flight international - 16-22 february 2016

7/24/2019 Flight International - 16-22 February 2016

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FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

CRASH REVIEW

Six years on, why Polishgovernment is restartinginquiries into SmolenskTu-154 disaster 13

X APPEAL

NASA seeks budget boostto support experimentalflight tests of supersonicdemonstrator by 2021 9

HOME STRETCH

FIRST A350-1000

NOSES INTO FINAL

ASSEMBLY PHASE

REPORT P7

16-22 FEBRUARY 2016

PROGRAMME

LIGHTNINGTHE MOODItalian F-35 aces transatlantic trek,but US DoD adjusts purchase plan

9 7 7 0 0 1 5 3 7 1 2 8 0

0 7

3.60


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16-22 February 2016 |Flight International|3flightglobal.com

FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

16-22 FEBRUARY 2016

FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

CRASHREVIEWSixyearson,whyPolishgovernmentis restartinginquiriesintoSmolenskTu-154disaster13

XAPPEALNASAseeksbudgetboosttosupportexperimentalflighttestsofsupersonicdemonstratorby2021 9

HOMESTRETCHFIRSTA350-1000

NOSESINTOFINAL

ASSEMBLYPHASEREPORTP7

16-22FEBRUARY 2016

PROGRAMME

LIGHTNINGTHE MOODItalianF-35acestransatlantictrek,butUSDoDadjustspurchaseplan

9 7 7 0 0 1 5 3 7 1 2 8 0

0 7

3.60

F I N_ 6 0 6 _ 0 . i n dd / 0 / 0 6 0 : 5 4

VOLUME 189 NUMBER 5525

Italian

AirForce

COVER IMAGE

Italys air force supplied

this image of its first F-35A

ready to refuel from a

KC-767 tanker during the

types maiden crossing ofthe Atlantic Ocean P20

BEHIND THE HEADLINESBeth Stevenson travelled toParis, to attend the annualconference at Frances DGA

defence procurement agency(P6). James Drew welcomedItalysfirst F-35Ato NASPatuxent River(P20), andStephen Trimblewas at aPNAA event in Seattle(P11)

NEXT WEEK SINGAPOREDont miss our all-anglescoverage from the Singaporeair show. And we detail therotorcraft topics for Heli-Expo Bo

eing,

Airbus

Helicopters

Seattle confident narrowbody is well positioned P11. Airbus Helicopters changes tack on upgraded H225P9

USA

irForce

Lightning II output traded for operations support P16

COVER STORY

20

Italian F-35 makes Atlantic crossingDomestically-assembled Lightning II completeshistoric journey from Cameri air base, with testsand training duties ahead

FEATURES24 F-35 TRAININGSimulated lightningThe

capabilities of Lockheed Martins F-35 and thethreats it may face in combat are so advancedthat the only place to fully prepare pilots is on theground

30 CYBERSECURITYIs a hack waiting tohappen?Manufacturers insist their aircraft areinvulnerable to attack by computer hackers, butelectronic threats are now worrying securityexperts and aviation authorities

REGULARS5 Comment

34 Straight & Level35 Letters

37 Classified

40 Jobs

43 Working Week

NEWS

THIS WEEK

6 Patroller selection was fair, says DGA.Lockheed drops clean-sheet T-X bid

7 Boeing starts countdown to launch?

USAF trims spending on LRS-B.First A350-1000 begins taking shape in Toulouse

8 Engine will leap into action, says CFM.Neo family grows as largest variant gets airborne

9 NASA budget sets stage for return to the X-planefactor.Change of course on H225 means 2B is not to be

10 Boeing plans 747-8 build-rate revival.CS300 to make operational debut in third quarter

AIR TRANSPORT11 Boeing upbeat on slow-selling Max 9

12 Lessor CIT hurt by size of orderbook.Resurrection of Il-114 gathers pace

13 Poland re-opens old wounds

14 Lisbon grabs back TAP stake.ASL Aviation to grow on back of TNT-FedEx merger

OBITUARY

15 Retired army master aviator and former Sikorskyhead Jeff Pinos lasting legacy

DEFENCE

16 US budget places readiness ahead ofmodernisation

17 Navy maintains Super Hornets sting

18 SHieLD laser pod could be in demonstration by2021.

TUSK proposal will strengthen Warthog fleet

19 US Navy targets Hornet hypoxia rate

UNMANNED SYSTEMS

21 UK to test Zephyr pseudo-satellites

BUSINESS AVIATION

22 Midsize revives, but other sectors slip

23 Russia works to modernise An-2 with new glasscockpit

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4/44

flightglobal.com4 |Flight International|16-22 February 2016

CONTENTS

QUESTION OF THE WEEKTHE WEEK IN NUMBERS

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Vote at flightglobal.com

Flightglobals premium news and data service delivers breaking air transport stories with

profiles, schedules, and fleet, financial and traffic information flightglobal.com/dashboard

TOTALVOTES:

2,397

This week, we ask: F-35s transatlantic crossing?

Genuine achievement

Brief lift for troubled programme Lindbergh managed it in 1927

Last week, we asked: Is Irans planned aviation expansion?You said:

Peak employment at Boeings soon-to-close Long Beach

C-17 plant, for which the city seeks a new productive use

5,000

Finnair made a 2015 operating profit, more than erasing2014s 36.5m loss; revenue rose slightly, to 2.3bn

237m

Aerospace and defence merger and acquisition deals hit arecord $62bn in 2015 more than double 2014s total

National League of Cities

Flightglobal dashboard

PwC158%

IMAGE OFTHE WEEKA formation of LockheedMartin F-35As three fromthe US Air Force and oneAustralian example carryout a training sortie nearLuke AFB in Arizona. Themanufacturer says itsprogramme surpassed the50,000 flight hours mark inFebruary. For more, see ourF-35 training feature on P24

View more great aviation shotsonline and in our weekly tabletedition:

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for Airbusand Europe

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www.fightglobal.com/milisimCAE oers training centres, training services, and simulation products for transports and tankers.


5/44

COMMENT


Greased LightningT

he Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II has become alightning rod for quick-hit budget savings in the

Pentagons latest military spending plan, despite whatthe programme office would have you believe.

Less than a week after celebrating a first transatlanticcrossing by an Italian-assembled F-35A, refuelled by anItalian air force KC-767, bad news quickly befell thefifth-generation fighter. Its largest customer, the US AirForce, is to defer 45 orders across its five-year budgetproposal, and wont hit 60 aircraft per year until 2021.

With a procurement cost of $391 billion for 2,457 USF-35s, its no wonder that when the books are

squeezed, number crunchers in the Pentagon turn tothis largest account for savings.

As recently retired air force vice chief of staff GenLarry Spencer asks, how long can the service back offbuying the F-35 before those new weapons designedspecifically to counter it are introduced? And is it atrisk of becoming another Lockheed F-22 or NorthropGrumman B-2 costly programmes so troublesomethat the fiscal Grim Reaper struck before they could befielded in operationally significant numbers?

F-35 czar Lt Gen Christopher Bogdan says no, andclaims the changes will hardly be felt. Time will tell,but with aviation cuts and deferrals proposed that willimpact every congressional district, US lawmakers

might not be as kind to the F-35 in fiscal year 2017.See Defence P16, News Focus P20

See This Week P9

USA

irFo

rce

The Mach of progress

NASAs newly announced plan

to revive the manned X-plane

is no mere nod to nostalgia

Confirmation of NASAs proposal to fly a new generation of manned X-planes is an exciting

development. But its pursuit of boom-free supersonic travel will not repeat 1950s drama

Need for speed

It was the golden age of flight experimentation whenScott Crossfield arrived at Edwards AFB, California,

in 1950. The soon-to-be legendary test pilot likenedthe atmosphere to an Indianapolis 500 withoutrules, as each flight attempted something a speed,an altitude or some combination that no human hadever before achieved.

In a 12-year span between the Bell X-1 and theNorth American X-15, the human speed recordleaped from Mach 1.0 to Mach 6.7. Not surprisingly,commercial aviation roughly doubled in speed over

the same time, as airline fleets transitioned from pis-ton power to jet propulsion.

The goals of NASAs newly announced plan to revivethe manned X-plane tradition may not seem quite soambitious as the X-15, but it is also no mere nod to nos-talgia. For the time being, there is no need to expand theboundaries of the human flight envelope of altitude and

speed, which were set almost entirely over the Mojavedesert during the 1950s. NASA is instead focusing on anarrower set of achievable goals that might transform theair travel experience in decades to come.

The Anglo-French Concorde proved that a niche seg-ment of the air transport market prizes speed over cost.Such a segment still exists, but supersonic speed maybe unobtainable as long as sonic booms are outlawedover land.

Technology now available should be able to mufflethe sound of the boom, but laws will not change until

the scientific principle is proven using a flying dem-onstrator. NASAs low-boom sonic demonstrator ifapproved by Congress could unlock the supersonicmarket for business jets after a decade. Another gen-eration of aerodynamic optimisation may yield thesame speed benefit for commercial airliners.

NASAs proposal also includes a request to launch asubsonic X-plane. The candidates include a hybridwing-body, a double-bubble fuselage and a strut-basedwing. Nothing in these designs will make commercial

air travel any faster, but they represent aviations besthope for making the biggest leap in fuel efficiency sincethe advent of the high-bypass turbofan engine in thelate 1960s.

Of the three concepts, NASAs scientists may preferthe hybrid wing-body, but the outlook for such a designin the commercial market is doubtful. As a commercialtechnology, the most promising candidate may be thestrut-braced wing, but only if concerns about flutterand control can be overcome.

