October 28, 2021 - No. 83 In This Issue : As climate concerns threaten air travel, aviation industry banks on technology solutions : Aviation CTOs Make Joint Sustainability Call : Forsyth Tech opens Aviation Technology lab : Aviation Leaders to Tackle CO2 Emission Challenge : Alaska Air Group Partners with ZeroAvia to Develop Hydrogen Power for Regional Airliners : Skyryse brings in $200M to make flying an aircraft as simple as swiping a touchscreen : GE Aviation, NASA Partner to Develop Compact Engine Core : Menzies Aviation Provides Ryanair with Fully Electric Turns at Airports Across Europe : Boeing, JAA break ground on $116 million Cecil Airport facility : Delta Introduces TSA Precheck Lobby, Bag Drop with Face Recognition Technology : SpaceX rideshare program beats small rockets for Emirati launch contract As climate concerns threaten air travel, aviation industry banks on technology solutions As aviation struggles to emerge from the historic, pandemic-driven downturn, another longer-term challenge already looms. Concern about air travel's contribution to climate change threatens to curtail growth of an industry that has expanded steadily for decades, shrinking the world for travelers and connecting the global economy. The airline industry, contending with growing political pressure in Europe and recently even in Seattle for new restrictions on flying, this month formally committed to a target of "net zero" carbon emissions by 2050. To achieve that, governments and industry will have to invest billions of dollars in infrastructure in the coming decade. Further out, Boeing and Airbus will have to develop dramatically new airplane designs. For the flying public, all outcomes in the years ahead point to an increase in the cost of flying. Yet that distant net-zero emissions target is so radical, and the proposed technology solutions so uncertain, that aviation risks falling far short. Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury recently warned that if the industry's new push for climate sustainability fails, governments could force a reduction in air travel by banning some of the flying that is routine today — a major step back after more than 100 years of passenger flights. "Aviation has a very important role on the planet to connect people and to contribute to prosperity," he said at a two-day aviation sustainability summit convened by Airbus in France last month. "We are at a point where this is in danger if we don't manage to transition and succeed in the decarbonization of the sector." This is "the number one matter of discussion in the industry, even more than COVID now," he added. Under pressure, the world's major airlines have firmly committed to one key technology that will dominate aviation's environmental push in the coming decade: Sustainable Aviation Fuel, or SAF. For the plane manufacturers, the major costs and big risks will come later. In the coming decade, Airbus and Boeing will make money from the airlines' push for sustainability by promoting the sale of new, more efficient jets to replace older planes that burn more gas and produce more carbon emissions. But further out, the plane builders will need to develop dramatically new technologies. Airbus is already aggressively pursuing research to develop by 2035 a zero-emission, short-haul airliner powered with hydrogen. That research is largely funded by European governments. Boeing contends that hydrogen-powered aircraft won't be realistic until as late as 2050. But as Mike Sinnett, Boeing vice president of product development, recently said, "whatever the next airplane is, we recognize sustainability is going to be a driving factor." After the world's airlines announced the new "net zero by 2050" goal at this month's annual conference of the International Air Transport Association, IATA Director General Willie Walsh demanded a big technology leap from Airbus and Boeing. "It's not good enough that we get incremental change in efficiency with the aircraft," Walsh said. "To get to net zero we're going to need a fundamental change." Climate campaigns The latest definitive scientific study estimates that aviation contributes a net 3.5% of total human-induced climate impact. Cleaning it up has become a focus of those who see an existential crisis in climate change. "There is a limited time for a life-altering change for my generation and my children's generation," said Sarah Shifley, a lawyer who volunteers on the aviation team of climate activist group 350 Seattle. This summer, 350 Seattle mounted a campaign opposing a planned expansion of flights at Boeing Field, where corporate jets and cargo aircraft, as well as Boeing delivery and test flights, fly in and out. Locally, the Puget Sound Regional Council that makes long-term decisions about transportation needs — and is weighing the need for one or more new airports — projects takeoffs and landings in the region will double by 2050 to over 800,000. In similar fashion, Boeing projects the world's fleet of airliners doubling by 2040, driven by growth in emerging economies. That's an appalling prospect to Shifley. "After the summer we've had, of heat domes and hurricanes and floods and fires, it's unfathomable to me to be considering doubling" air traffic, she said. Elsewhere, particularly in Europe, flying is already being curbed by government policy. France in April banned domestic flights between cities with a train connection of less than 2.5 hours. Various government agencies and organizations around Europe have imposed similar bans on short-haul flights for employee business travel. At the Airbus sustainability summit, Andrew Murphy, aviation director at Transport & Environment, a nonprofit that campaigns for clean transportation, said planned expansion of airports in Europe should stop. He called for mandates with strict timelines to spur the decarbonization of aviation. "What would drive innovation and drive focus in the sector is if we were to say, by 2035, we will end the sale of jet aircraft for short-haul flights in Europe," Murphy said. Ross Macfarlane, a vice president at both the Sierra Club and the Clean Energy Transition Institute, which seeks to cut carbon emissions out of the Pacific Northwest economy, said the U.S. needs to look at high-speed rail and other alternatives to flying. He said the COVID-19 lockdown has demonstrated there are "ways to do business that are frankly more efficient than jumping on a plane at the