U.S. Army officials are beginning to assess what upgrades they may want to make to early AH-64D Longbow Apaches now that the first production run is complete. Army and Boeing officials last week commemorated the end of the first multiyear contract that remanufactured 232 AH-64Ds from the older AH-64A configuration. The event coincided with delivery of the first of 269 AH-64Ds built under the second multiyear contract that was awarded in 2000.
The Global Hawk unmanned recon system will receive sensor suite improvements and increased gross takeoff weight under two contracts, worth about $300 million, that have been awarded to Northrop Grumman. Work is to be performed in California at Edwards AFB, and at company facilities in Palmdale and San Diego. The Global Hawk program is managed by USAF's Aeronautical Systems Center at Ohio-based Wright-Patterson AFB.
Brazilian military officials are expected to begin field evaluations of the three medium-lift transport aircraft that are candidates in the country's $270-million CL-X program--the Alenia Aeronautica/Lockheed Martin C-27J Spartan, EADS/CASA C-295 and Antonov An-32--according to an Alenia executive. Pilots will be sent to the facilities where the aircraft are built--Italy, Spain and the Ukraine, respectively--to evaluate the candidates. Brazil is expected to buy 12 of the transports, which will be based in Manaus for the country's Amazon River basin-surveillance program.
David A. Bolger has been appointed director of public relations in the Washington public affairs office for the United Parcel Service. He was vice president-communications for the United States Telecom Assn.
An International Launch Services Russian Proton booster fired from the Baikonur Cosmodrome placed the Space Systems/Loral Intelsat 903 spacecraft into a geosynchronous transfer orbit Mar. 30. The new Intelsat will be placed at 34.5 deg. W. Long., where it will provide communications services to the Americas, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. On Apr. 1, a Molniya M booster launched a Russian missile early warning satellite from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome.
This company was recently recognized with a Design-Build Excellence Award for the F-22 Robotics Coating Facility. Designed and constructed for Lockheed Martin, the hangar received the top award from the Design-Build Institute of America for industrial/process projects valued at more than $25 million. The facility in Marietta, Ga., is a 78,500-sq.-ft. hangar that houses a robotic system for applying the coatings that contribute to the performance capabilities of the stealth fighter.
In the14 months since Integrated Defense Technologies Inc.'s (IDT) initial public offering at $22 a share, investors in this defense electronics pure play have done well. As of last Thursday, when it closed at 30.25 a share, the stock had appreciated more than 37%, thus meeting or exceeding the price targets of several leading market professionals. But they believe there could be additional upside.
Registration has begun for dot.aero, the new Internet domain for the aviation industry. The domain is sponsored by SITA, an industry-wide IT group, and is intended to protect and promote existing aviation brands. Martin Gaskell, SITA's director for the dot.aero project, said, ``Large numbers of aviation companies missed out on registering their brands as dot.com domain names and will now want to protect them under dot.aero.''
The Spectroline AP-800 UltraWand UV lamp is designed for tight areas, such as between jet-engine turbine blades, and as a replacement for UV borescopes. It can also be used for conducting internal wet magnetic-particle and liquid-particle examinations. The 8-watt lamp is 1 in. in diameter and 30 in. long. The AP-800 plugs into an AC outlet or generator with a 12-ft. cord. It delivers steady-state UV-A (365-nanometer) irradiance. The 16-ounce unit causes less fatigue during inspection sessions, according to the company.
Raytheon Co. and Northrop Grumman Corp. have teamed up to pursue business opportunities in the explosives-detection systems market. The U.S. government has mandated the deployment of enough systems to screen 100% of checked baggage at all 438 U.S. commercial airports by Dec. 31, 2002.
Bill Prochazka has become executive vice president/general manager of Michigan operations for Lincoln, Neb.-based Duncan Aviation. He was vice president-aircraft and customer service.
