible for the sales of five helicopters recently, including two AS350 B3s to the Chilean army.
The initial production standard Eurofighter was flown for the first time on Apr. 5, from Alenia Aeronautica's Casselle, Italy, facility near Turin. Instrumented Production Aircraft 2 (IPA2), a two-seat version, was flown for 25 min. A second aircraft flew on Apr. 8, and a third was expected to fly on Apr. 14. Production standard aircraft for the four participating nations--U.K., Germany, Italy and Spain--are in final assembly, with deliveries due during the second half of 2002.
AIRBUS EXPECTS LATIN AMERICA and the Caribbean will provide a market for slightly more than 1,100 commercial transports during the next 20 years, based on what company executives say will be a 4.2% annual growth in airline traffic. John Leahy, executive vice president-customer service and chief commercial officer, said at FIDAE that the company has 16 customer airlines in Latin America operating a total of 136 aircraft with 82 more on order.
NASA chief Sean O'Keefe is moving to enhance cooperation within NASA by establishing a program executive officer (PEO) for the International Space Station. Look for a retired military officer to get the job. Like Pentagon PEOs, O'Keefe says, the new NASA PEO will coordinate program activities with other work across the agency.
D. Roy Goldsmith has been appointed group vice president-manufacturing operations and Gregory Smith division manager for Barnes Aerospace's Windsor (Conn.) Div. Goldsmith was president of the Windsor division, while Smith was its operations manager.
Latin America, long the outpost for independent but nearly broke flag carriers, is awakening to the prospect of restoring the airline industry by revising its basic structure. Six carriers have formed a working group to explore an alliance that would span an equal number of nations. The six include Aerolineas Argentinas, Lan Chile, Varig, Tam, Avianca and Aeropostal. Before long, additional airlines are likely to be involved. The chief executives in the working group are pressing others to join.
LOCKHEED MARTIN EXECUTIVES expect the F-16 to continue in production through at least 2008, thanks to a backlog that stood at 296 as of Mar. 31, including recent follow-on orders of 52 aircraft from Israel and 10 from Greece. Deliveries are scheduled to resume this month to the U.S. Air Force after a delay to allow incorporation of new features that had been requested by other nations that have ordered the F-16 recently. Among those countries is Chile, which earlier this year ordered 10 Advanced Block 50/52 F-16s, six single-seat C models and four two-seater Ds.
The Pentagon has successfully used sophisticated sensors to track elusive Al Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan's rough terrain. That is one of the early conclusions senior military officials have drawn as they review the first six months of operations in the hope of improving future phases of the war.
Operators and users of the Hubble Space Telescope have found the orbiting instrument largely ``healthy and fit'' as they wrap up their initial checkout following last month's servicing mission by astronauts from the space shuttle Columbia (AW&ST Mar. 18, p. 34). New rigid solar arrays, working with a power control unit that was replaced even though it was never meant to be, have upped power production on the telescope by 27% (see photo).
A 20-min. computer failure disrupted air traffic in the U.K., causing flight delays of 2-3 hr. on Apr. 10. The glitch was attributed to a software problem with the computers at West Drayton center in West London, which provides flight data processing to the New Enroute Center at Swanwick. Aircraft traffic into Heathrow, Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester and Stansted airports was affected. Industry observers attribute the problem to the aging system at West Drayton, which is equipped with both old software and old computers.
BOMBARDIER ALSO USED FIDAE to introduce its Global 5000 super-large business jet to Latin America. The Global 5000, which was launched last year, is scheduled for its first flight in the first quarter of next year. Certification by the FAA, European Joint Aviation Authorities and Transport Canada is expected during the first quarter of 2004, with deliveries beginning at the end of that year.
American Airlines CEO Donald Carty's unusual letter to Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta toward the end of American and British Airways' futile application for U.S.-U.K. antitrust immunity draws a slap from the department. Issuing its final order in the case, the department says in a footnote it was ``concerned about the letter's intemperate tone.'' Perhaps it was Carty's complaint that the department ``chose a path of political expedience'' in setting conditions on immunity.
LOCKHEED MARTIN AIRCRAFT Argentina SA (LMAASA) is holding 12 orders for the upgraded AT-63 Pampa primary trainer/light attack aircraft from the Argentine air force and expects eight orders from that country's navy. The Honeywell TFE 731-2C-2N turbofan-powered aircraft is scheduled for first flight in November and is the latest version of the former IA-63 and Pampa 2000. Refurbishment of Argentina's existing Pampas has been delayed. LMAASA says the AT-63 is involved in competitions in other countries for the procurement of 60 aircraft.
Spanish firms Gamesa and Turbo 2000, owned by Sener and state-holding company SEPI, plan to form a company specializing in aerostructures and engine components. Gamesa will spin off its aeronautical business, whose customers include Embraer and Airbus, to the as-yet-unnamed company, while Turbo 2000 will contribute its 53% stake in engine maker ITP, a partner in the Eurofighter's EJ200 powerplant. Gamesa will have 59% of the new firm, which anticipates a staff of 3,000 and annual sales of 700 million euros ($615 million); and Turbo 2000, 41%.
JAPAN'S CIVIL AVIATION BUREAU HAS OPENED Haneda Airport near Tokyo to general aviation flights by providing 16 slots per hour between 1400-2059 UTC daily. Other flights will have to land at alternate international airports before flying to destinations in Japan. Applications should be filed by the 15th of the month prior to the proposed date of flight. Only Runway 16L/34R will be used during the operational time period. The slots are applicable to charter flights as well as international business aircraft operators.
The U.S. Justice Dept., which is examining Northrop Grumman Corp.'s proposed acquisition of TRW Inc., last week asked Northrop for additional information under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Act. Northrop anticipated the request, and indicated it would promptly comply. It doesn't expect to encounter any significant antitrust issues in its pursuit of TRW.
The quality of U.S. airline performance showed an overall improvement last year--reversing a three-year downward trend, and consumer complaints declined by 30% compared with 2000, according to The Airline Quality Rating 2001. Prepared annually since 1991 by the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita (Kan.) State University and the University of Nebraska at Omaha Aviation Institute, the survey ``scores'' the 11 largest U.S. domestic carriers.
China's grand airline consolidation plan, drawn up last May and supposed to be completed by the end of this year, has run into opposition in the upper echelons of the government over strategy and timing.
