Albuquerque, NM — October 31, 2007 — Eclipse Aviation, manufacturer of the world’s first very light jet (VLJ), today announced that it has received approval of its Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA - pronounced foh-qwah) program from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Eclipse Aviation is the only aircraft manufacturer that has received FAA approval for a FOQA program that includes flight data monitoring capability consistent with the advanced programs used by commercial airline operations (FAR Part 121), the safest demonstrated flight operations in the world. Until now, FOQA was implemented only within resource-rich commercial airlines, and was largely unheard of in the general aviation and small corporate-fleet world. Eclipse’s FOQA program is breaking new ground, and is largely enabled by the next-generation integrated avionics and data collection systems designed for and incorporated in the Eclipse 500 very light jet.

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ST. LOUIS, Oct. 31, 2007 — The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] continues to log test milestones on its C-130 Avionics Modernization Program (AMP), including some significantly ahead of schedule. Most recently, Boeing flew the first C-130 AMP aircraft Oct. 20 for the first time following a series of Code 2 engineering improvements. The work, completed by Boeing 12 days ahead of schedule, consisted of converting analog signals to digital signals and enhancing the aircraft’s heads-up display capabilities. “The improvements give the aircraft increased mission capabilities and allow the customer to expand the system, if needed,” said Mike Harris, Boeing vice president and C-130 AMP program manager. Boeing performed the work in San Antonio, Texas, and the aircraft has since returned to the U.S. Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.

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SEATTLE, Oct. 30, 2007 — Ryanair, Europe’s largest low-cost carrier, took delivery on October 26 of its 150th Boeing Next-Generation 737-800. Shown here, the 146th, 147th, 148th, 149th and 150th 737s for Ryanair are parked in formation at Boeing Field in Seattle, where they underwent flight-testing prior to delivery to Ryanair. The successful European carrier operates a fleet of 737-800s around Europe and northwest Africa. From its inception, Ryanair has relied on the 737 - first the 737 Classic and now the Next-Generation 737 - to help it meet strenuous efficiency, environmental, cost and reliability targets that are critical to the success of its business model. Ryanair has replaced all of its older 737 Classics with the newer Next-Generation 737 and has achieved a 50 percent reduction in CO2 emissions per passenger kilometer since 1998. An additional 121 737s remain to be delivered to Ryanair. The last 737 Classic was phased out in January 2006. Ryanair operates the second largest 737 fleet in the world, after Southwest Airlines in the United States.

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Regional Express (Rex) today announced that it will temporarily suspend its single return service which operates six times per week between Sydney and the Snowy Mountains (Cooma). The service will be suspended from 19 November 2007 to 18 May 2008. Rex General Manager Network Strategy and Sales, Warrick Lodge, said that the airline industry is facing a current and potential future shortage of pilots. Mr Lodge indicated that while Rex has been proactive in recruiting and training flight crew, in recent weeks the airline had been forced to cancel some services due to crew sickness.

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The International Space Exploration Conference 2007 (ISEC 2007) taking place in Berlin (D) from 8 to 9 November will welcome 500 high-level representatives of stakeholder groups from political institutions, the scientific community, industry and applied research organisations, public organisations and the general public. ISEC 2007 will be the platform to present the first draft of Europe’s long-term strategy for space exploration. The conference will be an opportunity for the political, industrial and scientific sectors to help shape Europe’s role in the future of human spaceflight and exploration. The strategy has been developed in close consultation with numerous key stakeholder groups and is a global project intended to contribute to wider societal development.

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The Jules Verne, the first of Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicles designed to ferry supplies to the International Space Station (ISS), arrived at the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou late in July. Since its arrival, CNES teams have been preparing the ATV for launch in specially altered facilities, under the watchful eye of the director of operations. It is scheduled to make its maiden flight on 31 January 2008, on a specially adapted Ariane 5 launcher.

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MELBOURNE, Fla., Oct. 31, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) — Northrop Grumman Corporation’s (NYSE:NOC) KC-30 Tanker team will generate economic activity approaching $30 million annually and create nearly 400 direct and indirect jobs in West Virginia if the KC-30 Tanker aircraft is selected by the U.S. Air Force. Northrop Grumman, EADS, and the KC-30 supply chain in West Virginia currently support 1,000 jobs statewide and generate a combined economic activity approaching $100 million annually. Northrop Grumman alone employs nearly 100 West Virginians, representing $6 million in annual salaries.

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As part of its continuous efforts to further improve its services to the customers and enhance customer satisfaction, Eurocopter has recently inaugurated a “Customer Support Centre” (CSC) which will be manned 24 hours a day/7 days a week. The CSC will initially be accessible to customers in Europe. Supported by the logistics platforms in Hong Kong and Dallas, the CSC will go global in late 2007, ensuring that customers anywhere in the world can call day or night and receive the same high quality of service.

