All news – Page 7606
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DERA investment expected to cut costs of UK research
THE UK DEFENCE Research Agency (DRA) has moved into the first part of its £71 million ($110 million) research site, construction of which has reached the half-way stage. The DRA, a division of the UK Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) Defence Evaluation & Research Agency (DERA), took possession of ...
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Letov co-operation extended
EUROCOPTER Deutschland and Letov signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on 14 September, extending their co-operation to include helicopter parts manufacture. Letov has been manufacturing components supplied by Eurocopter for the Airbus A321 airliner programme. The new agreement foresees Letov preparing airframe components "primarily" on the German-built ...
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Lucas studies 'more-electric' technologies
Andrew Doyle/LONDON LUCAS AEROSPACE's Power Systems division is studying the next stage in the development of so-called "more-electric" aircraft concepts, following its successful bid to introduce variable-frequency generators on Bombardier's Global Express business jet. The company is focused on developing high-power variable-frequency generators for larger ...
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Czech parliament and MoD lock horns over fighter requirement
Andrzej Jeziorski/Jiri Kominek/PRAGUE THE CZECH DEFENCE ministry says that it cannot consider buying Western fighters until 2003, despite mounting parliamentary pressure to drop plans to upgrade its obsolescent Mikoyan MiG-21s. The 14 September closing date for bids to upgrade some 24 Czech air force MiG-21MF Fishbed ...
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Thai plans A300 update renewal
Paul Lewis/BANGKOK THAI AIRWAYS International is negotiating to purchase five additional Airbus Industrie A300-600Rs and two Boeing 747-400s as part of a long-term plan to rationalise and modernise its fleet. The A300-600Rs are needed as replacements for Thai's elderly A300B4s, now used on domestic and ...
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Eurocontrol starts Magyar ATC trials
ONE OF THE most complex real-time air-traffic-control (ATC) simulations ever carried out by Eurocontrol is under way at the organisation's Bretigny-sur-Orge research centre near Paris. The trials are for the new Magyar automated and integrated ATC system (Matias) under development for Hungary, which is undertaking a complete ...
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AlliedSignal develops GPWS for GA aircraft
Guy Norris/WICHITA A LOW-COST TERRAIN-warning system for single-engine general-aviation (GA) aircraft is being developed by AlliedSignal and will be available from around April 1996. The development of the terrain-warning system (TWS) was prompted by the re-emergence of Cessna's light-single product line. "Cessna's going back into ...
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UK admits it was wrong to shun Ariane 5 programme
Tim Furniss/GUILDFORD THE UK GOVERNMENT made a mistake, in not participating in the Ariane 5 launcher programme, the country's space minister, Ian Taylor, has admitted. Speaking during an UK Space Policy symposium at the University of Surrey on 15 September, Taylor said that a "...marginal ...
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Ranging wider
Canadair has gradually improved its Challenger corporate jet over the past decade. Harry Hopkins/WICHITA THE CANADAIR CHALLENGER series of corporate jets has evolved over 15 years in a series of small steps which have not detracted from the success of the original formula - to marry the ...
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Troubled Endeavour lands
THE 11-DAY Space Shuttle STS69/Endeavour mission ended at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 18 September, while preparations were being made to launch the STS73/Columbia on 28 September for the 16-day US Micro-gravity Laboratory 2 mission. The STS69 was one of the most troubled Shuttle missions, although ...
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TRW wins NASA EOS contracts
TRW HAS BEEN awarded a $398 million NASA contract to build the Earth Observing System (EOS) PM-1 and Chemistry 1 spacecraft, to be launched in 2000 and 2002, with an option to build two more craft, bringing its potential worth to $668 million. The craft will be based ...
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Far East spacecraft
Thailand's defence ministry has proposed the development of a $1 billion military-satellite system, while Vietnam plans to launch its first communications satellite in 2000. The $300 million spacecraft will be built "by a consortium of US and French companies", say the Vietnamese. Source: Flight International
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Spritely Sea Skua
The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) has asked Kaman to clear the British Aerospace Sea Skua air-to-surface anti-ship missile on its SH-2G SeaSprite as part of its bid for the RAN's frigate helicopter programme. The Sea Skua is already being offered, by Westland, as part of its Super Lynx proposal. ...
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Middle East Interline
Air Canada and Canadian Airlines International, have signed an interline agreement with British Mediterranean Airways, for flights from Heathrow to Beirut, Damascus and Amman. The British Mediterranean service to the Middle East links with morning flight arrivals from Canada, with the return flights arriving in time to connect with afternoon ...
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UK and Dutch discuss joint AH-64 support
SENIOR UK AND DUTCH defence officials met at the beginning of September to discuss setting up a joint support-structure following the two countries' purchase of McDonnell Douglas AH-64D Apache attack helicopters. David Hughes, director of helicopter projects at the UK Ministry of Defence's (MoD) Procurement Executive, met ...
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BA beds in for class battle
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON BRITISH AIRWAYS SAYS that the highly publicised launch of its new long-haul first-class "cabin" concept is just part of a broader £500 million ($776 million) programme to redesign all cabin services over the next three years. The new first-class offering, which was officially ...
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Indians to market composites kit
INDIA'S NATIONAL Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) and Indian Petrochemical (IPCL) have combined to develop aircraft-grade thermoset prepregs for use in manufacturing composite materials. NAL says, that the agreement signed in Bangalore in September, calls for production of the prepregs to begin within two years. NAL declines to reveal how ...
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MDC reveals Super Hornet stealth-upgrade details
Graham Warwick/ST LOUIS McDONNELL DOUGLAS (MDC) unveiled the first upgraded F-18E/F Super Hornet on 18 September, revealing design features incorporated to reduce the radar signature. Improved survivability is a design goal of the F-18 upgrade, along with increased range and payload and greater growth capacity. ...
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Boeing ready for new 737
BOEING HAS reached the 75% design release point on engineering for the 737-700, the first of its next-generation family of small twins. The company's development plan calls for the production of all three versions of the family within 18 months. "Boeing has never done anything like this," ...
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Temperature rises in MD-80 anti-icing struggle
THE COMPETITION TO equip more than 1,100 McDonnell Douglas MD-80s with anti-icing systems is intensifying as both contending companies claim major new customers. The competing systems, AlliedSignal's electro-thermal ice protection system, the ETIPS-80, and TDG Aerospace's NOFOD, have been developed to combat clear-ice accretion problems, which affect the ...