April 9, 2018 - No. 028 In This Issue Faced with global warming, aviation aims to turn green Watch NASA's crash-test dummies take a beating to make aviation safer Training program aims to strengthen aviation industry Police using 'drone killers' to disable flying devices in emergency situations Aviation Company Expanding in Alabama Creating 200 New Jobs Lithuanian MRO signs up two new European clients Bombardier and PSA Airlines Extend Heavy Maintenance Agreement Mumbai Airport main runway to be shut for 6 hours Monday, Tuesday Boeing tops Airbus with $12.3b American Air deal for 787s Operators groan over high price of aviation fuel, operational cost What a tool! Elon Musk shows off what SpaceX will use to build BFR spaceship Faced with global warming, aviation aims to turn green Will we someday be able to fly without the guilt of causing environmental damage? A handful of firms and regulators hope that the electric revolution in cars will also take to the skies, helping the industry cope with an expected boom in travel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. "Many people say that we must get rid of air transport because we will never be able to deal with emissions and noise, but this is an outdated approach," said Norwegian Transport Minister Ketil Solvik-Olsen, who recently hosted an aviation conference in Oslo. Norway, the largest oil and gas producer in western Europe, is paradoxically a pioneer in the field of electric transport. The Nordic nation aims for all new vehicle registrations to be zero emission by 2025 and launched a first electric ferry in early 2015. After land and water, the northern kingdom is now turning to the sky with the goal of electrifying all short haul flights in just over 20 years. "In my mind, there is no doubt: by 2040 Norway will be operating totally electric," said Dag Falk- Petersen, head of the country's public airport operator, Avinor. Tesla of the skies? Air transportation's impact on global warming is estimated at around five percent through CO2 emissions and other substances, including nitrogen oxide and water vapour. As the number of air passengers is expected to almost double by 2036 to 7.8 billion per year, according to the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) projections, aviation's impact is on a course to increase substantially if nothing is done. Meanwhile, the airline industry aims to cut its CO2 emissions in half by 2050 from 2005 levels. While the international umbrella group Climate Action Network (CAN) says these goals are unrealistic, some airlines are beginning to look at electric-powered aircraft as an answer. The small regional carrier Wideroe Airlines, operating in Norway's far north, plans to renew its fleet of twin-engine Bombardier Dash 8 planes with electric-powered aircraft by 2030. "Aircraft producers see that they have to do it because otherwise there will be a new Tesla taking their positions," said Falk-Petersen, referring to how the upstart US electric car manufacturer has shaken up the traditional automobile industry. Both of the major manufacturers of large passenger aircraft, Airbus and Boeing, are exploring the viability of electric planes. Airbus aims to develop a hybrid model called E-Fan X, and has teamed up with British engine maker Rolls Royce and German industrial group Siemens. The first flight is planned for 2020. "One of the biggest challenges is electricity storage," Glenn Llewellyn, general manager for electrification at Airbus, told AFP. As with cars, the performance of batteries is a critical element, with the added problem that they are heavier than fuel and carrying them into the air is the most-energy intensive part of the flight. "But at the same time battery technology is probably the technology in the world which has the most investment. So it will evolve," added Llewellyn. 'Any place in the world' Zunum Aero, a start-up partly financed by US aeronautics group Boeing, meanwhile plans to bring a 12-seat hybrid plane to the market by 2022. "The price that we're targeting is very much in line with the current aircraft but the operation cost is just a fraction, it's literally 60 to 70 percent lower than an equivalent aircraft in operation right now," said the startup's founder Matt Knapp. The expected lower operating costs of electric planes, both due to cheap electricity and simpler motors, means that the highly competitive airline industry could end up adopting them quickly. Airbus offered several years ago updated aircraft with 15 percent fuel savings, and as jet fuel is a major cost for airlines, they quickly placed orders for thousands as they tried to get ahead of rivals. The transition to electric could also provide another advantage: they are much quieter, meaning they may win exceptions to restrictions imposed due to noise near residential areas. Combined with the fact that electric