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Airbus Aims To Be First To Market With Zero-Emissions Aircraft

European aircraft manufacturer, Airbus, has developed several concept designs for zero-emission commercial aircraft powered by hydrogen. The concept designs are codenamed ZEROe. According to IATA, commercial aircraft produce up to 3 percent of worldwide carbon emissions. The industry has set ambitious goals to reduce the impact of commercial aviation on climate change such as a 50% reduction of carbon emissions by 2050. The zero-emission aircraft are likely to revolutionize the air transport industry.

Read about these concept aircraft at:
https://www.aviationtoday.com/2020/09/23/new-zero-emission-commercial-aircraft-designs-unveiled-airbus/

Boeing aircraft lined up on concrete and also on railway sidings

Aircraft Fuselages Are Shipped By Rail In An Unusual Combination Of Transport Modes

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A post shared by Overseas Brokers (@overseasbrokers) on Nov 3, 2020 at 10:45am PST

A unique combination of transport modes was captured on video in a way you wouldn’t expect when Boeing 737 MAX aircraft fuselages were filmed during transport by rail through a narrow railroad tunnel. Although the video may seem to show something that can’t possibly be right, it is all too real.

The fuselages are manufactured by Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita, Kansas. Transporting such large pieces of equipment presents a challenge due to height and width limits for over-the-road transport. Due to their dimensions, they must be transported by rail without the wings attached, as the fuselages alone are too long to be transported over the road from the factory in Kansas to Boeing’s assembly facility in Washington State. The fuselages are meticulously prepped for shipment on railcars to ensure sufficient clearance through tunnels.

On June 4, 2020 Spirit AeroSystems was directed by Boeing to stop production on four 737 MAX shipsets and avoid starting production on sixteen more units for delivery in 2020 due to COVID-19’s impact on air travel in an effort to reduce unnecessary production costs. Spirit’s production was subsequently lowered from 125 units to 72 units for 2020. As of September 2020, CEO Tom Gentile said Spirit expects to be back to 10 aircraft per month on the 737 in January.

That is good news for Boeing, the passenger airline industry and the air cargo industry. Of course railroad executives will be very happy to resume shipments of this special cargo. The Boeing 737 MAX was grounded in March 2019 after two fatal crashes.

Read more about the ripple effect that the grounding of the 737 MAX created in combination with the challenges presented by the pandemic at:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7803821/Airplane-fuselages-bound-Boeings-737-Max-production-facility-sit-storage-supplier.html

Sky High Ocean Freight Rates From Asia Attract Government Scrutiny

Ocean carriers have been skipping sailings to shore up their bottom line during the virus-induced downturn in manufacturing and consumer demand. Tactical blank sailings combined with record breaking rate spikes in the trans-Pacific trade have increased carrier profitability now that manufacturing and demand are coming back online. Decreased capacity and increased rates are helping ocean carriers recover at the expense of the global economy while suppliers struggle to meet pent up consumer demand. Government regulators have begun to exert pressure on ocean carriers to restore capacity and restrict rate increases. It has been customary to blank sailings during the Chinese Golden Week holiday, however the threat of intervention will surely impact carrier cost manipulations and capacity decisions.

Walmart And Amazon Drones Battle For Last-Mile Delivery Supremacy

Walmart and Amazon are engaged in a war of delivery drones. Although Amazon may be the largest e-commerce retailer, Walmart may have a structural edge enabling them to deliver groceries and household items by drone more quickly. Both players introduced short-range drones to transport small packages up to 5 pounds. According to Amazon, about 90% of products they sell weigh under 5 pounds.

Walmart claims they have a store within 10 miles of 90% of Americans. Amazon, by contrast, delivers from its fulfillment centers, usually located near major cities. That gives Walmart an edge until Amazon ramps up their rural presence.

Meanwhile, Amazon has patented a futuristic Jetson-style idea for distribution towers that look like beehives. The towers would function as fulfillment centers with landing pads for delivery drones, strategically located near high-density residential towers.

