LOWCOST AIRLINES NOT SUITABLE FOR INDIA

India is not a suitable country for low-cost airline operations as it not only lacks infrastructure like low-cost secondary airports but also the cost of their staff is at par with full service carriers (FSC), a study has claimed. 

Also, the LFCs have to face tough competition from Indian Railways and road transport for destinations of shorter durations.                                                

"India has very few secondary airports from which the low fare carriers (LFCs) could operate. Of the 127 airports with the Airports Authority of India, only 80 are operational," aerospace expert Harmoz P Mama claimed in a study 'Civil Aviation in India: Challenges and Prospects'. 

Highlighting the poor airline coverage of smaller airports of the country, he said, "The top five airports in India handle about 70% of all domestic passenger traffic in India, which indicates poor airline coverage of most of the other airports." 
Beyond these are primarily small, crumbling airstrips with huts masquerading as terminal building which are totally unsuitable for airline operations, he claimed. 

The low fare airlines in order to save their staff -- particularly the pilots and engineers -- from being poached have to pay salaries on a par with those of FSCs, he said.                                                Apart from it, low-cost airlines also have to bear the brunt of the high price of Air Turbine Fue(ATF), which actually is a high percentage of their total costs.

BIOFUEL MIRACLE BY BOEING

Air New Zealand and Boeing Announce December Date for Sustainable Biofuels Test Flight:
Partnership with Rolls-Royce and UOP highlights the path to fuel certification

SEATTLE, Nov. 11, 2008 -- Air New Zealand and Boeing [NYSE: BA] today announced Dec. 3 as the date for the airline's sustainable biofuels flight from Auckland using a 747-400 jetliner. Conducted in partnership with Rolls-Royce and UOP, a Honeywell company, one of the airplane's four Rolls-Royce RB211 engines will be powered in part using advanced generation biofuels derived from jatropha. Air New Zealand now becomes the first airline to use a commercially viable biofuel sourced using sustainability best practices.
Boeing, Air New Zealand and UOP have worked diligently with growers and project developer Terasol Energy to identify sustainable jatropha in adequate quantities to conduct thorough preflight testing. Using proprietary UOP fuel processing technology, the jatropha crude oil was successfully converted to biojet fuel, marking the world's first large-scale production run of a commercially viable and sustainable biofuel for aviation use.
"This flight strongly supports our efforts to be the world's most environmentally responsible airline," said Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Rob Fyfe. "We recently demonstrated the fuel and environmental gains that can be achieved through advanced operational procedures using Boeing 777s. We're also modernizing our fleet as we await our Trent 1000-powered 787-9 Dreamliners, which will burn 20 percent less fuel than the planes they replace. Introducing a new generation of sustainable fuels is the next logical step in our efforts to further save fuel and reduce aircraft emissions."
As part of the fuel verification process, UK-based engine maker Rolls-Royce's technical team conducted extensive laboratory testing to ensure compatibility with today's jet engine components and to validate the fuel meets stringent performance criteria for aviation fuel.
"In preparation for Air New Zealand's test flight we achieved our near-term goal - identifying and sourcing the first large-scale run of sustainable biofuel for commercial aviation," said Boeing Commercial Airplane's Managing Director of Environmental Strategy Billy Glover. "The processing technology exists today, and based on results we've seen, it's highly encouraging that this fuel not only met but exceeded three key criteria for the next generation of jet fuel: higher than expected jet fuel yields, very low freeze point and good energy density," Glover explained. "That tells us we're on the right path to certification and commercial availability."
Because of the unique environment in which aviation operates, stringent criteria are in place to ensure that any alternative fuel meets or exceeds current jet fuel requirements. Advance testing for the Air New Zealand flight showed that the jatropha-based biofuel met all critical specifications, including a freeze point at -53 degrees Fahrenheit (-47 degrees Celsius) and a flash point at 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius).
"Laboratory testing showed the final blend had excellent properties, meeting and in many cases exceeding the stringent technical requirements for fuels used in civil and defense aircraft," said Chris Lewis, Rolls-Royce company specialist for fuels. "The blended fuel therefore meets the essential requirement of being a 'drop-in' fuel, meaning its properties will be virtually indistinguishable from conventional fuel, Jet A1, which is used in commercial aviation today."
To process the jatropha crude, the team relied on UOP's green jet fuel processing technology based on hydroprocessing methodologies that are commonly used to produce transportation fuels. During processing, hydrogen is added to remove oxygen from the biomass, resulting in a bio-derived jet fuel that can be used as a petroleum replacement for commercial aviation. Boeing is working with airlines and engine manufacturers to gather biofuel performance data as part of the industry's efforts to revise the current American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards to include fuels from sustainable plant sources. Jatropha, which can be grown in a broad range of conditions, produces seeds that contain inedible lipid oil that is extracted and used to produce fuel. Each seed produces 30 to 40 percent of its mass in oil. Plant oil used to create the fuel for the Air New Zealand flight was sourced from nonarable lands in India and Southeastern Africa (Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania).
Air New Zealand is one of several air carriers working to diversify and secure its energy future through participation in the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Users Group. That effort includes a commitment to sustainability criteria for fuel sourcing and commercializing plant-based fuels that perform as well as, or better than, kerosene-based fuel but with a smaller carbon lifecycle. The goal is to create a portfolio of next-generation biofuels that can be blended with traditional kerosene fuel (Jet A) to improve environmental performance.

