Replacement Space Shuttle!

 It is on the way and much better than the last ones?

Lockheed is supposed to be building a new generation of far improved Shuttles, that will work along side existing technology and these machines may be part of the New Solar System fleet of craft, reaching Mars, Venus and further afield in the years to come!

Over coming gravity will be one plus for them, but the other is how do they deal with space dust and other materials hurtling by, that will rip the skins of these vessels, robot controlled or not?

The need to build and move cargo within our Solar System is not far away, as we expand out to the Moons of the giants and further afield, it will all look forward to some interesting times in the next fifty years of exploration!

Tunnel Boring!

 Machines that make tunnel under the Ground?

Ninety years ago these same machines were created for up to sixteen men to work within the rolling drum digging out the soil, rock, sand by hand and many were killed, either falling forward or back!

But today these boring machines are much bigger and longer, being automated, still crewed by with more safety at hand and they can with lasers work more accurately to also lay the framework of these tunnels with reinforced sections?

Eventually it is expected with A.I. that all types of machines with be robotic and serviced when out of operations, while all controls will come from a control room than the need for human intervention!

Currently the largest borers are building a underwater canal across China and other transport links, with motorways through mountain tunnels and bridges cutting time on land distant travel on winding roads and rail?

Giant Aircraft!

 Everyone has had a go at design and building?

From the 1920's Italy, the U.K. and America have thought about building large aircraft, but it was only Italy and Russia that got there with commercial types that actually flew beyond belief. 

But with the outbreak of World War-II (1939-45), everything change this large craft of years past were now to slow, so new ideas and concepts were put into place and being not so really big they worked?

Hughes built his giant flying boat taking a long standing world record, followed by the MARS that was only a water bomber until retired a few years ago. aircraft did get bigger with the coming of the Jet age, but people wanted more and so came the Boeing 747 Jumbo and many Lockheed military giants or deployment to Vietnam late 50;s to the early 70's!

The Soviet Union developed their own civil and military giants from the MIL-Mi 10, 12 and 26 to hold various records, the Antonov AN-22, An-125 and 225, which all still are in operation today with the Ilyushin IL-76, and civil IL-86/92.

Today the European Airbus have the A380-800 and the even newer A350-9/1000 that is pointing the future ahead?

NATO Costly pay for the Ukraine!

 No longer free weapons to fight Russia?

The U.S. is blaming the Ukraine leadership for keeping this war going based on nationalistic hatred, well that was the story from day one back in 2014 and not as the European media have been reporting their twisted history!

Despite the supply of old weapons, much that was good has been wasted for a symbol of German systems, wither they were good or bad?

But Russia is a super power and if they wanted they could take the lot if not also Poland, that keeps telling lies and at the same time trying to spread the regional security operation into a war with NATO!

But now the U.S. has stretched NATO having to pay for these needed weapons, while also deploying to protect Greenland, from being seized?

The world is more focused on Iran and many others places that may need military aide than the selfish high opinionated Kiev!

War with Iran!

 U.S. Power, will be Underminded?

What Iran has is a long arms of International terrorism, that will see the sons of Trump recovered in barrels of oil in Mari Largo, if the one or the other slips up in the next few days!

The U.S. has better manpower and training for their systems to work, but politically Trump has no concern for the deaths of the uprising, but rather he pull of a good deal on nuclear and access to their oil fields!

Iran will strike Israel, since it is obsessed with trying to wipe it out with their missile forces, but it is still unclear if Iran has a atomic weapon of some type and how many, since the U.S. strikes on Ferdow six months ago did not wipe out as Trump and his lies claim?

Much of everything else he claims is also lies and the cost of all this will hurt both Europe and the U.S. long term with reprisals and terror!

Anti-Missile Defenses!

  Israels new Laser System?

Which may soon be tested out if there is to be another war in the region with Iran!

This new weapon fires a beam of energy knocking out the guidance system of the rocket or missile thus causing it to crash, rather than explode in mid air?

It is not yet clear how many they have in service and do they still need to be re-supplied with support weapons from the United States to back up Davids Sling and the Iron dome!

What ever happens Israel will once more prove itself well able to damage and destroy their enemies who are on all sides of their little nation?

Emergency Vehicles!

 In light of Cars Montana, Switzerland?

Fire has killed between 40-47 and injured over 119 young people very seriously and despite the snow, the service got to the scene quickly with ground vehicles and helicopter air-ambulances to ferry the critically to specialist burns units in the country!

Some countries have adapted medical payload drops, that can treat the burned on the ground, and these may have more to earthquake struck places, where a patient could die en-route to a hospital?

