Gulfstream Aerospace announced performance accomplishments for its next-generation Gulfstream G500 and Gulfstream G600. Both aircraft successfully demonstrated steep-approach landings into London City Airport in England, as well as Lugano Airport and Sion Airport in Switzerland. The milestone demonstrations of low-speed handling and short-field landing capability were celebrated with a new city-pair record run.
Following official Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) steep-approach certification, anticipated next year, the G500 and G600 will gain access to challenging airports such as London City, which requires the certification due to its short runway and stringent noise-abatement requirements, as well as Lugano and similar airports located in the mountainous region of Switzerland. Lugano’s short runway, situated in the mouth of a valley, requires an extremely steep approach.
“The takeoff and landing performance we demonstrated in Europe was key in the process of securing customers’ access to even more locations worldwide, saving them even more valuable hours per year,” said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream. “Our customers already benefit from Gulfstream’s high-speed performance advantage when flying, and the investment we’ve made in flight testing and continuous improvement delivers even more value with increased flexibility.”
Following the landing demonstrations, the G500 and G600 each claimed city-pair speed records, departing London City Airport at average cruise speeds of Mach 0.90 and above. The G500 flew 3,077 nautical miles/5,699 kilometers to Teterboro Airport near New York in just 6 hours and 46 minutes, besting the previous record by 12 minutes despite challenging headwinds. The G600 set its own speed record from London to Seattle, completing its 4,235-nm/7,843-km flight in just 8 hours and 39 minutes.
Both flights landed with fuel reserves exceeding National Business Aviation Association minimums under Instrument Flight Rules. The flights are pending approval by the U.S. National Aeronautic Association and Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in Switzerland for recognition as world records. To date, the ultra-efficient G500 and G600 hold more than 60 city-pair speed records combined.
In addition, the G600 has officially received FAA and EASA certification of improved takeoff performance operations on grooved runways in wet conditions; G500 certification is tracking for early 2022. This improved aircraft performance provides customers with increased flexibility and range options when operating in wet runway conditions.
American Airlines announced that it has finalized a new sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) offtake agreement with Aemetis. The agreement brings the airline’s total SAF commitment to more than 120 million gallons, a signal of the integral role SAF will play in American’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions and achieve its ambitious sustainability goals.
The airline’s agreement with Aemetis is the result of work with the oneworld alliance, the first global airline alliance to commit to net-zero emissions by 2050 and to publish a pathway for doing so. oneworld is now the first global airline alliance to announce a SAF purchase.
American’s Path to Net Zero Emissions
“The American Airlines team is committed to reducing emissions from our operations, and sustainable aviation fuel is the cornerstone of our strategy in this decade,” said Doug Parker, Chairman and CEO of American. “We’re proud to join with our oneworld partners in supporting the growth of SAF through this agreement with Aemetis, and we’re eager to continue collaborating with like-minded partners to meet aviation’s climate challenge.”
American has agreed to take delivery of 16 million gallons of Aemetis SAF annually over a seven-year period beginning in 2024, with fuel delivered to San Francisco International Airport. The SAF will be blended with traditional jet fuel at a 40/60 ratio to align with international standards.
“American Airlines is demonstrating its leadership in the reduction of carbon emissions and improving air quality by using Aemetis Carbon Zero sustainable aviation fuel,” said Eric McAfee, the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Aemetis. “The Aemetis Carbon Zero plant under development at the former Army Ammunitions Plant in Riverbank, California, is designed to utilize zero carbon electricity, carbon negative hydrogen from waste wood and renewable oils along with CO2 sequestration to produce low carbon sustainable aviation fuel.”
American took its first delivery of SAF in mid-2020 and expects to use 9 million gallons by 2023. Additionally, American previously announced plans to purchase up to 10 million gallons of carbon-neutral SAF produced by Prometheus Fuels, which uses a novel process to make net-zero carbon transportation fuels.
American’s goal is to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, and the airline was the first in North America to commit to set a science-based intermediate target for the year 2035. Additionally, American was recently named to the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, the only passenger carrier to appear on the 2021 index. The company’s latest ESG Report features an updated analysis of the airline’s path to net-zero, showing a greater role for SAF than its previous analysis.