A-10 Thunderbolt

Key Data

Crew 1 pilot

Wingspan 17.53m

Length 16.26m

Height 4.47m

Empty Weight 25,000lb

Maximum Take-Off Weight 50,000lb

Non-Afterburning Turbo Fan Engines

2 x General Electric TF34-GE-100

The A-10 Thunderbolt is also known as the Warthog, the Flying Gun and the Tankbuster. The aircraft was used extensively during Operation Desert Storm, in support of NATO operations in response to the Kosovo crisis, in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The A-10 is a high-survivability and versatile aircraft, popular with pilots for the 'get home' effectiveness. The mission of the aircraft is ground attack against tanks, armoured vehicles and installations, and close air support of ground forces.

The aircraft is suitable for operation from forward air bases, with short take-off and landing capability. The aircraft has a long range (800 miles) and endurance and can loiter in the battle area.

The manoeuvrability at low speed and at low altitude (below 1,000ft) allows accurate and effective targeting and weapon delivery over all types of terrain.

The first flight of the A-10 was in May 1972, and a total of 707 aircraft have since been produced. Originally manufactured by Fairchild, since 1987 the prime contractor for the A-10 has been Northrop Grumman, which carries out support and structural upgrade programmes from the Integrated Systems and Aerostructures Divisions at Bethpage, New York and at St Augustine in Florida.

Over 350 A-10 aircraft are in service with the US Air Force, Air Combat Command, the US Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard.

In June 2007, Boeing was awarded a contract for the A-10 wing replacement program. Boeing will supply 242 replacement wing sets by 2018.

A-10C – PRECISON ENGAGEMENT UPGRADE PROGRAM

Improvements include: hands-on throttle and stick control, two new Raytheon Technical Services 5in x 5in multifunction cockpit displays, Situational Awareness Datalinks (SADL), digital stores management system, Integrated Flight and Fire Control Computer (IFFCC) from BAE Systems Platform Solutions for automated continuously computed weapons delivery, Sniper XR or Litening targeting pods for precision-guided weapons and helmet-mounted sighting system.

COCKPIT

The single-seat cockpit is protected by all-round armor, with a titanium 'bathtub' structure to protect the pilot that is up to 3.8cm thick. The cockpit has a large bulletproof bubble canopy, which gives good all-round vision.

The cockpit is equipped with a head-up display, which is used for targeting and weapon aiming, a Have-Quick secure radio communications system, inertial navigation and a Tactical Air Navigation (TACAN) system.

