Brunei is in one of the fastest growing, most dynamic regions of the world, but it is falling behind its Southeast Asian neighbors and could be destined to become an economic backwater. Loss-making national carrier Royal Brunei Airlines will stop serving Kuching in East Malaysia starting July 28 and will stop flying to Auckland, New Zealand; Brisbane and Perth, Australia; and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, effective Oct. 30.
Workers at Alaska Airlines relate to the effects of higher fuel prices when they fill their own cars, so when the airline asked for ideas on how it could save money, they were ready and willing. “Fuel is such a big expense of our businesses, employees were keen to help us save,” says Fred Mohr, vice president of maintenance and engineering.
Even as construction continues on the new Maynard H. Jackson International Terminal here, Delta Air Lines is also in the process of building a new $1.2 billion facility at New York John F. Kennedy International Airport attached to the existing Terminal 4.
A “huge” effort between Alaska Airlines, Boeing, FAA and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac) involves redesigning its arrival routes and traffic patterns. “Green Skies Over Seattle” would enable pilots to execute optimal profile descents through a gateway, and then using a series of waypoints, turn and intercept a required navigation performance (RNP) or an instrument landing system (ILS) approach, says Gary Beck, vice president of Alaska Air Group, which oversees the airport.
Raytheon Missile Systems may have a solution to two of the Pentagon's main stumbling blocks—building militarily effective weapons that do not jeopardize civilians and placing new defense products into service without years of delay from a stunningly bureaucratic acquisition system. With a key purchase, the company has expanded its potential to quickly develop and field a wide range of directed-energy warheads—primarily designed to destroy enemy electronics—for use on its catalog of air-to-ground, air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles.
The great majority of Australia's people and defense industries are on the southeastern fringe of the continent. But valuable and vulnerable natural resources are in the north and west, much closer to Asia. Where should the country put the weight of its defense forces? Until now, the answer for the air force and navy has been “mostly in the southeast.” The government, no longer sure of that stance, launched a review of military basing on June 22.
Airbus scored an unquestionably lopsided win in this year's Paris air show order race, but the week-long flurry may be more of a tactical success than a strategic breakthrough in the competitive airliner wars.
“Tom, you're taking this competition too far.” Embraer CEO Frederico Curado, in a note to Airbus CEO Tom Enders, after an Embraer building was clipped by the wing of an Airbus A380, which subsequently could not fly. Korean Air lent one of its A380s for the flight demonstration. Curado says he was joking, but Enders came to Embraer's chalet to apologize in person.
2045—The year to which the four partners of International Aero Engines—Rolls-Royce, MTU Aero Engines, Pratt & Whitney and Japanese Aero Engines—agree to extend their collaboration. Airbus A320NEO 1,029—deals since program launch six months ago. 1—Number of days a strike by workers on France's RER railway lasted, snarling travel between Paris and the air show. 102.5—The value (in billions of dollars) of airliner purchases committed at the Paris air show.
A transatlantic mating dance is under way as aerospace companies consider how to pair up to enter the upcoming competition for at least 350 advanced trainers for the U.S. Air Force. This T-X contract is likely the largest buy to come from the Air Force and, in an unusual twist, it is the U.S. companies courting foreign platform providers rather than overseas contractors chasing after stateside contractors.
The world has changed since a French-designed Exocet cruise missile fired by an Argentine navy Dassault-Breguet Super Etendard sunk the Royal Navy's HMS Sheffield during the war over the Falkland Islands in 1982.
For France and the U.K., it is a straightforward calculus: At a time of fiscal pressures, it makes sense to pursue unmanned aircraft programs cooperatively. But for other players, the implications of this move are troublesome and raise concerns about broader European defense industrial considerations. Europe's approach to meeting long-unmet unmanned aerial system (UAS) needs has become the battleground for these divergent views.
Even after the three surviving space shuttle orbiters have gathered a few decades of dust in their respective museums, mid-century spacefarers from around the Earth will be using tools and techniques for operating in space that were incubated on the historic U.S. spaceplanes.
If ever there was a time to pack carefully for a journey, it is now. NASA's shuttle era draws to a close with a final mission to the International Space Station (ISS) carrying enough supplies to keep the orbiting science laboratory fully staffed while U.S. cargo deliveries shift to emerging commercial providers.
MISSION: STS-135 International Space Station Utilization/Logistics Flight 7 (ULF 7), the 135th and final launch of the space shuttle program and the 37th to the ISS. ORBITER: Atlantis (OV-104), making its 33rd and final flight. Atlantis last returned from orbit on May 26, 2010, after the STS-132 flight to deliver Russia's Rassvet Mini Research Module 1 to the space station.
Though unlikely to go the way of the American cowboy, NASA's astronaut corps—a modern symbol for boldness and noble national achievement—could be corralled in Earth orbit until prosperity returns. Their path beyond the shuttle era stretches across a rugged political landscape clouded by a stale economy and dotted with warning signs of flat budgets ahead, or worse. In the near term, the ranks are dwindling as NASA prepares to pay Russia to launch astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) until a U.S. commercial crew transport is ready.
By demonstrating a robotic capability to refuel satellites not designed for on-orbit servicing, NASA hopes to use the final flight of the space shuttle to help launch a new industry in the U.S. intended to extend the operational lifetimes of geosynchronous spacecraft.
July 14—National Business Aviation Regional Forum. San Jose (Calif.) International Airport. Call +1 (202) 783-9000 or see www.nbaa.org July 17-19—Aviation Suppliers Association's 2011 Annual Conference. Washington Marriott at Metro Center. See www.aviationsuppliers.org
In one of his last policy speeches as U.S. defense secretary, Robert Gates railed against NATO members' unwillingness to pay their fair shares of the costs of the transatlantic security alliance. Importantly, his remarks went beyond the usual admonition to Europe to come up with more money, zeroing in for the first time on how NATO actually spends its limited defense resources.
It looks like Chinese airlines have dodged a bullet train, at least for now. The carriers have won a reprieve against extreme competition from fast rail on their premier route, between Beijing and Shanghai, with the railways ministry announcing fairly high fares for its imminent service.
VistaJet has ordered 10 Bombardier Global 8000 business jets, worth around $650 million. The Swiss business jet operator now has a $2 billion backlog with Bombardier.
Eurocopter's X3 makes its Paris air show debut. For Eurocopter, the X3 represents a potential forerunner to a generation of high-speed rotorcraft capable of replacing smaller regional aircraft. Other European helicopter makers also presented their visions for the future. And for commercial air transport manufacturers, overcast skies and daily downpours failed to dampen a surge in orders. Show coverage begins on page 24. Mike Vines/AW&ST photo.
A serious fuel fire during an acceptance test of a rocket engine destined to power one of two launch vehicles NASA is counting on for International Space Station resupply illustrates the fragility of U.S. civil space-access plans after the shuttle fleet retires.
Correspondent Christina MacKenzie's piece on strong demand for Airbus A400Ms elicited some tongue-in-cheek responses, including: Surely, the Russians won't buy . . . they're more interested in the Ukrainian An-70 which set the basis for the A400M. Besides, the An-70 has better performance stats.
