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UPDATE
Week ending October 6, 2002
+++ EADS opens new facility at Lechfeld +++ Lufthansa offers 2000 new jobs +++ Lockheed Martin calls for cooperation +++ Britain takes STOVL F-35 +++ Rolls-Royce and DLR sign Environmental Technology Agreement +++ EU-Russia foster relationship +++ Bombardier cuts jobs +++ News in brief +++

EADS opens new facility at Lechfeld
Flugplatz Lechfeld erhält EADS-Zweigwerk

In spite of the adverse economic situation in the international aviation business, Augsburg has once again expanded as an aviation center. Dr. Lutz Bertling, head of the plant, pressed symbolically the button to start the production at the newly established works division of EADS Augsburg in Lagerlechfeld. In October 2001 EADS had hired the "Pia Süd” hangar owned from the local fighter bomber wing, "Jagdbombergeschwader 32 ECR”. This enlargement became necessary on account of the additional tasks assigned to Augsburg within the new A380 and A400M programs. EADS will be producing part of the wings ­ the so-called bathtub ­ for the A380 here. After the start of the series production up to 100 such components will be leaving the new works division each year. EADS spends 6.8 million Euro for adapting the hall on their production standards and installing a complete infrastructure. A special advantage of the Lechfeld site is that an exclusive permission was granted to EADS for use of the runway of the fighter bomber wing. This enables the parts manufactured in Lechfeld to be directly airlifted by the Beluga, the Airbus giant transporter.

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Lufthansa offers 2000 new jobs
Neueinstellungen bei Lufthansa

Presenting the company's record on employment in Frankfurt, Stefan Lauer, Chief Executive Human Resources, said the report showed that Lufthansa had proved a reliable and steadfast employer, especially in the aftermath of 11 September 2001. "We overcame the crisis jointly with our staff. The solutions we reached with the employee representatives enabled us to avoid compulsory redundancies," Lauer said. "This approach underlines our policy not to regard staff as a cost factor but as the basis of our entrepreneurial success." Lufthansa is responding to the projected growth in air traffic and the requirements of its expansion strategy and is therefore seeking to recruit competent and dedicated staff. Market developments permitting, Lufthansa plans next year to recruit 1,800 flight attendants, 340 pilots and 410 airport staff for Frankfurt and Munich in the operational areas of its Passenger Business segment. In addition, the Group also has vacancies for a total of 600 university graduates. Employment prospects are positive because in the last few years Lufthansa has introduced progressive working time arrangements which enable the airline to adjust its workforce flexibly without having to lay off staff in a crisis. At present 28 per cent of staff in the Passenger Business segment benefit from these offers and are employed in various part-time schemes which take particular account of the wish to combine a career and family. In addition, Lufthansa plans to create new training positions. In 2003, a total of 644 apprenticeships will be available in the fields of aviation maintenance, commerce and information technology – providing that the economy remains stable. This represents an increase of 18 per cent compared to 2002. Employment prospects at the end of the training are very good. For the most part Lufthansa trains its own staff and almost 90 per cent of trainees can expect to be taken on by the company.

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Lockheed Martin calls for cooperation
Coffman:Transatlantische Zusammenarbeit wichtig

Dr. Vance Coffman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lockheed Martin, said today that the aerospace industry should work towards an integrated transatlantic defence marketplace and avoid "fortress mentalities” on both sides of the Atlantic. Coffman also said that governments must cooperate globally and be able to coordinate their policies and their military and law enforcement actions in response to global threats. Speaking on "The Future Transatlantic Marketplace,” Dr. Coffman made his remarks at the Annual Convention of the European Association of Aerospace Industries (AECMA) in the Hague where he joined 250 top executives from the European aerospace industry and senior government representatives. Coffman is currently serving as vice chairman of the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) of America. "We must now think of ourselves as part of the 'international security industry,' not simply the aerospace or defence industry,” said Coffman. "In that regard, I expect companies such as Lockheed Martin and others in our industry to take a leading role in providing the technologies and services necessary to meet the requirements for preserving what we in the U.S. call "homeland security.” Concerning the disparities between the levels of investment in capabilities in the United States and in Europe, Coffman said the lack of European defence funding was a major concern for the industry – both in Europe and the U.S. Taken together with the United States experiencing one of its cyclical increases in defence spending, Coffman warned that the current capabilities gap could get even worse. "The critical point is this: We cannot afford this type of fragmented resource allocation if we are to successfully meet the new security challenges we all face.”

