The HRRR, NOAA's Three-Kilometer Rapid-Refresh Model That Redraws the Thunderstorm Forecast Every Single Hour
How NOAA's HRRR model simulates thunderstorms on a 3-km grid every hour, and how pilots should actually use it to time storms.
Cleared Direct
Aviation technology analysis with Vector. Electric aircraft, avionics advances, eVTOL certification, satellite connectivity, and the engineering innovations shaping the future of flight.
The Sierra Space Dream Chaser, the Lifting-Body Spaceplane That Comes Home on a Runway Like an Airplane Instead of Splashing Into the Ocean
Sierra Space's Dream Chaser is a lifting-body spaceplane that lands on a runway like an airplane, returning fragile cargo gently instead of splashing into the ocean.
Beta Technologies, Kyle Clark, and the Bet That the First Electric Airplane to Make Money Won't Take Off Straight Up
Beta Technologies is betting the first profitable electric airplane won't take off vertically - it'll roll down a runway and plug into a network Beta built itself.
Boom Supersonic's XB-1, Boomless Cruise, and the Real Engineering Fight to Put a Civil Supersonic Jet Back in the Sky
Boom Supersonic's XB-1 broke the sound barrier in 2025, but the engine, economics, and 1973 rulebook are the real barriers to civil supersonic flight.
Boom Supersonic's XB-1, the Symphony Engine, and Whether a Startup Can Really Bring the Passenger Jet Back Through the Sound Barrier
Radio Hangar explores Boom Supersonic's XB-1, the Symphony Engine, and Whether a Startup Can Really Bring the Passenger Jet Back Through the Sound Barrier.
Garmin Smart Glide, the Emergency Assist Button That Points a Single-Engine Airplane at the Nearest Runway the Moment the Propeller Goes Quiet
Garmin Smart Glide points a single-engine airplane at the nearest reachable runway and holds best glide the moment the engine quits.
Pegasus, the Winged Rocket Dropped From an Airliner, and Whether Air Launch to Orbit Was Ever Going to Pay for Itself
Why air-launched rockets like Pegasus and LauncherOne worked technically but never beat conventional launch on cost.
The Privacy ICAO Address, How ADS-B Turned Every Airplane Into a Trackable Beacon and the FAA Program Built to Let You Disappear From the Feed
Radio Hangar explores The Privacy ICAO Address, How ADS-B Turned Every Airplane Into a Trackable Beacon and the FAA Program Built to Let You Disappear From the Feed.
ZeroAvia, the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Powertrain, and Whether a Gas With Three Times the Energy of Jet Fuel Can Fit Inside an Airplane
How ZeroAvia's hydrogen fuel cell powertrain works, what it has flown, and why the tank - not the fuel - is aviation's real hurdle.
ZeroAvia's Hydrogen-Electric Powertrain, the Dornier Testbed, and Whether a Fuel Cell Can Really Replace the Turbine on a Regional Airplane
ZeroAvia's hydrogen-electric powertrain has genuinely flown, but volume, cryogenics, and infrastructure make it a late-2020s story at best.
Aireon, Space-Based ADS-B on the Iridium NEXT Constellation, and How Sixty-Six Satellites Closed the Oceanic Gap That Radar Never Could
How Aireon's 66-satellite Iridium NEXT constellation brought ADS-B surveillance to the 70% of Earth radar never covered.
CFM RISE, the Open Fan Engine With No Cowling, and the Twenty Percent Fuel Burn Bet on the Airplane That Replaces the Single-Aisle Jet
Radio Hangar explores CFM RISE, the Open Fan Engine With No Cowling, and the Twenty Percent Fuel Burn Bet on the Airplane That Replaces the Single-Aisle Jet.
JetZero and the Blended Wing Body, the Airplane Shaped Like One Big Wing That Wants to Burn Half the Fuel
JetZero's blended wing body aims to cut airliner fuel burn by up to 50% using shape alone - here's how it works and when it might fly.
NASA's X-57 Maxwell, the Fourteen-Motor Electric Demonstrator That Never Left the Ground and Taught Us More by Failing Than Most Airplanes Do by Flying
NASA's X-57 Maxwell never flew, but its 14-motor electric design de-risked distributed propulsion for the entire eVTOL industry.
The Flight Director, the Magenta Command Bars, and Why the Autopilot Only Ever Flies What Somebody Already Drew on the Glass
The flight director draws command bars advising how to fly; the autopilot merely follows them. Here's how both work and how to fly them safely.
The Garmin GFC 500 Digital Autopilot, the Servo-and-Solid-State-Sensor Retrofit That Brought Airline-Grade Envelope Protection to a Nineteen-Seventies Cessna
The Garmin GFC 500 brings airline-grade envelope protection and attitude-based autopilot logic to 1970s piston singles.
The Magneto's Last Stand, Electronic Ignition, and Why SureFly Wants to Retire a Hundred-Year-Old Box on the Back of Your Engine
How SureFly's electronic ignition and FADEC are finally challenging the hundred-year-old aircraft magneto - and why it's taking so long.
The Stratolaunch Roc, the Widest Airplane Ever Built, and the Talon-A Hypersonic Runway It Flies to the Edge of Space
Stratolaunch's Roc, the widest airplane ever built at 385 feet, now air-launches the Talon-A hypersonic vehicle past Mach 5.
Garmin Smart Glide, the One Button That Turns an Engine Failure Into a Managed Problem Instead of a Blank Stare
Radio Hangar explores Garmin Smart Glide, the One Button That Turns an Engine Failure Into a Managed Problem Instead of a Blank Stare.
Hermeus and the Chimera Engine, the Turbojet That Turns Into a Ramjet in Flight, and the Long Road From Mach Five on a Test Stand to a Passenger Someday
Radio Hangar explores Hermeus and the Chimera Engine, the Turbojet That Turns Into a Ramjet in Flight, and the Long Road From Mach Five on a Test Stand to a Passenger Someday.