As time goes on there will be many improvements on what we have now with A.I. and drone robots doing most of the more difficult places to reach, even with helicopters and mountain rescue teams!

Flying boats to be phased Out!

 With recent crashes?

The flying boat may be seeing its last days as a viable machine, that is because some of the older types are facing problems with fatigue and just cannot perform as they once did!

But this is also an illusion, since there remains many new German, Canadian and Russian types that are essential in civilian roles across the world, for fire fighting as in Greece, Californian, U.S.A and Canada?

The Canadian Canadair CL-415 super scooper the Beriev A40 and civilian Be-200 remain some of the most successful fire-fighting boats around the world and are far superior than aircraft of helicopters!

So we cant just say, 'their time is up when it may be developed into something far better?

Happy Christmas East and West and a peaceful New Year!

Venezuela!

 War is coming, but at what cost to the Region?

The Americans claim to have the tech to win this quickly, but Venezuela has some really cool new Russian teach, that is far better than what the U,S, Presidents claims along with his narcotic claims and idiotic polices regarding Honduras!

The real reason is free resources and the removal of a socialist government, but what the U.S. administration does not understand at this time, is that this will go on for years and it will not take the worlds eyes off the middle-east or the Russia-Ukraine conflict along with many others!

Russia has supplied Venezuela with some sophisticated kit and U.S. collateral damage will not go down well with the public back home, while the republicans might not see them back in office ever again?

Sukhoi Su-27's, F-35's, Tupolev TU-160, B-2 bombers and fighter jets, missile systems galore, battle experienced troops fighting in the Ukraine and other nations like China and N-Korea will lead to world war -III something that Mr, Trump has hinted too for some time, to change the world!

Aged aircraft, after UPS Kentucky!

 Ten years after date to Withdraw? 

The sad loss of the MD-11 in Louisville was a disaster waiting to happen, was it fatigue or bad maintenance that one engine fell off this UPS air freighter on take-off for Europe!

When these aircraft come to the end of their commercial life, they become cargo planes and will probably fly until this incident and lost of goods?

What is to become of this aged fleet, the breakers yard for spare parts or just scrap, or other ground uses, bars, homes!

But the laws may need to be changed to end these classics for other withdrawn aircraft and a limited flying time them before dismantling?

Drones verses Missiles!

 Ukrainian war a proving Ground?

Kiev does not yet see that the NATO is using the Ukraine to test out their military systems and to prove that missiles are still better than drones!

When Zelensky offered his new drones to the U.S. President Trump was offended, because only America makes the best of everything, but this is another lie that comes from this silly man?

Russia, China and N-Korea, if not India and few others have much better systems than the U.S., as well as armor, guns, small-arms, and aircraft, while shipping is a difficult area and drones continue to have a limited capability, because of size and weight issues!

Donald Trump has been very critical of U.S. naval design, since he has a limited understanding of what stealth is and has to look back to warships with big guns?

But the future of air-defense is to be laser weapons, rather than rockets, while drones will continue to be effective in localized situations, rather than anything with a long range that Ukraine may never get.

But

Trike E-Bikes!

 Two seat versions?

One recently watched a series of videos made by a Polish Gentleman, I took to be a retired seas captain, who made his own one bed camper and it was ingenious to what can be achieved, but I wanted a two sleeper and also cut down on many extras, just keeping it basic and to 8.5 Kilos towing weight!

One also wanted to be able to take a passenger on the trike, with a suitable cover and extra batteries and what could be achieved with speed and distance along with safety?

Many people are buying these trikes to undercut road fines and operate for short journeys, cutting down on burning petrol, but one does not know what the legislation and the law of the road may change regionally in relation to what you can do or not and that make the concept pointless cross regional borders!

Space Colonization!

 Very Expensive?

It is all wonderful news that humans are returning to the Moon and we may have robotic humanoids on Mars in the next five years, but as for colonization apart from the scientific, that may still be a hundred years away yet, since it will be very expensive to maintain!

But with A.I. now moving fast and the conversion facilities for creating water and air, we may be able to sustain these drilling operations powered by low intensity nuclear power and other technology to do much more than we can now?

What holds us back now is mental health issues that were experienced on the International space station, being dealt with on long duration flights and how will we take to living on another world, with many moral questions too as to child birth and death!

Signal Complexities!

 There is more to Train Driving?

Understanding your road (Track) is only the beginning of a more complex observation and trust in the signal control centers is the start of being a driver, wither passenger, underground or freight!

