EU EMISSION ROW

Chinese and Indian airlines did not submit carbon-dioxide emissions data for 2011, disregarding European rules that seek to expand the region’s emissions trading system to include aviation. There has been “systematic non-reporting” of emissions to and from Europe from 10 airlines based in India and China, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

FUEL HEDGING

Fuel hedging is a contractual tool used by some airlines to stabilize jet fuel costs. A fuel hedge contract commits an airline to paying a pre-determined price for future jet fuel purchases. Airlines enter into such contracts as a bet that future jet fuel prices will be higher than current prices or to reduce the turbulence of confronting future expenses of unknown size. If the price of jet fuel falls and the airline hedged for a higher price, the airline will be forced to pay an above-market rate for jet fuel.(Wikipedia)

PERFORMANCE BASED NAVIGATION (PBN)

What is Performance Based Navigation(PBN) ?

Simply put, PBN means NO MORE GROUND AIDS based navigation.

PBN technology allows aircraft to fly precisely-defined flight paths without relying on ground-based radio-navigation signals. Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedures, an advanced form of PBN technology, can be designed to shorten the distance an aircraft has to fly en-route, and to reduce fuel burn, exhaust emissions and noise pollution in communities near airports. Because of RNP's precision and reliability, the technology can help air traffic controllers reduce flight delays and alleviate air traffic congestion.

AIRCRAFT END-OF-LIFE

Where do aircraft go when they die? The global aviation sector is expanding at a rapid pace and by 2050; the industry could be handling some 16 billion travellers and 400 million tons of cargo annually. At some stage, maintenance, repair and upgrading become uneconomic and at this point the owner will consider taking the aircraft out of service. It is estimated that over 9,700 aircraft are to be permanently retired or withdrawn from service over the next 20 years. In many cases the retired airframe will contain valuable components and parts that can be returned to 
service.

COMPOSITE MATERIALS IN AIRCRAFT

B787 Fuselage section

Composite materials have been used in aviation and aircraft manufacturing for decades. There were used in civil and military aircraft primarily on secondary surfaces. What exactly are composite materials??