Drone - Anti Submarine Warfare

Anti-Sub Adcom United 40 Unveiled at IDEX

UAE-based unmanned air vehicle specialist ADCOM Systems has unveiled an antisubmarine warfare (ASW) variant of its United-40 Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAV at IDEX.

Developed in co-operation with Finmeccanica (Stand 06-A03) company Whitehead Alenia Sistemi Subacquei (WASS), the United-40 Block 6 has been developed so as to be able to carry and deploy sonobuoys, plus a single lightweight torpedo.

ADCOM and WASS signed a letter of intent to co-develop an ASW-optimised MALE UAV in late 2013.

Since then, they have been working to mature their United-40 Block 6 concept, leading to the unveiling of a first full-scale version at the show.

According to ADCOM Systems, the United-40 Block 6 UAV can be used to lay a barrier of sonobuoys, and then continue to loiter in the area for up to 16 hours with its torpedo armament.

Sonobuoy pre-processing – employing proven multi-static techniques – would be performed on board the UAV, with acoustic data then shared via link to co-operating units.

Alternatively, a group of UAVs could operate together to create a larger field of sonobuoys. Cooperative operations could also be performed with maritime patrol aircraft and ASW helicopters equipped with active dipping sonars.

One other option postulated by ADCOM and WASS is for the United-40 Block 6 UAV to be used as a dedicated weapon-carrier, thus allowing helicopters and MPAs to carry more fuel and hence extend time on station.

Such an approach would increase the range at which submarine threats could be engaged. Furthermore, given the potential proliferation of submarine self-defence missile systems in the coming years, the use of a UAV to drop a torpedo in the target vicinity would enable manned airborne ASW platforms to remain at a safe range outside.

ADCOM and WASS are working to advance the electronic and mechanical integration of the ASW payloads, including drop testing from the United-40 platform. This is planned to culminate later this year with a torpedo drop test demonstration for the UAE Naval Forces.

Airshow time - Yak-3

Yakovlev Yak-3 Russian WW2 Fighter

The Yak-3 is arguably one of the best Russian fighter aircraft that saw service during World War Two.

This video captures Graeme Frew’s display routine in his Yak-3 fighter at the New Zealand Warbirds Association airshow at Ardmore Aerodrome (Auckland, New Zealand) in June 2014. The aircraft is one of two Yak-3′s currently operating in New Zealand.

Drone - Integrator - Video

Sjekk video her: http://tinyurl.com/ozqlnjj
Denne saken er en videreutvikling av velkjente ScanEagle
som ble presentert på Flyoperativt Forums UAV konferanse
i 2007

Insitu Demonstrates Integrator at IDEX

Insitu announced the successful demonstration of its Integrator unmanned aircraft system during the live flight event at IDEX in Abu Dhabi. The two-day live fly took place on 24 and 25 February at the Al Tareef Airstrip, and was held in conjunction with the Unmanned Systems Exhibition and Conference (UMEX).

Integrator performed two flights, showcasing key features and capabilities including ease of transport and set up, small footprint launch and recovery systems and its open-architecture ground control application, ICOMC2.

“Our mission is to provide our global customers with the power to make the best decisions,” said Suzanne McNamara, Insitu’s vice president of business development. “Integrator delivers the endurance and payload flexibility our customers need to save lives, protect assets and successfully complete their mission. We are extremely honored to have the opportunity to demonstrate our tactical multi-INT platform to IDEX visitors.”

Insitu’s Integrator is a robust aircraft built on more than 10 years of operational experience. The system is modular, flexible and multi-mission capable, with six payload spaces and 40 lbs. of payload capacity. The USMC Program of Record RQ-21A Blackjack (under NAVAIR PMA-263) is a variant of this platform.

Helikopter - Bell 525 Relentless på Heliexpo

Bell Textron skriver nå at maskinen vil vises i SAR utgave. Under ser du generell spec. Maskinen får fly-by-wire. Den faller i samme segmentet som AW189/169 og EC175.

 

British Airways` eiere rapporterer stort overskudd

27 February 2015 Last updated at 13:27 GMT

BA owner IAG reports soaring profits

British Airways (BA) owner International Airlines Group (IAG) has reported a big jump in annual profit and raised its forecast for 2015.

IAG reported pre-tax profits of €828m (£601m) for the year to 31 December.

Profits were boosted by the use of new fuel efficient aircraft and what it called a "remarkable" turnaround at Spanish airline Iberia.

IAG's operating profits nearly doubled to just more than €1bn. It also raised its 2015 forecast by 20%.
'Tremendous' performance
Since the formation of IAG through the merger of BA and Iberia in 2011, Iberia has been undergoing a massive restructuring programme, with jobs and salaries being cut.

Last year, Iberia made a further 1,427 redundancies following negotiations with trade unions in Spain, taking the total number of job cuts in recent years to 4,500.

But the airline reported an operating profit of €50m, compared with an operating loss of €166m last year.

IAG chief executive Willie Walsh welcomed the ''fantastic'' results

Mr Walsh called Iberia's turnaround "remarkable, both financially and operationally" adding he was "very proud of its achievement especially its strong cost discipline".

"In 2013 we said our intention was for Iberia to break even in 2014 and it has fulfilled that promise," he added.

