Sikorsky has begun assembly of the first of two S-97 Raider prototypes after delivery by Aurora Flight Sciences of the all-composite fuselage for the first of the high-speed, coaxial-rotor, light tactical helicopters. Assembly is underway in West Palm Beach, Fla. The first of the industry-funded Raiders is scheduled to fly at the end of 2014. The structure comprises a single integrated nose, cabin and tail cone. Sikorsky is aiming Raider at the U.S. Army's Armed Aerial Scout requirement.
A 1:11-scale model of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's D8 “double-bubble” airliner concept undergoes testing in NASA Langley Research Center's 14 X 22-ft. wind tunnel to measure the drag benefit from fuselage boundary-layer ingestion by very-high-bypass engines embedded in the tail. The 13.4 ft.-span model was made using additive manufacturing. NASA Langley photo by George Homich.
A series of U.S.-India military sales agreements worth billions of dollars are nearing completion, on the heels of a meeting between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. A $1.2 billion deal to buy six Lockheed-Martin C-130J Super Hercules aircraft (see photo) for the Indian air force (IAF), to bring its fleet to 12, has been inching forward all year. The Indian Defense Acquisition Council issued final clearance for the sale this month and the contract is expected to be signed by year-end.
An industry-government advisory group has prioritized capabilities in the FAA's NextGen program to help the agency realign its spending in an austere budget environment. The RTCA's NextGen Advisory Committee, chaired by Alaska Airlines CEO Bill Ayer, found that its priority list was similar to those compiled by earlier panels that had looked at streamlining and boosting the air traffic management overhaul effort. But this time the ramifications are more dire for programs further down the list.
There have been many times in my career when I have realized (in smack-on-side-of-head mode) that the answer to a question that nobody will answer today is in the notes from last month or a few years ago. This might sometimes be a good approach for the Pentagon to take. I wrote here two weeks ago (AW&ST Sept. 16, p. 16) about Russia's impressive new radars, quite clearly designed to detect and defeat stealth aircraft. But short of a doomsday bomb, there is no ultimate weapon, and I noted that these big complexes—“Aegis on wheels”—are not invulnerable.
Ma Xingrui, administrator of the China National Space Administration (CNSA), tells the 64th International Astronautical Congress that his country is ready to join the International Space Exploration Group (ISEGC), an organization of space agencies that is developing roadmaps for human exploration of the Solar System. “I don't see any problem with that,” he tells a questioner at the Beijing gathering. “If the organizer of the multilateral effort would like to invite China to be a part, of course we are willing to participate in it.
Bill Darbe has been named director of dealer programs for Satcom Direct, Satellite Beach, Fla. He was head of aftermarket sales and charter accounts for Aircell.
NASA's Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) has run into some heavy political flack on Capitol Hill, but inside the agency there is a clear understanding that it can be the nucleus of a lot of advanced-technology developments needed for expansion of human spaceflight into the Solar System, regardless of the objective.
A Japanese program to develop a cheaper solid-propellant space launcher has achieved a successful first launch, with the Epsilon rocket placing a planetary-observation satellite, Sprint-A, into orbit. The first Epsion launch cost ¥5.3 billion ($53.6 million), compared with a ¥3.8 billion target quoted for the initial version by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in 2011. The cost is to be reduced to ¥3 billion, report Japanese media, but it is unclear whether that figure applies to the version successfully launched on Sept.
Think “ram-air turbine,” and the pop-out propeller providing emergency power on an airliner comes to mind, or the air-driven prop powering the ALQ-99 jamming pod on a Boeing EA-18G Growler. But what if huge amounts of power are needed, for electronic attack, long-range sensors or directed-energy weapons—and not just in emergencies, but across the flight envelope?
You've probably heard the news that Aviation Week has been purchased by Penton Media, becoming one of Penton's flagship industry brands with a high-quality comprehensive portfolio of B2B Media, Events and Data/Analytics serving the growing global aviation, aerospace and defense marketplace.
Bill Sweetman's “Save the JSF. Really?” (AW&ST Aug. 19, p. 19), advocates several actions that could result in significant cost reductions for the Defense Department. However, there are a few of points that deserve additional thought before program cancellation becomes reality.
