TIM ROBINSON, BILL READ and KHALEM CHAPMAN provide a look at some of the most exciting news and highlights from the second trade day at the Paris Air Show 2019.
On Day Two on the Paris Air Show, temperatures soared as electric aviation produced a buzz, NASA looked back to Apollo and forward to Artemis in exploring the Moon, and Boeing received a massive boost for its stricken MAX at the end of the day. Let's take a look at some of the highlights.
Alice leads charge for a Wonderland of clean, green electric flight
In 2019, propeller-powered taildraggers are back.
With the a strong focus on aviation stepping up to meet the environmental challenge at this years show, one of the biggest stories on the second day was an announcement that the worlds first all-electric commuter aircraft, the Eviation Alice had secured its first launch 'customer' in the form of US GA airline Cape Air for an unspecified 'double-digit' number of this 9-seat, 2-pilot eco-efficient aircraft.
Just two years ago at the 2017 Paris Air Show, Eviation was an Israeli start-up, with a small stand, a UAV demonstrator and an intriguing idea – what if you could make an electric King Air-sized aircraft – that would unlock super-cheap point-to-point travel from smaller airfields? Most people visiting would have predicted the company would have folded by the next Le Bourget.
Instead, Eviation is here with its prototype Alice, which according to CEO Omer Bar-Yohay, is set to make its first flight at the end of 2019 or early 2020. Certification is planned for 2021/22. The company has also a range of highly experienced partners and 164 suppliers, including Honeywell (who developed a Part 23 Fly-By-Wire system for the first time) Siemens and MagniX for electric motors and Hartzell for the propellers. Interestingly, Bar-Yohay is keen to offer customers an electric choice – mirroring the keen engine supplier competitions in jet airliners that drive innovation and lower cost.
Key to the Alice's design, says Bar-Yohay, is 'Innovation within regulation' for this aircraft designed from the ground up as an all-electric aircraft. Alice incorporates some clever design ideas. For example thermal management, a challenge in electric aircraft, is turned into a positive by redirecting waste heat into the deicing system. The all-composite aircraft features no traditional radiators or inlets - instead, the wingtip and rear engine cones are made from aluminium and serve as heatsinks. Finally, for those who might worry about those wing-tip propellers and wing-low crosswind landings, Bar-Yohay revealed that the FBW system would allow the propellers to provide differential yaw control, as well as traditional control surfaces.
Eviation sees a potentially giant market of 40,000 GA aircraft worldwide, with around 700 aircraft being replaced each year. In the first phase, Alice and other electric aircraft might replace existing types one for one – but as the ticket prices drop thanks to lower operating costs - this might explode into a wholly new disruptive mode of affordable point to point travel from local airports.
Challenges – of course – remain not only in the certification of this unique electric aircraft but also in range/payload trade-offs. However, the excitement and buzz around Alice and its first launch customer sent a positive message to the wider world that the 'third revolution' of aerospace – electrification - is no longer a vague abstract vision – but a reality that is here and now.
IAG gives 737MAX big vote of confidence with 200-aircraft order
It was a big boost for Boeing and its 737 MAX (Boeing)
With the Boeing 737MAX dominating negative headlines on the first day of the air show, there was a big surprise right at the end of the second day, when International Airlines Group (IAG) announced its intention to buy 200 Boeing 737 MAXs. The two companies signed a letter of intent (LoI) at the show for the deal that is valued at over $24bn. Interestingly, IAG described the deal as a mix of 737-8s and 737-10s in its press release – dropping the 'MAX' from the designation. IAG chief Willie Walsh, who has flown the updated-MCAS 737 MAX simulator himself, said: "We have every confidence in Boeing and expect that the aircraft will make a successful return to service in the coming months".
IAG also announced an order for 14 Airbus A321XLRs. Of these aircraft, eight will go to Iberia and six to Aer Lingus. IAG is the parent company of Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and LEVEL.
Humans on the Moon by 2024?- Go faster and reduce political risk
NASA is looking for international partners to return to the Moon.
