Drone at Heli Expo - UAS Vision video

21st Century Helicopter Flies 4-5 Hours Unmanned

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Exhibiting amongst the world’s largest helicopter manufacturing companies at the HAI Heli-Expo in Louisville, Kentucky this week, Olaeris unveiled AEVA, a new unmanned aircraft with a 4-5 hour flight time. AEVA represents a pivot in the world of VTOL aviation, being described by the industry as the “21st Century Helicopter”.
Targeting the civilian helicopter market, Olaeris’ unmanned VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) aircraft is designed to fly beyond line of sight in commercial air space, putting the pilot on the ground, and a robust, autonomous aircraft with collision avoidance in the air. AEVA delivers the performance and capabilities that drones and radio controlled UAVs have promised for years, but can never achieve. “The user applications for AEVA are endless,” said Vice President of Sales & Business Development, Scott Lucas. With the pilot safely on the ground as a redundant safety backup, the aircraft uses onboard radar, Lidar, ADS-B and machine vision to “feel” its way through the airspace, avoiding flight path obstacles automatically. This leaves the pilot free to operate onboard cameras and sensors without the burden of flying the aircraft.
For industries like oil & gas monitoring, electric utility inspections and emergency response agencies, AEVA couldn’t emerge at a better time. Dozens of industries have used helicopters for decades to perform aerial work but budget cuts are forcing these entities to reduce spending. AEVA was designed to fill a need these customers have been desperate for; a more affordable alternative to helicopters without sacrificing performance.
This latest version of AEVA is the result of a 6-month design review with a multi-billion dollar aviation company that collaborated on the original design during the first half of 2015. They inserted engineering modifications to help ensure the FAA would find the aircraft safe and worthy of type-class certification like a conventional helicopter.
“Industries have been exploring the use of UAVs for hundreds of applications but have generally learned the hard way that they are based on flimsy hobby components and lack the durability to add value in everyday industrial applications. AEVA may look like a drone or UAV, but don’t be mistaken. We hope to prove she is as safe as any civilian helicopter flying today”, said CEO Ted Lindsley.
Emphasizing safety, titanium stress points, a Kevlar reinforced carbon fiber airframe, safety wired fasteners and multi-redundant backups are just some of the innovations resulting from 13 patents already filed. Lindsley said, “There are no hobby grade components in AEVA. Her critical flight systems have been engineered with multiple redundancies for safety and she uses the same quality of manufacturing partners that the general aviation industry relies upon.”
AEVA also uses shrouded, ducted fans rather than open rotors, allowing flight in close proximity to obstacles and package delivery without accidental rotor strike. Lindsley said, “Unless you are carrying large payloads or transporting people, AEVA represents the future. AEVA meets the needs of about half the customers that conventional helicopters currently serve.”
AEVA is being offered in 2 models at the Heli-Expo. The all-electric version is capable of flying for 1 full hour while carrying up to 5Kg/11 pounds of payload. The hybrid-electric version is capable of carrying the same 5Kg/11 pounds of payload for 4-5 hours.

Drone - EuroHawk på vingene igjen - UAS Vision

Foto: Northrop Grumman

German Euro Hawk to Fly Again The Northrop Grumman-built Euro Hawk unmanned air vehicle will fly again after the German air force decided to resume testing of the aircraft and its Airbus Defence & Space signals intelligence (SIGINT) payload. Since the cancellation of Euro Hawk in May 2013, Germany’s one RQ-4 Global Hawk-derived full-scale demonstrator has been in storage at Manching Air Base. Plans hatched last year will see testing resume as Germany looks to field the SIGINT payload, perhaps on an alternative platform. “Working with our German partners, we are returning our full-scale demonstrator to flight status and we continue to negotiate with the German Air Force to prove out that [Airbus] payload that we’re currently under contract with,” says Northrop Global Hawk chief Mick Jaggers. “I have a crew in Manching right now putting that aircraft back into flight status.” Euro Hawk development began in 2000, but the programme was shuttered because of concerns about airworthiness and unmanned aircraft integration in European airspace. Early-model Global Hawks do not have a weather radar or anti-icing systems, and cannot automatically detect and avoid other aircraft when transiting to their operating altitudes of 60,000ft. Germany is considering several options for hosting the Airbus-developed electronic and communications intelligence sensor, which began flight testing in January 2013 before being truncated. One option is the Global Hawk-derived MQ-4C Triton – being built for the US Navy and Australia – or perhaps the same Global Hawk type being delivered to NATO for its Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) programme. Another option is to host the payload on a manned business jet aircraft. Jaggers says airspace integration is not as problematic as it once was for the Global Hawk type. “We’ve been in a couple of demos in the European theatre, including Unified Vision in 2014 and Trident Juncture in 2015,” he says. “When you look at the airspace that was opened for us, we’ve been through the entire European airspace right now.” Three “Q-4” types will eventually be hosted in Europe at Sigonella Air Base in Italy: the US Air Force and NATO Global Hawks and MQ-4C Triton. The US military has already begun developing sense-and-avoid technologies and adverse weather modifications for its RQ-4s. -

