July 2010 Archives

Today's Image of the Day was taken by Billypix and posted to our AirSpace section. The photo depicts the flying display at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, which is occurring all this week. Our special Oshkosh section has more photos as well as video, articles, Tweets, interactive daily magazines and more. Check it out here.

Today's Image of the Day was taken by Billypix and posted to our AirSpace section. The photo depicts the flying display at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, which is occurring all this week. Our special Oshkosh section has more photos as well as video, articles, Tweets, interactive daily magazines and more. Check it out here.

Virgin Atlantic has unveiled a new livery. The British carrier says the new design will be applied to its 38 aircraft and was first applied to Boeing 747-400 G-VROC "Mustang Sally".

"Virgin Atlantic has a strong history of investing during downturns and we believe that our new livery and the forthcoming delivery of the Airbus A330-300 signals another period of growth for the airline," CEO Steve Ridgway says.

The carrier explains the features of its new livery:

The Virgin Atlantic name, previously on the front end of the fuselage is now emblazoned large across the whole of the aircraft in a fine custom drawn font.   In addition, the undercarriage of the aircraft now features the new Virgin Atlantic logo in dark purple - making the aircraft more easily identifiable when taking off and landing.  The winglets are now red with the Virgin script on the inner side, visible to passengers on board the plane.
 
The new livery uses an entirely new paint system which is unique to Virgin Atlantic - a first on commercial aircraft.  It has been specially developed to achieve a highly reflective depth of metallic colour.
 
The painting process has been simplified, using fewer maskings and applications for a drastic reduction in materials used.  Over 450 litres of paint was used and took over 3,000 - 3,500 man hours to paint.  The new paint is more durable so aircraft will only require re-painting once a decade.
 
The iconic, flag carrying flying lady, who appears on all Virgin Atlantic aircraft, has been rejuvenated with a subtle cosmetic makeover and enhanced detailing - now fluttering a larger Union Jack.

Virgin Atlantic says it commissioned brand agency Circus in 2008 to review its brand. The new livery and logo was developed by Johnson Banks.

What do you think? Have your say here on our AirSpace forums.

See this video of Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 being repainted in the new livery.

Here's an artist's impression of the new livery on the carrier's new A330-300, which the carrier will introduce into service next April. Note the registration is G-VNYC, although reservation systems indicate the first A330 flights will be to Orlando. 

Today's Image of the Day was taken by Billypix and posted to our AirSpace section. The photo depicts the static display at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, which is occurring all this week. Our special Oshkosh section has more photos as well as video, articles, Tweets, interactive daily magazines and more. Check it out here.

Today's Image of the Day was taken by Billypix and posted to our AirSpace section. The photo depicts DC-3s lining up at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, which is occurring all this week. Our special Oshkosh section has more photos as well as video, articles, Tweets, interactive daily magazines and more. Check it out here.

Yannick Delamarre captured this photo of the first Aerogal A320, s/n 4379. It bears test registration FWWIF and will be re-registered HC-CJM, Yannick says. Yannick took the photo during a test flight at Toulouse.

Yannick Delamarre captured this photo of the first Egypt Air A330 (a -343E) during a test flight at Toulouse. The aircraft is s/n 1143 and bears the test registration FWWKQ. Yannick says the aircraft will be re-registered with Egyptian registration SU-GDS.

This aircraft will be the first for the carrier to feature OnAir's in-flight wifi and mobile connectivity, including voice calls. Read more...

Picture credit: PA

The aircraft involved in today's crash in Pakistan has been identified as an Airbus A321 operated by privately-owned Pakistani carrier Airblue. Airbus says the A321 has..

Continue reading....

Today's Image of the Day was taken by AirSpace user Slider. His photo is of a flying display at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, which is occurring all this week. Our special Oshkosh section has more photos as well as video, articles, Tweets, interactive daily magazines and more. Check it out here.

 

picture credit PA

Further details have emerged about the Lufthansa Cargo Boeing MD-11 freighter destroyed in a landing accident in Riyadh today, although the reasons for the crash remain unclear.

