Elan Head and Jon Ostrower·
Log-in here if you’re already a subscriber Release DateMay 9, 2022FAA changes course on eVTOL certificationPurchase a PDF of this...
Log-in here if you’re already a subscriber Release DateApril 27, 2022Trump Air Force One deal leaves Boeing with $1B hangoverPurchase...
Elan Head and Jon Ostrower·
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Log-in here if you’re already a subscriber Release DateApril 22, 2022Boeing preps 777X for slip deep into 2024, as it...
Jon Ostrower and Elan Head·
It's been a frenetic week for fleet moves. Alaska Air is formally removing the asterisk on its Proudly All Boeing moniker, Delta got an all-new aircraft type, Air Canada's getting in line for early A321XLRs and the FAA is putting a significant question mark over the availability of the 737 Max 10. After the crash of China Eastern 5736, The Air Current compares historical high rates of descent for key air accidents. It's an important dose of perspective in the early phases of the investigation into what brought down the 737-800. Whisper Drone charts a course for high-speed electric flight. TAC spoke with Whisper Aero founder Mark Moore about its new drone testbed and its prospects as a promising early application for its ultra-quiet electric propulsors.
NetJets and FlightSafety International – both units of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway – have jumped into the electric vertical take-off and landing market, announcing plans for a strategic partnership with the German eVTOL developer Lilium. Buffett’s aviation investments have been stretched across the aerospace chain and with varying success.
Chorus Aviation is acquiring Falko Regional Aircraft, kicking off a fresh round of consolidation in the leasing space -- this time among those who focus on regional aviation.
The Federal Aviation Administration and U.K. Civil Aviation Authority have started working toward a bilateral agreement for the future certification and validation of eVTOL aircraft. It’s a post-Brexit signal that the CAA is not looking exclusively to Europe for guidance.
Less than four months after the Federal Aviation Administration rolled out its 2021 Aviation Climate Action Plan, the agency’s official blueprint for achieving net-zero aviation emissions by 2050 is already starting to look dated. The plan relies overwhelmingly on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) as the principal pathway for reducing the U.S. aviation sector’s greenhouse gas emissions. It is plainly dismissive of hydrogen, stating: “we do not expect hydrogen-powered aircraft to make a significant contribution toward achieving net-zero aviation emissions by 2050.”
Influential customer has “hard time seeing” 787 deliveries resuming before July, 777X certification likely to slip past 2023.
Jon Ostrower and Elan Head·
Eviation’s progress as the first all-new passenger commercial airplane exclusively powered by batteries is being closely watched as a technical, economic and regulatory pathfinder for the wider adoption of electric flight.
Jon Ostrower and Elan Head·
At first glance, the purchase of 50 new-generation aircraft looks out of character for Allegiant Air, here's why it jumped on the Boeing bandwagon. There's a rivalry brewing between eVTOL entrants Joby Aviation and Archer. The quiet war of words over certification milestones are increasingly important to watch as both eye 2024 for regulatory approvals and the bragging rights for first to fly paying passengers. Emirates 231 wasn't the only incident of its kind. There's no global system of incident reporting -- and that's what makes independent aviation journalism so important.
The industry is closely watching Boeing’s progress as a bellwether for its own health and that of the disrupted global supply chain. While its build rate will accelerate to 31 early next year, the company will need to advance its delivery rate well over that level in order to burn down its enormous inventory of 737 Max aircraft built and stored during the grounding.
While Boeing announced it would slow the rate at which it builds 787s in mid-July below five per month, some suppliers have halted work and deliveries of large structural sections by at least one major supplier won’t restart until at least October 26.