drop of a hat." Yet he acknowledges how critical aviation is to modern life and the global economy. "It's both unrealistic and not in society's interest to take a stance of simply advocating for aviation to go away. It's not going to happen," he said. Science and uncertainty Jet airplane engines burn a lot of fuel. Alaska Airlines alone burns 750 million gallons per year. Alaska provided data for a Boeing 737-900ER flight Oct. 6 from Seattle to Philadelphia: It burned 4,388 gallons of jet fuel, or about 24 gallons per passenger, counting bags and some extra cargo. Yet driving that 2,800-mile trip in a typical family car would use about 112 gallons of gas, making it less fuel efficient even with four people in the car. The most recent comprehensive scientific analysis of aviation's impact on the atmosphere over time — published in January in the journal Atmospheric Environment and cited by both climate activists and the industry — estimated the sector's contribution as 3.5% of total human-induced climate change based on 2011 global flight data. That's the same percentage calculated by the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change more than two decades ago based on 1992 flight data. Though aviation grew enormously between 1992 and 2011 as the world's fleet of airliners more than doubled, the increasingly efficient airplanes burned less fuel. Meanwhile, other human-induced climate impacts grew as fast so that percentage contribution was constant. Sean Newsum, director of environmental sustainability strategy at Boeing, said one can infer "that aviation emissions are growing at a rate no greater than the global emissions overall." The Atmospheric Environment analysis estimates that only a third of aviation's 3.5% net contribution to climate change is from its CO2 emissions, with the largest contribution coming from airplane contrails. A jet contrail — the line of what looks like white smoke that sometimes trails an airplane — is not an emission from the airplane. It's water vapor that is already in the air around the plane that's triggered to condense, forming ice particles. While contrails often disappear completely in a short period, under certain atmospheric conditions they persist as diffuse cirrus clouds that reflect back terrestrial radiation, with a net warming effect. The conclusion that aviation's non-CO2 impact on the climate — mostly from contrails, but also from soot particles, nitrogen oxides and other trace emissions — is twice as large as that from its CO2 emissions alone is often cited with alarm by climate activists. However, there's great scientific uncertainty around the climate impact of the non-CO2 emissions. A lead author of the Atmospheric Environment paper, David Fahey of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Boulder, Colorado, said in an interview that modeling the effect of contrails is complex, producing calculations with such wide probability ranges that the warming impact is "of uncertain magnitude." Speaking at the Airbus sustainability summit, another leading climate expert, Drew Shindell, professor of earth science at Duke University, said the impact of contrails "really is still up for debate in the scientific community" and is "probably not such an enormous problem." That suggests aviation's total net contribution to climate change could be significantly less than 3.5% of the total human-induced impact. Fahey said climate scientists aim to provide policymakers the best available data, while also laying out all the uncertainties. "People are throwing rocks at aviation," he said. "It's complicated." Hydrogen power At the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP26, which convenes at the end of this month in Glasgow, Scotland, countries around the world will commit to new targets to lower emissions. As a global business, international air travel has until now fallen outside the scope of those national targets, its goals instead set through the U.N.'s International Civil Aviation Organization, which is heavily influenced by the world's airlines. However, as conference host, the U.K. is launching the International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition in Glasgow to try to get more countries to sign a substantive declaration on aviation emissions. Clearly, if aviation is to avoid regional restrictions being imposed on flying, major industry players will have to convince the public and governments that they are taking real action. Airbus CEO Faury is confident his engineers will have a hydrogen-powered short-haul airplane ready by 2035, though the jet maker won't have to commit significant investment of its own until it formally launches an airplane program around 2027. At the IATA conference in Boston, Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief Stan Deal expressed his doubts that hydrogen-powered airliners can be ready in that time frame. First, there's the complexity of a totally new airplane design. Deal pointed out that liquid hydrogen occupies 18% more volume than current jet fuel and must be wrapped in cryogenic equipment to keep it cooled to -418°F. Designing such a system, he said, presents "some physics problems." Certifying it as safe to fly also will be a major hurdle. As Boeing's Sinnett expressed it, "To have a safe system that can carry liquid hydrogen and be as safe as we are with jet fuel today, that might be bigger and heavier than you want to put on an airplane." Even Airbus acknowledges it will take far longer to develop hydrogen power for large, long-haul aircraft. In addition, hydrogen production requires lots of electricity — and if that comes from a carbon-dirty source, there's no net climate benefit in using it as fuel. So energy companies will have to vastly scale up production of "green hydrogen," produced from sustainable sources. And then airports around the world will have to invest in the cryogenic tank infrastructure and equipment needed to dispense the liquid hydrogen to airplanes. Hydrogen, Sinnett said, "is not ready for prime time yet. It's a longer-term play." While Boeing has worked with NASA on various futuristic "green airplane" concepts, for now it offers the prospect of only incremental technology tweaks to its current planes. Otherwise, it promotes SAF as the potential solution to aviation's climate impact — a technology being developed and paid for not by the manufacturers but by alternative energy startups with government