Sunday, September 26, 2010
Indian Malayalee Pilot Killed in Plane Crash
An Indian Malayalee pilot Abraham Tiju George (25), son of Elathikal George Abraham from Pathanamthitta was killed on Friday night when a small plane crashed in Florida in north Georgia. Tiju was working as a flying instructor in a training school and has been residing in America for three years.
Tiju was an aeronautical engineer from the Hindustan Aviation Academy at Bangalore.
Another person was also killed and a third person seriously injured. According to Miami Herald daily, authorities say a Cessna SkyHawk crashed around 10:45 p.m. Friday near Highway 225 south of Chatsworth. Witnesses say the plane circled before crashing into the ground near a driveway. The injured person was flown to Erlanger Medical Center for treatment.
Resident Barbie Cochran says the plane came through her son's yard and hit some trees while her children were playing hide-and-seek.
Tiju was an aeronautical engineer from the Hindustan Aviation Academy at Bangalore.
Another person was also killed and a third person seriously injured. According to Miami Herald daily, authorities say a Cessna SkyHawk crashed around 10:45 p.m. Friday near Highway 225 south of Chatsworth. Witnesses say the plane circled before crashing into the ground near a driveway. The injured person was flown to Erlanger Medical Center for treatment.
Resident Barbie Cochran says the plane came through her son's yard and hit some trees while her children were playing hide-and-seek.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Airbus A350 XWB the new Aircraft
The design for the new Airbus type started as an improved version of the A330, which became rather difficult to sell since Boeing presented the 787. The airlines wanted a more advanced aircraft and forced Airbus to work harder on the new design. At Farnborough 2006 Airbus even presented an all new design, named 'A350 XWB' (eXtra Wide Body). Airbus officially launched the A350 XWB on 1 December 2006.
Several earlier designs based on the A330 still had the fuselage diameter of the good old A300, which allows a 2-4-2 seating arrangement compared to 3-3-3 seating in the 777 and 787. In Spring 2006, urged by criticism from airlines, Airbus started considering a wider fuselage, a larger wing, more powerful engines, a higher cruise speed and many other changes to satisfy the airlines. This resulted in the A350 XWB, but it means much extra development work and the intended in-service-date for the aircraft has slipped from 2010 to 2013, more than four years behind the scheduled introduction into service of the 787.
Airbus has planned three versions of the new airliner: the A350 XWB-800 carrying around 250 passengers in a three-class configuration, the A350 XWB-900, which accommodates around 300 passengers and the A350 XWB-1000 with about 350 seats.
The Airbus A350 XWB will be substantially more fuel-efficient than the A330 and less noisy. About 60 per cent of the A350 airframe will be built of weight-saving advanced materials like carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) and aluminium lithium alloys. In the A330 this is only 15 per cent. The new aircraft will be the first Airbus product with an all-composite wing. The rear fuselage and the tail cone will be constructed from composites as well. An aluminium lithium alloy is used in the forward and aft sections of the fuselage.
The cabin windows will be larger than on the A330. The cockpit crew rest area will be placed beneath the cockpit. This does not only saves space on the main deck, it is also a security precaution to keep the cockpit completely separated from the rest of the aircraft.
The first airline to sign a letter of intent for the A350 XWB was Singapore Airlines. Several other airlines had ordered earlier versions of the A350. Among them are Eurofly, Air Europa (Spain), Kingfisher Airlines (India), Qatar Airways, TAM (Brazil), US Airways, Finnair and several leasing companies
Several earlier designs based on the A330 still had the fuselage diameter of the good old A300, which allows a 2-4-2 seating arrangement compared to 3-3-3 seating in the 777 and 787. In Spring 2006, urged by criticism from airlines, Airbus started considering a wider fuselage, a larger wing, more powerful engines, a higher cruise speed and many other changes to satisfy the airlines. This resulted in the A350 XWB, but it means much extra development work and the intended in-service-date for the aircraft has slipped from 2010 to 2013, more than four years behind the scheduled introduction into service of the 787.
Airbus has planned three versions of the new airliner: the A350 XWB-800 carrying around 250 passengers in a three-class configuration, the A350 XWB-900, which accommodates around 300 passengers and the A350 XWB-1000 with about 350 seats.
The Airbus A350 XWB will be substantially more fuel-efficient than the A330 and less noisy. About 60 per cent of the A350 airframe will be built of weight-saving advanced materials like carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) and aluminium lithium alloys. In the A330 this is only 15 per cent. The new aircraft will be the first Airbus product with an all-composite wing. The rear fuselage and the tail cone will be constructed from composites as well. An aluminium lithium alloy is used in the forward and aft sections of the fuselage.
