The World Trade Organization (WTO) has authorised the EU to impose $4bn worth of import tariffs on US goods, including aircraft, tractors, fish, alcohol and dried fruit, over illegal US state support to Boeing. It comes a year after the WTO authorised the US to impose $7bn tariffs on the EU for Airbus subsidies.
Boeing has confirmed that it will end production of its 787 Dreamliner airliner in Washington State, moving the entire production to its South Carolina 787 facility starting in mid2021. Opened in 2011 as a non-unionised factory, Boeing’s Charleston, South Carolina factory is currently the sole assembly line for the 787-10 Dreamliner.
UAV specialists UMS Skeldar has carried out trials of what it calls a world-first in automated remote flight – allowing customers to fly and test its V-150 rotary-wing UAV from anywhere in the world. The flight tests, took place in Switzerland this summer, with the V-150 controlled from the UK and from ‘the other side of the globe’ according to the company. The client requires a small ground control station and an internet connection.
US FAA chief Steven Dickson conducted a personal test flight of the troubled Boeing 737 MAX, ahead of the type’s approval and return to airline service. The unusual move by the head of the FAA, a former military and commercial pilot, saw Dickson evaluate the aircraft’s changes and design tweaks himself over a two-hour flight on 30 September. However, the FAA refused to speculate on how much longer the aircraft would continue to be grounded for commercial flights.
AIR TRANSPORT
According to the Irish Independent, Irish budget carrier Ryanair is now in negotiations for a bumper 150-200 order of the currently grounded Boeing 737 MAXs. A deal for 150 737 MAXs, would be valued at $15.9bn at list prices, with the paper reporting that the sale could be sealed by the end of this year. The airline already has an order for 100 firm and 100 optional 737 MAX 200s.
Malaysia-based AirAsia Group is reported to be winding up its AirAsia Japan regional subsidiary due to a slump in demand resulting from the Covid-19 crisis. AirAsia posted its largest-ever quarterly loss in August of $238m – a 98% revenue fall.
German flag carrier Lufthansa is to put its entire Airbus A380 fleet and ten A340s into long-term storage with no date to return them to service. The aircraft will only return to flight in the case of an ‘unexpectedly rapid market recovery’, according to the airline.
US carrier American Airlines and United Airlines are expected to lay off over 32,000 workers after the US Government failure to reach agreement to extend its Payroll Support Program. American may reduce its staff levels by 19,000 and United by 12,000. Other US airlines are expected to make additional reductions.
DEFENCE
The UK’s Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group has been awarded a ten-year contract to provide depot-level maintenance for US Marine Corps KC-130J tanker-transports. The deal, one of the largest in the group’s history, covers 66 USMC KC-130Js and will see the first aircraft arrive for overhaul in Cambridge before the end of this year.
On 25 September, a Ukrainian Air Force An26 transport crashed in the Eastern Kharkiv region with at least 26 of the 27 on board being killed. The casualties included cadets from the Ivan Kozhedub National Air Force University. The aircraft had reportedly declared an emergency with one engine, when it came down 1.2miles away from a military airbase in Chuhuiv.
Leonardo UK has announced that it has carried out trials for the RAF of ‘swarming drone technology’ designed to overwhelm and confuse enemy air defences. The tests in July involved a number of Callen Lenz UAVs fitted with the company’s BriteCloud digital decoys.
Textron has won a contract from the Royal Thai Air Force for 12 Beechcraft T-6C Texan II military trainers as part of an integrated training system at the RTAF Flying Training School at Kamphaeng Saen airbase. The first T-6C Texan IIs, which will be called the T-6TH in Thailand, are due for delivery between the end of 2022 and early 2023.
SPACEFLIGHT
Small satellite company OneWeb has announced that it hopes to exit bankruptcy before the end of the year and resume launches for its global broadband network in December. OneWeb has reached agreement with Arianespace for a modified 16-launch contract to complete the deployment of its global satellite constellation in low Earth orbit before the end of 2022.
After two weeks of delays due to bad weather, on 6 October, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and successfully put another 60 Starlink communication satellites into orbit, bringing the total fleet in orbit to 715.
The UK Government is to initiate a new programme to explore wider alternatives to the European Galileo satellite navigation system. The ‘Space-Based Positioning Navigation and Timing Programme’ will ‘explore the use of different kinds of satellites at various levels of orbit by exploiting technologies offered by companies at the cutting-edge of innovation, such as OneWeb, Inmarsat and Airbus, according to a Whitehall press release. The programme is a reboot of the Global Navigation Satellite System (UK GNSS) which concluded at the end of September.
China launched nine small Earth observation satellites into orbit on 15 September. The satellites were launched aboard a Long March 11 launcher from a ship in the Yellow Sea.
GENERAL AVIATION
Gulfstream has added a fourth G700 test aircraft to join its flight certification programme. The fourth G700 will be used to test avionics, the environmental control system, mechanical systems, electrical power and hydraulics. The four flight-test aircraft have now flown over 600 hours since the first flight of the G700 in February.
On 30 September, the Norwegian Air Ambulance Foundation took delivery of the first five-bladed variant of the Airbus H145 helicopter. The extra blade allows for an additional 150kg of payload, while making for a smoother and quieter flight. The NAAF will use it for HEMS R&D projects, including a prehospital cabin CT scanner designed to check for head and brain trauma at the site of the incident.
German urban air mobility specialists Volocopter has begun selling ‘VoloFirst’ tickets for piloted air taxi flights after commercial launch. The tickets are priced at €300 and can be reserved for a 10% deposit and are valid for a 15-minute flight in a VoloCity eVTOL. Volocopter says that it intends to launch the first eVTOL flying taxi flights within the next two to three years.
US drone manufacturer Sonin Hybrid has unveiled a 140mph+ drone designed for first responders. The new Recruit hybrid-electric drone is built of carbon fibre, has an endurance of 3+ hours and is fitted with a video camera with fixed and mobile target tracking, FLIR with night vision, PA speakers, spotlight and additional sensors for first responders’ missions.
ON THE MOVE
Chief Executive of British Airways, Álex Cruz is stepping down. He is being replaced by Aer Lingus chief Sean Doyle.
The new Team Leader for the RAF Red Arrows display team for 2021 will be Sqn Ldr Tom Bould.
GKN Aerospace CEO Hans Buthker has resigned, reports Flight Global, with Peter Dilnot, Chief Operating Officer, Melrose taking over in the interim.
Glenn Bradley is the new Head of Flight Operations at the UK CAA.
Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson has pulled out from flying CST-100 Starliner on its first flight in 2021, citing personal reasons. In his place will be NASA astronaut Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore.