Quantum Technologies, Inc., and Thiokol Propulsion Corp. announced May 22 that the world's most advanced hydrogen storage testing facility will open soon at Thiokol Propulsion's NASA space shuttle rocket booster manufacturing facility in Promontory, Utah. The testing facility is owned and operated under a teaming agreement between the two companies and will be accessible to manufacturers of compressed gas storage tanks for applications in the aerospace, defense, automotive and industrial markets.
A new Ministry of Defence contract calls for an experimental pod-mounted synthetic aperture surveillance radar program to be installed and flight tested on a Royal Air Force Tornado. Britain's Defense Experimental&Research Agency (DERA) and Racal-Thorn Defense were originally selected by the MoD in 1999 to undertake a single concept study for the proposed SAR pod, for use by RAF Tornadoes and Eurofighters.
American Airlines and HEICO Corp., a leading designer, manufacturer and distributor of FAA-approved replacement parts for jet engines and airframe components, today are expected to announce they are forming a joint venture which will accelerate development of replacement parts, Aerospace Daily affiliate Aviation Daily reported. AMR and HEICO Aerospace also will cooperate with technical services and marketing support on a worldwide basis, the two companies said.
CAE of Toronto has been selected to upgrade the U.S. Army's AH-64A Combat Mission Simulator, located at Storch Barracks, Illesheim, Germany. The initial program value is about $9 million USD, the company announced May 23. CAE will provide its Medallion visual system with sensor capabilities, and will develop new visual databases and integrate a new tactical threat environment using its Tactical Environment Management System application.
With the Globalstar investment failure behind it, Loral Space and Communications Ltd. will concentrate on improving shareholder value by focusing on its two core business units, company chairman and chief executive officer, Bernard Schwartz, said May 23. Schwartz, speaking during the company's annual shareholders meeting in New York, acknowledged 2000 "was a very difficult one for Loral shareholders."
If Sen. James Jeffords (R-Vt.) leaves his party and votes to give Democrats control of the Senate, the Bush Administration will face greater resistance to its plans to deploy a robust missile defense system, analysts and congressional sources told The DAILY May 23.
Plans to restructure Russia's aircraft industry will likely lead to the creation of two huge new holdings that would develop and produce both civilian and military aircraft, including helicopters and some aircraft subsystems. A number of top-level government meetings on the issue have been held this month, and industry observers say the creation of diverse holding companies was chosen over the idea of branch monopolies, which would have included Combat Tactical Aviation, Heavy Aircraft and Russian Helicopters.
The International Space Station Alpha's Expedition Two crew on May 23 began unloading 1.5 tons of supplies - including critical computer equipment - that were brought to them aboard a Russian Progress supply ship on May 22. Russian commander Yuri Usachev and American flight engineers Jim Voss and Susan Helms were unpacking a spare command-and-control computer hard drive for the station's U.S. laboratory module Destiny along with other supplies and fuel for the orbiting outpost.
FAA yesterday ordered operators to inspect the wiring of static port heaters on some DC-9, MD-80 and MD-90 series aircraft for chafing, loose connections and evidence of arcing, and to make any repairs necessary. Operators also must determine if the surrounding insulation is covered with metalized Mylar, which must be removed or replaced with Tedlar-covered insulation, Aerospace Daily affiliate Aviation Daily reported. The order affects 593 U.S.-registered aircraft operated by Delta, Alaska, American, Continental, Midwest Express, TWA and US Airways.
The European Commission has cleared the acquisition by French company Thales of the whole of Airsys ATM, a joint venture active in the field of Air Traffic Management systems and turnkey airport systems. Airsys is currently owned by Thales and Siemens of Germany. The EC said the acquisition does not raise any competition problems. Siemens had included an option in the 1997 joint venture agreement by which it could require Thales to buy all of Siemen's shares in Airsys ATM, and it has now exercised that option.
The first of four Boeing C-17s leased by the Royal Air Force for its Brize Norton base in Oxfordshire arrived on May 23. However, upcoming elections have led to government-imposed media restrictions, which limited public awareness of the event. Although the lease program has been cited by the Ministry of Defence as a model of its kind, Boeing was unable to invite the press to view the C-17's arrival, which was over a month ahead of the original schedule.
In a DAILY story on May 23, it was erroneously reported that the Global Hawk and F-22 aircraft would be at the 2001 Paris Air Show in Le Bourget, France next month. Neither aircraft will be on exhibit, although there will be a full-scale model of Global Hawk on display. Aerospace Daily regrets the error.
