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Boeing's 'Phantom Swift' Advances In Darpa Program
Boeing won a $9.36 million contract modification from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) to refine its concept for a radically improved vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft to the preliminary design review stage. Three other contractors have proposed concepts for the...Read More
Boeing's 787 ecoDemonstrator Goes To Work
Boeing's ecoDemonstrator is back - but this time the company is using a 787 for the role rather than the polished aluminum 737-800 which it leased from American Airlines for the first ecoDem mission in 2012, writes Guy Norris...Read More
NTSB To Meet On UPS Flight 1354 Accident
The NTSB has set a meeting in which it will determine the probable cause of the Aug. 14, 2013, crash of UPS Airlines Flight 1354 on approach to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, AL. The Airbus A300-600 went down short of runway 18 during a localizer non-precision approach. The captain and first officer were fatally injured and the airplane was destroyed...Read More
Union Integration Proceeds Smoothly At American Airlines
Nine months after the American Airlines and US Airways merger closed, several union groups at the two carriers have negotiated new contracts. "We are really enthusiastic about the progress that has been made and excited that we have the structure that will deliver joint collective bargaining agreements pretty quickly after the merger has closed," said Steve Johnson... Read More
National Guard Identifies Fallen F-15C Pilot
Massachusetts National Guard officials identified the pilot of an F-15C Eagle jet that crashed in Virginia as Air Force Lt. Col. Morris "Moose" Fontenot Jr. The veteran aviator was killed Aug. 27 when his aircraft crashed in remote, mountainous terrain near Deerfield Valley. "We all continue to keep the Fontenot family in our thoughts and prayers during this very difficult time," said Col. James Keefe, commander of the 104th Fighter Wing based here...Read More
Global Hawk Variants Surpass 100,000 Combat/Operational Support Hours
Two U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) in Northrop Grumman Corporation's high altitude long endurance (HALE) series safely surpassed 100,000 combat/operational support hours. The Air Force Global Hawk fleet logged more than 88 percent of the global intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) information-gathering and airborne communications missions...Read More
Analysis: New Fuel-Efficient Aircraft Expected To Boost United
United Airlines plans to retire its 50-seat regional jets by next year, instead deploying larger Embraer regional jets that can seat 76 passengers. The Trefis Team writes that "fleet restructuring focused on replacing older, less fuel-efficient airplanes with new, more fuel-efficient airplanes will add growth to United's results in the coming years...Read More
Australian Advanced Aircraft Contract Executed By The U.S. Navy
Australian Minister for Defense Senator David Johnston announced Monday the United States Navy has executed an Advanced Acquisition Contract for Australia's P-8A Poseidon aircraft. Senator Johnston said this key defense procurement would allow the withdrawal of the ageing AP-3C Orion fleet, and enable Boeing US to place lead time orders in support of Australia's first four P-8A aircraft...Read More
Malaysia Airline Announces Major Restructuring
Troubled Malaysia Airline will make extensive route cuts and eliminate some 6,000 jobs in a major restructuring announced Friday by its majority shareholder. USA Today reports that the employee reduction accounts for about 30 percent of the airline's total workforce. It also plans to focus on regional routes rather than the unprofitable long-haul international routes, according to Khazana Nasional, the Malaysian government's sovereign wealth fund...Read More
Movie Airplanes May Fly Again After 40 Years Gathering Dust
Nine Spanish-built Bf-109 airplanes that had been used in the filming of the WWII movie "The Battle of Britain" were recently sold at auction to a European dealer and could be restored to flying condition in the near future. The rare airplanes ... Spanish versions of the Messerschmitt 109 built under license with the company ... were found in pieces gathering dust in a barn in Texas. The movie was filmed in 1968, and they had been stored in the barn ever since...Read More
Bombardier Delivers First 86-Seat Q400 NextGen Aircraft
The first Q400 NextGen turboprop with extra capacity seating configuration has been delivered to Nok Air of Bangkok, Thailand at Bombardier's facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where the aircraft is manufactured. The milestone aircraft is part of Nok Air's purchase agreement for up to eight Q400 NextGen airliners that was announced on November 19, 2013...Read More
