Farnborough Airshow News 7-10-12

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TUESDAY 7•10•2012

TM

Vol. 44 No. 21

Titanium Titan

Greater UAV Firepower

XWB Engines Advance

Four Farnborough show exhibitors are vying to bring down the cost and environmental impact of taxiing airliners to and from runways.

Russia’s VSMPO-AVISMA has turned around its fortunes with aggressive expansion in the growing market for using titanium in aerospace structures.

Missile maker MBDA is rolling out its Vigilus concept for expanding the capability of both manned and unmanned aircraft.

Rolls-Royce is stepping up efforts to ready the Trent XWB engines for a planned first flight of the new Airbus XWB widebody in mid-2013.

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Superjet 100

Chinese White Knight Set To Buy Hawker Late last night, Hawker Beechcraft announced that Chinabased Superior Aviation Beijing Co. has signed an “exclusivity agreement” to buy the whole U.S. aircraft manufacturer, minus its defense business. Hawker Beechcraft filed for U.S. Chapter 11 reorganization in May and just last week outlined a framework to exit this protection by year-end. Part of this plan included a potential sale, which is now the likely outcome.

Should the transaction be completed, Superior intends to maintain Hawker Beechcraft’s existing operations while also investing substantial capital in the company and its business and general aviation product line in Wichita, Kansas, and Little Rock, Arkansas. Due to U.S. defense restrictions, the transaction with Superior would not include Hawker Beechcraft Defense Co., which would remain a separate entity. HBDC will continue to manufacture T-6 trainers and pursue certification of its AT-6 light attack aircraft. –C.T.

SSJ crash: data reveals no ‘hint’ of technical fault

Air Lease signs for 75 B737 MAXs

Continued on page 62 u

by Gregory Polek

DAVID McINTOSH

Air Lease Corp. (ALC) opened the sales race between the world’s big commercial airframe makers here yesterday with a firm order for 75 Boeing CFM Leap-1B-powered 737 MAXs. The contract, valued at $7.2 billion at list prices, calls for delivery, first, of sixty 737 MAX 8s, followed by deliveries of fifteen 737 MAX 9s, which would run through 2022.

The deal, which includes options for another 25 aircraft, represents the first order by a

stop press!

DAVID McINTOSH

Cheaper, Cleaner Taxis

Signing the lease documents for 75 B737 MAXs are: left to right, Kevin McAllister, GE Aviation; Ray Conner, Boeing; Steven Udvar-Hazy; and John Plueger, Air Lease Corp.

The “Black box” flight recorders retrieved from the wreckage of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 that crashed in Indonesia on May 9 have so far revealed no “hint” of technical fault, United Aircraft Corp. president Mikhail Pogosyan reported during a Farnborough airshow press conference yesterday afternoon.

The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder– found about a kilometer (0.62 miles) from the accident site near Mount Salak, some 60 miles south of Jakarta–survived the collision “essentially”

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undamaged, said Pogosyan, who added that his company had seen analysis of data retrieved

by Indonesia’s Investigation Commission of the National Committee for Transport Safety (KNKT), and has shared the information with customers.

“We work in close contact with the national safety committee and the investigation board, which is conducting the investigation of the Superjet accident, and we have access to the analysis of the data,” Pogosyan said through an interpreter. “So based

Continued on page 62 u

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Farnborough Airshow News

A330 gets an upgrade at customers’ request

TM

FOUNDED IN 1972 James Holahan, Founding Editor Wilson S. Leach, Managing Director

MARK WAGNER

and Paris among other potential new city-pair services cited

by Airbus chief operating officer for customers John Leahy.

The new variant will be available at a maximum takeoff weight (mtow) of about 529,200 pounds, up from earlier increased mtow of 518,175 pounds chosen by six airlines, including three in Asia, and about 524,790 pounds selected by at least six Asia Pacific operators.

MAS said recently it is awaiting details of Airbus A330 product-development plans before deciding on a widebody-fleet rationalization. The Asian carrier operates more than 20 A330-200s and -300s, previously ordered another 15 A330s and has been considering whether to add more if the European manufacturer could find some additional range. Group chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya has said that, in such a case, MAS might elect to adopt an all-Airbus widebody

International Aero Engines (IAE) announced new business and confirmed changes to its management structure yesterday following the departure of Rolls-Royce from the consortium.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) subsidiary ICBC Financial Leasing has chosen IAE V2500 engines valued at $90 million for five additional Airbus A320s it has ordered for delivery during 2013-15. Jetstar Airways will use V2500 power for 32 more A320s ordered for the Qantas subsidiary’s fleet in August 2011. V2500s equip all 74 JetStar A320s and A321s.

New engine deliveries are scheduled to begin next year under an IAE V-Services fleethour agreement.

A $250 million maintenance agreement negotiated earlier this year covers V2500s operated by Monarch Airlines on its 16 A321 aircraft. Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris and IAE have amended their

V-Services agreement to cover 26 incremental V2500s in a $400 million deal.

Under the revised ownership of IAE, Pratt & Whitney has increased its share to 61 percent, and Germany’s MTU now has a larger 16-percent proportion, with Japanese Aero Engine retaining its 23-percent holding. “As we complete the recent restructuring, we are very well aligned.

Our partners have never been more steadfast, and RollsRoyce continues to be a strategic supplier with a commitment to continue to build 50 percent of our engines,” said president John Beatty, who has returned to office in place of Ian Aitken, who is returning to RollsRoyce. Beatty was president of IAE from 2007 to 2009 Pratt & Whitney president David Hess is named IAE chairman, succeeding RollsRoyce’s Jim Guyette; Pratt & Whitney past president Steve Finger is retiring from the IAE board.

–I.G.

A T I N

S

IAE redefines partnership following R-R’s departure

the production team Mona L. Brown (IT coordinator) R Jane Campbell E B L Alena Korenkov John Manfredo Mark Phelps Colleen Redmond Annmarie Yannaco O Photographers R T Y David McIntosh Mark Wagner press room administrator – Susie Alcock E

This Diamond DA-42 is equipped with an L-3 Wescam MX15 electro-optical system and UHF communications gear.

C

diamond jubilee

Peter Shaw-Smith Matt Thurber Aimée Turner Paulo Valpolini Harry Weisberger

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After requests from A330 owners and operators, Airbus is offering a higherweight, enhanced-performance variant that will permit services between many new city-pair destinations, according to chief operating officer for customers John Leahy.

fleet by relinquishing its 17 ageing Boeing 777-200ERs. For its part, Airbus sees the enhanced A330 as a lowercost, more-efficient alternative to the U.S. design. The European manufacturer says the new A330-300 model would cover “94 percent of the 777200ER network.”

The increased weight will be introduced on the A330300 model, which would “benefit from up to 400 nm extra range, to 5,950 nm with 300 passengers, and carry nearly 5,000 kg [about 11,000 pounds] more payload than today’s 235,000-kg [aircraft],” with entry into service around the middle of 2015.

Subsequently, the A330200 and A330-200F mtows would be similarly raised: “The new [529,000 pounds] A330-200 will fly up to 270 nm further–to 7,050 nm–with 246 passengers, and carry over [5,510 pounds)] more payload than today’s [524,691 pounds] A330-200.”

In range terms, Airbus said the new A330-300 would also be able to connect, say, London to Tokyo; Frankfurt to Cape Town; Beijing to Melbourne or San Francisco; or Los Angeles to Dublin.

“Moreover, compared with the [1992] original 212,000-kg [about 467,500 pounds] A330300, [it] can fly 2,000 nm further [including to] 90 percent of the [London Heathrow] market, [compared with] 39 percent [originally].”

Airbus has delivered 887 A330s and holds orders for a further 306, Leahy claiming that 750 have been sold since Boeing launched the rival Model 787. Some 115 are said to have been ordered since the beginning of last year.

Compared with the 518,000pound A330, a new aerodynamic package drawing on technology used on the upcoming A350 is said to reduce fuel consumption by one percent, while engines offer a further one-percent improvement.

Also, a “load-alleviation function” modifies the span-wise load distribution to move loading inboard in gusts or continuous turbulence–so-called “de-stressing” of the wing that permits the higher mtow. o

F

Increased range and payload for the Airbus A330 twinaisle twinjet, announced by the European manufacturer here at the Farnborough International airshow yesterday, will be welcomed by Malaysia Airlines (MAS), whose brandnew A380 very large airliner also opened the week’s flyingdisplays. After requests from owners and operators, Airbus is offering the enhanced performance, which will permit A330s to fly between Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur

MARK WAGNER

by Ian Goold

Editor-in-chief – R. Randall Padfield INTERNATIONAL EDITOR – Charles Alcock Pressroom managing Editor – Ian Sheppard PRODUCTION DIRECTOR – Mary E. Mahoney PRODUCTION editor – Lysbeth McAleer the editorial team Bill Carey Mark Huber David Donald Vladimir Karnozov Thierry Dubois Neelam Mathews Richard Gardner Nigel Moll Ian Goold Chris Pocock Kirby J. Harrison Gregory Polek

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Saving fuel burn by not using the aircraft engines for taxiing is an idea gaining traction in the industry. At left, the Israel Aircraft Industries TaxiBot allows the pilots to control the robotic tug from their cockpit. Above, the Electric Green Taxiing System uses power from the aircraft APU to drive the wheels with small electric motors.

by Charles Alcock the ground-handling company begin operational trials with Taxi­ Bot. The vehicle recently completed some trials at Chateautroux Airport in France, following earlier evaluations last year involving Airbus A340-600 and Boeing 747400 aircraft.

According to TaxiBot program director Ran Briar, one of the main differentiators of IAI’s system is that it can be used to tow larger aircraft. Rival systems using motors fitted to landing gear are generally designed to handle only narrowbodied airliners. He said that widebodied airliners typically would need bout 1,500 hp for taxiing and that typically APUs can deliver only about 150 hp for this purpose.

According to Briar, another advantage is that the path to certification is Gerhard Baumgarten of Lufthansa LEOS, left, has far simpler for a tow tug agreed with Shuki Eldar of IAI’s TaxiBot program to begin operational trials of the cockpit-controlled tug. because there is no need to install systems on the (IAI), L-3, Safran/Honeywell aircraft to provide power and and WheelTug, and they each cooling. He also argued that the have taken a different approach. weight penalty associated with L-3, WheelTug and the joint landing gear-mounted systems venture between Safran and means that additional fuel burn in Honeywell have taken a novel flight for flights lasting more than approach of installing motors two hours cancels out savings directly on landing gear to allow realized while taxiing.

TaxiBot has two diesel generaircraft to taxi autonomously using power from the auxiliary ators providing power to electric power unit (APU). By contrast, motors on its wheels. The vehiIAI’s TaxiBot system involves a cle can attain a normal aircraft semi-robotic tow tug that is con- taxiing speed of up to around trolled from the cockpit by pilots. 23 knots. Briar claimed that Yesterday IAI signed a mem- rival systems taxi more slowly orandum of understanding with and hold up other aircraft that Lufthansa LEOS that should see are taxiing under the power of

DAVID McINTOSH

Efforts to reduce the thousands of gallons of jet fuel now being burned each year just to move aircraft to and from runways are very much in evidence at the 2012 Farnborough International airshow. No fewer than four new products vying for the attention of airline and airport managements, including efforts

by Israel Aircraft Industries

their main engines.

According to IAI, a 747 taxiing for 17 minutes burns about 1,250 liters of fuel, while the same movement with TaxiBot would require no more than 30 liters. TaxiBot also emits far less carbon dioxide than would be the case if the aircraft were taxiing on main engine power.

For the pilot there is no difference in terms of how he or she controls the aircraft while taxiing with TaxiBot fitted to nose gear. The system uses a special interface with a rotating turret on the tug and when the gear moves it measures the angle and ensures that the wheels are in the correct alignment.

Braking Control

Braking is handled safely using a special pendulum and an energy-absorbing mechanism.

This senses the braking load applied by the pilot and softens the braking process so as not to transfer the load to the landing gear in a way that would result in excessive fatigue.

The unconfirmed list price for the TaxiBot system is expected to be around $1.5 million for the narrowbody version of the vehicle (with eight wheels), rising to $3 million for the larger model that can handle widebody airliners. IAI believes that each vehicle would be able to handle about 20 aircraft each day.

