Information Pasteboard
Weekly reports of meetings at NAL, snippets of R&D activity, conference announcements and other features of popular interest
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Information Pasteboard |
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News and Events #IP 962 28 Feb - 6 Mar 2011 The NAL Weekly Calendar – An Unfinished Journey of a Thousand Editions Professor Roddam Narasimha, the former Director of NAL, believed in dissemination of information in all forms. He must have been quite impressed by the Caltech Calendar which announced all events that took place every week including lectures, doctoral defense, symposia, dance classes, special courses and so on. He must have been equally impressed by the multitude of events that kept NAL vibrant. One day he said, “NAL must have its own weekly calendar”. The then Information Services Section (ISS) team got into action quickly and produced the first issue that was released in January 1992 covering the events for the week of January 13-19, 1992. Later ISS became IMD (Information Management Division) and IMD became KTMD (Knowledge and Technology Management Division); but NAL’s Weekly Calendar just rolled on as if all these happenings around it did not really matter to it. The Weekly Calendar announces the major events in NAL of the following week and is made more useful byincluding events “elsewhere” that were of general interest to NAL. The editions came out with clock-work precision - never missed an edition so far; the production team definitely needs congratulations from all its readers.
The Five Hundredth issue carried the following announcement: “C-MMACS Foundation Day: Dr. K. S. Yajnik, Founder Head of C-MMACS will speak on Impact of Digital Revolution on Dynamics of
The first issue of the IP was released in September 1992 and carried a mock interview on NAL’s first international R&D project on vortex wake modeling sponsored by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), United Kingdom. In addition, it carried a report on NAL’s A320 read-out system certified by Indian Airlines. By 1997 Information Pasteboard became a source of information not only for NAL but also for aerospace At the score of one Thousand, both the publications are growing stronger than ever. They are here to bring out nostalgic memories to retired NAL scientists and staff, and would help to write the history of NAL in the future that is yet to come! Vidyadhar Mudkavi
#IP 961 21 - 27 Feb 2011 Ministry of Civil Aviation Felicitates CSIR‐National Aerospace Laboratories
Director thanks all the members of
the CSIR‐NAL family, past and present, for their
valuable contributions and support, which has
brought this unique honour to CSIR‐NAL. He has
also thanked Director General, CSIR and the larger
CSIR family.
One More Hansa-3 Aircraft of CSIR-NAL Delivered For Flight Training One more Hansa-3 aircraft, designed, developed and manufactured by CSIR-NAL, Bangalore, bearing Registration VT-HOE was allotted to the Amritsar Aviation Club (AAC), Amritsar, by DGCA on January 29, 2011. This is the third Hansa-3 aircraft acquired by AAC through DGCA for training student pilots. Hansa-3 is reported to be very popular among the student pilots of the club. The representatives of AAC Capt. Rachhpal Singh Sohal, Chief Flying Instructor and Hon. Secretary, AAC and Shri. S. S. Rao, Chief Engineer, acknowledged that Hansa-3 aircraft is very economical to operate and an ideal platform to train flying students. On behalf of CSIR-NAL AAC gave flight demonstration of this aircraft at the International Air Show, Aero India 2011, held at Air Force Station, Yelahanka, Bangalore, during 9-13 February, 2011. The aircraft was later ferried to AAC on February 14, 2011; the aircraft left Bangalore on the February 14, 2011 and flew to Amritsar via Bellary, Sholapur, Aurangabad, Indore, Kota and Hissar and reached Amritsar on February 16, 2011. The longest flying time of 3:00 Hrs. was logged while covering the Kota – Hissar leg of the ferrying. The ferry flying of this aircraft was commanded by the AAC pilot Capt. Vikram Singh Toor, Asst. Pilot Instructor with Capt. Amit Dahiya, Pilot Instructor, AAC, as co-pilot.
