September 12, 1994

View Full Issue Table of Contents

HEADLINE NEWS

STEALTHY TSSAM ACES TESTS BUT FACES BUDGET BATTLE

WASHINGTON As Congress nears its final 1995 defense budget decisions, U.S. Air Force officials have unveiled Northrop's AGM-137 Tri-Service Standoff Attack Missile and the precise strike results of two August tests of the stealthy, long-range, $1.7-2.3-million weapon.

By DAVID A. FULGHUM

HEADLINE NEWS

RADAR-KILLING F-15 MAY FALL TO BUDGET AX

FARNBOROUGH WASHINGTON The U.S. Air Force favors abandoning development of a radar-killing version of the F-15, opting instead to rely only on newly fielded F-16s equipped with the Harm Targeting System (HTS). The F-16 will serve until an F-22 modified for suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD) can take over the role.

By JOHN D. MORROCCO,DAVID A. FUIGHUM

HEADLINE NEWS

BRAZIL ORDERS ERICSSON AEW SYSTEM

Brazil has stepped up to become the first export customer for the Ericsson Erieye airborne early warning system, with a firm commitment to purchase five of the dorsalmounted, active phased-array radars. The systems, which cost about $25 million each, will be integrated on Embraer EMB-120 turboprop aircraft.

HEADLINE NEWS

RUSSIANS CITE RADAR FOR MIR DOCKING WOES

WASHINGTON Russian controllers have pinpointed the cause of the failure of Progress M-24 to dock automatically to Mir, which led the commander on board the space station to remotely fly the resupply spacecraft for the linkup. Engineers have determined that automated procedure was spoiled by a malfunction of the Kurs radar in the rendezvous and docking system on the unmanned Progress.

By JEFFREY M. LENOROVITZ,JAMES R. ASKER

READER REACTION

LETTERS

McDonnell Douglas is tampering with the heart of the C-17 (AW&ST Aug. 22, p. 27). The most important characteristic that sets the C-17 apart from other large jet transports is ground maneuverability based on a robust back-up capability. Every analytical comparison of the C-17 to other options assumed its superior ground maneuverability.

MARKET FOCUS

NEW YORK No domestic carrier is safe any longer, it seems, from Southwest Airlines' incursion upon their market. The Dallas-based carrier is giving Trans World Airlines fits at its St. Louis hub, and some industry analysts believe a similar incursion into Alaska Airlines' market could erode that carrier's yields enough to depress full-year earnings.

By ANTHONY L. VELOCCI

AIRLINE OUTLOOK

FAA IS STUDYING whether to mandate minimum English language standards for pilots of foreign carriers flying into the U.S. Such a rule would require those foreign flight crews to pass a straightforward test verifying knowledge and comprehension of standard air traffic control phraseology and emergency communications.

By FRANCES FIORINO

1994 FARNBOROUGH REPORT

SHOW ORGANIZERS ACT TO ENSURE FUTURE

The number of aircraft displayed was a record for Farnborough, but fewer chalets were booked, reflecting industry consolidation and continued tough times

By CAROLE A. SHIFRIN

September 51994

September 191994

September 12, 1994

September 12, 1994