The first Airbus A330-800 commercial jet, flight test aircraft MSN1888, took off today from Toulouse-Blagnac Airport on its maiden flight over southwestern France during which the aircraft performed dedicated flight-physics tests required for the variant.
The 60th Maintenance Squadron at Travis Air Force Base is the first field unit in the United States Air Force to produce approved nonstructural aircraft parts using 3D printing – an additive manufacturing technique. The first parts: latrine covers on the Lockheed C-5M Super Galaxy strategic airlifter.
Pratt & Miller’s main role will be ensuring that the Lynx meets or exceeds the Army's survivability requirements for the OMFV, which is scheduled to begin replacing the M-2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle in 2026. The OMFV competition requires that the vehicle be optimized for dense urban areas while maintaining efficacy against threats in open, rural areas.
Unitech Composites, a Unitech Aerospace company in Hayden, Idaho, is providing its Lightweight Armament Support Structure (LASS) composite weapons pylons to maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) company Science and Engineering Services (SES) in Columbia, Md., for use on Sikorsky UH-60A Black Hawk helicopters the U.S. Army is supplying to the government of Afghanistan through the U.S. Department of Defense’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program.
In part two of a two-part series, Richard Gardner discusses various aerospace propulsion innovations and continued work by aerospace engineers and scientists to advance aircraft engine technologies to increase efficiency and lower emissions.
Engineers at Jetoptera in Edmonds, Washington, and GE Aviation in Evandale, Ohio, are collaborating on a 500 pound-force (lbf) class fluidic propulsion system leveraging a gas generator based on GE Aviation’s H-Series turboprop engine. Jetoptera’s Fluidic Propulsion System is, officials say, both revolutionary and a remarkably simple approach to producing thrust for powerful, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL)-capable aircraft.
Boeing officials are expanding the company’s use of Siemens’ Mentor Graphics software as part of its Second Century Enterprise Systems (2CES) initiative, an effort to transform the company and aerospace industry to meet future challenges and achieve maximum value from end-to-end integration of supply chain, manufacturing, engineering, product support, and more. Boeing is harnessing a set of Siemens technologies to enable the next generation of design and manufacturing through increased automation and digitalization.
The X-60A is an air-dropped, liquid oxygen and kerosene propelled rocket developed by Atlanta-based Generation Orbit Launch Services under contract to the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Aerospace Systems Directorate High Speed Systems Division. The vehicle propulsion system is the 5,000 pound-force sea level thrust Hadley liquid rocket engine, produced by Colorado-based Ursa Major Technologies.
The U.S. Air Force awarded Phoenix-based Honeywell Aerospace with an exclusive $1,036,726,575 performance-based sustainment contract to provide end-to-end logistics support for secondary power systems and ground based auxiliary power systems for multiple aircraft types.
Engineers at AeroMobil in Slovakia have developed a special edition of the company’s personal aerial vehicles targeted exclusively at the rapidly growing personal air transportation market in China. AeroMobil has unveiled two Sky Dragon roadable aircraft or flying car concepts, specifically designed for China, based on the AeroMobil 4.0 short takeoff and landing (STOL) and 5.0 vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft.
After wrapping up a wing swap on 173 Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II close air support attack aircraft, the Boeing Company was awarded with another Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) sustainment contract award from the U.S. Air Force to continue re-winging the rest of the A-10 fleet.