Calspan Learjet as Northrop-Grumman X-47B Surrogate

The Navy is inching closer to having an operational UAV with autonomous air refueling capability.  It seems that Calspan has loaded the X-47B software and hardware into their Varistab Lear and managed to simulate at least the initial approach for probe-and-drogue refueling.  This is impressive not because it hasn't been done before, NASA Dryden has done the same thing using their flight control research F-18.  (You can probably find the "Look ma, no hands!" picture on line if you try.)  What is impressive is that we seem to be getting very close to using the results in active service.

http://www.navair.navy.mil/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.NAVAIRNewsStory&id=4882

Icarus, meet Jarnos Smeets

This looks like a lot of fun, but I'm worried about controllability.  That is a lot of wing to control with very little in the way of tail surfaces.  Should be interesting!

http://techcrunch.com/2012/01/20/humanbirdwings-guy-survives-first-test-flight/

Airbus Military C-295 Being Cleared for AEW Role

The lift that can come from that big radome is not trivial, so initial aero testing, especially at very high and low angles of attack, has to be taken seriously.  It's not clear how it well has performed, nor does it seem to actually have a radar yet.

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/aew-themed-c-295-clears-flight-test-phase-367091/

F-35A Begins Night Testing, but are Mission Systems Lagging?

I never liked night flying at Edwards, so the approach of slowly transitioning from twilight makes a lot of sense.  With that big, empty lakebed all around the approach end it's like you're descending into a black hole.  You don't even have the minimal cues of a ship's wake as a reference below you.  It's just black.  The good news: sounds as though the cockpit lighting system is working as advertised.

http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2012/01/19/photos-f-35-conducts-first-night-flight-as-tests-continue/

The bad news may be at another link, with radar and other mission systems being less mature than the program had planned.  My money still goes on software immaturity as the culprit, but what do I know?

http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2012/01/20/report-notes-f-35-testing-program-has-not-delivered-effective-and-consistent-radar-performance/

Cessna Citation Ten Makes First Flight

The mid-sized, glass cockpit aircraft is intended to improve efficiency for this class of airplanes.  All indications are that the maiden flight went according to plan.

http://corpjetfin.live.subhub.com/articles/Citation_Ten_first_flight_127

Lufthansa Shelves Biofuel Flight Tests For Now

The story at the link below is one of the best I have run across at laying all the biofuel suitability cards on the table.  There are a lot of issues with biofuel that makes long-term reliance on it an unrealistic proposition any time soon.  It is great that folks are testing the waters, but no one is really going swimming in this pool for quite a while.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,15661617,00.html

Great Synopsis of F-35 2011 Achievements

Granted, this link is based on a Lockheed-Martin press release and has a lot of chest-pounding, but it still contains a pretty good rundown of the test work that has been done over the last 12 months.  It's not clear if all the test points mentioned were successful in that the results met specs, or were successful in that all data were valid (i.e. provided a correct answer, even if it was bad news).  It also isn't clear how many of the points may have been repeat points.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/lockheed-martin-f-35-program-exceeds-2011-flight-test-goals-2012-01-12

B-1 Bomber Gains Improved Capability Against Moving Targets

When it comes to military flight test, the ultimate name of the game is more combat capability.  The combined developmental and operational test teams on this project seem to have delivered exactly that through this series of tests.  System testing like this is what can extend the life and punch of aircraft that have been in the inventory for decades.  It would seem that any reports of the "Bone's" demise continue to be premature.

http://www.edwards.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123285635

Schempp-Hirth Quintus M Self-Launching Sailplane

I don't normally put links to purely video items, but this is pretty interesting.  It looks as though Schempp-Hirth is trying to change the way people think about open-class sailplanes.  They seem to be downsizing the plane to make transport and assembly easier, and seeking competitive performance on strong days by going with a higher wing-loading.  As a motor-glider guy myself, I have to say that the machines are a lot of fun.  Guess we'll see where this one goes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_oqWm3I4N0

Lockheed F-35C Apparently Has Tailhook Geometry Problems

If what the article at this link says is true, there could be serious problems with carrier suitability for the UK (and perhaps other) versions of the airplane.  The link to the graphic that appears about mid-article is worth a click.  Compared to other carrier-qualified aircraft, the plane stands out like a parakeet at a dog-show.  Let's see if the team can engineer a fix.

http://www.f-16.net/news_article4494.html

Afghani Scratch-Built Being Flight-Tested

This story is inspiring, encouraging, frightening, and funny all at the same time.  Hopefully Mr. Shah has at least gotten hold of a copy of AC 90-89A on the subject of homebuilt flight testing, which he can find at the FAA's web site:
http://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/advisory_circulars/index.cfm/go/document.list/parentTopicID/128

I envy his courage and ingenuity.  I just hope he can make it through flight testing successfully.  Suggestion: Find somebody who actually has flight experience to do the next few flights.  Good Luck!

http://www.eaa.org/news/2012/2012-01-05_shah.asp

Excellent Summary of Bombardier's Plan for CS100 Test Program

The link below provides a surprisingly comprehensive picture of the company's game plan for testing of the new airplane.  Much of it won't begin for a while, but this gives an airframe-by-airframe outline of one approach to making it all happen.  Good stuff for such a brief article!

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/bombardier-details-cseries-flight-test-programme-366583/

Sukhoi Superjet 100 Into Cat III ILS Testing

Even though these tests are typically performed in clear weather, they can still be very much a white-knuckle experience.  As a guy who performed some of the original Automatic Terrain Following tests during F-16 / LANTIRN integration testing, it is never boring to have an airplane take you close to the rocks in a new autonomous mode.  Great work!

http://www.ainonline.com/?q=aviation-news/aviation-international-news/2012-01-01/superjet-lands-under-category-iiia