PRESS RELEASE
Cardiff – Airbus’ A350-1000 test aircraft MSN071 has completed fuel system and engine tests in Cardiff, Wales between 3 and 4 May as part of its type certification flight test campaign.
Fuel test engineers from Airbus’ site at Filton, Bristol, were on hand to support testing of the fuel systems that were designed in the UK. The objective of the test is to simulate operational conditions in hot countries and check how global fuel management system and engines behave with hot fuel (over 43°C).
The early results demonstrate that the fuel management system efficiently handles various fuel densities and temperatures, as well as fuel flow to engines and between tanks while airborne offering the best operational performance. The A350-1000 is ready for hot conditions operations from Entry Into Service later this year.
The A350-1000, just as the -900, has a simplified fuel system with only three tanks and fewer pumps and valves. This contributes to a 25% advantage in operating costs and is another example of the high level of commonality within the A350 XWB family.
Fuel systems tests are part of standard tests for all new aircraft and major modifications such as new engines. The aircraft was fuelled twice a day and then the flight test team performed a number of required engine and systems flight tests with hot fuel.
The site at Filton, Bristol is Airbus’s worldwide centre of expertise for fuel systems design and testing, which is why these fuel tests for the A350-1000 - as for all Airbus aircraft such as A320neo, A380, A350-900, and A400M - have been carried out in the UK.
The A350-1000 is the latest member of the Airbus leading widebody family, together with the A330neo, offering unprecedented levels of operating efficiency, low noise and true long-range capability. As well as having a longer fuselage to accommodate 40 more passengers than the A350-900, the A350-1000 also features a modified wing trailing-edge, new six-wheel main landing gears and more powerful Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines. The A350-1000 embodies all of the fuel efficiency and ‘Airspace’ cabin comfort of the original A350-900 – but with extra size perfectly tailored for our customers on some of their busiest long-haul routes. To date 12 customers from five continents have placed orders for a total of 211 A350-1000s.
In New Atlas
http://newatlas.com/x-37-b-spaceplane-record-flight/49400/
In press release
http://www.af.mil/mobile/News/Article/1175402/x-37b-orbital-test-vehicle-4-lands-at-kennedy-space-center/
WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- The X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle mission 4 (OTV-4), the Air Force's unmanned, reusable space plane, landed at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility May 7, 2017.
“Today marks an incredibly exciting day for the 45th Space Wing as we continue to break barriers,” said Brig. Gen. Wayne Monteith, the 45th SW commander. “Our team has been preparing for this event for several years, and I am extremely proud to see our hard work and dedication culminate in today’s safe and successful landing of the X-37B.”
The OTV-4 conducted on-orbit experiments for 718 days during its mission, extending the total number of days spent on-orbit for the OTV program to 2,085 days.
"The landing of OTV-4 marks another success for the X-37B program and the nation," said Lt. Col. Ron Fehlen, X-37B program manager. "This mission once again set an on-orbit endurance record and marks the vehicle's first landing in the state of Florida. We are incredibly pleased with the performance of the space vehicle and are excited about the data gathered to support the scientific and space communities. We are extremely proud of the dedication and hard work by the entire team."
The X-37B is the newest and most advanced re-entry spacecraft. Managed by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, the X-37B program performs risk reduction, experimentation and concept of operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies.
"The hard work of the X-37B OTV team and the 45th Space Wing successfully demonstrated the flexibility and resolve necessary to continue the nation's advancement in space," said Randy Walden, the director of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office. "The ability to land, refurbish, and launch from the same location further enhances the OTV's ability to rapidly integrate and qualify new space technologies."
The Air Force is preparing to launch the fifth X-37B mission from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, later in 2017.
Get the feeling that India’s ‘Make in India’ fighter project(s) have gone cold over the last two months? Well, for one thing, you’re not alone. For another, you’re right — it definitely feels like they’re on the proverbial backburner. And there are good reasons. We begin the first of this week’s special two-part deep dive on the Indian Air Force’s Make In India fighter projects by bringing to you a breakdown distilled from a range of conversations over two weeks with several officers leading the acquisitions and plans processes at the IAF and Ministry of Defence https://www.livefistdefence.com/2017/05/iaf-begins-brutal-rejig-of-purchase-priorities-expect-blood.html
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