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Britain takes STOVL F-35
F-35: Senkrechtstarter für Großbritannien

The Defence Procurement Minister, Lord Bach, announced on 30 September 2002 the selection of the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to equip the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers. The carriers will, however, be designed to allow future adaptation to accommodate other aircraft designs if need be. The STOVL version of the F-35 meets the UK's requirement for a Joint Combat Aircraft to replace the Harrier, both for service afloat and ashore, retaining the flexibility offered by a "jump-jet" configuration, yet offering all the advantages of a modern stealth design. This version is also being adopted by the US Marine Corps. However, given that the new carriers are planned to have a service life of up to fifty years - longer than that expected for the aircraft - BAe Systems and Thales, competing for the design and construction of the vessels, have been asked to opt for a design which can be adapted to operate more conventional aircraft types if necessary later in the ships' lives. To this end, the ships will have the capability to be fitted with catapults and arrestor gear, although they will be built with the "ski-ramp" well-known from the Royal Navy's current Invincible class carriers for STOVL operations.
The UK is heavily involved in the Joint Strike Fighter project, with Rolls-Royce leading the development of the lift system for the STOVL variant. Up to 150 of the aircraft will be acquired by the MOD, in a programme worth up to £10 billion.

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Rolls-Royce and DLR sign Environmental Technology Agreement
Umweltforschung wird intensiviert

A new, far-reaching co-operation agreement aimed at making air transport more efficient and environmentally-responsible was signed by Rolls-Royce plc, Rolls-Royce Deutschland and the German Aerospace Research Establishment (DLR), one of the most important aerospace research establishments in Europe. The framework agreement follows many years of successful collaboration between Rolls-Royce Deutschland and DLR on research and technology, from which DLR has already contributed significantly towards the environmental acceptability and competitiveness of Rolls-Royce products. The initial focus of the collaboration is civil turbofan engines and aims to further reduce both the emission of gases and particles, particularly through the development of low-emission combustors, and engine noise.
Dr. Norbert Arndt, Director Engineering at Rolls-Royce Deutschland, said today: "This far-reaching agreement underlines both the close co-operation that has existed with the DLR for some time and the importance that Rolls-Royce attaches to the capabilities of the DLR with regard to the major challenges that face aerospace technology for the future." Hamish Low, Engineering Director - Combustion Systems at Rolls-Royce plc, added: "The outstanding results of previous collaboration between DLR and Rolls-Royce Deutschland have inspired us to seek strategic collaboration with the DLR in the area of combustion and emissions reduction."

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EU-Russia foster relationship
Europa und Russland wollen Zusammenarbeit intensivieren

On 25 September in Strasbourg, the Sky and Space Intergroup, chaired by Gilles Savary (MEP), for the first time focussed on EU-Russia relationships in aerospace. Guests at the meeting included members of the Russian DUMA and the European Parliament, as well as representatives of the European Commission; furthermore, senior representatives of the European Space Agency, of the Russian Aviation and Space Agency (Rosaviakosmos), and from the aerospace industries: Alcatel-Space, Arianespace, EADS, Finmeccanicca, the Khrunichev Space Centre, and SNECMA. All speakers emphasised the very long and fruitful, world­class co-operation between Europe and Russia and strongly called for the implementation of a long-term strategy in the areas of aeronautics and space. The debate highlighted several projects and areas where partnerships should be envisaged, such as, for example, Galileo, GMES, Launchers, satellites and aircraft. The European Commission underlined the possible participation of Russia in the 6th Framework Program. A workshop in Moscow in January 2003 will take place on the subject. Several speakers from both sides, EU and Russia, recognised the importance of sessions like this Sky & Space Intergroup meeting and called for follow-up events.

