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Week ending November 14, 1999
+++ Lufthansa takes stake in British Midland +++ Airbus confident on A3XX money +++ Swissair to equip MD-11 fleet with new insulation material +++ Mars Climate Orbiter failure board releases report +++ Italy buys C-27Js +++ A400M will boost German workforce, says Airbus +++ Ariane launches GE4 satellite +++ News in brief +++
Lufthansa takes stake in British Midland
Einstieg bei British Midland
British Midland (BM) announced this week that Deutsche Lufthansa AG has completed negotiations to acquire a 20 per cent stake in the company for #91.4 million. The shares are being acquired from Scandinavian Airline System (SAS) who has halved its 40 per cent stake. The sale is conditional on BM's entry into Star Alliance, led by Lufthansa and United Airlines, and necessary regulatory consent. BM also said that the terms of ist entry into Star Alliance have been agreed. The deal values BM at 457 million Pound. Talks had been held with Air France and KLM before opting for Star Alliance. British Midland has stratgic value for Star because it holds 14 per cent of the slots at Heathrow. British Airways was quick to call for the European Commission and the UK government ta take action against Lufthansa's dominant position at Frankfurt. Back to the top of the page / Zurück zum Anfang der Seite
Airbus confident on A3XX money
Zuversicht für die Finanzierung der A3XX
Airbus Industry has said that it is confident of raising the funds necessary to finance the development of its A3XX super jumbo jet. The project is estimated to cost 12 billion US-Dollars and a spokesperson for Airbus said that about 30 % will be raised through loans from the governments of the countries in which the consortium's partners are based, 33 % will come from internal funding and another third will come from the open market. So far no decision has been made with regards to the location of the assembly site, but the work is expected to be split equally between the partners. Orders for the A3XX aircraft, which will be able to seat between 550 and 650 passengers, will be taken from 2000 with the delivery date set for July 2005 Back to the top of the page / Zurück zum Anfang der Seite
Swissair to equip MD-11 fleet with new insulation material
MD-11 der Swissair werden umgerüstet
On November 9, Swissair announced an initiative to replace insulation material in the cockpit and in certain cabin sections of an MD-11 aircraft with a particularly fire-resistant brand of insulation. The new material, known under the brand name Tedlar, replaces the Mylar brand insulation. The main function of aircraft insulation is to shield the cockpit and cabin from cold temperatures prevalent at high altitudes and to muffle engine noise. The first overhauled MD-11 will re-enter revenue service in mid-November. This task is undertaken at Swissair's initiative and is based on information gathered in the ongoing investigation into the cause of the SR 111 accident. Taking advantage of a routine maintenance procedure known as a D-check, the new Insulfab 330 insulation blankets were installed in strategic zones of the stripped-down aircraft's fuselage. The twin goals of this step were to enhance the fire-retardant properties of the insulation blankets as well as to define the time required and the most correct work methods for conducting this type of action for future reference. This procedure was conducted in cooperation with aircraft manufacturer Boeing, which intends to use the knowledge gained from the process to create recommendations and documentation that will simplify future aircraft maintenance and overhaul procedures.
The costs for replacing the material in the Swissair MD-11 are being shared by Swissair and Boeing, with Swissair paying labour costs of approximately CHF 150,000 for 1000 man-hours of work, while Boeing is responsible for material expenses of approximately CHF 50,000. Swissair plans to complete the replacement of insulation blankets on its remaining MD-11 fleet irrespective of an eventual mandate by the FAA.