Curtis Robb has become acting chief information officer of Delta Air Lines and acting president/CEO of Delta Technology. He was senior vice president/chief technology officer of Delta Technology. Robb succeeds Robert DeRodes, who is now executive vice president/CIO of The Home Depot.
The U.S. Navy is playing a key role in increasing military satcom bandwidth, coordinating satcom capabilities and providing unique space imagery to support Navy, Marine, Air Force, Army and Special Forces operations in Afghanistan and other theaters in the war on terrorism. The Space&Naval Warfare Systems Command (Spawar) in San Diego, Calif., and Naval Space Command in Dahlgren, Va., are the focal points for this support.
France has become one of the first countries to sign a new Common Agreement outlining German funding and penalty details for its contribution to Europe's A400M airlifter program (AW&ST Apr. 1, p. 21). French defense officials said all eight participating nations planned to ink the document by mid-April, which would allow a definitive contract to be signed by month's end.
Brussels-based VG Airlines, a startup carrier, expects to obtain an air operator certificate in the next few days and plans to inaugurate scheduled services to the U.S. East Coast soon. VG, named after founder and Chief Executive Freddy Van Gaever, has taken delivery of three 229-seat Airbus A330-200 twinjets under a lease agreement with the International Lease Finance Corp. They were previously operated by Sabena Belgian World Airlines and were parked in Chateauroux, central France. Late last year, Sabena filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations.
Phil S. Gray has been appointed president of Radarsat International, Richmond, British Columbia. He succeeds Roland Knight, who has become operations manager of parent MacDonald Dettwiler&Associates' Information Products Group.
U.S. Undersecretary of Defense E.C. (Pete) Aldridge, Jr., is one of four recently named honorary fellows of the Reston, Va.-based American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. The others are: Duane McRuer, a consultant with Systems Technology Inc.; Philippe Poisson-Quinton, a senior consultant with Onera in Paris; and Robert C. Truax, president of Truax Engineering.
John Capeci (see photo) has been named director of marketing for ITT Industries' Avionics Div., Clifton, N.J. He was director of technology and systems engineering for Honeywell International, Teterboro, N.J.
Manfred Brennwald has been appointed deputy head of flight operations for the new Swiss Air Lines. He was head of flight operations for Swissair. Brennwald succeeds Rainer Hillebrand, who has been assigned to Zurich Airport.
Mark F. Crumblish has been named vice president-acquisitions and Kent L. Statler vice president-manufacturing operations for Rockwell Collins, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Crumblish was executive director of operations for Milcom Technologies. Statler was vice president-lean electronics for Rockwell Collins.
The Chinese Shenzhou III satellite reentry module landed safely by parachute in Inner Mongolia on Mar. 31 after making 108 orbits during a seven-day flight. The mission was the third unmanned test of China's manned spacecraft design. The vehicle's orbital module will continue to function in space for up to six months.
Rachel Cohen has become director of charter sales, Paul Brown assistant operations manager and Joseph Brannan director of aircraft maintenance, all for Business Air Services, Oxford, Conn.
NASA military support is growing, especially to the Navy, where the satellite imagery is used for strike operations The U.S. Navy is leading an initiative to exploit advanced new NASA and commercial environmental satellite imagery and data to aid time-critical strike planning--including weapons selection--for Afghanistan and potential other target areas in the Middle East, such as Iraq.
Most electro-static discharge damage can be prevented through a static control program with constant monitoring, according to the company. The model 790 static monitor measures the voltage potential on a person. An operator inserts a dual conductor ground cord into one of the input jacks on the monitor. A slide switch is used to select the voltage level necessary for the job being performed. Visible and audible alarms identify existing conditions: exceeding voltage level set limit, loss of contact between arm and wristband, or monitor disconnected from ground.
The Boeing S-307 Stratoliner that ditched near the Seattle shoreline on Mar. 28 appears to be in relatively good condition, although officials are concerned that the right wing spar might be bent. All four crewmember escaped serious injury.
