April 1, 1991

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HEADLINE NEWS

South Korea to Buy 120 F-16C/Ds, Reversing Plan to Order F/A-18s

By DAVID A. BROWN,FT. WORTH,DAVID F. BOND

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HEADLINE NEWS

Army Speeds Helicopter Enhancements In Response to Desert Storm Problems

WASHINGTON U. S. Army officials believe their helicopters performed well and were effective in the war against Iraq, but they intend to accelerate attempts to deal with refueling, night flying and “friendly fire” problems. A month after the decisive ground operations of the war, information reaching the Pentagon from the field remained sketchy and anecdotal.

By DAVID F. BOND

HEADLINE NEWS

USAF Reverses Decision To Phase Out F-4G, RF-4C

LANGLEY AFB, VA. The U. S. Air Force, reversing a prePersian Gulf war decision, will not phase out its F-4G Wild Weasel defense suppression and RF-4C tactical reconnaissance aircraft before replacements come on line. Gen. Robert D. Russ, retiring commander of Tactical Air Command, said the Air Force plans to extend the service life of the specialty Phantoms and accelerate the introduction of RF-16s and F-16 Wild Weasels to replace them.

By DAVID A. FULGHUM

HEADLINE NEWS

South Korea to Buy 120 F-16C/Ds, Reversing Plan to Order F/A-18s

WASHINGTON Reversing a 15-month-old decision, South Korea last week dropped its plan to buy 120 McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 strike fighters and said it will order the same number of General Dynamics F-16C/D Block 50 fighters instead. The decision, which will save South Korea more than $1 billion over the next decade, was “driven by budgetary constraints and other financial considerations,” James R. Mellor, president and chief operating officer of General Dynamics, told AVIATION WEEK & SPACE TECHNOLOGY.

By DAVID A. BROWN,FT. WORTH,DAVID F. BOND

HEADLINE NEWS

NASP Team Narrows Its Options As First Design Cycle Nears Completion

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, OHIO The National Aero-Space Plane team is nearing formal completion of the first of five scheduled design cycles that already have begun to narrow options and freeze design approaches available to developers of the hypersonic vehicle. In recent months, the NASP team has:

By STANLEY W. KANDEBO

HEADLINE NEWS

USAF Studies Retrofitting 707s Into AWACS As Boeing Considers Shutting Production Line

HANSCOM AFB, MASS. The U. S. Air Force is studying the feasibility of converting used Boeing 707 airframes into Airborne Warning and Control System platforms as the manufacturer nears a decision on ending AWACS production by closing the 707 line.

By DAVID HUGHES

HEADLINE NEWS

Sikorsky Delivers Inlet Particle Separators for Black Hawk APUs

STRATFORD, CONN. Sikorsky Aircraft has developed and delivered more than 400 inlet particle separators for use on U. S. Army Black Hawk helicopters equipped with Sundstrandmanufactured auxiliary power units. The separators were developed as a permanent way to combat APU sand erosion problems that surfaced during the initial deployment of U. S. troops to the Persian Gulf last August.

HEADLINE NEWS

Israel Conducts Second Test Of Arrow ABM Over Mediterranean

BONN A second test of Israel’s Arrow antitactical ballistic missile system was conducted successfully over the Mediterranean Sea last week, according to the Israel Defense Ministry. The flight was intended to verify the Arrow’s design and integration of its components, the ministry said.

SPACE TECHNOLOGY

Shuttle Set for EVA Mission, Gamma Ray Observatory Deployment

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, HOUSTON Launch of the $557-million Gamma Ray Observatory on board the space shuttle Atlantis, scheduled for 9:18 a. m. EST on Apr. 5, is expected to open a new window on the universe, enabling astronomers to observe phenomena such as annihilation of matter by antimatter.

By CRAIG COVAULT

March 251991

April 81991

April 1, 1991

April 1, 1991