March 20, 2024 - No. 12 In This Issue : Boeing Advises Airlines to Inspect 787 Cockpit Seats After Cause of LATAM Airlines’ Mid-Air Drop Is Revealed : DARPA GETS GREEN LIGHT TO BUILD FIRST OF A KIND X65 CRANE JET : Aircraft Cabin Air International Conference - 17 & 18 September - London : FAA Readies For PAFI Unleaded Fuel Tests : GE Aerospace Announces $650 Million in Manufacturing, Supply Chain Spending : FAA Introduces New Technology To Enhance Airport Surface Safety Nationwide : Revolutionary plans unveiled for world’s largest plane set to change aviation : Aviation Safety, Then and Now : Bjorn’s Corner: New aircraft technologies. Part 50. Wrap up. : Unapproved Repair Triggers CFM56 Emergency Directive : The Rise & Fall of the Radial Airplane Engine - History & Technical (Video) Boeing Advises Airlines to Inspect 787 Cockpit Seats After Cause of LATAM Airlines’ Mid-Air Drop Is Revealed The incident aboard the New Zealand-bound flight left 50 people injured on Monday By Natalia Senanayake Published on March 15, 2024 07:12PM EDT • LATAM Airlines flight LA800 experienced a sudden plunge during its flight to Auckland, New Zealand from Sydney, Australia on Monday • The cause of the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner’s mid-air drop was reportedly due to a flight attendant accidentally hitting a switch on the pilot’s seat in the cockpit • Boeing has issued a memo to all 787 operators to inspect their planes as the switch is meant to be covered Boeing has sent a reminder out to all 787 operators after LATAM airlines flight LA800 experienced a severe mid-air drop on Monday during its flight to New Zealand from Australia. The sudden plunge was reportedly caused by a flight attendant accidentally hitting a switch on the pilot’s seat while serving a meal in the cockpit, according to the Wall Street Journal. A motorized feature that pushed the pilot’s seat forward was then initiated, causing the pilot to bump into a control that directed the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner’s nose downward, per the outlet. Following the incident, Boeing issued a precautionary memo to all 787 operators as the switch is meant to be covered whenever the seat is occupied. In a statement shared with PEOPLE, Boeing says: “We have taken the precautionary measure of reminding 787 operators of a service bulletin issued in 2017 which included instructions for inspecting and maintaining switches on flight deck seats.” They add that the investigation of the flight is ongoing, and that “We are recommending operators perform an inspection at the next maintenance opportunity.” LATAM Airlines declined PEOPLE’s request for comment until the investigation is complete. The plane was heading to Auckland from Sydney when it experienced a “strong shake” mid-journey, according to a press release from the Chile-based airline. After the plane landed safely at Auckland Airport at approximately 4:26 p.m, emergency medical service Hato Hone St John rushed to the scene. The organization confirmed to PEOPLE in a statement that their “ambulance crews assessed and treated approximately 50 patients.” While most injuries were “moderate to minor,” they said one passenger was left “in a serious condition.” In total, 14 Hato Hone St John units responded, including “seven ambulances, two operations managers, two Major Incident Support Team vehicles, one Command Unit, and two rapid response vehicles.” Passenger Brian Jokat, 61, recalled the terrifying experience to NBC News following the incident. "Everything was going well," Jokat said. “Then all of a sudden, the plane took a nosedive down.” He added, “People were flying out of their seats, hitting the roof, being thrown back four or five aisles back.” The flight was carrying a total of 263 passengers and nine flight and cabin crew members. LATAM Airlines confirmed to PEOPLE that 10 passengers and 3 cabin crew members were taken to Middlemore Hospital after Hato Hone St John assessed the injured. DARPA GETS GREEN LIGHT TO BUILD FIRST OF A KIND X65 CRANE JET By Matthew Griffin Future Transport 13th March 2024 An aircraft with no moving control surfaces or aerlons is as odd as it is revolutionary. Love the Exponential Future? Join our XPotential Community, future proof yourself with courses from XPotential University, read about exponential tech and trends, connect, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. DARPA has awarded a contract to Aurora Flight Sciences to build a full-scale aircraft called the X-65, a revolutionary new kind of aircraft that unlike conventional aircraft doesn’t have any moving control surfaces. It will test a new technology that replaces moving control surfaces with Active Flow