JULY 25, 2019 - No. 059 In This Issue Heston MRO Moves into Component Services Dassault Aviation advances its next generation Enterprise Platform: 3DEXPERIENCE for all programs GE9X recognized as most powerful jet engine in the world Bombardier's Singapore Service Centre Celebrates Global Express Aircraft Installation Milestone, Development of Expanded Facility Taking Shape Forsyth Tech breaks ground on aviation lab at Smith Reynolds Airport in Winston-Salem Mooney Intros Maintenance Cost Management Plan LHT signs tentative training deal with Saudi aviation academy Senate Confirms Dickson as FAA Administrator Court Overturns NTSB Findings in Falsification Case Threatening storms scrub SpaceX launch Heston MRO Moves into Component Services Australian maintenance provider Heston MRO has expanded its capabilities beyond line maintenance by launching a new component and material services business. The company has ambitions to become a multi-service total technical care provider for airlines and lessors. Its new parts division will begin by focusing on components trading, repair, exchanges and leasing for its customer base across the Australasia and South West Pacific region. The operation will be run from its Brisbane headquarters, which also serves as its main logistics and personnel base. The company will be following customers to different locations in the region for parts stock and placements through a case by case approach, says Jonas Butautis, a partner in parent group Heston Aviation, told Aviation Week. To begin, Heston has focused investment on Boeing 737 new generation parts and materials. In the near future, it plans to expand into Airbus A320 aircraft components along with other aircraft platforms with capabilities in place to scale up services depending on demand. "Adding components and materials services is an organic step towards the strategic goal of becoming a total technical care partner for our customers in Australasian and Pacific Islands region," says Paul Popow, head of components at Heston MRO. Over the next 12 months, the existing parts services will evolve into in-house repair capabilities for the most frequently removed items from an aircraft. According to Heston MRO, this will provide the base for flat rate exchanges, fixed price repairs, and power by the hour services. Later this year, it also plans to achieve certification for engine on-wing technical capabilities so it can offer that services to airlines, leasing companies and OEMs across the region. Heston MRO was announced earlier this year after Aircraft Maintenance Services Australia (AMSA), a former subsidiary of SIA Engineering specializing in line maintenance, was acquired by Heston Aviation in late 2018. The company has line stations at all major Australian airports, including Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide, in addition to its Brisbane base. https://www.mro-network.com/maintenance-repair-overhaul/heston-mro-moves-component- services Back to Top Dassault Aviation advances its next generation Enterprise Platform: 3DEXPERIENCE for all programs Dassault Systèmes announced that Dassault Aviation is using the 3DEXPERIENCE platform to design, develop and produce, as well as manage its value chain for all programs including a new one to continuously innovate and expand the existing Falcon range of business jets. The company can fully control aircraft development, better integrate business processes, improve performance and reduce costs with a platform approach. Dassault Aviation will rely on the "Winning Concept," "Program Excellence," "Co-Design to Target," Ready for Rate," "Build to Operate" and "Keep Them Operating" industry solution experiences based on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. The 3DEXPERIENCE platform incorporates 3D design, analysis, simulation and intelligence applications in a single digital environment that facilitates access to data for all Dassault Aviation departments, from preliminary concept to maintenance. Its teams can reuse knowledge and capitalize on know-how and best practices, as well as more easily collaborate internally and with a global supply chain of hundreds of industrial partners and subcontractors. This marks the next step in Dassault Aviation's digital transformation with the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, which was launched in 2018 to further optimize the company's operations in terms of product and service cycles, quality and costs. "As we move forward with our digital transformation, we are using the 3DEXPERIENCE platform to develop a digital, multi-program approach with easy access to data, especially for program management, procurement and quality processes," said Jean Sass, Chief Digital Officer, Dassault Aviation. "All of our industrial partners will work in collaboration with their customers on one digital platform. Ultimately, this will enable us to provide our customers with new, innovative flying experiences." "The 3DEXPERIENCE platform represents a holistic approach to innovation," said David Ziegler, Vice President Aerospace & Defense Industry, Dassault Systèmes. "It equips Dassault Aviation with integrated technologies and capabilities to connect all the dots from concept to operations, bring real-world data into the virtual world for analysis and action, build powerful, dynamic value networks of suppliers, and coordinate knowledge, know-how and processes to build their future aircraft." Dassault Aviation's Falcon range of aircraft has been one of the market leaders in the wide cabin, long range aircraft segment for 50 years. More than 2,100 Falcons