Flight International 5-11 May 2015

FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

COSMIC CRISISBudget cuts contribute to recent series of blows for Russias ambitious space programme 22

SWEDEN THE DEAL Saab looks to boost the capability of Gripen C/D with upgrade to fighters fire-control radar 19

A NICER RYANAIR REGRETS, IVE HAD A FEW, ADMITS OLEARY FRANKLYINTERVIEW P24

5-11 MAY 2015

US REGIONALS

SIZING UP THE OPPORTUNITYAre airlines ready for next-generation jets?

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5-11 May 2015 | Flight International | 3flightglobal.com

FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

5-11 MAY 2015VOLUME 187 NUMBER 5487

FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

COSMIC CRISISBudget cuts contribute to recent series of blows for Russias ambitious space programme 22

SWEDEN THE DEAL Saab looks to boost the capability of Gripen C/D with upgrade to fighters fire-control radar 19

A NICER RYANAIR REGRETS, IVE HAD A FEW, ADMITS OLEARY FRANKLYINTERVIEW P24

5-11 MAY 2015

US REGIONALS

SIZING UP THE OPPORTUNITYAre airlines ready for next-generation jets?

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

1 93.50

AirT

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COVER IMAGEMathieu Pouliot shot this SkyWest/American Eagle Bombardier CRJ200 (with Boeing 737-800 behind) at Montreals Trudeau airport for AirTeamImages P30

BEHIND THE HEADLINES David Learmount (left) joined chief pilot Capt Ray Conway and head of training Capt Andy OShea at the Ryanair Stansted training centre. He also talked strategy with chief executive Michael OLeary at the low-cost carriers Dublin headquarters (P24)

NEXT WEEK BUSINESS AVIATION We flight test the Citation Latitude and look at the programmes in development Cra

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Sweden targets increase in fully operational Gripen squadrons P11. Cheetal trio delivered to Afghanistan P19

NAS

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Russian spacecraft failures compounded by cuts P22

COVER STORY30 Growing pains The current cap on the size of

regional aircraft in pilot contracts is already beginning to pose problems for the introduction of next-generation MRJ and E2 jets at the US majors

FEATURES26 PROGRAMME Rising in the east Mitsubishi and

Comac are making progress with new jets, but their impact on the market depends on overcoming some tough challenges, not least convincing airlines to shun the established players

REGULARS7 Comment34 Letters36 Classied 39 Jobs 43 Working Week

NEWS THIS WEEK 8 Rafale hits target as Qatar commits.

Malaysia set to sell off widebodies9 US military fleet sets course for fleet reduction.

Airbus reports steady start for 2015 orderbook10 Market needs put 90-seater plan at bottom of

ATR list. European pilot group warns against growing pay-to-fly trend

11 Generator bug prompts 787 directive. Sweden to step up fighter readiness

AIR TRANSPORT 12 Spirit automates to meet ramp-up on programmes.

Southwest fits its 737s with Honeywell avionics13 Cargolux grounds lithium-ion batteries.

Avianca explains why Boeing failed to win it14 EASA warns of increase Baltic airprox incidents.

Revenue rises, but Sukhoi civil arm still in red17 Turkish A320 engine damaged in landing attempt.

Wizz Air teams up to train 40 cadets a year

DEFENCE 18 P&W deflects fresh criticism of F135.

IAI set to ramp up tanker conversions. Australia gets Super Hornet support boost

19 Saab touts Gripen C/D radar upgrade. Cheetal helicopters delivered to Afghanistan

20 RAF to harness Lightnings ISR power. Peru receives first locally-assembled KT-1 trainer

NEWS FOCUS 21 Strength of Hercules lies in training22 Budgets bring Russia down to earth24 OLeary admits mistakes as Ryanair softens image

BUSINESS AVIATION 23 NetJets Europe prepares to receive first

Challenger 350. Gama to strengthen Aberdeen base. GKN wins wing skin work for Gulfstreams

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flightglobal.com4 | Flight International | 5-11 May 2015

CONTENTS

THE WEEK IN NUMBERS

ightglobal.com/ight-international

Flightglobals premium news and data service delivers breaking air transport stories with profiles, schedules, and fleet, financial and traffic information ightglobal.com/dashboard

2%The 2014 turnover rise for firms in the Bilbao-focused HEGAN aerospace cluster, to 1.76bn; 65% was exported

63mThe first-quarter operating loss at Air France-KLMs cargo unit made last years 34m deficit look relatively healthy

100The number of sales lost by Boeing; Avianca will stick with A320s because Boeing didnt fight hard enough

Flightglobal dashboard

Flightglobal dashboard

HEGAN

Com

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IMAGE OF THE WEEK The Royal Australian Air Forces 36 Sqn prepares to deploy a Boeing C-17A Globemaster III transport from Amberley AFB to assist the Nepalese government after the earthquake on 25 April. Two C-17s carried some 15t of aid, and were expected to begin evacuation ights between Bangkok and KathmanduView more great aviation shots online and in our weekly tablet edition:

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

This week, we ask: Ryanairs brand image makeover? Cheap and cheerful

Cheap and tolerable Cheap and nastyVote at ightglobal.com

Last week, we asked: Will Airbus launch an A380neo by 2020?You said:

57%36%

7%Yes, with engine choice

No

Yes, exclusively Trent-poweredTOTAL

VOTES:

3,194

FLIGHT TRAINING Search the Civil Simulator Censuswww.ightglobal.com/civilsim

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COMMENT


See News Focus P24

Is Michael OLeary a sinner come to repentance? For years, Ryanair seemed to delight in being vile to customers. Cheap fares, an extensive network, modern (if frill-free) aircraft and punctual service kept punters rolling in. But few would have professed any kind of warm feelings to Europes biggest short-haul airline.

Passengers were barred or ned for carry-on baggage that was too big, or forgetting to print a boarding pass. The media gleefully reported tales of disabled travel-lers charged for wheelchairs or harrassed holidaymak-ers in tears after being unable to y home.

Ryanair has been softening its hard edge and nudg-ing towards the market that its rival EasyJet has tapped: thrifty professional yers happy to pay for exibility

and access to large airports. These passengers do not want to be treated like naughty children.

But the colourful chief executives Mr Nice Guy conversion should be viewed with scepticism. OLeary is, above all, a top businessman who turned Ryanair from Irish minnow to European behemoth. He knows Ryanairs new image is right for a new marketplace.

And OLeary says he has done aviation a favour. By being uncompromising with customer service, the airline has made passengers more resilient. Fewer turn up late at airports these days, or overpack or fail to complete check-in procedures. One of Ryanairs key contributions to aviation has been to sharpen us up.

Saint or sinner?

Another 2,000 aircraft are projected to exit the US militarys inventory over the next decade. For the eets of many countries, this would be an existential cri-sis. But this is the American eet, so it is only a 15% cut.

If the world looked any safer now than a decade ago, a planned cull would be welcomed. And as aircraft grow in capability and longevity, it should be possible to eld a smaller force packing a similar punch.

But these eet reductions outlined in the US militarys annual 30-year aviation plan ow out of broader considerations that have more to do with rising operating costs and tightening budgets.

Thirty-year forecasts are not to be taken at face value, but visibility over the next 10 years is reasonably clear. And it looks like a dreary decade for aircraft power.

The Lockheed Martin F-35 is expected to begin its long- delayed ramp up to full-rate production, although not fast enough to replace the number of ghters reach-

ing retirement age. The rst of a new generation of long-range strategic bombers will arrive under LRS-B. And the number of tankers and airlifters will actually grow as the Boeing KC-46A enters the eet.

Those three programmes will replenish the US militarys capability versus the most advanced threats over the next 10 years, following a decade of intense focus on low-threat conicts.

Survivability, appropriately, is the key to surviving the cull. The Fairchild Republic A-10 may yet duck the US Air Forces second attempt to usher it into retire-

ment, but it faces a long-term struggle against the services priorities. The army, meanwhile, has already begun pensioning off its Bell Helicopter OH-58D Kiowa Warriors with virtually no resistance.

Almost missing from the 10-year inventory plan is the introduction of a clean-sheet aircraft. The only new designs to arrive will be the navys carrier-based un-manned air vehicle, an advanced ghter trainer to re-place the aged Northrop T-38 Talon, and the LRS-B.

It will be at least another decade before the next wave of innovation sweeps in, with the potential arriv-al of sixth-generation ghters, high-speed rotorcraft and perhaps even blended-wing body transports in the 2030s or shortly thereafter.