The aircraft's fuselage ... read on....

Today's Image of the Day was taken by Billypix and posted to our AirSpace section. The photo depicts DC-3s lining up at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, which is occurring all this week. Our special Oshkosh section has more photos as well as video, articles, Tweets, interactive daily magazines and more. Check it out here.

This week's Image of the Week (featured on page 5 of Flight International), is taken by AirSpace user sunshine band (Keith Campbell). His photo depicts two Merlin HM1 helicopters, ZH856 in the foreground and ZH849 in the rear. Keith says his photo was "taken onboard HMS Illustrious on the North Sea during "Exercise Hairy Funnel" at the beginning of March 2006 when 3(F) Squadron embarked for their last Harrier deployment before re-rolling to the Typhoon."

AirSpace user berniec took this photo of the Airbus A380 performing a flying display during this year's Farnborough Airshow.

Toulouse spotter Yannick Delamarre captured this private A320-232CJ s/n 4388 during a flight test at Toulouse.

At the Farnborough airshow AirSpace user Tone Eye snapped this photo of the winglet of Etihad's first A330-200F.

At the show, Etihad took delivery of the aircraft. Here's our video of the event.

At the Farnborough Airshow Virgin America announced a memorandum of understanding to purchase upwards of 60 A320s, ideally with sharklets, which the carrier previously expressed interest in.

Here's an artist's impression of a Virgin America A320 with sharklets.

At the Farnborough Airshow Boeing announced its medium-altitude Phantom Ray unmanned air vehicle will get a piggyback ride on a 747 to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in California for testing.

The 15.2m (50ft) wing on the aircraft are not removable, says Darryl Davis, president of Boeing Phantom Works, and working out how to move the UAV has been going on "for some time." Continue reading...

At the Farnborough Airshow today Boeing announced that earlier this month the 40-year-old Boeing F-15 has fired (photo below) an air-to-air missile for the first time from an internal weapons bay, demonstrating a critical new capability invented for the stealthy F-15 Silent Eagle.

In a flight test on 14 July, the F-15E1 testbed fired the missile from a newly integrated conformal weapons bay that was modified from a conformal fuel tank, Boeing vice-president and general manager of Global Strike Systems Shelley Lavender. Continue reading...

Shortly after 4:30 PM local time, 787 Dreamliner ZA003 departed the Farnborough Airshow, which served as the 787's international debut. Two Supermarine Spitfires accompanied the aircraft on its fly out, as AirSpace photographer apgphoto captured in this picture below.

At the Farnborough show, it was announced TUI would be the first European operator of the aircraft and also aimed to be the first global carrier to have in-flight connectivity on the 787.

The 787 may be gone but our Farnborough Airshow coverage continues here.

At the Farnborough Airshow today AugustWestland unveiled its AW169, fulfilling a promise made in 2008, when talk of the XX9 medium light twin helicopter made the rounds at air shows.

The 4.5-tonne class twin helicopter is meant to challenge Eurocopter's Dauphin and EC145 lines. While the company has not yet put a price tag on the 10-passenger multi-role design, AgustaWestland chief executive Giuseppe Orsi during the unveiling ceremony said the company expects "at least" 1,000 sales over the next 20 years. Continue reading & watch a video of the unveiling...

Picture credit apgphoto

 

Two icons of the UK aerospace sector joined up today to make a spectacular fly-by appearance at the show.

Nine BAE Systems Hawks from the Royal Air Force's Red Arrows aerobatic display team led restored Cold War veteran Avro Vulcan XH558 down the centreline, giving visitors a taste of the weekend flying display at Farnborough.

This week's Image of the Week (featured on page 5 of Flight International), is taken by AirSpace user commercial aviation (Manuel Negrerie). His photo depicts the front of a Hong Kong Airlines A330-200. He says, "A colse-up on the A330-200 cockpit shows a flashy red and yellow curved cheatline and a logo repeating on each side of the Hainan Group as HNA." (Hong Kong Airlines is part of the Hainan Group.) Manuel says he photographed the aircraft at its base in Hong Kong preparing for another flight.

