Tag Archives: Biofuel

521 Appareo Systems ADS-B

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Appareo Systems is the maker of Stratus transponders for ADS-B systems. United Airlines announces its goal to cut greenhouse emissions by 50%, Airbus is investing in synthetic spider silk for composite aerostructures, the fatal crash of a Cessna 335, flight attendants on bad behavior by emotional support animals. Also, a conversation about passing the Cirrus SF50 checkride.

Kelly Keller flying in Alaska.

Kelly Keller flying in Alaska.

Guest

Kelly Keller is the Central US Territory Manager for Appareo Systems, maker of the Stratus line of transponders for ADS-B systems.

Appareo Stratus ADS-B In.

Stratus ADS-B In.

Kelly tells us about ADS-B In and ADS-B Out and explains what each does. From the Appareo website: “ADS-B is the technology being implemented by the FAA to provide surveillance and improved situational awareness to both pilots and air traffic controllers. The FAA mandate states that all aircraft operating in current Mode-C airspace must be ADS-B Out equipped by 2020. For the pilot, the two primary benefits come in the form of ADS-B In weather and traffic information.”

We explore the “hockey puck” and the “ghosting” effects and come to understand the implications if your airplane is ADS-B In equipped but not ADS-B Out equipped. Kelly also discusses the demand for installation and certification services and the increasing labor rates.

Kelly's Grandfather in a B-17.

Kelly’s Grandfather in a B-17.

Kelly attended the 2018 AOPA Santa Fe Fly-In and she shares her impressions from that event.

Kelly is a third generation pilot. Her grandfather was a WWII B-17 bomber pilot who flew two tours in the European theater, and her father was a Vietnam veteran, an airline pilot, an A&P/IA, and an avid advocate for general aviation.  Kelly has been a private pilot since 2010, with ASEL and ASES class ratings. She’s currently finishing up her instrument rating.

 

 

Kelly's family in front of the Staggerwing at Oshkosh.

Kelly’s family in front of the Staggerwing at Oshkosh.

Kelly in her old Citabria,

Kelly in her old Citabria,

Aviation News

United CEO announces his airline is going to cut greenhouse emissions by 50% and power its jets with biofuels

United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz says, “…United Airlines became the first U.S. airline to make a public commitment to reduce our own greenhouse gas emissions – 50 percent by the year 2050.” This will be accomplished through engine and airframe technology developments, and the use of biofuels. United made an aviation fuel purchase agreement with Fulcrum BioEnergy, and the airline celebrated their commitment with the longest transatlantic biofuel flight to date, from San Francisco to Zurich. See also: Major air carriers plan to use more biofuels.

Video: Fulcrum Corporate Video 2017-Nov

The airplane of the future might have synthetic spider silk inside it

Airbus partnered with AMSilk to develop a prototype composite material composed of Biosteel fiber and resin. AMSilk is a German company that produces Biosteel in the lab which is designed to mimic spider silk in terms of flexibility and strength. Biosteel is created through a “closed-loop, bacterial fermentation process.” They hope to debut the composite in 2019.

Surprising Details Emerge From Sunday’s Cessna 335 Crash

A Cessna 335 recently crashed on approach to Florida’s Palm Beach County Park/Lantana Airport. The twin-engine airplane hit the ground a mile from the airport, killing the pilot and his wife. The man did not hold a valid pilot certificate. In fact, his certificate had been revoked in 1997 “for making fraudulent or intentionally false statements on his application for a medical certificate.” See also, Crash Pilot Had Certificate Revoked.

Flight attendant survey says 61 percent worked flights where emotional support animal caused a disturbance

In its survey Emotional Support Animals Negatively Affecting Air Travel, the Association of Flight Attendants asked about 5,000 flight attendants across 30 airlines for their experiences with emotional support animals. The results are concerning and the AFA has called on the Department of Transportation to take action to limit abuse.

Mentioned

Audi Stuart Air Show, November 2-4, 2018 in Stuart, Florida.

Cirrus Aircraft Vision Jet – Max Trescott tells us about his experience passing his checkride on the SF50.

Brian will be attending Dorkfest 2018.

The Aviation is Your Future self-paced Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) celebrates Girls in Aviation Day on October 13. This course is a project of the Woman in Aviation International Chapter at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University – Worldwide. Oct 8 – Oct 22, 2018.

NBAA Chair, Gen. Newton, To Receive Wright Trophy

Delta Belatedly Is Facing Up To Its One Big Mistake: Investing In An Oil Refinery

How do you move 11 whales and dolphins 1,000 miles?