Control (AFC) actuators that use jets of air for control. If you’ve ever sat in the wing seat of a plane, you probably noticed that there’s a lot of activity going on out there. Flaps, slats, ailerons, spoilers all go into motion, while unseen on the tail of the plane the elevators and rudder play their part. It’s all very dramatic, but it also involves a complex symphony of machinery and control systems to make it all work. Using AFC actuators, DARPA hopes to one day replace all these expensive, weighty control surfaces with a much simpler system that depends on jets of air to do the same thing. Instead of moving control surfaces, an AFC system uses an array of nozzles installed on the following edges of the airfoils. By shooting compressed air out of these nozzles, they can change the air pressure in the vicinity and alter the air flow over the airfoil. In this way, the system can change the roll, pitch, and yaw of the aircraft. According to DARPA, the robotic X-65 will have a distinct diamond-shaped design for greater strength. However, it will not be controlled solely by AFC actuators. Instead, it will have both an AFC system and a conventional mechanical control system. The purpose of this setup is to ensure the safety of the experimental craft, and to provide a means of building up a baseline of data that engineers can use to compare the two systems. As the tests proceed, the mechanical controls will be locked down and replaced selectively until the AFC system has full control. The X65 Demonstrator (Video) Part of DARPA’s Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program, the X-65 has a modular design for quick modifications, operates without a crew, weighs in at over 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) and has a 30-ft (9-m) wingspan. When airborne, it’s expected to reach speeds of about Mach 0.7. These specifications make it similar to a military training jet, which means the test data can easily relate to the real world. DARPA says that Aurora flight systems has already begun construction of the X-65, which is expected to roll out early next year. If successful, the implications of the AFC technology are considerable. By reducing weight and simplifying systems, it will be possible for engineers to greatly improve aircraft by using the savings to make airframes lighter and sturdier. This could lead to thinner, longer wings with much greater efficiency and perhaps, one day, the technology could be expanded from airfoils to the entire aircraft, allowing it to be sheathed in a frictionless layer of air that will let the craft slip through the air with greatly reduced drag. “It’s thrilling to be able to say, ‘we’re building an AFC X-plane,'” said Dr. Richard Wlezien, DARPA’s program manager for CRANE. “I came to DARPA in 1999 to work on a program called Micro Adaptive Flow Control, which help (sic) pioneer the foundational understanding of fluid dynamics that eventually led to CRANE. I left DARPA in 2003 after managing MAFC, and it’s the chance of a lifetime to come back and help see that early work come to fruition in a full-scale physical aircraft. Aerospace engineers live to see their efforts take flight.” Source: DARPA FAA Readies For PAFI Unleaded Fuel Tests By Russ Niles Published: March 18, 2024 Updated: March 19, 2024 The FAA says engine cell testing of one of three contenders actively being considered as a replacement for 100LL avgas will begin later this year at the agency’s William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City. In a statement to AVweb, the agency said the fuel developed by a partnership between LyondellBasell Industries and VP Racing will also undergo flight testing as part of the approval process through the Piston Aviation Fuels Initiative. If it meets all the various standards required for a new fuel, it will earn “fleet authority” and be approved for use in all piston aircraft. The FAA is now lining up test beds for the LyondellBasell/VP Racing fuel. “The FAA is working with various aircraft equipment manufacturers and operators to support flight testing of a mixed fleet that includes eight different aircraft models of six different makes,” the agency said. “We will also work with engine manufacturers to support testing for 10 different makes/models. We will be able to provide additional details on the specific manufacturers that will be involved in the testing after arrangements have been finalized during the next few months.” LyondellBasell/VPRacing is the last contender using the PAFI process to get its fuel approved. Phillips 66 and Afton Chemical paused their testing earlier this year after technical issues during a 150-hour endurance test of its fuel and was also