Santa Maria Times from Santa Maria, California • 17

Santa Maria Times -r- Thursday, Aug. 1, 1996 C-S BUSINESS Aerospace a CUSTOM AIRCRAFT BIOTECHNOLOGY Monsanto combine forees BUSINESS ROUNDUP GST Telecom acquires Call America By Staff Wire Reports GST Telecommunications, Inc. and Cull America Business Communications Corp. of San Luis Obispo today announced aivin agreement in principle to merge into.a wholly owned subsidiary GST. "Under the terms of the agreement, GST will acquire 1 00 percent of Call America and its affiliates for a purchase price of $16 million in GST common shares valued at $14 per share.

The transaction is contingent upon the completion of due diligence, regulatory approvals, and the execution of definitive merger docu 'yr 'r i fly. 4 1 v. i 'yi AP The Aviat Aircraft, Inc. Pitts S-1-11B biplane takes its maiden introduce its new plane at the World Aerobatic Contest this flight over the mountains near Afton, Wyo. Aviat plans to month in Oklahoma City.

PQs)ui)s Mm ftDii hm ments. For the month of June, Call America and its affiliates recorded, consolidated and combined revenues in excess of $1 .75 million. Byars Insurance Services, Inc. welcomes Connie Koski as its newest account executive. Koski comes to Byars with eight years of experience as a local business owner.

She is familiar with the current business environment and the special needs of the small business. She is a graduate of Hunter College in New York City where she served as administrator in the field of academic medicine. She also worked in the defense industry for several years before moving to Santa Maria. Flying buffs will see these biplanes aren't the pits to fly By Matt Kohlman Associated Press Writer DAVIS (AP) Monsanto which last year gave biotechnology company Calgene a much-needed financial boost, said Wednesday it was shaking up the boardroom and taking a controlling interest in the company. Monsanto had held a 49.9 percent stake in Calgene, but said Wednesday it would increase that to 54.6 percent by buying an additional 6.25 million shares of Calgene common stock.

Davis-based Calgene is best known for its genetically engineered tomato, the Flavr Savr, which is designed to avoid becoming soft once it has: been picked. Monsanto paid Calgene $30 million in June 1995 for its initial stake in the company. The new deal, whijh is subject to shareholder approval, would give Calgene $50 rhillion more. It has taken longer and cost more than eriginally expected to bring engineered foodstuffs to the market. Calgene 's tomato, the first to be approved by federal regulators, had only mixed sue-, cess with consumers.

But analyst Sano Shimoda of Bioscience Securities Inc. said Wednesday the new Monsanto investment could spark huge growth in agricultural biotechnology. "Calgene was always recognized as having a world-class technology base, especially in its oils business and in cotton," Shimoda said. "Now these resources give the company the ability to ramp up commercialization. "This industry is on the point of really taking off," he said.

"Despite all the skepti- cism and there's been good reason for the skepticism this industry is at the point now where the rocker ship is ready to take off and demonstrate to the real world, as well as the 'financial community, that this technology base is for real." Also Wednesday, Calgene Chairman Roger Salquist resigned. But Salquist, who had also been chief executive officer, said he would remain a director of the company and serve as a consultant. Meanwhile, Lloyd Kunimoto, currently vice president for strategic plan- ning and business develop- ment at Calgene, has heen named acting chief Lockheed Martin, one of four companies competing to develop the next generation of "Evolved Expendable Launch 'Foreign ones took over and by the 1990s, there's no American airplane in the upper category. That's where we come in. We're out to regain and surpass our past We're competing with the equivalent of General Dynamics for the most part, which makes it more amazing' Stuart Horn, owner of Aviat Aircraft Inc to produce his Federal Aviation Administration-certified biplane.

In 1972, the Pitts helped the U.S. Aerobatic team win the world title for the first time. Other countries took note and. Aerotech took orders. The company, which has had several owners, averaged about 40 sales a year of its Pitts and-Husky models, which cost $130,000 and $85,000 respectively.

Custom-made monoplanes are even pricier, at $200,000 and up. "Basically, these things are a rich man's toy," Merritt says. "Whether it's fast cars or horses or airplanes, you have to have pretty deep pockets to handle them." The Husky is a multipurpose plane used by bush pilots, in Alaska, anti-poaching units in Kenya and for glider towing in Germany, for example. The Pitts is the more glamorous plane. "It's like your Taurus wagon versus a Miata," says pilot Peter Pierpont.

Under the hood of the new Pitts S-1-1 IB is 300 horsepower that can power the lightweight aircraft to 212 mph. With a thrust-to-weight ratio of 1-1, the plane "can do F-16 straight-up things," Pierpont says. The planes are judged in competition similar to how Car and Driver may judge a Miata looks, horsepower, turning ability and speed. In the case of the airplanes, it's the speed, straight up. The old Pitts would climb 2,700 feet a minute up.

