Photo – First Korean Air A380 Leaves Paint Shop

Today the first Airbus A380 for Korean Air (MSN035) has been rolled out of the Airbus paint shop in Hamburg.
The aircraft is the first of 10 A380s ordered by the Asian airline. Korean Air will become the sixth operator of the A380 when it takes delivery in the second quarter of this year.
Korean Air will initially operate the A380 on flights from Seoul to Tokyo, Hong Kong and Bangkok, followed later in the year by transpacific services to New York and Los Angeles.

Korean Air Airbus A380

Photo: Airbus
Source: Airbus

Photos – 747-8 Intercontinental Unveiled

Boeing today unveiled its brand new Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental – and man, she’s a beauty!

“The new 747-8 Intercontinental features the latest in innovative technologies — applying many of the breakthroughs also found on the 787 Dreamliner,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Albaugh. “We think our customers will value the low operating costs and passengers will enjoy the comfort of the striking new interior.”

“The 747-8 Intercontinental will be a great complement to our fleet, fitting nicely into the 400-seat category, improving our fleet’s eco-efficiency even further,” said Nico Buchholz, executive vice president, Lufthansa Group Fleet Management. “As launch customer, we are looking forward to welcoming this new aircraft to our fleet next year as it adds to our ongoing fleet modernization and environmental efforts.”

Korean Air and VIP customers have joined launch customer Lufthansa in ordering a total of 33 747-8 Intercontinentals. First delivery of the 747-8 Intercontinental is scheduled for the fourth quarter.

Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental Premiere
Boeing 747-8I Orange Livery
Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental Unveiled

The 747-8 Intercontinental will have the lowest seat-mile cost of any large commercial jetliner, with 12 percent lower costs than its predecessor, the 747-400. The airplane provides 16 percent better fuel economy, 16 percent less carbon emissions per passenger and generates a 30 percent smaller noise footprint than the 747-400. The 747-8 Intercontinental applies interior features from the 787 Dreamliner that includes a new curved, upswept architecture giving passengers a greater feeling of space and comfort, while adding more room for personal belongings.

The airplane unveiled today is painted in a new Sunrise livery of red-orange that only will appear on the first 747-8 Intercontinental and is a significant departure from Boeing’s standard blue. The new color palette honors many key Boeing customers whose cultures recognize these colors as symbols of prosperity and good luck.

Source: Boeing
Photos: Boeing

Rollout of 1000th Boeing 767

On Feb. 2, 2011 Boeing marked an important milestone in the company’s history. Boeing celebrated the rollout of the 1000th 767 airplane.

The 1,000th airplane is a 767-300ER (extended range) passenger model for ANA (All Nippon Airways) and was the final 767 to complete assembly on the current production line. Final production work already is underway on the 1,001 unit in a new, smaller bay that repositions the production line toward a leaner, more efficient operation.

Photo
1000th Boeing 767 - ANA (All Nippon Airways) Boeing 767-300ER

Video

Boeing has offered the 767 as the platform for its NewGen Tanker if it wins the U.S. Air Force KC-X Tanker competition. A decision on the contract award is expected early this year.

The 767 family is settled in the 200- to 300-seat market. The 767 family includes three passenger models – the 767-200ER, 767-300ER and 767-400ER – and a medium-widebody freighter, which is based on the 767-300ER fuselage.

Source: Boeing
Photo&Video: Boeing

Spotted: China’s Chengdu J-20 Stealth Fighter?

Aviation Week is reporting that Chinese aviation enthusiasts have spotted a mysterious jet fighter at Chengdu Airport, China. It’s believed that the plane might be the infamous J-20 – the first Chinese stealth fighter, built by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation (CAC).
Judging from the pictures you can’t deny big similarities to an F-22 and the Sukhoi T-50 PAK FA. It seems to be much larger than an F-22 though.

Chengdu J-20 Chinese Stealth Fighter
More photos:
UPDATE:
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/blogs/defense/index.jsp?plckController=Blog&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPot…

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http://i.imgur.com/kFIPL.jpg
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http://sitelife.aviationweek.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/9/1/d9382d54-6099-4a2b-b174-02387a5012d8.Full.jpg

The Chengdu J-20 was first disclosed by US Office of Naval Intellegence (ONI) in 1997 as XXJ, J-20 (?) and is a 5th generation fighter to enter service around 2015. The jet is believed to be a twin-engine multi-role heavy fighter with enhanced stealth capability and maneuverability comparable to American F-22. It was speculated that 601 Institute was working on a “tri-plane” design based on canard/conventional layout/V-shape tailfin while 611 Institute working on a design based on canard/tailless delta wing/all moving V-shape tailfin/side DSI/bump inlet layout. All designs were expected to feature an internal weapon bay to reduce its radar footprint. The overall performance of J-20 is thought to be superior to Russian T-50 but still inferior to Amereican F-22. In August 2008 it was reported that 611 Institute was selected to be the main contractor for the development of J-20 and 601 Institute as the sub-contractor. One rumor in May 2010 suggested that 611 Institute started to construct the first prototype, which is expected to fly by 2012. The latest rumor claimed that the first two prototypes have been constructed and the first high-speed taxiing trial took place on December 22, 2010.

