December 18, 2017 - No. 098 In This Issue FPT Software and Airbus Ink a Letter of Intent to Cooperate in Aviation Technology Army partners with Marine Corps on 3-D printed drones Aerion and Lockheed Martin Join Forces to Develop World's First Supersonic Business Jet New Stealth Drone Has No Moving Surfaces at All GE and Tata Group to manufacture LEAP engine components in India Countdown to CORSIA: a new plan to achieve carbon neutral growth Airbus, Thai Airways to set up aircraft maintenance hub in Thailand Northrop Grumman Completes Development of Situation Awareness System, Gets $124M Contract Sacramento Airport Celebrates Opening of 8.9 Megawatt Solar Facility SpaceX launches and lands its first used rocket for NASA FPT Software and Airbus Ink a Letter of Intent to Cooperate in Aviation Technology HANOI, Vietnam--(BUSINESS WIRE)--FPT Software and Airbus have signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) in looking the opportunities to develop aviation technology related to Airbus's Skywise, a recently launched aviation data platform. According to the LoI, FPT Software, in short term, will look to create a pool of up to 500 developers and train these software talents of how to utilize Skywise in developing solutions to improve business efficiency in the aviation industry. The training courses about Skywise platform will then be expanded for Airbus's customers and Skywise users. Furthermore, FPT Software is ambitioning to be one of the strategic partner of Airbus in consulting, developing applications as well as acting as technical support and helpdesk division regarding services and applications related to Skywise Platform. The cooperation between FPT Software and Airbus will also invest topics such as provision of API for third parties to develop applications on Skywise; migration of applications onto Skywise and maintenance of Skywise applications. The two companies also agree to investigate how FPT Software can help for developing technology services and solutions for Airbus in the following areas: Innovative Application Development, Predictive maintenance applications, Cloud, Data analysis, Micro services/API design and development from existing components. Airbus launched Skywise in June 2017. This platform gathers aviation data from various sources such as work orders; spares consumption; components data; aircraft / fleet configuration; on-board sensor data; and flight schedules into one cloud-based platform, enabling users to access a single point yet gaining deep data insights. In addition, Skywise, with the ability to interpret large set of fleet and flight operations data, can help airlines to improve business efficiency by reducing flight disruptions; decreasing maintenance cost through predictive maintenance; optimizing flight operations; transforming cabin and ground operations; making faster decisions to cope with unexpected events; and optimizing fleet management. Furthermore, Skywise's secure and open platform empowers other airlines to store, access, manage and analyze selected Airbus data with their own data after the integration process, hence allow them to benchmark data without the need for additional infrastructure investments, revealing the business value of data which has been unutilized. At the signing ceremony, Mr. Marc Fontaine, Digital Transformation Officer of Airbus emphasized: "Skywise, "the beating heart of aviation", is a strategic initiative at the core of Airbus digital transformation and a game changer for the entire industry. As part of this open and innovative ecosystem, we are happy to engage with FPT as one of the partners that will help us taking this challenging endeavor further" Mr. Truong Gia Binh, FPT's Chairman also reaffirmed: "The cooperation agreement with Airbus on Skywise Data Platform has marked a significant milestone of FPT in the journey to become trusted partners of global leading technology corporations in developing and implementing their digital platforms. With strong expertise in aviation industry, we commit to invest resources in order to develop Airbus's Skywise as well as other aviation technology services and solutions". FPT Software has years of experience in aviation industry by cooperating with the largest airlines in the United States as well as the flag carrier of Vietnam - Vietnam Airlines. The company's expertise has been proven by a vast array of projects such as Airlines E-commerce Portal, Frequent Flyer Applications to facilitate the implementation of Customer Loyalty Program, and Navigational Information & Flight Planning Application. Since 2013, FPT Software has been Vietnam Airlines' strategic partner in providing services and solutions on mobile devices, website development, e- commerce, cloud computing, security, big data, hosting/data center, international and domestic transmission, internet service, ERP, etc. FPT Software also has capabilities and experience of cooperating with technology giants including Amazon Web Services (AWS), GE Predix and Siemens in