“The ‘A’ Word” ( AW&ST Aug. 11/18, p. 40) notes that the U.S. is spending billions of dollars to develop unmanned autonomous aircraft and other robotic machines. If I was a cash-strapped enemy of the state, I would be spending my limited funds on developing software that would allow me to take control of the aircraft in flight and send it back to destroy its base of operations.
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden’s statement: “If the species is to survive indefinitely, we need to become a multiplanet species” is typical of someone blinded by his own specialty. This and other gems were recounted in “Why Go?” ( AW&ST June 23, p. 45).
In the editorial “Still Some Explaining To Do” ( AW&ST Aug. 8/11, p. 74), which covers the F-35 and the Pratt & Whitney engine, there appears this flawed statement: “This sort of engine failure is normally the kind of fundamental design issue engineers are expected to catch early in development.”
An innovative engine cycle conceived for a single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) launch concept is attracting interest for possible wider application in several air-breathing hypersonic roles.
Aug. 25—Ninth Asia-Pacific Congress of Aerospace Medicine. Beijing. www.apfama.org/2014 Aug. 27-28—Fourth International Technical Specialists’ Meeting on Vertical Lift Aircraft RDT&E. Patuxent River, Maryland. vtol.org/pax Sept. 3-5—ALTA Aviation Law Americas. Miami. Call +1 (786) 388-0222 or see [email protected]
The fact that the British were even considering early retirement of the Royal Air Force’s airborne stand-off radar (Astor) system, “Staying Alive” ( AW&ST Aug. 4, p. 53), reveals an appalling ignorance about which military capabilities are important. Anyone with an elementary understanding of modern warfare should realize that vehicles have transformed how armies fight by providing them with mobility, heavy firepower, armored protection and supplies.
Anthony Velocci’s commentary “Innovation’s Quiet March” ( AW&ST Aug. 11/18, p. 18) concludes, “. . . leadership teams at established companies would do well to remember that casebooks are filled with examples of what happens when organizations start worrying more about protecting what they have than discovering what they can be.” The team of Orville and Wilbur Wright did just that with their obsession with lawsuits. The casebook goes back to the beginning.
Antoine Gelain’s commentary “Out of Steam” ( AW&ST July 7, p. 12) covers BAE Systems’ recent lackluster performance post-divesting itself of assets that subsequently proved very profitable. This unfortunate process goes back 25 years or more.
I agree with the premise of the subject editorial that Pratt & Whitney’s silence regarding the F-135 problems is “disappointing but perhaps understandable.”
I agree with the premise of the subject editorial that Pratt & Whitney’s silence regarding the F-135 problems is “disappointing but perhaps understandable.”
Your August 4 issue provides an extensive overview of the state-of-the-art and future possibilities of aircraft tracking. What strikes me is that even though the disappearance of MH370 seems to have spurred the implementation of all these new technologies, none of them would have actually prevented the event from happening. It appears that MH370 was being tracked, but the transponder was deliberately turned off. Why can the transponder be turned off by the pilot?
Reader Dan Patterson demonstrates a lack of basic understanding of unmanned aerial vehicle avionics and mission software in his “Breached Branch” comment about the Taranis unmanned aerial vehicle ( AW&ST Aug. 4, p. 8).
With regard to several letters in recent weeks referencing “False Promises” ( AW&ST July 21, p. 38) about false glideslopes, please note that transport pilots should use (most do) a 3-for-1 ratio as a backup for accuracy on descent to landing. Specifically, at 3 mi. the aircraft should be at 1,000 ft.; at 6 mi., 2,000 ft., and so on. If you are not on this ratio you are not on the proper glideslope. The 3-for-1 method helps to ensure arriving at the correct airport. It is simple and it works.
When the U.S. Army and, at some point, the Marine Corps select a new rotorcraft, they would do well to keep in mind the hard lessons of past wars. In tactical situations, steep, fast approaches and close-in maneuvering to tight landing zones are sometimes necessary. In such circumstances, tiltrotor aircraft with their relatively wide wingspans and more restrictive maneuvering envelopes are at a disadvantage compared with more conventional designs like coaxial rotor helicopters.
Northrop Grumman has unveiled a vertical-launch, horizontal-landing reusable booster design for the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency’s XS-1 experimental spaceplane.
