Tata and Lockheed Martin collaborate to manufacture F-16 wings in India

Lockheed Martin, the US-based aerospace company has given the go-ahead to manufacture the wings of F-16 fighter jets at the Tata-Lockheed Martin Aerostructures Limited (TLMAL) facility located in Hyderabad.

The company, on 8th December, formally acknowledged TLMAL ( Tata Lockheed Martin Aerostructures) as a potential co-producer of F-16 wings.

The Tech Outlook

Apparently, the TLMAL facility is spread over 21,000 sq m. and can make 50 pairs of wings a year.

Tata Group

The wing can carry fuel, it can perform and fly at ‘9G’ — ‘G’ defines gravitational pull and 9G is the maximum a human body can endure. The wing has 12,000-hour lifespan and is capable to be interchanged on all fighters F 16Aimee Burnett, vice-president (strategy and business development), Lockheed Martin Integrated Fighter Group

Representative | Defense View

He further termed wing-making as a “technologically complex aerostructure”.

We are doing transfer of technology and wing-making is an exampleWilliam Blair, vice-president and chief executive of Lockheed Martin India

According to Sukaran Singh, managing director and chief executive officer of Tata Advanced Systems Limited, the US aerospace company is in a race to tender for 114 Indian Airforce fighter aircraft.

If we win the tender, we can make 50 aircraft a yearSukaran Singh

With this strategic move, TASL is touted to become the provider of wings for all future customers and strengthens its role in the F-16 global supply chain.

Furthermore, with the landmark "Make in India" campaign gaining traction, this would only serve to strengthen Indo-US defence ties.

Did you know? TASL and Lockheed Martin, through a long-standing joint-venture, have been manufacturing airframe components of the C-130J aircraft and S-92 Sikorsky helicopter at the Hyderabad facility. 

KC-3802 Indian Air Force Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules | Planespotters

The production of F-16 wings on Indian soil will undoubtedly place India at the centre of the world's largest fighter aircraft ecosystem, thereby making it a preferred destination for aerospace manufacturing.

COVER: Air Force Magazine

UAE's Sky One FZE is among the bidders in the race to buy the government's stake in helicopter services company Pawan Hans, according to people aware of the matter. Pawan Hans was put up for sale in December 2020.

The Sharjah-based company has submitted an expression of interest (EoI) for the helicopter services firm and is planning a bid, the people said. There could be other bidders competing to acquire the company. Industry experts expect the employees’ union of Pawan Hans, along with Global Vectra Helicorp and Heligo Charters to bid for the company.

"Multiple EoIs have been received for privatisation of Pawan Hans Ltd. The transaction will now move to the second stage," Tuhin Kanta Pandey, secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) had tweeted earlier this year.

The sale process, which has faced delays on account of the Covid-19 pandemic that adversely impacted the aviation sector, has picked up momentum again over the past two weeks, according to sources. The government may receive financial bids for Pawan Hans before the end of the fiscal year, the sources added.

The government had attempted to privatize Pawan Hans in 2018 and 2019 but those were not successful.

Sky One FZE is a privately held company. It is in the business of operating helicopter charter services and has an aircraft leasing arm. It recently signed a deal with Boeing Capital Corporation to buy three Boeing 777-300 airplanes, according to Boeing's website.

Charles Szar, a former US Army pilot, is the company's chief executive officer. No details of the company's owners have been provided on its website, which states that it has over 40 aircraft.

ONGC to Sell Stake too Pawan Hans is 51% owned by the government, while ONGC owns the remaining. According to a preliminary information memorandum circulated by SBI Caps in December 2020, ONGC will also sell its stake to the successful bidder.

The government also plans to abolish landing charges and parking deposits, steps that may boost commercial operations of helicopters in India.

Pawan Hans owns a fleet of 42 helicopters. Its corporate headquarters is in Noida. The company provides services to ONGC, such as carrying personnel and supplies including cargo to drilling rigs in Bombay High and Rajahmundry.

