Revue de presse des semaines 30, 31 & 32
nectoco
Roland
nectoco
AERONAUTIQUE . Le rêve d'un avion à décollage vertical hante les esprits des
ingénieurs depuis des années. Après les très imparfaits Harrier britannique
et Osprey américain, Boeing propose une nouvelle solution. NEW SCIE)(TleT
Londres Depuis le vol inaugural de l'aérog $ nef britannique Harrier fump g
g fet, en 1960, les ingénieurs aéag rOrl8tltiques se sont evertuesa
concevoir des avions ä décollage vertical plus économiques en combustible.
Boeing est sur le point de mettre un terme ä ces années de recherches
infructueuses avec un appareil ä rotor qui devrait effectuer son premier vol
dans les semaines à venir. Le dernierné de la société aéronautique
américaine, baptisé Canard Rotor Wing (CRW), est un aéronef hybride, entre
l'avion à voilure fixe et l'hélicoptère. Il décollera ä l'aide d'un rotor
bipale [comme un hélicoptère], puis, une fois qu'il sera dans les airs, son
rotor devrait s'immobiliser et se verrouiller de telle sorte que les pales
puissent faire office d'ailes fixes, ce qui devrait permettre à l'appareil
d'atteindre des vitesses nettement supérieures ä celles de n importe quel
autre hélicoptère. LES PALES DE L'HELICO SERVENT D'AILES À L'AVION Le rotor
est propulsé par un flux d'échappement d'un moteur ä réaction envoyé jusqu'ä
l'extrémité des pales. Cela signifie que, contrairement aux hélicoptères
traditionnels, le CRW ne subit pas de couple, une force qui fait tournoyer
le inselage dans le sens inverse de celui du rotor principal. Par
conséquent, le CRW ne nécessite pas le rotor arrière [anticouple] dont les
autres hélicoptères sont pourvus afin de contrecarrer ce couple. Or ces
rotors de queue alourdissent considérablement les hélicoptères et les
rendent plus visibles sur les radars. Pouvoir s'en débarrasser est un gros
avantage, estime Erik Simonsen, le porte-parole de la société Boeing Une
fois dans les airs, l'hélicoptère met les gaz de manière à atteindre une
vitesse précise et, lorsqu'il a suffisamment de portance, le cotor
s'immobilise pour se verrouiller en position ailes. Au moment de la
transition, l'appareil utilise la portance d'un empennage hocizontal ainsi
que de petits plans portants montés sur sa partie avant et appelés canards.
Mais cette opération reste assez incertaine. "Les canards et la queue lui
donnent tout juste assez de portance pour effectuer la transition", livre
Wally Acree, un ingénieur aéronautique de l'Ames Research Center de la NASA,
en Californie" Par ailleurs, l'arrét du rotoc en plein vol et le
vecrouillage des pales en position ailes impliquent des compromis dans les
deux modes de fonctionnement. "Ce type de rotor [à deux pales] ne constitue
ni un rotor très efficace, ni des ailes très performantes , commente M.
Acree, qui a réalisé les premiers tests du CRW en sou8lerie. Mais on attend
surtout du CRW qu'il soit plus économique et qu'il dispose d'une autonomie
supérieure ä celle du Harrier, qui consomme énormément de combustible au
décollage. Le CRW est développé conjointement par Boeing et par la Défense
Advanced Research Projects Agency [DARPA, l'agence de projets de recherche
avancée pour la défense] du Pentagone, qui partagent équitablement les 24
millions de dollars [plus de 25 millions d'euros] de frais de recherche et
développement. Pour le premier vol, c'est un CRW ä échelle réduite et sans
équipage qui tächera de faire ses preuves. S'il réussit, le CRW sera piloté
par une ou deux personnes. D a été en grande partie conçu pour les missions
de reconnaissance de l'US Navy ou des marines. Mais pour que le CRW soit mis
en service, l'équipe de R & D devra rapidement prouver que la délicate
transition entre l'hélicoptère et l'avion peut s'effectuer en toute
sécurité. C'est sur ce point qu'a achoppé le fort controversé MV-22 Osprey
de Boeing un appareil ä rotors basculants. L'Osprey [balbuzard] est doté
d'énormes hélices disposées au bout de deux ailes pivotantes. En vol de
croisière, les hélices propulsent l'avion d'une manière ordinaire, en
revanche, au décollage et ä l'atterrissage, les ailes sont dressées ä la
verticale et les hélices servent alors de rotors. Malheureusement, son
histoire est entachée de catastrophes. Le MV- 22 s'est crashé lors de deux
de ses premiers vols, entramant la mort de douze personnes.
nectoco
Eurocopter Deutschland et Airbus viennent de signer un contrat en vue d'
accroître leur compétitivité sur le marché mondial.
A ce titre, le site allemand d'Eurocopter, qui fournit déjà Airbus en portes
passagers et soute, jouera un rôle important dans la réduction des coûts.
Cet objectif sera atteint, entre autres, grâce à l'extension accrue de l'
automatisation dans les processus de production et à l'externalisation de
certaines parties de la production dans des pays à bas coûts.
nectoco
EADS CASA met actuellement la dernière main au contrat de vente à l'Algérie
d'au moins six avions de transport C-295, pour un montant estimé à 150
millions d'euros.
Si cette transaction se concrétise, ce sera le contrat le plus important
jamais signé par une société espagnole avec l'Algérie, en matière de
matériels militaires.
Fournisseur de longue date du Maroc, l'industrie de la défense espagnole n'a
jamais, jusqu'ici, signé de contrat important avec l'Algérie. Cela pourrait
changer si les négociations en cours avec les forces armées algériennes,
portant sur la livraison de ces six avions de transport, débouchent
effectivement. Outre le nombre d'avions (les discussions ont d'abord porté
sur la fourniture éventuelle de huit à douze appareils), l'importance de
cette transaction réside également dans l'ouverture d'un nouveau marché et
dans l'instauration de relations commerciales nouvelles, qui pourraient
trouver un prolongement avec la fourniture de pièces de rechange et de
services de maintenance.
Source : El Pais
nectoco
the A380 has been respected. The site was inaugurated by Jean-Pierre
Raffarin at the beginning of May. Besides, Airbus has just upgraded its
delivery previsions for 2004. Instead of the 300 to 305 planes announced at
the beginning of the year, Airbus now hints at 320 deliveries, with good
perspectives of increases in production pace. This trend is even expected to
last for 2005.
L'Usine Nouvelle (15/07)
nectoco
the arrival of the A380. The European superjumbo will then surpass the
35-year-long dominant of the skies: Boeing's 747. The A380 will be able to
carry 555 passengers, a third more than the 747. Facing this new
competition, Boeing fights back by trying to convince airlines that the A380
is too big for the long-haul market. The US group also dismisses Airbus'
previsions that it will sell almost 1,000 A380s in the next two decades.
Boeing's vision of the future is that it will be driven by the
"fragmentation" of the air routes, consequently to the liberalization of the
air markets. So, Boeing is now staking on its 7E7, a super-efficient twin
jet that will have 200 to 250 seats.
The Times (15/07), The San Francisco Chronicle
nectoco
after the other, Labinal and Thales Avionics have been picked by Boeing as
suppliers for the 7E7 program. In March, Messier-Dowty was also awarded with
a Boeing contract. L'Usine Nouvelle notes that these opportunities will
allow the French companies to penetrate the "Boeing world" and thus to be
less dependent on Airbus.
L'Usine Nouvelle (15/07)
nectoco
that, for long, the leading British industrials have been seeking to conquer
the US market, leaving room for others in the UK. EADS, Snecma and Thales
managed to take advantage of the situation with their own different
strategies, which are adapted to their respective activities. EADS inherited
of alliances previously sealed by the companies that joined to create the
group in 2000. Today, the British defence programs are seen as a strong
competition place for European and US groups. EADS, which now employs 13,000
persons in the UK, won a major foothold with such programs as the A400M and
the A330-200 refueling tanker. Air & Cosmos (16/07)
nectoco
nectoco
of the Galileo satellite navigation system. The 30-satellite system rival to
the US network GPS is projected to cost ? 220M a year to operate. The
European Commission assigned an average of ? 71M a year for Galileo in its
budget for 2007-2013. "We want industry to meet most of the operating costs
because this is the commercial phase when companies will earn money from
services", a spokesman to the commission said. The EU states still have to
approve the spending plans. EADS, Alcatel and Eutelsat are currently
competing to operate Galileo.
Bloomberg (15/07), International Herald Tribune
nectoco
to EADS North America's CEO latest declarations concerning the group's
ambition of acquisitions in the US. He indicated that EADS was particularly
interested in firms that provide integrated systems, defence electronics,
training and simulation, and testing and other support services.
Defense News (12/07)
nectoco
years, Airbus' vice-president for market forecasts Adam Brown said in
Beijing on Tuesday. China's airlines will thus buy at least 1,316 mainline
jets of over 100 seats. China's passenger traffic will grow 20 % in 2004 and
2005, Adam Brown also forecast. By 2022 therefore, China will be the world's
second largest air travel market after the United States.
China News (14/07)
nectoco
McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s with Airbus A319s, letting Boeing face another
setback for its 717 program. Cebu has now committed to a deal with Airbus
for 12 firmly ordered A319s. A formal announcement is expected this month,
possibly at the Farnborough air show.
Flight International (14/07)
nectoco
24 airlines" for the sale of over 200 7E7 planes. Under the term of these
letters of intent, the carriers will pay a refundable deposit to Boeing and
then start negotiations that may lead to firm contracts, Boeing Commercial
Airplanes' vice-president of marketing Randy Baseler announced yesterday.
CEO Harry Stonecipher lately commented that the US group would make a
satisfactory profit by selling 1,000 of its Dreamliner over 20 years. He
added he hoped to get 500 orders before the first test flight in 2007.
AFP (14/07), Reuters (14/07), AFX (14/07), The Independent, Chicago Tribune
(14/07), Flight International (14/07), Vwd (14/07)
nectoco
Eurocopter is planning to offer the NH90 to the US Air Force. The group has
therefore starting talks with potential US prime contractors, Flight
International reports. Eurocopter's chief executive Fabrice Brégier said the
helicopter maker was taking the USAF requirement "seriously and decided to
answer the request for information. We expect to team with a strong US
partner for the request for proposals". Information were requested for the
end of June, with the RFP expected in 2006. Flight International (14/07)
nectoco
to make a final decision on the controversial deal for tanker jets in next
March or April. He expects the deal will finally be approved as "there is a
real need for these aircraft and the Air Force really wants them". If the $
20Bn deal was delayed any further, Boeing would be forced to cease
production of the 767 jet on which the tanker is based. Harry Stonecipher
also indicated that he forecast tanker sales to reach 400 to 500 jets in the
next 20 to 30 years. "I expect all of these orders to go to Boeing", he
added. Furthermore, the White House has agreed to start releasing documents
related to the deal to be transferred to Congress for scrutiny.
Reuters (12 & 13/07), Defense Daily (13/07)
nectoco
Rainer Hertrich said in an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
The A380 will end Boeing's monopoly with its 747, he said, claiming that
EADS hoped to produce 40 to 45 A380s annually by 2006 and that the program
will reach break even by 2012.
AFX (11/07), Flug Revue (01/08)
nectoco
20 %, Airbus Deutschland's chief Gerhard Puttfarcken told the Hamburger
Abendblatt. Currently, Airbus's Hamburg plant makes 12 planes a month. The
increased production would not create more jobs at the Airbus plant in
Hamburg Finkenwerder, he added. Concerning the extension of the airstrip at
the Hamburg Finkenwerder Airbus plant, he said that this extension of the
airstrip would be absolutely necessary for as soon as possible.
Dow Jones News (12/07), Hamburger Abendblatt
nectoco
government-owned jet Boeing 707 would be replaced by a new Airbus A319 worth
approximately $ 57M. Brazilian president Ignacio Lula da Silva himself
announced a belt- tightening policy and Brazil is aiming not to increase the
country's debts. On the other hand, Da Silva deems the Boeing 707 more than
outdated, and keeps in mind that the German army already got rid of this
type of jets in the early nineties. The new Brazilian Airbus A319 is
currently undertaking test-flights and a final check-up in the Airbus plant
in Hamburg Finkenwerder. The first flight in Brazil is scheduled for
December 2004 and Brazil aims to use the new Airbus A319 for 30 thirty
years.
Die Welt
nectoco
fleet, La Tribune reports. Dassault will present the Rafale at the next
Bayern meeting on September 4 and 5. The French plane maker is now trying to
export its fighter plane, after facing two failures in Netherlands and South
Korea.
La Tribune
nectoco
the absolute monopoly in jets with more than 400 passenger seats. In the
year 2000, the project Airbus A 380 was initiated. Airbus has already
received 129 orders for the A380 jet, each is worth $280 million, 17 of the
orders are for the freight version of the A380. Hamburg Airbus plant is
providing the rear and front body parts of the A 380. Furthermore, the
Hamburg Airbus plant will be upgraded as a delivery centre. On Friday,
senator of economics of the City of Hamburg Gunnar Uldall and Airbus
Deutschland's chief Gerhard Puttfarcken signed a contract on the
controversial extension of the Airbus airstrip at Hamburg Finkenwerder.
Hamburger Abendblatt (10 & 12/07), Die Welt (10/07), Der Spiegel
nectoco
Transport Commissioner Loyola de Palacio said that she preferred the
solution of a blacklist rather than the solution adopted in France of a
"Blue list" detailing safe airlines. The French solution, operational from
mid-2005, plans that the airlines will have to be certified with a safety
label to figure on the list.
Les Echos
nectoco
South Korea for a $ 8.6Bn military helicopter contract. The two other
bidders on the list are the US Bell and the US-Italian group
Agusta-Westland. The Korean Defence Ministry indicated that the government
would choose the best offer "by mid-September". About 500 new helicopters
will have to be built to replace South Korea's fleet of transport and combat
helicopters, by 2010 and 2012.
Bloomberg (09/07), La Tribune, Financial Times Deutschland
David N.A MATHIEU
> Source: Courrier International du 13.06.2006
Comme ça, on ne pourra pas dire qu'on n'était pas prévenu deux ans à
l'avance.
Cordialement
nectoco
Senior executives at EADS, the Franco-German aerospace group, have blamed
the UK for holding up a contract for a batch of 236 Eurofighters, saying if
no deal is signed before the end of this month the delay could add up to
C2bn (£1.3bn) to the already over budget programme. For the second phase of
the programme to move forward, military contractors and defence ministries
of four countries Britain, Germany, Spain and Italy - must all agree to a
new contract, which was supposed to be signed by the end of last year. But
according to executives at EADS, which is building the fighter for the
Spanish and German air forces, the inability of British partner BAE Systems
to agree with the UK's Ministry of Defence over the terms of its Royal Air
Force contract has stalled the negotiations and raised the prospect of more
delays. "Three partners have largely done their homework and one partner
hasn't," Thomas Enders, head of EADS's defence business, said ahead of
today's Farnborough air show. Rainer Hertrich, EADS chief executive, added:
"Hurry up, UK." The four Eurofighter nations had agreed to make the end of
July the final deadline and executives hoped there might be a commitment
from the British at Farnborough. People close to the MoD say that is now
unlikely. Differences between BAE and the MoD are believed to centre on the
costs of accelerating the ground attack capabilities of the new batch of
fighters, which would put a bigger burden on BAE than other partner
companies. In addition, the MoD and BAE have not agreed how to pay for cost
overruns on the first tranche of aircraft. Aloysius Rauen, the newly
appointed chief executive of Eurofighter, warned separately that unless a
commitment for funding from the UK was in place by the end of July it would
be difficult to prevent a gap in the supply chain. "If we end up with a
production break, that would really be very difficult," Mr Rauen said. Mr
Enders said it could add ?lbn to ?2bn to the programme if the manufacturing
is disrupted between tranche one and tranche two, as plants were mothballed
and engineers laid off in all four countries. A recent slowdown in
production has already stretched tranche one deliveries by a year, meaning a
gap would occur in the second quarter of 2007. BAE chief executive Mike
Turner has acknowledged the risks of a production gap if a contract is not
signed soon. But he said last week that he would wait until the terms of the
MoD contract were good for the company. "It will take as long as it takes,"
Mr Turner said. "There will be the funding for the second tranche. There is
no pressure. When it's signed, it's signed."
nectoco
L'avionneur américain annonce 200 intentions de commandes de 24 compagnies
aériennes pour son futur 7E7. . Airbus espère, lui, dépasser son total de
livraisons de 2003 qui l'avait vu devancer pour la première fois Boeing.
L'atmosphère promet d'être électrique à partir d'aujourd'hui au salon
aéronautique de Farnborough, près de Londres. Pour cette manifestation,
l'une des plus importantes du monde dans ce secteur, après le salon du
Bourget et avec celui de Singapour, on s'attend à une bataille entre Boeing
et Airbus, filiale à 80 % d'EADS et à 20 % de BAe Systems. Avant même
l'ouverture du salon, Boeing a annoncé hier son projet de recruter ou de
réembaucher 3.000 personnes d'ici à la fin de l'année, alors que ses
effectifs sont passés de 200.000 à 157.000 en trois ans du fait de la crise
que vient de connaître le transport aérien donc par ricochet l'aéronautique.
Mais aujourd'hui, aux yeux de l'avionneur américain, le marché repart. Il
annonce même avoir engrangé 200 intentions de commandes de 24 compagnies
aériennes pour son nouvel avion, le futur 7E7 Dreamliner censé être super
économique. Les Européens partagent cette analyse. Le coprésident d'EADS,
Philippe Camus, confirme de son côté avoir « de bons signes de reprise ».
Pour lui, « le trafic passagers s'améliore très rapidement et dépasse les
niveaux atteints avant le 11 septembre 2001 ». Du coup, Airbus prévoit de
livrer un peu plus d'avions cette année qu'en 2003. L'an passé, il avait
réussi, pour la première fois, à dépasser son rival américain en la matière,
opération renouvelée au premier semestre 2004. Le marché redécolle. Dans ce
bras de fer, les Américains menacent de vouloir renégocier l'accord de 1992
entre l'Union européenne et les Etats-Unis réglementant les aides à
l'aéronautique. Washington estime notamment que le futur Airbus géant A380
n'a pas besoin des subsides d'Etat. Ce à quoi les Européens répondent que
Boeing bénéficie, lui, des aides indirectes du ministère de la Défense
(Pentagone) et de son agence spatiale (la Nasa), qui bénéficient à ses
programmes d'avions civils. Mais le salon de Farnborough devrait aussi être
l'occasion de belles batailles sur le programme d'armement. Notamment pour
l'attribution par Londres de celui du drone (avion de surveillance sans
pilote) Watchkeeper pour lequel le français Thaïes est favori face à
l'américain Northrop Grumman et au britannique BAe Systems. Sur l'avion de
combat Eurofighter, EADS a déjà lancé une mise en garde contre de nouveaux
retards du programme si les gouvernements européens impliqués (Grande-
Bretagne, Allemagne, Italie, Espagne) ne passent pas commande d'une deuxième
série d'appareils. Difficile négociation. Quant aux avions ravitailleurs,
secteur en passe d'aflicher une importante croissante, Londres, qui veut en
acquérir, mène avec EADS (qui a tout de même évincé BAe) une négociation «
longue et complexe » qu'il espère voir aboutir par une signature définitive
fin 2005. Aux Etats-Unis, EADS rêve également de concurrencer Boeing dans ce
domaine auprès du Pentagone. Dans cette perspective, le groupe européen a
recruté pour sa filiale américaine, Ralph Crosby, un ancien dirigeant de
Northrop Grumman. Et il pourrait caresser l'idée d'un partenariat, par
exemple avec Lockheed Martin.
nectoco
Airbus is to intensify its dogfight with Boeing by announcing a spate of
orders at this week's Farnborough air show, including one for its A380
superjumbo from China. The rival plane-makers last night exchanged abuse on
the eve of the show over the issue of state subsidies, which could provoke a
trade war between the US and EU. Airbus, senior industry sources said, is
poised to seize the initiative this week by saying it has won a firm order
for the 555-seater, double-deck A380, its first this year. It is believed
the order comes from China Southern airline, which could introduce the plane
in time for the 2008 Olympic Games. The A380 is due to enter service in 2006
with Singapore Airlines. Boeing, which was overtaken by Airbus in aircraft
deliveries for the first time in 2003, has consistently belittled the market
for the A380, which can take up to 800 seats. Yesterday Harry Stonecipher,
chief executive, told an Italian newspaper that Airbus's forecast of a
'.,500plane market for the superjumbo over the next 20 years was wrong. "We
think it will be 400," he said. Alan Mulally, head of Boeing's commercial
aircraft division, said: "There just isn't demand for planes of that size
... Airlines are pressing us to make more 747s; some would like to stretch
it to take 450 passengers." But Andreas Sperl, Airbus chief financial
officer, said the group conservatively expected to sell 750 A380s and had
already secured 129 firm orders, with 51 options. Airbus, which expects to
deliver around 310 planes this year against Boeing's 285 and is in line for
more orders from Virgin and Abu Dhabi, expects the A380 to win half of a
market worth $339bn over 20 years, Mr Speri said. Philippe Camus and Rainec
Hertrich, co-chief executives of EADS, which owns 80% of Airbus, ridiculed
Boeing's attacks, saying there was room for both the A380 and the US group's
smaller new plane, the 7E7 Dreamliner. Mr Mulally accused the rival European
group of using state aid to gain unfair advantage. "Airbus is not a
fledgling, developing business that needs subsidies any more. It should
compete on commercial terms and clearly it doesn't." Boeing is pressing the
Bush administration to demand the scrapping of a 1992 EU-US agreement
setting a 33% ceiling on subsidies which, it says, clearly demands the
gradual withdrawal of such state aids. Mr Mulally accused Airbus of choosing
not to comply by securing billions of dollars in (repayable) launch aid from
national governments for the A380. The Europeans, in turn, say they do
comply and Boeing is subsidised to the tune of several billion dollars at
federal and state government level. Ralph Crosby, a former Northrop Grumman
executive now heading EADS's North American business, said: "This big deal
about massive subsidies amounts to 100,000 bucks a plane (costing $120m
upwards)." He is spearheading a drive to break into Boeing's dominance of
the American air-to-air refuelling market by offering to build large parts
of A330s in the US, creating thousands of jobs. EADS has recruited a former
USAF general, Charles Coolidge, and Pentagon procurement chief, Dave Oliver,
to help win orders for its air tankers. Boeing's initial contract for 100
tankers has been frozen by the Pentagon.
nectoco
Roland
nectoco
build plane in U.S. if it won stalled deal
Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer du 16.07.2004
Fifty years ago yesterday, a new Boeing airplane with four jet engines under
its wings lifted off on its maiden flight from the Renton Airport, not far
from the plant where it was built. The Dash 80 would help move commercial
aviation into the jet age. But even before it gave birth to The Boeing Co.'s
707, the program's first offspring, known as the KC-135, launched the
company into a lucrative military market that it has dominated for a
halfcentury -- air refueling tankers. But that dominance could be
threatened. The new kid on the block that hopes to eat some of Boeing s
tanker lunch has the alphabet-soup name of EADS, short for European
Aeronautic Defense & Space Co. It also has an 80 percent stake in Airbus,
Boeing's rival in the commercial jet business. EADS, as a foreign
competitor, is at a political disadvantage for winning congressional
approval in big military contracts. Congress has a way of granting
preference to projects from American companies. But EADS has an answer for
that. The company says now it may be ready to build its Airbus A330-200
tanker in this country should it be allowed to compete to supply the U.S.
