Tag Archives: Pratt & Whitney

458 The Intrepid A-12 Blackbird

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:44:17 — 47.8MB)

 

Jeanette Remak and Joe Ventolo Jr. from Phoenix Aviation Research tell the story behind the Lockheed A-12 Blackbird at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in Manhattan. In the news, we look at FAA reauthorization bills and the battle shaping up in Congress, this year’s Paris Air Show, the Catalina Flying Boats’ DC-3 aircraft, the youngest pilot in Australia, and an Israeli court ruling on reseating women in the airplane.

Guests

Janet Remak and Joe Ventolo Jr. with the A-12 on the Intrepid

Janet Remak and Joe Ventolo Jr. with the A-12 on the Intrepid.

Jeannette Remak is the owner of Phoenix Aviation Research. She’s a military aviation historian, a writer, author, artist, and photographic engineer. Her books include XB-70 Valkyrie: The Ride to Valhalla and A-12 Blackbird: Declassified.

In the mid-1990s, Jeannette worked as the volunteer Aircraft Historian for the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in Manhattan. She performed research for maintenance and restoration, and worked on the aircraft under her control at the museum, including many U.S. Naval and U.S. Air Force aircraft on loan. Jeannette restored sheet metal, she controlled airframe titanium corrosion, and she appropriated parts and specialized equipment for work on A-12 aircraft.

Working with the US Navy’s Curator office, Jeannette is responsible for the rescue of the Sikorsky RH-53D that is the lone survivor of the failed United States hostage rescue mission in Iran. The CH-53D is now restored and on display at the JFK/ US Navy Seal Training School in North Carolina.

Jeannette has a degree in Commercial Photographic Engineering and obtained her Master’s Degree in Aviation Science in 2000. Jeannette also has a degree in Commercial Photography from the NY Institute of Photography.

Joseph A. Ventolo, Jr. is the former curator of the National Museum of the US Air Force. His career started in November 1959 when Joe joined the 269th Combat Communications Squadron of the Ohio Air National Guard. In 1965, he received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant as a communications officer. He left the Ohio Air National Guard in 1966 and transferred to the Air Force Reserve where he was promoted to 1st Lieutenant and remained in the Air Force Reserve until 1970.

In 1962, Joe joined the staff of the U.S. Air Force Motion Picture Film Archives at Wright-Patterson AFB as a Motion Picture Archivist. In 1979, he transferred to the U.S. Air Force Museum’s Research Division as the Museum’s Historian. Two years later he became a Curator of Aeronautics. Joe has co-authored articles that appeared in such periodicals as Air Enthusiast, WW I Aero, and Friends Bulletin. In 1993 he was appointed Curator of the U.S. Air Force Museum and named Curator of the United States Air Force. He remained in that position until his retirement in 1995.

Joe is currently a co-owner/consultant with Phoenix Aviation Research. He has co-authored articles in the Atlantic Flyer, and written three aviation books, all with Jeannette Remak.

Their first book, XB-70 Valkyrie: The Ride to Valhalla was published in December 1998. Their second book, A-12 Blackbird: Declassified, was published in December 2000. And a third book, The Archangel and the OXCART: The Lockheed A-12 Blackbirds and the Dawn of Mach III Reconnaissance was published in 2008.

Jeannette and Joe previously appeared in Aviation Xtended #59 talking about the XB70 Valkyrie. Jeannette talked about the shuttle disaster in Aviation Xtended #54.

Phoenix Aviation Research Facebook page with all the photos.

Phoenix Aviation Research business page.

Jeannette Remak books on Amazon.com.

The United States Air Force Art Collection paintings by Jeannette Remak.

From the Paris Air Show

2017 Paris Airshow Highlights

Airbus secured 326 orders with Boeing getting 571. Boeing debuted the 737 Max 10 and offered some insights into the 797 model. Airbus presented the A321neo and the A350.

Qatar Airways wants to buy 10% of American Airlines

In a statement, American Airlines said: “Qatar Airways indicated that it has an interest in acquiring approximately a ten percent stake.”

The world’s biggest commercial plane just got more impressive

Airbus unveiled the A380plus, with 4% lower fuel cost. The plane features winglets and seating for 575 in four classes.

Boeing planning on hypersonic jets for commercial flights, though the Concorde’s memory lingers

Boeing says we could see hypersonic jets in commercial use in the next decade or two.

Pratt & Whitney Expands PurePower® Geared Turbofan™ Engine MRO Network

Eagle Services Asia (a JV between Pratt & Whitney and SIA Engineering Company Ltd.) will provide maintenance services for the PurePower® Geared Turbofan™ (GTF) engine.

Boeing launches MAX 10 at Paris Air Show to challenge Airbus neo jet

Boeing said it has 240 orders and commitments. Some orders are conversions from earlier orders for other MAX models. The MAX 10 is a stretch of the MAX 9 that seats up to 230 passengers and is designed to compete with the Airbus A321neo.