planes don't need such long runways, they could be used at some smaller airports close to city centres. Avinor said switching to electric would also help airlines avoid any climate change related penalties that regulators could impose, such as higher taxes and flying restrictions. Norway sees itself as a good test bed for electric planes. "There are a lot of issues to deal with, with icy conditions, with heavy winds," says Widero CEO Stein Nilsen. "But if we can do that here in Norway, I'm certain that this air plane will cope with any conditions in any place in the world." https://phys.org/news/2018-04-global-aviation-aims-green.html Back to Top Watch NASA's crash-test dummies take a beating to make aviation safer NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia recently offered a fascinating peek at its work to make aviation safer for us all, from passengers in airplanes to astronauts in space capsules. A video posted on YouTube explains how the team's work "ranges from next-generation aircraft to water-impact tests that evaluate the splashdown of Orion astronaut crew capsules returning from space." Many of the experiments involve the use of crash-test dummies, similar to the ones used by car safety designers working on ways to improve the protection of a vehicle's occupants in the event of a collision. NASA's dummies are packed with sensors that provide engineers with a slew of data from each impact test. With crash scenarios aplenty, the video clips may not offer the best viewing experience for nervous fliers, but for those interested in the team's work, the brief insight is sure to prove fascinating. "Everything that you want to know about injury occurs anywhere from one-tenth to four-tenths of a second [during impact]," explains Martin Annett, a structural impact dynamics engineer at the Langley Research Center. "We have to be able to capture a lot of data within that time-frame." Annett says that developments in technology mean the instrumentation that records the data "has gotten a lot smaller - you can now put a suite of sensors just in the back of the head and then the data will be stored on a laptop. We can then take a look at that data, evaluate that against injury criteria, [and] compute different injury criteria." The engineer says that when it comes to, say, astronauts, the team can use the data to improve the design of suits and helmets. The latter, for example, places extra weight on the neck and upper body, so keeping helmets light and properly balanced are essential for reducing the chances of injury if an impact occurs at any stage during a mission, particularly when the astronauts return to Earth. One of the clips shows the cross-section of a plane fuselage - complete with the sensor-laden dummy passengers - hitting the ground with great force following a vertical drop. Annett describes the importance of energy-absorbing seats in such a scenario, with tests allowing the team to learn about the likely effect of such an impact on humans. The dummies get battered every which way, but the ongoing research is leading to better designs across the aviation industry, for which anyone who ever leaves the ground in a flying machine (or space capsule) will surely be grateful. https://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/nasa-crash-test-dummies/ Back to Top Training program aims to strengthen aviation industry The Civil Aviation Training Centre (CATC) has completed seven courses in the first three months of the year and says 26 courses will be offered in 2018. CATC director Lim Kao spoke of the centre's program at a medals and awards ceremony to mark the completed courses. He said that in the first semester the centre had been conducting ten courses. These were in human factors, civil aviation indoctrination, basic air traffic control, flight inspection for navigation aids, human resource development, State Secretariat of Civil Aviation orientation, quality management systems, introduction to international air law, safety management systems, and flight operation officers or flight dispatchers. He said the ten courses consisted of 195 trainees who joined the course. Six did not get certificates because they did not meet CATC training requirements. "During the first quarter of the year, we completed seven training courses," he said. Three courses were picked to give certificates to trainees. These were for admin and HR management and development in SSCA, a SSCA orientation program, and basic air traffic control ICAO 051. Jeong Yun Gil, country director of Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) Cambodia, said since CATC was established, Cambodia had been able to cut the costs of sending officials and staff for overseas training. He said SSCA was moving into a phase of potential technological innovation in equipment that would enable it to achieve better results in