using the PAFI route. Swift Fuels is continuing development of its replacement fuel but will get it approved via Supplementary Type Certificate. General Aviation Modifications Inc. has already obtained STC approval for G100UL that covers every spark ignition engine used in certified aircraft in the U.S. and is now conducting an extended real-world evaluation using AOPA’s Beech C55 Baron with one engine running mostly on G100UL and the other on 100LL. They have about 150 hours on the test regimen. GE Aerospace Announces $650 Million in Manufacturing, Supply Chain Spending Andy Szal 3/18/2024 | 5 min read GE’s jet engine and aerospace manufacturing division plans to invest more than half a billion dollars in its U.S. operations and some $650 million worldwide this year, company officials announced. GE Aerospace said the spending would bolster production levels and quality for both commercial and defense aircraft. GE Aerospace U.S. Factory Investments Nearly $450 million of the total amount would pay for new machines, safety and facility upgrades, test cells, and inspection equipment at 22 of the segment’s sites in 14 states. The largest single allocation mentioned in the announcement, worth $107 million, would go to facilities in the Cincinnati area, while $54 million would go to a plant in Auburn, Alabama, for additional 3D printers and other tooling. Four facilities across North Carolina — which make parts for commercial aircraft — would receive a combined $46 million, while a suburban Boston site would see $30 million to support engine assembly and testing for fighter jets and military helicopters. Supplier, Overseas Spending Of the remaining $200 million, about half would go toward the business’ U.S.-based suppliers, and the remaining half would go to international GE Aerospace facilities, including sites in North America as well as Europe and India. GE officials said many of the projects stemmed from discussions between executives and workers under its “FLIGHT DECK” lean operating model. GE Aerospace to Add Hundreds of New Jobs GE also said in the announcement that it plans to add more than 1,000 jobs across its U.S. facilities. GE Aerospace to Become a Standalone Company GE Aerospace is preparing to become a standalone company later this year under a long-planned split of GE into three companies. The conglomerate’s healthcare business split into a separate company last year, and the aviation and energy segments will follow suit later this year. FAA Introduces New Technology To Enhance Airport Surface Safety Nationwide By Amelia Walsh Published: March 16, 2024 On Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the implementation of a new surface safety tool that warns air traffic controllers when an approaching aircraft is not lined up on its assigned runway. The FAA outlined plans to deploy Approach Runway Verification (ARV) technology at several airports across the U.S. this year through 2025, with Austin Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) the latest to adopt the solution. “A safe National Airspace System begins and ends on the airport surface,” said FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker in a press release. “Providing controllers with tools such as Approach Runway Verification will improve their situational awareness of the airport surface, which is paramount to improving safety.” According to the FAA, ARV is one of three surface situational awareness solutions under the agency’s accelerated surface safety initiative. The other two components include the Runway Incursion Device (RID) and the Surface Awareness Initiative (SAI). Developing and deploying these technologies is part of the FAA’s solution to mitigate near-miss occurrences in response to last year’s Safety Call to Action. In addition to implementing new technology, the FAA is taking steps to improve safety through measures including hiring more air traffic controllers, installing upgraded tower simulator systems in facilities nationwide, conducting routine runway safety action team meetings, and investing millions into runway lighting and surface improvements at U.S. airports. Revolutionary plans unveiled for world’s largest plane set to change aviation • Plans for the world’s largest plane have been unveiled • Called the WindRunner, it could revolutionise the wind power industry • At 356 feet long, it’s significantly bigger than the current biggest passenger jet • Published on Mar 18, 2024 at 7:34PM (UTC+4) by Tom Wood • Last updated on Mar 19, 2024 at 1:12PM (UTC+4) Edited by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones Plans have been unveiled for the world’s largest plane – it’s officially called the WindRunner but it has