One drawback with TaxiBot is that it is really suited only to towing aircraft out to the runway for takeoff since it would cause delays to have to attach it after landing. After the pilot has completed the taxi movement, a member of ground staff drives the tractor back to the apron.

Also progressing toward market entry is the new GreenTaxi electric taxiing system. On Monday, L-3 Space and Propulsion Systems signed an agreement

6 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

under which Crane Aerospace & Electronics will develop and market the system.

GreenTaxi integrates electric wheel drives into the main landing gear, drawing power from the APU. L-3’s engineers opted to use the main gear because they felt this would ensure better taxiing performance in poor weather conditions. It chose an electric motor over a hydraulic motor on the grounds that it would deliver higher torque more efficiently.

According to L-3, more than 3 percent of total airliner fuel consumption comes from taxiing. In December 2011 trials at Germany’s Frankfurt Airport for Lufthansa, the company claims to have proved that the technology can deliver worthwhile fuel savings, environmental benefits, improved airline autonomy and reduced infrastructure costs. It achieved taxi speeds of just over 16 knots.

Under a 50/50 joint venture, Safran and Honeywell have used an Airbus A320 and a Boeing 737-800 for ground tests, including recent trials with prospective launch customer Easyjet at London Luton Airport. The partners have estimated that its electric motor-based system

could save 3 to 4 percent of fuel burned on medium-haul flights.

Its “Electric Green Taxiing System” uses actuators fitted to both main landing gear legs.

Each unit, including the motor, gearbox and clutch, weighs around 220 pounds.

Safran deputy CEO Marc Ventre told AIN that the partners have purchased an A320 and will use it for further trials in 2013, including a demonstration at next June’s Paris Air Show. Entry into airline service is planned for 2016, and so would make the system a potential feature for the new A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX narrowbodies.

However, to date, it is the WheelTug system that has attracted the highest number of conditional airline commitments. In a letter of intent signed at the Farnborough show on Monday, Turkey’s Onur Air agreed to purchase the U.S. company’s Aircraft Drive Systems for 22 of its Airbus fleet.

According to CEO Isaiah Cox, the system consumes 80 percent less fuel than conventional taxiing. It will offer the equipment for lease or under power-by-the-hour terms. A video is at http://media.wheeltug.com. o

MARK WAGNER

Saving fuel and money getting to the runway

A display at the Crane stand shows hypothetical savings using Green Taxi.

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Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Ray Conner took to the podium for the first time yesterday as BCA boss and, in the process, laid to rest any thought that the company has been dragging its heels on follow-on development of the 78710X and 777X. “We’re not backing away from the airplanes one bit,” said Conner. “We’re more committed now than ever. We just don’t want to get into specifics…

When we get the aircraft right we’ll move forward.”

If yesterday’s briefing carried any sort of theme, it would probably be that it’s “business as usual.” Having suddenly replaced Jim Albaugh as head of BCA a little more than two weeks ago, Conner takes control at a critical time for Boeing as it prepares for ambitious production rate increases among

virtually its entire line of products, while also accelerating development of the re-engined 737NG (the 737 MAX) and readies to take decisions on the potential launch of the 787-10X and 777X. Production Increases

Conner acknowledged the challenges he faces, not least of which is raising the production rate of the 787 from 3.5 to 5 a month by the end of the year and to 10 a month by the end of 2013. He credited improvements in Boeing’s own production processes and those within the supply base for his stated confidence that the company will achieve its goal.

“The production system is healthier,” he said. “We’ve just delivered the first aircraft–Line number 66–from the factory directly to the delivery center.”

Successful SM-3 test keeps PAA on target

by David Donald In 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama announced a “phased adaptive approach” (PAA) for the missile defense of Europe to be deployed in four phases with a mix of sea- and land-based assets. A critical element is the Raytheon Standard Missile 3 interceptor, which in its Block 1A configuration forms the basis of PAA Phase I capability, which has now been implemented.

Raytheon is now developing the Block 1B version of the missile in line with the implementation of PAA Phase II in 2015.

On June 26 the third flight test (FTM-18) of this version was conducted at the Pacific Missile Test Range in Hawaii, during which the SM-3’s hit-to-kill vehicle successfully engaged a separating ballistic missile target.

The initial three shots tested the missile’s basic end-to-end operation, but trials will now increase in complexity toward operationally representative tests. The next trial, FTM-19, is due before the end of this year.

Under Phase II of PAA, SM-3s and the associated Aegis missile defense system are to be

based in Romania. Phase III follows in 2018 with the deployment of SM-3 Block IIA weapons in Poland. The Block IIA introduces an advanced TDACS (throttleable divert and attitude control system) for more accurate intercepts.

Phase IV of PAA, due in 2020, has yet to be defined. Raytheon has introduced an architecture analysis tool that provides the An SM-3 Block 1B missile launches from guided missile cruiser U.S.S. Lake Erie (CG 70) in the latest test campaign.

information necessary to optimize Europe’s integrated air and missile defenses by allowing analysis of many variables, such as where to place assets and how to incorporate existing assets into the layered defense. The effects of adding sensors or interceptors can be evaluated so that investments can be targeted for optimal results. This is entirely in line with NATO’s “Smart Defense” policy.

Under PAA, NATO assets are to be integrated into U.S. defensive systems to extend a robust coverage across Europe. When Phase 3 is complete, the U.S. assets of the two land locations plus two upgraded Aegis ships in the Mediterranean will cover most of eastern and southern Europe. Integration of ship-based air defense systems from European NATO members would extend that coverage to the whole of the continent.

In the meantime, Raytheon has announced two related developments. The company is nearing the completion of a new facility at the Redstone Arsenal, Huntsville, Alabama, to produce all-up rounds for the SM-3 and SM-6 missiles. Initial missiles will be delivered from next year.

The company has also received a $636 million contract to provide an exoatmospheric kill vehicle (EKV) for Boeing’s ground-based midcourse defense program, better known as the GBI (groundbased interceptor). o

8 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

departure by the 62-year-old Albaugh, his immediate replacement with Conner at least seemed abrupt, if not curious. An engineer by training, Albaugh assumed control of BCA from Scott Carson in 2009 at the nadir of the company’s reputation for technical excellence. Only a week earlier, Boeing announced yet another schedule change for the 787, at the time already more than two years late, while the 747-8 suffered through its own set of travails due, in part, to a shift in engineering resources to the ultra-high-tech, but troublesome, Dreamliner.

When Albaugh moved to BCA from Boeing’s military division, he promised to restore an engineering-centric culture undermined in preceding years by what some might consider a clumsy effort to run the company more as a product “integrator” than a manufacturer.

Reasonable people may argue over whether or not he succeeded, but the certification on his watch of the 787 and 747-8 at least staved off an erosion of credibility suffered with each missed program deadline. o

a farnborough Thumbs-up from the PM? British Prime Minister David Cameron isn’t noted for his cordial relationships with European leaders but he appeared to be in step with the continent’s aerospace top brass here at the Farnborough International airshow yesterday. EADS chief executive Tom Enders (left) and Airbus CEO Fabrice Bregier (center) might have taken the opportunity to echo the concerns of British colleagues about what many regard as miserly UK government support for the aerospace sector.

MARK WAGNER

by Gregory Polek

MARK WAGNER

Connor takes the helm at key time for Boeing

Conner quoted a “near 100 per- agreement with the Internacent” product execution among tional Association of Machinits suppliers, leading to improve- ists, the importance of which ments in production flow at its he left little doubt during yesmain Everett plant near Seattle terday’s briefing. “It’s workand good progress toward reduc- ing out very well,” he said. ing the number of air“We’ve implemented planes where design an incentive plan tied changes were being to production gains… incorporated.

Hopefully because the In choosing Conagreement is longer ner, Boeing has turned [than the duration of to a 32-year compast contracts], we’ll pany veteran known be able to create more for both his techniof a culture of workcal acumen and his ing together.” sales prowess. Widely Conner joined credited for landing Boeing in 1977 as a a groundbreaking, mechanic on the 727 $21.7 billion order for program. He worked Ray Conner 737s from Indonesia’s his way through the Lion Air while serving as the company’s ranks to become vice company’s senior vice president president and general manager sales and customer support, of the 777 and 747 programs Conner previously led BCA’s before accepting the post of vice supply chain management and president of sales for the Amerioperations organization, which cas and Asia Pacific regions and, included overseeing develop- later, vice president of sales for ment of Boeing’s new produc- all of BCA. tion and assembly facilities in Albaugh’s Legacy South Carolina.

The new BCA chief execuWhile the official word from tive also played a critical role Boeing suggests nothing other in reaching a landmark labor than a completely voluntary

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Aerospace demand buoys titanium titan

by Vladimir Karnozov The intake of titanium by the million) surplus in 2010, which global aviation industry is pre- was a hearty increase on the dicted to rise dramatically over 173 million rubles ($5.2 million) this decade with the production profit recorded in 2009.

In part, the major boost to of next-generation commercial jets made of advanced con- VSMPO’s balance sheet was struction materials gearing up. the outcome of a new financial Today, this industry consumes strategy aimed at decreasing 40 percent of the world’s tita- the group’s borrowing and cutnium supply. According to an ting its interest-rate exposure. independent analysis, demand This saw group debt slashed from 21.6 billion for titanium in comrubles ($655 milmercial aviation will lion) in early 2009 increase from 42,000 to 15.6 billion rubles metric tons in 2011 ($473 million) by to more than 49,000 early 2011. With it tons this year and interest rates paythen rise to 72,000 able tumbled from tons in 2016.

14 percent to 5 perThese ­statistics cent as the company explain the recent was able to switch to financial success of Russia’s VSMPO- VSMPO general manager long-term credits in hard currencies (as AVISMA (VSMPO), Mikhail Voevodin opposed to shorta specialist manufacturer of products made of tita- term credits in rubles).

No less eye-catching in the nium and aluminum alloys, steel and nickel. The company last set of company accounts was has two main sites, at Verkh- the declaration that VSMPO’s nyaya Salda in the Sverdlovsk worldwide payroll had increased region and at Bereznyaki in the by 25 percent from 20,000 to 25,000. Its sales and distribution Perm region.

In February, shareholders network spans the U.S., the UK, were told that they were to share Germany and China.

Ultimately, what accounts for 2011 dividends worth 305 million rubles ($9.3 million) out all this growth is nothing short of the group’s net profit of 3.1 of a revolution that has seen billion rubles ($93.9 million). VSMPO escape from a situation Last year’s profits represented in which it was largely depenan impressive fivefold increase dent on business from Ruson its 588 million rubles ($17.8 sian aircraft manufacturers to

VSMPO’s Cincinnati three-spindle milling machine is able to process 73 tons of stampings per month, which it is supplying for the Boeing 787.

one in which it became a major exporter of advanced metallic products for aerospace.

New Deals

In April, Boeing extended an existing contract for titanium mill products for a three-year term that will run through the end of 2018. Additionally, the Russian group will continue to provide the U.S. airframer with closed-die titanium forgings and its partners for all in-production commercial aircraft, with the exception of the 747.

Under this deal, Ural Boeing Manufacturing, a Russian joint venture between VSMPO and Boeing, will machine large numbers of these forgings for the new 787 widebody at its facility in Verkhnaya Salda. This operation delivers the forgings for final treatment at Boeing’s factory in Portland, Oregon, and last October it also started producing main landing gear struts for the 737NG narrowbody.

In March, VSMPO confirmed that it would triple the amount of titanium forgings it

Aviall promotes its parts prowess Aviation parts and aftermarket services firm Aviall is here at the Farnborough International Airshow (Hall 4 Stand G17) to highlight its ability to provide what it says are innovative supply chain services and logistics solutions to OEMs and aviation operators–civil and military–around the world. The Boeing subsidiary’s goal is to have a part in stock when it is needed as close to a customer as possible, and the company offers some two million parts from more than 240 manufacturers.

“We have 40 customer service centers strategically located in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, and our customer service professionals can ship from any location to meet the needs of our customers,” Aviall president Dan Komnenovich told AIN. “We have invested millions of dollars in technology to track our inventory, and we share that information with our customers and suppliers in real time.” The company makes about 5,000 shipments each day and serves more than 25,000 customers on six continents.

