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+++ First Galileo satellite in orbit +++ Boeing sells over 1000 airliners +++ IATA sees 6 billion Dollar loss for airlines +++ ORBCOMM announces completion of equity financings +++ GP7200 gets FAA certification +++ More orders for A350 +++ Lufthansa announces recruitment drive +++ News in brief +++
First Galileo satellite in orbit
Erster europäischer GPS-Satellit gestartet
The first Galileo demonstrator is in orbit, marking the very first step to full operability of Europe's new global navigation satellite system, under a partnership between ESA and the European Commission (EC). Giove A, the first Galileo in-orbit validation element, was launched on 28 December from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, atop a Soyuz-Fregat vehicle operated by Starsem. Following a textbook lift-off at 05:19 UTC (06:19 CET), the Fregat upper stage performed a series of manoeuvres to reach a circular orbit at an altitude of 23 258 km, inclined at 56 degrees to the Equator, before safely deploying the satellite at 09:01:39 UTC (10:01:39 CET). “Years of fruitful cooperation between ESA and the EC have now provided a new facility in space for improving the life of European citizens on Earth” said ESA Director General Jean Jacques Dordain congratulating ESA and industrial teams on the successful launch.
This 600 kg satellite, built by Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) of Guildford, in the UK, has a threefold mission. First, it will secure use of the frequencies allocated by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for the Galileo system. Second, it will demonstrate critical technologies for the navigation payload of future operational Galileo satellites. Third, it will characterise the radiation environment of the orbits planned for the Galileo constellation. Formerly known as GSTB-V2/A (Galileo System Test Bed Version 2), Giove A carries two redundant, small-size rubidium atomic clocks, each with a stability of 10 nanoseconds per day, and two signal generation units, one able to generate a simple Galileo signal and the other, more representative Galileo signals. These two signals will be broadcast through an L-band phased-array antenna designed to cover all of the visible Earth under the satellite. Two instruments will monitor the types of radiation to which the satellite is exposed during its two year mission.
Subsequently, four operational satellites will be launched to validate the basic Galileo space and related ground segments. Once this In-Orbit Validation (IOV) phase is completed, the remaining satellites will be launched to achieve Full Operational Capability (FOC).
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Boeing sells over 1000 airliners
Rekordvekäufe für Boeing
Boeing recorded 1,002 net commercial airplane orders during 2005, setting a new Boeing record for total orders in a single year. The 2005 total surpasses the previous Boeing record of 877 net orders in 1988, which includes both Boeing and then-McDonnell Douglas totals; the companies merged in 1997. Boeing posted 272 net orders for commercial airplanes in 2004. Gross orders in 2005, which exclude cancellations and conversions, totaled 1,029. Three airplane programs – the 737, 777 and 787 programs -- also achieved individual records with net orders of 569 for 737s, 154 for 777s and 235 for 787s. Previous record totals for these programs were 438 737s in 1996, 116 777s in 2000, and 56 787s in 2004. The 747 and 767 programs also had a very successful sales year with 43 and 15 net new orders, respectively.
Orders finalized since the Dec 20, 2005, update include 68 737, 777 and 787 airplanes for Air India, 20 737s for China Southern Airlines, 10 737s for dba (formerly Deutsche BA), 6 737s for Hainan Airlines, 5 737s for Shanghai Airlines, 4 737s for China Eastern Airlines, 5 737s for Shenzhen Airlines, 4 737s for WestJet, 2 737s for Turkmenistan Airlines, 8 787s for Lcal and 2 787s for Continental Airlines.
In total, more than 72 different customers ordered Boeing airplanes in 2005, including passenger airlines, cargo carriers, leasing companies and private customers. The 2005 totals include 28 aircraft from customers who wish to remain unidentified as of Jan. 4, 2006. “Clearly, 2005 was an incredible year for our customers and for Boeing,” said Alan Mulally, Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and chief executive officer. “We continued to stay focused on bringing efficiency and value to the airlines of the world through world-class services and airplanes that fly passengers how they want to fly -- point-to-point, nonstop, with more frequencies and more choices.” “We also solidified the transformation of our product line, and the market validated our strategy with every order during the year,” said Mulally. “Our new portfolio of airplanes from 100 to 450 seats, combined with our global support services, put us in a great position for the long term.”
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IATA sees 6 billion Dollar loss for airlines
Wieder Verlustjahr für Fluggesellschaften
The international Air Transport Association (IATA) announced traffic results to the end of November 2005. Freight traffic for November showed 2.8% growth over 2004, while passenger traffic grew at 6.1%. For the first 11 months of the year, freight recorded 2.8% growth while passenger traffic was up 7.7%. Passenger load factors for November were 73%. When adjusted for seasonality, November load factors improve to 77.1%, the highest level since December 2003.
"Overall the industry is growing which is good news. But the pace of growth has geared-down a notch as a result of weaker demand from some critical sectors such as IT," said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's Director General and CEO. "Next year we expect freight growth to return to more normal levels in the 6.0% range as the business sectors driving air freight recover—particularly the IT and semi-conductor industries."
"Turning growth into profitability has never been more critical. Airlines will end 2005 with a US$6 billion loss—on top of US$36 billion in losses accumulated between 2001 and 2004. As we battle the high price of fuel, cost efficiency will continue to be a top priority—not only for airlines but for every partner in the value chain including airports and air navigation service providers," said Bisignani. Airlines have reduced non-fuel unit costs by 14% since 2001. As a result the break-even price of oil has risen from US$22/barrel (Brent) in 2003 to US$48/barrel (Brent) in 2005. Based on continued cost reduction and an oil price of US$53/barrel (down from US$54.5 in 2005) airlines are expected to return a loss of US$4.3 billion in 2006. "We will only see profitability in 2007 when we expect a return of US$6.2 billion. This is a net profit margin of 1.5%, not even enough to cover the cost of capital and nowhere near recovering the billions lost since 2001. A long and difficult agenda for change involving all partners is still ahead of us," said Bisignani.
