All those Mirages, and Ouradours employed by Israel in 1967 […]

Ouragan… And Super Mystere 😉

Thank you Maro.Kyo. The KFX is IMOHO one of the most promising concept of all the non US/EU 5th Gen stealth aircraft and certainly a solid footstep toward the non-us market dominance.

An actuator in aerodynamics generally refers to a meaning that prevents the development of vorticity in a stream flow. Several techniques exist today (and since long) with usage tailored for each particular domain of flight (Re number) and level of sophistication. Pulse sound waves is one of them for the slow speed domain. Generating pulsed perpendicular current in an ionized flow is another. The generation of plasma is for this usage in a domain filled with gas (airflow) but can also be applied in water. It is of no importance where the Plasma comes from as in certain domain of flight, the electrostatic charges can be sufficient in the airflow or generated. IMOHO, you don’t have to focus so much on how the Plasma can be stored to generate enough gas for this application. A fighter plane displace a great amount of air, hence static charges that only require to be perturbed given that you can safely generate the necessary amount of electrical power.

Third stream will bring some advantage here for example.

German military to buy US Navy’s Triton drones

The Bundeswehr will buy the Northrop aircraft directly from the U.S. Navy. In the run-up to the decision, the authorization of the Triton was positively assessed by the newly created Aviation Office of the German Forces. The Euro Hawk drone, originally intended as a carrier platform for Isis, had never received a flight authorization in Germany – a lost investment of several hundred million euros.
[…]
The laboratory tests and the final evaluation of the data obtained with the Euro Hawk have thus shown that Isis can be successfully integrated into the Triton. As a speaker of the MoD confirmed, no final flight tests with Isis will take place. According to the manufacturer, the system has already been developed to more than 90 percent, with only the flight tests for the final qualification are missing.

Source:
DefenseNews.com

Thank you. I missed it obviously.

Nice one.

Also at Heli expo (not Military news but the technologies involved worth a mention here)

While Bell offered no performance specifics on the FCX concept machine, the company did outline a number of innovative technologies it might use, like a hybridized propulsion system combining a thermal engine core for primary power and an electric anti-torque system that not only eliminates the traditional tail rotor, but also the gears and transmission shafts that normally pull power from the main engine. The FCX main rotor blades will also morph to tailor aircraft performance to the mission at hand similar to the variable sweep of some fighter aircraft.

EDIT:
More details on FlightGlobal.com today:

Anti-Torque:
The biggest visible difference to the helicopter’s exterior is the lack of a tail rotor, which both saves weight and improves external safety. Anti-torque control is provided by what Bell calls a “cross-flow fan” – a series of electrically driven fans mounted in the tail boom.
[…]
Bench tests of a version of the cross-flow fan and an electric power system have already begun, says Drennan, but scaled for a helicopter the size of a “long, light single”.

Sweeping blade:
Instead of blades permanently fixed in one configuration, Drennan says it is investigating the use of “morphing” technology to allow the blade tips to be moved depending on the flight phase.
[…]
“Can we get the geometry of the blades to change in flight? That way would get more efficiency in the hover, but in forward flight could change them by sweeping them back a little bit.”

It is, he says, “another exercise in advanced actuation”. That principle can also be applied to the engine air intakes, which, if the pilot could alter their size or orientation in flight, might yield better engine performance, he suggests.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]251836[/ATTACH]

Given that 7 to 15% of power is drowned in the anti-torque system (from my mem) and that two engines are going to power that 12 pax concept, we can estimate a 300/400hp electrical fan engine cluster. let says that 6 are on each side (for redundancy in case of a partial failure) and have fan Ø of roughly 40cm (as mentioned), that lead us to 60hp per fan or 80hp including aero losses inherent to the cluster/shrouded configuration. Hence 60kW/fan -> 720kW peak. At 50% efficiency from Gas to electrical, we have a need for 1500hp total, power that can be generated by each single turbine of our model and give us the necessary one engine redundancy 😉

Also:
The problem that I see is will you push outward or aspire inward to create lateral thrust? Single torque rotor usually are better at inducing a flow toward the boom despite the shrouding effect of the vertical surface behind. The reason is that they are this way working in the flow path of the main rotor and not the contrary (hence right positioned rotor on US and left on EU (traditionally). Here, the cluster of fan will have to eject the accelerated flow through the boom cavity, inducing losses impairing the efficiency of the system.
Given the triangular shape of the boom, angled fans could act without interfering too much with each other reciprocal pair if angled and forming an open angle. The problem is then that the inflow will be drawn directly from the rotor downwash what is counter intuitive in term of efficiency. I do then think that the flow is accelerated from the downward position, through the boom cavities and expelled upward (angled fans) toward the rotor disk. Something that is reverse to what is done generally. Hence probable disturbance of blade airflow and increase aero induced vibration. Something not suitable.
Given that canted fan have been developed in applications like the F35B, perhaps we will have a civilian application here?*

Source:
Flying Mag.com
Flight Global.com
Aviation Week.com

Notice:
The cockpit config looks quite irrational to me with a lack of visual reference for the pilot.

*sorry for the spin off

is that a consequence of the crash in Colombia that decimated the Brazil’s Chapecoense soccer team ?

(we have a thread open here)

It’s all over again:

right, speaking about tick skulls…
there is simply now more F35 than Rafale flying. According to the published data of the USMC and USAF (notice without any need for a formal request by a lawmaker), those that we know about have better availability than the Rafale given the recent published number in France that I posted yesterday here (hence it’s news, something that we are discussing here, in a news and discussions thread!) and the ones of the 35 published early this year.

So, Would you please allow everyone to have a gentle discussion with some proper manner, Mr Hallow?