Formålet med bloggen er å bidra til informasjon om luftfart av alle slag. Også litt om ubåter og forsvarsspørsmål. Nyheter vil du finne her også, en del på engelsk som er det mest brukte luftfartsspråket. Har du selv noe som bør komme ut, så send meg en mail til per.gram@hesbynett.no - Politikk på alle nivåer over hele verden er i kaos. Voldsomme endringer kan finne sted på kort tid, som også kan få innvirkning på forsvarsdisposisjoner. Det må kommenteres.
I helgen holdt Elon Musks romfartsbedrift SpaceX en konkurranse som har som mål å fremme utviklingen av Hyperloop. I konkurransen deltok 27 lag, som ble bedømt av SpaceX-ingeniører. Målet var å sende kapslene gjennom et rør med nær vakuum.
Kapslene var designet av ingeniørstudenter fra hele verden, og under konkurransen ble de forskjellige løsningene vurdert.
Tanken er at kapslene skal sveve på en luftpute, som dannes når en vifte suger opp luften foran kapselen, og sender den ut på undersiden. Noen har imidlertid også utstyrt kapsler med magneter som bidrar til at de svever.
Målet med Hyperloop er å bygge en ny transportmetode hvor kapsler sendes gjennom et rør i rundt 1200 kilometer i timen.
De kom ikke akkurat opp i slike hastigheter i helgen, da den høyeste hastigheten som ble oppnådd var 94 kilometer i timen gjennom et 1,6 kilometer (1 mile) langt vakuumrør i et testanlegg ved SpaceX' hovedkvarter i California.
Denne kapselen var designet av et lag fra studentorganisasjonen WARR ved det tekniske universitetet i München.
Deres prototype, som ble presentert i sommer, er sponset av blant andre Airbus, og vant for høyeste oppnådde hastighet. TU Delft hadde den beste designen, ifølge juryen.Foto: Delft HyperloopKapselen som vant konkurransen samlet sett var designet og bygget av et lag fra det tekniske universitetet i Delft i Nederland (TU Delft). Denne var utformet i karbonfiber, og var utstyrt med et egenutviklet bremse- og stabilitetssystem. Den veier 149 kg. Laget fikk høyeste poengsum totalt, og vant for beste design og konstruksjon. Et egenutviklet stabilisatorsystem skal sørge for at turen oppleves behagelig.Foto: Delft HyperloopAlle lagene deltar i en pågående konkurranse, som ble lansert i 2015. Dette var imidlertid første gang lagene fikk anledning til å teste ut forskjellige løsninger mot hverandre på samme testbane.
Av de 27 lagene som deltok, var det bare tre lag som til slutt fikk anledning til å teste ut sin design. Dette fordi de først måtte gjennom flere tester, inkludert strukturelle tester som viste at kapslene fungerte under vakuum. Transportkapselprototype utviklet av MIT Hyperloop.Foto: MIT HyperloopI tillegg til de tyske og nederlandske lagene, fikk laget fra Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) gjennomført testen. MIT-laget har fra før av vunnet pris for beste design i en tidligere fase.
Under konkurransen i helgen, vant de prisen for sikkerhet og pålitelighet. Den siste delen av konkurransen går av stabelen senere i år. Datoen er ikke satt, men de lagene som ikke fikk testet sine kapsler i helgen, får en ny mulighet under siste del. Den raskeste kapselen i konkurransen var prototypen utviklet av studenter ved det tekniske universitetet i München.Foto: Uli Benz/TU MuenchenMed unntak av ett lag, er alle tilknyttet en utdanningsinstitusjon. Altså stiller ikke de kommersielle aktørene som utvikler Hyperloop i disse konkurransene direkte.
Hyperloop-selskap sponser
Hyperloop One, som holder på å utvikle et system med tanke på kommersialisering, sponser imidlertid flere av lagene, blant annet MITs lag og Virginia Tech-laget. Det er altså ikke utenkelig at erfaringer fra disse lagene vil kunne brukes under utviklingen av et kommersielt Hyperloop-system.
Men det er langt frem til man kan avgjøre om noen av disse systemene, eller de kommersielle aktørenes systemer, er levedyktige.
SpaceX er i seg selv ikke deltakende i kommersiell utvikling av Hyperloop, og de sponser heller ingen lag. Bakgrunnen for konkurransen er at de håper den skal bidra til å sette fart på utviklingen av en funksjonell Hyperloop-prototype. Elon Musk sa under en tale i forbindelse med konkurransen at noe av hensikten er å vekke folks interesse for transportmetoden, og å skape innovasjoner som utforsker fysikkens grenser for å se hva som er mulig.
