Cathay bolsters Boeing 777X program

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The Cathay Pacific 777-9X. – Boeing photo.

One of Asia’s biggest airlines has given a major boost to Boeing’s 777X program, ordering 21 aircraft worth more than $7 billion dollars.

Cathay Pacific’s order is for the 777-9X version of the yet to be named aircraft. This version will offer seating for more than 400 passengers, and the airline says the order reflects its future long-haul fleet strategy.

“We think it will be an ideal fit for long-haul destinations in North America and Europe, in particular those routes where we carry high volumes of passengers and cargo each day,” said John Slosar, CEO of the Hong Kong flag carrier.

In addition, the 777-9X promises improved payload range capability and reduced operating costs, he said.

The 777X program was launched at the Dubai Airshow last month where Boeing won orders and commitments for 259 aircraft worth $95 billion.

“The 777X currently stands as the largest product launch in commercial jetliner history by value and is targeted for first delivery in 2020,” Boeing said Friday in announcing the Cathay Pacific deal.

The aircraft is now undergoing low-speed wind tunnel tests in Britain.

Cathay Pacific has been a major Boeing customer for years. It operates 55 777s and an all-Boeing freighter fleet that includes 13 747-8

The 777X is the newest member of the highly successful 777 family of long-haul airliners.

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Green taxiing technology taking shape

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Airbus is embracing a green taxiing technology that would cut fuel consumption – and pollution at airports – substantially.

The electric green taxiing system, or EGTS, is being developed by technology giants Honeywell and Safran.

This is how the technology works. EGTS photo

It was demonstrated at the Paris Airshow in June.

The European aircraft manufacturer says it has signed a memorandum of understanding with EGTS International, a joint venture between Honeywell and Safran, to adopt EGTS for its A320 family of single-aisle airliners.

Airbus is calling it eTaxi.

The company says the system would allow the aircraft to push back from the gate without a tug, taxi out to the runway, and return to the gate after landing without operating the main engines.

The power will come from electric motors fitted to the airplane’s main landing gear wheels.

“Following our demonstration of the technology at this year’s Paris Airshow, this MoU marks the next critical milestone in the advancement of the electric green taxiing system as an option for Airbus A320 family,” said Brian Wenig, EGTS program vice-president at Honeywell Aerospace.

Olivier Savin, EGTS program vice-president at Safran, says the agreement is significant in the development of the system.

“Through this agreement we are creating the ideal context to collaborate to best utilize our own landing gear systems expertise to develop a green taxiing solution for the A320 family.”

Airbus says eTaxi will offer several operational and environmental benefits, including up to four per cent savings in fuel consumption and four per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions.

“Over the next few months the partners will jointly develop and present a global commercial case and implementation plan to determine the feasibility of an electric taxiing solution for the A320 family,” Airbus said Tuesday.

The system is expected to be installed on new aircraft in 2016.

Boeing expands training in Russia

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Pilot training in a 777 full-flight simulator. Boeing photo.

Boeing says it will open a new, state-of-the-art aviation training campus in Russia’s emerging high-tech centre in 2015.

The new full-service training facility will be located in the Skolkovo Innovation Center near Moscow, the U.S. aircraft manufacturer said Monday.

Initial capability will include flight, maintenance and specialty training, it said.

“We are bringing Boeing’s flight and maintenance training closer to our Russian customers, giving them the world-class support they need to successfully operate and maintain their fleets,” said Sherry Carbary, vice-president, Boeing Flight Services.

“Airlines in the region will benefit from a technologically advanced training campus staffed by the industry’s best qualified and most experienced pilots and instructors.”

Boeing will partner with the St. Petersburg, Russia-based avionics and flight-simulator manufacturer Transas on the project.

“We are delighted to become technology partners in this unique project,” said Nikholay Lebedev, president of Transas.

“We strongly appreciate that our flight simulation technologies have become part of this international project, aimed at improving the efficiency and quality of flight crew training in Russia — a sign of confidence in our products that we are proud of.”

