AE December 2020 ROSPACE SMART AIRLINER CABINS UK INTEGRATED REVIEW: ALREADY DEAD? CHANGING BUSINESS AVIATION’S IMAGE www.aerosociety.com December 2020 MARS ATTRACTS V olume 47 Number 12 RED PLANET GETS SET FOR NEW ROBOT VISITORS Royal A eronautical Society 11–15 & 19–21 JANUARY 2021 | ONLINE AN E X P A N DEXPERIENCE E D The world’s largest event for aerospace research and development just got bigger! The virtual 2021 AIAA SciTech Forum has expanded into eight days of programming over a two-week time frame. The new format offers a convenient, condensed daily schedule, allowing you to balance your work load and home life while attending a virtual event. Each day will be anchored by a high-level keynote or lecture, with 2,500+ technical presentations, panels, and special sessions scheduled throughout the forum. The forum will explore the functional role and importance of diversity in advancing the aerospace industry. Hear from high-profile industry leaders as they provide perspectives on how diversification of teams, industry sectors, technologies, and design cycles can all be leveraged toward innovation. REGISTER NOW aiaa.org/2021SciTech Volume 47 Number 12 December 2020 EDITORIAL Contents Lost Moon? Regulars 4 Radome 12 Transmission After a week of nail-biting excitement, last month saw a new president The latest aviation and Your letters, emails, tweets aeronautical intelligence, and social media feedback. elected in the US, Joe Biden. Although he is yet to be formally elected by analysis and comment. the Electoral College and inaugurated in January, it is extremely unlikely that 58 The Last Word this will be overturned. While some worry that a spiteful President Trump 11 Pushing the Envelope Keith Hayward looks forward could institute a scorched-earth policy on his way out, the question on a few Rob Coppinger reviews to the return into commercial progress in the development service of the Boeing 737 minds is – what will President-elect Biden mean for aerospace, defence of synthetic aviation fuels MAX. and space? It is obviously early days but there are glimpses of how this may made from carbon taken change. International institutions will be strengthened, as Biden says the from the air. US will rejoin the Paris Climate Change Agreement. NATO leaders, too, will Features privately be breathing sighs of relief that that the US will not pull out of a NASA 28 Pushing tin in a military alliance on the basis of a late-night tweet. However, other parts of pandemic How Covid-19 has impacted aerospace and defence may have more mixed results. NASA Adminstrator, NATS’ air traffic management Jim Bridenstine, has already said he will not stay on and the incoming 14 operations in the UK. administration will want to distance itself from the ambitious Pence/Trump Cranfield University Artemis ‘boots on the Moon by 2024’ plan in favour of climate science. That may be a shame – the US Moon mission was building up international steam Invaders to Mars! and the biggest challenge was not technical but political, in the shifting of Three Mars probes from the US, China and the UAE are goalposts and priorities by incoming presidents. Will Artemis go the way of set to arrive at the Red Planet 32 Bush’s Constellation? Maybe – but perhaps it will only be delayed, rather than early next year. cancelled. Artemis has a strong narrative and diversity angle that may appeal to the the White House (landing the first woman on the Moon). It also has 18 Russian stealth rising – Conscious cabins the PAK DA bomber Are future proposals for engaged private enterprise and a coalition of international partners in getting Focus on Russia’s next- intelligent aircraft cabin on board – as the next big space co-operation project after ISS. Despite generation long range systems a good or bad thing Artemis’ Trump origins, will Biden want to go down as the president who strategic bomber. for airline passengers? denied the first female astronaut her chance to set foot on the Moon? BAE Systems 36 Covid-19: an opportunity to reset and Tim Robinson FRAeS, Editor-in-Chief 22 restructure for airlines? [email protected] Is state aid the best way to help airlines to recover from Correspondence on all aerospace matters is welcome at: [email protected] the effects of Covid-19? Stratospheric Platforms Editor-in-Chief Editorial Office 2020 AEROSPACE subscription Tim Robinson, FRAeS Royal Aeronautical Society rates: Non-members, £180 +44 (0)20 7670 4353 No.4 Hamilton Place Please send your order to: Destined to fail? The UK’s [email protected] London W1J 7BQ, UK Wayne J Davis, RAeS, No.4 Hamilton Integrated Review +44 (0)20 7670 4300 Deputy Editor Place, London W1J 7BQ, UK. 38 [email protected] +44 (0)20 7670 4354 A critical analysis of the UK Bill Read, FRAeS Government’s forthcoming +44 (0)20 7670 4351 www.aerosociety.com [email protected] [email protected] AEROSPACE is published by the Royal Any member not requiring a print Integrated Review of Defence, Aeronautical Society (RAeS). version of this magazine should Security and Foreign Policy. Production Manager Get ready for 5G from the contact: [email protected] Wayne J Davis Chief Executive stratosphere +44 (0)20 7670 4354 Sir Brian Burridge CBE FRAeS USA: Periodical postage paid at 26 Making the case for A new UK company unveils [email protected] Advertising Champlain New York and additional business aviation plans for a 5G connectivity +44 (0)20 7670 4346 offices. Publications Executive Business aviation addresses high-altitude pseudo- [email protected] Chris Male, MRAeS Postmaster: Send address changes satellite network powered by to IMS of New York, PO Box 1518, the issues of the environment, +44 (0)20 7670 4352 Unless specifically attributed, no Champlain NY 12919-1518, USA. diversity and its media image. hydrogen. [email protected] material in AEROSPACE shall be taken Production Executive to represent the opinion of the RAeS. ISSN 2052-451X Annabel Hallam Reproduction of material used in this Afterburner +44 (0)20 7670 4361 publication is not permitted without the 44 Message from our President [email protected] written consent of the Editor-in-Chief. 45 Message from our Chief Executive Book Review Editors Printed by Buxton Press Limited, Tony Pilmer and Katrina Sudell Palace Road, Buxton, Derbyshire 46 Book Reviews [email protected] SK17 6AE, UK Distributed by Royal Mail 50 New Member Spotlight 52 Journal of Aeronautical History Additional content is available to view online at: aerosociety.com/aerospaceinsight 54 Diary Including: Climate change still No 1 challenge for aviation, Addressing the UK cyber-skills gap, In-flight refuelling for civil aircraft, In the November issue of AEROSPACE, New Member Spotlight, 56 Elections Online Hydrogen-powered HAPS UAV, Electrifying general aviation, Raiders of the lost aero-engine archives. 57 Obituary Front cover: A ‘selfie’ taken by the Mars Curiosity Rover on 11 October 2019 inside the Gale Crater on Mars (NASA) @aerosociety i Find us on LinkedIn f Find us on Facebook www.aerosociety.com DECEMBER 2020 13 Blueprint INTELLIGENCE / ANALYSIS / COMMENT Rear wing A rear spoiler on the AirCar provides downforce in car mode but switches to become pitch control as an elevator in aircraft mode. Fly ‘n’ drive Sitting in the left hand seat, the pilot uses a F1-style steering wheel to control the vehicle in ground and air modes. An emergency ballastic parachute deployment system is fitted. Autobot - transform! The AirCar can convert from compact car to aircraft mode in under three minutes, with the wings extending from a rear stowed position where they are also folded in half. The twin tail booms also extend rearwards to provide clearance for the centrally-mounted pusher propeller. Klein Vision 4 AEROSPACE Specifications Passengers 2 Weight 1,100kg Range 1,000km Top Speed 200km/h Take-off run 300m Top gears The AirCar is powered by a 140Hp BMW 1.6i engine giving a fuel consumption of 18l/h in flight mode. A model with a more powerful 300hp engine is already being developed. Growth potential While the Air Car V5 seats two people, the company says that the concept has the potential to be developed into four-seat versions, twin-engine variants or even an amphibous version. GENERAL AVIATION Flying car revs up Slovakian ‘roadable aircraft’ developer Klein Vision has announced its AirCar (V5) has made two successful flights on the week of 26 October. The flights, at Piestany airport, Slovakia, saw the vehicle fly at 1,500ft during the test flights. Developed by Stefan Klein, who was previously at another ‘flying car’ company Aeromobil, the AirCar V5 is a ‘roadable aircraft’ that is able to convert from car to aircraft configuration in less than three minutes. Klein Vision says that the two-seat AirCar is expected to be commercially available in six months. DECEMBER 2020 5 Radome COVID-19 AEROSPACE AIR TRANSPORT Aerospace stocks soar on Eurocontrol predicts no full Covid-19 vaccine news recovery until 2024 Airline stock prices, stock rose 26% while Air traffic forecasts Eurocontrol including IAG, easyJet Jet2 shares climbed by European and Ryanair have all 34.1%. The stock market ATM organisation risen sharply on the gains were repeated Eurocontrol has news on 9 November on the other side of the predicted that that a Covid-19 Atlantic, with United commercial air transport vaccine developed by Airlines shares rising movements in Europe pharmaceutical company 19%, Delta Air Lines are not likely to return Pfizer has proved 90% 17%, Hawaiian Airlines to pre-Covid levels until effective in Phase 3 50% and American 2024 at the earliest.