ST. LOUIS, Feb. 29, 2008 — We were just informed that our KC-767 Advanced Tanker proposal was not selected in the KC-135 Replacement Program known as KC-X. Obviously we are very disappointed with this outcome. We believe that we offered the Air Force the best value and lowest risk tanker for its mission. Our next step is to request and receive a debrief from the Air Force. Once we have reviewed the details behind the award, we will make a decision concerning our possible options, keeping in mind at all times the impact to the warfighter and our nation.

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CHARLOTTE, N.C., Feb. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Goodrich Corporation (NYSE: GR) today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire TEAC Aerospace Holdings, Inc. (TEAC), a leading provider of proprietary airborne mission data, video recording and debrief products for the defense industry, and cabin video systems for commercial airlines. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. TEAC, a Thayer | Hidden Creek portfolio company, employs roughly 85 people at its Monterey Park, Calif. facility. Major customers include all branches of the U.S. military, allied governments, leading defense contractors, and major airlines worldwide. The company has been in business for more than 30 years, and in 2007 generated over $50 million in revenue.

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The Middle East region is poised to redefine global aviation, as local carriers and airports undergo massive capacity expansion and foreign airlines establish in the region, according to the Executive Chairman of the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, Peter Harbison. Opening the Inaugural Middle East Aviation Outlook Summit in Abu Dhabi today, Mr Harbison explained this is the dawning of a new generation in global aviation. “‘Next-Gen aviation’ is an amalgam of airline, airport and coordinated policy leadership which makes possible the rapid growth of air services and passenger travel through the Middle East at long term rates previously believed to be achievable only over short periods”, he said. Over USD50 billion is being spent on Middle East airport infrastructure, developing throughput capacity within the next four years for an additional 320 million passengers per year.

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SAN DIEGO, Feb. 29, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) — The RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial system (UAS), built by Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC), celebrated the 10th anniversary of its first flight on Feb. 28, 2008. On that date in 1998 the Global Hawk made history when it flew for one hour over Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., and climbed to an altitude of 32,000 feet. “Today, this high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) system has logged more than 20,000 total program flight hours, of which more than 15,000 hours were flown in support of the global war on terrorism (GWOT),” said Jerry Madigan, Northrop Grumman vice president of HALE systems. “Its range, endurance and multi-sensor technology capabilities make it an ideal system to support homeland security objectives.”

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29 February 2008 - ESA PR 13-2008. With ESA’s Columbus laboratory successfully attached and operating on the International Space Station, the time has now come for another European milestone mission to leave for the ISS - that of the first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), named ‘Jules Verne’. Europe’s massive 19 357 kg supply spacecraft will be carried into orbit by a special version of the Ariane 5 launcher. This Ariane is now scheduled to lift off from Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on 8 March at 01:28 local time, 05:28 CET. Media are invited to space centres across Europe to follow this historic launch live (see details below). From 2008 onward, ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle will be one of the space station’s supply spacecraft, delivering experiments, equipment and spare parts, as well as food, air and water for its permanent crew. Constructed by EADS-Astrium, the ATV, which is the most powerful automatic spaceship ever built, will carry up to 9 tonnes of cargo to the station as it orbits 400 km above the Earth.

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Montréal, February 29, 2008 - Business Aircraft: Fourth consecutive year of increased orders and deliveries leads to a record level of orders and deliveries. Regional Aircraft: Significant increase in regional aircraft orders and fourth consecutive year of increased Q-Series deliveries Bombardier announced today that it delivered 361 aircraft for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2008. This represents an increase of more than 10 per cent over the 326 aircraft deliveries in the previous fiscal year. Additionally, the Company received 698 aircraft orders compared to 363 for the same period during the previous year.

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Ian Mills, Director of Engineering and Commercial Services, has been appointed to the Board of NATS, the UK’s major provider of air traffic management. Ian joined NATS four years ago and in his current position is responsible for the delivery of the company’s long-term investment plan and for the engineering resources required to achieve it. He also oversees supply chain, business improvement, training and commercial development. He said: “This is an exciting and challenging time for NATS and I’m grateful for the opportunity to play an even more active part in moving the company forward.”