Stay on top of the latest news

and analysis of the commercial

aviation sector, by going to:

flightglobal.com/dashboard


6/44

THIS WEEK


For more coverage of the burgeoning

unmanned air vehicle sector log on to

flightglobal.com/UAV

NO EMERGENCY CALL FROM DAALLO A321 PILOT

INVESTIGATIONPilots of the Daallo Airlines Airbus A321 that

suffered an in-flight explosion after departing Mogadishu initially cit-ed a pressurisation issue, but did not declare an emergency. French

investigation authority BEA has disclosed initial details of the 2

February incident, citing preliminary information from its Somali

counterparts. Investigators believe the aircraft was climbing through

a height of around 12,000ft at the time. One occupant of the aircraft

is suspected to have been ejected through the rupture in the fuse-

lage caused by the explosion. The Somali transport minister has

reportedly attributed the damage to a bomb.

US NAVY OSPREY GIVEN NEW DESIGNATION

NAMINGThe US Navy has designated its future long-range variant

of the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey the CMV-22B. The tiltrotor has been

chosen to replace the Grumman C-2 Greyhound in the USNs carrier

onboard delivery role, with 44 examples to be delivered from 2020.The navy wants to increase the Osprey variants unrefuelled range to

1,150nm (2,130km), from a current 860nm.

737 CLEARED TO DEPART FROM CLOSED RUNWAY

INCIDENTSpanish investigation authority CIAIAC is looking into an

incident involving a Germania Boeing 737-700 that was cleared to

depart from a closed runway at Las Palmas airport on 7 January. The

aircraft (D-ABLB) had been authorised for take-off from runway 03R,

although it had been shut for work to be carried out. After starting

their take-off run, air traffic control ordered the crew to abort, and the

737 was brought to a halt. None of the 135 passengers and five

crew members on board the aircraft were injured, CIAIAC says.

SUKHOI HUNGARY FOR FLAG CARRIER ROLEAIRLINESHungarys government has received an approach from a

Russian aircraft manufacturer regarding the creation of new national

carrier for the country. The nation has been without a formal flag car-

rier since the collapse of Malev in early 2012, shortly after the

European Commission ordered it to repay large sums of state aid.

Hungarys national development ministry says preliminary talks over

a successor were initiated by a Russian airframer which Flight

International understands to be Sukhoi in late autumn last year.

MRJ RESUMES TEST FLIGHTS FOLLOWING UPGRADES

PROGRAMMEMitsubishi Aircraft has resumed flight tests of its

initial MRJ prototype following a two-month lay-up for structural

modifications. Mitsubishi says it was able to confirm the upgrades

that have been made to the prototype during a 90min flight over the

Pacific coast of Japan on 10 February. It was the fourth flight of the

aircraft. The regional jet required structural reinforcements and

system software upgrades following its previous sortie on 27

November 2015. The manufacturer plans to redesign a number of

parts on production versions of the twinjet to strengthen the wing

root and fuselage above the centre wing.

US MILITARY TO REPLENISH AIR-LAUNCHED ARSENAL

MUNITIONSThe US Department of Defense is seeking to replenish

a depleted stock of precision-guided weapons via its budget request

for fiscal year 2017. In total, the Pentagon hopes to procure more

than 45,000 air-launched weapons an almost one-third increase

from its enacted total of almost 34,000 ordered in FY2016.

See Defence P16

BRIEFING

COMPETITION BETH STEVENSON PARIS

Patroller selectionwas fair, says DGAFrench defence procurement agency insists armys choiceof domestic UAV over Watchkeeper followed due process

Thirty examples of the

Sagem type are now

expected to be procured

OlivierLapy/Sagem

The head of Frances DGA de-fence procurement agency

has defended the selection ofSagems Patroller for the Frencharmys tactical unmanned air ve-hicle requirement, insisting thatthe competition was fair and didnot dismiss the rival ThalesWatchkeeper from the outset.

Formally acknowledging the

planned acquisition of thePatroller on 10 February,following several weeks of specu-lation, Laurent Collet-Billon,head of the DGA, told media inParis that the contest wascertainly not against theWatchkeeper a type originallydeveloped for the British Army.

Derived from Elbit SystemsHermes 450, the Watchkeeperhad long been pitched to France.

Its a long story, Collet-Billonsays. The Watchkeeper [previ-ously] experienced a different as-sessment by the army, but onboth sides of the Channel it wasconcluded that there had to be acompetition. We opened it to of-

fers. This is the choice of thearmy. [It] decided it, and therewill be no modification to that.

The tactical UAV programmeaims to replace the Sagem SperwerUAV. Thirty air vehicles are ex-pected to be procured, but an orderhas not yet been placed.See News Focus next week

Lockheed drops clean-sheet T-X bidREQUIREMENT JAMES DREWWASHINGTON DC

Lockheed Martin will offer anupgraded version of the T-50fighter it jointly developed withKorea Aerospace Industries (KAI)for the US Air Forces 350-aircraftT-X trainer programme, forgoing aclean-sheet alternative designedby its Skunk Works division.

The company on 11 Februaryconfirmed that it will build theupgraded T-50A in Greenville,South Carolina, using major com-ponents including the wings, fu-selage and tail assembled in

South Korea. It is already stand-ing up a warm final assembly

and checkout facility that shouldbe ready by year-end.

KAI unveiled the T-50A lastDecember, and the first two pro-duction examples are due to ar-rive in the USA later this yearfor testing and demonstration.

Our clean-sheet team thoughtwe had a great airplane, but itdoesnt do much more than theT-50, says Lockheed executiveRob Weiss. Skunk Works hadcompleted 80% of detailed de-sign work, but the model would

have cost eight times more tofully develop, he adds.


7/44

THIS WEEK


Engine will Leapinto action, saysCFM

THIS WEEK P8

Despite spending monthspleading for patience, Boeingexecutives are now telling em-ployees a launch decision for anew airliner aimed at the middleof the market (MOM) could bemade by the end of the year.

In an all-hands meeting withemployees on 10 February in Se-attle, Boeing Commercial Air-planes chief executive Ray Con-ner said the project may launch asearly as 2016, sources say.

Since at least 2012, Boeing has

identified a gap in the market be-tween the single-aisle 737 Max 9and the widebody 787-8. Twoyears of discussions with custom-

ers revealed a consensus for anaircraft with about 20% morerange and payload than a 757-200.

There has been little urgency tothis decision until now. Only aday before Conners address toemployees, Boeing vice-presidentof marketing Randy Tinseth saidhis team have a lot of time be-fore making a choice.

But the 737 Max 9 has struggledto compete against the AirbusA321neo. Sales of the 787-8 havealso slowed since the introduction

of the stretched -9 variant. In addi-tion, Boeing has a six-year backlogof major commercial projects al-ready in development, starting

with the entry into service of the737 Max 8 next year. The 787-10is scheduled for delivery in 2018,followed by the 777-9 in 2020 andthen the 777-8.

A MOM aircraft is not likely toappear before 2022, giving Boeingat least six years to complete de-velopment if a programme islaunched later this year.

Potential customers such as AirLease founder Steven Udvar-Hazyhave pressured Boeing to deliver aclean-sheet aircraft that combines

the range and payload of a smallwidebody, such as the 767-200,with the operating economics of anarrowbody like the 737-800.

Two industry analysts haveconcluded such an aircraft wouldrequire a new fuselage shape el-liptical instead of circular to re-duce aerodynamic drag while stillproviding enough payload.

Such an aircraft also may re-quire new engines sized in athrust-class between existing nar-rowbody and widebody engines,leading GE Aviation chief execu-tive David Joyce to speculate lastyear that a clean-sheet engine de-sign would be required.

Other concepts are reportedlyunder consideration, including alarger version of the 737 Max.See Air Transport P11

DEVELOPMENTSTEPHEN TRIMBLE SEATTLE

Boeing starts countdown to launch?Airframer may be edging closer to starting development of middle-market programme, with decision potentially by year-end

The US Air Forces funding pro-file for development of the

Northrop Grumman long-rangestrike bomber (LRS-B) has come

down by $2.8 billion in theservices latest budget proposal,submitted on 9 February.

Service officials say that whilethe sum being requested is muchless than that sought from Con-gress between 2017 and 2020 inlast years spending profile, itsclassified programme contentremains the same.

The $80 billion programme tobuild 100 next-generation bomb-ers was awarded to Northrop lastOctober. Each aircraft will cost

$564 million, according to USgovernment estimates.

All thats happened is wevehad a new cost estimate becauseweve had a competition, ex-plains USAF budget deputy

Carolyn Gleason. Wevedownselected, we have a winner,and we know that winners busi-ness strategy and technologystrategy, so thats purely an up-date to a cost estimate. The pro-gramme content is the same.

The losing LRS-B biddingteam comprised of Boeing andLockheed Martin late last yearprotested Northrops selection. Adecision by the US GovernmentAccountability Office on whetherto uphold or deny their appeal is

due by mid-February.See Defence P16

USA

irForce

Next-generation bomber is destined to replace Boeing B-1B fleet

Airbus has commenced finalassembly of the A350-1000,

the stretched version of the air-framers long-haul twinjet.

The -1000 under constructionat Toulouse is one of three whichwill be built for flight tests due tobegin this year.

It has been transferred to theStation 50 point for fuselage joinand fitting of the nose-gear, beforebeing sent to Station 40 for wingmating and installation of mainlanding-gear and other structures.

The airframer says it will carryout initial cabin fitting and electri-

cal power-on in parallel to thestructural assembly.

Airbus has secured orders for181 of the 366-seat type, whichwill be powered by Rolls-RoyceTrent XWB-97 engines, and aimsto begin delivering the jets inmid-2017.

Flight-testing of the TrentXWB-97, a higher-thrust versionof the engine used on theA350-900, began last year.