the future. "KOICA has committed to development cooperation in Cambodia which could help the country alleviate poverty and sustainability improve economic and social outcomes," Mr Jeong said. "We hope that the project effectively contributes to building human and institutional capacity of relevant state authorities and other stakeholders for the ultimate goal of sustainable socioeconomic development of Cambodia," he added. Mr Jeong said that the project for the establishment of CATC in Cambodia was crucial in assisting Cambodia to acquire knowledge and technology necessary to improve its aviation industry. It would also enhance related key sectors such as tourism and transportation, in line with the National Strategic Development Plan 2014-2018. Mao Havannall, SSCA secretary of state, said the air transport industry played a major role in world economic activities, and it remained one of the fastest-growing sectors. He said that due to the growth in civil aviation, human resources should highly focused to cope with the possibility of negative impacts on the industry. Therefore, the role of the CATC was very important to catch up the momentum of aviation growth in Cambodia in the context of the country's economic development. "I believe and hope that CATC continues to provide aviation training and education and reducing our expense for oversea courses training," Mr Havannall said. "It is vital in elevating national capacities to correspond with the advancing aviation sector which is rapidly increasing as a result of tourism, economic expansion, infrastructural development, and interregional activities. "The CATC will provide Cambodia with the ability and mechanism to cultivate aviation human resources while maximising the aviation sector's vital contribution to Cambodia's economic, social growth, and tourism development as well as international and regional cooperation," he said. In 2017, CATC conducted 15 training courses and 273 trainees successfully participated in training. CATC is the kingdom's first centre of its kind. It was officially inaugurated in March 2017 with funding from KOICA. CATC has been in operation since 2016, striving to enhance professional skills in Cambodian civil aviation and establishing an efficient management system for human resources. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50300822/training-program-aims-to-strengthen-aviation-industry/ Back to Top Police using 'drone killers' to disable flying devices in emergency situations Drones have been used for a lot more than making videos and delivering pizzas. They have dropped drugs into prison yards, scouted out illegal border crossings and grounded lifesaving efforts by accidentally wandering into the flight paths of firefighting aircraft. The sky may be the limit for drones, but local law enforcement agencies are looking for a way to bring them back to earth. A new electronic device called a "drone killer" could be the answer. The Oceanside Police Department recently acquired a "drone killer," an electronic device that can disable a drone in the sky and force it back to the ground. Other area law enforcement agencies are considering the technology as a way to rein in unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs. "The purpose is primarily for emergency situations," Oceanside police Lt. Aaron Doyle said last week. "It won't be used when someone complains about a neighbor flying a drone. It's pretty much for a life-or-death situation, to save lives." The need arose in December during northern San Diego County's Lilac fire, which destroyed more than 150 structures and forced thousands of residents to flee their homes. During the blaze, someone sent up a drone that forced aerial firefighting operations to cease for more than an hour to avoid a possible collision. "Shutting down the operations for an hour can be critical to saving lives," Doyle said. "We started looking for options in case it happened again." The search led officers to IXI Technology in Yorba Linda, a company that has been supplying high- tech electronic equipment to the U.S. military for 35 years, and a new device it released in 2017. The company agreed to donate one of the drone killers, worth about $30,000, and made a formal presentation to the Police Department at an Oceanside City Council meeting on March 28. "We are the first law enforcement agency in San Diego County to have this device," Police Chief Frank McCoy said at the meeting. The San Diego County Sheriff's Department also has looked at anti-drone technology and acknowledges a need for the devices, sheriff's Lt. Karen Stubkjaer said in an email. "We currently are not using this type of equipment, but have not ruled it out for future use," she said. "Terrorist organizations are utilizing drones as well as organized narcotic groups. This type of technology may be important in the future