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Canberra, 29 February 2008 - Qantas today announced that it would establish a major award for Excellence in Sustainable Tourism. Qantas Group General Manager Sales and Distribution, Mr Rob Gurney, said the award would recognise and encourage Australian tourism operators that minimised their impact on the local environment, respected local culture and provided benefits to local communities. “Qantas is a major supporter of the Australian tourism industry,” Mr Gurney said. “We are committed to sustainable growth across our own operations and seek to acknowledge and support tourism businesses that protect, enhance and promote Australia’s distinctive destinations and environment.

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HOUSTON, Texas, February 25, 2008 - Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. and Norsk Helikopter today at Heli-Expo announced that Norsk reached the 5,000 fleet hour milestone with its Sikorsky S-92® helicopter (aircraft serial #11). Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX) The aircraft achieved the milestone on Feb. 5, 2008. The achievement follows the fleet hour milestone of 20,000 hours with the Sikorsky S-92 helicopter, reached on Nov. 26, 2007. In 2006, Norsk became the first offshore oil operator in the North Sea to reach 10,000 fleet flight hours with the S-92 helicopter. It has continued to expand its fleet of Sikorsky helicopters, now employing a total of six S-92 helicopters.

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Finnair has ordered three more Embraer 190 aircraft. The aircraft will be delivered in 2010–2011. The Embraer 190 is a 100-seat jet aircraft, which Finnair uses in its domestic and European traffic. “Through the order we have ensured the availability of capacity under present conditions. The airline manufacturers’ order books are full for years ahead and we forecast that our European traffic will grow in the wake of Asian traffic,” says SVP, Finnair Scheduled Passenger Traffic Henrik Arle.

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Cannes, February 29, 2008 – Thales Alenia Space today announced that it has transferred the Star One C2 communication satellite to the launch site in Kourou, French Guiana. Star One C2 is dedicated to the Brazilian satellite operator Star One, owned by Embratel (80%) and GE International Holdings (20%). The launch of Star One C2, together with the recent launch of Star One C1, reinforces Star One’s position as the major regional operator in Latin America. Based on Thales Alenia Space Spacebus 3000B3 platform, the satellite will carry 28 transponders in C-band, 16 in Ku-band and 1 in X-band, it will weight 4100 kg at launch, has an electrical power of 10.5 kW (beginning of life) and will be positioned at 70° West.

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Cannes, February 29, 2008 – Thales Alenia Space today announced that it has transferred the Turksat 3A communications satellite to the launch site in Kourou, French Guiana. Turksat 3A satellite will enable Turksat to offer telecommunication services as well as direct TV broadcasting services though a broader area than its existing satellites covering Turkey, Europe, Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia. With the help of its switchable transponders, Turksat 3A will act as a bridge between Europe and Asia. Turksat 3A’s Turkey coverage has been specially designed to provide very efficient gain for broadband applications like VSAT services giving customers low-cost, up-link systems.

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Reston, VA – February 28, 2008 – Era Corporation will serve as a key sponsor of next week’s UC Symposium on Aviation Noise & Air Quality. Era’s ongoing support for this event underscores the company’s commitment to helping airports manage the increasingly important environmental issues such as noise and emissions. The symposium, entitled, “Flying Green: A Thoroughbred Approach to Winning the Race for the Environment,” will host over 300 attendees that represent all industry perspectives. While the umbrella focus is on noise and emissions, the symposium addresses issues such as regulations, policy, legal issues, communications and technology. The symposium will kick-off on Sunday, March 2nd with the 2nd Annual Golf Scramble, sponsored by Era and Brüel & Kjær.