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ORBCOMM announces completion of equity financings
Neue Mittel für ORBCOMM
OHB Technology affiliated company ORBCOMM, Dulles, Va., United States, a global satellite telecommunications company, announced that it has completed equity financings totaling over $110 million led by Pacific Corporate Group (PCG), which committed $60 million. New investors, in addition to PCG, include investment firms MH Equity Investors and Torch Hill Capital. Several existing investors also contributed to these financings including Ridgewood Capital, OHB Technology AG, Northwood Ventures and senior management. In this round, OHB Technology AG invested a further $4 million and thus took a larger share of the equity issue than its pro rata share of the existing investors. Following the completion of the equity issue, OHB will hold a 11% stake in ORBCOMM.
“This latest investment, with significant contributions from Pacific Corporate Group, a top-tier firm, further validates the uniqueness of our technology and our ability to bring cost-effective, high-quality infrastructure and asset tracking satellite services to businesses that have assets located anywhere in the world,” said Jerry Eisenberg, CEO of ORBCOMM. “This new funding allows us to accelerate our satellite replenishment program in order to support our rapidly growing customer base and offer new products and services. Attracting such high-quality investors reflects their belief in our ability to deliver significant value to our customers, our resellers and our hardware partners.”
Proceeds from the financings will be used primarily to fund ORBCOMM's next generation satellite program, which will replenish the existing 30 satellites in ORBCOMM's low-earth orbit constellation and upgrade the network's infrastructure over the next few years. These next generation satellites will have unique features and additional capabilities, which will allow ORBCOMM and its partners to offer new products and services. Following the final stages of a competitive bidding process, ORBCOMM anticipates signing contracts early in 2006 with vendors who will partner on the first deployment of this satellite replenishment program.
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GP7200 gets FAA certification
Zulassung für Engine Alliance GP7200
The U. S. Federal Aviation Administration granted airworthiness certification on December 29, 2005 to the Engine Alliance GP7200 engine, the leading powerplant for the Airbus A380. The FAR (Federal Aviation Regulation) 33 certification follows an extensive ground and flight-test program that involved eight engines over 21 months. During its development and certification program the GP7200 ran some 7,000 cycles, 25 full-scale engine certification tests and more than 50 component tests, and powered two flight-test programs on a flying test bed. The engine is initially certified at 76,500 pounds of thrust and has the capability to produce over 81,500 pounds with the same bill of material. During its certification program the engine was tested at thrust levels in excess of 94,000 pounds.
The Alliance delivered four flight-test engines to Airbus in September that will soon be installed on an A380 flight-test aircraft. First flight will take place later this year with entry into service at Emirates in 2007. The GP7200 is derived from two successful engines, the GE90 and the PW4000, incorporating all the lessons learned from millions of flight hours and benefiting from the two programs' latest, proven technologies. The GP7200 will ensure the A380 meets stringent Stage 4 noise regulations and QC2 departure noise rules, and its emissions are well below current and anticipated regulations. The GP7200 holds the market share lead with 55% of announced firm engine orders for the A380. In addition to Emirates, which has purchased or leased a total of 45 A380s, other Engine Alliance customers include Air France, FedEx, Korean Air and International Lease Finance Corporation.
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More orders for A350
A350: Weitere Bestellungen
After an extensive evaluation of the competing next generation of long haul aircraft, Bangkok Airways has announced its decision to acquire six Airbus A350s for operation on new long range services from Thailand to Europe commencing in 2012. The airline currently operates a fleet of seventeen jet and turboprop aircraft on a network of services to exotic tourist destinations in Thailand and across Asia. The fleet includes three leased A320s, which are deployed on services from Bangkok to destinations in China and Japan.
Eurofly has signed a contract with Airbus for the purchase of three A350-800s with three more on option, and becomes the Italian launch customer for Airbus' new 250 – 300 seat long range airliner. Eurofly is also leasing two additional A330-200s, bringing its total fleet of the type to five. This transaction is part of Eurofly's expansion plan to reinforce its widebody fleet on long range destinations. The A350s are to be delivered from 2013, and will be used by the Italian airline to pioneer additional long haul flights, connecting Italian airports with attractive holiday destinations in the Caribbean, Africa, America and Asia, and to operate direct flights between Rome, Naples, Palermo, Bologna and New York.
The decision by Bangkok Airways took total firm orders and commitments for the new Airbus A350 to 170 aircraft from 13 customers.
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Lufthansa announces recruitment drive
Neue Jobs bei LH
Lufthansa will recruit a total of 2,400 new employees in 2006. Most of the growth will occur in operational areas, with the company requiring 1,420 flight attendants and 220 ground staff to provide passenger handling services at its Frankfurt and Munich hubs. In the new year, 180 pilot students and 330 trainees will begin their professional training at Lufthansa. In addition, the Lufthansa Group will offer 250 university graduates and experienced academics in the fields of engineering, IT and commerce an opportunity to join the company. Once again, Lufthansa has shown that even in economically difficult times it is a reliable and attractive employer. In fact, graduates rate Lufthansa among the top ten employers in Germany. The first of the 1,420 future flight attendants will start their nine-week training course in January, after which they will be deployed on European and long-haul routes from Frankfurt and Munich. Lufthansa offers its staff a wide variety of attractive working time arrangements. For example, flight attendants can opt for seasonal contracts from May to October, while ground staff can work for three or four days a week. Lufthansa's recognised pilot training programme, which takes just two years, prepares and qualifies pilots for a fascinating career. Training takes place at Lufthansa Flight Training in Bremen as well as in Phoenix, Arizona.
