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UPDATE 
Week ending June 18, 2000
+++ ILA a success +++ Mir astronauts return +++ Job cuts at BAE Systems +++ Diehl and Sextant to found a joint avionics company +++ News in brief +++

ILA a success
Gute Geschäfte auf der ILA 2000

Spectacular sales successes, more trade visitors from home and abroad, and large crowds over the Whitsun weekend: the International Aerospace Exhibition ILA2000 also provided some decisions that pointed the way forward for the European aerospace sector. This event met the high expectations of the industry, as well as presenting an outstanding flying display for the general public, reflecting the fascination of flight. Although for the first time the ILA2000 began with three and a half trade visitors' days, from 6 to 12 June total attendance of 212,000 on the southern section of Berlin-Schönefeld Airport nearly equalled that of the previous ILA (1998: 226,000). Compared with the ILA'98 the number of trade visitors increased to 84,000 (1998: 82,000).
By the half way stage exhibitors had already calculated that the contracts signed and options agreed there totalled over DM 50 billion in value. This confirmed the position of the ILA2000 as a major commercial centre for the entire aerospace industry. The newly founded European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS), formed by the merger of DaimlerChrysler Aerospace (Dasa), Aerospatiale-Matra and CASA, was making its first appearance at any trade fair, as was the three-nation joint venture ASTRIUM, which is set to become Europe's largest space group. The largest ILA ever attracted more participants from a larger number of countries, with 941 exhibitors from 38 countries (1998: 825 exhibitors/32 countries), and for seven days they displayed products, systems and services covering every aspect of aerospace technology.
"The contracts worth billions that were signed by industrial enterprises, the many domestic and foreign delegations, and the quality of the conferences speak for themselves: the ILA has become a permanent feature of the international aerospace industry" commented BDLI chief executive Dr. Hans Eberhard Birke. The managing director of Messe Berlin, Karl-Joachim Kierey summed it up by saying: "The concept of the ILA as a concentrated trade fair and an attraction for the general public has proved highly effective."

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Mir astronauts return
Kosmonauten kehren von Mir zurück

The two Russian cosmonauts returned safely to Earth on June 16 after more than two months on the Mir space station. The Soyuz carrying Sergei Zalyotin and Alexander Kaleri landed on the steppes of the former-Soviet republic of Kazakstan near the town of Arkalyk after a 3.5-hour descent. The duo has blasted off on April 4 on a mission to resuscitate the 14-year old station that had been flying unmanned for eight months. After their departure, Mir was left unmanned until the fall when its foreign investors hope to raise funds for sending up another crew. The Russian government had planned to dump Mir this spring because of funding problems but extended its time aloft after the Netherlands-based MirCorp signed a lease agreement on the station and provided funds to send up Zalyotin and Kaleri. "If there is no money, Mir will not fly," Koptev said Thursday, according to the Interfax news agency. Russian officials are reluctant to dump Mir, the last symbol of the once-proud Soviet space program.

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Job cuts at BAE Systems
BAE Systems streicht Stellen

The formation of BAE Systems has now resulted in the first job cuts. Despite promising future prospects with A3XX, A400M and new missiles, the company has said that because of lengthy development periods the impact of this work boost will not be felt immediately. Instead, there is now a real requirement to ensure we remain highly competitive, capture the synergies arising from the merger and achieve profitable growth in the business. Accordingly, the company has conducted a rigorous review across all aspects of the UK business and the outcome of this work is seen as the key to delivering improvements that will further reinforce our secure base. John Weston, Chief Executive of BAE Systems said: "We will continue to protect our core competencies and manufacturing capabilities in the UK, and retain key disciplines and resources - particularly in scarce skill areas. We plan to recruit around 2,000 engineers over the next 18 months in specific areas such as Systems and Software Engineering and around 1,000 people in the next two years through our Young People recruitment programmes."Based on the outcome of the review it is now clear that there are savings to be realised. There are a number of areas in the UK in which the company has overlapping product capabilities, duplication of facilities and resources and opportunities to improve efficiency and consolidate activities. Savings across all areas of overhead in wholly owned operations in the UK have also been identified." The effect of this programme will be the equivalent of 3,800 job losses. The company's Group and Programme Managing Directors and their teams will be communicating and consulting on the impact on individual locations over the next few days.

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Diehl and Sextant to found a joint avionics company
Gemeinsame deutsch-französische Avionikfirma

Diehl VA Systeme and Thomson-CSF Sextant intend to found a joint avionics equipment company named "Diehl Avionik Systeme GmbH" in which Diehl will hold a share of 51% and Thomson-CSF Sextant a share of 49%. This new company will include all activities of BGT's "Control and Navigation Division" as well as VDO-Luftfahrtgeräte Werk GmbH. The new company "Diehl Avionik Systeme GmbH" will have locations in Überlingen and Frankfurt. The company will be registered in Überlingen. "Diehl Avionik Systeme GmbH" will employ about 800 persons, achieving annual sales of approx. DM 220 million or 112 million Euro. This new organization will become effective retroactively on January 1, 2000. Through this merger, "Diehl Avionik Systeme GmbH" will be the largest avionics company in Germany. Its close relations with the global player Thomson-CSF Sextant is a major prerequisite for being able to play an important role in international business also in the future. Since 1992, both companies, BGT and Thomson-CSF Sextant, have held an interest in the avionics equipment company VDO-Luftfahrtgeräte Werk GmbH located in Frankfurt (annual sales: DM 120 million or 61 million Euro, 450 employees), with shares of 50,5% for BGT and 49,5% for Thomson-CSF Sextant.