The cabin windows will be larger than on the A330. The cockpit crew rest area will be placed beneath the cockpit. This does not only saves space on the main deck, it is also a security precaution to keep the cockpit completely separated from the rest of the aircraft.
The first airline to sign a letter of intent for the A350 XWB was Singapore Airlines. Several other airlines had ordered earlier versions of the A350. Among them are Eurofly, Air Europa (Spain), Kingfisher Airlines (India), Qatar Airways, TAM (Brazil), US Airways, Finnair and several leasing companies
Thursday, June 24, 2010
1200 CFM Engines will be delivered in 2010
CFM, which is jointly owned by General Electric and Snecma, a unit of French aerospace firm Safran, is the sole engine supplier on the best-selling Boeing 737 and also fits engines for Airbus.
The joint venture delivered 1,263 engines in 2009."Deliveries are in line with our forecasts. At this stage of the year, we expect to be able to deliver more than 1,200 CFM engines in 2010," Snecma chief executive Philippe Petitcolin said. "New orders are satisfactory despite the crisis," he added.
Boeing said this month it would increase the production rate on its narrow-body 737 model to 35 planes per month in early 2012. The production rate increase is the second announced for the single-aisle plane this year.
Boeing and its rival Airbus suffered a slump in orders in 2008 and 2009 amid an economic recession. Demand has improved as the economy recovers.
Petitcolin was speaking at a European certification ceremony for the engines which it has helped to develop for Russia's Superjet 100 regional passenger jet built by Sukhoi. Sukhoi has sold about 100 of the twin-engined, 75-95 seat aircraft but Petitcolin said he hoped sales would rise to the equivalent of 400 planes. "We will have done our work properly if we build at least 800 engines on this programme," Petitcolin said.
Deliveries of the Superjet are running about two years behind schedule.
Alexei Fyodorov, head of Russia's government-owned United Aviation Corporation (UAC), last year blamed engine producers for the delay of Russia's first passenger jet project since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Russian officials say the first plane will be delivered by the end of the year, compared with an original target of 2008.
UAC is the owner of Sukhoi -- best known for making fighter jets -- which is developing the Superjet 100 in partnership with shareholder Finmeccanica of Italy.
Snecma and Russia's NPO Saturn are making the Sam146 engines, while France's Thales is involved in avionics. Russian flag carrier Aeroflot is first on the list of buyers.
The joint venture delivered 1,263 engines in 2009."Deliveries are in line with our forecasts. At this stage of the year, we expect to be able to deliver more than 1,200 CFM engines in 2010," Snecma chief executive Philippe Petitcolin said. "New orders are satisfactory despite the crisis," he added.
Boeing said this month it would increase the production rate on its narrow-body 737 model to 35 planes per month in early 2012. The production rate increase is the second announced for the single-aisle plane this year.
Boeing and its rival Airbus suffered a slump in orders in 2008 and 2009 amid an economic recession. Demand has improved as the economy recovers.
Petitcolin was speaking at a European certification ceremony for the engines which it has helped to develop for Russia's Superjet 100 regional passenger jet built by Sukhoi. Sukhoi has sold about 100 of the twin-engined, 75-95 seat aircraft but Petitcolin said he hoped sales would rise to the equivalent of 400 planes. "We will have done our work properly if we build at least 800 engines on this programme," Petitcolin said.
Deliveries of the Superjet are running about two years behind schedule.
Alexei Fyodorov, head of Russia's government-owned United Aviation Corporation (UAC), last year blamed engine producers for the delay of Russia's first passenger jet project since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Russian officials say the first plane will be delivered by the end of the year, compared with an original target of 2008.
UAC is the owner of Sukhoi -- best known for making fighter jets -- which is developing the Superjet 100 in partnership with shareholder Finmeccanica of Italy.
Snecma and Russia's NPO Saturn are making the Sam146 engines, while France's Thales is involved in avionics. Russian flag carrier Aeroflot is first on the list of buyers.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Mid-Air Crash which Claimed the lives of two Teenage Girl Pilots
A mid-air crash which claimed the lives of two Air Training Corps cadets and their RAF instructors was said today to have been caused by the instructors being unaware of the position of the other aircraft.
Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell said the inquiry into the accident near Porthcawl in South Wales last February concluded that 'either the pilots did not see each other, or they did not do so until it was too late'.
It is believed the planes clipped wings before tumbling in flames from the sky during a 20-minute 'air experience' flight from RAF St Athan, Vale of Glamorgan.