The current need for social distancing has accelerated a paradigm shift from brick-and-mortar stores to online shopping with contact-free delivery.

Read more about the drone war between Walmart and Amazon at:

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/walmart-pilots-drones-to-fly-items-to-consumers-doorsteps
& https://www.freightwaves.com/news/amazon-now-authorized-to-fly-commercial-delivery-drones

(Photo credit: Amazon, via FreightWaves, and Walmart, via FreightWaves)

Amazon Drone

Airlines Retrofit Passenger Aircraft To Handle Cargo

Cathay Pacific supplements their cargo capacity and cuts some of their losses related to the pandemic by removing economy seats from Boeing 777 planes to transport more medical supplies, PPE and other critical shipments. They are required to keep the front and rear seat rows in place to protect the aircraft from cargo that could shift due to turbulence. Cargo is placed in fire-retardant bags because passenger cabins aren’t equipped with fire-suppression systems. The airline follows in the footsteps of Air Canada and Lufthansa who have reconfigured some passenger planes for cargo.

(Image Credit: Cathay Pacific)

Drone Delivery System Aims to Make Mid-Size Retail Chains Competitive With E-Commerce Giants

Deuce Drone announced a test of their last mile delivery system which is intended to make delivery directly from stores to consumers faster and more affordable. Rouses Market, which operates 64 grocery stores in the south, has partnered with Deuce Drone to test a same day delivery system by drones in order to make last mile delivery faster and less costly than vans, so they can compete with Amazon.

(Image courtesy of: Commercial Drone Professional of Deuce Drone)

New Drone System Developed For Long Distance Delivery

Civil drone operators are currently restricted to line-of-sight operation of one drone at a time to avoid collisions. Satellite operator, Inmarsat Group Holdings, has partnered with Altitude Angel LTD to operate drones over long distances safely by integrating a backup satellite connection for areas with no land-based communications . If they can prove safe operation to regulators, fleets of remotely operated drones could be deployed to transport tons of goods. Read more about this development at:

(Photo Credit: Chip Chipman/Bloomberg News)

Airplane taking a flight over New Mexico

NASA And Virgin Galactic Join Forces To Advance Supersonic Travel

NASA has signed a space act agreement with Virgin Galactic and its subsidiary, The Spaceship Company, to develop high-Mach aircraft for potential use in the commercial aviation industry. The team will apply their combined know-how and advances in sub-orbital and space travel to explore new solutions for supersonic flight. The potential for a paradigm shift in high speed passenger and cargo transport is enormous.

(Photo: Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity performs its first glide flight over Spaceport America in New Mexico on May 1, 2020. Image: © Virgin Galactic)

Flying Car concept - Aeromobil VTOL concept via breakingdefense.com

Air Force Comes Up With Ingenious RFQ To Expedite Development Of Flying Cars

To promote the development of EVTOL cars, the Air Force will issue an RFQ for a program named Agility Prime, soliciting proposals from commercial developers to design a flying car for troops and cargo. The benefit to commercial developers is that military airspace will be made available to the winning bidders to test their aircraft. Access to military ranges will reduce the time required for certification by the FAA by creating a faster track to proof of airworthiness. Developing the technology for both military and commercial applications at inception would prevent the loss of an entire supply chain to early commercial investors, as was the case with the drone market, now controlled by Chinese investors. Uber and Nasa are working on similar concept vehicles for commercial applications.

(Photo credits:
Above: Uber’s Flying car concept via breakingdefense.com
In header: Aeromobil VTOL concept via breakingdefense.com)

Rendering of High speed aircraft - the Boom Supersonic XB-1

Boom Supersonic Will Test the XB-1 Supersonic Aircraft in a Military Zone in the Mojave Desert

Boom’s XB-1 is an experimental aircraft used in the development of Overture, a supersonic commercial aircraft with speeds exceeding Mach 2. The aircraft will be tested in protected military airspace, creating a supersonic corridor. This new breed of supersonic aircraft is expected to revolutionize the commercial aviation and cargo industry.