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Mars Climate Orbiter failure board releases report
Untersuchungsbericht über Crash des Mars Climate Orbiter
Wide-ranging managerial and technical actions are underway at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, in response to the loss of the Mars Climate Orbiter and the initial findings of the mission failure investigation board, whose first report is now released. Focused on the upcoming landing of NASA's Mars Polar Lander, these actions include: a newly assigned senior management leader, freshly reviewed and augmented work plans, detailed fault tree analyses for pending mission events, daily telecons to evaluate technical progress and plan work yet to be done, increased availability of the Deep Space Network for communications with the spacecraft, and independent peer review of all operational and contingency procedures. The board recognizes that mistakes occur on spacecraft projects, the report said. However, sufficient processes are usually in place on projects to catch these mistakes before they become critical to mission success. Unfortunately for MCO, the root cause was not caught by the processes in place in the MCO project. The failure board's first report identifies eight contributing factors that led directly or indirectly to the loss of the spacecraft. These contributing causes include inadequate consideration of the entire mission and its post-launch operation as a total system, inconsistent communications and training within the project, and lack of complete end-to-end verification of navigation software and related computer models. According to Arthur Stephenson, chairman of the Mars Climate Orbiter Mission Failure Investigation Board, the 'root cause' of the loss of the spacecraft was the failed translation of English units into metric units in a segment of ground-based, navigation-related mission software, as NASA has previously announced.Back to the top of the page / Zurück zum Anfang der Seite
Italy buys C-27Js
Alenia/Lockheed C-27J für Italien
On November 11, the Italian Air Force announced its decision to buy 12 C-27J Spartan tactical transport aircraft for an undisclosed sum to replace its fleet of G.222 transports. In doing so, the Italian Air Force has become the first customer to announce its intention to procure the C-27J. The C-27J Spartan, an upgraded version of the Alenia G.222, is being developed by Lockheed Martin Alenia Tactical Transport Systems (LMATTS) - a U. S. company jointly owned by Lockheed Martin and Alenia. C-27J deliveries to the Italian Air Force will begin in 2001 and conclude in 2004, with continued logistics support for the aircraft supplied by LMATTS. The Italian Air Force G.222 fleet will be gradually reduced and retired as the Spartans are introduced to service.The C-27J is being considered by the Royal Australian, Greek, and Swiss Air Forces to meet their light-to-medium tactical transport needs. In addition, the militaries of both Malaysia and Poland have also expressed interest in the Spartan. Due to its inherent capabilities as a multi-mission military transport, LMATTS anticipates strong demand for the C-27J as air forces throughout the world either expand or replace their existing transport fleets. The market forecast for the C-27J indicates a worldwide market potential of over 500 Spartans over the next twenty years.
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A400M will boost German workforce, says Airbus
Neue Arbeitsplätze für geplanten Militärtransporter?
Gustav Humbert, managing director of the Dasa Airbus GmbH in Hamburg, has joined the lobbying effort for the A400M military transport aircraft the European consortium wants to sell to seven nations. There is interest in 288 aircraft, Humbert boasted in an interview with daily newspater "Welt". Denigrating the Russian/Ukrainian competition An-7X in the usual crude Airbus style, he surprisingly claimed a price difference of less than ten per cent between the two aircraft. Regarding life-cylce costs, the A400M is fully competitive, he added. Humbert also offered 1000 jobs in Germany if the A400M should be ordered, with 40000 in Europe in total, just ignoring that the An-7X would also bring high-tech work to Germany. To ease a deal with cash strapped defence ministries, Airbus would be willing to go to extreme lengths in packaging attractive finance deals, according to Humbert.Back to the top of the page / Zurück zum Anfang der Seite
Ariane launches GE4 satellite
Neuer Ariane-Start in Kourou erfolgreich
The latest Ariane launch took place on November 14 at Kourou, French Guiana. A GE-4 communications satellite was put into orbit aboard an Ariane 44LP rocket. The spacecraft, which will be operated by GE American Communications, will provide television and other telecommunications services for the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean. The satellite was built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems and carries C-band and Ku-band transponders. Once in orbit, the GE-4 bird will be positioned at 101 degrees W over the Galapagos. The GE-4 satellite initially was scheduled for launch on a Russian Proton rocket but was switched to an Ariane because of delays in the wake of a July failure of the Proton. Back to the top of the page / Zurück zum Anfang der Seite
NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN
After renewed high level talks with German technology minister Edelgard Bulmahn, the space industry of the country is left disappointed. Ther will be no more money before 2003, it transpired, leaving funds for national-only projects woefully minimal at 260 million DM.+++
Dasa will need to cut 850 jobs in Germany due to reduced defence budgets, it was announced on November 12. 350 of them will go at Munich, 270 at the electronics works in Ulm and 180 at the space site in Friedrichshafen.