PAS17: The Revolution Will Be Data-Driven, Airbus Looks Skywise

Airbus launched a new open aviation data platform called Skywise to support digital transformation of the industry. The Skywise aviation data platform was developed in collaboration with Palantir Technologies. See the video: Airbus launches new open aviation data platform, Skywise.

Watch the F-35 pull mind-bending aerial tricks at the Paris Air Show

Test pilot Billie Flynn told Aviation Week, “After 10 years since first flight, with our first opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities and the maneuverability of the F-35, we are going to crush years of misinformation about what this aircraft is capable of doing,”

Video: F-35 Aerial Demonstration Debut at 2017 Paris Air Show

Japan trio to develop small-jet engines with Pratt & Whitney

P&W signed an MOU with Japanese Aero Engines, a consortium of Japanese manufacturers. The partners will spend more than 100 billion yen ($898 million) to create small-aircraft engines.

CAE Outlook Says Half of Future Pilots Haven’t Yet Begun Training

CAE announced that the industry will need more than a quarter of a million cockpit crewmembers over the next 10 years. The CAE Outlook says:

  • 85,000 will be needed in the Americas,
  • 50,000 in Europe,
  • 30,000 in the Middle East and Africa and
  • 90,000 in the Asia-Pacific region.

Other Aviation News

Airline Bumping Protection, Easier Drone Permits Aim of Bill

Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa. introduced a proposed FAA reauthorization bill in the House. The Bill prohibits passengers from being removed from a flight after they’ve boarded, privatizes ATC, and requires airlines to post resources for stranded passengers online when the airline is disrupted by a computer outage. It also calls for the faster development of a traffic management system for small drones, faster approval process for commercial drone operators, and a new certification system for small-drone commercial operators.

Catalina Flying Boats’ DC-3 aircraft make an aerial farewell before final departure

Catalina Flying Boats is retiring its historic DC-3 aircraft for a pair of single-engine turboprop Cessna Caravans.

Canberra 16-year-old Jade Esler Australia’s youngest pilot

Teenager Jade Esler has become Australia’s youngest licensed recreational pilot. She funded the training by selling about 20,000 cupcakes.

Israeli Judge Says Airlines Can’t Reseat Women At Request Of Men

Jerusalem’s Magistrate Court ruled that it was discrimination to ask a female passenger to change seats because an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man said he did he not feel comfortable sitting next to her.

Mentioned

After the 2017 Innovations in Flight event at the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, Jonathan Baron took David up in his Shark LSA. Jonathan was our guest in Episode 442 Shark Aero.

David Vanderhoof and Jonathan Baron with the Shark.

David Vanderhoof and Jonathan Baron with the Shark.

Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner and 737 MAX 9 Fly Together in Dramatic Display

Credit

Intro music courtesy Brother Love from his Album Of The Year CD. Outtro by Bruno Misonne from The Sound of Flaps.

446 Reliability Centered Maintenance for Aviation

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:34:04 — 43.1MB)

Learn about what Reliability Centered Maintenance means for aviation from a well-known A&P/IA and the CEO of Savvy Aviation. In the news, first flights of the Boeing 787-10, the Airbus A319neo, the Antonov An-132D, and the Embraer E195-E2. Also, the Fairness for Pilots Act, important news for Continental engine owners, some talk about restarting the F-22 line, and an update from Airbus on an electric airplane.

Guest

Savvy Aviator CEO Mike Busch on Reliability Centered Maintenance

Savvy Aviator CEO Mike Busch

Mike Busch is the CEO of Savvy Aviation and a co-founder of AVweb. Mike is one of the best-known A&P/IAs in general aviation and he writes the monthly “Savvy Maintenance” column in AOPA Pilot magazine. He also hosts free monthly EAA-sponsored maintenance webinars. Mike was honored as “National Aviation Maintenance Technician of the Year” for 2008, he’s been a pilot and aircraft owner for 50 years with 7,500+ hours logged, and is a CFIA/I/ME.

Mike explains the origins of Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) and how it grew to be used by commercial, business and military aviation, but hasn’t fully trickled down to small general aviation.

RCM is an optimal maintenance program that differs from the old, traditional maintenance approach that follows the assumption that components start out reliable and become less so over time. RCM is a data-driven engineering method that assesses each aircraft component for possible functional failures, failure modes, failure effects and consequences. It then creates a maintenance plan that can even allow a component to run to failure. The result is lower maintenance costs and increased reliability.

Find many aviation maintenance resources at SavvyAviation.com, follow @SavvyAviator on Twitter, and like them on Facebook. See also:

Aviation News

IndiGo is Flying Their A320 NEOS at lower Altitudes over Engine Issues

Indian aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is requiring a borescope test for Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engines at 1000 flight hours instead of the usual 1500. Meanwhile, IndiGo Airlines has set at a maximum altitude of 30,000 feet for its A320neos. All this is due to problems with the engine combustion chambers and an oil seal.

