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Aviation History
2003
2003 - 2175.PDF
HEADLINES DEFENCE BRENDAN SOBIE / LANGKAWI Malaysia closes in on Super Hornets Government reverses previous decision on Boeing fighters Malaysia is closing in on its long- awaited purchase of 12 to 18 Boe ing F/A-18F Super Hornets after a year of delays. Mahathir Mohamad, the outgo ing prime minister, is understood to have recently endorsed the acquisition, marking a sudden rev ersal in his administration's deci sion to stall the purchase over the last year for political reasons. Mahathir openly criticised the USA's involvement in the Iraq war, and the consequent souring of USA-Malaysia relations has since made it difficult for any purchase of US military aircraft. Last year, Malaysia earmarked the Super Hornet and Sukhoi Su-30 as its two future fighters, but the acquisition of the Su-30 leap frogged over the Super Hornet ear lier this year. Offers for 12 or 18 Super Hornets remained on the table, industry sources say. Mahathir is now prepared to give approval to the procurement before he leaves office at the end of this month. Boeing F/A-18 programme pres ident Tony Parasida acknowledged during the LIMA 2003 air show last week that in late September there were more discussions with Malaysia than there had been for several months. But he says Mahathir and def ence minister Najib Tun Razak have not yet accepted either of Boeing's offers. Najib said at the beginning of the LIMA show that "we're still looking into" the Super Hornet. Boeing is also offering to take back Malaysia's eight existing F/A-18Ds. Seven are serviceable, and Parasida says that the air force is working on repairing the eighth, which was damaged during a runway overrun earlier this year. Industry sources say the new Su per Hornets will not be acquired until Malaysia's next defence plan, which begins in 2006, with deliver ies spread out across the second half of this decade. Given this schedule, the pur chase decision could be made next year by Mahathir's successor. But waiting for that change could jeop ardise the purchase altogether, and Boeing has been lobbying hard over the last couple of months to get initial approval before the end of the year. SEE LIMA SHOW REPORT P31 DEFENCE JUSTIN WASTNAGE/LONDON Galileo frequencies to change The European Commission is likely to alter the frequencies of the Galileo satel lite positioning system to accommodate the needs of the US military. The EC held talks in Washington DC with US Department of Defense offi cials, officially to "take stock of all issues related to Galileo". The negotiations are understood to have focused on the frequency assigned to the system's police and security services signal, the public regulated service (PRS). The current PRS frequency overlaps with one the USA plans to use for its M-code military frequency on the US global positioning system. Sources within the EC say they expect a compromise to be found by the end of the year, most likely to involve both sides shifting frequencies slightly. Pentagon officials claim that, despite the signals using different multiplexers, if PRS overlays M-code, terrorists could jam both frequencies simultaneously. Galileo needs to receive approval for any new frequency for PRS from the International Telecommunication Union before the end of the year to include its satellite in launch specifications for equipment manufacturers. "We have to reach an agreement by the end of the year to be in time to include any result in the final design. If any adaptations are necessary, it will still be possible to include them," says the EC. Briefing Raytheon sheds aerial targets company SALE Raytheon has sold its aerial targets business to Sacramento, California-based Composite Engineering. The Andover, Kansas-based unit, which employs 29 people, produces MQM-107 subsonic drones and guidance sections for the GQM-163A supersonic sea-skimming target. Composite Engineering is developing the BQM-167Asubscale aerial target, with deliveries to the US Air Force to begin early next year. Raytheon says the targets business was no longer strategic. Boeing optimistic for US DoD tanker sale PROCUREMENT Boeing is confident the US Department of Defense (DoD) will procure at least 100 more KC-767 tankers for delivery after 2011 when the last of its initial order for 100 aircraft enters service. "I believe there will be 200- plus tankers, at least through 2017," says Bob Gowers, vice-president tanker programmes. The DoD is at an impasse with the US Congress over how many of the 100 767s to lease Flight International, 30 September- 6 October). Gowers says the matter will be settled in "weeks rather than months". Diamond picks GIOOO flightdeck for DA40 AVIONICS Diamond Aircraft has selected Garmin's G1000 integrated flightdeck for its DA40-180 Diamond Star. The Austrian manufacturer says it is the first to offer the system "in an aircraft positioned to serve both the recreational and training markets". The all-glass G1000 has also been selected for Diamond's twin-engined DA42 Twin Star as well as the Cessna Citation Mustang personal jet. DigitalGlobe clinches NextView deal CONTRACT DigitalGlobe has received a $500 million NextView contract from the US Department of Defense's National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) to assure the availability of imagery from the next generation of high- resolution imaging satellites. The Longmont, Colorado-based company plans to launch the first of its Ball Aerospace & Technologies-built WoridView satel lites, with resolutions down to 0.25m (10in), late in 2005. NIMA hopes to award a similar NextView contract to competitor Space Imaging. Flight-test hitch hinders SpaceShipOne SPACE Scaled Composites' suborbital spacecraft SpaceShipOne encoun tered its first significant flight test problem on 23 September during its third glide flight over Mojave, California. Scaled says the problem is likely to require aerodynamic modifications to its X-Prize contender. Cargo Air Lines 747 overruns at Liege CRASH A Cargo Air Lines Boeing 747-200F (4X-ICM) from Nairobi, Kenya, and Tel Aviv, Israel, overshot runway 05R/23L at Liege airport, Belgium, on 1 October The aircraft, which was landing in heavy rain, came to a stop on the grass, causing damage to two engines and the landing gear. Preliminary findings show VLS-1 discharge ACCIDENT Brigadier Tiago da Silva Ribeiro, director of Brazil's Aerospace Technology Centre (CTA), has disclosed preliminary findings after an accident on 23 August destroyed the third prototype of the VLS-1 satellite launch vehicle and killed 21 CTA engineers. Initially working with the hypothesis that an external electrical discharge sparked ignition of the launch vehicle's "A" booster, the VLS-1 accident investigation commission found evidence to indicate that an electrical discharge did occur- but inside the rocket. Trimble joins Flight International PEOPLE Flight Internationals new US East Coast Editor is Stephen Trimble, formerly the Pentagon-based reporter with Aerospace Daily. Trimble worked for Federal Times in Washington before being part of the launch team of Military.com. He then joined McGraw Hill and spent a year and a half on AviationNow before moving to the daily. www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 7-13 OCTOBER 2003 5
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