Patrick Whyte, president of Comtek Advanced Structures Ltd., Burlington, Ontario, has been elected president of the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute.
Wide differences between France and Italy threaten to transform Europe's proposed Vega light booster back into an all-Italian program, or one run in association with U.S. or other non-European partners.
U.S. experts say that the Pentagon has at least one new, nonlethal weapon waiting in the wings, but experts say it's not likely to be used against the relatively unsophisticated technical infrastructure of Yugoslavia.
Lucas Aerospace and Pfalz-Flugzeugwerke have been selected by DaimlerChrysler Aerospace Airbus to supply the cargo mechanical system for the pending Airbus A340-500/600 aircraft.
European leaders cautiously welcomed Yugoslavia's acceptance of an international peace plan for Kosovo, while agreeing to build a common defense structure that would allow them to deal with similar crises, at a summit meeting in Cologne last week.
Steven D. Dorfman, vice chairman of Hughes Electronics Corp., has retired after a 42-year career at the company. Dorfman led development of the multispectral scanner for Landsat and was named manager of the Pioneer Venus program in 1972 for which he was later awarded NASA's Distinguished Public Service Medal. He also was president and CEO of Hughes Communications, president and CEO of Hughes Space and Communications Co., chairman of Hughes Telecommunications and Space Co. and executive vice president of Hughes Electronics.
Iridium competitor ICO Global Communications has commenced a stock offering that, if fully subscribed, will nearly complete financing for the $4.7-billion mobile satellite telephone system (AW&ST Apr. 26, p. 81). The offering, in the form of a rights issue open to existing shareholders, began on May 19 and ran until June 3. ICO also agreed to allow ICOEurope BV, a company owned by 11 European investors, to distribute its services and products in 48 European countries.
European airspace is rapidly nearing full saturation and will not be able to absorb additional traffic growth beyond 2002-05, according to European Commission officials. With the airline industry's 5% annual growth rate expected to continue in the long term, Europe urgently requires the implementation of automated Air Traffic Management (ATM) and upgraded navigation systems, the officials warn. According to International Air Transport Assn. Director General Pierre J. Jeanniot, travelers this year are suffering from a staggering number of delays.
The Indian air force intensified air strikes against insurgents in northern Kashmir last week as tensions continued to flare between India and Pakistan over the disputed province.
The U.K. Ministry of Defense is circulating a proposal to privatize its defense research laboratories. A study team has recommended the creation of a corporate entity that would include most of the 12,000 staff and 47 facilities of the Defense Evaluation and Research Agency. Highly sensitive sectors of Dera, such as chemical and biological laboratories, would be excluded. The aim is to create a public/private partnership in which the agency would be open to private investment to help offset declining defense spending and bankroll commercial spin-off work.
U.S. Air Force weather forecasting aimed at supporting advance mission planning could begin to take a turn for the better within two months as a new software program becomes operational. Air Force Weather Agency (AFWA) officials said clouds currently are forecast in theaters of operation with 40-km. resolution, while the new system will enable cloud forecasts with 5-km. resolution. That should allow mission planners in the Balkans, for example, to make better decisions on which targets to attack, when to attack them and what weapon guidance systems to use.
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines' net profit for the 1998-99 fiscal year decreased by nearly 50% to $214 million on $6.25 billion in revenues. The decline was caused by the Asian financial crisis, labor unrest at Northwest Airlines and increased competition in Europe and on transatlantic routes, KLM executives said.
Severe weather and pilot fatigue are major issues being scrutinized by U.S. National Transportation Safety Board investigators probing the crash landing of an American Airlines MD-82 June 1 at Little Rock, Ark.--but the accident also underscores growing industry concern about a gradual increase in the number of approach and landing accidents.
US Airways plans to replace all of the Boeing 727s on its Northeast U.S. shuttle operation with new, dedicated Airbus A320s. It also plans to expand that operation from its traditional routes from New York's LaGuardia Airport to Boston's Logan International and Washington's Reagan National airports, to include flights from Washington Dulles International to LaGuardia and Boston and flights between National and Boston.
