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Video answers: ‘Transforming the jet engine’

Here are the answers to last Friday’s video, enjoy!

Suggested ICAO level for video: 5+

  1. They’re loud, use a lot of fuel and aren’t good for the environment.
  2. The problem is that neither the fan at the front, nor the turbine at the back are operating at their most efficient speeds.
  3. His change was to introduce a gearbox into the shaft of the engine which allows the fan to spin more slowly and the turbine more quickly.
  4. It made the engine 15% more fuel efficient and up to 75% quieter.
  5. They’ll save around $1.5M dollars per plane per year.

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Video: ‘Transforming the jet engine’

Fly High English - Video

This week’s video describes a revolution in jet engine design. Watch the video to find out what it is and how it could change jet engines forever.

Try to answer the following questions about the video and come back on Monday for the answers.

Suggested ICAO level for video: 5+

  1. What are some of the disadvantages mentioned in relation to jet engines?
  2. What’s the problem with the design of current jet engines?
  3. What was Mike McCune’s simple, yet radical change to the jet engine?
  4. What effect did the change have on the engine?
  5. How much will the airlines save with this new design?

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Have a great weekend!

This Genius Invention Could Transform Jet Engines

Mike McCune is an engineer with Pratt & Whitney, the airplane manufacturer. After 30 years of development, he’s created a gearbox for a jet engine that makes them 75% quieter and 15% more fuel efficient. That’s a savings of about $1.5 million per airplane each year.

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Structure: ‘What was it like?’

Fly High English - Structure

This time in our structure help we talk about the preposition ‘like’ and in particular the question; what was it like? Students sometimes confuse the verb ‘like’ with the preposition ‘like’ and can be confused about the meaning of this type of question. Check out the diagram below to discover what it means and and then try to write some questions of your own.

Diagram explaining the question 'What was it like?'
What was it like?

Look at the following conversation.
A: I flew first class from New York to Dubai last month.
B: What was it like?
A: It was amazing! Wonderful food, champagne and a proper bed to sleep in!

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Have a great day!

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Video answers: ‘Solar Impulse completes its round-the-world trip’

Here are the answers to last Friday’s video, enjoy!

Suggested ICAO level for video: 5+

  1. It started (and finished) in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
  2. It’s as wide as a jumbo jet and has the weight of a family car, according to the video.
  3. It gets its power from the 17,000 solar cells along the wings fuselage and other surfaces of the plane.
  4. The flight between Burma and China was one of the trickiest parts of the trip because of the terrain.
  5. The objective was the make society greener and cleaner through awareness of new technologies.

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Video: ‘Solar Impulse completes its round-the-world trip’

Fly High English - Video

Here’s a video that reports on the completion of the Solar Impulse round-the-world trip.

Try to answer the following questions about the video and come back on Monday for the answers.

Suggested ICAO level for video: 5+

  1. Where did the record breaking journey start?
  2. What size and weight is the plane?
  3. Where does the plane get its power?
  4. What was one of the most difficult parts of the trip?
  5. What was the objective of the trip?

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Have a great weekend!

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Structure: ‘Modals 4’

Modals related to ability, permission, prohibition and obligation

We talked previously about how our modal verbs related to probability. Next we look at specific meanings to each of our modal verbs. Follow the examples and write some of your own to practice.

Ability

Ability
– Can you fly a multiengine plane?
– I could fly a glider when I was 17.

Permission

Permission
– Can we use runway 11 to land?
– The controller said that they could begin their startup.
– You may use the lavatory when the seatbelt sign is switched off.
– Might I switch seats? This one doesn’t recline.

Prohibition

Prohibition
– You can’t sit in the emergency exit seat with a baby.
– They told us that we couldn’t board the plane first.
– You may not bring liquids of more than 100ml on the flight.
– You shouldn’t drink a lot of alcohol on a flight.
– You mustn’t smoke on a flight.

Obligation

Obligation
– He should review the weather charts before the flight.
– Passengers must sit in their assigned seats.

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