USAF to Purchase 20 Embraer A-29 Super Tucano Aircraft

As reported by Embraer earlier today, the USAF (in partnership with the Sierra Nevada Corporation) will be acquiring 20 Super Tucanos. The aircraft are said to provide "advanced flight training, aerial reconnaissance and light air support operations".

Photo: Embraer

It won't be the first time Super Tucanos have operated in the US. XE Aviation (formerly Blackwater) has flown N314TG (photo) and displayed it at the 2011 Reno Air Races in Nevada. XE Aviation also has a Pilatus PC-6 registered under N181DA (photo).

Super Tucanos have also been photographed under military registrations, although nobody seems certain whether these are different airframes, or simply N314TG with different markings. Indeed, a thread on Scramble points out that the military registration seems to be a re-purposed MH-53E registration, perhaps to keep the aircraft (and possibly the "Imminent Fury" program) under wraps:

Another photo on Flickr shows the same airframe equipped with what appear to be guns or rocket pods underwing.

Gift Wrapping - Underway

Boeing 787 Wing Flex Animation

After reading Guy Norris' great article on the Boeing 787's wing flex, I thought it would be interesting to animate the three graphics he posted.

Here, we see the 787 wing in three stages - at rest, at a normal 1g load during cruise flight, and at the ultimate load, just before failure:

It's interesting to note that in normal cruise flight, the wing flex is such that the wingtips are above the top of the fuselage.

New Bicycle Wheel Design Not So New

Fast Company Magazine recently featured an interesting new bicycle wheel design by Ron Arad. It utilizes 18 individual strips of steel bent in such a way that shock is absorbed, providing a smooth ride:

It's an interesting design, to be sure. And it sure seemed familiar to me. But I couldn't quite remember what bicycle company had explored the idea previously.

Then it occurred to me...it wasn't a bicycle company that pioneered the use of bent strips of metal as a shock-absorbing wheel technology at all. It was an aircraft parts manufacturer in the 1910s and 1920s. Here is their design:

The Atlas Wheel design never took off. Whether it was due to technical shortcomings or business circumstances is beyond me. But it's interesting to see such an old design philosophy resurrected today. I wish Ron the best of luck with his bicycle application.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Fans Work at the FAA

...judging by the newest arrival fixes in Charleston, SC:

Cessna Citation Commuter Turboprop Concept

A strange thing often occurs when scouring the web for a specific piece of information. That which one seeks remains forever hidden, while new and unrelated discoveries are made.

Some time ago, I made such a discovery. While searching for photos of the elusive Citation turboprop pusher...

...I ran across files describing an even more bizarre variation on the Citation - a 19-passenger commuter turboprop variant. Enjoy...and click the images for larger versions:

Reno Crash - Further Investigation

I've received several emails and comments about the likelihood of a trim tab failure causing the recent crash at Reno. Among them was this:

"I was part of the pit crew. Jimmy was a close personal freind. I've owned Race 9 (Cloudancer) since April'10. It is common practice for air racers to zero the elevator and rudder tabs so there is less drag and less chance of setting up a buzz. I know this sounds strange, but when they are in the valley of speed it takes both hands pushing forward on the stick. And when you are turning especially pylon 7 and 8 where you need 5 to 7g's to make the corner and not bust the spectator deadline you relax the forward pressure so you dont have to pull so hard. 


If you had forward trim set in the act(tab up for down elevator) the forces on the tab would be tremendous while turning. The aircraft pitched up nearly vertical but climbed very little maybe a 100 Feet, this was accompanied by a very loud whump or a burrump sound. The aircraft slowed tremendously. Pictures show a large buckle in the right side of the fuselage, this probably tripped the tailwheel uplock cable and extended the tailwheel. The inboard 2/3's of the trimtab then seperated. Just a comment about bob hannah's tab failure, he said that when he came to he was looking at his feet"

The last comment was in reference to an incident with "Voodoo" several years ago. He lost a trim tab on the course, blacked out during a 10G pull-up and woke up to find himself at 9000 feet

And about that extended tail wheel, clearly visible in a photo shot a second or two before impact - a P-51 checklist emergency gear procedure on Aerofiles sheds some light on how extreme G-forces indeed could have extended the tail wheel:

"If there is any doubt about the tail wheel being down, dive the plane a short distance and pull out with enough acceleration to down the tail wheel."

Here's hoping for a future with the air races, but without accidents like this.