As each new system enters the eet, it seems inevita-ble that each advanced design will be more capable, cost more to buy and operate and be procured in lower quantities. The nifty trick of the consumer electronics revolution more performance at less cost will con-tinue to elude the aerospace industry. See This Week P9

Rex

Feat

ures

Someones going to need a bigger boneyard

Almost missing from the planis the introduction of a newclean-sheet aircraft design

Budgetary requirements and rising operating costs are forcing the US military to cut the size of its aircraft fleet. The next generation of platforms must be capable of doing more for less

Thinking small

To find more coverage about the US militarys spending challenge, go online at ightglobal.com/defence

THIS WEEK


To get more defence sector coverage, subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter:ightglobal.com/defencenewsletter

BA HAPPY WITH A380 BUT DOES NOT WANT MORESUPERJUMBO IAG does not see room for additional Airbus A380s in the British Airways fleet, despite being impressed with the types performance. BA has taken delivery of nine A380s from its firm order for 12. Parent company IAGs chief executive, Willie Walsh, says the aircraft has performed exceptionally well and exceeded expecta-tions in the BA network. But Walsh believes the benefit of the aircraft is unique to [BAs] network, given the Heathrow hub, and that there are a limited number of cities to which it can apply the model.

JAPANESE AMPHIBIAN IN TRAINING MISHAPACCIDENT All 19 crew members aboard a Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force ShinMaywa US-2 amphibious aircraft were rescued when the search and rescue asset crashed on 28 April. Bearing the tail number 9905, the aircraft was left floating nose down in the sea following the mishap, which occurred off the coast of the nations Kochi province during a training exercise.

LIEBHERR WINS 777X FOLDING WING-TIP DEALCONTRACT Germanys Liebherr-Aerospace Lindenberg is to supply crucial components for the Boeing 777Xs folding wing-tip mecha-nism. The 3.5m (11.4ft) folding tips will reduce the types wing span to less than 65m, to stay within the size category of the current 777. Liebherr-Aerospace states that it will provide the fold subsystem as well as latch-pin and secondary-lock actuators. The subsystem will employ a motor and rotating actuator to move the wing-tip.

AUTOMATIC TAKE-OFFS TO LIFT ISRAELI UAV FORCEOPERATIONS Israels air force is in the process of incorporating an automatic take-off and landing capability into its Israel Aerospace Industries Heron 1 and Elbit Systems Hermes 900 unmanned air vehicles. The service which already has such a capability available for its larger Heron TPs says the advance will give its White Eagle squadron increased operational capacity in poor weather conditions.

EMBRAER BOOSTS COMMERCIAL AVIATION REVENUERESULTS A sharp rise in deliveries helped lift Embraers commercial aviation segment revenues in the first quarter compared with the same period a year ago, but declining defence and executive jet sales resulted in a $58.9 million net loss, the company announced on 30 April. First quarter sales rose by 19% year-on-year to $662 million, as it delivered 20 Embraer 175s, compared to 14 E-Jets in the same period last year.

TU-160 PRODUCTION GIVEN STRATEGIC REVIVALBOMBERS Russias defence ministry says it is to restart production of the Tupolev Tu-160 strategic bomber, describing the supersonic type as the best aircraft in its class. Moscow is already upgrading its 13 Tu-160s to an M-model standard, and has 14 more on order.

AER LINGUS ATR CREW FACED LOSS OF VISIBILITYINCIDENT Investigators have disclosed that an ATR 72 turboprop crew faced a severe loss of visibility during a night landing after a coating of salt covered the windscreen. The aircraft, operating for Aer Lingus Regional, had already executed a go-around at Cork for unre-lated reasons. Following the go-around it had rejoined the approach to runway 25, via a coastal route at a height of 3,000ft. The Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit says the crew carried out a second go-around after a thick residue of sea salt obscured visibility.

BRIEFING

Qatar has ended its long- running search for new strike aircraft, with a decision to acquire 24 Dassault Rafales.

Announced by the manufac-turer on 30 April, the deal is ex-pected to be nalised with a con-tract signing in Doha on 4 May, in the presence of the French presi-dent, Franois Hollande.

The Rafale acquisition will de-liver replacements for the Qatar Emiri Air Forces current Dassault Mirage 2000-5EDAs. Flightglob-als MiliCAS database records the service as operating nine of the type plus four DDA-model train-ers, along with six Dassault-sourced Alpha Jets. It also previ-ously used the Mirage F1 ghter.

Qatars selection is the latest in a run of recent successes for the Snecma M88-powered Rafale, which already this year has se-

cured a 36-unit order from Egypt and a declaration of intent from India to acquire the same number of aircraft for its air force.

If all three commitments are -nalised, they would bring the French type within three units of matching the current export order total of 99 aircraft achieved by the Euroghter consortium, whose Typhoon had also previ-ously been on offer to Doha.

This success demonstrates the Rafales operational qualities and conrms the condence that countries which are already users of the Mirage 2000 have in our company, says Dassault chief executive Eric Trappier.

The new ghter capability will be introduced before Qatar hosts the football World Cup in 2022. Additional reporting by Craig Hoyle

Malaysia Airlines appears to be preparing to sell off a number of its widebody aircraft, as the carrier restructures its net-work and eet.

The airline has already started marketing some Boeing 7 77-200ERs and Airbus A330-200 freighters to potential purchasers, according to industry sources.

Separate reports that it is also planning to sell or lease out its six A380s have not been conrmed.

An airline ofcial says it in-tends to approach the market to dispose of some assets, but de-clines to comment further.

In addition to its A380s, Flight-globals Ascend Fleets database records Malaysia Airlines as hav-ing an active widebody eet of 13 777-200ERs following the loss of MH370 and MH17 last year and 13 A330-300s, plus a freighter inventory of four A330s and two 747-400s.

Malaysia set to sell off widebodiesFLEET ELLIS TAYLOR SINGAPORE

CAPABILITY DOMINC PERRY LONDON

Rafale hits target as Qatar commitsDassault announces Gulf states selection of its fighter for 24-unit deal, continuing the types recent export advances

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Doha will acquire the type through a 4 May contract

THIS WEEK


Generator bug prompts 787 directiveTHIS WEEK P11

A Congressional committee voted on 28 April to add money for the Pentagon to buy 18 more ghters and four more un-manned air systems in the next scal year. But the release of the US militarys long-term aviation plan the day before shows that eet retirements will be acceler-ating over the next decade.

Marking the rst step in a months-long authorisation and appropriations process, the mark-up by the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) authorised a proposal to give the Pentagon $604 billion in the scal year that begins on 1 October slightly less than the $612 billion request-ed by the Obama administration.

Aviation programmes fared well in the HASC version of the bill, which must still be ap-proved by the House of Repre-sentatives. Committee members authorised the navy to spend $1.15 billion more than request-ed, to buy 12 more Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft which the manufacturer needs to extend production through scal year 2017.

Operating prot at Airbuss commercial aircraft division increased by 8% to 569 million ($637 million) in the rst quarter as revenue reached 8.6 billion a performance it attributes to favourable foreign exchange mit-igating lower delivery volume.

The company delivered 134 commercial jets and took 101 net orders in the three months end-ing 31 March, compared with 141 and 103 respectively in the same period of 2014.

The rst-quarter order haul in-cluded 34 A330-family aircraft, while one A350 and four A380s were among the aircraft handed over. The A380 programme re-mains on track to reach break-even this year, Airbus says, while the A350s production ramp-up is ongoing, with the second aircraft delivered to Qatar Airways as planned. Develop-ment of the A320neo remains on schedule.

Group revenue narrowed by 4% to 12.1 billion, mainly re-ecting the phasing of deliveries at Commercial Aircraft, which are expected to be back-loaded in 2015, the company says. Operat-ing prot at the group level nar-rowed by 7.5%, to 651 million.

We are on track to achieve our full-year targets, says group chief executive Tom Enders.

Airbus foresees full-year deliv-eries being slightly higher than 2014s total of 629, and says the commercial aircraft order book is again expected to grow.

RESULTS

Airbus reports steady start for 2015 orderbook

PROGRAMME

PC-24 taxis towards rst ight in May

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BUDGET STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

US military sets course for 2,000-unit eet reductionRetirements to accelerate in coming decade, after brief funding respite from Congress

The planned purchase of six additional F-35Bs will cost $1 billion

A long-term aviationplan shows that themilitary aircraft eetis expected to declineby nearly 2,000 units

Pilatus has begun taxi runs of its PC-24, and says the light business jet remains on target to make its first flight during May. The seven-seat twin was pictured on the taxiway at the airframers Stans, Switzerland head-quarters on 29 April. Launched in 2012, the PC-24 is the first business jet programme for Pilatus builder of the PC-series of propeller-driven civilian aircraft and military trainers. Certification and service entry are scheduled for 2017, with the company touting the types short-runway performance and its ability to land on rough strips.

They also approved $1 billion for six more F-35Bs, which would raise the overall number of the Lockheed Martin type for the US services to 63 in the FY2016 budget.

The air forces latest attempt to retire the Fairchild Republic A-10 close-air-support aircraft continues to face resistance from Congress, with the committee adding $240 million to continue funding for a wing replacement programme for the type.

The HASC members also revealed a potential new delay for the services plan to award a contract for a long-range strike bomber around mid-year. Citing delays to the schedule for the award, the committee removed $400 million in funding.

