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+++ Venus Express enters orbit +++ ISS crew returns to Earth +++ China takes more Boeing 737s +++ Aeroflot joins SkyTeam +++ News in brief +++
Venus Express enters orbit
ESA-Sonde erreicht Venus
On 11 April, at the end of a 153-day and 400-million km cruise into the inner solar system beginning with its launch on 9 November 2005, ESA's Venus Express space probe fired its main engine at 09:17 CEST for a 50-minute burn, which brought it into orbit around Venus. With this firing, the probe reduced its relative velocity toward the planet from 29,000 to about 25,000 km/h and was captured by its gravity field. This orbit insertion manoeuvre was a complete success. During the next four weeks, the Venus Express probe will perform a series of manoeuvres to reach the scheduled operational orbit for its scientific mission. It will move from its current highly elongated 9-day orbit to a 24-hour polar orbit, culminating at 66,000 km. From this vantage point, the orbiter will conduct an in-depth observation of the structure, chemistry and dynamics of the atmosphere of Venus for at least two Venusian days (486 Earth days).
On 12 April, ESA's Venus Express has returned the first-ever images of the hothouse planet's south pole from a distance of 206 452 kilometres, showing surprisingly clear structures and unexpected detail.Engineers have lost no time in switching on several of the instruments and yesterday the VMC (Venus Monitoring Camera) and VIRTIS (Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer) imaged, for the first time in space history, the southern hemisphere of Venus as the spacecraft passed below the planet in an elliptical arc. Scientists are especially intrigued by the dark vortex shown almost directly over the south pole, a previously suspected but until now unconfirmed structure that corresponds to a similar cloud structure over the north pole. “Just one day after arrival, we are already experiencing the hot, dynamic environment of Venus,” said Dr Hakan Svedhem, Venus Express project scientist. “We will see much more detail at an unprecedented level as we get over 100 times better resolution as we get closer to Venus, and we expect to see these spiral structures evolve very quickly.”
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ISS crew returns to Earth
Expedition 12-Astronauten landen mit Sojus-Kapsel
After orbiting Earth more than 3,000 times during six months on the International Space Station, Expedition 12 Commander Bill McArthur and Flight Engineer Valery Tokarev returned to the planet on April 8 in the morning in Kazakhstan. With them was Marcos Pontes, Brazil's first astronaut. The Soyuz spacecraft with McArthur, Tokarev and Pontes landed in central Kazakhstan, about 30 miles northeast of Arkalyk, at 7:48 p.m. EDT, Saturday. The crew's families will greet them at Star City, Russia, near Moscow, early Monday. McArthur and Tokarev will remain in Star City for post-flight debriefings before returning to Houston later this month. McArthur and Tokarev launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Sept. 30, 2005. They spent 189 days, 18 hours and 51 minutes in space. During their mission, they conducted two spacewalks and relocated their Soyuz spacecraft twice, becoming the first ISS crew to dock to every Russian docking port on the complex. They also became the first two-person station crew to conduct a spacewalk in both Russian and U.S. spacesuits. Pontes flew to the station with the Expedition 13 crew last week as part of a commercial agreement with the Russian Federal Space Agency, Roscosmos. He spent eight days on the station conducting experiments.
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China takes more Boeing 737s
Weiterer Erfolg für US-Hersteller
Boeing is pleased to have signed the general purchase agreement with China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group for 80 Boeing Next-Generation 737 airplanes. The 80 airplanes in the agreement combine with 70 airplanes agreed to in November 2005 to complete a planned 150-airplane purchase. The first 50 of those Next-Generation 737 airplanes were booked in December 2005 with an additional 20 booked in January 2006. Boeing expects to finalize agreements for the 80 new orders with the individual Chinese airlines over the next few weeks. The 737 represents a large portion of the country's fleet. Of the 542 Boeing airplanes in China's fleet, 366 are 737 family aircraft. The 737 family of aircraft comprises 41 percent of China's passenger airplanes.