Sola Kommune og Greater Stavanger vil gjøre opp status for helikoptervirksomheten den 9. mars

Det er på tide å gjøre opp status med hvor denne viktige nærings- og teknologiklyngen er nå, og hvordan dere ser på utsiktene framover.

Vi vet at enkelte av dere påvirkes negativt av nedgangen aktiviteten innen petroleumssektoren.

Sola blir likevel manifestert som viktigste trafikk hub for helikoptertrafikken fram mot 2020, når Johan Sverdrup også er kommet i drift.

Fallet i kronekursen gjør at andre av dere kan blir mer konkurransedyktige i et internasjonalt marked, flott. Og i 2017 så begynner 330 innfasingen av sine nye AW 101.

Alt dette håper vi å få bedre innsikt i gjennom møtet.

Programskissen er som følger:

Velkommen ved ordfører i Sola, Ole Ueland

Hvordan kan vi utvikle dagens klynge videre i et langsiktig perspektiv til å bli et definitivt nasjonalt tyngdepunkt for norsk helikopterkompetanse.

Thales Simulerings- og treningssenter, i dag og videre framover.

Arne Martin GILBERG, Director Business Domain Training and Simulation

Oppdatering om Nawsarh Prosjektet, hvordan er framdriften og hva skjer framover mot at først AW 101 ankommer til Sola, innfasing og trening

Bjørn Ivar Aarseth, Prosjektleder Nawsarh Prosjekt

Deretter korte oppdateringer 7 min per selskap /organisasjon.

Hva ser vi etter i presentasjonene deres:

Kort status: Ansatte (fordelt operative/tekniske og Adm)

Markedsutsikter

Muligheter og barrierer spesielt det som kommunen eller det offentlige kan bidra med å løse opp i.

Mangler det noe på Sola for å gjøre klyngen mer komplett

Vi vil bruke materialet til å lage en samlet oversikt over helikopterklyngen sin dybde og tyngde blant annet opp mot offentlige myndigheter.

StartFragment

Chc Bristow Heli one 330 Redningsskavadronen Norsk Helikopterservice Fonna Fly Flight Safety AgustaWestland Eripio CAE Avinor Sola Vgs (note: dersom noen er glemt, si fra)

Med vennlig hilsen

Birger Haraldseid

På vegne av

Sola Kommune og Greater Stavanger

Telf 90893186

FlyViking - Oppdatering fra DN/NTB

Grunneier Ola O.K. Giæver selger til kinesisk milliardær. Arkivbilde. Foto: Thomas Haugersveen

Næringsliv 

Luftfart

Nytt flyselskap planlegger ruter nordover fra Trondheim

Det nye flyselskapet FlyViking, som har sagt det skal ta opp konkurransen med Widerøe, varsler ruter mellom Trondheim, Bodø og Tromsø. Det planlegges også en rute til Murmansk.

NTB

Publisert: 01.03.2016 — 05:22 Oppdatert: 01.03.2016 — 07:01

– I dag er det like dyrt å fly fra Trondheim til Bodø og Tromsø som å fly med Norwegian til Las Vegas. Hvis vi ikke klarer å konkurrere med det, er det ikke håp i havet, sier mannen bak det nye selskapet, Ola Giæver, til Adresseavisen. Han har blant annet 33 års fartstid bak seg som pilot i Widerøe.

Til sommeren starter selskapet ifølge Giæver å fly mellom Trondheim, Bodø og Tromsø og etter hvert videre til Alta, Kirkenes og Murmansk.

- Tar lang tid og er veldig dyrt

Flyselskap-gründeren er overbevist om at det er kundegrunnlag for å fly til den nordlige russiske byen, som ligger om lag 100 kilometer fra grensen til Norge.

– Ja, antallet reisende er betydelig. I dag må man fly via Oslo og Moskva. Det tar lang tid og er veldig dyrt, sier Giæver til avisen.

