March 28, 2019 - No. 025 In This Issue Harbour Air and magniX partner to build world's first all-electric airline; seaplanes to ePlanes Allianz Exec: Autonomous Aircraft Technology Will Cause 'Significant Shift' in Liability FAI Technik Adds Collins Tech To Global Express Refurb FAA Turned Over More Safety Work to Boeing Under Pressure to Regulate Drones European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) Approves Security Inspection Technology Global Aerospace Conference Will Showcase Cybersecurity, Robotics And Other Applied Tech Breakthroughs launched in San Antonio MAG Aerospace completes acquisition of Australia firm Encore Aviation German Aerospace Center tests digital communications technologies combined with additional navigation functions for the first time West Star Anchors Down in Chattanooga SpaceX proves higher than necessary safety of Starlink constellation Harbour Air and magniX partner to build world's first all-electric airline; seaplanes to ePlanes Electric aviation technology company magniX and Harbour Air, North America's largest seaplane airline, announced a partnership to transform Harbour Air seaplanes into an all-electric commercial fleet powered by the magni500, a 560 kW (751 shp) all-electric motor that delivers 2,814 N·m of torque. Operating 12 routes between hubs such as Seattle and Vancouver and across the Pacific Northwest, Harbour Air welcomes more than 500,000 passengers on 30,000 commercial flights each year. Through this partnership, both companies are furthering the vision to someday connect communities with clean, efficient and affordable electric air travel. "Harbour Air first demonstrated its commitment to sustainability by becoming the first fully carbon- neutral airline in North America in 2007, through the purchase of carbon offsets. Through our commitment to making a positive impact on people's lives, the communities where we operate and the environment, we are once again pushing the boundaries of aviation by becoming the first aircraft to be powered by electric propulsion. We are excited to bring commercial electric aviation to the Pacific Northwest, turning our seaplanes into ePlanes." -Greg McDougall, founder and CEO of Harbour Air Seaplanes The aviation industry currently contributes 12% of all US carbon emissions and 4.9% globally, all while providing few low-cost, fuel-efficient options for passenger flights under 1,000 miles. By modifying existing Harbour Air planes with all-electric magniX propulsion systems, the partnership will create the world's first completely electric commercial seaplane fleet. A Harbour Air ePlane will have zero reliance on fossil fuels and produce zero emissions. "In 2018, 75% of worldwide airline flights were 1,000 miles or less in range. With magniX's new propulsion systems coupled with emerging battery capabilities, we see tremendous potential for electric aviation to transform this heavily trafficked 'middle mile' range. We're excited to partner with Harbour Air, a forward thinking, like-minded company that is dedicated to bringing environmentally conscious, cost effective air-transport solutions to the West Coast of North America. This partnership will set the standard for the future of commercial aviation operators." -Roei Ganzarski, CEO of magniX The first aircraft to be converted will be the DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver, a six-passenger commercial aircraft used across Harbour Air's route network. Harbour Air and magniX expect to conduct first flight tests of the all-electric aircraft in late 2019. This partnership follows significant milestones for both companies, including the successful testing of magniX's 350 HP all-electric motor and the addition of a Vancouver to Seattle route in Harbour Air's destination roster. https://www.greencarcongress.com/2019/03/20190326-ha.html Back to Top Allianz Exec: Autonomous Aircraft Technology Will Cause 'Significant Shift' in Liability Flying autonomous transportation may not be mainstream yet, but if you believe companies like Uber and Ehang, it's just around the corner. James Van Meter, North American head of aviation at Allianz, said autonomous technology will change many things, not least of which is how insurance liability is assigned. "Today in most aircraft, there's a pilot involved. The operator has a majority of the liability. But as soon as we get into autonomous and semi-autonomous aircraft, just like driverless cars, we could see a significant shift in liability from operator to manufacturer," Van Meter said. Insurance and asset management company Allianz released a report detailing its findings on risks and liability in an industry that has yet to take flight. "The goal is to look at this new technology, that we see as an emerging market and address some of the risk issues we see as forthcoming," Van Meter said. Among the challenges that the report identifies are infrastructure on the ground, air traffic control, vehicle inventory, safety, and regulations. Van Meter called a friendly regulatory environment one of the "big keys" to determining where the technology will ultimately be in use. But most important of all are safety concerns ? and who is responsible when something goes wrong. "Everyone will really need to have insurance and need to be