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Aeroflot joins SkyTeam
Neues Mitglied in der Airline-Allianz
SkyTeam announced that effective April 14 global travelers will have direct access to an expanded network in Russia as Aeroflot officially becomes the alliance's tenth member. SkyTeam is the first global airline alliance to welcome a Russian carrier. With the addition of Aeroflot, SkyTeam will serve approximately 373 million passengers with nearly 15,000 daily departures to 728 global destinations in more than 149 countries. An official welcoming ceremony with key SkyTeam executives was held in Moscow. Aeroflot, the largest air carrier in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), has made significant progress over the past five years, enabling the airline to meet the levels of service and safety of the most effective airline companies of the world. In October 2005, Aeroflot successfully passed the International Airline Transport Association (IATA) Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), confirming its high operational standards. Also in 2005, the airline received an award for Onboard Service Improvement Excellence from Skytrax, a leading research and consultancy firm for the airline and air transport industry.
"Membership in the SkyTeam alliance will advance Aeroflot's growth and enhance operational efficiencies, thereby improving our service offerings to our highly-valued customers," said Valery Okulov, chief executive officer and chairman, Aeroflot. "We look forward to better serving our customers by linking them to the extensive SkyTeam network and providing them with more convenient connections, as well as the opportunity to earn more frequent flyer miles as they travel throughout the world." As part of its membership, Aeroflot passengers will be able to accrue and redeem frequent flyer miles interchangeably on any of the nine other SkyTeam member airlines. In turn, SkyTeam passengers on flights operated by Aeroflot can earn miles in their preferred frequent flyer program.
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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN
The US Civil Air Patrol (CAP) commands the world's largest single engine piston fleet, and that fleet now includes 16 new 182T Skylane aircraft from Cessna Aircraft. CAP has the world's largest fleet of single engine piston aircraft, and 540 are Cessnas. The 16 additional 182Ts will make 58 total 182Ts in the fleet, with plans to add more this year.
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Eurocopter warmly welcomed the final decision made by Korea's DAPA (Defense Acquisition Program Administration) for the acquisition of 245 utility helicopters to be developed by Korea Aerospace Industries Limited in partnership with Eurocopter, and produced as from 2011 onwards. This decision, which occurred yesterday during the 2nd Defense Program Promotion Meeting led by Korea's Defense Minister Yoon Kwang Woong, officially launches this significant military transport helicopter program, first of its kind in Korea. Eurocopter, which has been very successful in the civil and parapublic Korean markets over the last decades, is very proud to be associated to this governmental program.
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With a success rate exceeding 92% achieved in over 40 test-firing campaigns carried out around the world with ASPIDE and ASPIDE 2000 missiles during 2005, the qualities of this highly effective air defence system have once again been strongly emphasised. These successful test-firings, carried out from SPADA and Skyguard launchers for the ground based tests and from Albatros launchers for the naval tests, are renewed proof of the qualities of these systems. The exceptional operational reliability and high kill probability of the multi-role ASPIDE and its latest variant, ASPIDE 2000, are a true reflection of MBDA's technical excellence in the sector. The global success rate of these tests (over 90%) has more than met the requirements of the customer. Since entering service in the 1980s, the ASPIDE missile has registered a series of successes throughout an extensive range of test campaigns. To date, a record number of more than 700 firings have been carried out. The vast majority of these tests have been carried out under a wide range of differing conditions by the customer/user during firing exercises and training. Several types of target have been used – including those using evasive manoeuvres and other “real” targets as used in training exercises against the sea-skimming threat.
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FlightSafety International and Sikorsky announced a significant expansion of their comprehensive customer training program with the addition of one S-92 simulator and two S-76C+/C++ convertible simulators. “We are making this additional investment to support the large number of Sikorsky aircraft operators that rely on FlightSafety for the best professional training,” said Jim Waugh, Executive Vice President, FlightSafety International. “The expansion of our partnership with Sikorsky reinforces FlightSafety's position as the world's leading provider of business aircraft training.” The three new simulators are expected to enter service in 2007. Customers who train on these advanced technology simulators will benefit from FlightSafety's 200 X 60 degree VITAL visual system and electric motion and control loading technology. The simulators will be designed in conjunction with Sikorsky's engineering and flight test team to ensure they offer the highest level of fidelity and replicate the exact flying characteristics of the aircraft.