TestEquity announced a newly-formed partnership with Thurlby Thandar Instruments (Aim-TTi), a U.K.-based electronic testing instrument manufacturer. As a result of this partnership, TestEquity will now be an authorized distributor of Aim-TTi testing and measurement products throughout the North American market.
Aim-TTi is known for producing high-quality power supplies, function generators, and RF instruments. With its innovative product designs and manufacturing processes, Aim-TTi sets the standard for producing quality instruments at an affordable price. As a producer of testing and measurement products in the U.K. since 1979, Aim-TTi consistently challenges itself to provide the best quality possible while remaining cost-effective. The company’s tagline of “Measurably Better Value,” exemplifies what Aim-TTi sets out to accomplish with its production strategies. The company is supported by a low cost of ownership with great reliability and factory support to offer high-quality instruments at competitive prices.
“Across the industries we serve, our customers depend on power supplies,” said Scott Cave, director of Product Management at TestEquity. “Aim-TTi is known for building some of the best equipment in the world.”
TestEquity says they have built their reputation as a provider of testing and measurement solutions in the United States as a distributor of testing and measurement instruments since 1971. The distributor serves many industries including aerospace, defense, electronics, and medical industries. The two companies say the partnership will improve accessibility to the entire Aim-TTi product line to engineers in North America.
In the mutually beneficial partnership, Aim-TTi will instantly see the impact of having its products distributed by a major supplier to the U.S. market, and TestEquity gains the advantage of adding even more high-quality testing and measurement instrumentation to its already vast product catalog. An array of Aim-TTi products are stocked and ready to be ordered from TestEquity’s website immediately. The current lineup includes, but is not limited to, the following:
The FAA believes the expansion of 5G and aviation will safely co-exist. Today, we took an important step toward that goal by issuing two airworthiness directives to provide a framework and to gather more information to avoid potential effects on aviation safety equipment. The FAA is working closely with the Federal Communications Commission and wireless companies, and has made progress toward safely implementing the 5G expansion. We are confident with ongoing collaboration we will reach this shared goal.
Wireless broadband deployment will occur in phases in 46 markets beginning January 5, 2022. The FCC defines these areas as Partial Economic Areas (PEAs) 1-4, 6-10, 12-19, 21-41, and 43-50.
The FAA issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin on November 2, 2021, that provided initial information about possible interference from 5G C-band wireless transmissions.
SITA, the technology provider for the air transport industry, has developed a proven blockchain-based solution enabling the verification of an electronic personnel license (EPL) without network connectivity. Allowing offline verification in an efficient and privacy-preserving way, SITA’s contribution supports the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) adoption of an industry-wide digital standard for the use of EPLs on international flights.
After setting out to create a digital standard for the use of EPLs on international flights, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) determined that the ability to verify EPLs without network connectivity would be a necessary feature to ensure functionality across civil aviation authorities globally. SITA began to work on a solution to the issue of offline license verification in 2019. Following a successful Proof of Concept in 2020 where SITA integrated its solution for offline verification into the Civil Aviation Authority of China’s EPL system, SITA has become the first industry partner to prove offline verification for pilot licenses, made possible specifically by using blockchain-based decentralized identity technology.
Having a proven example of integrating offline verification capabilities has enabled the ICAO Air Navigation Commission to issue a recommendation to move forward with developing an international standard for EPLs. In March 2022, the ICAO Council will consider adopting a new international Standard that will pave the way for EPLs to become valid licenses, with offline verification systems in place by the end of 2022, citing SITA’s solution as an example.
SITA’s contribution represents one more step towards streamlining the multi-stakeholder processes behind personnel license issuing and verification, while preventing possible fraud and preserving sensitive identity information from privacy concerns. The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated a stronger need than ever for digitalization, as office closures meant civil aviation authorities were unable to issue or renew paper-based pilot licenses. Whereas issuing a digital license takes a few days, paper-based licenses may take several weeks, incurring significant costs for operators and public administrations. And the only option for additional verifications of a paper-based license is contacting the issuing Authority, which can lead to operational disruptions and possible flight delays.
However, centralized databases with sensitive information are proven to be vulnerable to breaches and liabilities, and a central data management system is not well-suited to the needs of the complex ecosystem of civil aviation authorities, involving different states and organizations. A blockchain-based solution which eliminates the need for a centralized database and enables offline verification is ideal.
