The E-2 Hawkeye is an airborne early warning and control aircraft. The current production version is the E-2C. E-2Cs built after 1988 are powered by two Rolls-Royce T56-A-427 single-shaft, axial-flow turboprops rated at 5,250 shp. each. The E-2 first flew in 1960. Northrop Grumman is now producing the new E-2D derivative. Through 2007, 223 E-2s were produced. An additional 36 E-2Ds are expected to be built during 2009-18.
The Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) is a single-seat multirole fighter/attack aircraft. A two-seat trainer version also is being developed. Initial aircraft are powered by GE F404-GE-F2J3 augmented turbofans rated at 18,100 lb. thrust each, although later aircraft will feature the Gas Turbine Research Establishment GTX-35VS Kaveri augmented turbofan now under development. LCA first flight occurred in 2001. Ten aircraft were built through 2008. A total of 121 aircraft are slated to be produced in 2009-18.
Preliminary design studies for the B-52 heavy bomber began in 1946 and, in 1952, a prototype made its maiden flight. Production ran until 1962 and reached a total of 744 aircraft, including two prototypes. The aging aircraft remains in U.S. Air Force service and is the subject of several modernization programs. The bomber is currently powered by eight Pratt & Whitney TF33-P-3 turbofans rated at 17,000 lb. thrust each.
The short history of the FAA’s NextGen modernization effort is littered with reports and road maps, but a new review by an independent task force could cause the program’s largest shake-up yet. Industry and FAA officials believe the latest recommendations will lead to a shift in NextGen priorities, redirecting attention to the problems that most concern airspace users. This should go a long way to overcoming airline skepticism that the modernization effort will pay off for them—although carriers may still need convincing that the FAA will follow through.
The MiG-AT advanced jet trainer made its first flight in 1996. The aircraft uses two 3,175-lb. thrust Turbomeca/Snecma Larzac 04-R20 turbofan engines, although aircraft intended for the Russian air force may be fitted with Soyuz RD-1700s. A single-seat light fighter/attack version of the MiG-AT, called the MiG-AS, is also being developed. About six MiG-AT prototypes were built through 2008.
The Tornado is a two-seat multirole strike and air combat fighter. A first prototype flew in 1974. All Tornado versions are powered by two Turbo-Union RB199 turbofan engines. Production was completed in 1998 after 992 aircraft were built.
The K-8 is a two-seat intermediate/advanced trainer produced by Hongdu Aviation Industry Group. Several K-8 components are manufactured by Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC). 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. Approximately 202 K-8 aircraft were produced through 2008, with 138 forecast for production in 2009-18.
Maybe you have a lot of foreign weapons and want to ship them with no fingerprints. Here’s an option. Kaman Aerospace Corp. was awarded a $9.9-million, five-year U.S. Army firm-fixed-price contract for the continued study and testing of the broad-area, unmanned, responsive, resupply-operations helicopter. This requirement will expand on previous efforts by Kaman.
R. Nicholas Burns has been named director of the Washington-based Aspen Strategy Group . He is retired U.S. undersecretary of State for political affairs and succeeds Kurt M. Campbell, who has become assistant secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific affairs.
The F-22 is a single-seat air superiority and ground attack aircraft selected in 1991 as the U.S. Air Force’s next air superiority fighter. Initial flight occurred in 1997. Propulsion is provided by two 35,000-lb.-thrust Pratt & Whitney F119-PW-100 turbofan engines. Approximately 132 F-22s were produced through 2008, including test aircraft. Planned Air Force procurement is for 55 additonal units through 2012, when production will stop, for a total of 187 aircraft.
First flight of the Mirage 2000 occurred in 1978. Early production aircraft were powered by a Snecma M53-5 augmented turbofan (19,840 lb. thrust), with later production aircraft fitted with an M53-P2 augmented turbofan (21,385 lb. thrust). Single- and two-seat variants were available. Approximately 607 Mirage 2000s have been produced, and no further production is expected.
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and International Air Transport Assn. (IATA) are combining efforts with aviation industry stakeholders to develop policies that ensure there will be sufficient numbers of competent personnel to manage and maintain the future global air transportation system.
This single-main-rotor, medium-lift helicopter is powered by two GE CT7-8 turboshaft engines rated at roughly 2,550 shp. each. The H-92 is the military version of the S-92. The H-92, configured for the land assault mission, offers a 200-naut.-mi. radius of action while carrying 22 troops at 3,000 ft. on a 91.5F day. In the amphibious assault role, the aircraft has a dual-sortie radius of action of 65 naut. mi. with 22 troops under 103F conditions. Through 2018, approximately 91 H-92s are forecast for production.