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On November 10, Virgin Express has started its operations from Berlin-Schönefeld airport. The first flight went to Rome, and was nearly fully booked, according to the low-fare carrier. Virgin is offering introductory fares als low as 99 DM to Rome and London and 49 DM to Brussels and will keep ticket prices 70 percent below current levels permanently, it claimed.
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Rostock will have no chance to land the A3XX final assembly site, it emerged at a hearing at the Bundestag. A Dasa Airbus spokesman said that Airbus needs to place this important and technoligically challenging programme at a site with a proven track record, i.e. Hamburg or Toulose. Even generous 800 million DM subsidies for building a new factory would not change the equation.
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NASA, Honeywell Technology Center and Honeywell Airport Systems have developed new technology that could contribute to fewer weahter delays at US airports. Called Airborne Information for Lateral Spacing (AILS) and Closely Spaced Parallel Approaches (CASPER), the systems expand on existing communication and navigation technology to allow planes to land safely in bad weather on parallel runways spaced as closely as 2,500 feet apart. NASA and Honeywell conducted in-flight demonstrations of the system at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Nov. 8 through 10 for Federal Aviation Administration officials and other government and industry representatives, and invited media.
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Fairchild Aerospace has named Bart Harrington director of airline sales for Latin America. Harrington will manage campaigns in Mexico and other countries of the region, as well as selected countries in South America. Harrington, based in San Antonio, will report to Steve Koenig, vice president of airline sales. Harrington joins Fairchild from Bell Helicopter Textron where he served most recently as director of international marketing in Latin America.
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Bombardier Aerospace has signed a contract with Cimber Air of Denmark for the purchase of two CRJ200 aircraft plus four options. Value of the two firm aircraft is approximately 46 million US-Dollars. This is the seventh new customer this year for the CRJ and brings the number of airline and corporate customers for the product to 35 worldwide."Addition of Bombardier's 50-seat CRJ200 to our fleet will provide Cimber Air with a new tool to support our passengers' needs on new city pairs," said Cimber Air president Jorgen Nielsen.Based in Sonderborg, Cimber Air is one of Denmark's most experienced airlines. Established in 1950, Cimber Air currently operates a fleet of 15 turboprop aircraft.
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Bombardier Aerospace has announced the sale of five CRJ200 regional jet aircraft to Shandong Airlines in central China. The contract, valued at 116 million US-Dollars represents the first CRJ sale to a scheduled regional airline operator in China. "Shandong Airlines is acquiring Bombardier's CRJ200 aircraft for expansion and growth on our regional routes throughout The Peoples' Republic of China," said airline president and chairman Mr. Sun Dehan during the ceremony. "The CRJ will join our fleet of 737s and turboprop aircraft on a variety of scheduled revenue passenger services as well as charter and VIP operations once delivered," he said.
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Two officials of a Texas-based aerospace company are now in Guyana to begin supervising preliminary work on a potential site in a disputed area to launch commercial rockets into space. Beal Aerospace, on the verge of clinching the endorsement of the Guyana government to set up a satellite launch site in the remote Waini area in the northwest district, has already hired a local firm to conduct geophysical surveys of the prospective site. The site is close to the Guyanese-Venezuelan border, in a region that is a part of a 158,000-square-kilometer (61,000 square mile) area of resource-rich territory Venezuela has been claiming as its own in a 100-year-old territorial dispute. Venezuela has reportedly expressed serious reservations about the satellite pad. Beal officials have acknowledged they are willing to discuss the potential investment with the Chavez administration if requested.
