Boeing has received a follow-on contract from the U.S. Air Force for additional upgrades of the Rockwell (Boeing) B-1 Lancer bomber fleet’s avionics software. The $57 million contract continues a software-sustainment program that has updated and improved the B-1′s sustainability and operational capabilities since the aircraft entered service in 1989. Usually, one avionics software block is in development while another is in test and a third is fielded on the fleet of 66 B-1s. This new agreement authorizes Boeing to start work on Sustainment Block 16A (SB 16A). SB 16A includes changes to the aircraft’s navigation, weapon delivery, radar, diagnostics, electrical multiplexing, communication/navigation management system software, and controls and displays. SB 16A will further improve the B-1 crew’s situational awareness, using the new color cockpit displays, data link, and sensor capabilities added by recently awarded production contract programs. Design and development work will begin immediately. Source: Boeing

Qantas has confirmed that all domestic and international services have resumed from mid-afternoon on Monday 31 October. Fair Work Australia this morning granted the Australian Government’s application to terminate all industrial action by the Australian Licenced Engineers Union, the Transport Workers Union, the Australian and International Pilots Union and Qantas. Under the orders issued by Fair Work Australia, there will now be up to 21 days of negotiations between the parties. No industrial action can take place during this period. If no agreement is reached during this period, binding arbitration will take place under the control of Fair Work Australia. Qantas Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce said the decision would provide certainty for Qantas passengers and all of our employees. “This is a good outcome that will enable us to begin operating flights this afternoon on a limited schedule with the approval of the regulator, CASA,” Mr Joyce said. “Operations ...

Australia’s flag carrier Qantas Airways grounded its entire fleet today in an unprecedented move. Qantas stoped all domestic and international flights until further notice. The airline said, this is in response to “the damaging industrial action by three unions – the Australian Licenced Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA), the Australian International Pilots Association (AIPA) and the Transport Workers Union (TWU)”. Qantas said that all employees who will be covered by the industrial agreements currently being negotiated with these unions have been locked out. The lock-out will continue until the unions “drop the extreme demands that have made it impossible for agreements to be reached”. Pilots, licenced engineers and baggage, ground and catering staff are essential to Qantas operations and the lock-out will therefore make it necessary for all Qantas aircraft to be grounded. Aircraft currently in the air will complete the sectors they are operating. However, there will be no further ...

Bombardier Aerospace announced that a Chinese airline, which has requested to remain unidentified at the present time, has signed a conditional purchase agreement for six Bombardier CRJ900 NextGen aircraft. The transaction, which is the first for CRJ900 aircraft in China, includes options on additional five CRJ900 NextGen aircraft. “Since the introduction of the original Canadair Regional Jet in 1992, Bombardier’s CRJ Series aircraft have become the best-selling regional aircraft program in history and we look forward to welcoming more operators in China,” said Guy C. Hachey, President and Chief Operating Officer, Bombardier Aerospace. “Bombardier Aerospace is uniquely positioned as the only aircraft manufacturer with three distinct and optimized aircraft families in the 60- to 149-seat market segment. We are well positioned to grow our commercial aircraft business in China.” More than 80 Bombardier-produced aircraft, including CRJ Series and Q-Series commercial aircraft, as well as Learjet, Challenger and Global business jets ...

A RAF Boeing HC Mk2/2A Chinook performing a tactical landing and doing a reverse take off with front gear off the runway (pinnicle landing). Display Team is made up of personnel from RAF Odiham in Hampshire.

This Iran Air Boeing 727-200 (EP-IRR) successfully conducted an emergency landing at Tehran Mehrabad airport, Iran on Oct 18th 2011. Flight IR-742 was bound from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Tehran Imam Khomeini (Iran) with 94 passengers and 19 crew. During approach the crew did not receive a down and locked indication for the nose gear and aborted the landing. Following unsuccessful troubleshooting they decided to divert to Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport where a low approach confirmed the nose gear was not extended. The crew subsequently performed a picture-perfect landing without nose gear on runway 29L. Nobody was injured. Video