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Bombardier cuts jobs
Stellenstreichungen bei Bombardier

Bombardier Aerospace announced that it is taking steps to adjust its cost structure to the current business environment. Adjustments include a reduction in its staffing and production levels at all of its sites. A total of 1,980 employees, including 20 per cent of management, will be laid off at Bombardier Aerospace facilities in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, beginning in October 2002.
In addition, Bombardier will temporarily cutback production of some of its aircraft programs at its sites in Belfast, Montréal, Toronto and Wichita. The reduced production levels affect the following manufacturing work. They will take effect over the following weeks: · In Belfast, business aircraft component manufacturing will be affected; in Montréal, production of the Bombardier Challenger 604 business jet will be reduced over a four-month period; in Toronto, all manufacturing work will be interrupted for six to eight weeks, beginning in late November, impacting the Bombardier Q Series turboprop aircraft and the Bombardier Global family of business aircraft production lines. Some 1,600 employees will be affected during this period; in Wichita, production of the Bombardier Learjet 45 and Learjet 60 will be interrupted for a period of four months beginning in December, affecting some 500 employees. The Bombardier Challenger 300 and Bombardier Learjet 40 development programs and entry-into-service schedules are not impacted by these measures.

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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN

American Eurocopter has sold its first EC 145 in the United States to the Lee County Division of Public Safety/EMS. The launch customer will use the EC 145 primarily to support the Lee County Emergency Medical Services segment of the Division. Lee County, which lies along the west coast of Florida, includes the cities of Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, Cape Coral and Bonita Springs as well as 652,000 acres of coastal area and barrier islands. Lee County EMS (LCEMS) is a third-service municipal Advanced Life Support provider for Lee County, Florida. The EMS Helicopter Operation is responsible for providing advanced life support for out-of-hospital emergencies and primary health care. While trauma and medical calls constitute the majority of the operation, LCEMS also responds to personnel searches, mass casualty incidents, and missing or downed aircraft reports.
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The French Air Force has ordered four EC 725 helicopters re-engined with the Turbomeca Makila 2A. The first helicopter in the batch recently made its maiden flight from the Marignane site under the control of test pilot Hervé Jammayrac, flight test engineer Bernard Turcat, and flight test technician Daniel Sémioli. The first flight lasted about 90 minutes, and was devoted to checking out the behavior of the Makila 2A engine and its Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC). The new engine developed by Turbomeca has a new-generation compressor. It operates at higher temperatures, and therefore generates 14% more contingency power (2,448 hp, 2,413 shp) than the preceding version.
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NASA and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) researchers will estimate how long it takes to secure the passenger cabin of a wide-body airliner in advance of oncoming air turbulence during a three-day joint experiment this week at the FAA's Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City. The Aircraft Cabin Turbulence Warning Experiment Oct. 1 - 3 will provide critical information to improve in-flight safety for turbulence encounters, the largest cause of in-flight injuries. Sponsored by the joint FAA - NASA Aviation Safety Program, tests will be conducted by crews from three major air carriers -- United, Delta and US Air -- one airline each day. In addition, American Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines are supporting the work with equipment and staff, and two flight attendant unions -- the Association of Flight Attendants and the Association of Professional Flight Attendants -- are providing support through planning and technical consultation.
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Japan Airline Systems (JAL) has selected Technical Services and Modifications, a Boeing Commercial Aviation Services business unit, to modernize their fleet of 747-200/-300 in-service airplanes. The upgrades will allow continued operations in European- and Pacific-region airspace, including the Future Air Navigation Systems (FANS-1) environment. The upgrades also will enable the JAL 747-200/-300 airplanes to operate in the same preferred airspace as the newest airplanes in the fleet. The certification for the JAL upgrades will be complete May 2003. The project includes installation and flight test of the first JAL airplanes.
