Some equity analysts are fearful that the aerospace/defense industry's robust margins may become a political issue. But hefty profits and the generation of large amounts of cash do not appear to be raising eyebrows in Washington, despite the fact that many companies likely will post a strong financial performance for a third consecutive year.
MATRA MARCONI SPACE is studying three lunar mission concepts that could be sponsored by the European Space Agency. The company's Bristol, England, facility is studying technology for the proposed ESA Moon Orbiting Observatory mission. The company's Launch Vehicles Group in Stevenage, England, is examining propulsion and landing systems that could be used on the small lunar lander technology spacecraft ESA expects to launch about 2003. In Toulouse, France, the company is working on futuristic concepts for an interferometric observatory using two telescopes 1 km.
MULTILAYER TECHNOLOGY (MULTEK) HAS DEVELOPED a 68-layer Teflon printed circuit board for phased array antennas for low-Earth-orbit satellites. The 22-in.-dia., 1-in.-thick boards use 16 capacitively coupled, four-layer subsets with overlapping lines on the outside, to vertically integrate the whole stack. The ceramic-filled Teflon base material was chosen for its good insulating quality at microwave frequency.
PROLONGED HAGGLING between Russia and Kazakhstan over the Baikonur Cosmodrome is finally over. Russia's parliament approved a lease this month in which the space power will pay the former Soviet republic $115 million annually for 20 years to keep using the launch complex. Russia has an option for an additional 10 years. That is an enormous sum for the cash-strapped Russian Space Agency, but the agency's director believes it will be worth every bit. Yuri Koptev told ITAR-Tass he expects Russia to earn $1.6 billion for commercial satellite launches during the 1990s.
THE SECOND ORBCOMM satellite is regaining its health. Orbital Sciences Corp. restored the ability of the Flight Model 1 (FM 1) ``little LEO'' satellite to receive transmissions from subscriber communicators. Controllers sent commands that corrected what appears to have been a software problem. They are continuing to try to restore the satellite's ability to transmit to subscribers, work they expect will take several weeks.
A U.S. Transportation Dept. administrative law judge has concluded that ``the landing fees imposed by the Los Angeles Dept. of Airports in July, 1993, are unreasonable,'' and is taking written briefs on his recommendation this week before the Transportation Dept. makes a final decision.
The FAA has issued an emergency airworthiness directive to inspect Lockheed L-1011 transports for cracks or severed fuselage frames that could compromise structural integrity of the cabin pressure vessel.
Steve J. Alexander has been appointed managing director of GoodSmith&Co., Costa Mesa, Calif. He was president/chief executive officer of Regency International. Robert J. Pond has been named manager of finance. He was a senior executive with the McDonnell Douglas Finance Corp.
THE WIDENING ROLE OF REGIONAL AIRLINES in North America and the introduction of larger jet- and turboprop-powered commuter transports has the Regional Airline Assn. seeking to change its membership criteria. The move to amend RAA's bylaws, if passed, would remove the current 60-passenger and 18,000-lb. all-cargo payload limit.
Boeing Sikorsky has rolled out the much-delayed RAH-66 Comanche helicopter, an aircraft projected to be the cornerstone of the U.S. Army's future warfighting strategy. The aircraft, which made its public debut in ceremonies at Sikorsky's Stratford , Conn., facility on May 25, is the first of two prototypes and six evaluation aircraft that may pave the way toward a potential 1,292 helicopter buy, should funding obstacles be overcome (AW&ST Feb. 27, p. 24).
Charles (Nick) Ide has been appointed president of the United Technologies Microelectronics Center in Colorado Springs. He succeeds Cal Ransom, who has retired. Ide was president/chief executive officer of CPAD Holdings, Ltd.
FIVE LEO SATCOM systems could be in orbit in the next 10 years, according to a study by the U.S. Transportation Dept.'s commercial space transportation office. The study of the low Earth orbit mobile satellite communications market offered two scenarios. The low-end scenario projects two ``big LEO'' systems for voice and other high data-rate applications and one ``little LEO'' constellation for low data-rate uses, such as paging and messaging. The high-end scenario projects three big and two little LEOs.
