Aviation News in Brief 23 September 2020

Sriwijaya Air selects Rusada’s ENVISION: Indonesian airline Sriwijaya Air has signed up for Rusada’s Airworthiness and MRO software, ENVISION. Sriwijaya Air is Indonesia’s third-largest carrier, and along with subsidiary Nam Air, provides passenger flights to destinations across the country as well as international flights to Malaysia, Singapore and China. Since launching in 2003, its fleet has grown to 30 aircraft, consisting of Boeing 737s and ATR 72s. Sriwijaya Air have signed up for six of ENVISION’s modules, including Fleet Management, Line Maintenance, Inventory Management, and Human Resources. Rusada has already begun work on the implementation project, which will be carried out remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Their Asia-Pacific team, based in Brisbane, will conduct user training sessions via video conferencing, and use project management software to track and convey progress to Sriwijaya.

ALSIM opens new production site: ALSIM, the global flight simulator manufacturer headquartered in France, has opened a new production site next to its factory in Le Loroux-Bottereau, Nantes. To respond to growing demand of the market, the flight simulator manufacturer has decided to expand its production capacities. The new facility allows ALSIM to produce up to 10 simulators at the same time. The production has been reorganised to get a greater reliability of manufacturing processes. This change leads to an increase of simulators’ quality and would allow ALSIM to consider the ISO certification in the near future. In addition to the production team, the hardware engineers’ team has also been integrated to the facility to reinforce the synergies and enable an even smoother and more efficient work.

Arianespace to resume OneWeb constellation’s deployment: Arianespace and OneWeb will resume launch operations to continue the deployment of the OneWeb constellation. The next Soyuz launch is planned as soon as December 2020 from the Vostochny Cosmodrome. Pursuant to an amended launch contract with OneWeb, the London-based communications company, Arianespace will perform 16 more Soyuz launches from three spaceports (Kourou, Baikonur and Vostochny) beginning in late 2020 and continuing through 2022. These launches will enable OneWeb to complete the deployment of its full global constellation of Low Earth Orbit satellites by the end of 2022. The next Soyuz flight is scheduled for December 2020 from Vostochny with 36 satellites on board. Arianespace has launched 74 OneWeb satellites to date. The initial six were successfully orbited by Soyuz Flight VS21 from French Guiana on February, 2019. In February and March, 2020, Arianespace and its Starsem affiliate successfully launched 68 OneWeb satellites from Baikonur on Soyuz Flights ST27 and ST28. OneWeb’s goal is to deliver global connectivity from a network of 650 low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites that will provide high-bandwidth, low latency communication services to regions previously unconnected.

Airbus selected for ESA’s new polar ice and snow topography mission: The European Space Agency (ESA) has selected Airbus to develop and build the Copernicus polar ice and snow topography mission (CRISTAL). With two satellites the CRISTAL mission will ensure the long-term continuation of radar altimetry ice elevation and change records. It is one of six new missions to expand the current capabilities of the Copernicus space component for the benefit of all European citizens. The contract is worth 300 million euros. With launch planned in 2027, CRISTAL will carry an advanced multi-frequency altimeter that will measure sea ice thickness and ice sheet elevations. These data will support maritime operations in polar oceans and contribute to a better understanding of climate processes. CRISTAL will also support applications related to coastal and inland waters and the observation of ocean topography. Six fixed and two deployable solar arrays – 18.6 m² in total – ensure enough power on a drifting polar orbit at 760km above the Earth. Its on-board memory will be able to store up to 4 terabits of science data at once, providing scientists with a wealth of information during its 7.5 year lifetime. The Airbus Defence and Space site in Friedrichshafen (Germany) will head an industrial consortium involving companies from 19 countries to deliver the project, including Thales Alenia Space to provide the IRIS Interferometric Radar Altimeter. The 1.7 ton spacecraft is based on a proven, robust Airbus satellite design building on the heritage from Sentinel-6 and CryoSat.