PROGRAMME

First A350-1000 beginstaking shape in Toulouse

Airb

us

Prototype is one of three flight-test articles for stretched variant

BUDGET JAMES DREW WASHINGTON DC

USAF trims spending on LRS-B


8/44

THIS WEEK


For up-to-the-minute aviation and

aerospace news and analysis, go to:

flightglobal.com/news

Start-up times are not a prob-lem for the Leap-1A enginenearing entry into service on theAirbus A320neo, says powerplantjoint venture CFM International.

The Leap-1A engines, whichare due to make their operationaldebut on the A320neo in mid-2016, need 50s to spool-up afterthe activation sequence is started,says CFM executive vice-presi-dent Allen Paxson.

That is within a handful ofseconds of the time required by

the CFM56 engine that theLeap-1A replaces on the A320family, he adds. This start-uptime appears to contrast with thesame requirement for the firstbatch of Pratt & WhitneyPW1100G engines, CFMs rivalon the A320neo.

In December, Airbus delayedentry into service of the A320neoby one month after originallaunch customer Qatar Airwaysobjected to the start-up time re-quirement for the PW1100G en-

gine. Instead, Lufthansa acceptedthe first Neo and launched ser-vices in late January.

Meanwhile, P&W parent Unit-ed Technologies has said the ex-cess start-up timing requirement

on early engines is needed to pre-vent components in the enginefrom overheating.

A hardware and software up-grade is expected to be ready thismonth for PW1100Gs now infinal assembly. Those engineswill likely begin entering serviceon delivered A320neos begin-ning early in the second quarter.

CFM officials are keen to dis-tance the upcoming Leap-1Afrom such concerns. Their engineis scheduled to enter service on

the A320neo in mid-2016.The Leap-1A engine was de-

signed to minimise the start-uptime requirement, says CFM exec-utive vice-president Francois Bas-tin. Key electronics are locatednear the front of the engine closeto the fan, which means they areinstalled in a cooler environ-ment, he says. Thats taken intoaccount in the very early stages ofthe design, he adds.

CFM remains on track to de-liver the first production version

of the Leap-1A soon to Airbusfor installation on a customerA320neo. Test cell data hasconfirmed the engine meets Air-buss and customer specifica-tions, Bastin says.

SALES

Life is good as orders pass 10,000 mark

CFM International signed new orders

for 2,154 engines in 2015 to power

five commercial aircraft types in pro-

duction or early development, says

the GE Aviation-Snecma joint venture.

The numbers reflected the slower

sales logged in 2015 by Airbus and

Boeing compared with the industry

records set the previous year. In

2014, CFM reported 4,244 new or-ders, including 2,717 for the Leap

engine family and 1,527 for the

CFM56 engine.

But the delivery pace continued

growing in 2015, with 1,638 CFM56

engines produced 5% more than in

2014. That number is expected to

rise above 1,700 engines in 2016,

despite Boeing recently forecasting

fewer 737 deliveries this year.

For CFM, life is good, says Jean-

Paul Ebanga, CFM president and

chief executive.

In January, the Leap engine family

crossed the 10,000-order mark,despite not being scheduled to en-

ter service until mid-2016 on the

Airbus A320neo. Additional variants

will be produced for the 737 Max

and Comac C919.

Airbus has started test flightswith the A321neo, the largest

member of its re-engined single-aisle family.

The aircraft (D-AVXB), fittedwith CFM International Leap-1Aengines, took off on its maidensortie from Airbuss Finkenwerderplant in Hamburg on 9 February.

Airbus says the aircraft, withfive crew members on board, wasairborne for 5h 29min.

The airframer adds that testscomprised engine-speed varia-tions, systems behaviour andflight-envelope validation.

Airbus says the A321neo willundertake a partial flight-test 9 February flight of re-engined narrowbody lasted for 5h 29min

programme to examine specificaspects associated with the larger

types performance.It also plans to start test flights

with the Pratt & WhitneyPW1100G-powered version in afew weeks.

The P&W powerplant has beenundergoing adjustments to deal

with start-up issues relating tothermal differentials.

It doesnt really make a differ-ence which engine type makesthe first flight as we are working

to commit to our delivery targetsfor our customers, says Airbus.

Airbus has secured orders for1,094 of the type, with over 400destined for major customerscomprising Air Lease, Wizz Air,American Airlines and TurkishAirlines.

Initial deliveries of theA321neo are scheduled to takeplace towards the end of this year.

Figures from FlightglobalsFleets Analyzer database giveP&W a 36% share of the A321neomarket, with CFM on 21%. How-ever, no engine selection has

been made on the remaining 43%of orders.

Neo family grows as largest variant gets airbornePROGRAMME DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

PROPULSION STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

Engine will Leap into action, says CFMJoint-venture manufacturer distances its new narrowbody powerplant from issues befalling rival PW1100G geared turbofan

Leap engines will power three aircraft types, including the Neo

CFM

International

Airb

us


9/44

THIS WEEK


Boeing bids torevive 747-8build rate

NEWS FOCUS P10

NASA plans a return to a dec-ades-old tradition of develop-

ing and flying experimental air-craft projects, or X-planes, inorder to achieve new break-throughs in super- and subsonicaeronautics research.

The fiscal year 2017 budgetproposal submitted to Congresson 9 February reveals a 23% leapin funding for NASAs aeronauticsresearch division, rising from$640 million in FY2016 to $790million next year. The agency alsoreleased a 10-year outlook withaeronautics funding peaking at$1.3 billion in FY2023, when twopossible X-planes are scheduledto be flying.

It felt like Christmas in Janu-ary, says Jaiwon Shin, NASAs

associate administrator for aero-nautics research, recalling the

moment when the agencys finalrequest was confirmed.

The funding levels still trackwell below the $2 billion annualsums once allocated to NASAsaeronautics branch through the1980s, but are still roughly dou-

ble the average spending enactedover the last decade.

X-planes are usually associatedwith US military projects, butNASA and its predecessor agencyhas a long history of achieving in-flight aeronautic breakthroughs,with such projects as the super-sonic Bell X-1 and the hypersonicNorth American X-15.

Recently, NASA has workedmainly in the laboratory and thewindtunnel, while maintaining asmall fleet of research aircraft, in-

cluding the miniature-scale Boe-ing X-48 hybrid wing-body.

But Shin has been pushing fora decade to revive the agencysX-plane tradition. He played akey role in developing the firstpresidential policy for aeronaut-ics research and development,which encouraged the use of X-

planes to validate laboratory andwindtunnel findings in the air.

INVESTMENT

As early as 2012, NASA appearedpoised to launch a hybrid wing-body X-plane programme, cap-ping a five-year investment in lab-oratory work and subscale flightresearch under the environmen-tally responsible aviation project.

NASAs high-speed research of-fice has recently completed a se-ries of studies showing that tech-

nology available today should beable to muffle the sonic boom pro-

duced by a supersonic aircraft,potentially allowing civil aircraftto fly overland above Mach 1.0.

NASA will develop a prelimi-nary design for a supersonic X-plane in FY2016, then launch acompetition next year to develop

and build the low-boom super-sonic demonstrator. Flight testscould begin as early as 2021.

NASA will also launch inFY2017 a preliminary design fora hybrid wing-body, subsonicdemonstrator. But that will com-pete with two other concepts ahorizontally-aligned double-bub-ble airframe and a truss-bracedwing to be developed asNASAs next subsonic X-plane.

The budget includes fundingfor other demonstrators, including

sub-scale aircraft with hybrid-electric propulsion systems.

Airbus Helicopters plans to de-liver the first upgraded H225

heavy twin to launch customerLease Corp International in early2017, but has dropped an upratedengine from the package of en-

hancements and scaled back aplanned weight increase.

Launched in February 2014 asthe EC225e, the helicopter was duefor certification in late 2015 andwas intended to use a new variantof the Turbomeca Makila power-plant, the 2B. This promised a pay-load boost of 550kg (1,210lb),bringing the H225s maximumtake-off weight (MTOW) closer tothat of the rival Sikorsky S-92. Ra-dius-of-action would grow by50nm (92km) with 19 passengers,

or 300nm with 10 passengers andan additional fuel tank.

Change of course on H225 means 2B is not to beROTORCRAFT DOMINIC PERRY LONDON

POLICYSTEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

NASA budget setsstage for return tothe X-plane factorAgencys FY2017 proposal set to provide 23% increase infunding for groundbreaking aeronautics research division

Maximum take-off weight will rise to 11,160kg on the heavy twin

Airb

us

Helicopters

NASA

X-15 became the first

manned hypersonic

aircraft, in 1959

However, faced with an oil andgas market in crisis, AirbusHelicopters late last year took thedecision to ditch the new engineon cost grounds, and rely on thecurrent Makila 2A1. The airfram-

er believes sufficient perfor-mance gains can be achievedusing other elements of the en-hancement package.

Turbomeca says it has now fro-zen development of the 2B vari-ant, despite flight tests havingbegun in 2014. It featured a newcombustion chamber and high-pressure turbine blades for in-

creased take-off performance andpayload capability.

The decision means MTOW onthe H225 will now increase to

11,160kg a rise of just 160kg overthe previous figure still allowingthe optional installation of anextra fuel tank.

That maintains the proposedradius-of-action increase with 10

passengers, although with 19 pas-sengers Airbus Helicopters sim-ply says it allows around 20minof additional flight time.

The airframer is still proceed-ing with an avionics upgrade forthe type, however. A key elementof that an option for oil and gasoperators is its new Rig N Flysystem, which allows automatedapproaches to offshore platforms.

This has gained certificationfrom the European Aviation Safe-ty Agency and will also be availa-

ble on the H175 from end-2016,and the developmental H160.


