NASA says launch of the $1.5 billion Npoess Preparatory Project (NPP) spacecraft from Vandenberg AFB, Calif., aboard a Delta II rocket is scheduled for Oct. 27 at 2:48 a.m. PDT. The current schedule represents a two-day slip to address a small hydraulic system leak and a damaged flexible exhaust system collar. NPP carries five Earth-observing instruments—each destined for operational assignments crucial to the future of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's rechristened Joint Polar Satellite System network—into a Sun-synchronous orbit with a 512-mi.
Jim Halsell, former NASA astronaut and retired USAF colonel, will join Huntsville, Ala.-based Dynetics this month. He was NASA director of operations at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Russia and led NASA's Space Shuttle Return-to-Flight Planning Team after the Columbia accident.
The AS565 Panther multirole, 10-15-seat helicopter is a military version of the AS365 Dauphin. Several variants of the Panther exist, including the U.S. Coast Guard's HH-65C (powered by Turbomeca Arriel 2C2 engines); the naval AS565MB and land-based AS565UB (both powered by Arriel 2Cs). Military roles include ground support, anti-armor, scout, medical evacuation, search-and-rescue, anti-submarine and anti-surface vessel warfare, and airborne assault.
Boeing's first 747-8 freighter was officially delivered to launch customer Cargolux Oct. 12 after a long-running wrangle over contractual terms concerning engine performance was resolved. Originally due for delivery Sept. 19, the aircraft departed from Boeing's Everett facility and stopped at nearby Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to pick up its first load (see photo). The second of 13 aircraft on order by Cargolux was delivered Oct. 13. The 747-8F program is more than a year behind its original schedule. Boeing has taken 75 orders for the 747-8F.
While the overall deployment rate may be low, required navigation performance (RNP) initiatives are under way in many countries. These are examples of developments in different regions:
Satellite-based airport approaches are expected to yield dramatic gains in efficiency and safety, but industry experts say slow deployment worldwide is preventing their full potential from being realized.
The Typhoon is a delta-wing, single- and two-seat, supersonic, air-superiority combat fighter produced by Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH (a consortium that includes Alenia, BAE Systems and EADS) and sponsored by France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. The aircraft is powered by two Eurojet EJ200 axial-flow, low-bypass, augmented turbofans rated at 20,250 lb. thrust each with reheat. The initial prototype flew in 1994, with deliveries commencing in 2002. Some 256 Typhoons were built through 2010, while an estimated 304 are forecast for production in 2011-20.
The A330 MRTT is a military tanker/transport version of the Airbus A330 airliner. The twin-engine A330 MRTT is powered by either Rolls-Royce Trent 700 or General Electric CF6-80E1 turbofan engines. Through 2010, 14 green A330s were produced for eventual conversion to the MRTT configuration; an additional 15 are forecast to be built in the 2011-20 period.
General Electric has submitted all documents to the European Aviation Safety Authority for certification of the Czech-built H80 turboprop, and is on track to deliver 12 engines before the end of the year. The H80, derived from the original Walter M601 but heavily modified with GE 3D aero design know-how, forms the core of GE's nascent business and general aviation strategy to penetrate this segment. In particular, GE sees a largely untapped niche in the agricultural, general aviation and utility market for a competitor to Pratt & Whitney Canada's PT6 turboprop.
And on our Things With Wings blog, Rupa Haria's post, “Call it Heathwick, Call It Gatrow, Call it Dead On Arrival,” outlines the many ideas (mostly bad) to revitalize London's failing airport infrastructure, eliciting: AirlinesAngel saying:
The Tucano series is a family of trainer and light attack aircraft; first flight occurred in 1980. The standard EMB-312 Tucano is powered by a single 750-shp Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-25C turboprop engine, while the Shorts-built S312 (T1) variant is powered by an uprated 1,100-shp AlliedSignal TPE331-12B-701A turboprop. These original Tucano models are no longer in production. The current production model is the EMB-314 Super Tucano, which has an extended fuselage, pressurized cockpit, strengthened airframe and 1,600-shp PT6A-68C turboprop.
Airbus is poised to deliver the first A320 family aircraft powered by upgraded CFM International CFM56-5B PIP (Performance Improvement Package) engines. The upgraded -5B PIP package, originally dubbed the -5BE, will enter service on an A320 scheduled for delivery to LAN Airlines of Chile within the next few days. Prior to certification, the PIP package completed extensive ground testing and 26 hr. of flight-testing on the A320, says CFM.
