International Aerospace Discussion

negi · Post by **negi** » 07 Jun 2010 08:32

Gurudev that picture itself has references to some of the known design houses from the great Bear.

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 07 Jun 2010 08:57

I think this Falcon-9 will be a strong competitor to Soyuz and GSLV.

Certainly, once it can demonstrate reliability in sending crewmembers to orbit, then US astronauts will no longer be flying on Soyuz.

Falcon-9 Launch Pricing:

Mission Type............................................................Price*
LEO......(s/c<80% capacity to the customer orbit)..........$45.8M
LEO......(s/c>80% capacity to the customer orbit)..........$51.5M
GTO......(s/c<3,000 kg)**..........................................$45.8M
GTO......(s/c up to 4,680 kg)......................................$51.5M

What are the comparable projected costs for GSLV-Mk3?

sathyaC · Post by **sathyaC** » 07 Jun 2010 18:06

Was F22 raptor shot down by J10

chiru · Post by **chiru** » 07 Jun 2010 18:37

no it was not ...it was a big gossip ...if j-10 could shoot down the raptor ...the russians would have scrapped the PAK-FA and bought 500 j-10s as their next air defense fighter lol.

chackojoseph · Post by **chackojoseph** » 07 Jun 2010 19:04

F-35C flies

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Jun 2010 20:27

next gen green iPaint . iPaint > yellow paint. the US uses it!

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 07 Jun 2010 21:27

Irkut signs USD 5 bln contract for supply of 50 MS-21 planes to Malaysia

The corporation Irkut on Monday signed a contract with Crecom Burj Resources for the supply of 50 MS-21 planes to Malaysia.

“The sum of the contract is estimated at five billion U.S. dollars,” a source close to the negotiations told Itar-Tass.

MS-21 planes will have a wider body for the comfort of passengers. They will have a better wing sweep to increase safety during landings and takeoffs. The wings will be a bit thicker in order to take on mire fuel, which will allow the planes to travel greater distances.

All these factors will negatively affect aerodynamic properties of the planes. “This makes the success of the scientists who have improved this crucial property of any aircraft all the more important,” Zhukovsky Central Aerodynamic Institute (TsAGI) Director Sergei Chernyshev said.

MS-21 Programme Director Andrei Matveyev said, “Increasing aerodynamic properties of a plane even by 1 percent over several years is considered to be a big achievement.”

He said the new design would reduce operating costs by 12-15 percent as compared to that of existing foreign counterparts and give additional competitive advantages to the new plane.

The Yakovlev Design Bureau is the principal designer of the MS-21 plane. It is working under the federal programme “Development of Civil Aircraft in Russia”. The state contractor is the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 08 Jun 2010 09:49

Falcon 9 Soars in Its Debut

A successful launch moves commercial space companies toward human spaceflight.

Brando · Post by **Brando** » 08 Jun 2010 13:46

Singha wrote:next gen green iPaint . iPaint > yellow paint. the US uses it!

This is just a guess but I think the "green" vs "yellow" paint is because of new stealthy composites being used on the F-35.

ravar · Post by **ravar** » 08 Jun 2010 17:11

Austin wrote:Irkut signs USD 5 bln contract for supply of 50 MS-21 planes to Malaysia

The corporation Irkut on Monday signed a contract with Crecom Burj Resources for the supply of 50 MS-21 planes to Malaysia.

“The sum of the contract is estimated at five billion U.S. dollars,” a source close to the negotiations told Itar-Tass.

MS-21 planes will have a wider body for the comfort of passengers. They will have a better wing sweep to increase safety during landings and takeoffs. The wings will be a bit thicker in order to take on mire fuel, which will allow the planes to travel greater distances.

All these factors will negatively affect aerodynamic properties of the planes. “This makes the success of the scientists who have improved this crucial property of any aircraft all the more important,” Zhukovsky Central Aerodynamic Institute (TsAGI) Director Sergei Chernyshev said.

MS-21 Programme Director Andrei Matveyev said, “Increasing aerodynamic properties of a plane even by 1 percent over several years is considered to be a big achievement.”

He said the new design would reduce operating costs by 12-15 percent as compared to that of existing foreign counterparts and give additional competitive advantages to the new plane.

The Yakovlev Design Bureau is the principal designer of the MS-21 plane. It is working under the federal programme “Development of Civil Aircraft in Russia”. The state contractor is the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Bit old news-

Greece joins MS 21 and Be 200 aircraft projects

“Our second goal is to involve Greece in the development and production of components for the new MS-21 project, which is a priority for the Russian aircraft industry,” the minister said.