All Nippon Airways (ANA), Japan’s largest airline, today achieved a milestone of commercial aviation by operating the first ever passenger flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner (JA801A – cn 34485/8). The special charter flight NH7871 took off from Narita Airport, Tokyo, with more than 240 passengers on board and landed four hours and a half later in Hong Kong. Videos Takeoff at Tokyo Narita Take-off cabin view! Landing in Hong Kong Built mainly from carbon fiber composite material, the revolutionary new aircraft raises the bar for fuel efficiency and passenger comfort. The 787 uses 20% less fuel, meaning it is the first mid-size airplane capable of flying long-range routes while cutting carbon emissions. The 787 Dreamliner has strong links with Japan, with Japanese manufacturers providing approximately 35% of all the aircraft parts, including key sections of the wings and fuselage. ANA has ordered 55 Dreamliners from Boeing and has ...

Boeing announced that the plane maker recently delivered the 300th Boeing 777-300ER (extended range) (S2-AFO – c/n 40122) to first-time customer Biman Bangladesh. The 777-300ER has been ordered by 37 customers around the globe. Twenty-seven customers now operate the 777-300ER, 10 additional customers will take delivery of their first 777-300ERs through 2014. The 777-300ER was introduced into service in 2005 and quickly became a best seller. “It is distinguished by its fuel efficiency, award-winning cabin interior, range – it can fly point to point bypassing crowded hub airports – and its commonality with the Boeing 767 and 787.”, said the 777 vice president and general manager. Approximately 35 percent of the 777-300ER was changed from earlier 777 models. Each wing was extended by 6.5 feet (1.98 m) by adding raked wingtips, which reduce takeoff field length, increase climb performance and reduce fuel burn. The body, wing, empennage and nose ...

Airbus has completed installation of the first A350XWB Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine on the A380 “flying-testbed” aircraft (MSN 001). The aircraft and engine will be prepared for flight-tests commencing in the coming weeks. The Airbus A380 test plane also wears a dedicated painting “…flying the A350 XWB engine”. The Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine is the largest Rolls-Royce turbofan with a 118-inch diameter fan. (The Trent 900 for the A380 has a fan-diameter of 116 inch.) The Trent XWB engine has been specially designed to power all members of the new Airbus A350 XWB Family with maximum efficiency. The all-new composite Airbus A350 XWB is scheduled for first delivery in late 2013. Photos Note the special painting on the A380 “…flying the A350 XWB engine”. Photos: Airbus

Today the first commercial spaceport in the world – Spaceport America – was opened by Sir Richard Branson and New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez. Looking skyward, more than 800 guests marveled at Virgin Galactic’s commercial space vehicles as they soared through the skies of southern New Mexico during the dedication ceremonies of Virgin Galactic’s new home. “Today is another history-making day for Virgin Galactic,” said Sir Richard Branson. “We are here with a group of incredible people who are helping us lead the way in creating one of the most important new industrial sectors of the 21st century. We’ve never wavered in our commitment to the monumental task of pioneering safe, affordable and clean access to space, or to demonstrate that we mean business at each step along the way.” Branson and his children, Sam and Holly, who will be the first commercial passengers on SpaceShipTwo, brought the event to ...

The 300th Eurofighter Typhoon was delivered today by Cassidian to the Spanish Air Force. The Eurofighter Typhoons – developed and manufactured by Cassidian in Germany and Spain, BAE Systems in the UK and Alenia Aeronautica in Italy – are now in service across the globe with 16 units in six air forces replacing 11 aircraft types. To date, the fleet has completed over 130,000 flying hours with well above average operational availability and unmatched operational performance which was demonstrated recently during operations over Libya. Eurofighter Typhoon is the aircraft of choice for the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Austrian Air Forces. The event coincides with the Seoul Air Show 2011 where Eurofighter is exhibiting its capabilities to support the campaign for the FX-III acquisition project where the South Korean Defence Ministry is seeking to purchase some 60 next-generation fighters with the target of having ...

It’s time for a new Photo of the Week! These two Canadian North American T-6 Texan (Noorduyn AT-6 Harvard II) during dogfight at Gatineau Air Show 2011 (Canada) are the perfect contestants to wear the title. Congrats to Jan Jasinski for this perfectly timed masterpiece. The North American Aviation T-6 Texan was a single-engine advanced trainer aircraft used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces, United States Navy, Royal Air Force and other air forces of the British Commonwealth during World War II and into the 1950s. (c) Photographer: Jan Jasinski Did you know that your photo could be featured here, too? Just enter the Flightstory Flickr Photo Contest.

