Airbus’ Fly Your Ideas competition yields innovative ideas

June 10, 201310:54 a.m.

Airplane cabins powered by body heat, planes running on cow power, or methane gas, and luggage floating on a bed of air are some of the ideas developed by university students in a Fly Your Ideas  competition sponsored by Airbus.

Airbus challenged students to develop “radical eco-efficient ideas” for aviation.

The planemaker selected five finalist teams. Each team will travel to Airbus headquarters in Toulouse to present their ideas to a panel of judges for the prize.

The winning team will be announced at the Paris Air Show next week.

The program aims to “highlight the growth opportunities available to young innovators, who could help change the world and work towards a more sustainable aviation industry,” Airbus said.

Teams that made the finals came from Brazil, Australia, India, Italy and Malaysia.

According to Airbus, the concepts include:

Luggage floating on air. Using the principles of air hockey, the cargo hold is fitted with light sliding sections to let baggage handlers quickly load and unload luggage, allowing passengers to get their bags 30 percent faster.

Planes powered by cow power. A sustainable fuel uses liquified methane held in specially-created supercooled pods located next to the engine. The solution could reduce CO2 emissions by 97 percent.

Shape-shifting materials to reduce noise. An engine modification made from shape-shifting materials can change the airflow through the engines and reduce noise.

Battery-powered hybrid engines. Rechargeable batteries drop into the cargo hold and help power efficient hybrid engines. In a short-haul flight, the solution could save up to 60 percent of fuel.

Human body heat powering aircraft cabins. Heat energy from specially-embedded heat-sensitive material in cabin seats captures energy from passengers and could be used to power onboard electronics. That can reduce energy requirements for the flight.

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under Airbus, aircraft manufacturers, aviation industry | Comments

Beechcraft names heads of planning and programs and human resources

May 30, 201310:59 a.m.

Dave Rosenberg

Beechcraft Corp. has appointed two leaders to its executive team, the company announced.

Dave Rosenberg, who joined the company in 2000, has been appointed vice president of strategic planning and programs.

He is responsible for the company’s planning and programs, including management of commercial product development programs and analysis of joint ventures and potential acquisitions.

Don Alvord was named vice president of human resources. Alvord came to Wichita from Little Rock, Ark., where he served as vice president and general manager of the company’s Little Rock Completions Center.

 

Don Alvord

Beechcraft recently closed the center and moved the work to Wichita.

In his role, Alvord oversees talent acquisition, management and succession planning, diversity initiatives, employee relations and compensation and benefits management.

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, aviation industry, Beechcraft Corp. | Comments

Southwest Airlines leader to speak at Wichita Aero Club Monday

May 30, 20136:12 a.m.

For years, Ron Ricks worked closely with Herb Kelleher, the colorful co-founder and chairman emeritus of Southwest Airlines.

Kelleher created a culture for a low-cost, no-frills airline known for putting fun in flying, such as flight attendants who sang in-flight announcements to the tune of popular songs.

“As a result, (Ricks) probably knows more about the airline than anyone besides Herb,” Dave Franson, president of the Wichita Aero Club, said in a statement.

Ricks, executive vice president and chief legal and regulatory officer at Southwest, is the keynote speaker at Monday’s Wichita Aero Club meeting. The meeting is the day after Southwest’s launch of service in Wichita.

Before joining the airline, Ricks was a partner in a San Antonio law firm founded by Kelleher.

The luncheon will be held 11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Doubletree Hotel by Hilton at Wichita Airport.

Reservations can be made by calling 641-5962 or through www.wichitaaeroclub.org.

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under airlines, associations, aviation industry | Comments

Analyst: Boeing could launch 787-10X at Paris Air Show, but unlikely to kick off 777X there

May 28, 201311:16 a.m.

Boeing says it hopes to launch the Boeing 777X, a revamped 777, this year.

Those kind of launches are typically announced at major air shows.

But it seems unlikely that Boeing will announce it at next month’s Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport, Cowen and Co. aerospace analyst Cai von Rumohr wrote in a report Tuesday.

Boeing is still working the details of the business case and prime launch customers are Arab carriers Emirates and Ethiad airlines, von Rumohr said.

That makes a launch more plausible during November’s Dubai Air Show, he said

It’s possible Boeing, however, may launch the 787-10X during the Paris Air Show.

That’s because Boeing has resolved the battery issues with the 787, which alleviates customer resistance, it’s improving 787 productivity and the 787 derivative will make a strong competitor to the Airbus A330-300, von Rumohr said.

The 787-10 will be more profitable than the Boeing 787-8 or the -9, he said.

 

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under airlines, airports | Comments

Augusta Municipal Airport adds jet fuel truck as fuel sales rise

May 24, 20136:26 a.m.

Augusta Municipal Airport east of Wichita has added a jet fuel truck to pump Jet-A fuel as sales increase.

The airport has doubled sales of Jet-A fuel year-to-date and aviation fuel sales are up 25 percent to 30 percent, said airport manager Lloyd Partin.

“They are significantly better,” Partin said.