With NASA now tasked with landing humans on the Moon by 2024 and a sustained presence by 2028, its Administrator, Jim Bridenstine, outlined the ways in which this ambitious goal can succeed at a media briefing in the US pavilion. Today NASA has a far smaller budget to get to the Moon, a more compressed timeline (five years compared to JFK's decade) and a more complex outcome – a sustained and permanently occupied outpost on another body in the Solar System.
Bridenstine explained that there were two main risks – technical ones which NASA could control and political which were out of its control. He noted that previous US initiatives to re-start human exploration of the Moon (or Mars) had always come unstuck by political risk - in which fickle US domestic politics shape the space agenda, shifting goalposts from different Administrations or Congress loses interest. He argued therefore that counter-intuitively the answer to 'retire this political risk' was to actually go faster and get there – before politicians change their minds again.
Legendary NASA astronauts reflect on Apollo 50 years on
Three Apollo astronauts were in attendance at Le Bourget in the form of NASA’s Apollo 7’s Walter Cunningham, Apollo 15’s Al Worden and Apollo 16’s Charles Duke. The trio were joined by French astronaut Jean-François Clervoy on the Air Lab Stage in Concorde Hall.
In the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s famous first step, the three Apollo astronauts were asked to reflect on the Apollo programme in a panel interview. Out of the trio, Charles Duke was the only astronaut to actually set foot on the lunar surface, with Al Worden staying in the command module and Walter Cunningham being part of the spacecraft tests in low Earth orbit in the years prior. They spoke about the lunar rover, creating the 'Moon Olympics' and what the view is like of the Universe behind the Moon; with Al Worden saying “I lost sight of individual stars, there are so many stars out there, like a million times as many stars as you can see through the atmosphere.”
When asked what kind of advice he would give to an astronaut crew heading to Mars, Charles Duke said: “they’re going to have to be really focused, it’s a long trip, you’ve got to learn to get along with one another and that was true with Apollo… We learned to get along with one another because of the good of the mission.”
Walter Cunningham said the public is “very positive” about heading back to the Moon and onwards to Mars but about the latter, he said: “I think I’m being realistic, it’s going to be a number of decades longer than big people today are talking about going to Mars… When you go to Mars, you’re going to have to find a way to do it, like a whole lot better velocity than you’d be doing if you were going to the Moon.”
He added that “It’s going to cost so much more than it did to go to the Moon and the public and unfortunately government support of manned spaceflight has been falling off over the years, but there has to be a good motivation to do it, you have to be able to get the funding.” He then compared the cost of the Apollo programme which had a budget of $20bn (with cost overruns of $5bn) to go to the moon, which converted with today’s USD value would be roughly $150bn – “it’s going to cost a lot more to develop the technology to go to Mars and we’re not willing to put up that kind of money… Don’t buy into the fact that we’ll be going there in five years.”
Al Worden said “the secret to being a good crew member when going to Mars is patience, lots of patience, lots of perseverance and not getting dispirited because you’re locked up in a very small cage. So I think patience and perseverance will win the day for the Mars crew.”
The astronauts gave an array of spirited and mixed opinions regarding the next phase of human space exploration and agreed it was “logical” to build a base on and around the moon.
Cebu Pacific to debut high-density A330neos
Signing ceremony in the Airbus press centre.
Philippines low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for 16 Airbus A330-900neos, ten A321XLR and five A320neos. The A330neos will be a higher capacity version of the A330-900, with 460 seats in a single class configuration.
Rolls-Royce to acquire Siemens eAircraft propulsion business
Rolls-Royce is accelerating the electrification of aviation with projects like the ACCEL to create a 300mph record-breaking race aircraft. (Rolls-Royce)
Rolls-Royce was also in the news on Tuesday with a significant announcement that it is to acquire the electric and hybrid-electric aerospace propulsion business (eAircraft) of Siemens - boosting its presence in the fast-growing 'third revolution' of electric/hybrid-electric flight. The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of next year, following a period of employee consultation. Based in Germany and Hungary, the eAircraft business employs around 180 specialist electrical designers and engineers who have been developing a range of all-electric and hybrid electric propulsion solutions for the aerospace industry. Rolls-Royce has already worked with the eAircraft on the Airbus E-Fan X demonstrator aircraft project.
