In the 1980s, Curtiss-Wright Corp. began thinking of its home in the industrial Northeast as increasingly staid and the American South as “the place to go.”
Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce have shipped the first production short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing (Stovl) propulsion system to Lockheed Martin for installation in the F-35B variant. The lift-fan module, produced at Rolls’s Indianapolis facility, will be integrated with Pratt & Whitney’s F135’s Stovl engine and remaining elements of the lift system in the first production aircraft BF-6. The 50-in., two-stage counter-rotating lift fan, capable of generating more than 20,000 lb.
The forthcoming twin-engine, extra-widebody jetliner is intended to compete with Boeing’s 787 and 777. The A350 will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines rated in the 74,000-92,000-lb.-thrust range and will likely have a cruise speed of Mach 0.85. Three basic versions are being marketed: the -800, -900 and -1000. Depending on version, the aircraft seats 270-350 passengers and will have a range of 8,000-8,300 nm. An ultra-long-range version, the A350-900R, will also be available, as will a-900F freighter.
The U.S. Air Force is playing down speculation about operational roles for the secretive X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), but it acknowledges that the reusable spacecraft could complement ongoing operationally responsive space initiatives.
The MS-21 is a twin-engine, narrowbody derivative of the defunct Yak-242 airliner being developed by Yakovlev (a subsidiary of Irkut in Russia’s United Aircraft Corp., or UAC). Planned for first flight in 2014, it will come in three variants, all available in both basic and extended-range versions: the MS-21-200 (150 passengers), -300 (181 passengers) and -400 (212 passengers). The MS-21 will be powered by Pratt & Whitney’s PW1000G geared turbofan or the optional Aviadvigatel PD-14.
A major technology-needs inventory now underway at the U.S. National Research Council (NRC) will provide guidance for civil, military and commercial spaceflight managers, regardless of the funding NASA receives for technology development in the years ahead.
The An-124 is a four-engine, intercontinental-range, heavy-lift cargo transport, while the An-225 is a one-off, six-engine, heavy-lift jet designed to carry the Soviet shuttle orbiter Buran. Initial flight of a production An-124 prototype took place in 1982, and commercial operations began in 1986. The An-124 and -225 arepowered by MKB Perm Progress/Lotarev D-18T turbofan engines. Fifty-five An-124s and one An-225 have been manufactured to date.
Christophe Robin has been named vice president-engineering for Daher-Socata ’s Airplane Division. A graduate of France’s Ensica national college for aircraft manufacturing engineers, he has created Dyn’Aero, which has designed and developed more than 17 light and ultra-light aircraft.
Airbus’s launch of the A320NEO (New Engine Option) family has shifted the commercial aircraft industry’s attention from the widebody market, and Boeing’s travails with the 787, to the dramatic change underway in the narrowbody sector.
The TBM 850 is a single-engine, 4-6-passenger, turboprop-powered business transport; it replaced the earlier TBM 700 in 2006. The TBM 850 is powered by a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-66D engine rated at 850 shp. and has a range of 1,520 nm. Through 2009, 184 aircraft were built. Production of 413 TBM 850s is forecast for the 2010-19 period. EADS Socata is designing the TBM 850 to compete with very light jets.
Richard Flynn has been named CFO of Jazz Air Income Fund , effective Feb. 28, succeeding Allan Rowe, who will retire. Flynn has been vice president-finance. Honors And Elections
Airbus says it will close 2010 with nine new executive jet sales, raising to 170 the number of such jets it has sold of all types, including one A380. Approximately half of those sales come from the Middle East.
The 747 is an intercontinental widebody commercial transport; 1,418 were produced through 2009. The aircraft is powered by four turbofan engines. The current 747-400 production model is available with 62,100-lb.-thrust General Electric CF6-80C2B5F engines, 63,300-lb.-thrust Pratt & Whitney PW4062s or 59,500-lb.-thrust Rolls-Royce RB211-524H2-Ts. The 747-400 carries 416 passengers in a typical three-class configuration. First flight and certification occurred in 1969. The -400 variant was certificated, and deliveries began, in January 1989.