It is an exclusive parts supplier for General Electric, GE Aviation, Rolls-Royce, Pratt & Whitney,

Pratt & Whitney Canada, Honeywell and Hamilton Sundstrand. Aviall also offers a variety of products from parent company Boeing, as well as Michelin, Goodyear, ExxonMobil, Jeppesen, 3M, Champion, Lord, ConocoPhillips, Lycoming, Sherwin-Williams, Telex and Saft, among others.

Aviall recently completed requirements necessary to become compliant with Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 15, allowing the company to serve the military market by enabling it to compete for U.S. government contracts previously out of reach. The company’s exclusive agreements include global aftermarket support for the RollsRoyce T56 turboprop engine, which powers thousands of aircraft in all major military segments in nearly 70 countries.

In addition to providing new aircraft parts, Aviall operates 20 repair facilities that perform services, including hose assembly, battery repair and wheel and brake services. The company also offers chemical management, repair and rotable management, paint mixing, kitting, AOG services and electronic inventory management. –C.T.

12 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

makes for the 787 to a total of 73 tons per month. This increase followed a visit to the company by officials from Boeing and 787 landing gear provider Messier-Dowty.

Sergei Kravchenko, Boeing’s president for Russia and the CIS countries, said each 787 includes about 22 tons of Russian titanium. Indeed, out of the $27 billion that Boeing plans to invest in Russia about $18 billion is to be spent on titanium products and the development of metals technologies for aerospace.

Large Customer Base

In addition to its relationship with Boeing, which is entering a third decade, VSMPO has a customer base extending to more than 300 firms in 48 countries. General manager Mikhail Voevodin said he is negotiating contract extensions with other leading Western aircraft and engine manufacturers, including Airbus, Embraer, Goodrich, Messier Dowty, Eurocopter, Liebherr, Rolls-Royce, Safran and Pratt & Whitney Canada.

To ramp up for the anticipated growth in output of titanium products, VSMPO is investing in modern smelting equipment, the ability to make greater use of recyclable metallic waste, new presses, vacuumarm furnaces and cold-hearth furnaces, expansion of its metalforming integrated complex and advanced tools for machining die forgings. It has been investing up to around $8 million annually in technology programs, while boosting spending on manufacturing equipment and sites to $300 million last year.

A recent change in the company’s strategy has been to focus on higher-value products requiring a greater degree of machining processing, such as engine disks and rings, and landing gear struts. At the same time, VSMPO makes more than 400 die-forged products for export and over 1,000 for Russian manufacturers, such as Irkut, which

is using them for its MC-21 airliner. Today VSMPO exports more semi-machined parts made using advanced machine tools and is expanding the scope of international cooperation for developing modern alloys and technologies aimed at the increased use of titanium parts in new aircraft and engines.

Russia accounts for 40 percent of the titanium used by Boeing and 60 percent of that used by Airbus. Last summer the latter signed an agreement under which VSMPO will make die forgings for the A350XWB-1000 main landing gear struts. Since the A350-1000 is heavier than earlier -800 and -900 versions, its struts need to be stronger and, therefore, made of VST5552-1 titanium super alloy. The use of this proprietary material allowed Goodrich to win the contract to supply the struts.

Also last year, Airbus and VSMPO signed a memorandum of understanding to expand the supply of titanium raw materials, die forgings and other metallic products for Airbus programs. This will include the development of new alloys for the exclusive use of Airbus and its parent group, EADS. It will also see the creation of an integrated supply chain between the two companies covering the whole process, from supplying raw materials to providing products for Airbus vendors.

Meanwhile, the 10th anniversary of VSMPO’s cooperation with Chinese aerospace firms was marked by the formation of a joint venture with Avic and Comac, covering parts for their respective new ARJ21 and C919 airliners. Also in Asia, the company is cooperating with India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. and South Korean manufacturers. In 2011, Brazil’s Embraer extended its supply contract for VSMPO’s titanium semi-machined parts and die forgings through 2020.

In the aero-engine making, VSMPO is supplying France’s Safran group under a $300 million contract signed in 2008, Pratt & Whitney Canada is buying at least a quarter of its titanium forgings from the company and Rolls-Royce has three longterm agreements covering about $250 million worth of titanium products through 2015.

In addition to sharing its success with shareholders, VSMPO agreed to increase the wages of factory workers this month by an unspecified amount; they started this year earning an average 24,000 rubles. In 2011, VSMPO’s share price increased by 47 percent from 3,585 to 5,280 rubles. o

Saab’s Gripen E/F fighter boasts a new cockpit

Lt. Gen. Markus Gygax, chief of staff of the Swiss Air Force.

Gripen–the Swiss Air Force View Having selected the Gripen E/F to fulfill its F-5 replacement requirement, the Swiss air force is calmly confident that the acquisition makes it through the political process unscathed. Lt. Gen. Markus Gygax, the air force chief of staff, spoke to AIN last month about his service’s plans for the machine.

“We are in the process of finalizing the configuration. We want the same thing as the Swedes. We do not want an aircraft that is Swiss-unique–it must be exactly the same. And we will use it for all three missions: fighter, recce and air-to-ground. We need [the Gripen] to support the F-18 in the air-to-air role, and to gain the other two missions, which we have lost.”

Under Swiss planning the Gripen would begin operations in the air-to-air role, initially with Iris-T and AMRAAM missiles, but possibly adding Meteor at a later date. Reconnaissance capability would then be added, although the decision over which podded system would provide that capability has not yet been taken, and rests between the Rafael RecceLite, Saab SPK 39 and Thales DJRP. “We lost our air-to-ground capability with the Hawker Hunter,” explained Gygax. “Today it is easy to rebuild, thanks to the capabilities of the aircraft and simulators. We can send pilots to the Swedish air force so the knowledge will come back very fast.” The Litening laser designation pod and a range of laser- and GPS-guided bombs would be the most likely equipment for the ground-attack role.

Switzerland is hoping to buy 22 Gripens, with a planned split of 16 Gripen E single-seaters and six Gripen F two-seaters. They are planned to equip two squadrons at Payerne, with both units to be fully operational by around 2025.

Initial pilot training would be conducted in Sweden, but it is possible that two or three of Switzerland’s eight Pilatus PC-21 trainers could be reconfigured with a Gripen-style cockpit in place of the current F-18 workstation.

The Gripen is to replace the Northrop F-5, and some questions have been raised over the slippage of the new fighter buy. “Delaying [the Gripen ­acquisition] is absolutely no problem for us,” asserted Gygax. “Right now we have 54 F-5s in the inventory. With only three squadrons that is enough–we need only 36. The F-5’s structure is no problem until the end of this decade.” –D.D.

Earlier this year Saab grabbed the opportunity to fly Gripens from all six users in a unique formation. The last four of South Africa’s aircraft have been retained for a few months in Europe, while aircraft from the second Thai batch have yet to be delivered.

and as a flying aid, producing a steerable infrared picture in a helmet-mounted display.

The SIT426 advanced indentify-friend-or-foe (IFF) system that Selex Galileo has developed for the Gripen E/F has already been pole-tested at the Arboga range. It is not due to be incorporated into a Gripen airframe until the first production JAS 39E/F, which is scheduled to fly in December 2014. As the IFF system is separate from the radar this does not affect the program’s development, as ground testing can accomplish most of the IFF program’s requirements.

Formerly the Gripen Demo, aircraft 39-7 (seen here with a JAS 39D) is now the avionics testbed for the Gripen E/F. Development of the type is working toward a joint Swedish/Swiss configuration.

Jamie Hunter/Saab

Raven e-scan radar, complete with repositioner. In this guise, 39-7 has become the avionics testbed for the Gripen E/F. By the end of next year Saab is scheduled to have flown a full E/F prototype aircraft (398), newly built to the upgraded standard. The final configuration of the Gripen E/F has yet to be decided, but the major elements are already selected. The aircraft will have a General Electric F414 engine, possibly in its higher-rated EPE variant, and has a wider fuselage housing more fuel. Additional weapons pylons are installed.

Following delivery of the Raven radar, in late 2012 Selex Galileo’s Nerviano plant is due to deliver the first Skyward G infrared search-and-track system, which will also be fitted in 39-7 for tests that are scheduled to begin early next year. Skyward G gives the Gripen E/F a sophisticated multi-target passive tracking capability, able to handle up to 200 targets. Its scanning capability matches that of the radar in azimuth. It can also be used for target imaging

Swiss Choice, Too

Sweden has committed to the JAS 39E/F, and it has also been selected by Switzerland, although there is still a political process to go through before any Swiss contract is signed.

Swedish requirements are stated as being between 60 and 80 aircraft, and they will gradually replace the existing JAS 39C/D fleet between 2020 and 2030. It is likely that all of the aircraft will be JAS 39E single-seaters.

Switzerland’s requirement is for 22 aircraft, which will replace the Northrop F-5. The political process involves ratification by the two houses of the Swiss parliament, and is likely to include a public referendum.

Such processes are likely to conclude in 2014.

Saab has promised to deliver the first Gripen E/F four years after contract award, but has not ruled out the ability to expedite development should another customer require earlier delivery.

Sweden and Switzerland have aligned their requirements to produce an aircraft with a common baseline configuration and expected initial operating capability to be achieved in 2018.

Gripen NG aircraft will, in effect, be new-build machines although some elements of existing JAS 39C/Ds will be re-used, notably the wings. This is made possible by the E/F’s design, which widens the fuselage to achieve greater lifting area rather

14 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

A Swedish JAS 39D flies over the Swiss Alps alongside a Swiss Air Force Hornet. A Gripen is due to appear at the Axalp-Ebenfluh public air force demonstration in October.

than enlarging the wing surfaces.

In the meantime, Saab continues to market the current Gripen C/D, highlighting the type’s good performance and low cost per flying hour, and to support existing customers.

Hungary has recently extended its Gripen lease to 2026, and negotiations are ongoing with the Czech Republic to also extend. Thailand is to receive its second batch of six aircraft next year, with most of them already flying in Sweden.

South Africa is scheduled to receive its final aircraft this summer, and earlier this year began operations with the Thales DJRP (digital joint reconnaissance pod). All the aircraft have been officially handed over, but four were retained in Sweden to allow South African participation in the Lion Effort Gripen User Group exercise held at Ronneby in May.

Saab continues to target a number of opportunities for the Gripen around the world. Brazil is the most obvious, where the aircraft Rafale and the F-18.

Success there could open the door to further Latin American sales. Thailand is likely to order a third batch of aircraft, while Malaysia is in the market for a replacement for the Russian MiG-29. Other Far East possibilities exist in the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam, while in eastern Europe several nations have new fighter requirements.

Saab’s UK office is also continuing conceptual work on a carrier-capable Sea Gripen, with an eye on Indian and Brazilian requirements. Riskreduction work on the Sea Gripen will continue up to the point of an evaluated concept, according to a Saab official, “and then we’ll park it” to await further developments. o

swiss air force

DAVID DONALD

Saab has brought its newgeneration Gripen to the Farnborough International Airshow not as a demonstrator aircraft for potential new technologies, as previously, but as a systems prototype for the intended production Gripen NG, or Gripen E/F as it is also known. Designated as aircraft 39-7, the two-seat Gripen has new avionics and new cockpit installed, and just before Farnborough received the fullstandard Selex Galileo ES-05

Jamie Hunter/Saab

by David Donald

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With new KC-390 transport, Embraer eyes C-130 market

by Thierry Dubois Embraer will soon freeze the design of its first purpose-built military transport, the KC-390, for tactical missions.

Although the first flight is planned for 2014, some details remain sketchy. But at least the program seems well funded, with

the Brazilian government providing most of the $2.2 billion needed for development.

“The KC-390 is essentially being designed for cargo and air-refueling missions,” Luiz Carlos Aguiar, Embraer Defense and Security CEO, told AIN. The

Embraer is developing the KC-390 as an alternative to the C-130 for cargo and air refueling, thanks to a 50,700-pound cargo capability and two refueling pods.

50,700-pound maximum payload (slightly below previously announced numbers) can consist of 64 paratroopers, 80 soldiers, a helicopter or wheeled armored vehicles.

The KC-390’s tanker capability is based on the installation of two removable internal fuel tanks. The aircraft will also be capable of being refueled in flight.

Six countries have signed letters of intent for a total 60 aircraft: Brazil (28), Colombia (12), Argentina (6), Chile (6), Portugal (6) and the Czech Republic (2).

