U.S. Air Force accident investigators are examining the wreckage of a T-6A Texan II trainer that crashed near Spofford, Texas, on Sept. 24. The aircraft, whose crew ejected safely, was based at Laughlin AFB and assigned to the 47th Flying Training Wing. Local reports suggest engine failure is being investigated.
The commercial remote-sensing business is still on a rapid growth trajectory, but weaning the sector from military and government sales will be difficult, as German startup Rapid Eye has discovered.
The AS565 Panther multirole, 10-15-seat helicopter is a military version of the AS365. Several military and paramilitary variants exist, historically powered in a range of twin-turboshaft engine configurations: the U.S. Coast Guard’s AS366G (USCG designated HH-65A) current upgrade—the HH-65C—incorporates Turbomeca Arriel 2C2 engines; the current naval version, the AS565MB, is powered by Turbomeca Arriel 2C engines; and the current land-based military model, the AS565UB, is Turbomeca Arriel 2C-powered.
The B-2 stealth bomber is a long-range nuclear and conventional strike/attack aircraft operated by the U.S. Air Force; it is powered by four 17,300-lb.-thrust General Electric F118-GE-100 turbofan engines. The B-2’s first flight occurred in 1989, with the 21st and final aircraft delivered in 1997. Only the final two B-2s were delivered in the full Block 30 configuration; however, the other 19 bombers achieved that standard through subsequent upgrades.
The Yak-130 is a twin-engine, subsonic advanced trainer and light attack aircraft. It is powered by either the ZMKB Progress AI-222-25 turbofan engine or Soyuz RD-2500 turbofan (prototypes have been equipped with Klimov RD-35 turbofan engines). The first flight of a Yak-130 prototype took place in 1996, followed by the first flight of a production aircraft in 2004. Development and testing have been extended (only about seven Yak-130s were produced through 2009), with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2010 and 153 aircraft forecast to be built in 2010-19.
France is facing the prospect of real capability gaps as it adjusts defense spending to curb its mounting budget deficit. As a first step, the government announced plans last week to curtail defense outlays by €1.3 billion ($1.7 billion) over three years. The move, expected for months, is nonetheless significant because it reverses several years of upticks.
The CN-235 is a twin-turboprop, utility transport and maritime patrol/anti-submarine warfare aircraft, which in passenger transport variants seats 30-40 (up to 53 paratroopers), or a maximum payload of 11,023 lb. (5,000 kg.). The stretched version, the C-295, carries up to 78 troops, or a maximum payload of 20,392 lb. The CN-235 is powered by two General Electric CT7 turboprop engines (the exact version depends on aircraft model, with the early model using -7As and later models -9Cs).
The South Korean government has allocated preliminary funding to study the proposed Korea Attack Helicopter project, intended to create a home-grown replacement for the army’s Bell AH-1S Cobras and Hughes MD500s.
In a head-on challenge to Gulfstream’s high-end G650 business jet, Bombardier will expand its family of large business jets. The Canadian aircraft builder is withholding details until Oct. 18, but the project is believed to be a clean-sheet aircraft that would enter service around 2017, five years after the G650.
The F-CK-1 (also called the Indigenous Defense Fighter) is a light fighter aircraft developed by the Taiwanese state-owned aerospace company in the 1980s. Powered by two Honeywell/ITEC F125-GA-100 turbofan engines, the aircraft entered service in 1994. In all, 130 aircraft were completed by the time production stopped in 1999.
Ryan S. Mifsud has been promoted to executive vice president of the Mifsud Group of Cleveland from vice president/general manager of subsidiary Aero-Instruments. Daniel J. Pappano has been named president of Aero-Instruments. He was senior executive at the Hexcel Corp.
Launch of the Boeing/Ball Aerospace Space-Based Space Surveillance satellite has given the U.S. Air Force an orbiting telescope to locate and track satellites and space debris that is unrestricted by the weather and time considerations that hamper ground-based systems. The $858-million mission started with a Sept. 25 launch on an Orbital Sciences Minotaur IV from Vandenberg AFB, Calif. The spacecraft, which weighed slightly less than 1,100 kg. (2,420 lb.) at launch, is expected to undergo a seven-month checkout period.
The Pentagon is finally buying the next lot of Terminal High-Altitude Air Defense (Thaad) missile defense interceptors from Lockheed Martin after a year-long delay because a single part failed qualification testing. The $298-million contract covers 26 missiles; these are the first missiles for the third and fourth Thaad batteries. Testing of the fix for the optical block sensor, a Moog part that prevents uncommanded launch, is underway.