Video: Pratt & Whitney PW1000G PurePower Engine How It Works

Boeing 787-10 completes first flight in Charleston

First Flight of Airbus A319neo Finishes Hours Ahead of 787-10

Antonov completes first flight of An-132D

Embraer E195-E2 achieves first flight ahead of schedule

A number of first flights recently took place: The Boeing 787-10, the Airbus A319neo, the Antonov An-132D multi-purpose twin-engine turboprop, and the Embraer E195-E2 E-Jet.

Fairness for Pilots Act introduced

The Pilot’s Bill of Rights was signed into law in 2012. Now U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) wants to broaden protections for general aviation pilots with the Fairness for Pilots Act.

Trump’s Secaf Pick Hints F-35 May Get New Rival—F-22

“President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the U.S. Air Force wants the service to look at Lockheed Martin’s F-22 Raptor as a possible alternative to the F-35…”

Important News for Continental 520/550 Owners

An extremely costly AD may be in the works.

Airbus abandons E-Fan as electric tech moves on

Airbus will not be producing the electric E-Fan two-seater training aircraft because the technology has advanced so much in the past three years. However, Airbus is considering an E-FAN X with another order of magnitude jump in electric power.

The Airplane of the Week

The favorite airplane of David’s father was the P-61 Black Widow.

David and his father

David and his father

P-61 Black Widow

P-61 Black Widow

Mentioned

Fabulous Farnborough Airshow Photographs by Mary B. Lyons.

Aviation Hackathon #SkyHack – Open to college students 18 years of age or older, October 13-15, 2017.

Video: The Boneyard

Explaining the East/West Asymmetry of Jet Lag

Newest Bath Iron Works ship named after Korean War hero

Update: Our listener Utah Patrick wrote us with the following:

“Like Max, I was touched by the story related in the current episode about Thomas Hudner and Jesse Brown. So much so that I decided to dig a bit deeper into the story. Turns out Hudner received the Medal of Honor for his efforts to rescue his wingman. The part about leaving Brown’s body behind bothered me. I understand the reasoning but I wondered if it had ever been recovered.

“Turns out Brown’s body and his aircraft were napalmed to keep them out of enemy hands. However, figuring something was left behind, attempts have been made to retrieve remains including one attempt 63 years later by (and this really surprised me) Thomas Hudner himself.”

Patrick provided two articles that provide more details: U.S. veteran in North Korea to find remains of fellow aviator and Six Decades Later, a Second Rescue Attempt.

Listener Mick's new neighborhood

Listener Mick’s new neighborhood.

Credit

Intro music courtesy Brother Love from his Album Of The Year CD. Outtro by Bruno Misonne from The Sound of Flaps.

402 A Young Airline Geek

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:28:08 — 40.4MB)

We talk with a teenage aviation enthusiast who created an aviation news site and has organized a major avgeek event with American Airlines for National Aviation Day. In the news, we discuss narrowbody production ramp ups, a B-29 receives an airworthiness certificate, the CSeries, and EgyptAir Flight 804.

Guest

Ryan Ewing

Ryan Ewing

Ryan Ewing is the teenage founder and president of AirlineGeeks.com, a news site where a team of young journalists create the content. Most of them hope to work in the aviation industry as professionals when they grow older.

Ryan is quite knowledgeable about the airline industry for someone his age, and he’s been working with American Airlines to create AAviation Day 2016 on National Aviation Day, Friday, August 19th, 2016. On that day, American will open certain facilities to #AvGeeks who have registered for unique tours and events. The facilities include PHL, DCA, MIA, CLT, LGA, DFW, American’s HQ and Integrated Operations Center in Fort Worth, the Tulsa Maintenance Base, ORD, LAX, LHR, and Envoy’s HQ in Irving, Texas.

Ryan EwingWe first met Ryan in 2013 at the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center during the 9th annual Become a Pilot Family Day and Aviation Display. That the event that is now called the Innovations in Flight Family Day and Outdoor Aviation Display. Ryan will have a table at this year’s Innovations in Flight Day June 18, 2016. He plans to focus on encouraging young people to develop interests in aviation.

Visit AirlineGeeks.com, and follow the team at @AirlineGeeks and on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Ryan tweets at @flyinghighryan.

AAviation Day 2016

News

Boeing shows off new 777X wing center

Boeing has spent $1B to create a 1.2-million-square-foot 777X center in Everett, Washington to manufacture wing components for that airplane. The 110-foot composite wing includes an 11-foot folding wingtip, which will be built by Boeing in St. Louis and sent to Everett for assembly. Power for the 777X comes from the advanced GE9X engine which has the largest fan that GE has built.

