An update on the Avionics Europe conference and expo March 21 and 22 in Munich

Posted by John Keller

We've got an update on the Avionics Europe 2012 conference and exposition, which PennWell is sponsoring March 21 and 22 in Munich. Avionics giant Thales has signed on as a major sponsor and exhibitor at the show. Thales will be the delegate and visitor bag sponsor.

Avionics Europe has the support of Association of European Airlines, SESAR, and EUROCAE, who will all be hosting two-hour workshops relating to the Single European Sky initiative and its influence on the avionics industry.

The theme of Avionics Europe 2012 is Common Sky: Operating in One Air Space. Commercial and military aircraft, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), have vastly different missions, yet share many of the same operating requirements -- especially when operating side-by-side in common air space. The conference and expo will highlight and explore the technological, policy, and design issues faced by designers and operators of civil aircraft, military aircraft, and UAVs as global aviation moves into the new frontier of air traffic management exemplified by SESAR and NextGen.

The revolves around two tracks: cockpit avionics and technologies for civil and military aircraft; and aircraft, spacecraft, and UAV sensor payloads, diagnostics, and certification.

The Avionics Europe conference and exhibition saw a 30 percent growth in attendance at the 2011 event, highlighting a return of activity to the aerospace industry following the preceding challenging economic climate. For more information contact Avionics Europe online at www.avionics-event.com.

The best defense is...

Posted by Skyler Frink

The best defense has changed throughout time. While the old phrase "the best defense is a good offense" has been popular, is it always true?

As times change it seems the best defense has changed with it. Trench warfare showed us the best defense is, indeed, a good defense. The cold war turned around and showed us that the best defense was a good offense (that you chose not to use, lest the other side use their own good offense).

Now we are at a time where the best defense is early detection. Everywhere from airports to the front lines are utilizing advanced forms of detection, which is currently as the best way of preventing an attack or halting one that has already begun.

We possess systems that can prevent any manner of attack, from our missile intercept systems, anti-torpedo measures and even a vehicle-arresting barrier, if we know an attack is being carried out we are capable of halting it (or at least severely limiting the damage done).

However, these systems are worthless if they can't detect a threat before it is too late. This is what has caused a paradigm shift, and led to many of the technological advancements of the day. From the full body scanners at airports to the new radar systems used by our military, we have begun pushing for more accurate and earlier detection.

After all, what's the point of a system that can stop a missile mid-flight if you don't even know the threat is there in the first place?

The politics and interpretation of DOD's Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) guidelines

Posted by John Keller

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) is using a long and nebulous set of guidelines that have a lot of people talking within the defense industry. The guidelines are called
Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA), and describe in some detail the relative maturity of evolving technologies considered crucial for military systems like ships, airplanes, and tanks to meet their operational requirements.

The interesting thing about TRAs -- and one that generates substantial conversation and controversy in the defense industry -- is how to play them to best advantage in competitions for military procurement programs, and how companies can game the TRAs to ensure their most important technologies have the most beneficial TRA ratings.

The DOD lists nine different levels of TRAs, ranking so-called critical military technologies from least to most mature. Where the gamesmanship comes in is where on the scale to peg a company's most lucrative technology offerings for upcoming military procurements.

Related stories -- SWIR, infrared HD, and low-light images of France from 17,000 feet -- Boeing Future Combat System shows maturity in joint experiment -- GA-ASI will leverage work on new U.S. Navy study contract to develop high-tech, carrier-launched unmanned aerial system.

Company leaders don't want their core technology offerings to be among the least mature, because newer technologies pose great risk; there's no guarantee these technologies will work every time, and might not work and play well with other system components.

On the other hand, companies don't want their most important products to be among the most mature technologies because many of those are nearing obsolescence. No one wants to design in obsolete technology ... well, at least not on purpose.

The trick is to find that sweet spot in the middle that can describe a company's most important and lucrative technologies as not too new, not too old, but just right -- positioned most advantageously for system procurements with various durations.

DOD officials point out that TRA ratings come from independent review teams of subject matter experts, but we'd be silly if we didn't think each company had a substantial say in how their products will be rated.