Boom counts down to zero-carbon XB-1 test flights in 2020
Boom says its inlet design (seen here on shadowgraph) is 5% more efficient than Concorde's - a remarkable achievement. (Boom Supersonic)
Over at press conference from supersonic start-up Boom Aerospace, CEO Blake Scholl outlined a number of recent milestones as it gets set to fly its XB-1 demonstrator in 2020, after a roll-out in December. Ground testing of the three-engined, two-seat Mach 2.2 demonstrator technology, including CFD, wind-tunnel, engine are now wrapped up.
The XB-1 is, of course, the technology demonstrator for Boom's larger 55-seat Overture supersonic airliner – which is aiming to bring Mach 2.2 supersonic passenger flight back, at the price of a business-class ticket. Scholl says that modern materials and technology means that Overture will have 75% lower operating costs than Concorde, opening up some 500 viable overwater routes that are not reliant on sonic boom restrictions. Modern technology, he explained, now means that supersonic flight can be sustainable – both from an environmental and economic viewpoint.
At the show, Scholl also announced an intriguing new partner - low-carbon fuel specialist Prometheus. It is set to provide the alternative fuel for the XB-1 Baby Boom prototype – making the test flights 'zero-carbon'. Even more excitingly, tests show that this alternative fuel actually gives a 2-3% increase in efficiency - a definite win-win for speed and the environment.
However, while Boom has revealed partners in 3D printing, digital design and cabin design – one significant supplier for Overture still eludes them – an engine manufacturer. Scholl says that Boom is in discussions with a number of engine makers, with solutions that range from higher-risk, higher performance bespoke engines, to lower-risk, lower-performance derivatives. These would be the focus of ongoing talks over "the next months and years" he said.
Whichever engine is eventually chosen for Overture, Scholl is confident that it will not have the same acoustic signature of Concorde's ear-splitting take-offs – saying that as a medium bypass turbofans people living around airports: "wouldn't even know it was flying".
Half a century after Concorde first flew, can Booms Overture SST, scheduled to make its first flight in 2025, usher in an age-of-zero carbon supersonic flight for the masses?
GKN launches new additive manufacturing projects
Meanwhile, GKN Aerospace announced two new £33m additive manufacturing (AM) research programmes (AIRLIFT and DAM) to be conducted in partnership with the University of Sheffield, Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, Autodesk and Siemens Digital Industries Software. AIRLIFT (Additive Industrialisation for Future Technology) is a £19m technology industrialisation programme that uses Industry 4.0 and simulation to enhance laser metal deposition with wire (LMD-w) and powder bed AM technologies. DAM (Developing Design for Additive Manufacturing) is a £14m programme to develop the next generation of design tools and methods for additive manufacturing using a data-driven, material-centric approach. Both programmes will be based out of GKN Aerospace’s new Global Technology Centre in Bristol.
ATR wins 105-aircraft deal from Nordic Air Capital
ATR saw a significant order on the second day. (ATR)
Regional aircraft lessor Nordic Air Capital (NAC) signed a letter of intent for 35 ATR 72-600 turboprops, The deal also includes options for a 35 more -600s and purchase rights for another 35. Deliveries of the initial 35 aircraft are scheduled between 2020 and 2025.
Send a drone to kill a drone
Over at Raytheon, making headlines this week with its mega-merger with UTC, the company briefed reporters of potential answers to the growing problem of small drones - whether they are rogue hobby operators, criminals or terrorist or state-backed weaponised UAVs. The company stressed in defending both civil and military assets from drones, there was no 'one size fits all' solution.
In defending civil infrastructure such as a large airport, Raytheon highlighted its Windshear counter-drone C4I system, which takes in information from existing sensors (eg ATC radars) and dedicated CUAS ones (eg Electro-optic) to provide enhanced situational awareness of the low-level airspace. Once an intruder drone is found, non-kinetic 'effectors' such as RF (radio frequency) or GPS jamming can then be turned on the UAV to safely disable it or ground it.
