Tag Archives: glider

559 Boom Supersonic Overture Facility

The president of Hoar Program Management tells us about plans for the Boom Supersonic Overture facility. In the news, we discuss Bombardier’s actions to exit commercial aviation, a government probe into production practices of the 787 Dreamliner, and UTC’s project for a hybrid-electric regional plane. We also talk with a 14-year-old who flew a glider from California to Maine solo, and an interview with PPG from the Paris Air Show.

Boom Supersonic Overture

Boom Supersonic Overture. Courtesy Boom Supersonic.

Guest

Mike Lanier, President of Hoar Program Management (HPM).

Mike Lanier is president of Hoar Program Management (HPM), a company that provides program management services for construction projects. HPM was chosen by Boom Supersonic to manage the process of site selection, planning, design, and construction of Boom Supersonic’s first U.S. manufacturing facility for its Overture Mach-2.2 supersonic commercial airliner.

Mike explains the primary criteria used to select the initial target list of sites: the amount of developable land, minimum runway length, and proximity to a supersonic test corridor. The next phase will involve a deeper dive into the candidate sites and creating a shortlist. The final site selection should occur by early 2020 and will consider a number of factors, including a cultural fit between Boom Supersonic and the local community.

The facility design process will take perhaps a year, followed by 2 to 3 years of construction. All this to support first flight in the mid-2020s. HPM performed the same service for Airbus in developing their Mobile, Alabama A320 facility.

As for Boom Supersonic, they are currently assembling the XB-1, a Mach-2.2 supersonic demonstrator aircraft. Data from XB-1 test flights will help refine the design of Overture which will hold 55-75 pax in a 170’ fuselage with a 60’ wingspan. Japan Airlines and Virgin Group have thirty of the all business class tri-jet on pre-order. Boom Supersonic founder and CEO Blake Scholl was our guest in Episode 463, published in August 2017.

Mike has led HPM since its inception in 1997, and his team of more than 150 professionals is engaged in the management of capital building projects located throughout the US and in Europe. Over its 22-year history, Mike and his team have grown the company from a division of a southern US-based construction company into its own nationally-ranked program management firm which handles almost a billion dollars of construction value for clients on an annual basis. A native of Louisiana, Mike began his career in construction in Atlanta after receiving his civil engineering degree from Tulane University.

Aviation News

UTC’s Hybrid-Electric Regional Plane Promises 30 Percent Fuel Savings

United Technologies Corp. (UTC) is developing a hybrid-electric flight demonstrator based on a Bombardier Dash 8 regional turboprop. “Project 804” replaces one of the engines with a two-megawatt hybrid-electric engine. The hybrid-electric powerplant is produced through a collaboration between its Collins Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney subsidiaries. First flight should take place “in about three years.”

Calio to succeed Leduc as Pratt & Whitney president

P&W president Bob Leduc is retiring and Chris Calio will be replacing him. Leduc started his long career in engineering. Calio has a legal background. Both men held senior leadership positions at various UTC aerospace units.

DOJ probe expands beyond Boeing 737 MAX, includes 787 Dreamliner

According to “sources” Boeing has been subpoenaed for records relating to 787 Dreamliner in production in South Carolina. This after reports of poor quality work at that facility. The DOJ is also conducting a criminal investigation into the certification and design of the 737 MAX.

Bombardier quits commercial aviation after failing to break the Boeing-Airbus stranglehold

Bombardier has sold its regional jet business to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for $550 million in cash. Bombardier will now focus on trains and private planes. Bombardier will assemble the remaining backlog of regional jets for Mitsubishi, then cease production. That should be in the second half of 2020.

Riley Speidel, Glider Pilot

Riley Speidel comes from a flying family. Her father, grandfather, grandmother and aunt are all pilots. With flying in her blood, Riley soloed a glider just after her fourteenth birthday and shortly after that, she flew a glider solo from Marina, California to Sanford, Maine. Our Main(e) Man Micah caught up with her at the Southern Maine Aviation FBO.

Riley Speidel and Micah

Riley and Micah.

David Palermo, PPG Transparencies

David Palermo is the PPG Global Director, Military and Defense Transparencies. Reporter-at-Large Launchpad Marzari spoke with David at the Paris Air Show about windshields and canopies.

Mentioned

Letchworth State Park. Photo by Max Flight.

Credit

Outtro by Bruno Misonne.