Air Force a next-generation tanker. That tanker project was to have been
Boeing's baby. Boeing had a $23 billion deal to build the tankers all but
locked up - the Air Force would buy and lease a hundred 767 tankers - until
it was derailed by an ethics scandal within the company that continues to
unfold. The European company is hoping that poses an opportunity. In an
interview before the Farnborough Air Show that begins Monday outside London,
Ralph Crosby, chief executive of EADS North America, underscored that as of
now there is no tanker competition. "If someone creates that (competition),
we look forward to it," said Crosby, who spent more than 20 years in the
U.S. aerospace business, most recently as president of integrated defense
systems for Northrop Grumman, before he was recruited in September 2002 by
EADS to run its North America operations and expand the business in this
country. "I can't find anyone who argues against the benefit of
competition." Earlier this year, Crosby and U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, the
Washington state Democrat and supporter of the Boeing tanker deal, exchanged
testy letters after Murray wrote to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
complaining Airbus had mounted a campaign of "distortion and half truths,"
in trying to kill the tanker lease deal. She also took to the Senate floor
to make the same charges, and more. "That is absolutely inaccurate," Crosby
said in the interview. "There has been no lobbying. Boeing's problems and
issues are Boeing's problems and issues." Rumsfeld is expected to decide
late this year or early 2005 whether to reopen the tanker deal to a
competition. If EADS were allowed to bid, and it bested Boeing, then the
company would "insource" its tanker work in this country, Crosby said. "If
you ended up with two substantially American offerings," he said, "then I
think you get down to the issue of what's the best product for the best
price." Boeing's 767 tankers would be built at its plant in Everett. Crosby
would not say for certain that EADS would build a tanker plant in the United
States, much less where. The A330-200 commercial jets are assembled in
Toulouse, France, home of Airbus. "I prefer to have our actions speak rather
than our predictions." As if to acknowledge the obvious, however, Crosby
then added: "We think we know what the requirements are to be competitive
here in the United States and we are fully prepared to meet them." Richard
Aboulafia, aviation analyst with the Teal Group, a consulting firm near
Washington, D.C., said EADS is caught in a Catch-22. "They won't put a large
manufacturing facility here without a firm order, and they won't get a firm
order without a large manufacturing facility here," he said. But would the
Air Force ever buy Airbus planes from EADS, even if they were produced at a
U.S. plant? "I do not think for a moment there will be Airbus tankers in the
Air Force fleet," Boeing Chief Executive Harry Stonecipher said earlier this
year. John Douglass, president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries
Association, a U.S. trade group, said Airbus has never built a single plane
for the United States Air Force. "So why would the Air Force want to do
that?" he said. Would the Air Force want to be in business with them
(Airbus ) and be dependent on spares and run the risk of some future Iraq
and the French saying they won't give us any spare parts?" France refused to
back the U.S.-led war against Iraq. Douglass did acknowledge that EADS, if
it partnered with a U.S. company on a tanker deal, or built a tanker
assembly plant here, would have a much better chance to sell to the Air
Force. But the tankers would have to be built in America, he said, with
American engines, American avionics, American this, American that... ."
Crosby said EADS understands the need to partner with U.S. companies on any
Air Force tanker deal: "No doubt there would have to be a substantial U.S.
tanker industrial team in support of this action." Still, it might be an
impossible sell in Congress, despite some lawmakers' strong opposition to
the Boeing lease deal. Congressman Norm Dicks, the Washington state Democrat
who has long been one of Boeing's strongest supporters, serves on the House
defense subcommittee. "I can tell you that our committee would block that,"
Dicks said when asked what would happen if the Air Forced opted for tankers
from Airbus. "The Congress is not going to allow them - and thank God - to
buy anything but Boeing. So they (EADS) can say what they want to say." In
only eight years, from 1957 to 1965, Boeing delivered the original Air Force
fleet of more than 700 KC-135 tankers. The Air Force had placed the first
tanker order with Boeing only a month after that historic first flight of
the Dash 80, on July 15, 1954. The U.S. Air Force needed a jet-powered
tanker that could keep up with Boeing's new B-52 bomber and Boeing developed
the Dash 80 with its eyes on the tanker prize. But those KC-135 tankers are
old, and in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks Boeing and its
supporters in Congress proposed the Air Force lease 100 767s tankers - a
lucrative-for- Boeing prelude to eventually replacing the entire fleet of
KC-135 Air Force tankers. The Air Force finally reached a tentative
agreement with Boeing last year, and Congress approved, though only after
the deal was amended to call for leasing 20 tankers and buying 80. Then came
Boeing's ethics surprise. In November, Boeing fired Chief Financial Officer
Mike Sears. A week later Chairman and CEO Phil Condit resigned and
Stonecipher came out of retirement to lead the company. Also fired with
Sears was Darlene Druyun, who had been in charge of the Air Force tanker
talks with Boeing at the same time that Sears was talking with her about a
job at Boeing - a violation of federal law. She subsequently quit her Air
Force acquisitions job and went to work for Boeing as a top executive.
Druyun has pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge and is cooperating
with federal investigators. Sears has not been charged. But Boeing s tanker
deal is grounded for now. Rumsfeld could decide to delay any tanker deal for
several years in favor of extending the life of existing KC-135s. Or Boeing
could be asked to rework its previous 767 offering with no competition. Or
the tanker deal could be thrown out and Boeing would have to square off
against EADS - and anyone else - in what this time would be a much more
lively competition. Previously, the Air Force requested information about a
KC-135 replacement from EADS and it responded by proposing the KC-330, a
tanker derivative of the A330-200. But the Air Force rejected the EADS
offer, essentially saying the company did not have tanker experience. Since
then, EADS has won a hard-fought tanker competition in Australia, which
rejected Boeing s 767 in favor of the Airbus A330-200. EADS also will
convert six Airbus A31 Os into tankers for the German and Canadian armed
forces. That tanker platform is already in flight testing - though delivery
of the first plane to Germany has slipped by several months. And in March,
an EADS-led tanker team beat a team led by Boeing to supply A330 tankers to
Britain's military. But that is not yet a firm deal. Last month, in an
interview with the Financial Times of London, U.S. Air Force Secretary James
Roche said he favors giving European contractors more access to Pentagon
contracts to stimulate competition. He said he hoped EADS would compete for
the Air Force tankers if competition were reopened. I dont care if the
planes are made by martians, Roche told the London paper. Airbus was not
prepared before. Now they are." Boeing and its tanker supporters scoff at
the notion that a newcomer to the tanker business has the necessary
experience, especially in developing boom technology essential to refueling
other planes in flight. We have many, many, many years and millions of
flight hours designing, building, fielding and operating tanker aircraft,"
said George Muellner, Boeing's senior vice president for Air Force systems.
We are on our third generation of boom technology, he said. We will be
fielding our second generation of remote operator technology. We have done
the risk mitigation and learned all the valuable lessons over the years. We
have a mature approach and a mature product line." EADS is spending millions
to develop an advanced, digitally flight controlled boom, with an operator
platform adjacent to the cockpit. Flight tests of the boom are scheduled for
2005, Crosby said. For now, EADS and Boeing wait for the Rumsfeld decision.
Waiting for us means we are moving ahead on the contract for the
Australians, which is a configuration that is very close to the one that
might be of interest to the U.S. Air Force," Crosby said. "We are
positioning ourselves to be responsive to whatever the U.S. government
requirements are. In the end, it boils down to what we have said every time
we are asked, starting two years ago - when there is a competitive
opportunity, we will compete."
nectoco
Getting More Defense Work In World's Biggest Market Will Face Political
Hurdles By DANIEL MICHAELS PARIS-European Aeronautic Defense & Space Co.,
the parent of Airbus, wants to be known as more than that. EADS wants to
crack the U.S. defense market in a big way-but faces high political hurdles.
In addition to holding- 80% of Airbus, the French, German and Spanish
aerospace conglomerate owns one of the world's largest helicopter makers,
Eurocopter. Its space division is a leading producer of satellites and is
the main builder of Europe's Ariane rockets. Most significant, EADS is
entering the top rank of global defense giants. EADS recently landed big
military contracts in France, Britain and as far afield as Australia.
Several long-gestating pan-European projects it is leading finally are
coming to life, including the Eurofighter, the A400M military-transport
plane and the Tiger attack helicopter. Thanks to these, its defense revenue
will grow to ?10 billion next year from ?6 billion in 2002, executives
predict. But EADS remains a small player in the world's largest defense
market, the U.S. Its success in the U.S. will determine how big a defense
player EADS ultimately can become, industry officials say. While Britain's
BAE Systems PLC has built up a substantial base of work for the U.S.
Department of Defense, EADS hardly registers on the Pentagon's radar screen.
EADS's efforts to win more defense work in the U.S. have sparked anger from
some U.S. politicians, who are upset by Airbus's success in winning market
share in the passenger-jet market from U.S. aerospace icon Boeing Co. Sen.
Patty Murray from the state of Washington, where Boeing builds planes,
recently said in a speech to the Senate: "EADS and Airbus have launched a
deceptive PR and lobbying campaign to convince the U.S. government that it
is essentially an American company." EADS Co-Chief Executive Rainer Hertrich
says he "knew from the beginning that entering the defense market is not
easy in any country, and especially in the U.S. " He says building EADS's
U.S. presence is "a long-term target." EADS already has made significant
inroads to the U.S. homeland-security market with Eurocopter helicopters and
with military-transport planes bought by the U.S. Coast Guard. EADS is
building small factories in Alabama and Mississippi to assemble and support
those aircraft-a sign, Mr. Hertrich says, of its commitment to investing in
the U.S. When EADS was created in 1999, many industry observers saw it as
simply a vehicle to convert Airbus from a loose industrial consortium into a
true corporation; the companies consolidated into EADS together owned 80% of
the plane maker. (BAE Systems owns the other 20%.) Most of EADS's other
operations seemed an afterthought. Some analysts said they should be spun
off and EADS simply disappear once Airbus became a real company in July
2000. The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S. overnight boosted
the significance of EADS's non-Airbus operations, as the commercial-airliner
business suffered. Airbus managed to limit the damage and avoid wrenching
cutbacks, but prospects for jetliner sales suddenly looked less rosy. So
EADS pushed hard to rationalize and enhance its disparate defense, space and
other divisions. Co-Chief Executive Philippe Camus says the "first part" of
EADS's life was devoted to its integration and organization; "Now it's
done," he says. "EADS is entering the second stage of its life." EADS's
structure looks increasingly like that of rival Boeing. Once mainly an
airplane maker, Boeing in recent years has greatly expanded defense and
space operations. EADS is doing the same. It aims to boost defense to about
30% of revenue that EADS targets at roughly ?40 billion in three or four
years from 22% of its ?30.1 billion revenue last year. Mr. Hertrich says
this will be possible because militaries are shifting away from emphasizing
traditional arms like tanks and battleships, and toward hightech systems
like precision-guided weapons that require connecting soldiers to data
networks. "Our aerospace business is benefiting from the defense
transformation," Mr. Hertrich says. Just as Boeing has done, EADS "can bring
synergies of the group," he says. EADS's defense division, for example, is
tapping Airbus jetliners as military "platforms," such as planes used for
midair refueling or airborne surveillance. The space division is working on
defense projects, including military-communications satellites,
missile-defense networks and guidance systems. That's a big boost for the
space operation, which, like most space companies, suffered badly since the
telecommunications boom of the 1990s ended. EADS has cut 30% of the
division's staff and radically reorganized the unprofitable division, which
it expects to break even this year. Mr. Hertrich concedes that "these days,
space is not an attractive business," but he considers the division "a
strategic asset" that gives EADS "a competitive advantage, particularly for
the military business." EADS's broad product range means "we feel we have
something to offer," Mr. Hertrich says. Indeed, several top Pentagon
officials have said they would like EADS to compete for big contracts. Ralph
Crosby, a former executive at U.S. defense giant Northrop Grumman Corp. and
now head of EADS's North American operation, is working to boost EADS's
visibility and industrial presence. "Our U.S. tootprint is critical for our
viability in the government-procurement market," he says.
nectoco
The European Commission could next week relaunch legal action against
European Union member states in an attempt to end their bilateral
transatlantic aviation deals with the US. Loyola de Palacio, EU transport
commissioner, wants to put pressure on member states to scrap the deals, to
open the way for an interim "open skies" agreement between Europe and the
US. But her surprise plan to start the process of taking action in the
European Court of Justice could be controversial with her colleagues. She
needs the support of the rest of the European Commission at a meeting on
Tuesday to take the first step towards confronting member states in the
court. She wants to start proceedings against 12 member states and demand
information from eight others. Only five EU members do not have bilateral
agreements with the US. The initiative will surprise some national capitals,
which had assumed that the aviation negotiations would be put on hold until
next year, after a new US administration is formed and after a new
Commission is formed. Ms de Palado, whose term expires on October 31, may be
seen by some colleagues to be in a rush and trying to tie the hands of the
new Brussels executive. However her aides say the European Court criticised
member states over their bilateral deals in November 2002, and the
Commission agreed then that it would start legal action. The idea of trying
to force member states to denounce their treaties was fiercely attacked by
the UK government last night. A UK transport spokesman said: "We are not
going to give up our bilateral agreements before there is something proper
to replace them . . . We are seeking a truly liberalised agreement." Even
the US, which has expressed dismay at the rejection by member states of the
recent deal negotiated with the Commission, has strongly warned against
denunciation of the existing treaties. John Byerly, deputy assistant
secretary of state for transportation affairs, said this week: "Denunciation
would disrupt and might even prevent the resumption of our negotiations."
The mandate given by member states to the European Commission last year was
to negotiate a comprehensive deal to liberalise air services and dismantle
the network of regulations that have severely hampered the consolidation of
the global airline industry.
nectoco
Source: International Herald Tribune du 19.07.2004
Nearly three years after hijacked commercial jets were used to attack New
York and Washington, security specialists warn that the aviation industry
and especially the authorities that oversee it are not sufficiently prepared
to prevent another attack or to respond adequately should one occur. Efforts
to enhance security remain ineffective, they say, because attention is
directed at intelligence gathering and organizing military responses to
hijackings, while being diverted from more fruitful pursuits, in their
opinion, like wider and better use of screening on the ground and armed
personnel in the air. What is being done in these areas is often wasted
because it is implemented by cumbersome government bureaucracies with little
experience in security matters. About $12 billion is estimated to have been
spent on im proving air security in the United States alone smce Sept U,
2001, on a variety of measures, including improvements to screening;
reinforcement of cockpit doors and other aircraft features, and the training
and placement of sky marshals on planes. Estimates of expenditure elsewhere
are hard to come by, but the International Air Transport Association, a body
representing nearly all carriers that fly international routes, says that
airlines have spent $5 billion a year since the attacks on security for
their international operations. But the sheer scale of the task of making
flying safe - there are tens of thousands of commercial flights daily
worldwide - combined with the determination and skill that terrorist
organizations have shown in targeting civilian jets virtually guarantees
that the effort will be hit and miss. "Looking at the system in total, an
average citizen would believe airline security is much safer than it was on
the morning of 9/U, maybe even safe enough," said David Mackett, president
of the Airline Pilots Security Alliance. "Ifs not good enough to be close.
For even if we successfully prevent attacks on three out of five airplanes
targeted on a single morning, the two remaining planes have the destructive
power to kill thousands of people and do billions of dollars in damage."
About $12 billion has been spent on Improving security in the U.S. alone,
Weaknesses in screening procedures have been revealed on many occasions
since the attacks, said Mackett, a commercial pilot for more than 20 years.
Notorious examples include that of the so-called shoe bomber, Richard Reid,
a Briton who was stopped by passengers on a trans-Atlantic flight from
setting off an explosive device hidden in his shoe, and an American who
tried to save airfare by packing himself in a box and mailing himself across
the country. "The most important contribution the governments and airline
managements could make to airline security is to be honest enough to admit
security screening has virtually no chance of preventing a motivated
terrorist team from getting weapons onto airliners," Mackett said. That is
at least partly because officials are using the wrong equipment and not
screening all the things they should be, said Charles Slepian, chief
executive of the Foreseeable Risk Analysis Center, which is a consultancy
that provides security assessments to aviation and other industries. Bags
are examined with devices that are cousins of magnetic resonance imaging
machines; they produce crude pictures of contents based on density, he
explained. A more effective approach would be to conduct chemical analyses
of luggage, he said, but the appropriate technology is not used due to the
cost of shifting from one system to the other. The existing equipment gives
so many false positive readings as it flags innocuous objects that
supervisors often tell operators to switch it off, Slepian said. Slepian
also expressed concern about a lack of screening of airport personnel "An
airliner should not be accessible to anyone who has not been physically
screened," he said, but most employees are subjected to background security
checks and nothing further. Industry representatives point to significant
strides that have been made since 9/11, however, especially in the United
States, where there had been a marked absence of the maze of metal detectors
and inquisitive security staff that travelers in Europe have been used to
for many years. "If you look at the U.S. domestic market, a lot has
changed," said Anthony Concil, a spokesman for IATA in Geneva. "Airports
built for domestic security have been transformed into
international-security-level airports." One reason it is such a chore to get
through an American airport, he noted, is that "processes and equipment have
been put into a space it was never designed to accommodate." Articulating a
position widely held by the airline industry, Concil said that safeguarding
the skies is best accomplished far from airports and long before check-in
and takeoff. "If you're looking to beef up security to prevent another 9/U,
the real issue is intelligence and sharing of information," he said. "That's
where the most important changes in security are taking place." Such talk
makes Billie Vincent, chief executive of Aerospace Services International, a
Virginia consultancy, bristle. Vincent, who served as head of security in
the 1980s for the Federal Aviation Administration, was willing to give
authorities and airlines some credit for their efforts to enhance screening
procedures, but he had plenty of criticism to mete out elsewhere, including
the panel set up by the U.S. Congress to investigate the 2001 attacks. The
9/U Commission, as it is commonly known, cited failings in intelligence that
might have prevented the hijackings, as well as confusion and
miscommunication within and between civilian and military authorities that
prevented fighter jets from being sent aloft in time to shoot down the
hijacked planes if ordered to do so. "9/U was not an intelligence failure,"
Vincent said. He argued that there was sufficient evidence that an attack
was being planned but that authorities were afraid "to tell the airlines and
get it right." "The commission has failed to address that," he said. Instead
it is "focusing on ludicrous things like the interface between the military
and the FAA." "They should get back into what hasn't been done and should be
done," Vincent said, including more effective use of sky marshals. There are
too few marshals spread across too many flights to serve as an adequate
deterrent to terrorists, he said. And the ones that are up there are too
easy to spot "They're dressed straight out of "Men in Black,'"he said. To
compensate for the dearth of marshals, he advocated allowing passengers
trained in the use of firearms, such as off-duty police officers, to carry
them on flights. Mackett agreed. "Arm and train the pilots urgently, quickly
and in very large numbers," he advised. "It is the most cost-effective,
safest way to protect airliners from the weapons we know will get on board."