able to cover their risks ? the operational risks, the manufacturing risks," Van Meter said. Likely everyone involved with flying taxis, including the vehicle manufacturer, the operator, and the intermediary ? the Lyfts or Ubers of the flying taxi world ? will need to have some sort of insurance to protect passengers as well as people and property on the ground, Van Meter said. These types of questions may seem premature, but China's Ehang has already begun testing this kind of technology in China. And Uber is preparing to demonstrate its aerial ride-sharing platform, Uber Elevate, as early as 2020 with a goal of having an operational urban air mobility concept by 2023, according to Allianz's report. "I think we are likely to see a drone taxi service operational in the next two years ? outside of the U.S.," Van Meter said. https://cheddar.com/media/allianz Back to Top FAI Technik Adds Collins Tech To Global Express Refurb Germany-based MRO FAI Technik's latest Bombardier Global Express cabin refurbishment project, dubbed Project Pearl, includes Collins Aerospace's latest version of its Venue cabin management and high-definition entertainment system, the unit of FAI Aviation Group announced. "We are very much looking forward to presenting this unique aircraft to the preowned Global Express market in April," said FAI Group founder and chairman Siegfried Axtmann. The five-month project included a complete overhaul of the aircraft's cabin and additions of Venue and Honeywell's Ka-band satellite communications technology, as well as 60-, 120-, and 240- month inspections. Venue delivers HD movies and enhanced digital audio throughout the cabin, as well as other high-resolution content. Collins appointed Nuremberg-based FAI Technik as an authorized dealer for its avionics and electronics in January. German designer Tim Callies, the architect of Project Pearl, is known for his interior work on Airbus Corporate Jets, Boeing Business Jets, and Global Expresses. His latest project includes VIP seating for 12 passengers that incorporates two-tone leather seats and two, three-seat sofas covered in Armani fabric. Other cabin modifications and upgrades encompass new cabinetry, cobalt black metal plating, granite tabletops, and appliances such as a wine cooler, coffee maker, and oven. The aircraft's galley and restroom have heated stone floors. In addition, the refurbished Global Express will have new paint. It is expected to be listed at $10.95 million when it goes on the market next month. Project Pearl is FAI Technik's sixth in-house Global cabin refurbishment project. "FAI Technik continues to stretch the boundaries to extend its remit in MRO and this latest project demonstrates our outstanding capabilities in refurbishing Global Express aircraft," added Axtmann. FAI Technik boasts the largest general aviation hangar complex in Germany, with a 48,438-sq-ft structure complementing two other hangars measuring 21,528 sq ft and 32,292 sq ft at Albrecht Durer International Airport (NUE). https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2019-03-27/fai-technik-adds-collins- tech-global-express-refurb Back to Top FAA Turned Over More Safety Work to Boeing Under Pressure to Regulate Drones The Federal Aviation Administration is handing off certification work to aircraft manufacturers like Boeing because of pressure on the agency to keep up with the rapidly growing drone industry. Officials from the FAA, National Transportation Safety Board, and Department of Transportation will testify before Congress on Wednesday in hearings focused on how the FAA and Boeing have handled the aftermath of two fatal crashes involving the 737 MAX-8 in five months. While there's no direct evidence that the pressure may have hampered the FAA's role in certifying the 737 MAX and the anti-stall system suspected of bringing down the jets, it is clearly one reason that the FAA ceded part of the work to Boeing in 2017 when the agency gave final certification to the MAX. The agency's budget request for that year said its Aviation Safety Office, in charge of certifying aircraft, would need "additional safety staffing to meet growing demands for UAS [unmanned aircraft system] operations, while continuing to expand delegation responsibilities to designees," like Boeing. FAA staff is under unprecedented pressure to meet the demands of a radical change in the way that airspace will be used in the next decade. This pressure is coming at the agency in two urgent waves: First, to produce regulations that will permit short-range drone deliveries in urban areas and second - and far more revolutionary - to clear another layer of airspace for new fleets of electrically powered air taxis, a vision of future mobility being driven by Uber. The FAA's budget request for the 2019 fiscal year indicated a perfect storm of converging leaps in aviation technology: It said it had to accommodate "a spike in unmanned aircraft system (UAS) work, as well as an increase in the level of complexity that some of these projects will bring. "While FAA's staffing plan calls for adding AVS (Aviation Safety Office) personnel in future its fiscal 2019 strategy is to redirect existing resources...These factors are driving the need in the short-term to reprioritize some of the AVS existing resources