are in service in 90 countries. The next generation Falcon aircraft will build upon the hallmarks of the existing range: low fuel consumption levels, low CO2 emissions, comfort and distance features that address a wide range of travel needs. https://www.designworldonline.com/dassault-aviation-advances-its-next-generation-enterprise- platform-3dexperience-for-all-programs/ Back to Top GE9X recognized as most powerful jet engine in the world GE9X Breaks GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ Title for Thrust The GE9X engine for the Boeing 777X has been recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the the most powerful commercial aircraft jet engine (test performance) after reaching 134,300 lbs of thrust. The record-breaking thrust occurred during an engineering test on November 10, 2017 at GE's outdoor test facility in Peebles, Ohio. Guinness World Records acknowledged the feat earlier this month at a ceremony at GE Aviation's Ohio headquarters as part of the company's 100 year celebration. The GE9X's achievement breaks the record held by GE's GE90-115B engine of 127,900 lbs of thrust, which was set in 2002. David Joyce, president and CEO of GE Aviation said, "The GE9X engine incorporates the most advanced technologies that GE Aviation has developed during the last decade and is the culmination of our commercial engine portfolio renewal. "While we didn't set out to break the thrust world record, we are proud of the engine's performance, which is a testament to our talented employees and partners who design and build outstanding products for our customers." More than 700 GE9X engines are on order with eight customers. The GE9X engine has the largest front fan at 134 inches in diameter, with a composite fan case and 16carbon fiber composite fan blades. Other key features include: a highly efficient 27:1 pressure-ratio high-pressure compressor; a low emissions combustor; and lightweight and durable ceramic matrix composite material used in the combustor and turbine. Last month mechanics from five airlines, Boeing and GE Aviation engineers along with the Federal Aviation Administration took part in an ETOPS (Extended-range Twin-engine Operational Performance Standards) Maintenance Demo at GE Aviation's Peebles Test Operation, Ohio. Using the Boeing 777X AMM (Aircraft Maintenance Manual) and a GE9X development engine, the group followed the AMM procedure line-by-line for the removal and installation of GE9X line replaceable components. The 10-day effort successfully validated the AMM procedures, helping to pave the way for a smooth GE9X entry into service. https://www.aerospacetestinginternational.com/videos/ge9x-recognised-as-most-powerful-jet- engine-in-the-world.html Back to Top Bombardier's Singapore Service Centre Celebrates Global Express Aircraft Installation Milestone, Development of Expanded Facility Taking Shape MONTREAL, July 24, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bombardier announced today that its Service Centre at the Seletar Aerospace Park in Singapore has installed and certified a Lufthansa Technik AG nice HD Cabin Management System (CMS) and SDR Wi-Fi system in a Global Express XRS aircraft, marking the first time a Bombardier business jet in the Asia-Pacific region has achieved such an installation milestone. Installed by the engineering team in Singapore, this achievement was the ideal fit for this undisclosed customer, who wanted to update the existing 10-year-old CMS with the nice HD system on the Global Express aircraft. The CMS milestone comes as the expansion for the Singapore Service Centre is in full development. Announced in February 2019 at a ground-breaking ceremony, the enhancement of the Singapore Service Centre will see the facility more than quadruple its current 100,000 sq. ft. (9,260 m2) footprint to approximately 430,000 sq. ft. (40,000 m2), transforming it into a high-capacity, one- stop-shop super centre, offering customers a full gamut of maintenance, refurbishment and modification services required throughout an aircraft's life, directly on site. Construction is ongoing with the target for its inauguration in 2020. "This achievement underscores the outstanding engineering and maintenance teams that we have at the Singapore Service Centre serving our customers in the Asia-Pacific region," said Jean- Christophe Gallagher, Vice President and General Manager, Customer Experience, Bombardier Business Aircraft. "Since opening in February 2014, the Singapore Centre has established itself as a centre of excellence for all types of retrofits, maintenance procedures and upgrades. With the expansion of this facility, we will continue to provide customers in the Asia-Pacific region with enhanced reliability and service options and create future opportunities to reach more achievements like this one." "This Global Express XRS customer sought a facility that had the ability to take on such an upgrade to enhance the customer experience," said Simon Wayne, General Manager of the Singapore Service Centre. "The passenger control units for the nice HD system fit into the Global's existing locations, which saved the customer time and money." The Singapore Service Centre expansion will introduce exceptional new customer facilities, including a full-service 37,000 sq. ft. (3,500 m2) paint shop, advanced interior finishing capabilities, with key support functions such as training, sales and customer support, and an expanded portfolio of component, repair and overhaul (CR&O) services. It will also offer heavy structural and composite repair capabilities, in addition to a 10,000 sq. ft. (929 