The Air India B787 fatal crash and the ram air turbine, how your personal travel data is sold, next generation commercial aircraft engines, personal electric flying machines that are becoming dangerously affordable, and GippsAero is coming back to Australia to build the GA8 airvan.

Aviation News

Indian authorities begin investigating Air India crash in which 1 passenger survived

India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is investigating the fatal crash of an Air India B787. Of the 242 passengers and crew aboard, one passenger survived. Numerous theories are being speculated in the press, including loss of power by both engines, failure to set the flaps properly for takeoff, and erroneously retracting the flaps instead of the landing gear. Some say the Ram Air Turbine appears to be deployed in one video.

The Ram Air Turbine (RAT) extends from the fuselage or the wing to generate power in an emergency. Twin blades [corrected] spin a shaft connected to either an electrical generator or a hydraulic pump that drives a generator.

The B787, A320, and A380 Ram Air Turbines are produced by Collins Aerospace. The company manufactures hydraulic, electric, and hybrid RATs that generate both electric and hydraulic power. Safran also produces Ram Air Turbines.

Ram Air Turbine. Image courtesy Collins Aerospace.

US Navy Vought RF-8G Crusader on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM) Udvar-Hazy Center, Chantilly, Virginia.

Airlines Secretly Sold One Billion Passenger Records—Now The Government Can Track Where You Travel

The Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) is a major provider of settlement services for the airline industry. Clients include airlines, travel agencies, and corporate travel departments. ARC is owned by the airlines and sells passenger names, full domestic flight itineraries, and payment details (e.g., credit card used) through its “Travel Intelligence Program” (TIP). Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is reportedly purchasing this data.

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) is critical of this practice and wants airlines to explain why they allow ARC to resell this information. CBP claims they adhere to strong privacy policies, and only use the data for open investigations.

Open Fan Would Be Suboptimal On Narrowbody, RTX Chief Scientist Says

The next generation of single-aisle aircraft will need to offer at least a 20% fuel burn improvement. Some of that will likely come from the airframe, and most will come from the power plants. The next generation of turbofans under development includes the CFM International open-fan RISE demonstrator and geared turbofans from Pratt & Whitney.

Thermal efficiency vs. propulsive efficiency:

Thermal efficiency measures how effectively an engine converts fuel energy into mechanical work. Propulsive efficiency measures how efficiently the engine converts mechanical energy into useful thrust. Both are dimensionless ratios, typically expressed as a percentage (%). The overall efficiency of the engine is the propulsive efficiency multiplied by the thermal efficiency.

Mentioned

American Helicopter Museum

UAV News Talk

Freakonomics Airplane Food

Spurwink Farm Pancake Breakfast and Fly-In

Personal electric flying machines are becoming dangerously affordable

Aerolite EV-103 

Video: Aerolite EV-103 Electric powered aircraft - First Owner Review at Oshkosh 2021

https://youtu.be/DIaD71KOAdU?si=FTHeEU87xsSjcbto

SP140 electric paramotor 

GippsAero promises Gippsland jobs with new GA8 airvan launch

Hosts this Episode

Max Flight, David Vanderhoof, and our Main(e) Man Micah.