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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) recently delivered of its first two production T-50 advanced jet trainer aircraft to the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF). Designated KAI-1 and KAI-2, these aircraft are the first deliveries to a customer since the award of the production contract just 24 months ago. Pilots received the aircraft on behalf of the ROKAF after the historical acceptance flights. "The T-50 is an incredible aircraft. Its capabilities and technological advances have exceeded my every expectation. We could not have made a better choice for a lead-in fighter trainer and light combat aircraft," said Maj. Jin-youn Kim, ROKAF test pilot in the 52nd Squadron at Sacheon, after his acceptance flight. The T-50 program's transition from a robust flight testing program to production and now delivery signifies the well proven design and maturity of the aircraft, validating the completion of its development. "The on-time delivery of these aircraft to the ROKAF is an important milestone for both KAI and our customer. We are very proud that we achieved our commitment to them with an on-time delivery with no deficiencies noted. Our employees are proud of this accomplishment. It shows the dedication and pride they have in this great product. We continue to meet or exceed our customer's expectation," said Hae joo Chung, CEO and President of KAI. In addition to these two aircraft, KAI will deliver another eight aircraft to the ROKAF in 2006, and one per month afterward.
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Air Deccan placed a firm order with Airbus for 30 more A320s on 22nd December, taking its firm orders for the type to 62 aircraft. Each Airbus A320 will seat 180 passengers in a single-class layout, with wider seats than competing single-aisle aircraft. A choice of engines has yet to be announced. “We need more aircraft to respond to the tremendous growth in air traffic that we are experiencing in India,” says Air Deccan CEO and founding Managing Director Captain G.R.Gopinath, “and the Airbus A320, with its first-class economics, modern design and proven reliability, is the natural choice for low-cost carriers such as us.” Bangalore-based Air Deccan was India's first low-cost carrier, and began flying Airbus A320s in 2004. It now flies Airbus A320s and ATR 42s and 72s to more destinations in India than any other airline.
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Raytheon has closed an agreement with Flight Options International to purchase its remaining equity in Flight Options, LLC, a fractional jet service provider. Prior to this agreement, Raytheon had a 97.6% ownership stake in Flight Options, LLC. This equity purchase makes Flight Options, LLC a wholly-owned subsidiary of Raytheon Company. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
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Boeing and Avion Group, based in Iceland, have signed a contract for the purchase of four 777 Freighters. The airplanes are in addition to an order for four 777 Freighters that Avion Group placed with Boeing last September. The four new orders were previously posted as unidentified on Boeing's Orders & Deliveries website. The new cargo planes will be operated by Avion Group's subsidiary, wet-lease operator Air Atlanta Icelandic.
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The crew onboard the International Space Station are looked forward to celebrating New Year's Day after spending a quiet Christmas 225 miles above the Earth. On Sunday, Expedition 12 Commander Bill McArthur and Flight Engineer Valery Tokarev spoke with their families, friends and co-workers. They also feasted on a meal including Russian soup, bread and fish. They opened gifts, including a Russian Santa Claus matryoshka doll, and chocolates. The gifts arrived last Friday in a recent cargo shipment. The crew took Monday off in observance of Christmas and will take next Monday off for New Year's. They plan to ring in 2006 with another Russian meal. The crew unloaded almost three tons of equipment and supplies from the Progress. The crew also logged their food intake and collected urine samples as part of a medical study to understand ways to prevent kidney stones in weightlessness. The unpiloted Russian Progress cargo craft had linked up automatically to the station's Pirs Docking Compartment at approximately 2:46 p.m. EST. The Progress was launched Wednesday from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The Progress holds 1,940 pounds of propellant for the station's Russian thrusters; 183 pounds of back up oxygen and air for the Russian Elektron system; and 463 pounds of water to augment onboard supplies. More than 3,000 pounds of spare parts, experiment hardware, life support components and holiday gifts round out the cargo.
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The Raytheon Aircraft produced T-1A Advanced Military Trainer aircraft reached the one million flight hour mark with the U.S. government. The T-1A aircraft is a missionized version of the Beechjet Model 400A and was first delivered to the USAF in January 1992. The Beechjet was modified to improve the utility of the airplane in its military role as a primary training platform that is used by Air Force student pilots entering the Air Education & Training Command Airlift/Tanker track. As an advanced phase Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training (SUPT) trainer, the T-1A provides specialized pilot training in transition, navigation and mission familiarization roles. The civilian version of the T-1A, the Beechjet Model 400A, has now been upgraded and renamed the Hawker 400XP with over 500 in service worldwide.
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According to Mr. Serik Turzhanov, head of "KazCosmos", Kazakhstan's National Space Company, the country launched its first communications satellite "KazSat" on December 29, 2005. The satellite will contained 10-12 Ku-band transponders and will provide television broadcasting, permanent satellite communications and data transmission. The satellite will cover Central Asia, Turkmenistan, Caucasus, South-Eastern Moldova, Ukraine and the Moscow suburbs. Once the satellite is launched, national satellite communication providers will be able to shift to KazSat. The Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Mr. Akhmetov noted that "the exploitation of KazSat resources by domestic communications providers will allow Kazakhstan to become more independent from international satellite organizations and provide the country with budget savings." Moreover, the satellite communication channels will be rented to communication providers from other CIS countries. Kazakhstan's geostationary satellite, KazSat, was designed and constructed by the National Center of Satellite Communications of Kazakhstan together with the Russian Khrunichev Center which is the directing agency of the project. Kazakhstan spent USD $ 60 million to construct and launch its first national geostationary satellite.
Space projects of Kazakhstan
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UAL Corporation, the holding company whose primary subsidiary is United Airlines, announced that all the classes of creditors voting on its Plan of Reorganization have accepted the Plan. "We are pleased to have received this support for our Plan from our creditors. These results validate our efforts to develop an exit plan that is in the best interests of all of our stakeholders and maintains our strong momentum toward emerging from Chapter 11 in February," said Glenn Tilton, United's Chairman, CEO and President.