Credit

Outtro by Bruno Misonne from The Sound of Flaps.

 

AirplaneGeeks 358 Just an Episode

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Hawker Hind

DOJ investigating airlines for collusion, United plans biofuel flights, future jet engine tech from Rolls-Royce, Solar Impulse makes it to Hawaii, a report from the Shuttleworth Collection air show, looking back on McNerney and ahead to AirVenture Oshkosh.

News

Justice Dept. investigating potential airline price collusion

Government faces burden in proving airline collusion

The United States Justice Department is investigating a number of airlines to determine if they illegally colluded to keep airfares high. The Justice Department confirmed the investigation, but would not name the airlines. However, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, and United Airlines each said they were being investigated.

United Airlines to test biofuel on L.A. to San Francisco route

This Airline Just Invested Millions Into Turning Garbage Into Jet Fuel

This summer, United plans to use biofuel on a regular scheduled route. The biofuel will be “generated from farm waste and oils derived [from] animal fats.” Four to five flights per day will use a 30 percent biofuel mix.

United Airlines has invested $30 million in California-based biofuel company Fulcrum BioEnergy. The strategic partnership includes an agreement that contemplates the joint development of up to five projects located near United’s hubs. These projects expect to produce as much as 180 million gallons of biofuel per year, with United agreeing to buy up to half that amount.

Rolls-Royce Details Advance And UltraFan Test Plan

Rolls-Royce UltraFan

UltraFan courtesy Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce previously made public its strategic plan for developing new jet engines. Now we have more details.

First, the “Advance” engine with a bypass ratio of more than 11:1, a pressure ratio more than 60:1, fuel-burn at least 20% better than the current Trent 700, a composite-titanium fan, and a composite fan casing. EIS around 2020.

Second, the “UltraFan” engine with 25% better fuel-burn than the Trent 700, a gear-driven variable-pitch fan, a 15:1 bypass ratio, and overall pressure ratio of 70:1. EIS around 2025.

Changes for the Advance include reallocating the work contributed by the various compressors and turbines. By lightening the load on the HP spool, RR achieves better efficiency and commonality with the UltraFan core.

With the geared UltraFan, the low pressure turbine is gone and the engine is more like the 2-spool engines P&W and GE produce. Other technologies to be introduced include cooled cooling air (compressor bleed air through a heat exchanger) and blings or bladed rings, an advancement from blisks, or bladed disks.

Ever-Bigger Engines Challenge Conventional Airliner Designs

As fan engine diameter continues to increase, mounting under the wing becomes less practical. Clean sheet airplane designs are gravitating to engines on top of wings, or engines embedded (or partially embedded) in the tail.

Solar Impulse lands in Hawaii, sets record for longest solar-powered flight

The Solar Impulse finally left Japan on June 28 and landed in Hawaii on July 3.

Listener recording

Bristol Boxkite

Bristol Boxkite

Roland attended a rather special airshow at the Shuttleworth Collection museum in Bedfordshire, England. He brings us his impressions, and some great photographs.

Mentioned

Spitfire 944

The producer’s great uncle recorded 90 minutes of personal footage during WW II that he mailed home from the war. The footage was transferred to digital media, then the producer had the thought to find the pilot of a Spitfire that crashed on film. He found the pilot, who had never seen the footage.

What does it take to restore a World War Two Spitfire?

A rare Mark 1 Spitfire shot down during World War Two was restored and will be sold at Christie’s July 9, 2015. 22,500 Spitfires were originally built, just 56 are still airworthy, and most of these are later versions of the aircraft. There are only four Mark 1s still flying.

New Lavi trainer better prepares IAF cadets for Hezbollah, Iran

What do you do when the wheel from a jet lands on your roof?

Crash Test Assesses Plane Emergency Locator Transmitters

Old F-16 vs. next-generation F-35: Guess who wins?

Why The “F-35 v F-16″ Article Is Garbage

McNerney lifted Boeing above turbulence

Credit

Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at brotherloverocks.com.

 

AirplaneGeeks 305 – Alternative Jet Fuel

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Field

Aviation biofuel, the NTSB summary report on the Asiana flight 214 accident, the SAAB 105 trainer, an Air New Zealand and Etihad maintenance agreement, and aviation news from the UK.

Co-host Rob Mark will be away for a few months to focus on some other projects, and we welcome National CFI of the Year Max Trescott to help shoulder the co-hosting load.

Guest

Guest Steve Csonka is a long-time commercial aviation professional with airline and aviation OEM experience, and he’s the Executive Director of the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI), a public/private partnership.

