Australia's government has appointed advisers to help with the sale of three Sydney-area general aviation airports it hopes to privatise in mid-2003. The three Sydney Basin airports being put up for sale are Bankstown, Camden and Hoxton Park. The process is expected to be completed around the middle of next year. The sale of the airports will complete Australia's airport privatisation programme. Meggitt has acquired Lodge, a UK aerospace sensor and industrial igniters business, from Smiths Group for £33 million ($51.6 million). UK autoclave specialist Aeroform has bought US autoclave machinery manufacturer Thermal Equipment (TEC). TEC, which was bought for an undisclosed sum from Dover Diversified, has delivered autoclaves to all major US prime aerospace contractors. Air France, British Airways, Global Freight Exchange and Lufthansa have got the go-ahead from the European Union for their GF-X Operation - an electronic tool for selling freight capacity. Pilot Investor of Iceland has acquired a controlling interest in wet-lease operator Air Atlanta Icelandic. Saab is merging its command and control system, electronic warfare and avionics businesses in a single company. It will comprise Saab Tech Systems, Saab Avionics and Saab Facilities.
Source: Flight International