leveraging as well as implementing partners' platform so as to bring about disruptive digital solutions helping enterprises change the way they do business. Specifically, FPT Software was one of the earliest AWS's partners to achieve Managed Service and Migration Competencies in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Since 2016, the company has been GE Predix's global partner with the most number of Predix certified engineers. More recently, in July 2017, FPT Software has become partner of Siemens in MindSphere IoT Operating System. About Airbus Airbus is a global leader in aeronautics, space and related services. In 2016, it generated revenues of €67 billion and employed a workforce of around 134,000. Airbus offers the most comprehensive range of passenger airliners from 100 to more than 600 seats. Airbus is also a European leader providing tanker, combat, transport and mission aircraft, as well as Europe's number one space enterprise and the world's second largest space business. In helicopters, Airbus provides the most efficient civil and military rotorcraft solutions worldwide. About FPT Software FPT Software is a subsidiary of FPT Corporation - the global leading technology, outsourcing and IT services group headquartered in Vietnam with over US$1.8 billion revenue and 28,000 employees. Qualified with CMMI Level 5 v1.3 & ISO 27001, FPT Software delivers world-class services in Analytics, IoT, Mobility, Cloud, Embedded System, QA testing, Legacy Migration, Package Implementation, Application Service, and BPO services globally from delivery centers across the United States, Japan, Europe, Australia, Vietnam and the Asia Pacific. With focus on R&D activities to improve quality of services, the company has been serving over 450 customers worldwide, of which nearly 50 are Fortune 500 in the industries of manufacturing, semiconductors, healthcare, utility, financial services, satellite TV and more. For more information, please visit https://www.fpt- software.com/ https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171215005239/en/FPT-Software-Airbus-Ink-Letter- Intent-Cooperate Back to Top Army partners with Marine Corps on 3-D printed drones ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- Army researchers are working with the Marines to develop 3- D printed drones as materials science, aviation technology and software development merge to deliver new capabilities. "Several years ago when we were collaborating with our academic partner, Georgia Tech, we had this project where we were focusing on design engineering of small unmanned aircraft systems," said Eric Spero, a team lead within the laboratory's Vehicle Technology Directorate. Spero and his team brought their idea to fruition at the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command's annual event at Fort Benning, Georgia in 2016. The Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiment or AEWE puts new technologies in the the hands of Soldiers. This is theme of a new YouTube documentary released by the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (see related links). The video details how researchers first envisioned on-demand printing with a suite of tools that would allow for Soldiers to enter mission parameters and then get a 3-D printed aviation asset within 24 hours. Researchers then reached out the the U.S. Marine Corps and started working with them to provide a software catalog that Marines would use to select and print an unmanned aircraft system for a specific mission. Additive manufacturing, or 3-D printing is maturing as a viable means to produce mission-essential parts or equipment at the point of need, said ARL engineer Larry (LJ) R. Holmes Jr. "We have interacted with Marines who have never touched an unmanned system before to Marines who are experts in unmanned aerial flight," Holmes said. "Across the board they were all they all seemed to be very interested in the topic of being able to manufacture a tool that they can use that was mission specific and has a turn around." Holmes said the Marines expected the turn around to be days or weeks and they showed them that the turnaround time can be anywhere from minutes to hours. Researchers said they plan to streamline their processes based on feedback received from the Marines in order to enable unprecedented situational awareness. "Things like additive manufacturing with materials, artificial intelligence and machine learning, unmanned systems technologies, these will enable us to bring together the capabilities that will allow the future Soldiers and Marines the decisive edge that they need in the battlefield," said Elias Rigas, a division chief in ARL's Vehicle Technology Directorate. The capability to print something from a spool of plastic that flies off on a military mission is something that captures the imagination, Holmes said. "I think a lot of folks are interested in additive manufacturing because we've seen on sci-fi shows...just walking up to a user interface and saying, 'cheeseburger,' and there's my cheeseburger," he said. "I think that as additive manufacturing continues to to grow and the technologies continue to evolve that we're going to get to a point eventually where we will be making things in a similar fashion where you will walk up to your user interface and say, 'unmanned aerial system,' and it will make it for you." http://okinawa.stripes.com/news/army-partners-marine-corps-3-d-printed-drones Back to Top Aerion and Lockheed Martin Join Forces to Develop World's First Supersonic Business Jet WASHINGTON, Dec. