The laws of atmospheric physics dictate that no matter how a supersonic vehicle is shaped or propelled it will generate a sonic boom when it exceeds the speed of sound. But technology to dramatically minimize that boom has been developed and new details of two concept vehicles that could be used to prove these advances in flight test have been revealed for the first time.
I n the face of a new and unexpected threat, Iraq is hurriedly rebuilding its air force, but not with help from the U.S., as one might expect. Instead they are turning to Russia, and to an old enemy, Iran. The sudden and dramatic taking of the city of Mosul on June 10 by the jihadist group, Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), poses one of the biggest challenges to the Iraqi state since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
W hen American Airlines introduced Gogo Internet in 2008 on transcontinental flights, it marked a major development in onboard connectivity. But six years later, the system’s technology is growing increasingly outdated, and U.S. airlines may soon have to explore options to improve it.
Y ou have checked in for your flight and are killing time browsing the Duty Free shops when an announcement with your name in it rings across the departure hall, and you panic: You forgot to reset your watch. How far? Which way? Walk, run or take the shuttle? You make a dash for it, but the gate closes 2 min. before you get there. “We thought you had decided not to travel,” says the gate clerk as you work on apologies for the missed meeting.
With the purchase of LiveTV finalized last month, Thales has done more than bolster its position in the inflight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) sector. As the world’s third-largest supplier of avionics to the commercial aircraft industry, the company aims to enhance operational efficiencies for airlines as well—everything from engine monitoring and weather updates to proposed trajectory changes that reduce fuel consumption.
L ockheed Martin and Pentagon officials have carefully planned their talking points at this week’s Farnborough air show to focus on the F-35’s reliability.
A s Airbus showcases the A350-900 for the first time at this year’s Farnborough International Airshow, the aircraft’s exclusive engine provider, Rolls-Royce, is poised to begin tests of the higher-thrust Trent XWB-97 version for the stretched A350-1000.
Air New Zealand has become the first airline to take delivery of the Boeing 787-9, and plans to debut the aircraft on revenue flights from Auckland to Sydney in early August. A celebration to mark the handover was held in Everett, Washington, on July 8, almost 10 years after the orders for 10 aircraft were placed. The first aircraft was flown back to New Zealand on July 10. The carrier will spend about three weeks preparing the aircraft for revenue service, conducting proving flights and additional training.
The Textron AirLand Scorpion made its international debut at last week’s Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford in the U.K.; it sat a mere several feet from the F-35B mockup brought in by Lockheed Martin in place of the F-35Bs that were no-shows, thanks to a fleet-wide grounding. The twin-engine jet made seven stops en route to its appearance July 10 at the event; it arrived at the air field July 9. The aircraft flew 4,607.9 mi., logging a cumulative 15.7 hr. for the journey; it was accompanied by a Cessna Sovereign+ business jet.
Although Boeing has played down the disruption to its 737 production system caused by the July 3 derailment of a BNSF train in Rivulet, Montana, the crash was an eye-catching example of how even the most robust and redundant supply system can be severed by an interruption to something as small as a 4-ft., 8.5-in.-gauge railroad track.
T wo years ago at the Farnborough International Air Show, defense companies were optimistic about generating export sales to offset declining government support at home. Now Western defense executives are worrying about the rapid spike in competition from companies in China, Israel, India, Brazil and South Korea.
Business jets, one of the White House’s favorite symbols of corporate excess, are back in the administration’s crosshairs. The White House is threatening to veto a bill that would make permanent a 50% bonus depreciation measure on certain capital equipment, including biz jets. The bill is among a series drafted by the House Ways and Means Committee that would make permanent tax breaks that for years have been approved on a temporary basis.
The FAA is revising its guidance on air cargo ops in response to last year’s fatal Boeing 747-400 freighter accident at Afghanistan’s Bagram Airfield. In April 2013, a National Airlines freighter operating for the U.S. military, crashed on takeoff from Bagram, killing all seven crew. The converted passenger aircraft was carrying five military vehicles.
Tucked into President Barack Obama’s request for $3.7 billion to address the increase in children migrating across the border into the southwestern U.S. are a few dollars for the growing unmanned aerial systems (UAS) industry. Of the total, $39.4 million is requested to fund 16,526 additional border security flight hours in fiscal 2015 and 16 additional UAS crews. U.S. Customs and Border Patrol uses Predator B UAVs.
The composite backplane structure designed to support the 18 beryllium mirrors that will give the planned James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) a 21-ft. primary aperture has completed static testing, clearing the way for its integration with the deployment mechanisms that will unfold it in deep space and the mirrors themselves. ATK, which designed and built the backplane structure, joined JWST prime contractor Northrop Grumman in the test, which determined that the 2,180-lb. structure can support loads totaling 12 times its weight during its 2018 launch.
Public and private organizations worldwide will be able to use hyperspectral imagery collected on the International Space Station, following a collaboration agreement between the United Nations Institute for Training and Research and the U.S. Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (Casis) to develop a new sensor. Casis, the non-profit organization established to promote the use of capabilities offered by the U.S.
Russia launched its new Angara-1.2 light launcher from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome July 9, after a technical glitch postponed a planned June 25 debut. Lifting off on a ballistic trajectory at 12:00 UTC, the two-stage Angara carried a mass simulator weighing 1,430 kg (3,150 lb.), according to Angara prime contractor Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. Khrunichev said the suborbital demonstration mission ended as planned when the Angara second stage and its dummy payload landed 21.28 min. post-launch 5,700 km (3,600 mi.) from Plesetsk.
Avic’s Xian Aircraft factory has begun final assembly of the center fuselage for the Comac C919 program’s first flight-test aircraft. The plant, one of several Avic units supplying major structural assemblies to Comac, says it completed the center wingbox, which should be part of the center fuselage module that Xian Aircraft is contracted to supply to Comac in Shanghai for final assembly of the aircraft. The center fuselage should be delivered this month. The first C919 is due to fly in 2015. Certification of the 158-seater is scheduled for 2018.
Lufthansa and Air China should begin joint-venture operations between China and Europe as early as the 2014 winter schedule, providing improved market access to the German airline and cooperation with a competitive partner to the Chinese carrier. The two Star Alliance airlines also plan to collaborate more closely on maintenance, repair and overhaul services. The memorandum of understanding was signed on July 7.
Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) of Guilford, England, will build the medium-resolution Alsat-1B remote-sensing satellite for Algerian space agency ASAL, along with a new spacecraft assembly and integration center in Oran, on the country’s northwestern coast. Based on the SSTL-100 small satellite bus, Alsat-1B will carry a 24-meter-resolution (39-ft.) multispectral imager and a 12-meter-resolution black-and-white imager.