Behind The Scenes Of P&W’s Production Plan

Pratt & Whitney must nearly triple its output of engines to meet demand for the GTF and engines for the F-35 and the KC-46 tanker. To meet the production ramp-up, P&W has invested $1B and created a 600,000 square foot facility in Manchester NH, operated by United Parcel Service (UPS), that will receive parts from suppliers, kit them, and deliver them to manufacturing and assembly plants around the world.

FAA Deems B-29 Doc Airworthy, First Flight Imminent

The FAA has issued a Special Airworthiness Certificate to the B-29 known as Doc, which has been undergoing restoration Wichita since May 23, 2000. Next, the restoration team will request access to a runway at McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita for test flight operations. See, Photo Gallery: Doc’s Airworthiness Celebration.

Bombardier cuts Republic CSeries order from production schedule

In 2010, Republic Airways placed 40 firm orders and 40 options for the CS300, with deliveries initially scheduled to start in 2015. Bombardier has kept the order in the backlog, but removed it from their production schedule. Frontier filed for bankruptcy protection in February.

Aircraft of the Week

David begins giving the histories of aircraft requested by listeners in Episode 400. The first topic will be done in two segments for Michael and Tony. In part one, David talks about the development of the Mirage III. Next week he’ll cover the variants and conflicts fought with the the Dassault jet.

Davids Mirage IIIB

David’s 1/48th Scale Mirage IIIB from Heller with Aeromaster Decals

Mirage IIIB 286 was from 245 Squadron  “Negev”  and is the Highest Kill Mirage IIIB with 4.5.

Report on Shuttle External Tank “ET”

Brian watches the Shuttle Tank pass by

Brian watches the Shuttle Tank pass by

Brian reports on the movement of the Shuttle External Tank (“ET”) through the streets of LA on it’s way to the California Science Center, which describes how it:

“carried propellants—liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen—that flowed into the Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs), where they combined and ignited to produce almost one and a half million pounds of thrust to help push the space shuttle to orbit. The external tank also served as the structural support for the whole shuttle stack, with attachment points for the orbiter and booster rockets.”

ET-94 is the last flight-qualified external tank in existence and was donated to the Science Center by NASA.  The California Science Center’s Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center will be the only place in the world that people will be able to go to see a complete shuttle stack—orbiter, external tank, and solid rocket boosters—with all real flight hardware in launch configuration.

Mentioned

Video: John Waldron Memorial, from John Mollison.

Advanced Flight Systems

Aircraft photos, and more photos from Ryan Hothersall.

The Airplane Geeks episode archive kindly provided by Willem.

Air National Guard Units Interested In V-22 Osprey via Tom.

Credit

Intro music courtesy Brother Love from his Album Of The Year CD. Outtro by Bruno Misonne from The Sound of Flaps.

 

 

AirplaneGeeks 400 That’s a Lot of Episodes

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:41:18 — 46.4MB)

John Croft

John Croft in the NASA Langley simulator

John Croft, Senior Editor at Aviation Week & Space Technology joins us for our 400th episode. We discuss Safety Management Systems (SMS), the IATA 2015 Safety Report, challenges for a safety culture that embraces self-reporting, and flight simulator changes that include models for high-altitude, high-angle of attack regimes.

In the news, we discuss airline profits and complaints (both up), an aircraft leasing company IPO, thoughts on a B-52 engine upgrade, a female aviation pioneer, sonic booms, and PSA Airlines’ pilot hiring strategy.

John CroftGuest

John Croft is Senior Editor Avionics & Safety, Aviation Week & Space Technology. He’s a part-owner of a 1978 Piper Archer II, a certified flight instructor, instrument instructor, multi-engine rated commercial pilot, and former NASA engineer. He specialized in avionics and control systems for Earth-orbiting satellites, including the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer and Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer.

After leaving NASA in 2000, John earned a Master’s Degree in Journalism from the University of Maryland and went on to work for several aerospace publications, including Flight International as Americas Editor before joining Aviation Week in 2012.

News

Airlines report record profits even as customer complaints soar

In 2015, fuel prices came down 35%, baggage fees amounted to $3.8 billion, and reservation change fees were $3 billion. At the same time, average fares were down 3.8%, yet U.S. passenger airlines enjoyed $25.6 billion in profits in 2015 vs. $7.5 billion in 2014. But formal complaints grew 30%.

Top aircraft leasing firm’s IPO to raise $1.5b

Many airlines lease the airplanes they operate, from companies like ILFC, AerCap, GCAS, and BOC Aviation. Singapore-based BOC Aviation Ltd, is owned by the Bank of China, and they are looking at a possible IPO which could raise as much as $1.5 billion.

P&W still pushing upgrade of B-52’s original TF33 engine

Boeing B-52 bombers are powered by Pratt & Whitney TF33 engines, 1950’s engine technology. They are loud, smoky, and burn a lot of fuel. There has been talk in the past of replacing each pair of TF33’s with a single new-technology engine, but such a re-engining would be very expensive. Instead, P&W military engines president Bennett Croswell is proposing a TF33 upgrade package that would lower the cost of maintenance.

