Research and Development – VISIONSBLOG.INFO

Lufthansa takes off with polar explorers to a 13,700-kilometer Nonstop Journey

Routing Hamburg-Falkland Islands/Image: Lufthansa

On Sunday, January 31, 2021, a Lufthansa Airbus A350-900 will take off for the longest nonstop flight in Lufthansa history: 13,700 kilometers from Hamburg to the military base Mount Pleasant in the Falkland Islands. On board there will be scientists and crew members of the research vessel “Polarstern”.

At 9:30 p.m., it’s “Ready for take-off” for 16 crew members and 92 passengers. On board the special flight are Continue reading “Lufthansa takes off with polar explorers to a 13,700-kilometer Nonstop Journey”

DLR starts planning production of climate-neutral kerosene

Refueling the Airbus A320-232- D-ATRA with synthetic fuel/Photo: DLR

Synthetic fuels, along with battery and fuel cell propulsion systems, are another technological building block for making the mobility of the future sustainable and climate-neutral. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) has now been commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) to plan a pilot plant for the production of climate-neutral synthetic fuels on an industrial scale.

The pilot project is intended to Continue reading “DLR starts planning production of climate-neutral kerosene”

World’s largest science show

DLR Promotion of Young Talent with World Record/Photo: DLR

The DLR Space Show on June 7, 2019, in Erfurt’s Steigerwald Stadium was the world’s largest science show of all time. This has now been confirmed by the Guinness Book of Records. On this day, 15,966 schoolchildren watched the stage presentation by the German Aerospace Center (DLR), which also featured the German ESA astronauts Ulf Merbold and Alexander Gerst.

The new world record surpasses Continue reading “World’s largest science show”

European aviation research: IMOTHEP, an ambitious technology programme for hybrid electric drives

The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is an important key to the further development of aviation. It requires ambitious research and solutions that go far beyond the continuous improvement of current aircraft technologies. On January 20, 2020, Bauhaus Luftfahrt e. V. and its partners from aviation research and industry officially launched the IMOTHEP project in Brussels, a research initiative on hybrid electric propulsion that is funded by the European Commission as part of Horizon 2020 .

Continue reading “European aviation research: IMOTHEP, an ambitious technology programme for hybrid electric drives”

Aviation X Lab wants to redesign the future of aviation

Aviation X Lab, an aviation-specific incubator that brings together Airbus, Collins Aerospace, Emirates, GE Aviation and Thales under one roof, was recently unveiled at Area 2071 and established a long-term partnership among the five industry giants. It invites startups, innovators, academics, NGOs, activists and companies worldwide to participate in problem solving. Continue reading “Aviation X Lab wants to redesign the future of aviation”

Robots can fly – but,

Robots can fly – but, they cannot do this at the same level of safety as manned aviation. Moreover, it is more than questionable whether automated flight systems/robo-pilots will be more efficient or effective than manned systems in the foreseeable future. This was the conclusion reached by the participants of the 22nd symposium of the Research Network for Pilot Training (FHP), which took place at the end of September under the topic “Are Robots Learning to Fly? – How will the current hype about artificial intelligence (AI) affect work in the cockpit as well as the training and further education of pilots?

A guest contribution by Max Scheck, Lufthansa Captain A320, Master of Aeronautical Science and member of the board of the research network for commercial pilot training, FHP. Continue reading “Robots can fly – but,”

Established aviation companies must keep pace with innovative ideas from start ups

the development of environmentally friendly mobility concepts will be one of the central challenges of the coming decades/Foto: Dassault Systemes

The development of environmentally friendly mobility concepts will be one of the central challenges of the coming decades. An interesting exhibitor in this field at this year’s Paris Air Show was “Dassault Aviation”, a subsidiary of the multinational software development company “Dassault Systemes”. “Established aviation companies must keep pace with innovative ideas from start-ups that are entering the market”, says CEO David Ziegler. Continue reading “Established aviation companies must keep pace with innovative ideas from start ups”

Austrian Airlines inspects aircraft using drone technology

Since mid-year, Austrian Airlines has been testing a completely new technology for the technical inspection of its aircraft fleet:/Photo: Austrian Airlines

Using autonomous drones developed by the French start-up “Donecle”, Austrian Airlines’ aircraft are checked for damage to paintwork and structures. The innovation not only makes work easier for the airline’s technicians, but the shorter duration of the check – less than two hours instead of the previous four to ten hours – also ensures faster availability of the aircraft in daily operations. Continue reading “Austrian Airlines inspects aircraft using drone technology”

Clear Air Turbulences – are on the rise

Clear Air Turbulences, short CAT, which occur completely unexpectedly, increase. The tricky thing about it is that no pilot, radar, satellite or meteorologist can predict a CAT. The turbulence comes from nowhere. According to atmospheric scientist Paul Williams from the University of Reading (England), this phenomenon is likely to occur much more frequently in the future, because climate change not only affects the ground, but also the altitude in a special way.

11 July 2019: Air Canada’s Boeing 777 flew quietly over the Pacific. The night was cloudless. Many passengers slept, Continue reading “Clear Air Turbulences – are on the rise”

Kerosene from sunlight, water and CO2

Solaranlage SUN-to-LIQUID zur Herstellung von Kerosin/Foto: DLR

The conversion from fossil to renewable fuels is one of the most important challenges of the future. The “SUN-to-LIQUID” project, funded by the European Union and Switzerland, was the first to produce solar kerosene. The production of renewable kerosene from water and CO2 is made possible by concentrated sunlight. Continue reading “Kerosene from sunlight, water and CO2”