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Two leaders in supersonic technology, Aerion and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today to define a formal and gated process to explore the feasibility of a joint development of the world's first supersonic business jet, the Aerion AS2. Over the next 12 months, the companies will work together to develop a framework on all phases of the program, including engineering, certification and production. Aerion Chairman Robert M. Bass stated, "This relationship is absolutely key to creating a supersonic renaissance. When it comes to supersonic know-how, Lockheed Martin's capabilities are well known, and, in fact, legendary. We share with Lockheed Martin a commitment to the long-term development of efficient civil supersonic aircraft." "We are excited to work with Aerion on their development of the next-generation, efficient supersonic jet that will potentially serve as a platform for pioneering future supersonic aircraft," said Orlando Carvalho, Executive Vice President, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. The MOU is the result of extensive discussions between Aerion and Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works® Advanced Development Programs team. For close to 75 years, Skunk Works has existed to create revolutionary aircraft that push the boundaries of what is possible. Lockheed Martin, known for developing the world's leading supersonic combat aircraft, the F-16, the F-35, and F-22, as well as the Mach 3+ SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft, is committed to fostering new innovations and developing supersonic technologies with civil and commercial applications. "Following our initial review of Aerion's aerodynamic technology, our conclusion is that the Aerion AS2 concept warrants the further investment of our time and resources," said Carvalho. "We are committed to remaining on the cutting edge of aerospace technology and are excited to examine the contribution we might make to working with Aerion on making aviation history." During the last two and a half years, Aerion advanced the aerodynamics and structural design of the AS2 through a previous engineering collaboration agreement with Airbus. Through that effort, the two companies developed a preliminary design of wing and airframe structures, systems layout, and preliminary concepts for a fly-by-wire flight control system. "We are grateful for Airbus' contribution to the program," said Brian Barents, Aerion Executive Chairman. "We could not have moved the program to this stage without their support." In May 2017, GE Aviation announced an agreement with Aerion to define a supersonic engine for the AS2. The latest announcement with Lockheed Martin further positions Aerion as the leader in the nascent sector of civil supersonic aviation. About Aerion Corporation Aerion Corporation of Reno, Nevada, was formed in 2003 to introduce a new era of practical and efficient supersonic flight. Over more than a decade, Aerion has developed and demonstrated advanced wing technology in conjunction with NASA and other leading aeronautical institutions. This research includes breakthrough work in supersonic natural laminar flow, the key enabling technology behind the AS2 business jet. The 12-passenger AS2 is expected to fly at a maximum speed of Mach 1.4 over water, and, where permitted by regulation, at speeds approaching Mach 1.2 without a sonic boom reaching the ground. Thanks to its unique supersonic natural laminar flow wing, the aircraft is expected to achieve long range (LA to Paris) and efficiency at supersonic and subsonic speeds. Once fielded, it will reduce trans-Atlantic trips by as much as three hours, enabling business leaders to fly roundtrip between New York and Londonin a day. In November 2015, Aerion announced a fleet order from fractional aircraft fleet operator Flexjet for 20 AS2 aircraft. Aerion expects the AS2's first flight in 2023 and certification in 2025. About Lockheed Martin Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 97,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products, and services. More information can be found at www.aerionsupersonic.com. http://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/Aerion-and-Lockheed-Martin-Join-Forces-to- Develop-World-s-First-Supersonic-Business-Jet-1011568599 Back to Top New Stealth Drone Has No Moving Surfaces at All BAE Systems has unveiled a new aircraft design that