m2) integrated parts depot. The Singapore Service Centre can service the full range of Bombardier Global, Challenger and Learjet aircraft including the largest, most luxurious and longest range business jet ever built, the flagship Global 7500 aircraft. About Bombardier With over 68,000 employees, Bombardier is a global leader in the transportation industry, creating innovative and game-changing planes and trains. Our products and services provide world-class transportation experiences that set new standards in passenger comfort, energy efficiency, reliability and safety. Headquartered in Montreal, Canada, Bombardier has production and engineering sites in 28 countries as well as a broad portfolio of products and services for the business aviation, commercial aviation and rail transportation markets. Bombardier shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD). In the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018, Bombardier posted revenues of $16.2 billion US. The company is recognized on the 2019 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World Index. News and information are available at bombardier.com or follow us on Twitter @Bombardier. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/07/24/1887227/0/en/Bombardier-s- Singapore-Service-Centre-Celebrates-Global-Express-Aircraft-Installation-Milestone-Development- of-Expanded-Facility-Taking-Shape.html Back to Top Forsyth Tech breaks ground on aviation lab at Smith Reynolds Airport in Winston-Salem Construction is underway on Forsyth Technical Community College's $16 million aviation facility at Smith Reynolds Airport in Winston-Salem. The community college officially broke ground Wednesday on the Forsyth Technical Community College Mazie S. Woodruff Aviation Technology Lab, which is at 2739 Aviation Drive. "Forsyth Tech is confident that this new aviation lab and the programs that we already have planned as well as exciting new programs that we are exploring that are focused around things like additive manufacturing and emerging technologies like unmanned aircraft .... that they will be drivers for economic growth," said Janet Spriggs, president of Forsyth Tech. This growth will be achieved "by expanding the skilled aviation workforce for our region, preparing students for sustainable career pathways with livable wages and also increasing our ability to attract new and expanding industries to our communities," she said. Forsyth County Board of Commissioners Chairman Dave Plyler called Forsyth Tech a gift that the community has had for years "and it just gets better." "One of the neat things about what's happening today is all these blue hats behind us and all the shovels behind us represent what we're going to have, which is a facility that will work to teach and help coming generations in this county," Plyler said. "It couldn't get any better than that. Most people would give a lot just to have what we are about to take." The lab will be 53,000 square feet with a 12,000-square-foot airframe lab that can house up to eight aircraft. The two-story building will include classrooms and components labs including sheet metal, composite structures from fiberglass to carbon fiber, avionics/electrical, paint, aircraft welding and piston/turbine engines. Two programs of study for associate degrees will be offered at the aviation lab. The Aviation Systems Technology program will provide requirements necessary to become an aviation maintenance technician, and the Aviation Electronics (Avionics) Technology will focus on educating students in the operations, repair and overhaul of general avionics, electrical and electronic systems, practical wiring, navigation, flight management and communications equipment. The aviation lab is to be completed between September and the end of October 2020. Other speakers at the ceremony included Winston-Salem Mayor Pro Tem Vivian Burke, who is the Northeast Ward city council member; Peter Hans, president of the North Carolina Community College System; and Scott Piper, chairman of the Smith Reynolds Airport board. Burke said that the Northeast Ward has been Smith Reynolds Airport's neighbors for years. Then she made a request. Referring to the nearby Carver High School, she asked Spriggs along with members of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School Board to engage in conversations about how to help minority students so that they can land jobs in the aviation industry. Spriggs told Burke, "We are honored to be your partners and your neighbors." She said that Forsyth Tech will continue to be "excellent partners with the school board and with the community." Hans said that aerospace is critical to both the Triad and North Carolina's future. "And it can't happen without a skilled workforce," Hans said. "Those technicians and mechanics are great jobs, great careers. We know that their training - the education they will receive - will make continued growth and prosperity." Piper named several customers at Smith Reynolds Airport that are always finding themselves in need of such workers as aviation technicians, avionics technicians and welders. "I am extremely excited about the potential for aviation and future opportunities provided by this new Forsyth Tech Mazie S. Woodruff Aviation Lab, which will provide the education and training to students to fill the growing needs of jobs and help move aviation forward in this community, in the Triad and in the state." Along with county and city officials, attendees at the ceremony included various Forsyth Tech leaders; representatives for community agencies, the local school board and