for certification services and UAS integration." The agency's 2019 budget actually cut funding for the Aviation Safety Office by 1.7 percent. An FAA spokesperson told The Daily Beast that they could not respond in detail to specific questions about the impact of certification and oversight work on unmanned aircraft systems. This included revealing any measure of the increased workload imposed by the introduction of commercial drones - or how those resources have been allocated since 2016. After the two crashes in which 346 people died the certification program of the 737 MAX-8 is under scrutiny by a special Department of Transportation committee. "This review by leading outside experts will determine if improvements can be made to the FAA certification process," Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said. The certification of the MAX-8 was not put under unusual time pressure, as some have suggested. The time from first flight to certification to clear it for delivery to airlines was 394 days. The average time taken to certify previous models of the 737 was 230 days - and changes to those versions, called Next Generation, involved far deeper modifications to the airplane than in the MAX series. https://www.thedailybeast.com/737-max-scandal-faa-turned-over-more-certification-work-to- boeing-under-pressure-to-regulate-drones Back to Top European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) Approves Security Inspection Technology Rapiscan® Systems, a leading global supplier of security inspection technology, today announced that its 920CT checkpoint screening system has achieved C3 approval from the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) under its Common Evaluation Process (CEP) for Explosive Detection Systems for Cabin Baggage (EDSCB). With this approval, passengers may now leave liquids and laptops in their carry-on luggage during the screening process at airport checkpoints that utilize the 920CT system and follow the ECAC standards. Rapiscan's 920CT is equipped with advanced software and detection algorithms that are designed to be upgradeable. With 3D volumetric imaging, the 920CT is superior to 2D systems as it provides improved visualization of potential threats. It has also been engineered to integrate seamlessly with Rapiscan's TRS™ solution to create a more efficient checkpoint experience for passengers and staff. "Achievement of this detection standard demonstrates our commitment to pursuing the highest regulatory approval standards to meet the needs of our customers," said Mal Maginnis, President of Rapiscan Systems. "We look forward to bringing this innovative screening solution to more customers around the world." https://www.eturbonews.com/248505/european-civil-aviation-conference-ecac-approves-security- inspection-technology Back to Top Global Aerospace Conference Will Showcase Cybersecurity, Robotics And Other Applied Tech Breakthroughs Launched In San Antonio SAN ANTONIO, March 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Port San Antonio, the 1,900-acre technology campus and industrial airport located southwest of the city's downtown, is leading efforts to showcase the ways in which locally-developed innovations in digital security, robotics and other applied sciences are transforming how aircraft are maintained, upgraded and modernized around the world. The Port is heading a delegation of businesses and partner organizations to participate in Aviation Week's MRO Americas 2019 convention in Atlanta, Georgia, from April 9 to 11. The event is the world's premiere gathering for technologies that support the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of the global fleets of commercial and military aircraft. The large exhibit showcasing San Antonio's technologies is a partnership between the Port, the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation (SAEDF) and the City of San Antonio's Economic Development Department. The two organizations collaborate with the Port and its customers to provide strategic support to aerospace and other advanced technology companies that locate and expand in the region. San Antonio is one of America's fastest-growing cities and has diverse and mature industry sectors. In addition to being the home of modern aviation, the Alamo City has significant industry clusters driving global innovation in an array of other sectors, including cybersecurity, computing, defense, energy, advanced manufacturing, biosciences and financial services. The Port, which oversees strategic redevelopment of the former Kelly Air Force Base, is leading the regional growth of many of these fields. Over the course of the twentieth century, Kelly was the world's first major platform for aviation maintenance and innovation. Since the base's closure in 2001, the Port has grown and modernized the property as a 21st-century aerospace hub. Today, the campus is home to large operations by Boeing, StandardAero and other industry leaders. The Port has also attracted numerous complementary operations that are driving innovations in the aerospace sector and other mature industries. Of note is the presence of major cybersecurity and robotics / applied technology organizations. The organization is similarly collaborating with other advanced research and