AEROSPACE January 2018 Q&A WITH TIM PEAKE CIVIL AIRSPACE RISKS THE RIDDLE OF THE SANDY(S) REPORT www.aerosociety.com January 2018 Volume 45 Number 1 Volume ATLAS SHOULDERS THE LOAD Royal Aeronautical Society Royal Aeronautical HOW THE RAF A400M FORCE IS GOING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH Have you renewed your membership subscription for 2018? Your membership subscription is due on 1 January 2018 Your membership benefits include: How to renew: ⚫ Monthly subscription to AEROSPACE Online: Log in to your account on the magazine Society’s website to pay at: www.aerosociety.com. 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Contents 32 Correspondence on all aerospace matters is welcome at: The Editor, AEROSPACE, No.4 Hamilton Place, London W1J 7BQ, UK [email protected] Comment Regulars 4 Radome 12 Transmission The latest aviation and Your letters, emails, tweets aeronautical intelligence, and feedback. analysis and comment. 58 The Last Word A UK hybrid-electric future? 10 Antenna Keith Hayward looks back Howard Wheeldon looks 70 years at UK aerospace ahead at the prospects for the in 1948 and its lessons for Over half a century ago, strange delta-winged aircraft flew in British skies, aerospace industry in 2018. today. portending a future of high-speed passenger flight. These prototypes, the BAC 221 (the modified Fairey Delta 2) and the Handley Page HP.115, were tested in the early 1960s to support the development of a supersonic airliner – which would eventually enter service as the Aerospatiale/BAC Concorde. Features CNES NASA That future faded with the retirement of this iconic airliner in 2003. However, on 28 November at the RAeS HQ in London, an agreement was signed that 36 may, one day, perhaps be looked back on as one of the key moments in an exciting new era of low-carbon, commercial flight. The agreement, signed by Airbus, Rolls-Royce and Siemens, is for a flying hybrid-electric demonstrator aircraft, based on a BAe 146, which is set to fly in 2020 and may potentially be 18 the first British (with international partners) civil X-plane in over half a century. At the press conference, the project partners were coy on where the aircraft Making the best use of might be modified and test flown. Traditionally, the involvement of Airbus might space Manned engineering point to Toulouse but with the E-Fan X being based on a BAe aircraft platform, An overview of the RAeS Career opportunities in the President’s conference on civil UAV sector for it may be that this hybrid-electric demonstrator is flown from the UK. One the commercialisation of ex-military personnel. location immediately springs to mind – Cranfield University’s new Aerospace space. Integration Research Centre (AIRC) which already has experience of modifying 22 Civil air threat BAe146s into specialist aircraft. This is, of course, speculation but, should R&D The risk to civil airliners of funding from the UK’s Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) be secured, there flying over war zones. 38 RAeS (NAL) is the possibility that, for the first time in decades, the UK could be home to a prototype testbed designed to investigate new technology for commercial aviation. This could also lead to new opportunities for the UK in hybrid-electric flight for engineers, designers, technicians, operators and entrepreneurs across the whole supply chain. The benefits could be far-reaching. 26 Tim Robinson, Editor-in-Chief The Riddle of the Sandys [email protected] A look back at Duncan Dubai continues to Sandys’ 1957 Defence surprise Review which saw the end NEWS IN BRIEF A report on the 2017 Dubai of many British aircraft Air Show. projects. Editor-in-Chief AEROSPACE is published by the Royal 2018 AEROSPACE subscription Tim Robinson Aeronautical Society (RAeS). rates: Non-members, £160 +44 (0)20 7670 4353 Chief Executive Please send your order to: [email protected] Simon C Luxmoore Chris Male, RAeS, No.4 Hamilton Place, Deputy Editor Advertising London W1J 7BQ, UK. 41 Afterburner Bill Read Simon Levy +44 (0)20 7670 4352 +44 (0)20 7670 4351 +44 (0)20 7670 4346 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Any member not requiring a print Publications Manager Unless specifically attributed, no version of this magazine, please 42 Message from our President Chris Male contact: [email protected] material in AEROSPACE shall be taken 43 Message from our +44 (0)20 7670 4352 to represent the opinion of the RAeS. USA: Periodical postage paid at [email protected] Chief Executive Reproduction of material used in this Champlain New York and additional Production Editor Online publication is not permitted without the offices. 