companies; as well as four generations of the Mazie S. Woodruff family. The aviation lab bears the name of Woodruff, the first African American to serve on the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners, and is part of the Mazie S. Woodruff Center on Lansing Drive. "She worked so hard to try to get young people in the community to have job opportunities and the like," said Robert Woodruff, one of Woodruff's sons. "She would be over the moon to see this." https://www.journalnow.com/news/local/forsyth-tech-breaks-ground-on-aviation-lab-at-smith- reynolds/article_4294d85b-9e43-577f-a694-3914f88a50a4.html Back to Top Mooney Intros Maintenance Cost Management Plan Mooney Aircraft, manufacturer of the turbocharged Acclaim Ultra high-performance single, announced at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh an engine and airframe maintenance cost management offering; a useful load increase initiative; and the return of the company's factory service center, heralding additional aftermarket service programs. Calling the forthcoming maintenance plan "our main announcement," Mooney v-p and CFO Barry Hodkin said the coverage, offered in partnership with Piston Power, will be available for all new and legacy Mooneys, commencing with model-year 2020 deliveries. Its Kerrville, Texas factory service center's return, meanwhile, will enable the company to proceed with long-spoken plans to provide aftermarket factory upgrades, as well as increase Mooney's contact parts production for other OEMs, already on the upswing. The Mooney's useful load is a spec "we do need to improve," Hodkin said in announcing the effort to increase it, which will involve both weight savings and aerodynamic modifications. "A few of those items will get us to a significant increase," he said, but "it won't be overnight." A carbon fiber cowl, representing a potential 17-pound airframe weight reduction, is among the first steps under consideration. Hodkin said the Chinese owned company's investors remain "very supportive" and added that the company notched orders for two Acclaim Ultras notched by early afternoon of the first day of AirVenture. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2019-07-23/mooney-intros- maintenance-cost-management-plan Back to Top LHT signs tentative training deal with Saudi aviation academy Lufthansa Technik Shannon has tentatively agreed to support an effort by the Saudi National Company of Aviation (SNCA) to develop a maintenance training organisation in the kingdom. SNCA says the memorandum of understanding envisions that LHT Shannon's training academy will "explore the viability" of teaching aircraft technicians at a new aviation training centre at King Fahd International airport in Dammam. "It gives us the opportunity to bring global excellence in aviation technician training to our training centre," states SNCA business development director Anthony Miller. The centre - used for training of pilots under a separate partnership with Canadian company CAE - has been established to address a "significant regional shortage in aviation training", says SNCA. LHT Shannon notes that its in-house aviation training academy has since 1990 supplied technicians for its own operations and third-party airlines. "We are looking forward to exploring new opportunities to support the growing needs of the [Saudi Arabia's] aviation sector," states the Irish training provider's business development specialist David Ward. https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/lht-signs-tentative-training-deal-with-saudi-aviatio- 459847/ Back to Top Senate Confirms Dickson as FAA Administrator The U.S. Senate today approved the nomination of Stephen Dickson to a five-year term as FAA administrator by a vote of 52-40. Announced in March, the nomination had received broad industry backing, with leaders characterizing the former Delta Air Lines senior v-p of flight operations and U.S. Air Force F-15 pilot as a champion of safety with deep industry knowledge. However, his nomination remained shrouded in controversy through the confirmation after a complaint came to light alleging that Delta had retaliated after a whistleblower expressed safety concerns. The events detailed in the complaint had occurred while Dickson was in senior management at the airline. However, Dickson was not specifically named as a party to the complaint. The Commerce Committee narrowly approved the nomination along party lines. But it cleared a key hurdle Tuesday afternoon when the Senate voted 52-45 to limit debate. That vote paved the way for a Senate vote on the nomination without fear of a filibuster. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, reiterated her concerns before the procedural vote, saying, "It is clear to me he is not the right person for the safety culture that we need today at the FAA...It is distressing to me that Mr. Dickson advanced out of committee on just a party-line vote. I believe that we should have found consensus on a nominee for the FAA, given all of the concerns the public has about flying safety." Commerce Committee chairman Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), however, has endorsed the nomination, calling Dickson an "excellent nominee." https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2019-07-24/senate-confirms-dickson- faa-administrator Back to Top Court Overturns NTSB Findings in Falsification Case Finding the NTSB did not follow its own precedents, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia overturned a certificate revocation of the Kornitzky Group, which was known as AeroBearings and specialized