All news – Page 6715
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Re-engining plan will speed up King Air 90
Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON Re-engining of the Beech King Air 90, providing improved performance and lower cabin noise, is expected to be available by the end of the year. The project, the Kilo Alpha 290, is being developed by Detroit-based Murray Aviation for the five- to eight-seat twin turboprop and is ...
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Resurrected Luscombe heads for approval
Kate Sarsfield/LONDON Renaissance Aircraft's Luscombe 8F light aircraft is on target for certification and first deliveries by the fourth quarter of the year, nearly four decades after production of the piston single was halted. "The first production aircraft is flying and we are taking orders," says Renaissance. Monkton, Maryland, ...
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USAF commissions F-16 trainer centres
Lockheed Martin has been selected to build and operate privately financed F-16 training centres for the US Air Force. The contract award is the latest under the USAF's Distributed Mission Training (DMT) programme. The first two of up to 18 F-16 mission training centres (MTCs) are to be operational ...
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UK police Islander will test anti-noise propellers
In response to growing environmental concerns over noise from general aviation aircraft in Europe, the UK's Britten-Norman plans a six-month trial of new generation propellers on a BN2B light utility piston-engined Islander. The test is part of a UK Government-backed programme. Designed by US propeller manufacturer Hartzell as part ...
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Jamaican force ready for two more AS355Ns
The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) is due to take delivery of two Eurocopter AS355Ns in August, to add to the two it acquired earlier in the year. The aircraft, which were completed by Eurocopter UK distributor McAlpine Helicopters, will be deployed on law enforcement and anti-drug trafficking missions. In preparation ...
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Pop-out floats
The US Federal Aviation Administration has approved Robinson R44 emergency pop-out floats, allowing the pilot to resume flying, without noticeable loss of airspeed, once a cause of an emergency is corrected. Robinson says the $22,000 floats are lightweight, durable and inflate in about 2s. The company has delivered the first ...
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Diesel Air sets sights on general aviation piston engine market
As the potentially lucrative piston engine replacement market emerges, UK manufacturer Diesel Air has entered the fray, with plans to produce a diesel engine family aimed at the general aviation market. The 75kW (100hp) DAIR 100 is the first in a 75-450kW engine range. It has completed more than ...
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Digital data network software progresses
Aeronautical Communication International (ACI) has completed the first of three phases of aeronautical telecommunications network software for the communications, navigation and surveillance/air traffic management environment. The software will determine the routing of digital data messages between aircraft and air traffic control. ACI, which comprises Airsys ATM, AlliedSignal, Honeywell, Sextant ...
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Bangladesh buys eight MiG-29s
Bangladesh is buying eight MAPO MiG-29 Fulcrums in a $115 million deal. An air force requirement for new fighters has existed for several years. Four aircraft will be delivered in December following pilot and technician training in Russia, while the remaining aircraft will follow next February. Bangladesh will ...
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Carriers put transpolar plans on ice
Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC North American carriers are being forced to shelve plans for new non-stop direct services between US and Asian destinations as infrastructural and political problems delay the opening of transpolar routes . Trial flights over the North Pole have stopped only 12 months after the inaugural ...
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Winglets boost 707 cruise performance for BAC II
Burbank Aeronautical (BAC II) says the cruise performance of its Boeing 707-320B demonstrator is "dramatically" improved thanks to winglets installed before a transatlantic flight to Paris, where the modified aircraft was on static display at June's Paris air show. Although the company is evaluating precise performance figures, the winglets ...
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EasyJet gains Gatwick foothold
EasyJet is to begin its first services from London Gatwick this year. London Luton-based low-fares carrier easyJet has been seeking to gain access to the capital's other airports - Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted - and will use its Gatwick slots to launch daily scheduled services to Geneva for the winter ...
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Aerospatiale Matra tanker deal sparks Raytheon exclusivity row
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC Aerospatiale Matra's partnership with Lockheed Martin on an air-to-air refuelling aircraft based on an Airbus Industrie aircraft violates an exclusive agreement between Raytheon and Airbus to develop and market a militarised Airbus A310-300, Raytheon officials claim. In April, Raytheon Systems and Airbus teamed on the ...
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USAF looks for F-16 upgrade funds
Combat missions over Kosovo have driven the US Air Force to seek supplemental funding to refurbish many of its of Lockheed Martin F-16C/D fighters that would otherwise fall short of their projected lifespans. Lockheed Martin designed the single-engined fighter to last 8,000h within a specific flight profile based on ...
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French navy production Rafale flies
The first production naval Rafale fighter has flown from Dassault's Bordeaux plant on the same day that the prototype made its first landing on the nuclear-powered carrier Charles de Gaulle. The first Rafale M squadron of 12 aircraft will be formed in 2001. The French navy requires 60 Rafales, 25 ...
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China and Pakistan agree on Super-7 fighter development work
China and Pakistan have signed an agreement on the joint development and production of the Chengdu FC-1/Super 7 fighter, firming up a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed two years ago. According to Chengdu Aircraft Industrial Group (CAC), the agreement was signed at the end of June during a visit ...
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First JORN detection trials in September
Peter La Franchi/CANBERRA Australia's Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN)will begin tracking tests in September with the first array, at Longreach in western Queensland, undergoing integration testing. Air Cdre Dick Hedges, director of strategic high-frequency projects within the Defence Acquisition Organisation, says the trials will focus on tracking civil aircraft. ...
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Lockheed Martin wins SH-60R work
Lockheed Martin plans to begin test flying the first upgraded Sikorsky SH-60R prototype in September and has been awarded a $154 million follow-on contract to modify a second pair of helicopters with the new multi-mission sensor and avionics suite. Sikorsky has delivered the first upgraded SH-60B to systems integrator Lockheed ...
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LANTIRN enhanced for bomb damage assessment
The US Air Force is to improve the Lockheed Martin LANTIRN targeting pod by giving it bomb damage assessment (BDA) and digital recording capabilities. Lockheed Martin flew a prototype last year as part of a Department of Defense-funded technology demonstration of the Tactical FLIR Pod Modification (TFPM). The USAF ...
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Testing times
Test flights of a Boeing 707-320 with one JT8D-219 and three JT3Ds start this month in preparation for more tests in November, when all four JT3Ds will be replaced by the newer engine. The re-engining effort is led by San Antonio, Texas-based Seven Q Seven and involves Omega Air, Ed ...