As you know from my previous post, the first Airbus A380 for China Southern Airlines has been delivered yesterday (MSN0031). The following video features the highlights of this very special delivery ceremony in Toulouse, France. China Southern Airlines has ordered a total of 5 A380 so far but Airbus sees a potential of probably up to 200 Chinese A380 orders over the coming years. China Southern becomes the 7th A380 operator after Korean Air, Lufthansa, Air France, Qantas, Emirates and Singapore Airlines. Highlights of Airbus A380 delivery ceremony: Great additional video showing the beauty of this A380:

Tomorrow, 14 October, China Southern Airlines will become the first Chinese airline to receive the Airbus A380 (MSN0031). Later this month the aircraft will be deployed on domestic services in China, with the commercial flights to begin on 17 October between Beijing and Guangzhou. You can watch the A380 handover on a live webcast, beginning at 09:00 AM UTC (11:00 AM Paris time / 5:00 PM Beijing time) on http://www.a380delivery.com/china-southern/ Photo: (c) Airbus

These days across Europe we see more and more commercial flights using biofuel. Even being just test flights, far away from commercial daily usage, these flights are a huge step forward in terms of a greener, more eco friendly future of aviation. Air France and Airbus have completed the world’s greenest commercial flight by combining the latest bio fuel and air traffic management technologies. The flight from Toulouse-Blagnac to Paris-Orly using an Airbus A321 has been able to demonstrate the cutting in half of CO2 emitted compared to a regular flight. The commercial flight combined for the first time the use of bio-fuels (50 per cent in each engine), optimised air traffic management (ATM) and efficient Continuous Descent Approach (CDA) to minimise CO2 emissions. Combining these technologies helped half the overall CO2 emissions to 54 grams per passenger and kilometre. This is equivalent to a fuel efficiency of 2.2 litres ...

Boeing, Cargolux and GE have finally resolved the contractual issues related to the performance of the aircraft and its engines, that delayed the first delivery of the 747-8 Freighter last month. Cargolux will take delivery of their first 747-8 Freighter already today (October 12) and immediately put it into service with a stop at Sea-Tac Airport for a cargo pickup. Tomorrow Cargolux will take delivery of its second Boeing 747-8F. In its meeting on 7 October, the Cargolux Board of Directors appreciated that the negotiation team and Company management took the appropriate actions to ensure that the 747-8 entry into service issues be resolved successfully. Frank Reimen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cargolux, said: “I am pleased that we have reached agreement on the contractual issues. The 747-8 Freighter will be a driver of profitable growth for Cargolux”. Photo (c) Boeing As an enhanced variant of the 747-400F, the ...

Boeing is offering a new subscription based service that allows airliners to receive in-flight real-time wind information from their destination. This allows pilots to choose a more fuel-efficient approach, reducing costs and carbon emissions. Alaska Airlines and KLM are the first airlines to use this new service, that is not limited to Boeing airplanes only, but also can be used in a wide range of modern commercial aircraft including Airbus, Embraer and Bombardier. Video:

These photos show the newest Boeing Business Jet cabin interior, that was especially designed for the Chinese charter market. The new BBJ is operated by Deer Jet, Beijing, the largest BBJ charter operator in China. BBJ customers work with interior designers to develop personalized cabin interiors. The interior of Deer Jet’s new BBJ was completed by Associated Air Center, Dallas and features 28 seats, a bedroom suite and full sized bathroom with a shower. (c) Photos provided by Boeing

A few days ago I have been on a special Emirates Airbus A380 flight from Hamburg to Dubai, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Hamburg airport. So I was sitting in Dubai and as being an aviation enthusiast, of course, I took the chance to see the desert from above. This video gives you a glimpse of this amazing ride in a hot air balloon during sunrise. If you’re going to Dubai and looking for an awesome, absolutely unique adventure that you’ll never forget, make sure to book a balloon ride with Balloon Adventures Dubai at ballooning.ae Video: