Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions

The Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (from the Latin Pontificium Institutum Missionum Exterarum) is a society of secular priests and lay people who dedicate their lives to missionary activities in: Algeria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Hong Kong, India, Ivory Coast, Japan, Mexico, Myanmar (Burma), Papua New Guinea, Philippines and Thailand.

Independently founded in Milan in 1850 and Rome in 1874 as a group of missionary-style diocesan priests and seminarians, these two seminaries were merged and officially recognized as PIME in 1926 by Pope Pius XI. PIME supports more than 500 missionaries in 18 countries and is headquartered in Rome. The institute opened its North American Regional headquarters in Detroit in 1947 at the invitation of then Detroit Archbishop Cardinal Edward Mooney.

The North American Region focuses its efforts by being at the service of the Church, both locally and globally. The members of PIME minister in local parishes, fostering vocations, mission awareness and financial assistance to their missions and missionaries around the World. PIME has built more than 2,000 churches and chapels and either operates or supports many hospitals and clinics, schools, orphanages and shelters. Among the programs offered by PIME are:

NII

Nii or NII may refer to:

Acronyms

Vega Radio Engineering Corporation

JSC Vega Radio Engineering Corporation (Russian: АО «Концерн радиостроения «Вега», earlier CKB-17, NII-17, MNIIP) is a Russian company specializing in military radar and surveillance and C&C systems for ground-based, airborne and space systems like A-50, Almaz-1 and UAVs.

Founded as CKB-17 (Russian: ЦКБ-17) on October 1, 1944 by the Decree of State Defence Committee of USSR.

Headquarters located in Moscow on Kutuzovskiy, 34.

Currently, Director General and General Designer is V.S. Verba

Overview

The company develops terrestrial, air and space surveillance systems, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). It also manufactures civilian products, such as air traffic control equipment. As of August, 2009, Vega is the only domestic company manufacturing UAVs for the Russian Armed Forces.

Vega's flagship product is the Tipchak mobile aerial system for reconnaissance and target designation. The system operates up to six UAVs launched from a pneumatic catapult. Each UAV has a range of 40 kilometers (25 mi) and a 3-hour endurance. It can provide targeting for artillery and theater-based ballistic missiles at distances up to 350 km (217 mi). The first Tipchak system entered service with the Russian Armed Forces in 2008.

GosNIIAS

FSUE State Scientific Research Institute of Aviation Systems or GosNIIAS for short (Russian: ГосНИИАС) is a Russian R&D enterprise, providing a scientific support of aviation weapons systems development. Founded by the decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR on 26 February 1946 from some of the Mikhail Gromov's LII laboratories under a name of the NII-2. On 24 March 1994 the Institute is known under its current name of GosNIIAS.

GosNIIAS has a status of the State Centre of Science of the Russian Federation.

External links