in the maintenance of jet engine bearings. While ruling favored the company, the Aeronautical Repair Station Association fears it might have been for the wrong reason. The NTSB had revoked Kornitzky's repair station certificate in 2018, backing an emergency order imposed by the FAA. That revocation stemmed from two primary allegations: the company had violated aviation safety regulations by repairing bearings without the necessary technical data and Kornitzky had intentionally falsified maintenance records by recording only the engine bearing inspections without indicating the disassembly and repair work. The FAA had said the company was required to disclose any maintenance affecting the airworthiness of the bearings but had only mentioned "overhauled" in certain return-to-service forms. In a decision released this month, the appeals court upheld that the company performed maintenance without the appropriate technical data but set aside the charge of intentional falsification. "The Board departed from its own precedents when considering whether Kornitzky Group had acted with the requisite knowledge," the appeals court said. COMPLAINTS PROMPT FAA INSPECTIONS Founded by the late Michael Kornitzky and Zev Galel in 2010, the company originally received FAA certification in 2011. In 2016, the FAA had received two complaints about technical data that Kornitzky used, prompting a review by the FAA's Engine Certification Office. The office determined the company's data was not specific enough to support the bearing repair work. A year later, the company was notified that the FAA had incorrectly issued one of the company's ratings surrounding bearing maintenance and that it had 10 days to submit to a reinspection or face suspension. After the follow-up inspection, the FAA determined that the company had exceeded the scope of work permitted by the OEM and issued an emergency certificate revocation, alleging the violation of several maintenance regulations involving intentional falsification and lack of requisite data. An NTSB administrative law judge subsequently found that Kornitzky had violated maintenance regulations because it was unable to produce the required technical data. But the Safety Board judge also rejected the intentional-falsification claim, saying the statements on the required forms were not false when examined alone. The NTSB's administrative law judge decided the appropriate sanction was certificate suspension pending compliance rather than a permanent revocation. Subsequent appeals to the NTSB resulted in the Board affirming the conclusion that Kornitzky had violated the maintenance regulations surrounding the necessary technical data. But in a reversal, the NTSB then backed the FAA's intentional-falsification claim. "The [NTSB] found that Kornitzky Group's selective disclosure of information rendered the [return- to-service] Form 8130-3s false because the company had excluded other information in a way that gave an incomplete and misleading impression of the work it had performed. The Board further found that the company acted with knowledge of that falsity," according to the appeals court, noting the NTSB then decided this warranted certificate revocation. Kornitzky then turned to the U.S. appeals court, arguing that the NTSB acted arbitrarily and capriciously in finding violations of the FAA's maintenance and intentional-falsification regulations. However, the appeals court determined that the NTSB correctly concluded Kornitzy "made a materially false representation by referencing some but not all of its work affecting the bearings' airworthiness." But the NTSB failed to adequately address whether the company acted knowingly, the appeals court added. "Under its own precedent, the Board was required to find that Galel, Kornitzky Group's owner and sole principal, correctly understood the Form 8130-3 requirements but still instructed his company to provide a false response," the appeals court said. "Galel's subjective knowledge, however, was not addressed by the administrative law judge and the Board did not make the required factual finding...In short, the Board identified no evidence that Galel had intentionally disregarded the Form 8130-3 instruction." ARSA RESPONSE ARSA, fearing the NTSB decision could affect other maintenance providers, had filed an amicus brief disputing that the company intentionally falsified information. "During the original proceedings, the inspector agreed there was no false or incorrect information on any of the forms; the entries were simply incomplete" ARSA had argued, adding, "A maintenance release is a certification that the work performed was accomplished correctly; it is not a complete maintenance record." ARSA executive director Sarah MacLeod reiterated that belief in response to the appeals court decision. "In this case, the court may have come to the correct conclusion but for the wrong reason. There was no falsification by omission because the FAA Form 8130-3 is the maintenance release portion of a maintenance record," MacLeod said. "The agency has stated in numerous guidance documents that a single word is enough to describe the work performed." MacLeod added that a maintenance release "does not, and never has, contained the details that the court seemed to think were necessary." Since a repair station is the only maintenance provider that has to provide a "maintenance release," the regulations involving maintenance recordkeeping, CFR 43.9, explains that the return-to-service form is different from a complete maintenance record. "Those nuances got lost in the court case and thus an ignorant