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Union representatives of the Delta pilots, a unit of the Air Line Pilots Association, announced that by a 58 to 42% margin, their membership voted to ratify an interim agreement that will defer proceedings on Delta's effort to reject the pilot working agreement. In accordance with the timeline of the approved agreement, the Union and the Company will commit their resources and representatives to reach a comprehensive follow-on agreement. The deadline for the membership to ratify a comprehensive agreement is March 22, 2006. The interim agreement ratified puts a hold on Delta management's motion to reject the pilot working agreement in bankruptcy. Should the union negotiating committee be unable to reach a tentative comprehensive agreement with management, or if either of two contractually specified deadlines pass without ratification, management's Section 1113 motion will be heard before a third party neutral panel. Chairman Lee Moak states in a letter to pilots, "While I am hopeful that a comprehensive agreement can be obtained, our position on a rejected contract has not changed. We will not work willingly without a contract." The 86% voter turnout was high. The narrow 58-42 margin reflected the pilot group's anger over the concession request, which came less than a year after the union granted a controversial, $5 Billion concession package in an effort to help Delta avoid bankruptcy. Concerns were also expressed over management's failure to outline a plan that demonstrated how further sacrifices would insure Delta's financial future.
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ExpressJet Holdings announced it received notice from Continental Airlines of its intention to reduce by 69 the number of aircraft ExpressJet will operate for Continental under the companies' capacity purchase agreement. As announced by Continental, the withdrawal of aircraft from the agreement is expected to begin in January 2007 and be completed during summer 2007. ExpressJet has nine months to decide whether it will retain the 69 aircraft or return the aircraft to Continental. In the meantime, Continental announced its intention to request proposals from other regional carriers to replace the service for them beginning in January 2007. As previously announced, ExpressJet and Continental are still negotiating rates for 2006. Continental has agreed to continue paying ExpressJet at December 2005 rates until an agreement is reached. Any agreement to revise the current rate structure will be retroactive to January 1, 2006. Because of the uncertainties attending these negotiations, the company will not provide any disclosures regarding the progress of the negotiations.
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Russia has launched three new satellites for its Global Navigation Satellite System, or GLONASS. A Proton lifted off on 25 December at Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome at 0507 GMT (12:07 a.m. EST). The launcher included a Block-DM upper stage that performed several burns to place the three craft in the desired circular orbit almost 12,000 miles in altitude and inclined 64.8 degrees before releasing them into space at 0839 GMT (3:39 a.m. EST), a report from RIA Novosti said. The payload consisted of two upgraded GLONASS satellites, which feature longer service lives of seven years, while also substantially increasing the precision of positioning data produced using the constellation. The third spacecraft is an older model with an anticipated lifetime of three years. Once operational, each 3,000-pound satellite will enter service to provide exact positioning, velocity, and timing information to millions of users around the world, including the Russian armed forces.
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ESA's SMART-1 spacecraft has been surveying the Moon's surface in visible and near-infrared light using a new technique, never before tried in lunar orbit. For the last few months, the Advanced Moon Imaging Experiment (AMIE) on board SMART-1, has been opening new ground by attempting multi-spectral imaging in the 'push-broom' mode. This technique is particularly suited to colour imaging of the lunar surface. In this mode, AMIE takes images along a line on the Moon's surface perpendicular to the ground track of the spacecraft. It relies on the orbital motion of the spacecraft to reposition it as it records a sequence of images known as an 'image swath'. The AMIE camera on board SMART-1 has fixed-mounted filters which see the Moon in different colour bands. The figure shows four consecutive images taken by AMIE from left to right. The fixed filters are indicated by coloured frames.
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Raytheon Aircraft is being awarded a $268,994,493.60 commercial firm-fixed price contract modification. This action provides for Lot 13 option exercise, JPATS T-6A production aircraft Lot 13 (54 aircraft) for FY06, and Retrofit Material Kit B option exercise. This work will be complete by February 2009.
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Back in 1973, the 1553 multiplex data bus was the wave of the future for military aircraft. It replaced bulky equipment in passing data between sensors, computers, indicators and other aircraft equipment. It reduced weigh and was simpler and more flexible. That was more than 30 years ago. The old data bus can not handle the task of relaying data for today's sophisticated warfighting systems. Think of a data bus as a two-lane highway. Now try to get to work on that two-lane highway when there is six lanes worth of traffic. To solve that problem, the Aging Aircraft Systems Squadron here it testing a more robust 1553 data bus. It is a solution that will benefit warfighters from all of the services as it leads to more capable combat aircraft and ground equipment. "We've been working with (the Air Force Research Laboratory), the Air Logistics Center at Tinker AFB, Okla., and our own engineers," said Orlando Cortes, lead engineer, "to acquire and test what we call an 'extended' or more robust 1553 data bus." The new data bus -- encompassed in either a computer card or chip set -- enables anaircraft to shuttle 200 megabits of data per second back and forth between its sytems. Current data rates are only one megabit per second. The new data bus has an average error rate of one bit in a trillion, much lower than the old model. That provides a performance boost, because correcting errors in today's high-performance networks costs more resources than in older networks, said William Wilson, the Aeronautical Systems Center Engineering Directorate's technical auhtority for the squadron.
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The French DGA on Dec. 20, 2005 awarded Eurocopter a contract for the acquisition and in-service support of five EC 135 helicopters which will be operated by the Customs Service's maritime patrol units. These helicopters, which will replace the Ecureuils currently in service, will be delivered in the course of 2007. The contract is valued at 40 million euros. The EC 135s will be fitted with gyro-stabilized sensors allowing the detection and identification of maritime targets by day and night in all weather and geographical conditions. They will strengthen the Customs Service's operational capabilities for maritime patrol and anti-smuggling missions, and to efficiently carry out a range of public service missions such as search and rescue and anti-pollution.