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Raytheon has successfully simulated simultaneous command and control of two unmanned air vehicles (UAV) and an unmanned surface vehicle from a single common control system. Under contract from NAVAIR (Naval Air Systems Command) and U.S. Navy Program Execution Office for Strike Weapons and Unmanned Aviation (PMA-263), Raytheon used the Multiple Vehicle Control System (MVCS), a derivative of the Tactical Control System (TCS). The MVCS is a STANAG 4586-based rapid prototyping asset used for advancements and evaluation of future ground control station capabilities and functionality. STANAG 4586 is a specification that allows members of the NATO alliance to share information obtained by their unmanned air vehicles. "The unmanned air systems (UAS) that are deployed today consist of one ground station with one type of air vehicle," said Steve Daniel, the demonstration effort program manager for NAVAIR, PMA-263. "The state-of-the-art in UAS system development is one ground station with multiple air vehicles. This experiment demonstrates how the TCS program is going even further by using a single TCS-based ground station to control multiple, air and surface unmanned vehicles."
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The UH-145 Light Utility Helicopter's industrial team has been further expanded with the addition of four new suppliers for avionics, navigation and communications systems, windscreens and windows, and crew and passenger seats. Selected by EADS North America and its subsidiary American Eurocopter to join the UH-145 supplier line-up are: Thales USA, Wulfsberg Electronics, the NORDAM Group and Armor Holdings. Thales USA's avionics suite for the UH-145 utilizes proven, commercial equipment that is in extensive operation on rotary-wing aircraft worldwide. It is based on the company's Meghas cost-effective, new-generation avionics suite, which features a glass cockpit with active matrix liquid crystal displays. The system's centralized vehicle and engine management display (VEMD) replaces a dozen conventional instruments, contributing to the avionics suite's reduced cost and low pilot workload.
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EMS SATCOM, a division of EMS Technologies Inc., reported that Eurocopter Deutschland has selected the EMS SATCOM eNfusion HSD-128 high-speed data terminal as part of a communications solution developed by SCOTTY that will provide real-time tactical video transmission, videoconferencing and high-speed internet capabilities to German Army CH-53 helicopters. "This contract is a key milestone for our burgeoning business in Europe," said Neil Mackay, Senior Vice President and General Manager of EMS SATCOM. "Working with SCOTTY, we have demonstrated that our eNfusion satellite-based communications systems are robust, key enablers for the German Army's CH-53 helicopters and their missions. We've seen that the demand, particularly from military programs, for these capabilities on mobile platforms continue to rise." The communications solution on board the German Army CH-53G helicopter is the result of a tri-lateral project, initiated and led by SCOTTY. Integrated by Eurocopter, the system consists of SCOTTY's video and data communication equipment, and EMS SATCOM's eNfusion system: HSD-128 high-speed data terminal, and Helicom -- AMT-50 high-gain antenna and customized radome. Installed and tested on the CH53-G helicopter in September of 2005, the solution delivers key capabilities to aircraft that previously only had access to high-frequency radio communications. The system's live in-flight tactical video imagery, videoconferencing, and high-speed Internet capabilities securely accessible around the globe and wherever the aircraft happens to be, provide substantial tactical and communications advantages.
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NASA will send a second spacecraft to the moon with the launch of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, scheduled for October 2008. The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite will travel independent of the orbiter to search for water ice. The spacecraft, proposed by NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., will fly as a secondary payload on the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle that will launch the orbiter from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. First, the craft will direct the upper stage used to leave Earth orbit to crash into a permanently-shadowed crater at the lunar south pole, creating a plume visible to Earth-based observatories. Next, the satellite will observe the plume and fly through it using several instruments to look for water. Then the satellite will itself become an impactor, creating a second plume visible to lunar-orbiting spacecraft and Earth-based observatories. NASA's requirements for the secondary payload were that it benefits the robotic lunar program, cost no more than $80 million and not exceed 2,205 pounds (1000 kilograms).
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ILOG announced that Lufthansa German Airlines has implemented an automatic crew assignment system which uses ILOG optimization software. Lufthansa can now create duty rosters in a more effective, responsive and cost-sensitive way -- all while significantly reducing the time it takes to build crew duty rosters. Prior to the new automatic rostering system, the crew duty rosters for 3,500 cockpit and 14,500 cabin staff were created manually. By using ILOG CPLEX, Lufthansa has streamlined the scheduling process and crew duty rosters are automatically processed. The new system takes into account costs, stability, individual crew preferences, industry and government regulatory requirements and internal corporate policies. Planners, freed from performing these tasks manually, now can use simulations to further improve the crew assignment process. More than 1,000 commercial customers, including 160 members of the Global 500, use ILOG optimization tools, engines and applications to solve the world's most challenging planning and scheduling problems.
