Swissair is considering several initiatives to obtain proper access to the European Union's unified market, boost traffic growth and further reduce operating costs. Switzerland, which is politically neutral, recently declined joining the 15-country EU, a decision that could pose a threat to Swissair's strategic business plan. ``Switzerland is not yet as European as we would like it to be, at least from an economic and political viewpoint,'' according to Paul Reutlinger, Swissair group executive vice president-marketing.
Alaska Airlines has appointed Robert M. Reeder staff vice president-information and communication services. He was director of applications development.
The BASS-03X ultra-wideband impulse generator produces a 1-nanosec. monocycle pulse with a peak-to-peak output of 7,000 v. The monocycle is centered at 1 GHz., and more than 90% of its energy is above 250 MHz. The pulse will radiate efficiently from most nondispersive antennas. Power consumption is 350 milliamps from a +28-v. supply. The low average transmitted power limits the probability of detection by other equipment or conventional receivers. Triggering can be internal or external. Power Spectra, 919 Hermosa Court, Sunnyvale, Calif. 94086-4103.
THE CIA WILL SOON ASK President Clinton to approve the declassification of vintage spy satellite photos taken during the 1960s. They would be made available through the National Archives. The agency recently declassified many top secret National Intelligence Estimates.
Shipments of U.S.-built general aviation aircraft declined 3.7% in 1994, but industry billings totaled more than $2.3 billion due to rising demand for business jets, according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Assn. (GAMA).
Reports by Beijing-controlled Chinese media that have blamed Hughes for the Apstar-2 satellite failure have become so persistent that the government-owned China Great Wall Industries has publicly denounced them.
The Model SCS 2400 is a global positioning system constellation simulator that is designed for testing GPS receivers. The device generates 24 independent radio frequency channels of highly accurate L1 and L2 GPS signals that can be routed to two RF ports. The signals can simulate ground, air and space vehicles in motion with up to 30g of acceleration. Multipath effects, wide area augmentation systems, common GPS jammers and GPS ground transmitters also can be simulated.
This hydromechanical actuator provides smooth, reliable deployment of spacecraft subsystems without the need for external power. The device consists of a fluid-filled damper with an integral coil spring. The orifices can be set to provide virtually any deployment time. The actuator can be held closed by a mechanical latch or some other device. The device is available in sizes ranging from 10-500 lb. and displacements of 2-10 in. Taylor Devices, Inc., 90 Taylor Drive, P.O. Box 748, North Tonawanda, N.Y. 14120-0748.
Universal Navigation Corp. expects its UNS-1M Navigation Management System, already in use for en route and terminal navigation, to receive FAA approval for use on nonprecision approaches in April.
Pentagon analysts say suspending large aperture radars from balloons at high altitude may be a cheap way of finding stealthy cruise missiles and aircraft. Military aerostat advocates contend that a high-altitude-based combination of radars and other sensors will ``facilitate detection and track of low observables in high clutter environments,'' according to a new Defense Dept. document currently being briefed in the Pentagon.
The GTR250VG is a five-axis chamfering machine that can process work pieces up to 250 mm. (9.75 in.) dia. and 350 mm. (13.65 in.) wide and 500 mm. (19.5 in.) long. The computer numerically controlled machine can store more than 100 part summaries. Macro parameters can be altered to point teeth as required. The machine features five-axis control of the work spindle drive, workhead cross feed, cutter head vertical feed, cross feed and swivel. The cutter spindle's speed can be varied continuously over a range of 0-5,000 rpm.
General Microwave Corp., Amityville, N.Y., has promoted Mitchell Tuckman to president/chief executive officer from executive vice president/chief operating officer. He succeeds Sherman A. Rinkel, president and cofounder, who has retired.
Bombardier Regional Aircraft Div. has chosen a 13,000-lb.-thrust CF34-8C engine from General Electric for its new 70-seat CRJ-X regional jet, and GE will invest more than $200 million to develop this CF34 derivative powerplant.
