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Aviation History
1999
1999 - 1462.PDF
HEA&UNIES UK will seek phased US open skies deal THE UK GOVERNMENT has admitted it will seek a phased open skies agreement on services between the UK and USA when formal negotiations on a new bilateral treaty resume in mid- June. Following two days of infor mal talks in the UK, which ended on 20 May, the two sides say that "discussions were productive", with the UKseeking "a phased lib eralisation of air services". The statement formalises the shift in the UK position from seek ing a full open skies deal - allowing British Airways to enter into an immediate alliance with American Airlines - to its current stance of securing staged liberalisation over the next few years. BA and American are themselves planning to phase in their alliance. Sources say the US side also raised the case of Trans World Airlines, which hopes to transfer St Louis- London Gatwick services to London Heathrow as a trade-off for the USA making British Midland's Heathrow-New York application exempt from the current bilateraLQ US probes launches THE US LAUNCHER in dustry may be grounded for up to six months as President Bill Clinton has ordered Defense Secretary George Cohen to inves tigate recent launch failures of Lockheed Martin Titan IV, Athena and Boeing Delta III boosters. Six failures between July 1998 and May this year have cost over $3.5 billion. The Central Intelligence Agency and NASA will assist the investigations. • NEWS IN BRIEF • PARIS TRAVEL Pathways Travel is offering Flight International readers cut-price flights between IS and 17 June from London Heathrow to Charles de Gaulle and a trade ticket for the Paris air show. Telephone or fax +44 (181) 350 5675. Lufthansa ponders A319CJ for long-haul luxury service DAVID LEARMOUNT/TOULOUSE LUFTHANSA IS considering using the Airbus A319CJ cor porate aircraft to carry high yield passengers on scheduled long-haul services. The CJ is the corporate jet ver sion of the 124-seat A319 short/ medium-range twinjet. This has a customised cabin and increased fuel capacity through the addition of auxiliary tanks in the belly cargo hold, which boosts range to 11,655km (6,300nm). Lufthansa operates 20 airliner versions of the A319 on European routes. Lufthansa originally discussed the concept with Bombardier sev eral years ago for a passenger ver sion of its Global Express long-range business jet but the car rier decided not to proceed with the plans. The Canadian manufacturer is now conducting market studies to assess demand for an airliner ver sion of the aircraft (Flight International, 14-20 April). Details of the A319 seating arrangements are undecided, but High-yield Lufthansa passengers could soon fly long-haul flights on A319CJs the operation would be aimed at first class passengers and those who pay full business class fares. The German flag carrier's vice-presi dent of technical operations, Dr Hans-Jurgen Loss, says innovation in high yield travel is essential. If market research shows the propos al to be viable, Lufthansa could gain more space for high-density seating on its large airliners. Depending on the payload, the aircraft could fly from central Europe to destinations on the US East Coast. DaimlerChrysler recently ordered an A319CJ, which will be operated on shuttle flights between the USA and Germany. The A319CJ can accommodate between 35 and 50 luxury seats. Additional features could include separate dining areas. Airbus vice-president of sales (Europe) Chris Buckley says no air line has approached the manu facturer with such a proposition, but the A319CJ with auxiliary tanks would be suitable for the task. • Lockheed Martin team wins MEADS RAMON LOPEZ/WASHINGTON DC ALOCKHEED MARTIN-led team has won a $300 million contract to start developing the Medium Extended Air Defence System (MEADS), a joint pro gramme between Germany, Italy and the USA to field a highly mobile, medium-range battlefield air- defence system. The future of the $12 billion MEADS project was in doubt only a few months ago after the US Department of Defense restruc tured the requirement as part of a revamp of its ballistic missile defence programmes. MEADS funding was slashed and the initial fielding date slipped beyond 2007. The USA also said that the hit-to- kill Lockheed Martin Vought Sys tems Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC-3) air defence missile should be used forthe MEADS. Protracted negotiations among the three parties allowed the pro gramme to move forward, with Italy and Germany accepting the PAC-3 instead of a new interceptor fortheMEADS. Lockheed Martin was chosen over Raytheon as the US team member for a three-year risk reduction phase of research and development. Italy's Alenia and Germany's DaimlerChrysler Aerospace were members of both US contractor's MEADS teams. In October 1996, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon were each awarded $80 million 2 7-month programme definition and validation contracts. "The requirement that fostered MEADS.. .remains valid and more urgent each day," says Werner Huss, president of joint venture company MEADS International. Lockheed Martin called the con tract "a huge win that represents the future of air and missile defence". As part of the contract, MEADS International will demonstrate a prototype system in 2 002. The MEADS will give forces in the field 360° protection against theatre ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and manned and unmanned aircraft. Mounted on a wheeled vehicle, it would employ an advanced fire control radar and multi-canister vertical launcher to release its interceptors. 3 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 26 May - 1 June 1999
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