could be a major advance in stealth technology. The new MAGMA drone does away with aircraft control surfaces, resulting in an aircraft whose shape remains constant throughout its entire flight. The small demonstration aircraft, which has completed a successful first flight, uses blown air to change direction instead of complex mechanical controls. Most airplanes look unmoving in flight, like a wing hanging off a giant tube plowing through the sky. Look more closely however and you'll see smaller parts of the airplane frequently moving to control the direction of the aircraft. Conventional aircraft use a system of elevators, rudders, and ailerons to control their direction in the pitch, (up and down) yaw (left to right), and roll directions. These mechanical devices are usually in the shape of control surfaces attached to the rear of the wing, horizontal, and vertical stabilizers and are controlled by the pilot-or sometimes an onboard flight computer. Control surfaces have been an instrumental part of aircraft since the early 20th century. They're large and heavy, and require a fairly complicated mechanism to move them in mid-flight. These mechanisms can and do fail, limiting an airplane's maneuverability, sometimes with tragic consequences. Among the new generation stealth warplanes such as the B-2 Spirit, F-22 Raptor, and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, control surfaces can also affect an airplane's carefully shaped stealth profile, as the fin-like device moves upward or downward, momentarily making the aircraft slightly more visible to radar. MAGMA's innovations could be a fix to both the problem of mechanical complexity and stealth, and accomplishes this by doing away with elevators, rudders, and ailerons in exchange for a system redirected air from the engine and air blowers. The first process, known as wing circulation control, redirects air from the engine moving at supersonic speeds and blows it through the trailing edge of the wing. The second process, known as fluidic thrust vectoring, uses air blowers to change the direction of the aircraft's exhaust. Combined, both processes allow the pilot to control the direction of the aircraft merely by manipulating the air around it. The elimination of hydraulic controls, replaced with air redirecting ducts and air blowers, will make aircraft with this technology cheaper, easier to maintain, and safer. MAGMA also helps keep the plane stealthy. A pilot or drone operator can change directions without fear that doing so makes his or her plane more visible to radar. MAGMA's technology is impressive enough to nearly break out the "R" word: revolutionary. That having been said, the tech is limited to a single pilotless drone that has completed a single flight. If the tech is everything BAE Systems claims, the benefits are so potentially so great it should be rapidly implemented on new aircraft designs. Mechanical aircraft controls might have had a good one hundred year run, but maybe it's time for blown air to finally take over. http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/a14435997/new-stealth-drone-has-no- moving-surfaces-at-all/ Back to Top GE and Tata Group to manufacture LEAP engine components in India GE Aviation and Tata Group have signed an agreement to manufacture CFM International's LEAP engine components in India. The fuel-efficient LEAP engine is used to power single-aisle commercial jets. Both parties also agreed to jointly pursue military engine and aircraft system opportunities in the Indian market. GE chairman and CEO John Flannery said: "Tata Group is a leader in the Indian defence and aerospace sector, and we look forward to working together to meet the growing demand for LEAP engines. "Our collaboration in building innovative technologies will support the 'Make in India' vision of the Indian Government." Under the terms of the partnership agreement, GE Aviation and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) will collaborate to manufacture, assemble, integrate and test aircraft components. TASL specialises in providing integrated solutions for aerospace, defence and homeland security operating throughout the aerospace value chain from design to full aircraft assembly. A new centre of excellence will also be formed under the partnership to develop a strong system for aircraft engine manufacturing services in India, as well as help in building associated capabilities. A 50/50 joint company of GE and Safran Aircraft Engines, CFM International manufactures LEAP engines. The LEAP engine family is currrently used in commercial service by more than 26 customers operating more than 140 aircraft on four continents. https://www.aerospace-technology.com/news/ge-tata-group-manufacture-leap-engine- components-india/ Back to Top Countdown to CORSIA: a new plan to achieve carbon neutral growth CORSIA - a global market-based measure under which airlines will monitor and offset their carbon emissions - is a major coup for the aviation industry as it looks to achieve