CHINA SOUTHWEST AIRLINES IS THE FIRST IN CHINA to have a traffic-alert collision avoidance system (TCAS) installed in-country during a D-check heavy maintenance overhaul. The work was accomplished in 38 days by Ameco-Beijing, the shortest turnaround time that the Air China/Lufthansa partnership has achieved for a D-check and close to an international average of 30 days. It was Ameco's sixth D-check and first for a customer other than Air China.
Health and Usage Monitoring System for light turbine and piston-powered helicopters incorporates new data recording and sensing technology in a package that weighs less than 2 lb. HUMS consists of a microprocessor, three sensors, simple wiring harness, cockpit indicator light and a multi-purpose ground station. For less than $5,000, turbine operators can record instances of torque, turbine temperature and rotor speed exceeding limits. Data can be downloaded to a personal computer for analysis and report generation. The system also is designed to be tamper proof.
After years of advancing quietly, India's space program has proven its mettle with two important new commercial agreements--one with the world's largest space telecommunications enterprise and the other with one of the two leading satellite remote sensing companies.
McDonnell Douglas MD-11 transport operators have been requested by an FAA airworthiness directive to inspect for possible cracks in part of the aircraft's engine pylon box structure. THE ISSUING of the directive follows the recent discovery of a crack found in an upper spar angle on an American Airlines trijet during a routine inspection. Douglas Aircraft Co. officials said about 90% of the MD-11 fleet had been inspected by mid-week last week, and that only one other pylon crack had been found by that time.
THE HOUSE SCIENCE COMMITTEE'S RANKING DEMOCRAT, Rep. George E. Brown, Jr. (Calif.), is disappointed with his President's research and development budget. Brown says Clinton's Fiscal 1996 request would inflict a 3% real decline in total federal R&D budget authority. What really has Brown worried, though, is the historical trend. He says combined civilian and defense R&D relative to gross domestic product (GDP) has plunged by 64% and 62%, respectively, during the past 30 years. Clinton's latest request would fall below 1% of GDP, the lowest level since 1958.
USAF PLANS TO LAUNCH five Titan 4 boosters with classified payloads in 1995, with the first launch slated for mid-April from Cape Canaveral Air Station. The first launch, targeted for Apr. 11, is to use a Centaur upper stage to orbit its classified payload, as are the three other planned launches from the Cape. The sole Titan 4 scheduled for launch from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., will use no upper stage, according to Titan program officials. The 1995 launch schedule is an ambitious one for the USAF heavy-lift booster program.
ORION SATELLITE CORP.'S Orion 1 spacecraft is providing service from its geosynchronous orbit at 37.5 deg. W. Long. after being maneuvered down from an unusual transfer orbit that took it a third of the way to the Moon. The satellite's ``super-synchronous'' transfer orbit, which took it as high as 75,000 mi., was used to extend its service life. To reach its geosynchronous slot, the Matra Marconi spacecraft, launched Nov.
DASSAULT AVIATION'S Falcon 2000 business jet received FAA certification Feb. 2 under FAR Part 25 through Amendment 42. First customer delivery is scheduled for later this month, to a South African company. Initial deliveries to North American customers will begin this spring.
The U.S. Army will soon seek industry bids for the next development phase of its Advanced Threat Infrared Countermeasures (ATIRCM) system, which recently became a triservice program to provide a Missile Approach Warning System (MAWS) for USAF and Navy aircraft.
Pratt&Whitney will focus on boosting its portion of the propulsion overhaul and repair business as well as increasing sales in the industrial gas turbine market as a means of enhancing profitability through 1998. Based on the number of installed Pratt&Whitney engines, the company estimates it could have earned as much as $3 billion in 1991 in the spare parts and growing engine overhaul and repair market. Instead, it garnered only half that. Rival General Electric faces the same challenge.
