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Week ending June 8, 1997
+++ Lobbying for Eurofighter series preparation investment intensifies +++ Arianespace launches two satellites +++ Lufthansa Technik: Sales and profits up +++ DLR-Chairman Kröll's visions for the future of German aerospace +++ Cryogenic stage of Ariane 5 leaves France for Kourou +++ Raytheon Aircraft unveils Raytheon Travel Air plan +++ Lockheed Martin and Intersputnik co-operate +++ News in brief +++
Lobbying for Eurofighter series preparation investment intensifies
Druck auf Bundesregierung wächst
All week long, the pressure on the German government to come to a positive decision regarding the long-overdue production-investment phase of the Eurofighter EF2000 was mounting in Bonn:- On Monday, a delegation of the Dasa (Daimler-Benz Aerospace) works council was delivering 20000 postcards to the Chancellors office, demanding a speedy decision on the procurement of the new fighter, whose need is acknoledged by all political parties. Works council president Ingrid Lüllmann said that morale at the affected Dasa departments and many of the over 100 subcontractors is low, as fears over further job losses and the eventual closure of factories rises. If there are no positive political signs soon, she indicated that the aerospace workers would probably have to follow their collegues in the coal and steel industries in the staging of large scale protest marches.
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On Wednesday, the BDLI (German aerospace industries association) announced that unless there is a firm signal for a production investment go ahead by the parliamentary summer recess, company funded work on series preparation will stop immediately. "Our patience is running out, we no longer can live on lip-services", said Dr. Eberhard Birke, BDLI-President. This is especially true for the equipment industry comprised mainly of small companies. But even Dasa has now said that 200 million DM or so of investment without any indication of a return is enough. A German withdrawal would not only substantially weakening the German industry in the forthcoming European restructuring process, but would even endanger the Eurofighter project as a whole, as none of the partners has enough money to fill the gap, it was warned.
But Dasa military aircraft top manager Aloysius Rauen confirmed that his company has started discussions with the Government over an earlier repayment of Airbus subsidies to get over the currently perceived one billion DM underfunding from 1997 to 2001. However, he was at a total loss when asked how this transaction could be handled, let alone be put in place in the next weeks. The matter is extremely complicated, as the repayment rules for the various Airbus programmes carry a lot of different conditions and thus hinge on unpredictable things like Dasa Airbus profits, sales prices, Dollar rates, production rates and the like. Nobody can say today what the total liability of Dasa to the Government will be from 2001. Anyway, sources in the industry ministry say that independent auditors are at work to cut through the maze and help to get some reasonable figures on which to base a possible agreement. - Also on Wednesday, the new British minister of defence, George Robertson, was in Bonn. "I hope to get obver the message that an early decision is critical for the success of the project", he said. His German counterpart Volker Rühe tried to get an optimistic tone after the talks, saying that he has reassurances from finance minister Waigel that Eurofighter will figure in the 1998 budget.
- On Friday, British pime minister Tony Blair met chancellor Kohl. He also was pushing for the Eurofighter decision. Blair had said in the House of Commons that the UK needs the new fighter for defence reasons but also because 40000 badly needed jobs are at stake.
Arianespace launches two satellites
Arianespace startet zwei Satelliten
During the night of June 3 to 4, 1997, Arianespace successfully launched the Inmarsat-3F4 satellite for the international organization Inmarsat and Insat-2D for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Both of these operators have been Ariane customers for more than 15 years. Flight 97th was carried out by an Ariane 44L, the most powerful version of the European launcher, with four liquid-propellant strap-on boosters.Inmarsat-3F4 is the fifth satellite launched by an Ariane for Inmarsat and will provide telecommunication services on both sides of the Atlantic. The satellite was built by Lockheed Martin Telecommunications in East Windsor, New Jersey. Insat-2D was designed and built by ISRO in India. It is also the fifth satellite launched by an Ariane. The next Ariane launch (flight 98) is scheduled for June 25th with Intelsat 802.
