Textron offers Scorpion and AT-6 for OA-X effort [feedly]

Textron offers Scorpion and AT-6 for OA-X effort
http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/textron-offers-scorpion-and-at-6-for-oa-x-effort-436376/

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ARJ21 makes new flight tests following design optimisation [feedly]

ARJ21 makes new flight tests following design optimisation
http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/arj21-makes-new-flight-tests-following-design-optimi-436408/

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Lilium (autonomous electric VTOL aircraft) celebrates successful maiden flight and introduces 5-seater VTOL jet

Lilium's press release: https://lilium.com/news/

https://youtu.be/ohig71bwRUE

We have incredibly exciting news to share. The Lilium Jet successfully completed its maiden test flight series in the skies above Bavaria. The 2-seater Eagle prototype executed a range of complex maneuvers, including its signature mid-air transition from hover mode to wing-borne forward flight.

Seeing the Lilium Jet take to the sky and performing sophisticated maneuvers with apparent ease is testament to the skill and perseverance of our amazing team. We have solved some of the toughest engineering challenges in aviation to get to this point. The successful test flight programme shows that our ground-breaking technical design works exactly as we envisioned. We can now turn our focus to designing a 5-seater production aircraft.




We are now developing a larger, 5-seater version of our Lilium Jet, designed for on-demand air taxi and ridesharing services. A typical journey with the Lilium Jet will be at least 5x faster than by car, with even greater efficiencies in busy cities. So a flight from Manhattan to New York’s JFK Airport will take around 5 minutes, compared to the 55 minutes it would take you by car.



Please make sure you read more about Lilium’s mission and technology.

As well as making great progress in the air, we’ve also updated our Lilium brand. Enjoy our new website, we hope you like it!

Bell Helicopter to Exhibit Future of Warfighting at Army Aviation Summit

Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced its show plans for the 2017 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit in Nashville, Tenn., April 26-28, 2017. The company will display its full-size mockup of the Bell V-280 Valor next generation aircraft, as well as the newly introduced Bell V-247 Vigilant tiltrotor model.

View the media kit for the show here.

“The Army Aviation Summit provides a great venue for engaging with our current and future customers, as well as displaying our products that bring game-changing capabilities to the warfighter,” said Vince Tobin, Bell Helicopter’s vice president of Advanced Tiltrotor Systems. “The disruptive technology of tiltrotor flight delivers unmatched efficiency and range unavailable with traditional rotorcraft. We look forward to the discussions and engagements with our military customers on how this aircraft will enable multi-domain battle.”

Throughout the show, Bell Helicopter will present next-level technology, including an immersive virtual reality experience of the Bell V-280 that will highlight mission capabilities of the aircraft, and an opportunity to fly the V-280 simulator setup in the booth – showcasing the future of vertical lift. In addition, the V-280 mockup will be shown in both attack and utility configurations, demonstrating the aircraft’s versatility.

The V-280 tiltrotor has been designed to provide unmatched speed, range and payload, along with unmatched agility at the objective. The aircraft will provide the best value in operations and maintenance costs, and is being designed with sustainability, affordability, and ease of manufacturing in mind.

The Bell V-247 tiltrotor is a Group 5 unmanned aerial system (UAS) that will combine the vertical lift capability of a helicopter with the speed and range of a conventional fixed-wing aircraft. The revolutionary UAS is designed to provide unmatched long-endurance persistent expeditionary and surveillance capability and lethal reach, as well as runway independence to operate successfully in maritime environments and locations without secure runway availability.

The Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit provides the Army Aviation community with the opportunity for professional development, and brings together Army Aviation, government leaders and industry representatives. Attendees will be able to hear leadership messages in general sessions, network with fellow attendees in deep dive sessions on technology and training, and attend presentations from U.S. Army leadership. The annual show also features recognition ceremonies for deserving Aviation soldiers and units.

- See more at: http://investor.textron.com/news/news-releases/press-release-details/2017/Bell-Helicopter-to-Exhibit-Future-of-Warfighting-at-Army-Aviation-Summit/default.aspx#sthash.py0VU9kB.dpuf

Rotorcraft Asia: Multiple orders for Bell 429

Rotorcraft Asia 2017 has seen a number of orders for Bell Helicopter including four Model 429s which are to be delivered across Asia-Pacific, from the Philippines to Bangladesh.