That might not happen now after the Greek tragedy (economic)

Why can't India pitch in at this opportunity? We anyway have the PAKFA collaboration and Indians and Russians vibe well.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 08 Jun 2010 17:31

ravar wrote:Why can't India pitch in at this opportunity? We anyway have the PAKFA collaboration and Indians and Russians vibe well.

We are jointly developing MTA with Russia and we have no need for MS-21 which is a civilian aircraft. .NAL is developing a 70-90 seater aircraft

ravar · Post by **ravar** » 08 Jun 2010 17:58

We are jointly developing MTA with Russia and we have no need for MS-21 which is a civilian aircraft. .NAL is developing a 70-90 seater aircraft

MS 21 falls in the 737 and A320 category. Do you mean to say we do not need these civilian aircrafts? Just see how many A320s AirIndigo has approached the Civil Aviation Ministry for approval-> http://www.livemint.com/2010/04/2823145 ... 8217s.html

Add to it the potential orders of Kingfisher, Jet, AI etc.

Do you mean to say that MTA (though it is mainly meant for the military) will fulfill the civilian transport need together with the RTA and there is no need for this category?

Also, gaining a foothold over tech domain does not mean meeting just domestic demand? Is it?

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 09 Jun 2010 21:59

Russian strategic bombers carry out record nonstop flight

Two Russian Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers are carrying out a 23-hour patrol with a planned flight range of 18,000 kilometers (over 11,000 miles), an Air Force spokesman said on Wednesday.

"We are expecting this mission to set a record because its duration will exceed the previous achievement by two hours for a total of 23 hours, and its range will reach 18,000 kilometers," Lt. Col. Vladimir Drik said.

The Tu-160s conducted a similar mission last year and stayed in the air for 21 hours.

The bombers are flying along the Russian borders and over neutral waters of the Arctic and Pacific oceans.

They will practice instrumental flight and carry out in-flight refueling from Il-78 aerial tankers.

Misraji · Post by **Misraji** » 09 Jun 2010 22:49

Austin wrote:Russian strategic bombers carry out record nonstop flight

Two Russian Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers are carrying out a 23-hour patrol with a planned flight range of 18,000 kilometers (over 11,000 miles), an Air Force spokesman said on Wednesday.
"We are expecting this mission to set a record because its duration will exceed the previous achievement by two hours for a total of 23 hours, and its range will reach 18,000 kilometers," Lt. Col. Vladimir Drik said.
The Tu-160s conducted a similar mission last year and stayed in the air for 21 hours.
The bombers are flying along the Russian borders and over neutral waters of the Arctic and Pacific oceans.
They will practice instrumental flight and carry out in-flight refueling from Il-78 aerial tankers.

Not exactly a world-record though. Just beats the previous russian record.
B-2 bombers have flown for 36-hours non-stop during GW2.

~Ashish.

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 10 Jun 2010 06:11

Japanese Spacecraft Deploys First Ever Solar Sail

Wow, very scifi - Carl Sagan and Arthur C Clarke would approve

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 10 Jun 2010 09:14

Misraji wrote:Not exactly a world-record though. Just beats the previous russian record.
B-2 bombers have flown for 36-hours non-stop during GW2.

~Ashish.

True , but B-2 is not a supersonic strategic bomber

darshhan · Post by **darshhan** » 10 Jun 2010 10:25

Austin wrote:
Misraji wrote:Not exactly a world-record though. Just beats the previous russian record.
B-2 bombers have flown for 36-hours non-stop during GW2.

~Ashish.
True , but B-2 is not a supersonic strategic bomber

but even if T-160 is a supersonic aircraft it is highly unlikely that they would have carried out this flight at a supersonic speed.Most likely they would have flown at subsonic speeds for most of the flight duration.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 11 Jun 2010 04:14

South Korea rocket 'explodes' moments after take-off

The launch was South Korea's second attempt to put a satellite in space, after a launch in August 2009 failed.

The country had been hoping to become only the 10th in the world able to put satellites into space, and thereby gain a lucrative slice of the growing space launch industry.

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 11 Jun 2010 05:19

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 11 Jun 2010 05:54

Interview with SpaceX Chief Elon Musk following Successful Launch of the Falcon-9:

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 11 Jun 2010 08:36

http://www.fastcompany.com/1658527/rock ... explode-us

SpaceX is now extremely confident about the next couple of Falcon 9 flights.