SR Technics sells design engineering solutions to groWING.aero: SR Technics announced that effective 1 October 2020 its design engineering solutions department will be transferred to groWING.aero as part of a sale that ensures the continuity of these services. This is due to the industry-wide COVID-19 crisis and the changing market environment where SR Technics has decided to focus on engine services and line maintenance in Switzerland. SR Technics will remain involved until the end of this year to support a smooth transition to the new owner. All SR Technics staff dedicated to design engineering solutions at the Belgrade, Dublin and Zurich locations will continue to be employed at groWING engineering partners GmbH under the umbrella of the Swiss company groWING (holding) AG, based in Hünenberg, canton of Zug. The new groWING.aero design organization will continue to provide services under approval reference EASA.21J.770, and customers will continue to receive support from the former SR Technics team led by Randolph Odi as the previous and new operational lead, and in sales and customer support by Oladimeji Olukolu, also part of the current SR Technics team.

Jet Aviation commits to sustainable aviation: Jet Aviation confirmed its ongoing commitment to sustainable aviation in the industry’s first ever (virtual) sustainability summit hosted earlier this week by the Business Aviation Coalition for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF Coalition). The company was the first, exclusive provider of SAF in Switzerland through its pilot program during WEF 2020. It continues to invest in sustainable solutions, recently delivering industry-leading weight values in its quietest ever VIP cabin interior. Recent sustainable efforts introduced at Jet Aviation include new fume pipes and skylights (Basel), facilities built to LEED standards (Boston-Bedford, Burbank, Van Nuys and Palm Beach), as well as low flow water fixtures, a white roof and a heat-reducing tarmac (Palm Beach).

Airbus to keep NASA’s helicopters flying for up to 10 years: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has signed a US$15million HCare Infinite full-availability support solution with Airbus Helicopters. The comprehensive contract, initially covering two years with the option to extend up to 10, provides the entire spectrum of support needs for NASA’s fleet of three H135 helicopters. Airbus will ensure operational availability by managing all of NASA’s scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, as well as spare parts. In addition, Airbus will be responsible for the helicopter flight operations by stationing two pilots, two mechanics and one program manager at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre (KSC) in Florida. NASA will operate their new fleet of H135 helicopters, purchased as part of a fleet renewal initiative, at Cape Canaveral for a variety of missions including security around rocket launches, emergency medical services, and qualified personnel transport. HCare Infinite is Airbus’ comprehensive level of customer support and requires the company to guarantee the customer’s full fleet operational availability, including maintenance, technical support, and the supply of spare parts, tools and consumables.

Air Transport Services Group offers airline operations solution: Lufthansa Systems and Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) announced an agreement to implement Lufthansa Systems’ Integrated Operations Control Centre (IOCC) solutions at each of ATSG’s individual cargo airlines, Air Transport International and ABX Air. The recently signed contract enables each airline to migrate to the proven Lido Flight 4D flight planning system, monitor flight operations with NetLine/Ops ++ and manage its crews with NetLine/Crew. The Lido Flight 4D flight planning solution calculates the most suitable and efficient trajectory for each flight based on all relevant flight data, such as weather conditions, the current airspace situation, fully integrated notice to airmen (NOTAMs) and further restrictions that may apply. The solution offers many integrated and automated functionalities that reduce the workload of flight dispatchers who can focus on what really matters – safe and efficient flight planning. NetLine/Ops ++ monitors current flight operations.

Leonardo joining Lot Fourteen space arena: Italian company Leonardo is joining the South Australian space ecosystem by establishing a foothold for its space service business through its subsidiary e-GEOS in partnership with SmartSat CRC. e-GEOS is a joint venture between Telespazio, Leonardo’s subsidiary, and the Italian Space Agency. As a dominant worldwide supplier in the space sector, Leonardo aims to collaborate with the Australian space industry to stimulate local growth and competitiveness in global markets. “Lot Fourteen is the beating heart of Australia’s space activity. It is where the future of Australia’s space capability is being created. Leonardo and e-GEOS have so much space expertise to bring, technology to transfer and experience to share. We want to see the Australian space industry grow. How could we not be part of this thrilling venture?” said Michael Lenton, executive chairman of Leonardo Australia. In 2019, Leonardo Australia through e-GEOS, became a supporting partner of Adelaide-based space Cooperative Research Centre SmartSat CRC. Leonardo Australia’s partnership with SmartSat is a key driver in the company’s strategy to grow its presence in the space industry within the Oceania region and to develop joint research and commercialisation opportunities. As prominent provider of the European Copernicus program, e-GEOS supports rapid security and disaster response operations all over the world, including providing Australian fire authorities rapid mapping during recent bushfires.

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