Aircraft

Matthew Tanner is a Colorado-based air show pilot who also competes in aerobatics competitions and teaches Air Force pilots how to fly. His current stunt aircraft of choice is a Laser Z300. Much as he is able to do with the nimble little airplane, he wants to be able to perform aerial maneuvers that no one has ever seen before. In order to do so, he intends to equip the plane with a pair vertical wings. Read More

What is set to be the latest addition to Cessna’s Citation line of business jets made its first flight this week. The Cessna Citation Ten prototype flew for more than two hours in the skies over Cessna’s main manufacturing facility at Wichita, Kansas, with the aircraft's stability and control, handling, autopilot and autothrottle systems, engine operability and avionics all put to the test. Cessna says all systems functioned as expected on the maiden flight, keeping the Citation Ten on track for FAA certification in mid-2013, with first deliveries planned for the second half of 2013. Read More

So you are in holiday mode, probably lounging down at the beach or by a big open fire with the snow falling outside, depending on where you live. There’s nothing on TV and you have read all the books of interest, so now what? Well, if you fancy yourself as an artist, you might like to enter a competition to design the livery for the first of the new Pipistrel Panthera aircraft and stand to take home 1,000 euro (approx. US$1,290). You have until January 10, 2012. Read More

Twenty-eight years ago, the United States Navy decided that it wanted a field replacement for its A-6 Intruder ground-attack aircraft. A team from McDonnell Douglas and General Dynamics won the contract to design the plane, which would be an all-weather, aircraft carrier-based stealth bomber, known as the A-12 Avenger II. Its first flight was planned for December 1990, but technical difficulties and cost overruns kept the team from meeting that deadline. By January 1991, in fact, the Secretary of Defense cancelled the program due to breach of contract. A legal battle between the Navy and McDonnell Douglas ensued, and continues to this day. Now, however, it’s possible to own a literal “piece” of the story – a cockpit canopy reportedly made for the A-12 is for sale on eBay. Read More

Along with the well known defense applications, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are also used for crop dusting, bushfire and environmental monitoring, and infrastructure inspection. Such applications can see them flying close to the ground and amongst obstacles meaning it is of the utmost importance for pilotless craft to be able to accurately determine their heading and orientation to the ground. By imitating the method insects employ, Australian researchers have designed a vision-based system to provide real-time guidance for these eyes in the skies. Read More

When the Wright Brothers first took to the skies more than hundred years ago they did so with an aircraft made with a fabric skin. Over the years a variety of materials have been used including sheet metals such as aluminum and titanium, and even ceramics. A fabric of sorts has now returned in the form of carbon fiber, a composite material that offers greater strength-to-weight ratio than virtually anything else. While airplane manufacturers have used carbon fiber in airplanes for some time, its use is on the rise due to the material's durability and rigidity ... and with the advent of new manufacturing processes such as Advaero's Heat Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Method (HVARTM), this looks set to continue. Read More

A new invention out of Norway promises to keep the skies of the world open. When a volcano in Iceland erupted in 2010, it spewed out invisible clouds of ash that spread across Europe–effectively shutting down all civilian and military air traffic, stranding millions of people and costing the world economy billions of dollars. Now, a new camera has been developed that will allow pilots to see and avoid volcanic dust clouds, making similar eruptions in the future much less disruptive. Read More

Seven years ago, philanthropist Paul G. Allen collaborated with aerospace expert Burt Rutan, to create SpaceShipOne – the first privately-funded, manned rocket ship to fly beyond Earth’s atmosphere, and winner of the Ansari X PRIZE. Now, in the post-Shuttle era, the two men have reunited to create a reusable vehicle for launching both manned and unmanned rockets into space. The project was announced in Seattle today. Read More

Jetman's death-defying aerial antics took another turn recently, when he teamed up with a pair of jets for some formation work. In what could easily have turned into a replay of Icarus's last adventure, Jetman (Swiss pilot Yves Rossy) strapped on his tiny wings and leaped from his rotary-wing elevator to meet up with his bigger brothers. Read More