Boeing X-51A WaveRider smashes high-speed record

The X-51A WaveRider, built by Boeing's advanced R&D team Phantom Works and powered by a Pratt & Whitney / Rocketdyne supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet) engine, achieved flight history on Wednesday, May 26th.  In its very first attempt, the experimental unmanned aircraft successfully completed the longest supersonic combustion ramjet-powered flight in history, accelerating to Mach 5 (5 times the speed of sound, around 3,500 mph) and reaching a peak altitude of 70,000 feet within 200 seconds of flight.  The event took place near Edwards Air Force Base in Southern California, where a B-52H Stratofortress carried the X-51A under its left wing prior to releasing it for its test flight.  After release, the X-51A was initially propelled by an attached solid rocket booster before this eventually detached and the X-51A's main engine took over.  If this technology matures enough, imagine being able to travel from L.A. to N.Y. in under 30 minutes!  It would revolutionize the way we travel in the skies (and even in outer space).  This initial test flight represents one of 4 X-51A aircraft already built by Boeing.  The link below has a neat little 1.5 minute video of the X-51A in flight.

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Dreamliner ZA004 moves on to Colorado

After experiencing the hot climates and low altitudes of Mesa, AZ, 787 aircraft ZA004 has now moved on the other extreme: cold weather temperatures and high altitudes, this time in Colorado Spring, CO.  There the aircraft will conduct high-altitude flight testing for several days.

ANA pilots get a taste of the Dreamliner in flight

On May 12th, two pilots from All Nippon Airways (the launch customer for the 787 Dreamliner) became the first pilots outside of Boeing's flight test team to actually pilot the 787 Dreamliner.  Under the close watch of Boeing's chief test pilots, the two ANA pilots flew aircraft ZA001 over the state of Washington for about 2.5 hours, conducting normal flight maneuvers (takeoffs, climbs, descents, and landings) and even several emergency procedures (single engine operation).  One word sums up what the two ANA pilots felt after flying the Dreamliner for the very first time: "FANTASTIC."  The first link below has some pictures of the flight, while the 2nd link contains a short two-minute video of the experience by the ANA pilots.

ANA Demonstration Flight Pics

ANA Demonstration Flight Video

787 makes debut flight in Arizona

The 787 Dreamliner made another debut last Saturday 5/22, this time in the state of Arizona, where aircraft ZA004 landed at the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport in Mesa, AZ.  There the plane will conduct hot-weather testing (makes sense in the 100+ degree weather of Arizona) and low-altitude flights.  Just a friendly reminder to the flight test team traveling to Arizona: bring your U.S. Driver's License and/or U.S. Passport!

Sea Launch to become Russian-owned

Sea Launch's future could just very well have brightened with the announcement that Russian-based rocket engine maker Rocket & Space Corp. Energia has proposed investing $140 million and thus taking an 85% stake in the rocket venture.  This would be part of a bigger plan to help bring Sea Launch out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy possibly as early as August of this year.  Based in Long Beach, CA, Sea Launch is a Boeing rocket launch venture with several European and Russian companies.  It uses a converted oil-rig located in the Pacific Ocean near the equator from which the rockets are launched.  From this location, the rockets take advantage of the Earth's rotation for additional momentum, enabling the rockets to reach orbit faster and hence burn less fuel, which translates to more savings to the customer.  Currently there are no launches scheduled for this year, but it does have 2 scheduled for 2011, with a total backlog of 4 launches.  Interestingly enough, Sea Launch plans on doubling it's employee numbers to 100 in preparation for the 2011 launches, even though the company still has not come out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Even more interesting is whether Long Beach will continue to have a Sea Launch presence; there is a secondary land-based launch platform based in Kazakhstan.  The thinking is that with majority ownership being transferred to a Russian company, and because the rockets themselves are assembled in the Ukraine, Sea Launch could abandon Long Beach and its Pacific Ocean operations and just use the Kazakhstan facility for future launches.

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Crucial Boeing talent soon to retire

Interesting article from the Seattle Everett Herald regarding Boeing's Technical Fellowship Program, which is essentially the braintrust and cream-of-the-crop of Boeing engineering.  Formed in 1989, it was designed for those Boeing engineers and scientists who were not seeking management positions.  Currently the program comprises less than 5% of the company's engineers and scientists, while 56% are 50 years or older, with the minimum retirement age set at 55.  Suffice it to say, there could be a potential of high-level talent leaving the company due to retirement.  Combine that with the high amount of outsourced engineering that was incorporated with the 787 (though that's being reigned in somewhat) and the recent tendency to layoff young engineers during Boeing's down times in the industry, and you're looking at a big engineering hole that will eventually need to be filled.  And that can't be done just overnight.  Click below to read more on this topic.