A TRA, in essence, is a formal, systematic, metrics-based process and accompanying report that assesses the maturity of military technologies -- hardware or software -- which are necessary for military systems to meet their operational requirements. Here are the nine different TRA levels:

TRA 1, the lowest level of technology readiness, essentially is still laboratory technology just being considered for applications. TRA 2 is a technology just being translated into applications. TRA 3 refers to an experimental technology. TRA 4 refers to breadboard technologies. TRA 5 are technologies in advanced development. TRA 6 is prototype technology for specific applications. TRA 7 refers to demonstration and validation technology. TRA 8 refers to proven technologies. TRA 9 refers to technologies with a reasonably long track record in actual applications, and which might be on the downslope toward obsolescence.

DOD officials keep the TRA guidelines vague on purpose, so sometimes it's a guessing game for companies to determine the best TRA ratings. It's a fair bet that TRAs will remain a hot topic at the bar and around the water cooler.

Space geeks rejoice: NASA news abounds

I had the opportunity to meet with high-level executives at military and aerospace technology firms throughout the Pacific Northwest in the past couple weeks. I had the pleasure of discussing the avionics market, including military, commercial, and general aviation with professionals at industry firms VPT, Crane Aerospace & Electronics, Radisys, Martek Power, EDT, and others.

I learned in numerous face-to-face meetings that, when it comes to the current and future health of the industry, optimism abounds. Demand for avionics is growing across multiple segments and locales; among them are: the Asia-Pacific region, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and space. Space avionics sub-segments--including spacecraft systems, unmanned rovers, and satellites--are active and gaining considerable attention.

NASA officials have made several announcements, just in this first week of November. Among them is a rare opportunity.

For the first time in three decades, the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is open to tourists. Guests at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex can take a tour of the 525-foot-tall VAB, where myriad rockets have been built—ranging from the first Saturn V rocket in the late 1960s to the last space shuttle, the STS-135 Atlantis.

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), being called the largest and most capable rover to be sent to another planet, is scheduled to launch the morning of Nov. 25. The spacecraft will carry the car-sized Curiosity rover to the surface of Mars in Aug. 2010.

NASA officials, together with engineers from Lockheed Martin Space Systems, also plan an unmanned flight test of the Orion spacecraft in early 2014. The test of Lockheed Martin’s multi-purpose crew vehicle supports NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS).

NASA’s Deep Space Network antenna in California captured radar images of the aircraft carrier-sized Asteroid 2005 YU55 passing roughly 860,000 miles away from Earth.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden has appointed Mason Peck, a professor at Cornell University, to be the agency’s chief technologist starting in January.

The Juno spacecraft has launched on its five-year voyage to Jupiter, with help from American Pacific Corp.'s in-space propulsion subsidiary (AMPAC-ISP).

NASA engineers are busy and, in turn, keeping aerospace technology companies busy and innovating. Space is a bright spot in the avionics community, and recent activity should allay concerns over a dwindling U.S. space industry. Kudos and keep up the great work--to 2012 and beyond!

Knowledge is Power

Posted by Skyler Frink

If there's one thing GI Joe taught me, it's that knowledge is power.

Intelligence has always been a key factor in military engagements. From the lack of communication between Lee and Stuart in the civil war to the blunder by the British during the Battle of New Orleans, those without knowledge of the battlefield and the capabilities of both sides have been at a severe disadvantage.

Fortunately for the military intelligence has evolved, and getting exact information is increasingly possible with satellites, laser systems, advanced radar, unmanned sensors and unmanned vehicles. The problem facing the modern military is how to share this wealth of information.

The answer is the same as it's always been: Radios.

Modern radios, which behave more like smart phones than the radios of old that only relayed verbal communication, can transmit images, video and data. The utility of these improvements are obvious; verbal reports can be inaccurate and can often be misinterpreted. Rather than having to listen to a verbal report, imagine being able to see the battlefield through video feeds, or have a map that is updated in real-time as data flows in from various sensors.

