"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn)
12/16/2016 at 13:15 • Filed to: Planelopnik, planelopnik history
7
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"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn)
12/16/2016 at 13:15 • Filed to: Planelopnik, planelopnik history | 7
| 10 |
Welcome to This Date in Aviation History , getting of you caught up on milestones, important historical events and people in aviation from December 14 through December 16.
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December 15, 2009 – The first flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. In the modern age of air travel, the battle among airline designers, particularly Boeing and Airbus, has been fought over passenger load and efficiency, with designers seeking ways to fly more passengers to distant destinations while using less fuel. A large part of the effort has gone into engine design, and modern airliner engines have become marvels of efficiency. So, the next logical step is to investigate new materials that are strong yet light, as weight is one of the greatest enemies of fuel efficiency. Boeing began to tackle the problem back in the late 1990s, when, as the airliner sales market started cooling, they began to look for a replacement aircraft to bolster sagging sales of their !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . They considered the 747X, a lengthened version of the 747-400, and the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , a radical delta wing aircraft which offered higher speeds than were currently obtainable. While the Sonic Cruiser was eventually abandoned in 2002 in favor of a more traditional design, which would become the 787, much of what Boeing learned in the development of the Sonic Cruiser, particularly the use of !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , would be put to use on the Dreamliner. The new airliner was given the internal Boeing designation 7E7, and it would be the first production airliner to be built from one-piece, composite sections rather than riveted aluminum, with the final breakdown of materials being 50% composite, 20% aluminum, 15% titanium, 10% steel, and 5% other materials. According to Boeing, the savings in weight for this type of construction, coupled with two new engines, the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! high-bypass turbofan jet engines, would make the 787 20% more fuel efficient than the 767 while carrying more passengers.
The development of the 787 was plagued with delays. Boeing struggled to get the Dreamliner down to its intended weight, as some parts had to be redesigned with titanium, and other delays in obtaining fasteners and difficulty with the software kept pushing back delivery dates. Still, Boeing had 677 orders for the 787 by 2007, more than any other previous widebody. Following yet more delays, extensive testing, and certification, the first Dreamliner was officially delivered to the 787’s launch customer, All Nippon Airways, on September 25, 2o11 at the Boeing factory in Everett, Washington, and it entered service the following month. As of November 2015, Boeing has received orders for 1,210 Dreamliners, and they have delivered 489. Production delays have pushed back some deliveries, but Boeing has worked hard to streamline the production process, and as of April 2015 they were delivering 10 aircraft per month, though they will need to sell 1,100 before they begin to turn a profit.
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Photo by Spaceaero2 via
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; photo by the author)
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December 15, 2006 – The first flight of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. Back in the early 1960s, both the US Navy and US Air Force needed to replace aging aircraft, and newly appointed Defense Secretary !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , well known for his micromanagement of America’s war efforts in Vietnam, ordered that both branches should pursue a common aircraft in an effort to save money. Even though the two branches had very different requirements, McNamara dictated that the new aircraft, the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , would be designed for the Air Force, and development of a carrier-based version for the Navy would follow. Finding that there was no chance that the F-111 would become a successful naval fighter bomber, the Navy pulled out of the program and went their own way, developing the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Despite the difficulties faced by the US military in developing a single platform to satisfy very different requirements, the Pentagon once again embarked on a similar path with the announcement of the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (JSF) competition in 1993. The goal was to develop a single basic aircraft that would serve the very different missions of the Air Force, Navy and US Marine Corps, as well as the needs of numerous export countries. It was hoped that the new fighter could perform the missions of the various aircraft it was slated to replace: the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . The competition for what would become the largest defense contract in history was fought between the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , and the X-35, which first flew on October 24, 2000, was declared the winner in 2001. Lockheed’s design, which drew on elements of the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , featured stealth technology, partial composite construction, integrated avionics and data networking to provide the pilot with unparalleled situational awareness, and a computerized maintenance management system. The Lightning II is powered by the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! afterburning turbofan engine, and while it is not capable of !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , it can maintain a speed of Mach 1.2 for a distance of 150 miles. To fulfill the varied requirements of the different branches of the military, the F-35 is produced in three main variants: the F-35A, a traditional fighter-bomber for the Air Force; the F-35B, a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (STOVL) version for the Marine Corps; and the F-35C, a fully navalized variant for the US Navy.
