CoolPix: RAAF (Australian) AEW&C - The Prickly 737!

(click pic for hi-res)

 The familiar Boeing 707 based E-3 AWACS (Airborne Warning And Control System) with the huge rotating disc antenna mounted in front of the vertical fin has been the mainstay of eye-in-the-sky air traffic control and detection for military operations since the late 70's. But when the RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) was looking to add large scale AWACS capabilities, they wanted a package that was a lot more cost effective. The Boeing 737 based AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning & Control), seen here flying over Sydney Harbour, is the result. It's actually a pretty stunning picture of the airplane nicknamed Wedgetail, with such a beautiful and iconic Australian backdrop... and it gives a really good view of the rather massive number of small prickly antennas and other unique protrusions that give this airplane its cutting edge electronic capabilities. 

 The significantly smaller 737-700 airframe with only two engines to feed and maintain greatly reduce overall operating costs. And while I can't speak for how effective that much smaller external antenna is as compared to the big rotating one on the E-3, it surely seems it must be simpler to maintain since it's fixed. The RAAF has ordered six 737 AEW&C, and while two of them were delivered by Boeing about a year ago, it wasn't until last May that the RAAF officially had them handed over into their full control. Three more aircraft have been scheduled to be delivered by the end of this year, but I haven't been able to confirm if that's still likely to happen. Overall, much like most all large aircraft projects in the last 10 years, the 737 AEW&C program has been somewhat disrupted by long delays. 

 In addition to the six airplanes ordered by the RAAF, Turkey and South Korea have both ordered some of them too. According to Boeing, a total of 14 of the 737 AEW&C aircraft have been purchased. If the deliveries can pick up pace, and if the airplane performs well in its intended role, this could become the new standard for airborne early warning systems.

Videos: AirPigz Inspired RC YC-14 - What A Great EDF Flyer!

(3 videos)

 I posted a CoolPix of the YC-14 a little while back - mostly cuz I've always thought it was a really awesome airplane. It had a different look, especially with those two big turbofans mounted up high and well forward of the wing... and from everything I can find out about it, it was also a spectacular performer. And then today, I got an email from Will who runs MikeysRC.com saying that he's really been enjoying AirPigz, (pardon me while I give myself a tiny pat on the back) and that he was especially inspired by the YC-14 post. He was so inspired in fact, by the knowledge of this airplane he'd never seen before, that he decided to build an twin EDF (Electric Ducted Fan) RC model of it!

 The video above shows what he came up with. It's a very lightweight foam slab 'quick build', all from scratch, but he's done a great job of capturing the visual essence of the YC-14 while still making it really easy to build. If you're in a hurry, skip ahead to about 1:20 for a good view and then the maiden flight launch. This little thing flies extremely well! I haven't flown any electric ducted fans, but I've heard they often don't really perform very well... for whatever reason, they're working great on this little YC-14. The video after the jump explains the second very cool feature of this YC-14. Will has it set up for FPV, or First Person View flying. Yeah, it's like full UAV with onboard live video streaming back to the pilot! This is all so cool : )

Click to read more ...

Caption Contest #44 - Ends Wednesday 12.8.10 At 9PM EST

  Ahh, it's hard to beat the crazy testing days of the 50's and 60's for wild flying machine concepts... and this one is about as wild as they come. Even more, those two rotors right under the pilot's feet kinda remind me of the sliced bacon I'll be cooking up and making into a bacon sandwich at Oshkosh 2011 for the person who wins this contest!

 So, you've got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EST to submit your clever/funny/cool captions. Then, I’ll pick the best 5 and put ’em in a poll for everyone to vote on for all day Thursday and Friday so we can find the winner.

 The Rules: 

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EST 

4) Keep it clean!

 Then, anyone who wants to can cast their vote will be able to starting Thursday morning and running thru til 9pm EST Friday. The winner will be posted Saturday morning 12-11-10. And hey, watch that first step, she can be a real doozy!

Video: Time-Lapse Morph Of First 777 Into New United Paint

 I sure don't know if merging United and Continental airlines together was a good idea, but I do know that watching this cool time lapsed video of the first 777 to be converted from old UAL paint to the new combo scheme is both a good idea and a lot of fun. So please, do it now : )

Caption Contest #43 - A 'Brake Lock' Winner!

 Congrats to 'seerjfly', a repeat offender in the Caption Contest! There'll be more than one bacon sandwich to collect at Oshkosh 2011 for this captioning excellence... I hope OSH11 is in your summer avgeek plans for next year.

 The 'heels on the floor' idea is a great one, but I was really pulling for the Shuttle dragster/wheelie concept here. No worries tho, it's all just so we can have some fun with pix of flying machines. Thanx again to all who tossed a caption in the ring, and to all who voted.

 Watch next Monday morning for another chance to win a hot, sizzling, Oshkosh bacon sandwich : )

Video: The Kinda Mysterious X-37B Space UAV Returns To Earth

(video and info via 30th Space Wing Vandengerg youtube channel)

12/3/2010 - VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The U.S. Air Force's first unmanned re-entry spacecraft landed at Vandenberg Air Force Base at 1:16 a.m. today.

The X-37B, named Orbital Test Vehicle 1 (OTV-1), conducted on-orbit experiments for more than 220 days during its maiden voyage. It fired its orbital maneuver engine in low-earth orbit to perform an autonomous reentry before landing.

The X-37B is the newest and most advanced re-entry spacecraft. Managed by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (AFRCO), the X-37B program performs risk reduction, experimentation and concept of operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies.

"Today's landing culminates a successful mission based on close teamwork between the 30th Space Wing, Boeing and the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office," said Lt Col Troy Giese, X-37B program manager from the AFRCO. "We are very pleased that the program completed all the on-orbit objectives for the first mission."

OTV-1's de-orbit and landing mark the transition from the on-orbit demonstration phase to a refurbishment phase for the program. 

The Air Force is preparing to launch the next X-37B, OTV-2, in Spring 2011 aboard an Atlas V booster.

CoolPix - NASA: That’s One Jacked Up B-29! (Seriously)

(click pic for hi-res)

 OK, technically it’s not a B-29, it’s actually the B-50, which is the airplane that was going to be called the B-29D, but in the postwar WWII era, this enhanced version of the B-29 wound up with the big leap in numbers all the way up to 50. It is however, seriously jacked up here! There’s just no limit to what buckets full of money can do.

 This amazing picture is from November 1951 and shows the X-1-3, the third aircraft in the original configuration of the Bell X-1, being positioned under the lifted B-50. The X-1-3 was first used by the Air Force along with the X-1-1 and the X-1-2 for supersonic testing, but by this far into the program Bell was working on significantly upgraded X-1 designs (X-1A, B and D) and thus the Air Force cancelled the X-1-3 program. NACA then acquired the airplane for continued supersonic research to be conducted at Edwards. While this picture is incredible in that it showcases those amazing jacks used to raise the B-50, it also has a rather tragic follow up story. After the picture was taken, the X-1 was attached to the B-50 for a captive test flight, which did take place, but in the de-fueling process of the X-1 back on the ground, it exploded and caught fire, destroying both aircraft. Joe Cannon, the pilot in the X-1-3 survived the explosion but was seriously burned and spent nearly a year in the hospital recovering. The cause of the explosion, as well as several others that had taken place, was eventually traced to a compound used to treat leather that was used in some of the systems gaskets. That compound was prone to explosion when in the presence of pure oxygen and mechanical shock.

 The flight ending in the de-fueling explosion was only the second flight for the X-1-3. The first flight, a glide test also flown by Joe Cannon, was conducted in July 1951. The short video below has some excellent footage of the release from the B-50 on that flight.

Algie Composite Aircraft 'LP1' - 385 MPH At FL290 & 14.5 GPH?

