March 8, 2021 - No. 18 In This Issue : MAAS Aviation Partners with FL Technics to Create World Class Re-Delivery Center in Kaunas, Lithuania : Manchester aviation firm Aeroco Group acquired in MBO : SkyNet Aviation Launches World’s First Ground-Based Technology Solution to Major Aviation Safety Issue : NBAA, AOPA Raise Concerns about Intentional GPS Jamming : New revisions to penalize flight crews for flaunting health rules : Airlines warn passengers of data breach after aviation tech supplier is hit by cyberattack : Agreement reached to develop SAF at German site : GE nears $30bn deal to merge aircraft-leasing business with AerCap : Converting Plastic into Ultra-Clean Jet Fuel to Reduce CO2 Emissions : Ericsson-powered 5G Unleashes Spot the Robot for Airport Inspection : SpaceX reveals the grand extent of its starport plans in South Texas MAAS Aviation Partners with FL Technics to Create World Class Re-Delivery Center in Kaunas, Lithuania Following a multi-million Euro investment, MAAS Aviation, recognized experts in aircraft painting and exterior coatings, has opened a new purpose-built paint shop at Kaunas Airport (KUN) in Lithuania, adjacent to FL Technics’ MRO facilities. Combining base maintenance, painting and parking/storage in one location is an attractive proposition for leasing companies. It minimizes aircraft ground time which offers economic value and less complexity for lessors. MAAS Aviation’s ultra-modern Lithuanian facility is a twin-bay narrow body paint shop capable of accommodating up to two A321 sized aircraft simultaneously and is the first of its kind in Lithuania. It grows the Company’s global footprint to eleven best-in-class paint shops and increases their overall MRO capacity in Europe by 40%. The 40% increase in MAAS Aviation’s European MRO capacity enables the Company to service more airlines and lessors particularly during peak seasons. The MRO repainting sector is normally cyclical with winter peaks and for many years MAAS has juggled capacity constraints during these periods due to demand from its long-term contracted customers. “Demand for our paint shops has always exceeded supply, so this additional capacity supports our growth ambitions and represents a logical next step for us” says Tim Macdougald, CEO – MAAS Aviation. “Our partnership with FL Technics will enable us to combine services for the benefit of airline and leasing company customers that value technologically and environmentally advanced facilities. Together we can offer an outstanding aircraft asset redelivery center-of-excellence.” “As we are headquartered in Lithuania we are excited to be in a position to help MAAS Aviation launch their brand new facility in Kaunas.“, states Zilvinas Lapinskas, CEO – FL Technics. “Integrations with trusted partners, such as MAAS Aviation, to deliver complex MRO (base maintenance) services, covering nose-to-tail aircraft delivery, painting and remarketing projects is a key focus for us from 2021 onwards“ adds Saulius Bajarunas, COO – FL Technics. In the build up to establishing this new facility MAAS Aviation has experienced a dynamic growth trajectory surpassing 180% over the past six years. In 2015 the Company had three paint shops in two locations and 130 aircraft were painted. In 2021, MAAS has eleven paint shops (three in Hamburg; two in Kaunas; two in Maastricht; one at Fokker Woensdrecht; and three in Mobile, Alabama) and the Company forecasts painting up to 300 aircraft. All MAAS paint shops are operated to OEM standards of performance and it is one of the top three aircraft painting specialist companies worldwide. From a lessor’s perspective, combining painting with the other base maintenance capabilities offered by FL Technics offers a streamlined experience, including the management and co-ordination of aircraft redeliveries which is expected to take on an increased relevance post COVID-19 due to the number of aircraft likely to change operator. Macdougald goes on to say “We consider ourselves to be up there with the best in our industry. We operate well established processes and systems, with in-house expertise in design, project management, fitout & training. We will continue to invest in infrastructure, like we have done in Kaunas, Lithuania, provided the investment can be supported by a credible business case. COVID-19 has not dampened our ambition as we are currently exploring a variety of other expansion opportunities with respected partners which play to our strengths to deliver our world class services across a wider global footprint. The continued growth of MAAS Aviation is a good news story which, let‘s face it, our industry needs in view of what it has been through this past year.” https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/maintenance-providers/mro/press-release/21213287/fl-technics-maas-aviation-partners-with-fl-technics-to-create-world-class-redelivery-center-in-kaunas-lithuania Manchester aviation firm Aeroco Group acquired in MBO The multi-million pound transaction, which comprises Aeroco Group Holdings and its subsidiary companies, including Aeroco Group International Limited, Aeroco