Reno Crash - Trim Tab to Blame?

It is, of course, very early to speculate on the cause of the tragic crash at Reno. A disciplined examination of photos, however, reveals a possible clue.

This photo was shot by Tim O'Brien of the AP and Grass Valley Union just a moment before the crash. A sharp-eyed Russell Farris spotted an elevator trim tab that is either missing or severely deflected. If the trim tab was deflected downward at such an angle, the elevator would have been forced upward with a great deal of force. This would severely pitch the nose upward, likely with enough force to overpower even the strongest pilot.

In such a scenario, the pilot would push forward on the control stick with all his might to arrest the pitch rate. If he was unable to do so, the nose would continue to pitch further and further upward until airframe failure or ground contact occurs.

It's important to bear in mind that at the speed he was flying today, a relatively small control surface deflection would have resulted in an abrupt and extreme load factor ("G-force") on the pilot, making recovery that much more difficult.

Here's hoping the reaction of the public and media doesn't put an end to the Reno Air Races. You can bet that none of today's victims would have wanted that.

Meet MAX

Yep, it's official - the new 737s will be known as the Boeing 737 MAX 7, 737 MAX 8, and 737 MAX 9.

More renderings available at the official 737 MAX site.

PZL M-15 Belphegor

The old-school Lockheed engineers designed and built the SR-71 using slide rules. They were second only to the Belphegor engineers, who used witchcraft and dark forces.

The Belphegor has long been my favorite aircraft. It kills me that there are none in the US, and it kills me that not a single one is flying. It is beyond any common logic how one could opt to restore, fly, and maintain something as trite and mundane as a T-6, T-33, or L-29 when cold-war-era jet-powered Polish biplane crop dusters are there for the taking in eastern Europe and Russia.

Were I to win the lottery, I would acquire and restore one to be used as an Oshkosh partymobile. I would install amphibious floats to further enhance it's massive ramp presence and to enable operation from lakes that would otherwise remain tranquil and serene. The chemical hoppers would be converted into refrigerated beer storage tanks for the aforementioned Oshkosh trips. Skis would be installed for the annual Skiplane Fly-in and Chili Dump up at Pioneer Field:

Although the temptation to paint it an ominous matte black with mysterious red symbols would be nearly irresistible, I would likely paint it in accurate original colors:

Alas, I do not possess the necessary funding to transform such dreams into reality. Instead, my current budget can only sustain the acquisition of an authentic flight manual and control yoke. If anyone can track these items down or acquire them for me, I will gladly pay a fair price. Just contact me at the above link.

Vintage Bellanca Crashes in Stoughton, WI

A Bellanca 14-13 Cruisair Senior has crashed in Stoughton, WI. The classic aircraft, manufactured in 1946, had been on display in Oshkosh for the 2011 Airventure fly-in:

The aircraft is registered to Richard Cross of Brewster, Minnesota. WKOW of Madison reported that a father and son from Minnesota were on board. The father was reportedly taken to UW hospital via ambulance, and the son was taken via Medflight.

Here is a photo of the aircraft (N74260) as it appeared last Friday at Oshkosh:

Here's hoping father and son make a full recovery soon. And here's hoping the media keep in mind that for every general aviation accident, there are tens of thousands of automobile accidents.

Jet-Powered Aerostar Debuts

Seems people just can't resist modifying the Piper Aerostar. The last couple of years, we've seen the Speedstar single-engine turboprop development at Oshkosh:

And now, it seems a twin-jet version has arrived. Here's video of it's first flight:



And here's a shot of it on display at Oshkosh:

American is Getting A320s...and an Opportunity to Evolve the Livery

It was announced a few hours ago that American Airlines is ordering at least 260 A320-series aircraft. Deliveries will begin in 2013. Now more than ever, the airline should be thinking hard about updating it's livery.

Here is an examples of how the present livery will look on an Airbus fleet:

Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © mikephotos
Template © mikephotos

It's not that the current livery is bad or outdated from a design standpoint...it's that a livery based on polished aluminum is most suited to aircraft that are built primarily from that material. As more aircraft types integrate composite materials in their construction, the attractiveness of polished aluminum quickly becomes overshadowed by the painted gray composite panels surrounding it.

This much is certain - American's livery is changing whether they want it to or not. If they continue to do nothing, it will continue to evolve into a drab and unattractive mishmash of various dull gray and white paints. If, however, they become proactive and update their livery now, they will strengthen their brand in both the short and long term.