Of these, Argentina, Portugal and the Czech Republic have also agreed on industrial partnerships. France, although it has clearly expressed interest for a dozen, has not signed any agreement or letter–apparently because it is waiting for the Brazilians to order Dassault’s Rafale fighter first.

The $2.2 billion funding runs until the end of 2014. This is when the KC-390 is scheduled to make its first flight. The funded development phase includes two prototypes and production tooling. From 2015, Embraer is counting on starting to receive partial payments from customers. The first deliveries to the Brazilian air force are slated for 2016.

Surprisingly, Aguiar did not want to give indications on the range. “This is premature,” he said. Preliminary data Embraer released in 2010 showed that range, with a 52,000-pound payload, would be close to 1,400 nm.

The company will be ready to make firm offers, including price and specifications, in the first quarter of next year.

“From March or April, we’ll got to the market aggressively,” Aguiar said. The program is now in the “joint definition” phase.

Some 180 engineers, representing over 50 companies, are working at Embraer’s São José dos Campos design offices.

As development money is flowing, the KC-390 program already appears as revenues in Embraer Defense and Security’s accounting books. Last year, it accounted for 19 percent of $852 million. This year, the program’s funding will represent 39 percent of an estimated $900- to $950 million in revenues.

Aguiar made it clear there is no risksharing partner (in the commercial meaning) on the program. It is purely funded by governments. Brazil is funding more than 90 percent of the program, while the Czech

Boeing To Help with Marketing In late June, Boeing and Embraer announced an extension of their April collaboration agreement to cover the KC-390 program.

The pair will jointly assess the medium-lift ­military transport market. Boeing may help sell the KC-390 to “potential customers that had not been considered [as] initial market prospects,” the companies said. –C.P.

16 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

KC-390, by the Numbers Length: 115 feet Height: 40 feet Wingspan: 115 feet Maximum payload: 50,700 pounds Maximum cruise speed: Mach 0.80

Republic and Argentina are providing the rest. For a fixed amount, Embraer is supposed to deliver the aircraft on time and on specifications. Any development delay beyond 2014 would have to be funded by the manufacturer. And the government could refuse the delivery of an aircraft that is not performing as expected.

Embraer has chosen its main suppliers.

International Aero Engines will provide the two V2500 turbofan engines with accompanying nacelles and thrust reversers. The airframer said that it chose turbofans over turboprops because it wants to be able to cover large distances with speed. The KC-390 will be the lowest total life-cycle cost airlifter in its class, Embraer claims.

International Supply Team

The mission computer, as well as crew seats and directional infrared countermeasures, comes from AEL. Liebherr is in charge of the cabin pressure control system and the air-conditioning system. DRS, a Finmeccanica company, is responsible for the cargo handling and aerial delivery system. Another Finmeccanica company, Selex Galileo, will supply the tactical radar.

The fly-by-wire control system, along with actuators, will come from Goodrich and BAE Systems. Hispano-Suiza is responsible for the head-up display. Messier-Bugatti, another Safran company, is in charge of wheels and brakes. Cobham will supply the air refueling pods.

The KC-390’s main technology feature will be its fly-by-wire control system, according to Aguiar. He said Embraer continues to improve fly-by-wire, from the E-Jets to the Legacy 500 and now on the KC-390. The next feature will be Rockwell Collins avionics, based on the Pro Line Fusion suite, in the flight deck.

In terms of market forecast, Embraer officials believe they have a conservative estimate. By 2025, the market for such transports is seen at 700 aircraft. The bulk of it is for Lockheed Martin C-130 replacement. Aguiar said he would be happy with 17 to 18 percent of the 700. This would translate into around 120 KC-390s.

Aguiar sees his competitors being C-130 modernization programs. “Some of them include structural upgrades for prolonged wing utilization,” he said. The in-production C-130J is another.

Embraer has already penciled in some plans for production. The assembly line should have a capacity of 1.5 aircraft per month. Aguiar is counting on 8 to 10 deliveries per year and a total production run of 140 “would be a great success,” he said. o

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Avionics systems Cabin systems Flight information solutions Simulation and training Life-cycle service and support

by Vladimir Karnozov Here at Farnborough International Airshow, Russia’s Irkut is demonstrating its Yakovlev Yak-130 combat trainer. Although the aircraft has participated in various airshows before, this time it represents a version of the jet already in service with the Russian and Algerian air forces.

The program began the late 1980s and first flight occurred in April 1996. Since then the two-seat Yak-130 has met and overcome numerous challenges, and has gradually evolved into a highly potent and truly versatile platform able to play many modern air force roles.

Last month, Russia’s Aviation Center for Crew Training at Borisoglebsk reported that it had commenced a program of preparation of the country’s air force pilots using the Yak-130 in the role of lead-in fighter trainer (Lift).

Although the Russian air force formally pronounced the Yak-130 operational in December 2009, additional weapons-firing tests, and the preparation of various techniques and manuals by the Combat Usage and Crew Re-Training Center at Lipetsk air force base, took two more years to complete.

Five Yak-130s arrived at Borisoglebsk in April 2011, and preparation of the syllabus commenced. According to the air force, the expected arrival of seven more aircraft this summer will enable it to complete the formation of a full-strength training squadron.

The center’s senior students are flying the new type as a final part of their qualification process. “This aircraft is easy to handle, and has a big future ahead of it,” said Victor Lyakhov, commander of the Borisoglebsk center. “In addition to the primary combat training role, the Yak130 can perform missions as an attack aircraft, a fighter and a tactical bomber.”

Flying Computer

Russian air force officers refer to the Yak-130 as the “flying computer” because of its KSU-130 re-programmable fly-by-wire flight control system, which is able to replicate the behavior of various combat jets. In particular, Borisoglebsk will prepare pilots for flying the Sukhoi Su-34 interdiction fighter and Su-25 attack aircraft. In the primary trainer role, the Yak-130 replaces the Czech Let L-39, which has been the mainstay of Russia and former Soviet states since the early 1970s.

Irkut (Hall 1 Stand E8) offers the Yak130 as part of a “fully integrated training system” that also includes interactive computer classes, procedural and fullflight simulators and Yak-52M/Yak-152 light piston airplanes. Until a Yak-130 full-flight simulator is installed at Borisoglebsk, the students are using a simulator based at Irkutsk, where Irkut runs a

training and in-type qualification center for foreign pilots.

Last year Russia’s state arms export agency, Rosoboronexport, delivered 16 customized Yak-130s to Algeria, along with the last eight Su-30MKA fighters (out of 44 ordered). As part of the contract, Irkut trained about 150 Algerian air force pilots to operate both types.

First Computer-aided Design

The Yak-130 is the first military aircraft developed from scratch in Russia with extensive use of computeraided technologies. It belongs to the fourth generation of combat jets and features open-architecture avionics on

has the Russian Knights team flying Su27s and the Strizhy team in MiG-29s, but supersonic fighters are rather costly in that role.

Now Yakovlev is also working on a dedicated ground-attack variant of the Yak-130. It will differ from the baseline combat trainer with a larger nose housing a multifunctional radar, an armor-protected pilot cockpit for one crewmember instead of two and higher-power engines each developing 6,173 pounds of thrust compared to 5,511 pounds for the current production Ivchenko-Progress AI222-25. The industrial team behind the project also hopes to sell a dedicated trainer version to the Russian and Indian navies.

In a recent press briefing, former Russian air force commander Alexander Zelin and current defense ministry advisor Anatoly Serdyukov said that the air force needs a new type of ground-attack aircraft and that provision has been made for this in the 2011-2020 arms procurement plan. The new aircraft would have stealth characteristics, be capable of operating from short runways and be equipped with an advanced radar.

Irkut is proposing a version of the Yak-130 for this role. Zelin said that while the aircraft has its strengths, it could be

VLADIMIR KARNOZOV

Yak-130 trainer enters service and aspires to attack roles

fuel tanks on wing pylons extends the range to 1,134 nm.

The aircraft can carry 6,614 pounds of weapons on nine pylons. This may include a 23-mm twin-barrel cannon pod on the central hardpoint and a combination of dummy rockets/bombs and precision-guided munitions (PGMs) on wing pylons.

Although subsonic (Mach 0.93), the Yak-130 is highly agile (with an angle of attack up to 35 degrees) and maneuverable (up to +8g). It can climb to 30,000 feet in three minutes.

A high power-to-weight ratio (0.7) and advanced aerodynamic configuration with moderately swept wings smoothly blended into large fuselage root extensions allow the Yak-130 to have more than a 200-fps climb rate at 15,000 feet. This enables its use as interceptor armed with Vympel R-73E infrared air-to-air missiles, for which the pilots can designate targets using helmet-mounted sights.

In 2005, the Russian defense ministry ordered the initial batch of 12 Yak130s. Deliveries from the Sokol plant in Nizhny Novogorod commenced in 2008 and were completed in March 2011.

In November 2011, the ministry came

The fly-by-wire Yak-130, the first military aircraft developed from scratch in Russia with extensive use of computer-aided technologies, can serve as a primary combat trainer, as well as an attack aircraft, a fighter and a tactical bomber.

the MIL-STD-1553B databus and embedded simulation.

In addition to three multi-function displays, as in the rear cockpit, the forward one additionally has a head-up display similar to that in use in MiG-29/ Su-27 fighters. Fly-by-wire technologies provide for carefree handling, reducing pilot workload.

The airframe is made largely of aluminum-magnesium-lithium alloys and also titanium, which Irkut claims makes it weight-efficient without use of composites. Selection of materials was dictated by the customer requirements for simple and low-cost maintenance and repairs, as well as “away-from-main-base” combat deployments in tough climatic conditions. The Yak-130 can operate from semi-prepared airfields, relying on a system of air intakes and channels designed to prevent damage to the engine by foreign objects during takeoff and landing.

In “clean” configuration (that is, without weapons or other external equipment), with full tanks, the Yak-130 has a maximum takeoff weight (mtow) of 15,984 pounds. For combat deployment, mtow is 22,686 pounds. Standard fuel capacity of 3,748 pounds provides for a range of 864 nm. A pair of 992-pound

18 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

up with another order for 55 Yak-130s with an option for 10 more. The respective contract went to Irkut, which by that time had completed 16 such aircraft for Algeria.

Worthy Addition

Irkut president Alexei Fedorov has estimated the Yak-130 delivery rate at 250 units “in the middle term” and believes the type can compete for a quarter of the world’s market for advanced jet trainers, estimated at 2,500 units. In his view, the Yak-130 is “a worthy addition” to the Sukhoi Su-30MK twin-seat multirole fighter, which has been Irkut’s cash cow since 1996.

Bangladesh is reportedly negotiating for 10 Yak-130s in a prospective deal through Rosoboronexport that would likely be backed by Russian government credits. Syria has signed for the Yak-130, but the status of this order is unconfirmed. During the deposed regime of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya also ordered the Russian trainer but this contract is understood to have been canceled.

The Russian air force is expected to place additional orders for special variants of the Yak-130, including some for an aerobatic display team. The service

found wanting with weaknesses such as insufficient protection for the pilot from ground fire.

In this market Irkut faces strong competition from Sukhoi, which has been urging the defense ministry to restart production of the Su-25 family of aircraft at the UUAZ helicopter plant in Ulan-Ude. This enterprise specializes in production of the highly successful and popular Mil Mi-17 series of helicopters, but has retained manufacturing jigs for the Su-25UB twin-seat operational trainer and its derivatives (Su-25UBK, Su-25T and Su-39). These types were in limited production in Ulan-Ude at the turn of the century.

The Yak’s strongpoint is Irkut’s capacity to produce 50 Yak-130s a year, Alexander Veprev, general manager at Irkut’s IAZ plant, told AIN. He added that there is a provision to increase this to 60 units if demand proves high enough, in addition to which Sokol could add up to 10 airframes a year. o

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Diverse Cobham enhances major aircraft programs

by Bill Carey Operating as a Tier Two and Three supplier of components and subsystems to major aerospace and defense manufacturers, the UK-based Cobham group has evolved over eight decades into a company generating almost $3 billion per year in revenues. The multinational group now has content on most major aircraft platforms either flying or in development.

Nevertheless, one will not generally see the Cobham name emblazoned on an aircraft–unless, of course, you were to v­ isit Australia or Papua New Guinea, where Cobham Aviation Services operates a c­harter service using BAe 146 jets and Bombardier Dash 8 turboprops. In addition, Cobham operates Boeing 717 twinjets on behalf of the Qantas regional subsidiary QantasLink and maritime patrol Dash 8s for the Australian Customs Service. Elsewhere, the

company promotes itself as a trusted supplier of key components across space, aerospace, land and maritime domains.

