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UPDATE 
Week ending March 18, 2001
+++ SAirGroup Board names new Chairman and Delegate +++ Lufthansa profits second best ever +++ MTU Aero Engines on growth course +++ ICAO safety report for 2000 shows more deaths +++ Italy to Acquire USAF F -16s +++ Astrium signs Ariane engine contract +++ News in brief +++

SAirGroup Board names new Chairman and Delegate
Neue Führung für Swissair-Gruppe

At its meeting on March 15, the SAirGroup Board of Directors agreed on naming a new Chairman of the Group's highest administrative body earlier than originally planned. Dr. Mario A. Corti, currently Chief Financial Officer of Nestlé S.A. and member of this company's executive management board, will take over the role of Chairman of the SAirGroup. He has also been named Delegate of the Board of Directors and thereby assumes operational responsibility for the Group with immediate effect. Dr. Eric Honegger will be stepping down from the SAirGroup Board at the Group's Shareholders' Meeting on April 25, 2001, one year earlier than initially scheduled. The Board wishes to express its gratitude to Dr. Honegger for his many years of service on the company's behalf.
In discussing the future of the SAirGroup, the Board came to the unanimous decision that continuity at Board level must be guaranteed and newly organised without delay. The Board therefore decided to select, with immediate effect, Dr. Mario Corti as the new Board Chairman and Delegate of the Board of Directors. Dr. Mario A. Corti, currently Chief Financial Officer at Nestlé and a member of Nestlé's executive management, will leave this company after its annual shareholders' meeting of April 5 and fully concentrate on his new duties with the SAirGroup. Dr. Corti will provide a comprehensive briefing at the Group's Annual Results Media Conference on April 2, 2001.

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Lufthansa profits second best ever
Gute Geschäfte für die Lufthansa

According to provisional figures, the Lufthansa Group returned a pre-tax profit totalling more than 1.2 billion euros in the business year 2000. Revenues rose by 19 per cent to 15.2 billion euros. The operative result surpassed the previously announced forecast and climbed by 44 per cent on the year-earlier level to 1.0 billion euros. The financial result fell by 251 million euros because the contribution of AMADEUS Global Travel Distribution S.A. did not again attain the previous year's level, which was boosted by one-off effects. Lufthansa shareholders are to share in the Group's positive development. The Executive Board and Supervisory Board will propose to the Annual General Meeting that the net dividend be increased on the previous year by 4 cents to 0.60 euros per share. More details on the annual results in 2000 will be disclosed by Lufthansa at the annual press conference on April 27 2001.

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MTU Aero Engines on growth course
Wachstum für die MTU

Munich, March 14, 2001 - For the fourth year running, MTU Aero Engines GmbH, a 30-year affiliate of DaimlerChrysler and its precursors, posted a record bottom line. Sales in fiscal 2000 jumped 21% over the prior year, to Euro 2.1 billion, while operating profit soared to Euro 153 million, from Euro 135 million. New orders made the largest leap, to Euro 2.4 billion, up 56%. These were the key data Germany's leading engine manufacturer revealed at its annual press conference in Munich. The company scored also with its global expansion strategy. Within a year, it added four new affiliates to its global network of maintenance, engineering and manufacturing locations. Just two weeks ago, it acquired U.S.-based Caval, a recognized and respected manufacturer of turbine disks, now renamed MTU Aero Engine Components.
The reported gains in sales and operating profit essentially stem from a rising demand for commercial engines and the lucrative spare parts business that comes with it, and are attributed also to the expansion of MTU Aero Engines' commercial engine M.R.O. segment, where the company boosted its market share from 3.8% to 5.0%. "This makes us the world's largest provider of independent engine services," said Steffens, predicting another rise in market share, to 7%. The strength of the U.S. dollar against the euro also proved a windfall, even against substantial exchange rate hedging. Government business was stable over the year. Fueling the steep rise in new orders was chiefly the commercial engine manufacturing segment, where orders just about doubled. The wave of new orders was led by the V2500 for the Airbus A320 family. Posting gains also were the General Electric CF6 and Pratt & Whitney PW2000 and PW6000.
MTU Aero Engines' investments, too, were an all-time high in fiscal 2000. At Euro 93 million, they were up 60%. The company plowed another Euro 128;70 million of its own money into undedicated research and development. "Our outstanding financial performance gave us a chance to reinvest in our future," emphasized Steffens. "If as a sub-system supplier you're technologically less than world-class in your core competencies, first-tier engine manufacturers may feel tempted to dump you or not even consider you in the first place."