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Raytheon has been awarded a $114 million contract by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) to implement the Upgraded Early Warning Radar (UEWR) program at Thule, Greenland. “We're pleased to be selected as the prime contractor for UEWR Thule,” said Pete Franklin, vice president, Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) Missile Defense Business Area. “The UEWR at Thule will build on the radars that we've already deployed to Beale Air Force Base, Calif., and Royal Air Force Fylingdales, U.K., and will add significantly more surveillance coverage for the U.S. missile defense mission.”
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The U.S. Navy has awarded a contract to Rockwell Collins for its MH-60 Weapons Load Trainer (WLT) program. The program, valued at $26 million, calls for Rockwell Collins to modify an existing H-60F trainer and build four new H-60 WLTs.
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UPS announced the start of direct air service from Shanghai to Europe along with the addition of three new flights connecting Shanghai to the U.S. and another new flight between Qingdao and Incheon, Korea. "UPS now flies to more points in China than any other U.S. airline, freight or passenger," said David Abney, president, International Operations. "These new flights are part of our strategy to expand our service options, stay ahead of customer needs and solidify our position as the leader in the world's fastest growing market." UPS will utilize MD-11 aircraft to fly from Shanghai to Cologne five times a week. In addition to the new service to Europe, UPS has added three new frequencies on its Shanghai-U.S. route, increasing to nine times per week the number of non-stop flights on that lane. The number of UPS flights into Qingdao, a major port and manufacturing center, now has increased to six per week. The airline's growth is part of a broader effort to accelerate global trade and offer new service options to customers. Already the world's largest package delivery service and among the largest of logistics companies, UPS in recent months has doubled the size of its air hub in Cologne, Germany; begun expanding its network reach inside China and Japan; expanded its intra-Asia air hub in the Philippines; is nearing completion of a new 425,000-square-foot freight and logistics hub in Singapore; is developing a new air hub in Shanghai, and has re-engineered its U.S. ground network to accelerate the delivery of more than half-a-million packages every day.
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Lufthansa reports further growth. After posting an all-time high of 51.3 million passengers last year, growth continued in the first three months of this year. The Lufthansa passenger airlines carried 11.4 million passengers in the first quarter, an increase of 2.8 per cent on the year-earlier level. Since the rise of one per cent in revenue passenger-kilometres lagged behind the increase in capacity (+3.1 per cent), the seat load factor fell by 1.5 percentage points to 71.8 per cent. The volume of freight and mail transported by Lufthansa Cargo was marginally down on the first quarter last time round to 410,000 tonnes. Although available capacity was scaled back by 3.4 per cent, the cargo carrier lifted sales by 1.1 per cent. The cargo load factor improved in consequence by 3.1 percentage points to 68.3 per cent. Overall capacity utilisation on passenger and cargo flights rose in the first quarter by 0.3 percentage points to 70.3 per cent.
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NASA has signed an agreement with other U.S. and international agencies to launch the Ocean Surface Topography Mission in 2008. The satellite, named Jason-2, will increase our understanding of ocean circulation and improve climate forecasts and measurements of global sea-level change. The 3- to 5-year mission will extend the ocean topography measurements collected since 1992, first by TOPEX/Poseidon and now by Jason. NASA is cooperating with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), France's Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) on this mission. NASA will provide several of the mission's science instruments, including an advanced microwave radiometer, laser retroreflector array and Global Positioning System payload receiver package. NASA will also provide launch services on a Boeing Delta II rocket. NOAA will provide a satellite-control center, stations for commanding the spacecraft and acquiring data, data processing, and the infrastructure for archiving and distributing mission data. After the satellite's launch and an engineering assessment, CNES will hand over management of the satellite to NOAA.
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For the first time, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has seen distinctly the "tenth planet," currently nicknamed "Xena," and has found that it is only slightly larger than Pluto. Though previous ground-based observations suggested that Xena's diameter was about 30 percent greater than Pluto, Hubble observations taken Dec. 9 and 10, 2005, showed Xena's diameter as 1,490 miles (with an uncertainty of 60 miles). Pluto's diameter, as measured by Hubble, is 1,422 miles. "Hubble is the only telescope capable of getting a clean visible-light measurement of the actual diameter of Xena," said Mike Brown, planetary scientist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif. Brown's research team discovered Xena, officially cataloged as 2003 UB313, and its results have been accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Only a handful of images were required to determine Xena's diameter. Located 10 billion miles from Earth with a diameter a little more than half the width of the United States, the object is 1.5 pixels across in Hubble's view. That's enough to make a precise size measurement.