educational partners in the region who will also present their work at MRO Americas as they develop innovations in close collaboration with the aerospace industry. At MRO Americas, the Port will highlight its own plans to launch the first phase of an innovation center in the heart of its property. The inaugural facility-spanning over 130,000 square feet-will serve as a strategic site to leverage the region's human capital, industry expertise and expansive capabilities in education. This collaborative space will accelerate the development of new technologies and serve as a showroom to sell those innovations to global markets, particularly in the aviation, energy, defense, manufacturing and biomedical sectors. Components of the first building will include a technology arena, co-working facilities for prototyping and a combination technology museum and industry showroom. (See Tech Port - Connected World, Connected Solutions - Port San Antonio's innovation ecosystem strategic blueprint.) The San Antonio delegation at MRO Americas will also include: * Plus One Robotics - Headquartered at Port San Antonio, the company develops artificial intelligence (AI) software for industrial robots used by logistics and e-commerce operations around the world. Through this innovative technology, the company's clients are able to shift their employees into greater value-added roles as robots are used to complete monotonous tasks such as package sorting, induction or decanting. Plus One has led the industry by developing a system that can be integrated into any brand of existing industrial robot. Unlike traditional robots that can only accomplish a limited range of pre-programmed tasks, units outfitted with Plus One's AI technology can learn and adapt in changing industrial environments-adjusting to situations such as surges in work flows and packages of variable types and sizes that roll down conveyor belts in large logistics operations. Reckon Point - Also headquartered at the Port, the company specializes in outfitting robots with sensors that allow for high-speed precision mapping of commercial and industrial interiors. This technology has already been deployed to create maps of airport terminals and amenities and can further be integrated into applications used by operators or passengers. Reckon Point's solutions are also utilized by operators of large industrial facilities-including aerospace workshops / hangars and factories-as production lines are reconfigured. * Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) - The globally-renowned applied research nonprofit will showcase new solutions it is developing that allow for the rapid and environmentally-sound de-painting of an aircraft's exterior. The technology consists of large industrial robots outfitted with lasers that remove paint with micron-precision accuracy-a method that does not rely on traditional chemical solvents and which significantly accelerates the speed with which aircraft are re-painted as operators such as airlines re-brand their fleet and when aircraft are sold between operators. * Booz Allen Hamilton - The Virginia-based management and information technology organization has had a longstanding presence at the Port and throughout the region, where they provide cybersecurity and other consultancy services to an array of government clients such as the 24th Air Force Cyber Command headquartered on the Port campus, and the 25th Air Force Intelligence headquartered at Lackland Air Force Base. At MRO Americas, the firm will showcase its aircraft and aircrew virtual reality training products that leverage consumer grade technologies-innovations that create platforms supporting training, information management and operational management. These technologies present highly technical and complex aircraft training concepts that help bridge the gap between the classroom and the physical aircraft. * The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) - As America's top university for numerous cybersecurity specializations, UTSA has fortified its status as a leading center in delivering programs focused on the security of aviation and other critical infrastructure. Two top students will attend the MRO conference to showcase their cybersecurity research innovations. Attendees can experience augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) technology that the students developed aimed at studying and addressing cybersickness-a type of motion sickness that is becoming more prevalent as a growing number of global professions require people to look at three-dimensional graphics, such as flight simulators, for extended periods of time. UTSA also recently launched its National Security and Collaboration Center (NSCC), which advances research, education and workforce development in cybersecurity, data analytics and cloud computing, including projects like those that will be showcased at MRO Americas. The NSCC is building a collaborative ecosystem-of which Port San Antonio is also part-engaging government, industry and academia to address urgent cybersecurity issues across the nation. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-aerospace-conference-will-showcase- cybersecurity-robotics-and-other-applied-tech-breakthroughs-launched-in-san-antonio- 300819068.html Back to Top MAG Aerospace completes acquisition of Australia firm Encore Aviation US-based MAG Aerospace (MAG) has acquired Australian company Encore Aviation and its helicopter maintenance business, marking MAG's first deal this year. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Encore Aviation is a maintenance organisation that supports Australia's general aviation. It provides deployed and homebase engineering and maintenance services to various fixed and rotary wing aviation companies. The company also provides support services to those contracted to Melbourne's National Aerial Firefighting Centre. Since its establishment in 2002, the company has an Australian Maintenance Certificate of Approval. MAG CEO Joe Fluet said: "Encore's location and existing capabilities gives us the essential tools and positioning in a growing Australian market. This acquisition is critical to MAG's planned growth in the Asia-Pacific region." With the acquisition, MAG Australia will increase its commercial potential while supporting its current customer base and the manned and unmanned intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) services in the Asia-Pacific region. Last year, MAG acquired US-based engineering and defence solutions company Ausley Associates and Florida-based airborne special missions systems integration firm North American Surveillance Systems. Founded in 2010, MAG was acquired by New-York based private equity firm New Mountain. The Australian division was established in 2016. The company provides a complete range of ISR services such as operations, training and aviation services to federal, civilian and commercial organisations worldwide. https://www.aerospace-technology.com/news/mag-aerospace-completes-acquisition-of-australia- firm-encore-aviation/ Back to Top German Aerospace Center tests digital communications technologies combined with additional navigation functions for the first time OBERPFAFFENHOFEN, Germany - For eight decades, analog communication between aircraft and air traffic control has been the standard. This month, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) will test a prototype of the new digital aeronautical radio standard LDACS (L-band Digital Aeronautical Communications System). "In principle, LDACS for aviation works in a similar way to mobile radio communications on the ground," explains Michael Schnell, from the DLR Institute of Communications and Navigation in Oberpfaffenhofen, where the new technology has been undergoing development with external partners since 2007. "The ground station corresponds to the mobile phone base station, and the radio in the aircraft corresponds to the smartphone." The new technology, with which pilots and controllers can benefit from improved communications, enables both high-quality voice transmissions and fast data exchange. "The particular challenge was that no new frequencies could be made available for this digital service," explains Christoph Günther, Director of the DLR Institute for Communications and Navigation. "It was thus necessary to develop procedures to enable the operation of this service in parallel with other services in the same frequency band." Related: German Aerospace Center developed de-icing technology using carbon fiber DLR notes that with LDACS, pilots and air traffic controllers will be able to communicate more efficiently and will be able to provide precise locations for the aircraft by determining its distance from at least four ground stations. "If the signals from the GPS or Galileo satellites are unavailable for any reason, the pilots would still be able to find their precise location via LDACS," says Schnell. "This creates an additional margin of safety." While DLR will besting the LDACS equipment soon, the organization said it will take a few years before the technology is adopted. "Once the standard is finalised, manufacturers and airlines will be encouraged to adopt it," explains Michael Schnell. "This should happen by 2022." https://www.intelligent-aerospace.com/articles/2019/03/dlr-ldacs-to-be-tested.html Back to Top West Star Anchors Down in Chattanooga Within months of moving into its expansive addition at its facility Chattanooga Airport in Tennessee (CHA), West Star Aviation already has had a full hangar, backlog of work, new authorizations, and long-range plans for even more growth. West Star opened that expansion late last fall, adding a newly built hangar, paint facilities, and initial backshop and administrative space spanning more than 110,000 sq ft, bringing its total footprint at CHA to more than 175,000 sq ft. Plans for that addition began shortly after West Star moved into Chattanooga. The company laid out a vision to build the site into another major center that could provide an anchor in the Eastern U.S. West Star gained a foothold in the Chattanooga market with its 2015 acquisition of a hangar formerly owned by Jones Management Services Company. Even before West Star was ready to reopen that facility for its MRO operations in early 2016, it already found a need to ensure that a second shift was staffed there. When West Star held its open house that spring, it announced plans to construct another hangar on a 13-acre tract on the opposite side of the airport, along with a paint facility