While the committee recom-mends an overall addition to the aviation accounts next year, the long-term trend is tilted in the opposite direction.

A long-term aviation plan submitted to Congress by the Pentagon shows that the military aircraft eet is expected to de-cline by nearly 2,000 units over the next 10 years from 14,900 today to about 12,900 in FY2025.

This will include the sched-uled retirement of about 600 army-operated Bell Helicopter OH-58Ds by the end of this year. Numbers will fall in every category except airlift and tank-ers, which are projected to grow by about 140 aircraft, to reach about 4,620. See Defence P18

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THIS WEEK


Sign up to our dashboard for full access to the latest aviation news and data: ightglobal.com/dashboard

The prospects of a 90-seat aircraft from ATR appear to be reced-ing, as the Airbus/Alenia Aermac-chi joint venture focuses efforts on a 78- to 80-seat higher-density ver-sion of the ATR 72 turboprop.

Quoted in the manufacturers in-house publication, chief execu-tive Patrick de Castelbajac says operators are looking for more ef-cient aircraft that can carry ad-ditional passengers and generate extra revenue. This is why we are considering bringing the number of seats in the aircraft up to 78, he says, adding that a 90-seat aircraft is not necessarily what the mar-ket wants right now.

ATR has long been studying the possibility of a 90-seat aircraft but, despite enthusiasm from Finmeccanica-owned Alenia, the project has met resistance from Airbus Group.

Meanwhile, ATR says a major overhaul of its Toulouse nal as-sembly plant last year to create two parallel production lines

could take capacity to 120 aircraft a year. Steadily increasing de-mand has led ATR to raise its out-put every year since a single-g-ure nadir in 2004, and this year the airframer will produce 90 air-craft, around 10% of which will be the smaller ATR 42 variant.

Although ATR believes pro-duction will plateau at 100 air-craft in 2016, it wants the ability to add another 20% in terms of capacity should the turboprops popularity continue to grow.

We changed our approach about ve years ago and told sup-pliers they needed to invest, says Raphael Dubus, head of manufacturing. All our tier ones now get a three-year visibility, in-cluding a six-month rm order, which was three months before.

It is also insisting that contrac-tors deliver components on the due date. Three years ago, our on-time deliveries were 60%. It is now 90%, and we are targeting 95% for the end of the year, Dubus says. Q

Airbuss vision of an electric ight future is starting to shape up, with plans to build a nal assembly line for its E-Fan light aircraft range in Pau, south-eastern France.

The ambitious project will see an all-electric two-seater entering service around the end of 2017 or in early 2018, with ight schools the likely customers.

A four-seat E-Fan 4.0 will fol-low, featuring a kerosene engine range extender to keep its battery topped up.

Both aircraft are based on the twin-engined E-Fan prototype,

which Airbus ew publicly for the rst time at Bordeaux Merig-nac airport in April 2014. Chief technology ofcer Jean Botti sees the project as key early experi-ence in design and industrialisa-tion of an E-Thrust hybrid elec-tric regional aircraft that, he insists, will eventually be offered by Airbus although probably in a 2050s timescale.

Airbus says Pau was chosen for the assembly location due to its proximity to design partner Daher. E-Fan is managed, de-signed and will ultimately be sold by Airbus subsidiary Voltair. Q

Despite years of protest from the pilot community, pay-to-y (P2F) schemes are becoming more common, according to the Euro-pean Cockpit Association (ECA). The term refers to a practice where inexperienced but licensed pilots pay to act as crew on commercial or business aviation ights, in order to become more employable.

Airlines are constantly rein-venting models to get cheaper la-bour, like hiring self-employed or fake-self-employed pilots, pilots on temporary work agency contracts, or on zero-hours contracts, says ECA president Dirk Polloczek. P2F takes such unacceptable practices to a wholly different level: the employment of young pi-lots is no longer an investment by the airline in its staff but a simple revenue generator. It is a blunt abuse and exploitation of young, low-hours pilots who are desperate to nd a job.

The issue is also becoming more common in the USA, where Congress has previously ruled that pilots must have 1,500h of airborne experience before ying for US commercial carriers.

Miami, Florida-based EagleJet International, for example, is of-fering low-hour pilots the oppor-tunity to gain 1,000h ying Air-bus A320s for an Asian airline or others. The company is now offering European pilots this op-portunity for 87,500 ($97,400).

The ECA is worried that the idea is gaining ground with op-erators in Europe. Secretary gen-eral Philip von Schppenthau cautions: P2F provides a per-verse incentive for a pilot to y at any cost. Few will admit it, but when you have paid up to 50,000 to y this plane, you will think twice before deciding not to y today because you feel sick or fatigued. Q

PROPULSION DAN THISDELL LONDON

Airbus powers ahead with E-Fan

Last years overhaul in Toulouse could lift annual capacity to 120

ATR

The all-electric light aircraft should enter

service by 2018

Airb

us

CONTRACTS DAVID LEARMOUNT LONDON

Europe pilot group warns against pay-to-fly offers

DEVELOPMENT DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON MURDO MORRISON TOULOUSE

Market needs put 90-seater plan at bottom of ATR list Resistance from Airbus Group contributes to retreat from larger model as production capacity continues to increase

THIS WEEK

flightglobal.com 5-11 May 2015 | Flight International | 11

Spirit automates to meet ramp-up on programmesAIR TRANSPORT P12

All Boeing 787 operators will be required to periodically deac-tivate the electrical system to avoid a problem with a newly-dis-covered software bug that could cause the aircraft to lose alternat-ing current power, the US Federal Aviation Administration says in a new airworthiness directive.

The agency adopted the nal rule after Boeing reported the re-sults of a laboratory test showing that a total loss of power is possi-ble if the generator control units run continuously for eight months, the FAA says in a 30 April notice. Its binding airworthi-ness directive was published less than two weeks after Boeing pri-vately alerted operators about the problem, the company conrms.

So far, no 787 operator has ex-perienced the software problem that causes four onboard genera-tors to stop working at the same time, Boeing says. The company

The Swedish government has outlined its defence priorities until 2020, with new measures to include increasing the number of fully operational Saab Gripen squadrons and potentially order-ing a further 10 E-model examples.

Published on 24 April, the framework document sets a target to have all six current Gripen

EDITORIAL CHANGES

After 14 years leading Flight International, Murdo Morrison is moving to a new role within Flightglobal. As head of strategic content, he will manage our Flight Daily News publications, strategic content programme and thought leadership initiative, which seeks to deliver en-hanced analysis and content to the aerospace market.

Craig Hoyle who has been with Flightglobal since 2003 becomes editor of Flight International, with Dominic Perry appointed as deputy editor and Dan Thisdell as features editor.

Meanwhile, the global editorial team has been strengthened with the ap-pointment of James Drew, who joins Flightglobals US bureau in Washington DC as Americas aerospace reporter.

OPERATIONS CRAIG HOYLE GOTLAND

Sweden to step up fighter readiness

SOFTWARE STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

Generator bug prompts 787 directiveFAA mandates periodical deactivation of electrical system after Boeing test results highlight potential total loss of power

squadrons attain full operational status. Two are now focused main-ly on delivering pilot training ser-vices with the F7 wing at Satenas.

Speaking at the F17 wings for-ward operating base on Gotland on 28 April, Swedish air force chief of staff Marcus Bjrkgren said the service has begun assess-ing the implications of the deci-

sion for its eet of almost 100 Gripen C/Ds. We will have to focus a little extra to get those [training] squadrons to a real op-erational level, he says.

The initiative is being pursued following an escalation in quick reaction alert activities in Swed-ish airspace, due to the increase in Russian air force ights over the Baltic Sea since 2013.

The defence bill for 2016 to 2020 would increase spending by SKr10.2 billion ($1.2 billion).

The government says it could also potentially boost the air forces Gripen E order by a further 10 aircraft, to 70, although its ve-year plan does not include fund-ing for this. Deliveries under its existing order will commence during 2019, with the type expect-ed to achieve initial operating ca-pability in 2023 and become fully operational three years later. QSee Defence P19All six Gripen C/D squadrons would attain full operational status

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is working on a software update to x the problem, which should be ready in the fourth quarter.

In addition to powering on-board avionics, the 787s electrical generators also are used to pres-surise the aircraft cabin and de-ice the leading edge of the wing.

Two 250kVA generators are in-stalled on each of the 787s turbo-

fan engines. Another two back-up generators each rated at 225kVA are connected to the auxiliary power unit. If all six generators fail at the same time, a lithium-ion main battery keeps power running to the ightdeck systems for about 6s, until a ram air turbine (RAT) can deploy and begin generating enough power to help the pilots

navigate while attempting to re-start the engines or glide to an un-powered landing.

Boeings laboratory testing dis-covered that an internal software counter in a generator control unit (GCU) overows after run-ning continuously for 248 days, the FAA says. This causes all four GCUs on the engine-mounted generators to enter failsafe mode at the same time.