For militaries seeking to defend forces (eg a FOB) from weaponised drones, more options to take out the UAV come into play in a layered defence that can include non-kinetic and kinetic options such as high-power microwaves (able to defeat drone swarms), missiles such as Stinger or even anti-drone drones such as its Coyote. This tube-launched killer drone, fielded by the US military as a matter of urgency following the rise of airborne IED drones is able to provide UAV defence at range – once the intruder is positively identified as a hostile threat. A new version, the Coyote Blk 2 is faster and able to take on larger drones up to the size of a helicopter.
Aerospace comes together for sustainability
The magnificent seven CTOs - Grazia Vittadini, Airbus; Greg Hyslop, Boeing; Bruno Stoufflet, Dassault Aviation; Eric Ducharme (Chief Engineer, GE Aviation), Paul Stein, Rolls-Royce; Stéphane Cueille, Safran; and Paul Eremenko, UTC.
When seven Chief Technology Officers from different companies stand on a stage together to issue a joint statement, you know that something unusual is about to happen. One of today’s most significant meetings was a joint presentation from seven CTO representing the some of the world’s leading aircraft and engine manufacturers, together with additional representatives from international aviation fuel suppliers, to announce how they are collaborating and sharing approaches to promote the sustainability of aviation.
With ever increasing pressure to control and reduce the effect of aircraft emissions on the environment, the air transport industry is having to face up to the challenge of meeting strict CO2 reduction targets in the future while at the same time responding to demand to increase the number of aircraft in the skies. Well aware of the challenge, the industry has already begun work on developing new solutions, including research into electric and hybrid electric flight, supporting the commercialisation of sustainable alternative aviation fuels, developing new novel airframes, streamlining the air traffic management infrastructure in which aircraft have to operate and developing new designs for both airframes and engines through advanced materials, manufacturing, digitisation and artificial intelligence.
The CTOs’ joint statement declared that: “Aviation connects our world by efficiently and rapidly moving people, opening new economic opportunities and transporting food and goods all over our planet. Aviation promotes global understanding, generating rich cultural exchanges and thereby contributing to peaceful co-existence. At the same time, climate change has become a clear concern for our society. Humanity’s impact on the climate requires action on many fronts. The aviation industry is already taking significant action to protect the planet and will continue to do so.
Aviation contributes to 2% of human-made carbon dioxide emissions. The industry has challenged itself to reduce net CO2 emissions even while demand for air travel and transport grows significantly. Through the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG), the aviation industry became the world’s first industrial sector to set an ambitious target: reduce CO2 emissions to half of 2005 levels by 2050, and to limit the growth of net CO2 emissions by 2020. We are on track to meet those near-term commitments, including the 2019 implementation of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) program as agreed upon by the nations of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).’
Among the comments on the initiative from the CTOs were:
Paul Stein (Rolls-Royce) “We need to emphasise the importance of air travel on the world, those who want to reduce air travel are heading for a darker place.”
Eric Ducharme (GE) – “This is an incredible alignment on sustainable aviation - we’re competing, yet we’re working together.”
Greg Hyslop (Boeing) - “We are facing a daunting task to cut energy consumption by 2050 while also satisfying growing demand. We don’t know yet how this is going to be happen, which is why we’re coming together.”
Paul Eremenko (UTC) - “Creating sustainable aviation is a big problem but is also a fun problem. Although we are facing an exceptional challenge, together we are a big group and we had an array of new technology which I find both energising and electrifying.
Grazia Vittadini (Airbus) – “Our challenge is to master the impact of our own success. We must achieve carbon neutral growth but we cannot do it alone. We need to work together and hand over a better planet to our future generation.”
The co-operation announcement has been welcomed by ADS in the UK whose CE, Paul Everitt, said: “The UK’s aerospace sector is committed to playing its part in achieving the target of net zero carbon emissions. “Today’s statement from the Chief Technology Officers at seven of the world’s leading aerospace manufacturers shows how seriously this challenge is being taken and the vital technological development already underway to achieve it.