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We arrived at the ramp around at 7:00 a.m. and checked if the wind was perfect to take off. And we decided to take off as early as possible to avoid dangerous take-off later when thermal activity adds up to the wind. The day started blue with a promise of perfect conditions to break the record. However, during the initial moments of flight, the scenery started radically to change with some thick startus clouds just above the first cumulus of the day and giving shades to the route. It was discouraging and almost ruined the day that would be the day of the first flight above 400km in Brazil. So we decided to keep above the take-off and wait to make the first try in order to avoid landing just after taking off. And that would be disastrous. We waited until 8:10 am to guarantee the most comfortable take-off. Maybe this decision has saved our day. In the first 20 km we went down sometimes with great possibilities to land very soon. However, the day didn’t disappoint us and we manage until km 50. After a very difficult and complicated beginning, we thought that we would not fall anymore. All of this confidence betrayed us when we took the first wrong decision of the day when we almost got to the ground just before Madalena (km 60), just under some cumulus that seemed to show some activity but at same time was going away.

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Developed by the well-known Simwings-Team this package contains the Mega Airport London-Heathrow including the brand new Terminal 5. Discover a exquisitely true to original atmosphere! FS2004 version included in the box! Simwings did have the BAA as an official partner for this project which makes it as realistic as can be with a foresight in to the future. Using up-to-date 3d files for many buildings according to BAA plans to include even the newest (and some in real life still under construction) layout and buildings. Check out what EGLL will be like in October 2008!

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“Mayday, mayday! Double engine failure!” - “Captain, two green, one red, left main gear stuck!” - “Hang on, this is going to be a tough one!”… Since the very first Flight Simulator every simulator pilot dreamed of scenarios like these. Extreme emergency situations, crucial rescue maneuvers, thrilling aerobatics: that’s what makes PC-flying fun. With the new Flight Simulator such situations can be rendered much more realistic and thrilling than before. With the popularity of FSX default missions we decided to develop an Add-On with emergency missions, relaxed scenic flights and challenging head-to-head air races. The Mission Pack - Flight Tales I include 10 missions full of challenges for inexperienced as well as advanced pilots.

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30 October 2007 - More than 500,000 people visited a two-day celebration in Austria marking the Austrian Armed Forces display in Vienna, 25 October, and the Austrian National Day, 26 October. One of the major attractions was Eurofighter Typhoon in Austrian markings, drawing in the crowds despite the cold and wet weather conditions. Two Austrian Air Force pilots briefed the interested public from the cockpit, Captain Jörg Sandhofer (left) and First Lieutenant Christian Sagfriedmüller. Austria has already received two aircraft and is to take delivery of a total of 15 Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft by 2009.

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Plug-In Suite 3 combines 4 essential Photoshop plug-ins that save you time and money so you can get back to shooting. Plug-In Suite 3 is CS2 and CS3 compatible, Universal Binary support, offering fast native support for Photoshop CS3 and Intel-based Macintosh computers. Plug-In Suite 3 installs all four tools with one serial number and includes new startup tutorials for each, making installation and getting up to speed a breeze. Combine that with new integrated “Show Me How” video tutorials and automatic update checking and you have everything you need to be productive in Photoshop and Photoshop Elements so you can do what you really want to do: get back to shooting.

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The first monolithic machined panel for the first AgustaWestland Future Lynx was manufactured last week at Oldland CNC’s facility in Bristol, United Kingdom. The manufacture of the first component, a lower fuselage bulkhead, was witnessed by representatives from the UK Ministry of Defence Integrated Project Team and AgustaWestland. Oldland CNC is manufacturing 83 of the 147 Future Lynx primary structure monolithic machined components and supplying them to GKN Aerospace for incorporation into the airframe prior to delivery to AgustaWestland. The monolithic machinings that are used in Future Lynx dramatically reduce parts count, assembly time and reduce in service maintenance.

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Virgin Atlantic today launched its first direct services between London Gatwick and Kingston, the capital of Jamaica. Sir Richard Branson and local VIPs greeted the passengers on arrival into Kingston which is Virgin Atlantic’s eighth destination in the Caribbean and 30th destination worldwide. The twice-weekly flights will be operated by Virgin’s 451-seat Boeing 747-400 aircraft. Sir Richard Branson, President of Virgin Atlantic commented: “We are delighted to be able to offer new flights to Jamaica so soon after we launched our Montego Bay services last year. We are doubling Virgin Atlantic’s capacity between London and Jamaica to almost 200,000 seats a year.

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Wichita, October 30, 2007 - All new Learjet aircraft positioned between the midsize and super midsize segments. More than 65 letters-of-intent received to date. Corporate aviation leader Bombardier Aerospace today launched its all-new Learjet aircraft, provisionally named Learjet NXT, the next generation in Learjet excellence. “I am extremely pleased to announce the launch of the Learjet NXT – an aircraft that is set to redefine the midsize jet category and set the standard against which all competitive aircraft will be measured,” said Pierre Beaudoin, president and chief operating officer, Bombardier Aerospace.

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The Chief of Air Force, Air Vice-Marshal Graham Lintott has today welcomed a Government announcement that the Agusta 109 is the preferred helicopter to replace the Air Forces fleet of Sioux Helicopters. “This is excellent news for the Air Force and those that depend on the helicopter support we provide,” says Air Vice-Marshal Lintott. “The Agusta 109 is a modern and very capable training and light utility helicopter (T/LUH) with a growing international customer base and assured long-term support. It has been designed to meet current and future requirements and provides an excellent long-term investment”, he said.

