Hughes Space and Communications will build Astra 2C and 2D for the Societe Europeenne de Satellites of Luxembourg for launch late next year and early in 2001. Astra 2D, the first to be launched, will be SES' first spin-stabilized spacecraft, an HS 376HP with 15 active Ku-band transponders. Astra 2D will be a larger HS 601HP with 28 active Ku-band transponders. Astra 2D will use an Ariane launcher while the choice for Astra 2C is yet to be made between Ariane or Proton.
James M. (Max) Lane has become publishing general manager for Traveler and Travel Arranger Products in North America for OAG Worldwide, Oak Brook, Ill.
Parametric's Pro/Engineer 2000i Student Edition has many full-functioning capabilities of the regular 3D solid modeling program, but is only $299 for students, faculty and educational staff using it for noncommercial jobs. More information is at http://www.journeyed.com.
The Hughes Space and Communications Co. has asked NASA, on behalf of international insurance underwriters, to launch the shuttle on a commercial space salvage mission to capture the wayward Hughes Orion 3 communications satellite so astronauts can attach a new upper stage rocket motor to the stranded satcom.
Bombardier Aerospace is stepping up the production rate for the Canadair Regional Jet 100 and 200 series to 9.5 aircraft per month, up from 7.5. The company said it plans to reach an annual production rate of 112 units by fall 2000 to meet increased airline demand for the aircraft.
Darren Taylor has been named vice president-sales and marketing of BittWare Inc., Concord, N.H. He was director of business development of Applied Microelectronics.
Broad-brush statements pronouncing that all airline alliances are good reminds me of Howard Gekko, the character Michael Douglas played in the movie ``Wall Street,'' saying that ``greed is good.'' Sure, self-interest is good when it provides motivation and focus within reasonable bounds. But it's bad when taken to its full definition without conscionable constraints.
The accused hijacker of an All Nippon Airways 747-400 has been found fit to stand trial. Prosecutors had some doubt whether Yuji Nishizawa, 28, was sane after he allegedly killed Capt. Naoyuki Nagashima, 54, as the younger man attempted to land the aircraft with 517 people on board. But a preliminary psychiatric examination determined that he could be charged with criminal responsibility.
Royal Norwegian Air Force test pilot Maj. F. A. Evensen has completed a second series of Eurofighter flight tests at DaimlerChrysler Aerospace's facility in Manching, Germany. Evensen conducted two flights in DASA's DA5 development aircraft. The first was to evaluate autopilot/autothrottle functions based on the latest standard of flight control software. The second focused on the capabilities of the aircraft's ECR90 radar. Eying a buy of 30 aircraft, Norway is set to decide by year-end between Eurofighter and the F-16,
David C. Yen has become president of the Raytheon Aircraft Credit Corp., Wichita, Kan. He was vice president/treasurer of the Occidental Petroleum Corp.
The oldest, most integrated and committed of the airline partnerships, the Wings alliance, is working on ways to maintain an edge over the growing alliance rivalries.
Mark T. Provost has been appointed director of support engineering for the Fairchild Aerospace Corp., San Antonio, Tex. He was director of engineering for Structural Integrity Engineering, Chatsworth, Calif.
Boeing is transitioning to using only Catia 3D computer-aided design and manufacturing software on its Joint Strike Fighter program. The Seattle-based manufacturer plans to use just Catia and associated Enovia software in the next phase of the JSF program--engineering and manufacturing development. Boeing and Lockheed Martin are competing to win the JSF EMD contract, scheduled to be awarded in 2001. The switch to an all-Catia system will reduce JSF engineering time and eliminate expenses associated with translating engineering data from other systems, Boeing said.
Art Mallamo, Jr., has been named vice president/general manager of international services and vice president-business development and marketing of Lear Siegler Services Inc., Annapolis, Md. He was vice president-business development of Marconi Flight Systems Inc.
Honeywell/Racal has joined South Africa's OmniPless (Pty) Ltd. to provide a low-cost SCS-1000 Aero SATCOM system to the aviation industry. Under the agreement, Honeywell/Racal will manage marketing, distribution and product support for SCS-1000 Mini-M Aero SATCOM.
JOSEPH C. ANSELMOMilitary Editor Robert Wall contributed to this story.
Iridium's filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection buys the troubled venture some more time, but analysts say the company must move swiftly to survive.
Saturday, Aug. 21, was GPS rollover day, where the system's week counter went from 1023 to 0. Older GPS receivers may have problems. Intellisource (http://www.intellisourceit.com) has been working with the FAA and NASA to identify other potentially troubling dates, including Sept. 9, 1999, or 9999, which older code could interpret as ``end of data'' or other wrong meanings; Oct. 1, 1999--the beginning of Fiscal 2000, for those computers running on federal fiscal years; Feb. 29, 2000, the first leap year in the new millennium; Oct.
Singapore authorities are showing little sympathy for incidents of air rage. One drunken passenger on a British Airways flight from Perth, Australia, to London via Singapore was jailed for 12 months and fined $660 earlier this month for hitting a flight attendant, while another was jailed for six months and fined a similar amount for turning violent on a Singapore Airlines (SIA) flight from Los Angeles to Singapore.
Vilhelm Hahn-Petersen has been appointed chief operating officer of U.K. low-cost carrier EasyJet, effective Sept. 13. He was executive vice president of FLS Aerospace. Nick Manoudakis, who has been EasyJet finance director, will become finance and business director of EasyGroup; and James Rothnie, head of public affairs for the airline, will be group director of corporate affairs.
Michael Slingluff has become senior vice president-strategic planning and marketing at the Mooney Aircraft Corp,. Kerrville, Tex. He was president of Diamond Aircraft of Canada.
The Boeing 717-200 full-motion flight simulator built by FlightSafety Boeing Training International has been certified by the FAA (AW&ST Aug. 9, p. 44). Certification flight testing for the 717-200 has been completed, with concurrent certification expected from the FAA and JAA in early September. Initial delivery to AirTran Airways is set to occur in about one month. Meanwhile, the first production 717, which had been part of the flight test program, is being prepared for a Far East tour.
If the Kosovo air campaign had lasted a few days longer, the U.S. Air Force would have introduced the new combat technique of using unmanned aircraft equipped with laser designators to pick out Yugoslav military targets. As an additional wrinkle, the unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) would have flown beneath cloud layers--which stymied many efforts to use precision weaponry--to direct laser-guided bombs after they were released by manned aircraft flying safely above the clouds, said the Pentagon's top aviator in Europe, Air Force Gen. John Jumper.