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EADS-Space Transportation and EUROPROPULSION (50% Avio and 50% Safran) signed a contract for the production of 30 pairs of boosters for the European Ariane 5 Launcher. The contract has a total value of about EUR 900 million, of which EUR 400 million is part of a subcontract with Avio for the production of components of cutting-edge technology for the boosters, such as the solid-fuel propellant, thermal protection and igniters. Avio has the complete responsibility for the performance of the boosters, which guarantee 90% of the thrust at launching and for over two minutes until their release, which takes place at a height of 65 km and a speed of Mach 3. “This, for Avio, is the most important contract regarding the space activities, during the last few years,” said Pier Giuliano Lasagni, Head of Avio's Space Division. “This signing ensures the Ariane production over the next five years, starting from the January launch, and an important confirmation of the confidence in the commercial success of Ariane 5.”
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Sikorsky Aircraft announced that it has received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification for its S-76C++ helicopter. Since being certified, two C++ aircraft have already been delivered. The inaugural C++ aircraft went to Petroleum Helicopters Inc. (PHI) and will be used for offshore oil support and employee transfer missions. In total there are over 60 S-76C++ helicopters on order. First announced at the Heli-Expo trade show in February 2005 as a series of engine, air vehicle, interior and avionics upgrades the new S-76C++ helicopter will make way for a set of additional product improvements that will lead to the launch of the new S-76D model in 2008.
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The U.S. government awarded a $99.7 million contract to Lockheed Martin on December 27 for long-lead tasks related to the production of 30 new Advanced Block 52+ aircraft for Greece. The governments of Greece and the United States signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) for the aircraft earlier in December. The new order includes 20 single-place F-16Cs and 10 two-place F-16Ds. The LOA provides Greece an option for an additional 10 aircraft. The new aircraft will supplement the existing fleet of Hellenic Air Force (HAF) F-16s and continue the modernization of the HAF. The total program value for the initial 30 aircraft is approximately $2 billion, with Lockheed Martin's portion estimated at about $1.2 billion.
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Max-Viz President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Tuttle announced that Montreal based Canadian Helicopters, Ltd. has selected the Max-Viz EVS-1000 Enhanced Vision System for its helicopter operations. Canadian Helicopters, Ltd. operates numerous type helicopters throughout Canada with services including Emergency Medical Service (EMS), Forestry, Utility, Mining, Construction, Police and Filming.
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The U.S. Air Force's RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial reconnaissance system, built by Northrop Grumman, recently passed the 5,000 combat flight-hours mark while on a mission supporting the global war on terrorism. Deployed almost immediately following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles have been flying nearly continuous combat missions since 2001. The system has now flown 233 missions, 157 of them by a single Global Hawk. Collectively, the family of Global Hawk aircraft has accumulated more than 8,000 total flight hours. "The high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned reconnaissance system has performed exceptionally well in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, providing image intelligence for hundreds of time-sensitive targets," said George Guerra, director of Northrop Grumman's Air Force Global Hawk program. "It not only flies preprogrammed missions, but can also be re-tasked in just minutes to locate new targets. Global Hawk proved early-on its unique value, reliability and flexibility as an intelligence asset."
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FLYi, Inc., parent of low-fare airline Independence Air, announced today that because of the continued financial challenges facing the company, it will voluntarily discontinue all scheduled flights planned to depart after 7:00pm on the evening of Thursday, January 5th. The company is seeking bankruptcy court approval to automatically refund customers with reservations for flights scheduled to depart beyond that time. Customers with roundtrip reservations for trips departing before the cessation of operations (including those customers who have already departed) but were scheduled to return afterwards will be contacted by Independence Air and offered the opportunity to change their return reservations to one of the remaining days of operation. All change fees will be waived for changes made by phone. The company is also seeking bankruptcy court approval to automatically refund customers for those return flights that are not rescheduled. No refunds will be offered for free tickets or vouchers. Independence Air Chairman and CEO Kerry Skeen said, "While we've been clear in reminding everyone that this was a possibility, we remained optimistic that there would be a way to avoid reaching this juncture. To date there has not been a firm offer put forward that meets the financial criteria necessary to continue operations as is. Therefore, we are voluntarily discontinuing scheduled service as of Thursday evening.
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Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., is being awarded an $11,041,184 firm-fixed-price delivery order against a previously awarded basic ordering agreement for nonrecurring retrofit efforts in support of Engineering Change Proposal 4010 for correction of operational deficiencies in the MH-60S aircraft. Lockheed Martin awarded $16M contract for MH-60S engineering services Lockheed Martin Systems Integration-Owego, Owego, N.Y., is being awarded a $16,405,000 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee contract for non-recurring engineering services in support of MH-60S Airborne Mine Countermeasures Common Console Technology Insertion Effort.
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Data Link Solutions (DLS), a BAE SYSTEMS/Rockwell Collins company, has been selected by the Canadian Forces to provide Multi-Functional Information Distribution System (MIDS) Low Volume Terminals (LVT) as part of their Fleet Modernization Program, incorporating Link 16 capability into their CF-18 Hornet aircraft fleet. Under the terms of the contract, which runs through 2007, DLS will deliver MIDS LVTs under U.S. Foreign Military Sales procurement. Selection criteria were based on terminal price, ability to deliver on time, terminal reliability, commitment to life cycle support and commitment to Canadian Industrial Benefits. The approximate value of the contract is in excess of $22.7 million USD. The incorporation of the MIDS Link 16 capabilities provides the Canadian Forces CF-18 aircraft with a significant situational awareness enhancement and ensures interoperability with NATO and other coalition forces.
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Bombardier Aerospace announced that Caribbean Aircraft Leasing (BVI) Limited has signed a contract to acquire a new Bombardier Q300 50-seat turboprop airliner. The order was placed two months after Bombardier announced Caribbean Aircraft Leasing's initial order for three Q300 aircraft. The contract is valued at approximately $16.3 million US. The four Q300 aircraft will be operated either by Caribbean Aircraft Leasing regional airline affiliates Caribbean Star Airlines Limited, based in Antigua, or Caribbean Sun Airlines Inc., based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. They will join the two airlines' existing fleet of 12 Bombardier 37-seat Dash 8/Q Series 100 and seven 50-seat Dash 8/Q Series 300 aircraft.
