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Aviation History
1991
1991 - 1159.PDF
H EADLINES TBM700 flies into manufacturing rift Socata and Mooney split over TBM700 BY GILBERT SEDBON IN TARBES Socata and Mooney Aircraft are to part company over the manufacture of the TBM700 six- seat single-engine aircraft. The rift comes at a time when Socata, Aerospatiale's general aviation subsidiary, is due to deliver its first TBM700 to US industrialist Bob Pond. "We are having discussions with the Mooney owners with a view to taking over the whole manufacturing and marketing of the TBM700," says Socata mar keting director Alain Aubry. Under the original agreement signed in 1989, Mooney had a 30% holding in the project. The accord envisaged Socata under taking development and certifi cation and the entire production of the first six aircraft at its Tarbes plant in France. At that point production NEWS IN BRIEF CREW FAILED Final US National Transpor tation Safety Board verdict on responsibility for the January 1990 Avianca Boeing 707 crash at New York is that there was "...such poor flight crew performance" that any air traffic control shortcom ings were irrelevent. The air craft ran out of fuel, yet the crew failed to declare an emergency even when two engines had flamed out. would have been split, with the French company building the forward part of the fuselage, wing boxes and other compo nents. Mooney would have con structed the aft section of the fuselage and the empennages. Two production lines were planned — one in France and the second at Mooney's plant in Kerrville, Texas. The agreement also provided a joint venture to market the TBM700 in North America and internationally. "When we ran into the terms of investments for the manu facturing we discovered that Mooney did not want to invest money in order to adapt its manufacturing facility to accommodate TBM. I think the problem is purely a financial question," says Aubry. Socata has built a new as sembly hall with a Frl85 mil lion ($33 million) loan from the European Investment Bank — the loan issufficient also to fi nance the whole programme. Aubry says: "Socata has dis cussed with Alexandre Cou- velair, the French president of Mooney Aircraft a revision of our existing agreement to take account of the new situation. One of the alternatives would be a take-over 100% of the US operations. That is a distinct possibility." Socata has firm orders for 92 aircraft — including 40 from the USA. Earlier this year, the French company pulled out of talks to acquire Piper. • A-12 funds USN plans BY SIMON ELLIOTT The US Navy is set to receive 210 additional McDonnell Douglas F-18C/D Hornets and to re-wing 120 Grumman A-6E Intruder medium-attack aircraft. The move is designed to main tain aircraft fleet levels in the wake of the cancellation of the General Dynamics/McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II strike aircraft. Under the plan, funding would also be adjusted for the AX programme (the aircraft which would have replaced the A-12) to allow for production of the aircraft in fiscal year 2002. The US Navy confirms that the move would bring the pro gramme forward. The plan would also "... shut down the production of F-14 fighters ", says the US Depart ment of Defense (DoD). The naval-aviation develop ments form the principal part of the US DoD's amended budget submission (ABS) to the 1992-3 defence budget. The amend ment was submitted to Con gress on 26 April and will now go through the political process as part of the defence budget. To carry out the re-winging work on the A-6Es, the ABS would shift funds from the FY1990 and FY1991 budgets that had been earmarked for the A-12 programme. The Navy says that 60 of the rewingings are additional to the 60 re- 3 Pentagon budget. The Navy has already ordered over 170 new wings for the A-6E from Boeing Military Air planes, the company having been selected in 1985 to design, develop and produce a compos ite wing to replace the A-6E's metal wing. The last 20 new- build A-6Es are being fitted with the new wing, with the remaining wings retrofitted onto existing A-6Es. The new request for the addi tional re-winging could go out to contract, with Grumman say ing that, if that were the case, it "...plans to participate". The ABS calls for buying 12 more F-18C/Ds in FY1992, 28 more in FY1993, and another 170 Hornets from FY1995 through to FY1997. Money for the additional aircraft would also come from funds previ ously set aside for work on the A-12. The amendment would add to the 36 Hornets previ ously planned for purchase in FY 1992 and the 20 already pro grammed for FY1993. The ABS would also shut down the Grumman F-14 Tom cat production line. Funds spent in FY1991-4 would buy up spare parts, support equip ment and pay for other shut down costs. The DoD says: "The final F-14D remanufacturing programme, for 12 planes, was funded in a supplemental budget passed earlier this year by Congress" . D See News Analysis page 27 quested in the original FY 1992 US Navy is ready to receive 210 further McDonnell Douglas F-18C/Ds FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 8 - 14 May, 1991
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