Aircraft Engineering Limited, and Aerograph Limited was funded by Frontier Development Capital. Led by the new management owners and supported by its existing team, Aeroco Group will look to continue the growth it has achieved in previous years as well as diversifying its capabilities with new products through its Part 21 manufacturing division and it’s Part 145 maintenance repair provisions. With a new state-of-the-art 40,000 sq ft facility in Stockport, Manchester, Aeroco Group will service new and existing customers throughout Europe, America, the Middle East and Far East. As part of the change of ownership, original founder William Sheil will exit the business, having left a strong foundation for the MBO team to build upon. Tony Lewin, Managing Director at Aeroco, says: “We are delighted to have completed the buyout of the Aeroco Group. Having performed strongly throughout the pandemic, and with new opportunities on the horizon, this is the perfect time to take control of the company to implement our future vision after working together for many years alongside the previous owner. “We look forward to the future of Aeroco, whilst also wishing Mr Sheil well in his retirement.” Jonathan Bird, Chief Executive at Aeroco, says: “We are absolutely thrilled to have completed what has been a long process within a challenging environment and economic climate. We look forward to the start of a new and exciting journey to provide more of the same, with some new and welcomed opportunities in the coming months. "I would also like to express my sincere thanks and appreciation of the hard work carried out by the Aeroco team, and express gratitude and goodwill to the departing Mr Sheil, whilst congratulating him on his life-time’s work. We wish him the very best.” FDC is a leading provider of regional debt funding, dedicated to supporting established SMEs through flexible long-term debt investment. Ondrej Okeke, Investment Director at Frontier Development Capital, says: Aeroco is a thriving UK SME, which is very well-placed for continued growth under the experienced stewardship of Jonathan, Tony and their energetic and highly service-driven team of technicians. “We have been very impressed by the professionalism and innovative approach of the Aeroco team, and we believe they are well-positioned in terms of deep industry knowledge and its expanded manufacturing infrastructure to take the business to the next stage of its development. “With our new Debt Fund in place, FDC continues to build relationships with ambitious teams like this across the UK and deliver fit-for-purpose funding solutions for regional businesses, through flexible long term investment.” Legal advice for the transaction was provided by Butcher & Barlow LLP (for the MBO team), Squire Patton Boggs UK LLP (for FDC), and Gorvins LLP (vendor shareholder). https://www.privateequitywire.co.uk/2021/03/08/296845/manchester-aviation-firm-aeroco-group-acquired-mbo SkyNet Aviation Launches World’s First Ground-Based Technology Solution to Major Aviation Safety Issue SkyNet Aviation, the leading global specialist in mid-size fleet aviation technology solutions, has announced the launch of the world’s first AI-enabled, ground-based technology to provide 24/7 alerts of Wrong Deck Landings (WDL) and Wrong Surface Landings (WSL). Specifically developed for helipad and airport operators, including cluster helipads and remote and unmanned airports, REACH LASAW is an effective and affordable solution to the under-recognized, but potentially life-threatening, safety issue of unscheduled or unannounced aircraft landings. LASAW (Landing, Approach, Surveillance, Warning) provides early warning and detects any aircraft in a landing configuration, tracks its approach and automatically triggers a series of audio and visual alarms to clear a landing site of personnel, equipment or wildlife and prevent damage or injury. The unique technology, developed over several years at SkyNet Aviation’s headquarters in Brisbane, Australia, can: Monitor up to 500 aircraft at up to 1-second intervals in a detection range up to 260 nautical miles/480km Monitor and display all long-range inbound flights Flight planned to the Destination Analyze and detect all other airborne traffic to provide approach warnings up to 10 nautical miles/20km or more pre-landing notification Trigger ground alerts (sirens, strobe lights, automated two-way radio announcements etc) Create Custom No Fly Zones for alarms and recording aircraft details and operator Log all Landing Approach Events, Time on Ground logs with aircraft type and operator information Can also be programmed to ignore known activity, such as training circuit flights “This is a real industry gamechanger,” explains Jon Davis, SkyNet’s founder and CEO. “LASAW will have a major impact on the prevention of this very significant safety issue which is widely recognized - particularly by pilots who operate around platforms in the oil & gas fields, FPSOs and in remote areas - but is not well documented. WSL can also be a problem at any airport and I’m glad to see that for 2021, some key safety