It carried 1,48,508 passengers and 1,45,750 kg of cargo load in financial year 2019-20. It also provides helicopter services to VIPs and is involved in heli-tourism operations to places of pilgrimage such as Badrinath, Vaishno Devi, Kedarnath, Amarnath and Tirupati as well as inter-island transportation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Daman and Diu and Lakshadweep Islands to transport locals and tourists from one island to another.

It posted revenues of INR 376 crore in the financial year 2019-20. It had a net loss of INR 28 crore. Pawan Hans is among a list of companies identified for privatization by the government in the ongoing fiscal year, along with Air India, Shipping Corporation of India, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, BEML, Container Corporation of India, IDBI Bank and Neelachal Ispat Nigam.

(With Inputs from The Economic Times)

Continuing on the recovery path, domestic air passenger traffic crossed the 10 million mark in November for the first time since the pandemic hit the aviation industry in March 2020 but the coronavirus' new variant Omicron has the potential to spoil the party, according to a rating agency ICRA.

After recording 1.23 crore domestic passengers in February 2020, domestic air travel demand dipped to 19.84 lakh passengers in the first month (June 2020) of the resumption of flight services on the local routes after a two-month hiatus.

The recovery in domestic traffic continued till March 2021 when a more virulent second wave of the pandemic hit the country, resulting in domestic travel demand nosediving to 21.15 lakh passengers in May 2021.

In the second phase of the recovery, domestic travel demand rose to 10.04-10.05 million (1.004 crore-1.005 crore) in November 2021 as against 63.54 lakh passengers recorded in the year-ago period, registering a robust 64% year-on-year growth, ICRA said in a statement. The month-on-month growth, however, stood at 15-16 per cent in November over around 8.98 million passenger traffic in October 2021, ICRA said.

"Though the recovery continued in November, demand continues to be subdued from the corporate traveller segment as reflected by the passenger traffic being lower by around 19 per cent in November 2021 compared to pre-COVID-19 levels.Moreover, the threat of the new variant, which has pushed the resumption of scheduled international operations, has the potential to derail the domestic recovery too, if it becomes a source of a fresh round of lockdowns/ restrictions in the near term.For November, the average daily departures were at around 2,700, significantly higher than the average daily departures of 1,806 in November 2020, and higher than around 2,400 in October 2021."Suprio Banerjee, Vice-President and Sector Head, ICRA

ICRA also said domestic carriers deployed 49% higher capacity in the previous months vis-à-vis November 2020, logging around 80,750 departures in the month under review as against 54,132 departures in the year-ago period. On a sequential basis, the number of departures in November was around 12 per cent higher as coronavirus infections demonstrated a downward trajectory, it said.

The average number of passengers per flight during November was around 129, against an average of 125 passengers per flight in October 2021, according to the rating agency.

One major concern that continues to worry the aviation sector is the aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, which have seen a sharp 67.3% increase on a y-o-y basis till December 2021, which is mainly attributed to an increase in crude oil prices, ICRA said. This, coupled with relatively low capacity utilisation of aircraft fleet, will continue to weigh on the financial performance of domestic carriers in FY2022, it stated.

On November 26, the director-general of civil aviation (DGCA) announced the resumption of scheduled International operations from December 15 with some restrictions. However, the regulator had to postpone it till further notice, due to the spread of the Omicron variant.

An Indian Army helicopter carrying senior defence officials, including CDS Bipin Rawat, crashed at Coonoor in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district, an Indian Air Force press release has confirmed.

A total of 14 people were on-board the military chopper that crashed between Coimbatore and Sulur in Tamil Nadu. Thirteen people of the 14 people on board are dead and one has been rescued alive.

Wing Commander Prithvi Singh Chauhan was the pilot of the Mi-17V5, which crashed with 14 personnel on board, including CDS Gen Bipin Rawat. He is the Commanding Officer of the 109 Helicopter Unit.

https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1468493903921770499

"An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu. An Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident," reads the Indian Air Force tweet.

Bipin Rawat is India's first and current Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). He is a four-star general of the Indian Army.

PTI reports quoting sources that all the injured people on board the Mi-17V5 helicopter have been evacuated from the spot of the accident.