Terra Barbaza Aviation has ordered an additional Bell 429 to add to its current fleet of one in the Philippines. The aircraft will be utilised for corporate/VIP transport.

In addition, a purchase agreement for one example was signed at the show between the OEM and Meghna Aviation in Bangladesh.

Two 429s are also being delivered to Indonesian private general trading company PT Carpediem Mandiri – the aircraft will be supplied to the flight calibration department of the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation.

The company focuses on vehicle rental services. Sameer Rehman, managing director of Asia Pacific at Bell Helicopter, commented on the 429s' mission with the operator.

'[The] deliveries mark the first time a Bell 429 has been configured for flight calibration missions, and it brings us great pride to support the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation in this important effort,' he said.

The Bell 429s will be performing calibration for helicopter ground instrument landing and departing systems at airports, heliports and helipads.

Aerodata is introducing its flight inspection system known as AD-HELIFIS on the Bell 429 and this order marks the second helicopter internationally and the first of the type operating with the technology.

Lastly, adding to the roster of 429s signed for at the show, Tata Steel Group, based in Mumbai, India, has purchased a second aircraft to support its steel production operations.

Sikorsky Announces Expanded Support in Asia with Plans for New Customer Support Center

Singapore, April 18, 2017 – Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company today announced plans to expand its S-92® and S-76™ helicopter support services in the Asia-Pacific region. Thai Aviation Services is scheduled to become the first Sikorsky Customer Support Center in Thailand by the end of 2017. The announcement was made at the inaugural 2017 Rotorcraft Asia show.

“This decision further exemplifies Sikorsky’s commitment to the Asia-Pacific region and to our continued focus on customer support excellence,” said Christophe Nurit, Sikorsky’s regional sales executive, Asia. “As the preferred service center in Thailand, Thai Aviation Services will provide a critical role in offering the highest level of support for Sikorsky helicopters in a strategically important region.”

“Thai Aviation Services has a long-standing partnership with Sikorsky over the past 25 years. We look forward to expanding this partnership through the designation as a Customer Support Center and putting our extensive experience operating Sikorsky aircraft to use for the benefit of supporting all Sikorsky aircraft operating in the Asia Pacific region,” said Craig Havas, Thai Aviation Services Deputy Managing Director – Operations, and S-92 Chief Pilot.

Customer Support Centers enable quick access to Sikorsky logistics and spare parts inventory for operators while providing advanced service capabilities. This support center will represent Sikorsky’s seventh in the Asia-Pacific region and add to the growing network of 20 Sikorsky support centers world-wide.

In addition to authorized support centers, Sikorsky’s customer support organization maintains four forward stocking locations in S-92 and S-76 fleet-concentrated regions and fields more than 100 customer service representatives, all connected through Sikorsky’s state-of-the-art Customer Care Center in Trumbull, Connecticut.

Sikorsky and Thai Aviation Services have done business together for more than 25 years. Thai Aviation Services operates only Sikorsky helicopters and recently renewed its existing fleet of commercial helicopters with five S-76D™ medium lift and two S-92 heavy lift aircraft. These aircraft enable the Bangkok-based operator to continue its track record of providing safe, reliable helicopter transportation to oil and gas customers in the Gulf of Thailand.

For additional information, visit: Sikorsky Commercial Systems & Services

Long Range Discrimination Radar Program Led by Lockheed Martin Achieves Preliminary Design Review On-Schedule

Lockheed Martin announces new Solid State Radar Integration Site that will significantly reduce risk before the missile defense radar is constructed in Alaska


MOORESTOWN, N.J., April 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than 18 months from contract award, the Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR), developed by Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), passed Preliminary Design Review (PDR), indicating that detailed design on the radar system can move forward. The radar system will support a layered ballistic missile defense strategy to protect the U.S. homeland from ballistic missile attacks.