551 Conversations from Sun ‘n Fun

Interviews recorded at Sun ‘n Fun 2019: the Aerospace Center of Excellence, a family-owned GA aircraft interiors company, how a high school student funds his pilot training, a flight operations software company, and a competitive glider pilot. In the news, 737 Max fallout for American Airlines and Boeing, a pilot rescued by a hazardous tree removal company, unexplained aerial phenomena seen by military pilots, and a human transplant kidney delivered by drone.

The Blue Angels perform for the crowd at Sun 'n Fun 2019.

The Blue Angels perform for the crowd at Sun ‘n Fun 2019.

Conversations from Sun ‘n Fun 2019

These interviews were recorded at the Sun ‘n Fun International Fly-in and Expo, held April 2-7, 2019 in Lakeland, Florida. [Approximate start times in brackets.]

Ed Young, Executive Director, Aerospace Center of Excellence. This non-profit helps people pursue careers in aviation. The Lakeland, Florida campus includes the Central Florida Aerospace High School, Buehler Restoration Center, Piedmont Hangar, Florida Air Museum, and the Crossfield Building. [32:13]

Convair F2Y Sea Dart

Convair F2Y Sea Dart

Cesia Lopez from family-owned AviationX Aircraft Interiors (formally Camarillo Aircraft Interiors) creates custom interiors to the client’s specifications. One of their custom interior clients won Outstanding In Type at Sun ‘n Fun with a 1967 Cessna 182. [51:56]

Cesia Lopez from AviationX Aircraft Interiors.

Cesia Lopez from AviationX Aircraft Interiors.

Trevor Simoneau is a high school student who funds his student pilot training through Chart it All, a business selling custom sectional chart shirts and gifts. Be sure to see Trevor’s YouTube channel. [58:10]

Tom Perkowski, co-founder and president of Eagle Cap Software, providing flight operations software and specializing in dispatch and operations systems, and front-of-the-aircraft systems such as mapping and EFB software. The free Aero Charting app is a data-driven moving map aeronautical charting application for the iPad. Tom also describes the Top Ten List of Learn to Fly Resources card he hands out when youngsters are inquisitive about aviation. [1:12:12]

Laura Radigan is a glider pilot who will be competing in the World Championships July in Romania, at the U.S. Nationals in September, and at the Southwest Regional Championships in Arizona in November. See Laura’s YouTube channel and find her on Facebook. [1:21:50]

Glider pilot and competitor Laura Radigan.

Glider pilot and competitor Laura Radigan.

Aviation News

American Airlines trims outlook citing 737 Max groundings, but expects planes to fly again by mid-August

A combination of higher fuel prices and the grounding of its 737 Max aircraft pushed the airline to cut its 2019 earnings forecast. The carrier raised its 2019 fuel cost guidance by $650 million due to higher costs.

Boeing Hit With New FAA Safety Directive Ahead of Shareholder Meeting

A new Airworthiness Directive is effective on June 3, 2019, and requires inspections and checks for certain parts, including the aileron and elevator power control units. The AD was motivated by reports of hydraulic leakage after lightning strikes.

Pilot Rescued From Treetop

Pilot John Gregory, 79, crashed his Piper Cub into a treetop near McCall, Idaho. Gregory was able to call 911 from his 60 foot high perch. The SPOT locator beacon was activated which alerted the International Emergency Response Coordination Center (IERCC). A hazardous tree removal company climbed the tree and rescued the pilot.

Frustrated pilots got Navy to stop dismissing UFO sightings

The military calls them “unexplained aerial phenomena” and pilots are repeatedly seeing something that is not explained. The U.S. Navy has drafted procedures for pilots to use to document these encounters. A spokesman for the deputy chief of naval operations for information warfare, told the Washington Post, “Since 2014, these intrusions have been happening on a regular basis.  We want to get to the bottom of this. We need to determine who’s doing it, where it’s coming from, and what their intent is. We need to try to find ways to prevent it from happening again.”

Drone Delivers Kidney for Successful Human Transplant

GE Aviation AiRXOS unit collaborated with the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, and the Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland to fly a kidney 2.6 miles on a University of Maryland Medical Center drone. AiRXOS’s Air Mobility platform monitored the drone’s flight.

Mentioned

Credit

Outtro by Bruno Misonne. All photographs copyright Max Flight.