Last June, the FAA approved an exemption to allow the 787-9 to enter service on schedule, despite a substandard reliability record on the GCU for the RAT. The agency approved the exemption because it was deemed extremely improba-ble that all six power generators on board could fail at the same time.

A redesigned RAT was cut into the 787-9 production line on schedule in February and Boeing says it is continuing to retrot previously delivered aircraft. Q

Boeing had already warned operators about the potential problem

Boei

ng

AIR TRANSPORT


Find out what our advisory service Ascend can offer your business: ightglobal.com/ascend

Spirit AeroSystems has an-nounced a plan to invest more than $100 million in automation projects to support production rate increases across four Airbus and Boeing aircraft programmes.

We continue to drive the en-terprise to nd the most efcient and productive approaches for the rate increases on the 737, A320, 787 and A350, says Spirit Aero-Systems chief executive Larry Lawson. In addition to invest-ments to support the rate, we are investing in automation projects of over $100 million. These auto-mation projects will return our in-vestment in three to four years and continue to differentiate our manufacturing capability.

The monthly rate for the 737 is expected to rise from 42 today to 52 in 2018, while Airbus is in-creasing the A320 rate from 42 to

50 in 2017. The 787 rate is rising from 10 per month to 12 in 2016 and the A350 is ramping up to 10 per month by 2017.

Spirit AeroSystems supplies major fuselage structures for the 737, 787 and A350 and wing struc-tures for all these and the A320.

The rate of production is in-creasing even as Airbus and Boe-ing introduce eight new versions of those four aircraft combined over the next ve years, raising pressure on major suppliers such as Spirit AeroSystems to keep up with demand.

Youre going to see us spend a lot of energy focused on inter-nal investments, Lawson told analysts on a rst quarter earn-ings call on 29 April. We really have some opportunities to in-vest in ourselves to connive to improve operations.

Low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines will equip most of its eet with updated avionics pro-vided by Honeywell, including a collision avoidance system that can be coupled with an automat-ic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) In receiver.

Honeywell says Southwests Boeing 737NGs and its incoming 737 Max will get the SmartTrafc collision avoidance system.

Although the system has the ability to interface with ADS-B In data, Honeywell tells Flight International that the deal does not include installation of those receivers.

The carriers eet includes 436 737-700s and 93 737-800s, and it has orders for 170 737 Max 8s and 30 737 Max 7s, says Flightglobals Ascend Fleets database.

Southwest also has 118 older 737-300s and 12 737-500s, As-cend shows, although the carrier does not say whether those types will receive the upgrades.

The aircraft will also have in-stalled Honeywells Integrated Multi-Mode Receiver, which can process data from a range of navi-gation systems, as well as its As-pire satellite communications system, which provides voice and data communication via sat-ellite networks, the US-based company says.

Other equipment covered in the deal includes Honeywells In-tuVue RDR-4000 3-D weather radar, which can help predict tur-bulence at distances up to 60nm, and its Quantum Line communi-cations and navigation radios, Honeywell adds.

Miami-based start-up carrier Eastern Air Lines has re-ceived nal approval from the US Department of Transportation to launch charter operations.

The certicate was nalised after the DOT received no objec-tions to a tentative 20 April ruling.

The airline intends initially to offer charter ights from Miami to the Caribbean and Latin Amer-ica until it receives a certicate for scheduled operations.

The carrier currently has one Boeing 737-800 leased from FLY Leasing and orders for 10 more of the type, Flightglobals As-cend Fleets database shows.

It also has a rm order for 20 Mitsubishi Aircraft MRJ90s as well as a letter of intent for 10 737 Max 8s.

Eastern uses the same name and brand of the previous Miami-based US trunk carrier that shut down in 1991.

Airbuss pilot training joint ven-ture with Singapore Airlines is set to start operations at a new facility in the rst quarter of 2016.

Building work has com-menced on the Airbus Asia Train-ing Centre (AATC) at Singapores Seletar Aerospace Park.

It will be Airbuss fourth ight training centre in its global net-work, joining facilities in Toulouse, Miami and Beijing. When fully op-erational, the Singapore centre will have eight full-ight simulators four A350 XWBs, one A380, one A330 and two A320s.

Airbus digs in for Singapore centreTRAINING

MANUFACTURING STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

Spirit automates to meet ramp-up on programmesAerostructures provider to spend $100 million in technology as output increases sharply on A320, A350, 737 and 787

Production of Airbuss A350 will increase to 10 per month by 2017

Airb

us

UPGRADES JON HEMMERDINGER WASHINGTON DC

Southwest fits its 737s with Honeywell avionics

APPROVAL

New Eastern cleared for take-off

The carriers first aircraft is a Boeing 737-800 from FLY Leasing

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AIR TRANSPORT


EASA warns of increase in airprox incidents over BalticAIR TRANSPORT P14

Freight operator Cargolux is preparing to suspend trans-port of lithium-ion battery con-signments in light of recent re-as-sessment of the potential hazards they pose.

Cargolux has reviewed data from ICAO, the US FAA and Boe-ing centred on the effectiveness of onboard extinguishing systems against lithium battery res.

Last August the FAA present-ed the results of a full-scale re test, using a Boeing 727 freighter, to an air safety forum.

The test showed that contain-ment of a lithium-ion re on the main deck was marginal while a blaze involving lithium metal cells was not contained.

Cargolux had already banned the carriage of lithium metal cells. But it says that analysis of re-ex-

All Nippon Airways (ANA) was due to deploy its Boeing 787-9 aircraft on international ser-vices on 5 May, beginning with the Tokyo Haneda-Munich route.

The carriers internationally congured 787-9s will have 215 seats in three classes: 48 busi-ness, 21 premium economy and 146 economy. The aircraft will carry 46 more seats than ANAs

Latin American airline group Aviancas decision to stay with the Airbus A320 family for its narrowbody needs ultimately boiled down to cost efciencies in a campaign that the airline be-lieves Boeing did not ght hard enough for, says Avianca co-founder Roberto Kriete.

We are already an Airbus op-erator. For Boeing to compensate Avianca for the expense of switching to a mixed eet, it would have required a much stronger effort from Boeing than they were willing to make, Kri-ete tells Flightglobal.

The Star Alliance carrier an-nounced in February its intention

787-8s now used internationally, it says.

ANA also has 787-9s deployed on domestic services, which are equipped with 18 business and 377 economy class seats, for 395 seats in total.

Flightglobals Ascend Fleets da-tabase shows that ANA operates 32 787-8s and three -9s. It has or-ders for 48 more 787s.

tinguishing system capabilities and the temperature that lithium-ion batteries can reach have spurred the airline to impose a temporary suspension on trans-port of such batteries from 1 May.

To lift the ban as soon as pos-sible, Cargolux will assess differ-

ent options to identify if technol-ogy exists or if new technology can be developed in order to make the transportation of bulk shipments of lithium batteries safe, says the carrier.

Cargolux operates a eet of 23 747-8 and 747-400 freighters.

to order 100 A320neos its sec-ond such order for the re-engined Airbus narrowbody. Aviancas de-cision follows a campaign that saw Boeing express condence that it could unseat Airbus at the Latin American airline for its fu-ture narrowbody eet needs.

Upon Aviancas decision to stay with the A320, Boeing said it was disappointed, even as the carrier remains an important cus-tomer for the airframer.

The incumbent [Airbus] has home court advantage, Kriete ac-knowledges, saying that Boeing needed to be more aggressive.

Avianca has no plans for addi-tional aircraft orders following the commitment for 100 A320ne-os. The carrier is focused on re-newing its eet, an effort which involves incorporating more Boe-ing 787s and operating them on routes now operated with the A330.

Lithium batteries are suspect-ed to have been involved in two fatal cargo 747 res in the past ve years.

Lithium-ion batteries con-tained in other equipment will be exempt from the suspension, says the carrier.

SAFETY DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

Cargolux grounds lithium-ion batteriesAnalysis of fire-extinguishing system capabilities and potential temperatures leads freight operator to ban transport of cells

WIDEBODIES FIRDAUS HASHIM SINGAPORE

ANA introduces 787-9 to world beyond Japan

ORDERS GHIM-LAY YEO WASHINGTON DC

Avianca explains why Boeing failed to win it

The widebody type has already been deployed on domestic routes

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Lithium batteries may have caused fatal fires on cargo 747s, of which Cargolux operates 23 models

The incumbent [Airbus] has home court advantageROBERTO KRIETE Co-founder, Avianca

AIR TRANSPORT


For the latest expert news and views from the air transport sector, visit ightglobal.com/airtransport

Sukhois civil aircraft division, which builds the Superjet 100, increased revenues last year by 45% to just over Rb29 billion ($566 million).

It is claiming a gross prot of nearly Rb2.8 billion for the period. But it admits that, despite broad improvements to its performance, it made a net loss of Rb4.6 billion.

The airframer increased deliv-eries to 29 aircraft, up from the gure of 25 it gave for 2013, gen-erating a hike in sales revenues.