These three-engine heavy-lift transport and special-purpose helicopters are powered by GE T64-GE-416/419 turboshaft engines rated at 4,380 and 4,750 shp, respectively. To date, Sikorsky has delivered approximately 177 CH-53Es, 48 MH-53Es and 11 S-80s. (Twin-engine H-53 versions were produced earlier.) In January 2006, Sikorsky was awarded an $8.4-million contract to begin preliminary design work on the CH-53K, a new CH-53 model for the U.S. Marine Corps. Plans call for the company to manufacture 156 CH-53Ks for the Marines.
Boeing reduced its 737 and 787 order book by 10 aircraft each on Oct. 6, bringing total order reductions across all airplane models to 111 this year and a net of 70. The cancellations are the result of the merger of First Choice and TUI, two U.K. leisure specialists, to become Thomson Airways. First Choice held 12 787 orders and TUI an additional 11. Thomson will now hold 13 with 13 purchase rights. The 787 reduction lowers that type’s total firm order book to 840.
These are single-main-rotor, medium-lift military transport helicopters. The UH-60A is powered by two GE T700-GE-700 turboshaft engines, each with an intermediate rating of 1,622 shp. The UH-60L is 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-701D engines. Sikorsky has produced more than 2,500 Black Hawks. An additional 941 units—including UH-60J and UH-60JA models built under license by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries—are expected to be built by 2018.
Deputy Managing Editor-Space Frank Morring, Jr. (left), interviews Cui Jijun (right), who is director general of China’s Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, as Lu Jinrong, the center’s general engineer, looks on. Morring and Aviation Week President Tom Henricks, a former shuttle astronaut, visited the Gobi Desert facility during a tour of China’s human-spaceflight facilities arranged by the China Manned Space Engineering Office as it explores possible cooperation in space with NASA. Morring’s report begins on p. 45.
The PC-21 two-seat trainer is a new design from Pilatus. The PC-21 has five hardpoints for armament training. Development began in 1998, and an initial prototype made its first flight in July 2002. Certification was achieved in December 2004. Power is provided by a 1,600-shp. Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-68B turboprop engine. The PC-21 faces competition from the Embraer Super Tucano and the Hawker Beechcraft T-6. Pilatus is projected to deliver 100 PC-21s during 2009-18..
British Airways last week announced it was cutting the equivalent of 1,700 permanent cabin crew positions as part of ongoing efforts to reduce costs. Management and unions have been discussing a revised cabin crew deal for months. However, the cut is being imposed unilaterally, risking industrial action.
Lufthansa’s growth strategy has been largely one of acquisition, aiding somewhat in consolidating Europe’s fractured airline market, but there are exceptions. In the case of Italy, rather than aggressively pursuing Alitalia when it came on the market, Lufthansa decided on a different approach—branding its own entity. “We are building an independent airline in a foreign country,” says Heike Birlenbach, head of Lufthansa Italia. The airline, based in the country’s financial center in Milan, began flying this year.
The Tucano trainer and light attack aircraft first flew 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 Tucano models are no longer in production. The current production model is the EMB-314 Super Tucano, which has an extended fuselage, pressurized cockpit and strengthened airframe, and is powered by a 1,600-shp. Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-68C turboprop.
Bombardier has begun ground preparations for its new Learjet 85 manufacturing facility in Queretaro, Mexico. When it opens next spring, the 190,000-sq.-ft. building will house manufacturing of the aircraft’s primary composite structure and pre-assembly of various sections. Final assembly of this, the first all-composite FAR25 aircraft, will take place in Wichita, Kan. Bombardier says it holds 61 firm orders for the $17.2-million, 3,000-naut.-mi.-range aircraft (with two pilots and four passengers), which is to enter service in 2013.
Oct. 19-20—Technology Training Corp.’s Military Energy and Alternative Fuels Conference. Holiday Inn, Alexandria, Va. Call +1 (310) 563-1210 or see www.ttcus.com Oct. 19-21—SAFE Assn.’s 47th Annual Symposium. Town and Country Resort and Convention Center, San Diego. Call +1 (541) 895-3012, fax +1 (541) 895-3014 or see www.safeassociation.com Oct. 19-22—Sampe’s 2009 Fall Technical Conference. Century II Convention Center, Wichita, Kan. Call +1 (626) 331-0616 or see www.sampe.org