467 EAA Founder’s Innovation Prize

We talk with the three high school students who won the EAA Founder’s Innovation Prize competition for 2017. In the news, we look at the decline in short haul traffic in the US, how the US Air Force is responding to the flight crew shortage, using airport data to improve efficiency, the grounding of the MRJ test fleet, and AOPA taking action against egregious FBO charges.

Guests

EAA Founder’s Innovation Prize winners Justin Zhou, Thomas Baron, and Max Lord.

Justin Zhou, Thomas Baron, and Max Lord

Thomas Baron, Max Lord, and Justin Zhou won the 2017 EAA Founder’s Innovation Prize with their “Remora System” which takes sensor inputs and displays airspeed and angle of attack on a head-mounted display. All three are seniors at the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Northern Virginia.

The students explain their system which places the sensors in a pod under the airplane and transmits data which is displayed in a Vufine high definition wearable display. We talk about how the project started, and how it came to be entered in the EAA Founder’s Innovation Prize competition.

The EAA Founder’s Innovation Prize was presented by Airbus and leveraged the creativity of the EAA community to solve specific challenges facing general aviation. The competition was featured at AirVenture Oshkosh where five finalists presented their ideas.

See Three High School Students Awarded Founder’s Innovation Prize, the Remora Systems website, and their Facebook page.

The Shark with sensor pod.

The Shark with sensor pod.

Jonathan Baron and the head mounted display.

Jonathan Baron and the head-mounted display.

Aviation News

What Caused Short Haul Traffic Decline in the US? – the $34b Question

Courtney Miller discusses three theories why U.S. short-haul traffic under 500 miles has declined by almost 30% since 2000 while the total U.S. domestic market has grown almost 30% since then. Courtney is Director, Lessor Sales at Bombardier Aerospace.

Air Force Boosts Pay Incentives, Targets Retirees Amid Pilot Shortage

The U.S. Air Force faces an aircrew shortage and is increasing incentive pay to try and improve the situation. In June, the Air Force expanded Aviator Retention Pay with a new Aviation Bonus Program.

How a Danish startup is using math to cut airport wait times in half

Copenhagen Optimization is using mathematical models and data to help airports optimize their activities. Waiting time was reduced by more than 50% at Geneva Airport in Switzerland, passenger throughput increased by 10% at Dublin Airport, and peak in check-in counter demand was decreased by 5.5% at Stockholm Arlanda.

Mitsubishi Grounds MRJs Following In-flight Engine Failure

Mitsubishi has four U.S.-based MRJ flight-test airplanes. The left engine on FTA-2 experienced an uncommanded shutdown and the plane was diverted to Portland International Airport where it landed “without incident.” The engine has been removed and sent to Pratt & Whitney for inspection.

AOPA Files Official Complaints Over FBO Fees

After pilots started reporting that some fixed base operators are charging excessive fees, AOPA analyzed the data and found some “exceptionally egregious,” fees: fuel more than $6 a gallon or fees for minimal or no services over $100. AOPA and seven affected pilots have “filed FAA Part 13 complaints over egregious FBO pricing practices at Illinois’s Waukegan National Airport, North Carolina’s Asheville Regional Airport, and Florida’s Key West International Airport, on behalf of its membership.”

Airline Story of the Week

Virgin Atlantic helps a family of four enjoy a memorable flight from London Gatwick to Orlando, especially for the two daughters aged 10 and 12.

Airshow Report

David tells us about Thunder Over Dover, the 2017 Dover AFB Open House. All photos by copyright by David Vanderhoof:

Listener Recording

Glen gives us some thoughts on the Embraer KC-390. For background, see Embraer and Boeing to collaborate on worldwide sales, support of KC-390 medium airlift.

Mentioned

easyjet : Inside The Cockpit ITV S1 E1 – This documentary series follows new recruits as they train to become pilots for easyJet. [Note: This video has now been blocked by ITV.]

The OLC website lets sailplane, paraglider, and hang glider pilots from all over the world upload their flight tracks. It’s competitive and there are several categories of competitions and most are based on distance. See Help… How things work in OLC? And All Flights of Jim Payne which shows Jim Payne’s flights from the Perlan 2 project.

Самолёт на трассе ДТП [Plane on the road accident]

Credit

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

AirplaneGeeks 357 Einar Enevoldson and the Perlan Project

 

Perlan Project

Perlan Project aims to soar to 90,000 feet in a glider, a sightseeing crash in Alaska, United buys into Azul Brazilian Airlines, China building airport infrastructure, news media companies start drone testing, OneGo to offer flights for a fixed monthly fee, and Solar Impulse leaves Japan.