Handing over of aircraft documents Shri.M.S.Chidananda, Head, C-CADD and Programme Director - Civil aviation
#IP 960 14 - 20 Feb 2011 AERO INDIA 2011: A Platform for Global Cooperation The 8th edition of the mega Indian Aerospace Expo Aero India 2011 was held at Yelahanka air base near Bangalore. The spectacular event took off on February 9, 2011 in the august presence of Sri A. K. Antony, The Defence Minister, GOI, The Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallam Raju, and Karnataka Chief Minister B.S.Yeddyurappa. The roar and thunder of the man-made metal birds from India and other parts of the world fascinated the spectators and the dignitaries with their breath-taking manoeuvres and daring aerobatics. As per the information from the exhibition sources, the international participation in Aero India 2011 exhibition went up by 25 percent as compared to the last show. Shri Antony said, “Showcasing of the latest advances in both civilian and military aerospace sectors, including advances in avionics, radars and electronics warfare systems, has marked the India’s emergence as an attractive destination for the global aerospace industry. The recent Defence Production Policy makes for a greater participation of the Indian industry in defence production sector”. He also stated that by enlarging the scope of offset obligation, India has taken a major step towards boosting the growth of its defence and other industries. As a prelude to the eighth edition of Aero India 2011 biennial aerospace exposition, the Defence Research and Development Organisation, in association with the Aeronautical Society of India organised an International seminar from February 7-9, 2011, whose theme was “Aero and Space Technologies: Success through Global Cooperation”. Many of the scientists from NAL and other R & D organisations and Industries participated in the seminar, which provided an ideal platform for synergic interactions amongst aerospace professionals, researchers and industry leaders from both domestic and across the world. NAL had setup an impressive stall in the Aero India 2011 exhibition which showcased many of its critical technologies. They included CFC components, wind tunnel models for LCA-Tejas, the Wankel engine, Autoclave models, MAV’s, UAV, Pulsejet for small UAVs, high pressure ratio compressor, Carbon Fibre technology, Smart Materials, NALFOQA, the new Flosolver, Radomes, presentations on “Computing Fluid Flows” and Flow diagnostics, SARAS and HANSA flight videos, etc. All these technologies attracted many business enquiries during the event. A large number of posters exhibiting the NAL’s technologies and expertise were displayed which provided an insight into the visitors on NAL’s capabilities. There was a special emphasis on the proposed National Civil Aircraft (NCA) programme, and the NAL team was poured with large number of enquiries, especially from abroad, for possible cooperation in the programme. The scaled versions of HANSA, SARAS, and NM5 attracted many aircraft enthusiasts. Visitors at large appreciated the NAL’s efforts in indigenous development of these aircrafts, and expected to see SARAS & NM5 flying in the next Aero India Show. Flying displays are perhaps the most enthralling among everything that goes on in an air show. Aero India 2011 hosted some of the most advanced and top-of-the-line fighter aircrafts in the world, which were flown by most daring pilots demonstrating the aerobatics and manoeuvres pushing them to their limits and leaving all spectators wonder struck and fascinated. The home grown 5.5 tonne class multi-role Dhruv, theAdvanced Light Helicopter (ALH) demonstrated the multiple roles it is capable of performing. NAL’s pride, the HANSA made an impressive flying which caught the eyes of young budding pilots. The LCA (Tejas) which received its Initial Operation Clearance (IOC) in January this year, proudly showed off its capabilities; the stunning manoeuvres displayed by Tejas were indeed a feast to the eyes of the viewers. As repeatedly stated by our Defence Minister, Tejas has become a vibrant symbol of which Indians should be really proud off. The show also saw for the first time the BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missile equipped with SU-30MKI. The sense of anticipation for the flying displays were heightened with the Suryakiran formation displays with their now famous dare-devil manoeuvres. The Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet displayed exhilarating turns and twists. Also, Ratan Tata flew F/A -18 Super Hornet on the second day of the Air Show making the event memorable. The Flying Bulls, the aerobatic team from Czech Republic flying for the first time in India in their Zlin 50 LX aircraft, pulled some of the most daring manoeuvres ever seen. The world class fighter aircrafts from abroad - the Rafael, F-16, Euro Fighter Typhoon and the swedish GRIPPEN - were flown, one competing with the other in leaving their everlasting impressions with the spectators. As expected, Aero India 2011 served as a perfect platform for the demonstration of the fighter aircrafts in the race to bag the mega Indian Defence order for the supply of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA). Civil and military aerospace manufacturers from nearly twenty countries including those from USA, UK, Russia, France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Israel, Spain, Netherlands, and Republic of Korea and many others participated in the show. They will not only be able to network with the Indian industry, but also would benefit from the sharing of R & D expertise, and pave the way for cooperation in different fields of military and civil aviation. R Venkatesh