support. Sustainable Aviation Fuel On that, Faury and Airbus agree: If the industry is to meet the net zero goal, it cannot wait for hydrogen and must over the next three decades dramatically scale up the use of SAF. Yet that too is a difficult technological goal. SAF is a hydrocarbon fuel typically produced from biomass feedstock such as waste oils or plant debris and purified so that the final liquid is essentially identical to current jet fuel. When SAF burns in a jet engine, it produces exactly the same carbon emissions. Nevertheless, it's deemed "sustainable" because the life cycle of those emissions shows the carbon being absorbed from the air by plants, then recycled back to the air. This contrasts with fossil fuel, where the carbon going into the air had previously been sequestered underground for millions of years. If SAF is carefully produced using the cleanest methods, it's touted as providing a life-cycle reduction in carbon emissions of between 50% and 80% compared with fossil fuels. Because SAF can be simply dropped in a tank instead of jet fuel, neither the design of the airplane nor the fueling infrastructure at the airport need to change. The problem is producing SAF in sufficient quantities at an affordable price. The small quantities produced today cost five to seven times as much as jet fuel. Though demonstration flights have flown on SAF, it makes up less than 1% of the aviation fuel currently used. To hit its net zero emissions target, IATA wants that scaled up so that 65% of all aviation fuel is SAF by 2050. Macfarlane of the Sierra Club believes SAF can work, while acknowledging that "skepticism is well justified." "There are many proposals out there for biofuels that would be used for aviation, that aren't sustainable and aren't really scalable," he said. Identifying truly sustainable sources is problematic. Imported palm oil, for example, the cause of deforestation in Southeast Asia, is unacceptable. And producers must consider what land use is displaced by growing the feedstock. Still, momentum and investment are building to overcome these obstacles. Multiple SAF projects are in the works in the U.S. and around the world. Oil giant Shell has committed to produce 2 million metric tons of SAF per year by 2025, though to be clear, that's less than 1% of aviation's annual fuel needs. The Bend, Oregon-based U.S. subsidiary of alternative fuels startup SkyNRG plans to build a plant for producing such jet fuel out of landfill waste. Boeing has a deal with SkyNRG to tap that proposed facility for its own aviation fuel needs. The Department of Energy in September awarded $64.7 million in new funding for biofuels, with SkyNRG getting $1 million of that. With coal and gas climate change provisions already cut from President Joe Biden's proposed social spending legislation, Sen. Maria Cantwell is pushing to retain $1 billion for SAF research and tax credits so as to stimulate production of 3 billion gallons of SAF per year in the U.S. by 2030 — about 10% of U.S. airline fuel needs. Major companies keen to burnish their own sustainability credentials are putting money into jump-starting SAF production. Microsoft has agreed to pay Alaska Airlines for SAF, expensive as it is, to be used on certain West Coast routes frequently flown by its employees. At the Airbus summit, John Holland-Kaye, CEO of London's Heathrow Airport, said that without sustainability "we won't have a business." "It may well be that the flying does cost a little bit more," he said. "But that will be a price worth paying." https://www.normantranscript.com/region/as-climate-concerns-threaten-air-travel-aviation-industry-banks-on-technology-solutions/article_439f06a0-5d36-5211-9188-d8bef5afa8de.html Aviation CTOs Make Joint Sustainability Call Chief technical officers of seven major aviation manufacturers, including Airbus and Boeing, made a call this week for governments, policymakers, and industry stakeholders to commit to advancing aviation sustainability goals through cooperation and continued investment. The call to action comes as the group reaffirmed a joint commitment to decarbonizing aviation and achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. In a joint statement, the CTOs from Airbus, Dassault Aviation, Pratt & Whitney, Safran, Boeing, GE Aviation and Rolls-Royce called for: A sustained policymaking approach that supports novel technology development and stimulates the ramp-up of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and green hydrogen production capacity An internationally consistent approach to regulation and certification standards Collaboration between research institutions and aerospace suppliers in the development of the new technologies Investment in SAF production capacity by fuel producers Investment by airport operators in the infrastructure required to support novel aviation technologies The CTOs pledged that the companies would work to: Advance state-of-the-art aircraft and engine design Support increased availability and use of SAF Investigate hydrogen fuel use Continue the development of technologies aimed at achieving net-zero carbon aviation Combined, the seven companies have spent more than $75 billion in research and design in the past five years, much of which was targeted on improving the fuel efficiency of aircraft and their engines, they said. “For aviation to continue to deliver its benefits to society, we need to embrace the sustainability challenge and solve it with technology, transparency and cooperation,” the CTOs said. https://www.flyingmag.com/story/news/aviation-ctos-sustainability/ Forsyth Tech opens Aviation Technology lab WINSTON-SALEM — On Tuesday a crowd gathered to celebrate the grand opening of Forsyth Technical Community College’s latest innovative center: the Mazie S. Woodruff Aviation Technology Lab at Smith Reynolds Airport. This lab, which was part of a $16 million bond referendum, will train students to meet the high demand throughout the region and country for aircraft maintenance and avionics technicians. Gleaming white floors greeted guests as they entered the space, which encompasses 51,962 square feet, including a 15,000+ square foot aviation hangar, classrooms and a library. The site can store up to 8 aircraft and is one of only five aviation training programs that is connected to an airport in the state. This connectivity gives students the hands-on training they need. “Making sure our students