Aerospace Diary

Posted By- Neelam Mathews Aug 22, 2014 Aerospace Industries Association President and CEO Marion Blakey accepted the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge today from Capt. Lee Moak of the Air Line Pilots Association and made a personal donation of $1,000 to further support the effort to end ALS.    Her challenge went out to Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson and their head of government relations Andrea Newman, along with Club for Growth’s president Chris Chocola, and the Export-Import Bank’s chairman and president Fred Hochberg - you have 24 hours. http://www.aia-aerospace.org/ news/aias_marion_blakey_ accepts_the_als_ice_bucket_ challenge/#.U_eTuEI5f_k.gmail

Posted by- Neelam Mathews Jan 25, 2012 “Sequestration budget cuts are poised to strangle the U.S economy and devastate our military,” says Aerospace Industries Association. AIA President and CEO Marion C. Blakey released the following statement:  “The State of the Union can be measured in many ways, but first and foremost is the security of the nation. By that measure, the future of our country is unclear. The President’s Budget Request scheduled for release Feb. 13 targets defense for a $487 billion reduction over ten years.    “However, that isn’t the end. Defense faces more than five hundred billion dollars of additional cuts under a sequestration scenario driven by politics rather than security. Simply put, this will jeopardize the nation’s security, knee-cap the technological edge we’ve enjoyed for generations in aerospace and defense and risk as many as one million American jobs. As a nation, we need to put our foot down when it comes to any more defense...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews Jan 23, 2012  The U.S. space industry is losing its competitive edge and risks falling short of future national security requirements unless government reforms our export control system and promotes the international competitiveness of U.S. industry, according to a new report released by Aerospace Industries Association (AIA). “A strong and globally competitive space industrial and supplier base is a major national security asset,” said AIA President and CEO Marion C. Blakey.  “Reforming America’s export control system and promoting space exports will better serve our national security and bolster our economy and technological leadership.”  The report, Competing for Space: Satellite Export Policy and U.S. National Security , surveys U.S. satellite systems and components manufacturers about the challenges the space industrial base faces as a result of U.S. export policies. Among the adverse impacts on industry are loss of global market share...

Statement by AIA President and CEO Marion C. Blakey For some time our industry has advocated that reductions in the defense budget be made on the basis of a new national defense strategy that seeks to secure America’s future rather than simply applying lower numbers across-the-board. We therefore appreciate the evident hard work and thoughtful process that President Obama and Secretary Panetta described in developing the new strategy and their commitment to avoid arbitrary cuts. We are encouraged that Secretary Panetta made it clear once again that sequestration was not an option for the strong defense that our nation deserves. He also specifically recognized the importance of a strong industrial base to support the military. It’s been a long-standing concern of defense experts that ill-considered cuts will leave the industry unable to develop and build the technologies and the capabilities that have made America’s military the finest in the world.

Neelam Mathews Dec 23, 2011 Air India will add a fifth weekly on its Delhi – Tokyo Narita service starting March 25, 2012 using a Boeing 777-200LR.  AI competes with Japan Airlines on the route and the splitting the estimated 117,000 O&D passengers. A further 37,000 passengers flew between Delhi and Tokyo Narita via other Asian airports including Thai Airways International, Cathay Pacific Airways and Singapore Airlines.  An Air India ticket is around 25% cheaper than JAL. Singapore Airlines (SIA) has made capacity adjustments between Match 25, 2012 and October 27, 2012 to meet changes in seasonal demand from the travelling public. It is adding an additional daily to Seoul with a fourth flight between Singapore Changi and Incheon International, one of which continues on to San Francisco. Four weekly flights will be introduced to Male increasing from ten a week to a double daily schedule with daytime and nighttime rotations.  In India, Mumbai will see two addi...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews Dec 14, 2011 Failure of the deficit reduction supercommittee and the specter of sequestration cuts cast a shadow on a relatively strong year for the aerospace industry, says Aerospace Industries Association. “ The fact that our industry is a leading job-creator, a technological innovator and a critical part of our nation’s security is too important to be taken for granted ,” said AIA President and CEO Marion C. Blakey. “If this industry stops being Second to None, the future of our country is in question.” In her remarks to more than 300 members of the news media, government and industry at the association’s 47th annual Year-end Review and Forecast Luncheon, Blakey cited a preliminary total aerospace sales figure of $218 billion, making 2011 the eighth consecutive year of growth . “Annual sales are going to be up across the board in 2011,” Blakey said.  “But in 2012 we expect things to begin to change.” In 2011, the U.S. aerospace industry contri...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews Oct 26, 2011 One can expect US to get more aggressive in countries with potential for large procurement like India even as an economic impact analysis projects more than one million American jobs could be lost as a result of defense budget cuts. This will follow if the deficit reduction select committee fails to reach agreement on alternative balanced budget solutions and total cuts to defense reach $1 trillion.  Cuts would lower projected GDP growth by 25% Dr. Stephen S. Fuller, Dwight Schar Faculty Chair, University Professor and Director, Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University and Economic Modeling Specialists Inc. (EMSI) conducted the analysis on behalf of the Aerospace Industries Association.  “Our analysis reveals bleak outcomes for both the defense industry and the economy as a whole if the budget sequestration trigger is pulled and $1 trillion is cut from defense.”  “Dr. Fuller and EMSI’s study shows the dramat...

