Twin entrepreneurs behind RadioBro target mini-satellite, aviation opportunities
PARIS — Twin brothers Mark and Eric Becnel built their first mini-satellite while attending the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Now 27, they operate a company that has developed communications radios for small spacecraft and a data logging kit for aircraft testing that will be on exhibit at the Paris Air Show. “We plan to stay…
MAAS Aviation teams for $39 million paint hangar project at Mobile Aeroplex
Mobile Airport Authority said today that it has teamed with MAAS Aviation to construct a new $39 million twin bay paint facility at the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley, broadening the capabilities of the industrial complex that’s home to Airbus’ first U.S. assembly center. The new project is in addition to the MAAS paint facility that…
Region positioned for growth, says Aerospace Alliance chairman
PARIS – The chairman of The Aerospace Alliance says Alabama and its Gulf Coast neighbors stand to benefit from a growing commercial aviation sector symbolized by the Airbus manufacturing facility that’s about to open in Mobile. The Alliance is a partnership meant to foster cooperation between four Southeastern states that have targeted expansion and growth…
GE Aviation readies first 3-D printed jet engine nozzle at Alabama plant
AUBURN, Alabama — GE Aviation is turning its facility in Auburn into the world’s first factory for 3-D printed jet engine fuel nozzles, landing the Alabama plant a starring role in a technology that promises to revolutionize aerospace manufacturing. GE Aviation, one of the world’s top aircraft engine producers, announced plans to introduce high-volume production of…
Huntsville studies possibility of Dream Chaser landings at airport
PARIS – Huntsville International Airport could become the first commercial airport to handle landings of the Dream Chaser, the spaceplane being developed by Sierra Nevada Corp. for supply trips to the International Space Station and other missions. At the Paris Air Show today, Huntsville leaders announced they have launched preliminary studies to assess the possibility…
France-based Hutchinson picks Alabama for aerospace facility
PARIS – At the Paris Air Show today, Hutchinson Corp. announced plans to open an Aerospace Manufacturing Center of Excellence at Mobile Aeroplex, positioning the French company to serve Airbus’ Alabama assembly line and the region’s expanding aerospace industry. “We look forward to working with the Alabama economic development team and the state’s leadership to…
Alabama rocketeer Tim Pickens talks space flight, rocket bikes
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Like the city where he lives, Tim Pickens has rockets in his DNA. Over the years, Pickens has earned a reputation for masterminding an unconventional propulsion system that took a private spacecraft to the edge of space and for quirky inventions that include a rocket-propelled bike. Pickens grew up in Huntsville at…
Secretary Canfield kicks off Alabama Paris Air Show effort: ‘Let’s go’
PARIS — Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield addressed a group of aerospace entrepreneurs, community leaders, economic development specialists and university representatives at a breakfast event this morning that kicked off the Alabama Paris Air Show marketing and recruitment effort. On the eve of the world’s largest aerospace business development and trade show, Secretary Canfield said Alabama’s…
Archangel Systems takes off with global aviation companies
AUBURN, Alabama – For Michael Greene, an electrical engineer with experience working on aerospace projects, it all started with failed mechanical gyros on a cross country flight in his private plane. Determined to create something more reliable, Greene started Archangel Systems in Auburn more than two decades ago. Fast forward to 2015, and Archangel now…
Dynetics rocket breakthroughs rely on 3-D printing, new methods
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Engineers and scientists in the Huntsville area are using next-generation manufacturing techniques and the latest advances in rocket engine technology to build cost-efficient hardware aimed at lifting U.S. ambitions in space and safeguarding security at home. Dynetics, a Huntsville firm with roots dating back 40 years, and partner Aerojet Rocketdyne are leaders…
