Solar Impulse Flight - Across The USA, Powered By The Sun

The experimental airplane Solar Impulse completed its first flight across the United States this week. The Swiss-made plane, powered only by the sun, is the first to make the trip both day and night without using conventional fuel. It started the journey on May 3 in California and ended on July 6 in New York. Pilots and creators Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg took turns manning the single-seat flyer, which is powered by about 12,000 silicon solar cells and has a wingspan of a jumbo jet. The next step is a trip around the world in 2015

Workers load a wing of the Swiss sun-powered aircraft Solar Impulse into a Cargolux Boeing 747 cargo aircraft on February 20 at Payerne airport in Geneva. The Boeing will carry the Solar Impulse HB-SIA prototype aircraft to San Francisco for a series of flights across the US from the West to East Coast. 

13 inspiring facts about airplanes

At the May holidays, many of our compatriots prefer to fly away from their home towns. Even those who are afraid to fly. If you belong to their number, this post - for you! Probably after you are familiar with our "baker's dozen" air facts, you will feel more confident on the board. Although it is not a fact . Some degree of aerophobia so high that no facts will not help.

Air transportation - the safest form of transport

Photos of Plane Wrecks With “Happy Ends”

Airplane wrecks usually denote tragedies, but photographer Dietmar Eckell aims to highlight the rare miracles from the history of aviation where everyone survived. "'Happy End' is a photo-project about miracles in aviation history - 15 airplanes that had forced landings but all on board survived and were rescued from the remote locations," says Dietmar Eckell a photographer from Dusseldorf, Germany.

West Sahara

Airport Runway Becomes Parking Lot for Hurricane Damaged Vehicles

Tens of thousands of vehicles damaged by Superstorm Sandy are being temporarily stored on runways and taxiways at Calverton Executive Airpark in Calverton, New York. The vehicles were recovered, processed and stored by Insurance Auto Auctions, a salvage auto auction company specializing in total-loss vehicles. The company made a deal with the Town of Riverhead to lease the airport land and then the vehicles will be auctioned online.

The Sandy-hit cars here sprawl over two runways that stretch 2 and 3 kilometers respectively. The first area rented by IAA covers 54 acres (22 hectares) but the company later contracted for more. IAA is able to rent the runways because the airport opens only in summer. The runways started to fill it at the end of November, but it has to be cleared by April when the runway opens for business.

Kabul International Airport

Kabul Airport was originally built in the early 1960s by Soviet engineers. Around this time in history, Afghanistan was becoming a modernized nation and catching up with the rest of the nations in the world. Many western tourists from places such as the Americas, Europe, India, and else where started flocking to the country via Kabul Airport. This era tragically ended in the late 1970s when the country began facing political turmoil.

The airport was used by the Soviet Army during the Soviet War in Afghanistan, from 1979 to 1989. It was also used by the military forces of the former President of Afghanistan, Mohammad Najibullah, until 1992. It fell in the hands of local mujahideen forces for several years and then was taken over by the Taliban until late 2001 when they fled the city after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. Due to international sanctions during the Taliban government, the airport was closed in the late 1990s, with very limited international flights. 

The Ten most Dangerous Airports to Land

We all love to travel and while most of our journeys are by air we tend to enjoy that. True enough, landing and take off in a jet plane is fun experience but if you have been to one of the following airports, I am sure you beg to differ. This lists brings for you the ten most dangerous airports to land in. The reasons include the length of the air strip, the location, the winds etc. Believe me, that heavy thud when the air plane touches the ground is nothing compared to what the pilot and the passengers go through while landing on one of the following air strips.

10. PRINCESS JULIANA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, ST. MAARTEN

This is perhaps one of the busiest airports in the Caribbean. United States Airline, KLM Royal Dutch and Corsairfly are usual users of the airport. The air strip is about 7,152 feet long and was built for smaller planes to land on but it still used by 747s and A340s. The air strip is located right next to the beach, so if you are sun-bathing and tall,  make sure to not stand up. It can be very dangerous with the strong gushes of wind. Also, you need to stay clear of the engine exhaust. It can blow you away, literally.

Futuristic looking spaceport america

Spaceport America, dubbed as the first spaceport in the world, looks like a gigantic moth, its rounded wings outspread against the arid, reddish-brown dirt of southern New Mexico. The view from east reveals a curved, pitched glass facade, soaring steel hanger doors and a white-on-white interior. The lofty architecture encapsulates the equally lofty dream of this complex – to serve as the launch-pad for commercial spaceflight and the dawn of second space age.