10/44


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THIS WEEK

Boeing has revealed long-termplans to double the plannedproduction rate on the 747-8 pro-gramme in 2019, despite near-term output reductions on theback of low orders and a dimin-ished backlog.

The build rate on the 747-8 lineis falling from 1.3 per month todayto 0.5 per month in September2016, reflecting continued anae-mic growth in the air cargo market.

But Boeings newly-releasedannual report says the company

anticipates that rate will return to12 per year from 2019.

We are currently producing ata rate of 1.3 per month with plansto reduce the rate to one permonth in March 2016, further re-

PRODUCTION

Conner warns of job cuts as costs drag on competitiveness

Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief

executive Ray Conner on 10 February

announced plans to reduce jobs to

counter rising competitive pressures.The announcement in a company-

wide webcast did not reveal the ex-

tent or timeline for any reductions of

the 82,545-strong workforce, and

the exact number depends on how

effectively we bring down costs as a

whole, Boeing says.

Lay-offs will start at the executive

and managerial-level, Boeing says.

We will also use attrition and

voluntary lay-offs, the company

adds. As a last resort, involuntary

lay-offs may be necessary.

The staff reductions are coming

despite continued growth in theoverall commercial market. Although

Boeing plans to reduce output of the

747 and 777, production rates on

the 737, 767 and 787 are growing

rapidly over the next four years.

But trimming headcount is neces-

sary to maintain a healthy busi-

ness and to win in the market,

Conner says.

Boeings 787 line is increasing

output, but still has not become prof-

itable on a unit- or programme-level

basis. Indeed, Boeing has delivered

roughly 370 787s so far at a com-

bined loss of nearly $30 billion, notcounting its undisclosed cost to de-

velop the widebody twinjet.

To avoid reporting a forward loss,

Boeing must repay a proportion of

that bill on each of the next 930

787s off the assembly line.

That results in a need to build the

remaining 787s at an average cost

of $91 million each, says Teal Group

vice-president of analysis Richard

Aboulafia.

duce the rate to 0.5 per month inSeptember 2016 and then returnto one per month in 2019, thecompany says.

The 747-8 assembly line has

struggled to stay alive and manyanalysts have suggested Boeing islikely to end production in thenear future.

But Boeing executives have

AirTeamImages

A sluggish cargo market is one reason for the jumbos malaise

Bombardier now says theCS300 variant of the CSeries

aircraft family is on track toenter service in the third quarterwith launch customer Air Baltic,clarifying previous statementsthat the milestone would occurin the second half of 2016.

Meanwhile, Swiss Internation-al Air Lines expects to launch

services with the smaller CS100variant in the second quarter.

made slightly more optimisticstatements, acknowledging aslow current market but pre-dicting that demand could pick

back up in 2019 as around 200older 747 freighters reach retire-ment age. That refleeting re-quirement could spur renewedinterest in the jumbo, it be-lieves. However, Boeing alsowarns in its annual report thatanother forward loss could bereported on the 747-8 if newsales do not materialise.

We have a number of com-pleted aircraft in inventory aswell as unsold production posi-tions and we remain focused on

obtaining additional orders andimplementing cost-reduction ef-forts, Boeing adds.

Boeings most recent orderand delivery data records a totalof 19 747s in its backlog, split be-tween seven freighters and 12 ofthe passenger model. However,six orders for the latter for ArikAir and defunct Russian carrierTransaero are unlikely to befulfilled.

The CS300 has logged over400h of tests on more than 130flights, according to Ross Mitch-ell, Bombardiers vice-presidentof business acquisition for com-mercial aircraft.

Certification of the 135-seatvariant is expected to be in thesecond quarter, or within sixmonths of the same milestone

for the CS100, said Mitchell,speaking at the Pacific North-

CS300 to make operational debut in third quarterDEVELOPMENTSTEPHEN TRIMBLE SEATTLE

west Aerospace Alliance confer-ence in Seattle on 10 February.

The first production exampleof the CS300 is now undergoingfinal assembly at Bombardiersplant in Mirabel, Canada, saysMitchell.

The CS300 accounts for morethan two-thirds of Bombardierstotal backlog of 243 firm orders

for the CSeries.

Boeing also warns inits annual report that

another forward loss

could be reported

if new sales do not

materialise

Bom

bardier

Type has logged 400h of tests

FORECASTSTEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

Boeing plans 747-8 build-rate revivalAirframer predicts return to output of 12 per year by 2019, on back of improved demand driven by freighter fleet renewal


11/44

AIR TRANSPORT


Lessor CIT hurt bysize of orderbookAIR TRANSPORT P12

GE Aviation has confirmed thatfinal assembly has started onthe first full-scale GE9X engine.

The first full GE9X engine iscoming together nicely, says BillMillhaem, general manager of theGE90 and GE9X programmes.

GE froze the design for the100,000lb-thrust (444kN)-classpowerplant for the Boeing 777X

six months ago. The full-scale firstengine to test is scheduled to beready later this year, and a secondfull-scale engine will follow in2017 to be installed on a GE-owned Boeing 747 flying testbed.

Boeing plans to start flying theengine on the first 777-9 test air-craft in 2018, followed by certifi-cation the following year andentry into service in 2020.

The GE9X improves high-pres-sure compressor technology toachieve a fuel burn advantage

over the GE90, with a compressorpressure ratio of 27:1.

Though so far outsold by morethan five to one by the AirbusA321neo, Boeing remains confi-dent that the 737 Max 9 thelargest member of its re-enginednarrowbody family has the po-tential to grab market share.

At the Pacific Northwest Aero-space Alliance (PNAA) confer-ence in Seattle on 9 February,

Boeing vice-president of market-ing Randy Tinseth defended theMax 9 on the same day that theA321neo completed its first flight.

The Max 9 isnt as large buthas a lower trip-cost as well as alower seat-cost and so thats anice combination, and it flies a

OUTLOOK STEPHEN TRIMBLE SEATTLE

Boeing upbeat onslow-selling Max 9Seattle confident re-engined narrowbody is well-positioned,despite orderbook well behind that of rival Airbus A321neo

Boeing

Largest member of the Max family can

accommodate up to 220 passengers

bit further, so we think werewell-positioned, Tinseth says.

But airlines have ordered only224 737 Max 9s compared with1,094 A321neos, according todata from Flightglobals FleetsAnalyzer database and Airbussmost recent order figures.

Tinseth also argues that thesmaller 150-180-seat-segment

will claim about 60% of the salesin the single-aisle market, whereBoeing offers the 737 Max 8 withup to 189 seats and the higher-density 737 Max 200.

He estimates that together the737 Max 9 and A321neo will ac-count for about 20-25% of overall

demand for single-aisle aircraftover the next 20 years. But thecombined backlogs for the two sofar suggest even that could be opti-mistic: the 1,318 total orders rep-resent around 17% of overall nar-

rowbody commitments.Boeing has hinted that it could

launch a new aircraft either a de-rivative or clean-sheet design byyear-end to plug the gap betweenthe Max 9 and the 787-8, whereAirbus today offers the A321neoand the re-engined A330-800.

A year ago, Tinseth had saidthat a months-long dialogue withcustomers had found a consensusof demand for a new aircraft in themiddle of the market with morerange and size than a 757.

But Tinseth now says the dia-logue with customers has movedon to a new stage: I think werein that process now where weplay catch-ball with our custom-ers, and we start looking at op-tions, what you can do, and yousee how you can do it.

Operators of Airbus A320s areto be instructed to modifyCFM International CFM56-powered aircraft in a bid to stemincidents involving loss of un-latched fan-cowl doors.

The measure is being put for-ward to help resolve a long-standing problem in which thedoors are inadvertently left unse-cured, typically after routine

maintenance, and crews do notnotice during pre-flight checks.

Left unlatched, the cowls canbe torn off as the aircraft acceler-ates for departure, potentiallydamaging engine and airframe.

The modification comprises anew latch mechanism which re-quires a specific key to unlock thecowl door.

This key cannot be removed

EASA has key to solve cowl-loss issueSAFETYDAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

from the lock unless the latch isproperly closed.

Once the door is closed thekey, upon removal, must bestowed in the cockpit of the air-craft at a particular location, saysa proposed European AviationSafety Agency directive.

The flight crew operating man-ual and aircraft maintenancemanual will be updated with therevised instructions.

EASA is proposing a 35-monthperiod in which to carry out the

modification. It only applies, sofar, to the CFM56-equipped ver-sion of the A320 family andEASA has not indicated whethera similar directive will be drawnup for International Aero EnginesV2500-powered aircraft.

Although there have been pre-vious efforts to find a solution, aninquiry into the May 2013 cowl-loss on a British Airways A319found that, although the rate ofsuch incidents had been reduced,the increasing number of A320s

in service had resulted in a great-er number of occurrences.

Hea

thcliffOMalley/REX/Shutterstock

BA A319 was damaged in 2013 after fan-cowl door left unlatched

PROPULSION

STEPHEN TRIMBLEWASHINGTON DC

GE9X engine for

777X is comingtogether nicely


12/44

AIR TRANSPORT


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aircraft reporting and forecasting visit:

flightglobal.com/fleetsanalyzer

Any sale of CIT Aerospacewould be as an integratedleasing unit rather than simply acollection of aircraft, CIT Groupchief John Thain has stressed.

The US financial servicesgroup is still pursuing either asale or a spin-off of its aircraftleasing business as it moves to-wards a more conventional com-mercial banking model.

At the end of 2015, CIT Aero-spaces assets were roughly $11billion, making the lessor the

largest division of its parent byassets under management.