Sukhoi says that it showed a prot from sales, Rb1.4 billion, for the rst time since the start of serial production.

Post-sales customer support revenues amounted to Rb157 mil-lion, says Sukhoi. Expenditure by the company rose by 21% to Rb26.3 billion primarily as a re-sult of greater aircraft production.

Sukhoi points out that the rate of revenue increase is outstripping the growth in costs, following op-timisation of production expense and a reduction in the number of deliveries to early customers.

European safety authorities are highlighting a high risk to civil aviation from increasing in-stances of encounters with non-co-operative military aircraft, particularly over the Baltic Sea.

Non-co-operative ights are those which le no ightplan, operate without an active tran-sponder, and do not communi-cate or co-ordinate with civil air trafc control.

Newly-published analysis from EASA requested by the European Commission last No-vember shows the number of safety occurrences involving civil aircraft and non-co-operative military ights signicantly in-creased last year.

The Baltic states were the most affected by such occurrences in 2014, the analysis states, al-though similar events were re-ported by several EU countries.

Risk assessment has concluded that the threat to civil aviation is high, it adds, and that mitigation measures need to be taken to re-duce this to an acceptable level.

EASAs technical analysis does not identify specic military or-ganisations but it does refer to NATO documentation highlight-ing interceptions of Russian ght-er and bomber formations and detailing large-scale air activity by Russian forces.

The structure of Baltic Sea air-space is relatively complex, the analysis says, with four different functional blocks and major traf-c ows.

Narrow airspace sections make the presence of non-co-operative military ights hazardous to civil aircraft, it adds, because traf-c information cannot be provid-ed in a timely manner if civil con-trollers are unaware of them.

Since this airspace congura-tion is not new, the number of air-space infringements and occur-rences should be comparable over the years, or at least propor-tionate to trafc increase, says EASA in the analysis.

However, the gures stem-ming from the data provided to [EASA] show a denitive increase

in the number of occurrences and also in the number of infringe-ments over the past three years.

Information supplied to EASA indicates four airprox events in-volving civil and military aircraft in 2012. But this increased to 13 last year, plus three airspace in-fringements. Thirteen of these 16 occurrences last year involved unco-operative military trafc.

EASA says that the aircraft in-volved were probably surveil-lance or reconnaissance types. It is concerned that instances in which transponders have been inactive renders normal anti-collision processes ineffective, adding that the closest proximity between a civil and military air-craft was 0.5nm horizontally and 300ft vertically.

REQUIREMENT

Cityjet on hunt for Avro replacement AirTea

mIm

ages

Cityjet is seeking to acquire new aircraft to replace its fleet of BAE Systems Avro RJ85s.

The Irish airline says it is jointly evaluating new acquisitions with UK lessor Falko Regional Aircraft and expects deliveries to begin in the fourth quarter of this year and continue over 30 months.

After 21 years of successful operations with the BAe 146 and its successor the Avro RJ85, we believe the time is now to firm up on the aircraft type that represents the best option for us to form the backbone of our fleet renewal programme, says Pat Byrne, Cityjets founder and executive chairman.

RESULTS DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

Revenue rises, but Sukhoi civil arm still in red

SAFETY DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

EASA warns of increase in airprox incidents over BalticUnco-operative military flights hazardous to civil aircraft in restricted skies, report says

EASA refers to reported interceptions of Russian aircraft

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[The rate of revenue increase] is outstripping the growth in costsSUKHOI

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AIR TRANSPORT


P&W deflects fresh criticism of F135DEFENCE P18

Investigators are trying to ascer-tain the extent of damage sus-tained by a Turkish Airlines Air-bus A320, apparently during an initial landing attempt before the aircraft executed a go-around at Istanbul Ataturk.

While the aircraft subsequent-ly landed safely albeit with a runway excursion and apparent gear collapse there is evidence that it had been ying with sub-stantial damage to its starboard wing and International Aero En-gines V2500 powerplant.

The airline says all 97 passen-gers on ight TK1878 evacuated safely after the aircraft, arriving

from Milan on 25 April, came to rest. Necessary investigation has been started to clarify the causes of the incident, says the carrier.

Publicly-available automatic dependent surveillance data in-dicates that the aircraft initially made an approach to runway 05. Meteorological data at the time indicates a slight crosswind but good weather conditions.

But the crew aborted the land-ing and turned south over the Sea of Marmara before attempting a second approach to the longer runway 35L some 20min later.

Images of the aircraft in ight show ames appearing to ema-

nate from the starboard engine. Subsequent photographs also in-dicate substantial structural dam-age to the inboard trailing edge, a missing starboard exhaust noz-zle, a displaced winglet, and the starboard main landing-gear out of its normal position.

Video images of the touchdown indicate that this main gear assem-bly was unable to prevent the right-hand engine from contacting the runway. The aircraft regis-tered TC-JPE and bearing the col-our scheme of Star Alliance, of which Turkish Airlines is a mem-ber left the runway as it slowed, and ground-looped.

Central European budget carrier Wizz Air is the latest operator to introduce a cadet pilot programme as the industry struggles to nd sufcient quali-ed ightdeck crew to meet am-bitious growth plans.

The Budapest-headquartered airline has signed ve-year co-operation agreements with UK pilot school CTC Aviation and with Central European Flight Academy, a partnership be-tween Hungarian pilot training specialist Trener, KLM subsidi-ary Martinair Flight Academy, and Flight Simulation (FSC) in the Netherlands.

Courses will start in September this year, and the car-rier has set an initial target of re-cruiting 40 cadets a year. The programme will comprise train-ing for an integrated air transport pilot licence (ATPL) with a type rating on the airlines Airbus A320-family eet.

Participants who complete the training with the required pro-ciency will have a guaranteed job, says Wizz.

The airline is launching the scheme to support signicant growth of its business, it says.

CTC Aviation has also recent-ly partnered with low cost carri-ers including Flybe and Ryanair to train cadet pilots.

The airline says all the passengers on board evacuated safely after the incident at Istanbul Ataturk

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RECRUITMENT MICHAEL GUBISCH LONDON

Wizz Air teams up to train 40 cadets a year

INVESTIGATION DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON

Turkish A320s right engine damaged in landing attemptIstanbul-bound crew executed go-around with flames seen coming from one of its V2500s

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DEFENCE


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Pratt & Whitneys F135 engine for the Lockheed Martin F-35 is the target of two new US gov-ernment reports criticising the propulsion systems very poor reliability and 61 nonconformi-ties with P&Ws own and the De-partment of Defenses quality management procedures.

The ndings by the US Gov-ernment Accountability Ofce (GAO) and the DoD Inspector General (IG) have appeared less than two months before the US Marine Corps prepares to declare initial operational capability with its rst frontline squadron of short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) F-35Bs.

P&W argues that the GAO is mischaracterising the F135s reli-ability data, and that the IG re-ports ndings about its manage-ment system do not reect the quality of the end-product.

Israel Aerospace Industries Bedek group will operate a ded-icated conversion line for Boeing 767s to be adapted to the compa-nys multi-mission tanker trans-port (MMTT) conguration.

Yosi Melamed, Bedek Aviation Group executive vice-president and general manager, says the line will receive used 767-300ERs and make the necessary modications to the airframe and systems to en-able the new role. This work will include incorporating a new glass cockpit and the installation of re-placement GE Aviation CF6-80C2 engines, plus the installation of auxiliary fuel tanks, under-wing hose-and drogue refuelling pods and a boom, if the latter is re-quired by the customer.

The conguration will allow in addition to the main mission of aerial refuelling to transport 200 soldiers and 60t of cargo, Melamed says. The aircraft will be able to perform all-cargo or all-

The US Defense Security Coop-eration Agency (DSCA) has ap-proved a $1.5 billion sustainment package for Australias current 24 Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets and future eet of 12 EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft.

Boeing will be prime contractor for the work, which also is to cover software and hardware upgrades, engineering change proposals, spare parts and other equipment and services, the DSCA says.

The proposed sale of follow-on sustainment support and ser-vices will enable the Royal Aus-tralian Air Force to ensure the reliability and performance of its F/A-18 eet, the agency says. The follow-on support will allow Australia to maintain aircraft availability/operational rates, and enhance interoperability with the US and other nations. Q

The engine is reliable, and well continue trying to make it more reliable, says Bennett Croswell, president of P&Ws military engines business.

In a 14 April report, however, the GAO says that a key reliabili-ty metric for the F135 the mean ight hours between component failures is tracking well behind a planned growth curve.

At this point in development,

that curve suggests the conven-tional take-off and landing ver-sion of the engine should operate for more than 100 ight hours between failures, the GAO says, but eet data shows the eet av-erages a failure roughly every 25h. The STOVL version of the engine should be averaging about 90h between failures, but is actually achieving closer to 45, the GAO says.

Croswell acknowledges the ac-curacy of the GAOs numbers, but says that its report does not re-ect the overall picture of the F135s reliability record.

