Emirates challenges rivals, aims for 120 A380s

Dubai's Emirates launched a double challenge to European airlines yesterday, setting out ambitions to own a fleet of more than 100 Airbus A380 superjumbos and stepping up a war of words over rivals' subsidy claims.

Emirates, which surprised the aviation world by lifting its orders of the world's largest airliner by a third to 90 aircraft in June, is only constrained by a shortage of space to park them, airline president Tim Clark said.

"We would like some more but we are going to run short of space," Clark said in an interview in his glass-walled office overlooking rows of jets at the Middle East's busiest airport.


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Efficient STOL transports for the future

http://s.noticias-aero.info/FutureSTOL

Traditional STOL aircraft cannot fly that fast, and the Speed Agile concepts use integrated lift systems to reduce drag. Boeing's design uses upper-surface blowing from embedded engines on the inboard wing and blown flaps for circulation control on the outboard wing. Lockheed's design also uses blown flaps outboard, but inboard uses patented reversing ejector nozzles.


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UAVs Are (Almost) Capable of See And Avoid, Says Air Force

As unmanned aerial vehicles inevitably find their way into the National Airspace System, both the FAA and other airspace users worry that these remotely piloted aircraft can't see other traffic the way a human pilot can. The reality, says the Air Force, is that the current generation of UAVs may be able to see traffic better than a human pilots because of sophisticated sensors that operate in both the visual and infrared spectrums.

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/UAV_See_And_Avoid_203442-1.html


Sierra Nevada Corp. to develop Navy collision-avoidance system to enable UAVs to operate in civil airspace
http://www.militaryaerospace.com/index/display/article-display.articles.military-aerospace-electronics.executive-watch-2.2010.10.sierra-nevada_corp.QP129867.dcmp=rss.page=1.html

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Air New Zealand anuncia un nuevo tipo de asiento que permitirá viajar tumbado y en pareja, por el precio de dos pasajes y medio

En unos meses, los pasajeros de clase turista que lo desean y viajen en vuelos de largo recorrido podrán reservar una fila de asientos que se convierten en un sofá o una cama. El plan de Air New Zealand formará parte de los vuelos a través del Pacífico, y se configurará por una fila de tres asientos regulares, pero rediseñados para crear una superficie plana para que los adultos puedan relajarse y dormir o un espacio para que los niños puedan jugar.

http://www.publico.es/internacional/341769/volar-como-un-rey-en-la-clase-turista

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EASA guide to improve rotary wings safety

EASA Methods to Improve Rotary Wings Safety

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Instituciones públicas y privadas de la Comunidad Valenciana firman un convenio para impulsar el desarrollo del sector aeroespacial

15/10/2010 (Infodefensa.com) Valencia.- El Parque Científico y Empresarial de la Universidad Miguel Hernández (UMH) de Valencia ha albergado la firma de un convenio entre diversas entidades relacionadas con la industria aeroespacial para el fomento y desarrollo del sector en la Comunidad Valenciana.

El primer proyecto consistirá en la realización de un estudio de prospectiva estratégica, cuya finalización está prevista para 2011, según informó el director general de la Agencia Valenciana de Evaluación y Prospectiva (AVAP), Juan Manuel Badenas.

http://www.infodefensa.com/esp/noticias/noticias.asp?cod=2735&n=Instituciones-p%FAblicas-y-privadas-de-la-Comunidad-Valenciana-firman-un-convenio-para-impulsar-el-desarrollo-del-sector-aeroespacial-


La Universidad Miguel Hernández se convierte en sede del impulso del sector aeroespacial valenciano


http://www.diarioinformacion.com/elche/2010/10/14/umh-convierte-sede-impulso-sector-aeroespacial-valenciano/1053845.html

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Defensa presenta un documento que encauza la innovación tecnológica en función de las capacidades militares demandadas

http://www.infodefensa.com/esp/noticias/noticias.asp?cod=2731&n=Defensa-presenta-un-documento-que-encauza-la-innovaci%F3n-tecnol%F3gica-en-funci%F3n-de-las-capacidades-militares-demandadas

La Dirección General de Armamento y Material define cuatro ejes de actuación:

- Eje tecnológico: realización de un análisis tecnológico que permita establecer los objetivos a alcanzar, metas tecnológicas agrupadas en seis áreas: Armamento, ISTAR, Plataformas, Protección de personal, Protección de Plataformas e Instalaciones y TICs.

