Designed and configured for all LED measurement requirements, UDT Instruments’ optometer features microprocessor control and three measurement data-presentation options: direct display measurement with analog bar, RS-232C computer interface, and analog voltage input. It is easy to use in production and/or laboratory settings, according to the company, and is equipped with a silicon photometric detector and LED holding sockets for many common LED types.
Embraer has sold three EMB-145 Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft to the Indian government. The first, featuring the Saab Erieye radar, is to be handed over in 2011. India will undertake outfitting the mission system and cabin equipment. The Indian air force also operates four Embraer Legacy business jets for VIP transport; the country’s home ministry operated a fifth Legacy. India has several airborne early warning efforts underway. Neighboring Pakistan will operate the same radar system, the Erieye, although mounted on a Saab 2000 turboprop.
The U.S. Army and Air Force are expected by October to finalize a plan to settle on a common Predator/Sky Warrior vehicle to reduce complications and save on costs to operate and maintain the similar Predator, Sky Warrior and Reaper fleets simultaneously. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems is conducting integration flight tests of its Block 1 Army Sky Warrior UAV, a derivative of the USAF Predator. Already, two of eight Block 0 aircraft, which include Sky Warrior’s larger airframe and the heavy fuel engine, are in the Middle East.
Dan Swenson has become vice president-investor relations for Rockwell Collins , Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He was an investment banker with Banc of America Securities and Credit Suisse.
Leo Malloy has become president of the Skyway subsidiary of Midwest Airlines . He succeeds David Reeve, who has retired. Malloy has been vice president-customer service for Skyway and city manager for Midwest’s operations at Washington’s two airports.
A European Commission research project will seek to develop a second-generation integrated modular avionics architecture to enable it to be applied to more systems across a broader range of aircraft. Integrated modular avionics (IMA) allows various aircraft systems and software packages from different manufacturers to be hosted on the same computer using standard hardware and high-speed multiplexing technology borrowed from the telecom industry, without compromising aircraft safety.
Chinese courts are continuing to order pilots to pay damages for quitting their jobs. They are enforcing the most contentious term in the employment contracts of a rapidly growing industry suffering extreme shortages of skilled labor. A court in the central city of Wuhan ordered 10 pilots who left their jobs at China Eastern to pay 10 million yuan ($1.46 million) to the carrier, which argues that compensation is needed to cover the cost of training them.
SES has decided to combine its Americom and New Skies affiliates into a single operational unit. The two satellite fleets will remain separately owned and operated. New Skies CEO Robert Bednarek will head the new unit.
Worldwide spending on commercial jet transport MRO in 2009 will be $1.3 billion less than previously forecast as a result of aircraft groundings and other capacity reduction moves made by airlines struggling with record fuel prices. The majority of that money, roughly $1 billion, would have been spent on aircraft operated by North American carriers, according to consulting company TeamSAI, which produced the original forecast and has been tracking the situation.
Final plans for completing the International Space Station are taking shape, with Russia adding to its anticipated on-orbit assets as NASA prepares to shut down the space shuttle fleet. The next shuttle crew to visit the ISS will clean and lubricate both of the 10-ft.-dia. solar alpha rotary joints (SARJs) that turn the massive solar arrays around the ends of the station truss to track the Sun.
Smiths Detection, part of Smiths Group, has released a hand-held vapor detector for volatile chemicals commonly used in homemade bombs. The Sabre EXV, using Ion Mobility Spectrometry (IMS) technology, is a lightweight device that can detect and identify explosive substances, including peroxide-based chemicals, in as little as 10 sec., according to the company.
NASA and the European Space Agency have identified several areas of “significant mutual interest” to pursue as the U.S. agency and its international partners cobble together plans for developing lunar-exploration hardware. Potential areas of cooperation include Ariane V-based lunar cargo-landing systems, lunar orbital and surface infrastructure, and systems for communications and navigation on the Moon. The two agencies also agree on the importance of having two different crew vehicles able to reach the Moon.
Safran has been selected to supply landing/braking system and nacelles for the Bombardier Learjet 85. Safran’s Messier-Bugatti unit will provide the landing and braking system, which includes the wheels, carbon brakes, ground steering system and landing gear extension/retraction hardware, for the midsize jet. The company’s Aircelle affiliate will supply the nacelle, along with the thrust reverser (see p. 156). Together, the two awards will account for 11% of the Learjet 85’s supply contracts, Safran says.
