Aerospace Industry in Latin America

Embraer, which already has a contract for the supply of 28 KC-390 aircraft for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), signed this week with the Italian company Selex ES to supply Gabbiano T20 radar. The equipment will be installed in the nose of the aircraft and may be used, for example, to find boats on the high seas.

The first KC-390 to be delivered to the Air Force at the end of next year and the goal will fulfill all the tasks currently carried out by C-130 Hercules. The ability to take up to 23.2 tonnes of fuel in the wings necessary to transport long range flights or flight refueling other aircraft also makes it possible to use the KC-390 for conducting search missions, and the radar will assist in this task.

The Gabbiano T20 can help identify oil stains or perform the mapping of land areas. Targets in tracking mode, you can track more than 200 vessels simultaneously and can also be used to combat illegal activities such as overfishing and piracy.

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Since 1964, more than 500 commercial and military Bell helicopters have operated in Mexico covering a wide variety of missions. Bell Helicopter’s facility in Chihuahua, Mexico opened in 2009 and produces cabins for the Bell 429 and Bell 407, as well as other major parts and components for many Bell Helicopter models.

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Embraer Executive Jets announced today that Etihad Flight College, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has signed a purchase agreement for four Phenom 100E jets, and options for three additional aircraft of the same model.

Based on current list prices the deal is valued at about USD 30 million, if all options are exercised, and deliveries of the aircraft to Etihad Flight College will start in the first quarter of 2016.

The delivery of the four new Embraer Phenom 100E jets will bring to 20 the number of aircraft in the trainer fleet, which is currently composed of 16 single-engine propeller airplanes.

“We are very pleased with the selection of the Phenom 100E by Etihad Flight College,” said Marco Túlio Pellegrini, President and CEO, Embraer Executive Jets. “The Phenom 100E has proven to be the ideal aircraft for jet pilot training, delivering advanced cockpit technology, along with high performance and high reliability, at a low operating cost.”

“As the national airline of the UAE, it is vital for us to establish a world-class training facility to support the training and manpower development of the local Emirati workforce, while also providing a source of well-trained, highly-skilled pilots for our growing operations.” said Richard Hill, Etihad Airways’ Chief Operations Officer. "The Phenom 100E’s airline-grade technology, performance and reliability make it an ideal initial training platform to prepare our cadets for line operations."

Based in Al Ain, the Etihad Flight College is the first organization in the world to use multi-engine aircraft in the core phase of its MPL training program, and provides training for up to 120 Emirati and international cadets annually.


Etihad Flight College

Etihad Flight College, the world-class flight training college based at Al Ain International Airport in the UAE, is now authorised to provide the Multi Crew Pilot Licence (MPL) training program following certification as an Approved Training Organisation (ATO) by the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA).

The MPL training program provides students with the core competencies required of an airline pilot in today’s ever-changing aviation marketplace. It focuses on relevant and operator-specific training, rather than the traditional model of performance-based training in a generic format. It produces pilots with not only the skills to fly a modern commercial aircraft to the most exacting standards, but the competencies and attitudes required of a professional pilot as well.

Established following the acquisition of the fixed wing division of Horizon International Flight Academy from Mubadala in September 2014, the Etihad Flight College will train up to 200 Emirati and international cadets annually. Etihad Airways currently employs over 2,200 pilots to operate its fleet of 110 Airbus and Boeing aircraft.


The Phenom 100E

The Phenom 100E has a four-occupant range of 1,178 nautical miles (2,182 km), with NBAA IFR reserves. With a high speed cruise of 390 knots, the Phenom 100E is one of the fastest jets in its class, with operating costs comparable to that of leading turbo-prop aircraft. The Phenom 100E also features multi-function spoilers, and the aircraft is capable of flying at 41,000 feet (12,500 m), powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW617F-E engines with 1,695 pounds of thrust each.

The pilot-friendly cockpit enables single-pilot operation and offers the Prodigy Flight Deck, with Synthetic Vision System. Other standard features include improved takeoff performance with thrust reserve, increased Maximum Zero-Fuel Weight and an electronic checklist.