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The official ceremony of induction of 10 Su-30MKI fighters into the Indian Air Force was held at Lohagaon Air Base (Pune, Maharashtra, India) on September 27, 2002. Guests and participants of the show were addressed by Defence Minister Mr. George Fernandes. After flying part of the ceremony, performed by new-comers, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal S.Krishnaswamy declared the induction of Su-30MKI a/c into the Indian combat aviation as a confirmed fact. The Russian side was represented by Mr. V.A.Pakhomov, Deputy General director, Rosoboronexport State Corporation, Mr. A.I.Fedorov, President, IAPO JSC, Mr. M.A.Pogosjan, General director, AVPK Sukhoi Enterprise, top-management of manufacturers, involved in MKI Project, the Russian Embassy staff. Contract on supply of 40 Su-30MKI aircraft to the IAF was signed up in November 1996 between the Indian MoD and Rosvoorouzhenie State Company - legal predecessor of Rosoboronexport Corporation. The implementation of the contract was assigned to Irkutsk-based IAPO JSC.
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Flight trials of the Typhoon's Defensive Aids Sub-System (DASS) have shown that the system is delivering performance that meets or exceeds expectations. Recent trials, covering the air-to-air and air-to-ground operation of the Electronic Support Measures (ESM) and Electronic Countermeasures (ECM), have been conducted on a Typhoon operating from the BAE Systems facility at Warton in north west England. This series of flight trials has been aimed at data collection, to optimize the performance of the final production-standard equipment. Results have confirmed that the ESM and ECM are delivering impressive performance. The data collection program is planned to continue until late this year, with flight trials of the final production-standard equipment beginning in 2003. DASS - the Defensive Aids Sub-System for Typhoon - is a fully integrated Electronic Warfare (EW) suite with a Radar Warning Receiver (RWR), RF Jammer, radar decoys, active missile approach warner, laser warner and chaff/flare dispenser. All are controlled through the Defensive Aids Computer.
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NASA is developing technology to help prevent airliner fuel tank fires or explosions. Four contracts, awarded by NASA's Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, may reduce airliner fuel tank fire and explosion hazards. The four contracts, totaling approximately $400,000, have been awarded to Creare Engineering, Inc., Hanover, N.H.; Essex Cryogenics Inc., St. Louis; Honeywell Environmental Controls Systems, Torrance, Calif.; and Valcor Engineering, Springfield, N.J. "The companies will study how to reduce flammability in fuel tanks by replacing oxygen with a gas that won't support combustion," said Clarence Chang, manager of the fire prevention element of Glenn's Accident Mitigation Project. "The purpose is to prevent the kind of explosion that in recent years brought down TWA flight 800 and destroyed two other airliners at overseas locations," he said. Phase I of the contracts, lasting five months, is a study and feasibility determination of improved on-board inert gas generation system and on-board oxygen generation system methods and the design of demonstration systems. If Phase I is successful, actual hardware fabrication and testing will take place during Phase II.
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The Chief Executive Officer for Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL), Jahangir Askerov, and the Commercial Action Executive Vice President for the Eurocopter Group, Olivier Lambert, have just signed a contract for the purchase of two AS 332 L1 Super Puma helicopters and four EC 155 B1 helicopters. The French Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Renaud Muselier, also attended the signing ceremony held in Baku. The role of these helicopters will be to shuttle workers to and from the oil rigs in the Caspian Sea, and to transport passengers. The Super Puma and EC 155 B1 both underwent lengthy trials in "real life" operational conditions to validate their performances. Deliveries will start in late 2003 and end in mid-2004. The AZAL order clearly strengthens the reputation and the presence of Eurocopter in this part of the world. The EC 155 B1 is the latest member of the Dauphin family. It features leading-edge technology, such as a 5-blade Spheriflex main rotor and a shrouded Fenestron tail rotor, and is extremely quiet with the lowest noise level in its category.
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GE Aircraft Engines (GEAE), the U.S. Air Force (USAF) Materiel Command (AFMC) and the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) have signed a Strategic Supplier Alliance to improve support of GEAE engines installed in the tactical and strategic military aircraft in service around the world. The alliance agreement, which is part of the U.S. Department of Defense's initiative to improve force readiness, will focus specifically on leveraging the strengths of AFMC, DLA and GEAE to improve forecasting, material supply and inventory, and supply chain management for all GE engines in use by U.S. forces around the world. The new agreement builds on GE's long-standing relationship with the DLA and USAF. In 1999, GE signed the industry's first "corporate contract" with the USAF at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base to manage the entire F110 supply chain for the USAF.
