Feb 2, 2018  -  Airbus SE reported its flight-test team completed the first flight for the A321LR (Long Range), a new variant of the A321neo single-aisle aircraft. The test mission lasted 2 hours and 36 minutes, with the aircraft powered by CFM International LEAP-1A engines. The same aircraft now will undergo a flight-test program scheduled to last nearly 100 hours (including transatlantic routes) to attain for EASA and FAA Type Certification by midyear.

Feb 2, 2018  -  On the evening of Jan. 31, 1958, the United States orbited its first satellite -- Explorer 1. The effort was part of the nation's participation in the International Geophysical Year (IGY), a peaceful scientific endeavor. It also marked America's first step in the Space Race of the Cold War.

Jan 26, 2018  -  The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union can reveal that only 60% of seats were filled on the ratepayer subsidised Wellington-Canberra flight route, compared to an average of nearly 80% for all flights in and out of Australia. Taxpayers’ Union Economist, Joe Ascroft, says that “Figures published by the Australian Government in their international airline review for 2016/17 make for sober reading. It is no surprise that Singapore had to move their flight route to Melbourne. Making profit, even after ratepayer subsidies, on a route where 40% of seats are empty on an average flight was never realistic.” “Changing the route to Melbourne is unlikely to be successful either. Jetstar had to discontinue their Wellington-Melbourne route in 2016 because it was unprofitable to compete with Air New Zealand and Qantas. Ratepayers shouldn’t be forced to subsidise an airline, and especially on a route which is already serviced by two other airlines.”

The Taxpayers’ Union is calling on the Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency to cancel their deal with Singapore Airlines. We’ve started a petition which you can view here.

|A Taxpayers Union release  ||  January 26, 2018   |||

Jan 21, 2018  -  Rocket Lab has successfully launched its second flight as well as launching three mini-satellites into a low Earth orbit.

The 17-metre Electron booster launched on a test flight from the Mahia Peninsula was carrying three mini-satellites that have gone into orbit on behalf of paying customers.

Yesterday the company tried six times to launch its rocket, with one attempt stopping 60 seconds before take off due to a boat entering the exclusion zone downrange from the launch pad.

The launch was later scrubbed as high winds passed over the Mahia Peninsula.

Rocket Lab chief executive Peter Beck has said that although it was a test flight it was also carrying three satellites for paying customers.

The satellites are an Earth-imaging satellite for Planet, and two Lemur-2 satellites for Spire, for weather and ship tracking.

Continue to read full article with video on NewsTalkZB    ||  January 21, 2018   |||

19 January, 2018 - A newly-signed contract discloses key details of Russia’s design goals for the country’s first high-bypass gas turbine engine in the 75,000lb-thrust power class launched on 19 January to support the CRIAC CR929 widebody, Ilyuishin Il-96-400 and several military projects.

The $1.13 billion (₽64.3 billion) contract awarded by the Russian government on 19 January calls on United Engine Corporation-Aviadvigital to develop a demonstrator engine named the PD-35-1 by 2023 featuring several state-of-the-art technologies, including wide-chord composite fan blades and composite fan case, ceramic matrix composites and advanced cooling systems.

The PD-35-1 also will be designed with a compressor pressure ratio measuring 23:1, the contract documents posted on the Russian government’s procurement agency says. That falls a step below the 27:1 ratio planned for the high-pressure compressor section of the GE Aviation GE9X engine now in development testing for the Boeing 777X.

But the documents still reveal a plan for Russian industry to make dramatic progress over the next decade. Building on the advanced metallics now in testing in the 28,000lb-thrust PD-14 turbofan, the PD-35-1 will drive Russia to introduce composite materials pioneered by GE over the last 15 years. The Aviadvigital PD-14 is Russia’s homegrown alternative to the Pratt & Whitney PW1400G on the Irkut MC-21 narrowbody.

In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Russia’s deputy prime minister for defence and space industries Dmitry Rogozin notes that the Soviet Union never produced a turbofan engine over 70,000lb-thrust and the PD-35-1 will become the first in the region’s history.

“We really need it,” he says.

Russia and China have teamed up to develop the CR929 under the CRIAC joint venture beween Comac and United Aircraft Corporiation. CRIAC is expected to select an engine made by GE or R-R to introduce the CR929 into commercial service by the end of the next decade. Separately, China and Russia each plan to develop indigenously-sourced alternatives to the Western powerplants for the CR929. The PD-35-1 also would be used to power several Russian air force development projects, including the Il-476 airlifter, Il-478 tanker and a long-term effort to replace the Antonov An-124.

