EADS names potential KC-330 tanker sites
EADS North America has selected four US sites to compete to become a "centre of industrial activity" for its proposed KC-330 tanker. Drawn from over 70 proposals, the locations are Mobile, Alabama; Melbourne, Florida; Kiln, Mississippi; and North Charleston, South Carolina. Access to a seaport and a 2,750m (9,000ft) runway proved to be the most demanding drivers for selection, says EADS, which says the inclusion of Melbourne is "coincidental", despite widespread reports of a potential link with Northrop Grumman on a pending US Air Force tanker competition. The site is the headquarters for Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems.
Viking Air, a Canadian aircraft parts and maintenance company, is to become the main spares manufacturer and distributor for de Havilland heritage aircraft, after buying the business from Bombardier's Commercial Service Centre division. The transaction gives Viking product support responsibilities for de Havilland Dash 7, DHC-6 Twin Otter, DHC-5 Buffalo, DHC-4 Caribou, DHC-3 Otter, DHC-2 Beaver and DHC-1 Chipmunk aircraft. More than 3,500 of these types have been built since 1947, says Victoria, British Columbia-based Viking.
Source: Flight International