have the necessary training and experience they need to succeed is what we do at Forsyth Tech. The A & P Program is just one of many innovative ways that we are working to develop our community’s workforce and be a driver for equitable economic opportunities in the Triad,” said Dr. Janet Spriggs, the president of Forsyth Tech. The inaugural class will begin in January. “We know that aerospace is critical to our region and our state’s future. And research has shown that airports are an important part of local economies, and are a consideration for new businesses when deciding where to invest their resources,” Spriggs added. “Being able to deliver a skilled workforce to support this essential part of our local and state economy is a what we are all about at Forsyth Tech,” Spriggs went on to say. The Aviation Technology Lab is named in honor of Mazie Spencer Woodruff, the first African American elected as a Forsyth County commissioner. She served from 1976 to 1990, and was known for her dedication to education and social justice. “We feel it is our duty to recognize individuals like Mazie Woodruff, who blazed new trails, and we are proud and honored to do so,” said Dr. Spriggs. https://www.thestokesnews.com/news/32230/forsyth-tech-opens-aviation-technology-lab Aviation Leaders to Tackle CO2 Emission Challenge BOSTON, Oct. 28, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Global airline leaders, including Air Canada, Air France-KLM, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, Lufthansa, Southwest Airlines Co., United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic, together with Boston Consulting Group (BCG), announce the formation of the Aviation Climate Taskforce (ACT)–a new non-profit organization founded to accelerate breakthroughs in emerging technologies to decarbonize aviation. While aviation currently only contributes around 2-3% on average of global carbon dioxide emissions annually, the number could rise to 20% by 2050 if no action is taken. Aviation is a hard-to-abate sector where dramatically reducing emissions is challenging, and breakthrough innovations are required to help the sector reach net zero. ACT will stimulate innovation in the next generation of technologies. The majority of its focus will be on critical medium-term solutions, such as synthetic fuel and direct air capture. Over time, the portfolio will expand to include more near-term solutions, such as emerging bio-based Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) pathways, as well as long-term solutions, such as hydrogen technologies. ACT's mission will be supported by two pillars: an Innovation Network and a Collaboration Forum. ACT's Pillars ACT's Innovation Network will accelerate technological breakthroughs by focusing on early-stage research. ACT will use proven tools to map the vast amount of research across the ecosystem. With a clear view of the existing networks of innovations available, ACT will provide grant funding and host innovation challenges in order to stimulate new patterns of collaboration and research. The Collaboration Forum will support the Innovation Network by identifying other ways to jointly reduce carbon emissions, such as expediting the adoption and scale-up of next generation technologies through engagement with experts and thought leaders. In the future, ACT intends to launch an Investment Fund, in which members and other third parties may participate. The Investment Fund will provide capital to rapidly scale-up emerging technologies that have the potential to dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of air travel. Over the course of its first year, ACT will concentrate on selecting focus areas within these technologies and setting up the Innovation Network. ACT will welcome additional airlines and participants from across the aviation sector, and more information can be found on its website. ACT will be sharing further details in the coming months. ACT and its founding members would like to acknowledge the support and assistance of the law firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP in developing ACT's legal and constitutional framework. For media inquiries, please contact Brian Bannister at +1 44 7733 886 145. About the Aviation Climate Taskforce (ACT) The Aviation Climate Taskforce (ACT) is a non-profit coalition focused on accelerating breakthroughs in emerging technology to drive the decarbonization of the aviation sector. ACT will support the advancement of emerging technologies through two key pillars, an Innovation Network and Collaboration Forum. The Innovation Network will use proven tools to pinpoint collaboration opportunities across the ecosystem, and provide grant funding as well as utilize challenge platforms to tackle critical barriers from novel angels. The Collaboration Forum will identify other ways to expedite the adoption and scale-up of next generation technologies. ACT was founded in 2021 by leading global airlines in conjunction with The Boston Consulting Group. ACT welcomes additional airlines and other members of the aviation ecosystem to join us. For more information please visit our website: https://aviationclimatetaskforce.com/. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aviation-leaders-to-tackle-co2-emission-challenge-301410532.html Alaska Air Group Partners with ZeroAvia to Develop Hydrogen Power for Regional Airliners Alaska Air Group, the parent company of Alaska Airlines, has partnered with ZeroAvia under a collaboration that will develop a hydrogen-electric powertrain capable of flying a 76-seat regional aircraft with a range of 500 nautical miles, according to an Oct. 26 announcement made by the two companies. The partnership marks the latest milestone for ZeroAvia, the California-based green startup that has been testing its hydrogen powertrain in the U.K. over the last year, in their effort to de-carbonize regional airline operations. Under the new partnership, the two company's engineering teams will scale ZeroAvia's existing hydrogen electric powertrain to produce the "ZA2000," that will be retrofitted onto a 76-seat De Havilland Q400 previously operated by Horizon Air. "Alaska is committed to creating a sustainable future for aviation, working on all aspects of a five-part path toward our goal of net zero by 2040," Diana Birkett Rakow, vice president of public affairs and sustainability for Alaska Airlines said in a statement announcing the new