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Rockwell Collins has been selected to provide concurrency updates, training modifications and support for the U.S. Air Force's B-1B Training System. The 6-year contract is worth $95 million. The contract calls for Rockwell Collins to support five Weapons System Trainers, two Mission Trainers, five Cockpit Procedure Trainers and 18 Maintenance Trainers.
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Carson Helicopters of Perkasie, Pennsylvania and Sagem Avionics, Inc. of Grand Prairie, Texas announce plans for significant upgrades to the Sikorsky S-61 helicopter. The new enhancements include new composite main rotor blades, SAGEM cockpit displays and SAGEM PA 155 automatic flight control system (AFCS). Additionally, two SAGEM F201 attitude heading reference systems (AHRS) will provide aircraft attitude and heading information to the cockpit display and AFCS. The new integrated “glass” cockpit includes five SAGEM ICDS-10 active matrix liquid crystal displays. The ICDS-10 displays, each with a 10.4 inch viewing area will include two primary flight displays (PFD) and 3 multifunction displays (MFD). The displays will serve as replacements for a majority of the older style “steam gauges” and will provide the aircrew with a wealth of versatility and selectability in presentation of aircraft flight, navigation, and engine system information and monitoring. The centerpiece of the new upgrade program for the S-61 is the SAGEM PA 155 automatic flight control system (AFCS). This is the same series AFCS certified in the Eurocopter SA 332 Super Puma helicopter. It was most recently FAA certified for retrofit on the Erickson S-64 Air Crane. The AFCS is a 3-axis AFCS with duplex architecture consisting of two AFCS computers and two attitude/heading reference systems (AHRS). The duplex feature gives the system a fail-passive and fail-operational capability after any first failure. The AFCS provides for attitude retention and automatic heading hold in a hover. For cruise flight modes the pilot can opt for basic attitude retention or select to couple to heading or GPS, and altitude or airspeed for true “hands off” flight.
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Bell Helicopter recently announced their ARH-70A Mission Equipment Package (MEP) risk reduction prototype aircraft has surpassed the 70 hour flight test mark. The MEP aircraft is a Bell 407 with the capability to mount ARH mission equipment in the aft cabin as well as the Target Acquisition Sensor System for in flight testing and component integration,” explained Bell ARH Program Manager Bill Leonard. “This is another significant milestone for the ARH program and allows us to reduce program risk by getting a head start on the on-aircraft integration for many of the key Avionics systems.” Currently, more than half of the ARH-70A's mission equipment package is undergoing testing and integration on the risk reduction prototype. Key components being tested and evaluated are the Common Avionics Architecture System, or CASS, the Target Acquisition Sensor Suite, or TASS, Embedded GPS/Inertial Navigation System, or EGI, as well as the Data Collection Unit, or DCU, radar altimeter and more.
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The U.S. Army has awarded BAE Systems a $52 million contract to provide more than 200 Common Missile Warning Systems (CMWS) to protect Army fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft against infrared guided missile threats. BAE Systems has been delivering CMWS systems to the Army under an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract awarded in September 2004.
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GE - Aviation has selected BAE Systems to develop an Electronic Engine Control Unit (EECU) for the full-authority digital electronic control (FADEC)-equipped T700-701D engine. The U.S. Army has designated the T700-701D as the single-configuration engine for new UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters. The FADEC System will reduce pilot workload, improve engine performance, and reduce maintenance costs compared to the standard digital engine controls used on current Black Hawks. The dual-channel control will govern engine fuel flow and variable engine geometries and perform advanced functions such as electronic engine overspeed protection. The system also will incorporate built-in prognostic tools to interface with the aircraft's health, utility, and management systems.