However, its extensive on-orderfleet ties up significant amounts ofcapital, which is beginning to,basically, hurt the business be-cause we [are] restricting itsgrowth, said Thain during a re-sults call on 2 February.

Antonov has started flight test-ing its developmental An-178transport with modified Ivchenko-Progress D-436 engines.

The high-wing aircraft a de-rivative of the An-148 regionalairliner conducted a first sortiewith the D-436-148FM turbofanon 5 February.

Ground tests of the powerplanthad previously been completedat a facility in Zaporozhye,Ukraine.

The D-436-148FMs thrust hasbeen uprated by 6.7% to 15,500lbthrust (68.8kN) for the take-offphase. Another pre-productionAn-178 is undergoing rig-basedfatigue trials at the Ukrainian air-framers Kiev facility.

Antonov has secured prelimi-nary orders for 30 of the type fromSaudi Arabias military and a fur-

ther 10 from Azerbaijani cargo car-rier Silk Way West Airlines.

FINANCEALEX DERBER LONDON

Lessor CIT hurt by size of orderbookRequirement to set aside capital proportional to size of incoming fleet is restricting growth, says boss of parent company

Boeing

Commitments include deal for 30 Boeing 737 Max narrowbodies

CIT has a total of 126 Airbusand Boeing aircraft on order,Flightglobals Fleets Analyzerdatabase indicates. The backloghas grown substantially in rela-

tion to CITs roster of income-generating assets.

Aircraft on order will takemany years to all be deliveredand, until they are, regulations re-

MANUFACTURINGTOM ZAITSEVMOSCOW

Resurrection of Il-114 gathers pace

DEVELOPMENT

TOM ZAITSEVMOSCOW

An-178 putsnew enginesthrough paces

quire that CIT set aside capitalproportional to its commitments.

As a result, says Thain, CIT, likeother lessors, is trading beneath itsbook value. While that would ap-pear to discourage a sale, Thain be-lieves that the leasing business hasinherent value above that of itsnominal assets, although a spin-offremains CITs fall-back scenario.

Yet both divestment optionsrequire two hurdles to be over-come: the combination of CITAerospaces aircraft under a sin-

gle legal entity and the creation ofits own balance sheet.

CITs Transportation & Interna-tional Finance division, to whichCIT Aerospace belongs, madepre-tax income of $156 million inthe final quarter of 2015, com-pared with $141 million for thegroup as a whole.

Ilyushin is finalising plans to re-start manufacturing of its moth-balled Il-114 regional turboprop.

The 64-seat aircraft will bebuilt at the Sokol aviation plantin Nizhny Novgorod at a rate of18 per year, says Ilyushin generaldirector Sergei Velmozhkin.

Weve already freed up spacefor it, completed re-planning andare ready to make tooling andrigs. Were looking to test run theassembly line in 2017 and roll

out a first aircraft in 2018, Vel-mozhkin says.

Plant director Alexander Kare-

zin says Sokol and Ilyushin havejointly agreed a business planand secured tentative funding forthe production programme.

In the same vein, weve con-cluded a general agreement withother enterprises of [Ilyushin par-ent] United Aircraft, which col-

laborate in the project, and third-party suppliers, Karezin adds.

AirTeamImages

Production of 64-seat turboprop will take place at Sokol factory

Ilyushin is also negotiating toacquire Il-114 aerostructurescurrently in storage at former af-filiate TAPOs facility in Tash-kent, where the aircraft werepreviously built.

Il-114 production in Uzbeki-stan ceased in 2012, when the

TAPO plant was converted forother uses.

Weve completed

re-planning and

are ready to make

tooling and rigs.

Were looking to test

run the assembly line

in 2017ALEXANDER KAREZINDirector, Sokol aviation plant


13/44

AIR TRANSPORT


Lisbon grabs

back TAP

AIR TRANSPORT P14

Investigators have disclosed thecrew of a Danish Air TransportATR 72-200 erroneously lined upwith the runway edge lights dur-ing a take-off incident at Karup.

The aircraft (OY-LHA) had beenoperating a domestic service,flight DX171, to Copenhagen on25 January. DAT previously con-firmed the aircraft hit edge lightsduring the take-off roll, withoutgiving more detail.

But French investigation

authority BEA, citing preliminaryinformation from its Danish coun-terpart, says the pilots aligned theaircraft with the edge lights in themistaken belief they were the run-way centreline lights.

As the turboprop acceleratedalong runway 27L its nose-gearand a main-gear assembly hit theedge lights and an arrester cable, itadds. The take-off was aborted.

Karup would have been indarkness at the time of the inci-dent and weather data indicates

low visibility as a result of fog.The extent of any damage to theaircraft has not been disclosed.

Flightglobals Fleets Analyzerdatabase lists the aircraft as a 20-year old airframe.

GKN Aerospace is to supplycomponents for the ACAECJ-1000A engine, becoming thefirst confirmed Western supplierto Chinas first indigenous high-bypass turbofan. The UK-head-quartered manufacturer will sup-ply low-pressure turbine shafts toChinese engine maker ACAE froma facility in Norway, it says.

Neil McManus, senior vice-president for Asia at GKNAerospace, calls the deal a mile-stone first agreement with ACAE,which he describes as an impor-tant customer. This is a major pro-

gramme in a key market.Development of the CJ-1000

began five years ago with the goalof producing a domestic alterna-

tive to the CFM InternationalLeap-1C engine to power theComac C919 narrowbody.

GKN has released a cutaway re-vealing more details about the in-terior architecture of the CJ-1000A. It appears to feature aneight-stage high-pressure com-pressor driven by a two-stagehigh-pressure turbine.

The programme has attractedinterest from Western suppliers,but GKN is the first to announce aconfirmed supply contract.

Germanys MTU Aero Enginesworked with ACAE in 2012 to

study the life cycle of theCJ-1000A, evaluating the design

feasibility. But MTU has an-nounced no further involvement.

Last year, Russian engine sup-

plier United Engine Corporationrevealed it had signed an agree-

ment with ACAE to study a roleon the CJ-1000A, but no progresshas been announced.

ACAE selects first Western supplier for CJ-1000AMANUFACTURINGSTEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

REX/Shutterstock

China is developing an alternative engine to the Leap-1C

SAFETY

DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROWLONDON

Departing DATcrew lined up

with edge lightsPolands defence ministry hasformally approved restartinginquiries into the Tupolev Tu-154crash at Smolensk which killedthe countrys then-president anddozens of senior officials.

Its decision follows last yearsPolish parliamentary election, inwhich the Law and Justice partyemerged victorious. The party ischaired by Jaroslaw Kaczynski,the brother of the deceased presi-dent Lech Kaczynski.

Russian investigators conduct-

ed an extensive analysis of theApril 2010 accident, against abackground of deep suspicionbetween the two sides.

President Kaczynski had beentravelling to Smolensk with ahigh-ranking delegation for asensitive commemoration cere-mony at Katyn, the site of aSecond World War massacre ofPolish prisoners by Soviet agents.

The inquiry by RussiasInterstate Aviation Committeeconcluded that the Tu-154 had

descended below safe altitude inlow-visibility conditions, andthat its crew had failed torespond to terrain warnings.

There was no evidence of a fireor explosion on board the jet

INVESTIGATION DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

Poland re-opens old woundsWarsaw risks fresh rift with Russia with new inquiry into 2010 crash of presidential Tu-154

before the crash. The Russianinvestigation determined that thepilots had been under psycho-logical pressure, from senior mili-tary personnel present in thecockpit, to attempt the approachrather than divert.

But despite the strongevidence supporting the inquirys

findings, the Polish defenceministry which was sharplycriticised by investigators appears determined to re-analysethe events.

The new subcommittee will be

chaired by aviation engineerWaclaw Berczynski.

Defence minister AntoniMacierewicz says a resumptionof the investigation will allow usto find out what happened, andidentify those responsible.

He suggests the organisation ofthe original inquiry committee

was flawed. Macierewicz claimsa previous Polish commission,headed by then-interior ministerJerzy Miller, pointed to numer-ous irregularities and errorsrelating to the course of events.

REX/Shuttersto

ck

A previous safety probe attributed Tupolev accident to pilot error


14/44


15/44


OBITUARY

Jeff Pino, 1954 5 February, 2016

Retired army master aviator and former Sikorsky head Jeff Pino will have a lasting legacy afterfamily establish a foundation in his name and through the TriFan 600 project he championed

The TriFan 600 (top) promoted by Pino (right), and the Sikorsky X2 which paved the way for innovative S-97 Raider

A man with big ideas

Former Sikorsky president Jeff Pino died on 5February, when his North American P-51D Mustang

crashed in Pinal County, Arizona. The owner of thewarbird nicknamed Big Beautiful Doll and passen-ger Nicholas Tramontano were killed in the accident.

As news of the crash spread, dozens of tributes to thelate aerospace executive spread on social media, writesStephen Trimble. Lockheed Martin-owned SikorskyAircraft tweeted the company mourns the suddenloss. In a news release, his former company added:we remember Jeff as a leader, pioneer, innovator andadvocate. The retired army master aviator was well-respected among flyers, particularly in the warbird com-munity. RIP Jeff Pino. I enjoyed flying with you,tweeted air show display pilot Patty Wagstaff.

Pino struck an unusual profile, as both a top aero-space executive and a highly-skilled pilot with apassion for flying and pushing the boundaries of tech-nology. In addition to his P-51D, he also owned one of

the first Eclipse 500 very light jets to roll off the compa-nys Albuquerque assembly line in New Mexico.

Its a shame more real innovation is so slow in theindustry, Pino wrote less than two weeks before hisdeath, in a 26 January ask me anything featurepublished on Reddit.