“At the top level, it’s products, services and subsystems,” said Greg Caires, Cobham vice president of media relations in the U.S. “We don’t make airplanes, we make things that are very useful to airplanes and other platforms. About two thirds of the business involves moving information from a sensor to a decision maker, and the other third of the business is about keeping people safe in challenging environments.”

Cobham is divided into three divisions–aerospace and security, defense systems and mission systems–that employ 11,000 people on five continents. It has 13 principal manufacturing locations: nine in the U.S., three in the UK and one in France.

The company describes itself

C31007.010_SJI00_Farnborough_WORLD_AviationIntNews_170x550_v1.indd 1

as “acquisitive,” having acquired U.S. defense and security estabnearly 50 other companies in the lishments represent 44 percent last decade and 80 overall, as well of Cobham’s business by market as divesting some. Among its type, with commercial business strategic objectives is to “build and non-U.S. defense and securisustainable scale positions” in ty each generating 28 percent.

Half of the company’s emthe markets it serves. “We want to sell products and services that ployees reside in the U.S., folare different enough from our lowed by 2,500 in the UK and competitors that we maintain 1,100 in Australia. And this year, Cobham appointed an a top position in that market American–Robert Murspace–one, two or three,” phy–as its first non-British said Caires. “If we’re really CEO. Murphy, who took not one of the top three the reins June 25, previ[companies] you could buy ously was executive vice from, then we look to exit president of the BAE that market.”

Cobham says it inSystems product sectors business. He will vested £129 million work from the corpo($201 million) last rate headquarters in year in research and Wimborne, Dorset. development in core Former BAE Systems With its many operbusinesses. In June, executive Robert Murphy ations and diverse prodit completed a £275 took over as Cobham’s first non-British chief uct range–Cobham’s million ($428 mil- executive on June 25. website lists 72 busilion) share takeover of satellite communications equip- ness unit locations and 289 prodment provider Thrane & Thrane ucts–it is helpful to think of the company in terms of capabilities, of Denmark.

While it is UK-based, Cob- which it says are “increasingly ham generated just 10 percent centered around communication of its revenue from the UK last and the insatiable need for data, year. Fifty-two percent of reve- connectivity and bandwidth,” as nue came from the U.S., followed well as size, weight and powerby Australia at 13 percent. The consumption factors.

It is also instructive to characterize Cobham by the platforms that host its equipment.

When described in this way, the company has an impressive story to tell. For example, Cobham supplies its HGA-7001 satcom antenna system and the on board inert gas generating system (Obiggs) to protect against fuel tank explosions on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The company supplies antennas, servers, routers, oxygen systems and audio and radio management systems on the Airbus A380.

Military Products

In the military arena, Cobham supplies 100 components and $1 million worth of content on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. These include the fifth-generation fighter’s refueling probe, the cryocooler used to cool the infrared detector of its electro-optical targeting system, the pneumatic bomb racks, integrated microwave assemblies supporting electronic warfare systems in the tail and the cartridge actuated cutter, which automatically cuts an air passage in the pilot’s oxygen mask hose when the pilot resurfaces after

being submerged in water.

Cobham supplies the lowband transmitter and integrated antenna/radome of the U.S. Navy’s EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft. It provides external fuel tanks and communications and life-support equipment on the U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor, and antennas and other components on the Eurofighter Typhoon, Saab Gripen, Airbus A400M and Northrop Grumman Global Hawk.

Appropriately, for a company started by Sir Alan Cobham in 1934 as Flight Refueling, a manufacturer of air-to-air refueling systems, Cobham claims to provide 95 percent of the probeand-drogue refueling systems in service worldwide, supporting every NATO operation.

In July 2011, the company was awarded subcontracts from Boeing to provide hose and drogue systems for the engineering and manufacturing development phase of the KC-46 refueling tanker. Also last year, Embraer Defense and Security chose the company to supply the aerial refueling probe and wing-mounted refueling pods of the KC-390. o

Selex Galileo provides the aircraft gateway processor for the Block III Apache attack helicopter’s defensive aids suite.

Selex Galileo looks to U.S. to lead EW growth

by David Donald Defense and security electronics specialist Selex Galileo is seeking to build its extensive EW (electronic warfare) business with further sales into the U.S., particularly as the U.S. Army and Marine Corps seek to implement new defensive aids system (DAS) capabilities for their helicopters.

Sales into the U.S. market are also a springboard for expansion in other markets, particularly as FMS (foreign military sales) customers often specify U.S.-standard equipment.

While the Praetorian integrated defensive system for the Typhoon fighter is the company’s leading EW product, Selex Galileo (Outdoor Exhibit 1) offers a range of components, systems and services. Systems include the Seer family of radar warning receivers and Sage family of electronic support measures.

Selex Galileo has already gained an important foothold in

the U.S. EW market through its AGP (aircraft gateway processor), which it supplies to the AH-64 Apache Block III program. The AGP is a defensive aids controller that provides a gateway between DAS components and the aircraft’s central systems. It allows new elements, functions and technologies to be added to the DAS without changing the central system and without affecting flight safety-critical software.

This ability to insert new components has already been demonstrated by the U.S. Army through the addition of an acoustic GFAS (gunfire acquisition system) into the Apache’s defenses. GFAS is being implemented as a QRC (quick-reaction capability) program, and is being fitted to a trial batch of 24 helicopters.

Success with AGP in this Tier 3 technology provider activity places Selex Galileo advantageously to answer a forthcoming

requirement for a new ASE (aircraft survivability equipment) architecture for all U.S. Army and Marine Corps helicopters. A request for information for this program is expected around the end of the year.

Acting as a Tier 2 supplier, Selex Galileo has experience in providing integrated defensive systems through the Praetorian DAS and the HIDAS (helicopter integrated DAS) that is applied to the UK’s Apache helicopter fleet. The company is also leading the UK’s CDAS (common DAS) technology demonstrator program (TDP), which includes Thales, QinetiQ, DSTL and BAE Systems North America.

CDAS is developing a UKsovereign DAS architecture that is coherent with HIDAS and defensive systems on other UK helicopters, such as the Chinook and Lynx Wildcat. The

program seeks to develop a common architecture that allows for future technology insertion through a common growth path across all platforms. Phase I of this TDP is complete, with flight trials to begin soon in the second phase. U.S./UK agreements allow the sharing of technology and work in this arena, and CDAS technology could be used as part of proposals to the U.S. To enhance its electronic warfare capabilities, Selex Galileo has established a center at Lincoln in the UK to provide classified EWOS (electronic warfare operational support). The center already provides data files and other support for Saudi Arabian Typhoons and Kuwaiti Apaches (which have HIDAS), as well as various support activities for UK assets. The center also provides EW support and training for the Greek Apache fleet. o

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02/07/2012 14:45

MiG-29s miss show for Indian sea trials

by Vladimir Karnozov Open-sea testing of the new Indian Navy aircraft carrier Vikramaditya and her primary weapons, in the form of MiG29K/KUB deck fighters, means that the MiGs won’t be making an appearance here at the 2012 Farnborough International Airshow. The ship has been bought from Russia to replace the former British-built HMS Hermes, which India acquired in 1986 and renamed Viraat.

“Resources of our flight-test department are heavily engaged in the carrier trials, and this is why we are not able to demonstrate our aircraft at this year’s show at Farnborough,” Elena Fedorova, spokeswoman for Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG (RAC MiG), told AIN. Following completion of extensive refit and modernization work, the Vikramaditya departed Severodvinsk harbor on June 8, 2012. She will spend the rest of the year in the White and Barents seas, ahead of anticipated delivery to the customer in time for Indian Navy Day on December 4.

The Vikramaditya is a “through-deck” carrier of the Stobar (short-takeoff but arrestedrecovery) type with a complement of 1,924 crew. Originally a heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser, in 1978 the ship was delivered to what was then the Soviet navy, with which it served under the name Admiral Gorshkov until 1998.

Then the cruiser was offered to India as an alternative to an Invincible-class “Harrier-carrier” available from the UK. A deal was struck in March 2004, leading the cruiser into Russia’s Sevmash dry dock in December 2005 for conversion, which has included significant content from UK systems suppliers, as well as equipment from Croatia, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Finland, France, Norway, Poland and Sweden.

She was relaunched in November 2008 as a Project 11430 aircraft carrier, and now features a 14-degree ski-ramp and three arrestor wires.

At face value, India’s new aircraft carrier will not compare too badly with the new carriers ordered by the British Royal Navy, and has certainly worked out a lot cheaper. With the inclusion of separate contracts for training, ground equipment and

shore infrastructure installations, the bill totals approximately $1.9 billion. By comparison, the bill for the UK’s new Queen Elizabeth-class carrier is in the region of $4.7 billion.

The new Royal Navy carrier has the same 920-foot length as the Vikramaditya, but a larger full displacement at 65,600 metric tons, versus 45,300 metric tons, and a larger hangar to

Russia’s MiG will not be on hand at this year’s Farnborough Airshow because a prototype of its MiG-29K is heavily involved in sea trials of an Indian Navy aircraft carrier.

India’s new Vikramaditya aircraft carrier is preparing to enter service at the end of 2012 carrying a fleet of Russian MiG-29K and KUB fighters.

house a fleet of more than 40 F-35 Lightning II fighters, plus Merlin and Lynx Wildcat helicopters. The Indian carrier will accommodate a mix of between 30 and 34 MiG fighters and Kamov helicopters.

None of the Indian Navy’s fleet of aircraft will be deployed for the sea trails of the Vikramaditya. Instead, RAC MiG has provided MiG-29K and MiG-29KUB prototypes. Also involved in the sea trials is a MiG-35D demonstrator believed to have been outfitted with an arrestor hook–a decision influenced by the crash of a purpose-built MiG-29KUB at the Russian defense ministry firing range at Akhtubinsk in June 2011. The MiG-29K was lifted by crane onto the Vikramaditya’s flight deck last year and serves as a full-scale mockup. First flown in 1988, this veteran aircraft had an extensive operational life before being grounded.

New MiGs

India took delivery of 16 MiG-29K/KUBs in 2010-2011.

They replaced Sea Harriers in the Black Panther squadron

at Hansa naval airbase in Goa province. Last year it firmed up an option for 29 additional MiGs, which are due for delivery between now and 2014.

The MiG-29K/KUB differs from the classic MiG-29 Fulcrum in having a reworked airframe with 15 percent more composite materials. It comes with a larger folding wing with extensive highlift surfaces for shorter takeoff and landing distances. Maximum gross weight has been increased to 24.5 metric tons and the weapons load to 4.5 tons.

The latest MiG-29s also feature higher-thrust Fadecequipped Klimov RD-33MK engines with smokeless combustors, digital fly-by-wire flight controls, open-architecture systems on the MIL-STD-1553B databus and a lowered radar signature. Increased range is achieved through enlarged inner tanks and in-flight refueling system. The aircraft can be refueled in flight using the PAK-1MK pod.

The Russian defense ministry ordered 24 deck fighters from RAC MiG in February 2012. Deliveries are scheduled for 2013-2015. MiG’s general

22 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

manager, Sergei Korotkov, said the ministry order came after the company spent many years on development, testing and setting up series production of the MiG-29K. “The MiG-29K and other versions derived from the baseline model shall ensure a stable workload for the company in the middle term,” he added.

AESA Radar

The Russian Navy aircraft will differ from the Indian Navy MiGs. “These airplanes will be made to a new technical specification that complies with [Russian] defense ministry requirements,” the manufacturer said. A new radar with active electronically scanned antenna (AESA) is expected to take the place of the Phazotron Zhuk-M with a slotted antenna and mechanical radar beam scanning, the radar fitted to the Indian MiGs. Vladimir Barkovsky, chief of the MiG engineering center, said that in the course of RAC MiG’s unsuccessful bid for India’s medium multi-role combat aircraft competition, the company demonstrated the performance of the Zhuk-MA

on the MiG-35D demonstrator: “We demonstrated that the radar actually works in air-to-air and ground-mapping modes,” he explained. “It can select, discriminate and track targets. During these trials, the MiG-35 launched a missile that destroyed a drone using radar data for targeting.”