44 Book Reviews Wayne J Davis written consent of the Editor-in-Chief. Postmaster: Send address changes Additional features and content +44 (0)20 7670 4354 to IMS of New York, PO Box 1518, 47 Library Additions [email protected] Printed by Buxton Press Limited, are available to view online on Palace Road, Buxton, Derbyshire Champlain NY 12919-1518, USA. 48 Sir Henry Royce Lecture www.media.aerosociety.com/ Book Review Editor SK17 6AE, UK aerospace-insight Brian Riddle 50 YPN event 2017 ISSN 2052-451X Including: North Korean missiles, Future Editorial Office Distributed by Royal Mail 52 Diary aerospace workspace, E-Fan X hybrid electric Royal Aeronautical Society 55 Corporate Partners flight, demonstrator, In the December issue of No.4 Hamilton Place AEROSPACE, Making the best use of space, London W1J 7BQ, UK 56 RAeS Elections Video interview with ESA astronaut +44 (0)20 7670 4300 Tim Peake, Four daily reports from [email protected] Front cover: The winning entry from James Roberts for the inaugural 2017 Airbus the 2017 Dubai Air Show. www.aerosociety.com A400M photo competition (James Roberts/A400M #InPlaneSight competition). @aerosociety i Find us on LinkedIn f Find us on Facebook www.aerosociety.com JANUARY 2018 13 Radome INTELLIGENCE / ANALYSIS / COMMENT Power management Siemens will supply the 2MW electric motor, as well as the motor power electronics and the inverter, DC/DC converter and power distribution system. APU on steroids Providing power to a 2MW generator (the most powerful ever flown, according to Rolls-Royce), will be a R-R AE2100 gas turbine, normally used to power the C-130. Note intake for this turbine in rear fuselage. Electric thrust A single Honeywell turbofan will be swapped for a 2MW Siemens electric motor. The fan and nacelle will use an exist- ing R-R design from its AE3007 engine. The 146 was chosen as a four-engined aircraft, as it provides a safety margin and allows the team to potentially convert a second turbofan to electric power if initial tests are successful. Airbus 4 AEROSPACE / JANUARY 2018 Optimising flight Aimed to fly in 2020, the E-Fan X will explore thermal effects, power management, altitude and dynamic effects and electromagnetic issues of this 3,000volt power system. On a production hybrid-electric airliner, adding additional power from the batteries for the most energy intensive phases of flight will allow a smaller turbofan to be used in cruise, dramatically reducing fuel burn. Flightdeck Airbus will supply the cockpit HMI (human machine interface) for the E-Fan X, as well as the HEPS (hybrid electric propulsion system) ‘e-Supervisor’. AEROSPACE E-Fan X charges ahead Officially announced at the Royal Aeronautical Society HQ on 28 November was a partnership between airframer Airbus, engine-maker Rolls-Royce and electrics specialist Siemens to develop a hybrid-electric flight demonstrator called the E-Fan X. Based on a BAe 146 RJ, the E-Fan X, set to fly in 2020, will be used to explore hybrid-electric flight, which promises lower noise and 'double digit' fuel savings – opening up new possibilities for greener, quieter regional airliners in the 2030s. @aerosociety i Find us on LinkedIn f Find us on Facebook www.aerosociety.com JANUARY 2018 5 Radome GENERAL AVIATION AEROSPACE The Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) has carried out what it says is 'a first' in Pilatus PC-24 awarded aviation safety with collision testing between a small UAV and passenger aircraft. The certification testing, on 30 November at an AVIC facility in Xiangbei, saw a DJI drone and the nose section of a civil airliner impact at representative speeds, Switzerland’s Pilatus PC-24 is Pilatus’ first using a moving sled.