GENERAL DYNAMICS COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS was awarded a contract by the Air Force to provide program management, engineering, maintenance and support services to sustain the DIRECT Emergency Action Message system. DIRECT includes receive and transmit interfaces to all communications systems used for Emergency Action Messages at National Command Authority and Nuclear CINC command centers around the world.
Hawker Pacific Aerospace has signed a contract with AIR 2000 to provide landing gear overhaul services for AIR 2000's B757-200 and B767-300ER fleets, which currently total 20 aircraft. The 10-year contract is worth about $4.5 million, Sun Valley, Calif.,-based Hawker announced May 23. AIR 2000 is a charter airline based at London's Gatwick Airport.
ENGLAND CONFIRMED: The Senate May 22 confirmed Gordon England, a former executive at General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin, to be secretary of the Navy.
The Marine Corps expects to field its first operational squadron of the V-22 Osprey in about 2004 after fixing the tiltrotor aircraft's hydraulics, flight control software and other problem areas, Maj. Gen. Robert Magnus told the Defense Writers Group May 23. The Navy Department is restructuring the V-22 program to address various deficiencies identified recently by a Defense Department-appointed blue-ribbon panel (DAILY, April 19), which was set up to review the program after two fatal crashes last year.
Competitors Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon are awaiting the final contract award for the Air Force's Advanced Targeting Pod (ATP) program, expected on or about July 23. Planned for installation on Block 30 and 50 F-16s, the winning ATP concept could also see service on Block 40 F-16s, Boeing F-15Es and Fairchild A-10 attack planes.
Due to incorrect information from official Pentagon sources, an article in the May 22 issue of The DAILY incorrectly stated that the V-22 Osprey has been moved to a DoD ACAT-1 D Pentagon acquisition category program. Sources now report the V-22 has been moved to a Navy ACAT-1 D program. The Navy ACAT-1 D still requires DoD Defense Acquisition Board oversight and gives Edward "Pete" Aldridge, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, any production decision authority. DoD ACAT-1 D programs are generally large, service-wide programs.
Standard&Poor's has revised its ratings on K&F Industries from stable to positive, citing the aerospace component provider's reduced debt following its 1997 recapitalization. The ratings service also said the company's cash flows are benefiting from industry demand, which it said should be sustainable. K&F is a leading supplier of braking systems - wheels, steel and carbon brakes, and anti-skid systems - and fuel tanks to commercial and military aerospace markets.
The Air Force's Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is preparing for its trip home from Australia early next month, after which it is expected to fly to Paris be one of the major attractions at the 2001 Paris Air Show. The U.S. Department of Defense is scheduled to display more than 20 aircraft at the air show, including the F-22 Raptor and the B-2 stealth bomber. The show will take place June 17 to 24 in Le Bourget, France.
China Southern Airlines and MTU yesterday laid the cornerstone for the new MTU Maintenance Zhuhai Co. Ltd., which will work on IAE V2500 and other aircraft engines when it opens in 2002. The center is a 50% each joint venture between the two companies, Aerospace Daily affiliate Aviation Daily reported. It is located in Zhuhai, one of China's special economic zones, close to Hong Kong and Macao. Capacity is expected to grow for up to 150 engine overhauls a year by 2006.
BAE Systems has completed a series of live fire tests of the Advanced Threat Infrared Countermeasures/Common Missile Warning System (ATIRCM/CMWS) at the White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The tests were conducted from April 4 to April 24, and completed a major phase of the developmental test/operational test - a critical requirement for the Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) decision expected early next year. ATIRCM/CMWS is the next-generation countermeasure to protect aircraft from infrared-guided missiles.
The U.S. Army conducted three successful intercept tests of the Patriot Advanced Capability-2 (PAC-2) missile defense system over the Gulf of Mexico, the Army announced May 21. The first Patriot launched intercepted a MQM-107 drone target flying an inbound profile at low altitude. The second two Patriots intercepted Patriot Omnidirectional Target Ariel-Tow (POTA-Tow) targets, which were flying a nominal trajectory inbound toward the Patriot radar.
L-3 Communications' Link Simulation and Training division has been awarded a $6.4 million firm-fixed-price contract by the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center for the lease and maintenance of Boeing 737 aircraft that will be used for in-flight training of E-6 Take Charge and Move Out (TACAMO) flight crews. The logistics center is based at Tinker Air Force Base. Link will provide program management, scheduling and quality assurance services, and has contracted with AAR Aircraft Services of Oklahoma City to provide the 737 leases and maintenance support.
Australia's government today confirmed the go-ahead for a range of new military equipment programs, kicking off its biggest defense-spending hike in two decades by tabling a A$12.7 billion (US$6.64 billion) 2001-02 defense budget that includes the first dollop of funds to pay for the upgrades outlined in December's Defense White Paper.
