Following an 18-month development program, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force and Navy have conducted test flights of the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) on an F-15 and F/A-18. The tests, which included 56 target acquisitions using the system, validated its performance. The primary subcon- tractor is Vision Systems International, a joint venture between Elbit Systems Ltd. of Israel and Kaiser Electronics of San Jose, Calif. Further JHMCS flight tests are planned, with initial production deliveries scheduled to start in 2000.
A federal judge has dismissed Crane Co.'s lawsuit aimed at thwarting Coltec Industries' plan to merge with BFGoodrich. Crane officials are waiting to see the written ruling of Judge Barbara Jones of U.S. District Court in White Plains, N.Y., before deciding whether they will appeal. Coltec and BFGoodrich hope to close their transaction by April.
Nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament must go hand in hand, argues U.N. Undersecretary General Jayantha Dhanapala of Sri Lanka. He addressed a Carnegie Endowment symposium last week in Washington. U.S. Secretary of War Henry Stimson issued a statement on Aug. 6, 1945, the day of the Hiroshima bombing, [saying], ``Every effort is being bent toward assuring that this weapon and the new field of science that stands behind it will be employed wisely in the interests of the security of peace-loving nations and the well-being of the world.''
David A. King has succeeded the retiring Robert B. Sieck as director of shuttle processing at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). King has been deputy director. Ralph R. Roe, Jr., will continue as launch director on a permanent basis. Jan Heuser has been named KSC program manager for the Space Experiments Research and Processing Laboratory Project. She has been associate director of installation operations. And, Joseph Gordon, Jr., has become NASA director of public affairs at KSC. He succeeds Hugh Harris, who retired in April.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, long Boeing's prime supplier in Japan, has begun negotiations with Europe's Airbus Industrie about participation in Airbus programs. The companies are expected to reach an agreement by the end of the year that will see Mitsubishi assemble parts and components for existing Airbus products as a subcontractor. Mitsubishi's biggest participation in Boeing programs is on the 767 and 777. It expects to be a major partner on the 747-X, should Boeing approve an update of that aircraft. Mitsubishi is Japan's largest aerospace manufacturer.
Mike Terrett has been appointed president/CEO of International Aero Engines, East Hartford, Conn. He was senior vice president for RB211 and Trent 700 programs for Rolls-Royce.
During a state visit here last week, President Clinton and Argentine President Carlos Menem directed their trade negotiators to conclude an ``open skies'' pact by April. The two presidents said they would like to reach an agreement on terms for allowing each nation's air carriers greater access to the other's domestic markets, with a transition period to start next January. The current agreement allows only two U.S.
Delta Air Lines is charging passengers a $1-per-flight segment surcharge for all tickets unless they are purchased over the Internet. Carrier officials said the fee is an attempt to offset rising costs of using traditional computer reservations systems, which most travel agents and many consumers use to purchase tickets. Travel agents criticized the move, calling it another attempt by the airline to shrink their profits and squeeze them out of the ticket-distribution chain. Delta and other carriers in recent years have enforced caps on commissions paid to travel agents.
Direct-to-Home TV satellite operator Eutelsat is preparing to start commercial operation of a satellite-based high-speed Internet service. The service will allow users to access the Web using a DVB-MPEG2 standard PC card, a 60-cm. TV dish antenna and Eutelsat's existing network of Hot Bird satellites.
Airbus Industrie predicts a slowdown in the commercial transport market in the near future, but nevertheless anticipates continuing brisk sales for the European consortium.
The Russian naval aircraft shown on p. 102 of the Dec. 21/28, 1998, Photo Issue was incorrectly identified. The fighter is a navalized version of the Sukhoi S-27, designated the Su-33. Also, the name of photographer Freddy Stenbom of Stockholm was misspelled. He took photos that appeared on pp. 98, 103 and 104.
The U.S. Air Force last year took control of the two major long-endurance, high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle advanced demonstration programs--the 1-ton payload Global Hawk and the stealthy DarkStar--that defense officials believe will be the premier platforms for carrying integrated packages of next-generation radars and hyperspectral sensors.
In addition to developing more effective radars, U.S. researchers are exploring how to turn a foe's radar into a weapon against him and avoid similar efforts by the enemy. Pentagon warfighters are developing better ways to find, analyze and exploit enemy radars. Once they are understood and can be tracked from moment to moment, they can be spoofed, blinded, avoided or destroyed.
Praxair Surface Technologies of Indianapolis and Snecma Services have signed a memorandum of understanding, paving the way for an engine repair joint venture in Saint-Etienne, France. It initially will focus on CFM56 and GE90 compressor components and serve operators in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Northrop Grumman Corp. has delivered the first of 20 upgraded EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft to the U.S. Navy. Modifications include installation of a new wing center section as well as extensive depot-level overhaul. Plans call for the company to deliver one aircraft per month.
Strides in developing miniature sensors to detect chemical and biological agents appear likely to bolster emergency response to terrorist attacks aimed at mass urban casualties.
The second X-38 technology demonstrator, equipped with a flight control system, is being prepared for its first mission next month at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center (see photo). The February test series comes nearly a year after the only X-38 flight to date--a drop test of vehicle No. 1 last March during which the demonstrator's parafoil was damaged. Following an extensive parafoil test program, vehicle No. 1 is scheduled for a captive-carry test Feb. 3 and essentially a reflight of last March's mission on Feb. 5.
Philip Jones has been appointed director of fuel systems for Shaw Aero Devices Inc., Fort Myers, Fla. He was head of sales and marketing for Flight Refueling.
AlliedSignal has set a goal of increasing the field reliability of its commercial aircraft auxiliary power units by up to 10% a year. The effort includes design improvements to older model APUs, comprehensive failure analysis, a formal customer satisfaction tracking process and once- or twice-yearly customer conferences, according to Jim Rhoden, director of engineering. As APU ``on wing'' times lengthen, the unit develops new failure modes, he said.
Tokyo's Haneda Airport passed the 50-millionth passenger mark for 1998 on Dec. 28, a milestone. The 67-year-old Haneda is predominantly a domestic airport, but easily ranks as Asia's busiest. It had about 126,000 flights last year. By comparison, Narita, Tokyo's international airport, had 24.5 million passengers in 1998--but it passed a milestone of its own Dec. 23, when it recorded its 2 millionth flight since opening in 1978. That is not a high mark by U.S. or European standards, but Narita's traffic consists of nearly all wide-body aircraft, mostly 747s.
Francesca Maher has become senior vice president of United Airlines and will continue as general counsel/secretary. Shelley Longmuir has been named senior vice president-governmental, regulatory and international affairs and Cyril Murphy vice president-international network development. Michael Whitaker has been promoted to vice president from director of international and regulatory affairs and succeeds Murphy. Longmuir was Washington-based vice president-governmental affairs. Mark Anderson has been appointed director of governmental affairs.
The International Space Station is a marquee program for NASA, but officials in aeronautics programs think they're being victimized to support the effort. They are now fighting for reversal of Fiscal 2000 budget decisions the Clinton Administration made over the holidays. For example, funding of the High-Speed Research program, which has been running about $200 million in recent years, is being slashed to $25 million or less. The program has been working to improve engine and airframe technology and explore the environmental impact of future supersonic transport aircraft.