The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) in 2015 awarded the $784 million contract to Lockheed Martin to develop, build and test LRDR, and the company is on track on an aggressive schedule to deliver the radar to Clear, Alaska. Lockheed Martin passed PDR by demonstrating both a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 and Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) 6, putting the team on a path to achieve TRL 7 later this year allowing the program transition to manufacturing. Lockheed Martin utilized a scaled LRDR system to successfully demonstrate Critical Technology Elements (CTEs) in a relevant end to end environment.

During the two-day PDR, representatives from the MDA and the Office of Secretary of Defense, toured Lockheed Martin's facility to see the LRDR Prototype System and the new Solid State Radar Integration Site, a self-funded test facility that will be utilized to demonstrate TRL 7 and provide significant risk reduction for development of LRDR and future solid state radar systems.

"Lockheed Martin is committed to supporting the nation's Integrated Air & Missile Defense and homeland defense missions and we are actively investing in research and technologies that will lead to advanced solutions," said Chandra Marshall, LRDR program director, Lockheed Martin. "The Solid State Radar Integration Site will be used to mature, integrate and test the LRDR design and building blocks before we deliver the radar to Alaska. Using this test site will result in significant cost savings and less risk overall."

Similar to Lockheed Martin's Space Fence radar system, LRDR is a high-powered S-Band radar incorporating solid-state gallium nitride (GaN) components, but is additionally capable of discriminating threats at extreme distances using the inherent wideband capability of the hardware coupled with advanced software algorithms.

"We built an open non-proprietary architecture that allows incorporation of the algorithms from small businesses, labs and the government, to provide an advanced discrimination capability for homeland defense," said Tony DeSimone, vice president, engineering and technology, Lockheed Martin Integrated Warfare Systems and Sensors.

LRDR is a key component of the MDA's Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) and will provide acquisition, tracking and discrimination data to enable separate defense systems to lock on and engage ballistic missile threats, a capability that stems from Lockheed Martin's decades of experience in creating ballistic missile defense systems for the U.S. and allied governments.

Work on LRDR is primarily performed in New Jersey, Alaska, Alabama, Florida and New York.

As a proven world leader in systems integration and development of air and missile defense systems and technologies, Lockheed Martin delivers high-quality missile defense solutions that protect citizens, critical assets and deployed forces from current and future threats. The company's experience spans radar and signal processing, missile design and production, hit-to-kill capabilities, infrared seekers, command and control/battle management, and communications, precision pointing and tracking optics, as well as threat-representative targets for missile defense tests.

For more information, visit www.lockheedmartin.com/lrdr.

Airbus delivers first ever A321neo to Virgin America

Aircraft powered by CFM engines boosts fuel efficiency by at least 15 percent



• Significant reductions in emissions and noise


20 APRIL 2017 PRESS RELEASE


Airbus has delivered the first-ever A321neo. The latest generation aircraft powered by CFM International’s LEAP-1A engines was handed over to U.S. airline Virgin America, an all-Airbus operator, at a ceremony in Hamburg, Germany.


“After Virgin America having been the first customer signing for the A320neo back in December 2010, we are today delighted to deliver the first A321neo to them,” said Fabrice Brégier, Airbus Chief Operating Officer and President Commercial Aircraft. “With our largest, latest, most fuel efficient NEO Single Aisle aircraft we are turning a new page. The new A321neo powered by next generation CFM LEAP-1A engines guarantees new levels of efficiency and longer range to its operators, greater comfort to the flying public and less emissions and noise to the airport communities. Thanks to its cutting edge technologies it is today the most eco-sensitive Single Aisle aircraft available.”


The A320neo significantly reduces noise levels, generating only half the noise footprint compared to previous generation aircraft. Equipped with fuel-saving Sharklet wingtip devices nitrous oxide emissions are 50 percent below regulatory requirements as outlined by the Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). In addition, the aircraft with LEAP-1A engines is proven to deliver at least a 15 percent fuel savings compared to Virgin America’s current generation aircraft, which is equivalent to cutting 5,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions with each plane every year.