Mimicking the structural configuration of the Boeing 787’s GEnx-1B engines, the PD-35-1 engine will be designed with widechord composite fan blades and a composite, the contract documents show. The documents don’t specify if Russian industry plans to use a similar process as GE’s 3D woven composite materials.

The turbine of the PD-35-1 will be exposed to temperatures as high as 1,450°C (2,640°F), exceeding the melting point of most advanced metal alloys. To help the turbine survive, the contract documents say Aviadvigital must integrate exotic new materials and advanced cooling systems. Two types of ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) – silicon carbide-silicon carbide (SiC-SiC) and carbon-silicon carbide (C-SiC) will be used in the PD-35-1 demonstrator engine, the contract documents say. GE pioneered the use of CMCs in the Leap-1 series of engines that it produces with Safran under the CFM International joint venture.

SOURCE: Flight Dashboard BY: Stephen Trimble Washington DC   ||  January 19, 2018   |||

Jan 18, 2018  -  OEM supplied +4% more aircraft and booked 52% more contracts than in the prior year.  Airbus S.E. reported its fifteenth consecutive annual increase in commercial aircraft deliveries for 2017, setting a new record with 718 aircraft delivered to 88 customers, an increase of +4% over the record (688 aircraft) set for 2016. More significantly, Airbus posted a 52% rise in contracts for new commercial aircraft, logging 1,109 net orders, and allowing it to claim the annual title in that category versus Boeing’s 912 new orders for 2017.

Jan 16,  2018  - Airbus has strengthened its position following a record year for jet sales, extending an order lead over rival manufacturers such as Boeing.  The European company booked contracts for 1,109 airliners in 2017, Airbus announced, widening its margin over its US competitor to 197.

Jan 12, 2018  -  After failing to launch last month, US spaceflight startup Rocket Lab will try again at the end of January to get its experimental rocket to orbit. The company plans to launch the vehicle, called the Electron, from its New Zealand facility sometime during a nine-day window that begins on January 20th. If all goes well, it could be the last test flight before Rocket Lab begins commercial flights in the coming year.

Jan 9, 2018  -  A bristol Freighter aicraft is to be restored in the city where it was built more than 60 years ago.  Shipped from New Zealand, where it had been in storage since last flying in 1977, it will be restored at Aerospace Bristol.  

Dec 29, 2017  -  Airbus has an order for 50 A321neo narrow-body aircraft from Qatar Airways, with deliveries to begin in 2019. The booking, which is valued at $6.35 billion at list prices, updates and expands an earlier contract placed by Qatar Airways in 2011.  The A321neo ACF (Airbus Cabin Flex configuration) introduces new placements for doors and other changes to the fuselage, so airlines can make more cost-effective use of cabin space and increase underfloor fuel capacity, for trans-Atlantic routes up to 4,000 nautical miles.

The A321neo is the largest variant of the OEM’s single-aisle, twin-engine A320 series jets with the “new engine option,” a choice of Pratt & Whitney PW1133G-JM or CFM International LEAP-1A engines. Along with the new engine options, the redesigned A320 series’ sharklet wing fixtures help to increase fuel efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions.

Qatar Airways selected the A320 series Airbus Cabin Flex (ACF) configuration, with relocated cabin doors and other modifications to the fuselage that give carriers the ability to increase seating, including more “underfloor” fuel capacity to support a range of up to 4,000 nautical miles (i.e., trans-Atlantic routes.)

The order is considered to be part of the airline’s ongoing route expansion effort; in 2017, it introduced new service to Western and Central Europe, Russia, and Southeast Asia, and more new destinations will be added in 2018. The airline also will be the global launch customer for the Airbus A350-1000 wide-body jet during the coming year.

“At a time when Qatar Airways is experiencing unprecedented growth and expansion the need for efficient, reliable and modern aircraft has never been greater,” commented Qatar Airways Group CEO Akbar Al Baker. “To answer our need for growth and additional capacity, the A321neo ACF is a world-class choice for our passengers and for our business. Qatar Airways is the fastest growing airline in the world and with this aircraft we will operate the youngest fleet whilst delivering unprecedented comfort and services to our customers.”

Source: American Machinest  ||  December 29, 2017   |||