Today’s CTO meeting is only the first for the new initiative. According to Paul Stein of Rolls-Royce, the group will meet three times a year and hopes to engage the interest of young people to take up some of the challenges.
PRISMA satellite hyperspectral images released
I can see clearly now. (ASI)
The Italian Space Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana) released the first images of Earth, taken by it’s PRISMA satellite’s hyperspectral sensor, which they say confirms the “outstanding performance” of both PRISMA and its sensor.
The satellite was launched on 22 March 2019 and was developed by a consortium including OHB Italia and Leonardo. It holds the mantle of being the “first European Earth Observation system with innovative hyperspectral optical instrumentation,” which is able to “perform chemical and physical analysis from space,” launched in Europe.
ASI’s PRISMA satellite is being poised to aid the United Nations (UN) in its 2030 sustainable development goals in an effort to protect the environment. In particular it will assist in include the UN’s no hunger, clean water and sanitation, sustainable cities and communities, responsible consumption, protect the planet, life below the water and life on the land goals.
At the Paris Air Show, ASI released some pictures taken over recent weeks by PRISMA’s hyperspectral sensor, which included images of Lake Trasimeno (Italy’s fourth largest lake), Peru, Castel Fusano and Basra. Whilst over these areas, PRISMA was reportedly able to identify and analyse images quickly and with precision. For example, ASI boasts that PRISMA’s hyperspectral sensor measured the turbidity of the entirety of Lake Trasimero in “less than two seconds” and was able to identify clear water and algae.
With its hyperspectral sensor, PRISMA is also able to measure air pollution (whilst seperation it into various types of gas), identify the chemical substances in water and soil, vegetation status and can identify forests at risk of wildfires by measuring the water content and identifying drier areas with higher risk. ASI claims that is all a handful of things PRISMA is capable of and looks forward to conducting more tests on the satellite and its sensor.
Amazon to lease extra freighters
Meanwhile, Amazon announced a partnership with GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) to lease an additional 15 Boeing 737-800 freighters. These will be in addition to the five Boeing 737-800s already leased from GECAS which were announced earlier this year.
Honey, I shrunk the AWACS
Small jet - big mission. (Embraer)
Embraer Defense and Security and ELTA Systems signed a strategic co-operation agreement at the Paris Air Show as they look to introduce the newly announced P600 AEW into the defence aviation market.
The design is based on the airframe of an Embraer Praetor 600 business jet and will incorporate IAI/ ELTA’s 4th-generation Digital Active Electronically-Scanned Array (AESA) radar which will come complete with IFF capabilities.
In the press release, Embraer stated that the “P600 AEW addresses the growing market of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance capabilities for countries that require cost-effective, high-performance and flexible solutions for defense and homeland security missions... Coupled with ELTA’s superior radar technology, the P600 AEW offers the benefits of cutting edge, proven systems and provides capabilities available until only now on much larger platforms.”
Embraer state that its P600 AEW aircraft monitors aerial activity outside ground radar coverage, providing an extended air situational picture and can “perform various missions such as air defence, early warning, command and control, fighter fleet efficiency, territorial defence and maritime surveillance.” Alongside this, the aircraft will be able to be configured with a “full range of AEW&C sensor and control systems” and features a “comprehensive communications suite” allowing for data link and satellite communication capabilities.
Air taxis for 2024 Olympic Games
Will you fly to the Olympics in Paris in 2024 by aerial taxi? (Airbus)
Airbus, Groupe ADP and the RATP Group have signed a partnership to study the integration of flying vehicles into urban transport. The partnership also includes the Paris Iler-de-France region and the French civil aviation authority (DGAC). The aim of the feasibility study is to demonstrate an urban system of VTOL vehicles for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The goal is to integrate design and production, maintenance, flight operations, low-altitude ATM, urban integration and planning, physical and digital infrastructure and passenger interfaces.