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A classic warbird not in the VWC collection (yet?) is the B-25 “Mitchell”. It served impressively in more theatres of war than any other aircraft in WWII. Not only was it flown by RCAF pilots during the war (in RAF units), but it also served in the RCAF in a variety of roles for almost two decades afterwards – few realize how actively or extensively, especially in Training Command, where I first met it. At one time we had well over 100 scattered throughout the RCAF, coast-to-coast, and I alone flew more than 60 different airframes.

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Leuven, Belgium, February 28th 2008 - Luciad, the leading software provider for distribution and high performance visualization of geospatial information, will be presenting a number of new product releases at ATC Global on March 11-13 at the Amsterdam RAI Convention Centre, The Netherlands. ATC Global is the meeting place for the Air Traffic Control & Management industry. At the Amsterdam event, Luciad will be showcasing its latest advances in Human-Machine Interface Technology for high performance ATC/ATM systems on booth #D516. Visitors will experience live demos of LuciadMap, the company’s flagship software component toolbox for building aeronautical information systems with superior graphical display capabilities. Version 8 of the product offers new capabilities such as pioneering support for the upcoming AIXM 5 standard, on-the-fly 3D visualization, and high responsiveness with complete control over performance parameters.

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Montréal, February 28, 2008 - Today, Bombardier Aerospace announced the official opening of its world-class manufacturing facility located at the Querétaro Aerospace Park in Mexico. This new facility complements Bombardier’s existing manufacturing sites located in Canada, Northern Ireland and the United States. Manufacturing operations in this facility began in the second half of 2007. Currently, Bombardier Aerospace has approximately 900 full-time employees working at its facilities in Mexico where they manufacture electrical harnesses and structural aircraft components. These components include the Challenger 850 mid-fuselage, the Q400 aircraft flight control work package (rudder, elevator and horizontal stabilizer), and the Global family of aircraft aft fuselage. By the end of 2008, Bombardier Aerospace expects to employ 1,200 full-time staff.

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28 February 2008 - ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain and European Commission Director General for Enterprise & Industry Heinz Zourek today signed in Brussels an agreement which establishes the allocation of an EC budget of €624 million to ESA as a contribution to the implementation of the GMES Space Component (GSC). This will be provided in two stages: €419 million for Segment 1 and €205 million for Segment 2 of the GSC programme. Segment 2 will be submitted for subscription by ESA’s Member States at next November’s ministerial-level Council meeting.

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AgustaWestland is pleased to announce that Aerolíneas Ejecutivas (ALE) of Mexico has signed a contract for fifteen additional helicopters comprising four AW119 Ke single engine, four AW109 Power and five Grand light twin and two AW139 medium twin turbine engine models. The contract value is worth approximately US$ 83 million. This latest order is part of the framework of the five-year contract and distribution agreement signed in August 2006. This order and the one signed in March 2007 brings the total number of firm orders to 38. ALE is a Mexican company with nearly 40 years of helicopter sales, rental, management and maintenance experience. In February 2006, ALE was appointed as the AgustaWestland Authorized Service Centre in Mexico. Located at Toluca International Airport outside of Mexico City, ALE provides maintenance and repair services as well as maintaining a spare parts inventory for the range of AgustaWestland commercial helicopters comprising the AW119 Ke, AW109 Power, Grand and AW139.

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AgustaWestland is pleased to announce that CareFlite Dallas/Fort Worth has ordered another AW109 Power light twin turbine helicopter. This purchase adds to the five AW109 Powers ordered in 2001 and further expands CareFlite’s fleet dedicated to emergency medical service purposes. Speaking on behalf of CareFlite, President and CEO James Swartz stated “This latest contract further confirms the reliance CareFlite, as a leading US air medical operator servicing a major metropolitan area, places upon the exceptional performance, operational economies, support and EMS capabilities of the AW109 Power. AgustaWestland’s AW109 meets and exceeds our load and range requirements while adding superior single engine performance. Its unequalled maximum and cruise speed facilitates an expeditious response to CareFlite’s medical emergencies when seconds are critical.”

