EDITORIAL

 Commercial aviation defeated by natural phenomenon

When choosing a topical news item on aviation it is difficult to ignore the event that caused the almost total closure of European airspace for several days, even though it may not be so topical by the time you read this. However it is almost certain to be a hot topic in aviation circles for some time to come and, at the time of writing, although most long haul flight schedules have been resumed it seems there is no certainty that the event is over.

Even the worst terrorist attack in aviation history did not cause such widespread and long lasting disruption to airline operations as the eruption of a volcano in Iceland and there are many unanswered questions at this time about whether the regulatory authorities were over-zealous in their role of ensuring the safety of the aircraft and their passengers. 

Questions such as:

• Was there certainty about the extent of the ash cloud and the concentration of particles within it?
• Can modern gas turbine engines fly safely through an ash cloud if the particle concentration is below a prescribed level?
• Do the airlines or the aviation authorities have sufficient means of detecting and measuring particle concentration – “sufficient” meaning both in quantity of equipment and it’s accuracy?
• Was it necessary to halt operations altogether in the areas under the cloud? Could height restrictions have been sufficient?

The answers to these and many other questions will no doubt be debated at length by airlines, engine manufacturers and aviation authorities for some time to come and finding satisfactory answers is of paramount importance for the airlines, since it is now recognised that similar events are likely to happen again. As well as debate, the latest news is that some airlines and passenger organisations are considering legal action against governments and aviation authorities that they feel over-reacted to the problem. However no legal action is going to help to find answers.

Until now it has been possible for aircraft to avoid volcanic eruptions as they have mostly been in areas that have not affected commercial aircraft flight paths except for one case when a civil airliner was unwittingly flown into an ash cloud which caused the failure of all engines. Fortunately this case had a happy ending as the pilot was able to re-start the engines after a considerable loss of height which apparently resulted in getting below the ash cloud. This latest incident has, however, shown that unfavourable weather conditions can result in an ash cloud that does not disperse rapidly and lingers over a large area for days on end. It has also been predicted that a larger volcano not far from the present eruption will most probably also erupt in the near future.

There is thus an urgent need for research into the problem and the development of instrumentation which can give more precise information on the extent and concentration of volcanic ash or any other kind of pollution that poses a danger to aircraft engines. Research is also needed into the design of air breathing engines which will be less susceptible to the kind of pollution that has caused so much havoc in European airspace and should we not also consider non-air-breathing engines?

There are many avenues of research that can help and South African engineers are well known for their innovative and lateral thinking and their ability to achieve the impossible, eg. the installation of a new engine in a French aircraft after the aircraft manufacturer assured their government that it was impossible! Our industry also developed effective sand filters for helicopters as a result of an operational necessity.

Perhaps it is time for our home grown industry to show the lead again in solving a problem that will haunt airlines worldwide until a solution is found.

The Evolution of Aeronautical Research Activities at the Dept. of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Stellenbosch University

Professor Thomas Jones

In 1992, a number of prominent engineers and academics established the Electronic System Laboratory (ESL) within the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Stellenbosch University. The purpose of the ESL was to put the first South African satellite in space. This dream was realised when SunSat was launched in 1999, providing images and broadcasts from space well beyond its 2 year design life-time. With the partial commercialisation of the ESL's space system activities, in the form of Sun Space and Information Systems (Pty) Ltd, researchers were expanding their horizons towards new challenges.

remote controlled hobby airframes. The helicopter demonstrated automated near-hover flight and the aeroplane perform  autonomous waypoint navigation.  As an avid glider pilot and flight enthusiast, Garth also put together the laboratory's first flight simulator. This was a 2-D motion simulator designed to train glider pilots to successfully perform aero-tow launch behind a tug aircraft. Two graduate students trained on the simulator and then completed their glider pilot's licences at Worcester Gliding Club.

By 2005 Garth, Thomas  and Dr. Iain Peddle (one of the ESL's first aeronautical control systems graduates) started a partnership known as the Centre of Expertise in Aeronautical Systems, funded by Armscor, ATE, Denel Dynamics and a dti/NRF THRIP initiative.