The driver must be watching and have good eyesight to obstacles on the road, from engineering workers, to the public and criminal activity, while speeds must be kept to, there are changes at times that have to be heeded?

On the Tube, Metro, Underground there may be slightly different rules, but crossing tracks is out of the control of the drivers and today much of it is in the hands of automation and now A.I. and in the near future more driver less trains will be in service all over the place!

Automation came in because of human error, due to being slack, lazy, but more likely tiredness and the actions leading to serious accidents from the introduction of railways and the underground?

Water Sports!

 Not near the Sea?

Since many people do not live near the sea, they have to find a alternative such as rivers, lakes and reservoirs that are the next best thing for small dinghies, water boarding and canoeing many other types and they are very popular!, 

Perhaps because in some cases they are safer, but on lakes and rivers currents do remain a danger to paddle boards and rafters, even in controlled environments, when errors of judgement are made?

Jet skiing and many motors sports can be done on a lake are worth the practice before doing on the sea and that applies to all the above since the sea is unpredictable than being flat calm in some cases!

Helicopters SAR and Civil!

 Search and Rescue and Civilian Usage?

Many helicopters most people think are for rich people who want privacy in travel, but they are wrong since many are used to ferry workers to our oil and gas rigs in the north sea and from time to time island communities in Scotland and the Scilley off Cornwall, Rathlin off N-Ireland and many other places to!

Helicopters are now common as air ambulances, saving may lives and transporting sick people over great distance from hospital to hospital apart of traffic and work incidents? 

Small types to large ones are employed in these essential roles in our modern world, getting over mountains and water are some of the key aspects of their roles!

Others are used by the national grid in relations to getting engineers to remote places to repair power lines after storms and bad weather, if not civil disturbances and deliberate acts of vandalism

 Meanwhile many are being replaced in some areas of work by drones, that are cheaper and can go places helicopters cannot, but they will also provide services in cities to move donor/ harvesting materials, blood samples and other, which cuts out getting stuck in traffic?

Other machines provide a taxi services for racing jockeys and moving materials that may be urgent for one reason or another and they also come in varied sizes!

The most common types in the U.K. Are the Airbus H135/145, Bell 207, Leonardo A189, 109, 139 and others in the family, the Airbus H225 is mostly deployed to gas and oil rigs and fitted out for 30-+, while the Sikorsky S-76 is the most popular air taxi and the S-92 for search and rescue?

Sailing remains a popular sport and Activity!

 Classic sail ships are the pride of many navies?

Many uses for sail ships have been found over the years in young peoples self-improvement programms and other leisure activities, apart from training naval crews in discipline and other!

Maintaining is one aspect of them, but rebuilding has also lead to many construction mistakes in the deign and at other times success in discovering new things that were lost?

Modern sail yachts are the state of the art today with the demands of better vessels for racing and others being sold on for avid sailors and for pleasure, if not also featuring in many movies and other!

Keeping the classics Going?

 How many aircraft and machines can be kept!

We all as nations and groups want to keep as much as we can to record 20th Century history, but can this collecting, restoration and re-builds be kept up!

So far many restorers and private collectors may eventually pass on to museum collections, but others would want to sell and recover assets for the work that they have done on their respective projects?

Many early aircraft of the first twenty years of human flight are now re-builds and are flying, adding some adventure to those basic and limited days and this come on our current electric revolution!

Vulnerability at Sea?

 Oil and gas tankers, hijacked and hit by Missiles!

With the current situation developing now between Iran and the U,S, revenge for the overnight attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities is putting the Hormuz strait and others in danger of being blocked and shipping lost, but revenge may come in the loss of aircraft and British interest as much in the region, if not in our own lands?

Shipping is large and hard to protect, this has been seen in the Red and Arabian seas already with the Houthis and earlier by Somali pirates, but now Iran has long range tentacles and they will use them to cause economic disaster on the world markets, if they want too with loss of life and limb!

Security guards will not be able to deal with missile attacks, they can prevent hijacking and maybe take down a few drones, arming ships with anti-aircraft weapons would make them military vessels and not civilian?

South-Wales Super Tram!

 Cardiff is to be the hub for new valleys Expansion?

The vision of the road rail tram is nothing new, but all the Welsh valleys are to be connected to the capital and then as a city wide tram service, breaking with the dependence of rail stock that is much of the time out of date and not reliable?

Now that the coal industry is gone and that there is a demand for a cleaner environment in the valleys and Cardiff city this new system will be much cleaner and serve more communities and new builds all over S/SE-Wales, with the potential to keep expanding it, if needs be!