By Michael Bruno michael_bruno@aviationweek.com, Graham Warwick graham_warwick@aviationweek.com
Washington,

The General Electric/Rolls-Royce F136 engine for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter appears increasingly likely to survive at least one more year after a slew of Capitol Hill developments created a scenario where the Obama administration’s veto threat may fall victim to other priorities.

Democratic-led votes by the House and a key Senate ...

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By Bettina H. Chavanne

The U.S. Navy added one more piece to its operational puzzle today with the unveiling of its Naval Operations Concept 2010 (NOC 10), a defining document meant to support the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), 30-year shipbuilding plan and the three-year-old maritime strategy.

The NOC 2010 explains “how, where and when we would exercise our core competencies” as outlined by the Navy’s ...

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By Bill Garvey william_garvey@aviationweek.com

Although his membership could theoretically benefit from novel funding schemes proposed for implementing FAA’s NextGen air traffic control system, the National Business Aviation Association’s head yesterday assumed a non-committal stance on the subject.

Clay Jones, the chairman, president and CEO of Rockwell Collins, last week suggested private industry create, maintain and manage the new ATC system under an ...

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By Irene Klotz

Kennedy Space Center, Fla. - With the completion of the STS-132 mission aboard shuttle Atlantis, the shutdown of the space shuttle program spreads from manufacturing facilities to the vehicle processing hub here.

There are no more flights planned for Atlantis, although the ship will be prepared as a launch-on-need vehicle for the STS-134 mission – the program’s planned finale ...

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By Elyse Moody elyse_moody@aviationweek.com

Limited numbers of rotables and tight schedules are pushing airlines to pursue maintenance contracts for components that typically visit shops on an on-condition basis. One example is nacelle maintenance. Operators can benefit in nacelle reliability, cost control and residual value by espousing a “soft time” maintenance philosophy, says Bob Gustafson, VP and general manager for Goodrich Aerostructures’ aftermarket services division ...

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