Patricia Ornst has become regional managing director-community and state affairs for the Northeast at American Airlines. She was VP and director of aviation at the New York City Economic Development Corp.
China's assertiveness over its claim to the South China Sea has rattled Vietnam and the Philippines the most, and sparked an arms race that is taking on a greater sense of urgency as more incidents arise.
The Su-27/30/35 series comprises twin-engine, single- and two-seat fighter/interceptor aircraft. Development of the Su-27 began in 1969, and a prototype made its initial flight in 1977. Power for the Su-27 comes from two Saturn/Lyulka AL-31F turbofans each rated at 27,557 lb. thrust with afterburner. Other derivatives of the base design include the two-seat Su-30M multirole combat aircraft, Su-34 fighter/bomber, Su-33 carrier-based naval aircraft and the latest iteration, the Su-35. India's Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. and China's Shenyang Aircraft Corp.
First flown as a prototype in 1982, the Ka-50 is a single-seat, twin-engine contra-rotating coaxial rotor attack helicopter. The Ka-52 is a side-by-side, twin-seat variant of the Ka-50. A prototype of the Ka-52 first flew in 199. Power for the Ka-50 initially came from 2,200-shp Klimov TV3-117VMAs. Though production ceased in 2009, it is still offered for sale but now with the 2,400-shp Klimov VK-2500 engine, as found on the Ka-52, which remains in production. Through 2010, 18 Ka-50s and 12 Ka-52s were built.
USAF Gen. (ret.) Charles R. Holland has been named the winner of this year's R. Lynn Rylander Award. The award, given by the Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict Div. of the National Defense Industrial Association, Arlington, Va., recognizes contributions to the special operations community, Department of Defense and the United States.Holland was at the forefront of integrating special operations capabilities and training within the USAF.
Michael “Willy” Andersen has been appointed VP and program director for the V-22 Osprey and deputy director of the Bell-Boeing Program Office at Bell Helicopter in Fort Worth. A retired USAF colonel, Andersen was director, chief engineer and deputy lead for missions systems for the Lockheed Martin F-35.
You have to hand it to European Union officials—they sure know how to keep an industry on its toes, if not knock it on its derriere. The EU's plan to include virtually all of the world's airlines in its emissions trading system (ETS) is both audacious and menacing. With tortuous reasoning, a European judge has ruled that, even though every EU member nation is a signatory to the Chicago Convention, the EU itself is not bound by the precepts of that convention, the essential backbone of international civil aviation for 65 years (AW&ST Oct. 10, p. 28).
The Eurocopter EC120 is a single-turbine helicopter primarily used in the military arena for flight training. Power is supplied by a Turbomeca Arrius 2F turboshaft engine rated at 504 shp. Through 2010, 689 EC120s were produced, with another 510 expected in 2011-20.
The K-8 is a tandem-seat trainer aircraft produced by Hongdu Aviation Industry Group, with 18% of components produced by Pakistan Aeronautical Complex. First flight occurred in 1990. The K-8 is powered by either a 3,600-lb.-thrust Honeywell TFE731-2-2A turbofan engine or a 3,792-lb.-thrust ZMKB Progress AI-25TL turbofan. At least 306 K-8 aircraft were produced through 2010, with 205 forecast for production in 2011-20.
The FAA gave its final, conditional approval for Delta Air Lines and US Airways to swap a large number of their slots at New York LaGuardia and Reagan Washington National airports, but the Justice Department (DOJ) says it is still investigating the slot transaction at National for antitrust concerns. The investigation will not prevent the carriers from proceeding, but the absence of a DOJ decision creates some uncertainty for US Airways.
First flight of the J-10 combat aircraft occurred in March 1998. The single-engine, single- or two-seat interceptor/ground-attack aircraft is powered by a Lyulka Saturn AL-31FN turbofan rated at 27,560 lb. thrust with reheat, although the Chinese have been working on a version powered by the indigenous WS-10 engine. Some 173 J-10s were produced through 2010. Production of an additional 276 is forecast for the 2011-20 period.
From the acquisition of an aircraft carrier to the development of new aircraft to an expansive view of its roles and rights in the South China Sea, Beijing is signaling it intends a longer military reach than just Taiwan (see pp. 32 and 52). In the photo by U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Jerry Morrison, Chinese navy sailors prepare for an honors ceremony for then-Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates in the capital last January.