Partin has noticed that the mood has improved in the past couple of months.

“I think people got tired of sitting around and waiting” for the economy to improve, he said.”If we sit and wait, we can sit around and wait forever.”

Attitudes have changed.

“People aren’t as skeptical,” Partin said.

The jet fuel truck holds 3,000 gallons of fuel and pumps 300 gallons a minute.

A pilot can get fueled, pay and take off in less than 15 minutes, Partin said.

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under airports, aviation industry | Comments

EBACE concludes with good attendance

May 24, 20135:53 a.m.

The 2013 European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition closed in Geneva, Switzerland, on Thursday with strong attendance, organizers say.

The show drew 12,353 attendees, 460 exhibitors and more than 400 reporters.

Its static display showcased 52 planes and was sold out with a waiting list.

Organizers — the European Business Aviation Association and the National Business Aviation Association — call the show a success.

“EBACE has proven to be of great value to the business aviation community — it has been a place where the industry has rallied together, made new announcements and set a positive tone, all of which has the business aviation community looking forward to the future,” NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen said in a statement.

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, associations, aviation industry | Comments

EAA, AOPA oppose FAA plan to charge for air traffic controllers at AirVenture

May 23, 201310:58 a.m.

The cost for the Experimental Aircraft Association to put on this year’s AirVenture aviation fly-in in Oshkosh, Wis., is going up.

The Federal Aviation Administration announced plans to charge for travel costs, per diem expenses and overtime pay for the air traffic controllers who deploy to work the show.

Traditionally, the FAA has incurred the cost of deploying controllers to the show, which attracts more than 10,000 aircraft.

The new charges were announced as part of the budget sequestration.

The show runs July 29 to Aug. 4.

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and the EAA are denouncing the charges.

“This is extremely troubling news,” Craig Fuller, AOPA president and CEO, said in a statement. “We’ve warned that the Obama Administration wants to hit general aviation with user fees, and that’s exactly what it’s doing to the EAA and AirVenture.”

Departing from its previous practice suggests the FAA has entered into a new “pay-as-you-go era with little regard for safety,” Fuller said.

General aviation already pays for FAA services through substantial user fees, he said.

“These user fees — there is no other word for them — are a double taxation, Fuller said. And that will add a burden and hurt the industry.

By Molly McMillin | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments

Cessna’s Turbo Skylane JT-A, which runs on jet fuel, takes first production flight

May 22, 201310:38 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft announced the first production flight of the Turbo Skylane JT-A took off from Independence on Tuesday.

The single-engine piston-powered plane has a diesel engine that runs on Jet-A fuel.

The four-place plane performed as expected, Dale Bleakney, Cessna senior test pilot, said in a statement.

“The weather conditions were fantastic, and we took the turbo 182 up for what turned out to be a very normal first flight,” Bleakney said.

The flight lasted 2.3 hours, flew at 8,000 feet and reached a true air speed at 182 mph.

The plane is the first aircraft powered by a diesel engine specifically designed for aviation, Cessna said.

The general aviation industry has been facing a looming fuel issue in many parts of the world.

Avgas, typically used to fuel most single-engine aircraft, is becoming scarce, expensive and unavailable in many parts of the world.

The ability for a single-engine plane to run on the more common Jet-A fuel means operators can fly to more parts of the world without worrying about the availability of increasingly scarce avgas, the company said.

The engine is expected to burn about 30 percent to 40 percent less fuel than comparable avgas engines, it said.

By Molly McMillin | Filed under Cessna | Comments

Beechcraft appoints new regional sales director for Sub-Saharan Africa

May 21, 201310:43 a.m.

Beechcraft Corp. has appointed a regional sales director for Beechcraft products in Sub-Saharan Africa, Kingsley Okoli, the company announced.

South Africa continues to be one of the largest growth markets in the world, Scott Plumb, Beechcraft vice president of sales for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said in a statement.

The business aviation fleet in the region has grown by more than 20 percent in the past 10 years, Plumb said.

“Having Kingsley stationed in South Africa will provide further impetus to strong Beechcraft sales in the region,” he said.

Okoli spent 13 years in the U.S. Air Force that included work involving the West Africa region and the Nigerian Air Force. He was an F-16 crew chief and later a fighter squadron logistics readiness officer, according to information from the company.

He has experience with Department of Defense acquisition program management, business development and operational management in foreign military sales and foreign military financing.

He most recently served as a senior program analyst for IMSolutions.

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Beechcraft Corp. | Comments

Boeing starts certification testing on 747-8 improvements

May 21, 201310:33 a.m.

Boeing’s 747-8 Intercontinental jet successfully completed its first certification test flight with a package of performance improvements, including enhanced engines.

The package is designed to improve fuel efficiency.

The flight took off from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., this week and flew for four hours.

“It was a great flight and the engines performed as expected, Capt. Kirk Vining said in a statement. “This is an important milestone for the flight test program.”

The plane’s Performance Improvement Package includes improvements to the engines and flight management computer software.

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Boeing | Comments