- Eje de cooperación: establecimiento de acuerdos de colaboración con otros ministerios como Ciencia e Innovación y con el Centro para el Desarrollo Tecnológico Industrial (CDTI).

- Eje de información: Iniciativas encaminadas a la difusión de la información y conocimiento mutuo entre distintos agentes. Entre distintas actuaciones, se creará un portal web como foro de comunicación y conocimiento entre los agentes involucrados y se potenciará la difusión del Boletín de Observación Tecnológica en Defensa.

- Eje de mejora continua: evaluación y seguimiento del retorno de las actividades de I+T y cumplimiento de objetivos. El retorno se cuantificará por medio de una métrica que contemple el impacto de dichas inversiones sobre la mejora tecnológica de las capacidades militares, la eficiencia económica, la mejora de la competitividad y el desarrollo del tejido industrial.




Estrategia deTecnología e Innovación para la defensa 2010, informe publicado por el ministerio de defensa [pdf - 14Mb], pulse aquí para descargar

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Airbus Military Targets India For A400M

Airbus is desperate to increase foreign sales of the A400M because the core European program — which remains in flux contractually — will not be sufficient to return a profit.

In India, Airbus Military will argue the A400M can fill a niche between the Boeing C-17 and Lockheed Martin C-130J that the country already is looking to buy. India is considering issuing a request for information for an airlifter than could transport large goods and land on airstrips without concrete runways.

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Ricardo’s Wolverine3 UAV heavy fuel engine takes to the sky at Nevada test site

Ricardo announced today that its new Wolverine3 heavy fuel unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) engine has completed its first in-flight tests at the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Nevada National Security Site.

The Ricardo Wolverine3 is a 3.1 horsepower, two-cylinder, two-stroke, air-cooled engine with spark ignition, direct fuel injection and 500 watts of on-board power. It is designed to power lightweight, tactical UAVs. For its first flight, the Wolverine3 was integrated into a Nightwind 2 aircraft, built by Unmanned Aerial Systems, Inc. (UAS), of Las Vegas. The Nightwind is a blended wing aircraft with 100 percent composite construction and a 2 metre wingspan.

“Tactical UAVs are ideal for surveillance and intelligence gathering missions and the Ricardo Wolverine3 has the potential to transform the role of UAVs on the battlefield by solving the logistical, safety and reliability issues created by today’s gasoline-powered engines,” said Kent Niederhofer, president of Ricardo, Inc.

“The Ricardo Wolverine3 is purpose-built for lightweight tactical UAVs like the UAS Nightwind family but the technology is readily applicable to auxiliary power units and automated ground vehicles, as well as civilian markets like border security and fire-fighting.”

Stephen Cakebread, Ricardo project director, unmanned systems, and architect of the Wolverine3, said the development team brought the engine from concept to an operational, production-representative prototype status in six months and from dynamometer first fire to first flight in less than five months. In that time, Ricardo has applied its full suite of advanced design, modelling, simulation and manufacturing tools. Testing leading up to the first flight included cooling duct optimization, airframe to engine electrical interface, electromagnetic interference (EMI) compliance, engine mount design, lubrication system development, propeller drive, calibration refinement and fuel delivery system development.

“The Wolverine3 design is optimized for performance, low weight, package efficiency and durability and can be integrated into a wide range of UAV designs,” Cakebread said. “We’ll take everything we have learned and apply it to further enhance the Wolverine3 capabilities, and we look forward to expanding the Wolverine family with a range of engines for new and different missions.”