The next one is due "late summer," and will be the first full demo of an ISS resupply mission, operating under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program. For that flight, a dummy Dragon space module will fly right by the ISS and then back into the atmosphere.

During a second test flight, the Dragon module will finally be captured by the ISS arm and mated to the station.

http://www.transterrestrial.com/?p=27458

“I definitely didn’t tell Pasztor that our LES would cost $1B. He is off by a factor of ten! All I told him is that there is no way it would cost us more than $1B to demonstrate crew transport. That includes development, testing and certification to the most stringent NASA standards of everything needed for a seven-crew vehicle. I’ve also said that our price per person would be $20M, assuming the seven-person configuration and minimum of four flights per year. This compares to $30B for Ares I/Orion and a per person cost of ~$250M.”

Can India compete with this cost, once it gets GSLV-Mk3 flying manned crews?

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 11 Jun 2010 08:44

is NASA going the way of AT & T bell labs? first at & t, RBOCs and Lucent got split. now lucent is a shadow of former glory (bought by alcatel) while 100s of pvt cos have arisen in the telecom space once nearly monopolized by them.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 11 Jun 2010 09:03

darshhan wrote:but even if T-160 is a supersonic aircraft it is highly unlikely that they would have carried out this flight at a supersonic speed.Most likely they would have flown at subsonic speeds for most of the flight duration.

Well no supersonic fighter ever flies supersonic in its entire sortie , not unless the pilot has plans to eject mid way due to lack of fuel or he has tankers at its disposal , even to tank up it will have to slow down

It is no different for Tu-160 , it flew supersonic and high subsonic during its entire mission probably more subsonic then supersonic.

Even if B-2 wanted to go M 2 it will never be able to do that , so the record of 36 hours would be valid in subsonic class of aircraft powered by Jet Engine , they only Russian bomber that can break ( if ever ) that record will be the Tu-95 bomber as it is in subsonic class ( to be fair not a jet engine though

)

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 11 Jun 2010 09:33

Singha wrote:is NASA going the way of AT & T bell labs? first at & t, RBOCs and Lucent got split. now lucent is a shadow of former glory (bought by alcatel) while 100s of pvt cos have arisen in the telecom space once nearly monopolized by them.

Well, if more is accomplished by these myriad of private participants, then it will be for the better.

But I don't think NASA would fade away, since it will be there to take on the bigger tasks or scientific R&D that the private sector just don't have the deep pockets for.

I'm wondering if ISRO should likewise spin off PSLV to the private sector, once GSLV-Mk3 is up and running as ISRO's main centrepiece. Wouldn't this be a nice way to cut costs, while also spurring Indian tech industry's expansion into the strategic space sector? If our private industry could do with space what they've done with IT, then India will gain a valuable strategic lead.

darshhan · Post by **darshhan** » 11 Jun 2010 10:28

Not just NASA but even Boeing and Lockheed martin are going to face the heat.Spacex is already getting contracts for launches to International space station.If they are able to execute a manned flight who knows even ARES program of Nasa might get cancelled.By the way spacex manned program will cost less than $1 billion.

http://www.transterrestrial.com/?p=27458

Whereas Ares program will cost about $30 billion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ares_I#Schedule_and_cost

SanjayM and Singha sir, NASA will be tolerated because of its research and development agenda including long distance exploration of solar system which no private company is capable of as of now.But companies like Boeing and Lockheed martin will be squeezed out of launch business if they don't become competitive.Spacex has set the bar and it has done a good job considering it has only about a thousand employees.

By the way this is just the start.Many other new age companies are waiting in the wings like Orbital sciences,Blue origin(jeff bezos of amazon is the founder),bigelow aerospace(space stations).There is lot of activity going on.

Aditya_V · Post by **Aditya_V** » 11 Jun 2010 11:02

Regarding TU-160 , if I remember right the B-2 top speed is around 500 MPH, so TU-160 even it flew high Subsonic, the distance of 18000Km would be longer than the 36 hour US- Afganistan , Diego Gracia missions

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 11 Jun 2010 18:22

darshhan wrote:Not just NASA but even Boeing and Lockheed martin are going to face the heat.Spacex is already getting contracts for launches to International space station.If they are able to execute a manned flight who knows even ARES program of Nasa might get cancelled.By the way spacex manned program will cost less than $1 billion.

http://www.transterrestrial.com/?p=27458

Whereas Ares program will cost about $30 billion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ares_I#Schedule_and_cost

SanjayM and Singha sir, NASA will be tolerated because of its research and development agenda including long distance exploration of solar system which no private company is capable of as of now.But companies like Boeing and Lockheed martin will be squeezed out of launch business if they don't become competitive.Spacex has set the bar and it has done a good job considering it has only about a thousand employees.

