Demand for high-performance plastics (HPPs) is up across the aerospace industry, driven by such key trends as growing performance requirements, increased use of additive manufacturing or 3D printing, supply chain globalization, and tightening environmental regulations. Growing passenger traffic coupled with the need to reduce emissions – being accomplished through lightweighting, engine downsizing, and vehicle electrification – present opportunities for HPPs, research analysts at Frost & Sullivan in San Antonio, Texas, explain.
Today, L3 WESCAM delivered the first of its first MX-15 electro-optical and infrared system to Airbus Defense and Space in support of Canada’s Fixed-Wing Search and Rescue aircraft replacement program.
In reviewing Obama-era vehicle-emissions standards dictated aggressive fuel-economy standards for the years 2022-2025, the U.S. EPA said that in light of current market conditions and consumer preferences, the regulations should be revised.
In a recent joint paper by the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) and the National Graphene Institute (NGI) at the University of Manchester, researchers outlined the disruptive impact potential of graphene applications in aerospace. This comes at a time of marked graphene innovation from research teams in Japan and Singapore.
Astronaut launches will return to U.S. soil for the first time since the space shuttle’s retirement in 2011. NASA officials have named the first U.S. astronauts who will fly on American-made, commercial spacecraft to and from the International Space Station (ISS). Space agency officials have assigned nine astronauts to crew the first test flight and mission of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner crew capsule, developed in collaboration with Bigelow Aerospace in Las Vegas, and SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft.
Established on July 1, the ECLAIR consortium will focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other negative environmental impacts of the aerospace industry by developing innovative electric technologies.
LiquidPiston Inc. has developed a new engine that can run on multiple fuels, including diesel, jet fuel, and gasoline. This platform uses an optimized thermodynamic cycle and a new rotary engine architecture and could increases flight endurance over conventional UAV engines by greater than 50%.
Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation (UTC), has laid out its plans for what is calling “The Grid” – an 25,000-square-foot advanced electric power systems laboratory for designing and testing next-generation, more-electric aircraft technologies for commercial, military, and business aviation.
Chicago-based Boeing recently completed a “demo flight” of a 737 MAX 7 narrow-body airliner equipped with updated Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) software.
Goodfellow’s process involves breaking methane gas – a very potent greenhouse gas – into hydrogen and elemental carbon atoms in a plasma reactor. The carbon atoms recombine into graphene sheets in the hydrogen atmosphere.
Officials at GE Aviation and Teradata are expanding their partnership to provide airlines with a framework that combines Teradata’s high-performance analytics in the cloud from with GE Aviation’s edge-connectivity services. Markets and Markets Research estimates the aviation analytics market is a $2.16 billion industry that will grow to an estimated $4.23 billion by 2021.
The National Center for Advanced Materials Performance (NCAMP) of Wichita State University (WSU) is partnering with SAE International to develop globally harmonized aerospace material and process specifications for advanced composites and non-metal additive manufacturing (AM) materials in the aerospace and air transport industries.
Continental Aerospace Technologies is partnering with Diamond Aircraft Industries GmbH of Austria to provide a new powerplant for the DA50 general aviation aircraft. Continental also recently expanded its portfolio with a “cash and in-kind contribution” investment in Ampaire Inc., an electric aircraft and propulsion company.
“We originally thought solar cells would be standard on the airplane’s wings,” says George E. Bye, founder and CEO of Bye Aerospace Bye. “However, with eFlyer’s primary markets being flight training and air taxi services, it makes more sense to make the price of the airplane as reasonable as possible.”
Rolls-Royce in London is unveiling a concept electric vertical take-off and landing (EVTOL) vehicle, including civil and military variants, that could take to the skies as soon as the early 2020s. The flexible design – able to be adapted for a variety of applications, including personal transport, public transport, logistics, and defense – is based upon technologies currently in use and under development.
Counterfeit parts prevention is integral to an effective obsolescence management plan, and the focus of anti-counterfeit standards – including Counterfeit Avoidance Standard (AS5553) and Counterfeit Detection Standard (AS6081) – from SAE International in Warrendale, Pa. SAE International officials are bringing the anti-counterfeit discussion and sharing best practices, which include adherence to critical standards, to the Future of Obsolescence Management (FOM) event on October 10 and 11 in Washington.
For airlines, providing an enjoyable customer experience, especially on long-haul flights, is a balancing act of additional features and weight and space savings. Collins Aerospace is pioneering the use of MicroLED lighting technology to increases lighting flexibility and slimline kiosks to give passengers premium self-service options.
United Technologies Corporation (UTC) is collaborating with its subsidiaries Pratt & Whitney and Collins Aerospace to develop a hybrid-electric X-plane with a hybrid-electric propulsion system efficient enough to make regional flights as practical as bus rides.