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Lufthansa Technik: Sales and profits up
Gutes Ergebnis für Lufthansa Technik AG
Lufthansa Technik AG is "very satisfied" with ist 1996 results. The executive board has declared that the company exceeded ist sales and earnings goals for 1996. It achieved a pre-tax profit of 62 million DM (versus 36 million in 1995), strengthened ist position as industry leader in a difficult market and gained new customers. More than that, the company is off to a good start in 1997 with a continuing high degree of utilization of ist capacities, reported executive-board member Dr. Gerald Gallus at the annual press conference in Hamburg. Gallus acknowledged that the good results of the company's second fiscal year were due in part to the stronger US-Dollar. Mainly though, he asserted, they were "clearly a reflection of the success of our own efforts".In 1996 Lufthansa Technik's sales rose by nearly 16 percent to over three billion DM, coming mainly from business with customers, that are not members of the Lufthansa group. Teh sales to these international customers increased by a disproportionately high 21 percent to just under 1,1 billion DM. According to Gallus, this indicated that "our product mix enjoyed complete market acceptance". Sales to customers within the LH-Group were up by 7,7 percent to just under 1,8 billion DM.
Gallus further reported that all investments (totalling 88 million DM) were financed entirely from the company's cash flow of 253 million DM (versus 188 million the year before). That sum also enabled Lufthansa Technik to pay down by 250 million DM (to a remainder of 450 million) the outstanding balance of the intra-group loan from its parent company and sole shareholder, Deutsche Lufthansa AG.
Expenditures for personnel and material also increased but less than sales to 2,241 billion DM. Even so, the former were up by 12,4 percent, the outlay for personnel alona by 6,2 percent. The company had an above-average expense for social-insurance and retirement benefits, owing in large part to the provisions required to cover ist pension plan (79 percent above the previous year's figure). The reason, Gallus explained, was the Growth and Employment-Promotion Law enacted in September of 1996.
Last year, in te docks at ist bases in Hamburg and Berlin LHT overhauled a total of 85 aircraft and repainted 72. Its engine shop overhauled 450 entire engines and more than 4000 engine modules (larger engine subassemblies). Serviced also were more than 68000 instruments and components. The LHT maintenance facility in Frankfurt services the aircarft of some 130 airlines. The company has full technical responsibility for more than 100 aircraft of 27 of ist customers under so-called Total Technical Service-Contracts (TTS). Over 200 airlines worldwide and ooperators of transport aircraft are among ist customers.
Lufthansa Technik's transformation from bein a provider of only MRO services to one offering a more comprehensive package will continue, said Gallus: "We must and shall retain our leading role in shaping the development of our industry", and added "but at the same time it is not acceptable that Original Equipment Manufacturers such as Boeing or General Electric aggressively try to enter the market as supplier and competitor for their own prducts at teh same time. The double strategy behind this is to combine aircraft sales and technical support in one package in order to tie the airlines in longterm-commitments". "The last time we had structures like this, were in the former Sovjet Union", Lufthansa Technik Chairman Dr. Wolfgang Mayrhuber ended the session.
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DLR-Chairman Kröll's visions for the future of German aerospace
DLR-Vorstandsvorsitzender Kröll zur Zukunft der deutschen Luft- und Raumfahrt
Germany should focus on areas in aerospace the country's ressources in industry and research can excel in. This is Professor Walter Kröll's vision of the future. The chairman of the German Aerospace Resaerch Institute DLR thinks some areas have to be given up, because with frozen budgets at the best "some projects we now are following cannot be financed". At a meeting of the German Aerospace Wrtiers' Association (Luftfahrtpresse Club) in Bonn Kröll was optimistic that Germany will be successful with this strategy. With a sound national strategy for better European products that also secure German jobs and a bilateral as well as multilateral European cooperation the challenges of the global aerospace market and the strong American competition could be met, Kröll told the journalists.Combined initiatives the DLR has undertaken with Daimler-Benz Aerospace in aerospace research and development, with the Frankfurt Airport for a unique new Air Traffic Management System are only a few examples for this new strategy, said Kröll.