By the way this is just the start.Many other new age companies are waiting in the wings like Orbital sciences,Blue origin(jeff bezos of amazon is the founder),bigelow aerospace(space stations).There is lot of activity going on.

darshan, I think that Boeing and Lockheed may try to get the Atlas-V man-rated for crewed flights to ISS.

If India could spin off PSLV to a consortium of private Indian companies, after GSLV-Mk3 is up and running as ISRO's main flagship vehicle, then it might allow the private Indian operator to more aggressively pursue the lower end of the launch payload market. India could become much more competitive in the space sector, while saving money as well.

SpaceX has a major cost advantage over NASA - enough to make it competitive on cost against ISRO, Russia, and China. If a privatized PSLV similarly offered a major cost reduction from current ISRO pricing, and perhaps even an improvement in quality, then India could regain an edge again.

Furthermore, a private Indian launch consortium could probably attract better quality people than ISRO can.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 11 Jun 2010 20:58

Sanjay M wrote: Not just NASA but even Boeing and Lockheed martin are going to face the heat.Spacex is already getting contracts for launches to International space station.If they are able to execute a manned flight who knows even ARES program of Nasa might get cancelled.By the way spacex manned program will cost less than $1 billion.
NASA is a military organization and there is enough black budget for subsidy that nobody can figure it out.

darshan, I think that Boeing and Lockheed may try to get the Atlas-V man-rated for crewed flights to ISS.

If India could spin off PSLV to a consortium of private Indian companies, after GSLV-Mk3 is up and running as ISRO's main flagship vehicle, then it might allow the private Indian operator to more aggressively pursue the lower end of the launch payload market. India could become much more competitive in the space sector, while saving money as well.

SpaceX has a major cost advantage over NASA - enough to make it competitive on cost against ISRO, Russia, and China. If a privatized PSLV similarly offered a major cost reduction from current ISRO pricing, and perhaps even an improvement in quality, then India could regain an edge again.

Furthermore, a private Indian launch consortium could probably attract better quality people than ISRO can.

Using a system of sanction and tech denial they have made sure that India does not create a market for space industry and create a small monopoly. India needs leadership which can assert its advantage

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 12 Jun 2010 02:57

Acharya wrote:Using a system of sanction and tech denial they have made sure that India does not create a market for space industry and create a small monopoly. India needs leadership which can assert its advantage

Sanctions are made possible by agreements and alliances. To counteract them, you form your own agreements and alliances. India has never bothered with alliances, instead choosing stupid "movements" like Non-Aligned Movement, which is fully of noisy, useless countries. I suppose it could try and make itself a launch vehicle for the third world, but they will have a hard time paying.

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 13 Jun 2010 11:10

SpaceX Chief Musk Seeks to Condense Falcon9 Trials

Instead of 3 demonstration flights before starting deliveries to ISS, he wants to cram all the technology demonstrations into 2 flights.

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 13 Jun 2010 12:41

Folks I got this off the Lockheed Martin website

F 35 A (CTOL)
Length 51.5 ft
Height 14.2 ft
Wingspan 35 ft
Wing area 460 sq ft
Horizontal tail span 23 ft
Weight empty 29,300 lb
Maximum weight 70,000 lb class
Internal fuel 18,000 + lbs
Speed Mach 1.6 (~1,200 mph)
Range ~1.200 n. mi
Combat radius 610 n. mi
Standard Internal Weapons Load
• 25 mm GAU-22/A cannon
• Two AIM-120C air-to-air missiles
• Two 2,000-pound GBU-31 JDAM guided bombs
Power plant One P&W F135 or GE F136
Engine thrust 40,000 lb (with after burner)

F 35 B (STOVL)
Length 51.3 ft
Height 14.1 ft
Wingspan 35 ft
Wing area 460 sq ft
Horizontal tail span 22 ft
Weight empty 32,000 lb
Maximum weight 60,000 lb class
Internal fuel 14,000 + lbs
Speed Mach 1.6 (~1,200 mph)
Range ~900 n. mi
Combat radius 500 n. mi
Standard Internal Weapons Load
• Two AIM-120C air-to-air missiles
• Two 1,000-pound GBU-32 JDAM guided bombs

