Commercial Aircraft Sales

Meanwhile, Denver International Airport is shaping up as a potentially important new hub for both US domestic and international services. The new airport, which is under construction on a 53sq mile site 29km from Denver’s CBD, is scheduled to be opened in October 1993. Denver officials note that the airport is located equidistant from Tokyo and Munich, which from Denver would enable extended range twinjets to reach both cities nonstop. With such a well placed site, Den- ver officials appear confident that their new airport will boost domestic traffic in the region, allowing the airport to become the third busiest airport in passenger volume by the year 2000.

One problem with the plan, however, is that the city may have difficulty attracting a major airline to establish Denver as a hub base. Delta already have a hub at Salt Lake City, and are unlikely to require another so close. American is unlikely to need Denver as a hub unless its plans for Dallas/Fort Worth are stalled. Northwest and USAir are seen as potential hub developers, however certainly not in the next few years. Continental is presently the largest operator into Denver.

As for the present Denver airport at Stapleton, officials are hoping to attract the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air & Space Museum to locate a western US exhibition centre at the site. However the NASM are not so keen, still being intent on establishing their second facility at Dulles International Airport, close to Washington and the main NASM exhibition and storage centre. Denver officials claim that their location would enable more people to visit the display, however with NASM already the top US tourist attraction the NASM are not exactly enthusiast to swap Dulles for Stapleton. Meanwhile Denver is seeking other developments for Stapleton, which will be closed to all aircraft traffic once the new airport is open.

Rmit Forms Aerospace Structures Research Centre:

The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) has established an Aerospace Structures Research Centre to “foster the development of an efficient and globally competitive Australian aerospace industry. . . ” The Centre will conduct research and development programs for the design and manufacture of advanced civil aerospace structures, concentrating on structures which employ advanced fibre reinforced composite construction. It is aimed for the research to “create a sharp increase in the export capability of the Australian industry enabling it to achieve a more competitive position in the rapidly growing world civil aerospace market and to raise its export performance to even higher standards. ” The Centre is a joint venture involving several organisations, and will undertake research in both Sydney and Melbourne. Aerospace Technologies of Australia (ASTA) and Hawker de Havilland are both key industry partners, bringing to the Centre significant composites design and manufacturing capabilities. All three university departments which currently offer aerospace education in Australia – RMIT, University of Sydney and University of NSW are also partners, and also bring a considerable aerospace research capability to the Centre. Monash University will also provide materials engineering expertise essential to the development of advanced structures, while the Aeronautical Research Laboratory (ARL) of the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) will contribute an extensive experimental capability.

Thus with such recognised and experienced organisations involved in the Aerospace Structures Research Centre, it is hoped to bring Australia to the forefront in this field, which offers great potential for aerospace technology development and foreign earnings. New aerospace researchers will be trained with degrees available at Doctoral and Masters degree level, while a new Master of Aerospace Engineering degree is being developed especially to promote the skills necessary in this very competitive industry.