American Airlines tapped Capt. Kathi Durst as chief pilot of Dallas/Fort Worth Airport. Durst is the first female pilot to fill the leadership role. "Kathi brings strong leadership skills, experience and a high standard of professionalism with her to serve the pilots of DFW," said Capt. Jim Dees, director of flight at DFW for American... Read More
ANG B-2 Pilot Surpasses 1,000 Hours
The landing gear touched down and the aircraft skimmed down the runway just as it had many times before. This time, though, a routine flying mission became a major achievement for the 131st Bomb Wing as well as a career milestone for Lt. Col. Ryan "Poacher" Bailey, a Missouri Air National Guardsman who surpassed 1,000 flying-hours in the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber at Missouri's Whiteman Air Force Base Aug. 23...Read More
NASA Awards Option On Test And Operations Support Contract
NASA has exercised the first option to extend the period of performance of its Test and Operations Support Contract (TOSC) with Jacobs Technology Inc. of Tullahoma, TN, to September 30, 2016. Jacobs Technology Inc. will provide continued overall management and implementation of ground systems capabilities, flight hardware processing and launch operations in support of the International Space Station, Ground Systems Development and Operations...Read More
Single Operating Certificate For American By Q2, COO Says
Robert Isom, the chief operating officer of American Airlines, said the carrier expects to receive a single operating certificate in the second quarter of next year. Isom said the schedule gives American and its merger partner of US Airways time to ensure operations and policies "are all identical, mirror images at the time of single operating certificate...Read More
Astronaut Steve Nagel's Unforgettable Landing
Former NASA astronaut Steve Nagel died Thursday. His hometown paper, the Canton (Illinois) Daily Ledger, said he died after a two-year battle with cancer. He was 67. I met Steve in the mid-1980s, when I covered science at The Houston Post. And I still knew him when I came to Aviation Week & Space Technology as a space reporter. Steve was a consummate professional and a straight-shooter...Read More
Pentagon: Chinese Fighter Jet Makes Close Pass To P-8 Poseidon
The Pentagon says a Chinese fighter jet with a full compliment of weapons came within 30 feet of a U.S. P-8 Poseidon August 19. USA Today reports that, according to Pentagon Press Secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby, the Chinese pilot acted in an "aggressive and unprofessional manner" when he or she made several passes near the U.S. reconnaissance airplane in international airspace about 135 miles east of Hainan island...Read More
Analysis: Delta In "Solid Financial Position"
Shares of Delta Air Lines rose 3.4% in Tuesday trading as oil prices dropped, and TheStreet Ratings Team rated the shares as a buy. "The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its notable return on equity, attractive valuation levels, solid stock price performance, revenue growth and largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures," said the ratings team...Read More
APFA To Represent US Airways Flight Attendants
US Airways flight attendants agreed to be represented by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents American Airlines flight attendants. The change in representation will occur once a joint contract is reached with American Airlines...Read More
Airlines' Recycling: Change Consumers Can See
Recycling is the consumer-facing side of the airline industry's environmental efforts. Jacqueline Drumheller, sustainability manager for Alaska Airlines, said that all too often, airlines' fuel conservation efforts garner all the headlines, obscuring other green initiatives. But recycling gives airlines credibility with consumers in a way that fuel conservation does not, because passengers can see it happening...Read More
Northrop Grumman Awarded Global Hawk Modification Contract
The Air Force has ordered the final three RQ-4B Global Hawk remotely piloted aircraft from manufacturer Northrop Grumman, completing the block's program of record of 21 airframes. The $240.7 million contract covers production of three Global Hawks as well as two additional Airborne Signals Intelligence Payload sensors, according to the award notice. Air Force spokesman...Read More
C-17 Loadmaster Helps To Save Lives, Earns Award for Valor
The composure and professionalism of a C-17 loadmaster played a key role in helping to save the lives of three critically wounded US personnel injured in an attempted rescue mission in South Sudan. That performance has earned SrA. Cody Nunez of the 21st Airlift Squadron the Gen. P. K. Carlton Award for Valor from the Airlift Tanker Association...Read More
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