April 5, 1999

April 5, 1999

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HEADLINE NEWS

Bell Modifies 407 Tail Rotor

By EDWARD H. PHILLIPS4 min

HEADLINE NEWS

Destruct System Eyed in Global Hawk Crash

By MICHAEL A. DORNHEIM4 min

HEADLINE NEWS

Sea Launch Passes Demonstration Test

By BRUCE A. SMITH4 min

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HEADLINE NEWS

Bell Modifies 407 Tail Rotor

FORT WORTH In the wake of three accidents, Bell Helicopter Textron is modifying the tail rotor and its control system on Bell 407 aircraft and is conducting special flight tests aimed at removing airspeed limitations by midyear. A Bell official said in each accident the tail boom was severed at Station 150, about 5-7 in.

By EDWARD H. PHILLIPS4 min

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HEADLINE NEWS

Destruct System Eyed in Global Hawk Crash

LOS ANGELES Teledyne Ryan’s Global Hawk reconnaissance drone had its first crash on Mar. 29, destroying the No. 2 aircraft and its sensors after it spiraled in from 40,000 ft. The crash will delay participation of Global Hawk in military exercises, which will be used to determine the future of the program.

By MICHAEL A. DORNHEIM4 min

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HEADLINE NEWS

Sea Launch Passes Demonstration Test

LONG BEACH, CALIF. A successful Sea Launch demonstration mission, conducted relatively quickly and precisely at the equator, has set the stage for the international joint venture’s first revenue mission later this year, according to program officials.

By BRUCE A. SMITH4 min

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HEADLINE NEWS

Italy Commits to Galileo, Radarsat

PARIS Barely weeks after kicking off development of a proposed European high-resolution optical/radar imaging network, Italy is poised to become the first nation to commit to the Galileo Global Navigation Satellite System. Last month, the Italian Council of Ministers approved a 310-million-euro ($341-million) financing package to allow Italy to take a lead role in Galileo/GNSS-2.

By MICHAEL A. TAVERNA3 min

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HEADLINE NEWS

Thaad Misses Target Again; Telemetry Loss Hinders Analysis

WASHINGTON U.S. Army and Ballistic Missile Defense Organization officials are struggling to reconstruct why the Theater High-Altitude Area Defense interceptor missile missed its Hera target in the sixth and latest failed attempt to achieve a hit-to-kill intercept.

By ROBERT WALL3 min

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HEADLINE NEWS

Mms to Build Mars Express

Paris The European Space Agency has issued a contract to Matra Marconi Space (MMS) for design and development of Mars Express, marking another step forward for this planetary project, but leaving it short of a formal go-ahead. ESA’s Science Program Committee proposed unanimously late last year that the agency proceed with Mars Express (AW&ST Dec. 7, 1998, p. 24; Nov. 16, 1998, p. 36).
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OPERATION ALLIED FORCE

B-52s Ignore Weather, Hammer Serb Targets

RAF FAIRFORD, ENGLAND The Kosovo conflict has again proven the value of B-52s as heavy hitters in aerial combat—this time because the bombers are firing satellite-guided cruise missiles that can find their way through the thick cloud layer that has slowed the air campaign.

By DAVID A. FULGHUM10 min

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OPERATION ALLIED FORCE

Weather, Weapons Dearth Slow Nato Strikes

Military officials worry that the limited number of air sorties is undermining the effectiveness of air strikes

By JOHN D. MORROCCO,DAVID A. FULGHUM,ROBERT WALL8 min

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USAF IN SPACE

Edwards Lab Seeking High-payoff Technology

EDWARDS AFB, CALIF. The Air Force Research Laboratory’s emphasis on space is clear at the western branch of the Propulsion Directorate based here, where rocket engines have been tested and developed for 50 years. Work on the integrated high-payoff rocket propulsion technology program (IHPRPT) is mainly centered here, and has the goal of reducing launch costs 33% by 2010, increasing satellite life by 45%, and increasing satellite repositioning capability by 500%.

By MICHAEL A. DORNHEIM8 min

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USAF IN SPACE

Materials Technology Leads AFRL Space Initiative

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, OHIO The U.S. Air Force is developing a new array of advanced aerospace materials and manufacturing technology on which to base a whole new class of sensors, structures and optics needed for development of advanced launch and military satellite systems.

By CRAIG COVAULT7 min

March 291999 April 121999