Part of the project will be to develop such technological building blocks as electric propulsion and autonomy to comply with both energy and sustainability development requirements. Airbus is already involved in the on-demand air mobility area with such projects as its Voom service based on using helicopters in urban areas and the development of its all-electric Vahana and CityAirbus VTOL vehicle demonstrators. The RATP Group is to focus on solutions which will enable a system of autonomous flying vehicles to be accessible by the largest number of people and be connected with existing transport infrastructure. Group ADP is to focus on the development of a UAM service within the Ile-de-France region through the creation of a network of ‘vertiport’ of take-off and landing platforms. This will include research into how flying vehicles will operate both in flight and on the ground, passenger wayfinding, energy supply and maintenance.
Japan puts its airlifter on show
Kawasaki and the Japanese Ministry of Defense is on show in force at Le Bourget this year, with both the C-2 long-range transport and P-1 maritime patrol aircraft on display at the Paris Air Show 2019.
In terms of performance, the C-2 is powered by two GE Aviation CF6-80C2K1F engines, giving it an operational ceiling of 43,000ft (13,100m) and a maximum cruising speed of between 0.81 and 0.82 Mach. The aircraft’s maximum take-off weight is 141 metric tonnes (311,100lbs) and with a full payload of 36 metric tonnes (79,400lbs), the C-2 has a range of 4,500km (2,400nmi) and with no payload, the aircraft has a total range of 9,800km (5,300nmi). Overall, the aircraft is 43.9m (144ft) long, 44.4m (145.8m) wingspan and is 14.2m (46.7in) high, similar in size to the Airbus A400M.
The aircraft boasts a very spacious cargo compartment, being 15.65m (51ft 4in) long and 4m (13ft) high, this varies slightly forward and aft of the wing rear spar, but only by a matter of inches. When speaking with a Chief Engineer for the C-2, he noted that the aircraft’s cargo compartment is bigger than that of the A400M’s.
As per the aircraft’s mission capabilities, the C-2 is able to conduct airdrop/ paratrooper insertion missions, perform humanitarian missions, air-to-air refuelling and general transport duties, with more capabilities expected to come. The C-2 is able to carry a variety of vehicles comfortably, from a regular Jeep to a medium-sized helicopter, such as the Mitsubishi H-60. The aircraft can also carry 110 additional personnel to its crew, which comprises two pilots and a loadmaster.
When asked about potential exports, the Chief Engineer said that because production of the C-2 is very recent “it’s really hard to export, but now we are thinking to export to countries… It’s really hard to say the countries, but we can export.” With regards to Japanese Air Self-Defense Force deliveries, the Chief Engineer stated that the “air force wants more but they have budget limits,” however he stated that nine aircraft had been produced thus far, with more on the production line. The Chief Engineer did not want to comment on any upcoming variants, such as the secretive ELINT variant which has been sighted lately.
The C-2 is looking set to be featured at future aviation trade shows after this week with both Kawasaki and the Japanese Ministry of Defense both looking to secure an export contract for the type.
Airbus customers trade-up
Saudia has increased its order of neos (Airbus)
AirAsia is to convert 253 existing orders for the Airbus A320neo to the larger A321neo. As a result, AirAsia also becomes the world’s largest customer for the A321neo. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) is to expand an existing order for 35 A320neo Family aircraft to 65 plus 35 options.
D-Day veteran on display
75 years ago - this aircraft led the liberation of France.
When is a Dakota not a Dakota? When it’s a Skytrain. Those of you who missed seeing the multiple Dakotas flying for the 75th anniversary of D-Day might be interested to know that there is also one to be found in the Le Bourget Musee de L’Air. This example - identified by the museum by its US name as a Douglas C-47a Skytrain – is a genuine veteran having taken part in the landings on 6th June 1944 as part of the 81st Troop Carrier Squadron of the 436th Troop Carrier Group – France.
And finally..
Refuel here...
Over that Cobham stand, the aerial refuelling specialists had branched out into flack-to-hack beer refuelling for thirsty aviation journalists needing topping up. A daily tanker trail for qualified media receivers is operating at 15.30 every day on Cobham's stand.
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