Advanced Super Hornet demonstrates significant stealth and range improvements

by BA Staff

During three weeks of flight testing the Advanced Super Hornet F/A-18F, Boeing and its partner Northrop Grumman demonstrated that the fighter can outperform threats for decades to come with improvements that make the jet much harder for radar to detect and give it significantly more combat range.

Through 21 flights in St. Louis and Patuxent River, MD., that began Aug. 5, the team tested conformal fuel tanks (CFT), an enclosed weapons pod (EWP), and signature enhancements, each of which can be retrofitted on an existing Block II Super Hornet aircraft or included on a new jet.

Improvements to the aircraft’s radar signature, including the enclosed pod, resulted in a 50 percent reduction compared with the U.S. Navy’s stealth requirement for the current Super Hornet variant. The tests also showed that the CFTs increase the jet’s combat radius by up to 130 nautical miles, for a total combat radius of more than 700 nautical miles.

Boeing and Northrop Grumman funded the testing. The companies, along with Hornet Industry Team partners GE Aviation and Raytheon, are investing in more advanced technologies for the Advanced Super Hornet, including internal Infrared Search and Track, an enhanced engine and a next-generation cockpit.

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The Airbus A350 XWB journey - behind the scenes videos

by Devesh Agarwal

Ahead of the first flight of the Airbus A350 XWB a set of videos from Airbus which gives us behind the scenes explanations on some aspects of the aircraft design, development, testing, manufacturing, and hand-over to the flight testing crew who will fly the aircraft today.

Like the Boeing 787, the A350 XWB heavily relies on composite materials to lighten the airplane. This video explains the use of composites in the A350. It is largely in French so you will have to follow the sub-titles.



The Final Assembly Line (FAL) is where all A350 airframes are built including the MSN (Manufacturer's Serial Number) 5000 series which were used for static testing on the ground, and MSN001 which will fly later today, god willing, weather permitting.



Prior to any form of flight, the airframe is tortured using special static testing rigs. Observe how the wing is flexed to a deflection of over 5.3 metres (17.38 ft), that is almost two floors of a building.



The first flyable prototype MSN001 is fitted with the Rolls Royce Trent XWB engines, the most powerful engine mounted on any Airbus airframe till date. Even more powerful than the Trent 900 engines on the A380; but then the A380 is powered by four engines, while the A350 is a twin jet.



The A350 XWB MSN001 is painted for flight.



After the first flyable prototype MSN001 is assembled, the manufacturing team turns the aircraft over to the flight test team, which accepts responsibility of the aircraft on behalf of the Engineering Division at Airbus. The flight test team then readies the aircraft and tests prior to the first flight.



MSN001 does not contain much of a passenger cabin. It is filled with mountains of test equipment.



The engines on MSN001 are powered up for the first time.



Fernando Alonso, who shares his name with the world champion Formula 1 Ferrari driver, joined Airbus in 1982 and is the head of Airbus Flight and Integration Test Centre. He will lead the flight test activities for Airbus.



Watch the A350 XWB first flight live.

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Video: How Boeing responded to the Indian Navy's P-8I additional flight and weapons' testing needs

In 2012, the P-8I being built for the Indian Navy was transitioned in to flight testing by Boeing. With a committed delivery date set, the program was suddenly required to do additional flight testing, including weapons separation testing; and all this without adding any additional time to the schedule. Boeing was required to drop simulated weapons from the wing of a commercial airplane, something no one has ever done before in The Boeing Company.

A military derivative of the Next-Generation 737-800, the P-8I is a sister ship to the P-8A, the United States Navy’s maritime surveillance and submarine hunter. The P-8 is designed to carry weapons both under the wing and in a weapons bay.

Watch this almost four minute video to see how the P-8I team achieved the requirements, much to the astonishment of the Indian Navy program managers and colleagues within the company

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Photos: Airbus powers up cockpit of first A350 XWB MSN1

European airframer Airbus has successfully powered-up the flight-deck of A350 XWB “MSN1” for the first time, following the initial application of electrical power to the aircraft’s front fuselage.

The front fuselage was delivered to the Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Toulouse two weeks ago.

Flight-deck power-on is an important step on the route to complete aircraft power-on and first flight, because it enables most systems functional checking to be undertaken.

Achieving this nearly a year before first flight, will allow Airbus engineers early identification and resolution of potential issues, and the company hopes, thus help protect the aircraft’s development schedule.

Testing of the front fuselage section will proceed during this summer. This will be followed by the powering on of the entire fuselage later this year, when it is constructed.

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Photos: Boeing commences flight test programme of Indian Navy's P-8I maritime aircraft ahead of December handover

US airframer Boeing commenced the flight test programme on the Indian Navy's first P-8I aircraft on July 7. Tail number IN320 took off from Boeing Field in Seattle at 0915 local and landing three hours and 49 minutes later after demonstrating flying qualities and handling characteristics.

The second P-8I aircraft, tail number IN321 performed its initial flight on July 12. Taking off from Renton Field at 15:29 and landing two hours and 14 minutes later at Boeing Field in Seattle. During the flight, Boeing test pilots performed airborne systems checks and took the P-8I to a maximum altitude of 41,000 feet prior to landing.

The P-8I is a long-range maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare aircraft, based the Boeing 737-800 commercial airplane. The Indian Navy had ordered eight aircraft from Boeing on January 1, 2009. Boeing commenced the manufacture of the aircraft in December 2010, after completing the final design review (FDR) in July, and the first P-8I, IN320, had its first flight on September 29, 2011. (Click each link for related stories and photos).

Indian Navy Boeing P-8I IN320 and IN321 face each other

As per Leland Wight, the Boeing P-8I program manager,

"The program is on plan and the Indian Navy is excited for the P-8I to join its fleet,"

. The two aircraft will now undergo extensive mission systems installation and checkout work in the coming weeks.

By December, the aircraft are expected to be handed over to Indian Navy personnel who will then commence training and familiarisation in the US. Boeing expects to make formal delivery to the Indian Navy in mid-2013 after which the P-8I's will fly to India.

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