FCC Tells FAA To Allow More Electronic Devices On Planes

Julius Genachowski, Chairman of the FCC, is pushing for the rules regarding the use of electronic devices to be relaxed in-flight. In a letter to Michael Huerta, acting administrator of the FAA, he has asked the aviation body to "enable greater use of tablets, e-readers and other portable devices." Electric shavers, hearing aids, portable voice recorders, and pacemakers are, of course, permitted.
This comes a few months after the aviation body announced it would undertake a study on the subject, although it concluded that "voice communications" during the duration of a flight were still verboten. The FAA is still strict about allowing passengers to use their devices during take-off and landing, despite the fact that there is still no evidence that the electronics on personal gadgets are as much a danger to avionic systems as, say, a flock of geese.

Credit : Fast Company

Aviation - An Entire Afternoon Of Airport Landings In Just 26 Seconds

 San Diego, CA, from 10:30 to 3:00. Beautiful.

Aviation : Boeing presents first Dreamliner 787 to ANA, flights start in September

 

After years of delays, hacker vulnerabilities, and technical hiccups, Boeing is finally reaching the finish line -- the 787 Dreamliner is ready. The first of the firm's fantasy flyers was presented to executives of All Nippon Airways this week, scoring ANA a dreamy new jet that promises to increase fuel efficiency by 20 percent when compared to similarly sized birds. The 787 owes its fuel savings (and selling point) to a primary structure comprised of 50 percent composite materials by weight; the much larger A380 sits pretty at 25 percent composite, for comparison's sake. Despite the official presentation, the inaugural Dreamliner is still just shy of actual delivery, requiring a few more test flights before beginning domestic service (in Japan) this September.

Aviation : The Airbus Concept Cabin

                                                                                                                         

By 2050 70% of the world's population will live in cities or towns and more of them will want and need to travel. In addition worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980, just under two thirds of the global population will be obese by 2030 and in America alone this is expected to reach 65% by 2050.

But one thing is clear, with more people travelling and their size, shapes and needs changing, aircraft cabins need to change right alongside them.
This zone will do precisely that. Morphing seats will adapt to suit passengers' budgets as well as their body, offering different levels of comfort and space for everybody; you might be travelling alone, but holographics, communication technologies and sound showers let you work with your colleagues or read a bedtime story to the kids as though they were right alongside; hand luggage is swallowed at the entrance, before reappearing beside you for easy access; all intended to provide flexible and personalised options for a productive and hassle-free flight.

 

Aviation : Eurocopter X3 hybrid sets new speed record of 430km/h, readies for next search and rescue mission

See that chopper right there? That's the Eurocopter X3, and as of last week, it can cruise at more than half the speed of a commercial jet. Although the helicopter was striving to hit 220 knots, it actually blew past that milestone to maintain 232 knots (450 km or 279.6 miles per hour) in level, stabilized flight -- a new record for this aircraft. For the uninitiated, the X3 earns its "hybrid" moniker by combining two turboshaft engines that power five-blade main rotor system and two propellers installed on short-span fixed wings -- which, in layman's terms, allows it to hover like a helicopter should while reaching the kind of speeds you'd expect from a turboprop-powered aircraft. (And before you get too excited, yes, this one requires pilots.) While we love the idea of a high-speed joy ride for tourists, this thing will be used for long-distance search and rescue missions, along with border patrol, coast guard duties, offshore operations, passenger and troop transport, and medical evacuation. So no ride for you, but you can get your vicarious thrill anyway with a short, percussion-heavy video after the break.

 

The Eurocopter X3 hybrid helicopter exceeds its speed challenge: 232 knots (430 km/h.) is attained in level, stabilized flight

Marignane, France, May 16, 2011

Eurocopter's X3 hybrid helicopter demonstrator has delivered on the promise of pushing the frontiers in rotary-wing aviation by surpassing its original speed target of 220 kts. demonstrating the compound aircraft's performance, capabilities and maturity.

The X3's speed milestone was reached on May 12 during stable, level flight – with the hybrid demonstrator maintaining a true airspeed of 232 kts. (430 km./hr.) for several minutes. This occurred during only the third mission after a scheduled upgrade that integrated the X3's definitive gearboxes, enabling it to operate at full power.