Although mean ight hours between component failures are below expectations, two other key reliability metrics mean ight hours between removals and full mission capability rate are running above expected lev-els, he notes.

P&Ws ground-based testing of the production conguration F135 also shows that version should meet current reliability tar-gets once it enters ight opera-tions later this year, Croswell says.

Although the IG was sharply critical of P&Ws quality manage-ment system, he says the compa-ny stands by a commercially de-rived programme that it has adapted for the programme. Q

The F-35As engine faces a component failure roughly every 25h

US

Air F

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POWERPLANTS STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC

P&W deects fresh criticism of F135US government reports citing reliability and quality management system problems are rebuffed by engine manufacturer

UPGRADES

Australia gets Super Hornetsupport boost

passenger transport duties, or be own in a Combi conguration, according to the company.

IAI is currently offering the 767 MMTT in a competition in South Korea, which wants to acquire four tankers for its air force. A se-lection in South Korea is expected in the coming months, accord-ing to Israeli defence ministry sources, who claim that the price of the 767 MMTT will be 15-20%

lower than any other alternative. Seoul also is considering the Air-bus A330 multi-role tanker trans-port and Boeing KC-46.

Bedek has previously delivered one 767-200ER converted as a tanker/transport for the Colombi-an air force. After long delays, the Brazilian government also has al-located the required budget for the purchase of three 767-300s to be converted for the role by IAI. Q

IAI set to ramp up tanker conversionsMODIFICATIONS ARIE EGOZI TEL AVIV

Bedek has delivered a converted 767-200ER to Colombias air force

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DEFENCE


RAF to harness Lightnings ISR powerDEFENCE P20

Saab has held recent early dis-cussions with the Swedish air force and export operators of the Gripen C/D about a dramatic upgrade in capability for the types PS-05/A re-control radar.

Disclosed by company ofcials on 27 April, the Mk4 modica-tion involves the replacement of two line-replaceable units in the back section of the mechanically-scanned radar. This provides a new exciter/receiver module with digital waveform generation and a new radar processing unit, along with updated software.

As a result of these changes, the PS-05/A Mk4 gains a claimed in-crease in detection range of at least 100%, and this is expected to rise to 150% for a high-altitude air-to-air engagement scenario by 2017, Saab says. Such a boost will ena-ble the Gripen to capitalise on the full ring envelope for the Ray-theon AIM-120 AMRAAM and MBDA Meteor air-to-air missiles.

The enhancement also offers an increased capability to detect heli-copters and targets with a low radar cross section, and improved air-to-ground performance.

Saab says the self-funded de-velopment has already been ight-tested, during campaigns conducted in December 2014 and last month. The adaptation which retains the PS-05/As exist-ing front-end hardware makes

Afghanistans air force has received a trio of Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) Cheetal light helicopters, with the Turbomeca TM333-2M2-powered aircraft delivered in mid-April.

These helicopters were handed over with associated spares and equipment. HAL has also trained four Afghan pilots in Bengaluru, says company chairman and managing director T Suvarna Raju.

Capable of being operated at altitudes of up to 23,000ft and with a ight endurance of 3.5h, the helicopter has a range of 345nm (640km).

Kabul also recently took deliv-ery of its rst batch of six armed MD Helicopters MD530Fs.

The US company expects to hand over the remaining examples from a 12-unit deal signed last October by the end of August 2015.

Brazil has further advanced its ac-quisition programme for the Saab Gripen NG by signing a roughly $245 million contract for the types weap-ons. Announced on 24 April, the deal is between the company and the Brazilian defence ministrys aer-onautics command.

Saab declines to detail the indi-vidual weapon systems included in the package, but says all export au-thorisations should be received dur-ing the second half of this year.

The acquisition contract in-cludes weapon deliveries by Saab and suppliers which have been se-lected by the customer, it adds.

Brazil last October confirmed its programme to acquire 36 Gripen NGs, and a final agreement covering the financial aspects of the procure-

ment should be concluded soon, according to Saab.

We expect that the agreement with the Brazilian government comes into effect during the second quarter, and the total order value will amount to SKr39.3 billion [$4.6 bil-lion], chief executive Hkan Buskhe said in a first quarter earnings state-ment also released on 24 April.

The Brazilian air force will receive 28 single-seat aircraft and eight two-seat examples from 2019 under the acquisition, but could eventually in-crease its fleet to more than 100 Gripens. Saab in mid-April finalised a programme management and lo-cal production arrangement with Embraer for the type. See our 19 May issue for a full Gripen programme update

ORDER

Brazil in $245m deal for NG weapons

Trio of Cheetal helicopters delivered to AfghanistanACCEPTANCE ATUL CHANDRA BENGALURU

MODIFICATION CRAIG HOYLE LINKPING

Saab touts Gripen C/D radar upgradeCompany reveals flight-testing campaigns already performed for extended-range Mk4 version of fighters PS-05/A sensor

Saab

Changes will boost air-to-air detection

range for AMRAAM by at least 100%

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Hindustan Aeronautics has trained four pilots to fly the rotorcraft

use of commercial off-the-shelf equipment, as well as systems de-veloped in support of some of its other radar programmes.

The modications needed have been kept to the absolute minimum, and you can switch between Mk3 and 4 hardware congurations easily within the aircraft, says Jan Qvillberg, head of the companys ghter radar and datalinks product area.

Speaking at its Linkping site, Qvillberg says the company could deliver an operational sys-tem within two years of a con-tract being placed. The Mk4 de-sign is also suitable for use with other aircraft types.

We will offer this to new ex-port customers, and have briefed existing C/D customers, says Jerker Ahlqvist, Saabs head of Gripen. In addition to Sweden, the models are own by the air forces of the Czech Republic, Hungary, South Africa and Thailand.

The C/D-version ghter cannot currently be equipped with an ac-tive electronically scanned array (AESA) radar without major struc-tural modications to provide in-creased power and cooling capac-ity. However, the in-development Gripen E, on order for the Swed-ish air force and also Brazil, will be supplied from 2019 with the Selex ES-produced ES-05 Raven AESA sensor.

DEFENCE


To get more defence sector coverage, subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter:ightglobal.com/defencenewsletter

The UK Royal Air Force could in the future use its ghter aircraft as surveillance assets, moving away from current stovepipe operations and al-lowing more data to be collected and exploited during conicts.

Under its current operational command structure, the RAFs combat aircraft and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets are split into two separate areas.

We need to nd a way of jolt-ing the system to bring us back to a single operation, an RAF ofc-er told SMis ISR conference in London in mid-April.

The fast jets now have as much capability to collect ISR data as the big traditional [ISR] planes, but they dont have the capability to process and disseminate it.

The UKs introduction of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II will test this theory, as the types active electronically scanned array radar will provide

phenomenal capability, the ofcer says, adding: We need to be able to exploit this and use all of that data being collected from the Lightning.

Future operating environ-ments also are likely to be more difcult than the RAF recently experienced in Afghanistan. Islamic State militants active in nations including Iraq and Syria have greater nancial support, enabling the organisation to purchase technology such as night-vision goggles and handheld identication friend-or-foe scanners.

They are the military acting in a non-military guise this enemy

has a brain, the RAF ofcer notes.The threat of state-backed

cyber attacks could disrupt datalinks, while GPS jamming could jeopardise missions.

Its not just a case of what we are technologically capable of now, its more a case of what the enemy can do and how they can inuence where we position our assets, he notes.

The volume of data acquired by ISR assets over the battleeld is also of concern to the UK. Due to the large amount of information collected in Afghanistan, most of it could not be analysed, and only a small percentage was turned into actionable intelligence that could support operations.

We probably need to be a bit more savvy about what data we move around the battlespace and what we keep on the host plat-form, the ofcer says, while multiple data streams also must be fused to enable decision mak-ing. We need to be able to act on information even quicker.

The Lockheed Martin type can collect a huge amount of data

We need to be able to exploit and use all of the data beingcollected from the LightningROYAL AIR FORCE

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Peruvian company Seman has delivered its rst locally- assembled example of the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) KT-1 trainer to the Latin American nations air force.

Marked during a 21 April cere-mony attended by both countries presidents at Las Palmas air base, the advance follows the delivery by KAI last November of the rst two KT-1Ps from a 20-unit deal worth around $200 million.

Sixteen of Perus KT-1Ps will be delivered from an assembly line at the site, with work to be supervised by KAI. The company also has trained service pilots and technicians under the deal.

The South Korean-designed trainer will enable Perus air force to progressively retire its eets of Alenia Aermacchi MB-339s and Embraer EMB-312s. The service expects the new type to become fully operational during 2016. A total of 16 trainers will be put together at Las Palmas air base

Rex

Feat

ures

Peru receives first locally-assembled KT-1 trainerDELIVERY CRAIG HOYLE LONDON

SURVEILLANCE BETH STEVENSON LONDON

RAF to harness Lightnings ISR powerService official emphasises need to employ full capability of F-35s electronically-scanned array radar during future conflicts

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Budgets bring Russia down to earthNEWS FOCUS P22

We cant get the majority of army equipment in the Hercules anymore, Wright says.