While public Washington wonders who launched the cyberattack against Iran (see p. 29), a senior Israeli strategic planner hints at why Tel Aviv has been saying every year since 2000 that it has to do something to stop Tehran’s nuclear program within the next 12 months. “The deadline is flexible,” he tells us, because each year something slows down the program—“something diplomatic, new sanctions or other elements.” That last phrase is broad enough to include a cyberattack.
Frtank Morring, Jr. (Prague), Michael A. Taverna (Prague)
U.S. space companies trying to plot a course as NASA reconfigures its approach to exploration and technology are not alone in their frustration and confusion. The space policy debate in Washington is reverberating around the ever-more collaborative world of space activities, leaving companies in Europe and elsewhere unsure of their best strategies for the changing marketplace.
The UH-60/S-70 Black Hawks are a family of single-main-rotor, twin-turbine, medium-lift military transport and utility helicopters. Past models have included the UH-60A – powered by two General Electric T700-GE-700 turboshaft engines, each with an intermediate rating of 1,622 shp.—and the UH-60L, fitted with two GE T700-GE-701C engines rated at 1,890 shp. each. The latest UH-60 version is the new UH-60M, powered by 2,215-shp. GE T700-GE-701Ds. The S-70 family is a line of utility-configured Black Hawks designed for sale on the international market.
A Moscow-based partnership that includes the Russian federal space agency Roscosmos and RSC Energia plans to build a man-tended commercial space station (CSS) that looks like an upgrade of the Soviet-era Salyut orbital stations. The CSS would be serviced by Soyuz and Progress vehicles as is the International Space Station, and could serve as an orbiting refuge for station crews. Able to accommodate up to seven crewmembers at a time, CSS could also receive commercial spacecraft from the U.S. and Europe, as well as Chinese Shenzhou spacecraft, the partnership announced.
The C-27J is a short-/medium-range, high-wing, twin-turboprop-powered short-takeoff-and-landing transport developed as a joint venture between Alenia and Lockheed Martin. The prototype C-27J, which first flew in 1999, was a modified Alenia G.222 with an upgraded cockpit and two 4,640-shp. Rolls-Royce AE2100D2 engines. The C-27J can carry 34-46 paratroopers or 46-68 infantry. The aircraft was selected in 2007 for the U.S. Army/Air Force Joint Cargo Aircraft program. Through 2008, Alenia produced 33 C-27Js, with a total of 118 forecast to be completed in 2010-19.
Novel nuclear and solar space propulsion concepts could receive long-awaited development opportunities as part of NASA’s evolving exploration road map.
The Tornado is a two-seat multirole strike and air combat fighter that first flew in 1974. All Tornado versions are powered by two Turbo-Union RB199 afterburning turbofan engines. Production was completed in 1998, with 992 aircraft built.
European industry leaders say the time may be ripe to launch major missile defense efforts, with a particular eye on fielding systems capable of engaging intermediate-range threats.
The Fuji T-7, also known as the T-3 Kai or the KM-2F, is a two-seat basic/primary trainer derived from Fuji’s piston-engined T-3. It is distinct in that it is powered by a 450-shp. Rolls-Royce 250-B17F turboprop engine. First flight of a prototype, converted from an existing T-3, occurred in 1998. In 2000, the T-7 was selected over the Pilatus PC-7 as the new primary trainer for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. T-7 deliveries began in 2002, with 49 produced through 2008, when the final aircraft was delivered for the Japanese requirement.
The Su-27/30/35 series comprises a family of twin-engine, single- and two-seat fighter/interceptor aircraft. Besides the Su-27 itself, other models in the series include the Su-30M multirole combat aircraft, Su-32 fighter/bomber, Su-33 carrier-based naval aircraft and Su-35 fighter. 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 turbofan engines that produce 27,557 lb. thrust each, with afterburning.
This twin-engine, tandem-seat combat support helicopter was initially developed with assistance by the South African Air Force (SAAF); Denel Aircraft continued subsequent development with in-house funds. Two prototype/demonstrator aircraft, one pre-production aircraft and 12 production-standard aircraft (for the SAAF) were produced through 2004. Production Rooivalks are powered by two Turbomeca Makila 1K2 turboshaft engines (1,843 lb. thrust each). Armament includes a Kentron GA-1 20-mm. cannon mounted in a steerable chin turret.