"Eurocopter's teams have once again shown their ability to apply innovation as a cornerstone of our strategy in remaining the helicopter industry leader," said Lutz Bertling, Eurocopter's President & CEO. "Future helicopters incorporating the X3 configuration will offer our customers about 50 percent more cruise speed and range at very affordable costs, therefore defining the future of high productivity rotary-wing aircraft."

Aboard the aircraft were Eurocopter test pilot Hervé Jammayrac and flight test engineer Daniel Semioli "We were impressed by the ease at which this speed objective was attained," Jammayrac explained. "The X3 handles extremely well, demonstrating remarkable stability at high speed – even with the autopilot off. We are very proud of this achievement, which results from the dedicated efforts of all those who have worked on the project."

Eurocopter began X3 flight testing last September in a program that combines the excellent vertical takeoff and landing capabilities of a helicopter with aircraft-type fast cruise speeds of more than 220 kts. After the X3 achieved the initial true airspeed goal of 180 kts. (333 km./hr.) in November at a reduced level of engine power, the X3 underwent its planned gearbox upgrade and safety inspection.

Since returning to flight last week, the X3 quickly demonstrated its performance at full engine power, including impressive climb and descent rates, as well as excellent maneuverability, while also confirming the hybrid propulsion system's outstanding capabilities for acceleration and deceleration.

In the test program to date, the X3's basic handling characteristics and stability have been validated throughout the aircraft's flight envelope without the need of a stability augmentation system, which has been confirmed in testing performed with the autopilot disengaged and engaged. In addition, the hybrid aircraft has low vibration levels without the use of passive or active anti-vibration systems, providing flight characteristics comparable to those of the best traditional design helicopters currently in service.

The X3 utilizes a Eurocopter Dauphin helicopter airframe equipped with two turboshaft engines that power a five-blade main rotor system and two propellers which are installed on short-span fixed wings. This hybrid configuration creates an advanced transportation system offering the speed of a turboprop-powered aircraft and the full hover flight capabilities of a helicopter.

The company envisions a wide range of utilizations for this concept, including long-distance search and rescue (SAR) missions, coast guard duties, border patrol missions, passenger transport, offshore operations and inter-city shuttle services. It also could be well-tailored for military missions in special forces operations, troop transport, combat SAR and medical evacuation – benefitting from the hybrid aircraft's combination of higher cruise speeds with excellent vertical takeoff/landing performance.

Flight testing of the X3 is being performed from the DGA Flight Test Center in Istres, France. The flight test program will continue throughout 2011 to explore the hybrid helicopter's full flight envelope and evaluate all of the possibilities offered by this new technology.

Aviation - iPad gets approval from FAA to replace paper flight charts and maps

The Federal Aviation Administration is moving with the times, it would seem, as it has just granted the first approval for the use of iPads instead of paper charts for informing airline pilots while on duty. There are already a number of EFB (electronic flight bag) devices in use, however the iPad is by far the cheapest and most portable one that's been validated yet. Executive Jet Management, a charter flight operator, went through three months of testing with the iPad, wherein it was used by 55 pilots on 250 flights, in order to obtain its FAA license to rely exclusively on the Apple tablet for its in-flight mapping data. Other airlines will have to go through the same process in order to dump their big stacks of paper charts for a slinky slate, but the important thing is that the precedent has been set. As to redundancies in case of failure or a software crash, the likeliest scenario is that pilots will carry a spare iPad with them, though there wasn't even a single (software) crash during the trial period -- which also included rapid decompression and electronic interference testing. So there you have it, the iPad's found itself a grown-up job just in time to retire from its throne as consumer sales leader.

Aviation : The Concorde Took Its First Flight to Failure 35 Years Ago

The Concorde was birthed as a symbol. It was a symbol of diplomacy (the result of a treaty between France and England) and a symbol of progress (the first commercial supersonic airliner). But it died a symbol of failure.

The project started off on the wrong foot. As the result of a political obligation (said treaty), both sides were compelled to proceed despite hindrances and setbacks. Hindrances like the gargantuan cost of each aircraft—which cost French and British taxpayers billions of dollars, between research, testing, and manufacturing.