Sources:
aviationweek.com
cnair.top81.cn

Photos – Qantas A380 Engine Failure

Today Qantas flight QF32, an Airbus A380-842, experienced an uncontained engine failure after take-off from Singapore. It performed a turn back and landed safely back in Singapore Changi. Parts of debris of affected engine number 2 punctured the left wing. The plane landed with opened landing gear doors as well as undeployed leading edge flaps – suggesting an emergency deployment of the landing gear or some kind of hydraulic or electrical issue caused by debris. According to sources engine No1 was producing significant thrust after the plane stopped and was not controllable from the cockpit.

The plane involved is VH-OQA, MSN 14. It was delivered to Qantas on 19th September 2008 and had logged around 8165 flight hours and 831 flight cycles as of today. It is powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines.

Qantas grounded its A380 fleet until sufficient information has been obtained about what occurred on QF32. Rolls-Royce has recommended immediate checks of its Trent 900 engines. Singapore Airlines, another operator of the Trent 900 engine, have announced that their A380 flights will be delayed as result of these inspections. Lufthansa sees no impact on its A380 flight schedule.

Update: In-flight passenger video below

Photos
Qantas Airbus A380 Uncontained Engine Failure in Singapore
Photo: AP

Qantas Airbus A380 Engine Failure Details
Photo: Reuters

Qantas Airbus A380 Engine Failure
Photo: AP

Qantas Airbus A380 Engine Failure Punctured Wing
Photo: AP

Videos – In-flight footage from passenger view

Source: Airbus, Rolls-Royce, Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa

Photos – Korean Air A380 in Final Production

Airbus A380 production moves ahead with the next new operator of the A380 – Korean Air.
Four A380s for Korean Air are now in production. The first aircraft is currently being prepared for its maiden flight, with the second and third aircraft now positioned next to each other in the main assembly hall. Meanwhile the joining of the wings and main fuselage sections of the fourth aircraft has just been completed.
First delivery is scheduled for May 2011 with the next three following in June, July and August. From 2012-2014, additional aircraft will be introduced, bringing the total to ten.

First Korean Air (KAL) Airbus A380
Korean Air (KAL) Airbus A380 on Production Line

Korean Air will be the first Asian airline to use the aircraft on transpacific routes between the US and Asia. The double-decker airplane will be outfitted with between 400 and 450 seats, making it the most spacious A380 anywhere.

“The reduced seating layout will expand cabin space and provide customers with a truly luxurious air travel experience,” says Korean Air’s Americas Marketing Director, John Jackson. “We are designing the cabin to promote relaxing air travel, and will incorporate some unique features to be revealed later.”

Korean Air will be the 6th carrier to introduce the A380 into its fleet.

Source: Airbus, Korean Air
Photos: Airbus

(Videos) – Tupolev Tu-154M Emergency Landing in Russia

On Tuesday a Tupolev Tu-154M (RA-85684) accomplished an emergency landing in Russia. The plane, operated by Alrosa Mirny Air Enterprise, was bound from Polyarnyj (PYJ/UERP) to Moskva-Domodedovo (DME/UUDD) when suddely all of its electrical systems, radio and navigation systems, flaps and fuel pumps have been lost. According to aviation-safety.net the crew was left with only 3,300kg of usable fuel.
The crew decided to do an emergency landing at an abandoned air strip, too short for a Tu-154. The aircraft overshot the air strip and came to rest 160m past the end of the runway. More info: http://aviation-safety.net

Photos: http://teh-nomad.livejournal.com/576075.html

Videos:

Cockpit Photos – Inside B-52 Stratofortress

I had the amazing chance to enter a Boeing B-52 Stratofortress and see it from inside. This very plane was built in 1961 and is still on active duty, at least till 2020. It seems like nothing was modernized since then as you can see on the photos below. Climbing through the cramped inside and sitting in the cockpit was quite a surreal experience. Big thanks to the crew!

Click on the images for full size.

Just contact me if you need any of the images for your project. (e.g. MSFS Panel) I’m willig to provide them in higher resolution without watermark.
© All Rights Reserved – you may not use these images in any form without my prior permission.

Photo – 747-8F in Cargolux Livery

The first Boeing 747-8 Freighter painted in customer livery left the Boeing paint hangar on June 7. The airplane sports an updated livery for launch customer Cargolux. The Luxembourg-based cargo operator has a total of 13 Boeing 747-8 Freighters on order.

Cargolux Boeing 747-8 Freighter - New Livery

“The design stands for continuity and commitment while confirming the fundamental principles that made Cargolux successful. The red, white and blue stripes symbolize the company’s roots in Luxembourg, its hub and home base,” said Ulrich Ogiermann, chief executive officer of Cargolux. The new livery features a distinctive new red tail and an additional logo on the belly further promotes the brand.

Boeing will deliver the first 747-8 Freighter to launch customer Cargolux in the fourth quarter of this year.

Source: Boeing
Photo: Boeing