SITA’s solution to bring offline verification capabilities to an EPL system is built based on the Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) model, using decentralized identity technology which provides users control over their personal data, allowing them to share a trusted credential for verification without revealing personal information. SITA has previously successfully applied decentralized identity to solutions such as the Aruba Health App.
First, the issuing civil aviation authority creates a signed credential gathering information about a pilot license, and issues it to a pilot. The pilot then accepts, stores, and presents a verifiable credential representing the license. The credentials are managed in a digital wallet, in the form of a mobile application which integrates seamlessly with the existing civil aviation authority app. With another mobile application, any inspector can then request, receive, and verify pilot’s licenses by exchanging the credential, with the option to transfer the credential offline using media such as a QR code.
This system provides easy and trustworthy license verification without the time-consuming process of verifying civil aviation authorities’ files by contacting their offices for extra checks. Pilots meanwhile no longer have to worry about losing, misplacing, or damaging physical credentials and benefit from the confidence that their personal data is kept private. The system will also lead to cost efficiencies over time: while it has been designed for use by pilots on international flights, civil aviation authorities will equally be able to leverage their EPL systems for all licensed personnel, maximizing their investment.
Miguel Marin, Chief Operational Safety, ICAO, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digitalization across the air transport industry, but the benefits of adopting a digital standard for electronic personnel licenses will last well into the long term: providing easier, quicker collaboration across civil aviation authorities globally, as well as a solution to fraud and reduced costs over time. We’re grateful for SITA’s willingness, working closely with the Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC), to develop a proof of concept to leverage cutting-edge innovation to the benefit of our entire sector.”
Sébastien Fabre, CEO, SITA FOR AIRCRAFT, said: “Our collaboration with ICAO on providing offline verification capabilities to EPLs is the latest example of SITA taking advantage of cutting-edge technology to bring greater efficiency to the air transport industry. With its ability to streamline complex multi-stakeholder processes in a secure way, blockchain technology is perfectly adapted to the industry’s needs. We have explored its benefits in the past with industry-first initiatives such as the MRO Blockchain Alliance, and our current partnership with ICAO allows us to apply our expertise on decentralized identity technology to support industry-wide change.”
The collaboration on EPLs is part of a newly signed 5-year partnership between ICAO and SITA aimed at supporting the global aviation community through innovations in aviation safety, air navigation capacity and efficiency, and aviation training.
Following a European open call for tenders, the technology multinational GMV, European industrial leader in Space Situational Awareness (SSA) and Space Surveillance and Tracking (SST), has been awarded a new contract by the German Space Agency at DLR for developing progressive and advanced SST data processing algorithms for the German Space Situational Awareness Centre (GSSAC), located in Uedem, Germany.
To foster the development of an SST capability in Europe, the EU established in 2014 (through decision No. 541/2014/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of April 16, 2014) a Framework for Space Surveillance and Tracking Support. The aim of this Support Framework is to develop an independent SSA/SST capability in Europe by EU SST. Since then, the incipient national SST capabilities in the countries within the EU SST consortium (Germany, France, UK, Italy, and Spain since 2016, as well as Poland, Romania and Portugal since 2019; the UK left the consortium in 2021 post‑Brexit) have been federated in a coordinated manner: EU SatCen acts as front desk for the SST services provided by the EU SST consortium.
This new project is part of the data processing activities within EU SST under the German Space Agency’s responsibility. Its main objective is to develop, validate and integrate advanced orbit propagation, orbit determination, and data correlation algorithms aimed at achieving an overall improved catalog build-up and maintenance capability, based on GMV’s experience and capabilities in the field. This cataloging capability is one of the main responsibilities of DLR as part of the German contribution to the EU SST system. Both German and Spanish branches of GMV will be involved in the activity, working with teams located in Munich, Darmstadt, and Madrid. GMV leads EU SST contracts in 5 countries (Spain, France, Germany, Poland, and Romania) and has additional capabilities and contracts in the UK and Portugal in the SST domain. All in all, over 70 GMV engineers work at GMV on SSA/SST activities, making it the largest SSA/SST industry and team in Europe
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