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The first of EUMETSAT's new generation of weather satellites, MSG-1, has arrived on station at 10.5°W in geostationary orbit at 36,000 kilometres above the Earth. After separation from the Ariane-5 launcher on 29 August, ESA's European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt took the spacecraft under control on behalf of EUMETSAT for the Launch and Early Operations Phase (LEOP). Operation of the spacecraft has now been handed over to EUMETSAT. MSG has been developed through the close cooperation between the European Space Agency (ESA) and EUMETSAT, the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites. The combination of ESA's space technology development skills and EUMETSAT's meteorological expertise and long-term operational perspective has resulted in this new satellite system set to provide an essential service for at least the next 12 years.
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In a ceremony held to mark the end of the TH 98 program in Alpenach (Switzerland) and attended by the Head of the Armaments Group and top-ranking military officials, Eurocopter President Jean-François Bigay praised the exceptional quality of the relations existing for the last 35 years with the Swiss industry in general and with Ruag Aerospace in particular. Eurocopter and Ruag Aerospace began working together at the end of the 1960s. Known as Fabrique Fédérale d'Avions d'Emmen at the time, the company had acquired a license for assembly of the Alouette 3, including the manufacture of the airframe. Initial discussions on the Puma-sized helicopters began in 1972 and subsequently gave birth to the TH 86, 89 and 98 programs. In the 1990s, the company also took part in the retrofit of 3 Super Pumas for the TH 86 program, upgrading them to the TH 89 program standard. The TH 89 program involved 12 Super Puma helicopters, 10 of which were assembled at Emmen. Starting in 2001, the same process was adopted for the 12 Super Pumas of the TH 98 program, 10 of which were assembled by Ruag Aerospace. The last machine has just been delivered to the Swiss Air Force. On this occasion, Jean-François Bigay noted: "All this would not have been possible without the skills of Ruag Aerospace. Acquired through our various cooperation programs, these skills have contributed to the reputation gained by Ruag Aerospace in the helicopter sector. May I say how pleased I am with the technology transferred to Ruag by the Helicopter Division of Aerospatiale and then by Eurocopter
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Goodrich Corporation announced today that it has completed its acquisition of TRW Inc.'s Aeronautical Systems businesses for $1.5 billion in cash. The acquired businesses design and manufacture commercial and military aerospace systems and equipment with 6,200 employees located in 22 facilities throughout the world. In commenting on the acquisition, Dave Burner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "These newly-acquired products and systems expand and strengthen our established global leadership positions, further improving our ability to meet the changing needs of the aerospace industry. Our large installed base of proprietary, flight-critical products, coupled with the long-term growth of the worldwide fleet of military, commercial and regional aircraft, creates a solid foundation for continued growth. Our strong, established, strategic customer relationships in each market will allow us to continue to provide the best products and services to sustain our position as one of the premier suppliers in the industry."
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Northrop Grumman Corporation's Integrated Systems sector, prime contractor for the U.S. Navy's RQ-8A Fire Scout vertical takeoff and landing tactical unmanned system, announced it has completed work on the first Fire Scout air vehicle built in the full production configuration. Following a brief rollout ceremony Sept. 30 at the company's Unmanned Systems facility here, the vehicle was shipped to Naval Air Warfare Center, China Lake, Calif., where it will join a flight test program already under way with a company-owned Fire Scout vehicle that has completed five autonomously controlled flights since May.
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NASA has released the first set of data taken by the Mars Odyssey spacecraft to the Planetary Data System, which will now make the information available to research scientists through a new online distribution and access system. "This release is a major milestone for Mars scientists worldwide, since the first validated data from our instruments are now available to the entire scientific community," said Dr. R. Stephen Saunders, the Odyssey Project Scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "There are fundamentally new kinds of information in these data sets, including day and night infrared images, maps of hydrogen in the soil, and radiation hazard data for future Mars missions." The information includes the first six weeks of mapping data through the end of March, as well as the observations made during the cruise phase to Mars. The archive consists of formatted instrument data from the gamma-ray spectrometer and high-energy neutron spectrometer; Mars maps from the neutron detectors; about 800 visible and infrared images taken by the camera system; and radiation measurements from the Martian radiation environment experiment. New data will be released to the science community every three months.
