Nimbus Group officials said the company has received a $1.2-billion commitment toward the production of 1,000 Eclipse 500 lightweight, entry-level business jets. The twin-engine aircraft is under development by Eclipse Aviation in Albuquerque, N.M. The funding was received from DAFIN Asset Finance Ltd., an affiliate of the Royal Bank in Scotland. Tentative plans call for the first of the jets to be delivered to Nimbus in 2004.
Arianespace plans to launch the Satmex 6 communications satellite, under construction at Space Systems/Loral, atop an Ariane 5 vehicle in the first quarter of next year. The 5,700-kg. (12,540-lb.) spacecraft will carry 36 C-band and 24 Ku-band transponders for service to Mexico and other markets in North and Latin America from an orbital slot at 109.2 deg. W. Long. It will mark the fourth flight on an Ariane for Mexican satellite operator Satelites Mexicanos S.A. de C.V.
French government officials, including Defense Minister Alain Richard, are closely monitoring the war in Afghanistan with an eye to reinstating manned bombers. The French air force still operates Dassault Aviation Mirage IVPs in long-range reconnaissance configuration, but the delta-wing aircraft's original bomber version is long forgotten. Airbus executives, who are keen on acquiring more military business, are aware that no program is in the works for the foreseeable future but are alert to possibilities.
U.S. Air Force officials still hope to jump-start replacement of the service's KC-135 tanker fleet with a 10-year lease agreement with Boeing, but they believe the odds are against their being able to seal a deal. ``It is going to be a tough road ahead to make this work. I will tell you right now, at best, it is a 50-50 shot,'' the Air Force's new acquisition chief Marvin R. Sambur said.
The Transatlantic Common Aviation Area between the U.S. and the 15 European Union member states, considered the long-overdue and much-needed substitute for bilateral air transportation accords, would establish fair and competitive rules, according to Loyola de Palacio, the European Commission's vice president and transport commissioner.
Sally Sullivan has become vice president-business development and resources for TRW Systems, Reston, Va. She was vice president/executive director of ChoicePoint. Sullivan succeeds Charles H. Shorter, who has been appointed a vice president in the Washington office.
French defense planners are studying a novel air-ground force multiplier concept that they hope to inscribe in the country's next multiyear spending plan, and to develop in cooperation with allied nations. Called Boa (the French acronym for operational air-ground bubble), it would combine advanced armor and unmanned ground/air vehicles with beyond-visual-range weapons to permit ground troops to be deployed in combat, peacekeeping or urban warfare environments of the type encountered in Afghanistan, Kosovo or Lebanon with minimum casualties.
SAS Scandinavian Airlines expects to post another loss in fiscal year 2002, though not as great as in 2001, as the airline copes with the current traffic slump and the integration of Braathens and Spanair into its group structure. The company owns a 49% stake in Spanair and expects to get regulatory approval to increase it to 74% by the end of March. SAS posted an operating loss of $140.1 million in 2001 on revenues of $4.9 billion. Almost the entire loss last year can be attributed to the fourth quarter ending Dec. 31.
EasyJet's plan to establish a secondary hub at Paris-Orly is on hold. The British low-cost carrier was denied the takeoff/landing slots it requested to operate seven Boeing 737s from the airport. Cohor, an allegedly independent committee handling slot attributions at Paris airports (but largely dominated by Air France and affiliates), claimed scarcity of slots in turning down the request. However, the British carrier was given unrequested slots at Charles de Gaulle.
In a last-minute about-face, Lockheed Martin has ditched plans to team with EADS in bidding for the U.S. Navy's P-3 follow-on program. The decision surprised and angered EADS officials. Board-level LockMart officials discussed on Feb. 8 a draft teaming agreement with EADS. Industry sources suggested the deal was anticipated in European circles as being waved through. In fact, it was kicked out, a move that threatens to undermine attempts to craft a long-term alliance between the U.S. aerospace giant and EADS centered on Airbus.
China Eastern Airlines is taking advantage of new flight opportunities to India, but it is unclear how quickly India will be able to respond. China Eastern is to begin twice-weekly flights from Shanghai via Beijing to New Delhi on Mar. 28. Trade between China and India grew 30% from January-September 2001, but Premier Zhu Rongji recently sounded a cautious note. ``Flights might suffer some losses at the outset," he said. Besides New Delhi, a new accord also opens Mumbai (Bombay) to either country's airlines.
Assembly work has begun on the first 747-400ER transport at Boeing production facilities in Everett, Wash. The aircraft, the first of two 747 derivatives, is designed to provide airlines with greater range or more payload-carrying capability. The initial -400ER passenger and freighter models are scheduled for delivery in October.
