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FLIGHT
INTERNATIONAL
10-16 MAY 2016
WICHITA STAR
SCORPION GETS
SET FOR ITS FIRST
PRODUCTION RUN
REPORT P24
SAFETY FEARS
Global H225 rotorcraft
fleet to undergo gearbox
inspections in wake of
Norwegian CHC crash
7
XPONENTIAL SHIFT
Unmanned vehicles take
centre stage as AUVSI
draws growth industry
to New Orleans show
10
ORDERS
RISING
FORTUNES
How soaring Asian demand brings
security to the narrowbody backlog
£3.60
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Illustration shows conceptual data only
FLIGHT
INTERNATIONAL
10-16 MAY 2016
VOLUME 189
NUMBER 5537
NEWS
FLIGHT
INTERNATIONAL
10-16 MAY 2016
WICHITA STAR
SCORPION GETS
SET FOR ITS FIRST
PRODUCTION RUN
REPORT P24
SAFETY FEARS
Global H225 rotorcraft
fleet to undergo gearbox
inspections in wake of
Norwegian CHC crash
7
XPONENTIAL SHIFT
Unmanned vehicles take
centre stage as AUVSI
draws growth industry
to New Orleans show
10
6
7
8
9
ORDERS
RISING
FORTUNES
THIS WEEK
Boeing considers new Max models
H225 crash thrusts safety to the fore
ScanEagle is ready to model FLARES.
AW609 returned to test as timetable lengthens
Blade upgrade for performance Leap
Loch Lomond Seaplanes
How soaring Asian demand brings
security to the narrowbody backlog
£3.60
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AirTeamImages
SHOW REPORT
10
ATOL upgrade increases capability of USAF Reapers
11
Cheap ‘Gremlins’ out to fight in small UAS plan
13
Kratos Defense aims high with adapted UTAP-22
AIR TRANSPORT
14
Tests could ease damage limitations.
Opportunistic IAG mulls used 777-300ER deals
15
Delta is delighted by ‘remarkable’ CSeries.
Embraer stays comfortable despite loss in
‘atypical’ race
16
IndiGo ‘confident’ P&W will fix A320neo issues.
Avianca defers deliveries to save cash
17
Airbus admits A380 delivery pressure.
Lufthansa Cargo mulls freighter fleet size
NEWS ANALYSIS
18
Dreaming about new horizons
DEFENCE
19
Boeing confident Chinook will see off Sikorsky.
V-280 coming together for US Army
20
Embraer ramps up KC-390 momentum.
Warmate on target for its first buyers
21
Leonardo swoops to Osprey success.
JF-17B trainer set to strengthen Thunder’s appeal
NEWS FOCUS
24
First production Scorpion nears flight milestone
BUSINESS AVIATION
26
‘Volatile’ market upsets Bombardier.
Loch Lomond Seaplanes’ sights on England
27
Gulfstream pair put pressure on legacy models.
Third Nextant 400XTi for PlaneSense
Loch Lomond Seaplanes adds Caravan to its fleet
P26
9
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COVER IMAGE
Chinese carriers will hold a
key position as Boeing and
Airbus ramp up narrowbody
production rates. This shot
from AirTeamImages has
both rivals in the frame
P31
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05/05/2016 10:10
COVER STORY
31 Narrowing the gap
Strong regional traffic growth
and a sizeable orders backlog suggest a positive
outlook among Asia-Pacific carriers, but increased
capacity comes with its share of risk too
FEATURES
28
AIRLINERS
Leadership challenge
Russia and
China are poised to unleash challenges to the
long-established dominance of Airbus and Boeing
in the mainline jet market – but do either have the
technical or commercial ability to break the
Western duopoly?
BEHIND THE HEADLINES
Reporters
Beth Stevenson
and
James Drew
were at the
AUVSI-run
Xponential
show
in
New Orleans,
to see all
things
unmanned
(P10). In
Wichita, Stephen Trimble
got
the latest on the
Scorpion,
as
Textron AirLand
prepares to
fly a production version (P24)
REGULARS
5
Comment
35 Straight & Level
36 Letters
38 Classified
40 Jobs
43 Working Week
NEXT WEEK
PREVIEW
We look at the main business
aviation topics set to grab the
headlines at EBACE – plus, a
Dassault Falcon 8X flight-test
Performance Leap promised with blade upgrade
P9.