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The US Air Transport Association (ATA), the industry organization representing leading U.S. airlines, today said that continued rising jet fuel prices are impeding the remarkable overall progress being made by the U.S. airline industry to return to profitability. "Record crude oil prices, which are expected to average nearly $70 per barrel this summer, will hamper the industry's widespread efforts to reverse the losses that have plagued the airlines in recent years," said ATA Vice President and Chief Economist John Heimlich. Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows that the price of benchmark crude oil averaged $63.27 in the first quarter of 2006, up 27 percent from the same period in 2005. Accordingly, the average price of jet fuel rose approximately 40 cents per gallon, from $1.45 to $1.85. "These high fuel prices highlight the need for airspace modernization to mitigate fuel expenses. A modernized system could save hundreds of millions of gallons of jet fuel per year, not to mention the environmental benefits that such improved operational efficiency would produce," said Heimlich. The industry's total fuel expense more than doubled from 2003 to 2005, and increased $10.3 billion from 2004 to 2005 alone, wiping out any chance of industry-wide profit last year. In addition, the first quarter price data suggests higher average prices throughout 2006 versus 2005. For 12 days in a row, the average price of jet fuel has exceeded $1.90 per gallon, and this past Friday, it reached its year-to-date peak of $2. U.S. airlines continue to take aggressive measures to conserve fuel: Since 2000, the industry has increased fuel efficiency by an impressive 16 percent. Even with these exhaustive efforts, for most carriers, fuel has now tied or overtaken labor as their largest expense. On average, labor costs per seat mile declined from $3.99 in 2002 to $2.95 in the third quarter of 2005, while fuel increased from $1.23 to $2.88. As Heimlich testified before Congress on Feb. 15, achieving significant increases in fuel efficiency going forward will require the deployment of available technologies and procedures to change the way our nation manages air traffic.
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Flight testing has begun with new fuel-saving winglets that potentially could replace the existing wingtip fences on A320 Family aircraft. Two different winglet designs, one from Airbus and the other developed by U.S.-based Winglet Technologies, will be evaluated during the flight tests. Airbus has begun flight-testing new fuel-saving winglets on its A320 testbed, with a view to making them available as an option on all of the A320 Family. The trials, which began on 4th April with a five hour and five minute flight, will investigate two different designs of winglet, one designed by Airbus and the other designed by Winglet Technologies, a U.S. based company. The new winglets potentially could replace the smaller, arrow-shaped, wingtip fences that grace the A318, A319, A320 and A321 today. With the advent of more sophisticated analysis techniques, in particular in the context of A380 development, Airbus recently reviewed the application of more advanced methodologies to the A320 Family wing. This allows Airbus today to consider the application of new wing tip devices. All winglets and wingtip fences work by acting as a barrier between the high-pressure air below the wing and the low-pressure air above it. They reduce the tendency of air to curl up into vortices at the wingtip and, in so doing, reduce drag - and hence fuel-burn - as well as improving aerodynamic efficiency leading to potential improvements in take-off and climb performance.
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The SAFRAN Group reported adjusted pro-forma first quarter sales of 2,707 million euros, an increase of 13.7% over the first quarter in 2005, which was relatively weak, however. At constant size and exchange rates, the increase would have been 13.8%. The growth in sales is due to higher sales of original equipment engines for commercial aircraft and helicopters, and the high level of spare parts sales. Both military and space sales decreased in comparison to the first quarter of 2005.
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Comments by Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the DaimlerChrysler Board of Management, at the Annual Meeting in Berlin, regarding the company's shareholding in EADS: At the Group level, DaimlerChrysler also continued to focus on its automotive core business. As already announced in early April, the company has decided to reduce its 30 percent share in EADS, the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company, to 22.5 percent. “In 2005, EADS substantially exceeded its financial targets for the sixth year in a row. Its order volume has more than doubled — partially due to the large demand for the Super Airbus A 380. And that's an excellent basis for achieving further profitable growth in the years ahead. “We aim to support this growth and to remain a major shareholder with a stake of at least 15 percent. Should we eventually decide to reduce our share to 15 percent, we will strive to maintain the balance between German and French shareholders.”
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Mitsubishi Electric has chosen Arianespace to launch the SUPERBIRD-7 satellite for Japanese operator Space Communications Corporation (SCC). Jean-Yves Le Gall, Chief Executive Officer of Arianespace, announced today in Tokyo the signature of the launch contract for the SUPERBIRD-7 satellite. The SUPERBIRD-7 contract is the 270th contract won by Arianespace since its founding in March 1980, and the 23rd won in Japan out of 32 open contracts in the commercial market. SUPERBIRD-7 will be launched by an Ariane 5 in the first quarter of 2008 from the Guiana Space Center, Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
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A team led by Boeing submitted its proposal to develop and deliver eight long-range maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare aircraft to the Indian navy. Boeing is offering a variant of its P-8A Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft, which is currently in development for the U.S. Navy. The proposed aircraft would provide India with a significantly improved maritime patrol and reconnaissance capability. Boeing is the prime contractor and systems integrator for the U.S. Navy's P-8A Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft. The Boeing team includes CFM, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and Smiths. The U.S. Navy plans to purchase 108 aircraft, with deliveries beginning in 2009. Boeing's proposal includes the development of a unique Indian navy P-8 configuration, significant participation for Indian industry, test and certification activities, and eight aircraft delivered over a four-year period. Under the request for proposal, bids were to be submitted by April 13, 2006, with first deliveries occurring within 48 months of the contract award.