On the company’s marketing strategy, Barkovsky said MiG will “aggressively promote” both naval (MiG-29K/KUB) and land-based (MiG-29M1/ M2/35) models sharing a common platform with state-of-theart avionics, improved engines, advanced construction materials, larger fuel stores and new weapons. “We believe this platform has a lot of potential and can generate sales over a long period of time,” he said. “We will develop this platform further [with] more fifth-generation technology insertions, such as the active radar, new optics and other sensors, state-of-theart ECM and so on. We have already implemented fully digital fly-by-wire on the MiG-29K and flight-tested AESA radar and the newest composite materials on the MiG-35.”

Having secured a place on the carrier deck, the MiG is seeking to sell advanced Fulcrums to ground-based forces. With this in mind, the prototype of the MiG-29M2 twin-seat landbased fighter commenced flight tests in December. A single-seat MiG-29M derivative joined the testing last February.

Syria placed an order for 24 MiG-29M1s/M2s in May 2008, with deliveries due in 2012-2014.

It remains to be seen whether this contract will be completed, in view of the current unrest in the Middle Eastern country, although Russian authorities have yet to indicate any intention to block military exports to the government of President Bashar Assad. o

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Saab’s 340MSA demonstrator is seen at the Linköping facility shortly before its first flight in its new guise last month.

Saab shows off maritime platforms

by David Donald completed last month, in time to begin customer demonstrations and appearances at a series of trade exhibitions, beginning with this week’s Farnborough International Airshow.

Starting with the 340 airborne early warning aircraft now in service with Sweden, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates, Saab has developed a range of special-mission aircraft based on

David Donald

Saab’s confidence in a growing sector has resulted in the company investing in a demonstrator platform for its 340 maritime security aircraft (MSA) offering.

The aircraft’s conversion was

Come see us at Farnborough Hall 4, Stand 4

40

its 340 and 2000 turboprop-powered airliners. Although neither type is in production, both are plentifully available, while the Swedish group offers a thorough refurbishment that effectively zero-lifes the airframes, giving them another 30 to 40 years of service life. Good performance and cost-effective, reliable operations carried forward from the types’ airliner roots make both ideal for a range of missions.

The larger 2000 model forms the basis of the current airborne early warning solution, the Airtracer signals intelligence platform and the recently named Swordfish MPA (maritime patrol aircraft). However, Saab sees a growing market for the smaller 340 in the MSA category, targeting coast guard and customs agencies, as well as military forces.

Envisaged roles include maritime surveillance, fishery patrol, anti-smuggling and anti-piracy missions, search and rescue, surface traffic monitoring, border and embargo enforcement, and pollution control.

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24 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

At the heart of the 340 MSA is a mission management system with a single operator in the baseline configuration. Up to three more operators can be added if required. Principal sensors include a retractable electro-optical/infrared sensor turret and a 360-degree surveillance radar. The demonstrator aircraft is fitted with a FLIR Systems Star SAFIRE sensor and Telephonics RDR1700B radar. Also included is AIS (automatic identification system, the maritime equivalent of identify-friend-or-foe) and satellite communications. This baseline configuration is priced at less than $20 million.

A range of options is available. Large observer windows can be fitted, and an air-drop door can be installed in the rear port side of the cabin. Another option is the installation of auxiliary fuel tanks that raise endurance from 6.5 to 8.5 hours. For environmental monitoring missions, the 340 MSA can be fitted with sensors such as side-looking airborne radar and ultraviolet/infrared line scanner. o

Expanding service role smooths MRTT kinks

by David Donald October, and fully implemented by the end of 2012, according to Airbus Military.

Welcome to the RAF

Meanwhile, the British Royal Air Force’s first A330 MRTT (Voyager) aircraft was released to service on April 6 this year, and has been flying intensively on transport and training tasks. The second aircraft, a three-point refueler, is being used as part of the Typhoon and Tornado receiver clearance process, which also involves a Saudi tanker and Spanish Typhoons. Two more Voyagers are undergoing conversion by Cobham in the UK, while aircraft number five is now being modified at Getafe in Spain.

Three weeks ago, the Airtanker consortium announced that the remaining nine conversions would also be done in Spain, rather than

by Cobham as previously planned.

This was to ensure timely delivery to the RAF, Airtanker said.

Initial RAF refueling trials encountered a number of problems, including basket-spinning and fuel venting. Improvements to the basket and some software modifications cured the spinning problem, while a new coupling is under test. The venting that occurred with RAF Tornados was

not encountered by Saudi Tornados, which have a different style of probe. Currently, defensive improved provisions are being negotiated for RAF aircraft.

This month the Royal Saudi Air Force is due to take its second aircraft, the first having been retained at Airbus for aircrew training. The third of six is also due before the end of the year, and the RSAF is aiming for entry to service in the third quarter of 2012. The first of three aircraft for the United Arab Emirates conducted in-country evaluation with Mirage 2000 and F-16 receivers, and all three aircraft are to be delivered by the end of this year.

In terms of future sales prospects, Airbus has made an unsolicited offer to Australia for a sixth aircraft. France has a requirement for up to 14 tankers, for which Airbus Military has a study contract to define the requirement.

A310 MRTT Test Bed

To support ongoing tanker programs, an A310 MRTT has been converted to test enhancements to the boom system, having been updated with technology from the A330 program. It began flying again last month, testing a dimming

MARK WAGNER

Airbus Military has taken orders for 28 A330 MRTT (multirole tanker-transport) aircraft, and by the end of this year 13 are due to be in service. The program has encountered a number of teething troubles, but the company reports that they are being solved as the aircraft expands the envelope of its operational experience.

Australia has three of its five aircraft in service (which it designates as the KC-30A), with the remaining pair retained by Airbus Military as they undergo a boom enhancement program. The three aircraft in Royal Australian Air Force service will be used for refueling with the pods only while the enhancement is being implemented, tested and certified. Airbus Military said that operational clearance to refuel F/A-18 Hornet fighters is expected later this year.

Under the improvement program the KC-30As are getting a Wave 2 flight management system that makes mission planning easier. The new system also integrates various classified modes that were previously separated. Boom operations are improved through new control laws for large receivers and a stick-shaker to warn of reaching the outer edges of the boom’s envelope. These systems should be certified around September/

An RAF Voyager multi-role tankertransport (MRTT) recently began evaluations with the A400.

osprey at rest The V22 Osprey famously takes off like a helicopter and cruises like a fixed-wing. At rest, its nacelles tip forward in the horizontal position. It’s likely safe to presume that rotating them to vertical is part of the pre-start checklist.

capability for the pilot director lights when operating in extreme external lighting conditions. It also has a new night-vision filter to ensure compatibility with the boom infrared illumination system.

This aircraft will also test a new advanced training function that allows synthetic aircraft to

be displayed on the operator’s screen. Various receiver types can be simulated, as well as varying weather and turbulence conditions. An advanced debrief system is also being developed, allowing detailed after-tanking review by both receivers and air refueling operators. o

New leadership at Parker, and some fresh contracts

by Ian Goold Sierra Nevada Corp. has including hydraulic fluid conselected Parker Aerospace Gas veyance to transmit hydraulic Turbine Fuel Systems division’s power between engine-mounted thermal-management equip- pumps and the aircraft; the oil ment to cool and heat its auton- system, including main pump, omous landing system (HALS) surface-cooler valve, variableon Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk frequency generator cooler valve helicopters. Sierra Nevada has and front-bearing housing valve; and the combustion a contract to fulfill system high-temperathe degraded visual ture flexible hoses. environments (DVE) o p e rat i o n a l - n e e d s New Management statement issued by the U.S. Army aviaRoger Sherrard has tion-networks misbeen appointed as sion-planning program the new president of directorate.

Parker Hannifin subThe HALS system sidiary Parker Aerocombines real-time, space (Hall 4 Stand three-dimensional imA18). He will replace ages with satellite digi- Roger Sherrard has been Bob Barker, who is retal-terrain imagery and appointed president of tiring after 39 years Parker Aerospace.

DVE-specific guidance with the company. symbols for takeoffs, approach- Meanwhile, Greg Crowe has es and landings in fog, brownouts been named Parker Aerospace and other reduced-visibility con- operations vice president and ditions. “The systems will be in- Frank Dubey has been appointstalled [for use] in extremely harsh ed vice president and general environments with high levels of manager of Parker Aerospace vibration, sand, dust and heat,” Control Systems. said SNC HALS program manSherrard will be responsiager Bob Lombard. ble for fiscal and operational Among its myriad prod- aspects of the group’s seven ucts, Parker Aerospace provides divisions. Most recently, he was many items for the Rolls-Royce president of Parker HanniTrent XWB engine that will fin’s automation group, leading power the Airbus A350. Com- development, manufacturing ponents include: the pneumat- and marketing of pneumatic ics system for engine controls, and electromechanical systems including intermediate- and and machine- and factory-autohigh-pressure (IP and HP) com- mation components. pressor bleed, cooling-air conIn his new role, Crowe will trol, engine-section stator and take responsibility for finance nacelle anti-ice, pressure reg- and operations at Parker Aeroulator, solenoid actuators and space’s Fluid Systems, Control check valves, as well as low- Systems and Stratoflex Products pressure and IP and HP tur- divisions, from his previous posibine-case cooling valves and tion as fluid-systems vice presiactuators; the engine build unit, dent and general manager. o

www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 25

UK’s carrier program faces a confused future

by Chris Pocock Controversial from the start, the UK’s new aircraft carrier program has endured many twists and turns. It is now 14 years since the government first defined the need for new carriers and it will be another four years before the first of the two Queen Elizabeth II-class warships is delivered. Beyond that, it will be yet another four years before the carrier-strike capability becomes fully operational, in 2020.

The second vessel is now being built but, on current budget projections, the country cannot afford to operate both. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has twice changed its mind on the type of F-35 stealth fighter to be operated from them.

At 65,000 metric tons displacement, the QE II and the Prince of Wales are the largest ships ever built in the UK, and are designed to support a variety of missions, such as amphibious or humanitarian operations, as well as air strikes. Described as eight acres of floating sovereign territory, they are three times the size of the three old Invincible-class carriers, which were

originally designed for antisubmarine operations during the Cold War. Two of those warships have now been retired in defense cuts, along with the entire fleet of Harriers. One remains but only as a helicopter carrier.

In the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), faced with budget cuts of up to 30 percent, senior military commanders suggested canceling one or both carriers. But more than £1.5 billion had already been spent and canceling saved only £1.2 billion, partly because the government had just guaranteed shipyard work to BAE Systems for the next 15 years. In the end, the defense budget was cut by 7.5 percent and both carriers survived. But only one would enter service and it would be converted for catapult takeoffs and arrested landings so that the UK could switch its order for JSFs from the F-35B to the “more capable” U.S. Navy F-35C version. The other carrier would be mothballed or even sold.

Recently, the MoD reverted to the F-35B after it discovered– thanks to a £40 million study– that the cost of conversion to

After fabrication in BAE System’s shipyard at Portsmouth, the 6,000-metric-ton Lower Block 2 was towed 600 miles around the British coast to Rosyth in late May. It will return to Portsmouth in 2016 as part of the completed Queen Elizabeth II, after completion of a $225 million dredging operation to widen and deepen the approach channel to the Royal Navy’s oldest port.

Ten aerospace companies in the UK are major suppliers to the F-35 program, and others stand to benefit from the 2,000-plus production run.

The Queen Elizabeth II and her sister ship The Prince of Wales will be the largest vessels ever built in the UK.

“cats and traps” could be a whopping £2 billion. The MoD also said that the next defense review in 2015 might provide enough funds to bring the second carrier into service.

Work on the two carriers is proceeding apace. The government’s audit body said that the alliance is working well, including the incentive provisions.

Over 300 companies, not all of them in the UK, have gained contracts worth £1.6 billion. A dry dock at Rosyth has been modified into the UK’s biggest.

Some big blocks of the QE II have already arrived there from the other dockyards, floated around Britain’s coast. Two software integration facilities are up and running. Thales is leading on aviation equipment, integration of the F-35 and on power and propulsion. BAE Systems is responsible for the mission systems. The QE II is scheduled to be fully assembled in 2014 and delivered in June 2016, with the Prince of Wales following in September 2018. Sea trials should begin four months after these dates.

One key associated procurement has yet to be finalized.

