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

China cancels all new Boeing Orders!

 Hitting back at U.S. Tariffs?

Boeing itself could soon become history, because of Chinese rejection of new sales, for more European types such as the Airbus A350-900/100 that is now taking over long-haul operations around the world, but it will be loss of sales of the Boeing 737-MAX-8-200 that will knock the U.S. and the Chinese influences on SE-Asia!

Europe can also offer China their new Airbus A321-200NX to compensate the Boeing MAX and other sales from Russia, with joint developments mean no one will need American aviation in the civil market, and for now the U.S. will just have to depend on the military market for its Jets and systems, but for how long?

What China has to offer in civil Aviation?

 MC-21/C919.

These two new types will start to take the market world wide this year, if Boeing cannot get is act together? 

Russia has already grounded many of its Boeing fleet for its own types, such a the TU-204/14 and Sukhoi SU-100/200, while considering these new Chinese types.

China is progressing with firm orders already in place and even Embraer is suffering because of its links with Boeing over poor build quality and other electrical computing failures?

China does not have those issues and it has a good aviation history of safety, as well as well built aircraft and their own computer systems, much of which they share with Russia! Sales may not exceed those of the U.S. but many aircraft meeting the needs of the Asian continent will be met, with India, Iran and others!

Sanctions on Russia?

 Still an open door to fossil fuels and Gas!

It would seem that despite thousands of sanctions being placed on Russia over its right to protect its people in the Ukraine from genocide by Zelensky and his secular cohorts the west has left doors open in the world stock markets to re-open trade, when Biden leaves office?

Russia is making more money than it is loosing selling gas to both India and China and many others new customers in the far-east, since it is much cheaper than any other commodity and has a much lower carbon rate than coal or oil!

But a new U.S. administration may want to still trade with Russia and it is known that Britain despite all its pro-Ukraine pomp is still carrying around the world Russian crude and it prepared to keep doing on the quiet as long as it can!

The U.S. a new path in Space?

Russia maybe Excluded?

NASA is being guided by the Trump administration into a new path of Space research and travel that breaks the long established cooperation! Currently the U.S still needs the Russians passage and re-supply to the International Space Station, but the new Gateway programme will see them be cut back to just one module in the whole project?

Artemis is the new project to return to the Moon to establish a south pole base that will lead eventually to getting humans on Mars by 2030? The sad thing is that many other nations such as China and Indi might pull it off with the Russians in a direct flight and return?

Flying Boats Today! One.

Beriev, Canadair, and Dornier?

These are some of the main manufacturers of flying boats today around the world and it is Russia that is leading the way with its Beriev B200 firefighter and other variants. This aircraft was based on its former Soviet military version developed for maritime reconnaissance and it is not clear if it is still operational?

Other manufactures such as Canadian Canadair developed two smaller flying boats that have had some success in the firefighting role the CL-214/215. But in recent work in both the United States and Portugal aircraft and crews were lost in wild fires work!

The third builder is German Dornier, who having much experience has opted for a smaller pleasure model, but this still has other options with it in relation to patrol work? The Peoples Republic of China have now developed its own long-range four engine flying boat making it the largest in the world, currently this is believed to be only a military venture?

Both the U.S. Navy and Japan have also taken a fresh interest in revitalising their last designs with modern electronics and weapon systems for sea, and coastal patrols. We will look at these later on to see more about them!

Off to the Moon! Part-One.

The Trump Mission?

For humanity to return to the Moon will cost billions if not trillions and something will have to give way, so it has been decided that the International Space station will have to go within the next few years? 

The United States of America is determined to beat China getting to the Moon in this next fifteen year period and the U.S. wants to do what JF Kennedy pressured NASA to do forty years ago, but with a base rather than just landing and coming home!

The problems with this are enormous, if their is no Space station as a stepping stone on these proposed missions! The ISS has at least another twenty good years of operational service and Russia will perhaps have to foot the bill for its replacement?

A Moon base may never really become that stepping stone to Mars as is being promised, to maintain it will be very difficult even with 6% gravity over that of none? Trump wants to undermine the Kennedy legacy as much as he is doing politically to Obamas!

A changing aviation Market?

Airbus A380 and A350-100 at a loss!

The world wants smaller aircraft, rather than larger ones and in the civil commercial airline market one does not get any bigger than the Super-Jumbo and the Extra-wide bodied? 