that would rival that at its major Grand Junction, Colorado location. EAST COAST FOOTHOLD For West Star, building a base at the small city on the southeast corner of Tennessee was a key part of its future growth strategy, because it gave the company a presence that could be easily accessed by operators in the East and the South, said Steve Goede, who stepped in as the new general manager of West Star's CHA facility late last fall as the expanded facilities came online. West Star had built up a presence in the West and Mountain regions with its Grand Junction location and has augmented that with satellite locations. In the Midwest, West Star has its major facility in East Alton, Illinois, as well as in Perryville, Missouri. These, too, are augmented with satellite facilities. The MRO chain further has expanded into the Southwest, along with its specialty services, with its acquisitions in recent years of companies including Dallas Aeronautical Services, Avant Aerospace, and Flite Components. CHA offered a chance to build up an East Coast presence. "We have a big customer base coming from the East Coast. They had flown over a lot of our competition to get to [Grand Junction or East Alton]. So Chattanooga was a desirable location. You have Nashville, Knoxville, Huntsville, and Atlanta all within two hours. This location has easy access." Further, it provides a draw for international customers, he added. "Florida is kind of a touching point for international customers to come in for U.S. Customs clearance. Chattanooga is not far away." Local and regional authorities made the location even more attractive to West Star. Goede pointed to strong support from the city of Chattanooga, the state of Tennessee, and the local airport authority. This was critical in the decision because the company previously had had a smaller base in Columbia, South Carolina, but a lack of support from the region caused the company to move out of the area. "Chattanooga is one of the fastest growing airports in the eastern region. And within Tennessee, it was the most developed and brought on the most workforce last year," he added. "There was the vision that Chattanooga is really willing, wanting, and able to work with us. " Along with the strong support for its presence at CHA, another draw was the support for the company to build up the labor force, an effort helped by plans for Volkswagen to also expand in the region. "We kind of piggyback off of each other in a sense is that Volkswagen has a lot of painting need, as do we," Goede said, adding the companies also shared the need for mechanical expertise. "We're both driving a lot of labor into Chattanooga and creating opportunities that have been pretty successful. It's challenging at times. But we've been pretty successful in doing so." This effort has included building partnerships with local schools. One such partnership involving Brainerd High School in Chattanooga provides an internship with a path to repairman certification. The company also is investing by donating aircraft skins, scrap accessory components, wheels and tires, and other parts to schools to spark interest in maintenance among younger people and to help develop skills. With this outreach and other recruitment efforts, West Star has built up an employment base of roughly 140 at CHA, and Goede said the company has been hiring. He added that he could see the base eventually grow into the size of Grand Junction or East Alton, which each support about 450 employees. But the foundation began with the shift of about 20 employees from Columbia to Chattanooga. West Star also shifted initial tools and equipment from Columbia to its new CHA site. The MRO began in the original Jones hangar with a range of capabilities, but initially, the company would "cross-utilize" assets of its other locations for certain work such as those involving avionics, interior, and paint. "We weren't doing full detail or extravagant paint jobs. It was more touch-up," Goede said. "We had the capabilities at other sites, and we had the vision and the direction that we wanted to go down here. So we got our feet wet." That original hangar mostly focused on the midsize and smaller aircraft, such as Hawkers, Citations, and Learjets, but it did accommodate some larger aircraft. That hangar is still in use, primarily for smaller and midsize aircraft. BUILT FOR THE FUTURE Significant to the location was that it had reached an agreement in 2017 with Embraer to become an authorized center for Phenoms, Legacys, and the Lineage over time. This agreement factored into West Star's design considerations as it laid plans for the major expansion. Goede noted that the tail of the Lineage is nearly 34 feet. Few business aviation hangars can accommodate that. As a result, the new facility was designed with a 28-foot-high door, but also with an additional stacked opening, or "tail door" that can go up to 36 feet. The Lineage authorization was formally granted earlier this year, just a few months after the new hangar opened. "The relationship with Embraer is very strong," he said, adding that its presence on the East Coast has led to the authorizations across the OEM's business aviation lines. But the design considerations weren't limited to Embraer aircraft. The new 40,000-sq-ft