“We have been with Virgin America from the beginning and we are excited to launch this new chapter in that relationship,” said Gael Meheust, President and CEO of CFM International. “The LEAP-1A has done extremely well in its first months of commercial service. It is proving unprecedented levels of fuel efficiency and environmental responsibility while maintaining the level of reliability Virgin America has come to expect from CFM. We think they will be very pleased with all this engine has to offer.”


The A321neo is the largest member of the A320neo Family. It covers the entire market, from high density to long-range thin routes. There are currently over 1,300 units on order.


“We are honored to be the first operator of this high in-demand aircraft,” said Virgin America President Peter Hunt, speaking at the ceremony attended by Virgin America teammates, Executives from Airbus, CFM and the aircraft lessor GECAS. “The new A321neo – the third member of the Airbus A320 Family to join our Virgin America fleet – will allow us to further reduce our unit costs and enable us to further reduce our carbon emissions.”


“Increased operational efficiency, productivity, and state-of-the-art technology -- this winning combination makes the A321neo an attractive investment for leasing companies like GECAS who are committed to meeting customers’ operational needs while providing the latest technology and a solid return on investment,” said Alec Burger, President and CEO at GECAS. “The low operating costs and reliability of the LEAP powered A320neo Family make it a strong asset in GECAS’ portfolio.”


Virgin America currently operates a fleet of 63 Airbus A320 family aircraft comprised of A319ceo and A320ceo aircraft powered by CFM’s CFM56-5B engines.


The new A321neo will become the largest aircraft in Virgin America’s fleet, featuring 185 seats - a 24 percent higher capacity at same comfort levels than its current A320s. Inside the cabin, Virgin America flyers will continue to enjoy three custom-designed classes of service, touch-screen personal entertainment and an on-demand food and cocktail menu on every flight in addition to power outlets at every seat. The aircraft is expected to enter service on May 31, 2017 with its inaugural flight from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).


As first announced in April 2016, Virgin America was acquired by Alaska Air Group in December 2016.

EarthCARE: Japanese Cloud Radar meets its spacecraft for the first time at Airbus’ Satellite Centre in Friedrichshafen

Friedrichshafen, 19/04/2017 – EarthCARE, the Cloud, Aerosol and Radiation Mission of European Space Agency (ESA), met its Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR), the Japanese payload for the mission, for the first time when the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) handed over the instrument to ESA at Airbus´ Satellite Centre in Friedrichshafen (Germany). Airbus is ESA’s prime contractor to develop and build the EarthCARE satellite.

In the coming weeks, JAXA and ESA teams will run final checks on the instrument before giving a "green light" to the Airbus project team to integrate it with the spacecraft. Once assembled on EarthCARE, it will be tested intensively for several weeks. Then the instrument will be handed back to JAXA for further adjustments before its final integration next year.

EarthCARE will collect global simultaneous observations of cloud and aerosol profiles together with solar and thermal radiation and will include these parameters in numerical weather and climate models.

Due for launch in 2019, EarthCARE will advance the understanding of the role that clouds and aerosols play in reflecting incident solar radiation back to space and trapping infrared radiation emitted from Earth’s surface. Energy in the atmosphere is balance between incoming light from the Sun, which heats Earth, and outgoing thermal radiation, which cools Earth.

Clouds and, to less extent, aerosols reflect incident solar light back out to space, but they also trap outgoing infrared light. This leads to a net effect of either cooling or heating of the planet. In addition, aerosols influence the life cycle of clouds, and so contribute indirectly to their radiative effect.

The CPR instrument is one of four instruments to be integrated on the EarthCARE satellite. This high power millimetre-wave radar will measure the vertical profiles of cloud structures (water / ice content).

Kazakhstan orders two more C295 aircraft

Kazakhstan is to acquire two more Airbus C295 transport aircraft following the signature of a new contract with Airbus Defence and Space.

The agreement, which includes a spares and support package, covers the final two aircraft included in a memorandum of understanding signed in 2012.

Both aircraft will be delivered in the second half of this year and will take the Kazakhstan Air Defence Forces’ C295 fleet to eight and total C295 sales to 186, including 12 in the CIS.

The attached photo shows an earlier C295 delivered to Kazakhstan.