Charlie Stuff (see photo) has been named executive vice president of U.K.-based Cobham’s North America Corporate . He was president of Cobham Avionics and Survellance.
EOS GmbH. Electro Optical Systems announced that aerospace supplier Northwest UAV Propulsion Systems (NWUAV) has purchased an EOSINT P 390 plastics laser-sintering machine to produce laser-sintered parts for UAVs. NWUAV manufactures complex cylinder head temperature controllers and shrouds among other parts for UAVs from Insitu Inc. With 10 days training time, NWUAV went from installation to parts production on the P 390, according to EOS. Previously, NWUAV ordered parts from an outside vendor and then performed finishing processes.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on July 9 reconvened its flight delay task force in a continuing effort to expand capacity and reduce flight delays at the region’s major airports, JFK, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty. The authority remains opposed to a flight slot auction plan as a solution. The task force proposed more than 100 recommendations in a December 2007 report. For details, see www.panynj.gov/pdf/flight_delay_report_final.pdf
David A. Fulghum (Washington), John M. Doyle (Washington), Craig Covault (Cape Canaveral)
Iranian war games and the firing of nine ballistic missiles to remind the world that Iran could control the Strait of Hormuz proved instead to be an intelligence windfall for the U.S. and Israel. Data on new Iranian warhead configurations was obtained as was “ground truth” launch data to match with U.S. missile-warning satellite sensor data. It also did the U.S. a favor by bolstering U.S. arguments for basing an anti-ballistic missile defense system in Eastern Europe, says Defense Secretary Robert Gates (see p. 53).
The La Fresh Tech Pack is a road-tested compact mini travel zip-up bag that contains individual towelettes to clean tech devices, and more. It’s appropriate for all digital gadgets—screens, lenses, scopes, cameras, PDAs, cell phones, laptops and gaming devices—as well as glasses, according to the company. The pack includes four wet & dry dual-action screen-cleaning towelettes, three lens-cleaning towelettes, and three for anti-bacterial use. All are biodegradable and meet TSA regulations to be carried on board a plane. La Fresh Group Inc., 4200 E.
Patrice Herbay (see photo) has become Toulouse-based aerospace group business manager for France and Spain for Crane Aerospace and Electronics . He was a customer services executive for Airbus.
Berkeley Nucleonics (BNC) offers three detector types: sodium iodide (NaI), lanthanum bromide (LaBr) and high-purity germanium (HPGe). The model SAM 935 has been deployed with such organizations as volunteer fire and public health departments to government pollution monitoring agencies. The company notes that it has taken the following features into account: 1. Efficiency: To detect/ID all ANSI isotopes, the device uses a 2 X 2 NaI, 3 X 3 NaI and 1.5 X 1.5 LaBr. The SAM 940 can provide 85%, 100% and 85%, respectively. 2.
Aero-Instruments has recently made available its FAA PMA-approved Boeing 757 0851FJ-1-AI Pitot Probe. It is a direct replacement for the 0851FJ-1 or S232N911-2 pitot probes currently installed on all 757s. The instrument has been certified to meet or exceed SAE AS393, AS8006, BS2G.135 and TSO C-16A standards for environmental icing and has been engineered for longer life, ultimately reducing operators’ total cost of ownership, according to the company. Same-day shipping is available. Aero-Instruments, 14901 Emery Ave., Cleveland, Ohio 44135 or www.aero-inst.com
KineticSystems’ P216/210/206/205 cards are simultaneous sampling multifunction PXI modules that provide four differential analog input channels, 14/16-bit A/D resolution, and up to 2 MS/s simultaneous sampling. They also provide two analog output channels with waveform generation capabilities to meet a range of requirements.
Human-machine interface, crew decision-making and the value of “seat-of-the pants” flying will likely be discussed late this summer when the NTSB determines the probable cause of an American Eagle incident in 2007.
Open rotors and geared turbofans hit the headlines like never before at last year’s Paris air show mainly because of growing environmental pressures, particularly on emissions. Now at Farnborough, the solutions are the same but the talk is all about skyrocketing fuel prices and airline survival.