And despite its record-setting performance (2 hours, 52 minutes, 59 seconds between New York and London, the fastest of all time), it simply wasn't terribly well liked. It was a source of nationalist pride for the English and French, but for many others, it was considered a bit obnoxious. A toy of the rich. A luxury of the jet setter.

And extremely loud. It was supersonic after all, and those sonic booms were never appreciated by anyone within earshot—noise from the jet during takeoff exceeded 110 decibels (about what you'd hear at the front row of a rock concert), and was described as "intolerable" in archival reports.

It also was not exactly eco-friendly, using three times the fuel of a standard transatlantic passenger plane, and dumping an inordinate amount of exhaust into the sky.

So it shouldn't have come as too much of a surprise that only 14 Concorde were sold, compared to an anticipated 200. Think of it as sort of the Laserdisc of aircraft.

But as much as it was ultimately a bust—retired in 2003 after the project was embroiled in a legal conflagration surrounding a terrible runway crash—the craft was still a spectacular achievement in many senses. When the first routes began—thirty five years ago today—between London and Bahrain and Paris and Rio, they were the first flights of their kind. The flights were loud, polluting, and expensive, yes—but they were fast as hell, and for the first time in history, supersonic travel was available to anyone with the scratch for a ticket. Not exactly a democratic moment, but still—it was out there, and it'll always be history. And for that, we recognize you, brilliant, booming failure. Happy birthday, Concorde.

Aviation - After the Hudson, Finding a Home at an Aviation Museum

Dorsch The Flight 1549 Airbus at its current home in a warehouse in Kearny, N.J.

US Airways Flight 1549 may make it to North Carolina after all.

The plane, which splash-landed in the Hudson River two years ago next week, may soon be bound for the Carolinas Aviation Museum in Charlotte, the museum’s president said on Wednesday. But it would have to travel there on the back of a truck because it no longer has its engines or its wings or tail.

With Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger at the helm, the plane took off from La Guardia Airport for a two-hour flight to Charlotte on Jan. 15, 2009. Minutes later, after striking a flock of geese that knocked out both of its engines, it was floating in the frigid Hudson.

After all 155 of its passengers and crew members were rescued, the plane was fished out of the water and hauled to a warehouse in Kearny, N.J. There it has sat for almost two years. It has been taken apart, combed over by federal crash investigators and put up for auction — apparently without a taker.

Shawn A. Dorsch, president of the Carolinas Aviation Museum, on a recent visit to the plane at the New Jersey warehouse.

Now, Shawn A. Dorsch, the president of the museum in Charlotte, says he is in the “very final, final stages” of negotiations to acquire the plane and its parts from Chartis, the company that insured the plane for US Airways. Mr. Dorsch declined to say whether Chartis would receive any money for the plane, an Airbus A320. A Chartis spokeswoman declined to comment, as did a spokesman for the airline.

One of the museum’s supporters, Mark C. Brickell, a Wall Street banker who lives in Manhattan, said the museum would have to cover the cost of transporting the fuselage and other pieces to Charlotte and reassembling them. “It’s not an inexpensive proposition, and it requires a lot of support,” said Mr. Brickell, a Wall Street banker.

Mr. Dorsch said he intended to invite museumgoers to watch the reassembly, which he said would probably take months. He said he hoped to move the plane in May. He talked to Mr. Sullenberger on Wednesday, he said, and the retired pilot has already promised to send the uniform he wore on the last flight to be included in the exhibit.

Charlotte’s mayor, Anthony Foxx, said his city was a fitting site for the plane because about 100 residents of the area were on Flight 1549 and because aviation is a big industry there. “We hope that when all is said and done we have a monument to not only the heroism but a way of framing a conversation about aviation safety and creating a vehicle to teach kids about aviation,” Mr. Foxx said.

Officials of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, which is on an aircraft carrier docked just a few hundred yards from where Flight 1549 hit the water, briefly considered trying to obtain the plane but decided that it was not presentable.

Mr. Dorsch thinks otherwise. “This is a tremendous artifact,” he said. “The Coke cans are still in the serving cart, the manuals are still in the cockpit. It has the dent from the tugboat, the dents from the birds. All of that is part of the story.”