Credit: apgphoto

PICTURES & VIDEO: Boeing 787 touches down for UK debut

More images of the 787 landing see apgphotos in AirSpace 

 

Qinetiq is due to launch a record-breaking flight with its Zephyr high-altitude long-endurance unmanned air vehicle, with the company aiming to have the lightweight design remain airborne for around a fortnight.

"The aim is for two weeks this time, to show that we've moved out of the research phase to a product that you might buy," says HALE business manager Jon Saltmarsh.

Already flown as a 6m (19.7ft) wingspan subscale demonstrator, the new Zephyr design weighs 53kg (117lb) and has a 23m wingspan - 4m wider than the company's previous iteration. Its wing area also has been increased by 50% by using a wider chord, and new winglets provide improved lift. A new T-tail configuration has also been adopted as a drag-reduction measure. Continue reading...

(Photo: Qinetiq)

The first two-seat trainer example of India's Tejas naval light combat aircraft will be flown for the first time before the end of the year, following the roll out of platform NP1 in Bangalore on 6 July. Continue reading...

Boeing hopes a series of demonstrations will prove the potential of its A160T Hummingbird unmanned helicopter to the US military

Technical description and general arrangement of A160T Hummingbird UAV

 

The A350-800's is 10 fuselage frames shorter than the -900 (six forward and four aft) which requires changes to the geometry of section 13/14 (forward), section 16/18 (rear) and the upper shell of section 15 (centre fuselage). This reduces typical two-class seating by just over 10% to 276 passengers. Continue reading...

Boeing has a long-term aim to adapt its Boeing 747 Dreamlifters as a "combi" to allow them to transport small groups of personnel in the nose section. This would enable the outsize freighter to carry up to 16 passengers on flights operating between the 787 production plants in support of the subassembly transport process. Continue reading...

This week Flightglobal publication Flight International has its pre-show special for the Farnborough Airshow. We review the progress of the show debutant, the Boeing 787, and look at steps being made by its Airbus rival, the A350. We also monitor F-35 testing, preview US fighters of the future, and more.

Check out our special page for the Farnborough Airshow, which has a range of dynamic content: articles, photos, videos, interactive daily magazines, Tweets and more.

On the cover of Flight International is a graphic design of the 787 against the Union Jack. Flightglobal's Head of Design and Production Alexis Rendell conceived and executed the design, which was inspired by the 787 making its air show debut at Farnborough, which will undoubtedly be one of the show's highlights.


You can subscribe to Flight International here or here for the digital version.

This week's Image of the Week (featured on page 5 of Flight International), is taken by AirSpace user Peter Reoch. His photo depicts a RAF Chinook HC3 at night. Peter says his photo was taken at RAF Northolt's night photo shoot in March 2010. This photo was the first public appearance of the Chinook HC3 in RAF service and the image was shot as the helicopter warmed up ready to depart back to its home base at Odiham.

Randeep Singh is in his second year of Doncasters Group's graduate development programme. Originally from India, he is the first graduate to spend a placement working at one of the company's US sites.

What first attracted you to aerospace and engineering?

After completing my BSc (Hons) in business administration and spending a year working in the construction industry, I decided to pursue my passion for supply chain engineering and logistics by taking an MSc in supply engineering and logistics at Warwick University.

The size and challenging nature of the aerospace sector provided a real opportunity to make an impact. The Airbus A380 and Boeing Dreamliner projects have seen a revolution in terms of supply chain management and I wanted to be part of it. Continue reading...

Here's an aerial overview of Air Salvage International's scrap yard at Kemble Airport. The company recently dismantled a Boeing 737-600 and a two-year old Boeing 737-800 involved in an accident. These were the first disassemblies of 737 Next Generation aircraft, an in-production type that entered service as recently as 1997.