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La mayor pala eólica del mundo (68m de largo) se diseñará en España

http://www.cincodias.com/articulo/empresas/mayor-pala-eolica-disenara-Espana/20101015cdscdiemp_20/cdsemp/#



La pala eólica más grande mundo se diseñará en España. Aeroblade, sociedad vasca participada por el grupo Aernnova y el Ejecutivo de Euskadi a través del fondo Ekarpen, ha cerrado el contrato con uno de los 10 principales fabricantes de aerogeneradores internacionales para desarrollar un aspa de 68 metros de longitud.

La operación supone un nuevo reto para Aeroblade. La pala que desarrollará su departamento de ingeniería, y que se montará en aerogeneradores con una potencia superior a los cinco megavatios, se destinará fundamentalmente a los parques eólicos marinos. También se pretende aprovechar las ventajas que ofrecen estas aspas para su instalación en zonas donde el viento sopla con menor intensidad.

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Boeing Joins Fuselage Sections for First 747-8 Intercontinental

EVERETT, Wash., Oct. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] moved closer this week toward completing assembly of the first 747-8 Intercontinental as mechanics in Everett, Wash., loaded the forward and aft fuselage sections to join with the wing and center section.

The 747-8 fuselage is 250 feet 2 inches (76.3 meters) long, which is 18 feet 4 inches (5.6 meters) longer than the 747-400. The stretch provides space for 51 additional seats to accommodate 467 passengers in a typical three-class configuration and offers 26 percent more cargo volume.

"Final body join is an important milestone for the 747 program," said Pat Shanahan, vice president and general manager of Airplane Programs in Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "It is a major step toward completing the structural integration and building out our all-new interior. We now have the first real look at the size and distinctive shape of the 747-8 Intercontinental. This is going to be a superb airplane for our customers both from an aesthetic and a performance perspective."

The 747-8 is the new high-capacity 747 that will give airlines the lowest operating costs and best economics of any large airplane while providing enhanced environmental performance. The airplane also features a 787 Dreamliner-inspired interior that will offer passengers a greater feeling of space and comfort.

The 747 program has orders for 109 747-8 Freighter and Intercontinental airplanes. Thirty-three of those are for the 747-8 Intercontinental, with orders coming from Lufthansa, Korean Air and eight VIP customers. The first 747-8 Intercontinental delivery is scheduled for late 2011 to a VIP customer.

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Boeing Projects $90 Billion Commercial Airplanes Market in Russia and CIS

Boeing [NYSE: BA] forecasts that air carriers in Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) will take delivery of about 960 new airplanes over the next 20 years at an investment of $90 billion.
New airplane deliveries in the region will be driven largely by the need to retire older, less fuel-efficient single-aisle airplanes and regional jets, as airlines replace them with new-generation, more fuel-efficient models.

"Demand for airplanes also will be fueled by an increase in the number of people flying to, from and within Russia and CIS,” said Randy Tinseth, vice president of Marketing, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, who released Boeing's 2010 CIS market outlook today in Moscow. “We expect passenger traffic for the region to grow at a rate of 4.8 percent on average."

Tinseth said the growing tendency of both business and personal travelers to traverse Russia and CIS will create strong demand for rapid, frequent and reliable coast-to-coast and interregional transportation. Driven by this demand, almost 60 percent of the new deliveries over the next 20 years will be single-aisle airplanes.

Taking retirements of old airplanes into account, the CIS fleet will grow from 1,150 airplanes today to about 1,300 airplanes by 2029.

Boeing forecasts that single-aisle airplanes will grow from 54 percent of the total CIS fleet today to 63 percent of the fleet by 2029. Airlines are increasingly focusing on airplane age as fuel-thirsty, older airplanes weigh increasingly on earnings. Increased attention to aviation's impact on global climate change also will be a factor in selecting airplanes that produce lower carbon emissions.

Newer airplane types such as the Next-Generation 737 offer significant advantages in environmental performance as well as improved capabilities, fuel efficiency and maintenance costs.

Twin-aisle fleets will evolve in the region as airlines continue to expand international point-to-point services to a wider range of airport pairs and frequencies. Small- and mid-sized twin-aisle airplanes will grow to represent 17 percent of the CIS fleet by 2029.