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With aid from the German Government, the Albanian Defense Ministry and Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH have recently signed a contract for the delivery of 12 modernized BO105 helicopters. The 10 million euro contract will be spread over a period of 3 years. The helicopters are a gift from the German Government to the Albanian Government. They will be modernized in the Donauworth plant and be converted into the BO105 E 4 version, whose performances are close to those of the civil CB-4 version. Eurocopter Deutschland is tasked with integrating the optional equipment for the missions, including emergency medical services (EMS), search and rescue (SAR), and VIP transport. Eurocopter Deutschland is also responsible for pilot training. The acquisition of the 12 BO105 E-4 helicopters is part of Albania's ongoing drive to modernize its armed forces and satisfy the conditions for NATO membership. The helicopters will also be operated by the Interior Ministry and the Health Ministry to help out in humanitarian operations and to ferry aid to populations off the beaten track in the mountains. The first deliveries will be made in the last three months of 2006.
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Sea Launch Company successfully delivered the JCSAT-9 communications satellite to geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). Early data indicate the spacecraft is accurately positioned and in excellent condition. A Zenit-3SL vehicle lifted off at 4:30pm PDT (23:30 GMT), from the Odyssey Launch Platform, at 154 degrees West Longitude in the equatorial Pacific. All systems performed nominally throughout flight. The Block DM upper stage inserted the 4401 kg (9703 lbs) JCSAT-9 satellite to GTO, on its way to a final orbital position of 132 degrees East Longitude. A ground station in Uralla, Australia, acquired the first signal from the satellite. Built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems (LMCSS), the high-power hybrid A2100AX spacecraft carries C-band, Ku-band and S-band transponders and is designed for a minimum mission life of 12 years on orbit. JCSAT-9 joins nine other JSAT spacecraft currently in orbit, covering North America, Hawaii, Asia and Oceania with communications and broadcasting services for corporate and inter-company networks as well as international telecommunications services.
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The U.S. Air Force's intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities have grown as Northrop Grumman Corporation delivered another RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to the service on April 5. “The Northrop Grumman team worked vigilantly to help the Air Force deploy two Global Hawks this January,'' said Jerry Madigan, who leads Northrop Grumman's High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) systems. “At the same time, we have worked hard to ensure the successful delivery of this Global Hawk. Now, we are looking forward to completing the final assembly and first flight of the next-generation, enhanced-version Global Hawk this year. This next-generation Global Hawk will be able to carry 1,000 pounds more payload than the current version, which fulfills one of our customer's most important requirements.'' The seventh RQ-4 Global Hawk is scheduled for delivery to the Air Force this summer. The Navy acquired two RQ-4's for their Maritime Demonstration Program.
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Ryanair announced nine new routes from its Frankfurt Hahn base to Granada and Murcia in Spain, Trieste and Verona in Italy, Krakow and Wroclaw in Poland, Kaunus in Lithuania and Fez and Marrakesh in Morocco. The new routes will operate at least 3 times weekly from the 25th October 2006 and bring the total number of destinations served by Ryanair from Frankfurt Hahn to 36. In addition to the 9 new routes, Ryanair will also increase frequency on the London service from 4 to 6 flights daily and the Oslo service from 1 to 2 flights daily. Today's new services will increase the annual passenger numbers at Frankfurt Hahn by over 1 Million to 4.3 Million passengers in 2007.
