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The Hubble Space Telescope was repaired and enhanced during the STS-125 mission of Space Shuttle Atlantis. Launched on May 11, 2009, the 11 day mission included some five spacewalks to make repairs and upgrades to the telescope, leaving it more capable and hopefully prepared to last another five years.
This educational video will explain astronomy for kids in a fun and engaging style with exciting computer animation and breath-taking images from the Hubble Telescope.
GAO Report On V-22 Osprey Iraq Record Raises Concerns About Combat Ops In Afghanistan
The US General Accounting Office (GAO) has issued a report on the performance of the Bell/Boeing V-22 Osprey in Iraq. The document outlines the successes and unique performance of the MV-22 in what it calls a low threat theater. It also chronicles many issues including aircraft cost, performance, readiness and poor parts availability. Concerns extend to upcoming combat operations in the high altitude conditions expected in the mountains of Afghanistan.
As a service to our readers we are publishing the GAO V-22 report's summary and recommendations as well as a link (below) to the full report. The GAO information is unedited except for formatting to fit our site.
Boeing announced a new delay in the first flight of the 787 Dreamliner. Today's statement said the postponement was "due to a need to reinforce an area within the side-of-body section of the aircraft." No new date was announced as it appears an unknown about of engineering and test are required before a resolution is in hand.
Despite the pressure on Boeing to get the 787 program back on schedule the company opted for a hoped for permanent fix rather than something quick that could get them in the air quickly.
"Consideration was given to a temporary solution that would allow us to fly as scheduled, but we ultimately concluded that the right thing was to develop, design, test and incorporate a permanent modification to the localized area requiring reinforcement," said Scott Carson, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, in a prepared statement.
Continental Airlines Flight 61 from Brussels to Newark, New Jersey, has landed safely and close to schedule despite the death of its 60 year old command pilot, a Captain with 32 years of service.
The trip was conducted aboard a Boeing 777 with 247 passengers (plus crew). Initial reports indicate two co-pilots flew the plane after the pilot died. The plane landed in rain and fog at 11:49 am EDT on 18 June 2009.
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This hot pic shows an F-15E Strike Eagle banking hard and loaded to the gills with weapons as it fires defensive flares over the mountains of Afghanistan during combat operations.
A statement issued by the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says the agency has accepted an invitation from the French aviation accident investigation authority, the Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses (BEA), to assist in the investigation of Air France Flight 447, the A330-200 that appears to have crashed in the Atlantic Ocean in the very early hours of 1 June 2009.
Wreckage presumed to be from the missing Airbus (registration F-GZCP) has been spotted along the expected route of flight. The plane was operating a trip between Rio de Janeiro and Paris.
An Air France plane is missing over the Atlantic and is thought to be crashed somewhere between South America and Africa. The jet is an Airbus A330, Air France Flight 447, operating a trip between Rio de Janeiro and Paris.
Contact with the GE CF6-80 powered jet was lost after the receipt of an automated message reporting electrical failure and loss of cabin pressure. The plane was not heard from again and so far no ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) beacon has been detected.
Published reports have indicated that the plane entered an area of intense tropical convective storm activity shortly before it was believed to have experienced the in-flight emergency. Other reports claim the jet was struck by lightning but such assertions are premature at best at this stage, and unlikely to have brought the aircraft down.
There are 228 passengers and crew aboard and the area thought to be the location of the aircraft is known to be extremely deep open ocean. This would complicate any investigation and make recovery of the so-called black boxes more challenging.
The accident will likely fall under the jurisdiction of aviation authorities in France.
Click read more to see a news video about this plane crash.
Industry
insiders and flight buffs alike will be fascinated by expert discussions
of the engineering challenges posed by the tiltrotor concept.