Slepian questioned such thinking: "If indeed cockpit doors are secure, as
they ought to be, I don't see a tremendous need to arm pilots." One view
shared by all three consultants is that the Transportation Security
Administration, which supervises aviation security in the United States,
does more harm than good. Mackett called the TSA "an overly bureaucratic,
uncreative, unresponsive agency that is actually impeding real progress on
airline security." Slepian described it as "an unprofessional organization
that puts public relations before security." The agency did not respond to
repeated requests for comment One ofMackett's solutions to chronic
deficiencies is to disband the TSA and allow security duties to be handled
by "those from the front line who work in the system every day, such as the
FBI and other law-enforcement bodies. "The problem, of course, is that we've
had nearly three years to do this and we've made very little progress
because we're afraid to accept the gravity of the threat we face head on,"
he said. "We don't have a weak security system, we have a Swiss cheese
system full of holes you could drive a truck through. And the terrorist
clock is ticking."
nectoco
Airbus parent company EADS expects final signing of a 13-billion-pound ($24
billion) British military refuelling plane contract to be delayed until late
2005, EADS co-chief executive Philippe Camus told reporters. The UK chose
EADS as part of a consortium over a Boeing Co.-led bid in a tentative
agreement in January, but working out the details has since proved a
challenge. "It will take time... It's more an issue for 2005, not 2004, the
end of 2005, not before," Camus said on Saturday in comments embargoed for
Sunday. Britain's top defence procurement official has threatened to scrap
the plan unless EADS and partners can ensure their AirTanker consortium will
deliver attractive terms. Britain's boldest so-called "private financing
initiative" (PFI) yet, the deal would outsource Royal Air Force (RAF)
tanking services to the consortium, which would own and maintain a fleet of
Airbus A330 planes fitted to double as tankers for lease to the RAF. Camus
said he believed the UK Ministry of Defence and AirTanker would make it
work. "I am confident we will reach an agreement on this complex PFI... We
do think the structure can work," he said. AirTanker includes EADS, France's
Thales, aircraft engine maker Rolls-Royce and British engineering firm
Cobham. Their challenge is to ensure value to shareholders from profits
made, despite shouldering all the costs of owning and maintaining the A330s.
"All the difficulty in PFI is the allocation of risk," Camus said. That will
hinge in part on being able to lease the planes to other parties when the
RAF is not using them, an option which could involve airlines or other
maJ-at;ar5-es. The UK Ministry of Defence is expected to outline spending
priorities on Wednesday and may indicate its view of its talks with
AirTanker then. The Farnborough Air Show also opens near London on Monday.
Since the event was last held in 2002, EADS has made strides in military
aircraft, securing a contract to build the A400M military transporter for
Europe, building its first tanker, winning a tanker order from Australia as
well as the tentative UK deal. Collaborative programmes have also advanced,
with the first deliveries of the Eurorlghter combat jet and NH90 military
helicopter also set to begin deliveries
nectoco
Source: Daily Telegraph du 19.07.2004
BOEING and Airbus upped the ante in the row over state aid this weekend as
both aeroplane makers accused the other of receiving unfair subsidies.
Boeing led the attack with claims that Airbus was deliberately flaunting a
1992 bilateral agreement between the US and European Union to gradually
reduce the levels of state aid. In its defence. Airbus claimed that Hoeing
receives indirect subsidies through its US defence projects and from
Japanese airframe part manufacturers. Airbus accepts that it has funded up
to 33pc of the 3111 billion development cost of its new A380 superjumbo with
government loans but claims the subsidies level the playing field. At a
briefing ahead of this week's Faniborough air show yesterday, Alan Mulally,
president and chief executive of Boeing commercial airplanes, rejected
Airbus' accusations. "We have absolutely followed the intent of the
bilateral agreement. Clearly Airbus is not moving to honour it, "he said. He
called on the US government and the EU to teaddress the agreement, adding:
"We are saying it needs to be talked about. You distort the market when you
subsidise, and Airbus is not a fledgling business any more. It has roughly
50pc of the market." The war of words is likely to escalate as both
companies are pinning their hopes on next generation aircraft. Airbus' A380
will carry 550 to 800 passengers compared with the 400 to 500 a standard
Boeing 747 can take. Boeing is developing the long-range, fuel-efficient 7E7
Dreamliner with capacity for 200 to 300 passengers, pitched as a mid-market
option to fly passengers direct to their city of choice. Its development
costs are estimated at $7billion. According to Mr Mulally, the 7E7 has
generated more early interest than any previous Boeing plane. It has about
200 outline orders and is expected to enter service in 2008. Airbus's much
larger plane has about 130 firm orders and is due out in 2006. Both
companies claim to have seen the start of a revival in air travel. Demand
particularly strong in Asia, where the freight market is growing at 9pc
ayear.
nectoco
Le Salon de Famborough (sud de Londres) ouvre aujourd'hui ses portes sous de
bons auspices pour l'industrie aéronautique. Malgré la persistance de
menaces récurrentes - attaques terroristes, flambée des cours du baril et
résurgence de l'épidémie du Sras -, le trafic aérien mondial a en effet
progressé de 19,4 % de janvier à mai selon l'IatEi. Il retrouve ainsi son
niveau d'avant le 11 septembre 2001. Farnborough 2004 s'annonce donc sous le
signe de la confiance. Cette édition, marquée par le retour en nombre des
exposants américains, devrait ainsi SB concrétiser par des prises de
commandes d'aiVlons commerciaux. A ce titre, Boeing passe à l'offensive. De
nouveau, le constructeur américain accuse Airbus (filiale d'EADS et de BAE
Systems), son rival européen, de percevoir des subventions illicites et
menace de prendre dès cette année des mesures concrètes. Mais c'est sur le
front commercial que Boeing est le plus attendu. Devancé par Airbus dans les
ventes d'appareils au premier semestre 2004 (151 avions livrés contre 161
pour Airbus), l'avionneur .américain entend renverser la donne à Farnbo"
rough grâce a son futur avion commercial, le 7E7 Dreamliiier, dont la
fabrication sera lancée en 2006. Misant sur son succès à venir, Boeing
prévoit déjà d'embaucher ou de réembaucher jusqu'à 3 000 personnes aux
Etats-Unis d'ici à la fin de l'année.. « 24 compagnies ont déjà accepté les
propositions de Boeing en vue d'acquérir 200 appareils 7E7 ». s'est
récemment félicité Randy Baseler, vice-président marketing de l'avionneur.
Parmi ces compagnies, Boeing compte Ail Nippon Airlines qui a, passé
commande de 50 7H7 at Air New Zea,land de 2 appareils. Dans son décompte,
Randy Baseler inclut également l'intérêt ma.nifestB la, semaine dernière par
deux compagnies européennes - l'itailerma Blue Panorama et l'anglaise First
Choice Airways - pour l'achat da 10 exemplaires de 7E7. Autre client
d'importance pour Boeing ; la compagnie asiatique Singapore Airlines -
également compagnie de lancement du futur super-jumbo d'Airbus, l'A 380 -
n'a pas caché son Intérêt à l'égard du 7E7. Enfin, une compagnie chinoise
pourrait également se laisser tenter, Une commande chinoise, si allé venait
à se confirmer, pourrait constituer un revers pour Airbus qui n'a toujours
pas engrangé la moindre commande de son A 380 en Chine. Mais cette la.cune
devrait être comblée avant la fin de l'année, à l'occasion du déplacement en
Chine, en octobre prochain, de Jacques Chirac. Certains se demandent en
effet comment la Chine, organisatrice des Jeux olympiques de 2008, pourrait
se passer du super-jumbo européen de 550 à, 850 sièges... En attendant,
l'avionneur européen discute avec China Eastern la vente de 10 A 330 en
rempla.cement de sa, Hotte vieillissante d'A 300. Face aux annonces des deux
mastodontes de l'aéronautique, l'outsider Bombardier pourrait créer la
surprise dès aujourd'hui en lançant son propre avion commercial de 120 à 125
pla.ces. Cette décision attendue marqua un tournant stratégique pour le
groupe canadien en difficulté qui n'a jusqu'à présent jamais construit de
jets régionaux de plus de 100 sièges. Cet appareil d'une taille supérieure
au dernier-né d'Embraer viendra directement concurrencer Boeing et Airbus.
En matière de défense, le gouvernement britannique .fiourtait profiter de
l'événement pour passer commandé de drones (avions sans pilote) pour près de
800 millions de llvrea (1,2 milliard d'eurosl au groupe français
d'électronique Thaïes. De même, EADS et ses partenaires du consortium Air
Tanker espèrent conclure avec le ministère britannique de la Défense un
contrat de 13 milliards de livres (19,7 milliards d'euros) pour la
fourniture d'avions ravitailleurs en vol à la RAF. EADS pourrait profiter de
l'occasion pour alerter le gouvernement britannique contre tont nouveau
retard dans la, production des chasseursbombardiers Euroflghter Typhoon, 11
est à noter, que l'aviation d'affaires et le spatial bénéficieront cette
année d'un pavillon dédié. La société européenne Arianespace sera d'ailleurs
présente pour la première fois à Farnborough. A l'inverse de la dernière
édition qui s'est déroulée dix mois après les attaques terroristes,
Farnborough 2004 pourrait bien incarner le retour en grâce de l'industrie
aéronautique après plusieurs années d'une crise sans précédent. Mais sans
doute pas jusqu'à concurrencer l'édition 2000, un millésime record avec 52
milliards de dollars de commandes et d'intentions d'achat
nectoco
Boeing Co is seeing increased demand for its 747 jumbo jet and building a
larger version remains a possibility, Alan Mulally, chief executive of
Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said on Sunday. "We're actually feeling upward
pressure to build more 747s," he said, adding that some carriers were
interested in having Boeing build a stretched version of the 747 which would
seat more passengers and offer greater range. "There are some airlines that
want us to stretch it (adding more seats) and increase the gross weight and
the range." Mulally, speaking to reporters on the eve of the Farnborough air
show near London, said Boeing continued to see only limited interest in the
market for a plane as large as rival Airbus's 555-seat A380, due for
delivery in 2006. However he said that increasing demand in the freight
market was part of the reason some carriers have expressed an interest in a
slightly larger 747. "We're seeing the most interest in Asia," Mulally said.
Boeing's next all-new plane is the 7E7 Dreamliner due in 2008. The U.S.
planemaker has received no firm orders for the plane, though it has reached
tentative deals for 62 of the mid-sized commercial jets. "It's as good as a
firm contract to us," Mulally said of the likelihood that such tentative
deals will translate into firm orders.
nectoco
Source: Le nouvel economiste du 17.07.2004
Six mois. n aura fallu à peine six mois pour que Boeing sorte de la profonde
dépression dans laquelle l'avait plongé l'affaire des avions ravitailleurs
pour le Pentagone. Accusé, fin 2003, d'espionnage à l'encontre d'Airbus, le
géant américain avait dû se séparer de deux de ses dirigeants, avant d'être
contraint de démissionner son emblématique PDG, Phil Condit, pour calmer la
colère des galonnés américains et, surtout, des membres du Congrès. Six mois
plus tard, l'euphorie regagne les équipes du constructeur américain, dirigé
maintenant par Harry Stonecipher. La cause : les succès commerciaux
remportés par le 7E7, le tout nouveau moyen-courrier que Boeing compte faire
voler à partir de 2008. Après la mari commande du Japonais ANA (50
appareils), qui a permis à Boeing de lancer la production du 7E7,
l'Américain. a engrangé, le 7 juillet, deux commandes de petites compagnies
européennes portant sur un total de 10 avions. Après des années d'apatMe
dans l'aéronautique civile, Boeing compte d'ailleurs foire du 7E7 le symbole
de sa renaissance, et reconquérir les parts de marché abtandonnées à Airbus.
« Si le pari réussit, cetavion marqueleréveQ de Boeing daiis l'aviation
commerciale», juge ainsi Stéphane Albemhe, associé au cabinet parisien de
Roland Berger et spécialiste de l'aéronautique. Objectif : faire voler, à
partir de 2008, un avion moyen-courrier (concurrent de l'AirbusA330)
permettant une économie d'exploitation de 20 % par siège. Jusque-là rien de
très nouveau : c'est le minimum demandé par les compagnies aériennes pour
accepter d'intégrer dans leur flotte un nouvel appareil. Mais à cette
occasion, Boeing a révolutionné ses méthodes de travail. Fini le 100 % (ou
presque) conçu et réalisé en interne ou par quelques sous-traitants
historiques américains, le constructeur a ouvert les portes à tous les
industriels aéronautiques capables de lui faire gagner son pan. Résultat: le
7E7 tient de l'Arche de Noé. 1.es Américains ont largement partagé le
travail avec leurs concurrents asiatiques et européens. Un tiers de
l'appareil sera ainsi produit par des industriels japonais. Et « un
pourcentage qui ne sera pas epsilonesque, mais qui sera quelque chose
d'important » pour les industriels français, selon Yves Galland,
l'ex-ministre délégué au Commerce extérieur (1995-1997) devenu le
représentant en France de Boeing depuis le printemps 2003. L'avionneur vient
ainsi d'annoncer deux nouveaux gros contrats en faveur des industriels
tricolores. Après Messier Dowty (groupe Snecma) pour le train d'atterrissage
et Dassault Systèmes pour les logiciels de CAO,Thales vient d'être choisi
pour le système électrique et Labinal pour le cäblage de l'appareil (100
kilomètres de fils). « Boeing va créer en France des milliers d'emplois »,
se félicite Yves Galland, qui assure qu'aucun contrat ne comprend des
obligations de produire aux Etats-Unis. Même si Labinal, qui a racheté l'an
dernier une usine américaine de câblage à... Boeing, pourrait y étre
fortement incité. Coté industriels français, on vole sur des petits nuages.
«Boeing veut faire un bon avion avec le 7E7. Comme les équipementiers
français sont parmi les meilleurs du monde, il était normal qu'ils soient
choisis », se réjouit Pierre Gorgeje responsable équipementiers PME au Gifas
(le syndicat des industriels du secteur). D'autres équipementiers français
pourraient monter à bord du 7E7, comme le Totdousain Latécoére, en
compétition notamment pour un contrat d'aérostructure. Dans ce tableau,
seule note discordante ; Airbus. L'avionneur européen s'inquiète de plus en
plus ouvertement des conséquences de ce rapprochement franco-américain.
«Airbus va rencontrer des difficultés pour passer des commandes urgentes
auprès des soustraitants qui commencent à travailler pour Boeing », affirme
un industriel hexagonal. Même inquiétude parmi les responsables de
l'intelligence économique en France qui ont des doutes sur les
arrière-pensées américaines. « II est inquiétant de voir que de nombreux
sous-traitants toulousains d'Airbus sont démarchés soit pour travailler pour
Binrgg, natgrur ouvrir leur eapital ö drs fonds d'investissement dirigés par
des proches du Pentagone », expliquait, au Nouvel Economiste, l'un d'entre
eux, voilà quelques semaines. «La stratégie de Boeing est habile: ce projet,
commed'autres (le JSF par exemple), va saturer les capacités
d'autofinancement des industriels européens, qui auront plus de mal à
participer au financement d'autres projets, explique Stéphane Albemhe. De
plus, travailler avec les équipementiers crée un contexte favorabkà la vente
d'avions Boeing à des compagnies aériennes de même nationalité, notamment au
Japon. »Maisles industriels européens sont d'autant plus contents de pouvoir
travailler avec l'Américain, que leurs relations avec Airbus se sont
profondément dégradées ces dernières années : Airbus ayant obligé ses
sous-traitants à accroîtije leur prise de risque financier s'ils voulaient
travailler sur le A 380 ou sur le A 400M. A l'inverse, l'image fortement
dégradée de Boeing va sortir renforcée de l'opération. Et avec elle, ses
v*ztes. ; Thierry Gadautt Subventions. Boeing plaide pour la transparence
« Si Boeing remet en cause l'accord de 1992 '.entre l'Europe et les
Etats-Unis, c' est parce qu' il n'offre aucune garantie de tràpsparence. »
Telles seraient, selon Yves (Ïalland, le patron de Boeing France, les
raisons qui pousseraient l'Américain à réclamer la remise à plat de l'accord
encadrant les aides publiques à l'aéronautiàue civile. Pourtant, la
transparence s'arrête vite chez Boeing. Quel est le coût du projet jij,
estimé à 8 milliards de dollars par les experts? « Boeing ne communique pas
de chiffre de recherchedéviettoppement par projet pour ne pas donner
d'informations à la concurrence», répond l'ex-ministre. Quel est le, montant
des subventions directes (du gouvernement américain) ou indirectes (versées
par d'autres gouvernements aux industriels travaillant sur le yE/)? Toujours
pas de réponse chiffrée, Yves Galland se contentant d'un « conforme avec
{'accord de 92». Cette'transparence bien tempérée suscite de l'inquiétude en
France sur le but de la ;manoeuvre. Un récent rapport de la Cour des comptes
sur le sujet des avances remboursables versées à Airbus a ainsi alerté les
pouvoirs publics sur le Hou juridique sur lequel repose tout le système.
Mais, ce sont d'abord les conditions de la renégociation de l'accord de 92
qui inquiètent. « A force de repousser depuis quatre ans cette
renégociation, nous allons devoir le faite en 2005, à un moment peu propice
à la défense des intérêts d'Airbus », explique un proche du dossier. Avec
il'élargissement de l'Union européenne à dix nouveaux membres, les pays.
fondateurs d'Airbus (France, Allemagne, Espagne et Grande- Bretagne) ont
perdu la majorité au conseil et vont devoir composer avec des pays qui n'ont
aucun intérêt dans Airbus, voire même ayant des intérêts opposés, favorables
à Boeing et à la position américaine. Autrement dit: le risque est grand de
voir une majorité de pays, européens reprendre les thèses américaines
aboutissant à priver Airbus de subventions publiques, alors que le système
américain, reposant sur un largei financement de l'aéronautique civile! par
des contrats militaires, ne serait pas touché. Boeing vient ainsi d'être
choisi par le Pentagone pour fournir à la marine des 737 reconvertis en
avions multi-rôles (surveillance, lutte antisous-marine).
nectoco
BOMBARDIER will come a step closer to launching its first commercial class
airplane - a move which would pit it against aerospace giants Boeing and
Airbus when it reveals strong customer interest in its proposals for a new
family of jets at the Famborough inrshow on Monday. The Business has learnt
that a feasibility study for the four 100 to 150-seater planes has drawn a
positive response from target customers, including low-cost airlines from
Europe and the United States. Alaunch next year is now increasingly likely.
The Canadian aerospace and engineering company believes the market for 100
to 150- ,egF1fäs,ztt1gya,could be worth .J;25(M}ri<Łl35bn, ?202bn) over 20
years - equivalent to 6,000 planes and 13% of the,K(tal aircraft market of
$2 tnB,(on over the period. DemantBtViU-come from mainline; carrierjs''with
a ..'r'.. ; .----rr-.' it. t . .Y-2ö'z . r. "",--.".". .-. -".'#".'."-,
cjttü at the end oftti$'ilticade a$ well as from low-to'st iävües looking to
connect smaller cities, it says. The new commercial aircraft programme was
conceived four months ago when Bombardier Aerospace was reorganised into
four business units. Programme president Gary Scott, a former Boeing
executive, told The Business: "The market response to the proposal has been
tremendous. "The reality is nobody has; a ja@iily oŁ;amjffl&|,esigned fog
"'s seß"triäeö$füä'market. Boeing and Airbus are concentrating on the other
87% of the market. Now is a good time to launch becailse of the pent-up
demand due to ageing aircraft." The next stage in the programme will be
convincing the Bombardier's stakeholders to accept the business case for the
jets and fund their development, which will cost billions of dollars. The
company may also seek financial assistance from the government to help it
build the planes. This could be tricky as the company announced a
firstquarter loss of $174m compared 'with a profit of$54m for the same
period in 2003. The company blamed the loss on restructuring costs at its
global transportation division. The proposed planes would allow, it to
leapfrog its main competitor, Embraer of Brazil, as w6]l as put it in more
direct competition with Boeing and Airbus. ; Scott claims the Bombardier
planes will offer better performance than similar-sized jets offered by the
two biggest manufacturers, such Boeing's slowselling 717, which he says
suffer from being downsized versions of their larger models. Four models are
currently planned: short and long range versions of both a 110 to 115-seater
plane and 130 to 135-seater plane. They would have a conventional design and
be twin-engined. Scott says fuel and maintenance costs will be 15% lower
than for today's aircraft. The plane would be at least partbuilt in Belfast,
home of Bombardier's Shorts plant. But all Bombardier: plants have been
invited to bid for assembly. The planes could find themselves becoming
Bombardier's great white hope. Analysts are expecting a sharp drop in demand
for the company's flagship 50-seat and 70-seat regional jets, and are not
anticipating robust spending in the future on the Bombardier line of
business jets. Bombardier, which makes rail equipment as well as business
and regional jets, has been forced to restructure since September 2001,
cutting roughly 10,000 aerospace jobs. It has also been forced to slash its
dividend, issue stock and sell its recreational products division. The
company said in May it would lay off 6,000 people at its train division, and
close seven plants to make annual savings of $600m. Bombardier's aerospace
rejig earlier this year was designed to improve customer service and
financial accountability "while reducing bureaucracy and costs.
nectoco
Source: Defense Daily du 16.07.2004
Negotiations are complete among the United States, Italy and Germany on a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the design and development (DD) phase
of the Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) program, an industry
official said. The tri-national discussions were complete yesterday,
according to MEADS International, the international joint venture developing
the 21st century air defense system. MEADS International partners are
Lockheed Martin [LMT], MBDA-ltalia, the European Aeronautic Defence and
Space Co. (EADS) and Germany's Lenkflugkorpersysteme (LFK). The MoU now will
go through a staff process in each nation that takes between four and six
weeks to complete, before government approval and formal signatures, Jim
()ravens, MEADS International president, told reporters at a briefing
Wednesday. Italy and Germany await parliamentary approval before moving
forward with the program. Italian approval was expected this week, while the
German parliament is not expected to meet before mid-September, MoU
discussions were delayed, pushing back the DD phase originally scheduled for
April 1, though industry was ready to move into DD. "We were ready to do
that," Cravens said. Assuming all three nations agree to the MoU, at that
point the United States and Italy would formally sign the MoU and both would
launch a letter contract "that would officially kick off design and
development," he said. German staffers, having approved the MoU as well,
would send it to parliament. Once that body approves the MoU, Germany could
formally sign the MoU and DD contract. ()ravens predicts moving into the DD
program, valued at about $2.88 billion, "certainly before the end of the
year
nectoco
Warning that the American aerospace industry could soon be eclipsed by
Europe, Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) is proposing that Congress mandate a
comprehensive review of defense trade. The U.S. aerospace industry is losing
its leading role while European governments are subsidizing Airbus, Murray
said yesterday, speaking at the Woodrow Wilson Institute in Washington. "We
are following a normal business model, and we're being overtaken by the
Europeans, who are following a social welfare model, where it doesn't matter
if they lose money, it doesn't matter if their products fail." But rather
than endorsing new Buy America legislation, which would further restrict the
Pentagon's ability to buy products from Europe, Murray is calling for a
comprehensive study of the issue. In a July 15 letter to Sen. John Warner
(R-Va.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), and Carl
Levin (D-Mich.), the panel's ranking minority member, Murray urged SASC to
refrain from making changes to the current law. Instead, the committee
should convene an independent group to conduct a study of defense trade. The
objective should be to provide the Congress with a fuller picture of key
issues involved in liberalizing access to [the] U.S. defense market," she
wrote. As part of her approach to the issue, Murray yesterday introduced
legislation in the Senate to establish a Select Committee on Aerospace. The
committee would conduct a full study on the U.S. aerospace industry and
recommend legislation to help the industrial base. Although Murray does not
advocate any new Buy America legislation, she railed against European
governments' support for its own aerospace industry and said the European
Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. (EADS) threatens U.S. jobs. "Airbus and its
parent company EADS represent the European effort to overtake American
aerospace workers," she said. She accused EADS of running a "slick campaign"
and overstating the number of jobs and business it brings to the United
States. "The bottom line is that Airbus and EADS are not helping America's
aerospace industry. They are destroying it." EADS has been focusing on
expanding its U.S. footprint in recent years to help compete in the
commercial and military market. The U.S. military tanker market is
considered one of the largest business opportunities for the European
aerospace giant. If the Air Force's multibillion dollar deal to lease and
buy KC-767 tankers from Boeing [BA] falls through and a competition is held,
European rival Airbus says it will offer its own commercial derivative of
the A330 aircraft to the U.S. military. The Boeing 767 line is located in
Murray's home state and she has long been an outspoken advocate of the
tanker deal. 767s are converted to tanker standard at Boeing's facility in
Wichita, Kan. In March, Murray wrote to EADS to complain about the company's
campaign to sell its tanker to the U.S. Air Force. Ralph Crosby, the CEO of
EADS, North America, replied to the senator, arguing that the company was
not actively campaigning and was not trying to interfere in the procurement
process. In yesterday's speech, Murray again accused Airbus of "working to
undermine both the Air Force and the Boeing Company to kill the tanker
program so that it may ultimately outsource tanker manufacturing to Europe."