to safeguard the county jails, courthouses and communities." The device, which looks like a gun, can be aimed like a rifle or a shotgun at a drone in the air. The 30-degree field of its beam and its range of almost half a mile make the target hard to miss. "In short, it breaks the command and control between the drone and the operator," said Andy Morabe of IXI Technology. The airborne drone, depending on how it is programmed, will do one of three things. It will either return to its "home," which is the place it was launched, hover in place or go straight to the ground and land. The company's anti-drone device was first used by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to protect the 2017 Rose Parade, Morabe said. Since then, it has been used at a number of large public events around Los Angeles. The device can stop almost all of the hundreds of models of remotely controlled aircraft that are available, Morabe said. When a new drone is encountered that the device can't defeat, the anti-drone software will be rewritten to include the new model and an update will be issued within days, he said. Operators can download the update from the internet, just like any new or updated app for a phone or computer. Advancing technology and lower prices have led to a proliferation of drones in recent years, from the small ones with cameras sold online and in department stores, to large ones used by the military to carry weapons. Drones have been used by criminals to drop contraband into prison yards, and by drug cartels to monitor the U.S.-Mexico border, Morabe said. U.S. penitentiaries, the Border Patrol and the military are all interested in the anti-drone technology, he said. Marines at Camp Pendleton trained with the device just last month, according to a story by the Reuters news service. Law enforcement agencies across the United States are rapidly adopting the use of drones. The San Diego County Sheriff's Department became the first law enforcement agency in the county to use drones for surveillance in 2016. The eyes in the sky have assisted in dozens of homicide investigations, SWAT incidents and search-and-rescue missions. The Chula Vista Police Department bought its first two drones this year, and police in Carlsbad and Escondido have said they are interested. The Oceanside Police Department acquired its first drone a few months ago, Doyle said. "It's a great tool to use to find people who are missing," he said, whether it's an Alzheimer's patient who just walked away from home, or a criminal fleeing a crime. The drone has a heat-sensitive infrared camera to help locate people at night. "Right now, we can only fly it during the day," he said. "The program is still in its infancy." Officers are working to become certified by the Federal Aviation Administration and to establish local policies for when drones and the anti-drone device can or should be used. Oceanside's location next to Camp Pendleton, where training frequently causes brush fires, increases the need for a way to control drones during emergencies, Doyle said. The Oceanside City Council gave its initial approval to a drone ordinance Nov. 1 and is still awaiting a final version. That ordinance, when finished later this year, is expected to prohibit drones over occupied schools and some other public places and may require a permit to operate drones in some situations. Police often hear complaints about drones invading people's privacy and in some cases creating a safety hazard. Last year, a drone hit an unsuspecting beachgoer, causing a minor injury, near the Oceanside pier. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-drone-killers-20180407-story.html Back to Top Aviation Company Expanding in Alabama Creating 200 New Jobs BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - An aviation company will create at least 200 new jobs through an expansion in central Alabama. Al.com reports that Stewart Industries International has leased the former Kaiser Aircraft facility adjacent to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport. The company said this week they expect to provide maintenance support to the east coast-based aviation industry. Graham & Co. was first hired in 2014 to market and lease the 1.7 million-square-foot (157.9- million-square-meter) facility and its 180 acres with direct runway access at the airport. The facility was also formerly Alabama Aircraft Industries, which Kaiser Aircraft bought out of bankruptcy in September 2011. "Birmingham is excited to welcome Stewart Industries into our city," Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said in a statement. "Stewart Industries will not only help Birmingham to make a mark in the aviation industry but open the door for hundreds of jobs as well." Stewart Industries International Birmingham president Dale Mullinax said the new facility could employ up to 