An US Marine Corps F-35B hovers over the USS Wasp during carrier trials
The Marine STOVL version has a pivoting engine nozzle for hovering, while the same engine powers a forward lift fan through a complex drive shaft. Takeoffs can be performed either vertically or by using a ski ramp, and a test program is underway to determine the feasibility of operating the F-35B from existing helicopter carriers. The entire F-35 program has been plagued with delays, software development problems and massive cost overruns, and, by 2014, it was $163 billion over budget and seven years behind schedule. Considering the entire development costs and operating budget for a planned 55 years of service, the F-35 program is projected to cost $1.5 trillion. These problems have led some international customers to reduce their commitment to buying the new fighter, but plans are still in the works for 3,100 F-35s to be built and delivered by 2035. In spite of continuing problems and systems that were not ready for battle, the Marines declared initial operating capability of the F-35B in July 2015, and the Air Force declared the F-35A combat ready in 2016. The Navy’s F-35C is not expected to reach the fleet until 2018.
(US Air Force photo; US Navy photo)
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Short Takeoff
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December 14, 1984 – The first flight of the Grumman X-29. Developed from two existing !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! airframes, the X-29 was designed to explore the flight characteristics of forward-swept wings, canards, and other novel design technologies. German aircraft designers pioneered the forward-swept wing late in WWII, and the X-29 would use fly-by-wire technology and flight control computers to take advantage of the inherently unstable design. The X-29 also explored the use of carbon fiber construction in the wings to reduce weight. The X-29 became the first forward-swept wing aircraft to pass Mach 1 in level flight, and numerous experiments were carried out during its seven-year test program. (NASA photo)
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December 14, 1979 – The first flight of the EA-7 Edgley Optica, a light observation aircraft designed to be a low-cost alternative to helicopters. The unique design features a glazed, bubble canopy set well forward which provides excellent visibility, a twin boom tail and tricycle landing gear. The original Optica was powered by a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! engine driving a ducted, fixed-pitch propeller, an arrangement that results in very quiet operation. Production of 22 aircraft was followed by numerous changes in Edgley’s ownership, and financial difficulties led to a halt in production. However, the transportation consulting and finance firm !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! began investigating the possibility of restarting production in 2016. (Photo by Anthony Noble via !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! )
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December 14, 1977 – The first flight of the Mil Mi-26, a heavy lift helicopter designed for civilian and military use and the largest and most powerful helicopter ever to enter production. Powered by two !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! engines and fitted with an eight-bladed main rotor, the Mi-26 is capable of lifting 44,000 pounds and was designed to replace the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! heavy-lift helicopters. The Mi-12’s main purpose is to move extremely heavy equipment to Russian military bases, such as armored personnel carriers and mobile ballistic missiles, with some payloads weighing as much as 29,000 pounds. A total of 316 Mi-26s have been built, and the helicopter remains in production. (Photo by ISAF Headquarters Public Affairs Office via !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! )
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December 15, 1944 – The disappearance of Glenn Miller, one of the best-known and prolific composers and performers of the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Wanting to take part in the war effort in WWII, Miller convinced the US Army to allow him to enlist at age 38 to form a “modernized Army band,” and he was given the rank of captain and soon promoted to major. While flying as a passenger on a flight from England to France for a performance, Miller’s !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! disappeared over the English Channel and was never found. It is not known what caused the disappearance, but a likely cause was engine failure from an iced carburetor. Another theory is that his plane strayed into an area where Allied bombers jettisoned unused bombs into the English Channel while returning to England, but plane spotters said that Miller’s aircraft was not headed into that area the last time it was seen. (Miller photo author unknown; Norseman photo via US Air Force)
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December 16, 1994 – The first flight of the Antonov An-70. Developed in the 1980s to replace the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , the An-70 is the first large aircraft to be powered by !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! engines, a jet engine in which the one or more stages of the turbine fan is outside the engine cowling. The Soviet government originally intended to build as many as 160 An-70s in factories in both Russia and Ukraine, but the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! of the Soviet Union in 1991 led to the cancellation of the project. Only two prototypes were built, the first of which was lost in a mid-air collision in 1995. There were plans to resurrect the project, but Russia declared in 2015 that they had no intention of procuring the An-70. (Photo by Oleg V. Belyakov via !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! )
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December 16, 1960 – Two airliners collide over Staten Island, New York.
In what has become known as the Park Slope plane crash, United Airlines Flight 826, a
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(N8013U) carrying 84 passengers and heading to Idlewild Airport (later JFK International) collided with TWA Flight 266, a
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(N6907C) carrying 44 passengers also en route to Idlewild, killing all but one on board the two airliners along with 6 people on the ground. The sole survivor, 11-year-old Steven Baltz, died the next day from complications caused by inhalation of burning jet fuel. Using information from the
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(commonly known as “black boxes”) for the first time since their use was mandated
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in 1957, investigators found that a faulty VHF transmitter contributed to the United crew’s overshooting their holding point, which caused it to cross paths with the TWA flight. The loss of 134 people was the world’s deadliest crash until 1968, when a US Air Force
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was
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over South Vietnam, killing 155, mostly South Vietnamese civilians, being evacuated from the
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.