been nicknamed the ‘Skytanic’. As you can no doubt imagine, it’s absolutely gigantic. Clocking in at 109 m (356 ft) long and 24 m (79) ft tall, with a wingspan of 80 m (261 ft), the WindRunner is aimed at helping change the world of renewable energy by transporting wind turbine blades around the world. It’s called WindRunner for a reason. The world’s largest plane – as it will be when completed – is set to be more than 30 m (100 ft) longer than the current longest passenger jet, the Boeing 747-8, and will be able to carry 12 times the weight that it can. In the end, the WindRunner will be able to carry 80 tonnes of cargo, so plenty of wind turbines. ecause of the size of this proposed plane, a brand new bespoke 1829 m (6,000 ft) runway will have to be built so that it can actually land. The world’s largest plane is designed to help solve one of the world’s largest problems. Renewable energy. Credit: Radia You see, because the wind turbine blades are so vast, measuring between 46 and 91 m (150 and 300 feet) long and weighing up to 35 tonnes, they are a pain to transport. Often they have to be taken on specially-made ships, which means that their use inland is sometimes limited. So, to ensure that more onshore wind farms can be built, a solution is needed. That’s where the world’s largest plane comes in. Colorado-based aircraft company, Radia, who are bringing this monster plane to life, said: “Today’s largest wind turbines and the even larger ones of the future cannot be transported to prime onshore wind farms via ground infrastructure.” So, they’ve designed the ‘Skytanic’ to help out. Credit: Radia Over the last seven years, they’ve been planning and plotting a plane that can meet this specific demand, as well as making sure that the eventual plane will be safe to fly. The impact won’t end there though, as – if everything goes to plan – the WindRunner will allow for bigger turbines to be made and transported, increasing the amount of power that can be generated, as well as – hopefully – bringing down energy costs significantly. It’s a big deal for the wind sector, basically. However, the planes could also have other significant uses, including transporting other massive cargo and military machinery. Credit: Radia Radia reckons that, after years of development behind the scenes, the WindRunner could be flying and operational within four years. Let’s hope so, because it sounds like an exciting project. What’s more, it sounds like a bit of a plane-spotter’s dream. Aviation Safety, Then and Now By Lightspeed Aviation 9 February, 2024 A recent online survey from YouGov.com found that out of more than 20,000 US adults surveyed, about a third of the participants, and a whopping 46% of the men, were confident that they could land a commercial airliner in an emergency, with the help of air traffic control. And a CNN commentary article highlighting the survey pointed out how difficult it would be for a non-pilot to land a passenger aircraft, even with all the technology in planes today. Still, aviation technology has come a long way over the last century. Let’s take a quick look at the tech that surrounds a pilot, making flying a better and safer experience, and take a quick look at where it may go from here. A Century of Safety Innovation Wilbur and Orville Wright spent 4 years of aeronautic research and development before launching the first engine-powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, in 1903. The plane’s innovations included propellers, plus a mechanical control system with forward-mounted stabilizers, a chain-and-sprocket transmission system, and a movable, vertical tail. Built of wood and muslin, the plane had no cockpit; no seat; no gauges, shocks, or wheels; no doors. On its fourth and last flight, it covered about 850 feet in 59 seconds, reaching an altitude of about 10 feet, before being rolled and destroyed by a gust of wind while sitting on the ground. Modern aviation was born, but if planes were to carry people, clearly, safety needed to follow. By the 1920s, military, commercial, and general aviation were growing, and planes began to be equipped with seatbelts. In the 1930s, instrument panels with gauges helped pilots navigate and see how a plane was performing, and fire extinguishers were added to the safety arsenal. Emergency Locator Transmitters were invented in the 1950s and required by the 1970s to help rescuers pinpoint the location of a downed plane. In the 1980s, Electronic Flight Instrument Systems replaced steam gauges, putting aircraft monitors, flight parameters, autopilot, and flight status in one, compact, easier-to-read display. The 1990s saw the beginning of the “electronic flight bag,” pilots using their