Category Archives: Aircraft Propulsion & Energy

Structural Batteries Pave Way for Light, Energy-Efficient Vehicles

When cars, planes, ships or computers are built from a material that functions as both a battery and a load-bearing structure, the weight and energy consumption are radically reduced. A research group at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden is now presenting a world-leading advance in so-called massless energy storage – a structural battery that could halve the weight of a laptop, make the mobile phone as thin as a credit card or increase the driving range of an electric car by up to 70 percent on a single charge. Continue reading →

Blueflite Hydrogen Fuel Cell Tech Revolutionizes Long-Range UAVs in Australia

–Blueflite is set to address the growing global demand for safe and reliable storage of hydrogen fuels for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) through a collaborative early-stage project supported by the Northern Territory Government. The ambitious project, which will also see Blueflite open its Darwin-based premises, seeks to develop a lightweight, high-pressure, hydrogen vessel (tank) using Advanced Fiber Placement (AFP) technology pitched squarely at the underserved, long-range, UAV sector. Continue reading →

UAV Navigation-Grupo Oesía’s Autopilot Integrates with JetCat’s Turbines

The UAV Navigation-Grupo Oesía and JetCat have collaborated to integrate JetCat’s P300 PRO turbine into UAV Navigation-Grupo Oesía’s VECTOR autopilots. This integration allows the autopilots to seamlessly control one of the most widely used turbines in the market, particularly for target drones, also known as the Unmanned Aerial Targets (UAT) segment. Continue reading →

GE Aerospace and Kratos Partner on Small Affordable Engines

GE Aerospace and Kratos Turbine Technologies, a division of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc., signed a Memorandum of Understanding to partner on the development and production of small affordable engines that could potentially power unmanned aerial systems (UAS), collaborative combat aircraft, and similar applications. Continue reading →

GA-ASI Flies MQ-9B with Pratt & Whitney Canada’s PT6 E-Series Engine

. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. flew a company-owned MQ-9B SkyGuardian Remotely Piloted Aircraft on July 15, 2024, with a PT6 E-Series model turboprop engine supplied by Pratt & Whitney Canada. Representatives from GA-ASI and Pratt & Whitney witnessed the first flight of the PT6 engine on MQ-9B, which lasted 44 minutes and demonstrated exemplary handling and acceleration. Continue reading →