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Production begins on 1st 747-8 Intercontinental

Last weekend, production on the first 747-8 Intercontinental (the passenger version of the revamped 747 model) began at the 747 factory in Everett, WA.  I decided to put together some fun facts regarding the 747-8I, which is expected to start carrying passengers worldwide sometime in late 2011.

News Release

* Length: 250' 2" (18.3' more than the 747-400)
* Wing Span: 224' 7"
* Height: 63' 6"
* Range: 8,000 nautical miles
* Seating: 467 in a 3-class configuration (51 more than the 747-400)
* Powerplant: 4 GEnx-2B engines (maximum thrust of 66,500 lbs.)
* Cruise Speed: Mach 0.85
* Maximum Takeoff Weight: 975,000 lbs.
* 16% more fuel efficient than the 747-400; 11% more than the A380
* 30% smaller noise footprint than the 747-400
* 13% lower seat-mile costs than the 747-400; 6% lower than the A380
* 2% lower trip costs than the 747-400; 21% lower than the A380
* 26% greater cargo volume than the 747-400
* Incorporates 787 technology for additional space and comfort and
  improved lighting
* Launch customer: Deutsche Lufthansa AG (20 firm, 20 options)
* Total orders: 32
* Can operate at any airport that currently serves 747-400 flights
* Uses the same pilot type rating as 747-400
* Scheduled delivery date: Late 2011

RwandAir places order for two 737-800's

On May 6th, Central African airline RwandAir (based in Kigali, Rwanda) announced an order for two Next-Generation 737-800 aircraft, which it will use to expand their network across Africa and the Middle East.

Fedex places order for 4 777 Freighters

On May 6th, delivery giant FedEx announced that it has ordered four 777 Freighter aircraft from Boeing.  It will also acquire an additional two 777 Freighters from other sources.  Combined with this latest order, FedEx now operates 38 total 777F's.

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Photo Credit / CC BY-NC 2.0

U.S. Navy to proceed with multiyear F/A-18 purchase

Everybody loves a good sale on big ticket items: cars, 3-D TV's, airfare.  And when it's an unbelievable too good to pass up deal, chances are you're opening up your wallet to make the purchase.  So when the U.S. Navy was able to wrangle a 10% price cut from Boeing for their F/A-18 Fighter plane, the taxpayers' collective wallets were effectively opened up to proceed with a multi-year deal for 124 of this sophisticated fighter jet.  The contract is worth about $5.3 billion, with the price per plane at around $50 million, well short of the $57 million sticker price.  The duration of the contract will be from 2010-2013, with an option for a 5th year.  Will there be buyer's remorse afterwards?  Not so much for the folks at Boeing's F/A-18 production line in St. Louis, which would now remain open through 2013 if the purchase is approved by Congress.  It also provides a fallback option for the U.S. Navy in case problems arise with their brand new toy, the F-35 Lightning II (built by Lockheed Martin), which is expected to replace the Navy's fleet of older F/A-18's and other jets.  I wonder if Boeing published a coupon in the local Sunday newspaper for 10% off on their F/A-18 fighter...

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Photo Credit / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Qatar Airways to order 4 additional 787's

On May 4th, 2010, Qatar Airways announced that they would be increasing their initial order of 787 Dreamliner aircraft from 2 to 6.  Delivery of their new aircraft is expected to begin September 2011.

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Photo Credit / CC BY-NC 2.0

Angola Airlines places order for two 777-300ER's

On April 29, 2010, Angola Airlines (or TAAG Linhas Aereas de Angola) announced an order for two 777-300ER (Extended Range) aircraft, with purchase rights for an additional two 777-300ER's.  Valued at around $544 million, Angola Airlines (the national flag carrier for that African republic) will utilize the new aircraft for route expansion into Europe.  Currently the airline operates 10 777-200ER aircraft.

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Photo Credit / CC BY-NC 2.0

United & Continental to merge

Yesterday, the aviation industry was stunned when it was announced that an all-stock merger between United Airlines and Continental Airlines was agreed upon, which would make it the world's largest airline.  The $3 billion merger (which took only three weeks to complete) would result in 10 domestic hubs that serve over 144 million passengers to 370 cities in 59 countries.  The United name will remain, with the new headquarters based in Chicago, but the Continental logo, livery, and colors will still be kept along with Continental's presence in Houston.  Management would be roughly split between the two.  But the deal still faces some potential hurdles.  First, it must pass stringent anti-trust rules, and second, the employee unions from both airlines must agree to the deal.  If everything goes through, the merger could result in more than $2 billion of additional revenue and cost savings.  But for us consumers, this will most likely result in higher fares, with less routes to choose from and more fees.  This is because consolidation would allow both airlines to cut routes and thus reduce seating capacity, which translates to increased fares.  I just hope nothing happens to my hard-earned Continental frequent-flyer miles.

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Proposed names for the new airline: Uninental?  Or how about Continited?