500 people within a year. "We have reviewed many proposals during the three and one-half years that our facility has been closed, but our objectives have now been met with the arrival of Stewart Industries International," said Doris Sewell, chief executive officer of Kaiser Aircraft Industries. Sewell said Stewart will give hiring preference to former Kaiser Aircraft employees. The company will reinstate Kaiser's former program of training inner city school candidates for the aviation industry. "This type of quality tenant brings renewed aviation activity to this unique facility as well as desirable employment opportunities to our community," said Michael Bell, chairman of the Birmingham Airport Authority board of directors. "It also demonstrates a level of proactive collaboration and leadership by many stakeholders that made this welcomed announcement possible. This is yet another testament that BHM is open for business." https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/alabama/articles/2018-04-07/aviation-company- expanding-in-alabama-creating-200-new-jobs Back to Top Lithuanian MRO signs up two new European clients Lithuania-headquartered FL Technics has further expanded its customer base by landing WOW Air and Corendon Dutch Airlines as its new clients. Lithuanian provider of aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul services (MRO) has recently entered into agreements with Corendon Dutch Airlines for both line and base maintenance services of its small fleet of three aircraft. The Dutch leisure carrier is part of the Corendon Travel Group which started operations under its own AOC in 2011 and flies to destinations in Europe and North Africa. But more importantly, Vilnius-based provider signed up WOW Air, fast-growing Iceland low-cost carrier, for base maintenance services. Last week, WOW Air's first two Airbus A321s came to FL Technics facilities for the base maintenance projects. As a rapidly developing company, operating fleet of fifteen Airbus A320 family aircraft and three A330 wide-bodies, WOW Air is very promising client for FL Technics. Keflavík-based WOW Air is focusing on low-cost transatlantic flying. FL Technics posted a net profit of 5.3 million euros in 2017, attributing the success to, among other things, client diversification. Still at least 30 per cent of the sum came from Russia and the CIS, CEO Zilvinas Lapinskas told Russian Aviation Insider earlier. The company also opened eight new line maintenance stations across the world last year in Germany, Spain, Latvia, Russia and the UK and it now operates in 15 countries. http://www.rusaviainsider.com/lithuanian-maintenance-signs-european-clients/ Back to Top Bombardier and PSA Airlines Extend Heavy Maintenance Agreement Bombardier Commercial Aircraft announced that Bombardier Services Corporation and PSA Airlines of Vandalia, Ohio recently signed a three-year extension to the parties' heavy maintenance agreement. Under this contract, heavy maintenance tasks for the airline's fleet of Bombardier CRJ200, CRJ700 and CRJ900 aircraft will be performed at Bombardier's West Virginia Air Center. Bombardier has conducted heavy maintenance for PSA Airlines since 2005. PSA Airlines, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines Group operates a fleet comprised exclusively of 126 CRJ regional jets. The airline operates the aircraft under the American Eagle regional brand. "PSA has seen tremendous growth over the past four years. We have tripled the size of our fleet and are well underway to our planned fleet of 150 CRJ aircraft. Our confidence in the West Virginia AirCenter simplified our decision to extend our partnership," said Gary Pratt, Vice President, Maintenance and Engineering, PSA Airlines. "Bombardier's expertise and dedicated support in maintaining our fleet of CRJ aircraft provides us with significant value as we work to exceed safety and reliability expectations of our partners, employees, and customers." "We are very proud of this new agreement with PSA Airlines and thank the airline for once again selecting Bombardier to provide heavy maintenance for its fleet," said Todd Young, Vice President and General Manager, Customer Services and Q400 Aircraft Program, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. "This vote of confidence in the service that we are providing underscores the value that our customers are receiving via the Bombardier FlightAdvantage - the portfolio under which we are delivering maintenance, material, support and training services to support the global fleet of Bombardier commercial aircraft." http://aviationtribune.com/airlines/north-america/bombardier-and-psa-airlines-extend-heavy- maintenance-agreement/ Back to Top Mumbai Airport main runway to be shut for 6 hours Monday, Tuesday More than 100 flights to and from Mumbai have already been cancelled due to a runway closure for maintenance. The main runway at the India's second busiest airport is shut for six hourse starting 11 am today and tomorrow. Jet Airways' website shows close to 70 domestic and international flights have been cancelled. A spokesperson for SpiceJet said 18 flights have been cancelled. "The main runway of the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) handled by GVK MIAL, will be un-operational on April 9th and 10th, 2018 between 1100 hrs to 1700 hrs on account of pre- monsoon maintenance activities," said a communication. "Passengers are requested to connect with their respective airlines," it added. The secondary runway will however be operational. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/mumbai-airport- main-runway-to-be-shut-for-6-hours-monday-tuesday/articleshow/63677380.cms Back to Top Boeing tops Airbus with $12.3b American Air deal for 787s Dallas: American Airlines Group Inc ordered 47 Boeing Co 787 Dreamliners for long-range flying, expanding its fleet of the advanced carbon-composite jetliners and dealing a blow to Airbus SE's ambitions to expand its wide-body aircraft sales in the US. In a related move, American cancelled an order for 22 of Airbus' twin-aisle A350 jets, a purchase placed by predecessor carrier US Airways, according to a statement Friday. The Boeing deal is worth a total of $12.3 billion (Dh45 billion) before customary discounts. The move underscores the difficulty that Airbus has faced in the US - the largest aviation market and a Boeing stronghold. The Dreamliner deal marks the second time this year that Boeing has convinced an Airbus wide-body customer in the US to switch to the 787. Hawaiian Airlines, the sole customer for Airbus's A330-800, decided last month to order 10 Dreamliners instead. Adding more of the fuel-efficient Boeing aircraft will allow American to simplify its fleet and shed some of its oldest long-range jets. Bloomberg had first reported March 23 that American had ruled out a competing Airbus bid for the A330neo. "This was a difficult decision between the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350 and A330neo," Robert Isom, American's president, said in the statement. "In the end, our goal to simplify our fleet made the 787 a compelling choice." Profitable With the plan, American will reduce the number of wide-body aircraft types it flies to three from five, reducing maintenance and training costs. American previously said the number of A350s it had ordered was too small for it to operate profitably. It already plans to shed another small fleet of 20 Embraer SA E190 jets. American had delayed taking the A350s in both 2016 and 2017. The deal includes 22 787-8s, the smallest member of the jet family, and 25 of the 787-9 variant - more than doubling American's fleet of Dreamliners, Boeing's most-advanced aircraft. All of the new 787s will be powered with General Electric Co.'s GEnx-1B engines. The 787-8s will begin arriving in 2022, followed a year later by the first of the 787-9s, the carrier said. American will use the planes to replace ageing Boeing 767-300s and, later, its Airbus A330- 300s and the oldest of its Boeing 777-200s. Order Deferral American also deferred delivery of 40 Boeing 737 Max narrow-body planes to between 2025 and 2026. The aircraft originally were to arrive in 2020-2022. The deferral will better match future planned retirements, the carrier said. Airbus has said it has a series of ongoing sales campaigns for the A330neo with more than 100 airlines that currently operate the older version of the plane. The 250-seat A330-800 is on track for its first flight in the middle of this year, with the bigger -900 variant set to enter into service around the same time with launch operator TAP - Air Portugal. http://gulfnews.com/business/aviation/boeing-tops-airbus-with-12-3b-american-air-deal-for-787s- 1.2201354 Back to Top Operators groan over high price of aviation fuel, operational cost Airline operators have expressed concern over the high cost of operating in the country, citing among others the burden of aviation fuel that has left them disadvantaged among international carriers. Aviation fuel, otherwise known as JetA1, currently accounts for between 35 to 40 per cent of the total operational cost of an average airline in the country. And with equally high cost of routine maintenance, personnel, overhead, mandatory charges and taxes among others, the airlines are left with very lean bottom line and in some cases, indebted to regulators and ancillary service providers. Chief Executive Officer of Med-View Airlines PLC, Muneer Bankole, recently lamented the heavy effect of aviation fuel on the total operating cost and profit margin of the airline in 2017. Med-View's audited annual reports and financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017 reported operating cost increased to N30.9 billion from