From October 2006, Ryanair will base 2 additional Boeing 737-800 in Frankfurt-Hahn as part of the $1 billion multi year expansion bringing the total number of based aircraft at Hahn to 9. Speaking in Frankfurt Hahn today, Ryanair's Sales & Marketing Manager for Germany, Caroline Baldwin said: “Ryanair launched its first service from Frankfurt Hahn in April 1999 and since then passenger numbers have increased from 90,000 in 1999 to 4.3 Million in 2007. Today, we are delighted to add nine new routes and increased frequencies to London and Oslo from Frankfurt Hahn, which will deliver 1,000 new jobs and 1,000,000 additional passengers per annum.
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Researchers released the first Mars images from two of the three science cameras on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Images taken by the orbiter's Context Camera and Mars Color Imager during the first tests of those instruments at Mars confirm the performance capability of the cameras even though the test images were taken from nearly 10 times as far from the planet as the spacecraft will be once it finishes reshaping its orbit. Test images from the third camera of the science payload were released previously. "The test images show that both cameras will meet or exceed their performance requirements once they're in the low-altitude science orbit. We're looking forward to that time with great anticipation," said Dr. Michael Malin of Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego. Malin is team leader for the Context Camera and principal investigator for the Mars Color Imager.
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Pakistan's Cabinet decided to go ahead with a purchase of F-16 fighters that President Pervez Musharraf had delayed last year after a devastating earthquake. The Bush administration offered F-16s to Pakistan and India last year. Pakistan's purchase is worth roughly $3 billion. The decision to buy 77 planes was announced by Pakistani Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, Dow Jones Newswires reported from Islamabad. The purchase, worth roughly $3 billion, should extend the life of Lockheed Martin Corp.'s Fort Worth production line beyond the end of 2009, when it would shut down without further sales.
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Frankfurt Airport (FRA) registered more than 11.2 million passengers in the first quarter of 2006, about 1.1 percent less than in the corresponding period last year. In the month of March alone, traffic slipped by about 2.4 percent to 4,083,429 passengers compared to March 2005. This decline can be attributed to harsh winter weather conditions even in March 2006 with an exceptional number of flight cancellations, as well as to this year's late occurring Easter holiday season, which just started in April. Excluding this calendar effect, passenger traffic would have grown in March. Thus, Fraport expects a noticeable increase in passenger figures for April 2006.
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The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approved the Sikorsky-built S-92 helicopter this week for flight into known icing conditions. The S-92 has now received icing certifications from all three of the world's preeminent civil certification authorities, as both the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Transport Canada granted their approvals in October 2005. All three authorities flew the S-92 with its Rotor Ice Protection System (RIPS) in Alaska in the fall of 2005. Since the first certifications in 2005, S-92 aircraft in the United States and Canada have flown flawlessly in known icing conditions. The automatic modes of the S-92 RIPS operation reduce pilot workload in these conditions providing for an even higher degree of operational capability. With the EASA approval, S-92 aircraft in Europe will now begin the same kinds of operation, helping to provide reliable passenger transportation in diverse weather conditions.
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Iridium Satellite announces its value-added reseller (VAR), Sky Connect, has sold 75 Iridium satellite communication systems to Era Helicopters LLC. Era Helicopters, of Lake Charles, La., is a major Gulf Coast provider of helicopter services for the offshore oil industry. Era has ordered 75 Sky Connect TRACKER systems, with an option for 50 more. Era has already installed the first 20 units, and the company plans to equip its entire fleet of Agusta, Bell, Eurocopter and Sikorsky helicopters with the Iridium systems. The Sky Connect TRACKER system provides operators with real-time knowledge of all airborne, shipborne or ground assets anywhere. It also allows for high-quality, reliable voice communications anywhere in the world through the Iridium network of low-earth orbiting (LEO) satellites.
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Boeing has demonstrated for the first time the ability of an AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter to control an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) weapon payload. Boeing demonstrated the capability in February at its Mesa, Ariz., facility, home of both Apache helicopter production and the company's Unmanned Little Bird (ULB) UAV technology demonstrator used in the milestone test. "Evaluations of the Apache Longbow helicopter's ability to control UAVs have been ongoing," said Melanie Luna, Boeing program manager for the Airborne Manned/Unmanned System Technology Demonstration (AMUST-D) program. "The latest test is moving the Apache to the next level -- controlling a UAV's sensors and employing its weapons." During the test, the Apache Longbow, the AMUST-D aircraft, took control and commanded multiple payloads on the unmanned aircraft, an A/MH-6 derivative in development by Boeing. The Apache was on the ground during this engineering phase of remote weapons control while the ULB was several miles away.
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