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Laser systems built by Northrop Grumman for the Missile Defense Agency's Airborne Laser (ABL) continue to post solid progress with the completion of power and duration testing of the megawatt-class chemical laser and delivery of the Beacon Illuminator Laser (BILL). The Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (COIL) is the world's most powerful directed energy weapon built for an airborne environment. The BILL, a high-power, solid-state laser, is essential to ABL's beam control/fire control system that “steers” COIL's beam as it propagates toward a target at 186,000 miles per second, the speed of light. Successful COIL tests at the Systems Integration Laboratory at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., produced the required levels of power and run-time necessary to destroy a missile during its 'boost phase.' The laboratory was built specifically to house the ABL testbed, a discarded Boeing 747-200 fuselage. Almost simultaneously, the Beacon Illuminator Laser was shipped to The Boeing Company's facility in Wichita, Kan., where the BILL will undergo testing and integration onto the ABL YAL-1A flight aircraft.
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As part of ongoing Total Force initiatives, the Air Force, the National Guard Bureau and the Adjutant General of California announced today that the California Air National Guard's 163rd Air Refueling Wing, March Air Reserve Base, CA, will become the home for a new MQ-1 Predator Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) unit. This important Air Force transformational mission converts the 163rd Air Refueling Wing to the 163rd Wing, and represents another example of the Air National Guard leveraging the unique talents of its units and Airmen to provide support to global operations with its Total Force partners – the Air Force and Air Force Reserve.
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USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) departed San Diego Jan. 4 on a deployment to conduct naval operations in support of the global war on terrorism, as well as national and theater cooperative security commitments in the western Pacific. This will be the maiden deployment for the Navy's newest Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. “During both COMPTUEX (Composite Unit Training Exercise) and JTFEX (Joint Task Force Exercise), Ronald Reagan and CVW (Carrier Air Wing) 14 proved to be a formidable fighting force,” said Rear Adm. Michael H. Miller, Ronald Reagan Strike Group commander.
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The joint NASA/Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales TOPEX/Poseidon oceanography satellite ceased operations after nearly 62,000 orbits of Earth. The spacecraft lost its ability to maneuver, bringing to a close a successful 13-year mission. "TOPEX/Poseidon revolutionized the study of Earth's oceans, providing the first continuous, global coverage of ocean surface topography and allowing us to see important week-to-week oceanic variations," said Mary Cleave, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. "Its data made a huge difference in our understanding of the oceans and their affect on global climatic conditions." TOPEX/Poseidon data have helped in hurricane and El Nino/La Nina forecasting, ocean and climate research, ship routing, offshore industries, fisheries management, marine mammals' research, modernizing global tide models and ocean debris tracking. "TOPEX/Poseidon was built to fly up to five years, but it became history's longest Earth-orbiting radar mission," said TOPEX/Poseidon Project Scientist Lee-Lueng Fu of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif. "It provided, on average, more than 98 percent of the science data it was designed to collect in every 10-day measurement cycle, a remarkable achievement."
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Northrop Grumman newest fiber optic gyro inertial navigation system, the LN-260, has been selected by the U.S. Air Force as an avionics upgrade for the F-16 Multinational Fighter Program aircraft fleet. "The Northrop Grumman LN-260 provides high reliability and improved aircraft navigation and targeting capabilities as a retrofit upgrade to existing aircraft and new production aircraft," said Mark Casady, vice president of navigation and positioning systems at Northrop Grumman's Navigation Systems Division. "Benefiting from low-noise fiber-optic-gyro technologies, the LN-260 eliminates the self-induced acceleration and velocity noise experienced by dithered laser-gyro systems, resulting in greatly reduced target location errors (TLE) and improved synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery."
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Piaggio Aero Industries delivered on 23 December 2005 the first P180 Avanti II to a private Swiss customer. The aircraft (Serial Number 105), configured for seven passengers, will enter service this month, providing corporate and private flights from Lugano Agno Airport under a newly registered name, Fly Wings. “We are delighted to present the first Avanti II into Switzerland with Fly Wings as we welcome in the New Year,” said Piaggio Aero CEO Jose di Mase. “It is the culmination of much hard work and dedication by our designers and engineers in Genoa and close collaboration with Rockwell Collins.” The Avanti II, certificated by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in October 2005, boasts enhanced digital avionics, engines, speed, payload and cabin comfort. The Avanti II's flightdeck features Rockwell Collins' Pro Line 21 avionics with three 10” x 8” liquid crystal adaptive flight displays; an FMS 3000 flight management system and the AHS 3000 attitude heading reference system.
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International Launch Services (ILS) wrapped up a successful year on 29 December with the launch of its Proton Breeze M vehicle carrying the AMC-23 communications satellite. This was the seventh mission of the year for ILS, a Lockheed Martin joint venture that markets satellite launches on the Russian-built Proton vehicle as well as the American Atlas rocket. The Proton launcher lifted off at 8:28 a.m. today local time at the Baikonur space center (9:28 p.m. Wednesday EST, 02:28 today GMT). After about nine hours and 20 minutes, the satellite separated from the Breeze M upper stage and entered a transfer orbit. Following a few weeks of maneuvers and in-orbit tests, the satellite will provide services throughout the Pacific Ocean region. "This launch continues the 100 percent success record of the Proton Breeze M vehicle," said ILS President Mark Albrecht. "Our thanks to Alcatel Alenia Space and SES Americom for once again having the confidence that ILS would deliver the satellite safely into orbit."
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NetJets, the worldwide leader in private aviation solutions, announced that Bill Boisture has resigned as president of NetJets Aviation and will be retained as a consultant to NetJets Inc., under a long-term agreement. NetJets also stated that Boisture, who has formed W. Boisture & Associates LLC, will support and assist the company on several strategic projects. Since arriving at NetJets in October 2003, Boisture has focused on high priority projects and processes at NetJets Aviation, the core of NetJets' business and its largest company.