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October 30, 2007, (Cincinnati, OH) — Executive Jet® Management (EJM), a leading provider of worldwide jet charter and aircraft management services, announced the appointment of Brent Smith as chief financial officer. Smith previously served as senior vice president, financial planning and analysis and has been with NetJets for the past 9 years. Smith has over 22 years of finance and accounting experience. In addition to working in the aviation industry, he has worked at companies involved in consumer products, retail and public accounting. He holds a BA degree from Ohio Northern University, a MA degree from The Ohio State University and is a Certified Public Accountant Reporting to Ben Murray, EJM’s president and chief executive officer, Smith’s duties and responsibilities will include accounting, finance, human resources and technology services.

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Montreal, October 30, 2007 - SEFA (Service de l’Exploitation et de la Formation Aéronautique), France’s national, public flight-training institution, has selected Mechtronix as a supplier for its flight training tool development project. This sale to an aeronautical renowned public institution reinforces Mechtronix’ expertise in glass avionics suites. Mechtronix has recently delivered a major order of glass avionics suites equipped with the Garmin 1000 panel to other training institutions.

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SEATTLE, Oct. 29, 2007 — Boeing [NYSE: BA] today announced that Martin (Marty) Bentrott has been named vice president-Middle East and Africa Sales for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, reporting to Larry Dickenson, vice president, Commercial Airplanes Sales. Bentrott will replace Lee Monson, who recently announced his decision to take a leave of absence. Bentrott and Monson will work together in transition effective immediately until January 2008. “The Boeing Company’s relationship with the Middle East goes back more than 60 years,” said Dickenson. “Today, the region is one of the world’s fastest-growing commercial airplane markets. Boeing is committed to further developing its solid relationship with airlines and governments as we aim to contribute to the long-term growth and economic development in the Middle East and Africa. Marty is a proven leader with a broad range of experience with global airlines. He is well suited to lead our efforts in this strategically important and dynamic region.”

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ST. LOUIS, Oct. 29, 2007 — The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has opened its first F-15E Mission Training Center (MTC) for the U.S. Air Force’s 366th Fighter Wing at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. The center will provide aircrews with high-fidelity, simulator-based training without the material and personnel costs associated with training on operational aircraft. “The F-15E MTC provides a huge leap in technology and capability for our Air Force customer,” said Tony Jones, vice president, Training Systems and Services, a division of IDS Support Systems. “Because of the added capabilities provided by the visual systems and other advanced features of the MTC, F-15E aircrews now will be able to experience more realistic scenarios to match today’s demanding missions.”

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Fort Worth, TX (October 26, 2007) — Officials from Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. company (NYSE: TXT), today announced the completion of another major milestone in Bell 429 development. The 429 team has set or “frozen” the final exterior profile design, verified through months of development flight testing. Commenting on the event Robert Fitzpatrick, sr. vice president for Marketing and Sales said, “This is one of the most significant events in the development of an aircraft. This means our design meets the aesthetic and in-flight handling specifications we set long ago. These are specifications we promised we would deliver to our customers. This moves us much closer to our certification and beginning delivery goal of the end of 2008.”

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The Light Sport Aircraft movement has begun to bear fruit: now three years old, hundreds of new aviators can thank Sport Pilot for taking them from the ground into the air. As navigation and communication skills improve, the desire to visit more airspace, to blend with higher-flying, faster aircraft, to fly at night, to make more use of the instruments – in short, the wish to become a more-versatile pilot – this is starting to drive many new Sport Pilots toward getting the Private Pilot certificate. Until now, there has been no systematic program for such pilots or their instructors to use. Knowledge requirements are abridged in the LSA world (and the aircraft themselves are relatively small, slow and simple), and CFIs have so far had only two options in transitioning Sport Pilots to Private: either they could “start over,” duplicating a lot of knowledge and effort; or they could assume some level of training and expertise and move on from there, sometimes leaving gaps that would not be discovered for months. Either way was inefficient.

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Paris, October 29, 2007 – Bulgaria Air, based in Sofia, has chosen Snecma Services (SAFRAN Group) to provide maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for its CFM56-3 engines. The five-year contract covers the jet engines powering the airline’s Boeing 737 Classic twinjets. Choosing an exclusive Time & Material contract, the Bulgarian airline is counting on the European OEM shop’s proven expertise in CFM56 servicing. Snecma Services will provide MRO services for these engines, as well as teaming up with its customer on the possible expansion of its scope of services in the region.

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Here is an exciting opportunity to meet face to face with the leaders of the Chinese helicopter industry! China’s helicopter industry is forecasted to become the largest civil helicopter market in the world. AVIC II and affiliated companies invite you come to Beijing for the 2007 China Helicopter Expo December 10, 11, 12, 2007. Any company interested in helicopter related business with China should attend. This is the first helicopter event solely sponsored by AVIC II, China’s only domestic producer and manufacturer of commercial helicopters. It is authorized and directly managed by the Chinese Central Government. The highest ranking officers in the aviation industry will attend.

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