In this week's cover article in Flight International we ask: why are newer aircraft being retired in greater numbers?

Meanwhile, BAE will roll out its Taranis unmanned combat air vehicle demonstrator (artist's impression pictured below) during an event to be staged at its Warton facility on 12 July. Continue reading...

The third and final Gulfstream G250 business jet has joined the 1,300h flight-test programme, six months after the campaign began.

The super-midsize aircraft made its first flight on 28 June at Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv, home of the G250's co-developer Israel Aerospace Industries. Continue reading...

Honeywell has given its Convair 580 test aircraft a facelift to reflect the trademark red and white colour scheme of its engine/avionics manufacturer. The twin-engined turboprop - registration N580HW - is pictured at its Paine Field in Everett, Washington base where it is used to test the new avionics.

The CV580 was previously decked in the blue and white paint scheme and N580AS registration of AlliedSignal - which bought and merged with Honeywell in late 1999. Continue reading...

This week Flightglobal publication Flight International in its cover article takes a look at fleet cycles. Most airlines end their days in the scrapyard, but usually after providing years of service. So why are newer aircraft being retired in greater numbers?

On the cover is an Air Team Images photo of an ex-Air France A320 meeting its end at Air Salvage International's yard at Kemble airfield, also known as Cotswold airport, in the UK.

Also featured in this issue are:

• Fixing a future: In our MRO report, we ask: Can Brazil be a global hub for maintenance?
  

• WTO Judgment: The WTO's ruling on subsidies is finally published, but can both sides really claim they came out on top?
  

• Slicker A380: Airbus gets to grips with superjumbo production as out-of-sequence work slashed at Toulouse
  

You can subscribe to Flight International here or here for the digital version.

This week's Image of the Week (featured on page 5 of Flight International), is taken by AirSpace user Steelhead. His photo depicts the No. 2 engine Kelowna Flightcraft DC-10-30F C-GKFB. The photo was taken at Hamilton (YHM), Ontario in Canada.

Michael Helling, general manager of the Aviator Hotel in Farnborough since 2008, is gearing up for his busiest time of the year and ensuring that standards do not slip as preparations for July's air show gather pace. We'll be covering the Farnborough airshow in full force so check back soon to see our dedicated page to Farnborough news, interactive daily magazine, videos, photos, Tweets, and more. If you're attending, let us know on our Facebook page.

How long have you been at Aviator and what were you doing before?

I came to the Aviator having worked at the Hong Kong Club for three years. I've been here since the hotel opened just before the 2008 Farnborough air show.

What attracted you to Aviator?

The idea of working at a hotel that had a different driving force behind it was really attractive. With the proximity to Farnborough airport we have an almost "built-in" clientele who need a convenient location close to the airport. We're noticing passengers choosing to save travelling time by using the hotel as a base for meetings or even as their UK office. Read more of the Q&A...

Combined with the advent of commercial suborbital flight ventures, spawned in part by Burt Rutan winning the $10 million Ansari X Prize in the fall of 2004 with two flights to suborbital space in a two-week period, ETC via Nastar in 2007 officially launched its space launch training programme with Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic as a client. Read more about the ETC via Nastar training and simulator...

Bombardier is assembling a composite panelled, aluminium-framed aft CSeries fuselage section demonstrator at its Saint-Laurent facility in Montreal.

The plant will be responsible for full fabrication of the twinjet's forward and aft fuselage. Although the majority of the CSeries fuselage is fabricated from advanced alloys, the rear section aft of the cabin incorporates composite panels. Continue reading...

Rolls-Royce has conducted a first-time run of its new Trent XWB engine for the Airbus A350 family. The engine ran yesterday on a test-bed at the manufacturer's Derby facility.

Rolls-Royce says the operation initiates the "most extensive pre-flight programme in Trent history", ahead of flight tests on an A380 in 2011.

Seven Trent XWB development engines will be operating by early next year, says the company, while flight-testing is scheduled to start on the A350 in 2012. Continue reading...