Coastwatch Row Developing Considering the previous history of the Australian Coastwatch contract, it is probably no surprise to learn that a major row has developed since the awarding of the new contract to National Jet Systems (NJS) last September. The four losing bidders — Skywest, Chopperline, the Direct Flight Consortium and Cobham Aviation (a combination

Raf Orders Hercules After months of speculation, Britain’s Royal Air Force has decided to order 25 new generation C-130J Hercules transports as the first step in replacing its fleet of 60 C-130Ks which are now well into their third decade of service. The order comes in the face of opposition from proponents of the proposed

Atr Restrictions Applied Then Eased The crash of an American Eagle ATR 72 regional turboprop, apparently due to icing-induced aerodynamic aileron lock near Chicago last October, resulted in a quick response from the US FAA, banning the aircraft and its smaller ATR 42 version from flying in known or forecast icing conditions. Transport Canada followed

Bae/Atr Join Forces Aerospatiale, Alenia (partners in the ATR consortium) and British Aerospace have announced they intend to create a European regional aircraft joint venture to be owned in equal proportion by the three parties. The deal covers BAe’s Jetstream 31 and 41 regional turboprops plus the Avro RJ range of jets as well as