MONITORING TECHNOLOGY CORP. IS APPLYING antisubmarine warfare digital signal processing to detect defects in jet engines and reduce the risk of catastrophic failures. The company's Rotational Vibration Monitoring continuously monitors an engine for reductions in the resonant frequencies of rotating components. These frequency changes could be caused by contamination, erosion or foreign object damage. The Air Force's Wright Laboratory is supporting the work with a $78,000 Small Business Innovative Research grant.
John E. Berlin (see photo) has been named vice president/general manager/ chief operating officer of the Tensolite Co. He was vice president-technical services/ director of OEM sales.
New aircraft, low operating costs and their expanding role as ``feeder'' airlines will spur the growth of regional carriers at a pace envied by their major-airline counterparts through the turn of the century. Despite those bright prospects, regional airlines' financial performance in coming years could be strained by growth at major carriers, which would lure many pilots away from the regionals, and by new safety regulations.
For the bottom-line-oriented U.S. aero-space/defense industry, this is the golden era of profits. Net income and earnings per share are at all-time highs. Balance sheets are strong and flush with cash. Moreover, the tremendous burst of liquidity that began three years ago shows no signs of abating.
UNITED'S PLANNED JULY OPENING of its Hong Kong flight attendant domicile is heating a major issue with the Assn. of Flight Attendants (AFA), whose contract becomes amendable next March. Flight attendants do not have an overseas cost-of-living allowance, and the AFA is concerned that the plum international jobs will go to foreigners who already live in expensive cities. United has domiciles in London, Paris and Taipei.
EXPECT A STRONG AERIAL ROUTINE from the X-31's first appearance at the Paris air show next month. The thrust-vectoring, high-maneuverability demonstrator was flown by C-5 transport to Germany from Edwards AFB, Calif., and is being reassembled for a German air force-escorted flight to Paris. The routine will include a post-stall loop after takeoff that looks like a figure-9, precise left and right yaws while falling like a leaf, and a break turn to 70- deg. angle of attack at 500 ft. with a reversal and roll.
ALLIEDSIGNAL'S 5,000-lb.-thrust TFE731-60 has received FAA certification. The powerplant, which is scheduled for use on the Falcon 900EX business jet, offers a 20% increase in climb/cruise thrust and a 12% improvement in specific fuel consumption over earlier TFE731s. First flight of the Falcon 900EX is scheduled for late this month.
SERVICE BETWEEN CHICAGO'S O'HARE AIRPORT and London's Heathrow facility is being ``artificially constrained,'' according to testimony by UAL's Gerald Greenwald, at last week's Senate hearings on the U.S.-U.K. bilateral agreement. If American Airlines and British Airways--the only two airlines serving the lucrative route--exceed 600,000 passengers for two consecutive 12-month periods, a third U.S. airline can be selected to serve the market, according to the current Bermuda 2 agreement.
Death and destruction could increase in the U.S. due to degraded weather prediction capabilities if budget cuts proposed in Congress become law. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is warning that it might have funds for only two meteorological satellites in orbit at a time, instead of the normal complement of four. And the agency says it would be forced to discontinue the National Weather Service modernization and close offices only recently opened.
A COMPROMISE IS IN THE WORKS TO RESOLVE the status of 28 F-16s that Pakistan paid for but never received (AW&ST Apr. 17, p. 19). Sen. Larry Pressler (R.-S.D.) suggested to a Senate panel last week that 17 of the aircraft be transferred to Taiwan--which has 150 F-16s on order--and 11 to the Philippines. Pakistan would be reimbursed with the $650 million in proceeds from the Taiwan purchase. Lawmakers were receptive to the proposal from Pressler, who authored the nuclear non-proliferation amendment that prevents Pakistan from taking delivery of the aircraft.
