Jon Buccola (see photo), chairman of Greenpoint Technologies, Kirkland, Wash., has been named Executive of the Year by the Pacific Northwest Aerospace Alliance. The award recognizes Buccola's “dedication to community service, company growth and developing a corporate culture which embodies the values of fun, integrity, teamwork, creativity, customer focus and giving back to the community.”
More than six months after the end of a nine-month halt to flights over hazardous environments by the Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters) EC225, all operators of the heavy helicopters, the majority of which are used to support oil and gas platforms, have returned it to the air having implemented a series of interim fixes certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) last July.
Avi Cohen, CEO of Israel-based RRsat, has been named 2014 Teleport Executive of the Year by the New York-based World Teleport Association. The award is presented to an individual for “entrepreneurship, leadership and innovation in the development or operation of a teleport-based business.”
Valery Kubasov, the flight engineer on Soyuz 19, which docked with an Apollo spacecraft in Earth orbit in July 1975, died Feb. 19 in Moscow. He was 79. His death was announced on RSC Energia's website, which called him a “high-spirited instructor test cosmonaut.” No cause of death was given.
Melissa Hathaway, former acting senior director for cyberspace at the National Security Council, has joined the board of regents of the Arlington, Va.-based Potomac Institute. Hathaway is at the Kennedy School of Government's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs as senior adviser to its cybersecurity initiative, Project Minerva, a joint effort of the Defense Department, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University.
Peter A. Antonenko has been promoted to chief operating officer from executive vice president of the Jetcraft Corp., Raleigh, N.C. Honors And Elections
When I learned to fly in the 1960s, the instructors—quite routinely and, of course, without warning—threw us some nasty tricks such as switching off the engine and asking us to land wherever possible down to a few feet above a hastily found half-suitable field, putting us in deep stall, or in a spin with engine off. The command to the trainee flying was: “It's up to you, mate.” And all that, of course, occurred in flight, not in a simulator. I am truly curious: Does this sort of training still occur? I hope so. It was invaluable.
Wayne Gilbert West has been appointed executive vice president/chief operating officer of Delta Air Lines. He will succeed Stephen E. Gorman, who plans to retire. West will remain head of Airport Customer Service and Delta TechOps.
Chris Reuther has become group vice president-finance for Circor Aerospace & Defense, Corona, Calif. He was lead manager of financial planning and analysis for Sikorsky Aerospace Services and had been CFO of Sikorsky's overhaul and repair business.
Investigators probing the crash of a police helicopter in Scotland are questioning why both engines flamed out despite the aircraft still having 10-15 min. of fuel left. The Airbus—formerly Eurocopter—EC135T2 operated for Police Scotland by Bond Air Services had been on a routine police mission and was returning back to its base at Glasgow City Heliport when it crashed onto the Clutha Vaults public house late in the evening of Nov. 29, 2013. All three crew onboard the helicopter were killed as were six patrons in the bar when the aircraft crashed through the roof.
Sikorsky Aircraft is bringing oil and gas platform operations into the 21st century with a new satellite-based approach system that takes the human calculation and guesswork out of legacy rig approaches in instrument conditions and at night. The system offers operators an automated arrival tool to reduce crew loading while increasing situational awareness.
Chris Cannady (see photo) has been Wichita-based appointed OEM sales manager for Universal Avionics, Tucson, Ariz. He has held positions in engineering, management and technical sales with Boeing Military Aircraft, Cessna Aircraft, Bombardier/Learjet and Gulfstream Aerospace.
Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the last commercial operator of passenger-configured Douglas DC-10s, similar to the one shown, completed the type's last scheduled passenger service on Feb. 20, flying from Dhaka to Birmingham, England, via Kuwait. The aircraft, a DC-10-30 registered S2-ACR, then carried out a series of scenic flights around the U.K. for aviation enthusiasts. The type is being replaced in service by the Boeing 777-300ER. Biman plans to donate the DC-10 to a museum, and a final ferry flight is expected later this year.
A military fly/drive vehicle inspired by miniature “multicopter” unmanned aircraft is being prepared for its first flight. Advanced Tactics Inc.'s (AT) Black Knight Transformer is the technology demonstrator for a casualty-evacuation and cargo-resupply vehicle that can drive on or off road and fly like a helicopter, manned or unmanned.
For Sikorsky, demonstrating the S-97 Raider high-speed helicopter is even more important now that the U.S. Army has decided to retire its armed scout helicopters and not replace them, at least in the near term. The company, which is building two Raider prototypes on industry funds, believes there is still room, and time, within the Army's long-term budget to acquire a small fleet of new armed scouts before it begins the heavy expenditure of replacing its large fleets of medium-utility and attack helicopters.
USAFR Maj. Gen. (ret.) Ralph S. Clem Jacksonville, Fla. (Nantes, France )
The recently released report by the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force (AW&ST Feb. 3, p. 12) captures many of the key issues raised and discussed by that body, especially as they relate to the need for optimizing the mix of forces among the three components of the service (Active Duty, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard) in light of shrinking budgets, declining manpower and new mission areas.
USAF Maj. Gen. Bart O. Iddins has been named commander of the 59th Medical Wing of Air Education and Training Command, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. He has been command surgeon at Headquarters Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill. Iddins has been succeeded by Brig. Gen. Kory G. Cornum, who has been commander of the 81st Medical Group of Air Education and Training Command, Keesler AFB, Miss. Col. Keith M.
I have been a subscriber for more than 45 years. I read your magazine from cover to cover—starting with the table of contents—and therein lies my complaint. The TOC is on two pages, with almost always an impediment between them. The photographs on the first page are for articles listed on the second page, and vice versa. If you must have photos and article listings on separate pages, at least have them on facing pages.
U.K. trials to develop a common architecture for aircraft defensive-aids systems could help to push down the cost of aircraft protection. Drawing lessons from operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, commanders have realized they might not be able to rely on or have time to buy such equipment through the urgent operational requirement procurements system in the future. As a result, engineers from the U.K.'s Defense Science Technology Laboratory (DSTL) have been working on a new model for delivering defensive aids to large fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft.
