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Defense

Flight Testing Microvanes and Riblets

The Air Force Operational Energy Office (SAF/IE), the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), and the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) have partnered together in seeking well-developed, commercially viable technologies to reduce drag, and therefore fuel consumption, on a number of USAF legacy aircraft, including the C-17 Globemaster III, C-130 Hercules, and KC-135 Stratotanker.

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Energy

GM Hydrotec Boss Readies Fuel Cells for Commercial Deployment

Call it a “technology-meets-the-moment” place in the transportation sector’s innovation timeline. After decades of concentrated development work, GM’s fuel-cell...

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Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Developing Thermoplastic Composites for Use in Commercial Aircraft

Thermoplastic composite materials (TPC) are gaining momentum for use in commercial airplanes and other aerospace applications, including electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.

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Manufacturing & Prototyping

Changing How the Aerospace Industry Makes Parts

Today's technology must increase production rates and part quality, while reducing setup times and costs.

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Manned Systems

Boeing’s Next EcoDemonstrator Test Bed Will Be a 777

The Boeing Company is kicking off a new round of flight-testing to research approximately 50 technology projects related to safety, environmental sustainability, and passenger...

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Manned Systems

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Will Acquire Bombardier’s Regional Jet Program

After failing to establish itself in the commercial aviation market against entrenched competition from The Boeing Company and Airbus SE, Montreal-based...

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Design

NASA Crash Landing Is a Complete Success

NASA just crash landed a Fokker F28 Mark 1000 Fellowship short-range, narrow-body airliner. The event, an experiment to gather crash-safety data, occurred at NASA Langley Research Center’s...

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Manned Systems

SAE Course Delivers an Introduction to the Latest Aviation Cybersecurity Essentials

As of 2019, the only acceptable mean of compliance (AMC) for U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and European Union Aviation Safety Agency aviation...

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Design

Boeing Reports on Its Environmental Efforts

In its 2019 Global Environment report, the Boeing Company provides an update on the environmental strategy the company unveiled last year. The strategy identifies 2025 as a target year to...

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Manned Systems

Wing’s UAS Delivery Service Has FAA Certification

Google LLC’s (Google’s) parent company, Alphabet Inc. (Alphabet), is moving forward with unmanned aircraft system (UAS) or “drone” delivery. Alphabet’s Wing project has become...

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Energy

UTC’s Project 804 Hybrid-Electric Demonstrator May Increase Regional Jet Efficiency by 30 Percent

United Technologies Corporation (UTC) is collaborating with its subsidiaries Pratt & Whitney and Collins Aerospace to develop a...

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Propulsion

“The Grid” Promises to Be the Most Advanced Electric Propulsion Laboratory in the Aerospace Industry

Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation (UTC), has laid out its plans for what is calling “The Grid”...

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Defense

Wichita State’s National Center for Advanced Materials Performance Partners with SAE International to Standardize Lightweight Aerospace Materials

The National Center for Advanced Materials Performance (NCAMP) of Wichita State University...

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Manned Systems

Sensuron Enables Real-Time Structural Health Monitoring Onboard NASA’s X-56 UAV

In contrast to the stiff, rigid wings found on most commercial aircraft, flexible wing technology is considered essential to next generation, fuel...

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Robotics, Automation & Control

Boeing Flies First 737 MAX 7 with Updated MCAS Software

Chicago-based Boeing recently completed a “demo flight” of a 737 MAX 7 narrow-body airliner equipped with updated Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS)...

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RF & Microwave Electronics

Wind River, Collins Aerospace Explore the Future of AI/ML in Avionics

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) will continue to bring about significant changes in aircraft cockpits and help move commercial, military, and...

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Photonics/Optics

Airbus’ Connected Cabin Concept Is Materializing with First Round of Partnerships

Airbus SE is shifting its Connected Experience cabin concept into the first stages of reality with cooperative buy-in from gategroup Holding AG, Stelia...

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Connectivity

Collins Aerospace Cabin Solutions Maintain Passenger Experience While Reducing Aircraft Weight

The application of light emitting diode (LED) technology in automotive and aerospace cabins has led to widespread energy and cost savings....

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Connectivity

AIA Predicts Flying Air Taxis, Supersonic Air Travel, and Space Industry for 2050

Arlington, Virginia-based Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) has collected input from leaders in the aerospace and defense industries and built a...

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Automotive

SAE International Releases New Process for Measuring Aerosols in Aircraft Exhaust

SAE International, based in Warrendale, Pennsylvania, has published a new recommended practice for assessing the amount of nonvolatile particulate matter...

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Propulsion

Virgin Galactic Takes First Passenger to Space

Virgin Galactic’s spaceplane, SpaceShipTwo or “VSS Unity,” made its fifth powered test flight and second space flight late last week with three individuals on board. In addition to...

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Manned Systems

Russia to Develop Supersonic Passenger Jet

According to the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Moscow-based United Aviation Corporation (UAC) will begin development on a supersonic passenger aircraft by 2022. The aircraft,...

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RF & Microwave Electronics

Curtiss-Wright Black Boxes Receive European Approval

Curtiss-Wright Corporation’s Fortress line of combined cockpit voice recorders (CVRs) and flight data recorders (FDRs) are now have European Technical Standard Order (ETSO) approval....

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Sensors/Data Acquisition

Curtiss-Wright and Honeywell Team to Develop Cloud-Enabled Flight Recorders of the Future

Davidson, North Carolina-based Curtiss-Wright Corporation and Honeywell International, Inc. of Charlotte, North Carolina will co-develop a...

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Electronics & Computers

Streamlining EMC Solutions for Avionics Interfaces

Lightning strikes to jet airliners are common - about once every 1000 flight hours. The DO-160G standard, Environmental Conditions and Test Procedures for Airborne Equipment, is a standard...

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AR/AI

NATS Will Test AI at Heathrow to Reduce Weather-Related Flight Delays

NATS Holdings (NATS), formerly National Air Traffic Services and the United Kingdom’s (UK’s) main air navigation service provider, is exploring the impact of...

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Manned Systems

Boeing’s 777X Finally Gets Its Engines

Less than a year after the GE9X turbofan first flew on its Boeing 747 testbed, GE Aviation and Boeing have installed the record-breaking engine on the aircraft it was designed for: the Boeing...

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Test & Measurement

Nomination Period Now Open for SAE International Aerospace Engineering Awards

Every year, SAE International seeks to recognize the outstanding individuals for their commitment to the mobility industry. Among the nearly 60 professional...

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Automotive

Boeing and NASA Unveil Lightweight, Ultra-Thin, More Aerodynamic Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Concept

Engineers at Boeing and NASA are collaborating on a lightweight, ultra-thin Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) concept, designed to be...

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