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Aviation History
1986
1986 - 2487.PDF
INTERNATIONAL Week ending 20 September. 1986 Number 4029, Volume 130 ISSN 0015-3710 World News Air Transport Defence General Aviation 14 Spaceflight 21 Avionics 27 Industry 28 BUSINESS FLYING: AIMING FOR GROWTH 30 We preview the NBAA's annual convention at Anaheim, California. WHAT'S YOUR HEADING? 32 Ian Goold looks at the FAA's analysis of the decline of US general aviation. FLYING DASSAULT'S BIG BIRD 38 Dassault's Falcon 900 is sampled by Harry Hopkins. AEROSPATIALE PLANS US STRATEGY 43 Alan Postlethwaite describes Aerospatiale Helicopter Corporation's plans to improve its US sales figures. ARIANE'S BIG FIX 48 Arianespace director general Charles Bigot tells Tim Furniss about the remedies for Ariane's third stage, and looks at business prospects for the 1990s. Letters 53 Straight and Level 54 Published in association with Airline Business by Business Press Inter national Lid (a Reed International Company , Quadrant House, The Quad rant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS, England, (£ Copyright Business Press International Lid. 1986 Founded 1909 Second-class postage paid at RAHWAY, N.Y., and additional entries. Postmaster: Send Address Corrections to "Flight International", c/o Mercury Airfreight International Ltd- Inc., 10B Englehard Avenue, Avenel, N.J. 07001. Editor David Mason Associate Editor Peter Middleion Assistant Editor Tom Hamill Air Transport Editor David Learmount Air Transport editorial Julia Hayley Defence Editor Mike Gaines Defence editorial Karen Walker Technical Editor Graham Warwick, BSc General Aviation Editor Robin Blech General Aviation editorial Ian Goold, Alan Postlethwaite Photographer Janice Lowe Production Editor Philip Janreu Sub-editor Graham Cowell Art Editor Colin Paine Layout Rita Molineux Technical Artists Ira Epton, Tim Hall, John Marsden Israel correspondent Arie Egozi 03 945326 Paris correspondent Gilbert Sedbon 825 5261 OS West Coast correspondent Norman Lynn (213) 377 8485 Washington correspondent Julian Moxon (202) 547 2624 Publishing Director James Weymouth Editor-in-Chief J M Ramsden Group Advertisement Manager John Humphreys Regional Manager. Continental Europe Linda Raabe Regional Manager, UK/Southern Europe Mike Spray Regional Manager, UK/Scandinavia Nicholas Wilcox Advertisement Production Howard Mason Advertisement Sales—France Pierre Mussard, 18.20 Place de la Made leine, Pans 75008, France Telephone: Pans 42655014. Telex: 215334F BISPRSF. Advertisement Sales—USA (East Coast) Clive Richardson. Classified Advertisement Sales—USA, Business Press International Ltd, 205 East 42nd Street. New York. NY 10017 Telephone: 212) 867 2030. Telex: 238327 Advertisement Sales—USA (Mid-West) & Canada Gene Glendinning, Business Press International (USA), Cahners Piaza, 1350 East Touhy Avenue, PO Box 5080. Des Plaines, Illinois 60018 Advertisement Sales—USA (West Coast) John Tidy, Business Press International (USA), 3700 Campus Drive, Suite 203, Newport Beach CA 92660. Telephone: 1714) 756 1057 Telex: 238327 Customer Services Manager Paddy Lane 01 -661 3344 Subscriptions Manager A Walden Telephone: England (0444) 459188 (UK and overseas subscription rates and agents can be found in this issue): Telephone: 01-661 3315 (Display Advertisement Sales) 01-661 8877 (Classified) 01-661 3267 (Advertisement Production) 01-661 3321 (Editorial) Telegram/Telex 892084 BISPRS G Access code: |TRP) Facsimile (Group lll/ll) on request. Telephone 01-661 3321 EE] Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations Front cover: Dassault's Falcon 900 business jet is the subject of Harry Hopkin 's flight test in this issue. Picture by Flight's Janice Lowe. EDITORIAL Make the most of EAP Private enterprise paid for the impressive performance by EAP at Farnborough. The Brit ish Government's one-third project funding ceased the second the aircraft's wheels first left the ground three weeks before the show. Only in Britain could such a patent ly obvious asset be in danger of gather ing dust in a hangar. Yet that was a distinct possibility as discussions between industry and Government continued earlier this week. By accepting two-thirds of building costs and all the flight-test burden, industry has fulfilled the doctrine extolled by Mrs Thatcher of taking initiatives and the concomitant risks in pursuit of business and reward. Now some of Britain's biggest avionics and systems companies fear that their reward for success on EAP is to be a kick in the teeth. Their fear and anger results from the British Government's inability to see clearly the role of EAP as a precursor to EFA. Besides backpedalling on the pro vision of flying funds, the Govern ment also wishes to re-open competition for EFA fly-by-wire controls and other systems, appar ently as a matter of principle, instead of building upon successful equipment already flown aboard EAP. The British companies who devel oped this equipment for EAP, and their European partners, did so only after winning stiff competitions managed by BAe (which will have similar responsibilities for any EFA contests). The EAP systems work. Their manufacturers are offering fixed prices for derivative equipment on EFA. To insist on another round of competition would be a betrayal of those who took the initiative and delivered the goods. It could also raise both the technological and financial risk for EFA. We see no reason why EAP should not continue flying until EFA takes off in the early 1990s, testing new Huds, new CRTs, perhaps an all- moving fin, but, most importantly, developing and refining flight-control software so that EFA flies with minimum risk and maximum performance. Nearly 70 man-years of control-system software development has been invested in EAP to obvious good effect. It would be folly not to exploit the one tangible result of that work—the aircraft itself. There is a direct parallel between EAP/EFA and the YF-16 demonstra tor of 1974 and the F-16 which followed it. The opportunity should be exploited, not squandered. The question, however, is whether EAP is a technology demonstrator. If so, British Department of Trade and Industry rules seem to demand that private enterprise finds half of the continuing costs. On the other hand, if EAP is regarded as a prototype, then money must come from the EFA budget, which does not exist until after the German elections next year. Paradoxically, even those elements of German industry which pulled out of EAP (along with the German and Italian governments), and now regret it, would like to see the aircraft continue to fly, perhaps with their belated help, to gain experience for EFA. The German Government, however, may be reluctant to see Britain taking a lead, and the British Government is sensitive to that fact. If Britain alone were to fund continued flying of EAP, it might be a faux pas in the context of EFA, which is one reason why the British Govern ment is seeking flying money not just from British industry, but from the European companies who took risk shares in EAP's construction. Faced with understandable indus try reluctance to contribute more money (especially if it still insists on re-bidding the EAP systems for EFA), the British Government might be persuaded to take a more charitable view of EAP flight-test funding. If it were to do so, it might cause a small diplomatic flutter in Bonn, but it would be doing Europe a favour. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL, 20 September 1986
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