The single seat Sherwood eKub made its first flight of 10 minutes and then a second flight later in the day of 22 minutes from Little Snoring airfield in Norfolk.
A project managed by Cranfield University to advance electric aviation has achieved a significant milestone, with what is thought to be the first ever flight by a British designed and built, all-electric conventional airplane. After taxi tests and “low hops”, the single seat Sherwood eKub made its first flight of 10 minutes and then a second flight later in the day of 22 minutes from Little Snoring airfield in Norfolk. Huge step forward for electric aviation The flights were piloted by Dr Guy Gratton, Associate Professor of Aviation and the Environment at Cranfield University and an Associate Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, who is also program manager for the Enabling Aircraft Electrification (EnabEl) project. “The airplane flew very much as predicted from our analysis and ground tests; this is a new way of flying, and we’re at the start of a steep learning curve on electric flight,” says Dr. Gratton. “The support from everybody on the team, as well as colleagues, funders and authorities has been fantastic in making this possible. As a test pilot, an aeronautical engineer, and as a researcher, learning all about this new class of airplane is one of the most exciting things I’ve ever done.” Paul Hendry Smith, Managing Director of The Light Aircraft Company (TLAC), which built the eKub and from whose Little Snoring site the airplane was test flown, says, “This is clearly a milestone in electrically powered flight and we are delighted to be at the cutting edge.” Delivering safe and environmentally efficient aircraft The eKub is a British designed and built all-electric microlight airplane and has been developed by a consortium of Cranfield University, TLAC, Flylight Airsports, and CDO². Funded by consortium partners and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) as part of the Future Flight Challenge (FFC) initiative, the eKub is part of the broader EnabEl project focused on delivering safe, viable, and environmentally efficient airplanes. “One of the key outcomes of the project so far is the work that has been undertaken in the background to facilitate the development and operation of all-electric aircraft," says Dr Thomas Delaney, project electrical engineer and Cranfield Research Fellow. "The eKub has been developed as a learning platform so that the project outcomes can now directly advise microlight builders and aviation regulators on both design best practice and new certification standards for the new era of electrified flight.” EnabEl is building two all-electric airplanes and the eKub flights will be followed by testing of a larger two-seat electric Skyranger Nynja Aircraft being built at Flylight Airsports' base of Sywell Aerodrome in Northamptonshire. Cranfield is the academic and research partner for the EnabEl consortium, one of nine projects that researchers from the University are taking part in which were announced as winners of UKRI’s FFC last year. Along with consortium partners, EnabEl is also being supported by the Civil Aviation Authority and the British Microlight Aircraft Association. A focus on aviation and the environment Cranfield University, which has committed to its own target of net zero carbon emissions by 2030, has a long-standing focus on aviation and the environment. It became a member of the National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) in 2020 and has hosted its FAAM Airborne Laboratory since 2007.
Hear manufacturing insights from our panel of experts representing Makino, Mitsui Seiki, and Okuma.
Register today for next week’s roundtable, Smart manufacturing with advanced machine tools, and learn from our panel of experts how smart manufacturing is delivered by combining manufacturing, information, and communication technologies ? connecting the entire manufacturing system for efficiency and competitiveness.
Taking place Wednesday, May 18 from 12PM – 1PM ET, this roundtable will be your opportunity to find out the latest how Industry 4.0, robotics, ultraprecision tools and more advancements are being incorporated by Makino, Okuma, and Mitsui Seiki.
Some key topics discussed will be:
Richard Aboulafia examines the current aerospace market and what to expect in the second half of 2022.
Richard Aboulafia, FRAeS, Managing Director, AeroDynamic Advisory, examines the current aerospace market and what to expect in the second half of 2022.
When? May 19, 2022 12:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Richard Aboulafia manages consulting projects in the commercial and military aircraft field and analyzes broader defense and aerospace trends. He has advised numerous aerospace companies, including most prime and many second- and third-tier contractors in the US, Europe, and Asia. He also advises numerous financial institutions on aerospace market conditions.
Click here to learn more and register today. Can’t participate during the live event? No problem. Each registered attendee will also receive a link to the recording. This content will be sent within 5 business days after the event.
Join us May 26 at 12PM ET to hear insights from Open Mind Technologies USA and Heidenhain.
When you register for our May Manufacturing Lunch + Learn event you will gain new insight about today’s manufacturing technology.
The first session is presented by Open Mind Technologies USA featuring Account Manager Kevin Lewis and Application Engineer Uday Honnalagere. The two will be discussing intelligent “best fit” CAM process for alignment and machining of 3D printed stock. Additive/3D printed material used in manufacturing applications are witnessing high growth worldwide in a broad range of industries. Historically, for components that need finish machining after AM, the alignment on the machine tool requires high expertise, expense in setup time, and can have inconsistent results. This is due to the challenge in alignment of the NC program to the real-world conditions presented by the clamping position of the irregular material on the machine tool. Intelligent part alignment integrated in the CAM system offers a solution to this problem by efficiently adapting the virtual (NC program) to the real world (location of the stock on the machine). A “best fit” CAM process offers a quick, predictable, and reliable path to overcome this challenge in a way that eliminates the requirement for specialist knowledge, reduces setup time and eliminates waste.
The second presentation is from John Parker, MT business development and product manager at Heidenhain. Parker will be discussing new CNCS manufactured in the U.S. – MILLPWR an TURNPWR.
MILLPWR a powerful yet easy to operate CNC retrofit systems for knee mills and bed mills. Faster set-ups, shorter run times and a major boost in productivity are just one "powerful easy" retrofit away. Our new MILLPWRG2 control and retrofit kits can turn just about any knee mill into a powerhouse money-maker.
TURNPWR is a workshop-oriented turning control that enables the user to program conventional machining operations right at the machine. It is designed for turning machine tools with up to two axes. TURNPWR was developed to satisfy the wants and needs of lathe machinists where manual and automated operation are both useful and needed. TURNPWR promises to enable the user to maximize throughput by significantly reducing setup time, scrap, and other non-productive operations.
Register today so you aren’t left behind the competition.
The iAero Thrust ETC is the first and only testing facility in South Florida for the CFM56 engine line.
iAero Thrust, a leading engine maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) and engine testing provider focused on the CFM56 engine line and one of the companies within the iAero Group aviation investment platform, has developed, built, and opened a new state-of-the-art engine test cell facility in Medley, FL. The ETC provides comprehensive engine testing and hospital visit services for the CFM56 engine line. It will test all engines serviced through the iAero Thrust MRO in Miami, FL as well as engines from third party MROs, lessors, and other engine operators. The ETC was designed and commissioned by Safran Test Cells and correlated by GE Aviation. The ETC is now FAA certified to perform acceptance testing on the CFM56-3 engines in addition to the CFM56-7B engine. "We are incredibly proud of our team for their resilience and hard work over the past two years to build, calibrate, and certify this new facility, and we are very excited to offer this new capability to our customers." said Tommy Mitchell, President iAero Thrust. "Our state-of-the-art Engine Test Center is just another way we are scaling our integrated full-service engine MRO to serve the growing maintenance and testing demand for the all-time best-selling commercial aircraft engine in the world."