Colorado Native Honored For Flying Through Glass Ceiling

Emily Hanrahan Warner became the first female airline pilot in the United States, and she’s now been inducted in the Irish American Hall of Fame. On April 10, 1973, Warner became the first woman hired by an American carrier and in 1976, she became America’s first female airline captain.

Honeywell, NASA Test Sonic Boom Technology

Under NASA’s Commercial Supersonic Technology (CST) project, Honeywell was awarded a contract in 2015 to overcome supersonic boom issues. Honeywell has developed a predictive display that tell pilots when a sonic boom is developing.

Seeking 500 pilots a year, PSA Airlines sweetens the pot

PSA AIrlines Inc. needs to hire 500 new pilots per year. To attract more pilots they will offer a $20,000 retention bonus to active first officers and a $250 monthly allowance for pilots to offset the cost of commuting hotel expenses.

Mentioned

IATA 2015 Safety Report [PDF]

Pilot Error Movie Trailer – A fictional drama film is inspired by the true story of Air France 447.

Credit

Intro music courtesy Brother Love from his Album Of The Year CD. Outtro by Bruno Misonne from The Sound of Flaps.

AirplaneGeeks 384 Plane Spotting with Ben Granucci

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:40:39 — 46.1MB)

NYCAviation.com editor Ben Granucci on plane spotting, CEO change at Spirit Airlines, drone news from the 2016 CES, a new FAA app, the Airbus A350, hand flying the airplane, five-engine airplanes, and the odd-looking Northrop Tacit Blue.

Guest

Ben Granucci inside Fedex A300 at EWR's Airport Day

Ben Granucci inside Fedex A300 at EWR’s Airport Day. Photo by Maggie Bradley.

Ben Granucci is the Standards Editor for NYCAviation.com, a New York City-based, globally focused aviation news, commentary, and enthusiast website. He is an avid aviation photographer and a lifelong avgeek. In addition to his work with NYCAviation, Ben also occasionally writes for AirlineReporter.com. Follow him on Twitter at @blgranucci and visit his Facebook page.

Some of Ben’s favorite photos:

Plane spotting at St Maarten

Plane spotting at St Maarten

A Tarom A310 carrying the Hungarian delegation taxis to depart while a Cathay Pacific 777-300ER lifts off in the background during UN Week 2015.

A Tarom A310 carrying the Hungarian delegation taxis to depart while a Cathay Pacific 777-300ER lifts off in the background during UN Week 2015.

An F-22 Raptor and P-51 Mustang perform the Heritage Flight during day 2 of the first ever New York Air Show.

An F-22 Raptor and P-51 Mustang perform the Heritage Flight during day 2 of the first ever New York Air Show.

A LAN Airlines A320 departs Santiago, Chile at sunset.

A LAN Airlines A320 departs Santiago, Chile at sunset.

News

Behind The Sudden Departure of Spirit Airline’s Wildly Unconventional CEO

The Spirit Airlines board announced that board member Robert Fornaro would replace Ben Baldanza as the CEO of the ultra low-cost airline. Fornaro was the AirTran CEO who managed the sale to Southwest  2011. While Spirit remains profitable, it is less so than before, and stock prices have tumbled. Could there be a merger in Spirit’s future?

See also:

It’s Official: Human-Carrying Drones Are Happening

EHang 184

EHang 184

China-based EHang announced its EHang 184 autonomous electric drone at CES, and says it should be in production in a year. The aircraft carries a single passenger, is limited to a 23 minute flight, and is expected to have a price of $200,000-$300,000.

B4UFLY Smartphone AppB4UFLY

At CES, FAA Administrator Huerta announced the public release of the B4UFLY app for iOS, and the beta of a version for the Android operating system. The FAA says, “B4UFLY tells users about current or upcoming requirements and restrictions in areas of the National Airspace System (NAS) where they may want to operate their unmanned aircraft system (UAS).”

FAA fails to ensure pilots’ manual flying skills: government report

The U.S. Transportation Department Office of the Inspector General released a report saying the FAA is not ensuring that airline pilots maintain the skills they need to take control from automated systems during an unexpected event.

FAA Wants GA Hand Flying Skills Checked

The FAA has issued a new advisory circular for flight instructors that promotes hand flying skills during flight reviews and proficiency checks. The AC says, “The FAA reminds CFIs conducting flight reviews and IPCs to ensure that a pilot under evaluation is proficient with the automated system and knows what to do if it fails.”

That time when we strapped an extra engine onto a jumbo

Qantas ferried a Rolls Royce engine from Sydney to Johannesburg so it could be used on another B747. See the video: Qantas’ Five-Engined Boeing 747-400 Ferry Flight Takes Off From Perth. Some years ago, Aviation Week covered Pratt & Whitney’s 747SP flying testbed with a “fifth engine” GTF.