I første omgang har selskapet kun ett fly. Det er en Dash 8– 100 med plass til 39 passasjerer. Flyet, som er samme modell som de minste flyene i Widerøes flåte, kommer til Norge i mai. Selskapet har tidligere sagt at de skal hente inn 100 millioner kroner før de begynner å fly.

Les også: Satser millioner på nytt nordnorsk flyselskap

Helicopters and ADS-B - Avionics

L-3 Responds to Helicopter Demand for ADS-B With All-in-One Solution

Juliet Van Wagenen

[Avionics Today 03-01-2016] Helicopters operating in the National Airspace System (NAS) are required to equip with Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast Out (ADS-B Out) avionics by Jan. 1, 2020, under an airspace mandate established as part of the FAA's NextGen air transportation system modernization program. Over the last year, several helicopter operators have expressed the need for a more simplified Supplemental Type Certification (STC) process, as well as the need for solutions providing easier paths to compliance for their existing fleets. L-3 believes its newly STC’d Lynx ADS-B transponders are the solution the rotorcraft market has been seeking. 

L-3 Lynx touchscreen transponder. Photo: L-3

At a press conference prior to the start of the 2016 Heli-Expo conference, L-3 unveiled an Approved Model List (AML) STC for Part 27 rotorcraft for the installation of its Lynx line of ADS-B products. The avionics manufacturer is one of several companies making an effort to establish an easier path to ADS-B compliance for helicopter operators right now. However, as Larry Riddle, vice president of marketing and sales for general aviation at L-3 told reporters during a pre Heli Expo press conference, what sets the NGT-9000 apart from others is the amount of functionality that it packs into one box.

"Last year there was a lot of buzz between the operators and FAA about finding an easy solution for ADS-B compliance for helicopters," Riddle said during the L-3 press briefing.

L-3 obtained an AML STC for 93 different helicopter models, which Riddle says covers an estimated 90 percent of Part 27 civilian use rotorcraft. While the basic low-cost versions of the Lynx models, including the NGT-2500, NGT-2000 and NGT-1000 can provide simple ADS-B Out compliance with the 2020 mandate, the NGT-9000 goes a step further.

L-3’s Lynx AML STC is already gaining traction at Heli Expo as well, with international Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) provider Vector Aerospace announcing that it is currently in the process of using the Lynx 1090 MHz Mode S ES transponder to develop its own ADS-B Out solution for Finmeccanica Helicopters AW139 medium twin rotorcraft.

According to L-3, the NGT-9000 combines a touchscreen ADS-B transponder with a display for viewing ADS-B traffic and weather data in a single panel-mounted unit. There is also an option to add Active Traffic and Aural Alerting (ATAS), as well as a Wi-Fi interface module enabling connectivity to mobile and tablet flight apps. Completing the all-in-one solution is the embedded Wide Area Augmentation System GPS, which requires no external GPS connections. As opposed to upgrading a transponder, position source, annunciators, and an interface mechanism, the NGT-9000 provides all of these ADS-B components that would normally be separated into one box.

"You get embedded WAAS, GPS, the 1090 ES and also the free weather through the [Universal Access Transceiver] UAT. And if you want to spend slightly more you can get full traffic, active traffic; today that requires a separate box, but we’ve actually found a software enablement that you can do with the transponder. It is the first touchscreen that you can have available as a transponder and an ADS-B compliant solution," said Riddle.

Although the display of traffic on the transponder is narrow and much smaller than it would appear on a standard cockpit display, there are other options available to display the traffic in a larger format. Riddle and Gary Watson, director of the development of flight-testing programs at L-3, said that the ADS-B In functionality of the NGT-9000 can also be displayed on a Multi-function Display (MFD).  Pilots can also take a Wi-Fi enabled iOS or Android device and connect directly to the transponder using the aircraft’s N number to display the traffic on a larger interface.

"The traffic is displayable on any MFD that accepts SkyWatch traffic,” said Watson. “So the traffic interface is available as an ARINC interface on many [Primary Flight Displays] PFDs as it has been with SkyWatch, the weather interface is an open [Ground Data Link] GDL 90 [Interface Control Document] ICD-type interface, and we’re seeing more and more MFDs accepting that interface. It’s also available via Wi-Fi to an Android or an iPad device," said Watson.