hangar was designed to accommodate the largest and latest lines of aircraft, he added. The Gulfstream G650 and Bombardier Global 7500, he said, "are visionary planes that require a lot of thought. Those aircraft take up a lot of real estate." They not only require width for the wingspan but like the Lineage, height for the tail, he said, adding all of this was taken into account. "When we went into thinking about the construction of this facility, we're long-term: what's the next business line, what's the next product, what are the OEMs building today and what are they going to release in the future. We want to be ready." The design goes beyond hangar size to tooling and capabilities. West Star is working with OEMs to support maintenance monitoring to efficiently diagnose problems. And while not ready to discuss details, he said, "there are a few things going in the background that we're working on." But he stressed it all comes back to the employees on the floor. "West Star has a huge commitment each year to training," he said, not only for new hires but ongoing education for its technology to keep up with the latest technologies. A jewel of the CHA campus is the 48,000-sq-ft state-of-the-art paint hangar. Based on the paint hangar opened in 2015 at Grand Junction, the CHA facility is built with a downdraft that pulls air directly down and prevents overspray and controls the direction of paint. The facility also uses a cross draft and more environmentally friendly chilled water. While these are not new technologies, the combination of these features "all play into the end product" improving efficiency and workmanship, Goede said. Throughout the facilities are LED lights, which not only are more environmentally friendly but will reduce costs. West Star is continuing to fill out its interior shops with new finish booths, eight new sewing operations, and a sanding downdraft either recently installed or coming shortly. "We're investing pretty heavily into our interior build out. That's an expansion that's currently going on and is going to complement the business very nicely." The company is seeing a steady flow of paint work from major operators-with a backlog that extends for several months-along with completions and refurbs. Like everyone else, West Star CHA is getting substantial inquiries for ADS-B upgrades. And while the shop prefers to bundle work, it also keeps space dedicated for just the ADS-B upgrade. "The backlog is an issue, but today we're not letting anything slip. We're not turning anything away." Another strong area is Wi-Fi upgrades "Everybody wants it and it's kind of an expectation," he said. West Star has been investing in sheet-metal technicians, a specialized expertise that is required for such installations. "It's a very fine art," he said, adding that such experts are not easy to find. "In order to [limit] downtime, we're doing multiple shifts with sheet metal," he said. Goede believes the opening of the newest facilities came at the right time, just as major milestone inspections are kicking in for Bombardier Globals and Embraer Phenoms. "We definitely want to have the capacity and the capability to be the one-stop shop and complete everything on site. " To that end, West uses its own on-site designers and is adding structural and electrical engineers. The location already has numerous authorizations, including from the FAA, Transport Canada, and EASA, among others. In addition, it holds organization designation authorization and designated airworthiness representatives' approvals. Goede expects the site's expansion will continue. The new hangar was built with a second floor that for now is empty, but could provide space for immediate needs that might pop up. "With the needs of our business, oftentimes we need to expand quickly," he said, citing work that materializes for accessories, avionics, interiors, and other back shop requirements. West Star already has 25,000 sq ft of back-shop space in use at the new hangar, but using the second floor could double that space. "Because it's already in place, it's a less costly way to go. Going up is easier than going out, sometimes," he said. The company further sees land development opportunities both north and south of its existing hangars that would provide the ability to double or even triple the space they have now. "There are future plans," Goede said, adding. "Obviously, it's performance-based." https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2019-03-26/west-star-anchors-down- chattanooga Back to Top SpaceX proves higher than necessary safety of Starlink constellation In an electronic filing with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), SpaceX has demonstrated a higher than necessary safety for their Starlink constellation satellites in terms of collision risk with other objects in orbit in the scenario that a Starlink satellite becomes uncontrollable after launch. The filing, in response to FCC questions, reveals SpaceX's upcoming space-based internet project carries a collision risk 2.1 times less likely than the accepted NASA standard. The filing occurred on 13 March 2019 in response to a series of FCC follow-up questions from previous approvals and relates to SpaceX's upcoming deployment of the first batch of Starlink