There's no shortage of opportunity, American. The time is right to evolve the brand. Eagle's E-jets are already a nightmare of painted whites and grays with no visible aluminum whatsoever...let's make sure that look doesn't continue to infest the mainline brand.


Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © Almaden
Template © Almaden


Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © Ryan Powers
Template © Ryan Powers


Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © Yves Mayer
Template © Yves Mayer


Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © Yves Mayer
Template © Yves Mayer


Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © Ryan Powers
Template © Ryan Powers


Aviation-Design.Net:

Design © R P Abraham
Template © R P Abraham

Gulfstream Declares War on Aircraft Recognition

In what appears to be an outright declaration of war on consistency and straightforward aircraft recognition, Gulfstream has yet again renamed the IAI Galaxy. In an attempt to enhance "cultural sensitivity", and despite remaining unchanged, the G250 will henceforth be known as the G280:

Although no mechanical modifications have been mentioned, weight and balance restrictions are sure to be introduced as the dataplate continues to grow and shift the CG rearward:

Cockpit Photography

Photographing cockpits and instrument panels can be pretty challenging. All too often, the light coming through the windows is overpowering, and the top half of the image becomes blown-out, like this:

I was sure this shot was going to be rejected by the Airliners.net screeners, but perhaps because they understand the challenges in shooting cockpits, they accepted it into the database. The shot has always bothered me, though, since everything above and to the side of the glareshield is invisible. I would have greatly preferred to frame the panel with a blue sky background.

So, for a subsequent photo shoot, I decided to try a different technique. 

This time, rather than expose the shot for the panel, I exposed it for the sky and scenery beyond. I did this by setting my camera to 'Auto', aiming it through the front windscreen just above the panel, depressing the shutter release halfway, and making a note of the suggested shutter and aperture settings.

Then, switching to 'Manual', I duplicated those suggested settings.

At this point, if I were to snap a shot of the panel, the sky/scenery beyond would look great, but the panel itself would be far too dark. So I activated the flash to illuminate the panel.

Here, we see the Waco RPT cockpit using my old technique:

...and here, we see the same view using the new technique:

A big improvement, to be sure. And I was using only the basic, built-in flash on the D90. A nice ring flash would make an even bigger difference.

New USAF Designation - Cirrus T-53A

Heads up, NIFA competitors...there's a new USAF aircraft to study. The Cirrus T-53A:

As Flying Magazine reports, the USAF Academy will start taking delivery of 25 aircraft this summer, and deliveries will continue through 2012.

USA Today Does it Again

It's always been apparent that USA Today's primary motivation when covering aviation-related stories is fear mongering and sensationalism. Today's coverage of a plane crash in California demonstrates that their reporters don't even let official sources stand in the way of a sensationalist headline:

USA Today - Your coverage and your reporters are a shameful embarrassment to the journalism community.

Starships For Sale

If you're in the market for a Beechcraft Starship, you're in luck - two of the five in active service are presently on the market.

The first, N8285Q/NC-50, is listed for $1,400,000 in Washington state. The airframe has 2695 hours, and the seller points out that the "jet quiet" cabin is a third larger than a King Air 350 at 2/3 the price.

The second, N8244L/NC-29, is listed for $1,600,000 in Oklahoma City. It was a marketing plane for Beechcraft that was featured on many magazine covers stories and in many articles. It is the only Starship with the original factory N number. The airframe has a higher total time (3985 hours), but you won't care, because included in the sale is NC-43, a parts aircraft sans engines.

But wait - there's more!

The seller is also including "plenty of tires" and a third set of props. He/she also points out that Starfleetsupport.com has parts and support available to Starship owners.

If you love the Starship but can't quite swing the cash for one of these examples, be sure to explore Bob Scherer's site. There, you can find downloadable flight manuals, parts catalogs, wiring diagrams, and all kinds of historical information.

I also recommend picking up a copy of The Starship Diaries, by Dallas Kachan. It's a fictional account of a very successful Silicon Valley resident who purchases a Starship and then "slowly meanders around the planet with no fixed route, and no fixed return date."

Study: Fast Food Enhances Pilot Performance

In what appears to be a link between our nations fast-food addiction and our aviation safety record that is second to none, unhealthy foods have been shown to enhance pilot performance.