When questioned about the touchscreen capabilities of the NGT-9000 solution in a helicopter where pilots often are affected by vibration and sometimes wear gloves, Riddle noted that the company went through testing with several rotorcraft airframe manufacturers and thoroughly ensured that it works in civilian helicopter operations. The touchscreen uses resistive display technology and also limits the different types gestures and inputs that a pilot can make on the transponder.

While the FAA issued the rotorcraft AML STC under the recent regulatory agreement established by the FAA, Transport Canada and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the certification approval applies to helicopters operating in European airspace as well.  The new agreement with EASA facilitates acceptance of the classification for basic STCs, according to the FAA.

- See more at: http://www.aviationtoday.com/av/rotocraft/87332.html?hq_e=el&hq_m=3218965&hq_l=1&hq_v=5c06548960#.VtYkio-cE2w

Royal Aeronautical Society on OSL and biofuel - RAS

The world's only learned society dedicated to the entire aerospace community

NEWS & PUBLICATIONS             

Oslo Airport pioneers biofuel facility 5 February 2016 BILL READ FRAeS reports from Norway where Oslo Gardermoen became the first airport in the world to offer airlines the option of refuelling aircraft with aviation biofuel through a normal fuel supply infrastructure.  Refuelling an SAS aircraft with biofuel blend. (Avinor) On 22 January 2016, Oslo Gardermoen Airport in Norway became the first airport in the world to offer airlines the option of refuelling aircraft aviation biofuel through a normal fuel supply infrastructure. For the first time, biofuel will be available via the airport’s fuel hydrant infrastructure instead of using a refuelling truck. Norwegian Minister of Transport and Communications, Ketil Solvik-Olsen. "Today is a red letter day for international aviation,” said Norway’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Ketil Solvik-Olsen. “Oslo Airport is now the world's first major international airport with regular deliveries of jet biofuel," Grown in Spain Green partners - left to right: Thorbjorn Larssen, GM, Air BP Norway; Theye Jacoubs Veen, CFO SkyNRG; Kaisa Hietala EVP, Neste; and David Gilmour, CEO Air BP. (Avinor) The biofuel now being delivered to Oslo Airport is derived from Camelina oilseed which is produced by 500 farmers on fallow land in semi-arid regions in Spain for Camelina Company Espana (CCE). Camelina is a flowering plant native to Northern Europe and Central Asia which can be grown in semi-arid regions which does not compete with other food crops or feedstock. The feedstock was then shipped to Neste’s Porvoo refinery in Finland where it was converted into biofuel. A main batch was shipped to Gavle in Sweden where it was blended with fossil Jet A-1 fuel in a 48% biofuel to 52% fossil fuel ratio which meets the current ASTM D1655/DEFSTAN 91-91 specifications for aviation turbine fuels. Air BP purchases the fuel from Neste with the assistance of SKyNRG acting as a consultant. The first deliveries by road tanker to Oslo Airport began on 30 December 2015 where it was dropped into the main fuel hydrant system. The biofuel is produced within the framework of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme demonstration project ITAKA (Intiative Towards sustAinable Kerosene for Aviation). Air BP has agreed to deliver a minimum of 1.25m litres of biofuel to Oslo Airport. (Avinor) The project is the result of co-operation between aircraft fuel supplier Air BP and Norwegian state-owned airport operator Avinor which operates Oslo and 45 other airports. Air BP, which supplies over 7bn gallons of jet kerosene and aviation gasoline each year to customers around the world, has agreed to deliver 1.25m litres to Oslo Airport. The aim is to increase this volume in the future to establish regular commercial deliveries.  Looking to the long term Lufthansa was the first airline to commit to using biofuel at Oslo. (Avinor) The opening of the Oslo biofuel facility comes at a time when the price of conventional fuel is at a record low level and other bio fuel projects have been suspended - one example was the recent suspension at the end of 2015 of the Solena/British Airways GreenSky scheme to create 16m gallons of fuel from London rubbish. However, the partners in the Oslo biofuel scheme are looking further ahead and pledging their faith in the future green credentials of biofuels. The Avinor/Air BP initiative is in line with the aviation industry environmental targets of climate-neutral growth by 2020 and a 50% reduction in emissions by 2050, compared to 2005. The EU has also set a target for 3.5% of all aviation fuel to be biofuel by 2020.. European-based carriers Lufthansa, SAS and KLM are active participants in the scheme and have signed agreements to purchase the fuel. Although biofuel currently costs more to produce than fossil jet fuel, the airlines have agreed to pay extra to ensure that biofuel could be offered at Oslo and have expressed the hope that more airlines will begin to use it in the future. Lufthansa was the first airline to commit to using biofuel at Oslo and has used it to refuel an Airbus A320. Meanwhile, KLM Cityhopper is to begin flights using blended biofuel in the second quarter of 2016 flying Embraer 190 regional jets between Oslo and Amsterdam Schipol. In co-operation with aircraft manufacturer Embraer, the efficiency of the biofuel will be assessed in comparison with kerosene. The flights have been made possible by the partners of the KLM Corporate BioFuel programme which pay a surcharge to cover the price difference between sustainable biofuel and traditional kerosene.   Oslo Airport refuelling tanks. Avinor has supported the supply of biofuel by sponsoring some of the start-up costs of the fuel production and a fixed contribution per tonne of fuel. In addition, the Norwegian government has also taken steps to encourage the adoption of biofuel with lower CO2 taxes on domestic flights in Norway. Biofuel is also exempted from the EU quota system. The Norwegian budget for 2016 proposes that flights using 25% of jet biofuel will receive a 25% reduction in airport landing fees, although the terms of operation are still being clarified. From 1 January 2018 the Norwegian Parliament proposes that the 25% rebate on aviation fuel will be replaced by a drop-in requirement. “Norway is committed to the transition to a low-emission society. I am pleased that the aviation sector wants to participate in this adjustment, as evidenced by the initiative taken by Avinor and Air BP,” says Minister of Climate and Environment, Vidar Helgesen.