The Air Force tanker program is currently on hold pending the outcome of two
Pentagon-backed studies. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld halted the deal earlier
this year after a former Air Force official admitted to holding job
discussions with Boeing while also negotiating contracts with the company.
nectoco
With defence budgets for jet fighters coming under increasing scrutiny in
Europe and the US, aircraft manufacturers are looking for other markets. Ake
Svensson, chief executive of Saab AB, during the company's general assembly
earlier this year, expressed "concern by what has happened in the last year,
as the Swedish defence has reduced its allocations for development orders.
It has meant fewer resources for research and development and that means
fewer new products and systems get developed". The disgruntled heads of
other aircraft manufacturers have in recent weeks also complained about cuts
in their national defence budgets. One market they are looking at is
Singapore, which by early next year plans to place an order for 10 new
fighter jets, each worth between £32m and £42m to replace the Air Force's
ageing fleet of Super Skyhawk fighters. It may follow-up with an additional
order of 10 more jets. Such contracts may not be the largest in aviation
history - yet judging by the marketing efforts some of the leading
contenders have undertaken, they are not entirely negligible. In early July,
two Eurofighter Typhoon jets arrived in Singapore to woo politicians and Air
Force officials after a six-day, 13,000 kilometre odyssey requiring mid-air
refuelling 16 times. It was the first time they were seen outside
Eurp.Be..-.Th.e.. Eurofighte.r built by BAE Systems at its Warton site in
the UK is competing against the Rafale, manufactured by France's Dassault
Aviation, as well as Boeing's F-15T. Saab, too, has been redoubling efforts
to increase its export sales to reduce dependence on the domestic market.
Last year, 60 per cent of Saab's order bookings came from outside Sweden -
and exports' share of the order backlog reached 65 per cent. "In 2004, Saab
will continue in its efforts to expand in the international market. We will
continue to focus on acquisitions to strengthen our presence in key markets
and enter new ones," Mr Svennson said in March. In June, the Czech
government approved a memorandum of understanding to lease 14 newly produced
Saab Aerospace/BAE Systems' JAS 39 Gripen fighter aircraft for a decade for
$750 m. Mr Svensson celebrated the deal as "further proof that our
export-related efforts with the Gripen have paid off". Previous clients
include Hungary and South Africa. Another market Gripen and other leading
manufacturers of jet fighters have an eye on is Brazil, where the Air Force
has been looking to acquire 12 advanced fighter aircraft worth an estimated
$700 m to replace its ageing Mirage III fleet. Proposals for the F-X BR
project include the Gripen, the Russian Sukhoi Su-35, the French Dassault
Mirage 2000-5 and the US Lockheed Martin F-16. Beyond the price tag and
technical specifications, the Brazilian government is said to be taking a
close look not only at industrial and off-set investments. Eager to develop
its own aircraft industry, Brazil is also looking for generous technology
transfer packages from manufacturers. .With US government limitations on
technology transfer, the French and Russian manufacturers offer the best
deals, analysts say. Dassault bets it has an additional benefit of being a
partner and shareholder in Embraer, the Brazilian jet manufacturer.
Together, the two hope to use the FX project as a platform to develop Latin
America's own jet fighter industry. Sukhoi also has a partnership with a
local company, Avibras, a defence contractor specialising in missiles,
rockets, and armoured vehicles. Yet some analysts say technology transfer
may be little more than a talking point in manufacturers' sales strategies.
"You need economies of scale, and with a dozen or 20 planes, you simply
don't have a market to justify local manufacturing in Brazil," says Richard
Aboulafia, of the Teal Group consultancy. Dassaut estimates that local
production of the Mirage 2000-5 would hinge on orders of at least 40 units.
Many of South America's military aircraft are 25 to 30 years old, and the
Brazilian government in recent years has sought to co-ordinate defence
contracts with its neighbours. Venezuela and Peru are said to be studying
the acQuisition of new aircraft. Chile in 2002 ordered 10 Lockheed F-16C/D
aircraft. Lockheed has a backlog for 245 F-16 aircraft, the largest in the
fighter industry and sees a market for as many as 200 more F-16s. "We
continue to focus on the global marketplace," the company says. Saudi
Arabia, which used to be one of the most important hard currency markets for
western military aircraft, is reviewing its defence priorities, and analysts
say, is unlikely to hand out the kind of multi-billion dollar contracts it
did in the past. Yet many other potential buyers are standing on the
sidelines waiting to see how the F-35 joint strike fighter project developed
by BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman, and Lockheed Martin develops. "Much of the
market is 'on hold' to see how the F-35 shapes up," says Mr Aboulafia.
Beyond initial estimated demand of 2,500 units, its manufacturers foresee an
export potential of between 2,000 and 3,000 aircraft. Italy, the
Netherlands, Turkey, Canada, Denmark, Norway and Australia have joined the
programme as partners.
nectoco
Le déplacement de Michèle AUiot-Marie à Alger, première visite officielle
d'un ministre de la Défense français en Algérie depuis l'indépendance, revêt
une indiscutable portée politique. Survenant quelques jours seulement après
la venue du ministre français des Affaires étrangères, Michel Bamier,
précédant de peu la délégation conduite par Nicolas Sarkozy, il démontre que
les relations franco-algériennes, qui devraient ouvrir un nouveau chapitre
en 2005, avec la conclusion d'un traité d'amitié, s'intensi- 6ent. C'est sur
le plan militaire que ce rapprochement est le plus sensible. Depuis 1962 et
la fin de la guerre, armées française et algérienne n'ont que très peu
coopéré. Des accords de défense ont été conclus en 1967 et 1983 mais n'ont
pas donné lieu à une vraie collaboration. Aussi la conclusion d'un accord
cadre dans ce domaine, dont Michèle AUiot-Marie est venue jeter les bases à
Alger et qu'elle souhaite concrétiser dès cet automne, estil perçu en
Algérie comme la levée d'un des derniers tabous entre la France et son
ancienne colonie. Ce projet, dont les termes restent à définir précisément
mais dont les grandes lignes sont déjà tracées, devrait comporter trois
volets portant sur la formation des troupes algériennes, la modernisation de
leur équipement et la conduite d'exercices communs. La France accueillera au
sein des forces et des écoles militaires françaises des officiers et
sous-officiers algériens. Ceux-ci y recevront un enseignement leur
permettant de travailler de concert avec les troupes françaises grâce à un
matériel interopérable que Paris pourrait fournir en fonction des desiderata
de l'armée algérienne. Une opportunité pour les entreprises françaises de
défense qui pourrait se traduire par l'obtention de marchés substantiels à
l'export. Car Alger, jouissant grâce aux prix records des hydrocarbures
d'une trésorerie confortable, est engagé dans un vaste effort de
modernisation de ses forces. Disposant déjà de l'armée la plus puissante du
Maghreb, qui la met a 1 abri de toute agression conventionnelle, elle vient
de conclure l'achat à la Russie de 70 avions de combat Mig et Sukhoï. Elle
n'a pas un besoin pressant en matière d'avions de combat, pas plus que de
chars ou de navires. Certes, des entreprises telles Sagem, qui modernise
déjà les chars T 72 de l'armée algérienne, ou comme Thaïes, qui pourrait
doter les avions de combat russes d'une électronique de bord plus
performante, pourraient, comme elles se proposent de le faire au Maroc,
obtenir des contrats sur le segment de la modernisation des matériels. Mais
le besoin réel est autre. Les forces armées algériennes pourraient se doter,
dans le cadre de la lutte antiterroriste, de systèmes facilitant leur
traque. Le théâtre d'opérations sur lequel elles sont engagées, le sud du
pays et ses frontières avec la Mauritanie, le Niger, le Mali et le Tchad,
est trop vaste pour que les mouvements terroristes, tel le Groupe salafîste
pour la prédication et le combat (GSPC), se prennent dans leur nasse. Des
instruments de haute technologie, permettant une surveillance efficace des
mouvements aux frontières, pourraient en conséquence faire l'objet d'une
demande de la part d'Alger. Et les Français ont en la matière un réel
savoir-faire. Thaïes, le spécialiste de l'électronique de défense, dispose
notamment des instruments adéquats. Le groupe négocie actuellement un
contrat, dénommé Miksa, avec l'Arabie Saoudite. Celle-ci, également
confrontée au terrorisme et dont la superficie est presque équivalente à
celle de l'Algérie, souhaite mettre en place un dispositif de contrôle
composé d'un réseau de télécommunications, d'avions de reconnaissance et
d'hélicoptères, associé à des radars permettant de détecter une intrusion
par voie terrestre, aérienne ou maritime sur son territoire. Cette solution
pourrait être adaptée au Maghreb. Au-delh de la France, l'Italie, l'Espagne
et le Portugal seraient également prêts à coopérer militairement avec
l'Algérie, le Maroc et la Tunisie. Coopérant déjà en Méditerranée dans le
cadre des forces terrestres et navales Eurofor et Euromarfor, ces Etats de
l'UH pourraient mener des manouvres communes avec leurs voisins maghrébins.
Faisant allusion aux tourments de la relation franco-algérienne, Michèle
AUiot-Marie, qui a rencontré le président de la République algérienne,
Abdelaziz Bouteflika, ses ministres des Affaires étrangères et de
l'Intérieur résume la situation d'une phrase : « Le moment est venu de
tourner la page. (...) Nous faisons face aux mêmes menaces », estime-t-elle.
Et MAM est pressée. Dès l'automne prochain, elle espère réunir ses
homologues italien, espagnol, portugais, algérien, marocain et tunisien pour
jeter les bases d'un partenariat de défense en Méditerranée occidentale.
nectoco
political obstacles, the Wall Street Journal Europe reports. EADS holds 80 %
of Airbus and one of the world's largest helicopter makers, Eurocopter. The
French, German and Spanish conglomerate also has a space division that is a
leading producer of satellites and is the main builder of the Ariane
rockets. Now, EADS is figuring in the top rank of the global defence giants.
Yet, it remains a small player in the world's largest market, the United
States. Rainer Hertrich commented recently that he "knew from the beginning
that entering the defence market is not easy in any country, and especially
in the US". Therefore, building EADS' presence in this market is "a
long-term target". EADS already showed its commitment in investing in the US
by building two factories in Alabama and Mississippi.
The Wall Street Journal Europe
nectoco
This contract is worth $ 512.6M. The Business highlights that Bombardier is
getting closer to launching a new family of 100 to 150-seater planes, a move
that will boost its competitiveness against Airbus and Boeing. A launch
might be possible for next year. To conduct its project, the Canadian plane
maker is looking for a location for a final assembly plant, which could be
in the UK, possibly in Belfast (Northern Ireland), Canada and the US.
Le Figaro Economie, The Business (18/07), Financial Times, Financial Times
Deutschland
nectoco
was allowed to compete to supply the Air Force. Boeing is indeed facing
investigation which put on hold a $ 23Bn deal to build the next-generation
tankers for the Air Force. Though EADS North America's CEO Ralph Crosby said
in an interview that there was no tanker competition now, the European group
is still hoping to see the competition reopen. On Sunday, Boeing's CEO Harry
Stonecipher said the loss of the contract would not cause a "giant hole" in
the group's finances. The Financial Times writes a special report on fighter
jets, saying that US and European suppliers are looking for new fresh
markets such as Venezuela or Peru.
AFP (18/07), Seattle Post Intelligencer (16/07), Financial Times
nectoco
Le premier système radar de surveillance et d'acquisition d'objectifs
(TRML-3D) de EADS Defence and Communications Systems a été livré aux forces
aériennes de Lituanie. Signé en 2001, le contrat porte sur la fourniture de
trois systèmes de ce type, le dernier devant être livré au mois d'août
prochain.
Cette livraison marque le début effectif des efforts de modernisation des
forces aériennes de Lituanie en matière de capacités de surveillance. A l'
occasion du salon de Farnborough, Stefan Zoller, président et CEO de EADS
Defence and Communications Systems, a précisé à propos de cet événement
majeur : « La modernisation du système de surveillance aérienne de la
Lituanie était nécessaire pour répondre aux besoins actuels du pays en
termes de sécurité. EADS fournit aux nations qui sont récemment venues s'
intégrer à l'OTAN des solutions offrant un excellent rapport coût-efficacité
pour assurer la surveillance des frontières et les opérations aériennes »
nectoco
European planemaker Airbus will not spark a trade war with the United States
over the issue of state subsidies to the aerospace industry. Chief Executive
Noel Forgeard said on Monday. "Will Airbus start a trade war? No ... I
prefer to pay engineers and tradesmen than lawyers and lobbyists," Forgeard
told reporters at the Farnborough air show near London. Airbus and U.S.
rival Boeing Co both say the other benefits from various forms of government
aid. U.S. Democrat Senator Patty Murray has said the United States should
quit a 1992 pact with the European Union on subsidies, setting the stage for
a trade war if the U.S. government takes her advice. Recent comments by
Boeing Chief Executive Harry Stonecipher targeting what he says are unfair
subsidies for Airbus had spawned an "artificial controversy", Forgeard said.
Airbus is building the world's biggest passenger jet, the 555-seat A380,
which is due for delivery to airlines in 2006. "We are on schedule for first
flight next year" as planned, said Forgeard. He played down any concerns
that the final version of the mammoth plane would be heavier than initially
expected. "The maximum empty weight is less that 2 percent over our internal
targets," Forgeard said. "There's always a struggle with weight with
suppliers in the launch stage and this one is no different," he said. Airbus
is owned by European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co (EADS) and Britain's BAE
Systems
nectoco
Salon de Farnborough: le patron d'Airbus évoque pour la première fois
l'après-A380
Source: Les Echos du : 20.07.2004
Hier au Salon aéronautique de Famborough. en Grande-Bretagne. Boeing a pris
les devants sur son grand rival français Airbus en annonçant la commande de
quatre 777 par la compagnie Emirates pour 3 milliards de dollars (2.4
milliards d'euros), assortie d'options sur 9 avions et celle de deux 737 par
GOL, compagnie économique brésilienne. Mais. en réalité, les projecteurs
sont avant tout braqués sur le 7E7, l'appareil de moyenne capacité super
économique destiné à remplacer le 767. qui doit sortir des chaînes en 2007
ou en 2008. et sur l'avantage stratégique déterminant dont cet avion
spécialisé dans les liaisons point à point bénéficierait sur le
super-gros-porteur A380 d'Airbus. Alan Mulallv, le PDG de la division avion
civil de l'avionneur américain, se déclare stupéfait de la réponse «
enthousiaste » des transporteurs au 7E7. Selon lui. plus de 30 d'entre eux
ont formalisé des intéréts pour 600 unités au total, 24 seraient pras ä
passer à l'acte pour 200 unités (y compris les 62 récemment annoncées), et
ont versé un acompte pour obtenir une date de livraison. Selon Alan Mulally,
le projet de Boeing est plus adapté aux besoins futurs des compagnies que
l'A380 d'Airbus. Avec le développement des compagnies économiques, les
besoins évolueraient vers des appareils plus petits permettant de multiplier
les trajets et les fréquences. Pas de « 7E7 versus A380 » Bon prince, Noël
Forgeard a admis pour la première fois publiquement que le projet du 7E7 de
son rival américain était « réel ». faisant implicitement référence au Sonic
Cruiser, qui s'est, en revanche, avéré être un leurre. Mais le patron
d'Airbus n'accepte pas pour autant de se laisser enfermer dans la
dialectique « 7E7 versus A380 ». Ce qui lui donne l'occasion, pour la
première fois, de lever le voile sur l'après-A380. « L'accroissement des
livraisons déclenchée par la reprise du marché élargit notre marge de
manouvre financière. En outre, l'amorce d'une baisse des ressources
nécessaires au développement de l'A380 [II reste à faire les essais en vol,
NDLR] libère des ressources pour d'autres objectifs », dit-il. Le retour de
la croissance « En combinant ces deux facteurs et notre objectif de
rentabilité de 10 %, on développe plusieurs scénarios d'une nouvelle étape
stratégique d'Airbus pour les vingt ans à venir. On ne sent aucune pression,
mais on reste vigilant pour être prêt à agir de manière pragmatique, et
tirer parti de la première opportunité du marché », souligne encore Noël
Forgeard. Alan Mulally justifie sans le vouloir ces ambitions. Il estime que
le transport aérien est en train de renouer progressivement avec la
croissance. Même si Boeing ne doit livrer en 2004 « que » 285 appareils,
soit moins qu'Airbus pour la deuxième année consécutive. Pour l'avionneur
européen, l'année 2004 se terminera sur un nombre de livraisons supérieur
aux 305 appareils de 2003. Le responsable de Boeing se montre moins agressif
sur la question des aides européennes à l'aéronautique : « Je ne crois pas
que cela va tourner à la guerre commerciale, car nous sommes deux acteurs
majeurs à la recherche d'une solution. » En écho, Noël Forgeard se dit prêt
à envisager un recours moins systématique aux avances remboursables des
Etats européens « notamment si on doit, à l'avenir, développer de nouvelles
versions dérivées ». La préparation de l'après-A380 a bel et bien débuté
nectoco
LONDON: At the air show in Farnborough, England, this week, there will be a
lot more on display than the latest in aviation. Also on exhibit will be
Washington's efforts to repair strained trans-Atlantic relations - to
re-engage with European countries that the United States has criticized for
their lack of support in the Iraq war. The Pentagon has decided to send
admirals, generals and top civilian brass to the Farnborough International
Air Show. For the first time, the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration will be sending a delegation, and American military
contractors will be sending hundreds of their executives and employees. This
contrasts with the Paris Air Show last year, which was snubbed by the United
States on instructions from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who would not
send anyone higher in rank than colonel. American contractors followed suit,
sending only modest delegations. Now the United States is back in force, and
its heavy presence is a reminder that major air shows are as much about
politics as about aviation. The American message is one of support for
Britain, its only major ally in Iraq. Britain alternates with France in
playing host to the annual event, which shows off the latest in military and
aerospace technology from 1,300 contractors in more than 30 countries. "Put
the air show against the backdrop of a presidential election year," said
Charles Pena, a military analyst at the Cato Institute, a libertarian
research group in Washington. "The administration is clearly making a push
to reach out to our European friends. The return of the Americans has a lot
to do with that. It's a full-court press to court European governments and
companies." The Pentagon plays down the magnitude of the change. An air
force Spokeswoman, Lieutenant Colonel Ann Cottongim, said the war in Iraq
precluded many people in the U.S. military from attending last year but that
this year, even with violence continuing in Iraq, "we are proud of our
strong ties with NATO countries and others in Western Europe." Still, the
Farnborough show, which started Monday about 30 miles, or 50 kilometers,
southwest of London, is taking place against a backdrop of tense and
uncertain relations between the United States and the Europeans on many
fronts. New "buy American" efforts are growing in Congress, causing concern
among European arms makers that they will be shut out of billions of dollars
of military contracts. The continuing tug of war between the commercial
divisions ofBoeing and European Aeronautic Defense & Space, which owns 80
percent of Airbus, is expected to play out as each company announces new
plane orders and argues about government subsidies. Beyond that, Europe's
military buying patterns are expected to undergo a big shift. A new European
Defense Agency, a sort of pan-European procurement operation, is to open
this year. Many wonder whether the agency will give the Europeans more power
in doing business with the United States. For years, European companies have
complained that they have bought American military products but found it
difficult to penetrate American markets with their own goods. Some say the
new agency could shift the balance of power. "There's a signal coming from
on high," said Joel Johnson, a spokesman for the Aerospace Industries
Association, a trade group based in Washington. Of course, the United States
does not view all the Europeans alike. Companies from Britain are in favor.