the lofty target of carbon neutral growth. But what are the benefits of the scheme and what challenges remain for airlines ahead of its 2020 deadline? The contribution of aviation to climate change has long been a sticking point for environmentalists. According to the most recent figures from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the global aviation industry produces around 2% of all human-induced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, with flights worldwide emitting a staggering 781 million tonnes of CO2 in 2015. In spite of the sector's predicted growth, aviation organisations are adamant that a landmark agreement last year will help the industry to meet its global emission reduction goals. On 6 October 2016, government representatives from nearly 200 countries met at the International Civil Aviation Organisation's (ICAO) 39th General Assembly to formalise its Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). CORSIA is a global market-based measure that aims to offset emissions from the aviation sector, with the ultimate aim of achieving carbon-neutral growth for the industry from 2020 onwards. The scheme is in line with the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) four-pillar strategy introduced in 2007, which sought a commitment from aviation stakeholders to invest in improved technology, operations and infrastructure to reduce aviation's environmental impact. Offsetting carbon emissions At the time of writing, 72 ICAO member states have voluntarily agreed to participate in the pilot phase and the first official phase of CORSIA, which will run from 2021-2026. From 2027, participation will be mandatory for member states meeting certain criteria related to their level of aviation activities, with the exception of several less developed or landlocked countries. Under CORSIA, the average volume of CO2emissions released by airlines involved in the scheme between 2019 and 2020 will represent the basis for carbon neutral growth from 2020. In any year after this that aircraft operators submit a higher number of emissions, they must purchase an equivalent number of offsets (or 'emission units') to support environmental projects in other industries. It will be up to ICAO member states to enforce the rules for operators based in their country. "There will be a very strict monitoring mechanism to make sure that what is being reported by airlines is accurate and to make sure that they've surrendered the required number of offsets," says IATA director of environment Michael Gill. "It will be up to each government to implement CORSIA into domestic law and then it would be according to international law how you enforce [the regulation] against an airline who you as a national regulator have authority for." The ICAO has been under increased pressure to come up with such a measure since 2012, when aviation was included in the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Operators flying to and from EU airports were asked to monitor and surrender allowances for their emissions, a requirement that has proved deeply unpopular with countries outside of Europe. IATA hopes that CORSIA will remove the need for the EU ETS to monitor aviation emissions, and act as the sole global market-based measure for airlines to abide by. This is expected to be the scheme's main benefit; as many airlines fly into lots of different countries every day, submitting them to a patchwork of national taxes and offsetting mechanisms would be needlessly complex and costly. CORSIA, on the other hand, gives these airlines a single point of accountability. "It recognises the unique nature of aviation emissions," says Gill. "If your average carrier operates in and out of hundreds of jurisdictions every day, it's extremely difficult to link your CO2emissions to a single country and that's why having this global mechanism makes much more sense." Preparing airlines As the scheme will take 2019-2020 as its baseline period, airlines from ICAO states will need to monitor their emissions from 1 January 2019. Thus, a major challenge for the scheme's advocates in 2018 will be educating airlines to ensure the successful implementation of CORSIA. IATA is working with the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) and other airline associations to raise awareness as part of its Countdown to CORSIA campaign. In October 2017, at ATAG's Global Sustainable Aviation Summit in Geneva, aircraft operators and governments were told that now is the time to begin their preparations. "We have an ambitious series of workshops scheduled for the early part of 2018 for different regions of the world to make sure that airlines know what CORSIA means, [as well as] put in place the right internal processes and resources to professionally implement it," says Gill. "At the same time IATA's developing some tools on behalf of its members that will facilitate the whole task. We have a specific emissions reporting tool which we're going to roll out in the course of 2018, and