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Ryanair announced a major expansion of capacity and growth at its German base in Frankfurt Hahn. The airline will base two more new Boeing 787-800 aircraft, bringing the total to five at the airport from Thursday 5th December 2002 and will launch four new routes with daily services to Rome (twice daily), Bologna Forli, Girona (Barcelona) (twice daily), Stockholm (twice daily) and is increasing its frequency to London Stansted from four daily flights to six). Making the announcement in Frankfurt today, Ryanair's Chief Executive, Mr Michael O'Leary said: "This is another historic day in the development of Ryanair and low fares in Germany. While others including Lufthansa talk about setting up low fare airlines in Germany Ryanair just gets on with the job. Only eight months ago, we established our first German base with three aircraft and eight routes. Such has been the enormous success of these routes and the widespread acceptance of Ryanair's low fares service by German passengers that less than one year into its existence, we are expanding in Germany by over 60%, by basing two extra aircraft.
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The RAH -66 COMANCHE entered the next phase of mission equipment development, testing and integration on Sept. 24 with the first flight using the Helmet Integrated Display Sighting System (HIDSS). The HIDSS was developed by Kaiser Electronics, a Rockwell Collins company, and integrated by the Boeing-Sikorsky team. The No. 2 aircraft evaluated the helmet operation using the COMANCHE's Night Vision Pilotage System (NVPS). With pilots John Armbrust at the controls and Rus Stiles wearing the helmet mounted display, the aircraft flew various air speeds and maneuvers for one hour here at the Development Flight Center. The flight marked yet another major milestone reached ahead of schedule this year. On May 23 Prototype No. 2 made the first successful flight with the new Mission Equipment Package software, soon followed on July 30 by the first flight with the NVPS.
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Saab Aircraft Leasing will soon complete a two-week North American demonstration tour of its first dedicated Saab 340A all-cargo version to existing and prospective customers. Full FAR/JAR Class E certification (cargo only operation) was granted at the end of September 2002. The conversion, consisting of 13 Service Bulletins, was developed jointly by Saab Aircraft AB and Field Aviation Company of Canada. Serial Number 069 was converted during a three-month period at Field Aviation's maintenance facility in Calgary. The Cargo version carries 8,500 lbs maximum payload a distance of 300 nm. The demonstrator aircraft sports a brand new Saab livery and is equipped with optional window blanks.
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In contrast to last year, Lufthansa is slightly expanding its winter timetable. After scaling back capacity this time last autumn, the airline is now boosting frequencies on some intercontinental and European routes, particularly to and from Munich and Frankfurt. With the introduction of the 2002/2003 winter timetable on 27 October, Lufthansa will increase its available capacity by 13 per cent compared to the 2001/02 winter timetable, bringing its total flight offering almost up to the level of winter 2001/2001. Lufthansa has also added a new long-haul destination to its network: with the new service to the Nigerian capital Abuja, Lufthansa will fly to a total of 317 cities in 86 countries. This winter, flights to Cairo will be resumed from Munich, Lufthansa's second hub. The Egyptian capital will then be served four times a week by an Airbus A319. Globetrotters seeking to escape from Europe's winter gloom will be able to fly direct from Munich and enjoy the summer in South Africa. A Lufthansa Airbus A340 will serve Johannesburg five times a week. Passengers to Shanghai will also have a greater choice of travel dates with the addition of a fourth weekday flight, on Mondays.
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LanChile Cargo inaugurated freighter service between Germany and South America. In connection with this new service, the Chilean airline has moved its European headquarters from Paris to Frankfurt and contracted Fraport AG's Aviation Ground Services and Logistics division as its new ground-handling partner at Frankfurt Airport. Using Boeing 767F all-cargo aircraft, LanChile Cargo will offer three weekly flights from Frankfurt via Miami to South American capitals such as Asunción, Buenos Aires, Montevideo and, of course, Santiago de Chile. Previously, the airline served the European market via Paris with two weekly freighter flights. Cooperation with Lufthansa Cargo on the routes between Frankfurt and South America, allows LanChile Cargo to offer additional freighter space. Vice versa, Lufthansa uses cargo capacities of the Chilean
