After over a year and a half of litigation, Disney is agreeing to pay out settlements to people who purchased Magic Key park passes in 2021.
25.08.2023 - 12:51 / skift.com
JetZero, which has won U.S. Air Force backing to build a demonstrator for a futuristic aircraft, expects a projected 50% cut in fuel consumption to open the doors of the airline industry as well the Pentagon, its chief executive said.
The U.S. Air Force on Wednesday announced a $235 million contract for the California startup to develop a “blended wing body” demonstrator, named because its wings merge seamlessly with the curvaceous fuselage, reducing drag.
The concept has been around since the 1940s but has attracted renewed attention because of its efficient elliptical shape, saving fuel and boosting range.
The demonstrator is expected to fly in 2027 and could influence the design of future military cargo jets and aerial refuelers. The Air Force hopes to begin buying a next-generation tanker in the mid-2030s and has its eyes on designs that could offer greater range and stealth needed in the Asia-Pacific.
While military contracts could offer JetZero a chance to break into aircraft production, it also eyes a much-touted gap in the civil market between medium- and long-haul jets, where its 200-250 seat aircraft will sit, CEO Tom O’Leary said.
Boeing abandoned a “middle of the market” plane project in 2022, saying the case did not work. Airbus has focused on expanding smaller models.
In an interview, O’Leary said this would not deter JetZero and its radical design.
“We’re beginning conversations with all of the airlines and finding out what their appetite is for aircraft in the middle market,” he told Reuters.
“There’s been universal interest and appeal because they’re all interested in fuel efficiency and emissions reductions.”
Two people familiar with the process said the Air Force, anxious to take advantage of higher volume and lower costs, had insisted bidders included a civil design when bidding.
JetZero’s partner Northrop Grumman will manufacture the demonstrator.
That taps Northrop’s pedigree in so-called flying-wing stealth bombers – an even more radical bat-wing design – though analysts say civil success depends on meeting goals of reliability very different from military jets.
Northrop’s B-2, the world’s first stealth bomber, fired the opening shots of the 1999 Kosovo war, while its newly-revealed B-21 successor also incorporates a bat-winged design.
The Air Force said materials and manufacturing advances have made production more attainable.
However, blended wing designs have not yet garnered significant support in civil markets. Airbus dropped the concept from candidates for a small hydrogen-powered plane for 2035. It has not ruled out another look later.
While range and payload make a blended wing body optimal for a freighter or tanker, an airliner is “trickier” because of logistical
After over a year and a half of litigation, Disney is agreeing to pay out settlements to people who purchased Magic Key park passes in 2021.
Hilton said Thursday that it plans to install at least six electric vehicle chargers per property at 2,000 hotels in North America, and will buy devices from Tesla. Once it fully installs them, Hilton will own more electric vehicle chargers than any other U.S.-based hotel group.
The saying goes, "West Coast, best coast," for a reason.
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From sprawling panoramic mountain views to breathtaking blue oceans, there’s a reason why Los Angeles holds a special place in the hearts of locals and visitors alike. But things get even better when venturing out of the urban landscape and into the surrounding area, a treasure trove filled with endless opportunities.
Flight prices have been all over the place this past year.
Born in Southern California and then lured back after college, I've spent more than a decade here — first southeast of Los Angeles and now northeast. I've traveled all across the region, down to the border of Mexico and up to San Francisco, journeying through our deserts, forests, beaches, and mountains.
Surf Air Mobility plans to list directly on public markets in the U.S. after ending a planned $1.4 billion special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, listing.
Skift has published hundreds of stories on funding for travel startups since our launch in 2012, featuring Airbnb and tours and activities provider GetYourGuide among other companies in some of those early articles. We took our coverage even further three years later with a weekly roundup of startups that had received or announced funding from investors.
When guests drive up to Marina Riviera, a boutique hotel in Big Bear, California that opened in the autumn of 2022, they won’t see a big sign for Casetta, the parent company that founded the hotel portfolio in 2019. Nor will they see its Casetta floral logo splashed on every corner of the lobby (look closely on the bath products and robes, though, and you’ll find it).
Motels won’t go the way of the dodo bird if Lark Hotels founder Rob Blood has anything to say about it.