Tag: aeronautical engineering

Sikorsky Unveils U-Hawk, a Fully Autonomous Cargo Black Hawk

Aerotime reports, “Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, has unveiled the S-70UAS U-Hawk, a fully autonomous variant of the UH-60 Black Hawk designed to operate as a heavy-lift cargo drone. Developed in just ten months, the prototype replaces the Black Hawk’s cockpit with actuated clamshell doors and a loading ramp, transforming the crewed helicopter into a platform capable of operating without pilots on board. Equipped with MATRIX™ autonomy software and a new fly-by-wire system, the aircraft can take off, fly, and land entirely under autonomous control.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

Skyryse Introduces its AI-powered Cockpit Flight Assistant Skylar

Aerotime reports, “Skyryse, a California-based aviation technology startup company, has introduced Skylar, an AI flight assistant that integrates with the maker’s SkyOS operating system. The technology is designed to reduce pilot workload, simplify communications, and improve safety across a wide range of aircraft, the company said. Skylar is designed to function as an always-on copilot, supporting the pilot through all phases of flight.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

New Zealand’s NH90 Helicopters Make Record-Breaking Flight Across Tasman Sea

Defense News reports, “Two Royal New Zealand Air Force NH90 helicopters have flown from Australia to New Zealand on a two-day, record-breaking journey for the aircraft, which each carried two 1,100lb external fuel tanks, according to the service. The aircraft flew from Royal Australian Air Force Base Amberley, near Brisbane, via Norfolk Island, to RNZAF Base Auckland, a distance of 1,765 miles over water. The longest leg of the trip, 660 miles, took around four and a half hours.”
Full Story (Defense News)

Why Wind Tunnels and Aerodynamic Prediction Tools Matter in Aerospace Engineering

FROM THE INSTITUTE
Rich Wahls, Sustainable Flight National Partnership Mission Integration Manager with NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) and AIAA Fellow, delivered the Applied Aerodynamics Award Lecture this week at the 2025 AIAA AVIATION Forum, offering a rare behind-the-scenes look at the evolution of aerodynamic testing and the future of flight.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

Bombardier Seals $1.7B Aircraft Order from Anonymous Client

Aerotime reports, “Canadian aerospace manufacturer Bombardier has announced that it has secured a “significant firm order” for 50 aircraft, valued at $1.7 Billion. According to Bombardier, the firm order consists of 50 of its Challenger and Global aircraft, combined with a first-of-a-kind service agreement, with deliveries set to begin in 2027. The deal also has an option for the purchase of a further 70 aircraft, which, if exercised, would take the value of the order over $4 Billion.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

Amazon Prime Air Plans First Drone Delivery Service in a Major U.S. City

Flying Magazine reports, “Less than one month after resuming drone delivery following a voluntary two-month operational hiatus, Amazon’s Prime Air is eyeing its first service in a major U.S. city. Amazon spokesperson Andy DiOrio told the Kansas City Star that Prime Air is considering moving into the Missouri metroplex. Kansas City would represent the company’s third and largest operation. Its population of half a million people dwarfs the number of customers it could reach with its other services in College Station, Texas, and Tolleson, Arizona.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

Pipistrel Flight-Tests NUUVA V300 Hybrid-Electric VTOL

Aerotime reports, “Pipistrel, a division of Textron eAviation, announced that its new NUUVA V300 hybrid-electric unmanned VTOL aircraft successfully completed its first flight on January 31, 2025, in Gorizia, northeastern Italy, next to the Slovenian border. The NUUVA is an unmanned aerial system (UAS) designed to carry 300 kg of cargo (the equivalent of three euro-pallets) over distances of up to 300 km.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

 

 

 

Video

Nuuva V300 makes first successful flight-test
(Pipistrel Aircraft; YouTube)

FAA Introduces Downwash Caution Area for Vertiports

Aviation Week reports “When the FAA released draft updated engineering guidelines for vertiports in September 2024, it introduced the requirement for a caution area to provide protection from the high wind velocities produced by the propellers of electric air taxis during vertical takeoffs and landings. The introduction of the downwash caution area (DCA) was the result of flight surveys of multiple prototype electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft for the FAA.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)