Boeing says the new facility will open with four simulator bays, featuring three Next-Generation 737 full-flight simulators and one 777 full-flight simulator.

Two of the simulators will be built by Transas, it said.

Groundbreaking on the new campus is scheduled for spring of 2014, with training beginning in mid-2015.

Boeing has forecast that the Commonwealth of Independent States, including Russia, will require 15,200 additional airline pilots and 18,000 technicians over the next two decades, supporting 1,530 new commercial airplanes by 2032.

Airbus tests trackable bags

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Nearly 26 million bags are lost or misplaced in airports around the globe each year, but a trackable bag may help reduce that number dramatically.

A prototype of the trackable Bag2Go

Bag2Go is being developed by Airbus in partnership with luggage manufacturer Rimowa and IT services company T-Systems.

It is a specially designed suitcase with integrated electronic tagging which can be controlled by a smartphone.

Tests on Bag2Go will be conducted throughout next year, Airbus said this week.

“It was very important for us to come up with an easy-to-use solution for passengers,” said Airbus Innovation Manager Jan Reh.

“Bag2Go is one piece in the overall puzzle to make luggage more controllable for airlines and provide passengers with a better travel experience.”

The European aircraft manufacturer says airlines are keen to participate because each lost luggage on average costs them about $100 to retrieve and return to the passenger.

The International Air Transport Association, the group that represents the world’s airlines, estimates that lost or misplaced baggage accounts for almost $2.5 billion dollars in lost revenue annually.

A baggage carousel at Dubai International Airport

“This new technology is a fantastic enabler that will help the business transform itself, so that not only will fewer bags be mishandled but newer, more innovative ways of delivering those bags will be found,” said Andrew Price, head of baggage services at the organization.

“These technologies may seem like they are new today but within five years they will be absolutely common place.”

At last, there is hope for light at the end of the baggage carousel!

Images are courtesy of Airbus and Dubai Airport.

IATA forecasts big rise in air travel

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While the world is bracing for a big rise in air travel, North America will record the slowest growth in international passenger demand in the next four years, the group that represents the world’s airlines said Tuesday.

The International Air Transport Association says the region will see a 3.6 per cent compound annual growth rate during 2013-2017.

The Middle East will report the strongest — a growth of 6.3 per cent.

Overall, international passenger numbers are expected to rise from 1.2 billion in 2012 to 1.5 billion in 2017, bringing in 292 million additional passengers, IATA said.

With a rate of more than 10 per cent, Uzbekistan is the fastest growing market for international passenger traffic. Others are Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey, Oman, China, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and Pakistan.

The group also forecast that airlines expect to see a 31 per cent increase in total passenger numbers between 2012 and 2017.

“By 2017, total passenger numbers are expected to rise to 3.91 billion — an increase of 930 million passengers over the 2.98 billion carried in 2012,” the IATA Airline Industry Forecast said.

The United Arab Emirates, home of the high-flying carrier Emirates, will add 29.2 million passengers over the forecast period, nearly as many as China, IATA said.

“For international traffic, routes between the Middle East and Asia-Pacific will see the strongest growth.”

Routes within or connected to China will be the single largest driver of growth, accounting for 24 per cent of new passengers during the forecast period, IATA said.

“Of the anticipated 227.4 million additional passengers, 195 million will be domestic and 32.4 million will be international.”

With 677.8 million domestic passengers in 2017, the United States will continue to be the largest single market for domestic passengers, although it will add only 70 million passengers over the forecast period, IATA said.

IATA, which represents nearly 250 airlines, says the global aviation industry supports some 57 million jobs and $2.2 trillion in economic activity.

Wind-tunnel testing for 777X begins

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Wind-tunnel testing will last about five months.

Less than a month after its spectacular launch at the Dubai Airshow, the Boeing 777X is undergoing low-speed wind-tunnel testing in Britain.

Testing started last week at a facility in Farnborough, the town northeast of London best known for the world’s premier airshow, Boeing said Monday.

“This is the first major development milestone for the program since we launched the program last month,” said Terry Beezhold, vice-president and chief project engineer of the 777X program.