PW B747SP flying testbed

P&W B747SP flying testbed with the PW1200G. Source: Pratt & Whitney.

The Airplane of the Week

David tells us about the ugliest airplane ever, the Northrop Tacit Blue.

Northrop Tacit Blue

Northrop Tacit Blue, courtesy National Museum of the US Air Force

Across the Pond

Pieter talks to FlightChic Marisa Garcia about the A350, Finnair, RyanAir and the sad new unfolding of an accident in Sweden.

ATP Finnair

Mentioned

Aviation centennials in 2016:

The 3 Plane Crashes You’ve Never Heard Of: Aviation’s Sacrificial Lambs by Phil Derner Jr. in NYCAviation.

Jack Dunn Stories – Stories from a long time aviator, captured in video.

Tracey Curtis-Taylor finishes UK to Australia biplane flight – Tracey Curtis-Taylor flew her 1942 Boeing Stearman Spirit of Artemis from Farnborough to Sydney, retracing pioneer Amy Johnson’s 1930 flight.

NASA Research Could Save Commercial Airlines Billions in New Era of Aviation

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 349 John Montgomery and his Quest for Flight

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:23:08 — 38.1MB)

John J. Montgomery readying to launch the The Evergreen glider from a track

The history of an early aviation pioneer, update on hidden city ticketing lawsuit, Jetblue starting flights to Havana, jet engine big data, a possible narrowbody future for Rolls Royce, Leap-1B begins flight testing, and the Airbus A400M crash.

Guest

Craig Harwood is a professional Engineering Geologist and as a hobby he enjoys researching and writing about history.

His book Quest for Flight draws out of obscurity and documents the fascinating backstories in the conquest of the skies. The work and influence of American aviation pioneer John J. Montgomery serves as a framework for understanding the western contributions in the quest for flight in America.

Montgomery was a scientific inventor in the late 1800’s who observed and tried to mimic bird flight. His research caused him to turn to soaring birds for inspiration and he demonstrated controlled flight with his manned gliders.

We talk about societal attitudes toward flying at the time, the different motivations of early pioneers, and the roles of women in early aviation. We also discuss how the stories of others were overshadowed by the Wrights, who actively worked to protect their position as the originators of manned flight.

John J. Montgomery aloft in The Evergreen

Quest for Flight: John J. Montgomery and the Dawn of Aviation in the West is available from publisher The University of Oklahoma Press and Amazon.com. You can contact Craig Harwood via email.

The 1946 movie Gallant Journey starred Glenn Ford as John J. Montgomery.

News

Judge throws out United Airlines lawsuit against 22-year-old

Orbitz and hidden-city ticketing site Skiplagged agree to settlement

A Chicago judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by United Airlines against a 22-year-old. Last November United Airlines and Orbitz filed a civil lawsuit in against Aktarer Zaman who created Skiplagged.com.  That site helps people with the “hidden city ticketing” strategy for low cost airfare. United and Orbitz claimed that Skiplagged provided “unfair competition” and promoted “strictly prohibited” travel.

The suit was filed in the Northern District Court of Illinois, but the judge in Chicago has now ruled that court has no jurisdiction because Zaman didn’t live or do business in that city.

JetBlue will start a weekly flight from JFK to Havana every Friday, starting July 3

Travelers should make arrangements directly with Cuba Travel Services for these flights operated by JetBlue.

Big Data in Planes: New P&W GTF Engine Telemetry to Generate 10GB/S

The Pratt & Whitney Geared Turbofan jet engine has over 5000 sensors, creating 10 Gigabytes/second of data per engine, or 2.04 Terebits/second for a twin engine airplane. P&W estimates data streaming will reach 12 Petabytes each year and they have partnered with IBM to create the data center capacity.

Rolls Royce Sees United Technologies as Possible Jet Engine Partner

Rolls Royce, Pratt & Whitney and some other partners teamed up to form International Aero Engines in 1983 to produce the V2500 engine for the Airbus A320 family and McDonnell Douglas MD-90. In 2011, P&W bought out Rolls Royce, which effectively removed RR from the narrowbody market. Now the departing CEO of Rolls-Royce said P&W parent company United Technologies Corporation is an “obvious” potential partner.

Leap-1B For 737 MAX Begins Key Flight Tests

Competing with the P&W GTF on the A320 family is the CFM International Leap-1A. The Leap-1B is sole sourced for the B737 MAX. and the Leap-1C variant powers the Comac C919.

Airbus A400M military transporter crashes on test flight, killing four

An Airbus A400M military transport plane crashed outside Seville one mile from the airport, killing four test crew and injuring two others. The aircraft was on its maiden test flight before being delivered to Turkey.