New aircraft such as the Bombardier C-series are more desirable, Embraer has taken the market with its E-Jet series and new comers from Russia, China and Japan are quickly following suite with their own versions!

Boeing has kept to a tight ship in its developments, staying with the 747-8bio-fuelled and struggling with the Dreamliner? But it has given up on the DC-9/717, for the expansion in the 737-800/900 and MAX, all of which is in demand around the globe.

Airbus has taken on the C-Series with reluctance, because it clashes with the A321-neo and similar designs that will be forthcoming?

Elon Musk!

In trouble over a failed Launch?

Space is still a tricky business we may be able to launch rockets weekly up the International Space Station as well military spying, but from time to time there will be failures since humans are not perfect and make mistakes?

Musk has promised much in relation to taking men back to the Moon after forty years and reaching to Mars, with his new re-usable rockets? But this is still new and untested systems that need to be fine-lined, even the Space Shuttle still had teething problems that NASA failed to address at the cost of precious scientific lives for the prestige!

We are only sixty-one years into the Space race exploration, man has reached Pluto and now beyond! Gone to the Moon and built several Space stations culminating in the ISS! Soviet Russia/Russia and the United States were the first to dominate this race from 1957!

But now other nations have now joined this Space club, China, Japan, Europe, India, Israel and more are coming along such as Brazil, Nigeria and Iran!

The Electric Bike.

A Chinese Success.

It would only be time when some one would come up with a novel idea such as this new fold-away electric bike? China had already done it with the motorised plough, who did not need a tractor to haul it!

The ability to fold such a machine is to make it theft proof and cut out the need to find a place to park it up. Speed and range are limited, but if it can get the worker from A to B that is perhaps enough?

This bike is putting out the gauntlet to other nations and manufacturers to do better, to make a speedier version one that has perhaps more appeal to the west? It is a good start and shows that when the Chinese their act together they can beat the world at many things?

Happy New Year 2017.

New Aircraft!

China has two top brand aircraft coming on to the commercial market for 2017 onwards the COMAC ARJ-21 and C919.

These two will be a threat to Boeing and Airbus in China and the far-east in the years to come, but Japan is not to be left out with its Mitsubishi MRJ business jet?

Canada has the Bombardier C-Series, while Airbus its A350-900 now entering service and Boeing plans for the 737-900 and MAX.

What is making these new types attractive is new computing systems, fuel efficiency and improved materials. Embraer and Sukhoi have hit the market with professionalism and there are many more to follow with the business size commercial airliner filling in on the shorter routes?

The decline in the price of Steel. Part-Two.

A point has to Come?

The demand for more metal items is actually on the decline as we said before, since the introduction of new types of combined plastics. Ship building and the need for the construction, road and railway building industry will continue to demand metal.

But the reallity is we will at some point need to start to re-cycle steel or we will face the WALLY situation of a world glut dump of metal and all the rubbish that the human race is accumilating.

The peoples Republic of China has given the world a gift while pricing its own self out? The idea that the steel market in a few years will lift up cannot be sustained by the building debt on some of these plants across the world.

This is serious in the west, when mainy are linked to pension schemes that are becoming chains to profits and something will have to be done by governments who may take advice to convert over that of closing down?

Russian Federation. Part-Two.

Always the sleeping Bear?

Russia is a country that one should really heed advices on starting any military conflict with, there have been many great world leaders and Empires that sought a scuffle with and have ended up in more of a mess than when they started!

Genghis Khan, Sweden, Napoleon and Adolf Hitler have all come to their ends with the stamina of the Russians over the last one-thousand years of history.  Today Barak Obama wants to make a name for himself, but if he wakes up this slumbering bear his own people may lynch him up somewhere.

Russia has ordered 40 nuclear warheads and many former Soviet era designs are being updated for joint construction with its close allie China. Russia still has many friends in our world, they might be small but they hold strategic positions and once Russia is ready the U.S.A. may have more than they bargained for with Europe being obliterated, or was that Australia?

Russian Federation. Part-One.

Re-Armament.

With European Union sanctions now being placed on Russia, it has caused it to re-arm with new MBT, the order of Nuclear warheads and missile systems. Many world leaders are defending the rights of the expansion of Europe into the Baltic States and the Ukraine and this all has echoes of Nazi-Germany.

Russia wanted peace and made great efforts to comply with the west to do so from the day of Gorbachev, but sadly the weak leadership of Barak Obama has allowed a third world war crises to be on the brink.