Power plant One P&W F135 or GE F136
Engine thrust 40,000 lb (with after burner)

F 35C
Length 51.5 ft
Height 14.9 ft
Wingspan 43ft
Wing area 668 sq ft
Horizontal tail span 26 ft
Weight empty 34,800 lb
Maximum weight 70,000 lb class
Internal fuel 19,000 + lbs
Speed Mach Mach 1.6 (~1,200 mph)
Range ~1,400 n. mi
Combat radius 640 n. mi
Standard Internal Weapons Load
• Two AIM-120C air-to-air missiles
• Two 2,000-pound GBU-31 JDAM guided bombs
Power plant One P&W F135 or GE F136
Engine thrust 40,000 lb (with after burner)

The F 35 B has a lift fan and no guns. Despite that its armament load is low and its combat radius is low showing the trade off that has been made for that STOVL capability

The F 35C has no gun. And possibly because of that trade off it has a longer range.

All in all the internal weapon load of the F 35 is so pathetic looking that I would laugh at it if it was an Indian aircraft. But I respect that miniscule warload because it is American. We must not laugh at others. My mummy always taught me to "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you"

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 13 Jun 2010 22:59

Hayabusa Re-enters Earth's Atmosphere

Kailash · Post by **Kailash** » 14 Jun 2010 11:07

Further military use of space based assets from the US...
Raytheon's ARTEMIS hyperspectral imager

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., June 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company's (NYSE: RTN) hyperspectral imaging sensor known as ARTEMIS is being prepared for a first-of-its-kind tactical military role by the Air Force Space Command.

The company's Advanced Responsive Tactically Effective Military Imaging Spectrometer has successfully completed its one-year experimental mission aboard the Air Force Research Laboratory's Tactical Satellite-3. Based on the success of that mission, Raytheon has been notified that the Air Force Space Command will take control of TacSat-3 with the intent to use ARTEMIS in an operational capacity.

"The ARTEMIS hyperspectral imager gives military commanders an important new advantage in the asymmetric battlefield," said Bill Hart, vice president for Raytheon Space Systems. "ARTEMIS can detect various man-made and natural materials, which adds a fundamentally new capability for the DoD."

Unlike visible imagers, hyperspectral sensors capture light across a wide swath of the electromagnetic spectrum, providing unprecedented spectral detail. That spectral information produces a distinct "signature," which can be compared against the spectral signatures of known objects to rapidly identify potential areas of interest.

The ARTEMIS hyperspectral imager combines spectral information with geo-location coordinates in an easy-to-read map. This information is then sent directly to troops on the ground in near real time.

Kailash · Post by **Kailash** » 14 Jun 2010 12:22

Boldly going nowhere: NASA ends plan to put man back on Moon

Nasa has begun to wind down construction of the rockets and spacecraft that were to have taken astronauts back to the Moon — effectively dismantling the US human spaceflight programme despite a congressional ban on its doing so.

Legislators have accused President Obama’s Administration of contriving to slip the termination of the Constellation programme through the back door to avoid a battle on Capitol Hill.

PratikDas · Post by **PratikDas** » 14 Jun 2010 15:41

Sanjay M wrote:Hayabusa Re-enters Earth's Atmosphere

Hayabusa capsule recovery begins

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 15 Jun 2010 05:18

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 15 Jun 2010 17:53

Blackjack Record Flight Route - Infographics

Craig Alpert · Post by **Craig Alpert** » 17 Jun 2010 04:30

Unique Defense from Anti-Aircraft Systems Created

Russian engineers recently demonstrated a unique system for helicopter active protection from any kinds of existing portable anti-aircraft systems.

Final version of the protection system, called “President-S”, was tested in 2009. After the system was switched on, any kinds of missiles veered away from a target and then self-destructed.

“President-S” active defense system is army-accepted and is now in serial production. All helicopters with missions in planet’s hot spots will be equipped with this new development of Russian engineers.

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 17 Jun 2010 04:46

SpaceX Bags Contract for Iridium Sat Network

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Jun 2010 03:28

ICBM performs for top official

This was the first intercontinental ballistic missile test launch under Air Force Global Strike Command, a group that was created after a series of snafus involving other bases that work with nuclear weapons.