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ICAO safety report for 2000 shows more deaths
Sicherheit: Mehr Tote im Jahr 2000

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has completed its analysis of the preliminary information available on aviation safety and aviation security for 2000. Regarding safety (excluding aircraft accidents caused by acts of unlawful interference) in 2000, there were 18 aircraft accidents with passenger fatalities in scheduled air services worldwide involving aircraft with a maximum take-off mass of more than 2250 kg. The number of passenger fatalities involved was 755. In 1999, there were 499 passenger fatalities from 21 accidents. Due to the higher number of fatalities in 2000, the accident rate (measured in passenger fatalities per 100 million passenger-kilometres) also rose, from approximately 0.02 in 1999 to 0.025 in 2000.
For non-scheduled air services, there were 22 accidents involving passenger fatalities for aircraft with a maximum take-off mass of more than 2250 kg both in 2000 and in 1999 (the latter including 6 involving all-cargo services with passengers on board). These accidents accounted for 291 passenger fatalities in 2000 compared with 129 in 1999. Regarding security in 2000, 27 acts of unlawful interference (including aircraft accidents caused by such acts) were recorded in which 53 persons were killed and 46 were injured (including 5 perpetrators killed and 5 injured).

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Italy to Acquire USAF F -16s
F-16 für Italien

On March 15, Italy signed an agreement for the lease of 34 F-16s from the U.S. Air Force inventory and a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) for aircraft support and services. The F-16s will replace the Tornado Air Defense Version aircraft currently leased from the United Kingdom and the F-104s, both operated in the air defense role. The first F-16s will be delivered in mid-2003. The five-year lease is renewable for a second five-year period. The LOA and lease value is approximately $777 million over 10 years. Lockheed Martin is expected to receive a contract through the U.S. government for spares, technical support and training. Lockheed Martin will manage the spares requisitioning and distribution at the Italian bases. The support contract, worth about $313 million over 10 years, is expected to be issued by the end of this year.
The Italian Air Force will receive 30 single-seat F-16A aircraft in the Block 15 Air Defense Fighter (ADF) configuration and four two-seat F-16B aircraft in the Block 10 Operational Capabilities Upgrade configuration. These aircraft have common software and cockpits, and the F-16Bs will be used as training aircraft. The ADF configuration has AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) radar missile capability, a night identification light, a long-range high-frequency radio, an electronic interrogator/transponder and other features tailored to the air defense role.

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Astrium signs Ariane engine contract
Vulcain-Motoren für die Ariane

Astrium has received an order worth DM 110 million for the production of 20 Vulcain-2 thrust chamber systems and 20 flight sets of cryogenic valve systems for the European launcher Ariane 5. The order has been placed by Snecma Moteurs, the French Snecma Group Company specialist for aerospace propulsion systems. This was announced by both companies on Tuesday, when the signatures were put to the contract at the Astrium site Ottobrunn. The Vulcain thrust chamber forms the heart of the Ariane 5 main engine. Via the valves, regulation of the pressure in the fuel tanks and supply of the engine with the cryogenic fuels liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen takes place. Snecma acts as the prime contractor of Arianespace, the operator of the Ariane launcher, to which it supplies the whole Vulcain engines. "By developing the Vulcain-2 thrust chamber system, Astrium has made a significant contribution to strengthening Ariane's position in the competitive markets", stated Dr. Axel Deich, Director Propulsion of Astrium's Space Infrastructure Division. "By making alterations to the design and introducing innovative production technologies, the engine thrust has been increased up to 135 tons, which is by more than 30 percent compared to the predecessor model. This corresponds to a performance of four million horsepower. At the same time, the manufacturing costs can be reduced by over 30 percent. The award of the production contract to Astrium underlines our role as the leading thrust chamber manufacturer in Europe."