(Photo by Time Life via
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)
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Recent Aviation History Posts
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If you enjoy these Aviation History posts, please let me know in the comments. And if you missed any of the past articles, you can find them all at !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .
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MonkeePuzzle
> ttyymmnn
12/16/2016 at 13:37 |
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it’s think outside the box day!
its good that occasionally designers will say “ok... but WHY do the wings have to look like that or be connected there or...”
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ttyymmnn
> MonkeePuzzle
12/16/2016 at 13:39 |
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Some of the world’s greatest achievements were made because somebody asked, “Why not?”
user314
> ttyymmnn
12/16/2016 at 13:55 |
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Although in the X-29's case, the answer turned out to be “Because it doesn’t work.” (at least as built):
The high pitch instability of the airframe led to wide predictions of extreme maneuverability. This perception has held up in the years following the end of flight tests. Air Force tests did not support this expectation. For the flight control system to keep the whole system stable, the ability to initiate a maneuver easily needed to be moderated. This was programmed into the flight control system to preserve the ability to stop the pitching rotation and keep the aircraft from departing out of control. As a result, the whole system as flown (with the flight control system in the loop as well) could not be characterized as having any special increased agility. It was concluded that the X-29 could have had increased agility if it had faster control surface actuators and/or larger control surfaces.
That said, who knows if future advances might lead to a re-examining of the idea.
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ttyymmnn
> user314
12/16/2016 at 14:24 |
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That said, who knows if future advances might lead to a re-examining of the idea.
My exact thought while reading that quote. We’ve made dramatic increases in computer control in the intervening years, and I bet we could make one of those fly today.
AuthiCooper1300
> ttyymmnn
12/16/2016 at 14:28 |
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I have a funny story indirectly related to two aircraft with forward-swept wings.
Quite a few years ago I was in Germany having dinner in a small café. I had just bought an aviation magazine with a very spectacular Su-47
Berkut
on the cover and had it by my side (I was sitting on a sort of long bench, back to the wall). I was leafing it while waiting to be served (or maybe between dishes).
At some stage I noticed a middle-aged man straining his eyes to have a look at the magazine from the other side of the café. Finally he made a gesture as if he were saying “May I...?, came to my table and asked if I could let him have a look.
I said yes, of
course... and minutes later he was telling me how he used to fly the
Hansa HFB-320 (also with forward swept wings) between Germany and Italy,
back in the day. It seems he mostly took bishops and cardinals to Rome
(?) and on the trip back to Germany... high-end call girls (?!)
He also claimed that he was one of the very few people to have flown the HF-320 on show in the Deutsches Museum (indeed, there is one there); last time he had visited he had asked the staff to look inside for the log book: yes, still there, with his name and signature.
The whole thing sounded so preposterous that it might have been true.
He was wearing a proper “old” Omega Speedmaster (pre 1968, I was considering getting one then) and told me a tale of how he had been at a conference or something in Germany where Armstrong was present – and when the man saw he was wearing that watch he excitedly showed him yours and starting comparing them etc.
He also said that he had his watch in good health by having it cleaned and adjusted by an old watchmaker. From what he said Omega is very interested in getting authentic old parts (hands, for example) from original Speedmasters to restore the watches of their best customers so they kindly offer to “fix” yours by exchanging those for newer Omega parts (but not “period”) at a very low price.
I still cannot decide whether he was a fantasist or not.
SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
> user314
12/16/2016 at 14:33 |
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There’s also the fact that fly-by-wire technology has gotten alot better since then. Flying wings were ditched for decades for similar reasons.
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ttyymmnn
> AuthiCooper1300
12/16/2016 at 14:48 |
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Hard to say, but it’s an interesting story nonetheless. It looks like they were only flown by the West German military, though. Did he give any indication that had been in the Luftwaffe?
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AuthiCooper1300
> ttyymmnn
12/16/2016 at 15:06 |
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I am pretty sure he must have learned to fly in the Luftwaffe (age etc) but he did not mention it.
According the German Wikipedia they only built 47 aircraft, of which 16 went to the Luftwaffe. 34 were sold in Europe, the US and South America (Argentina, mostly). Then they mention that a civilian machine is kept in the Laatzen-Hannover Aviation Museum.
The one in the Deutsches Museum is the second prototype (V2). Maybe he meant the one in the Laatzen-Hannover Museum?
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ttyymmnn
> AuthiCooper1300
12/16/2016 at 15:45 |
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No idea.
You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much
> ttyymmnn
12/19/2016 at 15:55 |
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The Mi-26 is amazingly huge. This may be my favorite picture of it, purely because it shows just how massive it actually is.