The $209 million project has attracted worldwide attention because of its bold premise, stunning architecture and the fact that it is home to the world’s first commercial passenger spaceline company, Virgin Galactic which has signed a 20-year lease and has already launched 12 suborbital flights from the spaceport as of August 2012.

Spaceport America includes basic operational infrastructure such as an airfield, launch pads, terminal / hangar facility, emergency response capabilities, utilities and roadways. The site will be capable of accommodating the activities of both vertical and horizontal takeoff space launch vehicles, serving as the base for pre-flight and post-flight activities, and providing a tourism experience for interested visitors and spectators.

The complex is located in the Jornada del Muerto desert basin in New Mexico, United States just west of the White Sands Missile Range, about 140 km north of El Paso. The low-lying form is dug into the landscape to exploit the thermal mass, which buffers the building from the extremes of the New Mexico climate as well as catching the westerly winds for ventilation; and maximum use is made of daylight via skylights.

To say the site is remote doesn’t do it justice. A power substation had to be installed, wells dug, water and sewer systems put in place. And while the spaceport will have a restaurant, at the moment the nearest place to grab a meal is more than 20 miles away. Although Spaceport America officially opened in 2010, the public areas aren't slated for completion until 2013 by which Spaceport Authority hopes to make the place more inviting. Plans are afoot for an elaborate visitor center complete with interactive exhibits devoted to all manner of space-oriented activities.

Meet Boeing 747-800

In May in Frankfurt there was a presentation of the new Boeing 747-800 of airline Lufthansa.Such a success is new for Russia, but we are glad for Germany. 

Farnborough Airshow

The Farnborough International Airshow, held once every two years, is one of the world’s most important aerospace and defense events. Situated around 40 miles southwest of London, the show encompasses five trade days and a weekend, during which the exhibition is open to the public. It brings together the biggest players from the commercial, business and military aviation industries. 

The airshow opened with a joint flypast of the Red Arrows (the U.K. Air Force’s aerobatic team) and the world's last airworthy Avro Vulcan bomber. A relic of the Cold War, the historic plane was the first of its kind to be delivered to the Royal Air Force in July 1960, and the last Vulcan to leave military service in 1993. 

Barcelona Airport Turned Into a Pile of Rubbish

Barcelona Airport Turned Into a Pile of Rubbish

In the first terminal of the Spanish El Prat airport in Barcelona 240 cleaners went on strike. This led to the fact that the floors of the terminalare are covered with rubbish, and in the arrivals area there is only one toilet. A passenger stands at the check-in desks during a protest by the cleaning staff at Barcelona's . Cleaning staff working for a company which has a contract with the airport demonstrated against pay and benefits cuts made by their employer.

Rarest Plane Crashes And Flight Accident Photos

Rarest Plane Crashes And Flight Accident Photos

Some of the Rarest Commercial, Military & Private Flight Photos

Did You Say More Left Aileron??. . . .
(An Actual Cross Wind Landing of a Air France Commercial Jetliner)

10 busiest airports in the world

10 Busiest Airports in the World

Top ten world’s busiest airports by passenger traffic are measured by number of total passengers (data provided by Airports Council International and BAA). One passenger is described as someone who arrives in, departs from, or transfers through the airport on a given day. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta has been the world’s busiest airport every year since 2000 whilst London has the world’s busiest city airspace with 2 of its airports regularly found in the top ten.

1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport – Georgia, United States

Amazing bird's eye views of airport runways

Amazing bird's eye views of airport runways

Hong kong international airport in sea

 Hong Kong International Airport in Sea

The construction of Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok was one of the biggest operations in the industry. The core programme cost more than $20bn and involved four major sponsors, ten separate projects, 225 construction contracts and over 1,000 critical interfaces."Hong Kong Airport has been one of the largest engineering and architectural projects in the world." The airport covers 12.48km² of reclaimed land between the two islands of Chek Lap Kok and Lam Chau. The airport increased the land area of Hong Kong by 1%.

The Airport in Gibraltar

The Airport in Gibraltar

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This airport is interesting because its runway crosses the road in Spain. When the plane was taxiing to the runway,
Highway on both sides overlap the gates, stopping the flow of traffic.

Kuwait new International Airport

Kuwait new International Airport

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 The Kuwait International Airport is a very bold project since it has a paramount importance for the Gulf region. The new airport will have an innovative design-a modern approach and a practical one, too since the climate in Kuwait is one of the hottest in the entire world. Foster+ Partners are handling the design of the airport, being inspired by local forms and using local materials, too.