AircraftNews.Com

When you think about it, it makes sense in a way. If you are a terrorist you may be a bit short of manufacturing power and money especially when compared to the West and so it makes sense that you find a way to take over control of the UAVs that are shooting you up.
It may be cynical but to me the recent claim by the Military that they have plugged a security breach tells me that this is possible and will happen. What a Christmas present for the infidels that would be! Let the good old USofA build them and then take them over. A good bit of spying would help. I wonder how hard it would be. Read more…

Airbus Military this week hopes to finally fly the A400M military airlifter, kicking off a three-year effort to get the transport into the first customer’s hands.

Barring poor weather or technical issues, Airbus Military officials late this week expect to complete a roughly 3-hr. flight from the company’s facility here to demonstrate the aircraft’s basic handling characteristics.

The event has been a long time coming, owing, in part, to development delays with the engine and subsystems that have set the program back several years. The event marks the official beginning of a flight-test program that calls for 4,370 hr., says Eric Isorce, chief flight test engineer. About 60% of the effort will focus on military certification, the balance will be dedicated to gaining European Aviation Safety Agency approval.

Six crew will be onboard, backed by 50 engineers at each of the two main telemetry stations in Seville and Toulouse.

The aircraft will initially be flown in direct law with some dampening. After takeoff—rotation speed is projected to be 120 kt.—the aircraft will climb to a medium altitude and the gear will be retracted. At 10,000 ft. some basic performance checks will occur, the aircraft will be taken close to its maximum speed of around Mach 0.72, and then to its minimum speed, says Ed Strongman, Airbus’s chief military test pilot who will be at the controls. Afterward, flight controls will be shifted to normal law and further segments of the flight envelope will be explored before returning to Seville.
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