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EADS will upgrade eleven air defense surveillance radars in Greece. As reported by EADS on Tuesday, its Business Unit Systems and Defence Electronics has received an order by the Hellenic Air Force to modernize 11 L-band radar systems according to the latest semiconductor technology. The contract is worth a total of approx. Euro 25 million. Stefan Zoller, President and CEO of EADS Systems and Defence Electronics, said: "Within the scope of an offset contract, the Greek industry will be included in the project as a subcontractor. Thus, the power modules for new radar transmitters will be built in Greece. We are pleased that this breakthrough co-operation with our Operating Unit Naval and Ground Systems will become a reality.”
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Bombardier Aerospace has announced that SkyWest Airlines of St. George, Utah has taken delivery of its 50th new Bombardier CRJ regional jet, a 50-seat CRJ200 model. SkyWest, one of the world's largest independently operated regional airlines, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the Bombardier CRJ in March of 1989, before the program was officially launched. The carrier placed its initial firm order for 10 Bombardier CRJ aircraft in mid-1993 and was the second U.S. carrier to introduce the aircraft, receiving its first Bombardier CRJ100* on Jan. 7, 1994 for Delta Connection routes. Its firm orders for the aircraft now total 100 and it holds conditional orders and options on an additional 148 aircraft.
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From next January, the European Union requires all European airports - including Frankfurt Airport - to screen all hold baggage before loading, as part of tighter security. This requires installation of additional baggage X-ray machines and may result in longer waiting times. As of January 1, 2003, passengers are, therefore, advised to arrive at the airport a little earlier and allow some extra time for check-in until the new procedures are routine. The additional X-ray machines will be installed in front of the check-in counters in both terminals at Frankfurt Airport.
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Industry and academia, under the leadership of The Boeing Company, has been awarded a NASA contract to meet the challenge of developing nuclear electric power for deep space exploration. Responding to NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe's call to move forward with a "nuclear propulsion initiative," Boeing and a team consisting of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Glenn Research Center, Honeywell, Swales Aerospace, Auburn University and Texas A&M will develop power conversion technologies that enable future reactor electric propulsion missions. "Our team's proposal was designed to meet the challenge NASA has made to further our exploration of the planets and deep space," said Terry Murphy, division director for Boeing Energy Systems at Boeing's Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power unit. "This reactor technology would give us a 100-fold increase in power and a 30-fold increase in propulsion efficiency compared to conventional, storable rocket propellants. This means that a mission would take a fraction of the travel time and provide years of scientific discovery."
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The Boeing International Space Station team began work Oct. 1 on a contract that consolidates previous NASA payload integration contracts.NASA awarded Boeing [NYSE: BA] the noncompetitive International Space Station Payload Integration Contract (IPIC) in September. It is a three-year contract worth about $200 million. NASA Systems, a Houston-based business unit of Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, holds the contract designed to cut costs and reduce payload processing time by optimizing payload engineering and operations and streamlining the team structure. Of the three previous contracts, Boeing held two and United Space Alliance held one. About 400 people in Houston and Huntsville, Ala., will work on the contract. Boeing's partners and subcontractors include Teledyne Brown Engineering, United Space Alliance, and several small and minority-owned businesses.
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Marietta, Ga. - Raptor 11, the first F/A-22 Production Representative Test Vehicle (PRTV) to fly, conducted its maiden flight on September 16, 2002, from the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company facility located here. Eight PRTV aircraft - Raptors 10 through 17 - will be delivered to Nellis AFB, Nev., in 2003 for operational testing and tactics development to ensure the F/A-22 meets the U.S. Air Force's warfighting needs. With this successful first flight, a major year 2002 F/A-22 program goal has been satisfied.
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The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I (TDRS-I), built for NASA by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, a unit of The Boeing Company, has reached geosynchronous orbit where it will provide critical communications support for NASA's space shuttles, the International Space Station, and numerous scientific spacecraft. The achievement comes after a successful recovery effort made necessary when one of the spacecraft's two propellant fuel tanks did not properly pressurize shortly after its March 8 launch. In a procedure that could be compared to a "remote control coronary bypass" from 23,000 miles away, satellite controllers at Boeing Satellite Systems, in El Segundo, Calif., have rerouted fuel tank pressurant around a blocked valve and conducted a series of engine burns over the past four months to raise TDRS-I's orbit to 22,300 miles. The last burn was performed early Monday morning, Sept. 30.