At a time when Sikorsky was flush with cash due to aspike in military spending, Pino reinvested some of thecompanys revenues in a bold programme to defeat theroughly 170kt (315km/h) speed barrier imposed on themost advanced helicopters. Subsequent tests of thecompanys compound, coaxial, rigid-rotor X2 validateda design capable of surpassing 250kt in level flight, andpaved the way for the launch of the internally-funded

S-97 Raider demonstrator and a collaboration withBoeing on the SB-1 Defiant, which is in development.

In retirement, Pino found another outlet for pursuinginnovation in the aerospace industry from an unlikelysource, joining with oil-and-gas industry attorney DavidBrody another passionate pilot with anentrepreneurial streak as vice-chairman of XTI

Aircraft, a new company proposing a vertical take-offand landing business jet powered by three ducted fans.

The approach to the TriFan 600 concept involvedlaunching a campaign through crowdfunding websitestartengine.com last August to promote interest andraise crucial financial backing.

Pino described the response as overwhelming,with more than 2,000 expressions of interest lodgedtotaling support worth around $20 million. This, hesaid, was a revelation for a start-up company wheresecuring funds from banks, private equity and high- net-worth individuals presented a real challenge.

Paying tribute to his colleague and friend, Brodysummed him up as a brilliant strategist, visionary and

expert in all things aviation. A man with big ideas, andeven bigger dreams.

In a statement, his family described his life as one ofleadership and innovation, and announced the estab-lishment of the Jeff Pino Foundation. This will raisefunds to support Veterans, the Red Cross, EAA, theUniversity of Arizona and other efforts that help, sup-port and mentor young people who aspire to becomepilots and pursue careers in aviation, aerospace, andscience, technology, engineering and math. This wasone of Jeffs dreams and will be his legacy.

Speaking to Flight International last month, Pinoexplained why he was staying involved with the indus-try after retiring from Sikorsky. Aircraft are in my

blood, he said. They have always been my passion.

XTIAircraft,

Sikorsky


16/44


DEFENCETo get more defence sector coverage,

subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter:

flightglobal.com/defencenewsletter

Aviation procurement hasbeen reduced by 7.2% to

$45.3 billion in the USDepartment of Defenses fiscalyear 2017 budget submission,with 298 new aircraft requested,versus an enacted 527 in FY2016.

The requested lower fundinglevel will buy eight fewer fixed-wing aircraft for the US Air Force five Lockheed Martin F-35Asand three Lockheed C-130Js, andremove 35 rotorcraft for the armyand navy versus the numberafforded in the current budget,say DoD officials. These will,respectively, lose 24 SikorskyUH-60 Black Hawks and nineBoeing AH-64 Apaches, and twoBell Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotorsfrom the FY2017 procurement

account.Detailed on 9 February, the

budget does protect other high-priority air force procurements,including of 15 Boeing KC-46Atankers and Northrop Grummanlong-range strike bomber. It alsoseeks two additional F-35s andtwo Boeing F/A-18E/F SuperHornets to replace combat losses.

Worth $582.7 billion, theDoDs entire spending proposalfor the year to 30 September 2017conforms with a bipartisanbudget deal passed late last year,and is $17 billion below thespending levels projected in last

years request.Deputy secretary of defence

Robert Work says that in craftingthe budget, the Pentagon focusedon shape, not size and moderni-sation, versus readiness fortodays conflicts.

Work foresees a return tolarge power competition overthe next 25 years, similar to theconditions seen during the ColdWar, and sees global terrorism asremaining a long-term threat. Heraises particular concern about

North Koreas pursuit of theKN-08 intercontinental ballisticmissile, which would be capableof reaching the US mainland ifsuccessfully fielded.

Work warns that the currentplan requires significant newfunding in FY2018, after thebudget agreement reverts back toenacted sequestration levels,

PROCUREMENT JAMES DREW WASHINGTON DC

US budget placesreadiness aheadof modernisationSlowed pace of Lightning II production among trade-offs tosupport operations, but tanker and bomber projects secure

meaning that many of the tough-est budget trade-offs and deci-sions will be left to the nextadministration, in 2017.

As part of the plan, the USNhas proposed deactivating its10th Carrier Air Wing at NAS

Lemoore in California, with itsremaining aircraft to be spreadamong other units. It is request-ing $14.1 billion to procure 94aircraft in FY2017: 42 rotorcraft,41 fixed-wing aircraft and 11unmanned aircraft. This is downfrom 153 in FY2016; reflectingthe end of its Lockheed/SikorskyMH-60R procurement.

Overall, rotorcraft orders werethe main casualty, falling from anenacted 316 helicopters andtiltrotors in FY2016 to 152 in thenew request.

The USAFs aircraft procure-ment account takes the biggest hit

in the budget, at $13.9 billion;down 12% compared with$15.8 billion in FY2016. The ser-vice will shift the procurement of45 F-35As out of its five-yearfunding profile: the equivalent offour fighter squadrons. Instead, itwill spend $3.4 billion to keepthe Fairchild Republic A-10operational through 2021, and

The US Navys long-running attempt

to field a carrier-based unmanned

combat aircraft has taken another

turn, morphing from a surveillance

and strike asset into a reconnais-

sance and aerial refuelling platform

with limited strike capability.

The about-turn follows a top-level

review and restructuring of the now-

defunct unmanned carrier-launched

airborne surveillance and strike

(UCLASS) project, with the services

latest budget instead funding the

RAQ-25 carrier-based aerial refuel-ling system (CBARS).

According to budget documents,

$1.1 billion has been committed to

UCLASS through fiscal year 2016,

supporting actvities including carrier-

based demonstrations of the

Northrop Grumman X-47B. About

$435 million was enacted by

Congress for FY2016, but CBARS

takes form with just $89 million in

the FY2017 budget submission.

Total funding for CBARS will be

$2.2 billion through 2021, and a

competition and downselect of an

air vehicle provider has been de-layed by approximately one year, to

The Northrop Grumman X-47B

received fuel in trials but CBARS

could be the tanker of the futureUSN

avy

UNMANNED SYSTEMS JAMES DREW WASHINGTON DC

Review refuels unmanned concept as reconnaissance and tanking platform


17/44


SHieLD laser pod could

be in demonstration

by 2021

DEFENCE P18

DEFENCE

the planned retirement of theEC-130H Compass Call has alsobeen delayed to meet persistentoperational demands.

The decision to delay mod-ernisation was taken to pay forcapacity and readiness, the

USAF says. These defermentsare not programme cuts, it adds.

An allocation of $3.6 billionwill enable the US Army to buyaircraft including 48 AH-64Es(down 25%), 36 UH-60Ms (-66%)and 22 Boeing CH-47 Chinooks(-43%). The service requested$5.9 billion for aviation procure-ment in FY2016.

USA

irForce

Five F-35As have been

trimmed from expected

fiscal year 2017 order

Five-year cut to F-35A procurement

2017, compared with the UCLASS

schedule. Northrop, Boeing, General

Atomics Aeronautical Systems and

Lockheed Martin are vying to build

the refuelling platform, expected to

reduce dependence on Boeing F/A-

18E/F Super Hornets in the role.

The mission of tanking is going

to be critical to making the air wing

more effective and projecting power

forward, but the long-endurance [sur-

veillance and targeting] is going to

be critical as well, says Rear Adm

William Lescher, the navys deputy

assistant secretary for budget.

The US Navy has sought moreBoeing F/A-18E/F Super Hor-

nets by funding two aircraft in fis-cal year 2017 to replace combatlosses, and another 14 in FY2018to maintain capacity as its olderHornets wear out.

Concerned about a shortfall instructurally-sound strike fighters,the navy has accelerated its pro-curement of Lockheed MartinF-35s by funding 64 carrier-basedC models by 2021 eight morethan previously planned andkeeping Boeings Super Hornetline in St Louis, Missouri active

amid a lack of exports.Boeing is counting on the USN

to sustain production of its SuperHornet variants, also includingthe EA-18G Growler electronic-attack model, as it attempts to

A US Air Force decision to reduce

annual procurement of the

Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning

II to 48 per year has been playeddown by the head of the multina-

tional programme, Lt Gen

Christopher Bogdan.

According to the services fis-

cal year 2017 budget submis-

sion, 45 fewer F-35As will be

sought over the next five years.

Overall, 36 fewer aircraft will be

acquired by the US services be-

tween 2017 and 2021, after ad-

justing for increased F-35B and

F-35C purchases for the Marine

Corps and navy, respectively. A

previously planned ramp-up to

60 units per year would be de-

ferred from FY2018 to FY2021.

Bogdan calculates that the

USAFs adjustments will not im-

pact the overall unit price of the

F-35 by more than 1%. His pro-

gramme office counts US and

international orders for 873

units from 2016 to 2021: a net

reduction of 20 from last years

plan. US purchases will account

for 54% of this total which for

now includes assumed aircraft

for Canada, which late last year

pledged to withdraw from the

programme and launch a new

competition to replace its Boeing

CF-18s.We have all kinds of puts and

takes with our eight partners and

three [foreign military sales/

FMS] customers, both in 2017

and in the future, Bogdan says.

Relative to the cost of the air-

plane and FMS commitment, its

a non-news event.

Other commentators are not

so sure. Gen Larry Spencer, who

retired last October as air force

vice chief of staff, says the orders

trend is reminiscent of the budg-

etary death spiral that contrib-

uted to the premature end of its

Lockheed F-22 and Northrop

Grumman B-2 procurements.

I remember when the F-22

decision was made, the rationale

was that we had the F-35 com-

ing, Spencer tells Flight

International. Okay, well here we

are, and were starting to slip it.

The USAF, which still wants to

acquire a total of 1,763 F-35As,

says the proposed deferments

will pay for capacity and readi-

ness for todays fight.