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Raytheon has announced that it has reorganized its defense and government electronics businesses, flattened its organizational structure, and made other changes to speed communications and decision-making to focus on bringing value to customers, shareholders and employees. The changes provide for a more direct connection between the operating units of the company and the corporate executive office. "The Raytheon Systems Company structure was necessary as we consolidated our businesses following an intense period of mergers and acquisitions. We have substantially achieved our cost savings objectives and built teams with strong industry and customer knowledge. Now that the transition has been largely completed, we can bring together complementary technologies and continue to reduce overhead structure," company president Dan Burnham said
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Four new Block 40 F-16Cs marked the start of new deliveries of the Fighting Falcon for the Egyptian Air Force. The aircraft delivered on November 7 are part of the Peace Vector V program announced in 1996 for additional Block 40 F-16C/Ds. "Today we realize another great milestone in the long history of the Egyptian Air Force F-16 Program," said William, B. Anderson, vice president of F-16 Programs for Lockheed Martin, during the ceremony. Including this purchase, Egypt has now purchased a total of 196 F-16s. The initial F-16 program for Egypt began with deliveries in 1982. In August of this year, Egypt also signed a contract for an additional 24 Block 40 F-16C/D aircraft.
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Boeing completed delivery of the first low-rate initial production F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to the U.S. Navy Nov. 9 - almost two months ahead of schedule. The single-seat E model aircraft's contractual delivery date was Dec. 31. All 12 of the LRIP 1 aircraft were delivered by Boeing on or ahead of their contractual delivery date. The aircraft is undergoing additional tests at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., before it ferries to Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif. Lemoore is the home of VFA-122 - the nation's first Super Hornet squadron. VFA-122 is a fleet readiness squadron responsible for aircrew and maintenance training. The Navy has ordered 62 Super Hornets and plans to buy a minimum of 548 of the aircraft.
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On November 8, Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise (S.A.L.E.) has signed contracts with Airbus Industrie for the purchase of 23 additional A320 family aircraft, confirming a previously announced commitment. The orders comprise a total of 20 A320s and three A321s, for delivery between the first quarter of 2001 and 2008, increasing the total number of Airbus Industrie single-aisle aircraft ordered by S.A.L.E. to 41. Robert Martin, Managing Director of S.A.L.E., said that the company's decision to acquire more A320 family aircraft was based on the strength of global demand for the types.
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The Boeing Joint Strike Fighter X-32A took another decisive step toward first flight last week when Pratt & Whitney completed final assembly of its JSF119-614 flight-test engine. Pratt & Whitney formally completed assembly at a "Last Bolt" tightening ceremony at its facility in West Palm Beach, Fla. After acceptance testing, the engine will be delivered to Boeing in Palmdale, Calif., where the X-32A is undergoing final systems installation and check out.
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Aerospatiale Matra posted consolidated sales of 8.612 Bn Euros (56.494 billion Francs) for the nine months ending September 30, 1999, an increase of 7.9% over the nine months sales ending September 30, 1998 restated on a pro forma basis to be comparable to the figures for 1999. Results by business were as follows, assuming a breakdown of activities and structure comparable to that at September 30, 1998: Airbus sales grew 34,4% at 3.948 bn Euros; helicopter sales grew 7.3% at 973 million Euros; as expected, sales by Dassault Aviation decreased by 16.7% at 915 million Euros and other aeronautics activities grew 3.7% at 594 million Euros, while Missile Systems sales declined 32% at 689 million Euros; space activities grew 1.3% at 936 million Euros, partially compensating the sales delay of the first half of 1999; sales by the Systems, Services and Telecommunications businesses grew 6.2% at 549 million Euros.
