BUSINESS NEWS
10 Dec 08. Growth will continue in the U.S aerospace industry in 2009, though at much more modest levels than in the past few years, Marion Blakey, Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) president and chief executive, told a gathering of industry executives and reporters Dec. 11. Blakey’s comments about the aerospace industry were cautiously positive. Though defense and space sectors are relatively safe from federal funding cuts in the near term, civil aviation will be more susceptible to the economic environment, she said. “As it stands, the aerospace industry is in a good position to weather the financial storm,” mainly because funding for defense and space have already been set for the short term. “Ideally, we would like to see increased investment in space exploration, but at least this keeps a stable base for NASA funding, and much of the groundwork for the 2010 fiscal budget has already been laid,” Blakey said. “With long lead times on federal budgets, we anticipate these funding levels will remain stable without any major adjustments for about the next 18 months, some might say even longer.” Blakey noted that though civil aviation is more affected by the economic downturn, “there’s a reason for confidence also in this sector,” given
“extraordinary, record-breaking orders” for commercial planes over the last several years, which “have created a very healthy backlog” for aircraft makers, without many order cancellations or deferrals. The AIA projects that aerospace industry sales will reach $204bn this year, up from $200bn in 2007, the smallest increase since 2004. The trade group estimated 2009 sales will come to $214bn, but that increase partly will be to make up for slow sales this year due to the Boeing strike, Blakey said. AIA estimated 2008 civil aircraft sales will be $80.6bn and military aircraft sales will be $54.7bn. For 2009, civil aircraft sales are estimated to be $86.6bn and military aircraft sales $57bn, according to the AIA. The trade group said it expects the 2008 backlog for aerospace companies to total $404bn. But decreased passenger traffic and the restraints on aircraft financing, given tight credit markets, are two worrisome spots for the industry, Blakey said. Moreover, “the anticipated fleet recapitalization in the U.S. airlines that we all know is there and pent up does not look like it’s going to materialize in the near term.” The U.S. aerospace workforce totaled 655,500 employees in 2008, up slightly from 645,000 in 2007, another positive sign for the industry, Blakey said. “Obviously, in a year that saw thousands of Americans lose their jobs, we consider ourselves very fortunate at this point.” But, she added, “We’re also watching this statistic carefully, since our industry hasn’t been totally spared bad employment news in the last few months. “This is not to say in any way that we are immune to the economic situation. There’s some speculation out there, in fact, that the defense budget will be the source for cutbacks in future years, to pay for other needs,” Blakey said. Defense research and development funding and supplemental spending are expected to decrease, she said. (Source: Defense News)
12 Dec 08. Armor Designs, Inc., the developer of next-generation composite armour, announces that it was informed on December 10, 2008 that David Seaton, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer and Ardeshir Sidhwa, the Company’s Chief Operating Officer have now received shares acquired in the Company on October 29, 2008 and on October 15, 2008, respectively. The shares were acquired at US$10/share or the equivalent to £6.11 and £5.81, respectively. Following the share purchases their holdings are as follows: Director/No. of Shares purchased/Total Shareholding following the purchase of shares/% Shareholding
David Seaton 37,000 37,0000 .14%
Ardeshir Sidhwa 5,000 5,000 <0.1%
17 Dec 08. The management team of International Safety Products Ltd has defied the lack of confidence wit