FISCAL YEAR 2017BUDGET REQUEST

Combat aircraft

F-35A 43 (-4)

F-35B 16 (-1)

F-35C 4 (-2)

F/A-18E/F 2 (-3)

Special mission

E-2D 6 (+1)

EA-18G 0 (-10)

P-8A 11 (-6)

Tanker

KC-46 15 (+3)

KC-130J 2 (-)

Transport

C-130J 12 (-15)

Combat helicopters

AH-64E 52 (-12)

CH-47F/G 22 (-17)

CH-53K 2 (+2)MH-60R/S 0 (-29)

UH-1Y/AH-1Z 24 (-5)

UH-60M 36 (-71)

UH-72 0 (-28)

V-22 16 (-4)

Unmanned systems

MQ-1C 0 (-17)

MQ-4C 2 (-2)

MQ-8C 1 (-4)

MQ-9 24 (-9)

RQ-7/20 8 (+2)

Total 298 (-229)

SOURCE: US Department of DefenseFigures show requests for fiscal year 2017,and unit change from FY2016 enacted total

Navy maintains Super Hornets stingPROGRAMME JAMES DREW WASHINGTON DC

muster 24 orders per year to keepthe line viable.

The navy has budgeted $185million in its wartime budget fortwo aircraft in FY2017, and in-

cluded $1.3 billion in its FY2018projects for the extra 14.

By contrast, the US Air Forcehas not lent a helping hand to theBoeing F-15E and Lockheed F-16production lines by ordering fur-

ther examples, although it willbegin retrofitting the latter withnew active electronically-scanned array radars.

Defence and aerospace analyst

Wayne Plucker, of Frost & Sulli-van, says the F-16 and F-15 willremain viable combat platformswhen supported by packages offifth-generation Lockheed F-22sand F-35s.

USN

avy

Boeing needs the USNs F/A-18E/F orders to maintain production


18/44

DEFENCE


To get more defence sector coverage,

subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter:

flightglobal.com/defencenewsletter

Development of BAE SystemsStriker II helmet-mounted

display (HMD) is due to end inthe coming months, after a flight-test campaign to validate its inte-grated night vision capability.

Night-time sorties have beenconducted since May, and the re-maining development work is setto finish soon, the company says.

Were just finishing off the lastpiece, and expect a full system tobe ready by the end of the secondquarter, says Mark Bowman,chief test pilot at BAE.

Striker II was developed as an

alternative HMD for the LockheedMartin F-35, but dropped for a Vi-sion Systems International design.

BAE Systems keeping Striker II order in its sightsEQUIPMENTBETH STEVENSON LONDON

BAESystems

HMD has undergone night vision testing with the Typhoon

The new digital Striker has beenqualified on the Eurofighter Ty-

phoon, but is yet to gain a produc-tion contract. An analogue ver-sion, requiring separate nightvision goggles, is used by

Typhoon operators, but produc-tion will end in 2016, having aver-

aged 12 units per month, andrisen to 22 per month in 2015.

BAE is confident Striker II willbe adopted, and is looking at tech-

nology for incorporation, plusincremental upgrades. These

include control methods such aseye tracking and blink control,and the use of medical, sport andneurological technology.

The company is very forward-leaning. There is a lot of invest-ment in future technology, saysBowman. He notes that the UKsStrategic Defence and SecurityReview last November affirmedthe relevance of the Royal AirForces Typhoon fleet to 2040.This should mean a sustainmentcontract for the services current

analogue Strikers, along with fu-ture capability updates or even theacquisition of a new design.

The US Air Force ResearchLaboratory (AFRL) will gathermarket information about a pod-ded electric laser system, whichcould demonstrate by 2021whether fifth- and sixth-genera-tion fighters can destroy, ratherthan divert, incoming missiles.

Under an advanced technologydemonstration programme calledself-protect high-energy laserdemonstrator (SHieLD), the effortseeks to integrate a moderate

ARMAMENTS JAMES DREW WASHINGTON DC

SHieLD laser pod could bein demonstration by 2021Advanced technology programme could enable fighters to destroy incoming missiles

USAirForce

power electric laser into a protec-tive pod on types such as theLockheed Martin F-22 and F-35.

SHieLD seeks to expandmoderate power (tens of kilo-watts) laser weapon operationinto the supersonic regime bydemonstrating system perfor-mance under transonic flight, andacquiring aero-effects data under asupersonic environment relevantto tactical aircraft, the AFRL saysin a request for information. Ad-

vanced laser options under inves-tigation are those with size andweight appropriate for integrationas part of a complete weapon sys-tem into an aerodynamic integrat-ed pod-like structure.

Scientists hope to validate thepod in a laboratory by 2017 anddemonstrate a prototype by 2021,the AFRL says. The US SpecialOperations Command also wantsa laser weapon on the LockheedAC-130J gunship by 2020.

Recently spared early retire-ment, the US Air Forces

Fairchild Republic A-10 fleet hashad a further boost, via a wingreplacement programme whichcould keep the type flying be-yond its 2021 out-of-service date.

According to contractingnotices, the A-10 thick-skin urgentspares kitting (TUSK) wing assem-blies programme could deliver upto 120 wings, at an annual rate of10 to 25 units, over five years.

A previous USAF contract withBoeing and Korea AerospaceIndustries, covering 173

replacement wings and optionsfor 69 more, is set to conclude inSeptember. Representatives fromthe former, plus Israel AerospaceIndustries, Lockheed Martin andSpirit AeroSystems, attended anindustry day at Hill AFB in Utahlast November about the follow-on requirement.

The air forces fiscal year 2016budget includes funding for a firstwing, plus three low-rate initialproduction units. The servicemaintains an operational fleet of

284 A-10C Warthogs, with anaverage age of 34 years.

MODIFICATION

TUSK proposalwill strengthenWarthog fleet

The US Air Forces F-22

could be equipped with

a high-energy defensive

capability under the plan


19/44

DEFENCE


Italian F-35 makes

Atlantic crossing

NEWS FOCUS P20

France has confirmed itspurchase of four Lockheed

Martin C-130J Super Herculestactical transports, including

two that will be configured to re-fuel its military rotorcraft.

A contract for the acquisitionwas signed on 29 January; twomonths after the US DefenseSecurity Cooperation Agency

(DSCA) had announced Congres-sional authorisation for theproposed deal.

Ordered through the US Air

Force via the US governmentsForeign Military Sales pro-gramme, the transport-roledC-130Js will be delivered in 2017and 2018, Frances DGA defenceprocurement agency says. The

extended-range KC-130J tankerswill follow during 2019.

The new aircraft will comple-ment a French air force transport

inventory which FlightglobalsFleets Analyzer database recordsas including 31 C160R Transallsand 14 C-130Hs. It also has re-ceived eight of an eventual 50Airbus Defence & Space A400Ms:

a type which has so far provedunsuitable for refuelling rotor-craft in-flight.

The DSCA last November val-

ued the four-aircraft deal asworth an estimated $355 million,also including personnel train-ing, in-service support and fourspare Rolls-Royce AE 2100D tur-boprop engines.

Paris finalises short-notice C-130J tanker purchasePROCUREMENT BETH STEVENSON LONDON

Efforts to overcome high ratesof hypoxia and decompres-sion sickness in pilots flyingBoeing F/A-18 variants is likechasing a ghost, says the USNavys director of air warfare,while adding that he remainsconfident in the aircraft and itsoxygen back-up systems.

Since 2010, F/A-18 pilots havebeen asked to report every physi-ological event such as dizzinessor confusion because of sus-pected problems with the air-

crafts onboard oxygen generationsystems (OBOGS) and environ-mental control system (ECS).

Those rates have been consist-ently high over the past sixreporting periods, with an aver-age of 19.7 cases per 100,000flight hours for early-modelF/A-18s and 20.4 for the newerE/F-model Super Hornet. The av-erage figure is 8.9 events per100,000 flight hours for EA-18GGrowler pilots, except for a sta-tistical anomaly in 2015, when

43.5 cases were reported.On 4 February, Rear Adm

Michael Manazir told a congres-sional hearing on naval strike

fighters that it is difficult to comeup with a materiel solutionwithout knowing the exact causeof the problem, adding that thereare no onboard sensors to recordcarbon monoxide or contami-nant levels.

Were trying to get the ratedown, Manazir says. If we had

a confidence problem in the air-plane we would ground the fleet,but we dont have that problem.

Director of navy tactical aircraft

Rear Adm Michael Moran says 18or 19 changes have been made tothe ECS, including new pressureand control valves and sensors todeal with possible causes of de-compression sickness.

New filtration systems havebeen installed in the OBOGS of219 aircraft to better remove car-

bon monoxide and other con-taminants from the pilots oxy-gen. Those filters will eventuallybe rolled out across the F/A-18

fleet, and testing of a new oxy-gen monitoring system shouldconclude this year, for installa-tion in 2017.

Were getting good test resultson removing the carbon monox-ide, and are doing a study to seewhat else is there, Moran says.

Manazir says he has full

confidence in the F/A-18s back-up oxygen system. It has worked100% every time, and Im confi-dent it still will, he says.

SAFETY JAMES DREW WASHINGTON DC

US Navy targets Hornet hypoxia rateNew filtration systems on F/A-18s to remove contaminants from pilots oxygen, as decompression sickness reports continue

USN

avy

Multiple changes

have been made

to the aircrafts

environmental

control system

Downlo ad t he 2016Wor ld A i r Forces Repor t

www.f l ightg lobal .com/waf

IN ASSOCIATION WITH


20/44


21/44


New designs fail tolift sagging sales

BUSINESS AVIATIONP22

UNMANNED SYSTEMS

The UK Ministry of Defenceexpects to sign a 10.6 mil-

lion ($15.5 million) contract withAirbus Defence & Space in thecoming weeks for the manufac-ture and testing of two Zephyr 8high-altitude pseudo-satellites.