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British Aerospace has signed a contract initially valued at around 600,000 Pounds with Norwegian company Kongsberg Protech for the supply of parts for the Eurofighter combat aircraft. It is anticipated that follow-on orders could lead to the award of further contracts worth over 1 million Pounds. Kongsberg Protech will manufacture titanium and aluminium Nose Landing Gear Door details for the world's most advanced multi-role combat aircraft. Deliveries to British Aerospace in the UK have already commenced. Eurofighter is in competition with the F-16 to become Norway's new fighter in the 21st century.
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On November 8, shareholders in British Aerospace (BAe) approved the proposed merger between the company and Marconi Electronic Systems (MES). All resolutions were passed overwhelmingly at an Extraordinary General Meeting held at the QEII Conference Centre in London. More than 99.9% of votes cast were in favour of the proposed merger. At separate meetings held on November 3 1999, Marconi plc (formerly known as GEC) also received approval for the proposed merger. Completion of the proposed merger depends on the successful resolution of the outstanding regulatory issues.
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Satellites are expected to sail through the potentially worst meteor shower in 33 years, but the US Air Force Space Command and other national agencies have been diligently working on a host of plans and operations that will ensure critical communication, navigation and surveillance systems stay operational. This year marks what is likely to be the last in the 33-year cycle of the comet Tempel-Tuttle that produces what is commonly known as the Leonid meteor shower. The height of the Leonid meteor shower will be the evening of Nov. 17 in most of North America. Tempel-Tuttle has been orbiting the sun opposite the Earth for nearly 2,500 years, but only poses a potential threat to the Earth three years out of each 33-year cycle said Lt. Col. Don Jewell, AFSPC's deputy chief scientist.
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Apache helicopters deployed in Kosovo, Bosnia, Southwest Asia and Korea will receive top priority repairs as the Army moves to replace parts implicated in a crash in January. So far, Army officials have determined about 400 of 743 AH-64 Apache attack helicopters need the new parts, Pentagon spokesman P.J. Crowley said Nov. 9. "The hanger bearing assemblies fore and aft house the drive train, which passes turbine engine power to the tail rotor," he explained. "A failure in the flange area will result in loss of tail rotor thrust and such a failure could be catastrophic." It will take eight to 10 months and about $13.5 million to replace the assemblies, Crowley said. Crew safety is the Army's first priority, he stressed. Substantial numbers of the helicopters will not fly for the next three months as the manufacturer accelerates the production of replacements, he said. The Army will ensure Apaches engaged in major contingencies and first-to-fight units are repaired first. "We don't expect any major impact on the key operations that the Army is currently involved in," Crowley said. Operations and training at stateside units, however, will be affected until the assemblies are replaced, he added. U.S. officials have notified other nations that have purchased Apaches of the problem, Crowley said.The Army announced Nov. 5 that all its 660 AH-64A and 83 AH-64D models must be inspected before their next flight. Army investigators had identified the bearing assembly problem while looking into a January accident at Fort Rucker, Ala., that destroyed an Apache and injured the two-man crew.
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On Wednesday Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Barak cooled down a dispute with Canada by extending another month permission for Air Canada to operate seven flights a week to Israel, a Canadian official said. Canada had threatened to close its airspace to Israel's national carrier El Al if Air Canada was forced to cancel any flights to Tel Aviv in the absence of a bilateral air agreement. "If Air Canada is required to cancel a flight, then the Canadian government will prevent El Al from overflying Canada in direct proportion for the economic losses suffered by Air Canada," Canada's commercial attache in Israel, Goldie Schermann, said before Barak intervened. Denied entry into Canadian airspace, El Al would have to re-route all its flights to the United States, adding an additional 30 minutes to flight times, the airline said. Schermann accused Israel of trying to limit fair competition after its Civil Aviation Authority told Air Canada to reduce the number of its weekly flights to Israel to four from seven. "We fly a daily flight to Israel and the Civil Aviation wants to reduce it to four. El Al requested four flights, but there doesn't have to be reciprocity," she said.
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