Listener Recording

David Sudworth brings us his story of a perfect flying day in the UK.

Mentioned

Credits

John J. Montgomery readying to launch the “The Evergreen” glider from a track, likely near Evergreen CA — photo from the San Diego Air & Space Museum archive

John J. Montgomery aloft in “The Evergreen” — photo from the San Diego Air & Space Museum archive.

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

 

AirplaneGeeks 344 It’s All About Rob

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:33:39 — 42.9MB)

D8 double-bubble

An Air Canada crash, Allegiant pilots try to strike, aviation safety in Asia, an advanced jet engine design, the classified Long-Range Strike Bomber, and TSA profiling. And it’s not really all about Rob…

News

Air Canada flight involved in runway crash hit antenna array: TSB

An Air Canada A320 touched down 1,100 feet short of the runway at the Halifax Airport, hitting an antenna array which damaged the landing gear, and skidded on its belly.

Air Canada gives $5Gs to passengers from crash-landed Halifax flight

Air Canada provided the money “to cover immediate and interim expenses.” It does not cover any money that could be awarded in potential lawsuits.

Pilot Strike at Allegiant Halted by Court Order

Some 500 Allegiant Air pilots planned to strike the airline, but a federal judge granted the airline’s request and issued a restraining order against the labor action. The strike would have grounded Allegiant Air over the Easter and Passover holiday weekend.

Asia’s aviation industry confronts safety challenges after decade of turbocharged growth

Does fast regional growth outpace the regulatory infrastructure?

A Reversed, Tilted Future For Pratt’s Geared Turbofan?

Pratt & Whitney concept engine

Credit: Pratt & Whitney

We see new aircraft about to enter service offering huge reductions in fuel consumption, but that’s not stopping people from thinking farther into the future with unique design concepts.

The $80 billion Pentagon program that could slice up an aerospace business

Northrop Grumman and Boeing are competing for the Pentagon’s classified Long-Range Strike Bomber. It’ll probably be called the B-3 and its valued at as much as $80 billion.

TSA ‘Behavior Detection” Program Targeting Undocumented Immigrants, Not Terrorists

The Intercept says the SPOT program (Screening of Passengers by Observation Techniques) catches illegal immigrants, not terrorists.

The Australia News Desk

Industry calls for rethink of new CASA charges

CASA are increasing their rates yet many of us think they should first improve their processes.

Air Mobility commander new deputy RAAF chief

Warren McDonald next RAAF deputy chief

We have a new RAAF DCAF (Deputy Commander Air Force).

Prince Harry touches down in Darwin

HRH Harry is ‘ere!

Steve and Grant will be doing airshow commentary at the Barossa Airshow near Adelaide on Sunday.

Listener Recording

In light of the coverage of the Germanwings crash, Micah gives us News Reporting & the Sport of Speculation or The Surge in Sensational Surrealism.

EVA Air Report

Hello Kitty swag from EVA

Brian provides his experience with the EVA Air PR department. His report was published in AirwaysNews as Inflight Review: EVA Air LAX-TPE-HKG-LAX in First Class, and you can also read his full version, Trip Report LAX – TPE – HKG – LAX [PDF].

Mentioned

Velocity SE

Velocity SE

Calculate air temperature based on altitude.

A video technical presentation by Mike Ciminera, an engineer from Northrop Grumman involved in designing the F-14.

This on demand film tells the amazing true story of Jewish American pilots who, in 1948, smuggled planes out of the U.S. and flew for Israel during its war for independence.

Listener Photo of the Week

Gliding with Glen

Glen Towler took this photo while gliding for the first time in 30 years. Glen is an Oshkosh veteran and hopes to get his certificate one day.

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 311 – Travel Skills

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:29:16 — 40.9MB)

TravelSkills founder Chris McGinnis

This Episode: A great new resource for business travelers, an FAA hangar policy change, the airliner manufacturing ramp-up, an MH370 update, the Griffon Lionheart, and some space news.

Guest

Chris McGinnis has had a long career in travel journalism, appearing on television and writing online. He recently created the Travel Skills blog, part of Boarding Area network, with news, information, tips, advice, and trip reports. Chris also co-hosts the #travelskills chat on Twitter with travel guru Johnny Jet every Friday morning at 9:00am Pacific Time (noon Eastern). There you’ll find topics discussed for an hour by people who are passionate about travel.

The News

New FAA Hangar Policy Draft: Much Confusion in GA Community

The FAA issued a draft policy that addresses the allowed uses for hangars at airports that receive federal grant funding. The policy as stated impacts airplane homebuilders.

GE Aviation invests $50M in 3-D printing plant

Alcoa Continues Aerospace Push With $1.1 Billion Pratt & Whitney Deal

Boeing, United Technologies Stockpile Titanium Parts

GE’s upgrade to their 300,000-square-foot Auburn, Alabama manufacturing plant is intended to let them mass produce fuel nozzles for the Leap-X engine. More broadly, we talk about the huge manufacturing ramp up required to satisfy the production requirements for new aircraft such as the A320neo family, 737 MAX, Comac C919, and Irkut MC-21.