Others, like EADS, which is primarily a French-German company and makes both
military and commercial equipment, have a tougher road ahead. "There is no
question that, at the Pentagon, British suppliers will be first among
equals," said Loren Thompson, a military analyst at the Lexington Institute,
"while there is no doubt that the administration is unfavorably disposed to
French suppliers."
nectoco
Source: La Tribune du 20.07.2004
Attendu en ouverture du salon aéronautique de Farnborough, le bataille entre
Airbus et Boeing s'est transformée en simple escarmouche. Si Boeing a
annoncé une commande de 13 Boeing B777-300ER (Extended range) de la part de
la compagnie aérienne Emirates, dont seulement 4 appareils fermes pour un
montant global de 2,96 milliards de dollars, Airbus est resté dans les
starting-blocks. Selon des sources en interne, l'avionneur européen devrait
prendre sa revanche aujourd'hui et demain, en annonçant des commandes «
significatives ». Le patron d'Airbus a évoqué l'éventualité d'une annonce
concernant son futur avion très gros porteur 1 'A380. Pour autant, le groupe
aéronautique européen n'est pas resté totalement inactif. Guerre
commerciale. D a tenu à répondre à Boeing en se déclarant « très surpris »
de la « controverse artificielle » lancée par son concurrent américain afin
que soit revu l'accord de 1992 entre les Etats- Unis et l'Union européenne
sur les aides publiques à l'aéronautique. «Airbus ne souhaite pas se lancer
dans une guerre commerciale mais nous ne laisserons pas attaquer sans
réagir », a lancé hier la direction du constructeur européen d'avions. Ce
dernier dit préférer « payer des ingénieurs et des travailleurs plutôt que
des avocats et des îobbyistes » et vouloir « rester dans son rôle de
constructeur et vendeur d'avions ». Airbus confirme toutefois que des
discussions étaient d'ores et déjà ouvertes entre l'Europe et les Etats-Unis
sur ce dossier. Mais il a tenu à rappeler au passage que tous les ans,
Airbus achète pour 5 milliards de dollars d'équipements aéronautiques aux
Etats-Unis. Course en tête. Au-delà de la polémique, le consortium basé à
Toulouse a indiqué que sur le plan financier et industriel, Airbus se porte
mieux que l'an dernier. L'avionneur affiche au premier semestre un résultat
opérationnel « substantiellement plus élevé » que celui réalisé lors du
premier semestre 2003. Et en 2004, Noël Forgeard a confirmé qu'Airbus
prévoit « de livrer plus d'avions 11 que l'année dernière. D profite
notamment de la reprise du marché. « L'année dernière, le trafic aérien
avait augmente de 7 %. Si la tendance se confirme, la croùsance devrait
atteindre 10 % cette armée », souligne Airbus qui se félicite de faire la
course en tête au premier semestre 2004 devant Boeing en termes de prises de
commandes (104, soit une part de marche de 58 % et 7,1 milliards de dollars
de revenus) et de livraisons (161 appareils, soit une part de marché de 52
%).
nectoco
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) agreed to supply its Hamilton Sundstrand
unit's emergency power systems to Boeiag Co.'s (BA) 7E7 jetliners. In a
press release Monday, United Technologies said the deal is its seventh
contract for the 7E7 program. All the contracts have a combined potential
value of more than $6 billion. United Technologies spokeswoman declined to
value the emergency power system supply contract as a separate deal. Last
Thursday, Boeing agreed to use Honeywell's flight-control electronics for
its 7E7 jets. In early April, The Wall Street Journal reported General
Electric Co. (GE) and Rolls-Royce Group PLC edged out United Technologies'
Pratt & Whitney unit to supply up to $60 billion worth of engines for the
7E7 jets. Booing will start delivery of the fuel-efficient 7E7 aircraft in
2008.
nectoco
A FURTHER delay of up to a year in the £3bn contract to provide the Royal
Navy with two new aircraft earners was announced yesterday by the Ministry
of Defence. Lord Bsch the Minister for Defence Procurement, told Parliament
the "assessment phase" of the programme was being extended and a firm
contract would not now be signed until some time in 2005. The programme was
originally awarded to a joint venture between BAE Systems and Thales of
France 18 months ago and investment go-ahead had been expected by March of
this year. However, since then the MoD has had a rethink and decided that
the two vessels should be built by an alliance of contractors and shipyards
led by the ministry. Lord Bach said the in-service date for the first
carrier remained 2012, adding that the MoD was sticking by its cost estimate
of £3bn. However, BAE puts the cost at nearer £4bn and doubts whether the
in-service date can be met unless the capability of the two ships is
drastically reduced. Nigel Stewart, the managing director of the carrier
programme for BAE, said that it would be "very challenging" to meet the
MoD's in-service dates and budget. Under the new "alliancing" arrangement
the taxpayer, through the MoD, is likely to end up shouldenng at least half
the risk of cost overruns on the project and 100 per cent of the risk beyond
a certain amount. Detence executives say the alliancing structure is similar
to the way large offshore oil projects and Heathrow's Terminal 5 are being
built. Lord Bach told MPs that spending more time on the assessment phase of
the contract would enable the MoD and its commercial partners to reduce
risks further.
nectoco
Russian aircraft maker Sukhoi said on Monday it planned to announce a sale
of 50 regional jets to Russian domestic carrier Sibir Airlines worth over $1
billion. Sukhoi General Director Michail Pogosyan told Reuters the company
would announce the deal under its Russian Regional Jet programme at the
Farnborough air show later on Monday. Sukhoi, Boeing Co, Ilyushin and
Yakovlev are partners in the Russian Regional Jet programme.
nectoco
L'avionneur canadien Bombardier a promis lundi de compliquer le traditionnel
affrontement entre les constructeurs européen Airbus et américain Boeing, en
annonçant qu'il étudiait le lancement en 2005 d'une famille d'avions de plus
de 100 places. Bombardier, jusqu'alors cantonné ä la production d'avions
régionaux, envisage de mettre en service en 2010 quatre appareils d'une
capacité de 110 à 135 places, aux coûts d'exploitation inférieurs de 15% à
ceux de ses concurrents, ont annoncé ses dirigeants au premier jour du salon
aéronautique international de Farnborough (Grande-Bretagne). Le rayon
d'action des différents avions variera entre 1.800 et 3.250 milles marins
selon les versions, permettant des vols transatlantiques. "Nous n'en sommes
encore qu'à la phase d'étude", a précisé Pierre Beaudoin, PDG de la division
aéronautique du groupe, lors d'une conférence de presse. Les équipes de
Bombardier prévoient de soumettre début 2005 au conseil d'administration du
constructeur canadien le "cas d'affaires" ("business case", ndlr) de ce
projet baptisé "CSeries", pour obtenir son autorisation de
commercialisation, qui pourrait intervenir à l'été 2005, a précisé Gary
Scott, responsable du programme. Sur les 20 prochaines années, le
constructeur canadien évalue ä 5.800 appareils, d'une valeur supérieure à
250 milliards de dollars américains, le segment de marché des avions de 100
à 149 sièges, représentant 13% du marché total des avions commerciaux. Ce
segment est aujourd'hui exclusivement disputé par Airbus et Boeing, le
constructeur européen ayant remporté 61% des commandes passées par les
compagnies aériennes dans cette catégorie au premier semestre 2004, selon
des statistiques fournies lundi par son PDG Noël Forgeard. Le programme
"CSeries" représente un investissement de l'ordre de 2 milliards de dollars
américains, dont Bombardier souhaite que la charge soit répartie à parts
égales entre lui-même, ses fournisseurs et la puissance publique, a précisé
M. Beaudoin. A cet égard, la localisation de l'assemb!age final des future
appareils fait l'objet de discussions avec les autorités canadiennes,
britanniques et plusieurs Etats américains, a-t-il précisé. En tout état de
cause, la mise en service des premiers appareils de la série, n'interviendra
pas avant 2010. Bombardier promet à ses clients une réduction de 15% des
coûts opérationnels ("cash operating costs", ndlr), grâce à la combinaison
de nouveaux moteurs, de matériaux et d'une aérodynamique particulières mais
aussi de davantage de systèmes électriques. Boeing comme Airbus ne
paraissent toutefois pas craindre l'irruption d'un trouble-fête dans leur
traditionnel combat de chefs. Interrogé sur le risque de voir sa part de
marché rognée par l'arrivée de Bombardier sur le segment des mono-couloirs,
le directeur commercial du constructeur européen John Leahy a répondu: "non,
pas du tout", lors d'une conférence de presse lundi. "Nous pensons que ni
l'un ni l'autre des deux constructeurs, Boeing et Airbus, ne seront
menacés", a-t-il expliqué, car les compagnies aériennes traditionnelles
continueront de développer leur flotte autour des familles d'avions qui la
composent actuellement et dont la capacité dépasse les 135 sièges promis par
le constructeur canadien. Même type d'argumentation chez Boeing:
"aujourd'hui, notre famille B737 nous semble très compétitive", face au
projet de Bombardier, a déclaré lundi Alan Mulally, patron de la division
avion commerciaux du géant américain. "Car ce que les compagnies aériennes
aiment dans cette famille c'est qu'elles peuvent faire voler 100 passagers
(...) dans un 737-600 et faire croître ce nombre jusqu'à 200 dans un
737-900", a-t-il précisé.
nectoco
Former Malaysia Music Man Leads Parade of Carriers Offering Low-Cost Tickets
Mr. Fernandes Shuns Brakes When Malaysia's state-owned airline launched a
bruising price war in 2002 that threatened AlrAsia, the Hedging discount
carrier. Tony Fernandes crashed an exclusive cocktail party in Kuala Lumpur.
In front of dozens at guests, AirAsia's chief executive confronted the
party's guest of honor-the nation's transport By S. Jayasankaran in Kuala
Lumpur and Cris Prystay in Singapore minister. Mr. Fernandes charged that
the state airline was trying to crush the upstart carrier and pleaded with
the minister to stop it. Soon afterward, the government ordered Malaysia
Airlines to end the steep fare cuts. The episode marked an important chapter
in Mr. Fernandes's evolution from a onetime music executive for Time Warner
Inc. to the top gun of Asia's burgeoning budget-airline business. During the
past three years, the 40-year-old Mr. Fernandes has built the no-frills
AirAsia into the region's .air'ainni ing to China and In- .HSww#w' -"###B
dia soon. The air- Tony Fernandes line is expected to announce a net profit
of $20 million (?16.1 million) for the year that ended June 30. In October,
the company plans to float a 20% stake, which it anticipates will raise
around $200 million. AirAsia's rapid takeoff shows how far the
low-cost-carrier model has spread, transforming markets around the world and
offering more affordable fares to business and leisure travelers. Today, a
flock of new budget carriers and Asian governments are scrambling to copy
Mr. Fernandes's formula. A dozen competitors, including state-owned carriers
in Thailand, India and Singapore, have started low-cost service or are
planning to do so in coming months. The new carriers Include ValuAlr and
Tiger Airways in Singapore and Nok Air in Thailand. Moreover, Singapore's
government plans to build a low-cost airline terminal even as it frets over
the potential threat that the discount carriers could pose to
state-controlled Singapore Airlines, long one of the world's most profitable
airlines. To get his airline off the ground, Mr. Fernandes had to prevail
over voluminous red tape and government bureaucrats determined to protect
their flag carriers-obstacles that many industry officials thought would
doom Asian efforts to emulate Dallas's Southwest Airlines and Dublin's
Ryanair. Breaking With Tradition Mr. Fernandes, a native of Malaysia who was
educated in Britain and worked for Richard Branson's Virgin Group, bought
AirAsia, an unprofitable Malaysian airline with a fleet of two aging 737s,
in 2001. He paid 27 cents and agreed to assume $10 million in debt. Asian
carriers have long catered to the well-to-do business traveler, but Mr.
Fernandes targeted a different audience: the millions of Asians, many of
whom had never flown, who wanted basic transportation at low prices. To lure
them, he set fares on some routes as low as $10, and began flying as a
budget carrier in January 2002. Airksia attracted half a million customers
in its first six months of operations. Cost-cutting is an obsession for Mr.
Fernandes, who often oversees operations from AirAsia's tiny headquarters at
Kuala Lumpur International Airport. He once suggested that pilots avoid
using their brakes as long as possible upon landing. "Friction usually does
the trick, so our brake pads and tires last a damn sight longer than most,"
he says. AlrAsia doesn't offer tree in-flight food, but sells sandwiches and
a few other basic items. It uses leased Boeing 737-300s that are typically
turned around within 25 minutes of landing. Tickets are sold over the
Internet. AirAsia staffers, including executives, do everything from
checking in passengers to cleaning up planes. Mr. Fernandes, whose mother
started the first Tupperware franchise in Malaysia, says he first dreamed of
owning an airline during his student days at a British boarding school.
After graduating from London University with an accounting degree, he worked
for Virgin Group, then joined Time Warner's Warner Music International in
London in 1989. Three years later, he transferred home to Kuala Lumpur to
head Warner's Malaysian operations. In 1999, Mr. Fernandes became head of
Warner Music's Southeast Asian operation. When Time Warner and America
Online Inc. decided to merge the following year, Mr. Pernandes was skeptical
about the merger and began thinking about leaving the company, he says. In
early 2001, he wrangled an horn-long meeting at London's Stansted Airport
with Conor McCarthy, a budget-airline expert who had just le£t his job as
chief operating officer of Ryanair to set up a consulting company. Mr.
McCarthy wasn't impressed by Mr. Fernandes's initial blueprint for a
low-cost airline. It "included long-haul routes and a few different aircraft
types and alliances with airlines all over the world," Mr. McCarthy recalls.
"Within five minutes, I'd thrown out the plan and told him it wouldn't
work." Two weeks later, Mr. Fernandes was back with a revised plan based on
Mr. Mc- Carthy's critique. This time, the plan stressed short flights within
a four-hour range, using one type and size of aircraft. The result: Mr.
McCarthy decided to take a 5% stake in the venture himself. Mr. Fernandes
quit Warner Music, cashed in his stock options and set up a holding company
named TuneAir Sdn. Bhd. with Mr. McCarthy and three other Malaysian
investors. The company bought the struggling AirAsia. To help raise cash,
Mr. Fernandes mortgaged his Kuala Lumpur house. But then the battles with
Asia's aviation establishment began. The Malaysian government balked at
granting the domestic routes AirAsia requested; according to government
officials, the Transport Ministry was worried about hurting the state-run
carrier, Malaysia Airlines. The country's chief airline regulator, who had
the authority to approve the routes, also was a member of Malaysia Airlines'
board. #Economic Terrorism' Mr. Fernandes improvised. He got contracts to
fly Muslim pilgrims to Mecca and to ferry Malaysian soldiers between
military postings. He lobbied senior government officials, including
then-Transport Minister Ling Liong Sik, for new domestic routes, and
eventually succeeded. The public embraced the new discount carrier
immediately, provoking near panic at Malaysia Airlines. In August 2002, the
state-owned carrier began slashing many domestic fares by half, a strategy
that AirAsia officials and many others felt was aimed at killing off the
budget airline. "They (Malaysia Airlines) were using government money to try
and push a second airline out of business," says Mr. McCarthy. In response,
Mr. Fernandes wrote a blistering letter to then-Prime Minister Mahathir
Mohamad, accusing Malaysia Airlines of "state-sponsored economic terrorism."
He attacked the government and the state airline in media interviews, a
daring move in a country where criticism of the government is muted and
cordial relations with politicians are considered vital to business success.
He also crashed the cocktail party where Mr. Ling, then the transport
minister, was the guest of honor. "1 had to do it," Mr. Fernandes says.
"We've had to fight every step of the way." The government, sensitive to
AirAsia's growing popularity with consumers, ordered Malaysia Airlines to
stop slashing fares. "We didn't want to give any reason for the people to
become angry with us," Mr. Ling says. A Malaysia Airlines spokesman denies
that the state-owned carrier started a fare war. The airline, she says,
simply extended "promotional fares" to a host of groups, including senior
citizens, students, police, armed-forces personnel, families and people who
fly at night. Mr. Pernandes faced fresh obstacles when he tried to expand
beyond Malaysia and into regional markets. A key target was Singapore's
Changi International Airport, a major hub, but a bilateral agreement between
Malaysia and Singapore gave reciprocal landing rights only to the two
governments' flag carriers. To tap the Singapore market, Mr. Fernandes set
up his own hub at Senai, a privately owned airport near the Malaysian border
town of Johor Bahru, about an hour's drive from Singapore. The Singapore
government bridled at the maneuver, and took other steps to block Mr.
Fernandes. When AirAsia asked for permission to provide bus service between
Singapore and Senai, the government turned it down. When Mr. Fernandes hired
a separate company to offer rides to his passengers, the government
impounded the bus. The government Transport Ministry says, "Such services
are not ideal, as they are inconvenient for both Singaporeans and
Malaysians." Mr. Fernandes responded to the snub with a cheeky ad campaign
in Singapore newspapers that poked fun at the government's tight regulation
of citizens' behavior. One ad read: "No chewing gum, no jaywalking, no
shuttles to Senai. Fortunately, low-priced flights are still legal." He also
set up a Singapore-based call center to make it easy for residents to buy
tickets on AirAsia's flights. Slngaporeans responded enthusiastically,
taking local buses to the Malaysian border, then catching a bus to Senai.
AirAsia now serves six destinations, including Bangkok and Jakarta, out of
Senai, and about 40% of its passengers are from Singapore. 'A Case Study'
Mr. Fernandes ran into trouble getting AirAsia's other international routes,
too. When the airline applied to fly from Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok and the
resort island of Phuket in August 2003, Malaysian officials sat on the
application for three months, then approved just one AirAsia flight per day
to each destination. By then, however, Malaysia had a new transport
minister, Chan Kong Choy, who was part of a growing cadre of politicians who
admired the businessman's nerve. "That guy is a case study for Harvard
Business School," says Mr. Chan. When bureaucrats sat on AirAsia's
applications for a second flight to Bangkok and one to Jakarta, Mr. Chan
intervened, ordering them to award the routes. Mr. Fernandes also moved
aggressively to get into the Thai market. He sought an alliance with Shin
Corp., a sprawling, Bangkok-based company controlled by the family of Thai
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The company controls Thailand's sole
satellite operator, the country's largest cellphone provider and a
television station. Mr. Thaksin, eager to spur domestic tourism, had asked
state-owned Singapore Airlines in early 2003 to work with stateowned Thai
Airways International to set up a discount carrier. When Singapore Airlines
declined, Mr. Fernandes pounced, sending his investment bankers to Thailand
to propose his own deal. Last November, Shin Corp. and AirAsia formed a
joint venture-a new discount airline, called Thai AirAsia, based in Bangkok.
The deal gave AirAsia a 49% stake in Thai AirAsia and management control.
Thai government officials quickly awarded AirAsia's Thai unit two daily
flights to Singapore as well as the landing rights that the state-owned Thai
airline had controlled, but never used, for China's premier gambling center,
Macau. Airhsia's groundbreaking Thailand deal once again shook up Asia's
aviation industry. Within months, at least eight airlines-some state-owned,
some privately owned-had announced plans for discount air services of their
own, many using the joint-venture formula pioneered by Mr. Fernandes. Mr.
Fernandes now plans to replicate his Thai joint-venture model across Asia.
His goal: a pan-Asian airline with a network stretching from China to India.
Take Off AirAsia at a glance: . Established: December 2001 . Headquarter:
Kuala Lumpur . CEO: Tony Fernandes . Parent company: TuneAirSdn.Bhd. (owns
99.25% equity) . Employees: 1.132 . Fleet: 17 Boeing 737-300 aircraft .
Passenger volume Carried more than four million passengers since
established . Bii»In«»»: Asia's first low-fare airline serving select cities
in Malaysia, Indonesia.Thailand, Brunei, Singapore and Macau Source:
nectoco
Source: Washington Post du 18.07.2004
Congress is poised to appropriate $100 million to keep one of the federal
government's most scandalridden and contentious programs - the Air Force's
plan to replace its aging aerial-refueling tankers with new Boeing 767s.
Insiders say that the primary reason for the payout is that House Speaker J.
Dennis Hastert (R-lll.) has made Boeing Co.'s cause his own. Hastert has
worked aggressively behind the scenes to keep the tanker contract in
Boeing's hands at least in part, his spokesman said, because Boeing is
headquartered in Chicago, not far from his congressional district. Boeing
also has needed the help. Questions about the cost of the program, among
other worries, have prompted the Pentagon to put off deciding its fate until
year-end at the earliest. "Yes, the Speaker goes to bat for Illinois and
he's been personally involved in this; he makes no secret about it," said
Hastert spokesman John Feehery. But Feehery portrayed Hastert's interest in
the deal as more than pork-barrel politics. "He's not just fighting for the
sake of his constituency; it's also for the country's sake," he said. A
fight is what it took. "I don't know how we could have done something this
controversial without the Speaker's support," said Rep. Todd Tiahrt
(R-Kan.), an advocate for the tanker program whose Wichita congressional
district includes a large Boeing factory. "You've got to have someone with a
lot of clout on your side and he's been there four-square for us." "The
Speaker has sure weighed in on this one," confirmed George Behan, spokesman
for Rep. Norman D. Dicks (D-Wash.), who also labored on Boeing's behalf. "He
worked hard." Hastert, who declined to be interviewed for this story, has
had to fight all year for the appropriation. Several lawmakers, led by Sen.