At the ADS trade associationsannual dinner in London on 2February, secretary of state for de-fence Michael Fallon said the dealwill be signed as part of our com-mitment to invest in battlefieldcommunications technology.

Zephyr can stay aloft for up to45 days, by using solar energy har-

vested in the daytime to power itssystems at night. It weighs 30kg

(66lb), including a 5kg payload,has a 25m (82ft) wingspan, and

operates at 70,000ft.First flight of the Zephyr 8 is

expected to occur later this year,and two aircraft will take part inan operational concept demon-strator programme during 2017,says the MoD. This will deter-mine if the capability wouldcomplement ground operationsby providing surveillance andcommunications relay services.

The UKs plans to invest in thehigh-altitude surveillance aircraftwere revealed as part of last No-

vembers Strategic Defence andSecurity Review.

Raytheons tube-launchedCoyote unmanned air vehi-

cle is to continue its role in track-ing hurricanes for the US Nation-al Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministration (NOAA), follow-ing an upgrade that has increasedits endurance and range.

The Coyote an expendablesystem was the first UAV to beflown directly into a hurricane, in2014, when it was launched fromthe belly of a NOAA-operatedLockheed Martin P-3 Orion intoHurricane Edouard.

We are under contract with

NOAA to support developmentand initial use of Coyotes in thehurricane research programme,John Hobday, businessdevelopment lead for RaytheonUnmanned Systems, tells FlightInternational. This is an ongoingcollaborative development withNOAA for several years that isnow going operational.

Raytheon says significant im-provements have been made tothe Coyote, which it acquired

Belgian company Unifly is tolaunch an airspace manage-

ment system for unmanned airvehicles that informs users wherethey can legally and safely oper-ate their aircraft.

SkyBridge incorporates datafeeds from open sources includ-ing NOTAMs, local airspace regu-lations and historical data, to pro-vide UAV operators with a mapof permitted low-level airspace. Italso features the self-separation

requirements of each nationalaviation authority, so that a userknows how close an air vehiclecan get to certain structures.

There is a new party in theATM [air traffic management]structure that is important, Jur-gen Verstaen, chief business de-velopment officer for Unifly, toldthe SkyTech conference in Lon-don last month. We need to havea system right now: we cant waitfor an incident to happen.

SURVEILLANCE BETH STEVENSON LONDON

UK to test Zephyrpseudo-satellitesMinistry of Defence set to trial high-altitude, long-enduranceaircraft designed for communications relay and surveillance

In a separate development, theMoD has disclosed a dramatic in-crease in its use of LockheedMartin AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles from the RoyalAir Forces remotely-piloted Gen-

eral Atomics Aeronautical Sys-tems MQ-9 Reapers. A respective

93 and 94 Hellfires were fired bythe type in 2013 and 2014, as theUK ran down its combat involve-ment in Afghanistan, but thisnumber jumped to 258 last year,during operations mounted

against Islamic State militants inIraq and Syria.

Hurricane-hunting Coyote set for dutyRESEARCH BETH STEVENSON LONDON ATMBETH STEVENSON LONDON

SkyBridge willgive UAV userslocal knowhow

from BAE Systems in January2015, increasing endurance to 1hand range to 50nm (92km) fromthe launch aircraft.

In terms of range, the onlylimiting factor is maintainingcommunications with the Coyoterelaying back atmospheric sensordata, Hobday says. Anothercapability rise is due later thisyear, Raytheon notes.

A joint NOAA/Raytheon teamwill use the Coyote to track andmodel storms over the AtlanticOcean during the hurricane sea-son, which typically runs fromJune to November.

The Coyote is also being of-fered to the US Department ofDefense for missions includingoff-board sensing and swarming,Hobday says.

NOAA and Raytheon will use the expendable type to track storms

Raytheon

AirbusDefence&S

pace

The aircraft has a 25m wingspan

and can stay aloft for up to 45

days using solar energy


22/44

BUSINESS AVIATION


Keep up with the latest news and read

in-depth analysis from the business

aviation sector: flightglobal.com/bizav

The business and general avia-tion market was flat in 2015,with the revival of the midsize

business jet sector driven by newdesigns one of few bright spots.

In its annual industry review,released on 10 February, the Gen-eral Aviation Manufacturers Asso-ciation (GAMA) records deliveriesof 2,267 fixed-wing aircraft in2015, compared with 2,376 pis-tons, turboprops and business jetsin 2014. The value of shipmentswas $20.9 billion $87 million

lower than in 2014.The business jet sector was the

top performer and the only niche torecord a year-on-year shipmentsincrease, GAMA says. The datashows 654 deliveries in 2015, com-pared with 644 a year earlier.

GAMAs report excludesBombardiers fourth quarter ship-ments for the last two years to givea like-for-like comparison. The Ca-nadian airframer will release its2015 delivery figures with its full-year results on 18 February.

Flightglobals Fleets Analyzerdatabase, however, records a com-

bined 78 Global, Challenger andLearjet deliveries for the finalquarter. This tally brings Bombar-diers 2015 shipments to 200 three down on 2014 and the

business jet sector shipments for2015 to 732 aircraft 10 more thanin the previous 12 months.

The business jet sector is solidand mature, says GAMA presi-dent and chief executive PeterBunce. Demand is coming from

the US, where the strong economyis triggering a return of corporate

buyers and high-net-worth indi-viduals. Bunces view is support-ed by Daniel Hall, senior analyst

with Flightglobals Ascend consul-tancy. North America saw a 13%new delivery increase, from 374 to421 units, making 2015 the firstyear since 2008 where the USA bet-tered the rest of the world, he says.

Growth in business jets in 2015was precipitated by the introduc-tion of new products, which arehelping re-energise the sector, stim-ulate customer demand and bolsterthe fortunes of developers, Bunceadds. His view is supported by

GAMAs data.The introduction of the Citation

Latitude last August lifted Cess-nas delivery tally nearly 5% in2015, to 166 units. Sixteen of themidsize jets were shipped.

Embraers shipment total rosefrom 116 in 2014 to 120 on the backof the midsize Legacy 500 andits mid-light stablemate, theLegacy 450.

The top-half of the business-jetsector performed sluggishly lastyear, due to the slump in demand

for large, long-distance aircraftfrom markets such as Brazil and

China. GAMA reports 290 ship-ments of large-cabin, long-rangeand VIP airliner-sized business jetsin 2015, compared with 317 theprevious year. Dassault saw the big-gest decline, delivering 11 fewerFalcons a 50% fall year-on-year.

Bombardier recorded a nine-unitfall in Challenger 605/650 ship-ments to 25 due in part to the late

certification of the upgraded 650,which entered service last Novem-

ber. Deliveries of the high-endGlobal 5000/6000 fell by sevenunits to 73 aircraft. Bombardier isreadjusting the Global productionrate to reflect falling sales.

Gulfstream continued to buckthe trend with shipments of its top-end trio the G450/550/650 -climbing by three aircraft, to 120.

TURBOPROP DECLINE

The turboprop sector was the

worst performing fixed-wing seg-ment. Deliveries of single- andtwin-engined models slid nearly8% to 557 aircraft, GAMA reveals.The decline is due to weak de-mand for agricultural aircraft. AirTractor recorded a drop in ship-ments of its AT-family from 145 in2014 to 114. Similarly, ThrushAircraft saw the tally of its S2Rseries fall from 36 to 29.

If the agricultural segment is ex-cluded, the core-business turbo-prop market remained stable,

GAMA reveals. The top performerlast year was Cessnas Caravan. De-

liveries rose from 94 units in 2014to 102 last year.

The strength of the single-engined turboprop market prompt-ed Cessna parent Textron Aviationto launch a clean-sheet aircraft last

July. The model will be unveiledthis year at the AirVenture show inOshkosh, Wisconsin.

After a 12-month absence fromGAMA shipment records, due tothe certification effort on its AvantiEvo, Piaggio re-emerged in 2015,recording three shipments.

However, overall shipments ofpressurised twin-turboprops felllast year by 7%, GAMA records.Most of the weakness was focusedon Beechcrafts entry-level KingAirs the C90GTx and 250.Combined shipments fell by 23units, to 33 aircraft last year.

Aerospace analyst RollandVincent says the top-of-the-range350i is unchallenged in a uniquemarket space.

With Textrons new single-en-gined turboprop in the works, I

would not be surprised if weak de-livery output is a signal of the slowdemise of the lower end of its KingAir line, he adds.

PISTONS PLUMMET

The piston-powered sector faredlittle better in 2015. Deliveries ofsingle- and twin-engined types fell

by 6.5% during this period, to1,056 aircraft. This compares with1,129 deliveries in 2014.

With the exception of Cessna,Mooney and Tecnam, which

recorded 51-, nine- and one-unitrises, respectively, in 2015 ship-ments, all the airframers saw adecline in deliveries. DiamondAircraft disclosed a 46% fall in de-liveries of its four-seat DA40 dur-ing the period from 136 to 75units while shipments ofBeechcrafts Baron and Bonanzafell from 72 to 41 aircraft.

Bunce attributes this decline to aslowdown in demand for privateflying and the lack of largecontracts for piston-engined

aircraft from the global flighttraining market.

ANALYSISKATE SARSFIELD LONDON

Midsize revives, but other sectors slipData from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association shows 2015 deliveries were flat, with several segments falling

Demand is coming

from the US, where

the strong economy

is triggering a return

of corporate buyersPETER BUNC

flight international - 16-22 february 2016

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