partnership. ZeroAvia notes that the ZA2000 will be an engine family capable of producing between 2,000 and 5,000 kilowatts of power allowing for a 500-mile range. A new facility will be established near Seattle to support the development of the ZA2000 engine. Alaska has also secured options for up to 50 kits to begin converting its regional aircraft to hydrogen-electric power, starting with the Q400. Alaska is including the new partnership in the five-step plan it laid out earlier this year to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040. Ben Minicucci, CEO of Alaska Airlines, previously commented on the carrier's view of electric aircraft during an appearance on a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Aviation Summit panel in April, describing how it could eventually be used on small passenger carrying aircraft. "I think we need to help these technology companies with investment, and research so we can really accelerate, the issue of batteries is very heavy, but I think you'll see it on little passenger airplanes, whether they be 5-10 at first and then moving into the bigger regional market," Minicucci said. ZeroAvia's Alaska Air Group partnership announcement came a day after another partnership agreement was announced with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Regional Jet Aviation Group (MHIRJ) to provide engineering services in support of their effort to certify their hydrogen-electric propulsion technology for regional jets. MHIRJ will also provide "advisory services evaluating the feasibility of a green retrofit program for regional aircraft," according to an Oct. 25 press release. Both the Alaska Air Group and MHIRJ partnership agreements come following a series of program development ups and downs for ZeroAvia, including an off-airport landing of their test aircraft near Cranfield Airport in April and the start of ground-testing for a 600 kilowatt powertrain designed for a 19-seat aircraft several months later in August. “The aviation industry is one of the hardest industries to decarbonize; however, with this collaboration, we are one step closer to achieving our goal of making our skies emission-free," Val Mifthakhov, CEO and founder of ZeroAvia said in a statement. "We are thrilled to see Alaska taking the lead to implement clean technologies into their operations and look forward to putting boots on the ground with Alaska’s team.” https://www.aviationtoday.com/2021/10/27/alaska-air-group-partners-zeroavia-develop-hydrogen-power-regional-airliners/ Skyryse brings in $200M to make flying an aircraft as simple as swiping a touchscreen Five-year-old startup Skyryse has raised a $200 million Series B to develop FlightOS, a flight automation technology stack that the company says will help experienced pilots operate new types of aircraft and allow complete novices to quickly learn the ropes of flying. Most importantly, the company says FlightOS will be able to be retrofitted onto any aircraft — potentially unlocking flight controls to anyone that can operate a touchscreen and a joystick. Right now, that touchscreen is an iPad, but Skyryse told TechCrunch that will be replaced by “aviation certified touchscreens” in the finished product. In addition to the screen and joystick, the FlightOS stack includes actuators and flight control computers, which would replace an aircraft’s existing mechanical systems. This one-to-one replacement means that the entire system is “cost neutral,” allowing OEMs to manufacture a vehicle with FlightOS at the same cost as they would for existing aircraft, the company said. In its early years, Skyryse pursued a fully automated system, with the intention of launching its own urban air mobility service. But the company has scaled back from being an operator, and is instead moving full-force on the FlightOS stack. FlightOS is not full automation; there still must be someone to operate the joystick, after all. But it’s close. Right now, CEO Mark Groden said the near-term goal was to boost the skills of certified pilots, but longer-term his plans are much more ambitious. “Our near-term goal is to improve safety in aviation, give current pilots the confidence to fly in various weather conditions with their families and open up new types of aircraft to them,” Groden told TechCrunch. “Our long-term goal is to allow the 220 million licensed drivers to operate any aircraft safely and effectively.” Still, the system does not account for things like communicating with air traffic control or an understanding of which conditions are unsafe to fly in — things that a certified pilot might learn. But Groden said the current certification process on its own does not ensure safe pilots, the same way getting a driver’s license to operate a vehicle does not ensure attentive driving. “The reality is that the FAA minimums for getting a pilot’s license are not sufficient to be safe and effective; our goal is to make that so,” he said. “On average people estimate it takes 50 hours of driving experience to get your license. In contrast the FAA only requires 40 hours to become a private pilot.” It’s important to note that the 40-hour requirement is not for all types of aircraft operations; for example, to fly a commercial carrier a pilot needs 1,500 hours of total flight time. But with Skyryse’s system, a less-experienced pilot could potentially take on new types of aircraft without lengthy additional training hours. Skyryse currently has partnerships with five fixed-wing and rotorcraft equipment manufacturers, including Robinsons Helicopters. Before FlightOS will start appearing in an eVTOL or helicopter, it first must be certified by the FAA. Integrating into existing aircraft will likely shorten the process, as the company won’t need to certify an entirely new vehicle (what eVTOL developers must do, for example). The startup says that its tech could even help with the global pilot shortage, a situation that may only become exacerbated if air taxis become operational this decade. The fresh funding brings the startup’s total raised to $250 million. This recent round was led by Fidelity Management & Research Company and Monashee Investment Management, with additional participation from ArrowMark Partners, Republic Capital, Raptor Group, Infinite Capital, Embedded Ventures, Fortistar, K3 Ventures, Rosecliff, SV Pacific Ventures, Laurence Tosi, and Dmitry Balyasny. Prior investors Venrock, Eclipse Ventures, and Fontinalis