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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN

A total of 2,938 combat aircraft valued at $134.4 billion (in 2001 U.S. dollars) will be built worldwide in the 2001-2010 period, predicts Teal Group in their latest world fighter/attack aircraft production forecast released today. The new Teal forecast covers all combat aircraft over 20,000 lbs maximum take-off weight (all supersonic planes plus the AV-8B Harrier). The numbers indicate that the market is at its lowest point since the jet age began. A mere 153 fighters worth $6.7 billion will be delivered this year. The future of the market is clouded with doubt and uncertainty. However, Teal Group predicts a fairly robust recovery, as procurement holidays end in the US and Europe. "After several false starts, the market will turn healthy again before the second half of our forecast period,'' said Aboulafia. "The annual value of fighter production will double by 2006.'' Because Europe's procurement holiday was longer, Europe's market share will increase dramatically, as Eurofighter and Rafale series production begins.
+++
The Lockheed Martin Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) X-35C, flying at a rate of up to six missions per day, completed its flight-test program with all objectives achieved on Sunday, March 11, at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. The airplane logged a total of 73 flights and 58 hours aloft. "This is a milestone in what is clearly one of the most successful flight-test programs in aviation history," said Tom Burbage, executive vice president and general manager of the Lockheed Martin JSF program. "Our team kept the X-35C's design common with our other JSF variants, but gave this plane some unique features to optimize it for carrier operations. The outcome, as we've shown in flight testing, is a magnificent carrier strike aircraft that for the first time will bring the element of stealth technology to the Navy."
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ATK (Alliant Techsystems) said ATK Aerospace Composite Structures Company, Clearfield, Utah, has been awarded contracts worth approximately $1.8 million from EADS CASA Espacio, Madrid, Spain, to produce composite structures for the Ariane 5 space launch vehicle -- the first new-generation heavy-lift launcher to enter commercial service. Under a nine-month contract valued at approximately $1 million, ATK Aerospace Composite Structures Company will fabricate a composite adapter that serves as a link between the Ariane 5 vehicle's upper stage and the payload. A second contract worth approximately $800,000 calls for the company to produce additional interstage skirts, which connect the lower and upper stages of the vehicle. These additional flight models represent a follow-on to an original $4 million contract award received in 1999.
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In what could be one of the largest contracts in the company's history, The BFGoodrich Company announced today that it has been selected to supply the body and wing landing gear for Airbus' new A380 aircraft. Under the contract, Goodrich will engineer and manufacture the gear, and ensure customer support once the aircraft enters commercial service in 2006. This is the first time that Goodrich, already a major supplier to Airbus, has been selected by the company to supply main landing gear. The program has the potential to generate total revenues in the range of $2-$3 billion over a 20-year period depending on the number of aircraft ordered. In addition to the original equipment, Goodrich will also provide spare parts and gear packages directly to the operators of the A380 aircraft.
+++
The resilient Galileo spacecraft doesn't know when it call it quits. So, NASA has outlined the details of one last mission extension, which includes five more flybys of the Jovian moons before a final plunge into the crushing pressure of the giant planet's atmosphere. Galileo has been orbiting Jupiter for more than five years and survived radiation exposure more than three times what it was built to withstand. Galileo's mission has previously been extended twice and during that time it has returned an enormous wealth of scientific information, including evidence of a sub-surface ocean on Jupiter's moon Europa. In 2002, having completed its imaging mission, Galileo will continue studies of Jupiter's massive magnetic field with seven instruments. In January, the orbiter will fly near the equator of Io. In November, it will swing closer to Jupiter than ever before, dipping within about 500 kilometers (about 300 miles) of the moon Amalthea, which is less than one-tenth the size of Io and less than half as far from Jupiter. Scientists will use