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Cryogenic stage of Ariane 5 leaves France for Kourou
Die Hauptstufe der Ariane 5 ist auf dem Weg nach Kourou
The main stage of the second Ariane 5 for flight 502 is on its way to Kourou. Aérospatiale, main contractor for the cryogenic stage, has integrated this article at Les Mureaux in France. The stage is 30 m high and has a diameter of 5.4 meters. It is mainly composed of a large tank with two compartments in light alloy. The major part of the tank structure is only 1.7 mm thick. The dry mass of the total stage is 12.5 metric tons, but it will carry more than 157 tons of liquid oxygen and hydrogen at the launch. The stage operates for 600 seconds and will cut off at an altitude between 130 and 420 km, depending on the type of the mission. The Vulcain engine in the main stage supplies 110 metric tons of thrust. The main participants in the construction of the main stage besides Aérospatiale are:
- SEP (France) for the Vulcain engine,
- Cryospace (France) for the cryogenic tank,>
- Fokker (Netherlands) for thrust frame,
- MAN (Germany) for the forward skirt,
- SABCA (Belgium) for the actuator system of the Vulcain engine.
Raytheon Aircraft unveils Raytheon Travel Air plan
Neues Angebot von Raytheon
On June 4, Raytheon Aircraft has introduced Raytheon Travel Air, a news fractional aircraft ownership plan that makes it easy for people to get into business aviation and learn about its advantages first-hand. Customers may choose part-ownership in a Beech King Air B200 twin turboprop, a Beechjet 400A light jet or a Hawker 800XP mid-size jet. The cost to participate in Raytheon Travel Air's program is low. For about $788,000, a customer can purchase a one-fifth share in a brand new King Air B200. A quarter share in a Beechjet 400A will cost $1.513 million, and a quarter share in a Hawker 800XP can be purchased for $2.79 million.
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Lockheed Martin and Intersputnik co-operate
Satelliten-Kooperation zwischen Lockheed und Intersputnik
On June 2, Lockheed Martin announced a joint venture with Russian-based Intersputnik International in a deal that reportedly could be worth $1.5 billion. The new company will be involved in launching satellites that will service mobile phone and television broadcasting projects, an industry whose demand is doubling every five years. Lockheed, in a press release issued in London, said the new company, Lockheed Martin Intersputnik Limited, will first provide broadcast, fixed telecommunications and very small aperture terminal (VSAT) services to customers in Eastern Europe, South Asia, Africa and the newly Independent States.Mel Brashears, the president and chief operating office of Lockheed's Space and Missiles Sector, said services will then expand to include direct-to-home video and audio, and mobile phone services. The company plans to sell and lease the use of the satellites and their signals. The company will be based in London, with marketing offices in Moscow. Industry analysts tell the Wall Street Journal that the joint venture between Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed and Intersputnik, an inter-governmental consortium of 22 nations, could produce annual revenue reaching more than $1.5 billion.
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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN
Fairchild Dornier will switch production of fuselage sectionfor its 328 and 328JET regional airliners from Daewoo in South Korea to OGMA in Portugal. The first aircraft with parts from OGMA will be assembled before the end of 1998, says the company.+++
Aérospatiale has delivered the 100th Ariane launcher to Arianespace. Since 1973 Aérospatiale is the architect of all Ariane launchers. Aérospatiale also builds the first and third stage of the European launcher that has gained market leader position through highest performance and safety margins. Aérospatiale has orders for 140 Ariane launchers with 28 orders for Ariane 1 to 3 already launched, and 96 Ariane 4, 67 of which have been launched.