With all of this information we get the ability to give more detailed commands. Rather than verbal orders, a satellite can locate a target and direct whatever forces are necessary to an area. There are no more questions about where other friendlies are located, because each soldier possesses a GPS that is constantly transmitting data to every other device on the field.

New technologies such as these help dispel the uncertainty created by the fog of war, and go a long way in improving safety for the men and women who are engaged in combat. GI Joe would be proud.

Is orange juice key to preserving last intact German Do-17 light bomber downed in Battle of Britain?

Posted by John Keller

Thanks to an Alert Reader in North Carolina, I've learned of an historical research project in England that seeks to raise and preserve what is believed to be the last remaining intact German Dornier Do-17, a World War II-era light bomber shot down over the English Channel in summer 1940 during the Battle of Britain.

Interestingly, it may turn out to be orange juice -- or some similar derivate rich in citric acid -- that may be key to preserving the aircraft remains, now submerged under the English Channel, from the ravages of salt-water-induced corrosion.

Experts from Imperial College London and the Royal Air Force Museum are joining hands to rescue the downed Do-17 -- better-known as the "Flying Pencil" -- and display the restored Nazi bomber in a proposed gallery planned to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the Battle of Britain.

The aircraft was found last year in the shallows off the Goodwin Sands in the English Channel between the England and France. Shifting sands uncovered the aircraft, which had been protected for decades by layers of sediment. Its exposure to salt water, however, threatens to destroy the remains. The Battle of Britain, fought in the summer and fall of 1940, refers to attempts by Nazi Germany to establish air superiority over the United Kingdom as a prelude to a German invasion of the British Isles, which never came, thanks to a tenacious defense by the Royal Air Force (RAF).

The recently discovered Do-17 had been manned by a crew of four and loaded with 2,000 pounds of bombs on 26 Aug. 1940 when it was shot down by RAF fighters. Its pilot and another crew member survived, and two were killed when the airplane went down.

For now, researchers are testing an environmentally friendly solution based on citric acid -- found in high concentrations in citrus fruit like oranges and lemons -- to remove surface layers of corrosion and sea deposits on the Do-17 remains, but leave remaining paint and markings on the aircraft intact.

If all goes well, researchers plan to raise the aircraft remains from the English Channel next spring, restore the aircraft, and display it in the planned new Battle of Britain Beacon win at the Royal Air Force Museum's London site.

Editor's note: special thanks goes out to Chris Burke, president of BtB Marketing Communications in Raleigh, N.C., a man of catholic interests, keen insights, and broad expertise. Don't laugh; he knows how to cook a turkey in a garbage can.

Boeing: A giant awakens

By Courtney E. Howard

When I began covering the aerospace market and, soon after, relocated to the Pacific Northwest, I was surprised to find that although The Boeing Company was considered an industry giant, it was also perceived by many, especially those in technological circles, to be rather slow-moving.

In little more than the past two months, however, Boeing has made significant strides.

The company announced global leadership changes, including: Marlin Dailey, vice president of sales for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, named president of Boeing Germany, Northern Europe/EU, and Africa; Ray Conner named to the new position of senior vice president of sales and customer support, leading sales, marketing, and commercial aviation services; Stan Deal named to succeed Conner as vice president and general manager, supply chain management and operations; Tim Peters named to lead surveillance and engagement division; Lianne Stein, vice president of Boeing International and president of Boeing Germany, appointed vice president of global corporate citizenship; and Vice President, Community and Education Relations Anne Roosevelt, Boeing Space Exploration VP Brewster Shaw, and CFO James Bell announcing retirement.

In the past two months, Boeing has: introduced the 737 MAX aircraft family, upgraded CV-22 trainers, delivered 787 Dreamliners, first flew the P-8I and CHAMP missile, modernized the F-15E radar, won various avionics modernization and satellite communications contract awards, approved quarterly dividends, modernized destroyers with Gigabit Ethernet networking, helped conduct the first biofuel flight, and much more.

Be sure to stay tuned to Avionics Intelligence to read the latest news, including a new Boeing Commercial Crew program office and partnership with NASA and Space Florida, which is destined to bring new jobs to the Florida facility.