KC sunshine despite ongoing political turmoil in Brazil
P20
Dassault Aviation
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Flight International
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Airbus, Brazilian air force
CONTENTS
IMAGE OF
THE WEEK
TAAG Angola Airlines has
received its fifth and final
Boeing 777-300ER from
current orders, with the
twinjet having flown nonstop
from its Everett site in
Washington to Luanda on 3
May. Flightglobal’s Fleets
Analyzer database records
aircraft D2-TEJ as also joining
the carrier’s three -200ERs
View more great aviation shots
online and in our weekly tablet
edition:
flightglobal.com/
flight-international
THE WEEK IN NUMBERS
IFE and training helped Thales lift Q1 aerospace segment
order intake to €1.03bn; sales dipped 1.3% to €1.06bn
31%
22
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
Last week, we asked:
Japan’s X-2 debut?:
You said:
Thales
42%
Will still
buy
American
20%
Vanity
The annual cost to US taxpayers of running the back office,
with more than 2,500 staff, for the F-35 fighter programme
$300
m
programme
Flightglobal.com
1,072
38%
Triumph
for Tokyo
This week, we ask:
Textron AirLand’s Scorpion?
❑
Nearing a first contract
❑
Learning experience for Cessna
❑
Will disappear, like F-20 Tigershark
Vote at
flightglobal.com
TOTAL
VOTES:
Triumph Group
Reorganisation at acquisitive aerospace supplier Triumph
Group has cut its number of operating companies, from 47
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Flight International
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10-16 May 2016
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Boeing
COMMENT
So who will it sting?
Launching the Scorpion fighter with no customer in sight was always a financial gamble, but we
should soon see if the programme causes pain for enemy forces – or maker, Textron AirLand
W
hen commercial aircraft product launches are
stage-managed with a careful unveiling of
billions of dolars worth of orders from a few hand-
picked customers, the sight of a new military aircraft
propelled into development with no announced buy-
ers can come across as a rarity bordering on reckless.
Selling military aircraft is already a hard business,
subject to feckless stewards in the acquisition offices,
unreliable support in the political class and shifting
requirements from an, often exclusive, primary cus-
tomer. But at least the development cost is usually paid
by the taxpayer, freeing the contractor from the risk of a
wholly profitless venture. Remove that development
subsidy and the whole business looks unfriendly to all
but high-stakes gamblers.
Into this marketing maelstrom in 2013 was thrown
the Textron AirLand Scorpion, a twin-engined fighter
with three plausible military missions: intelligence,
surveillance and reconnaissance; light attack; and ad-
vanced jet training.
He didn’t have a launch customer, either
For every visionary gamble like
the unmanned Predator there
are many more expensive flops
Three years into the project, the Scorpion demon-
strator has yet to find a launch customer. It is not the
world’s only self-funded development project. In
South Africa, Denel is developing the turboprop-
powered AHRLAC for a similar role, with perhaps
even dimmer prospects of a launch order on the way
from the cash-strapped government in Pretoria.
Historically, for every visionary gamble – Abe
Karem’s unmanned Predator comes to mind – there are
many more expensive flops, such as the worthy-yet-
unloved Northrop F-20 fighter. In which basket will the
Scorpion ultimately fall? A production-conforming
prototype, possibly ready in time for the Farnborough
air show, will no doubt soon settle the matter.
Textron AirLand’s sales pitch is at least timely and
truthful. Where modern fighters carry awesome sen-
sors and weapons at eye-watering prices, the Scorpion
offers similar capabilities and even a trainer on a com-
paratively cheap platform, albeit one that can only
operate with minimal risk of attack from ground or air.
Maybe Textron AirLand need not even make a sale
to deem the Scorpion a success. Assembling the air-
frame has given joint venture partner Textron Aviation
hands-on experience in all-composite jets, which may
one day boost its Cessna and Beechcraft ranges.
But Textron AirLand is a determined champion. At
Farnborough and other events later this year, Scorpion
will receive a fair hearing – and let the chips in this
high-stakes game fall where they may.
■
See News Focus P24
Back to square one
J
ust when the offshore transportation industry
appeared to have emerged from its most recent
safety crisis, it is immediately plunged into the next.
The accident on the coast of Norway in late April
could not have come at a worse time for all concerned.
With the price of a barrel of crude stubbornly stuck
below $50, operators had already been dealing with a
prolonged financial downturn that has seen helicopters
idled and workforces reduced.
CHC, which operated the destroyed H225, had for
several years been trying to stem its financial haemor-
rhaging. It is now in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
And Airbus Helicopters, which had worked so hard
to convince pilots and offshore oil industry workers
that its aircraft are safe to fly, is now back at square one.
Even if investigators conclude there was no fault on
the manufacturer’s part, it is questionable if the work-
force can be convinced.
A petition circulating online is calling for the H225’s
permanent ban from UK operations. Although unlikely
to come to pass, feelings are clearly running high.
Of course, while passengers may have little choice in
the selection of helicopters, they could vote with their
feet and refuse to get on board.
It is still too early to say what the investigation will
conclude, but either way, both Airbus Helicopters and
CHC have a great deal of damage to repair.
■
See This Week P7
10-16 May 2016
|
Flight International
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and analysis from the global
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