Avic reveals details about China’s answer to the F-35; Boeing and Tata pursue ‘Make in India’ manufacturing center of excellence; Textron readies small precision weapons for purchase in 2016; Lebanon’s low-cost UAV.
Works in the Atlantic Council’s War Stories From the Future depict “how emerging antagonists, disruptive technologies, and novel warfighting concepts may animate tomorrow’s conflicts.”
Delivering a staggering 1 terabits per second of throughput, ViaSat-3 will also comprise the first spacecraft in a three-satellite constellation designed to provide global broadband from geostationary orbit, feeding mobile demand from the U.S. government and commercial aeronautical markets.
NASA evaluators appear to have winnowed the field for future ISS cargo contractors to the commercial-cargo capsules already operated by CRS-1 contractors Orbital ATK and SpaceX and an unmanned cargo version of the Sierra Nevada Corp. Dream Chaser reusable lifting body.
Airbus gives Emirates some hope for the A380neo, while the airline considers ordering more A350s but keeps options open for the 787. Neither is acting quickly.
By Rupa Haria, Jens Flottau, Guy Norris, Tony Osborne
The last Dubai Airshow saw record-breaking orders for commercial airliners. Not so this year, but our onsite editors say that’s not necessarily something to worry about. They explain why in this report from the show.
Mathematically proving software that does only what it is supposed to provides a route to eliminating cybervulnerabilities in airborne systems, Darpa’s Hacms program demonstrates.
Pipistrel pioneers cloud-based CFD; navigation by pulsar; NASA’s Ptera UAV is a flying lab; aviation fuel from gas tested; Aeryon gets equity boost for small UAVs.
China boasts a first in flying a regeneratively cooled, kerosene-fueled scramjet engine, but this feat seemingly repeats what the U.S. achieved in 2010-13 with the hypersonic X-51A.
Boeing and Lockheed Martin claim the U.S. Air Force’s Long-Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B) competition was flawed, leading to an unfair award to Northrop Grumman.
OAG data indicate growth of Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways over the past five years has taken place on existing routes and with frequencies rather than only in new markets.
Kirk Shireman (see photo) has been named manager of the International Space Station (ISS) program at NASA, Houston. He succeeds Michael Suffredini, who is leaving for private industry. Shireman was most recently deputy center director of the Johnson Space Center, and prior to that deputy ISS program manager from 2006-13.
Moon aspirations; staking claim to the Moon; exhaust depiction more artistic than accurate; Rhimes system may be too high-maintenance; unknowns about NTI; overcomplicating volcanic ash directives.
COMMERCIAL AVIATION China’s first C919 airliner is ready for ground testing after being rolled out in Shanghai on Nov. 2, says manufacturer Comac. First flight is planned for 2016, but no date is given for entry into service of the 158-seat narrowbody. Deliveries were originally planned for 2016, but 2019-20 now appears likely (page 43).
Three interrelated events are indicative of the state of commercial aviation: Airbus ramps up its production rate—likely followed by Boeing; Bombardier announces a $1 billion equity infusion by the Quebec government into the C Series program; and Comac rolls out the first C919 test aircraft in Shanghai.
Continued technical troubles with the Silvercrest engine in development at Safran’s Snecma motors division will further delay certification of the new powerplant by 12-18 months, shelving hopes for a first test flight of Dassault Aviation’s new Falcon 5X business jet this year.
Land constraints, customs bureaucracy and an acute shortage of skilled labor afflict the maintenance, repair and overhaul industry in the Asia-Pacific region, which is forecast to become the world’s largest in terms of fleet size and MRO market value.