that is geared specifically at making compliance with CORSIA much easier for airlines." The Countdown to CORSIA campaign is telling airlines to build their capacity by hiring experts, filling resource gaps, and adapting their data collection systems, thereby ensuring they are ready to begin monitoring emissions and calculate their offset obligations. While airlines prepare, IATA and regional airline associations have been working with ICAO to iron out the technical details of CORSIA. The ICAO is currently looking at how it can standardise the way airlines should report their CO2 emissions, as well as how governments monitor and verify the reports that they receive. "It's quite technical and therefore it takes a certain amount of work to go through," says Gill. "The challenge that we have is trying to get those technical standards agreed in time for when the scheme comes into effect in 2021." Getting aviation players onboard Since CORSIA's announcement, critics have claimed that offsetting carbon emissions is not a viable means of addressing climate change, as it allows emissions to continue to grow for as long as offset credits are available. One particular concern is that the scheme will not help countries to cut their emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, which aims to keep global temperatures from rising more than 2°C this century. Another is that the scheme is currently only concerned with emissions released during international flights. Nevertheless, IATA says that CORSIA should be recognised as a positive step for the industry's short-term goal of carbon neutral growth, rather than a long-term solution for cutting emissions. It claims that aviation stakeholders remain committed to IATA's ongoing four-pillar strategy, which it hopes will reduce CO2 emissions to 50% of 2005 levels by 2050. "This target cannot be met by offsetting - it must be achieved through new technologies, including sustainable aviation fuels, more efficient operations, and better infrastructure," says IATA assistant director of corporate communications Chris Goater. "The industry targets and four-pillar strategy offer a way forward that helps aviation become more sustainable while still being able to be the business of freedom for so many travellers, not just in the developed world, but increasingly the developing world too." Despite this, there are still many ICAO members who have yet to volunteer for the scheme, and the pressure is therefore on to get these countries to participate to optimise CORSIA's role as a carbon neutraliser. IATA has made clear that countries will not benefit from delaying their entry into the scheme. When countries join in the mandatory phase from 2027, their operators will be subject to the same baseline level of emissions that they reported in 2020. "We're looking at a number of other big aviation players who have not yet indicated they'll volunteer, so we're working with the governments there to explain that from a cost perspective, CORSIA is the preferred option rather than national regulation/national legislation," says Gill. CORSIA is undoubtedly a milestone, as it will effectively be the first market-based measure to regulate the carbon emissions of a particular sector worldwide. Nevertheless, with the deadline looming, the scheme will rely on participation on airlines and as much early adoption as possible to increase its chances of success. http://www.airport-technology.com/features/countdown-corsia-new-plan-achieve-carbon-neutral- growth/ Back to Top Airbus, Thai Airways to set up aircraft maintenance hub in Thailand BANGKOK, Dec 15 (Reuters) - National carrier Thai Airways International and Airbus plan to jointly open an aircraft maintenance and repair operations (MRO) hub in Thailand, a Thai Airways official said on Friday. The hub will cost about 11 billion baht ($338 million), of which about 7 billion baht will come from the Thai navy's budget, while a Thai Airways-Airbus joint venture will invest the rest, Thai Airways Management and Flying Officer Ronnachai Wongchaoum told reporters in Bangkok. The aviation maintenance hub will be set up at Thailand's U-Tapao Airport, a joint civil-military airport near the country's eastern seaboard. The proposed project will add to the growing aviation maintenance sector spread across Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, potentially posing a threat to Singapore, the region's dominant hub for aircraft maintenance and repair. Thai Airways will start maintaining the Airbus A380 with the support of Airbus teams in U-Tapao, which is located 150 kilometers (90 miles) east of Bangkok, the airline said in a statement on Friday. The new facility will provide services including heavy maintenance, line maintenance and aircraft painting services, the carrier added. "Early next decade, new hangar facilities will be built, while U-Tapao will become a growing airport with eventually two runways," it said. "The Management of both companies have a joint vision for the new MRO