John McCain (R-Ariz.), have added language to Senate bills that would
restrict the program. Indeed, McCain has regularly tried since 2001 to
limit, delay or terminate the Boeing plan. Still, at the Speaker's urging,
House and Senate negotiators approved the seed money late Wednesday as part
of a Pentagon spending bill. The entire measure is scheduled for votes in
both chambers this week. Boeing declined to comment. But its congressional
backers say that they have stayed in close contact with the company's many
lobbyists as they pressed the tanker issue. "I've been in contact with the
Boeing office," Tiahrt said. "I probably talk to them once a week."
According to PoliticalMoneyLine.com, a nonpartisan campaign finance research
group, the $4 million Boeing spent to pay dozens of lobbyists last year (the
latest data available) made it No. 20 on the long list of major companies
and interest groups that try to influence Washington decision-makers. In the
current election cycle, Boeing ranks No. 12 among corporations in campaign
giving to federal candidates. Its political action committee has contributed
$492,000 so far, of which $10,000 went to Hastert, Politicalh6oneyLine.corn
records show. McCain and others have charged that the proposed $23.5 billion
deal for 100 Boeing jets - the costliest lease in U.S. history - was
designed more to benefit Boeing than American taxpayers. Boeing found itself
on the defensive after acknowledging that it improperly hired as an
executive the former Air Force official, Darleen A. Druyun, who negotiated
the lucrative arrangement. Druyun pleaded guilty in April to illegally
accepting a job with the company. Druyun's hiring "is the worst example of
the 'revolving door' in quite some time," said Keith Ashdown of Taxpayers
for Common Sense, a nonpartisan budget watchdog group. The Boeing deal was
"absolutely a waste of taxpayer money - in the billions of dollars."
Nonetheless, seed money was shoehorned into the legislation thanks to heavy
and repeated pressure by Hastert and his aides, Tiahrt and others involved
in the process say. Hastert's learn made its case at the White House, at the
Pentagon and to key lawmakers. In the end, they managed to overcome more
obstacles than any weapons program in recent memory. "The battle over these
tankers is in a class by itself," said Scott Lilly, who spent 31 years as a
Democratic congressional staffer, most of them dealing with appropriations.
The only program that came close in controversy, Lilly recalled , was the
B-f A bomber, which was canceled by President Jimmy Carter in 1977 after
only four prototypes were built. But that plane was shelved not so much for
reasons of cost or ethical concerns but because Carter wanted to pursue a
different nuclear-weapons strategy. He decided to develop cruise missiles
that could be carried by less expensive subsonic aircraft like the B-52
rather than deploy a new, fast-flying jet like the B-1A. Hastert did not
accomplish everything he sought. The House-passed version of the
appropriation designated Boeing as the supplier. The final version is less
specific. What's more, the Pentagon is conducting two studies of the program
and is reviewing its options, which include buying new tankers from another
supplier, possibly the France-based Airbus SAS, and refurbishing rather than
replacing the existing, 43-year-old fleet. Defense Secretary Donald H.
Rumsfeld has put the entire contract on hold until after the November
election. It's also unclear whether any new jets would be leased or bought.
Nonetheless, the mere fact that the appropriation survived gives hope to
Boeing and its congressional friends. "We're pleased with this language; we
hope it will further the program," said Dicks, whose home state of
Washington houses major Boeing facilities. According to Hastert aides, the
Speaker worked with Tiahrt and Dicks to round up support in both the House
and the Senate, where the Boeing deal faced louder opposition. Hastert
counted among his allies there the Republican senators from Kansas, Pat
Roberts and Sam Brownback. Their basic argument: The current fleet is so old
that it needs to be replaced and only one American company is positioned to
provide the tankers, Boeing. Boeing has not been coy about saying one reason
it decided to move to Chicago from Seattle was that it could count on
Hastert's patronage. Hastert, the House's top Republican, makes a habit of
helping Illinois-based corporations. He has championed measures for years
that have benefited Caterpillar Inc. and UAL Corp., the parent company of
United Airlines. In 1998, he added $250,000 to the Pentagon spending bill
sothatAmurol Confections Co. of his hometown ofYorkville, III., could study
caffeinated chewing gum. On the Boeing deal, Hastert had to face down many
congressional opponents, including his own state's senator, Peter Fitzgerald
(R-lll.). "The tanker lease was an unusually unfavorable deal for the
taxpayers and an unusually favorable deal for Boeing," Fitzgerald said. "It
appears to me that he [Hastert] is becoming fairly renowned for doing
special little favors behind the scenes here and there at interesting times
for some of his corporate buddies." Regardless of his reason, however, when
the Speaker spoke, money moved. "Out of respect forwho the Speaker is, when
he puts his blessing on something, it's a done deal," said Rep. Ray LaHood
(R- III.), another Hastert ally on Illinois appropriations.
nectoco
Le président de Boeing, Harry Stonecipher, a estime que la perte du contrat
d'avions ravitailleurs
Source: L´AGefi du 20.07.2004
Pentagone a décidé de différer 1'aftribution, n'entrafnerait pas un manque ä
gagner ingerable pour les finances de son groupe. Ce contrat lui aurait
toutefois rapporte environ 17 milliards de dollars sur 25 ans. Le groupe
aeronautique et de defense a par ailleurs annonce qu'il avait obtenu
l'accord preliminaire de 24 compagnies aeriennes pour l'acquisition de 200
exerriplaires de son futur avion commerdal 7E7. Aussi, Boeing prevoit
d'embaucher ou de reembaucher jusqu'ä 3.000 personnes d'ici ä la fin de
l'annee aux Etats-Unis, prindpalement dans sä division d'aviation
commerdale.
nectoco
Source: Financial Times du 20.07.2004
Lockheed Martin and its partners yesterday sought to dispel concerns that
the jump-jet version of its F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) was in trouble
because the aircraft was overweight. The short take-off and vertical landing
variant (STOVL) of the aircraft is crucial to the UK military, which is
planning to buy up to 150 aircraft to replace its ageing Harrier jump-jets,
early next decade. The $2OObn JSF programme is expected to be the largest
combat aircraft project in history. The UK and seven other countries -
including Italy and Australia - are helping to fund the development with the
US. Military analysts have said any weight problem could reduce the amount
of weaponry the aircraft could carry. The US Marine Corp plans to buy
several hundred of the STOVL aircraft to replace its own Harriers. Lockheed,
which is heading an industry team that includes Northrop Grumman, BAE
Systems and engine maker Pratt & Whitney, has orders for just over 2,500
aircraft. The weight problem with the aircraft has held up a decision by the
UK's Royal Navy on ordering two new aircraft carriers, which are being
designed around the JSF. The two ships would have to be substantially
modified if the STOVL version of JSF failed to materialise. But yesterday,
the head of Lockheed's aircraft business insisted the jump-jet version was
back on track after slowing development work down across the entire JSF
programme. "We are back into detailed design with confidence we have a
configuration that will meet STOVL requirements, leading to first flight in
2007," said Dain Hancock, president of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. Earlier
this year it was revealed that design projections had determined that the
jump-jet version of the aircraft was between 2,5001b and 2,8001b
(1,136kg-1,272kg) too heavy. Michael Cosentino, international programmes
director for the F-35, said a team of 500 engineers tasked with cutting the
weight had already identified l,6001b of savings. "We have great confidence
that the STOVL version will be a success," he said. Pratt & Whitney, a unit
of United Technologies, is also investigating the possibility of increasing
the power output of the engine that will power the first JSFs. Louis
Chenervet, president of P&W, said: "There is no doubt in my mind that the
STOVL version will fly."
nectoco
Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) has resolved weight problems on the second
version of its F-35 military jet, slimming 3,000 pounds off the airplane,
the company's head of aeronautics said Monday. In a press conference on the
first day of the Farnborough air show, Lockheed Executive Vice President
Dain Hancock said he's confident the customers for the Joint Strike Fighter
will agree, and accept the changes to the short takeoff/vertical landing
version of the airplane in September. Lockheed is leading development of the
new airplane for ten countries on both sides of the Atlantic. The company,
which is the largest U.S. defense contractor, sill expects the first flight
of the F-35 to take place in 2006, and for the second, short
takeoff/vertical landing version to happen in 2007, Hancock said. Hancock
added he expects the company has a backlog of 251 aircraft in the F-16
program, with deliveries scheduled until 2008. He said the program could get
another 200 orders through 2012.
nectoco
Source: La Tribune du 20.07.2004
Le ministère britannique de la Défense (MoD) devrait annoncer aujourd'hui
son choix pour le contrat Watchkeeper, une commande de drones, pour un
montant de 1,2 milliard d'euros. Le MoD aurait l'intention de sélectionner h
consortium dirigé par Tha!es, et comprenant l'israélien Elbit, au détriment
de celui mené par l'américain Northrop Grumman et le britannique BAe
Systems.
nectoco
Source: La Tribune du 20.07.2004
Le consortium mené par le groupe américain Général Dynamics qui comprend
aussi Thales, Rockwell Collins et BAe Systems est sur le point d'obtenir un
contrat de 5 à 10 milliards de dollars pour la fourniture de radios
tactiques à l'armée américaine. Il l'aurait emporté face à un groupe
comprenant Boeing, Raytheon et ITT Industries.
nectoco
EADS Astrium a signé un contrat de 130 millions d'euros pour la fabrication
d'un satellite civil d'observation de la Terre avec le ministère thaïlandais
des sciences et technologies, a annoncé, hier, François Auque, président
d'EADS Space, au Salon de Farnborough. Theos (Thailand Earth Observation
Satellite) aura une résolution d'environ 2 mètres et devrait 6tre lancé en
2007, II sera utilisé pour des applications de cartographie, d'observation
des cultures et d'aménagement des terrains agricoles.
nectoco
Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways is ordering 24 Airbus large-capacity jets.
According to Die Welt, the carrier is furthermore planning to sign options
for 12 additional jets. The whole order has a volume of $ 4.55Bn and
includes twelve Airbus A330-200 aircraft.
Die Welt
nectoco
Source: AFX du 20.07.2004
Lockheed Martin Corp and European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co said they
signed a draft agreement to explore partnership opportunities on missile
defence programmes worldwide. Lockheed Martin said it signed a similar
agreement with Finmeccanica SpA, which already partners EADS in the defence
sector.
nectoco
Source: Defense Daily du 20.07.2004
The European Aeronautic Defence Space Co. (EADS) expects the contract to
provide tankers to the Royal Air Force to be delayed by about six months,
according to a senior company official. The United Kingdom in February
selected EADS proposal to provide refueling tankers based on its Airbus A330
commercial aircraft over a competing offer from Boeing [BA]. But recent
media reports in the United Kingdom have reported friction between the U.K.
procurement agency and EADS over the price and structure of the deal, worth
about $20 billion. "We've seen about a six months slippage," Sir Jeremy
Blackham, EADS' United Kingdom president, told reporters Saturday at a press
seminar held here. The actual deliveries probably won't start until 2008 or
2009, he added. The current deal is to provide 12 newA330-200 aircraft and
five used aircraft, all equipped with two refueling pods. "This is a very
complex contract," Blackham said. "It does take an awful lot of effort." At
issue is the finalization of details needed to provide EADS with "preferred
bidder status," the prerequisite for moving forward with contract
negotiations. "We're not doing detailed contract negotiations because we're
not the preferred bidder," Blackham said. EADS expects the negotiations to
take about a year and to have a signed contract sometime next summer,
Blackham said. The issue now is whether EADS can produce an off balance
sheet deal that is commercially viable. "I think the answer is yes," he
said. The U.K. tanker competition was a major win for EADS, which is trying
to break into a market traditionally dominated by the United States. EADS is
also providing Germany and Canada with A310-based refueling tankers, and is
currently in contract negotiations to provide 14 tankers to France. In
April, Australia selected EADS over Boeing to provide five tanker aircraft
and support equipment in a deal worth $1.5 billion. A final contract is
expected to be signed by the end of the year, according to EADS. EADS
produces tankers based on A310 and A330 commercial aircraft. Eventually, the
company expects to convert its developmental A400M military transport
aircraft into a massive tanker capable of holding 112 tons of transferable
fuel. While EADS is making crucial inroads into the tanker market, the crown
jewels would be the KC(X) competition to provide refueling aircraft to the
U.S. military. In 2001, the U.S. Air Force rejected a preliminary Airbus
proposal to provide A330 derivative aircraft, citing the European company's
lack of experience with boom integration. EADS is now investing its own
money to develop a boom for its tankers. A prototype will be ready by the
fall of this year and first flight will take place in 2005, according to
Francisco Fernandez Sainz, who heads EADS military transport programs. The
prototype boom is being integrated on an A310 aircraft. Earlier this month,
the Pentagon issued a request for information on refueling tankers,
according to industry sources. The information will be used as part of a
RAND-led analysis of alternatives for tanker modernization. While EADS has
made no secret of its desire to compete for U.S. tankers, company officials
are careful to point out that they are not actively campaigning. Rather,
they ware working to build the company's American presence to bolster an
eventual tanker offer. "We are an American company," Ralph Crosby, the CEO
for EADS, North America said, speaking at the same press seminar. But Crosby
declined to discuss any specifics of a possible teaming agreement or
strategic alliance for a future U.S. tanker competition. The answer is we
will have a U.S. tanker industrial team, he said. Asked whether EADS would
consider submitting a proposal without teaming with a U.S. prime contractor,
Crosby said that issue "is to be determined." Another issue getting some
recent attention is subsidies European countries provide for Airbus
commercial development programs. Congressional backers of the original
Boeing deal, such as Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), are trying to revive the
debate over the subsidies Airbus receives. Airbus receives government loans
for aircraft development programs, a benefit that Europeans argue is
counterbalanced by the substantial funds Boeing gets for military research
and development programs. "I think this is much ado about nothing new,"
Crosby said. Europe abides by the 1992 agreement negotiated with the United
States on aircraft manufacturing subsidies and there is nothing new to
discuss, he said.
nectoco
Source: Bloomberg du : 20.07.2004
U.K.-based VT Group PLC (VTG.LN) will announce later Tuesday that it will
join a consortium that is in negotiations to supply refueling planes for the
Royal Air Force, according to people familiar with the situation. VT is
likely to take an equity stake of about 10% in the AirTanker consortium,
which is led by European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. (5730.FR), one of
these people said. AirTanker is currently in detailed talks with the U.K.
Ministry of Defense to finalize a GBP13 billion refueling service contract.
The contract will run over a 27-year period. VT executives have said
previously that they would be interested in taking a minority stake. VT is a
provider of support services for defense and civilian customers. The
announcement will come at the Farnborough air show at around 1300 GMT.
nectoco
Source: Le Figaro economie du 21.07.2004
La bataille commerciale que se livrent les deux constructeurs aéronautiques
mondiaux a connu hier un nouveau chapitre, au profil: cette fois de
l'avionnBur européen. Airbus a rendu publique, hier, à l'occasion de ta
deuxième Journée du Salon de Famborough (Grande-Bretagne), la signature d'un
protocole d'accord portant sur l'achat ferme par la compagnie émlratle
Etihad Alrways de vingt-quatre appareils, dont quatre exemplaires du futur
très gros porteur A 380 mais également quatre très long-courriers A 340-500,
quatre A 340-600 et douze A 330-200. Hasard du calendrier, en marge de la
visite à Paris du premier ministre turc, Turklah Alrllnes, en cours de
privatisation, a fait savoir qu'elle était en négociation a.vec Airbus et
son rival américain Boeing pour acheter une cinquantaine d'appareils.
L'annonce d'Etihad Airways intervient au lendemain de celle faite par Boeing
d'une commande de quatre avions 777-300 ER, signe que les deux géants
intensifient leur guerre d'image à coups d'effets d'annonces successifs. La
commande dévoilée hier par Airbus s'élèverait à quelque 4,5 milliards de
dollars sur la base du prix catalogue, mais sans tenir compte de ses rabais,
Lancée il y a tout juste un an, la jeune compagnie d'Abu Dhabi a également
émis une option sur douze autres appareils supplémentaires. Si cette option
SB concrétisait, la valeur de cette commande pourrait atteindre les 7
milliards de dollars. Hier, le président de la compagnie émiratie a motivé
son choix par les avantages que représente, en termes d'entrelien comme de
formation, une flotte composée des mêmes familles d'appareils. Profitant des
premières retombées économiques de ce contrat, le motoriste britannique
Rolls-Royce a précisé hier que les moteurs des A 340 d'Etihad représentaient
environ 400 millions de dollars sur la base du prix catalogue, Mais la
compagnie éroiratie n'a pas encore choisi les moteurs pour les autres
appareils. Cette annonce est lourde de symbole pour Airbus qui n'avait pas
enregistré de commandes A 380 depuis plusieurs mois. Les compagnies du
Golfe, soucieuses de développer le tourisme dans la région, ont été les
principales pourvoyeuses de commandes au cours des dernières années, alors
que l'ensemble du transport aérien traversait !a plus grave crise de son
histoire. Grâce à la commande d'Etihad, le carnet de commandes de l'A 380
porte désormais sur 133 appareils (dont 17 dans la version firet) qui seront
livrés à 12 clients. Reste qu'Airbus doit engranger au total 250 commandes
pour ce superjumbo de 555 à 800 places pour équilibrer ce programme de 10,7
milliards de dollars d'investissements. L'avionneur européen espère vendre,
d'ici à la fin de l'année, son superiumbo à une compagnie asiatique.
Certains observateurs s'attendent à ce que le gouvernement chinois,
organisateur des Jeux olympiques en 2008, dévoile une commande d'A 380 lors
d'un déplacement très attendu du président Chirac à Pékin cet automne. L'A
380, dont les premières livraisons sont prévues en 2006, pourra transporter
au moins 550 passagers,
nectoco
Source: Daily Telegraph du 21.07.2004
An American B52 bomber Hew from America for a flypast at the Famborough Air
Show yesterday but picked the wrong airfield. To the consternation of the
announcer and spectators at the Hampshire airfield the US bomber could be
seen over Blackbushe, five miles to the north-west. Show ozganisers
initially appeared confused by the non-appearance of the bomber. "It didn't
fly over Famborough," one said. "It flew over Blackbushe instead. You could
just see it in the very dear distance. We don't really know what happened,
it is being looked into." They issued a statement saying: "We can confirm
that the Boeing B52H Stratofortress did not arrive at the airfield". The B52
is known for its range and flew straight back to America. It can fly 8,800
miles without refuelling. The bomber played a key role in the 2001 attack on
Afghanistan and during the Iraq war.
nectoco
Source: reuters du 20.07.2004
Turkey is in the final stages of talks with European plane maker Airbus SAS
and could sign a preliminary deal to acquire jets as early as Tuesday
evening, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said. "On Airbus, I think
we've now reached the final stage," Erdogan told reporters. "I think this
evening or tomorrow morning, our colleagues will be able to find this
accord," he said, referring to a preliminary agreement. State-run Turkish
Airlines has been talking with Airbus and its rival Boeing Co. for months.
It is not clear how many planes the airlines could purchase and Erdogan, on
a visit to France, provided no additional details.
nectoco
Hot air at Farnborough; Boeing, Airbus officials swap allegations over trade
violations at air show
Source: Chicago Tribune du 20.07.2004
The Farnborough International air show, which used to be a battle of airline
orders between Boeing Co. and Airbus, has turned instead into a battle of
words. The show kicked off Monday with France-based Airbus vigorously
defending itself against accusations of unfair jetliner manufacturing
subsidies leveled by Boeing in recent months. Boeing chief executive Harry
Stonecipher has called for a stop to what he considers subsidies for Airbus
jets, and has asked the U.S. government to look into terms of a 1992 trade
pact between the United States and Europe. Airbus insists that it abides by
the pact's terms. "This is a game, because there are no grounds to attack
Airbus whatsoever," Airbus chief executive Noel Forgeard said at a press
conference at Farnborough International the biennial air show outside
London. Forgeard pointed a finger back at Chicago-based Boeing for receiving
financial incentives from Washington state to build its new 7E7. Airbus
officials are reacting to long-held allegations by Boeing, renewed recently
by Stonecipher, that it receives government subsidies to help it launch new
jetliner programs and charge less for its airplanes. Allan McArtor, chairman
of Airbus North America, said Airbus has received government loans for three
of its eight most recent jetliner programs. One of those three programs is
the superjumbo A380, due to fly at the Paris Air Show next summer and to be
in service in 2006. Airbus has staked its future on the belief that airlines
will want its 555-passenger A380 to fly long distances. Boeing is pinning
its hopes on the 7E7, a 200- to 250-passengerjet that is more fuelefficient
than other planes its size. Airbus repays the government loans it receives,
which are made at market rates, Forgeard said. "Airbus will not start a
trade war, but we'll leave no attack unanswered," he said. "We prefer to pay
engineers, not lobbyists or lawyers." In recent years, Airbus has chastised
Boeing for its lack of success at starting all-new commercial jet programs.
Boeing's new 7E7 program, which has promises for 62 orders from four
airlines, rendered that taunt useless at this year's show. Boeing announced
orders Monday for four 777-3OOERs and options for nine more from the
Dubai-based airline Emirates. Boeing delivered its first 777-300ER, the
newest member of its decade-old 777 family, earlier this year to Air France.
nectoco
Source: Defense News du 20.07.2004
The Eurofighter program is facing further delays unless European governments
reach a decision soon on an order for a second batch of the combat aircraft,
warned Tom Enders, the head of EADS' military unit. Britain, Germany, Italy,
and Spain have ordered a total of 620 Eurofighter aircraft in three tranches
from a consortium made up of European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co.