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Queretaro has 4 of the 11 aerospace program investigation centers in Mexico. By the end of this year, the State will open the Aeronautical Technologies National Center, with research capabilities and specialized services (non-destructive testing) to serve aerospace companies, thus consolidating this State as a leader in aerospace research.Queretaros aerospace sector consists of two subassemblies plants, Bombardier and Airbus Helicopters; 60 Tier 1 suppliers and one TechOps Mexicos MRO.

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Frisa Forjados Signs Long-term Agreement to Supply Forged Rings for Pratt & Whitney PurePower® jet engines Monterrey, Mexico - January 2013. Frisa Forjados, a world leading supplier of seamless rolled rings, has signed a new long-term agreement with Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX), valued at more than $150M. Under the agreement Frisa will supply forged rings and casings for the PurePower® family of Geared Turbofan™ jet engines. This agreement and associated work builds upon Frisa Forjados’ successful support on the V2500 engine program, a product of International Aero Engines for which Pratt & Whitney is a majority shareholder. "With this agreement, Frisa once again continues to strengthen its position as a leading supplier of forged rings to the aerospace industry." said Eduardo Garza, CEO of Frisa. "We are especially pleased to strengthen our role as a strategic supplier to Pratt & Whitney in support of these exciting new engines” Notes to Editors: Located in Monterrey, Mexico, Frisa is a world-class leading manufacturing company that specializes in seamless rolled rings and open die forgings. Frisa serves customers worldwide in market sectors such as aerospace, power generation, oil and gas, construction and mining, wind, and general industrial. Frisa has three state of the art facilities in Mexico, and a joint venture in the USA.

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Frisa: A Perfect Fit

Frisa is an integral piece of the soul that puts aircraft in the air. Its hi-temp seamless rolled rings and high-tech products meet the needs of some of the world's top aircraft engine manufacturers.

Frisa is the perfect match for aircraft engine manufacturers. The Mexican company has the experience needed to forge metals with special properties, supported by a highly-skilled workforce which has made a career out of it, an unbeatable geographic location (some 200 kilometers from the Mexico- US border) and the best production technology in its field.

Since 2003, Frisa has supplied seamless roll formed rings made from nickel and titanium alloys to Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) such as Rolls-Royce, General Electric (GE) and Pratt & Whitney, for the outer shells of turbines and inner areas such as combustion, transmission and exhaust chambers.

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A Mexican scientist creates drones that fly autonomously and learn new routes

The scientist has created an innovative method to estimate the position and orientation of the drone, which allows him to recognize his surroundings.
Mexican researcher has replaced the GPS by inexpensive sensors such as accelerometers, gyroscopes and cameras video.Los drones fly by themselves. That is, without anyone to pile. As stated in the Research and Development portal invdes.com, Mexican researcher José Martínez Carranza the National Institute of Astrophysics, Optics and Electronics (INAOE) has developed a vision system and learning to control and navigation without relying on GPS signal or trained personnel.

The scientist has created an innovative method to estimate the position and orientation of the drone, which allows him to recognize his surroundings. Carranza has replaced the GPS by inexpensive sensors such as accelerometers, gyroscopes and camcorders.

Video cameras on board the vehicle, pemiten obtain visual information and applying an algorithm locates and guides the drone during his flight to use such information. To do this, it has also developed a function that allows you to draw a specific route on a map aerial view, similar to google maps, to indicate that the vehicle navigate to a particular destination autonomously.

This knowledge was developed in the PUCE projects: Precise navigation of UAVs in Complex Environments and SMART Boomerang, work during his postdoc at the University of Bristol, in collaboration with the British company Blue Bear Ltd, which provided the drones and control algorithms while financing it obtained from Innovative UK and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), British government agencies that finance technological innovation projects.

The project is titled BURST: Robust Autonomous Flight of unmanned aerial vehicles in GPS-denied outdoor areas. Its main objective is to investigate different methods to perform autonomous flight of a drone abroad, where these devices face the fury of the wind currents in areas where there is no GPS signal.

"In the step of repeating, the pilot just makes off the drone, but once in the air, autonomous flight algorithms into action and by processing visual information captured by the camera, the vehicle recognizes where in the environment is, "said researcher INAOE.

Software for ground control station, where the transmission is received in real time which observe the drone was also developed this through the inspection chamber in charge to take photos or videos needed to detect fractures or structures failures.

In the future Martinez Carranza wants to make the drone can be used in various civil applications such as surveillance, exploration of land, or inspection of towers.

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