“Wind-tunnel testing will validate our performance models and generate a vast amount of data that our engineering teams will use to design the airplane in this phase of development.”

The low-speed model currently being tested is a 5.5 per cent scale model of the baseline 777X, measuring 4.22 metres long with a wing span of 3.92 metres, Boeing said.

“Hundreds of sensors are embedded in the model to measure pressure to determine the in-flight loads as well as provide valuable diagnostics of the aerodynamic performance of a given design.”

The testing will last about five months.

“We are on track to complete our top-level design in 2014 and reach firm configuration in 2015,” said Beezhold.

Boeing won orders and commitments for 259 aircraft worth almost $100 billion for the 777X in Dubai last month in what was the largest product launch in commercial jetliner history by dollar value.

They came from Emirates, Etihad, Lufthansa and Qatar Airways.

The 777X is the newest member of the highly successful 777 family of long-haul airliners. It will be built in two versions: the 777-9X that offers seating for more than 400 passengers and the 777-8X, which will seat 350 passengers.

Deliveries are expected to begin in 2020.

Images are courtesy of Boeing.

Airbus explores 3D printing of parts

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European aircraft manufacturer Airbus says it is exploring the use of three-dimensional printing of individual parts or even larger airframe structures.

Airbus has been testing the technology, also known as additive manufacturing, since the late 1990s.

Its parent company, EADS, is a key partner in the European Space Agency’s AMAZE project to perfect the printing of space-quality metal components.

AMAZE, or Additive Manufacturing Aiming Towards Zero Waste and Efficient Production of High-Tech Metal Products, involves 28 industrial partners.

The 3D printing technology offers greater manufacturing flexibility as well as cost- and weight-saving potential. Other aerospace companies, including engine manufacturers General Electric and Rolls-Royce, are also testing it.

Airbus made the announcement on Wednesday as the company and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology signed an agreement to explore the use of digital manufacturing in the aerospace industry.

The company will work with MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms  to evaluate how the digital material concepts being developed at the institute can potentially be applied to the design and construction of aerospace vehicles.

Metallic digital material.

“The agreement with MIT opens up an interesting collaboration with a cutting-edge research partner,” said Axel Krein, senior vice-president of research and technology at Airbus.Neil Gershenfeld is the director CBA.

“We’re delighted to welcome Airbus as CBA’s newest member, with a focus on aerospace applications of digital fabrication,” he said.

Airbus believes digital material technology could lead to a totally new way of assembling airplanes and may offer substantial benefits, including lighter aircraft structures as well as lower construction and assembly costs.

Images are courtesy of Airbus and ESA.

Benelux gets its 1st Dreamliner

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Jetairfly of Belgium is set to become the first airline in Benelux to operate the Boeing 787.

The Dreamliner. Boeing photo.

The carrier, which is part of the British-based leisure travel company TUI Travel PLC, took delivery of the Dreamliner at a ceremony in Seattle on Tuesday. The 787 will start flying this month, replacing the airline’s 767.

“We are very excited about the Jetairfly Dreamliner entering service as the first and only 787 operated by a Belgian airline,” said Elie Bruyninckx, CEO of TUI Belgium.

Bruyninckx called the aircraft a great asset in the company’s strategy of offering unique holiday experiences to its passengers, especially when they fly between Europe and the Caribbean.

“We are very excited that Jetairfly will be flying the 787 Dreamliner,” said, Todd Nelp, vice- president of European Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

The fuel-efficient Dreamliner has features such as larger, electronically-dimmable windows and larger overhead luggage bins.

TUI Travel, which operates six airlines including Thomson Airways, Arkefly, TUI Fly Nordic and Jetairfly, has made a commitment for up to 15 Dreamliners. It now has four in service.

The Dreamliner was launched in 2004. It reached a sales milestone at the Dubai Airshow last month when Boeing received the 1,000th order for the aircraft, from Etihad Airways of Abu Dhabi.

Boeing puts the total number of orders at 1,012 from 16 customers.