The Sukhoi Superjet 100 is a family of twin-engine regional transports powered by Snecma/NPO Saturn SaM146 turbofan engines, rated at 13,500-17,500 lb. thrust each. The series was launched with a 95-98-seat baseline model, the Superjet 100-95. The shortened 100-75, a 75-78-seat version, and the lengthened 100-115/120, a 115-120-seat version, are being considered. The Superjet 100-95 made its first flight in May 2008, and achieved initial Russian/Commonwealth of Independent States certification in early 2011.
Viking Air owns the manufacturing rights to a number of out-of-production de Havilland aircraft, including the DHC-6 Twin Otter, an all-metal, non-pressurized, high-wing, twin-engine turboprop utility aircraft. In April 2007, Viking Air launched a program to restart production of the 19-passenger Twin Otter. The updated Viking Air Twin Otter Series 400 incorporates more than 800 changes to the Series 300, and is powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34s or optional PT6A-35s.
Universal Avionics is about to certify a new flight deck called InSight that tightens the working relationship between pilot and machine with a blend of higher-resolution 3-D synthetic vision, larger displays and new icon-based command-and-control architecture. The system is the first major integrated cockpit refresh in nearly a decade from the company that first certified synthetic vision for the multifunction display in 2002, light airplanes in 2005 and air transport cockpits in 2006.
In 2010, the hope was that by 2015 private aircraft would be widely usable in China. As of 2014, little progress has been made for propeller-driven aircraft, although helicopter operations are making progress.
The 10th Zhuhai air show sees China emerging as a one-stop military aerospace provider, from surveillance satellites to 50-kg small-diameter precision-guided munitions.
Nov. 11-16—Eighth China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition. Zhuhai. See www.airshow.com.cn Nov. 12-14—11th ALTA Airline Leaders Forum. Nassau, Bahamas. See www.alta.aero/2010 Nov. 18—SpeedNews 12th Aerospace and Defense Industry Suppliers Conference. Litchfield Park, Arizona. See speednews.com/aerospace-and-defense-industry-suppliers-conference Dec. 8-10—Middle East Business Aviation. Dubai. See www.meba.aero
Nov. 19-20—A&D Programs, Litchfield Park, Arizona. Jan. 13-14—MRO Latin America, Buenos Aires. Feb. 2-3—MRO Middle East, Dubai. March 5—Laureate Awards, Washington. April 14-16—MRO Americas, Miami.
New avionics company Genesys Aerosystems, an amalgam of S-Tec and Chelton Flight Systems, is concentrating on special missions needs to make its mark in the Avionics realm
Pentagon procurement chief Frank Kendall is confident Boeing can deliver the initial KV-46s in 2017, but sees possible additional costs for the company
After astronauts install a special 3-D printer in the ISS’s Microgravity Science Glovebox and set up the high-definition video cameras that will watch its extruder and work platform from two different angles, controllers at a small startup company in California will send signals to begin making things in orbit.
The agency’s ultimate goal is to integrate the disparate elements of a vast ballistic missile defense system—including satellites, airborne infrared data and ground- and ship-based radars—into a single network of sensors and shooters functioning seamlessly.
Boeing and SpaceX are preceding apace with their plans for commercial crew space capsules, now that the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals ruled against Sierra Nevada’s protest.
Signature of a contract for 36 Saab JAS 39E/F Gripen fighters for Brazil—covering technology transfer, the development of the JAS 39F two-seater and a substantial role in the program for Embraer and other Brazilian companies—is a turning point in Gripen’s history, Saab officials say.
As France prepares to battle the European Commission over its 2015 spending plan, Paris is under pressure to reduce the nation’s deficit, even as its military takes on new operational commitments in Africa and the Middle East. Pro-defense lawmakers also worry that the six-year military spending plan will collapse if some of the defense ministry’s anticipated funding sources do not materialize as planned.
Contingency planning and the multi-vehicle approach to supplying the International Space Station will mitigate the effects of the worst accident to hit human spaceflight since the Columbia disaster, but not without some belt-tightening and lesson-learning in the months ahead.
Airbus A318 The A318 is a twin-engine, 107-132-passenger narrowbody jetliner. Initial flight occurred in January 2002. The European Joint Aviation Authorities certified the A318 (with CFM56 engines) in May 2003, followed by FAA certification a month later. A318 deliveries began in July 2003; 79 aircraft were produced through 2013. A318s are powered by two 21,600-23,800-lb.-thrust turbofan engines, either the Pratt & Whitney PW6000 or CFM56-5B.
The Pentagon’s proposed new strategy—Third Offset—builds on operational challenges faced in the 1950s and 1970s—that took advantage of U.S. technological leadership to overcome operational challenges.
It is growing more likely that July 1, 2015, will not mark the initial operational capability (IOC) declaration for the F-35B desired by the U.S. Marine Corps, according to Pentagon procurement chief Frank Kendall. Also in jeopardy is the U.S. Air Force’s ability to declare its F-35A operational by Aug. 1, 2016, due to an impending shortfall in maintainers to repair the single-engine, stealthy jet.