satellites into an initial operational orbit of 550 km. The first Starlinks are expected to launch No Earlier Than (NET) May from Florida aboard one of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets. Initially, the Starlink constellation was to comprise 12,000 satellites in two operational rings. However, SpaceX now plans three operational rings located at altitudes of 350 km, 550 km, and 1,200 km. The first two demo Starlink satellites, Tintin A and Tintin B, were launched on a Falcon 9 in February 2018 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA, as a ride-along payload to the Paz satellite. Spacex First two Starlink global Internet demo satellites deployed The 550 km orbital ring was an addition first confirmed by FCC filings in November 2018. Because this orbital altitude is above numerous Low Earth Orbit satellites and outposts, most notably the International Space Station, the FCC requested updated information on collision risks should one of the 1,584 satellites in the 550 km orbital ring become disabled immediately after orbital insertion. In response, SpaceX provided data demonstrating the statistical unlikelihood of a Starlink satellite being a collision risk or colliding with another object in orbit should it suffer a complete propulsion system failure rendering it incapable of collision-avoidance immediately after separation from the Falcon 9. "Due to SpaceX's decision to minimize risk by using the low injection altitude of 350 km, in the unlikely event any satellites after the initial launch experience immediate failure upon deployment, they would decay to the point of demise very quickly - as little as two weeks to at most eight months depending on the solar cycle," states the FCC filing. After initial injection into a 350 km orbit, the 1,584 Starlinks of the 550 km operational ring will use their Hall-effect thrusters to raise their orbits. Per the documents submitted, SpaceX showed the collision risk of a single uncontrollable Starlink satellite in its stowed configuration in the 550 km ring was 0.000000303 at solar minimum and 0.000000114 at solar maximum. In a deployed configuration, the solar minimum risk decreases to 0.000000274 and the solar maximum risk rises slightly to 0.000000137. So what do those individual Starlink collision risk calculations mean compared to the safety standard the FCC generally accepts? The "prevailing NASA safety standard" is calculated at 0.001 per satellite in terms of risk of collision after the irrecoverable failure of a propulsion system. Thus, a single uncontrollable Starlink satellite's collision risk is less likely by several thousand magnitudes compared to the accepted NASA standard. Moreover, "even assuming a highly unlikely and apocryphal case in which all 1,584 satellites proposed for deployment at 550 kilometers were immediately incapable of maneuvering upon orbital injection, remained in a stowed configuration, and were deorbiting during a period of solar minimum, the aggregate probability of collision would be 1,584 x 0.000000303 = 0.00048 - which is still less than half the 0.001 probability standard established by NASA." In other words, 1,584 of SpaceX's Starlink satellites together carry 2.1 times less of a collision risk than the single-satellite standard of safety as defined by NASA and used by the FCC for safety assessment. Moreover, it is basically impossible for all of the 1,584 Starlink satellites to be deployed in a 550 km orbit to suffer complete system failures as that amount of satellites will not be deployed at a single time. Additionally, should an entire deployment batch of Starlinks suffer a failure, SpaceX would halt future launches until the issue had been resolved. Second generation Starlinks to be completely "demisable": Following discussion of collision risk, the FCC also had follow-up questions regarding the risk to land, sea, and air during a Starlink satellite deorbit and atmospheric reentry. The answers provided confirm that the first generation of Starlink satellites, fewer than 75, will include iron thrusters and steel reaction wheels on all satellites, components that would likely survive atmospheric reentry and make it to the ground or ocean. This in itself is not an issue as numerous satellites and vehicles launched into orbit contain components that can survive atmospheric reentry even without a heat shield. In Starlink's case, the FCC filing confirms that after the 75 first generation satellites, subsequent generations of Starlink satellites will use components that are completely "demisable", that is the entire satellite will completely burn up in Earth's atmosphere during reentry with no component surviving to the ground or ocean. Starlink revisions, Nov 2018 "SpaceX's drive towards complete demisability has led to great strides across the spacecraft such that SpaceX now plans for a fully demisable spacecraft after the initial design version," notes the FCC filing. This type of design completely eliminates potential hazards to people on the ground and reinforces SpaceX's commitment to leave as small a footprint as possible and make the Starlink constellation as safe as possible. https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2019/03/spacex-higher-necessary-safety-starlink-constellation/ Curt Lewis