(EADS), Britain's BAE Systems and Italian group Alenia. But Britain now
wants production to be slowed and has demanded that a plan to equip the jets
with precision weapons be brought forward, according to recent media
reports. "We are heading into a serious situation now with tranche two,"
said Enders. "Four governments had wanted the contract signed in July. Three
parties have done their homework and one hasn't. That is causing a problem,"
he told reporters at a press conference near Bath in southwest England ahead
of the Farnborough Air Show, which opened July 19 near London. "We face a
serious risk that there could be a disruption to the program, which could be
costly for the taxpayers," said Enders. He estimated that the cost "could
run to between one billion and two billion euros." A British defense
ministry spokesman told AFP last week that Britain was still "committed" to
buying 232 aircraft. Germany agreed last year to purchase 180 Eurofighters
to be delivered between now and 2015 - the most expensive arms deal in the
history of the German armed forces. The Eurofighter project, which is in
competition with the U.S.-made Joint Strike Fighter, has been beset by
delays since it was conceived almost two decades ago.
nectoco
The struggling market for new airplanes received another boost with the
announcement that Etihad Airways ordered 24 planes from Airbus for around $7
billion (?5.6 billion). In a press conference at the Farnborough air show,
the state airline at the United Arab Emirates said it is buying four new
A380 jumbo jets, along with 12 A330-200s, four A340-5Ms and tour A340-600s
from Airbus, Toulouse, France. Once the planes are delivered in 2006 and
2007, Etihad's fleet will grow to 30 airplanes from six. The U.A.E. airline
also may add 12 more airplanes. On Monday, Airbus rival Boeing Co. received
an order from another Gulf airline. Emirates, for 13 777s in a deal worth
nearly $3 billion. Separately, in the first major defense announcement at
the air show, U.K. Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon said a consortium led by
French defense-electronics company Thales SA has been selected as preferred
bidder for a £800 million (?1.2 billion) surveillance drone program.
nectoco
State-run Turkish Airlines (THY) said on Wednesday it would buy 36 planes
from European maker Airbus and 15 from U.S.-based Boeing Co. "We decided at
our executive board meeting on Tuesday to buy five A330/200s, twelve
A321/200s and nineteen A320/200 planes from Airbus and fifteen B737/800 jets
from Boeing," THY said in a statement faxed to the Istanbul stock exchange.
The purchases are part of the national carrier's plans to expand its fleet,
which currently comprises 70 planes, the statement said. The order includes
five large-body, long-distance planes from Airbus and 46 medium-distance
planes from both Airbus and Boeing, it said. The announcement of the
decision coincides with a visit to France by Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip
Erdogan, who told reporters on Tuesday evening that talks between Airbus and
THY were in "the final stage". He gave no details of the purchases. The
talks with Airbus and Boeing have been going on for months amid a boom in
Turkish domestic air travel
nectoco
Source: Bloomberg du 20.07.2004
Airbus SAS's A380, a 555-seat aircraft set to enter service in 2006, is
almost 2 percent heavier than the weight target set when the manufacturer
first decided to build the plane. Airbus Chief Executive Noel Forgeard said.
Airbus has promised customers such as Singapore Airlines Ltd. that the A380
will be 15 percent to 20 percent cheaper to operate than Boeing Co.'s
747-400, carrying 35 percent more passengers, and with a 10 percent greater
range. Forgeard said the Toulous, Francebased planemaker still will meet
those goals. ''The battle of the bulge is an ongoing struggle for
manufacturers on all aircraft programs, and this one is no different,''
Forgeard said at the Farnborough Air Show. While the empty plane, without
cabin furnishings, fuel or passengers, is above the target, he said, that
only amounts to 1 percent of the maximum takeoff weight of 560 tons of the
fully fitted out plane. Failure to meet weight goals to a degree that
compromises the plane's performance would result in financial penalties and
could erode Airbus's lead over Boeing in the $50 billion a year commercial
jet market. Forgeard said the company would be able to ''fulfill all our
contractual performance'' criteria. Forgeard also said that Airbus is
pressing suppliers of socalled buyer-furnished equipment such as seats and
entertainment systems that get installed at the end of construction, to keep
down the weight. Airbus has sold 129 of the double-decker planes to
Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Deutsche Lufthansa AG and eight other
customers. Forgeard said today that the planemaker will have another
customer to announce at Farnborough this week. Tim Clark, president of
Dubai-based Emirates, the plane maker's largest customer for the A380, said
earlier this month that the plane is about 1.7 percent above the 239-ton
target at which Emirates ordered the plane. That weight is without cabin
furnishings, fuel or passengers.
nectoco
Airbus décroche un contrat géant avec la compagnie Etihad . Lavionneur
européen a signé un accord avec une compagnie d'Abu Dhabi portant sur
l'achat de 24 appareils pour près de 4,5 milliards de dollars. . Un succès
qui conforte la suprématie d'Airbus dans les avions de plus de 100 places.
Airbus a assommé hier la concurrence au salon aéronautique de Farnborough en
annonçant la signature d'un protocole d'accord (.mémorandum of
ttiidersfandiitg) portant sur l'achat par la compagnie aérienne d'Abu Dhabi,
Etihad, de 24 appareils fermes, dont 4 énormes A380, pour un montant de
l'ordre de 4,5 milliards de dollars. La signature du contrat devrait
intervenir en septembre, a précisé le président d'Etihad, Sheikh Ahmed
al-Nehyan. Au total, le contrat s'élève à environ 7 milliards de dollars, en
tenant compte des 12 options, dont les modèles n'ont pas été déterminés,
Etihad voulant se donner encore du temps pour réfléchir. Ce succès conforte
Airbus en tant aue leader actuel du marché des avions de plus de 100 places
mais aussi dans la catégorie des gros-porteurs, les modèles très lucratifs.
Durant les six premiers mois de 2004, il a déjä lit-re 44 appareils
gros-porteurs. Et le président d'Airbus, Noël Forgeard, a confié lundi que
la cadence des livraisons de ces appareils va passer de 6 à 8 par mois a la
fin de cette année et en 2005. Ambition. ,tgée de huit mois, la jeune
compagnie Etihad, dont la stratégie commerciale porte sur l'achat d'avions
gros-porteurs elle possède déjà une flotte de quatre A330-200 et d'un A340-
300 -, a en outre sélectionné quatre très long-courriers A340- 500, auatre
A340-600 ainsi que douze A330-200, un biréacteur préféré au prochain avion
de Boeing, le 7E7. Le président d'Etihad a d'ailleurs précisé qu'il avait
besoin rapidement de ces appareils en vue d'accompagner la croissance de sa
compagnie. Il a donc écarté le 7E7 car le futur appareil de Boeing ne sera
pas en service avant 2008. " Ce qui est trop long pour nous >, a-t-il
estimé. Dans ce cadre les A330- 200 et A340-500 seront livrables dès 2006 et
Etihad recevra ses premiers A340-600 et A380 en 2007. En outre, Sheikh Ahmed
al-Nehyan a souligné que son choix avait également été dicté par des
considérations de formation à la maintenance, l'A330 ayant là aussi sa
préférence. La compagnie émirarie exploitera ses appareils pour développer
son réseau au Moyen-Orient et à destination de l'Europe, l'Asie, l'Inde et
l'Amérique du Nord. Les quatre A380 seront utilisés pour desservir la Chine
et l'Asie. Ce contrat pour Etihad s'inscrit dans la compétition très dure
dans le Golfe, avec ses trois concurrents, AirArabia, GulfAir et surtout
Emirates. Pour autant, a souligné Sheikh Ahmed al-Nehyan, « aujourd'hui
marque une nouvelle étape de notre ambition de. devenir l'une des premières
compagnies de la région mais aussi du monde ». En vue d'accompagnei son
développement, qui se heurte pour le moment au manque de créneau,z de
décollage et d'atterrissage (slots) dans les principaux aéroports mondiaux,
Etihad table sur une flotte de « plus de 50 appareils à l'horizon 2008 ».
Contrat pour Rolls-Royce. Dans la foulée, le motoriste britannique
Rolls-Royce a emporté un contrat de 400 millions de dollars portant sur la
motorisaüon des huit Airbus A340-500 et A340-600 achetés par Etihad. Les
moteurs pour les quatre A380 et les douze A330 n'ont, eux, pas encore été
choisis.
nectoco
Source: reuters du 20.07.2004
Boeing Co said on Tuesday that delivery slots for its new 7E7 aircraft were
fully booked for all of 2008 and 2009 and for 80 percent of 2010. Speaking
at a briefing at the Farnborough air show, 7E7 senior vice president Mike
Bair also said that, of the 24 airline deposits on the new efficient plane
already received, none are from aircraft leasing companies. Bair said that
was due to the interest from the airline operators themselves. "The market
interest in this airplane is nothing short of phenomenal," Bair said.
Boeing's first all-new airplane programme in a decade, which will seat
around 250 passengers, the 7E7 was given the final go-head by Boeing's board
of directors earlier this year. Spokeswoman Yvonne Leach said the world's
second largest commercial airplane manufacturer plans to produce about 90 to
95 7E7s in the first two years, with initial production slow and then
picking up. A stretch version is planned around 2012. Japan's All Nippon
Airways <9202.T> placed the initial order for 50 7E7s in April. Interest
from Asia in particular is said by many Boeing officials to be strong. Air
New Zealand, British travel firm First Choice Holidays Pic and Italian
charter airline Blue Panorama have also signed tentative deals for the 7E7.
Boeing is promising airlines a 10 percent to 15 percent improvement in
operating costs. A major shift is the incrased amount of composites being
used on the plane, which are lighter and cost much less to assemble than
riveting sheets of aluminum. The Chicago-based aerospace company, which runs
its commercial jet operations from Seattle, sees a market for about 3,500 of
the 7E7 type of aircraft. The twin-engined 7E7 Dreamliner will succeed the
Boeing 757 and 767 and compete with European rival Airbus's A330. Based on
the sales' forces experience in the last six months of trying to sell the
plane, Bair said, "We are very very comfortable with the overall market
forecast...we're not yet into the push mode."
nectoco
nectoco
Boeing a évalue mardi a 5.400 milliards de dol lars le marché des nouveaux
avions de ligne
et des Services aenens au cours des vingt prochaines annees, en raison d'un
doublement de la flotte aerienne mondiale. Randy Baseler, vice-president de
Boeing Commerdal Airplanes dharge du Marketing, a dedar# que qudque 25.000
nouveaux avions de transport seraient adietes pendant les vingt ans ä venir.
Les transports aeriens mondiaux devraient, d'apres lui, connaitre une
croissance de 5,2 % par an.
nectoco
Source: Bloomberg du 20.07.2004
Bombardier Inc., the world's thirdbiggest commercial-aircraft maker, said a
new model that it may develop would be more efficient than Airbus SAS and
Boeing Co. planes of a similar size because of new engine technology.
''These two companies are focussed on the larger planes at this point,''
said Pierre Beaudoin, president of the company's aircraft business, in an
interview during the Farnborough Air Show. ''The technology to achieve the
targets we set for ourselves was not available until now.'' Montreal-based
Bombardier is studying whether to spend about $2 billion to go after a $250
billion market over 20 years with three versions of a so-called Series model
that would have 110 seats or 135 seats. Beaudoin may recommend developing
the plane to the company's board early next year. Boeing's smallest airliner
seats 106 and Airbus's seats 107. Beaudoin said the aircraft that those
competitors offer are based on designs that are more efficient for larger
numbers of seats. ''We're going to design the plane specifically for that
category, giving the airlines better economics,'' Beaudoin said.
International Aero Engines is in discussions with Bombardier on possible
development of a new engine for the aircraft, said Mike King, chief
executive officer of the venture, in a briefing at the Farnborough Air Show.
IAE is a venture of Rolls Royce Group Pic, United Technologies Corp.'s Pratt
& Whitney unit, MTU Aero Engines GmbH of Germany and Japanese Aero Engines
Corp. 'IAE Route' The venture's member companies ''are supporting IAE as the
route'' to compete for the contract instead of developing engines
themselves, he said. lAE's V2500 models power Airbus A319, 320 and 321
models and competes with CFM International, a venture of General Electric
Co. and Snecma SAS. CFM is unlikely to compete to put an engine on the
aircraft, Pierre Fabre, CEO of the venture, said in an interview yesterday.
'"We thought about it, and we came to the conclusion that we don't see what
we can offer that makes sense,'' Fabre said. General Electric, the world's
biggest jet-engine maker ahead of Pratt and Rolls-Royce, would ''in all
likelihood'' have to develop a new engine if the company decided to compete,
David Calhoun, who oversees GE Aircraft Engines as chief executive of GE
Transportation, said in an interview yesterday.
nectoco
Source: La Tribune du 21.07.2004
Les vingt-cinq et la Commission ne veulent pas s'engager, pour l'heure, dans
la prise en charge d'une partie du risque terroriste qui menace les
compagnies aériennes. Bruxelles a invité, lundi dernier, les Etats membres à
se pencher sur les rumeurs persistantes qui prêtent l'intention aux
assureurs de ne plus couvrir les compagnies aériennes pour les dommages
qu'occasionnerait une bombe « sale .>. Invitée ä cette réunion,
l'Association européenne de l'aviation (AEA) a expliqué, qu'elle a reçu « de
très forts signaux » en provenance des assureurs. Ces derniers
s'estimeraient incapables de faire face aux dégâts qu'engendrerait
l'explosion, au-dessus d'une ville, d'une bombe radioactive, chimique ou
bactériologique placée dans un avion civil. Ils envisageraient donc de
suspendre la couverture de ce risque dès les prochains renouvellements de
contrats, qui commencent en septembre. Réticences. Les vingt-cinq, comme la
Commission, savent qu'une parade s'imposerait alors pour éviter que les
avions ne restent cloués au sol : la prise en charge du risque « bombe
sale » par les pouvoirs publics. Ou à tout le moins, la limitation des
montants couverts par les assurances privées - les dépassements étant payés
sur les deniers publics. Mais visiblement, ni Bruxelles, ni les Etats
membres ne veulent mettre le doigt dans ce mécanisme. Les représentants
français, notamment celui de la Délégation générale de l'aviation civile,
ont signifié qu'ils refhsaient, en l'état actuel des informations, tout
engagement financier sur ce dossier. Les responsables européens ne veulent
pas s'engager plus avant sans connaître les intentions réelles des
assureurs - d'autant que l'hsh reconnait qu'elle ne dispose que de
déclarations orales pour alimenter ses craintes. « Expliquer aujourd'hui que
nous pallieront les défaillances des assureurs reviendrait à dédencner
inévitablement leur retrait, alors que rien n'est fait », explique un
diplomate à Bruxelles. Les assureurs n'ont d'ailleurs pas été conviés à la r
éunion de lundi « afin de ne pas offrir une tribune qui les aurait incités à
précipiter d'éventuelles annonces », poursuit ce responsable. Pressions. A
Bruxelles, on n'écarte pas la possibilité que les compagnies aériennes
européennes relaient la rumeur pour forcer la main à la Commission et aux
Etats. Pure coïncidence ? L'AEA a présenté en février dernier un projet,
baptisé « New Eurotime » : il exige que les Etats allègent les contraintes
qui pèsent sur les compagnies, en garantissant la prise en charge publique
d'une partie des risques terroristes. L'objectif de l'AEA est de combler le
fossé qui sépare les compagnies européennes de leurs concurrentes
américaines. Depuis le 11 septembre 2001, outre- Atlantique, le gouvernement
apporte en effet sa garantie aux compagnies nationales pour couvrir le
risque terroriste. La Commission, elle, a mis fin à un mécanisme similaire
dès octobre 2002. Depuis, les compagnies européennes dépenseraient près de 1
milliard d'euros pour une assurance de moindre qualité du risque terroriste.
Grégoire Pinson, à Bruxelles
nectoco
La Commission européenne poursuit son bras de fer en vue d'obtenir la
dénonciation des différents accords aériens bilatéraux noués entre les
gouvernements européens et les Etats-Unis
Source: La Correspondance économique du 21.07.2004
La Commission européenne a ouvert hier de nouvelles procédures Judiciaires
contre les Etats membres de l'UE pour obtenir la dénonciation de leurs
accords aériens bilatéraux avec les Etats- Unis. Ces accords ont été déjà
jugés incompatibles avec la législation communautaire par la justice
européenne, au motif qu'ils n'ouvrent de droits de trafic transatlantique
qu'aux seules compasnies nationales et non à l'ensemble des compagnies
européennes. Ainsi, Bruxelles a mis en demeure huit Etats membres de
dénoncer (eurs accords, ceux-là même qui ont déjà été condamnés par la Cour
européenne de justice en novembre 2002 : le Danemark, la Suède, la Finlande,
la Belgique, le Luxembourg, l'Autriche, l'Allemagne et le Royaume-Uni. En
cas de refus d'obtempérer, ces derniers s'exposent à une nouvelle action
devant la Cour de justice, pouvant déboucher cette foisci sur une
condamnation à verser des astreintes quotidiennes tant qu'ils ne se seront
pas en règle. L'initiative bruxelloise intervient quelques semaines après le
refus des ministres des Transports de l'UE d'accepter de remplacer les
accords bilatéraux par un nouvel accord général UE/Etats-Unis, plus conforme
au droit communautaire. Les ministres avaient estimé que Bruxelles, chargée
de mener les négociations avec Washington, n'avait pas réussi à obtenir de
propositions suffisamment intéressantes des Américains. La Commission va
également poursuivre une première fois les Pays-Bas devant la Cour
européenne de justice pour son accord bilatéral et entamer des procédures
contre la France, l'Italie et le Portugal. Huit autres Etats vont recevoir
une demande d'information informelle, la Commission ne souhaitant pas ouvrir
tout de suite les hostilités. Au final, seuls cinq Etats membres n'ayant pas
encore d'accord aérien bilatéral avec les Etats-Unis, n'encourent pas les
foudres de la Commission.
nectoco
Lawmakers Try To Restart USAF Tanker Aircraft Deal
Source: Defense News du 20.07.2004
A congressional conference committee is trying to refuel the stalled U.S.
Air Force tanker deal. House and Senate members on an appropriations
conference committee agreed July 14 to include $100 million in the 2005
Defense Appropriations bill to jumpstart a plan for replacing aging KC-135
aerial refueling tankers, according to Rep. Norman Dicks, D-Wash., one of
the conference committee members. Dicks said conferees want the Air Force to
begin leasing and buying 100 new refueling tankers from Boeing as soon as
possible. Language approved by the conferees sets up a $100 million 'tanker
replacement transfer fund" that Dicks said is to be used to speed up an
analysis of tanker alternatives and move as quickly as possible "to
implement the current tanker replacement program of record." Dicks said that
language refers specifically to a deal worked out last fall for the Air
Force to lease 20 and buy 80 Boeing 767 aircraft configured to serve as
aerial refueling tankers. Dicks' constituents include many Boeing workers.
Even as they push for progress on the tanker replacements, the conferees
noted that there are so many unanswered questions about the tanker deal -
and about Boeing's relationship with the Air Force - that they cannot yet
specifically appropriate money for the 20/80 tanker deal. The deal is
tainted by suspected overpricing, alleged influence peddling and other Air
Force and Boeing misdeeds. One former Air Force official turned Boeing
executive, Darleen Druyun, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy for negotiating
for a job with Boeing while serving as a senior Air Force contract officer
working on Boeing contracts. With several investigations and reviews still
underway, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld put the tanker deal on hold at
least until November. Among other things, the Air Force is accused of
failing to conduct a meaningful analysis of alternatives before negotiating
a $29 billion deal with Boeing to lease and then buy 100 refueling tankers.
In a compromise last fall, the Senate Armed Services Committee agreed to a
$23.5 billion deal in which the Air Force would lease 20 and buy 80 Boeing
tankers. But questions remain about whether there are cheaper alternatives,
including upgrading existing KC-135 tankers that are an average of 43 years
old The $100 million that Appropriations Committee conferees have earmarked
for new tankers is only enough to "get us a start" on buying a new fleet,
Dicks said. "I hope November comes, the analysis of alternatives comes in
and it says that a derivative of the 767 is the best alternative," he said.
Dicks said he strongly opposes some suggested alternatives such as building
a new tanker - which would be costly and time consuming - or buying used DC-
10s or other planes with some life left in them and converting them into
refueling tankers. The appropriations conferees also hope to slam the door
on yet another option - buying European-made Airbus tankers. In a report
that accompanies the appropriations bill, the conferees strongly urge the
Department of Defense to thoroughly consider the effects on the U.S.
aircraft industrial base of any and all tanker replacement program
alternatives." Buying foreign-built tankers would be a serious blow to
Boeing. Dicks said a decision on a final deal could be signed with Boeing
next spring.
nectoco
The British government named a consortium led by French defence electronics
maker Thales SA as the preferred bidder for a $1.5 billion military aerial
observation contract on Tuesday. The UK Ministry of Defence picked the
Thales group -- which includes Israel's Elbit Systems, Anglo-Dutch LogicaCMG
, Vega Group and Marshall SV -- over a group led by U.S.-based Jtorthrop
Grumman. The "Watchkeeper" contract, valued at around 800 million pounds
($1.5 billion), will supply the British army with a fleet of unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, used in military surveillance.
France's Thales said in March it would base its UAV business in Britain if
it won the contract. Thales said in March it would reveal details of its
plans after the bidding date, including where in Britain components such as
airframes, engines, sensors and ground stations will be manufactured. A
market source in Tel Aviv told Reuters that Elbit would receive about half
of the value of the contract, or $750 million. Elbit officials would not
immediately comment on the value of their share of the deal. They said
Watchkeeper was due to enter service in 2006.
nectoco
Source: reuters du 20.07.2004
A new maritime version of Northrop Grumann Corp's unmanned spy plane Global
Hawk likely has enough interest to support production, due to the plane's
success in Iraq and Afghanistan, a company executive said on Tuesday. The
company is "in discussions" with several potential purchaser of the newest
Global Hawk model, the RQ-4B, Edward Walby, Northrop's manager for business
development for the Global Hawk programme. These include U.S. agencies
including NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the
Department of Homeland Security, as well as Maro and Australia, Walby told
reporters at the Farnborough air show. "Those that have maritime concerns as
well as long distances to travel," are candidates for the plane, which can
snap images as clear as a person from 60,000 feet in the air, said Walby.
