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Aviation History
2002
2002 - 2605.PDF
HEADLINES DEFENCE ANDREW DOYLE / SINGAPORE Malaysia closes in on LUH decision Malaysia is nearing selection of a light-utility helicopter (LUH) to meet the army's long-standing light-observation/scout require ment, with a decision expected in the next two months. The Agusta- Westland A109M and Eurocopter EC635 are on Kuala Lumpur's shortlist for up to nine aircraft. It remains unclear whether Portugal's recent cancellation of an order for nine EC635s because of delivery delays and military certifi cation problems will influence the Malaysian decision. Eurocopter says the Portuguese move stemmed from a "disagreement over whether or not certain weapon system inte gration work was to be included as part of the contract" (Flight Inter national, 20-26 August). The Malaysian army had been expected to follow the country's navy in purchasing Eurocopter AS555Ns, but concerns over whether the aircraft could meet mission requirements caused a rethink on its selection. The navy ordered six AS555Ns for pilot train ing ahead of the start of naval Super Lynx deliveries scheduled for next year. The army tender was reopened with Eurocopter changing its bid to the EC635. AgustaWestland is offering the same LUH version of the A109 which it sold to South Africa in 2000, and to Sweden last year. "We are still in discussions and are awaiting the decision of the Malaysian government," says the company. BUSINESS GUY NORRIS / LOS ANGELES Boeing faces strike-action threat Boeing workers appeared to be on the verge of strike action late last week after a last-minute move by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (1AM) to extend contract negotiations was badly received by the manufacturer. On 29 August, when the protracted talks resulted in employees voting on Boeing's latest contract offer and strike action, Boeing and the 1AM received a request from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) to restart talks in Washington DC on 4 September. The 1AM, which invited the FMCS to intervene, has agreed to the request, and says that the votes taken on 29 August will not be counted until the talks have been completed. Boeing says it is unlikely to agree to the request for further talks, but will meet mediators. Boeing vice-president of human resources Jerry Calhoun says: "We have concluded negotiations and there is nothing left to bargain over." The 1AM motion has "tainted" the vote, says Boeing. According to Calhoun, the 1AM decision "undermines the integrity of the collective bargaining process, and denies lAM-represented employees the right to exercise their vote". He urged the union to make the results of the ballot public. The contract talks cover 26,000 machinists at Boeing Commercial Airplanes' sites at Puget Sound, Washington; Wichita, Kansas and Portland, Oregon. A further 20,000 employees not covered by the bargain ing are "potentially susceptible to the effects of a shutdown" in the event of a strike, says Calhoun. Any action would immediately close Boeing's major commercial final assembly and manufacturing sites around Seattle and supporting sites in Wichita and Portland. Boeing has offered to increase pensions by up to 20% as well as meet 1AM demands for modest pay increases. But it has rejected union calls for job security to be aligned with production rates. Calhoun says Boeing's situation "is going to get worse", and that employees should accept the terms while they can. Briefing US safety board urges CVR action RECOMMENDATIONS The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended to the US Federal Aviation Administration that operators include cockpit voice recorder (CVR) "deactivation", either manually or automatically, in flight shut-down checklist actions; and test CVR serviceability daily, including listening to a recording, before first flight. The recommendations are in response to NTSB concerns that CVR recordings on aircraft involved in serious incidents are often useless when they could have yielded important information. The main cause, says the NTSB, is the CVR tape is allowed to run for too long after the incident occurs. Even when an aircraft has landed safely, if the CVR is left running the vital information will have been overwritten by subsequent cockpit audio sounds that may even have taken place after the aircraft has shut down on the line. Most CVRs, says the agency, still have a tape duration of 30min, but it quotes many examples of recent important incidents in aircraft with 2h-duration CVR recording systems that have lost all the data that mattered because they were not switched off after the aircraft landed. Airlines defeat 11 September ban proposal PROTESTS A US Federal Aviation Administration and security agencies' proposal to ban foreign-operated flights from the Washington DC and New York areas and over part of Pennsylvania for much of 11-12 September is unlikely to be implemented after international carriers and airline organisations reacted angrily to the plan. The restrictions would have banned overseas carriers from operating to and from the three international airports in the Washington DC-Baltimore areas, and three airports serving New York on the anniversary of last year's terrorist attacks. The US Department of Transportation had not formally published the plan. Embraer cuts first 195 metal DEVELOPMENT Embraer has cut the first metal for the stretched 195 aircraft, which is scheduled to roll out in just over 12 months. The first machined frame for the 108-seat aircraft follows two years behind the start of Embraer 170 production and comes seven months ahead of that aircraft's scheduled entry into service. USAF withdraws B-IBs CUTS The US Air Force has begun withdrawing from service around a third of its 92 Boeing B-1B fleet. The move, part of previously announced cuts, is designed to fund improvements to the remainder of the bomber fleet. Of the 32 aircraft being retired, 10 will be kept in reserve at the Davis Monthan AFB storage facility in Arizona, 14 will be cannibalised and the remaining eight used as base displays. Alitalia raises €1.2bn in rights/bonds issue FUNDING Alitalia has raised €1.2 billion ($1.17 billion), less fees, in a rights and bond issue. The consortium of international banks underwriting the issue, led by Sanpaolo Imi, Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse First Boston, exercised €309 million worth of options, and the Italian government exercised its entire award of €893 million. At the end of the recapitalisation, however, 20% of the €1.43 billion bonds remained unsold. In the past three months, the Italian government has bailed out Alitalia to the tune of €1.26 billion including an earlier €371 million investment. Eutelsat satellite launch successful LAUNCH Arianespace launched its V155 mission from Kourou, French Guiana, on 29 August, with an Ariane 5 carrying Eutelsat's first Meteosat Second Generation satellite and Eutelsat's Atlantic Bird 1 into a 579 x 35,929km (360 x 22,300 miles), 5.49° geostationary transfer orbit (GTO). The next Arianespace launch is set for 6 September, with an Ariane 44L carrying Intelsat 906, to be followed in October by the first Ariane 5 ECA featuring a new cryogenic upper stage, with a 10,000kg(4,540lb) to GTO capability. www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 3-9 SEPTEMBER 2002 5
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