Some notable achievements over the past 7 years include:

• Demonstration of conventional taxi, automated take-off and automated landing of a fixed-wing UAV
• Automated aerobatic flight of a fixed-wing UAV
• Design, build and flight automation of a counter-rotating ducted fan vehicle
• Automation of the CSIR Meraka/DPSS Modular UAV
• Flight automation of a 2-seater manned helicopter, demonstrated at AAD 2008
• Establishment of a Centre-owned 2-seater fixed-wing test aircraft at Stellenbosch Airfield
• Establishment of an academic research chair of aeronautical modelling, control and simulation, funded by the DTI/NACoE
• Establishment of S-Plane Automation (Pty) Ltd as a UAV control technology supplier

At present, the Centre drives research projects aimed at fault tolerant flight control systems, automated take-off and landing from/on moving platforms, commercial airliner automation systems, and UAV flight certification and regulation.

Visit to South African Airways Technical (A Major Alister Miller Memorial Lecture)

Rob Jonkers

The highlight of the visit was the walk-around and through the A340-600 in its stripped condition. The aircraft was docked against a huge multi-level docking station where one can get access to virtually every area of the fuselage, wings & tail with ease. Entering the cabin stripped of its interior one was able to get the feel of vast space within the almost 75 m length. Most of the problems being dealt with in terms of repairs & maintenance inside the cabin had to do with water spillages (corrosion hazard) that emanates from the galley and washroom areas. Being a D-check also allows the aircraft to be available for modifications, and with everything opened and accessible easy to do. Most of the modifications are made available as retro-fit kits thus fairly easy to install using specialist manpower and in some cases the OEM (Airbus or component supplier) will send out a team to do the modifications.

Student Awards at Stellenbosch University for 2009.

Alan Nelson

Every year the Society partakes in University award ceremonies at Universities around the country and normally gives awards and prizes to the best final year students who have done projects with Aeronautical flavour.

A well organized event held in the heart of the winelands in a great garden setting.

ECSA CPD Process and AeSSA Pre-Accredited Activities.

Gert Jansen van Rensburg

For those members that need to complete their Continuous Professional Development (CPD) updates and re-applications for registration with ECSA, some guidelines. The pre-accredited items as registered by AeSSA are listed on the ECSA website and can be accessed as follows:

• Go to the main page on ECSA website: http://www.ecsa.co.za
• Select “CPD” => “CPD Activities” (left hand list), or
• Under “Quick Links”, select “CPD Activities”  directly
• On the opened page titled: “CPD Pre-accredited Items”, one then selects the “Category” switch, and to specifically view the AeSSA approved items, select either “Conferences” or “Courses and Lectures”.
• The typical AeSSA items are numbered as follows: AeSSA ‘xx’-000 ‘y’-‘zz’
• The ‘xx’ and ‘zz’ digits denote the year of validity, e.g. ‘06’ and ‘07’ respectively will denote the year 2006-2007
• The ‘000y’ digits are sequential numbers for a particular period, i.e. ‘AeSSA06-0003-07’, would mean activity 3 of period 2006-2007, typically
• For quick search of the specific AeSSA items, use the “Edit” – “Find” – “AeSSA” command in the “Validation Number” column
• Similarly, other VA’s activities may be identified , e.g. INCOSE registered Conferences (listed at the bottom of the table)

The table below lists the current validated AeSSA activities recognized thus far by ECSA. Attendees must always ensure that the attendance registers are filled in during an event, to enable proof of attendance should ECSA need to perform verification of applicants’ CPD claims.

The aim from AeSSA Council is to streamline this process as far as possible and to ensure that the purpose of CPD training is to the benefit of the individual members and the industry.

A basic motto is: “Become involved, participate and ‘network’. It works….!”

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

The Council is hard at work on a programme of lectures and visits that promise to be both entertaining and informative for the coming year. Although no dates are set or confirmed we intend to cover amongst others topics such as a Sailplane lecture by the Jonker Brothers to be held in the Cape, Rooivalk qualification as well as a topical lecture being arranged with the CAA. Watch your email & web site for further information.

The next lecture to be held will be at the University of Pretoria combined with the AGM to be given by Professor Thomas Jones tititled:

“Highlights of Aeronautical Developments at the Centre of Expertise in Autonomous Systems 2001 to 2010, Stellenbosch University.”