organizations are at last recognizing the potential dangers. Until LASAW, there has been no dedicated technology solution available to manage this potential danger. “During the development of this product, we spoke to pilots, landing site operators and safety organizations around the world, all of whom had personal or anecdotal evidence of just how often pilots, for many different reasons, can approach the wrong landing site. It’s not as unusual as you might imagine but not every WDL or WSL is recorded.” Until now, action to try and prevent these occurrences, particularly at offshore platforms, has usually relied on the pilot to visually identify the correct landing zone. Typically, this is aided by Satellite tracking information every 15 seconds. LASAW, using ground-based ADS-B technology, has access to position updates broadcast from aircraft up to twice per second, offering far greater position resolution and high-speed computing algorithms to determine if a potential landing conflict is present. Now airport, rig and FPSO operators can play a major role in averting potentially dangerous situations and make their landing environments safer. One organization which has been trialing LASAW is Devonport Airport, owned by the Tasmanian state government Ports Corporation. The airport wanted pre-landing alerts to provide warnings for ground maintenance teams, such as maintenance, refuellers and baggage services. “Devonport is a progressive regional airport, where safety is a key consideration, and LASAW has been developed specifically for our size of operation,” explains Dave Race, Devonport Airport’s General Manager. “Devonport Airport was part of the early testing and proving phase of the system and since its initial installation, we have provided end-user feedback which Skynet Aviation has incorporated into the system.” For airport operators such as Devonport, the LASAW system now extends to monitoring of long-range inbound flights well beyond LASAW’s detection range and aircraft once airborne from their departure point. LASAW can access the global Aeronautical Fixed Telecommunication Network (AFTN) to display these flights scheduled to arrive at the LASAW destination, no matter the distance. Once within detection range, these aircraft are monitored at up to 1-second intervals. Equally, Departures can be monitored to their completion outside of LASAW’s range. “Providing advanced accurate arrival information for Aerodrome Reporting Officers at key inbound points is proving extremely useful,” explains Race. “In addition we use the system to assist in our verification of aircraft using the airport for billing purposes or account queries. LASAW has added another layer of operational efficiency and safety to our airport operations.” https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/press-release/21213290/skynet-aviation-skynet-aviation-launches-worlds-first-groundbased-technology-solution-to-major-aviation-safety-issue NBAA, AOPA Raise Concerns about Intentional GPS Jamming NBAA and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) are expressing concerns that operators are continuing to face issues with intentional GPS jamming exercises and have asked the U.S Department of Defense (DOD) and FAA to provide an update on efforts to mitigate those instances. In a joint letter to the government agencies, the associations acknowledge the need for the DOD to simulate a loss of GPS for training, maintenance, and support efforts. But, they worry, “the National Airspace System (NAS) has become increasingly reliant on GPS as the primary source of navigation and aircraft system functionality while reducing the ground-based navigational backup infrastructure.” In response to concerns about this dynamic, the RTCA Tactical Operations Committee evaluated the operational impacts of intentional GPS interference and submitted a report in March 2018 with two dozen recommendations to help minimize these events, the associations noted. But the agencies have yet to detail any such efforts to minimize the impacts, they said. “Both the frequency and impacts of these events have continued to grow significantly over the past decade and will continue to proliferate over time.” This is been a problem even with the reduced operations over the past year. “In recent months, operators have continued to report operational impacts and reduced access to airspace and airports resulting from intentional GPS jamming events,” they said. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2021-03-08/nbaa-aopa-raise-concerns-about-intentional-gps-jamming New revisions to penalize flight crews for flaunting health rules Taipei, March 8 (CNA) The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), Taiwan's main aviation regulator, has revised regulations on flight operations to include penalties for violating disease prevention measures while on duty in flight or in a foreign country. The new rules stipulate that cockpit and cabin crews must comply with CAA directives that were devised based on Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) epidemic prevention rules and health guidelines. The rules will remain in effect as long the CECC, convened in January 2020 to manage Taiwan's COVID-19 response, operates. Violations will incur fines of NT$600,000 (US$21,346) to NT$3 million for carriers and NT$60,000 to NT$300,000 for individual flight crew members under the Civil Aviation Act, CAA officials said Monday. There is currently no law that stipulates penalties for health violations by flight crews when they are on duty in flight or have an overnight flight, leaving a loophole in COVID-19 prevention efforts, the officials said. It is also the first time fines for violating epidemic prevention protocols have been written into the Civil Aviation Act, the officials said. To date, the CECC has only put in place quarantine measures for flight crews on flights to foreign countries after their return to Taiwan, with violators facing penalties under the Communicable Disease Control Act. According to the new CAA rules, flight crew members should observe in-flight service protocols, including always wearing a mask and protective gear and using crew-only toilets. They must also room alone and not have any visitors when staying overnight at a foreign destination, with exceptions for approved special needs, according to the CAA. The revised regulations will take effect within the next few days, the CAA said. The new rules also cover other airline personnel such as ground staff and maintenance workers, who are required to follow other health protocols. https://focustaiwan.tw/society/202103080017 Airlines warn passengers of data breach after aviation tech supplier is hit by cyberattack Global aviation industry IT supplier SITA has confirmed it has fallen victim to a cyberattack, with hackers gaining access to personal information of airline passengers. The information technology and communications company, which claims to serve around 90% of the world's airlines, said that a cyberattack on February 24, 2021 led to "data security incident" involving passenger data that was stored on SITA Passenger Service System Inc. servers located at Atlanta, Georgia in the United States. A statement by SITA describes the incident as a "highly sophisticated attack" and said that the company "acted swiftly" to contain the incident, which still remains under investigation by SITA's Security Incident Response Team, alongside external cybersecurity experts. "We recognize that the COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns about security threats, and, at the same time, cyber criminals have become more sophisticated and active," said the SITA statement. Star Alliance airlines including Singapore Airlines, New Zealand Air and Lufthansa have warned passengers about the SITA data breach, while some One World airlines including Malaysia Airlines, Finnair, Japan Airlines and Cathay Pacific have also informed passengers about the cyberattack. South Korean airline JeJu Air has emailed passengers about the incident While SITA hasn't confirmed the exact nature of the information that has been accessed by hackers, a spokesperson told ZDNet that "it does include some personal data of airline passengers". Some airlines have detailed what information was accessed in the attack, stating that frequent flyer data – such as name, tier status and membership number – has been stolen. An email sent to customers of New Zealand Air said that the data breach doesn't contain information on passwords, credit card details, passport information or contact addresses. An exact figure for the number of passengers affected by the breach remains unclear as SITA has yet to publicly comment on the matter, but a report by The Guardian claims that hundreds of thousands of passengers could have had their information stolen. https://www.zdnet.com/article/airlines-warn-passengers-of-data-breach-after-aviation-tech-supplier-is-hit-by-cyberattack/ Agreement reached to develop SAF at German site Gevo and HCS Group have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop and build a renewable hydrocarbon facility. This will be built at HCS Group’s site located in Speyer, Germany, to utilise Gevo’s low-carbon sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) technology. The plan is to produce approximately 60 kMT (22 million gallons per year) of renewable hydrocarbons, advanced renewable fuels, and low-carbon SAF by the end of 2024. The HCS Group's manufacturing centre, operated by the Haltermann Carless brand, is strategically located in the geographical centre of Europe, at the Rhine river and in the vicinity of Frankfurt airport. “This project, developed in technology partnership with Gevo, is a key element of HCS Group’s strategy and our aspiration to be a perpetual pioneer in the area of high-value hydrocarbons, while making a clear contribution to defossilisation and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions,” said Henrik Krüpper, CEO of HCS Group. “We are excited to enable our customers in the aviation, premium fuels and personal care industries with bio-based solutions to meet their sustainability goals. Using our existing infrastructure in Speyer including our new hydrogenation plant allows us to minimise time-to-market, certification and approval processes, and costs for this first-of-its-kind project.” Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber said: “Gevo and HCS Group have a long-standing and productive relationship at supplying products to service existing HCS Group customers with renewable chemicals and high-octane products. Given that history, and the need for SAF in Europe, it made strategic sense to develop a joint project in the EU.” https://biofuels-news.com/news/agreement-reached-to-develop-saf-at-german-site/ GE nears $30bn deal to merge aircraft-leasing business with AerCap Multinational conglomerate General Electric (GE) is reportedly closing in on merging its aircraft-leasing business with aircraft lessor AerCap Holdings. Specific details of the estimated more than $30bn deal are not yet known. The merger is in line with GE chief executive Larry Culp’s strategy to streamline the company’s operations. However, the Wall Street Journal reported that an announcement is likely to be made today, citing people familiar with the development. The Covid-19 pandemic has severely impacted the global aviation industry and is forcing airlines to protect and stabilise their businesses while saving costs. GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) leases passenger aircraft developed by various manufacturers, including Boeing and Airbus, to customers ranging from flagship airlines to start-ups. As of 31 December, the company has assets worth $35.86bn. It owns, services or has 1,650 aircraft on order, according to its website. In 2019, GE agreed to divest its aircraft-financing business for $3.6bn to Apollo Global Management and Athene. Last year, the conglomerate reduced its debt by $16bn and had a total borrowing of $75bn by December. Based in Dublin, Ireland, AerCap owns 939 aircraft and managed 105, according to a regulatory filing. The lessor also has 286 aircraft on order, including jet models such as the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 Max. https://www.aerospace-technology.com/news/ge-aercap-merger-business/ Converting Plastic into Ultra-Clean Jet Fuel to Reduce CO2 Emissions In February 2021, green-energy organization, Clean Planet Energy, revealed its revolutionary technology that will convert non-recyclable plastics into ultra-clean jet fuel. The innovation provides a solution to two significant environmental issues: rapidly rising plastic waste and increasing CO2 emissions in the aviation sector. CO2 Emissions and Plastic Pollution: Two Significant Environmental Threats Global plastic pollution has become a crisis and is one of the world’s most pressing environmental issues. Although many countries in the developed world have ramped up their recycling efforts in recent years, plastic's annual production continues to increase, and many developing countries struggle to implement recycling strategies. Nearly half of all plastics ever made were produced in the last 15 years, representing an increased production rate, which is predicted to continue. The cost to the environment and human health is huge. Around 8 million tons of plastic waste end up in our oceans each year. In addition, the slow degradation of plastic releases microplastics into the environment. Research has shown that microplastics enter the human body via numerous routes and negatively impact our health, with studies linking microplastic exposure to a range of serious illnesses. There is a clear need for new strategies that help recycle large amounts of non-recyclable plastics to help reduce the plastic industry's negative impact. In 2019, the aviation industry was responsible for adding 915 million tons of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. This accounted for 12% of all CO2 emissions attributed to transport and 2-3% of all CO2 emissions. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has set the aviation industry a target of reducing net aviation CO2 emissions by 20% in relation to 2005 levels. While emissions have recently dropped, it is expected that much of this is related to worldwide travel bans implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19 throughout much of 2020. There are concerns carbon emissions will not only bounce back but possibly exceed previous levels. Therefore, there is also a pressing need for more strategies to reduce emissions associated with aviation. Reducing CO2 Emissions by 75% This year, green-energy company, Clean Planet Energy, announced that it had achieved a breakthrough that would significantly impact CO2 emissions in the transport industry. The breakthrough will tackle aviation-related emissions and plastic pollution. The company revealed its ultra-clean jet fuel, known as ‘Clean Planet Air’, that can directly replace the fossil fuel equivalent without updating the aircraft’s technology. Clean Planet Energy claims that its innovative ultra-clean jet fuel reduces CO2 emissions by at least 75% compared with fossil fuels, with the additional environmental benefit of removing thousands of tons of non-recyclable plastics from the environment