The rendering shows a Boeing 737 MAX 10 airplane in Lion Air’s livery Credit: PRNewsfoto / Boeing.
Martian soil. Credit: ESA.
BigRep and Etihad will primarily develop 3D-printed cabin parts for aircraft. Credit: BigRep GmbH.
Ariane 5 lifting off DSN-1/Superbird-8 and HYLAS 4 satellites. Credit: © Arianespace.

Boeing and Lion Air finalise $6.24bn deal for 50 737 MAX 10 aircraft

Boeing finalised a $6.24bn order with Indonesia’s Lion Air Group for 50 737 MAX 10 aircraft.

Lion Air Group is also planning to place a provisional order to buy Boeing 787 widebody jets. However, the company did not disclose details on the number of aircraft to be ordered, reported Reuters.

Lion Air Group was the launch customer of Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 aircraft and was the first to place an order for 737 MAX 9.

China’s Tiangong-1 space station falls to Earth over Pacific Ocean

China’s Tiangong-1 space station made a self-destructive re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere over the South Pacific.

Most of the parts of the defunct station burnt up once it entered the atmosphere and landed in the Pacific Ocean.

In a statement cited by theguardian.com, China Manned Space Engineering Office said: “Through monitoring and analysis by Beijing Aerospace Control Centre and related agencies, Tiangong 1 re-entered the atmosphere at about 8.15am, 2 April, Beijing time (1.15am GMT).

SIAEC and SilkAir sign $364m services agreement

SIA Engineering Company (SIAEC) signed a S$484m ($364m) services agreement with Singapore-based carrier SilkAir for its new fleet of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.

Under the deal, SIAEC will provide maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), as well as support services for SilkAir’s new fleet of 37 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft for 12 years.

The deal also includes an option to renew for an additional five years.

ESA and Nasa partner to bring Martian soil back to Earth

Nasa and the European Space Agency (ESA) signed a statement of intent to study mission concepts to bring samples of Martian soil back to Earth.

Collected samples will be thoroughly analysed in advanced laboratories.

The newly signed agreement features the possible roles that could be played by ESA and Nasa, as well as areas of potential cooperation between the agencies.

Engine explosion on Southwest Airlines plane kills one passenger

An engine powering Southwest Airlines’ Boeing 737-700 aircraft exploded in mid-air and killed one passenger on-board the flight.

Seven other passengers sustained minor injuries in the incident that occurred nearly 20 minutes into the flight on 17 April, reported nytimes.com.

The explosion resulted in damage to the aircraft fuselage and smashed a window that partially pulled the victim out of the plane.

Government of Canada to invest in aerospace industry

The Government of Canada is set to invest in the country’s aerospace sector to support the development of next-generation helicopter technology.

The C$49.5m ($39m) investment will be provided to an aerospace consortium led by Bell Helicopter Textron Canada.

It will help Bell and 18 industry and academic partners to develop new technologies that can be integrated into next-generation manned and unmanned helicopters, as well as fully autonomous aerial systems.

BigRep and Etihad partner to develop 3D-printed aerospace parts

Etihad Airways Engineering and BigRep collaborated to explore new approaches to develop 3D-printed components for the aerospace industry.

The partnership will primarily focus on the development of cabin interior parts for Etihad’s new aircraft and for the retrofit market.

Etihad Airways Engineering’s experience around the aircraft cabin lifecycle and 3D printer provider BigRep’s additive manufacturing equipment will be leveraged in the partnership.

Bye Aerospace completes first flight of Sun Flyer 2 prototype

Bye Aerospace completed the Sun Flyer 2 prototype aircraft’s first flight as part of a test programme that commenced in March.

The programme is being carried out at Centennial Airport south of Denver in Colorado, US. It is now moving towards the next phase of testing at increased speed, altitude, and endurance.

During the test, the Sun Flyer 2 prototype was equipped with Electric Power Systems’ (EPS) energy storage system that includes battery module packs, battery management units and power distribution units.

Airbus develops drone for indoor inspection of aircraft

Airbus collaborated with its subsidiary Testia to develop a drone-based maintenance tool for inspecting aircraft inside the hanger.

The new Advanced Inspection Drone is capable of accelerating and facilitating visual checks to reduce aircraft downtime and increase the quality of inspections.

It has been primarily developed to inspect the upper parts of the aircraft fuselage.

Arianespace launches two communications satellites for Japan and UK

Arianespace has launched two telecommunications satellites, DSN-1/Superbird-8 and HYLAS 4, into space from the Spaceport in French Guiana.

The mission was launched on-board an Ariane 5 rocket. It was carried out on behalf of Japan’s SKY Perfect JSAT and the UK’s Avanti Communications.

Ariane 5 crossed the 200-mark in its history of launching satellites with the latest 34-minute launch.