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MTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg at Ludwigsfelde, Germany, on Tuesday, October 1, 2002, concluded a three-year agreement with Adria Airlines for the repair of the CF34 engines powering the carrier's CRJ fleet. This first CF34 repair contract from an airline formally rings up the curtain on the Ludwigsfelde repair activities for this, the world's most popular engine in its class. The contract was signed in the presence of senior-level government and industry leaders, among them Brandenburg's Minister President Matthias Platzeck, who stated: "In the eleven years of MTU's committed presence in the Brandenburg region, the company has been very productive in creating new jobs and adding to the region's economic stability." The company, he continued, is doing its bit to make Brandenburg burgeon into one of Germany's major aerospace hubs.
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Alcatel announced the signature of a contract with the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) for the development and construction of a new telecommunications satellite. This partnership will allow both contractors to develop the first high capacity Chinese telecommunications satellite. The contract has been signed in the presence of China's Premier Zhu Rongji, the French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin, Alcatel's President and Chief Executive Officer Serge Tchuruk, the President of China Aerospace Corporation (CASC, parent company of CAST) Zhang Qingwei and the President of Asia Pacific Telecom (APT), Chen Zao Bing. Alcatel will provide the payload module - meaning the electronic equipment which specifies the satellite mission - to CAST for the integration of the first China made high capacity communication platform DFH4 into a complete satellite. The new satellite that will be delivered to APT (Hongkong), is tailored to provide communication, radio and TV broadcasting services to telecom operators and to radio and TV stations.
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Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji visited Airbus' headquarters in Toulouse, France, consolidating the traditional relations between the country and the aircraft manufacturer. Premier Zhu and Airbus President and CEO Noel Forgeard witnessed the signing of an agreement between General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) and Airbus on flight safety cooperation. Under the agreement, CAAC and Airbus plan to strengthen cooperation in flight operations and training, maintenance practices and organisations, management training, E-solutions, and information and communication, while establishing stronger ties with aviation institutes and universities of higher education.
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Fine particulate matter is now one of the biggest threats to human health from air pollution. A new technique to monitor the concentration of particulate matter in urban air, using satellite-borne sensors, offers a much more cost-effective approach than traditional land-based monitoring. The first trials of this system, developed by 11 partners in the European Commission-funded ICAROS-NET (Integrated Computational Assessment of urban air quality via Remote Observation Systems NETwork) project, will be presented in Athens on 15 October 2002. ICAROS-NET runs for three years from September 2001. The satellite-borne sensors will monitor atmospheric pollution at very high resolution in areas as small as 30 metres in diameter, by measuring the proportion of light blocked by particulate matter. Preliminary mapping shows that over the 1987-2002 period Aerosol Optical Thickness (AOT), a measure of the optical effect of particulates in the atmosphere, steadily grew in Athens. Results will help improve environmental policy making in Europe and the effectiveness of international environmental treaties. "ICAROS-NET will provide for a user-friendly system to assess air quality. It will be of great help to public authorities for taking the right decisions in the environmental field" said EU Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin. "It will simplify the integration of data from different sources, including from future monitoring tools, presenting consistent information to policy-makers. Across Europe, the integration of air quality data sourced from satellite sensors will help to better measure and reduce pollution. This project is an excellent example of the types of services that could become available as a result of the EU Commission's initiative for building a Global Monitoring for Environment and Security capability (GMES)."
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EAE European Air Express is starting a new service from Cologne/Bonn to Geneva. From Monday to Friday, attractive morning and evening flights will be offered. EAE is using an ATR 42-300 for the route, giving a flying time of 1:45 hours.
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