each year. The company aims to remove more than 1 million tons of plastic waste from the environment annually. The new fuel is just one of its strategies implemented to achieve this goal. Clean Planet Energy is launching ecoPlants, where non-recyclable waste plastics are converted into new products via pyrolysis and oil-upgrading technology. Here, the company will not only produce ultra-clean jet fuel, although it will be the main focus of the project, it will also create petrochemical feedstocks to produce new circular plastics. Further to the significant reduction in CO2 emissions and reducing plastic waste, Clean Planet Energy’s ‘Clean Planet Air’ will also help reduce other dangerous emissions associated with aviation. It claims that ‘Clean Planet Air’ emits 850x less poisonous nitrogen dioxide (NOx) and sulfur oxide (Sox) emissions than fossil-fueled transportation. This is likely to have a significant positive impact on human health, given that exposure to such emissions causes an estimated 9,000 early deaths daily worldwide. While the project's primary goal is to reduce CO2 emissions, it will undoubtedly improve the global plastic-waste crisis by providing a method of recycling plastics that currently cannot be mechanically recycled. Two ecoPlants have already been established at locations in the UK, and four more are currently in development. Clean Planet Energy is also working on its ecoPlant pipeline and is in talks with local authorities across the UK and Europe to establish multiple sites for its ecoPlants to run its operation on a large-scale. Clean Planet Energy’s ‘Clean Planet Air’ will add to its growing repertoire of ultra-clean fuels, with its ultra-clean and zero-sulfur diesel fuel that meets the top EU EN15940 specifications and others that directly substitute fossil fuels in large ships. With the launch of its ultra-clean jet fuel, Clean Planet Energy is now helping to meet the clean fuel needs of automotive, sea, and air transport. https://www.azocleantech.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=1183 Ericsson-powered 5G Unleashes Spot the Robot for Airport Inspection If you flew in or out of Hans Christian Anderson Airport near the Danish city of Odense recently and glanced out the window, you might have seen a four-legged robot called Spot freely patrolling the perimeter fencing and checking for damage. But this was no fairy tale. The robot was real and connected to TDC NET’s Ericsson-powered 5G. The 5G use-case trial was a partnership with the Danish Technological Institute. The trial was one of several 5G use case scenarios developed by the joint Ericsson/TDC NET 5G Innovation Hub in Denmark. The partners have already successfully tested and deployed indoor 5G-powered dedicated industrial network with and deployed indoor 5G-powered dedicated industrial networks with Danish water solutions provider Grundfos. They are also pursuing use cases using TDCs’ commercial 5G network, which was the first in the Nordics to achieve nationwide coverage in December 2020. In collaboration with the Danish Technological Institute, the partners focused on how to unleash Spot – the Institute’s four-legged mobile robot developed by robotic company Boston Dynamics – on TDC NET’s national commercial 5G network. Spot had previously only performed tasks for the institute using Wi-Fi connectivity. This means the connectivity range was limited. Spot’s operator also had to be within 30 meters. By connecting Spot to TDC’s commercial 5G network, the partners literally opened the doors to new use case possibilities for the robot. The fast speed, high bandwidth and extremely low latency of 5G provide the tools to send huge amounts of data securely from the robot across the network and back in real-time over large distances. In theory where the 5G network goes – so too can Spot one day as the robot can navigate uneven terrain, climb stairs and get into small spaces. Complete with 360 sensors, front and rear cameras and space for carrying packages and supplies, robots such as Spot could operate in the field as part of emergency response, rescue or industrial inspection missions. That was the hope of the partners as they teamed up with Hans Christian Anderson Airport and Lorenz Technology to perform perimeter-fencing security checks as a first test case. Airports, ports and many construction sites require several perimeter-fencing checks every day to comply with security and safety directives. Current methods usually involve employees patrolling the perimeter to check for signs of damage. In the 5G trial, deep learning methods were applied so that Spot could examine the perimeter for signs of damage in real-time. Spot navigated the fencing via TDC NET’s Ericsson-powered 5G network. The development of robot technology for fence inspection was supported by the Danish Agency for Education and Research under the Ministry of Education and Research. The trial, which concluded at the end of February, confirmed that Spot can be deployed for use cases beyond Wi-Fi and across a wide area via mobile networks. The trial success gives the green light to