quote:

The Lockheed WP-3D Orion aircraft flown by the NOAA Hurricane Hunters are heavily instrumented flying laboratories specifically modified to take atmospheric and radar measurements within tropical cyclones and winter storms.

The NOAA G-IV Gulfstream high altitude jet conducts hurricane surveillance flying upwards of 4,000 miles (6,400 km) each flight to document upper and lower level winds that affect the movement of tropical cyclones. The hurricane models (computer models predicting hurricane tracks and intensity) mainly utilize NOAA G-IV dropwindsonde data that is collected both day and night in storms affecting the United States.

Tide posted:

That is incredible. Absolutely incredible. Do we (the US) have anything that can compete with that sort of manueverability? Granted it seemed relatively low speeds and the pilot was probably Russia's absolute best they have and it had no armament (adding weight), but it just seemed so effortless.

PatrickBateman posted:

Jt8d has a spool up time under 10 seconds or it doesn't pass test cell or fuel control swap. I'll check what cfm56-5a has but I know the pw4168a is also under 10 seconds. Time and temp, and altitude all factor into it.

Why do aircraft come in for approach above idle? Unstable approach criteria means engine has to be spooled up slightly else the response time would result in an accident. One of many things flight safety monitors for and reports back to pilots at a major airline.

BonzoESC posted:

Every time I've come in to FLL from the west (i.e. TPA, SFO, IAH) we've stabilized about fifty miles out, and they still throttle up about five miles off the field (University Drive).

On some ATL-FLL and TPA-FLL flights, the pilots basically keep I-75 off the port side of the plane the whole flight. Florida seems like an easy state to fly over.

Colonel K posted:

Excellent pictures frankenbeans, I particularly like the swordfish.

Here's a shot I snapped last night whilst out at the airfield.

iyaayas01 posted:

Is that a Lightning in the background?

And great pictures frankenbeans.

MrChips posted:

On a somewhat related note, while executing a missed approach at ILS minimums, many jet aircraft can actually touch down on the runway briefly before the engines have spooled up enough to produce a positive rate of climb; this is especially true of older aircraft without digital engine control.

frankenbeans posted:

monkeytennis posted:

And a Jet Provost? Vampire? Where is that?

frankenbeans posted:

BSAKat posted:

God almighty that's breathtaking. Are those Hurricanes or Spitfires (or one of each) escorting that Lancaster?

quote:

A British manufacturer will build a fleet of airships for Yellowknife’s Discovery Air to supply remote communities and enterprises in the North, the two companies say.

The futuristic giant blimps from Hybrid Air Vehicles will cost $40 million each, Discovery Air Innovations, a Quebec-based subsidiary of Discovery Air, announced after signing its agreement with HAV.

The aircraft use a mix of non-flammable helium and air power to fly and can land on almost any surface, HAV says on its website

They'll be able to carry up to 50 tonnes of cargo to mining camps and remote communities, HAV says.

Stuart Russell, the vice-president of a Yellowknife mining logistics company, suggests northern transportation is a challenge just waiting for solutions.
Roads can fail

"It's a huge logistical challenge when the ice roads fail,” he told CBC News. “In the High Arctic, there's lots of opportunity for oil and gas extraction but we have to find a way to do it. The airship may be one solution."

Hybrid Air Vehicles and Discovery Air Innovations are working together to design the airship for the North and get it through the certification process.

Discovery Air, which faced major financial problems two years ago and needed assistance from the Northwest Territories government, says it plans to buy up to 45 airships and hopes to have them operational by 2014.

HAV says technological improvements have allowed for an airship much better than the original concept.

"With a cargo capacity of 50 tonnes at speeds up to [185 km/h], we believe this capability will enable economic development of remote, stranded resources with a low environmental impact," HAV said on its website.

Ola posted:

I absolutely adore these Silence Twisters. I'd love to own one and it isn't even that unrealistic. The designers said they wanted a Ducati 999 Monoposto (Italian for single seat) of the sky - and if the engine manufacturers numbers are to be trusted it actually gets better fuel mileage than a sport bike.

Epic Fail Guy posted:

Well, if the wheels touch the runway, it becomes less "missed approach" and more "aborted landing".

slidebite posted:

This is kind of cool. I know there has been a lot of talk about new gen airships being built for heavy lifting, but this one sounds like it might actually happen.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/offbeat/story/2011/08/26/nwt-discovery-airship.html

Agreements signed and deliveries aren't being talked about in the far future, 2014 is pretty close.

Boomerjinks posted:

Who watched a Dreamlifter take off after touring the Everette plant today?

This guy.

BeastOfExmoor posted:

Everett.

Boomerjinks posted:

Also, I could live very well in Seattle so long as my porch had a view of floatplanes landing all day.

Boomerjinks posted:

Also, I could live very well in Seattle so long as my porch had a view of floatplanes landing all day.

MA-Horus posted:

Holy poo poo the P-8 is a 737 with a BOMB BAY

How cool is that poo poo?

Cygni posted:

AND external hardpoints. A 737 carrying missiles!

benito posted:

The bomber version of the 737 has been an idea for a long time, and it's a cool concept and a lot cheaper than developing something like a bomber version of the C-17. But as someone who only flies civilian... part of me worries about the 737 becoming a potential warplane. Are those windows real or painted on? Do I get fighter escorts when flying into certain countries, just in case? Do we have to start patrolling 737s flying into American airspace? "I'm just a little lost Southwest plane, nothing to see here..."

Not paranoia, not whining, just slightly worried about blurring the lines between civilian and military aircraft, especially given the massive number of countries that have used the 737 for civilian purposes.

KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:

given that rightfuckingnow you could cut a hole in the bottom of Civilian Airliner X and install a munitions-delivery system i don't see how having it be a factory option is really gonna make a difference

ack! posted:

It'll be interesting to see where the new 737 MAX will be built.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_kKD6g53AA

quote:

commercial airliners with missiles

GnarlyCharlie4u posted:

what the gently caress is going on in here???

Captain Postal posted:

not if you want the aircraft to take off again. That's load bearing sheet metal.

Boomerjinks posted:

Also, I could live very well in Seattle so long as my porch had a view of floatplanes landing all day.

BeastOfExmoor posted:

I knew a guy who lived on a houseboat on Lake Union just north of downtown. It was literally like living on a runway since float planes would be landing within a 1/4 mile of him all day long. I've lived here my whole life, so it's funny to hear you talk about float planes with such high regard. They are probably the least exciting plane to see to me.