UNITED AIRLINES HAS INSTALLED PULSATING landing light systems on three Boeing 737s. The trial will evaluate the Pulselight system's enhanced visibility to other pilots and tower controllers and longer lightbulb lifetime. Developed by Precise Flight Inc. of Bend, Ore., Pulselight costs about $1,800 and consists of a single, lightweight avionics box. Lights are not turned on and off but dimmed, to extend filament life, and pilots select constant illumination for landing.
The historic docking of NASA's shuttle Atlantis with Russia's Mir space station begins an endeavor with the potential to plumb the limits of our ability to live and work in space (see p. 18). The astronauts and cosmonauts working together in space now, and the thousands on the ground who make their work possible, are setting the cornerstone upon which can be built unprecedented global cooperation in scientific research, and perhaps to send human explorers for the first time to other planets.
U.S. Navy pilots are learning to operate new cockpit systems by using low-cost laptop computers, which may also have applications for the civil market. DCS Corp. of Alexandria, Va., developed the interactive training system to teach Navy pilots to operate a new control display navigation unit (CDNU) that will be installed in their aircraft. Pilots will use the CDNU for flight planning and to control communication, navigation and the flight management system.
Edward W. Stimpson, president of the General Aviation Manufacturers Assn., was awarded the Aero Club of Washington's Trophy for Aviation Excellence for his leadership in the enactment of the General Aviation Revitalization Act.
South Africa's aviation industry is attempting to capture a substantial part of the world's Mirage modernization market by offering a series of upgrades built around more modern, powerful Russian and French-built engines. The engines are considered key to a successful upgrade of any portion of the aging 4,000-plane worldwide fleet. ``You can't do a lot without a new-generation, [high-bypass- ratio] engine,'' according to Pierre Dippenaar, a director of Aerosud Ltd.
Lockheed Martin expects to reduce its overall cost structure by 10% during the next five years through a massive consolidation. The company should be significantly more competitive at the end of that period, when the U.S. defense procurement cycle likely will be turning up. But that remains to be seen. Competitors will be trying to reduce their cost of doing business as well, and it is too early to tell how nimble the company will be in a marketplace that is becoming increasingly competitive.
Fighter aircraft are the last choice of military student pilots in South Africa, who prefer multi-engine or helicopter training because of the more lucrative career paths they may offer after pilots complete their 10-year obligation. Military officials contend these choices reflect tough realities in the South African Air Force. The organization has been cut 50% in less than four years. The fighter force alone has been cut from 13 squadrons to four and could shrink further.
Ford Ennals has been appointed director o.f marketing at British Airways, succeeding Mike Batt, who left the company to joint Alamo Rent-a-Car. Ennals is executive vice president-marketing and business operations for Fruit of the Loom.
South Africa's air force and aerospace industry are facing a post-Cold War drawdown that will test their resiliency. As after most wars, some officials want to cut defense spending and cancel research and development. Others in government see the key role of high-tech industries in maintaining national prominence. U.S. analysts predict the next two years will determine the fate of both the SAAF and South Africa's high-quality aerospace industry.
EUROPEAN AIRPORTS ARE MOVING FASTER than their U.S. counterparts in installing explosive detection systems. Two Boston-based companies, Vivid Technologies and Thermedics, have supplied X-ray machines and sniffing detectors that are integrated into baggage conveyor systems at Heathrow, Gatwick and other airports. A Vivid official claims his company's equipment can inspect 1,500 bags per hour. Neither company's system is in use in the states and Massachusetts Congressman Martin T. Meehan (D.) wants the FAA and the State Department to explain why.
The Bombardier Business Aircraft Div. has received a Supplementary Type Certificate from the FAA for the Canadair Special Edition, a corporate version of the Regional Jet with two auxiliary fuel tanks to provide transatlantic range.
U.S. AIR FORCE OFFICIALS say they will not stand in the way of early, heavy foreign sales of the Beech Mk. 2 Joint Primary Advanced Training Systems (JPATS). Such sales are considered crucial for Raytheon Aircraft during the early lean years of the program. Production for the Pentagon is set at one aircraft in 1995, three each in 1996 and 1997, and 12 in 1998; additionally, the program was stretched to 20 years from 12. The first production contract of 141 aircraft will not be completed until 2001, according to Col.
VEGA Group's new cockpit orientation trainer for the Sea Harrier F/A2 aircraft is in operation with the Royal Navy Air School at Yeovilton. The device is part of a new aircraft maintenance training system, which also involves 27 computer workstations to train students in fault diagnosis. The trainer will help maintenance technicians become familiar with the layout of the Sea Harrier.
Mitsubishi has fabricated the first lower aft wing skin section for the Bombardier Global Express long-range business jet at its Tobishima facility in Japan, while Short Brothers Plc., de Havilland and Canadair have begun manufacturing other sections of the aircraft.
E. King Yaeger has been named vice president-business development at Signals and Systems Inc., Troy, Mich. He was manager of contracts and subcontracts at Cadillac Gage Textron, Warren, Mich.
Vladimir Starov has been named director of advanced process technology for GaSonics International, San Jose, Calif. He was with Applied Photonics Research.
The board reviewing the latest failure of a Pegasus XL space launch vehicle has just begun its work, but Orbital Sciences Corp. believes it may be able to resume flights quickly. Orbital officials say they have good telemetry and video from on board the vehicle. That has them hoping they will be able to determine the cause of the accident and fix the problem quickly.
Larry R. Flynn has been appointed vice president-service and product support of Gulfstream Aerospace, Savannah, Ga. He was a vice president of Stevens Aviation. Juan Leon has been named regional vice president for South America south of the equator.
ORTEL CORP.'S LINEAR FIBEROPTIC technology will let U.S. Navy aircraft carriers receive wide bandwidth signals of imagery direct from airborne reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft. Photodiode receivers and high-speed distributed-feedback lasers convert an electrical signal into an optical analog signal, which the laser transmits down the fiberoptic link without down conversion. The Ortel approach gives a wide bandwidth (10 MHz. to 15 GHz.) over a lightweight 1/2-in. cable containing 48 optical fibers.
BELL HELICOPTER HAS TWICE INCREASED planned production of its new Model 407-series light helicopters, to about 7.5 units/month, to meet demand. The four-blade, high-performance 407 and 407T (twin) will augment Bell 206B JetRanger and 206L LongRanger lines. First deliveries of the 407 are scheduled for early 1996 and the 407T in 1997. Both aircraft will be equipped with full-authority digital electronic fuel controls and have cabins 7 in. wider than the 206.
The Orbiter Docking System that connects Atlantis to Mir serves a variety of functions beyond being a tunnel to lead astronauts to a historic handshake with cosmonauts. Much of its design heritage is in the system that joined Apollo and Soyuz spacecraft 20 years ago, but the current system is considerably more robust. At the same time, some changes have made aspects of the Orbiter Docking System (ODS) simpler or more efficient.
China Great Wall Industry Corp. has reported that it will strengthen the fairing of its Long March 2E before resuming launches this fall, even though investigators have yet to say why the last LM-2E exploded.
Michael J. Hegarty will retire as vice president-finance/secretary/treasurer of EDO Corp., College Point, N.Y., but will continue as a member of the board of directors. He will become executive vice president/chief operating officer of the Flushing Savings Bank.