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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN

Boeing successfully completed the first flight of a 777-200ER (Extended Range) airplane powered by two new General Electric GE90-94B engines. An Air France 777-200ER is being used as the test bed for the new engine. "This flight represents another step in the continuing development of the highly successful 777 airplane family," said Roger Houck, Boeing 777 chief engineer 777 test program. "The test program and the development of the Boeing 777 with the GE90-94B validates the advantages of this airplane and engine combination with improved fuel efficiency, lower maintenance cost, more payload and range resulting in an outstanding new member of the 777 family." Rated at 94,000 pounds of thrust, the GE90-94B builds on the proven success of the GE90 family, adding key performance-enhancing technologies such as the three-dimensional aerodynamic (3-D Aero) high pressure compressor - a key component of the performance improvement to be incorporated into the GE90-115B engine currently under development. 3-D Aero is a computer design and analysis program. Its use on the -115B engine design delivers improved fuel burn. After a recent series of rigorous tests for FAA certification, GE90-94B engines have completed more than 1400 hours of testing, and received FAA flight test certification this month.
+++
Speed, quality, reliability, conviviality: four criteria of choice for every individual shareholder but also four essential preoccupations for Aerospatiale Matra's Investor Relations and Financial Communications Department who, one year after its creation, has been awarded the "Fils d'Or 2000" for the best shareholder service of the French CAC 40 by "La Vie Financière". For Philippe Camus, CEO of Aerospatiale Matra "this award is an acknowledgement of the quality of service provided by the teams that respond daily, depending on the group's news, to between 150 to 300 telephone calls.
+++
Over the first five months of 2000, the number of flights controlled in the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) area stood at 3,365,874, representing an increase of 7.6% on the same period last year. The capacity made available by the Air Traffic Service (ATS) providers during this period was, however, still insufficient to absorb this increase in traffic, which was significantly higher than the forecast figure of 5.3%. As a result, the EUROCONTROL Central Flow Management Unit (CFMU), whose task is to guarantee in real time the best match between demand and the capacity offered by the national Air Traffic Control (ATC) providers, was obliged to impose regulations which led to an average delay per flight of 2.6 minutes. These figures relate only to en-route ATC delays and do not take into account other causes (such as airport, rotation of aircraft and weather), over which the European air traffic system has no control. It is important to highlight that this year's average delay figure is at the same level as that for 1998 in spite of a 15% increase in traffic since then. Furthermore, this figure is considerably lower than the average delay of 5.0 minutes per flight reported in 1999, a figure which was however exacerbated by the Kosovo crisis.
+++
The Turkish Government has contracted with Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. for eight S-80E heavy-lift helicopters. The contract value is $350 million, and includes spares and training. The contract, signed by Sikorsky President Dean C. Borgman and Lt. Gen. Sener Eruygur, Undersecretary of the Ministry of National Defense, will take effect after financing is arranged. "Turkey is one of our best customers," Borgman said. "We are proud to play a part in Turkey's Modernization of Forces, a partnership that began in 1988. We are delighted that the Turkish Land Forces selected the S-80E as its heavy-lift helicopter." S-80E is the commercial designation for Sikorsky CH-53E SUPER STALLION and MH-53E SEA DRAGON heavy-lift aircraft, which have flown successful combat, rescue and humanitarian missions with the U.S. Marine Corps and Navy around the world.
+++
Just in time for the General Meeting on June 15, 2000 in Berlin the Lufthansa Group debuted its newly designed Internet portal. The Lufthansa portal merges the entire online product spectrum of Lufthansa and its affiliates. Also new is the clear distinction between the independent Lufthansa group portal and Passage Airline's distribution portal InfoFlyway. Both can be accessed via the central Internet address www.lufthansa.com. This new Internet presence will boost InfoFlyway's position as an established electronic distribution channel. The Lufthansa group portal will offer a broad presentation platform for information, services, and product offerings of the entire Lufthansa family: News about the business sectors, subsidiaries, and stock developments as well as career possibilities and job offers within the Lufthansa group will be presented in detail. This new Internet presence will further improve the integration of our affiliates on the Internet and enable us to offer even more cross-functional search options. It is planned to expand the Internet pages throughout the year 2000 to create a communications tool with personalized functions for the various target groups- journalists, analysts, job applicants or employees.
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The continuous expansion of business opportunities in Africa, South America and the Caribbean represents the main emphasis of Swissport International Ltd.'s forward-looking strategy. Swissport aims to consolidate its position as the world's leading ground handling company. Setting a new trend, Swissport has been active in the e-business field since June 1, offering customers an attractive 24-hour Internet service. Swissport International, the SAirGroup's ground handling subsidiary recently was awarded a concession as the sole ground handler at the international airport in Tanzania. As a result of the ongoing privatisation of airports in Tanzania, Swissport also acquired a majority stake in the Dar es Salaam Airport Handling Company Ltd. (DAHACO), allowing Swissport to offer its services at both Dar es Salaam International Airport and Kilimanjaro International Airport. Tanzania marks the third African location for Swissport.
+++
The Italian state holding Iri has sold off Aeroporti di Roma for 1,25 billion Dollars to a consortium headed by Cesare Romiti. The former Fiat chief executive beat off bids by Benetton and Pirelli.
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Previous updates are still available:
Die News der letzten Wochen sind weiter abrufbar:

*June 11, 2000 *June 4, 2000

*May 28, 2000 *May 21, 2000 *May 14, 2000 *May 7, 2000

*April 30, 2000 *April 16, 2000 *April 9, 2000 *April 2, 2000

*January to March 2000 *January to December 1999 *January to December 1998 *January to December 1997 *September to December 1996

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Last updated 16 June 2000
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