Tilting Windmills
Hey.
I learned from www.aero-news.net yesterday that the first civil tilt-rotor aircraft, the Bell-Agusta BA609, is in flight testing and it looks successful so far. Bell Aircraft had been working on tilt-rotor technology since Ike was President, so it's about time this came along. This machine is the "Peace Dividend" of the Osprey that Bell (along with Boeing and other companies) developed for our armed forces. It'll probably be at least a year away from the FAA issuing it a certificate for carrying passengers, but it's still real progress.
So where are we going to see this machine fit in? Well, it takes off vertically, like a helicopter (which it is), but flies faster than any helicopter ever built, as it converts to a turboprop airplane in flight. So ambulance use is a given...especially for conveying trauma cases where speed is critical. Police departments would want them for rapid-response missions--at least at the State level. State governments would want them for VIP vehicles, as they'd be have more operational flexibility than conventional airplanes or helicopters. But the "killer ap" will be for those corporate CEOs who do a lot of regional travel. Imagine if you have a home office atop a Chicago skyscraper. With one of these as your limo, you could have satellite offices in Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Green Bay, Detroit, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Louisville, Columbus and Cleveland, travel to all of them on a very regular basis--and never see an airport concourse if all of the other office locations have heliports.
The only problem is the post-WTC attitude that the public now has to aircraft in urban airspace. General Aviation is still suffering the fallout from 9/11, and desire for "better security" might make it tougher for law-abiding air travelers no matter what way they want to go.
FP
I learned from www.aero-news.net yesterday that the first civil tilt-rotor aircraft, the Bell-Agusta BA609, is in flight testing and it looks successful so far. Bell Aircraft had been working on tilt-rotor technology since Ike was President, so it's about time this came along. This machine is the "Peace Dividend" of the Osprey that Bell (along with Boeing and other companies) developed for our armed forces. It'll probably be at least a year away from the FAA issuing it a certificate for carrying passengers, but it's still real progress.
So where are we going to see this machine fit in? Well, it takes off vertically, like a helicopter (which it is), but flies faster than any helicopter ever built, as it converts to a turboprop airplane in flight. So ambulance use is a given...especially for conveying trauma cases where speed is critical. Police departments would want them for rapid-response missions--at least at the State level. State governments would want them for VIP vehicles, as they'd be have more operational flexibility than conventional airplanes or helicopters. But the "killer ap" will be for those corporate CEOs who do a lot of regional travel. Imagine if you have a home office atop a Chicago skyscraper. With one of these as your limo, you could have satellite offices in Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Green Bay, Detroit, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Louisville, Columbus and Cleveland, travel to all of them on a very regular basis--and never see an airport concourse if all of the other office locations have heliports.
The only problem is the post-WTC attitude that the public now has to aircraft in urban airspace. General Aviation is still suffering the fallout from 9/11, and desire for "better security" might make it tougher for law-abiding air travelers no matter what way they want to go.
FP