HEADLINES

BUSI NESS
Eurocopter
picks US site
Eurocopter has selected a site in
Mississippi for its new US final
assembly plant for the Squirrel
helicopter and component manu-
facturing. The move comes as
the company steps up efforts to
break into the US military market
amid growing criticism of foreign
competition from incumbent local
manufacturer Sikorsky.
The EADS subsidiary plans to
invest an initial $12 million in the
new facility, which will be com-
pleted in late 2003. The plant will
be able to complete up to 30
AS350 Squirrels/AStars a year
for the local market and provide a
sole-source supply of compo-
nents for the AS350/355 and
EC 130 worldwide.
American Eurocopter claims
to have won more than a 50%
share of the US civil and para-
public market in the first nine
months of the year and hopes to
deliver 70 machines by year-end.
It is also targeting defence.
"It is a top priority to increase
our industrial presence and work-
force in the USA, particularly in
homeland security and defence,"
says Ralph Crosby, EADS chair-
man North America. But Sikorsky
president Dean Borgman says:
Any move by the USA to open
our defence market to Europeans
would represent unilateral
disarmament."
AIR TRANSPORT BRENDAN SOBIE / WASHINGTON DC
FedEx Express in talks to
acquire Continental ATRs
Proposed deal looks set to be the first of several for the type by freight giant
FedEx Express is in negotiations to
acquire eight ATR 42s from Con-
tinental Airlines as it looks set to
select the type as its new regional
feeder aircraft.
The aircraft are likely to be the
first of several ATR transactions
involving the US express packages
carrier, say industry sources. FedEx is
expected to quickly firm up deals on
as many as 30 ATR 42s and have
them in service with one or two of
its feeder partners by the middle of
next year.
Cargo kits could either be inst-
alled by conversion specialists or
FedEx's regional operators Empire
Airlines or Mountain Air Cargo. Sev-
eral modification specialists are vy-
ing to convert the aircraft to cargo
configuration. Empire and Moun-
tain, which operate 12 and 23 Fokk-
er F27s, respectively, have expressed
interest in changing to ATRs.
The ATR 42 was in competition
with the BAe ATP and the Saab 340
to meet FedEx's requirements for a
new turboprop freighter to replace
its 35 F27s (Flight International, 15-21
October). The competition began
last year after termination of the
Ayres Loadmaster programme, for
which FedEx had 75 commitments.
FedEx is not commenting on the
selection as it wants to acquire air-
craft before their value increases on
news of its interest.
Continental regional partner Ex-
press has already parked about half
of its 30 ATR 42s and will retire the
rest by year-end. Continental is try-
ing to sell the eight aircraft it owns,
while a variety of banks are respon-
sible for remarketing the other 22.
American Eagle also has 28 ATR 42s
but would prefer to sell its 71 Saab
340s to FedEx. FedEx favours acquir-
ing US-registered aircraft.
Italy's Aeronavali and Canada's
First Air and Exel Tech already offer
ATR 42 conversion programmes. US
firm Worldwide Aircraft Services,
which has converted several other
regional types, is also vying for the
business. Only Aeronavali offers a
full cargo door, but FedEx has not
yet decided if it wants to fly contain-
ers or bulk load the aircraft.
The Continental aircraft could be the first of up to 30 ATR 42s
TECHNOLOGY PETER LA FRANCHI / BRISBANE
Australia reveals electromagnetic pulse weapon
Australia's Defence Science and
Technology Organisation (DSTO)
has built an experimental reusable
high-power radio frequency
weapon with an impact zone of 20-
30m (65-100ft) as part of ongoing
research into electromagnetic-pulse
armaments able to destroy electri-
cal and electronic systems.
The weapon uses a combined bat-
tery and capacitor array to provide a
direct pulse energy source attached
to a pulse conditioning system and
antenna array. The conversion of
stored energy into a conditioned
RF signal in the 3GHz range is
described as taking less than Ins.
A photograph of weapon com-
ponents displayed by the DSTO at
the Australian Army's Land Warfare
Conference in Brisbane last week
showed a form of dipole antenna
array on either side of a cylindrical
RF pulse-conditioning unit.
The same display included a pho-
tograph of a 2.5m-diameter impulse
radiating antenna. DSTO officials
say that the antenna is part of a US
reusable RF weapon development
that is demonstrating 1.7-2kV/m
output at ranges of 2km (1.2 miles)
the DSTO's programme includes
reusable and single-use devices.
The display included a Raytheon
diagram showing an airborne high-
power reusable RF energy weapon
carried by a Lockheed Martin C-130.
The array was fitted to the fuselage
ahead of the port wing. DSTO offi-
cials say Raytheon plans to fly a pro-
totype on a C-130 within five years.
A paper released by the DSTO
reveals that state-of-the-art high-
power RF devices should be able
to demonstrate "effects generated
in targets at ranges of 100-200m".
Development of practical weapon
systems "with a range closer to the
lkm mark will depend on develop-
ments in compact pulsed power
systems and high-gain antenna
techniques", the DSTO says.
The paper also indicates that the
DSTO has problems developing
switches to handle the rapid RF
power rise before firing. Spark-gap
switching tends to limit the output,
but photoconductive semiconduc-
tors or similar solid-state devices
"give the promise for high-powered
arrays operating at pulse repetition
rates well above the 1kHz range",
it says.
The DSTO says that it is seeking
to develop an indigenous capabil-
ity which will enable Australia to
work with the UK and USA on
more advanced weapons.
8 29 OCTOBER - 4 NOVEMBER 2002 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL www.fliqhtinternational.com