New airplanes at Paris Air Show

Posted by John McHalePARIS AIR SHOW BLOG, 23 June 2011. A few new aircraft were introduced or just made their first appearances the Paris Air Show this week. Some of the highlights include the Boeing 787 and Intercontinental 747-8 passenger and freighter models, which made their first appearances at the show while AgustaWestland showcased its new AW149 twin helicopter for military applications. The Antonov An158 regional twinjet made its first appearance at the Paris Air Show not long after getting Russian certification earlier this year. Russian airframer Irkut also debuted the MC-21 aircraft with new avionics from Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.In terms of concept aircraft, Eurocopter brought its X-3 demosntrator to the Paris Air Show for the first time and HyperMach debuted a hypersonic business jet that seats 10 passengers and is propelled by hybrid electric engines to fly as fast as Mach 4.In following the green theme of many aircraft at the show this year, the new solar aircraft -- Solar Impulse -- also made its visit to Paris. The plane is famous for reportedly flying 26 hours straight using only solar energy.The new aircraft are mostly business or commercial platforms, re-confirming my belief that this is a commercial aircraft show not a military one -- aside from loud Eurofighter fly overs.