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IATA and its Member airlines are to collaborate with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on long-term epidemiological studies of the effect of flying on the development of blood clots. At a consultation on air travel and "venous thromboembolism" (DVT or deep vein thrombosis) held at the WHO in Geneva, 12/13 March, Members of IATA said that there was no confirmed link between DVT and air travel itself, beyond a risk associated with any long periods of immobility. The evidence presented at the consultation suggested that any link between air travel and DVT mainly affected passengers who already had additional risk factors - such as obesity, a history of venous thrombosis, hormone treatment, etc. However, the available evidence consists largely of case studies and in order to provide definitive assessments of risk, properly conducted large-scale studies, taking up to two years to complete were required.
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Bombardier Aerospace has finalized a deal with Italian airline Air Dolomiti for the sale of three CRJ200 aircraft. The transaction, valued at approximately $66 million U.S. ($99 million Cdn.), represents the conversion of three existing options to firm orders by Air Dolomiti. The airline completed the deal at the time of its first CRJ200 delivery from a previous order for three aircraft. The airline is scheduled to receive the second CRJ200 from its original order later this month and third aircraft in April while two of the newly ordered aircraft are expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2002 and the final aircraft in the first quarter of 2003. Air Dolomiti will be the first airline in Italy and the 12th in Europe to put Bombardier's CRJ into service.
+++
NASA is examining flight data following the termination on the morning of March 11 of the Ultra-Long Duration Balloon (ULDB) mission launched Saturday from the Northern Territory of Central Australia. The balloon reached its desired float altitude of 112,000 feet before a NASA operations team decided to bring it down. The ULDB was launched from Alice Springs, Australia, at 9 a.m., March 10, local time (6:30 p.m. EST, March 9). The flight ended 24 hours 42 minutes later when the balloon and payload landed within one mile from the West Coast of Australia. There were no injuries or damage to personal property. Recovery operations are underway. "Although the ULDB launch and ascent were very close to normal, the balloon's internal pressure was less than we expected, but within acceptable margins, on Saturday afternoon and evening," said Steve Smith, Chief of the Balloon Program Office at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, VA. "At sunrise on Sunday morning the balloon failed to regain its daytime pressure and a decision was made to bring it down on the coast of Australia."
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Within the scope of Austrian Airlines' Extraordinary General Meeting held on March 9, 2001, the following new supervisory board members were elected to the regulatory body: Alain D. Bandle, (48), Chairman of the Executive Board of Y.O.U. Swiss Private Banking Inc., a corporation of the Vontobel Group Zürich; Martine Dornier-Tiefenthaler, (46), self-employed attorney in Munich; Herbert Koch, (59), Managing Partner of Kika Möbel-Handelsgesellschaft m.b.H. and General Manager of Leiner; Karlheinz Muhr, (43), Chairman of the Executive Board and Member of the Administrative Board of KM Management, New York; Alfred Ötsch, (47), Member of the Executive Committee of Siemens Inc. Austria responsible for finance; Erhard Schaschl, (58), Chairman of the Executive Board and General Director of Wienerberger Baustoffindustrie Inc. As part of its constituent assembly, the supervisory committee appointed Johannes Ditz as Chairman of the Supervisory Board while Herbert Koch was elected Deputy Chairman. Along with this new constitution, Austrian Airlines' Supervisory Board reduces from 18 to 15 members (ten shareholders' representatives and only five members of the Employees' Committee instead of six).
+++
Lockheed Martin is now fully certified by the FAA to provide pilot training on its A320 and B-737 aircraft simulators at the Lockheed Martin Information Systems' Commercial Flight Training Center in Orlando. Airline pilot-candidates arriving for initial training and veteran pilots fulfilling periodic re-certification requirements will undergo training in the center's full-flight simulators. Lockheed Martin's A320 and B-737 Electronic Flight Instrument System (EFIS) training simulators have received the Federal Aviation Administration's Level C certification. Level C training allows pilots to qualify for actual flight duty after completing simulator flight training. A B-737 Next Generation full-motion simulator is to be installed in the third quarter of 2001.
