airplane

Siemens introduced the world this week to the first serial hybrid electric aircraft at the 2011 Paris Air Show in Le Bourget, France.

The DA36 E-Star, a two-seater composite glider, was a partnership project among Siemens, aircraft manufacturer Diamond Aircraft Industries, and aerospace giant EADS. The plane is based on Diamond Aircraft's HK36 Super Dimona.

Similar to General Motors' Chevy Volt drive train, the DA36 E-Star uses a serial hybrid electric drive train in which a main engine is powered alternately by a gasoline-powered generator and batteries.

A 70-kilowatt Siemens engine runs the aircraft's propeller. That engine is powered alternately between a small Wankel combustion engine made by Austro Engine that runs on gasoline and acts as a generator, and EADS batteries. Additional EADS batteries are used during takeoff and ascent.

While it's in early development, Siemens claims its drive train can be scaled up for use on a large passenger plane, and under further development hopes to create a drive train that can save 25 percent in fuel consumption.

Of course, even more so than with electric cars, battery weight is still an issue. The plane's range is limited by the number of batteries and the amount of fuel it can carry.… Read more

HAMBURG, Germany--Sure, Miniatur Wunderland is the world's largest collection of model trains, but to describe it that way would do it a serious injustice. What it really is is a beyond-belief collection of fantastic dioramas depicting scenes from the Swiss and Austrian Alps, Germany, the United States, and Scandinavia throughout which run 900 trains on the more than eight miles of tracks.

I had planned to come here as part of Road Trip 2011, because I'd read that Miniatur Wunderland had recently added a giant scale model of a working airport. And when I looked into that, I … Read more

Air Attack HD is a vertically scrolling "shmup" (shoot-'em-up game) that pays homage to old-school airplane adventure games like 1942 and Aero Fighters. In it, your mission is to fly through different stages and obliterate hordes of enemies, both in the air and on land.

In Air Attack, you choose one of two unique airplanes and make your way through eight challenging missions. Each airplane is equipped with a different default cannon, and both are capable of dropping crater-making bombs. To upgrade your arsenal, destroy enemies carrying power-ups or purchase add-ons in the shop. These upgrades can … Read more

Flight Control is an attractive, addictive game in which you play an air traffic controller guiding an endless armada of incoming aircraft to safe landings (you hope!) at a crowded airport. Flight Control makes great use of the iOS touch interface, as you use your finger to trace a trajectory for each approaching craft, sending jets, seaplanes, and helicopters to various runways and landing pads. The controls are incredibly simple and intuitive, which contributes to Flight Control's surprisingly rich, devilishly addictive gameplay.

The game starts out at a leisurely pace, but as aircraft enter from every edge of the … Read more

Flight Control HD is an attractive, addictive game in which you play an air-traffic controller guiding an endless armada of incoming aircraft to safe landings (you hope!) at a crowded airport. Flight Control makes great use of the iPad interface, as you use your finger to trace a trajectory for each approaching craft, sending jets, seaplanes, helicopters, et al. to various runways and landing pads. The controls are incredibly simple and intuitive, which contributes to Flight Control's surprisingly rich, devilishly addictive gameplay.

The game starts out at a leisurely pace, but as aircraft enter from every edge of the … Read more

Airplane Mode is more than just a way to comply with flight attendants' requests to disable your device during a flight. It can actually be used as a preventative measure while roaming, or letting your child play a game on your iPhone, as well as help you save battery life. We show you how to activate Airplane Mode on your iPhone, and suggest scenarios for when it might be wise to use this powerful-yet-overlooked feature.

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If a technology being developed by aerospace giant Honeywell that helps airplanes land in very cloudy conditions wins regulatory approval, it could make a huge dent in weather-related delays throughout the aviation system.

The technology is called Enhanced Visual System/Synthetic Vision System (EVS/SVS), and it is designed to give pilots the information they need to land safely even when there is cloud cover near ground. Current U.S. rules mandate that pilots decide at the 200-foot mark if their ground visibility is good enough to land or if they need to circle around for another try. With EVS/… Read more

If a group of scientists can get their project off the ground, there's a chance U.S. air travelers may one day be able to bring aboard more liquids in their carry-on luggage again.

The team, led by Oklahoma State University chemistry professor Allen Apblett, has come up with what it says is a nanomaterial that can both detect and neutralize some dangerous explosives. If deployed in a practical manner at airports in the U.S. and elsewhere around the world, it could, in theory, make it possible once again for some people to bring more liquids with them … Read more

SEATTLE--With the beautiful snow-covered mountains of Washington state behind it, Boeing's 747-8 Intercontinental made its first-ever landing today, four-and-a-half hours after taking off on its maiden flight.

The flight went about as well as could be expected, 747 chief pilot Mark Feuerstein said in a brief press conference at Boeing Field here, minutes after the plane touched down at 2:25 p.m. PT.

The plane, with its unique red, orange, and white livery, took off at 9:58 a.m. PT from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., and headed immediately toward the Olympic Peninsula, Feuerstein told the crowd … Read more