personal devices to store and access charts, maps, manuals, and weather information plus digital flight and maintenance logs. Today, improved flight data monitoring systems allow pilots to detect problems with the flight or plane earlier, and infrared systems give pilots visibility through weather and dark. GPS systems have revolutionized navigation, and Terrain Awareness and Warning System (TAWS) and collision avoidance systemsnowalert pilots to impending threats. In the 2020s, Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) is being deployed to give pilots radically improved situational awareness, with real-time flight information about all surrounding aircraft. A New Era of Pilot Safety The pilot is arguably the most important part of an aviation system. (Hence, the reason any old Joe can’t land a plane with the help of an autopilot.) In recognition of that, aviation tech has also evolved to better protect pilots. Hearing and hearing protection has been a big factor in making pilots safer. Accurately hearing comms is critical to flight safely, yet the noise in a cockpit can damage hearing over time. Over the last century of flight, we’ve gone from pilots wearing no hearing protection to passive protection to aviation headsets with sophisticated Active Noise Reduction (ANR) technology that not only protects hearing but improves intelligibility of communications, helping avoid misunderstandings that can cause potential crashes. The Lightspeed Delta Zulu™, launched in 2022, is the first pilot headset that can adapt sound performance to the user’s hearing profile. Another big risk to pilots and passengers is carbon monoxide exposure. CO monitoring has evolved from none to crude paper test strips to digital monitoring. The Lightspeed Delta Zulu headset puts a built-in CO sensor in the aviation headset and pairs it with an app for customizable alerts and data gathering that can help pilots identify developing issues with an aircraft. Looking Ahead Aviation and aviation safety have come a long way in the 100-plus years since Kitty Hawk. And who knows what will come next? Ongoing data analysis has already had a huge impact on aviation safety, and advanced informatics and artificial intelligence are the newest tools in that effort. Experts also predict that AI will take cockpit automation to the next level, aiding pilots with real-time predictions and modeling. Sustainable aviation fuels and even hydrogen-powered aircraft are on the horizon, promising to make flying safer for the environment, too. So far, technology hasn’t found a way around gravity. What goes up must still come down. But based on the last century of innovation, pilots and passengers can look forward to a future of greater safety and enjoyment while they’re going up, down, and all around. Leeham News and Analysis • Embraer goes for growth after ‘solid’ 2023 • March 18, 2024 • Bjorn’s Corner: New aircraft technologies. Part 50. Wrap up. • March 15, 2024 • When does a larger airliner pay off? Part 2 • March 14, 2024 • “If something requires us to cease production, we will do that:” FAA • March 13, 2024 • Pontifications: “Boards are invested in their C.E.O.s until they’re not.” • March 12, 2024 Bjorn’s Corner: New aircraft technologies. Part 50. Wrap up. By Bjorn Fehrm March 15, 2024, ©. Leeham News: We started the series a year ago about the New Aircraft Technologies that can be used when replacing our present single-aisle airliners. We have covered a lot, including the typical development phases, from initial studies to preparing for the aircraft’s in-service phase. Let’s make a resume of what we have discussed. Figure 1. Boeing’s Truss Braced Wing X-66A demonstrator based on the MD-90. Source: Boeing. New Aircraft Technologies Over the 49 articles, we have covered a lot. Let’s run through what we looked at and learned about the ideas and technologies that can come to use for the replacement of the present single-aisle Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 MAX series: • The first question is the airplane’s configuration. Are alternatives to the tube with wings mature enough to be considered? We must realize that the single-aisle is the backbone earner of both Airbus and Boeing. Companies will have a very low-risk appetite, as failure can risk them. In summary, we can assume that the next generation will keep the tube with wings. • The next question is whether to keep the single-aisle configuration or if the yearly increase in passenger volumes and increasing slot constraints at key airports will favor a shorter and higher-capacity dual-aisle configuration. It all depends on the projected passenger growth. The problem is to project the movement of the heart of the