Partners also participated. https://techcrunch.com/2021/10/27/skyryse-brings-in-200m-to-make-flying-an-aircraft-as-simple-as-swiping-a-touchscreen/ GE Aviation, NASA Partner to Develop Compact Engine Core GE Aviation has announced a partnership with NASA to develop advanced engine cores for single-aisle aircraft. The move is part of GE’s effort to make commercial flight more sustainable. GE has been awarded contracts as part of NASA’s Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core (HyTEC) project, totalling nearly $20 million for advanced engine core development. NASA and GE plan to ground test a new engine core as early as the mid-2020s. “The HyTEC project further expands GE Aviation’s partnership with NASA on the future of flight with our shared commitment to accelerate the introduction of technologies that reduce the environmental impact of commercial aviation and make a step-change reduction in fuel burn,” said Mohamed Ali, vice president of engineering for GE Aviation, in a statement Wednesday. The focus of this development is to create a more compact and efficient engine core design, including the testing of compressors, high-pressure turbine technologies, heat-resistant materials, and the continued development of ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) to increase fuel efficiency and decrease emissions. GE has previously been awarded NASA contracts under the HyTEC program in 2020, focusing on next-generation turbofan engines. “We are grateful for NASA’s confidence in GE Aviation as a partner to co-develop sustainable technology solutions, including new aircraft engine cores and hybrid electric powertrains that are critical elements of our CFM RISE Program,” Ali said. GE Aviation and CFM International’s Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines (RISE) program began developing compact engine core designs in June 2021 to bolster technology maturation efforts to increase propulsive and thermal efficiency. The partnership also seeks to create innovations that are compatible with alternative energy, such as hybrid and hydrogen fuels. https://www.flyingmag.com/story/news/ge-nasa-partnership/ Menzies Aviation Provides Ryanair with Fully Electric Turns at Airports Across Europe Oct. 27, 2021, EDINBURGH: Menzies Aviation, the global aviation logistics specialist, today announces it is providing Ryanair with fully electric turnarounds at three airports in Europe. These turns reinforce Menzies’ and Ryanair’s commitment to reducing the carbon footprint of their operations. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Gothenburg-Landvetter Airport and Oslo Airport are the first locations in Europe where Menzies has the capability to provide fully electric green turns. The turns have been made possible through the airports’ provision of charging infrastructure necessary for electric equipment. A signatory of the UN Global Compact, Menzies has an industry leading sustainability strategy, which includes becoming carbon neutral by 2033 – the company’s 200th anniversary. A key component of this goal is Menzies’ commitment to evolving its ground services equipment (GSE) fleet to become fully electric where possible, which will be achieved through the replacement of combustion engines with electric motors. Katy Reid, head of sustainability and corporate responsibility, Menzies, said: “We recognize the aviation industry’s role in addressing the climate emergency and we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint and becoming carbon neutral, for scope one and two emissions, by 2033. We are taking action by switching to electric GSE where possible and ongoing collaboration with partners such as Ryanair will be vital to achieving this ambition. We look forward to working closely with industry partners, including suppliers, airlines and airports, to advance more environmentally friendly operations.” Thomas Fowler, director of sustainability and finance, Ryanair, added: “At Ryanair we have committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and reducing CO2 emissions per passenger/km by 10% by 2030. That is why we have invested $22bn in new aircraft that will help us reduce our fuel consumption by approx. 16% on a per-seat basis.We can now offer zero emissions turnarounds at 11 locations, including Amsterdam, Gothenburg and Oslo, when previously, a standard turnaround could emit up to 52.43kg of CO2. Our partnerships with industry leaders such as Menzies Aviation are vital to us in achieving our goal of being net carbon neutral by 2050.” https://www.aviationpros.com/gse/gse-technology/green-alternative-energy-gse/press-release/21244098/menzies-aviation-menzies-aviation-provides-ryanair-with-fully-electric-turns-at-airports-across-europe Boeing, JAA break ground on $116 million Cecil Airport facility Boeing Global Services CEO Ted Colbert said when the company’s 370,000-square-foot facility at Cecil Airport opens in 2023, it will be the aviation industry’s “first digitally enabled” maintenance repair and overhaul site. At a groundbreaking ceremony Oct. 27 for the eight-hangar complex in West Jacksonville, Colbert told federal, state and city officials at the event that the project will allow Boeing to understand the maintenance and repair needs of U.S. military aircraft before they land at Cecil. “We don’t have to wait for the aircraft to arrive so that we can strip it down and do the analysis,” he said. “We can get straight to the work using data insights to get the aircraft back performing for critical missions around the world.” The estimated $116.5 million project is a partnership of Boeing, the Jacksonville Aviation Authority and the city. Boeing reached a 25-year lease agreement with JAA on Dec. 17 to expand the aerospace company’s 400,000-square-foot operation at Cecil. JAA CEO Mark VanLoh said before the event that the aviation authority purchased the steel for the project during the pandemic to control materials costs, which have spiked in recent months. JAA will pay for the project through debt financing. VanLoh told attendees Oct. 27 that was a challenge to obtain during what he called “this little bit of a financial crisis in the aviation industry in the last 18 months.” “(JAA CFO) Ross (Jones) and his team went out and received financing for this entire project under (the) JAA umbrella in an impossible period with hundreds of Zoom calls and most airports are still trying to find their way,” VanLoh said