campus to be the most modern aircraft maintenance facility equipped with the most modern aircraft technology," the Thai company said. For years, successive Thai governments have talked about developing U-Tapao airport, currently used as a naval airbase, into an international commercial airport to support growing foreign tourist arrivals. ($1 = 32.5400 baht) (Reporting by Pracha Hariraksapitak; Writing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri) http://www.businessinsider.com/r-airbus-thai-airways-to-set-up-aircraft-maintenance-hub-in- thailand-2017-12 Back to Top Northrop Grumman Completes Development of Situation Awareness System, Gets $124M Contract The U.S. Army and U.S. Navy aircrews are set to receive new situational awareness solutions from Northrop Grumman. The company said Thursday it has received a contract award for production of AN/APR-39D(V)2 digital radar warning receiver and electronic warfare management systems. Worth $124.7 million, the deal follows the completion of engineering and manufacturing development activities. This included a series of tests that verified the system's readiness for production and the demands of combat operations, according to Northrop Grumman. The solution is small and lightweight. It provides 360-deg coverage to detect and identify radio frequency threats to an aircraft. As an electronic warfare management suite, the APR-39D(V)2 can display data from multiple onboard sensors and automatically initiate countermeasures to protect aircrews, Northrop Grumman said. The system incorporates high-performance digital receiver technology, enhanced signal processing and updated apertures for comprehensive aircraft survivability. "With the AN/APR-39D(V)2, we are bringing mature, fifth-generation digital technology to the rotary fleet," said Robert Fleming, VP of the land and avionics C4ISR division at Northrop Grumman Mission Systems. "With its growth path to additional capabilities, including radio frequency countermeasures and advanced self-protection, the AN/APR-39D(V)2 will help warfighters stay ahead of emerging threats." http://www.aviationtoday.com/2017/12/15/northrop-grumman-completes-development-situation- awareness-system-gets-124m-contract/ Back to Top Sacramento Airport Celebrates Opening of 8.9 Megawatt Solar Facility Sacramento International Airport officials and community representatives on Dec. 14, celebrated the opening of a new solar facility which is expected to provide more than 30 percent of the airport's electricity. It is the largest on-airport solar facility in California The airport had no costs for construction. The capital investment was provided by NRG, which financed construction by Borrego Solar. NRG owns and operates the facility and will sell electricity to Sacramento International Airport at a reduced rate under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). Projected cost savings from the project are an average of $850,000 annually throughout the 25- year term of the agreement. The 7.9 megawatt solar farm consists of a 15-acre east site on Aviation Drive and a 20-acre site north of the runway. The facility is comprised of more than 23,000 LG solar panels mounted on NEXTracker racking that tracks the sun's path from east to west over the course of the day, maximizing efficiency and energy production. The electricity generated by the facility is enough to power 1,600 homes a year. Solar arrays have been producing energy since Nov. 30. Today's event, taking place on a crisp, sunny Sacramento morning, was a celebration of months of hard work and collaboration. "This is an exciting development for the Sacramento International Airport. By partnering with a private company, we have a source of clean, renewable energy that will save money and furthers our commitment to sustainable practices," said John Wheat, Director of Airports for the Sacramento County Department of Airports. "It's truly a win-win scenario." "Over 10 million travelers fly in and out of Sacramento Airport each year who will now be able to see the value of solar at work and witness the airport's commitment to clean, reliable, renewable energy," said Kevin Prince, Sr. Director of Business Development, NRG Renewables. "The airport and county had the vision to embrace solar technology. With this system now operational, we can offset one-third of the airport's annual load and, on certain days like today, offset the entire electricity needs of the airport." Borrego Solar Systems, a leading national developer, designer, installer and operator of commercial solar and energy storage systems developed and built the arrays. "By adopting solar, Sacramento Airport has not only made a prudent financial decision, but has also taken action to reduce its environmental impact. The solar energy produced over the life of the system will offset nearly 289,000 metric tons of harmful carbon dioxide equivalents - this is the same amount that would be offset by taking nearly 62,000 cars off the road," said Jackie Pitera, a senior