It can be assumed that China is developing a combat drone, maybe several. The technology is so obviously part of the future that the rising power cannot ignore it. But making even tentative conclusions about China's progress in the field is not easy. The country's rapid advances in fighter technology suggest it may be little more than a decade behind the West; yet even the U.S. is still years from deploying an unmanned strike aircraft with the penetration capabilities of a modern fighter.
Robert Wall (Madrid), Amy Butler (Washington and Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio)
The next two years could see a sea change in the shape of the worldwide airlift market, as new entrants try to secure their global positions while incumbents aim to keep production lines open. Despite tight defense budgets, operations in Afghanistan and increased demand for humanitarian support around the world have kept the airlift market relatively vibrant, a situation not hurt by the fact many air forces are operating aging airlifters.
Richard Hawkins (see photo) has been appointed group quality director for Pattonair, Derby, England. He was supplier development executive for Rolls-Royce's Marine Sector.
Martin Bentler has been appointed CFO of Krauss-Maffei Wegmannof Munich, succeeding Stefan Krischik, who plans to leave the company. Bentler has held management positions in the finance and information technology divisions of Siemens.
Boeing has confirmed what everyone knew: that it will put on a flight demonstration at the Farnborough International Airshow this week with a 787-8 in Qatar Airways livery (AW&ST July 2, p. 33). The decision abandons a 28-year policy of not participating in flying demonstrations for safety reasons and because they are not thought to help sales.
Few military competitions will mirror the protracted, bare-knuckle fight between Boeing and EADS over the U.S. Air Force refueling tanker program. Now the two rivals are ready to take the battle on the road as other countries look to recapitalize their fleets.
Autonomy—the ability of automated systems to make their own decisions—is essential if the manpower demands of unmanned aircraft are to be minimized. But autonomy means behavior that cannot be predefined and programmed, anathema to certification authorities wanting guarantees a vehicle will always perform as designed.
Japan has come to the conclusion that without exports, there is no way it can sustain its domestic defense industry. Consequently, some in the government are pushing Japan's defense companies to seek overseas sales, but there will be limits on how far the country can go to become a supplier of military aircraft.
Fernando Lacerda Da Silva has been appointed sales director for new aircraft in Brazil for Montreal-based Bombardier Aerospace. He is a veteran of Latin American business aircraft sales.
There are many things that composites take away from aerospace—weight, corrosion, part count, manufacturing complexity—and many that they give, such as stiff, strong structures that open the door to innovative, easier-to-maintain designs. Boeing has been the big leader in composite airframes, but in propulsion, GE Aviation has been out front. With its own innovations, Snecma, its partner in the CFM International engine alliance, has joined GE in that leadership role.
Rose Wai Mun Lee has been appointed as an independent non-executive director for Swire Pacific Ltd.of Hong Kong, succeeding Margaret Leung, who has retired. Lee is a director of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp. and vice chairman of the China Committee of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.
Virgin Australia has ordered 23 Boeing 737-8 aircraft, which will be of the MAX family and used to replace its oldest 737-800s. The new aircraft will be delivered between 2019 and 2021. The carrier currently operates 62 737-800s, and has seven 737-700s that are scheduled to be retired by the end of 2013. The airline has also deferred an undisclosed number of the 737-800s that it already has on order. Under its revised plan, it will take delivery of 31 between 2013 and 2016.
The JetBlue Airways pilot whose bizarre behavior on a New York-Las Vegas flight March 27 led to an emergency landing of an Airbus A320 at Amarillo, Texas, has been ruled not guilty in U.S. District Court there after a psychological assessment found that severe mental illness had impaired his judgment. All parties, including the prosecutors, agreed to the report. Clayton Osborn, 49, was charged with interfering with a flight crew and faced up to 20 years in federal prison. The judge ordered that Osborn be sent to a mental health facility for further examination.
Mike Piscatella and Bruce MacCoubrey have been appointed to share the duties of the Office of the President of IWG Technologies, Burnaby, British Columbia, following the departure of David Fox. Piscatella and MacCoubrey are directors of the company.
When International Airlines Group (IAG) was formed by the merger of British Airways and Iberia, CEO Willie Walsh announced a grand list of acquisition targets. Only a year and several iterations of the European banking crisis later, part of IAG is now up for grabs.
July 16-17—Airports Council International-North America's 2012 Small Airports Conference. JW Marriott Hotel, Grand Rapids, Mich. See www.aci-na.org July 16-18—Worldwide Business Research's Performance-Based Life-Cycle Product Support. Washington Plaza Hotel. See www.wbresearch.com/pblusa July 23-25—Practical Aeronautics Short Course: “Introduction to Jet Engines-A Practical Perspective.” Ohio Aerospace Institute, Cleveland. See www.practicalaero.com
The letter from reader Ed T. Barron, “Fire-Fighting Guardsmen” (AW&ST June 25, p. 8), is a step in the right direction. However, a workable, cost-effective program to respond to the devastating wildfires in the U.S. will require a much more detailed plan.
Boeing and Japan's Big Three aerospace manufacturers—Fuji, Kawasaki and Mitsubishi—have reached an initial agreement on what they are calling a new form of academic-industry cooperation with the University of Tokyo's Institute of Industrial Science (IIS). Their consortium will focus on industrial-scale manufacturing technology and processes. Earlly efforts will focus on machining and drilling process technology for titanium, aluminum and composite materials. The aim is for the IIS to tackle manufacturing issues that are common across different industries.
The Indian government faces a dilemma over whether to turn beleaguered Air India over to a private entity or allow the relic of state ownership to limp along in its zombie state. Privatization could be the only way to save Air India, says Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh. A pilot strike that held the government hostage for two months and bled the already cash-strapped airline of nearly 6 billion rupees ($110 million) finally reached resolution July 4. During the strike, the civil aviation ministry seriously considered divesting Air India.
Normally, manufacturers like to stack up orders at this time of year for a grand splash at one of the summer's big air shows, but not in FedEx's case. Boeing said last week that it has added 15 767 Freighters for FedEx to this year's order book, boosting total 767 orders to 19 and total net orders for all aircraft types to 440 as it heads for Farnborough.
Bell Helicopter has added suppliers to its Bell 525 Relentless program, the world's first “super-medium” helicopter. The Textron company signed agreements with Goodrich for ice-protection systems, Israel Aerospace Industries for passenger seating, Mecaer Aviation Group for landing gear, Kuka for major structure-tooling and Pacifica Engineering for rotor- and drive-tooling. GKN Aerospace and Triumph Group will supply airframe-structure, complex machining and composites.
