Insurgents in Iraq have hacked into live video feeds from unmanned American drone aircraft, US media reports say. Shia fighters are said to have used off-the-shelf software programs to capture the footage. The hacking was possible because the remotely flown planes have an unprotected communications link. Obtaining such video feeds could provide insurgents with information about sites the military might be planning to target. The breach of the Pentagon surveillance system’s security is said to have come to light when footage shot by a Predator drone was found on the laptop of an apprehended Iraqi insurgent. Alex Gallafent reports.
China has chosen aircraft engine maker CFM International to power a future rival to the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 jets, Les Echos newspaper reported on Thursday.
An agreement is set to be signed on Monday in Beijing during a visit by French Prime Minister Francois Fillon, the paper said. CFM is a joint venture between General Electric and France’s Safran.
Under the deal, CFM would provide its LEAP-X turbofan engines, currently being developed, for the government-backed Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China’s C919 plane, Les Echos said.
COMAC has said it will select engine suppliers for the C919 by the end of the year and has been holding talks with four main engine suppliers, including General Electric, Rolls-Royce, and Pratt & Whitney.
China’s C919 will have at least 150 seats and deliveries are expected to start in 2016, COMAC has said.
COMAC could yet choose multiple engine suppliers for the C919, Les Echos added.
CFM, which is the sole supplier for Boeing’s 737 series, expects the LEAP-X could be certified by 2016. The engine will run on 16 percent less fuel and have 16 percent fewer CO2 emissions than existing CFM engines, according to CFM.