The carrier must also have an airborne early warning capability. The Royal Navy’s radarequipped Sea King Mk 7s are nearing the end of their service lives. Embarrassed by its budget problems, the MoD has said little about their replacement. But Defence Secretary Philip Hammond recently announced that the “£38 billion black hole in the defense budget” has been eliminated. The MoD now plans to spend £152 billion (about $240 billion) on equipment over the next 10 years. More than £4 billion of that will be spent on ISR projects, including the carrier AEW capability that is codenamed Crows Nest.

In 2002, Britain committed

26 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

approximately $3.2 billion to the development cost of the F-35, then estimated to cost $39 billion in total. That cost has risen to nearly $60 billion in current dollars, an increase borne entirely by the U.S. Meanwhile, 10 aerospace companies in the UK are supplying parts and equipment that is potentially worth billions of pounds over the life of the program. It seems like a good deal.

But while estimates of the F-35’s production cost have steadily increased, the UK’s defense budget has steadily decreased in real terms. The MoD sticks doggedly to the mantra that it doesn’t need to decide how many F-35s it will buy before 2015. But the SDSR reduced the number of F-35s to be routinely deployed onboard the new carrier from 36 to 12. The UK total may not be much more than half the originally planned 138.

When the MoD switched to the F-35C version in 2010, it was good news for the Royal Air Force (RAF). The F-35 is also supposed to replace the RAF fleet of Tornado land-based strike aircraft. Its greater payload, range and internal weapons capacity made the F-35C a closer match to the ageing but still-very-capable “Tonka.”

Moreover, the F-35C would have cost 10 to 20 percent less than the F-35B to acquire, depending on how the sums are done.

Now that the MoD has reverted to the F-35B, officials are making the best of it. The UK doesn’t have a 2,000-pound bomb, so it doesn’t matter that the F-35B weapons bay can take only 1,000-pound-class weapons. The STOVL version can be topped up by aerial refueling after takeoff, thus mitigating the range penalty. The additional cost of operating a cat-and-trap carrier, including the extra pilot training that is required, was

over half that of the additional acquisition and support costs of the F-35B versus the F-35C, a senior MoD official said.

The F-35B’s development problems are also being discounted. “The F-35B is off probation now,” a senior British officer noted. Only last year, Rear Admiral Amjad Hussein told a parliamentary enquiry that “the STOVL aircraft is more complicated...it is trying to do some difficult things... it requires an awful lot of power... it probably needs to lose its stores before it can land.”

Lockheed Martin program v-p Larry Lawson said earlier this year that “critical engineering challenges” on the F-35B had been solved. But the recent GAO report on the F-35 program noted that “three of the five fixes for the STOVL version are temporary and untested.”

Having recognized a few years ago that the F-35B still had a weight problem, despite the 2004 redesign, the MoD was contemplating a shipboard rolling vertical landing (SRVL) technique to solve the “bring-back” problem.

In a recent briefing to explain the decision to revert to the F-35B, the senior British officer confirmed to AIN that SRVL would now be further explored.

The F-35B is scheduled to make its first landing on the QE II sometime in 2018. If the switch to the F-35C had been sustained, there would have been a two-year delay. Meanwhile, the RAF’s prospective land-based operations of the F-35 have been largely overlooked in all the debate over the carriers. An RAF spokesman told AIN that the service was hoping to declare initial operating capability in 2018. o For a more comprehensive ­ver­sion of this report, go to www.ainonline.com.

P&W’s ‘war on cost’ balances lower demand Production of Pratt & Whitney’s F135 engines that power Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter is set to peak this year at 50 units before flattening out in the coming years as the U.S. defers deliveries of the new aircraft.

According to Pratt & Whitney Military Engines president Bennett Croswell, the engine maker won’t have to substantially reduce its production rates in response to the slowdown, it will defer plans it had hatched to ramp up output that would have compensated for reduced rates of production for the F117 and F100 turbofans.

U.S. budget cuts apart, some F35 partner nations have reduced their commitment to the program, such as Italy, which will now take 90 aircraft instead of the planned 135. But Croswell said this has been compensated for by sales to new foreign military sales clients such as Israel and Japan. “[F135 production] will come down further in the next couple of years so the way for us to maintain momentum is to bring down the cost for the engine,” Croswell told AIN. “We’re making great progress in what we call ‘the war on cost’ and we have dropped the cost [of each

Pratt & Whitney has declared “war on costs” in the face of reduced demand for engines that power military aircraft, such as the F117-equipped C-17 transport.

DAVID McINTOSH

by Charles Alcock

Malaysian Reflections Steady rains and standing water at least made for some artistic photo opportunities. The Malaysian Airlines A380 on display here at the Farnborough International airshow is nicely reflected on the watery ramp.

engine] by about 40 percent since 2009.”

Cost-containment efforts are largely focused on making sure that a higher percentage of engine assemblies and components are made correctly the first time to avoid reworking. “We are working with the supply base to get new ideas for leveraging increased volumes and improving quality to make sure that scrap rates are as low as possible.”

Looking beyond the F135, Pratt & Whitney’s engineers are already working on early U.S. Air Force and Navy propulsion wish lists for sixth-generation fighters. Croswell explained that his includes work on variable cycle engines, such as those needed for short takeoff and vertical landing capability. Efforts are also being concentrated on finding ways to significantly improve fuel efficiency for fighters and helicopters.

In a collaborative effort with Honeywell, Pratt & Whitney

is pushing to deliver a 25-percent reduction in fuel burn with the HPW3000 turboshaft being developed for new versions of the Black Hawk and Apache helicopters. This will involve delivering a 60-percent increase in the ratio of horsepower to weight.

So far the Pratt & Whitney team has run about 24 component rigs for the HPW3000 and Honeywell has already run a core engine, as well as power turbine and low-pressure rigs. “We have a clear path to the goals of the program and the next step is

Broens Wins Contract for F135 Gearbox Jack Pratt & Whitney this week signed an agreement with Australia’s Broens Industries for the supply of support equipment that will be used at initial operating bases for the Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter in the U.S. Broens has designed a jack that allows the removal and maneuvering of the gearbox from under the F135 engine. The new contract is worth around $300,000 and follows a prototype award, while follow-on production contracts could reach a value of at least $7 million. –D.D.

AgustaWestland family meeting global demand

GrandNew Gains Approval for LPV Ops

by Thierry Dubois AgustaWestland logged a cluster of new helicopter sales on the eve of the Farnborough International airshow.

In Japan, two AW139 medium twins have been ordered for fire-fighting roles, one by the Fire Disaster Management Agency (FDMA) and the other by the city of Yokohama. The FDMA should receive its aircraft in 2013, equipped with a belly tank and Bambi Bucket, while Yokohama city will take delivery of its AW139 in March next year, sporting only a belly tank. These orders bring to five the number of fire-fighting AW139s purchased in Japan

during the past 18 months.

In Europe, the Italian police force has ordered two AW139s.

They are partly funded by the European Union’s Frontex program for EU border management. The contract includes support, as well as crew and maintenance technician training.

An option for another six helicopters could be exercised by early next year. The two helicopters on firm order are to be delivered in 2013. They will operate from Pratica di Mare Airbase, close to Rome.

In South America, Agusta Westland has sold an AW169 medium twin for corporate/

to run the full engine, which will happen some time in the middle of 2013,” said Croswell. The U.S. Army is now working on a formal request for proposal for the new powerplant.

Meanwhile, Pratt & Whitney is working on the software modifications that will adjust the commercial airliner PW4062 turbofans to power the KC-46 tanker that Boeing will provide for the U.S. military. The first engines are due to be delivered to the airframer in the fourth quarter of 2013. o

Family portrait: the AgustaWestland product line has booked a series of orders from around the globe, including Japan, Italy, South America, Russia and the United States.

VIP missions. This brings to eight the number of helicopters ordered, for such applications, in Brazil and Venezuela. Deliveries of the in-flight-test type are to begin in 2015.

In Russia, a government

security agency is to receive three AW139s next year. In the U.S., the New Jersey State Police has just been handed over its fifth and final AW139. These aircraft were assembled at the airframer’s Philadelphia, Pennsylvania factory. o

The AgustaWestland GrandNew light twin has been certified to conduct Rnav (area navigation) satellite-based approaches with vertical guidance to LPV (lateral precision with vertical guidance) minimums. It thus can perform approaches at speeds as low as 45 knots and glidepath angles as high as 9 degrees, with ILS-equivalent minimums–without ILS infrastructure. Europe has begun implementing LPV approaches, which are already common in the U.S. –T.D.

www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 27

news clips

z Terma To Support C-130J Warning System Denmark’s Terma has been awarded a contract by Lockheed Martin to provide its AN/ALQ-213A defensive aids controller and associated engineering services to support integration of a missile warning system on C-130J Super Hercules for an international customer.

The Terma AN/ALQ-213A (Hall 2 Stand C26) gives C-130J customers an affordable option to move to an enhanced defensive systems suite with a choice of sensors and countermeasures subsystems.

z GE Aviation To Provide Data Link for C-130J GE Aviation has announced here at the show that it is to provide the data link for Lockheed Martin’s Block 8.1 upgrade for the C-130J Hercules. Lockheed Martin was awarded a $167 million upgrade contract by the U.S. Air Force in December, and has selected GE Aviation (Hall 4 Stand B7) to provide the advanced communication, navigation and air traffic management data link. Block 8.1 is a fleet-wide modification that enables military operators to be compatible with future air traffic management systems. A modernized identificationfriend-or-foe (IFF) system and automatic dependent surveillance broadcast (ADS-B) capability are included.

z Canadian Air Force Gets Radar for Surveillance Telephonics Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Griffon Corp., has delivered its first production AN/APS-508, an advanced multi-mode imaging radar system (IRS), to the Canadian Department of National Defense (CDND) for installation on the CP140 Aurora long-range maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft.

Jointly developed and built by Telephonics and MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA), and manufactured by Lockheed Martin (Canada), the AN/APS-508 provides multi-mode surveillance/imaging capability. An initial quantity of nine radar systems and lifecycle spares will be delivered to CDND. Separately, Telephonics (Chalet C25) has revealed that its RDR-1700B radar is to be installed on the new Saab 340 maritime surveillance aircraft demonstrator. The radar enables critical maritime missions.

z BA Chooses Crane’s Landing Gear Control Unit British Airways has chosen Crane’s enhanced landing gear control interface unit (LGCIU), which has been standard fit on Airbus A320 family aircraft since October 2010, for its A320 fleet upgrade. The LGCIU provides system health status to the central fault display system, sensing the position of the landing gear and landing gear doors, flap disconnect status and cargo door position.

The LGCIU from Crane (Hall 4 Stand F14) has enhanced reliability over the legacy device. “The new unit is also lower weight and provides an improvement in the system fault isolation capability to increase dispatch reliability for British Airways,” said Tim King, director of aftermarket sales for Crane aerospace & electronics.

A U.S. Air Force F-16 is on display here at Farnborough. Lockheed Martin is keen to extend the life of the multi-role fighter with service life extensions and export versions.

Fourth-generation F-16 expected to soldier on

by Bill Carey In April, Lockheed Martin celebrated the delivery of its 4,500th F-16 Fighting Falcon, attesting to the longevity of the fourth generation, multirole fighter. Now the company is working to extend that legacy with the U.S. Air Force and to stretch the production of F-16 export versions.

Late last year, the USAF indicated that it will proceed with a service life extension program (SLEP) and avionics upgrade of 300 or more Block 40/52 F-16s to compensate for the delay in operational readiness of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Lockheed Martin (Chalet D9-10, OE8) has on loan from the service a Block 50 F-16 that will be engineered for a 2,000-hour SLEP to 10,000 hours.

A second piece of the planned upgrade, the combat avionics programmed extension suite (CAPES), will integrate on the F-16 an active electronically scanned array (AESA) fire-control radar, a large center pedestal display unit, an ALQ-213 electronic warfare management suite and an integrated broadcast service network receiver.

Initial operational capability of 24 F-16s is planned by the fourth quarter of 2018, with full ­operational capability to follow in 2022.

to modify USAF jets for both the SLEP and CAPES is estimated at $9 million to $10 million per aircraft, or $3 billion for around 300 F-16s.