- See more at: http://aerosociety.com/News/Insight-Blog/4043/Oslo-Airport-pioneers-biofuel-facility#sthash.iHRrXc5f.dpuf

Drone - Weapons arsenal project - UAS Vision video

USAF Shows ‘Arsenal Plane’ Concept at Air Warfare Symposium

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The US Air Force has offered an artist’s impression of the Pentagon’s “arsenal plane” concept in a video presented by service secretary Deborah Lee James at the Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida.
As first seen in DARPA “system of systems” promotion released last year, the video depicts an aircraft with an eight-engine Boeing B-52 bomber wing with the body of a Lockheed Martin C-130 turboprop. The secretary’s outtake shows the aircraft launching a barrage of networked Raytheon Small Diameter Bomb II glide bombs at mobile enemy radar warning and air defence targets.
This aircraft mash-up is relevant, because the Pentagon has not revealed whether its arsenal plane will be a re-purposed B-52 or a smaller cargo airplane like the C-130, or perhaps faster types like the C-17 or B-1B.
The cargo-bomber airplane concept appears to be unmanned since it doesn’t have a cockpit window, but does have a side cargo bay door. It’s not known if the arsenal plane – based on an old, repurposed aircraft – will carry weapon specialists, similar to current AC-130 gunships.

“Of course, this is still a concept so there’s various artist’s renditions or videos that may attempt to show what this is like, but there has been no decision, per se, on the type of aircraft that would become this arsenal,” says James on 26 February, when asked about the image. “But I offered it up as an example of some of the creative thinking that is not only technology driven, but sometimes involves repurposing existing aircraft as concepts of operation.”
USAF chief of staff Gen Mark Welsh offered some additional insight, saying the choice of platform will depend on what types of weapons it will carry. It also depends on the size of those weapons, he says, and if the aircraft needs to get into position quickly.
“I think you can make arsenal platforms in near space, you can make arsenal platforms behind the battle lines, you could make a case for arsenal platforms in the battlespace,” says Welsh. “It just depends on what you’re trying to do, how much you can afford, and how you prioritise the effort.
“It’s just where you put it, how you access the weapons, when you need them, et cetera, and who’s actually calling for them. Is it another airborne platform, is it somebody on the ground? That’s the discussion we’re in right now. It’s going to be a fascinating discussion.”
The arsenal plane concept was revealed by US defence secretary Ashton Carter during his budget preview speech in Washington DC on February 2. It is run by the secretive Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO), which specialises in modifying old weapons into new capabilities.
The concept converts “one of our oldest aircraft platform” into a flying launchpad,” he says. It would be an “airborne magazine” that is networked with modern combat jets and potentially the Northrop Grumman B-21 bomber, which is designed as a “family of systems”.
The project is funded in the Pentagon’s “advanced innovative technologies” budget under a new, mostly-classified programme labelled “alternative strike”. Almost $200 million has been dedicated to the project in fiscal year 2017, and flight demonstrations would start in late 2017 or 2018 and run through 2020.