The Chief of Defence Staff was on his way to the Defence Staff College in Wellington. The IAF said a Court of Inquiry has been ordered into the accident.

https://twitter.com/adgpi/status/1468591104794644484

General MM Naravane and all ranks of the Indian Army express their deepest grief and sorrow over the untimely demise of General Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence Staff, Madhulika Rawat, President DWWA and 11 other military personnel in an unfortunate air accident today on December 8, said a statement by Indian Army.

The mortal remains of CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife, along with others killed in the crash, are expected to arrive in Delhi by tomorrow evening.

The Russian-made Mi-17V5 military helicopter had just taken off from an army base in Sulur and was heading for Wellington town, less than 100km (62 miles) away, where Gen Rawat was due to visit the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC).

CDS Gen Bipin Rawat and his wife Madhulika Rawat, President, Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) have lost their lives in the crash.

Rescue efforts were hampered due to the crash site's hilly location, which is thick with vegetation.

Gen Rawat, who was born on 16 March 1958 in the northern state of Uttarakhand, was a decorated officer who often commanded units in restive regions in the country. In recent months, the general was focusing on modernising the military.

Although the Mi-17V5 is among the most sophisticated military transport helicopters, India's ageing air force fleet is often blamed for a high number of crashes.

Former army chief J J Singh said it was "a safe, proven helicopter", adding that he himself had travelled on it in difficult situations.

In 2017, seven military personnel were killed in a Mi-17V5 crash in the north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh. The helicopter was on a training sortie.

A year before that, another of the helicopters had crashed immediately after take-off during a military drill in the northern state of Uttarakhand. No casualties were reported.

We pay our heartfelt tributes to CDS Gen Bipin Rawat and all the officials who have lost their lives in the crash.

Cover Image - Telangana Today

Airbus has completed the final structural assembly of the highly hyped, long-range narrowbody, the A321 XLR (Extra Long Range).

The aircraft, with serial number MSN11000, is one of the three planned development aircraft which will perform the flight testing and Type Certification programme -- starting in 2022, to pave the way for series production and entry into service in 2023.

Aviation International News

While other Final Assembly Line (FAL) locations would be eventually producing the A321 XLR, Airbus chose Hamburg to pilot’ this new variant into series production. The structural completion follows the recent assembly and equipping of the Major Component Assemblies (MCAs) and their subsequent delivery and introduction on schedule into the FAL in November. 

For the A321 Family, we have started all the head-of-versions in Hamburg -- the real first ones -- and it is our intention to build these aircraft also at the other sites Michael Menking, Head of the A320 Family Programme 

Of the four A320 Family assembly lines in Hamburg, the one which is processing the first A321XLR is referred to as “FAL Line 2". The subsequent two A321XLR development aircraft – MSN11058 and MSN11080 – will follow in due course from the same assembly line.

We are currently on the way to also have the A321XLR delivered out of other Single Aisle FALs. So it is important for sure that all the teams learn from the experience in Hamburg so we can bring this knowledge to the other facilities. This is also what we are doing with the A320 Family Airspace cabin which we started in HamburgMichael Menking

After having passed through all the stations, the very first A321XLR will have transformed from a collection of individual parts into a real aircraft.

This test aircraft has a partial cabin installed to leave space for all the required flight test equipment. What is also specific for this first A321XLR aircraft is that there is a lot of documentation work to be done, especially for flight test installation, which is very different from our serial process. So this requires a special focus by all the teams in closing the documentation and dealing with any discrepanciesGerd Weber, Head of A320 Family Value Stream Management & FALs

The aircraft will eventually have a sophisticated flight-test-instrumentation (FTI) suite installed followed by the installation of its CFM LEAP engines.

With all that in place and the aircraft’s external paint scheme implemented, the aircraft would be ready to perform the taxiing runs and eventually its maiden test flight, tentatively by next year.

The A321 XLR, which is basically a variant of the A321 LR, was launched at the June 2019 Paris Air Show, with a 4,700 nmi range.

