Also: FAA Clears 787-10, Final G450, Airbus 2017 Heli Results, Smutny Directing US Nationals

The astronaut who was to have been the first African-American woman to work aboard the International Space Station has been removed from her mission, and NASA is not saying why.

NASA said in a news release that Serena Auñón-Chancellor, who previously was assigned to Expedition 58/59, has been reassigned to the Expedition 56/57 crew, launching in June. She is taking the place of astronaut Jeanette Epps, who returns to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston to assume duties in the Astronaut Office and be considered for assignment to future missions. Flight testing is underway on the latest variant of the Merlin PSA (Personal Sport Aircraft) In Lakeland, FL. The airplane has a new engine option available; the 4-stroke HKS 700E. Early tests are showing near-identical takeoff and climb, but with higher cruise numbers, compared to the Merlin with the Rotax 582 two-stroke, the only engine that has been available in the Merlin so far. The four-stroke, opposed 2-cylinder HKS and its gearbox weighs a bit more than the two-stroke option. The latest creation from Zapata is being likened to an aerial "Segway" ... a stand-on platform with handgrips steered by shifting body weight. The difference is... it flies. While the concept is similar to the Flyboard Air, which is more like the device flown by The Green Goblin of Spiderman fame, the Ezfly is, as its name would suggest, easy to fly, requiring little training. You simply stand on the platform, grip the control sticks, and hit "go". The operator is not attached to the device in any way. All this -- and MORE in today's episode of Airborne!!!

Airborne 01.24.18 is chock full of info in this Daily News Episode, Wednesday, January 24th, 2018... Presented by Aero-TV veteran videographer and Airborne Hosts Brianne Cross, Christopher Odom, and Laura Hutson, and is supported by ANN CEO/Editor-In-Chief Jim Campbell, Chief Videographer Nathan Cremisino, and Aero-Journalist Tom Patton, this episode covers:

• Jeanette Epps Bumped From Upcoming ISS Expedition
• Merlin PSA Now Flying With 4-Stroke HKS Power
• Zapata Developing Jet-Powered Flying 'Segway' 
• FAA Clears 787-10 For Commercial Service 
• Gulfstream Delivers Final G450 
• Airbus Releases 2017 Helicopter Results
• John Smutny To Direct The U.S. Nationals

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