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AgustaWestland is pleased to announce that Skyline Helicopters of Kelowna, British Colombia, Canada has been commissioned as the first AgustaWestland Service Centre in Canada. Grant Louden, the President and CEO of Skyline Helicopters stated that the qualification as an AgustaWestland service centre has been a planned growth goal for some time, and that he is pleased to become part of the family of worldwide AgustaWestland service centres. This additional qualification will expand Skyline’s maintenance business by being able to provide high quality factory authorised service to other Canadian AgustaWestland operators.

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Paris, February 28, 2008 – Euroconsult, the leading international research and analyst firm specialized in the satellite & broadcasting sectors, announced today that the satellite TV market has entered into a new growth cycle worldwide with revenues reaching $59 billion at the end of 2007 and the number of satellite TV platforms increasing to a record 92 worldwide. According to the just released Euroconsult report “Satellite TV Platforms, World Survey & Prospects to 2017” in contrast to the competitive threat anticipated from telecoms and media convergence, satellite TV is proving to be a growth driver for the industry.

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Preparations for the initial two Ariane 5 flights of 2008 are in full swing at Europe’s Spaceport as Arianespace continues to demonstrate its ability to provide launch capacity and mission flexibility that meet customers’ needs. The two vehicles currently being readied at the Spaceport are an Ariane 5 ECA for an April liftoff with a pair of commercial telecommunications satellites, and the Ariane 5 ES for Arianespace’s historic March 8 launch with the International Space Station’s Automated Transfer Vehicle resupply spacecraft. For the April mission, initial build-up of its Ariane 5 is nearing completion inside the Launcher Integration Building, where the cryogenic core stage has been mated with its two solid rocket boosters, and the cryogenic upper stage also has been installed. This heavy-lift Ariane 5 is scheduled for liftoff during the first half of April, and will carry Star One C2 for Brazilian operator Star One, along with a second telecom platform on another of Arianespace’s trademark dual-payload missions. Star One C2 arrived in French Guiana earlier this week aboard an Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft, and is now undergoing initial pre-launch checkout in one of the Spaceport’s clean rooms.

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Tanzania’s Precision Air Services today accepted delivery of its first ATR 72-500. This first delivery follows a deal inked in 2006, for the purchase of 6 new ‘-500s’ ATRs. In 2007, the airline booked an additional ATR 42-500. With these 7 new ‘-500 series’ aircraft (5 ATR 72-500s and 2 ATR 42-500s), Precision Air Services will renew its ATR fleet, which today consists of 4 ATR 42-320s and 3 ATR 72-210s. The remaining 6 ATRs are to be delivered from 2008 through 2010. The delivery ceremony took place at ATR’s final assembly line in Toulouse with Michael Shirima, the Board of Directors Chairman of Precision Air Services, Hon Basil Mramba, Guest of Honour and Honorable Member of the Parliament of Tanzania and Stéphane Mayer, ATR CEO.

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Wichita, KS - February 28, 2008 - Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, completed a successful visit to the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition Forum 2008 on Feb. 14 in Hong Kong and the Singapore Airshow Feb. 19-24 by wrapping up orders for 74 aircraft, with an estimated value of more than $219 million. Cessna announced several agreements that were finalized in time for the Singapore Airshow: private aviation services provider BJETS placed an order for 20 Citation CJ2+ business jets worth approximately $150 million; India-based Chimes Aviation ordered 11 Skyhawk 172Rs and nine Skyhawk turbo-diesel models; and Susi Air of Indonesia ordered six Grand Caravan 208Bs.

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Eurocopter encountered a tremendous success at the world’s most important Helicopter Exhibition, Heli-Expo 2008 in Houston, for its brand-new EC175, after it lifted the veil off its new 7 ton class helicopter on the first day of the Show. Eurocopter signed intentions to buy with 13 different customers during the 3 days of Heli-Expo for a total of 111 units, confirming the huge demand for such a helicopter. Eurocopter also reached outstanding bookings for the rest of its range with 120 orders, marking its continued success in extremely active North American and international markets.

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