market correctly over the new airliner’s 50-year lifetime. • We then looked at the aerodynamic advancement that new aerodynamic tools, structural materials, and control techniques enable. Boeing put the folding wingtip onto airliners with the 777X. We can assume that the folding wingtip will appear on the new generation aircraft. Boeing is also exploring the next step in wider wings (to reduce the induced drag), which is the Truss-Braced Wing (TBW). The question is, will the test with a truss-braced wing on an MD-90 (Figure 1) give Boeing the confidence to dare it for the next generation? We will know by the end of the decade. • To enable a more advanced aerodynamic shape at the lowest aircraft mass, we need materials that allow wings with advanced shapes and curvatures and strong and durable fuselages. The wing material will most likely be the classical thermoset composite, which cures chemically and is then joined with bolts (called fastened in aero-speak) into larger assemblies. The more complicated fuselage would benefit from a less workhour intensive assembly method than the bolting’s “drill and fill’. It’s where the heat-matured thermoplastic composite would allow the welding of parts into assemblies, much like car chassis parts are spot-welded into the final chassis. • The airframe classically represents about one-third of the gain in efficiency and new engine technology two-thirds. The problem with the classical turbofan engine is the easiest efficiency improvement is to decrease the average exhaust speed of the hot gases leaving the engine (the gas overspeed versus the surrounding air), which increases the propulsive efficiency. The problem is that the method to get there, to increase the ByPass Ratio (BPR), was used heavily for the last generations, from BPR around 4 for the CFM56 generation to BPR 12 for the Pratt & Whitney GTF, an increase of three times. It will not be possible to increase the classical turbofan BPR another three times, which would be a BPR of 30+. The engine and its nacelle would be too large. • The technology that can achieve a BPR of 30+ is the Open Rotor technology, which can achieve BPRs of double that. GE and SAFRAN propose a simplified Open Rotor for the next-generation aircraft called RISE (Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines). It puts the rotor at the front, with a non-rotating vane stage working as the de-swirler behind the single rotor. It simplifies the Open Rotor configuration without sacrificing efficiency. • The other major efficiency improvement is found in the engine core, where new design principles and materials enable more efficient air compression, combustion, and power extraction. However, this increases the mechanical and thermal loads. It has led to the present crisis in engine durability, where airlines suffer with aircraft grounded. We will do a follow-up series about what can be done to change this situation. We continue to Wrap our series in the next Corner. Unapproved Repair Triggers CFM56 Emergency Directive Sean Broderick March 13, 2024 Credit: Sean Broderick/Aviation Week Network An MRO shop's unapproved repair process triggered a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) emergency airworthiness directive that orders parts removed from 57 CFM International engines. A third-party engine maintenance shop working on critical CFM56 parts used an induction heater "in a manner that may have resulted in unintended electrical arcing to those parts," EASA said. The unnamed shop discovered the issue and alerted CFM. The shop determined its unapproved process was used on life-limited parts that ended up in 57 engines, including CFM56-5s, and -7s found on Airbus A320ceos and Boeing 737 Next Generation variants. Affected parts were high-pressure compressor stage 3 disks, high pressure turbine rear shafts, and compressor discharge pressure seals, EASA said. Evidence of arcing on a part shed light on the issue. Arcing can damage coatings or degrade materials, which can affect their service lives. CFM issued an all operators' wire and looped in EASA, which worked up the directive. EASA's directive ordered the removal of affected parts, listed by serial number, before further flight. The Rise & Fall of the Radial Airplane Engine - History & Technical The Radial engine was once the pinnacle of internal combustion engine design, but has gone mostly extinct. What happened? The Radial first ousted the Rotary, then to a large extent the inline engines (V12's) before the Radial itself was ousted. In this video we briefly go through the history of the radial and we also take a bit of a deep dive into radial engine design and see what made it such a great engine. Curt Lewis