AirTran has accused Delta Air Lines of matching its fares and adding flights to drive out low-cost competition and ultimately raise fares. The airline submitted a brief to the U.S. Justice and Transportation Depts., alleging in part that Delta hiked fares in one market by 52% the week after AirTran pulled out. Delta called the charges ``insulting and untrue.'' The allegations came in the wake of the U.S. government's lawsuit against American Airlines alleging predatory pricing against smaller rivals.
BMW Rolls-Royce has successfully completed a 150-hr. endurance test of the BR710 Mk. 101 engine intended for the British Royal Air Force's Nimrod MRA4 maritime reconnaissance aircraft upgrade program. The next phase of qualification work--a 1,200-hr. corrosion test--is due to start later this year at the U.K.'s Pyestock, England, test site.
After extensive flight testing in the wake of three accidents, Transport Canada and the FAA have approved an increase in the Bell 407's maximum speed to 130 kt. from 100 kt., and company officials expect to restore the light helicopter's 140-kt. never exceed speed (Vne) by the third quarter of this year.
After much back-and-forth, the U.S. Army has finally decided on a path to fill its requirement for a small number of light utility helicopters. A plan to buy a new helicopter didn't go far because it would have been too expensive. Instead, the Army wants to pursue a low-cost upgrade to 160 Army National Guard UH-1H Hueys. Industry is being asked to come up with upgrade ideas. However, the Army wants the improvements to cost no more than $3 million per helicopter. Two areas will be the focus of the ``LUH'' upgrade--avionics and a new engine--said Army officials.
A. Thomas Young, former president/chief operating officer of the Martin Marietta Corp., has been named chairman and Thomas Moorman, former U.S. Air Force vice chief of staff, has been appointed vice chairman of the Lockheed Martin Space and Strategic Missiles Sector comprehensive review panel. It is expected to study program management, engineering and manufacturing, and quality control at Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Missiles and Space, and Michoud Space Systems.
The U.K. has earmarked another 10,000 ground troops for possible deployment to the Balkans, in addition to the 2,300 it placed on standby more than a week ago. The British offer followed quickly on the heels of a decision by NATO ambassadors last week to increase the size of its ground force in the region to 45,000 from 28,000 troops. NATO planners meet this week to hammer out the exact composition of the larger force that would implement any peace agreement. Last week, the U.N.
AN INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION THAT WOULD HOLD the governments supplying navigation satellites liable for the accuracy of their signals would not be needed if there are back-up navigation systems, according to one view of the Secretariat Study Group, which is advising the International Civil Aviation Organization. That would appear to benefit the U.S., which is the prime liability target. But while the U.S. opposes a liability convention, it continues to argue for GPS as a sole means of navigation.
Phil Watkins has been named regional business development director based in Redditch, England, for Shaw Aero Devices, Fort Myers, Fla. He was a customer support manager for BMW Rolls-Royce in Germany.
European TV satellite operator Eutelsat has pulled the plug on broadcasts to a Yugoslav TV channel, RTS Sat, after weeks of diplomatic pressure from NATO member countries. NATO had complained that the network was using spacecraft operated by Eutelsat, in which the Yugoslav telecom ministry is a shareholder, to beam ``government propaganda'' throughout the Balkans, defeating the purpose of air strikes intended to knock out the network's transmission facilities.
Raytheon Co. has the dubious distinction of posting some of the lowest scores in key performance measures that underpin Aviation Week&Space Technology's Competitive Index (p. 45) for this year. But these scores, based on publicly available information compiled by Standard&Poor's, reflect management decisions in the five years leading up to 1998.
GenCorp Aerojet has won a $9-million, four-year contract from PRC Inc., a Litton Industries subsidiary, to provide Mark VI attitude control systems for NASA sounding rockets.
