U.S. Leading the way in the new Super-Sonic Age!

 Smaller business class Jets?

Britain, and France lead the way with the one-hundred seat Concorde until a crash in France twenty-five years ago ended a most successful trans-Atlantic affair, meanwhile only Singapore airlines operated the type and the Soviet-Russians operated their Tupolev TU-144 between Moscow and the far east, but the demand was not strong and the type was retired too!

On the other hand the U.S. has gone it alone with several larger Boeing concepts, but this new type will allow a one third version to be built more so for private and business flights and to be employed world wide, the secret to this type is perhaps alternative fuel, speed and operational costs being much lower than the original types?

One will just have to wait and see what will happen, or is this another red herring, pink elephants ect, that we will never see the light of day as so many went before!

Yakolev Yak-40.

 The Russian jet that just keeps going?

One reason for the longevity of the Yak-40 is that there is no alternative to it in Russia, compared to western types in business jets has big profits financially behind them and a demand for comfort and entertainment, if not rest and relaxation?

But the Yak-40 has held its ground as a small airline, a business jet and in the field of being an air ambulance, which is handy when dealing with long distances to be covered across Siberia, but it also has many other functions with the military and with combined-cargo operations moving smaller things to remote places!

The Yak-40 may be coming to the end of its working career, but until a new replacement is found it will soldier on in the role of being an essential air ambulance for remote places and moving essential staff to where they are needed!

Cruising is where the money Is!

 Growing fleets of cruise Ships?

Owners of existing fleets are now modernizing their fleets, by not upgrading existing one, but building more newer ones and the success of them is they are getting almost fully booked for the year for each cruise!

Some companies have allowed rich people to buy a suite on board and have it for life as they slowly tour the world, this was so with the Aurora that got stuck in Belfast with engine problems, but recently was able to get to Brest in NW France, before heading for the Bahamas?

Despite the demand for new fad ships, many of the older ones are still popular, bringing back the days of cruising from the various Agatha Christie novels of luxury travel and a more refined catering, servants care and less people on a much larger modern ship!

What ever happened to the Boeing 797?

 Boeing 737-MAX and no replacement for the 757?

Boeing has shelfed the 797/757 replacement to further develop its popular 737-MAX and extend others such as the 777X, 787-8,9,10 Dream liners and keep the 767-400 going?

Since they believe this is the future as they face stiff competition from Airbus and Embraer, since both are cheaper and more reliable, if not a better safety record than Boeing and are way ahead in the neo-fuel and NX next generation technology.

Boeing has several concepts, such as a Supersonic business jet, but we have been here before with that one and it came to nothing, where Europe is considering the wing concept and are progressing with it?

On the military front Boeing is doing well in it's C-17 Globemaster-III transport, but Embraer is catching up with their C390. Weapon systems always do well and the MR variant's of the 737 air frame are now entering British and NATO air forces after another long technical wait!

In the Biz jet market and short haul Embraer is taking the lead with their popular range of craft and military sales are good with smaller nations military and civil.

Embraer a Brazillian Success?

Taking the World Market!

Like all things we can rule the nest for a while but then find ourselves undone by either the older or a new upstart? Embraer has slowly developed both its civil and military divisions from the C-23 to the 110/111 and on to its commercial jets EMB-135 to the E-Jets EMB-195.

It has had a long success with the Tucano advanced trainer counter-insurgence two-seater and various version of the Maritime EMB-111, but now it has become a threat to Boeing with the KC-95 medium transport?

Embraer is able to fill a gap that the more expensive Airbus and Boeing has failed in, many countries have opted for the 170, 190 and 195 to counter the Airbus A319, 320/321 and the Boeing 737-600/700. But Embraer has also successfully taken on the business jet market with the Legacy 100 and 500, while the smaller jets have been welcomed by many rich Arab nations!

What the future holds is the slow progress with the E-Types that will counter the Airbus A321LR and neo!

Corperate and Commercial Jets. Part-Two.

Not a new concept, but perhaps Improved.

The McDonnel-Douglas DC-8 and the Boeing 727-1/200 in the past have met the mark for many corperate heads such as Donald Trump. People really want space to move and live in while on long haul flights, it has been the Royal Saudi family who have taken to large commercial airlines and converted them in to their private business aircraft.

The Boeing 777-2/300 has met that demand today over the probal only alternative back in the day of the Boeing 747-1/200, and SP versions.

What does the future hold?

Private Airbus A380-8 or Boeing 787-8/9 or the new entry Airbus A350 may be the large coperate jets of the years to come, but the Gulfstream, Dassualt, Cessna and Beeches, Bombardier, Embraer, IAI, Mitsuibishi will remain wanted by the rest of us.

Meanwhile the plentiful of the Airbus A320' and Boeing 737-6/7/8's will still be meeting requirements along with their Russian equivilants Tupolev TU-204, Sukhoi Su-1/200 SuperJets?

Corperate to Commercial Jets. Part-One.

Business to Small Airlines.

There is more of a demand today for the smaller commercial jet, than has ever been seen. 

The business jet offered from 8 to 20 seats, privacy and speed, but today with the success story of the Fairchild-Dornier 328J at 18-to 28 seats many manufacturers are now seeing a market for their aircraft?

Bombardier and Mitsubishi are taking the market off Boeing, Cessna, Gulfstram, Beech and Embraer, because they have designed the right size and seating capacity for the airlines. 

The Boeing 737-600 is still to big for many small airlines, while the Sukhoi S-100J Superjet still has to prove itself. Meanwhile the Airbus A319-100 and various versions have just not come up to the mark.

Cargo Ships. Part-Two.

Container World.

It was the introduction of the container that has changed the world, we now can have anything and everything exported and imported in a metal box. The mordern world is built around the container, which can be carried by road, train, large transport aircraft and shipping.

These containers are available in various sizes, I have noticed that in India and Ireland they are smaller and are perhaps easier to handle without the need of a fork-lifter or crane. But the disadvantage with conainers is that they are good for hiding criminal goods and are hard to detect by police and customs.

Old containers are not heading directly to the scap yard, but now being used in housing projects both in the United Kindom and the Netherlands, while in Canada units are employed for small business start ups.

Levitated Rail and Mono-Rail.

The Future and near Future.

Technology and new concepts are ever advancing, speed is becoming more of an issue for the railways because time is money. Conventional high speed is improving with straight tracks from A to B/Z but there are other possibilities now available in Levitated or magnetic rail and advancements in mono rails.

Cost will ultimately be the down fall to some designs, while others may be constructed on a small scale? The railways around the globe make money on freight, the movement of containers and minerals which are essential for modern living.

Current proposals are only for high-speed passenger movement and countries with large land masses and big metropolitan areas will benefit from this new future travel concepts.

The Biz Jets. Part-One.

Business.

From almost day one in aviation the idea of the business plane was born, for the business man to get from A to B without the bother of being with other people. Early flight was initially either for the very rich or for military uses, it was not until the 1920's that new types of aircraft allowed for longer and longer distances to travel.

From cross Channel to Continental flight, some business people preferred travel with the post rather Handley-Page types than mixing and this continues today. Early aircraft were limited, but during World-War-II )1939-45) this type of travel came to the fore. British PM Mr. Winston Churchill prop-seated in a Douglas  DC-3/C-47 around the world negotiating an effective alliance against Adolf Hitler. The U.S and Soviet Russia followed.