We discuss the aviation industry motivations for moving to biofuel, some of the challenges, the importance of it being a “drop in fuel,” and supply chain implications. Also, how biofuel is being used today and what to expect in the future.

There are many issues to be resolved, because as Steve puts it, we’re standing up a new industrial sector.

Aviation News

Animation of Asiana Flight 214 accident sequence

NTSB Report on Asiana 214 Crash Investigation

On July 6, 2013, Asiana flight 214 crashed on approach at San Francisco International Airport. It struck the seawall at the end of the runway. Three of the 291 passengers died and 40 passengers, eight of the 12 flight attendants, and one of the four flight crewmembers received serious injuries. The rest received minor injuries or were not injured.

From Crash of Asiana Flight 214 Accident Report Summary from the NTSB:

“The NTSB determined that the flight crew mismanaged the initial approach and that the airplane was well above the desired glidepath as it neared the runway. In response to the excessive altitude, the captain selected an inappropriate autopilot mode and took other actions that, unbeknownst to him, resulted in the autothrottle no longer controlling airspeed.”

NTSB faults flight crew for fatal Asiana crash in San Francisco

NTSB Press Release

Asiana 214 Crew Errors Caused Accident, Rules NTSB

David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week

Saab 105

The Saab 105 two place four seat trainer of the Swedish and Austrian air forces.

The Australia News Desk

The southern winter weather has taken its toll on Grant this week, so Steve flies the segment solo.  In the news, the constant doom and gloom surrounding aviation maintenance job losses was brightened slightly with the announcement by Air New Zealand and Etihad of an agreement to use each other’s line facilities in Melbourne and Los Angeles.  In a boost for Melbourne, Etihad’s local line maintenance facility will service Air New Zealand aircraft. In return, their aircraft will be serviced in LA at Air New Zealand’s facility.

In an era where QANTAS continues to claim that Australian aircraft maintenance is unviable, Etihad has shown that the opposite can be the case.  It also operates a line maintenance facility in Sydney.

Steve also catches up with 17 year old Alex Fisher as he continues his Flight of Solidarity around Australia in a Cessna 172, raising awareness of – and funds for – the Royal Flying Doctor Service.  This week we find Alex in Perth, Western Australia.

Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

Across the Pond

Virgin Atlantic

Pieter Johnson brings us some UK aviation, airline, and airport news this week, including the new Virgin 787-9 route confirmation, the ups and downs for British Airways, and what it costs to fly on a private Boeing 767 around with world with Captain’s Choice. He opens with a refreshing approach to general aviation with the Civil Aviation Authority consulting on its new policy framework and how it plans to reduce bureaucracy and help improve the sector in the UK. Wow!

Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast.

AirplaneGeeks 283 – Aviation Accident Animation

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Eyewitness Animations

Jack Suchocki (a former Eastern Airlines Captain) is President of Eyewitness Animations. They create professional forensic animations and courtroom graphics, including aviation accident reconstruction. These are used for investigations and litigation. An example is the Asiana 214 crash video they produced. The animations are accurate with respect to the events, scale, and time. Clients include U.S. Government agencies, industry manufacturers and organizations, television networks, and many others.

We talk about where the data comes from for these animations constructed on personal computers and how they are used in accident litigation.

Sky Whale

The week’s aviation news:

Douglas DC-9

David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: the Douglas DC-9.

In this week’s Australia Desk:

  • Qantas copping a US$90k fine for not a form of tarmac stranding
  • Qantas pulls their 737s out of Hobart & sticks to 717s
  • Air India 787 lines up on Essendon GA airport instead of Melbourne airport
  • Things get even more kooky with the new Toowoomba airport, starting with its name. (Damien Rose used to live in Toowoomba and knows the area well.)

Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

View through the glass from Barcelona Tower

View through the glass from Barcelona Tower

In this week’s Across the Pond segment:

Pieter talks to Jesús Calderon, Air Traffic Controller in the Barcelona Tower about recent changes to airfield procedures, why he is taking his ATPL exams in London and why Barcelona has been busier than Madrid this summer. We also get an insight into what an Air Traffic Controller thinks about when he takes a commercial flight as a passenger.

Find Jesús on Facebook, Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast.

Mentioned:

Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Episode 255 – Steve McNeilly, Aviation Tutorials

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VH-OLS “Spirit of the Sapphire Coast”

Guest Steve McNeilly is president and founder of Aviation Tutorials, providing interactive training software for pilots and flight simmers. He’s been in aviation for thirty years, he’s an airline pilot, A&P mechanic, instructor, examiner, book author, and FAA WINGS training provider.