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Cosmos Air in Mannheim has started services between Berlin, Mannheim and London City Airport. It uses a Dornier 328 on the route.
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In 1996, Lockheed Martin again dominated the US defence scene. According to the usual Pentagon report on top contractors of the military services, it got 12 billion US-Dollar worth of new contracts. McDonnell Douglas came in as a distant second with 3,2 billion Dollars. Other aerospace companies listed were Raytheon (3 billion), Northrop Grumman (2,6 billion), United Technologies (2,6 billion), Boeing (1,7 billion) and General Electric (1,5 billion).
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The receivers of Fokker NV have now started preparations for the sell off of all machines, office equipment etc. of the bankrupt company. It will be "the biggest auction of industrial equipment in Europe ever", say the Troostwijk auctioneers in Amsterdam.
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Senior Hungarian Defence Force Pilots have started the evaluation of Gripen during pre-evaluation flights at Saab, Sweden. Colonel Ferenc Varga and Lt. Col. Zsolt Racz made several sorties during the week-long visit, including testing of radar function, weapon targeting etc.
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The German defence ministry has revealed some figures on the activities of its contingent of the NATO SFOR forces in the former Jugoslavia. Up to the end of May, Luftwaffe Tornados have conducted 500 recce flights, while transport aircraft moved more than 1600 tons of material and 20000 people. Also, helicopters of the army aviation units stationed in the region flew close to 700 hours in support of SFOR operations.
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NASA is currently using an upgraded Lockheed ER-2 fo a month-long campaign to measure radiation at high altitudes. Data collected at 52000 to 70000 ft height will be used to charcterice the radiation environment for aircrew and frequent-flying public fo a future High-Speed Civil Transport (HSCT). Radiation measurements are obtained by instruments from the US, Canada, Germany, UK and Italy.
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Flottillenadmiral Wolfgang Engelmann, commander of the German Navy flying branch (Marineflieger) has made its last sortie in a military aircraft - exactly 36 years after he started his flying training. Engelmann will retire in September and will be replaced by Kapitän zur See Ulrich Otto. He has logged some 2850 hours in jets like the Seahawk, Starfighter and Tornado, surviving an F-104 crash into the North Sea in 1966.
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The German Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA) and the US FAA have signed an agreement for the reciprocal approval of maintenance companies. Thus, German companies will no longer need both an LBA and FAA approval if they want to work on US-registered aircraft, cutting red tape and costs. The other way round, the FAA will sanction US maintenance companies for work on German planes. The agreement is based on negotiations conducted between the FAA and the European JAA (Joint Airworthiness Authorities).
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Eurowings is now carrying national and international freight and express cargo for EASY (Express Air Systems GmbH).
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Central Enterprise, the regular NATO exercise for its air forces in central Europe, takes place from June 9 to 13 and 16 to 20. Flying activities will be over Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany. Also, France will take part and allow the use of airspace in the north of the country. Flying will be restricted to daylight hours.
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Christopher Korenke is the new Director for Germany of French national Airline Air France. He replaces Thierry Antionori, who has left the company. Air France has 400 employees in Germany, its most important international market.
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The 10th International Frankfurt Air Freight Days will be held on September 24/25 at the Sheraton hotel adjacent to the airport. The theme this year is "Cargo meets Customers", and international experts will discuss ways to better satisfy the demanding customers in the changing environment.
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Because the French authorities have blocked a proposed service between Munich and St. Tropez, Augusburg Airways has switched one of its aircraft to the Munich - Sylt route instead. It will be served every Sunday through September 28.
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Previous updates are still available:
June 1, 1997
May 25, 1997
May 18, 1997
May 11, 1997
May 4, 1997
March 23, 1997
March 16, 1997
March 9, 1997
March 2, 1997
February 23, 1997
February 16, 1997
January 26, 1997
January 19, 1997
January 12, 1997
January 5, 1997
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Last updated June 6, 1997
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