"There are an infinate number of applications." The $30-million plane is a
combined effort between companies that include radar and imaging system
maker Raytheon, L-3 Communications Holdings, which designed equipment to
operate the plane remotely from anywhere in the world, and engine builder
Rolls Royce. The cost does not include expenses for ground control and
operations. The Global Hawk RQ-4A, usually operated by two people on the
ground, was able to produce clear images of targets through sandstorms and
windstorms during combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. The plane was credited
with identifying about 300 Iraqi tanks, or 38 percent of the country's known
armor. Currently, the planes are being used in the "global war on
terrorism", though Walby declined to be more specific, citing security
concerns. The design for the newest "B" model is 99 percent complete and is
expected to be delivered to the Air Force in January of 2007, Northrqp said.
Currently, the Air Force has no plans to arm the Global Hawk, since there
are other unmanned aerial vehicles to take on that role, said Walby.
nectoco
L'armée roumaine a mis en vente ses 18 derniers avions de combat Mig 29
achetés à l'ex-URSS entre 1980 et 1989. Le ministère de la Défense a indiqué
que la vente de ces appareils était plus rentable que leur modernisation.
L'armée roumaine, qui compte une centaine de Mig 21, envisage de se doter à
moyen terme de nouveaux avions de combat.
nectoco
RUSSIAN, INDIAN SPACE AGENCIES SIGN COOPERATION PROTOCOL.
Source: RIA Novosty du 19.07.2004
Anatoly Perminov and Madhavan Nair, respective chiefs of the Russian and
Indian space agencies, have signed a protocol on further cooperation,
according to Vyacheslav Davydenko, spokesman for Russia's Federal Space
Agency. They also introduced amendments to the draft agreement on activities
in the sphere of space that is to be signed late next year. Messrs Perminov
and Nair discussed prospects for the joint restoration and use of the global
satellite network and the possibility of launching Russian spacecraft on
Indian-made boosters. The conferees also discussed the possibility of
developing equipment for Earth probes, joint research in the area of
electric engines for spacecraft, and joint projects for probing lunar
surface and building a solar observatory, i.e. a spacecraft to study
Roentgen rays. Mr Perminov updated the Indian delegates on the results of
Russia's administrative reform and its effect on the Federal Space Agency.
Mr Perminov also voiced satisfaction with current Russian-Indian
cooperation. "We regard India as a great space power," said Mr Perminov.
Doctor Nair said the two countries' positions on a range of international
space-related issues coincided and fell perfectly in line with the world's
integration processes. Peaceful cooperation in the sphere of space has been
an important part of Russian-Indian relations, which dates back to the
1970s. In the 1970s-80s, the Soviet Union began launching first Indian
satellites from its Baikonur launching site. The first ever Indian cosmonaut
implemented a research programme on board the Soviet Salyut-7 space station
in 1984
nectoco
EADS Defence Electronics adapte son système d'alerte missiles MILDS à une
nouvelle configuration - MILDS-F - en vue de répondre aux besoins
spécifiques des avions de combat.
Les forces aériennes royales du Danemark (RDAF) ont attribué un contrat à
EADS Defence Electronics pour la fourniture de trente systèmes de ce type,
en coopération avec la société danoise TERMA A/S, chargée de leur
intégration à bord des F-16 de la RDAF.
nectoco
La compagnie nationale Turkish Airlines vient de signer un protocole d'
accord pour l'acquisition de trente-six Airbus : dix-neuf A320, douze A321
et cinq A330-200. Le contrat correspondant devrait être signé prochainement.
Le transporteur turc, qui assure actuellement des liaisons domestiques et
internationales via Istanbul, devrait prendre livraison de ces nouveaux
appareils à compter de fin 2005, et les mettre en service sur ses lignes
intérieures, ainsi que sur ses lignes internationales à moyenne et longue
distance.
nectoco
Source: Wall Street Journal du 21.07.2004
European Aeronautic Defense & Space Co., the parent of Airbus, wants to be
known as more than that. EADS wants to crack the U.S. defense market in a
big way - but faces high political hurdles. In addition to holding 80% of
Airbus, the French, German and Spanish aerospace conglomerate owns one of
the world's largest helicopter makers, Eurocopter. Its space division is a
leading producer of satellites and is the main builder of Europe's Ariane
rockets. Most significant, EADS is entering the top rank of global defense
giants. EADS recently landed big military contracts in France, Britain and
as far afield as Australia. Several long-gestating pan-European projects it
is leading finally are coming to life, including the Eurofighter, the A400M
military-transport plane and the Tiger attack helicopter. Thanks to these,
its defense revenue will grow to 10 billion euros ($12.4 billion) next year
from 6 billion euros in 2002, executives predict. But EADS remains a small
player in the world's largest defense market, the U.S. Its success in the
U.S. will determine how big a defense player EADS ultimately can become,
industry officials say. While Britain's BAE Systems PLC has built up a
substantial base of work for the U.S. Department of Defense, EADS hardly
registers on the Pentagon's radar screen. EADS's efforts to win more defense
work in the U.S. have sparked anger from some U.S. politicians, who are
upset by Airbus's success in winning market share in the passenger-jet
market from U.S. aerospace icon Boeing Co. Sen. Patty Murray from the state
of Washington, where Boeing builds planes, recently said in a speech to the
Senate: "EADS and Airbus have launched a deceptive PR and lobbying campaign
to convince the U.S. government that it is essentially an American company."
EADS Co-Chief Executive Rainer Hertrich says he "knew from the beginning
that entering the defense market is not easy in any country, and especially
in the U.S." He says building EADS's U.S. presence is "a long-term target."
EADS already has made significant inroads to the U.S. homeland-security
market with Eurocopter helicopters and with military-transport planes bought
by the U.S. Coast Guard. EADS is building small factories in Alabama and
Mississippi to assemble and support those aircraft - a sign, Mr. Hertrich
says, of its commitment to investing in the U.S. When EADS was created in
1999, many industry observers saw it as simply a vehicle to convert Airbus
from a loose industrial consortium into a true corporation; the companies
consolidated into EADS together owned 80% of the plane maker. (BAE Systems
owns the other 20%.) Most of EADS's other operations seemed an afterthought.
Some analysts said they should be spun off and EADS simply disappear once
Airbus became a real company in July 2000. The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks on the U.S. overnight boosted the significance of EADS's non-Airbus
operations, as the commercial-airliner business suffered. Airbus managed to
limit the damage and avoid wrenching cutbacks, but prospects for jetliner
sales suddenly looked less rosy. So EADS pushed hard to rationalize and
enhance its disparate defense, space and other divisions. Co-Chief Executive
Philippe Camus says the "first part" of EADS's life was devoted to its
integration and organization. "Now it's done," he says. "EADS is entering
the second stage of its life." EADS's structure looks increasingly like that
of rival Boeing. Once mainly an airplane maker, Boeing in recent years has
greatly expanded defense and space operations. EADS is doing the same. It
aims to boost defense to about 30% of revenue that EADS targets at roughly
40 billion euros in three or four years from 22% of its 30.1 billion euros
revenue last year. Mr. Hertrich says this will be possible because
militaries are shifting away from emphasizing traditional arms like tanks
and battleships, and toward high-tech systems like precision-guided weapons
that require connecting soldiers to data networks. "Our aerospace business
is benefiting from the defense transformation," Mr. Hertrich says. Just as
Boeing has done, EADS "can bring synergies of the group," he says. EADS's
defense division, for example, is tapping Airbus jetliners as military
"platforms," such as planes used for midair refueling or airborne
surveillance. The space division is working on defense projects, including
militarycommunications satellites, missile-defense networks and guidance
systems. That's a big boost for the space operation, which, like most space
companies, suffered badly since the telecommunications boom of the 1990s
ended. EADS has cut 30% of the division's staff and radically reorganized
the unprofitable division, which it expects to break even this year. Mr.
Hertrich concedes that "these days, space is not an attractive business,"
but he considers the division "a strategic asset" that gives EADS "a
competitive advantage, particularly for the military business." EADS's broad
product range means "we feel we have something to offer," Mr. Hertrich says.
Indeed, several top Pentagon officials have said they would like EADS to
compete for big contracts. Ralph Crosby, a former executive at U.S. defense
giant Northrop Grumman Corp. and now head of EADS's North American
operation, is working to boost EADS's visibility and industrial presence.
"Our U.S. footprint is critical for our viability in the
government-procurement market," he says.
nectoco
Source: Financial Times du 22.07.2004
General Dynamics, Honeywell and United Technologies, the defence
contractors, yesterday reported double-digit jumps in earnings for the
second quarter as the US military spent more on combat hardware and systems.
The three companies also gained from the improving civil aviation
environment. Honeywell and United Technologies lifted their earnings
guidance for the full year. The two companies are exposed to the broader
global economy through businesses providing factory controls, heating and
air conditioning, and lifts. Both reported higher revenues in these sectors,
but said they faced a "headwind" in the form of high costs for raw materials
such as iron and steel. The ability to pass on high commodity costs has
improved, according to David Anderson, Honeywell chief financial officer.
"Pricing is not the same drag it was," he said. Sales of military
communications systems and warships boosted the quarterly earnings of
General Dynamics to $300m, or $1.49 per share - 22 per cent higher than the
same period last year. The company's business aviation group, which includes
Gulfstream aircraft, more than doubled its contribution to operating
earnings as cost controls took effect. Nicholas Chabraja, chairman and chief
executive, said he expected earnings of about $5.85 per share for the full
year, just above Wall Street's consensus. Honeywell also saw its defence
sales increase in the quarter, by 7 per cent compared with last year. The
company's biggest gains came from its aerospace division, which increased
sales by 14 per cent and contributed about $lOOm more to pre-tax profits
than a year ago. Net income for the quarter was $361m, or $0.42 per share -
13 per cent higher than a year ago. Mr Anderson said the aerospace division
had been driven by upgrades and spare parts. The comparison with the same
quarter in 2003 is flattering because that period was weakened by Sars and
the Iraq war, Mr Anderson said. The company raised its earnings guidance for
2004 to $1.60-$1.70 per share, from $1.50-$1.60 per share. United
Technologies, which makes aerospace systems and Pratt & Whitney aircraft
engines, reported quarterly earnings 32 per cent up compared with the second
quarter of 2003 at $837m, or $1.66 per share. "This was a very strong
quarter," said George David, chairman and chief executive. Mr David raised
the earnings forecast for 2004 from $5.40 to $5.50 per share.
nectoco
Source: International Herald Tribune du 22.07.2004
Hopes are high, but short-term practical expectations low for the new
European Defense Agency created in the aftermath of the Iraq war to help
shore up the European Union's common foreign security policy. A unified
front is probably the best way for European countries to provide security
and counter what they say are heavy-handed tactics favored by Washington and
the U.S. aerospace companies, said several executives from European defense
companies who attended the air show here this week. But they fear the
European agency, which aims to consolidate defense-related research and
spending in Britain and on the Continent, will be hobbled by bureaucracy.
Some worry that it may be stifled by shrinking defense budgets - and
ultimately rendered impotent if its members are unable to agree on anything.
"There's a great debate in Europe about the amount of research and
development spending, and about how Europe takes care of its own defense
without being reliant on the United States," said lan McNamee, managing
director of Gripen International, a Swedish-British company that makes
fighter jets. Sparked by tensions over the Iraq war, which threatened to
destabilize the European Union's common foreign security policy, the
European Defense Agency was created in November, and funded in June, several
years earlier than originally planned. The agency's annual budget is a
relatively tiny ?25 million, or $30.7 million. That compares with the $195
billion European countries spent on defense in 2003, or the more than $400
billion spent by the United States. Still, the agency's mandate is huge:
find Europe's defense shortfalls, then coordinate spending and research
among EU countries long accustomed to competing to create the best
technologies and sell the most products. U.S. officials have been critical
of the project, in part because it operates outside of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization. European companies argue that the European Defense
Agency will ultimately be beneficial to the United States. "We're not doing
this against the United States, as is often wrongly understood," said
Philippe Camus, chief executive of European Aeronautic Defense & Space and
one of the most vocal supporters of the agency. "We're doing it to be a real
partner, not to contradict." U.S. defense companies have been pushing
European countries to buy American weapons and equipment, even as Congress
talks of a "Buy American" bill that would limit U.S. purchase of European
goods. "I don't think anyone wants to become a vassal state to the United
States" and be forced to buy products without access to the technology
behind them, Gripen's McNamee said. In June, Gripen won a contract to
produce 14 aircraft for the Czech Republic, beating out Lockheed Martin's
F-16. Before the decision was made, the U.S. ambassador's office in Prague
issued a statement asking the Czech government to think about "long-term
strategic considerations," a tactic that critics say earned the United
States little respect. Plans for a European agency have existed for many
years, "but this is the first time that the EU has had the political
authority to launch collective military operations," and has defined goals
for what it is trying to achieve, said Alyson Bailes, director of the
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which compiles
defense-spending statistics. New European Union members say they are
enthusiastic. "It's difficult to find the proper border" between cooperation
and competition, said Leos Liska, development manager at Lorn Praha, a Czech
company that modernizes aircraft to fit NATO standards and trains pilots.
One big issue will be who owns any copyrights for products developed under
the umbrella of the EDA, Liska added. Still, he said, "We have to quickly
embark on this movement. It is time to catch a wave." "No one wants to
criticize the program, because there's a slim chance that it might work, and
then you wouldn't get that business," said one executive from an
Italian-British defense company. The New York Times
nectoco
EADS va créer un joint-venture à 50-50 avec le groupe russe Irkout qui
regroupera les activités de marketing et de certification pour les appareils
bombardier d'eau Beriev 200, selon nos informations.
nectoco
Start-up Indian budget airline Kingfisher will buy four Airbus A320 jets and
has options to acquire eight more. Airbus announced on Wednesday. The
European planemaker said deliveries of the new aircraft, worth up to $770
million at list prices, would begin in the last quarter of 2005. Kingfisher
is the brainchild of colourful Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, whose UB
Group owns the Kingfisher beer label. Mallya said he would try to
distinguish the new airline from typical low-fare carriers, which have
grabbed customers away from traditional, full-service airlines using
knock-down prices. "We do not intend to start a price war in India," he
said. "I certainly do not intend to fly anybody for five quid." He said the
airline would target a growing number of affluent Indians and that he
expected to draw people new to flying, including rail travellers.
"Aspirational levels are rising rapidly in India," he said.
nectoco
Source: Financial Times du 22.07.2004
1 commend the FT for taking the lead in your editorial "Pots and kettles"
(July 13) discussing the complex issue of ongoing launch aid received by
Airbus. Unfortunately, you make several incorrect assertions, including the
claim that the 747 was "based on a military aircraft". Boeing was using
company funds to develop a "jumbo" commercial aircraft three years before
the US initiated the C5A programme. Boeing postponed work on the 747 while
it worked on its C-5A proposal, returning to the project after the company
lost the C-5A contract for heavy-cargo transport aircraft. As with all its
commercial aircraft, Boeing used its own money, plus funds borrowed from
commercial lenders, to design and build the 747. Government launch aid
allows Airbus to develop and market aircraft unconstrained by market forces
and without incurring full commercial risk. If an Airbus product fails, the
company does not pay back these below-market-rate government loans. Airbus's
$lSbn in upfront, risk-free, no-interest or low-interest government launch
aid has freed Airbus of at least $35bn in additional debt and shifted to the
European sponsor governments the commercial risk of aircraft development.
Boeing receives no such launch aid. It must either spend the earnings from
the profitability of its existing aircraft, or borrow money at commercial
rates, to fund new aircraft development. This asymmetry has allowed Airbus
to grow quickly to achieve a 50 per cent market share today. As you rightly
say: "Never has Airbus seemed less in need of taxpayer support."
nectoco
Boeing Co. (BA) said Wednesday that it received two firm orders for 747
freighter airplanes from Air China Cargo. Boeing Executive Vice President
Toby Bright said in an interview with journalists Wednesday that Air China
will make an official announcement in the next few days. Air China also
ordered engines from Pratt & Whitney Canada Corp. (PNW.YY), a unit of United
Technologies (UTX), said Pratt & Whitney spokesman Mark Sullivan. The order
for two PW4056 engines has a list value of $87 million, Sullivan said. He
said the aircraft and engines will be delivered in 2005 and 2006
nectoco
Boeing Co. is unlikely to receive orders from U.S. airlines for its new
efficient 7E7 jet this year, the U.S. aerospace giant said on Wednesday. "I
don't think that I would predict by the end of this year that we would have
announcements in the U.S., but I certainly think in 2005 we'll have
announcements from the U.S.," Boeing Executive Vice President of Sales Toby
Bright told reporters at the Farnborough air show near London. Bright said
the next orders for the aircraft were likely to come from Asia, Europe and
the Middle East. He declined to quantify how many orders would come from
each region but said it was likely there would be "one or two more" in
Europe this year. He said Boeing expected to finalise this week a pending
deal to sell two of its 747-400 cargo jets to Air China's cargo division.
The freight planes are worth around $200 million each at list prices. Bright
was also upbeat on the prospects for the 747 and the smaller 737. "What
really pleases me is the 747 is doing great and we're seeing it come back
strong," Bright said. "737s and 747s is where we see the main upward
pressure" in production rates.
nectoco
Source: Presseinformation du 21.07.2004
ATR (Avions de Transport Regional) et Air New Zealand ont annonce
aujourd'hui une commande pour 1 ATR 72-500 de nouvelle generation. Avec
cette nouvelle commande, la compagnie diente d'ATR depuis 1995 disposera
d'une flotte de 11 ATR 72. Cet appareil sera livre en novembre de cette
annee et opere par Mount Cook Airlines. Cette compagnie regionale, filiale
d'Air New Zealand basee ä Christen u rch, augmentera ainsi la frequence de
ses vols de 550 ä 600 par semaine. <rLes ATR nous donnent entiere
satisfaction en termes de confort, de faible consommat!on öe carburant et öe
resgect de 1'environnement. L'f17R est particulierement bien adapte ä nos
besoins et cette nouvelle commande va nous permettre de satisfaire notre
clientele qui est de plus en plus nombreuse-», a declare Peter O'Regan,
Directeur General de Mount Cook Airlines. Le reseau d'Air New Zealand se
concentre sur la region du Pacifique Sud avec des dessertes vers la Nouvelle
Zelande, l'Australie et les lies du Pacifique depuis l'Europe, l'Amerique du
nord et l'Asie. Les vols interieurs et regionaux sont assures par ses
filiales. Air New Zealand est membre de Star Alliance qui regroupe 15
compagnies aeriennes dans le monde operant 79 ATR. Filippo Bagnato,
President Executif d'ATR a declare : « Nous sommes tres satisfaits de cette
nouvelle commande qui demontre toute la confiance que Air New Zealand
accorde ä notre produit. Cet ATR 72-500 livre ä Air New Zealand sera le
300eme ATR 72 produit.» ATR est dejä tres present dans la zone Asie
Pacifique avec 88 ATR exploites par 19 compagnies aeriennes. ATR a vendu 688
avions (381 ATR 42 et 307 ATR 72) depuis le debut du Programme et enregistre
un total de 12 commandes depuis le debut de l'annee. ATR, base ä Toulouse,
est le leader mondial sur le marche des turbopropulseurs de 50 ä 70 Sieges.
ATR est un partenariat ä parts egales entre Alenia Aeronautica (Groupe
Finmeccanica) et EADS (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company).
nectoco
Source: La Croix du 22.07.2004
Selon le parquet de Pontoise (Val-d'Oise), la matière de la lamelle sur
laquelle a roulé le Concorde au décollage avant de s'écraser en juillet 2000
a eu une «incidence directe» dans l'accident qui a fait 113 victimes. Cette
pièce en titane, provenant d'un DC10, se trouvait sur la piste et avait
sectionné le pneu du supersonique. Elle avait été installée auparavant à
Houston (États-Unis) en remplacement de la lamelle d'origine, constituée
dans un autre alliage. Or, des expertises ont démontré que l'alliage
d'origine ne «coupe pas les pneus», contrairement au titane. Le juge
d'instruction s'intéresse désormais aux raisons et à la régularité du
remplacement de la lamelle.
nectoco
Le groupe Thales a été sélectionné par Airbus Military en tant que
fournisseur d'équipements électroniques pour le programme du futur avion
militaire de transport européen A400M, ont annoncé hier Airbus et Thaïes au
Salon de Famborough. Le montant de ce contrat est évalué à 130 millions
d'euros, a précisé le patron d'Airbus, Noël Forgeard. Thaïes fournira avec
sa filiale allemande, Diehl Avionik Systems, les écrans de contrôle du
cockpit de l'A400M, l'avionique modulaire intégrée et le « viseur tête
haute ». L'A400M, avion-cargo de transport de troupes et de blindés légers,
a fait l'objet de 180 commandes par huit pays, et constitue le plus
important projet industriel militaire jamais mené en coopération européenne.
nectoco
Après l'achat des drones (avions sans pilote) au français Thales (voir « La
Tribune » d'hier), le ministre de la Défense britannique, Geoff Hoon, a
annoncé hier aux Communes que son pays allait acquérir de nouveaux missiles
« à très grande vitesse ». Selon nos informations, il s'agit des missiles
sol-air de courte portée Starstreak fabriqués par Thales UK à Belfast et
concurrents du Mistral de MBDA (filiale d'EADS et BAe Systems). Le montant
du contrat, qui doit être signé dans les prochains jours avec le ministère
britannique de la Défense (MoD), s'élève à environ 180 millions de livres.
Thales attend également la signature imminente avec le MoD du contrat AVTS
(armoured vehicle training service), services liés aux véhicules blindés de
l'armée britannique. Le montant de ce contrat, via un partenariat
public-privé (PFT) est estimé entre 300 et 800 millions de livres sur trente
ans. Michel Cabirol, ä Farnboroztgh