He added he expected Iberia to continue to improve its profitability given the trajectory that it is on. "The performance to date for Iberia has been tremendous and we expect that to continue in 2015," he said.

Shares in IAG rose almost 5% to 586.50p on the London Stock Exchange.
Low-cost competition
In addition to BA and Iberia, IAG also owns Spanish low-cost airline Vueling.

IAG said all three of its airlines faced very competitive markets domestically and across Europe from "the growing presence of low-cost carriers".

BA reported an operating profit of €1.2bn, up from €762m a year earlier, which IAG said showed "significant progress towards its long-term targets".

Vueling reported a slight rise in annual operating profits to €141m. It increased capacity by 24% and added new bases in Brussels and Rome.

Last month, IAG launched a €1.36bn takeover bid for Irish airline Aer Lingus, but it gave no further details on the progress of the takeover in its results statement.

The Irish government, which holds a 25% stake in Aer Lingus, is believed to have concerns over the deal and trades unions have warned over jobs cuts.

IAG chief executive Willie Walsh, told the BBC: "We'll have discussions in due course with the Irish government.

"I'm very much focused on the fantastic results that we've announced today and looking forward to developing IAG with the existing airlines and with opportunities to expand with other airlines."

Fra den kalde krigen

Et sted i Barentshavet - Foto: Per Gram

Norwegian - Kjos driver helt klart streikebryteri

Norwegian leier inn nye piloter som følge av pilot-streiken:

Ekspert om Norwegian: - Midt i hjertet av hva som er streikebryteri

Bjørn Kjos avviser kritikken og sier han forsøker å gjøre streiken minst mulig turbulent for passasjerene.

Nina Selbo Torset

Oppdatert: 28.feb. 2015 21:19

Lørdag morgen gikk 70 Norwegian-piloter ut i streik etter brudd i forhandlingene mellom arbeidstagerorganisasjonen Parat og NHO Luftfart.
Ifølge selskapet vil få eller ingen avganger bli berørt i helgen, men allerede onsdag trappes streiken kraftig opp. Da går 650 piloter vekk fra spakene.
For at passasjerene i minst mulig grad skal rammes, vil moderselskapet Norwegian Air Shuttle hente inn utenlandske piloter til å gjennomføre flyvningene.

• Les også: Slik takler du flystreiken

- Moralsk forkastelig

Både de streikende pilotene i Norwegian Air Norway (NAN) og eksperter på arbeidsrett mener dette er et klart streikebrudd.

- Helt klart streikebryteri, sier Knut-Marius Sture, ekspert på arbeidsrett.

- Norwegian Air Shuttle må regnes som part i denne konflikten. Dersom de leier inn andre til å gjøre jobben til de streikende, mener jeg det er midt i hjertet av hva som er streikebryteri, sier Knut-Marius Sture, ekspert på arbeidsrett og partner i advokatfirmaet Arntzen de Besche.
Streikebryteri forstås som når en utenforstående arbeidstager overtar arbeidet til en som er i lovlig streik.
- Man kan hjelpe seg selv så lenge det ikke fremstår som bistand til en part i konflikten. La oss si at Aftenposten har inngått en avtale med et eksternt trykkeri om å trykke avisen. Dersom trykkeriet går ut i streik mot sin arbeidstager, vil ikke Aftenposten være part i konflikten, men en kunde som rammes. Aftenposten kan da sysselsette et annet trykkeri uten at det er streikebrudd, forklarer Sture.
- Ja, Norwegian hjelper seg selv, men som en rammet part i konflikten. Da er det streikebryteri. Det er ikke ulovlig, men anses for å være moralsk forkastelig.
Sture mener å overføre passasjerene til et annet flyselskap er det tryggeste Norwegian kan gjøre.
- Hvis en rute mellom Oslo og Bergen er streikerammet, kan Norwegian flytte passasjerene til en av SAS sine flyvninger. Det vil være til hjelp for passasjerene og ikke å regne som streikebryteri.

Norwegian avviser kritikken

Norwegian-sjef Bjørn Kjos mener derimot han har sitt på det tørre. Han argumenterer med at selskapet der pilotene er ansatt, Norwegian Air Norway, er en underleverandør.

Informasjonssjef i Norwegian, Lasse Sandaker-Nielsen.

FOTO: Charlotte Sverdrup

Når de ikke kan levere sine tjenester på grunn av arbeidskonflikten, mener Kjos han står fritt til å få andre til å gjøre arbeidet de streikende pilotene egentlig skulle ha gjort.
- Norwegian har mange underleverandører, og vi står fritt til å velge blant dem, sier Kjos til NTB.
Informasjonssjef Lasse Sandaker-Nielsen sier Norwegian er sikre på at de er på trygg juridisk grunn.
- Det er Norwegian Air Shuttle som er moderselskapet og kjøper pilottjenester fra datterselskapene i Norwegian-familien. Det ene datterselskapet er nå i streik, mens de andre flyr som normalt. Det er primært fra disse selskapene vi nå henter inn piloter, sier han til Aftenposten.
- Når pilotene i NAN ikke er i stand til å levere tjenester til Norwegian Air Shuttle, må vi hente inn andre. Det viktigste for oss er at passasjerene kommer frem.