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The root cause of the CryoSat failure on October 8, 2005 has been unambiguously identified and corrective measures for Rockot`s return-to-flight are now under way for the safe launch of Kompsat-2 in the second quarter of 2006, as agreed between the Korea Aerospace Research Institute and Eurockot Launch Services. Human error and not an inherent design flaw of the launch vehicle caused the failure. On October 8, 2005 the launch of ESA's CryoSat satellite on board a Rockot launch vehicle had ended in failure. Due to an anomaly towards the end of the planned 2nd stage operations and approximately five minutes after lift-off, the launch vehicle had automatically terminated its mission. The combined stack of the launch vehicle (2nd, 3rd stage) and the CryoSat spacecraft had impacted into the Arctic Ocean. A Russian State Commission including members from Khrunichev (the Launch Vehicle contractor), Khartron (the Control System subcontractor), the Russian Federal Space Agency, Space Forces as well as Russian industrial representatives was convened immediately after the mishap. Its investigation work has been concluded by issuing a commission report including recommendations. A summary of the findings of the Russian State Commission final report was presented to Eurockot and ESA on November 3, 2005 in Moscow. In parallel to the Russian State Commission investigation, a Eurockot Failure Review Board was formed to review the Russian State Commission investigation results as well as its conclusions and recommendations. This resulted in an independent report, drawing its own conclusions and recommendations. The board was co-chaired by Eurockot and Khrunichev senior managers and comprised of experts from Eurockot, Khrunichev and EADS Space Transportation. The European Space Agency (ESA), to whom the CryoSat satellite belongs, participated within the Eurockot Board as observers. The launch failure was ultimately caused by the 2nd stage main engine not being shut down at the correct time, leading to an engine burn until the propellants were depleted. Due to this incorrect shut down, an engine failure occurred resulting in a lateral force on the launch vehicle. This resulted in unstable flight causing the vehicle flight angles to exceed allowable limits. In accordance with the flight programme, the on-board computer automatically terminated the mission at 308s into the flight. As a consequence, the 2nd stage was not separated from the 3rd stage and the 3rd stage main engine was not ignited. The whole stack of 2nd stage, 3rd stage and CryoSat spacecraft dropped within the nominal drop area of the second stage.Analysis of the telemetry data indicates that the 1st stage performed nominally. The 2nd stage performed nominally until main engine shut down was to occur. Telemetry records show that the command to shut down the 2nd stage main engine by the on-board computer was generated correctly. However for this shut down command to be carried out, a further condition must be met. This requires that the pressurisation of the low pressure tank of the 3rd stage Breeze be fully completed before the shut down command can be carried out. Due to human error, the completion time of the pressurisation sequence for the CryoSat launch was erroneously specified and occurred after the shut down command was generated and therefore it was not carried out. In nominal mission cases, this 3rd stage pressurisation is completed well before the 2nd stage main engine shut down command is generated. This error had also not been identified by existing verification and testing procedures. The Eurockot Review Board concurs fully with the Russian State Commission's findings of the root cause. Furthermore the Eurockot Review Board fully agrees with the Russian State Commission's proposed return-to-flight measures. In summary, four aspects will be improved and implemented for return-to-flight. Firstly, the pressurisation timeline will in the future be constrained within a fixed window within the overall mission timeline. Improved and more thorough verification procedures will be introduced when generating the mission timeline input data both at Khrunichev and the control system subcontractor Khartron. Additionally improved testing during 'electronic launch' simulation at the Control System subcontractor shall be introduced. Finally, the Eurockot Review Board has recommended that further measures be undertaken to provide improved visibility of mission peculiar aspects of future missions. The Eurockot Review Board will monitor that these return-to-flight measures and their resulting action items have been correctly implemented in a series of project meetings and reviews prior to the next launch of Rockot, which is for the Kompsat-2 spacecraft in 2Q 2006. Furthermore, the Russian State Commission, as part of the Flight and Launch Readiness Reviews for the Kompsat-2 launch, will formally provide the go-ahead for launch. The Kompsat-2 launch will be followed by the ESA missions GOCE, SMOS and Proba-2 in 2007, in which year Eurockot will also launch an earth observation satellite for an undisclosed customer.
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AirTran Airways reported record traffic results for the full year 2005 as well as December 2005 and the fourth quarter. For the year, AirTran Airways traffic increased 33.3 percent over 2004 on a 28.3 percent increase in capacity. The airline served a record 16,638,214 customers during 2005 -- a 26.3 percent increase year-over-year. The airline set new annual records for traffic, capacity and passenger enplanements. "The AirTran brand continues to demonstrate strength as we expand our network and fleet," said Robert Fornaro, president and COO. "Our unit revenue performance is strong and we look forward to carrying these positive trends into 2006 as the industry capacity rationalizes, particularly along the East Coast." AirTran Airways' traffic grew by 28.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2005, compared to the same period in 2004 on 25.0 percent capacity growth. The airline served a record 4,388,198 customers during the fourth quarter of 2005, a 27.1 percent increase year-over-year.
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Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors, Akron, Ohio is being awarded a cost reimbursable contract to build and demonstrate the technical feasibility and military utility of the High Altitude Airship. Under this contract, Lockheed Martin will develop an unmanned and untethered prototype airship with the requirement of remaining on station for one continuous month at a nominal cruise altitude. This prototype vehicle will also have a minimum payload capacity of 500 pounds with 3 kW of power. The total contract effort is estimated at $149,220,102.
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The United States Air Force will reactivate the historic 65th Aggressor Squadron Jan. 12 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. In a letter sent out to Airmen, Gen. T. Michael Moseley, Air Force chief of staff, cited the history of the unit as “legendary” and said the aggressors will “directly contribute to the combat capability of our Airmen.” “The 65th and other Aggressor units will provide realistic adversary training in air, space and information operations that make us even better,” said Gen. Moseley. “Their training will keep us innovative as we fight this Global War on Terror and defend this great Nation in the face of modern threats and tactics that continue to proliferate.” The squadron was last active in 1989 when it operated F-5E Tiger II aircraft. The unit will stand up with nine F-15C Eagles, which will be expanded to include a total of 24 fighters. Once active, the the 65th Aggressor Squadron will fly alongside the F-16s of the 64th Aggressor Squadron as part of our Air Force's advanced composite force training team.