Guest

Einar Enevoldson is a lifelong glider pilot and a former NASA test pilot.

In 1992, Einar first envisioned the Perlan Project when a LIDAR image was shown of a stratospheric mountain wave at 75,000 feet above Northern Scandinavia. Einar believed that these mountain waves could be used to fly a sailplane to great heights.

The Perlan Project is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit aeronautical exploration and atmospheric science research organization that utilizes sailplanes (gliders) designed to fly at extremely high altitudes.

Einar and Steve Fossett proved their concept when they set a world altitude record for gliders of 50,671 feet on August 30, 2006. They flew the Perlan I, a modified DG505M, in stratospheric mountain waves generated by the Polar Vortex over el Calafate, Argentina.

In July 2014, Airbus Group became the partner and title sponsor of Airbus Perlan Mission II.

Sometime in 2015/16 the Airbus Perlan Mission II intends to set new altitude records by flying a purpose-built pressurized high-altitude glider higher than any other manned wing borne aircraft has ever flown in sustained flight using stratospheric mountain waves and the polar vortex. Perlan Project intends to use the Airbus Perlan Mission II to expand their educational programmes by creating more partnerships and forming an international education committee.

YF-12A

YF-12A

Einar’s military service includes test pilot on the Hunter, Lightning, and Javelin British fighter aircraft from 1966 to 1967. Following that, Einar was a NASA research pilot at the Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards, California. Among the many planes he flew for NASA were the YF-12A (Interceptor version of the SR-71), the oblique wing AD-1, the Controlled Deep Stall Sailplane, and the X-24B Lifting Body. He was twice awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Medal.

X-24B

X-24B

News

Eight Holland America Guests Die in Alaska “Flightseeing” Accident

Eight passengers and the pilot died when their “flightseeing” DeHavilland DHC-3T Turbine Otter crashed into a rock face about 20 from Ketchikan, Alaska. The floatplane was providing a tour for passengers from Holland America Line’s MS Westerdam cruise ship. The wreckage is on a 60 degree slope at the base of a mountainside cliff.

Azul by Paul Flimer

Azul by Paul Flimer

United Airlines to pay $100 mln for Azul stake, for foothold in Brazil

Azul Brazilian Airlines is the third largest airline in Brazil, and was founded in 2008 by Brazilian-born David Neeleman, who also founded JetBlue Airways. Neeleman is Azul’s chief executive. United would gain access to Brazilian cities. Azul gets investment money where they have been unable to offer an initial public offering due to Brazil’s poor economy.

China’s aviation boom drives airport building frenzy

More than 60 inland airports in China are expanding, and another 30 new regional airports are  being built. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), says more than $80 billion will be invested in aviation projects this year alone. Driving this are business travel and outbound tourism.

News Coalition Launches Hands-On Drone Testing Program with Virginia Tech

Fifteen news media companies launched research testing of sUAS for news gathering in partnership with Virginia Tech, one of the six FAA UAS test sites. Flight tests will include a series of scenarios to simulate news gathering with small UAVs.

OneGo Will Offer Unlimited West Coast Flights For $1,500 A Month

Startup OneGo wants to offer this service to small and medium businesses where team members have to do a lot of travel. In exchange for the fixed monthly fee, travelers will get unlimited economy class direct flights on major airlines like American, Delta, United and Virgin America, as well as Gogo WiFi membership, and enrollment in TSA Pre for faster security screenings.

Solar Impulse Crossing The Pacific

Solar Impulse 2 finally launched from Nagoya, Japan, en route to Hawaii. The flight is expected to take five days.

The Australia News Desk

Grant’s holding together with cold and flu medicine long enough to get an AusDesk recorded with Steve covering:

Mentioned

  • Flight Threats – An iOS app designed as a situational awareness improvement tool for pilots.

Patrick Wiggins 50th anniversary jump

Courtesy of Skydive Utah: NASA Ambassador Patrick Wiggins, 66, is no stranger to the sky with about 760 jumps under his belt as he logs another while stepping out of a Skydive Utah plane near Tooele. On Friday the education assistant at the University of Utah donned his original 1965 “antique parachute” and gear to mark the 50th anniversary of his first jump while joining friends at Skydive Utah, at the Tooele Valley Airport in Erda.

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

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.