Aug. 21-22—Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Worldwide UAS Workshop. Daytona Beach, Florida. See proed.erau.edu or email [email protected]. Aug. 22—54th Annual Conference of the Indian Society of Aerospace Medicine. Bangalore. www.isam.in Aug. 25—Ninth Asia-Pacific Congress of Aerospace Medicine. Beijing. www.apfama.org/2014
Giovanni Spitale (see photo) has been appointed president of Unison Industries, Jacksonville, Florida. He was general manager for GE Aviation’s Flight Efficiency Services and was its global C919 program leader in Shanghai.
Darrell Frey has been named director of international service center operations for the Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., Savannah, Georgia, and Thomas Anderson director of product support for its site at Long Beach (California) Airport. Frey was director of regional service center operations, while Anderson was director of final phase operations for the G550 and G450.
Kevin Weiss (see photo) has become vice president-human resources for L-3 Communications of New York. He was senior vice president-human resources for for L-3 Aerospace Systems.
Terry Lutrick has been appointed sales manager for California, Nevada and Arizona, and Ed Henry sales manager for the Mid-Atlantic U.S., both for West Star Aviation, East Alton, Illinois.
During the Farnborough International Airshow this month, Israel Aerospace Industries CEO and President Joseph Weiss talked with Paris Bureau Chief Amy Svitak, about plans to expand the company’s presence in the global space sector with exports of remote-sensing and communications satellites.
Perhaps reader Donald Peterson ( AW&ST July 21, p. 9) has confused the current Orion space capsule with the 1950s/60s era Project Orion, an interstellar spacecraft powered by detonating atomic bombs and riding the blast waves, which is, I’m fairly certain, what reader Jeremiah Farmer was referring to ( AW&ST June 30, p. 8). A 1968 study by Freeman Dyson (ow.ly/zt7jm) calculated possible speeds of up to 10,000 kps., thus making a one-way trip to Alpha Centauri take ∼90 years, with no slowdown at the other end.
Frank Morring, Jr.’s “Exploration Election” ( AW&ST June 23, p. 18) deserves careful attention. The 2016 presidential election may result in establishing a dismal NASA strategy that will endure for years.
Reader Kenneth Madl spoke eloquently of “Lockheed’s Earlier ‘Magic,’” ( AW&ST July 21, p. 8). But I would like to offer one small correction: The Direct Lift Control on Lockheed L-1011s used the spoilers, not the slats, to vary the lift on the wing on landing approach. If landing flaps of 33 or 42 deg. were selected, the spoilers would deploy approximately 25% and modulate up or down, depending on yoke or autopilot pitch input.
The recent interview of Boeing CEO James McNerney ( AW&ST July 14, p. 62) was disappointing, especially compared with SpaceX founder Elon Musk’s vision. It sounded like Boeing was ready to throw in the towel. If there is ever going to be a breakthrough in science, technology, flight and whatever is beyond, it will come from outside of our two traditional airframe manufacturers. SpaceX? Possibly, but it could emerge from an entity none of us know of yet.
Craig Pluim has been named sales director for Vector Aerospace Helicopter Services-North America, Richmond, British Columbia. He was a regional sales director for Heli-One and had been director of maintenance/general manager for Arctic Air Service Inc.
Patrick Neary (see photos) has been promoted to vice president-engineering for the Northrop Grumman Corp.’s Redondo Beach, California-based Aerospace Systems sector unmanned systems programs from director of systems integration and test and evaluation.
Robin Coackley has become an account manager for U.K.-based Envitia. He was an executive with Exelis and has been a member on the Geological Remote Sensing Group.
David Read has been appointed vice president-sales for Europe, the Middle East and Africa for Atlanta-based Maintag. He was director of business development for Europe for Xerafy.
Todd Bitgood (see photo) has been promoted to manager of FlightSafety International’s Learning Center in Long Beach, California, from assistant manager of the St. Louis Learning Center. He succeeds Pete Nily, who has become a regional director of training operations.
USAF Col. Michael Norton has become commander of the Eastern Air Defense Sector of the New York National Guard at the Griffiss Business and Technology Park in Rome. He was chief of the National Guard Bureau International Affairs Div. of the Strategic Plans, Policy and International Affairs Directorate in Washington.