decision was rendered that requires the agency to make clear which certificate holder has what responsibilities for creation and retention of maintenance records." https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2019-07-23/court-overturns-ntsb- findings-falsification-case Back to Top Threatening storms scrub SpaceX launch SpaceX called off a Falcon 9 countdown Wednesday due to the threat of lightning from thunderstorms along Florida's Space Coast, pushing back the departure of a cargo mission for the International Space Station until Thursday. But weather conditions are not forecast to be much better Thursday afternoon, when SpaceX has another instantaneous launch window at 6:01:56 p.m. EDT (2201:56 GMT) to send a Dragon cargo craft toward the space station. Widespread thunderstorms streaming southwest-to-northeast across Central Florida brought rain and thunder to Cape Canaveral. Despite a bleak forecast, SpaceX proceeded with the loading of kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants into the two-stage Falcon 9 rocket, with the countdown ticking toward a planned liftoff at 6:24:30 p.m. EDT (2224:30 GMT). Two launch weather rules concerning surface electrical fields and anvil clouds were remained "no go" for launch as the countdown ticked toward zero. SpaceX aborted the countdown at T-minus 30 seconds, and teams kicked off procedures to drain the Falcon 9 of its liquid propellants and set up for another try Thursday. "Hold, hold, hold on Countdown 1," a member of SpaceX's launch team called out on the countdown net at T-minus 30 seconds. "Launch abort script is running," another engineer said. "Please proceed to ... scrub post-static fire procedures." SpaceX hopes for better luck Thursday to begin the company's 18th resupply mission to the International Space Station under a multibillion-dollar contract with NASA. The Dragon cargo capsule is packed with 5,097 pounds (2,312 kilograms) of supplies, equipment and experiments for the station's six-person Expedition 60 crew. But the Air Force's 45th Weather Squadron, which issues launch weather forecasts for space missions departing Cape Canaveral, expects similar conditions Thursday as the spaceport experienced Wednesday afternoon. An updated forecast released Wednesday evening predicts a 70 percent chance of weather conditions preventing launch Thursday. Like Wednesday, the chief weather concerns Thursday will be the potential for storms to violate the anvil cloud, cumulus cloud and lightning rules. For the lightning rule, the Air Force range weather team tracks lightning strikes to ensure no discharges have recently occurred within a 10-mile radius of the launch pad, or within 10 miles of the downrange flight path of the Falcon 9 rocket. The anvil cloud rules address concerns with rocket-triggered lightning. "Those are a little bit more scary to us because it may look like the weather is clear, there may not have been a lightning strike in the past 30 to 45 minutes, but if you send a rocket through that (anvil) cloud, that cloud could still be charged enough to trigger additional lightning strikes," said Will Ulrich, the launch weather officer from the 45th Weather Squadron, during a pre-launch press conference Wednesday morning. If the launch does not get off the ground Thursday, NASA and SpaceX might have to wait up to a week for the next chance to send the Dragon cargo ship toward the International Space Station. The position of the space station in its orbit prevents the Dragon spacecraft from launching on certain days, and a Russian Progress supply ship is due to depart the orbiting complex July 29, setting the stage for the docking of a fresh Progress supply freighter July 31. It typically takes two or three days for a Dragon cargo craft to reach the space station after launch from Cape Canaveral. If the mission is able to blast off today, the SpaceX-owned cargo carrier will arrive at the space station Friday. NASA and SpaceX are looking at finding another launch opportunity amid the busy station traffic. Otherwise, the next launch attempt after Thursday could be as late as Aug. 1, officials said. The resupply mission was previously scheduled to take off July 21, but SpaceX delayed the flight three days after the repair of a liquid oxygen leak on the Falcon 9's first stage last week put launch preparations behind schedule. The Dragon spacecraft's cargo load includes the International Docking Adapter-3, or IDA-3, a mechanism to accommodate linkups with visiting commercial crew capsules owned by Boeing and SpaceX ferrying astronauts to and from the station. NASA paid for the third International Docking Adapter to replace the first IDA unit lost on a SpaceX launch failure in June 2015. SpaceX successfully delivered the second IDA to the station in July 2016, and SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft first used the docking mechanism earlier this year during an unpiloted test flight that docked with the orbiting research outpost. Other items on the Dragon mission include 40 mice to help researchers gauge the impacts of space travel on their immune systems, organs, muscles and bones. NASA is also flying a spacesuit inside the Dragon cargo craft's pressurized compartment for use by astronauts on spacewalks. After a stay of about a month at the space station, the Dragon spacecraft will depart and return to Earth for a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific Ocean, bringing home research specimens for analysis, and another spacesuit for refurbishment. https://spaceflightnow.com/2019/07/24/threatening-storms-scrub-spacex-launch/ Curt Lewis