during the presentation. The facility comprises about 270,000 square feet of hangar space and more than 100,000 square feet of office and support shop space on 57 acres, according to JAA. VanLoh said Boeing’s MRO facility at Cecil will lead the aerospace industry in resource, skill and technology optimization. “Their presence in Jacksonville, particularly here at Cecil airport, is important for demonstrating this region’s leadership in the aerospace sector,” VanLoh said. Jacksonville-based architectural, engineering and construction firm Pond and consulting firm Haskell are working on the facility. According to the city Office of Economic Development, Boeing will create 334 jobs for the facility at an average annual salary of $65,000. The new jobs will be in place by Dec. 31, 2026, at a $21.7 million payroll excluding benefits, according to city documents. Boeing has been expanding its Jacksonville workforce. The aerospace company opened the 23,000-square-foot Boeing Jacksonville Training Systems Center of Excellence at 6225 Lake Gray Blvd that Colbert said will employ 100 people. Before the ceremony, Colbert said the jobs will be new roles at Boeing. He said the company’s growth in Jacksonville “represents a real strong foundational capability” and could continue. “Honestly, what it really comes down to is our teams have got to execute and perform to the mission that we have with our customer,” he said. “And if that works well, there could be more growth, right?” The city is giving Boeing a $425,000 grant to assist with the estimated $3 million in infrastructure expenditures for the project over three years. At the groundbreaking, Mayor Lenny Curry said the grant will help pay for stormwater drainage areas, fencing and extending sewer, electrical and water lines. “Creating jobs and expanding our aviation manufacturing base here in Duval County is critical to establishing innovative, technological leadership,” Curry said. Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Núñez said Boeing’s investment at Cecil is part of the state’s overall strategy to grow Florida’s aerospace industry. Boeing has operated its existing MRO facilities at Cecil Airport since 1999. According to a news release, the company has modified and upgraded 1,030 aircraft for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps including the F/A-18 A-D Hornet; F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet; and EA-18G Growler. The company also uses Cecil to convert F/A-18 Super Hornets into flight demonstration aircraft for the Blue Angel squadron and modified retired F-16s into autonomous aerial targets for the Air Force. Boeing’s Flight Control Repair Center provides structural repairs to F/A-18 A-F; EA-18G and the Navy’s P-8 aircraft. Colbert said Boeing and its military customers are finalizing what equipment will be maintained at the new MRO facility. JAA officials see the agreement with Boeing as both a revenue driver and marketing tool for Cecil Airport. “We will certainly use this site to go out and get some other developers and other suppliers that want to be near Boeing,” VanLoh said. City Council member Aaron Bowman, who is senior vice president of business development for the JAXUSA Partnership economic development arm of JAX Chamber, said the MRO facility will have hangars large enough to support any U.S. Department of Defense aircraft in the Navy or Air Force inventory. He said this will be the first project in the 400-acre northeast section of Cecil Airport. “The land is clear. We have a taxiway over here. It really does show anybody else who’s interested and needs a lot of space that we’re available for them right now,” Bowman said. “Now having Boeing here, obviously an internationally recognized company that’s said ‘this is where we want to be,’ it speaks loudly across the industry.” https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/photo-gallery/boeing-jaa-break-ground-on-dollar116-million-cecil-airport-facility Delta Introduces TSA Precheck Lobby, Bag Drop with Face Recognition Technology Traveling through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport will be even easier for Delta customers enrolled in TSA PreCheck starting next month with the expansion of new facial recognition capabilities and the opening of the first-ever Delta-TSA PreCheck® express lobby and bag drop. Customers with both the Fly Delta app and a TSA PreCheck membership will soon be able to visit a new dedicated bag drop lobby on the lower level of Atlanta’s Domestic South Terminal, pass through the security checkpoint, and board their plane at the gate using only their "digital identity" (made up of a customer’s SkyMiles Member number, passport number and Known Traveler Number). Customers are free to travel from curb to gate, completely hands- and device-free. “We want to give our customers more time to enjoy travel by unlocking simplified, seamless and efficient experiences from end to end,” said Byron Merritt, Delta’s Vice President of Brand Experience Design. “Delta has been a leader in testing and implementing facial recognition technology since 2018 as part of our vision for building airports that are effortless. The launch of Atlanta’s express lobby and bag drop is the latest step in our commitment to listening and innovating for our customers.” Here’s how Delta’s new experience will ease transit through three airport touchpoints in Atlanta: Delta is setting a new standard for the industry as the first and only airline to build a dedicated bag drop space for TSA PreCheck customers. In Atlanta, a sleek new facility features fully automated self-serve bag drop machines – allowing for a quick and easy drop. After checking in on the Fly Delta app, customers can enter the dedicated lobby area, conveniently located next to the rideshare drop-off area on the lower level of Atlanta’s Domestic South Terminal. They’ll quickly verify their identity via a hands-free facial scan, print and attach a bag tag from a self-serve kiosk, and place their bag on the conveyer. Not only does the new experience streamline steps required to check a bag, but it also saves customers an average of more than two minutes (and more during peak travel times) by allowing them to skip the lines inside the main airport lobby. The space will open next month ahead of the holiday travel season. In Detroit, eligible customers will be able to enjoy self-serve bag tagging and a dedicated Delta bag drop queue