Additionally, it also features a new permanent Rear Centre Tank (RCT) for more fuel, strengthened landing gear for a 101 t (223,000 lb) MTOW and an optimised wing trailing-edge flap configuration to preserve take-off performance.

A321 XLR REAR CENTRE TANK (RCT) | SimpleFlying

Did you know? The A321 XLR offers a vast 4,700 nautical miles of range, exceeding any current narrowbodies at the moment. In comparison, the longest-range Boeing 737 MAX 7, offers a range of 3,850 NM (but only seats up to 150), while the A321LR has a range of 4,000 NM (seats 206 passengers).

AIRBUS

The extra-long range of the A321 XLR would allow low-cost carriers to tap into long haul markets which were earlier dominated by widebodies. Not surprisingly, Indigo broke news last October by placing an order for a massive 300 A320 Neo family aircraft which included the A321 XLR as well.

SOURCE: Airbus

COVER: Airbus

As the country records over 20 cases of Omicron in just three days while several COVID-19-positive samples undergo genome testing, as many as 50% of people want the central government to suspend all Vande Bharat flights coming from countries where 20 or more Omicron cases have been detected, according to a survey.

The survey was done by the online platform LocalCircles and received over 18,000 responses from citizens residing in 317 districts of the country.

It was conducted to understand the approach that people want the government to take on international flight restrictions and also to strengthen the quarantine process so that the risk of Omicron spread is minimised, according to a statement.

(Image Courtesy - Outlook India)

The government has identified 14 countries as “at-risk” countries, including South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe as well as European countries like the UK and Singapore.

The people were also asked if it should be made mandatory for district health officials to do inspection or location tracking for anyone undergoing home quarantine. In response, only 16% said it was not required and 84% said it should be made mandatory, indicating that the majority wants district officials to regularly inspect or location track individuals coming on international flights and under home quarantine to minimise the risk of Omicron variant. The question in the survey received 8,590 responses.

People want the government to streamline the home quarantine process by effectively tracking and tracing these individuals such that the risk of Omicron spread through them is reduced, it said. The scheduled commercial international passenger flight services to and from India remain suspended for nearly 21 months now due to the pandemic.

(Image Courtesy - The Economic Times)

To facilitate international air travel, the government has allowed operations of flight services in a limited manner under the Vande Bharat Mission and air bubble pacts with various governments. Currently, India has air bubble agreements with as many as 31 countries from Afghanistan and Bangladesh to Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore, the UAE, the UK and the US, among others.

Reports from several states suggest that international travellers have either become non-traceable after exiting from the airport or allegedly deliberately given the wrong contact information about themselves, it said. The risk is that if these travellers start going out, meeting others and visiting tourist destinations, they are likely to infect many more, LocalCircles said in the release.

“The need of the hour, according to the people, is for the government to ensure that a traveller arriving from an ‘at-risk’ country must validate their phone number or e-mail address to be approved for home quarantine via an OTP and if the same does not happen, the traveller should be put in mandatory institutional quarantine."Sachin Taparia, Founder, LocalCircles

People also suggested that location tracking of the travellers must be done via WhatsApp or Arogya Setu or some other mechanism such that they maintain the home quarantine discipline, Taparia added.

Also, the transfer of information of travellers sent by airport authorities to the district administration must be done in real-time, said LocalCircles. It added that the findings in the survey indicate that people want timely action on these two recommendations, helpful in isolating Omicron cases and slowing their spread and possibly averting the third wave.

The survey received more than 18,000 responses from citizens residing in 317 districts of India. 68% of respondents were men while 32% of respondents were women.

The variant, which has scientists and epidemiologists from around the world raise red flags, has been categorised as a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organisation after it was identified in three countries. Within a week, Omicron has been detected in over 50 countries with all major countries included. The latest data suggests that the Omicron variant has between 30-50 mutations and a 5X transmission advantage over the base or alpha variant of SARS-CoV-2. More data is awaited on the severity of illness caused by Omicron, along with the efficacy of existing vaccines against this variant.

(With Inputs from PTI)

Cover Image - Bloomberg