He said the RAF inquiry panel found 'the cause of the accident was the controlled flight of both aircraft into the same airspace at the same time as a result of both aircraft captains being unaware of the position and proximity of the other aircraft'.
In a written statement, Mr Rammell said a number of 'contributory, probable and aggravating factors' were identified and the 29 recommendations made by the panel to address them would be implemented 'as soon as practicable'.
Among the recommendations were fitting 'collision warning systems' to the training aircraft.
Cadets Nikkita Walters, 13, and Katie-Jo Davies, 14, who were cousins from Evanstown, near Gilfach Goch in the South Wales valleys, died in the crash.
Their instructors, Hylton Price, 63, from Bridgend, and Andrew Marsh, 24 from Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, were also killed.
Mr Rammell said the purpose of the inquiry was to establish the circumstances of the accident and to learn lessons from it, adding: 'It does not seek to apportion blame.'
He added: 'Our deepest sympathies remain with their families and friends. I know that the RAF community was deeply saddened and shocked by this terrible accident.'
The girls set off for the flight in the Grob Tutor aircraft used by the University of Wales Air Squadron based at the St Athan RAF base near Barry, South Wales.
The RAF Service inquiry said radar showed both were making different turns and heights until crossing above the sand dunes at Kenfig Hill.
Katie-Jo and Nikkita - who had grown up toge
Katie-Jo had joined her cousin in the 1004 Air Training Corps based in Pontypridd, South Wales, just two months earlier and both had put their names down for the taster flight.
Nikkita had been a member of the ATC for eight months and had just passed her first class cadet examinations.
Their parents declined to comment on the inquiry. But earlier the families said: 'Words cannot describe how devastated we are at the loss of our girls. They were much loved and will be so sorely missed.'
Flying Officer Price was a retired wing commander who once flew Tornados and Phantoms and was a member of the RAF voluntary reserves.
Flt Lt Marsh had only been promoted a week before the tragedy and was waiting to start advanced fast jet training at RAF Valley on Anglesey.
An inquest will be held later by Bridgend coroner Phillip Maddox. Mr Rammell said the Ministry of Defence would co-operate fully with the coroner.
Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell said the inquiry into the accident near Porthcawl in South Wales last February concluded that 'either the pilots did not see each other, or they did not do so until it was too late'.
It is believed the planes clipped wings before tumbling in flames from the sky during a 20-minute 'air experience' flight from RAF St Athan, Vale of Glamorgan.
He said the RAF inquiry panel found 'the cause of the accident was the controlled flight of both aircraft into the same airspace at the same time as a result of both aircraft captains being unaware of the position and proximity of the other aircraft'.
In a written statement, Mr Rammell said a number of 'contributory, probable and aggravating factors' were identified and the 29 recommendations made by the panel to address them would be implemented 'as soon as practicable'.
Among the recommendations were fitting 'collision warning systems' to the training aircraft.
Cadets Nikkita Walters, 13, and Katie-Jo Davies, 14, who were cousins from Evanstown, near Gilfach Goch in the South Wales valleys, died in the crash.
Their instructors, Hylton Price, 63, from Bridgend, and Andrew Marsh, 24 from Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, were also killed.
Mr Rammell said the purpose of the inquiry was to establish the circumstances of the accident and to learn lessons from it, adding: 'It does not seek to apportion blame.'
He added: 'Our deepest sympathies remain with their families and friends. I know that the RAF community was deeply saddened and shocked by this terrible accident.'
The girls set off for the flight in the Grob Tutor aircraft used by the University of Wales Air Squadron based at the St Athan RAF base near Barry, South Wales.
The RAF Service inquiry said radar showed both were making different turns and heights until crossing above the sand dunes at Kenfig Hill.
Katie-Jo and Nikkita - who had grown up toge
Katie-Jo had joined her cousin in the 1004 Air Training Corps based in Pontypridd, South Wales, just two months earlier and both had put their names down for the taster flight.
Nikkita had been a member of the ATC for eight months and had just passed her first class cadet examinations.
Their parents declined to comment on the inquiry. But earlier the families said: 'Words cannot describe how devastated we are at the loss of our girls. They were much loved and will be so sorely missed.'
Flying Officer Price was a retired wing commander who once flew Tornados and Phantoms and was a member of the RAF voluntary reserves.
Flt Lt Marsh had only been promoted a week before the tragedy and was waiting to start advanced fast jet training at RAF Valley on Anglesey.
An inquest will be held later by Bridgend coroner Phillip Maddox. Mr Rammell said the Ministry of Defence would co-operate fully with the coroner.
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