All news – Page 7072
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Boeing/DARPA agree canard rotor/wing trial
Boeing's Phantom Works and the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have signed a $24 million cost sharing contract for a proof of concept demonstration of the canard rotor/wing (CR/W). The three year programme is to include flight testing of a subscale unmanned vehicle to demonstrate vertical take-off and ...
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P&W tests F119 seal failure fix for F-22
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC Pratt &Whitney resumed testing of the F119 fighter engine on 19 March to clear a near term solution to a compressor seal failure which led to the halt of all development testing. P&W hopes that the cure will allow flight testing of the F119 powered Lockheed Martin/Boeing ...
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Hawkeye 2000 AEW prepared for tests
Northrop Grumman plans to fly the prototype E-2CHawkeye 2000 airborne early warning aircraft next month. The aircraft is the first to incorporate all of the upgrades planned for the Hawkeye 2000, including the co-operative engagement capability (CEC). An E-2C has been flying since January 1997 with the mission computer ...
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Dasa aims for Huzar contest with HOT3 demonstration in Poland
Daimler-Benz Aerospace (Dasa) is planning to demonstrate the Euromissile HOT 3 anti-tank missile in Poland, in the hope of pushing its way into the PZL-Swidnik Huzar attack helicopter weapons and avionics competition. The Huzar project has been surrounded by controversy since the Government launched investigations into the signing of ...
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Boeing expects South Korea to go ahead with AEW proposals
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Boeing remains optimistic that the South Korean air force will press ahead on schedule with its airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft procurement, despite the country's economic difficulties. Jack Sperry, Boeing 767 airborne warning and control system (AWACS) programme manager, says: "Our perception is that Korea is a ...
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NHI presses France to revise NH90 date
Julian Moxon/PARIS Gert Kromhout/THE HAGUE NH Industries (NHI) is asking the French defence ministry to bring forward by up to seven years its planned 2011 service entry date for army versions of the NH90 tactical and naval transport helicopter. Under current planning, France will be the last of ...
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Going Dutch
The Belgian and Netherlands air forces are pooling their Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) forces when providing weekend, night and holiday cover. Belgian air force Lockheed Martin F-16As from Florennes airbase and Dutch F-16As from air bases at Volkel, Leeuwarden and Twente will take it in turns to be on QRA ...
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China reveals upgraded variant of PL5 missile
Douglas Barrie/LONDON China has unveiled an upgraded variant of its PL5 infra-red guided short range air-to-air missile, the PL5E, which it is offering for export. The main difference from the previously seen variant, the PL5B, is in the considerably improved seeker. The PL5B is not described as having an ...
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New Zealand flies first Seasprite
The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) flew one of its four Kaman SH-2F Seasprite anti submarine warfare helicopters for the first time, from Hobsonville Airfield on 24 February. The SH-2Fs will be used to replace the RNZN's obsolete Westland Wasps until the arrival of SH-2G Super Seasprites now on ...
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Boeing tests RTM power on Apache
Boeing and prime contractor GKN Westland Helicopters are preparing to start ground tests of the first WAH-64D Apache attack helicopter development prototype for the British Army, having fitted Rolls-Royce Turboméca RTM322 engines in an existing Longbow Apache airframe at Boeing's Mesa, Arizona, helicopter plant. Andrew Walbridge, deputy chief designer ...
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Definitely maybe
Max Kingsley-Jones/SINGAPORE Airbus Industrie may have just allowed its A3XX high capacity airliner programme to slip by almost a year, but it remains committed to the initiative to provide a European alternative to Boeing's long term monopoly of the market. There are hurdles to cross during 1998, however, before Airbus ...
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Widening the franchise
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON When Cityflyer Express first signed up as a British Airways franchisee in the middle of 1993, it was something of an experiment for both carriers. Five years later the formula appears to be working. When BA hosts fifth anniversary celebrations in July, it will do so with nine ...
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Sentimental journey
Tim Furniss/LONDON Watching his fourth sunset of the day, sitting on the deck of the USS Noa recovery ship in the Atlantic Ocean after his splashdown on 20 February, 1962, US Marine Lt Col John Herschel Glenn yearned to return to orbit. On 7 November, 1998, Senator John Glenn, who ...
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Class war
Douglas Barrie/RAF LEUCHARS The target is a power station in the Hebrides, Scotland, with the aim being to disable its generating capability for four to six weeks. A strike force of Panavia Tornado GR1s is tasked with the mission - following devolution, relations between Scotland and England have ...
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Allison is on track for 'Super R' certification
Allison Engine hopes to certificate an ambitious upgrade for its Model 250-C20R Series II turboshaft engine in the third quarter of 1998, says the Rolls-Royce owned company. Allison says that the "Super R" project will provide up to a 20% increase in power and is aimed at improving performance for ...
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European pressure group will battle for business aviation
Kate Sarsfield/LONDON Four leading European general aviation associations have formed a pressure group to tackle the problem of airport access for business aircraft in Europe. Called the Business Aviation Fighting Force (BAFF), the organisation, which incorporates the European Business Aviation Association, the UK General Aviation Manufacturers and Traders ...
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Aerostructures wants risk share role in Bell Boeing 609
Aerostructures is negotiating to supply the fuselage of the Bell Boeing 609 civil tilt-rotor as a risk sharing partner. The Nashville, Tennessee-based company would take over the work from Boeing, which has transferred its stake in the venture to partner Bell Helicopter Textron. Bell is seeking risk sharing partners to ...
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Poland certificates Mielec's two seat Dromader
The Polish Civil Aviation Authority has granted type certification to the new two-seat version of the PZL-Mielec M18 Dromader agricultural and fire-fighting aircraft. The aircraft, designated the M18BS, first flew last November. Orders for two have already been received from local operator Aviation Agriculture Enterprise, which worked closely with ...
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Improved Katana is on the way
Graham Warwick/LONDON, ONTARIO Diamond Aircraft has begun production of a Teledyne Continental-powered version of its DA20 Katana two seater. The all-composite aircraft incorporates several improvements and can now accommodate an uprated version of the original Rotax 912 engine or the Continental, which is expected to increase the Katana's appeal ...
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PC-12 Centre
Pilatus Aircraft has named TSA Transairco a PC-12 centre. The Geneva Airport, Switzerland based company, which has been marketing the single engined aircraft in European and North African countries since January, is a fully owned subsidiary of Pilatus and will be responsible for maintenance, repair, technical support and sales of ...