Testbanen i seg selv er ifølge Musk det nest største vakummkammer etter Large Hadron Collider.
Waypoint Sees Near-term Lift for Offshore Helo Market
Waypoint Leasing is forecasting a near-term recovery for the offshore helicopter market based on fourth-quarter developments in the global energy outlook. Ian Gurekin, Waypoint's chief risk officer, said yesterday that the near-term outlook is now “optimistic, buoyed by OPEC’s announcement to cut production followed by non-OPEC producers vowing to do the same. Several of the major oil companies have taken advantage of the current environment by securing investment deals, committing to new offshore blocks and increasing exploration and drilling activity.”
The helicopter lessor noted that it added 23 new aircraft and 10 new customers in last year’s down market and moved stronger into the light-twin helicopter market based on stronger demand there. It also announced that of the 10 Leonardo AW139s and Sikorsky S-92s it took back from operator CHC as part of that company's reorganization, seven have already been placed and two are likely to be soon. Overall, Waypoint completed 30 re-leases last year.
Waypoint’s portfolio includes more than 140 aircraft for 26 customers in 31 countries worth more than $1.6 billion. It also has firm orders and options with OEMs over the next five years for more than 120 helicopters valued at more than $1.5 billion.
Volcanic Ash Detector for Jets Passes Ground Tests
An in-aircraft volcanic ash-detection system developed by Norway-based Nicarnica Aviation, and paired with Elbit System’s ClearVision enhanced-vision system, has successfully completed ground trials, the companies announced today. Nicarnica’s Airborne Volcanic Object Imaging Detector (Avoid) is an awareness device intended to provide real-time imagery of volcanic ash, which can damage turbine engines.
Information is supplied to the cockpit from two fast-sampling, imaging infrared cameras that can detect hazardous volcanic ash particles up to 54 nm/100 km ahead. At typical jet cruise speeds, this provides pilots with a seven- to 10-minute warning to safely evade the ash clouds.
During the recent ground trials, the Avoid system demonstrated “unprecedented” volcanic ash-detection capability. According to Elbit, “The trial findings verify that the final product will achieve a successful detection at a range of 100 kilometers in sufficient time to allow pilots to avoid the no-fly zone affected by the presence of volcanic ash.”
We recently visited Embraer’s impressive and much expanded campus in Melbourne, Florida. While there, we strapped into the left seat of Legacy 500 Serial Number 52 for a demonstration of its Rockwell Collins HGS-3500 compact head-up display, EVS-3000 multi-spectral enhanced vision system and synthetic vision capability.
This is Embraer’s first aircraft to have the certified version of E2VS, short for Embraer Enhanced Vision System. It was FAA-approved in September 2016 as an enhanced flight vision system in accordance with Advisory Circular 90-106A. Accordingly, it can be used for credit to fly down as low as 100 ft. above the touchdown zone elevation before the flight crew must see the runway environment with unaided vision in accordance with FAR Part 91.175. However, when the HGS-3500 is displaying synthetic vision background imagery, the system cannot be used to fly down to lower than published approach procedure minimums.
Accompanied by Sydney V. de M. Rodrigues, senior demonstration, instructor and Legacy 450/500 standards pilot, in the right seat and Peter Kruger, senior demonstration and safety pilot, on the jump seat, we taxied out from Embraer’s ramp at Melbourne International Airport (MLB). Even though the weather was too clear to show off all of the system’s capabilities during low visibility approaches, its value became apparent as soon as we started rolling down Taxiways G and K toward the approach end of Runway 9L. We could see the thermal image of Embraer’s taxi director on the ramp, the pavement edges, along with the taxiway and runway paint stripes. The thermal image is slightly offset to the left from the actual pavement and paint stripes due to parallax between the left-side-mounted HUD and center-mounted EVS-3000 camera array.
The long-wave infrared (IR) sensor of the EVS camera array enabled us to see down the taxiway two or three times farther than we could using our own eyes and the aircraft taxi lights. The shortwave IR and electro-optical visible light sensor enabled us to see both incandescent and LED/sodium vapor/mercury vapor light sources. We also could see the infrared exhaust signatures or proximate turbine aircraft, but not the four-cylinder Piper Cherokee in the left traffic pattern.