Lockheed Martin has begun delivery of 21 USAF A-10 aircraft with the embedded global positioning system/inertial navigation system (EGI), which pinpoints the exact location of the aircraft. The aircraft are also to be fitted with BAE Systems Terrain Profile Matching systems (TERPROM).

The pilot is equipped with night-vision goggles and also the infrared imaging display of the Maverick AGM-65.

WEAPONS

The aircraft has 11 stores pylons, providing an external load capacity of 7,260kg. There are three pylons under the fuselage and the loads can be configured to use either the centre-line pylon or the two flanking fuselage pylons.

For weapon guidance, the aircraft can be fitted with Pave Penny laser guidance / electronic support measures, pod installed on the starboard fuselage pylon. Each wing carries four stores pylons: three outboard and one inboard of the wheel fairing.

The A-10 can carry up to ten Maverick air-to-surface missiles. The Raytheon Maverick AGM-65 missile uses a variety of guidance systems, including imaging infrared guidance and warheads, including a high-penetration, 57kg conical-shaped charge warhead. Range is more than 45km. The A-10 can also carry the Sidewinder air-to-air missile, which is an all-aspect short-range missile with maximum speed over Mach 2.

The A10 is capable of deploying a wide range of ordnance: for example, the LDGP Mk 82 226kg, 500lb general-purpose bombs, BLU-1 and BLU-27/B Rockeye II cluster bombs and the cluster bomb unit CBU-52/71.

The Northrop Grumman Litening ER (Extended Range) targeting pod has been successfully integrated on an A-10. Litening ER features a 640 x 512 pixel thermal imager, CCD TV, laser spot tracker / rangefinder, IR marker and laser designator.

The aircraft is armed with a General Dynamics GAU-8/A Avenger 30mm cannon, mounted in the nose of the aircraft.

"The A-10 has 11 stores pylons, providing an external load capacity of 7,260kg."

Using the cannon, the A-10 is capable of disabling a main battle tank from a range of over 6,500m. The cannon can fire a range of ammunition, including Armour-Piercing Incendiary rounds (API) weighing up to 0.75kg, or uranium-depleted 0.43kg API rounds.

The magazine can hold 1,350 rounds of ammunition. The pilot can select a firing rate of 2,100 or 4,200 rounds per minute.

ENGINES

The two non-afterburning turbo fan engines, TF34-GE-100, supplied by General Electric, each supply 9,065lb thrust. The location of the engines, high on the fuselage, allows the pilot to fly the aircraft fairly easily with one engine inoperable.

Battery Powered Airplane

Take your everyday metal moni motoglider, trick it out with a custom battery pack and you've got the ElectraFlyer C, a small electric airplane that debuted at the AirVenture show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, last week.

The plane, which received its airworthiness certificate in April, features a 5.6 kWh lithium battery with a projected life cycle (the number of times it can be depleted and recharged) of 1,000 cycles. The battery has a max weight of 78 pounds and can be custom-built to fit the available space in an airplane. It provides juice for a motor driving a 45-inch superlight PowerFin propeller made of a foam core surrounded by an outer shell of carbon fiber and glass fabric.

Once in the air, the ElectraFlyer C cruises at 70 miles per hour. Top speed is 90 mph and the stall speed is 45. The plane can fly for 90 to 120 minutes before the battery needs recharging. When the battery winds down, just plug it into a 110V outlet -- your house is full of them -- and you're good to go in just more than six hours. Bump the voltage to 220 and you're flying again in two hours.

The people at Electric Aircraft Corporation say the small plane carries some big benefits. The motor is nearly silent, which means no earplugs for pilots, and brings the potential for flying into new sites. And then there's the a dramatic improvement in what the company calls "neighbor relations" -- no droning engines to drive them nuts. Electric motors don't produce a lot of soot or pollution, and overhauls are a snap. And by combining this motor with the ElectraFlyer's slow turning propeller, you've got a flight that is practically vibration free.

But the most compelling sell is an economic one: The company estimates that "refueling" the plane with a full charge of the battery will cost, on average, a whopping sixty cents.