Mentor Blogs

NASA, for the second consecutive year, is actively seeking proposals for suborbital technology payloads and spacecraft capability enhancements capable of potentially revolutionizing future space missions. NASA will help test selected technologies before they are used for their intended purpose and environment—being launched into and functioning in the dark, cold reaches of outer space. After the selected … Read More

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Aerospace engineers and executives will be happy to hear that, for the second year, NASA plans to assist makers of space-related technologies, such as advanced payloads and spacecraft systems. This month, NASA announced that it is soliciting proposals from aerospace technology companies from far and wide. NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program is sponsoring the solicitation for proposals, which … Read More

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During the Mentor Graphics Integrated Electrical Solutions Forum (IESF) 2013 earlier this month, Teal Group Vice President of Analysis Richard Aboulafia delivered both good and bad news related to aerospace market trends. The good news: The commercial aviation market segment continues its strong growth, with orders for passenger jets extending to 2018. The bad news: The regional jet segment is suffering, … Read More

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The Teal Group Vice President of Analysis Richard Aboulafia discussed aerospace market trends, including continued growth in the commercial aviation segment, during the Mentor Graphics Integrated Electrical Solutions Forum (IESF) 2013 in Dallas earlier this month. Commercial jetliners are a “serious anomaly” and make up more than half of the entire market in terms of industrial output and revenue—with … Read More

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Richard Aboulafia, vice president of analysis at The Teal Group, a provider of aerospace and defense market intelligence, analysis, and forecasts, was informative (as always) at the Mentor Graphics Integrated Electrical Solutions Forum (IESF) 2013 in Dallas this month. Not surprisingly, Aboulafia’s valuable insights will be the subject of a series of blogs on the aviation market, including both civil … Read More

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Hundreds of military and aerospace (mil/aero) design engineers, engineering managers, and executives flocked to Dallas last week to attend Mentor Graphics’ annual Integrated Electrical Solutions Forum (IESF) focused on mil/aero applications, trends, and technologies. Mentor Graphics Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Wally Rhines opened the annual event with an interesting keynote address on: Meeting … Read More

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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in the U.S., investigating the cause of a fire on a Boeing Dreamliner 787 parked at Boston Logan Airport in January, transitioned its work from a macroscopic study to a microscopic examination, including chemical and elemental analysis of the areas of internal short circuiting and thermal damage. Soon after launching a microscopic investigation, NTSB officials … Read More

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The aerospace industry has been a hotbed of activity this year—and we’re only two months into 2013. The hottest news (no pun intended) has been and continues to be related to the grounding of the entire fleet of Boeing Dreamliner 787 commercial airliners. Just last month, the Transport Ministry within the Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB) closed its investigation of Kyoto, Japan-based battery manufacturer … Read More

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The Boeing 787 Dreamliner tale has it all: mystery, suspense, and now controversy. On the same day, Japan’s Transport Ministry closed its investigation of Kyoto, Japan-based battery manufacturer GS Yuasa, and U.S. safety officials asked Boeing for its operating history of lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery use on 787 aircraft. The Transport Ministry, part of the Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB), found … Read More

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Just as an avalanche of events occurred this month related to the Boeing Dreamliner 787, with one issue after another rearing its ugly head, a seeming chain reaction of investigations has also resulted. Boeing, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Federal Aviation Administration, Japan’s Transport Ministry and Civil Aviation Bureau launched investigations; and, the European Aviation Safety … Read More

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What can only be described as a series of unfortunate events (to borrow from Lemony Snicket) with prompted organizations dedicated to safety to launch investigations into the Boeing 787 Dreamliner’s safety and potential for additional problems, as well as to ground 787s until its safety is proven. While some problems are expected in the release of new design into service the quick succession of these … Read More

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When we last left off, the auxiliary power unit (APU) of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner parked at Boston’s Logan Airport had caught fire, purportedly melting a Lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery module. It would not be the last of the commercial airliner’s—or even Japan Airlines’—problems, however. The very next day (Jan. 8), in fact, a second Japan Airlines (JAL) 787 suffered a fuel leak, and its flight out of … Read More

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Aerospace professionals the world over are focused on three little words: Lithium ion batteries. Even the collective interest of the defense community (more on that later) is piqued about potential power problems. Alliteration aside, Boeing’s 787 battery has captured the attention of aerospace geeks, government agencies, and the traveling public. In case you haven’t heard about the latest trouble with … Read More

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Forty-three years ago, on 20 July 1969, the United States Apollo 11 became the first manned mission to the moon. Were you aware, however, that it the first space vehicle to reach the vicinity of the moon was not manned at all? Intrigued? This geek hopes so. Fun fact: Unmanned spacecraft reached the vicinity of the moon a decade before the first manned mission landed on the lunar surface. The Soviet … Read More

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Forty-three years ago this month, astronauts made history. The Apollo 11 mission, a milestone in human history, continues to be celebrated worldwide decades later. The first words spoken on the moon by Neil Armstrong, the first to step onto the lunar surface, remain among the most famous and inspirational in the world: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Nearly 500 million … Read More

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