The synthetic and computer-based training set-up that the C-130J follows is being mirrored for the new type. Were trying to mirror A400M with this, because its worked so well, Wright says.

There are challenges ahead building up A400M and chang-ing the way we do C-130J training as we shrink the eet.

C-130J operations will scale down in the coming years as A400M use ramps up, so the air transport capability of the RAF will remain the same throughout, he says.

What will happen to the two C-130J simulators as this happens remains to be seen, but Wright hopes to keep both so that forma-tion training can still be carried out. The nancial impact of keep-ing the two simulators is negligi-ble, he says, because they could also be used for foreign training

The Royal Air Forces Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules transports have contin-ued to be heavily utilised follow-ing years in Afghanistan, and have been used in a range of hu-manitarian roles most recently in delivering supplies in support of the crisis following the earth-quake in Nepal on 25 April.

A Hercules deployed to India via RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus on the evening of 28 April from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, and the transport will provide logistics support for Kathmandu once it arrives.

The commitment follows a range of other humanitarian disas-ter relief operations that the UK aircraft have recently carried out, including the delivery of supplies to people on Mount Sinjar dis-placed as a result of Islamic State attacks in Iraq, and in support of a UN relief effort in South Sudan.

We thought we would be less busy when we left Afghanistan, but we are actually busier, Sqn Ldr S P Wright, executive ofcer for the air mobility operational conversion units 24 Sqn, says.

Throughout [Operation] Herrick we were operating from one base and we knew what the task was. We are now spread wider and we are sending guys to other locations.

BALANCEThe key to balancing this exibil-ity is training, Wright says. This is provided through the squadron via a contract with aircraft prime Lockheed and CAE. The latter provides synthetic and computer-aided instruction to pilots and rear cabin and maintenance crews of the Hercules.

Some 90% of initial conversion to ight is done on the two dynamic mission C-130J simulators that CAE provides at Brize Norton, along with all cur-rency training.

There are currently ve tiers of training for the C-130J, but this is being streamlined so that the

FLEET BETH STEVENSON RAF BRIZE NORTON

Strength of Hercules lies in trainingUK Royal Air Force is less than a decade away from retiring its C-130J transports, but demand for airlifter remains high

The type has continued to see heavy use on relief missions since ceasing operations in Afghanistan

Crow

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We need to go backto where ying in andout of Nepal is asroutine as ying intoconict zonesWG CDR DARRYN RAWLINSCommanding ofcer, 24 Sqn, RAF

baseline level that pilots will graduate at will be at a tactical ying level in line with the types of operation the crews have to carry out as standard.

The RAFs 24-strong eet of C-130Js is due to retire from service in 2022, but general consensus is that the Hercules will transition past this out of service date in some way. However, the squadron is not counting on it.

The C-130J has been touted for a special operations role post-2022, as the Airbus A400M that is replacing the UKs Hercu-les will not be ready for such missions at that point. However, an upgrade would have to be made to the C-130J eet if this were to happen at a price the RAF will not necessarily be able to afford.

Wright admits that the A400M Atlas is increasingly where our focus is going, but says the C-130J is proving to be an effec-tive asset in a variety of tasks.

We know where we are with it, he says. In years to come air mobility will be a very capable eet of aircraft.

However, the British Armys move towards larger vehicles that need to be transported by the RAFs logistics aircraft has driven the need for a wide-bodied air-craft like the A400M.

something that has been carried out before, but restricted by ca-pacity issues.

I think it is arrogant to think we get it right every time we can learn a lot from others, Wg Cdr Darryn Rawlins, commanding of-cer of 24 Sqn adds, regarding the importance of sharing training with foreign C-130J crews.

The air mobility blend is pret-ty good in my opinion, he says. As a force we need to go back to where ying in and out of Nepal or the Asia-Pacic is as routine as ying into conict zones.

CONTRACTThe current contract that CAE has with Lockheed for the training ex-pires on 31 December this year, and CAE says it is currently negotiating another ve-year deal.

The simulators have been upgraded to bring them to CAEs Medallion 6000 image generator and visual system standard in the past 12 months, and CAE also de-livered a suite of databases built to a common standard, which al-lows for rapid updates and dis-tributed mission training.

The training system is deliver-ing a 98% availability at the moment. Eight members of CAE staff are dedicated to the training at Brize Norton, which has now been provided for the C-130J for 15 years.

NEWS FOCUS


Bring all the latest news on spaceflight programmes into your orbit by visiting ightglobal.com/spaceight

Russias space programme has had a bad recent run, with an unmanned International Space Station (ISS) resupply ship left spinning out of control, the fail-ure of an experimental military launcher and the apparent can-cellation of a super-heavy-lift rocket programme owing to swingeing budget cuts.

Federal space agency Roscos-mos looks set to lose 35% of its budget over the next 10 years, with spending cut over the dec-ade to about Rb2 trillion ($37.7 billion), according to a Reuters report carried by The Moscow Times. Lost in those cuts will be a super-heavy-lift rocket pro-gramme and Russian plans to orbit its own space station from 2023 may also be in doubt.

Russias government is facing a nancial squeeze and looming recession, with low crude prices hitting oil revenues and Western sanctions laid down over the cri-sis in Ukraine starting to bite.

A Progress mission to resupply the ISS went irretrievably wrong soon after launch on 28 April, when navigational antenna failed to deploy leaving Russian ground controllers unable to com-mand the ship. Meanwhile, the US Air Force Joint Space Opera-tions Center at Vandenberg AFB reported that its radar had ob-served 44 pieces of debris in the vicinity of the resupply vehicle and its upper stage rocket body.

A launch failure on 22 April saw a 9.6t experimental solid-fuel rocket carrying metrical equipment clear the pad at Plesetsk spaceport, inside the Arctic Circle. It then strayed off trajectory and crashed to the ground with no injuries, accord-ing to state news agency Tass.

But while occasional failures are to be expected, the budget cuts pose a real crisis for Russias space programme. Roscosmos could not be reached to elaborate, but the launcher in question would ap-pear to be the heaviest version of a modular system called Angara,

SPACEFLIGHT DAN THISDELL LONDON

Budgets bring Russia down to earthLikely spending slash at Roscosmos deepens gloom after failures of experimental military launcher and ISS resupply ship

Previous Progress missions to the ISS have had greater success

NAS

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which is intended to replace the failure-prone Proton. In December 2014, the Angara A5 capable of lifting 25t to low-Earth orbit made a successful maiden ight from Plesetsk. The smallest vari-ant in the family, Angara 1.2PP, ew ve months earlier. A 35t variant was also planned.

AMBITIONSVery heavy launch capability has become a key element in Russias space policy. The nation has been building a new launch com-plex in the east of the country, at Vostochny, with the intention of hosting operations that currently y from Baikonur in Kazakhstan the launch site for Sputnik, Yuri Gagarin and, currently, all astronauts travelling to the ISS. As the most southerly site in the old USSR and surrounded by sparsely-inhabited terrain, Bai-konur was an obvious choice for rocket launches, which are ideal-ly carried out as near as possible to the equator to gain energy from the Earths rotation.

Vostochny is not so well situ-ated, but offers the security ad-vantages of being inside Russia.

The 25t Angara 5 may be suf-cient to push satellites to the high-est geostationary orbits. However, plans to y Angara from Vostoch-ny later this year with manned

Soyuz ights expected from 2018 look to be in doubt. Construc-tion has been dogged by stoppag-es, with some workers reportedly on hunger strike, unpaid for months by a contractor in nan-cial difculty. Tass also cites re-ports that claim Rb50 million has been embezzled from the project.

The budget situation also casts uncertainty over Russias long-term participation in the ISS. The USA has declared its intention to extend its nancial support for the station to 2024, and partners Europe, Russia, Canada and Japan are considering following suit; the current agreement runs out in 2020.

But NASA is understood to be making contingency plans for Rus-sias outright withdrawal from the ISS which at an extreme could mean that it detaches its modules and uses them to start its own sta-tion. It has talked of launching new modules later this decade, and possibly holding them in orbit

as building blocks for a Russian station of the 2020s, rather than at-taching them to the ISS.

Confusing the issue, Russia an-nounced in March that it has agreed to work with the USA on a new station after the current one reaches the end of its life as far off as 2028, from a pure engineering perspective but the USA made no corresponding declaration.

MARSIn any case, US interest in a space station beyond 2024 must be called into doubt. NASA is bas-ing its budget planning for a mid-2030s manned mission to Mars on the assumption that money freed by a winding-down of the ISS in the early to mid-2020s would assist preparatory work.