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NASA and its international partners have selected astronaut Jeffrey Williams and Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov as the next crew for the International Space Station, designated as Expedition 13. Williams is a U.S. Army colonel and veteran of one space flight. He will serve as Expedition 13 flight engineer and NASA science officer. He flew aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis as a mission specialist in May 2000 on a 10-day space station assembly mission. Vinogradov, a veteran of one long-duration spaceflight, will command Expedition 13. He flew aboard a Soyuz spacecraft to the Russian Mir Space Station as flight engineer for the 24th resident crew in 1997, a 198-day mission. During the mission, he performed five spacewalks.
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Arianespace once again confirmed its global leadership in 2005 as it signed seven new launch contracts, while subsidiary Starsem added two more. Since its creation, Arianespace has signed 267 launch contracts with 62 international operators, and Starsem has signed 18 contracts. Six out of 10 satellites in orbit today were launched by Arianespace. The company has a backlog of 37 satellites to be launched, while Starsem has five - far and away the largest order book in the industry. Eight launches in 2005: Five for Ariane 5 and three for Starsem, placing 11 satellites in orbit In 2005, Arianespace successfully launched two Ariane 5 ECA and three standard Ariane 5G launchers, placing eight satellites into geostationary transfer orbit. With 21 successful launches and 11 in a row, Europe's Ariane 5 has amply proven its technical maturity. Ariane 5 is the only commercial launcher now on the market capable of launching two payloads at once, thereby delivering greater performance, flexibility and competitiveness to all customers.
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The U.S. Navy has awarded Boeing a long-term performance-based logistics contract valued at $995 million for the F/A-18E/F Integrated Readiness Support Teaming (FIRST) program. In addition to substantial savings, the new contract will allow the U.S. Navy to consolidate the separate contracts the FIRST program currently operates under into a single contract overseen by the Naval Inventory Control Point, NAVICP. The contract also adds features not currently covered, including automated maintenance environment, an integrated software program that improves maintenance data, fault diagnosis and decisions, and integrated electronic technical manuals for F/A-18A-D models.
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NASA will pay Russia $US21.8 million per astronaut for a lift aboard a Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station. The fare is slightly more than the world's first "space tourists" forked out for a ride into space with the Russian craft. With its shuttle fleet grounded and no other vehicles available to serve as space station rescue boats, NASA had no choice but to pay Russia for transportation or abandon the half-built orbital outpost. Congress last year lifted a weapons proliferation ban so NASA could buy Russian space services. The ban was enacted after concerns that Russian technology was helping Iran develop its nuclear program.
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Pilatus is pleased to announce its first PC-12 delivery to Brazil by OceanAir Táxi Aéreo, its exclusive dealer for that country that was appointed March of this year. “The high level of interest in the PC-12 shown by Brazilian customers confirms our belief that there is huge potential for the aircraft in this region”, said José Eduardo Brandão, General Director of OceanAir Táxi Aéreo. The milestone aircraft was delivered in the fourth quarter to Bertin Ltda. It will be based in São Paulo and be used for executive transport, facilitating the needs of Grupo Bertin's cattle business in Brazil.
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“We have certain plans of organizing series production of Ka-62 helicopter in Ulan-Ude. We have already discussed them and have come to an agreement with chairman of the Buryatia Republic government Leonid Potapov,” said OPK Oboronprom general director Denis Manturov on Thursday, during the ceremony of signing of Agreement on cooperation in helicopter industry between united industrial corporation Oboronprom and Buryatia government. According to Mr. Manturov, launching Ka-62 helicopter production on Ulan-Ude aviation plant will need $150 million of investment. “At the moment $60 million has already been invested into this program,” says Manturov. First serial Ka-62 helicopter will be manufactured at Ulan-Ude aviation plant in two or three years. “By the year 2010 we are planning to reach production volume of 30-40 helicopters a year,” reported Mr. Manturov.
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New seats in the Business and Economy Classes will provide a considerable improvement in seating comfort on Lufthansa flights within Germany and Europe as of next spring. With this step the airline is continuing the quality offensive in the European traffic it launched in 2004 which, above all, offers more comfort to passengers in the Business Class. The unoccupied middle seat in this class provides more personal freedom of movement, more privacy for confidential paperwork or undisturbed reading, more room to relax and more storage capacity. The passengers will be offered a new cabin with a contemporary design. Leather seats will still be standard not only in the Business Class, but also in the Economy Class. With their two-colour design and high-quality finish, the new covers will also visually underline Lufthansa's quality claim.
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Just in time for Christmas, Diamond Aircraft Industries is pleased to announce EASA certification for 3 important operational extensions of the DA42 Twin Star. Operation with conventional diesel fuel EN 590; Increase of MTOW (Max Take-Off Weight) to 1,785 kg (3,927 lbs); Approved flight into forecast or known icing conditions : Beginning immediately the DA42 Twin Star can be flown not only with Jet A1, but also with inexpensive automotive diesel or any mixture of both fuels, leading to extremely economical operation. The maximum take-off weight has been increased to 1,785 kg (3,927 lbs) , effectively boosting the useful load by 85 kg (187 lbs). This again extends the mission spectrum of the DA42 Twin Star. The TKS deicing system (ice protection system) is an electrically operated liquid deicing system. Special p orous panels are installed on the leading edges of the wings and horizontal and vertical stabilizers which exude deicing fluid, preventing ice formation. The propellers and the canopy are protected against icing in the same way. A 30 litre (8 gal) tank is installed in the forward luggage compartment, giving an endurance under extreme icing conditions of 2.5 hours. Under normal icing conditions an endurance between 50 - 100 hours is possible.
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