All aerospace news – Page 1883
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Moving goalposts
The UK Government's decision to give British Aerospace £123 million ($200 million) launch aid for development work on the wing of the Airbus A340 500/600 airliner may give a much-needed morale boost to the UK aerospace industry, but it may also do little to bolster (and may even harm) the ...
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Light twin, right price
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC When Bell introduced the Model 407 light single-turbine helicopter it was essentially competing with itself, or rather with the longevity of its popular Model 206 JetRanger/LongRanger family. With the new Model 427 light twin, the company is breaking new ground, and competing with helicopters from established manufacturers. ...
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Eurocopter delivers Super Puma for North Sea
Eurocopter has delivered an AS.332C-L1 Super Puma to British International Helicopters (BHI) at Aberdeen in Scotland. The machine, which has been converted to the stretched L1 configuration by Eurocopter, was originally built as a "C" model. The Super Puma is destined for offshore work in the North Sea oil support ...
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New stretch of 747 defined
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Boeing has revised its future 747 growth studies to include a 500-passenger stretch version with a larger wingspan, known as the -400Y Stretch, while dropping another long range variant dubbed the -400ERY. The company stresses that the only new version of the 747 being formally ...
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Airbus puts back entry into service of A3XX
Julian Moxon/PARIS Airbus Industrie is to delay the entry into service of its planned 555-seat A3XX by at least nine months, to the third quarter of 2004. The consortium claims that the delay is "minor" and says that the current economic chaos in key Asian markets is not responsible ...
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Shuttle tank heads for May debut
The first lightweight Space Shuttle external tank has arrived at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida to be prepared for its first flight on the STS91/ Discovery mission, to make the ninth docking at the Russian Mir space station in May. The aluminium lithium tank, which holds the cryogenic liquid ...
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NASA works on runway-friction indexing
Ian Sheppard/LONDON NASA is calibrating a new runway-friction indexing method designed to prevent aircraft accidents on icy runways, after it was realised that poor surface-friction information had contributed to incidents where aircraft have slid off the runway or been dangerously slow to reach lift-off speed. The NASA-led tests ...
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Russia seeks $6.2 billion for International Space Station
Tim Furniss/LONDON Russia will need $6.2 billion funding over the next ten years to build and maintain its component of the International Space Station (ISS), according to Russian Space Agency (RSA) director Yuri Koptev. Some $3 billion will be spent on construction, with the remainder going on maintenance, he says. ...
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Regional revolution
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON Regional aircraft manufacturers must, by now, be getting used to living in a perpetual state of revolution, and 1997 was no disappointment. The year began with Fokker delivering its last few aircraft and ended with the loss of another famous name, as Saab Aircraft announced its retreat ...
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Giant leaps for Deltas
Tim Furniss/CAPE CANAVERAL Boeing is preparing launch pad 17B at Cape Canaveral, Florida, for the first launch of the Delta III booster in June. The company is also expecting an Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) contract from the US Air Force in June to start development of the new ...
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Xyvision conductor
Xyvision of Slough, UK, is to supply Swissair's SR Technics maintenance division with its SGML Conductor document-management system. SR uses Conductor for service bulletins, and is adding aircraft-maintenance and engine manuals and illustrated parts catalogues. Source: Flight International
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Sikorsky signs
Sikorsky has signed memoranda of co-operation with three Taiwanese manufacturers, as part of an offset agreement for S-70 helicopters. Chengfeng Machinery, Ta-Yih and Topkey will each be contracted to supply structural, landing-gear and lighting components. Source: Flight International
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Wayfarer grows
White Plains, New York-based Wayfarer Aviation has added a Gulfstream III business jet and SikorskyS-76 corporate helicopter to its managed-aircraft fleet. Source: Flight International
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Helibras sales up
Brazilian helicopter manufacturer Helibras sold 30 aircraft in 1997, worth real 50 million ($45 million), reports Gazeta Merchantil. Itajuba-based Helibras licence-assembles Eurocopter AS350/355s and AS365s and plans to introduce the EC120 light turbine-single and EC135 light twin to the Brazilian market by 1999. Source: Flight International
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ITP buys into Mexico
Spanish engine venture ITP has paid $20 million to take a 60% share in Turborreactores, the maintenance arm of Mexico's CINTRA group. The unit was originally created to service Pratt &Whitney engines, but has been mothballed since 1993. ITP now hopes to bring the plant up to annual sales of ...
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Workshop
-Pemco Aeroplex has been awarded a maintenance contract by Mesa Airlines to carry out line maintenance, technical support and transit checks in support of Mesa's Bombardier Canadair Regional Jets in operation through Birmingham International Airport, Alabama. -AeroCorp has signed a contract with Continental Airlines to undertake heavy scheduled maintenance of ...
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US airline profits are 'best ever'
The major US airlines ended 1997 with their strongest profits on record, but the celebrations were accompanied by the promise of more turbulence ahead, with the fall-out from Asian economic crisis and the prospect of a renewed round of consolidation closer to home following the Continental/Northwest Airlines tie-up. With only ...
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Going with the flow
Tim Furniss/KENNEDY SPACE CENTER With six International Space Station (ISS) assembly missions scheduled for 1999, and 18 more due to take place between 2000 and 2002, NASA's Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF) at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, is soon going to be a hive of activity. The Photovoltaic Module ...
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PZL-Swidnik upgrades SW-4 prototype with flight-control system
Polish helicopter manufacturer PZL-Swidnik is fitting a hydraulic flight-control system from French manufacturer SAMM to its third SW-4 light-helicopter prototype. The four/five-seat helicopter, powered by a single 335kW (450shp) Allison 250-C20R/2 turboshaft has undergone 70h of flight testing since it was first flown on 26 October, 1996, and is ...
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Northwest and Continental tie-up raises Alitalia/KLM hopes
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON Julian Moxon/PARIS The tie-up between Northwest and Continental Airlines has been welcomed by European partners Alitalia and KLM, offering the prospect of a global alliance within five years. "The deal opens the door to a much wider co-operation," says Fausto Cereti, chairman of Alitalia, which already ...