June 21, 2007

Boeing keeping C-17 line going on its own

By Ian Sheppard

Boeing decided on Tuesday that it would shoulder the risk of keeping the C-17 supply chain going for the additional 10 aircraft, which it hopes will be approved in October, at the end of the latest U.S. Government budget process.

Speaking in the aircraft in the static display at the show, Dave Bowman, C-17 program manager, said: “Boeing has decided at its own risk to start work it needs more

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Not dyslexic: dog is his copilot

By Stephen Pope

Fred Furth (the jet-piloting, law-litigating, wine-growing vintner) and his trusty sidekick Brandenburg (a six-year-old Great Dane) planned to blast off at precisely eight this morning for the next leg of their round-the-world odyssey in a Citation Mustang very light jet.

The pair started out at Furth’s Chalk Hill winery in Sonoma County, California, and have worked their way east to P more

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Easy-to-fly AeroQuad uses a coaxial rotor

By Brian Walters

The AN-1 AeroQuad produced in Spain by Aeris Naviter Aeronautical Technologies is on display in the light aircraft static park. The latest in a long line of attempts to produce an easy-to-fly platform that requires minimal training, it comprises a coaxial rotor configuration above which the operator stands to control the vehicle.

The AeroQuad has been designed for use in a wide range o more

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EASA cuts its teeth on the biggest of big birds

By Didier Daoust

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) awarded the Airbus A380, the world’s largest airliner, its official seal of approval just over six months ago last December 12. The certification process for the A380 began in 1998 with France’s DGAC civil aviation authority and continued when EASA assumed responsibility for airworthiness approvals in 2003. The A380 is the first large European aircraft ce more

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Nimbus turns UAV dreams into reality with Metaplane

By Paolo Valpolini

For developers of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), combining sufficient speed, a high payload, maneuverability, low fuel consumption, high endurance and minimum takeoff and landing distances is a dream scenario. Italian company Nimbus is trying to make this proposition a reality with its Metaplane.

At its base in Lombardore, close to Turin, the company started flight tests of the prepro more

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Zodiac readies for Power8 power play

By Jeff Apter

French aerospace equipment maker Zodiac is selling its marine business to boost its aerospace activity. This process may see it taking over one of the three European factories for which Airbus is seeking partnership arrangements under its Power8 reorganization plan. With the same goal in mind, Zodiac has strengthened the family-owned group’s senior management team.

Olivier Zarrouati, wh more

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