NASA is relentlessly publicis-ing its development of a deep-space-capable manned launch system, as well as an asteroid capture mission planned for the 2020s and research into space medicine and astronaut physiol-ogy, as steps on a journey to Mars. But quite apart from the daunting technological challeng-es of keeping a crew alive and supplied on a minimum 18-month round trip, money is a major obstacle. The agency is less publicly insisting that any Mars mission depends on the partici-pation of many international partners, a challenge under-scored by the difculties of reach-ing agreement even to fund the ISS through 2024. Russian space austerity would only exacerbate that challenge.

NASAs annual budget has stood at a little more than $17 bil-lion for years now, from which it funds a wide range of space mis-sions as well as aeronautics re-search. The agency is making no estimates of the cost of a Mars programme, assumed to launch in 2035, but for comparison the ISS is estimated to have con-sumed some $150 billion from all partners in the 30 years since conceptual work began. Q

The budget situation casts uncertainty over Russias long-term participation in the ISS

BUSINESS AVIATION


OLeary admits mistakesNEWS FOCUS P24

Iain

Mac

kenz

ie

NetJets Europes first Challenger 350 will debut at EBACE in May

Gam

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Gamas fleet based in Scotland includes Beechcraft King Airs

DEAL KATE SARSFIELD LONDON

GKN wins wing skin work for Gulfstreams

Gama to strengthen Aberdeen baseEXPANSION KATE SARSFIELD LONDON

DELIVERY KATE SARSFIELD LONDON

NetJets Europe prepares to receive rst Challenger 350Super-midsize jet kicks off an extensive fleet overhaul for fractional ownership provider

Business aviation services pro-vider Gama Aviation is plan-ning to build an operations and maintenance facility at Aberdeen International airport, as part of a strategic investment in its thriv-ing Scotland-based business.

The Farnborough-headquar-tered company has been active in Scotland for more than two dec-ades, from where it has been sup-porting its business jet customers and the countrys health service, out of two bases in Glasgow and one in Aberdeen.

According to Marwan Khalek, founder and chief executive of 33-year-old Gama, the new 1,700m2 (18,300ft2) facility rep-resents a logical yet important step in further strengthening our presence in Scotland to serve

NetJets Europe is poised to take delivery of its rst Bombar-dier Challenger 350.

The super-midsize business jet registration CS-CHA was pictured in Glasgow on 25 April during its ferry ight from Bombardiers Mon-treal completion facility to the frac-tional ownership companys head-quarters in Lisbon, Portugal.

The aircraft will make its pub-lic debut with NetJets at the Euro-pean Business Aviation Conven-tion and Exhibition in Geneva,

Switzerland from 19-21 May.Another four of the twin-engined

type are bound for NetJets Europe this year. The companys 2015 air-craft delivery schedule also in-cludes six Embraer Phenom 300s and two Bombardier Global 6000s.

NetJets parent company placed an order for up to 75 Chal-lenger 350s in 2012, as part of a $7.3 billion contract for up to 275 Challenger-series aircraft.

The Berkshire Hathaway-owned rm also has multi-billion

dollar orders for Phenom 300s its entry-level product and the Global 5000/6000, which sit at the top of its product offering.

The new aircraft are part of a top-to-tail overhaul of NetJets 500-plus aircraft eet, and should all be incorporated into the oper-ators global inventory over the next 10 years. NetJets older types are being phased out.

Meanwhile, NetJets US opera-tion took delivery of its 10th Challenger 350 on 26 April, bringing its total eet of Signature Series business jets to 68 in-cluding 40 Phenom 300s and 18 Global 5000/6000s.

NetJets is also launch customer for the Challenger 650 a re-vamped Challenger 605 featuring an avionics, propulsion and inte-rior upgrade and is gearing up to take the rst of the large-cabin business jets in the fourth quarter of this year.

Aberdeen and the east coast.If permission for the facility is

granted, the base is expected to open in 2016.

Gamas Scotland-based eet

consists of two Beechcraft King Air B200s, one King Air 350C and two Airbus Helicopters EC135s, which are subcontracted to Bond Aviation.

Gulfstream has selected GKN Aerospace to supply the upper and lower wing skins for the airframers new large-cabin, long-range business jet duo, the G500 and G600.

The award marks another major step in the UK-headquar-tered companys strategy to in-crease its presence in the busi-ness jet market.

GKN already supplies skins for the G550s wings, and says it aims to foster and grow its rela-tionship with Gulfstream for the long term.

The G500 and G600 upper wing skins are constructed in a single piece, eliminating fasten-ers and joints and lowering weight and reducing mainte-nance demands, says GKN.

The lower wing skins are composed of several panels and incorporate a number of com-plex design features, the compa-ny adds.

All the skins will be manufac-tured at GKNs advanced ma-chined structures facility in Wel-lington, Kansas.

The G500 and G600 were un-veiled last October and are posi-tioned at the top end of Gulf-streams eight-strong product line, between the G450, G550 and ultra-long-range G650.

The 5,000nm (9,260km)-range G500 will be the rst to market, with the aircrafts certication and service entry planned for 2017 and 2018 respectively.

Gulfstream says the rst test aircraft, T1, has completed ground vibration testing and structural mode interaction test-ing in preparation for its rst ight this year. The other G500 ight test aircraft, T2, T3 and T4, are in various stages of produc-tion, it adds.

The G600 ight test pro-gramme will commence about 12 to 18 months after the G500, with entry-into-service for the 6,200nm-range aircraft sched-uled for 2019.

NEWS FOCUS


To access connected aviation news and data on our dashboard, sign up at ightglobal.com/dashboard

Ryanair expects to carry 100 million passengers in its cur-rent nancial year, and the 30-year-old Irish budget carrier appears to be infused with a new-found respect for its passengers.

Weve moved from being cheap and nasty to cheap and cheerful, says chief executive Michael OLeary. If that state-ment sounds glib to the sceptical traveller, OLeary points out he has backed up his new strategy with a passenger charter.

This manifesto alongside the new Ryanair website is certainly a break with the past. If Id known it would work so well, Id

have done it years ago, admits OLeary. He argues that crews and passengers are happier and notes a 5% boost to the load factor.

Bursting with business plans as always, OLeary is looking for the airline to expand its present eet of 309 Boeing 737-800NGs to 550 aircraft carrying 160 million pas-sengers by 2024. It still has 170 new -800s on order, and 100 of the new 737 Max on rm order for delivery from 2019 with the same number again on option.

When an airline already has 73 bases in Europe, where is there left to go? There is plenty of op-portunity, insists OLeary, having

just opened its newest and most remote base in Ponta Delgada in the Portuguese Azores islands. At present, Ponta Delgada is a one-aircraft base serving Lisbon, Porto and London Stansted.

But the major part of the new plan is to set up Ryanair opera-tions at Europes major bases, undercutting EasyJet and the lega-cy carriers in their home territory. This he sees as a natural extension of the new passenger-friendly Ry-anair, now bidding unashamedly for the cost-conscious business market that EasyJet attracts. In fact, it is essential to attract the more business-oriented passengers that use the hubs because that is where expansion and improved yield will come from, says OLeary.

UPSELLINGRyanairs average fare is 46 ($51), he notes, but passengers pay an average of 40 on top of that for the carriers new Busi-ness Plus service.

The only out-of-bounds air-ports for Ryanair in Europe, he says, are London Heathow, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Frankfurt Main, because they are too ex-pensive and inefcient. Ryanair is now or will soon be at Brus-sels Zaventem, Cologne, Copen-hagen and Lisbon, and OLeary says the carrier will be at all the others within ve years.

OLeary recalls that Ryanairs bid for Aer Lingus disallowed by the European competition au-thorities was a part of the plan to serve the national hubs, which Aer Lingus already does. Ryanair would have acquired a ready-made, mid-market low-cost car-rier at the main European bases. But if it couldnt have Aer Lin-gus, it had to take on the job itself.

OLeary can even see low-cost carriers feeding the legacy long-haul carriers at their hubs, be-cause he says the cost of global distribution systems such as Am-

adeus, Galileo and Sabre has come down so much they could be viable for low-cost operations. He adds, however, that Ryanair does less than 1% of its business through the GDSs at present.

So if OLeary really has adopted a new philosophy, and it certainly looks as if he has, it could be summed up as: Never say never. The word never used to be one of his favourites. Now he voices the never say never mantra fre-quently, as if to remind himself of the fact that the old Ryanair like the old OLeary is history.

This raises a point that involves senior Ryanair executives, such as group director of operations Mi-chael Hickey and chief pilot Ray Conway. One of the factors that makes the Ryanair operation work like clockwork every day is its single-type, single-variant eet. All training, all type ratings, and all spare parts are common.

Yet the mould will be broken with the advent of the 737 Max, however hard Boeing has worked to ensure commonality for those purposes. Conway says he hopes conversion to the Max, for

INTERVIEW DAVID LEARMOUNT DUBLIN

OLeary admits mistakes as Ryanair softens imageControversial chief executive says low-cost airlines new approach is break with past

OLeary believes there are still plenty of opportunities for growth

Rex

Feat

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Weve moved from being cheap and nasty to cheap and cheerfulMICHAEL OLEARY Chie

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