Rodrigues used the FMS to compute takeoff V speeds and takeoff field length. We noted that s.n. 52 is 329 lb. heavier than what Embraer quoted for BCA’s May 2016 Purchase Planning Handbook. With 5,990 lb. of fuel and one passenger, our computed takeoff weight was 30,260 lb. At Melbourne’s 33-ft. field elevation, at 25C and using Flaps 1 for takeoff, V1 and Vr were 112 KIAS, V2 was 120 KIAS and en route climb speed was 140 KIAS. Takeoff field length was 3,379 ft. with 6,000 ft. of pavement available.
Cleared for takeoff, we advanced the thrust levers until the autothrottles engaged. The lightly loaded aircraft had a 1:2.15 thrust-to-weight ratio, so acceleration was brisk. When Rodrigues called “Rotate,” we immediately were reminded why the Legacy 500 is such a pleasure to fly. Pitch response to the sidestick input was crisp but well damped. It was easy to follow the flight director cue in the HUD.
We settled into a comfortable 180 KIAS climb. Tower asked us to maintain the 094-deg. runway heading until 1,500 ft. for noise abatement. After switching over to Orlando Departure, we were cleared to climb southeasterly through broken cumulus to 5,000 ft. MSL. We could see the shapes, sizes and tops of the clouds both in the HUD and on the head-down displays with the help of the EVS IR sensors. Rodrigues showed us how to use the background imagery on/off button on the left sidestick to check visibility with unaided vision. That check is essential when flying approaches down to minimums.
OK, we admit it. We’re HUD junkies. It’s so much easier to fly an aircraft with smoothness and precision when using the HUD’s flight-path vector and 1:1 conformal symbology than it is with a compressed imagery head-down display, in our opinion. And it keeps the pilot head-up and with eyes looking outside the cockpit. It could be the biggest safety breakthrough since the invention of the windshield.
For the first approach back at Melbourne, though, Rodrigues elected to switch to synthetic vision for the background imagery so that we could see how it works in comparison with enhanced vision.
SVS, as it uses the aircraft’s own TAWS terrain database, will provide situational awareness even if the clouds are so dense that they obscure the view of the enhanced vision camera array. SVS provides dome images over nearby airports, high-resolution terrain contours, lead-in lines to runway centerlines and runway outline imagery. In addition, in clear weather it can help the pilot visually acquire airports and runways in urban areas, which often can disappear in a sea of lights from buildings, roads and housing developments.
But switching between SVS and EVS for background HUD imagery requires use of the cursor control device and a series of drop-down menus. We’d prefer a vertically mounted, two-way, momentary contact rocker switch in place of the background imagery on/off button on the sidestick. One side of the rocker could be used to turn on/off the EVS and the other could be used to turn on/off the SVS.
As we approached Runway 9R using the RNAV (GPS) LPV procedure, SVS showed us the extended runway centerline. The closer we got to MLB, the runway outline image became ever larger. At the published 232 ft. MSL (200 ft. AGL) decision altitude, we executed a go-around and set up for the ILS Runway 9R.
This time, we switched from SVS to EVS imagery. As we peered through the HUD, it was quite apparent that improvements have been made by Rockwell Collins and Embraer to the multi-spectral EVS camera since we first flew the system in Brazil. The gains between the two IR sensors and low-light camera have been harmonized to provide a more realistic image of lights, terrain and pavement. We could see Interstate 95 and Ellis Road, for instance, east of the airport. We also could see the thermal signatures of the high-intensity runway edge lights on Runways 9L and 9R, plus the MALSR array leading us to Runway 9R.
Rodrigues also could see everything detected by the EVS camera in an upper left window of the right-side display screen. He also had SVS imagery displayed on the right-half PFD so that he could compare the two.
Rodrigues called “minimums’ at the ILS 232-ft. decision height and we replied “Continuing.” We flew down to 132 ft. MSL, switched off the EVS to take a brief look at the runway and executed a second go-around.
For our final approach, we again flew the ILS Runway 9R using EVS. This time, we switched off the EVS at 132 ft. MSL (100 ft. AGL) and continued for landing using the HUD with unaided vision.
We again switched on the EVS for the taxi back to Embraer’s Melbourne campus, providing a much-enhanced view of the pavement, paint stripes, lights and drainage ditches along the sides of the taxiways.
Conclusions? The combination of the HGS-3500 and EVS-3000 provides tangible cost benefits in the form of being able to fly down to lower-than-published minimums. Its intangibles include flying with VFR precision and smoothness in IMC and much improved situational awareness.
