Editorial opinion – Page 13
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OpinionOPINION: C-130J's success gives hope to A400M
Twenty years ago, Lockheed Martin made its first delivery of a C-130J to launch operator the UK Royal Air Force, following a troubled development and testing programme which was very much at odds with its chosen moniker: “Super Hercules”.
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OpinionOPINION: Qatar Airways must choose wisdom over hubris
If anyone thought Qatar Airways chief Akbar Al Baker, eight months into a Gulf blockade on the carrier, might choose to adopt a more diplomatic tone while addressing the international press, they must have been barking.
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OpinionOPINION: Are air taxis on a ride to nowhere?
Don’t waste your money on a new car. Studies on the economics of taxi services built around autonomous electric-powered vertical take-off and landing aircraft – so-called eVTOLs – make compelling reading. Basically, cost per passenger mile looks like undercutting helicopter rides by an order of magnitude – and even makes ...
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OpinionOPINION: Why Saratov An-148 loss is cautionary tale
Russia's rich literary history includes the short verse Gvozd i Podkova, in which a city falls to invaders because the blacksmith did not have a nail with which to shoe the defending commander's horse.
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OpinionOPINION: Can contract revision rescue A400M?
One year ago, Airbus chief executive Tom Enders put the future of the company’s flagship military project on the line, by demanding crisis talks with its European customers for the long-troubled A400M.
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OpinionOPINION: Who will lose out in NMA engine battle?
How long can a duopoly of large commercial aircraft manufacturers sustain a triopoly of engine suppliers? We may find out the answer later this year.
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Opinion
OPINION: New boss, new Leonardo?
Corporate chiefs are fearful of missing out on the Next Big Thing, of leaving it to bold, visionary rivals to anticipate a future that they themselves were too short-sighted, or too timid, to grasp.
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Opinion
OPINION: Is the CSeries ruling a seismic shift?
Over the past four months, the competitive landscape in the small-narrowbody jet market has been turned upside down. Bombardier has agreed to give Airbus control of the CSeries programme and open a new final assembly line in Alabama. Boeing is in discussions to construct some kind of combination with Embraer. ...
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Opinion
OPINION: X6 delay could be a regret for Airbus Helicopters chief
For his final annual press conference as head of Airbus Helicopters, Guillaume Faury adopted the Édith Piaf approach, declaring that he had “no regrets” about any aspect of his five-year stint as chief executive.
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Opinion
OPINION: ATR in pole position to launch new turboprop – for now
ATR is an enviable position: the Airbus-Leonardo joint venture supplies more than three-quarters of the annual demand for regional turboprops, has an order backlog – significantly bolstered in 2017 – equating to around three years of production, and, perhaps most significantly, its sole Western competitor, Bombardier, is currently occupied with ...
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Opinion
OPINION: Market looks rosy, but beware the unknown
If Boeing intended to antagonise Airbus ahead of the annual order tussle, it chose to tweak the European airframer’s most sensitive nerve.
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Opinion
OPINION: Leahy leaves lasting legacy with Emirates deal
Any doubts that the future of Airbus’s flagship product was genuinely under threat were demolished by the blunt assessment from outgoing head salesman John Leahy. If Emirates did not buy more, the A380 programme was finished, he said.
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Opinion
OPINION: BAE research project promises stealth advance
Most of the magic in stealth aircraft design is created by geometry. By shaping an aircraft surface to reflect transmitted radio waves away from their source, the radar is effectively blinded. This works fine as long the stealthy aircraft has no need to manoeuvre. Any change in direction or altitude ...
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Opinion
OPINION: Airframers should approach further rate rises with caution
Boeing in 2017 successfully transitioned to a production rate of 47 aircraft per month on its 737 line, as it works to address its swelling single-aisle backlog, which hit 4,668 firm orders at year-end.
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Opinion
OPINION: Engine arrival signals China's supply chain progress
By rolling out the first locally designed high-bypass turbofan on 29 December, China joined one of the most exclusive clubs in the global aerospace industry.
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Opinion
OPINION: Boeing and Embraer have much to gain from tie-up
A combination of Boeing and Embraer would make a powerful team in commercial aviation, deepen a potentially disruptive alliance with Saab in the defence market, and could upset the business aviation status quo.
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Opinion
OPINION: A fresh start at Airbus
Not since the extraordinary round of musical chairs which followed the A380 crisis of 2006 has Airbus faced a more substantial overhaul of its senior management.
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Opinion
OPINION: Singapore's cabin shines, but will it sell more A380s?
The plight currently facing Airbus on its A380 programme is neatly – although perhaps inadvertently – summed up by customer Singapore Airlines (SIA).
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OpinionOPINION: The airline industry's success stories from 2017
Airlines’ headline figures for 2017 are impressive, reflecting another year of rising traffic and impressive profits.
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Opinion
OPINION: Travel disruptors are airline investment opportunity
Japan Airlines flight JL001, operated with a Boeing 777, needs roughly 12h to fly about 4,500nm (8,330km) from Tokyo to San Francisco. A Mach 2.2 airliner could cover the same distance in about 5.5h, or around the time it takes a subsonic airliner to fly across the USA.