at the Delta check-in counter later this fall. After a short walk from bag drop to security, eligible customers will once again use a quick facial scan to pass through the domestic checkpoint in dedicated TSA PreCheck lanes – no need to show a government ID or boarding pass. In Atlanta, customers will also have the benefit of industry-leading, more efficient security scanners that allow travelers to keep electronics and approved liquids in carry-on bags. As always, CLEAR remains a good choice for members who prefer to use its services. When it’s time to board, customers will swap a facial scan for a boarding pass, just as they did at bag drop and the security checkpoint. One photo, and they are ready to board. In Atlanta, T1-T8 gates will be the first to offer a facial recognition option for domestic boarding. Gates A10 and A12 will offer the same digital identity-enabled boarding in Detroit. “This element of the customer journey is possible thanks to our strong partnerships with TSA, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and airport leadership, which were built over years of testing and perfecting facial recognition options for international customers,” said Greg Forbes, Delta’s Managing Director – Airport Experience. “Delta is writing the playbook for the industry as the first and only carrier to test this experience with TSA and TSA PreCheck.” “We are glad to support self-service technologies that enhance security and reduce physical contact for passengers and TSA employees,” said Atlanta’s TSA Federal Security Director Robert Spinden. “This is one of many such pilots at domestic airports, and we look forward to continuing to test new initiatives with airline and interagency partners.” Customers with an active Delta SkyMiles membership, Known Traveler Number and passport details saved to their profile can opt in when checking in for their flight using the Fly Delta app. If a customer does not want to participate in this option, they can choose not to opt in and proceed through the airport as preferred – participation is voluntary. Delta does not save or store any biometric data, nor does it plan to. Delta teams are working to expand the airline’s facial recognition-enabled offerings both in scale and scope so more customers can experience a hands-free journey in the future. With ongoing enhancements to the customer experience both in the air and on the ground – and even more destinations on the map in 2021-2022 – Delta is giving customers more to look forward to as they continue returning to the skies. https://ftnnews.com/aviation/42736-delta-introduces-tsa-precheck-lobby-bag-drop-with-face-recognition-technology SpaceX rideshare program beats small rockets for Emirati launch contract The United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) space agency has contracted with SpaceX to launch a domestically-built Earth observation satellite on a Falcon 9 rideshare mission. Known as MBZ SAT, the ~700 kg (~1550 lb) spacecraft will be the second domestic imaging satellite (mostly) built by the UAE itself and, among several other upgrades, will nearly double its resolving power from KhalifaSat’s 0.7m/pixel to ~0.4m/pixel – not far off from the unclassified state of the art. To develop such an advanced domestic capability is no small task and based on similarly sized and capable spacecraft from the US and Europe, MBZ SAT development and the first flightworthy satellite could easily cost $100 million or more. That makes the mission a bit of a jewel in the crown of SpaceX’s Smallsat Rideshare Program, which is intentionally branded as a more hands-off, public-transit-like utility that offers extremely low prices at the cost of more traditional white-glove launch services. For a direct contract with SpaceX itself, the Smallsat Rideshare Program charges a minimum of $1 million to launch up to 200 kg (440 lb) on one payload adapter. Anything beyond that 200 kg mark costs the same, so twice the payload on the same adapter would cost exactly twice as much. For a fee, SpaceX also offers fueling services and gives customers the option of buying SpaceX-built adapters and deployment mechanisms or bringing their own. Buying from SpaceX, that makes the Smallsat Program optimal for spacecraft between about 50 kg and 500 kg. For truly tiny satellites, third-party launch service providers like Exolaunch and Spaceflight purchase several-hundred-kilogram slots for self-built adapters that can host a handful to dozens of cubesats and nanosats. In that sense, the way SpaceX has structured its Smallsat Program almost mirrors large-scale shipping. SpaceX simply offers space on its ‘ship,’ leaving it mostly up to the customers to worry about their ‘containers.’ Some customers might need all or most of a container to themselves – an optimal outcome. Others might have goods that barely fill a fraction of a container and have to either find other customers to partner with or a third-party logistics company that works to slot a bunch of small payloads together to maximize efficiency and minimize shipping costs. With the right balance, most common customer needs and budgets can be catered to with the same program and on the same ship or launch. That includes outliers like MZB SAT, which can be equated to an ultra-expensive hypercar that needs special handling and a container all to itself. In this case, it’s likely that SpaceX will go above and beyond to accommodate the UAE’s particular needs and be extra cognizant of the gap between MZB SAT and the Transporter mission’s other rideshare payloads. Above all else, MZB SAT is almost perfectly sized and destined for the perfect orbit (500 km or 310 mi) to be launched on one of several new small rockets that could be operational by H2 2023. That list includes Firefly’s Alpha, Relativity’s Terran 1, ABL Space’s RS1, and several other vehicles specifically designed to launch small satellites in the 300-1000 kg range. For a premium over rideshare space on larger rockets, a dedicated launch does tend to include more hands-on service, greater schedule flexibility, and a ride to the optimal orbit. However, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket ultimately won over the UAE, firmly demonstrating that industry-best pricing paired with the most reliable rocket currently flying is a hard combination to beat. https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-wins-uae-imaging-satellite-launch-contract/ Curt Lewis