N21.8 billion in 2016. In comparative terms, the fuel is one of the highest among oil producing companies in the world. For instance, the same content is sold for 20 cent (N61) in Saudi Arabia, even as United Arab Emirates has subsidised the price to a competitive average selling rate. Chief Operating Officer of one of the airlines said it costs at least N800,000 to N1million to fuel a Boeing 737 aircraft on a frequency of two landings. He said except the Lagos-Abuja-Lagos route, it is almost impossible to break even on other routes due to high cost of aviation fuel. Marketers of the product have, however, blamed zero refining capacity, coupled with alleged multiple taxes and charges for the high cost of supply. The Guardian learnt that besides the N2.50 the Federal Government charges on each litre of fuel, there are other sundry charges at various airports. "The truth is that there are varying cost elements from the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), in terms of ground rents, access permits for equipment, personal permits for fueling operations and fuel tax itself. All of these are heavy cost elements that are typical of our environment, making the cost higher compare to other African countries. "It is really not the fault of marketers, but the fact that we have to import in the first place and then the issues of multiple charges that we have to push to the end-user," a top marketer said on condition of anonymity. Chief Operating Officer of CITA Petroleum Nigeria Limited, Olasimbo Betiku, added that the jet fuel problem in Nigeria is mainly that of supply. According to him, "We have zero local refining capacity for the product and this is the number one cost-impacting factor. When supply and demand balance is impacted upon, price will increase for the balance to be established, in our elementary economics. "Secondly, importation transactions for jet fuel are dollar-denominated. So, if dollar is scarce, it will definitely impact on our local cost. In addition, our global national infrastructural template; covering roads, ports and pipelines among others, is challenged. Our ports were built when our population was around 55 per cent of the present figure. So are roads and no pipelines to move the product. "All the above extra financial commitments on logistics directly impact cost of the product here. In addition, our industry is dollar-denominated. If our local currency is weak to a dollar, we pay more than other countries with healthier currency to a dollar. This is a factor that will make consumers pay relatively more," Betiku said. https://guardian.ng/news/operators-groan-over-high-price-of-aviation-fuel-operational-cost/ Back to Top What a tool! Elon Musk shows off what SpaceX will use to build BFR spaceship To build a big frickin' spaceship, you need a big frickin' rack to put it on. And SpaceX has the rack. The company's billionaire CEO, Elon Musk, took to Instagram tonight to show off the main-body construction tool - which is analogous to the turning mandrel that Boeing uses as a rack for a 787 composite fuselage while it's being built up from layers of carbon fiber. A Tesla Model 3 electric car is included in the picture to lend a sense of scale: instagram pic For what it's worth, some have speculated that SpaceX's partner for BFR carbon-fiber construction is Janicki Industries, which is headquartered in Sedro-Woolley, Wash. The BFR interplanetary spaceship is the cargo-carrying element of the reusable Big Frickin' Rocket that Musk eventually plans to use as an all-purpose space vehicle - for trips ranging from point-to- point suborbital passenger travel, to orbital satellite deployment, to moon missions, to journeys to Mars and beyond. Last month, Musk said the spaceship is already under construction and should be on track to start short-hop test flights next year. SpaceX's tentative specs suggest the spaceship will be 30 feet in diameter and about 157 feet long. The craft is meant to accommodate about 100 people in 40 cabins when it's configured for Mars trips. Musk said the first, uncrewed BFR cargo mission to the Red Planet could take place as early as 2022. The other main element of the BFR is the booster, which is projected to be even taller than the spaceship. The current design incorporates 31 methane-powered Raptor engines, capable of providing a record-high 11 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. Will SpaceX stick to the schedule for Mars flights? If history is any guide, it'll take longer than Musk expects for the BFR to spread its wings, but as long as he has the wherewithal - and Musk's net worth is currently estimated at $19.6 billion - he'll stick with it. The fact that Musk is showing off his giant tool demonstrates that he's serious. https://www.geekwire.com/2018/tool-elon-musk-shows-off-spacex-will-use-build-mammoth-bfr- spaceship/ Curt Lewis