This is a family of twin-engine, 70-122-seat regional jet aircraft. The 70-80-passenger 170 made its first flight in February 2002 and deliveries began in March 2004, while the 78-88-seat 175 flew for the first time in June 2003. The 170 and the 175 share a common engine in the 14,200-lb.-thrust General Electric CF34-8E. The 94-114-seat 190 made its initial flight in March 2004, while the 106-122-passenger 195 first flew in December 2004. The 190 and 195 also share the 20,000-lb.-thrust CF34-10E engine. Through 2009, 614 aircraft in the series were built.
Thierry Antinori has been named chief executive of Austrian Airlines ’ executive board, effective April 1, joining co-chief executives Peter Malanik and Andreas Bierwith. Antinori is chief marketing officer at Lufthansa, Austrian’s parent company.
The twin-engine turboprop aircraft family initially was known as the Dash 8 series. The Q100, the original model, made its first flight in June 1983; first deliveries followed in October 1984. The Q100 carried 37-39 passengers and was equipped with 2,150-shp. Pratt & Whitney Canada PW120/121 engines. In 2009, production of the 37-39-passenger Q200 (with 2,150-shp. PW123C/D engines) and the 50-56-seat Q300 (with 2,500-shp PW123Bs) ended. Currently, the 65-70-seat Q400 (with 6,000-shp. PW150As) is in production.
Italy and Israel have agreed to build a hyperspectral remote-sensing satellite system that will be one of the first operational systems of its kind in space.
The Indian government is poised to exercise an option to double the size of its fleet of C-130J tactical transports while recognizing that its operational requirement will require an even larger force. With delivery of the first of six Lockheed Martin C-130J-30s due to begin soon, the prospect of additional buys is strengthening. “We definitely need more than six airplanes,” says an Indian air force officer.
Upcoming spending decisions will be instrumental in dictating the level of operational risk the U.K. will face as the Royal Air Force reshapes and downsizes its combat air arm.
David A. Fulghum (Washington), Robert Wall (London)
Chinese advisers are believed to be working with Afghan Taliban groups who are now in combat with NATO forces, prompting concerns that China might become the conduit for shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles, improved communications and additional small arms to the fundamentalist Muslim fighters.
The 228NG (Next Generation) is an update to Dornier’s original Do 228 launched by RUAG Aerospace in 2007. The aircraft uses upgraded 776-shp. TPE331-10 engines, along with other improvements over the original, including a new glass cockpit, avionics by Rockwell Collins, five-blade MT propeller and aerodynamic changes to the wing to boost short-field performance. Delivery of the first Do 228NG is expected in September 2010, with 73 aircraft forecast for production over the 2010-19 period.
The first parts for the Indian navy’s initial Boeing P-8I maritime reconnaissance and antisubmarine-warfare aircraft have entered manufacturing at SpiritAerosystems in Wichita, Kan. The first part, cut on Dec. 6, is a bonded aluminum panel that later will be installed on the fuselage’s upper lobe to support an antenna. Boeing plans to deliver eight P-8Is to India.
The twin-engine, 107-129-passenger narrowbody jetliner made its initial flight in January 2002. In May 2003, the European Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) certified the aircraft with CFM56 engines, U.S. FAA certification followed in June, and deliveries began in July. Through 2009, Airbus produced 72 A318s, which are powered by two 21,600-23,800-lb.-thrust turbofan engines—either the Pratt & Whitney PW6000 or the CFM International CFM56-5B. Primary competition includes the Embraer 190 and 195 and the Bombardier CSeries.
Amy Butler (Los Angeles AFB and Beverly Hills, Calif.)
A dramatic increase in funding pressure on the Pentagon could finally compel the military space community to buy satellites in bulk, securing 5-35% savings on various programs, according to senior U.S. Air Force officials.