Within the CIS market, Boeing sees a demand for 160 new, efficient twin-aisle airplanes such as the 787 Dreamliner. Twin-aisles will account for 17 percent of total airplane demand in the region over 20 years.
Large airplanes (747-size and larger) will not see significant demand in CIS, accounting for only three percent of all deliveries over the next 20 years. Approximately 30 large airplanes, all freighters, are projected for CIS through 2020.

Boeing also forecasts demand for 200 regional jets in the CIS -- more than 10 percent of the projected world demand. This category will account for 21 percent of the total deliveries of new aircraft. These aircraft will be used to accommodate traffic growth to smaller secondary markets within the region and to replace older aircraft.


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Airbus Military inaugura su nuevo Centro de Instrucción en Sevilla / The new Airbus Military Training Centre has been opened today in Seville (Spain).

El consejero de Economía, Innovación y Ciencia, Antonio Ávila, y el presidente de Airbus Military, Domingo Ureña, han inaugurado hoy en Sevilla el nuevo Centro de Instrucción de de tripulaciones de Airbus Military. Estas instalaciones se encuentran entre las más modernas del mundo y cuentan con espacio para seis simuladores de vuelo, así como con una amplia variedad de dispositivos formativos basados en aplicaciones informáticas. Acogerá la formación de las tripulaciones del avión de transporte de nueva generación A400M, así como para los pilotos de la familia de aviones de tamaño medio y ligero de Airbus Military, los C295, CN235 y C212.

Este nuevo Centro de Instrucción, fruto de un convenio de colaboración entre la Fundación Andaluza para el Desarrollo Aeroespacial (FADA) y Airbus Military, ya cuenta con dos simuladores, uno para el C295 y otro para el CN235, que replican fielmente la experiencia de vuelo en un avión real.

El simulador del A400M se instalará antes de su entrada en servicio, prevista para 2012. Todos los simuladores pueden recrear una amplia gama de operaciones, entre las que se encuentran actividades especializadas como el vuelo con visión nocturna, despegues y aterrizajes en pistas no preparadas o el lanzamiento de cargas o paracaidistas.

La formación se imparte también en aulas a partir de diferentes dispositivos que se utilizan para la formación de tripulaciones, ingenieros y técnicos para el mantenimiento de la aeronave. De forma adicional, el Centro de Instrucción impartirá formación sobre la operación y mantenimiento del sistema táctico completamente integrado (FITS, por sus iniciales en inglés), que es el corazón de los aviones de vigilancia de Airbus Military. Estas nuevas instalaciones contarán con una plantilla de alrededor de 100 empleados, de los que en torno a 40 ocuparán puestos de nueva creación, y formará a más de mil alumnos cada año.

El centro cuenta con una superficie de 13.000 metros cuadrados construidos en dos plantas. El diseño del edificio ha tomado como modelo la arquitectura local de patios interiores, lo que proporciona abundante luz natural a la mayor parte de las salas y facilita el aislamiento térmico en verano, convirtiéndolo en un edificio ecoeficiente.


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The facility is among the most modern in the world with space for six full-flight simulators and a range of other computer-based training devices. It will house Airbus Military’s training provision for the A400M new-generation airlifter as well as its family of light and medium aircraft and military derivatives of commercial models.

Two full-flight simulators, one for the C295 and one for the CN235, which faithfully replicate the experience of flying a real aircraft, have already been installed.

An A400M simulator will be installed prior to the planned entry into service of the aircraft in 2012. All the simulators are capable of representing the full range of operations including specialised activities such as flight with night vision goggles, rough field take-offs and landings, and air-dropping of loads or paratroopers.

A range of other devices for training on specific aircraft systems, including the Fully Integrated Tactical System (FITS) at the heart of Airbus Military’s surveillance aircraft, and in the classroom or over an intranet are also provided. Further devices are dedicated to training engineers and technicians in the maintenance and support of the aircraft.

The new centre has a staff of some 100, of which 40 are new positions, and is expected to train around 1,000 students per year. The two-storey building covers 13,000m2 and is built in the Andalusian style with environmentally friendly internal patios providing natural light and ventilation to most rooms.

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