We talk about how Steve came to develop these professional grade simulation tutorials which are light on theory and heavy on “this is what you need to do.” Also, pilots using iPads, drones in the airspace, electric drive systems for airliners, thrust reverser depoyment at altitude (Steve’s done that in a DC-8).

The week’s aviation news:

David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week is the D.H. 86 Express Airliner.

Ryan Cambell

Ryan Cambell

In this week’s Australia Desk:

After an “interesting” week in Australian federal politics, Minister for Transport & Infrastructure, Anthony Albanese, is now also the Deputy Prime Minister, leaving Steve & Grant to ponder whether this will be good for aviation or not. In more positive aviation news, 19 year old Ryan Campbell has set out on his attempt to become the youngest person to fly solo around the world; a record which has only recently been set by American, Jack Wiegant. Ryan is flying in a Cirrus SR-22, VH-OLS, named “Spirit of the Sapphire Coast”, tracking east from Wollongong, just south of Sydney, across the Pacific to the USA (including a stop at Airventure 2013), then on to Europe, Asia and back to Australia. We spoke to Ryan a couple of days prior to launch and we present part of that interview in the week’s report.

Follow Ryan’s progress at www.teenworldflight.com and @teenworldflight on Twitter.

In other news, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has handed down it’s findings into the cause of the Qantas A380 engine failure on board VH-OQA, in 2010. Although this has been covered earlier in the show, we popped our two cents in as well, including the fact that Rolls Royce ended up paying some hefty compensation.

Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net.

Mentioned:

Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Episode 155 – Bryce Soars

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LET Aircraft Industries

Guest Bryce Kujat has been flying since 1999 with about 6000 hours, including night cargo along the Gulf Coast in a C-310 and BE-58. He’s flown Lear 35, Caravans in Africa, experimental Navy surveillance aircraft, and charter in the Caribbean. Bryce holds a glider commercial and instructor license and he flys with the Cleveland Soaring Society. Bryce now flies low level atmospheric research aircraft over the Pacific Ocean for the Naval Postgraduate School.

The week’s aviation news:

Steve Visscher and Grant McHerron provide their Australia Desk report and talk about Tigar Airways and the carbon tax in Australia. Be sure to listen to the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

This week on Across the Pond, Pieter Johnson talks with Dave Robinson from Aviation Ancestry about that historical archive. Dave is @aeroancestry on Twitter.

Aviation Ancestry

 

Mentions:

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Episode 114 – Back with Benet

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Virgin America

Benet Wilson, Online Managing Editor-Business Aviation for the Aviation Week Group, joins once again as our guest. We talk about the week’s aviation news, the upcoming NBAA Conference, and other aviation topics. Find Benet on Twitter as avweekbenet and avweektweets, and read her posts at Business Aviation Now and Things With Wings, the commercial aviation blog.

The week’s aviation news:

Mentions:

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Episode 94 – Jet Checking

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EADS KC-45

Our guest this episode is Jonathan Heckman, founder and writer of the JetCheck.net blog. Jonathan attends Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University where he’s working to a Bachelor of Science degree in Aviation Business Administration. He’s also a student pilot, logging hours in a Diamond Eclipse.

The news:

David provides his This Week in Aviation history segment, and we have a great report from the Airplane Geeks Australia Desk.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01. We’re  also on Facebook.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Episode 60 – Flying Green

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Image courtesy International Aero Engines

Guest Jim Hileman, an alternative fuels researcher from MIT, joins Dan, Rob, and Max to talk biofuels and reducing the carbon footprint of aviation.

In the news this week:

Also:

  • Sirus boss quits
  • Delta job cuts
  • Save Frontier

And some news from the green aviation front:

And finally, some related resources:

We also have a report from the Airplane Geeks Australia Desk.  Court returns with another Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot segment, we have a This Week in Aviation segment, listener mail, and more.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave us voice mail at (812) 757-4252.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Episode 55 – Flying With Fish

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Continental 777-200

Featuring Steven Frischling, the founder of The Travel Strategist site as well as the popular travel blog Flying With Fish.

We also have a report from the boys down under at the Airplane Geeks Australia Desk, a This Week in Aviation segment, a bit by Courtney (remember him?), and listener mail.

Dan selected Flightlevel350.com as this week’s aviation website pick of the week, a great source for aviation videos.

Don’t forget to send us your ideas for Airplane Geeks T-Shirts!

Follow the Airplane Geeks on Twitter as @AirplaneGeeks, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave us voice mail at (812) 757-4252.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love. You can visit his site at brotherloverocks.com.