As reported by Ultra Fitness Dynamics, a University of North Dakota study has shown that "commercial airline pilots who ate a diet that was high in fat or carbohydrates performed significantly better on a flight simulator than did pilots who ate a diet high in protein."

The report went on to describe that cognitive function and sleep were also enhanced with such a diet.

The implications are clear - when you board your next flight, you want to see your pilots straining their waistbands, smacking their lips, and covered in grease.

And while no operator-specific correlations have been linked to the study, the Yum! Brands senior management team can likely rest assured that they are in good hands:

MyAviation.net:

Photographer © James Richard Covington

Royal Navy Dubs New King-Air Trainers "Avenger"

Having retired their 30+ year-old Jetstreams, the Royal Navy will soon be taking delivery of their replacement - converted Beechcraft King Air 350ERs:

What's interesting about these aircraft from a NIFA/Aircraft Rec perspective is their name. Soon, a King-Air 350ER in Royal Navy colors will be an "Avenger".

Aviation Coverage in the Media

Oh, US media...when will you learn to check your facts when covering aviation stories?

Another example, this time from Fox News:

The media's lack of attention to detail is not limited to aircraft identification. It seems that every time a 737, A320, or regional jet has an issue in the air, the media soon starts talking about how the aircraft in question is dumping fuel. A capability, of course, that the aforementioned aircraft models lack. And it's not uncommon to witness a reporter bash corporate aviation, claiming that corporate pilots are "less experienced" and undergo less training than their airline counterparts.

I never notice this level of blatant disregard for accuracy in non-aviation coverage. But in the world of aviation, it seems that the opportunity for quick sensationalism trumps the opportunity for disciplined reporting.

The problem is not that reporters speculate, sometimes incorrectly, at the content of aviation-related news. Speculation can be constructive. The problem occurs when reporters either present this speculation as fact, or fail to specify that it is, in fact, speculation.


Example:

An airplane crashes. You're the reporter. You vaguely remember hearing your neighbor's stepcousin-in-law mention that this particular airline flies Airbus L-1011 aircraft.

Which do you report?

A) An airplane has crashed
B) An Airbus L-1011 has crashed

Far too often, reporters choose the equivalent of B and either present it as fact or fail to clearly specify that it is speculation.

That is the problem with the media. It amounts to a severe lack of discipline and professionalism. Qualities that, in most other professions, would justifiably lead to termination.

History - Tupolev TB-1 Lands in Dearborn, Michigan

It's amazing what one can find in forgotten boxes in the attic. During a recent move, I uncovered this framed news clipping, given to me by a relative:

As the Milwaukee Sentinel reported on October 29, 1929:


The four flyers of the Russian plane, "Land of the Soviets", were greeted Monday by Henry Ford after their arrival from Chicago at the Ford Airport at Dearborn. The automobile manufacturer congratulated them on their achievement in conquering the storms of the northern Pacific ocean and placed the facilities of his airport at their disposal.


The Soviet airmen were guests of the engineering department of the Ford Motor Company at a luncheon in the engineering laboratories.


Monday it was announced they would continue the tourney to New York Wednesday morning. Meanwhile they will be feted by various Slavish organizations of Detroit. They will be presented with ten farm tractors which will be shipped to Russia to be used in cultivating the soil of the soviet union.


More than 5,000 persons were at the airport when the plane arrived.

Cessna T-128T Caravan

It seems there could be a new military designation for the Cessna Caravan. Flightglobal reported that Cessna has won a USAF counter-insurgency contract for six Cessna T-128T and 26 Cessna 208B Caravans to be delivered the Afghanistan air force.

While the designation may be new, military Caravans certainly are not:

(images courtesy USAF)

Mystery Prop

I need help identifying this propeller. It was originally covered in a black rubbery coating. That coating was stripped off, and this is what it looks like now:

Any guesses as to what aircraft type it might have come from?

Waco RPT

Now that the 2011 Nationals test has been revealed, I can share my Waco RPT photo shoot. The RPT competed for a US military contract in the early 1940s and lost. The sole example was originally built with an open cockpit. A later owner added the canopy. The aircraft has only 85 hours total time and has rarely ventured out of a hangar. It is currently offered for sale on Controller.com for $57,900.

Prior to spring of 2011, only one or two photos of the RPT existed on the web. This was one of them, shot at Oshkosh sometime in the 1970s or 1980s:

After tracking down the owner, I managed to get permission to do a full photo shoot. It can be seen here.