The British Defense Ministry has released a public discussion paper on amending its 1998 Strategic Defense Review in the light of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. It raises the issue of whether Britain needs to be able to more rapidly deploy forces, and bolster resources allocated to intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance. If increased defense funding is required this will need to be fought for within the government's annual spending review.
The first prototype Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche helicopter has been retired after completing a six-year flight test and development program during which it accumulated 387 flight hours. It will undergo a preservation process and serve as backup to the second prototype that will resume testing this spring toward validation of the Comanche Mission Equipment Package, according to Boeing Sikorsky. The first prototype flew in January 1996; the second in 1998.
Prevailing winds on Capitol Hill favor the feds picking up the huge tab for explosive detection systems (EDS) in airports. The big question is how much it will cost to fulfill the mandate to screen all checked baggage by EDS equipment by Dec. 31. The FAA estimates 2,200 state-of-the-art scanning machines at $1 million apiece would be required. It is not at all clear that many could be built in time. Even then, airports would have to figure out where to put them all.
Airline pilots are perturbed by recent National Transportation Safety Board recommendations which state flight crews must be made aware that aggressive rudder input can induce structural damage or failure but do not define ways to recognize or prevent disaster. One airline captain compared the situation to the FBI's putting the nation on high alert in response to threats of terrorism--yet being unable to define where exactly danger lurks and what actions one must take to avoid peril. Pilots want clear-cut definitions, and quickly.
NASA's Thermosphere, Ionosphere, Mesosphere, Energetics and Dynamics (Timed) spacecraft has completed its post-launch engineering checkout. The spacecraft has started its two-year mission to study the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere/Ionosphere (MLTI), where the Earth's atmosphere thins into space. Launched on Dec. 7, 2001, the spacecraft will add its data to those gathered by a network of ground sites, generating the first comprehensive set of atmospheric measurements 40-110 mi. above Earth (AW&ST Dec. 3, 2001, p. 34).
Jeff Potter, who has been president/ chief operating officer of Frontier Airlines, also will be CEO, effective Apr. 1. He will succeed Sam Addoms, who will remain chairman. Ronald McClellan has been appointed vice president-maintenance and engineering. He succeeds Jon Bartram, who had been acting vice president. McClellan held the same position at Vanguard Airlines.
William F. Shea, former FAA associate administrator for airports, will be the namesake of the William F. Shea Award for Distinguished Contribution to Aviation that will be presented by the Aviation Institute of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Shea was a founding director of the institute.
Jeffrey D. Pinneo has been named president/CEO of Horizon Air. He succeeds George D. Bagley, who has been promoted to executive vice president-operations at Alaska Airlines. Pinneo was vice president-customer services. He has been succeeded by Glenn S. Johnson, who will be senior vice president. Johnson has been vice president/treasurer and has been succeeded by Rudi H. Schmidt, who has been controller.
An Evergreen International Airlines Boeing 747 landed at Kabul, Afghanistan, last week carrying 95 tons of humanitarian aid valued at $2 million. The shipment of medical supplies, clothing, blankets and livestock feed on a widebody charter aircraft was unloaded by Mercy Corps staff. The flight was sponsored by two nonprofit organizations: Mercy Corps and Evergreen Humanitarian Services. Evergreen International Airlines donated the use of the 747 and the services of the crew. Military forces have been assisting in the aid effort in war-shattered Afghanistan as well. U.S.
Norman Iverson has been appointed vice president-business development for BAE Systems' Santa Monica, Calif.-based Integrated Systems unit. He held similar positions at Litton Integrated Systems and Litton Data Systems.
To compensate for weak satellite demand, Alcatel Space anticipates shrinking its workforce, although a pair of recent milsatcom orders could signal the start of a business upturn, at least on the military end. Company managers told union members that employment would be cut by 450 people, or 10%, at four plants, including its main satellite integration facility in Cannes, according to union sources. About one-third of those affected are permanent Alcatel employees.
Iridium Satellite LLC expects to break even in 2003, delaying profitability this year in favor of investments in software and other technology development aimed at a potentially lucrative niche in the data delivery market. Meanwhile Iridium Satellite is going ahead with its plans to keep its hand-me-down constellation functioning through 2010 at least. On Feb. 11 it launched five more spares on a Boeing Delta II, bringing its total in orbit to 66 operating satellites and 12 spares, with two more spares due for launch before the end of the year.
Freddy Van Gaever, a Belgian entrepreneur knowledgeable in aviation matters, is mulling over a plan to form VG Airlines, a long-haul carrier. It would focus on transatlantic operations in an effort to complement Delta Air Transport (DAT), the newly revamped regional affiliate of defunct Sabena Belgian World Airlines. Ironically, Van Gaever in the 1960s transformed then-tiny DAT into a full-fledged European airline that competed aggressively with Sabena.