Today's monoplanes, such as the Russian Sukhoi, climb at about 3.800 feet a minute. The new Pitts has been designed to reach 4,140. The new plane also has an old-fashioned twist, with handmade parts and a design that has changed little since Curtis Pitts came up with it in 1945. These airplanes are tried and true. Structurally and design-wise, they're very capable, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it," Horn says.

"This airplane is deemed by aeronautic engine design purists as the best aerobatic airplane ever designed." AFTON, Wyo! Airplane buffs revere the Pitts aerobatic biplane in much the same way motorcyclists admire the Harley Davidson. "It's a piece of Americana," says Stuart Horn, owner of Aviat Aircraft the western Wyoming company that manufacturers the Pitts. "At one time.jt was the epitome of aerobatic planes." That time was the 1970s ajid 1 980s. peaking' in 1980 when the plane dominated the prestigious World Aerobatic Contest held for the first tiifie in the United Slates. Monoplanes built by overseas, government-subsidized corporations have since elbowed the Pitts out of the contest's top level, where 100.

of the world's best pilots roll, twist, tum and maneuver their plane before judges. From Aug. 18-30, the global contest that has been called the Olympics of the air returns to the -States, in Oklahoma City, Okla. Aviat plans to be there as well, with a new Pitts design that Horn believes will propel the company to new heights. "Foreign ones took over and by Uie 1 990s, there's no American airplane in the upper category.

That's where we come in," Horn says. "We're out to regain and surpass our past glories. We're competing with the equivalent of General Dynamics for the most part, which makes it more amazing." The idea started around Christmas when Horn purchased the formerly low-key Star Valley company from Englishman Malcolm White. He learned abouvthe sale through a blind ad, but didn't walk'into the situation blind. Horn says a desire for a change and his interest in aviation "I had my pilot's license before my driver's license" caused him to leave his New York real estate developer job and buy Aviat.

Since then, the number of Aviat employees has jumped from 55 to 80 people, with 100 as Vehicles" to replace the aging' Delta, Atlas and Titan families, has chosen a company to develop a new upper stage rocket engine for Lockheed Martin's EELV entry. Team Agena 2000, comprising Atlantic Research Corporation and Aerojet, has been selected by Lockheed Martin for a project the huge defense contractor terms "the key to our EELV. design." The Agena engine would be placed on all EELV rockets designed to carry medium to heavy payloads into Earth orbit, ranging from low-earth to geosynchronous, 22,300 miles above Earth. The engine is based on an existing Agena upper-stage design in use since the 1960s. The new upper stage rocket will use room-temperature storablc propellant and could be used in other rockets on the company's drawing board.

The Air Force is expected to select two of the four teams contributing EELV proposals in December. Those two teams will develop more detailed designs. SBC Communications Inc. shareholders on Wednesday the 12-month target. The niche plane manufacturer more than surpassed its $5 million in sales last year in the first three months.

Aviat has taken an active role in the airplane community by restoring old planes, supporting a scholarship program for young fliers and more. And Robert Armstrong of the U.S. aerobatic team has agreed to fly in the 1996 world contest with the new biplane. He placed in the top three in two tune-up contests. "This facility built a wonderful product before, but didn't connect with those buying.

It was like a very passive, isolated situation. We want to be a very proactive, involved company," Horn says. Adds company researcher and part-historian Robert Merritt: "There's a lot of people in Wyoming that don't know there's been airplanes built over in this end of the state for 65 years." Call Air started producing crop dusters in Afton back in the 1930s until the company was bought out and moved. Seeking to fill the gap, area leaders persuaded legendary engineer Curtis Pitts and others to form Aerotech in 197 1 COMMODITIES NYSE Market in brief July 1M9 DOWiMuttuhi NYSE LOS ANGELES (AP) (FSMN): Strawberries: Lower, Fiats 12ptntbas- PRODUCE kets: CMornia AM up too uta SAP WdCjp NASOAd 4.00-6.00, mostty 4.00-5.00, some bes( 7 .00, occasional 8.00. BrooooS: Higher.

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approved the company's $17 billion merger with Pacific Telesis Group. "The merger is on track to be completed by early 1997," Edward E. Whitacre chief executive officer of SBC, said after the vote at a special shareholders meeting in San Antonio. The merger was supported by 97 percent of shares voted at the meeting. The vote represented 70 percent of SBC's outstanding shares, officials Pv3tmc Telesis shareholders were scheduled to vote on the merger late Wednesday.

yThe merger must also be approved by U.S. Department of Justice and the California Public Utility Commission. SBC and Pacific Telesis announced their merger agreement on April I Together, the two companies will have over $21 billion in revenues and will serve the nation's two most populous states, California and Texas. 475,075,260. LONDON IAP) GoW prices rose.

Golddosed In London at $385.10 per ounce Wednesday, up from $384.75 bid Tuesday. NEW YORK Harmon 527. 53 297, 307. 1077. 37'.

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