member of Borrego Solar's project development team. "I want to congratulate airport leadership on a successful project and working with our operations team and NRG to get a solar project up and running in just six months of construction." http://www.aviationpros.com/press_release/12386995/airport-celebrates-opening-of-89- megawatt-solar-facility-will-provide-more-than-30-of-electricity Back to Top SpaceX launches and lands its first used rocket for NASA Update 12/15 10:46 AM ET: SpaceX's first flight with a pre-flown booster for NASA was a success. After launch, SpaceX successfully touched down its used Falcon 9 rocket at the company's ground- based Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral. This marks the 14th landing SpaceX has pulled off this year, and the second time this particular vehicle has landed following take off. This is also their 17th launch of 2017. Original story: Today, SpaceX will once again send cargo to the International Space Station for NASA, but this time, the company is employing mostly used hardware for the job. A Falcon 9 rocket that the company previously launched to the ISS in June will loft a used Dragon cargo capsule, filled with supplies and science experiments for the station crew. It's the first time SpaceX will fly a used rocket for one of its NASA resupply missions. SpaceX finally started re-flying its used rockets earlier this year, after years of landing the vehicles post-launch. But so far, only a few of the company's commercial customers have taken the plunge and put their satellites on previously flown Falcon 9 rockets. Now, NASA has signaled that it's willing to fly on SpaceX's used vehicles, too - a big endorsement for the company's reusable rocket technology. Moving forward, NASA says it will make the decision to fly used rockets for resupply missions on a case-by-case basis. This launch is also a big milestone for SpaceX because of where the mission is taking off from: the company's launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, SLC-40. The site has been out of commission since last September, after one of SpaceX's rockets exploded on the pad during a fueling procedure. Since then, the company has worked to rebuild the damaged site and even give it a few upgrades. SpaceX started the bulk of the repairs in February and has spent around $50 million to fix the site up, according to John Muratore, SpaceX's director at SLC-40. Today's mission will mark the first time SpaceX has flown from the site since the accident.And now that the pad is back in action, it paves the way for SpaceX to launch the company's next big rocket, the Falcon Heavy - a larger version of its Falcon 9 that includes three rocket cores. When SLC-40 went offline last year, SpaceX had to rely on its other pad at the Cape, a site called LC-39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, to launch all of its Florida missions. SpaceX ultimately wants to launch the Falcon Heavy from 39A, too, but the pad needed some modifications first in order to accommodate the larger rocket. SpaceX couldn't fully focus on the upgrades to 39A while repairs were still being done at SLC-40. Moving forward, the company plans to launch its Falcon 9 missions from SLC-40 and its Falcon Heavy flights from 39A. Earlier this year, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said that the first flight of the Falcon Heavy would happen in November, but the demonstration flight has been pushed back to sometime in January now. Meanwhile, SpaceX has just a couple more flights to round out the year, including today's cargo resupply flight. This morning's launch will carry nearly 4,800 pounds of cargo to the ISS. Included on board is a sensor designed to monitor how much space debris is surrounding the station, as well as another sensor that's supposed to measure how much sunlight reaches the Earth. And as per usual, SpaceX plans to land this Falcon 9 after take off at the company's ground-based landing site, Landing Zone 1. If successful, it'll mark the second time this rocket has landed after a flight and the 14th landing for SpaceX this year. Today's mission has suffered from a few delays, though. SpaceX was aiming to launch on December 12th, but wound up pushing back until today. The company said it needed more time to investigate particles it had found in part of the rocket's fuel system. If SpaceX doesn't end up launching today, then it'll have to wait until later in December. But so far, weather is looking good for launch, with a 90 percent chance of favorable conditions. Take off is scheduled for 10:36AM ET, and SpaceX has an instantaneous launch window for this flight, meaning the rocket has to go up at that time or else the mission will be delayed. NASA's coverage of the flight begins at 10AM ET, while SpaceX's coverage begins about 20 minutes before launch. Check back later to watch the mission live. https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/15/16759416/spacex-nasa-used-falcon-9-rocket-launch-live- stream Curt Lewis