The Russian Federation has plenty of military equipment available and with economic co-operation with Iran and the Peoples Republic of China, it will find it easy to develop more and more newer and advanced types equiptment and defence systems.

Aviation Lifters. Part-Two.

Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, Antonov An-124/224.

These are currently the three largest giants of the aviation world in the area of heavy lifting, as yet there no cargo version of the civil Airbus A380 on the cards. Lifting of oil and drill rigs parts are the main uses today, apart from the ability to Carry ICBM (Inter-continental Ballistic missile) components. Russia, Canada and Australia along with the Amazon in Brazil are the areas for this type of work. 

We do not hear much about this, because these aircraft really are military more than they are civil. But now with exploration and the ever increasing demand of fossil fuels by developing nations, such as China, India and Brazil there is a demand for commercial contract flying.

Road Trains. Part-One.

Haulage.
Generally most trucking in Europe is a combination of one vehicle plus a trailer, but in Australia, Canada and the United States along with Russia and China there are more possibilities to have a number of trailers forming a train.

What limits haulage is other alternatives such as shipping and railways, because in the long term they are much cheaper on fuel costings.

The movement of livestock is perhaps one of the best usages for this type of haulage in the outback of Australia, were the alternatives are limited.

Modern trains and Metros. Part-Two.

Upgrades and Extensions.

Many countries around the world today are starting to see the value of what they have in relation to joint rail and Metro systems and have began the upgrading of stock. Meanwhile some have also extended their networks, lines and have brought other closed or planned sections back into operation.

In some cases the advancements being made in design, speed and comfort may look good to the eye, but sometimes they fail on reliability and age.

The United Kingdom, France and Germany have been able to do much, while some south-American countries Brazil, Argentina have the opportunity to start new projects along with Australia and New Zealand. India is trying and has started to grasp the need for the metro network.

Eastern Europe and Russia and many other nations have perhaps neglected what thy have and are now in financial constrains to start doing anything. The far-east Singapore, Japan, China and south-Korea in my mind always has the vision to take full advantage, but has to turn back to Europe and the United States for the design and engineering that is required.

The BTR-60 APC.

'Were rocking all over the world.'

Soviet Russia spread its socialist philosphy with trade and military hardware, just as much as the united States and many other countries do so today. One of the biggest exports outside military jets, was the assortment of ground vehicles and the APC's on offer.

Many countries that could not buy aircraft or ships, went for vehicles instead, apart from Tanks. Today we see the situations of conflicts around the world, from the Middle-East to Afghanistan, to the Uraine to Libya in North-Africa and we see that familiar eight wheel APC, the BTR-60 still active in successfully moving troops about.

The BTR-60 started life in 1961 and was an advanced development and replacement for the BTR-152 APC. It was fully amphibious, carried a crew of two and 14 troops. Today there are so many versions available, that it would be immpossible to account for all of them here. 

Speed is around 48 mph and range around 350 miles, but with improved engines this has probably improved since the fall of the Soviet Union. The vehicle has been built under licence in Romania as the TAB-70, also in India and China. While several adapted vehicles were re-built from it in the middle-east and in Israel.

Modern Trams and Metros. Part-One.

Improved Technology.

Modern trams and the various other light rail systems today are a far cry from say seventy years ago. These newer systems and machines have better design and layout, but that is to be expected. We can only learn to improve by experience, trail and error in anything.

The computer, battery technology and design for capacity layout has been a great advantage. Speed and comfort are also improved considerations, employed in some countries with security measures.

The building of town extensions, new town has forced planners to improve the use of both the metro and tram to go to the best pic up and dropping points for both day and night use.

Blade Runners. Part-One.

An Introduction to the Hydrofoil.

This is perhaps the most prolific ship design that has ever been conceived, to lift up a weight on a blade. today we associate blade running with athletics and that is an amazing feat of engineering in its own right.

The era of the Hydrofoils were the 1950's and it seems there was great competition across the globe to build and have one. Italy, Russia and the United State of America, took full opportunity to build them in all sizes and sleekness of design. 

Bolivian Arrow, 14-ton, 40 seater, Russian Burevestnik, 41-67-tom 130-150 seat river ferry, Italian RHS 70, 32-ton, 71 seat passenger ferry and the U.S Flagstaff 1 (PHG-1) US Coastguard 67.5-ton, with a 40knot speed.

Today they are not as popular, as they once were but they remain in operation in several countries as a novelty design concept.