Australia to announce next MH370 search

Malaysia Steps In to Save Its Reeling National Airline

Australia has selected Dutch company Fugro Survey to undertake the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. The operation is expected to begin in September and last as long as a year. We also see that the Malaysian government plans to take full control of the company through a stock, buyback and restructure the airline’s operations.

David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week

Lionheart

David is off this week, but Jamie Dodson from NickGrantAdventures.com steps in to tell us about the Griffon Lionheart, an American single-engined, six-seat biplane designed and produced in kit form for home building by Griffon Aerospace of Harvest, Alabama.

Across the Pond

Pieter is back reporting on the European Space Agency news that the Rosetta mission is now close to Comet 67P, ATV5 is close to docking with the ISS, the possibility that the UK will get its own Spaceport. Listen to Ep.27 – From rocket history to spaceplanes for more space content.

Listener Recording

Harriet and Micah

Harriet and Micah

Micah tells the story, “Favorite Flights I Never Flew.”

Mentioned

The 8 best beds on a Boeing 777

Chris McGinnis’ video tour of the crew rest area on Cathay Pacific’s new Boeing 777-300ER.

Boeing looking to expand presence in South Africa

Boeing Partners with South African Airways to Turn New Tobacco Plant into Jet Fuel

Activities include training, manufacturing, and biofuels. Boeing and South African Airways signed an agreement last year to establish a sustainable aviation biofuel supply chain in Southern Africa.

Photos from Paul Filmer

NCAR by Paul Filmer

NCAR by Paul Filmer

NCAR FRAPPE and NASA DISCOVER-AQ Operations in Colorado – July 2014

Aviation News – NCAR FRAPPE and NASA DISCOVER-AQ Operations in Colorado

Xtended Episode.29 – FIA 2014 (Live)

Pieter in the A350

Pieter in the A350

Recorded at the Farnborough International Airshow, Pieter and Tim talk to Jean Vincent Reymondon, Social Media Manager with the Media Relations Department of the Airbus Group. You’ll also hear interviews with several key suppliers.

Credit

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 182 – Alan Epstein and the Geared Turbofan Engine

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (44.0MB)

PW1000G Engine

Guest Alan Epstein is Pratt & Whitney’s Vice President of Technology & Environment. We talk about the PurePower family of geared turbofan (GTF) jet engines: how long the technology has been around, what the GTF is trying to achieve, propulsive and thermal efficiency, biofuel, technology push versus pull, and more. Alan even has his own “grill the geeks” question!

The week’s aviation news:

David’s Aircraft of the Week is the Sikorsky S-61L.

In this week’s Australia Desk report: More A380 cracking issues for Qantas to keep an eye on, Australian Army grounds Blackhawk fleet as a precautionary measure, China Southern establishes the “Canton Route” – Sydney to London, Air Asia X announces extra services to Sydney, Virgin Australia add A330s to the Melbourne – Sydney route.

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.

This week on Across the Pond, Pieter talks to Paul Fowler from Enstone Flying Club, about the Club and the airfield. Set in Oxfordshire, a stunningly beautiful part of the UK, Paul tells us about the history of the airfield and its residents and what its like to fly in this part of the world. Enstone Airfield has some great residents and has a fabulous community relationship, many others could learn from.

You can find Enstone on Facebook and YouTube and you can find Paul Fowler on Twitter and LinkedIn. Pieter can be found on Twitter as @Nascothornet or XTP Media’s Facebook Page.

Mentioned in the episode:

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 172 – Girls With Wings

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (43.2MB)

Lynda Meeks, Executive Director Girls With Wings, Inc., http://girlswithwings.com/

Guest Lynda Meeks is Executive Director of Girls With Wings, Inc. a non-profit organization which introduces young girls to aviation. Lynda began her flying career in the military where she learned to fly helicopters. She’s flown twins and the Citation X as a professional pilot. Lynda also offers flight and ground instruction from Medina Municipal Airport in Medina, Ohio. Learn more at LyndaMeeks.com.

The week’s aviation news:

In this week’s Australia Desk report: Qantas wins return to work order, Qantas A380 makes precautionary landing in Abu Dhabi, Virgin Australia boss John Borghetti offers his thoughts on the opportunities the Qantas grounding created them, Grant talks about his L39 ride.

Find the boys down under at 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 welcomes back Gareth Stringer and Tim Robinson to talk about UK and European aviation, including the Global Aviation Resources recent journalism award success, Tim’s visit to Kazakhstan and the run down of services following the campaign in Libya. Find Gareth at www.globalaviationresource.com and Tim at www.aerosociety.com.

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/.