Embraer is pricing the HGS-3500 at $275,000 and the EVS-3000 at $275,000, if they are purchased separately. Together, the package will be available for just over $500,000. That’s roughly half the cost of conventional stand-alone HUD/EVS packages. Apparently, many Legacy 500 buyers see the value of the system. Before it was certified, more than half of the customers were ordering their aircraft with provisions for both systems. Now with the system’s FAA and EASA approvals, 80% of operators with HGS/EVS provisions are installing it.
Boeing’s F/A-18E/F
Super Hornet could steal orders away from the Lockheed Martin F-35 if the Trump
Administration adjusts defence priorities, military acquisition analyst Andrew
Hunter told an audience 23 January at the Center for Strategic and International
Studies.
An
"advanced Super Hornet" still can’t compete with the stealthy F-35 in
airspace monitored by radar surveillance, but a semi-low-observable F/A-18E/F
with more carriage capacity could emerge as an attractive option against less
sophisticated threats, according to Hunter.
“But if your strategy requires
to operate continuously in denied access air environments, there is no such
thing as a comparable Super Hornet,” he adds. “It simply doesn’t exist.”
In 2015, US Gen Joseph Dunford,
the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called Russia the greatest
existential threat to the US followed by China, North Korea and Islamic State
terrorists. That order affects how the US Department of Defense approaches its
procurement priorities. When it comes to air, it means the Pentagon has set its
sights on buying high-end aircraft that can penetrate more sophisticated
Russian air defences in Crimea.
But there is some indication
from Trump’s previous statements and his proclivity for Russian president
Vladimir Putin that the old order could be flipped. US president Donald Trump’s
national security team could make terrorism their top concern and let the
Russian threat fall to the back burner, according to CSIS defence budget
analyst Todd Harrison.
“If that holds true then why do
you need as many of these stealthy aircraft?” Harrison says. “So it could
dramatically change what we’re buying.”
Last week, USAF chief Gen David
Goldfein expressed his support for Senate Armed Services Committee Chair
Senator John McCain’s proposal to add 300 low-cost fighters to the budget. That
move would make sense if the DOD pivots its focus toward fighting terrorist
groups in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, where light-attack aircraft such as the
Embraer Super Tucano already operate.
Trump’s proposal for a price
shoot-out on the F-35 programme between Boeing and Lockheed has some precedent.
Harrison noted the US Navy already pits the Super Hornet against the
carrier-based F-35C variant, with its numerous budget requests to increase the
number of F/A-18E/Fs while reducing orders for the F-35C.
The service requested 14 Super
Hornets in the most recent defence policy bill, which were turned down by
Congress. A recent white paper from McCain suggested continuing this trend,
pointing to the growing shortfall of Navy fighters and ongoing delays to the
F-35C programme. McCain proposed procuring 58 more Super Hornets and 16 EA-18G
Growlers over the next five years, but would continue F-35 procurement as
quickly as possible.
If Lockheed would feel
competition from any aircraft, it would be the Super Hornet, Harrison adds.
“I
think it’s easy to say Trump doesn’t know what he’s talking about, the F-18
doesn’t have the same capabilities as F-35C,” Harrison says. “All of that’s
true, but I think he knew that he was picking at a scab.”
Fornebu 31.12.1982 - Siste tur med Citation II i HS- Foto Per Gram
Citation business jet turns 45 this month This Cessna Citation 500 business jet is similar to
the first one delivered in January 1972. Textron Aviation Courtesy
photo
Forty-five years ago this month, Cessna delivered its first
Citation business jet, an event that arguably changed the course of the Wichita
plane maker.
American Airlines was the first recipient of the Citation
500 jet in late January 1972, officials of Cessna parent Textron Aviation said
Monday. American planned to use the jet for the development of its in-house
training program.
Since the delivery, the company that is equally known
for its light, single-piston-engine airplanes has delivered more than 7,000
Citation business jets that have amassed nearly 35 million flight
hours.
"This milestone marking 45 years of industry leadership is really
a celebration of the thousands of people through the years - customers and
employees - who have made the Citation line of business jets the world leader,"
Kriya Shortt, Textron Aviation senior vice president of sales and marketing,
said in a news release.
The Citation line encompasses eight jets ranging
from light to midsize with two larger models under development: the super
midsize Longitude that's expected to be certified later this year and the
large-cabin Hemisphere, scheduled for first flight in 2019.
