Editor Carl Chance, Wings Over Kansas’ aviation & aerospace correspondent, former news consultant and producer for Wingspan Air & Space Channel.
Boeing Supports Space Shuttle Endeavour’s Final Flight
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla., April 28, 2011 — Boeing [NYSE: BA] engineers and technicians are supporting Space Shuttle Endeavour’s final mission by helping to prepare the orbiter for its April 29 launch and leading the processing of the payload. Mission STS-134 will carry the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-02 (AMS-02) and a large external platform called the Express Logistics Carrier 3 (ELC-3) to the International Space Station.
"The AMS is a hosted payload for which we provide the facility, infrastructure, ground support and procedures, and orchestrate all the testing for the ISS and the interface with the space shuttle," said Bob Hart, Boeing STS-134 Payload Flow manager. "Boeing also helped ensure that the AMS and ELC could be installed on the station’s truss structure."
Boeing is responsible for the coordination, planning, buildup, testing and checkout of the hardware installed on the ELC-3. ELC-3 arrived at Kennedy Space Center in December 2009 as a bare carrier. Boeing integrated spare parts onto the carrier from several companies and NASA centers.
Another Boeing contribution to this mission is the 0.5-inch protrusion installed on a special test tile under Endeavour’s left wing. This protrusion, designed by Boeing engineers, will trip a boundary layer that flows around the orbiter as it re-enters the atmosphere in the Mach 19-20 range. The tile protrusion causes turbulent airflow that will be measured by several sensors on and downstream of the protrusion. During this fifth and final tile test, Boeing and NASA engineers will gather data that will help design better heat shields for future spacecraft.
The STS-134 crew will transfer Endeavour’s 50-foot boom, used for inspecting the orbiter’s heat shield, to the ISS for indefinite storage on Boeing-provided hardware located on the Starboard 1 truss segment. The boom can be used with the station’s robotic arm to extend its reach to the solar arrays or other areas where repairs may be required.
Endeavour rolled out of Boeing’s Palmdale, Calif., plant on April 25, 1991, and has flown 25 missions, traveled 108 million miles and spent 295 days in space. It was the fifth space shuttle to be built, constructed as a replacement for Challenger, which was lost in 1986. Endeavour was largely constructed from structural spare parts and was built in considerably less time than previous orbiters.
Endeavour flew the first assembly mission to the ISS, STS-88 in 1998. STS-134 marks the final ISS assembly mission.
Boeing is a major subcontractor to United Space Alliance (USA), NASA’s prime contractor for space shuttle operations. Under this contract, Boeing provides NASA and USA with sustaining engineering, engineering support to operations — including launch — and overall shuttle systems and payload integration services. Boeing is the designer and manufacturer of the space shuttle orbiters.
Boeing is NASA’s prime contractor for the ISS. In addition to designing and building the major U.S. elements, Boeing also is responsible for ensuring the successful integration of new hardware and software — including components from international partners — as well as for providing sustaining engineering work.
The @BoeingDefense Twitter feed (www.twitter.com/boeingdefense) will participate in NASA’s STS-134 Tweetup from Kennedy Space Center on April 28-29.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world’s largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world’s largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $32 billion business with 66,000 employees worldwide. Follow us on Twitter: @BoeingDefense.
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Contact:
Ed Memi Boeing Space Exploration Office: 281-226-4029 Mobile: 713-204-5464 [email protected] Susan Wells Boeing Space Exploration Office: 321-264-8580 Mobile: 321-446-4970 [email protected]
Bombardier to Showcase its Learjet 60 XR aircraft on a Tour of Latin America and the Caribbean
April 25, 2011 — Montréal Aerospace
Bombardier Aerospace today announced that its Learjet 60 XR aircraft will visit several cities in Latin America and the Caribbean during a demonstration tour from April 25 to May 21, 2011.
The high-performance jet will visit Medellín, Colombia, from April 25-27; Bogotá, Colombia, from April 28-30; Buenos Aires, Argentina, from May 1-9; São Paulo, Brazil, from May 10-11; Belo Horizonte, Brazil, from May 12-13; Goiânia, Brazil, on May 14; Fortaleza, Brazil, on May 16; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from May 18-19; and San Juan, Puerto Rico, from May 20-21.
“This demonstration tour is an opportunity for our customers in this growing market to experience our aircraft,” said Fabio Rebello, Regional Vice President, Sales, Latin America, Bombardier Business Aircraft. “With its unparalleled performance, versatility and true Learjet heritage, the Learjet 60 XR aircraft is perfectly suited for the needs of our customers in Latin America and the Caribbean,” he added.
In service since July 2007, the Learjet 60 XR aircraft is a proven model of performance, comfort, value and versatility in the midsize jet market segment. It delivers a high cruise speed of Mach 0.81 (861 km/hr), superior climb capabilities, proven fuel efficiency and low direct operating costs per nautical mile*. The jet’s higher operating altitudes – certified to 51,000 ft (15,545 m) – translate to time savings due to better winds, less traffic and less turbulence.
The Learjet 60 XR aircraft can fly from Buenos Aires to Lima and São Paulo to Boa Vista non-stop with four passengers and two crew*. It is available with the Signature Series interiors, which combine bold design elements with increased functionality to bring the large cabin concept to a midsize jet.
Boeing Ready to Deliver 787 Pilot Training on Global Scale
SEATTLE, April 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing (NYSE: BA) has achieved multiple qualifications for its worldwide network of 787 training campuses. The qualifications mean Boeing Flight Services has training devices that are ready to be used with an approved training course in locations around the globe.
"The innovations of the 787 Dreamliner don’t end with the airplane itself," said Sherry Carbary, vice president, Boeing Flight Services. "Boeing is changing the game through continued innovation in our advanced suite of training technologies. By bringing this cutting-edge training directly to airlines in the regions of the world where they’re based and serve their passengers, we’re offering our customers the flexibility and efficiency of flight crew training where they need it, when they need it," Carbary said.
Full-flight simulators and other flight training devices for commercial pilot training require qualifications from each airline’s home country regulatory agency. Boeing is qualifying its network of 787 training devices with multiple regulators in order to allow airlines the maximum options and regional locations for training their crews.
"Providing our airline customers with cost effective flexibility is a top priority," said Roei Ganzarski, chief customer officer, Boeing Training & Flight Services. "We’ve invested in world-class courseware, trained a global team of experienced instructors, and now have certified a worldwide network of simulators, all to provide 787 operators an efficient and effective 787 training solution."
Boeing operates 787 training campuses in five locations: Seattle, Singapore, Tokyo, London Gatwick and Shanghai. As part of the qualification process, Boeing demonstrated, with the regulators’ concurrence, that the training devices located at the five campuses around the world were similar or identical in the way they operate.
The qualifications from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on behalf of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) and the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) will allow Boeing Flight Services to deliver the same quality of training at all locations.
Last month the CAAC qualified the Shanghai Boeing training campus for 787 training including the full-flight 787 simulator and the 787 flight training device. With this achievement, Boeing has received more than 20 separate qualifications in five locations on three continents in support of 787 entry into service beginning later this year.
Contact: Jim Condelles Communications Manager Boeing Flight Services