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Maryland State Police, who has already achieved two firsts, has added another to the list. They became the first unit in the US to ever perform triple missions in a single aircraft with a single crew, completing not only Search & Rescue and EMS missions, but a law enforcement mission as well. Last year they became the first customer in the US to purchase the new AS365 N3. And they are now the first customer in the world to receive the AS365 N1 to N3 retrofit. "This retrofit is a huge step for our crew's safety. Eurocopter substantially increased the gross weight of the Dauphin with their new N3, allowing us to carry more on the hoist at a low hover and giving us a greater margin of safety," said Maj. Donald Lewis.
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The 10 astronauts and cosmonauts aboard Discovery and the International Space Station will spend another day docked to the orbiting science outpost to pack for the trip home. Discovery's STS-102 mission now will end with a landing back in Florida about 1 a.m. Wednesday. Discovery will now spend almost nine days docked to the station, allowing ground controllers and the crew more time to ensure all necessary items are stowed away correctly aboard the Leonardo cargo module. Leonardo, filled with equipment to return to Earth, now will be detached from the station and latched back in Discovery's payload bay early Sunday morning, a day later than originally planned. Discovery will undock from the station late Sunday night, spend Monday checking landing equipment, and return to Earth about midnight Tuesday. Discovery is planned to fire its deorbit engines at 10:55 p.m. Tuesday, descending to a touchdown at the Kennedy Space Center, at 11:59 p.m. All the members of the second permanent crew of the international space station (ISS) have got on board the station from Discovery shuttle on March 14. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Usachyov did officially assume the station's command on March 17. Astronaut Susan Helms was the last to get aboard the ISS. It is expected that Usachyov, Helms and the third member of their crew, James Voss, will now be able to give upto 20 percent of their time to scientific research.
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Russian officials have now for the first time published a more precise date for the demise of the Mir space station. It will enter the Earths atmosphere on 22 March at about 9.00 MEZ and burn up over the South Pacific. Remaining debris will splash down east of New Zealand, with the largest pieces weighing around 700 kg.
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Vienna Airport has handled 11,9 million passengers in 2000, an increase of 6,6 per cent. Destionations in eastern Europe were booming, with a plus of 14 per cent. Aircraft movements got up 8,6 per cent, while freight tonnage rise was 12,1 per cent. Profit of 1,1 million Euros will lead to a rise in dividend payments.
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The first commercial liftoff of a satellite under the Air Launch programme with a new two-stage Polyot rocket which will be fired from an An-124 plane, is scheduled for 2003, president of the Aerospace corporation Air Launch Anatoly Karpov told on March 14 a roundtable which is conducted on the sidelines of the second international forum "High Technologies of Defence Complex". According to the president, his corporation plans to lift off satellites weighting up to four tonnes. This system will help to cut by over 80 percent launches of low-orbit spacecraft. The cost of putting into orbit one kilo of load will total 5,000-6,000 U.S. dollars, while this figure stands at 25,000-30,000 dollars from ground launching pads and 7,000-9,000 dollars from the Sea Launch system.
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Previous updates are still available:
Die News der letzten Wochen sind weiter abrufbar:

*March 11, 2001 *March 4, 2001

*February 25, 2001 *February 18, 2001 *February 4, 2001

*January 28, 2001 *January 21, 2001 *January 14, 2001 *January 7, 2001

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

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Last updated 16 March 2001
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