Photo and photo collage designed by Team Photography, KTMD, NAL #IP 959 7 - 13 Feb 2011 Mr M K Sridhar is the new advisor Mr M K Sridhar, Head, Material Science Division, Chairman of Technology Clusters has been nominated to function as Advisor (M&A) to Director. Dr A Muthukrishnan appointed as the Transparency Officer Director, NAL has been pleased to designate Dr A Muthukrishnan, Sr Controller of Administration to function as Transparency Officer who would oversee the implementation of Section 4 obligations by public authorities and to apprise the top management of its progress besides being an interface for the Central Information Commission on the progress made in implementation thereof. Dr Sajeer Ahmed is Advisor(Tech) to Director Dr Sajeer Ahmed, CSIR Technical Consultant is the Advisor Technical to Director, NAL. He will continue to function as Chairman, Aero Thermal Sciences Cluster. Dr Sajeer Ahmed will also advise the team from NTAF on the subject of Refurbishment of 1.2 m Trisonic Tunnel as well as generation of proposal for a New Trisonic Tunnel. Dr V Arun Kumar awarded the Dr. Biren Roy Trust Award for the year 2010 Dr V Arun Kumar, Head, Propulsion Division is the winner of the Dr Biren Roy Trust Award for the year 2010. Congratulations Sir. #IP 958 31 Jan - 6 Feb 2011 Visit to the 49th Aerospace Sciences Meeting at Orlando, Florida I had recently been to the 49th Aerospace Sciences Meeting from January 4-7th 2011 at Orlando, Florida USA to present an invited paper. The 49th AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting is a major multi-disciplinary event of the year for aerospace scientists and engineers from around the world. The ASM covers a breathtaking range of topics, covering the gamut from A for Aeroacoustics to T for Thermophysics. To give an idea some of the topics covered are: Aeroacoustics, Aerodynamic Measurement Technology, Air Breathing Propulsion Systems Integration, Aircraft Design, Applied Aerodynamics, Atmospheric Flight Mechanics, Computer Systems, Design Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Gas Turbine Engines, Ground Testing, High Speed Air Breathing Propulsion, Homeland Security, Visualization, and Computational Environments, MDO, Plasma dynamics and Lasers, Propellants and Combustion, Sensor Systems, Space Exploration and Colonization, Space Operations and Support, Thermophysics and even Education and History of Aerospace Endeavors! With such a plethora of topics (165 sessions included over a 780 papers) and paucity of time one is left feeling like the proverbial child at the dessert table – too full but wanting to taste everything. The keynote lecture was delivered by NASA Administrator Charles F. Bolden. During his keynote address entitled Space Shuttle Era: Results and Way Ahead, Mr. Bolden stated that there is no competition between commercial entities and NASA, and that what really exists between the two is a cooperation and partnership. He further explained that “Commercial entities provide space access, and NASA provides space exploration.” He went on to say, “NASA’s future lies in exploration while low earth orbit missions will depend upon industry.” It may be of interest to some of us note that Mr. Bolden, a former marine, decorated combat pilot and Shuttle astronaut, is the first black administrator for NASA, and is a telling commentary of the possible achievements with equal opportunity. The meeting was also marked by several special events including lectures to honor outstanding individuals in aerospace research. The ‘Dryden Lectureship in Research’ emphasizes the great importance of basic research to advancement in aeronautics and astronautics and is a salute to research scientists and engineers named in honor of Dr. Hugh L. Dryden, renowned leader in aerospace research programs. The 2011 lecture was given by Dr. Chung Law, the Robert H. Goddard Professor, from Princeton University. The ‘Wright Brothers’ Lecture in Aeronautics honors an individual who has made contributions to the field of civil air transportation which are considered of current interest and major importance. The 2011 lecture was delivered by Dr. Michael Francis, Chief, Advanced Programs and Senior Fellow, United Technologies Research Center. The ‘von Kármán’ Lectureship in Astronautics honors an individual who has performed notably and distinguished himself/herself technically in the field of astronautics. It is named for Theodore von Kármán, the world famous authority on aerospace sciences; the 2011 lecture was given by Dr. Robert Braun, Chief Technologist, NASA. The event also had the AIAA Associate Fellows who where newly elected (like me!) were lapel-pinned and formally awarded their certificates. While the week leaves one feeling exhausted, it was also exhilarating. Of course, the venue being Orlando one can always refresh oneself at the world famous Disney parks right down the road – an act not possible when it used to be held in cold Reno Nevada for close to two decades (which was on good for those who hit the slot machines or the tables!). However, it sadly is not going to reside in Orlando (blame it on the high cost of hotels), but will henceforth be rotated among many states in the US, the next 2012 conference to be held in Nashville, Tennessee. I attended presentations on the areas of new measurement techniques, flow control for drag reduction, vortex flows and shock/boundary layer interaction - all of relevance to my current interests and projects, especially as I am involved in developing new flow diagnostic methods and applying them to understand the physics of “real-life” flows relevant to aircraft. There were two entire sessions on MAVs and Low Reynolds number flows which were of tremendous importance to NAL, given the need to carry out proper flow-physics based optimization of the vehicles currently being developed at NAL. I shall be sharing the knowledge gained in these with my colleagues at EAD. There were several papers on new applications in Particle Image Velocimetry and Pressure Sensitive Paints, both of which are undergoing development and application at NAL, and hence extremely useful. The sessions gave an overview of the current state of these technologies and possible future improvements. The feedback I received on my own presentation has helped me to compare my results with those of other groups and assess its impact before publishing in a journal. Further, participating in the conference and meeting scientists from different research organizations and industry from around the world will certainly helped me to enhance my knowledge in Experimental Aerodynamics and get an exposure to the current international R&D activities in aerospace engineering. These would help me to contribute better to the current aerospace programs of the country. L Venkatakrishnan Recent issues of NAL Information Pasteboard Prev To
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The CSIR‐National Aerospace Laboratories was
felicitated by the Hon’ble Minister for Civil
Aviation, Shri Vayalar Ravi for its significant
contributions to the growth of Civil Aviation in
India on the occasion of launching of the
Centenary Celebrations of Civil Aviation in India on
18 February 2011 at New Delhi. Dr. A R Upadhya,
Director, NAL personally received the honour on
behalf of the Laboratory, which included a Plaque
and a Scroll. The other Institutions so felicitated
are Aero Club of India, Aeronautical Society of
India, Institute of Aviation Medicine and Hindustan
Aeronautical Limited.