Algie Composite Aircraft LP1 rendering and logo  (images: Woodward Aerospace)

 (11 pix, 2 videos)

 The LP1, or 'Light Pressurized 1', began over 15 years ago in the mind of David Algie. It wasn’t just an idea 15 years ago tho, work actually began on this airplane that far back, and the basic shape has been frozen for quite a long time. The LP1 is a two-place, pressurized, carbon fiber kit aircraft powered by an adapted Chevy Corvette LS engine that is intended to operate at altitudes as high as 29,000 feet (with sea level cockpit pressurization) and cruise at 385 mph burning just 14.5 gallons of fuel per hour. Even more astonishing is the goal for a 1,080 pound empty weight which will give this aircraft the ability to carry two 200 pound people, 50 pounds of baggage, and 62 gallons of fuel… all with a gross weight of just 1,902 pounds. Imagine the climb performance with 300 hp under the hood and such a light airplane!

 When I first saw the airplane at Sun-n-Fun in April 2010, the claim of 385 mph on 14.5 gph along with that flashy engine compartment, and the general feeling that this airplane wasn't designed the way were used to in the aviation world is what caused me to shake my head and walk away. The 2-seat carbon airframe with an elliptical wing claiming crazy high cruise speeds, sea level pressurization at 29,000 feet, and with an automotive engine tightly shoehorned into the cowl (and an unusual looking prop/spinner nose) pretty much told me this was just another crazy dreamer. I’ve been around homebuilt airplanes since the early 70’s, since before I was even a teenager, and I’ve seen a boatload of dreamers come along and make Bede-esque claims of wild performance coupled with low cost and build simplicity... but in the end, they all disappeared.

David Algie and the LP1 featured on a STIHL sponsored video recently

The LP1 on display at Sun-n-Fun 2010  (photo: Woodward Aerospace)

 But a couple months ago I had reason to be curious enough to find out more about that ’crazy’ airplane, and the research that day opened my eyes to what just might become one of the most revolutionary aircraft of the last 40 years.

Click to read more ...

Caption Contest #43 - Ends Wednesday 12.1.10 At 9PM EST

 Of course Shuttle Discovery is landing in this pic, but it doesn’t take much imagination to think it might not be landing at all. I’m hoping you get that, and you can spin some fun into a good caption, or two, or maybe even three.

 Since the final launch for Discovery is currently scheduled for mid December (no earlier than 12-17-10) and with the final flights for Shuttles Endeavour and Atlantis planned for 2011, it’s definitely time to be remembering, honoring, and maybe even having a little fun with the Shuttle program… especially if there’s a bacon sandwich at Oshkosh 2011 to be won!

 So, you've got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EST to submit your clever/funny/cool captions. Then, I’ll pick the best 5 and put ’em in a poll for everyone to vote on for all day Thursday and Friday so we can find the winner.

 The Rules: 

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EST 

4) Keep it clean!

 Then, anyone who wants to can cast their vote will be able to starting Thursday morning and running thru til 9pm EST Friday. The winner will be posted Saturday morning 12-4-10. And now… it’s burnout time!

Videos: Oshkosh Dreamin' As We Head Toward Winter

 The high temp in northern Indiana today was right around the freezing mark, and with the clear knowledge that winter is on the way I found myself aching for some pure summer feelings... and that of course left me thinking about Oshkosh! It's pretty hard to beat a video (or two) from youtuber slickhutto for getting that OSH feeling stirred up, so here ya go! The 2009 Oshkosh video from Slick is above - I figured if you've already seen it, it's probably been a while, so it should feel pretty fresh...

...and this video is the one from 2010. Slick does a great job of capturing the real feel of Oshkosh, while also doing a fab job of editing. If you're a purist and would rather watch some Oshkosh without it bering a music video, check out Slick's youtube page for the more recent uploads that run 10 minutes and feature airplanes with all their natural (beautiful) sounds.

 I hope watching these videos inspires you to push ahead with whatever aviation project you're into. Whether you're building an airplane, learning to fly, upgrading your ratings, or maybe needing to fall in love with flying again (or just soaking up all the aviation knowledge you can find), watching moments from Oshkosh is one of the best ways to be motivated. I know it sure helps keep me going - thanx Slick : )