innovate new use cases around monitoring, image recognition and video analytics autonomous operations for Spot. Thomas Høiberg Giselsson, senior specialist, Danish Technological Institute, said, “If you want real-time analyses, it is necessary to be able to process data directly on Spot or to be able to efficiently transfer data to a suitable device. Our test showed that by connecting Spot to 5G we have an opportunity to conduct real-time analysis.” Toke Binzer, vice president, TDC NET, said, “The Spot collaboration with the Danish Technological Institute is a great and very concrete example of the possibilities our nationwide 5G network brings. By connecting the well-known technologies such as drones and mobile robots to the faster network, they are able to solve new, more demanding tasks and thus deliver increased value. We are still early in the development, but based on the partnerships we drive together with Ericsson through our joint Innovation Hub, we are well on our way to realizing the potential of 5G.” Niclas Backlund, head of Ericsson Denmark, said, “Industries and enterprises globally are becoming increasingly engaged with the huge benefits that 5G will bring to their indoor production and operations. What this exciting initiative with TDC, the Danish Technological Institute, Hans Christian Anderson Airport and Lorenz Technology highlighted is the power of commercial national 5G networks to transform business and society.” https://www.aviationpros.com/airports/airport-technology/communications/press-release/21213238/ericsson-ericssonpowered-5g-unleashes-spot-the-robot-for-airport-inspection SpaceX reveals the grand extent of its starport plans in South Texas As part of a federal review process for its plans in South Texas, details of SpaceX's proposed spaceport have been made public. They were posted late last week in a public notice from the US Army Corps of engineers, which is soliciting public comments on the changes. Most notably, the new documents include a detailed architectural drawing of the multi-acre site at the southern tip of Texas, along the Gulf of Mexico. The major hardware that exists or will be built includes: Two orbital launch pads, one of which is already under constriction Two suborbital launch pads, one of which already exists Two landing pads, one of which already exists Two structural test stands for Starship and the Super Heavy booster A large "tank farm" to provide ground support equipment for orbital flights A permanent position for the totemic "Starhopper" vehicle at the site's entrance What is striking about this architectural drawing is its compact nature, largely because SpaceX has limited land to work with at the facility and must include stormwater ponds to mitigate against flooding. All of these facilities will be concentrated within a couple dozen acres, which is in stark contrast to more expansive launch sites in Florida at Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. However, SpaceX appears confident that it can control the launch and landing of its vehicles such that any mishaps will not severely damage nearby equipment. This is a non-traditional and possibly risky bet, but SpaceX has always been willing to take risks during development programs in order to move more quickly. All in on Texas These detailed plans also provide more evidence that company founder Elon Musk is all in on Texas for the future of SpaceX. These four launch pads, in conjunction with the acquisition of two oil rigs named Phobos and Deimos, provide some sense of the company's operational capabilities. The plan is likely to conduct launches from South Texas and land vehicles on these modified platforms and to fly Starships on suborbital hops from South Texas to these platforms for orbital launches. This effectively provides the Starship Launch System with four orbital launch pads—and possibly a fifth one should SpaceX continue work on site modifications at Kennedy Space Center. The US Army Corps review is not the only regulatory process underway in South Texas. In addition to satisfying the Army Corps of Engineers, SpaceX is also undergoing an environmental assessment by the Federal Aviation Administration. Since first acquiring the south Texas launch site in 2014, the company's planned scope of activities has grown dramatically, from about 10 Falcon 9 launches a year to launches of the massive Starship vehicle. SpaceX is working to provide the FAA with an updated environmental assessment that the federal agency will then evaluate. Musk has also proposed the incorporation of nearby Boca Chica Village into a new city, called Starbase, Texas. Such a city would need to have at least 201 residents and follow state rules for incorporation. Prior to SpaceX's arrival, the small Boca Chica community consisted of several dozen homes. Somewhat controversially, in recent years, the company has sought to buy out or otherwise remove residents so that it has more control over its nearby launch activities. https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/spacex-reveals-the-grand-extent-of-its-starport-plans-in-south-texas/ Curt Lewis