By Marion C. Blakey President & CEO AI, U.S No more. That was the message AIA executives delivered to reporters at a press briefing launching the Second to None campaign during National Aerospace Week. With $460 billion in defense cuts already on the table, this industry has been cut to the bone. Hundreds of thousands of jobs and our national security are at risk as the supercommittee meets to decide how they can achieve the $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction mandated by the Budget Control Act. As Chuck Gray, vice president and COO of Frontier Electronics Systems Corporation said, “We’ve already given at the office.” But, apparently that isn’t enough as another $600 billion in defense cuts could be mandated if sequestration takes effect. Certainly FAA and NASA will be eyed for sharp reductions as well. According to estimates prepared by Deloitte Consulting LLC, the aerospace and defense industry employs more than one million workers. Barr Group Aerospace calculates that 2...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews July 23, 2011 Here is the AIA statement. Nobody thought it could come to this! It’s very disturbing that after 20 short-term extensions and almost four years without an FAA authorization bill, Congress decided to let FAA partially shut down today.   At midnight tonight, roughly 4,000 employees will be sent home and important airport projects and improvements like the Next Generation Air Transportation System will stop.  Especially perplexing is that while the country worries about our nation’s fiscal health, this congressional impasse will cost the government over $200 million a week in lost revenue. Yet, despite this unprecedented distraction, FAA will operate our national airspace system as safely as always.  Airlines, pilots and the planes they fly will be as trustworthy as ever. You can be sure if today’s decision meant a full FAA shutdown causing lawmakers to feel the wrath of grounded constituents in the middle of summer vacatio...

  By Marion C. Blakey President and CEO of the U.S Aerospace. Industries Association     In an Afghan battlefield, U.S. warfighters navigate through darkness and around jagged cliffs with GPS guidance. They communicate via satellite in the vast remoteness. Overhead sensors provide critical intelligence on enemies that may be lurking just mountaintops away. As this real-life account from Marcus Luttrell’s 2007 bestseller, Lone Survivor , clearly demonstrates, our nation’s warriors depend on national security space technology. But critical space capabilities, like those highlighted in Luttrell’s book, will become less feasible if recent cuts in the House Defense Appropriations bill go forward. To help meet the warfighter’s growing needs, the U.S. government and industry have been working around the clock to upgrade and strengthen these vital technologies. From September 2010 through April 2011, the National Reconnaissance Office – the U.S. agenc...

Neelam Mathews July 19, 2011 Time- 8;15pm IST Even as the Aerospace Industries Association welcomed the U.S administration’s proposed rule to relieve low-risk technology exports of burdensome and unnecessary restrictions, India now needs to look at a system that will protect its own technology. As India looks at design, development and manufacture of sensitive technologies, questions are starting to emerge. “Does India have any regulations for export control…It will have to put in some pieces..Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd has sold its Advance Light Helicopter to a Latin American country…any regulation signed on this? What is the guarantee if the BrahMos is sold to a country that   will not sell it to a rogue state?” says an OEM to Aerospace Diary. “We can say Iran is our friend, and sell to it. Any guarantees that Pakistan will not get the technology,?” queries an Indian industry official. Meanwhile, India has welcomed steps taken by the U.S to remove Indian entities from the ...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews July 16, 2011 The lobby against cuts in US defense spending is getting louder.  Responding to President Obama's remarks on defense spending, Marion Blakey, president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association, said: "For months, there have been calls from a number of quarters for severe cuts that would undermine our dominance in the skies, fail to recognize the dynamic and changing security realities that we face in an age of asymmetrical warfare and which would undermine our industrial base and research capabilities for decades.  “Instead of hiding behind abstract numbers pulled from thin air, it’s time for everyone to put their cards on the table. Almost $200 billion in defense spending has already been identified for the chopping block. Those calling for indiscriminate additional cuts should explain specifically how and why these cuts will not cost jobs or compromise our national security. “When asked about additional cuts in defense s...

By Neelam Mathews June 30, 2011 U.S Aerospace Industries Association has taken objection to r emarks about business aviation made by President Barack Obama during a June 29 White House press conference concerning tax policies for general aviation planes as part of deficit cutting efforts.  “We're disturbed by President Obama's remarks on business aviation today. It seems odd that he would undermine the aviation industry one day after visiting Alcoa's factory and praising the workers who make parts and materials that are critical to producing business jets,” said President and CEO Marion C. Blakey. “General aviation plays an important role in our economy and took a substantial hit in the recent recession. We feel that disparaging comments from the president regarding business jet users are not conducive to promoting jobs, investment and economic growth,” Blakey added. National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) President and CEO Ed Bolen too made a statement. "...

Neelam Mathews New Delhi June 2, 2011 Defense contracts raise concerns about offsets in India Printed headline: Seeking Clarity India has short-listed Dassault’s Rafale and the Eurofighter Typhoon for the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) bid, which is expected to result in procurement of 126 fighters worth $12 billion. A huge battle over industrial terms is now expected as vendors submit their revised offset proposals later this year. The schedule for production transfer is aggressive, and the technology that India expects to be transferred through co-development work generated by offsets is raising concerns among vendors about intellectual property violations and the potential for counterfeit products. Observers say India’s lack of clarity on such violations may result in OEMs finding ways to circumvent the use of advanced technology, on the grounds that India does not have safeguards to protect manufacturers that license tech...