Lockheed Martin is being challenged for international F-16 upgrades by BAE Systems, which is competing for Korea’s planned upgrade of 130 F-16s, and potentially Boeing. BAE has installed a new commercial fire control radar in 270 U.S. Air National Guard F-16s and 50 Turkish Air Force fighters. However, Bill McHenry, Lockheed Martin manager of F-16 business development, contends the international market will follow the USAF’s lead.

“What we’re seeing in general is that [countries] have a great

Fighting Falcons Worldwide

As of May 31, Lockheed Martin’s F-16 backlog was 60 aircraft (4,570 ordered, with 4,510 delivered), extending production at its Fort Worth, Texas plant through January 2016.

Thirty F-16s were ordered in the last year through foreign military sales, including 18 for Iraq and 12 for Oman. The company had completed production of 24 F-16 Block 52s for the Royal Moroccan Air Force, and was building jets for Egypt through 2013. These will be followed by jets sold to Oman in 2014 and Iraq in 2015.

Lockheed Martin sees an extended time horizon for the venerable fighter. The proposed V model “recognizes that fourthand fifth-generation airplanes are going to be operating together for a number of years,” McHenry said. “The F-16 is going to be around for years to come, both in the U.S. Air Force and in the international community.” o

Upgraded F-16V Model

The AESA radar, which will be a choice between the competing Raytheon advanced combat radar (RACR) and Northrop Grumman’s scalable agile beam radar (SABR), is the basis of a new version of the fighter–the F-16V–introduced at the Singapore Airshow in February. The radar upgrade is tied together with an upgraded Raytheon modular mission computer to handle the additional processing power of the radar and other CAPES components. The cost

28 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

beam me up scotty Could the Farnborough International airshow be in for a name change?

How does “Farnborough Intergalactic Air and Space Show” sound?

DAVID McINTOSH

Indonesia has ordered eight more Embraer A-29 Super Tucano single-engine turboprops, and a full-flight simulator for the type. The announcement, made here at the Farnborough International airshow, came just as deliveries of a first batch of eight was about to start. The Indonesian Air Force will receive all its aircraft in light-attack configuration.

Deliveries of the second batch will all take place in 2014, said Luiz Carlos Aguiar, Embraer CEO defense and security. For the first batch, deliveries are to begin in August, with the first four aircraft. The next four are to be handed over next year. Aguiar would not disclose the value of the contract but emphasized the A-29 fleet’s 154,000 flight hours, including 23,000 in combat, without any loss.

Replacing North American Rockwell OV-10 Broncos, the aircraft will be used mainly for counterinsurgency missions.

Indonesian pilots have been training in Brazil.

DAVID McINTOSH

z More Super Tucano Trainers for Indonesia

desire to stay in lockstep with what the U.S. Air Force is doing, and the U.S. Air Force is moving out with their modular mission computers,” McHenry told AIN. “Anybody else’s upgrade offering to the program is not in lockstep with the plan. We’ve been working with the United States Air Force since the beginning of the program on upgrades of the airplane. That’s the path for the airplane.”

ETS row could slow output of Airbus A330

[such as] Korean Air, Cathay Pacific, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines and Saudi Arabian.” He said there have been 324 net sales since 2008, compared with 272 for Boeing’s established 777 and 19 for the new 787. The period had seen 10 new A330 customers booked, against six new 777 operators and a net loss of three 787 customers. o

by Ian Goold claiming the aircraft continues to attract high market demand from “a lot of big customers

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Airbus could withdraw from a commitment to increase A330 production to 11 aircraft per month in two years’ time, if there is no change to the European Union (EU) emissions trading scheme (ETS), according to programs executive vice president Tom Williams. Having increased A330 build rates steadily over the past five years from seven a month, the European airframer has until now been planning to increase from the current 9 to 10 in 2013 and then to 11 per month a year later.

Under the ETS, all airlines would have to buy carbon-emission allowances when flying into EU airports or through EU airspace. Major countries, including China, India, Russia, Japan and the U.S., have been leading protests against the imposition of ETS on non-EU carriers. For instance, the Chinese government has blocked Chinese airlines from buying up to 45 Airbus aircraft.

“The [scheme] has to be discussed and negotiated at the global level,” said Airbus chief executive Fabrice Bregier. “The EU has started in this direction, and Airbus hopes it moves faster toward a global solution.”

At last month’s International Air Transport Association annual meeting in Beijing, Airbus chief operating officer (customers) John Leahy said, “We agree with the frustrations of the Chinese airlines and the Chinese government.”

The manufacturer does not oppose the principle of the ETS, which Bregier describes as an incentive to contain emissions.

He said the goal is to keep worldwide aviation emissions stable while passenger traffic continues rising at 4 to 5 percent a year.

Leahy pointed out that continuous traffic growth–which Airbus forecasts will average 4.8 percent annually for the next 20 years–does not mean that fuel consumption, and therefore emissions, must increase at the same rate. Indeed, since 2000, traffic has gone up by some 53 percent, while fuel demand has increased just 3 percent.

At the beginning of June, Airbus had a backlog of some 320 orders for the A330, sufficient to provide work until early 2015 if production is not increased to 11 per month.

Last year, Airbus took orders for 99 A330s, with Leahy

If China withholds expected orders for A330s, Airbus will not increase production rates and Chinese airlines will have to wait for deliveries.

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www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 29

Growing GEnx engine fleet reduces fuel burn on 787

by Ian Goold Operators of Boeing 787s powered by the latest-standard GEnx-1Bs are promised real fuel savings over similar aircraft with competing engines, according to engine maker General Electric. The powerplants also will be more durable

and remain “on wing” longer if equipped with two performance improvement packages: PIPs I and II. The latter is scheduled for certification at the end of this year, with PIP I–which was primarily driven by a requirement

to improve fuel consumption–having received U.S. Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness approval last month. The two-stage enhancement aims to ensure that the engines meet Boeing’s original fuel-burn specification, while also offering higher thrust that will support growth in aircraft weights, perhaps including the 787-10X being mulled

by Boeing.

The latest PIP II development adds various fan, booster, compressor and combustor changes to the low-pressure turbine (LPT) improvement covered by PIP I, which represents the current build standard. Together, the two packages

45 customers currently covering some 1,300 engines.

In addition, there are about 250 more 787s for which engine selection remains to be announced. Nugent did not expect to see any “significant” orders announced here at the show this week, but predicts “a lot more” in the coming year. As the production ramp-up continues, GE expects to be very busy in the coming six months as it prepares for the delivery of GEnxpowered 787s to Air India, China Southern, Ethiopian Airlines, Qatar Airways and United Airlines.

In a six-year development program, GE has tested more than 50 GEnx

In a six-year development program, GE has tested more than 50 GEnx engines, logging 38,000 ground and flight cycles and accumulating 43,000 hours engine-running experience.

could provide customers with a claimed “two-percent fuel advantage over our competitor,” said GE Aviation GEnx program general manager Chuck Nugent.

The U.S. manufacturer believes there will be “an additional one-percent advantage from [better] performance retention” than its British rival. “That is our big news,” GE told AIN.

engines, logging 38,000 ground and flight cycles and accumulating 43,000 hours engine-running experience.

Another 26,000 cycles will form part of an aggressive maturation program by the end of 2014 to anticipate issues or repair requirements before customers suffer them.

Production Ramp-up

Nugent maintained that there is nothing unusual or untoward about the introduction of two performance packages within a year of GEnx entering service, saying that additional improvements often appear only after an original configuration has been established. “You always learn from tests and the entry-intoservice process, and [because of the extended 787 development period] we had a larger ‘window’ in which to identify [changes],” he explained.

A major contribution to the improved GEnx-1B fuel performance arising from implementation of PIP I, introduced on the first 787-8 in late March, has come from LPT changes, which have increased the number of titanium-aluminum blades in the seven-stage turbine.

“The original engine design had about 30 percent fewer LPT blades than the GE90 engine, but we discovered during testing that we were not getting the desired performance,” said Nugent. “So [we put] about 20 percent of the blades back in, which helped performance.”

By mid-June the eight GEnx-1Bs flying with Japan Airlines had accrued 4,500 hours in about 1,000 flights since services began on April 22. Overall, the engines, including -2Bs powering Boeing 747-8s, have logged about 115,000 hours during 25,000 flights, representing a rate of use about three times that of the GE90-115 when it entered service on the Boeing 777, according to Nugent.

He said the production ramp-up is two to three times that of GE’s previous engines for widebody airliners, reflecting the company’s investment in capacity.

The U.S.-based manufacturer has suppliers in 15 countries and in 16 U.S. states.

As the GEnx fleet begins to grow, Nugent said preparations for series production had gone well, meeting or exceeding requirements. This year GE expects to deliver at least 150 examples, 50 percent more than in 2011, and more than 200 next year. Production is likely to reach around 300 units per year in 2014 and 2015 and to stabilize at that rate as the manufacturer addresses orders from

30 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

Performance Improvements

Continued on page 32 u

GEnx engines see reduced fuel burn uContinued from page 32

Three-dimensional changes to the blades also have improved efficiency. Other factors include optimization of the engine’s turbine blade-tip clearance-control system, achieved through a software

adjustment to ensure clearances can be controlled throughout the flight operation, and improvements to the hot-section turbine nozzle durability. A further gain from this package has been the prospect of increased onwing time, a key element of GE’s “value proposition.”

Following introduction of PIP I, the GEnx-1B was certified

at 75,000 pounds thrust, which permits operators to fly from hot and/or high airports or from shorter runways. “It was very important that we be able to offer that,” said Nugent.

The manufacturer’s PIP II package includes the PIP I elements, plus a half-inch increase in fan diameter, optimized outlet guide vanes, a high-flow booster

(for increased thrust), improved high-pressure compressor (HPC) aerodynamics, as well as better combustor and high-pressure turbine durability, said the program manager.

The PIP II-enhanced engine has been approved for operation at 78,000 pounds thrust, allowing GE (Hall 4 Stand B7) to maximize its engineering capability

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GEnx-2B Improvements

In mid-June, the GEnx-2B had recorded 110,000 engine hours in the air during some 23,000 flights. There were 80 engines in service on 16 B747-8 Freighters–flown by Atlas Air, Cargolux, Cathay Pacific, Korean Air and Volga Dnepr– the single Lufthansa passenger variant and three corporate models, which were in completion centers being fitted out.

The PIP for the GEnx-2B powering the 747-8 has followed a similar pattern to the -1B packages, with improvements to fan and turbine aerodynamics and the engine core, which is similar to that of the -1B. The two engines enjoy 80-percent line-replaceable unit and 90-percent tooling commonality. Specifically different PIP elements on the -2B have been optimization of core “turbo machinery” arising from the engine’s smaller, 105-inch diameter fan (employing different blade-tip clearances) and of flow patterns through low-pressure systems.

Again, such considerations had meant “very subtle” changes resulting in claimed “significant improvements.” Nugent declined to comment on reports that Boeing has seen 747-8 fuel burn one percent better than expected at this point in the program, results it had not expected for another two years. o

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32 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

for future requirements. According to Nugent, a significant part of the PIP II gains has arisen from the better HPC aerodynamics, which follows an airfoil re-design based on all the test data GE has accrued.

By mid-June some 70 percent of PIP II testing had been completed and initial results had been “positive.” There had been 37 flights on GE’s 747 testbed and recent trials had included largebird ingestion. A core engine test to validate aeromechanical changes was completed in May. Further use of the flying testbed covers performance optimization of the GEnx-1B PIP II package and, separately, aerial trials next year of the -2B PIP changes.

GE has been “very active” in building engines for endurance block tests or flight trials, and it was expecting to complete PIP II emissions testing by the end of June.

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A GKN technician performs welding work on a 787 exhaust plug. The company recently won a contract to supply Boeing with complex machined titanium and aluminum parts and assemblies for the 787-9’s horizontal stabilizer.

GKN plays the technology card in growing aerostructures battleground

by Ian Sheppard Last month’s breakthrough in winning a contract to supply Boeing with complex machined titanium and aluminum parts and assemblies for the horizontal ­ stabilizer of the new 787-9 Dreamliner widebody is the prime example of GKN Aerospace’s recent success in keeping its backlog buoyant. The UK-based group has also sought to maintain a healthy balance between civil and military work, as evidenced by its commencing manufacture of titanium structures for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II fighter at its main factory at Filton near Bristol in May. At a press briefing several weeks ahead of the 2012 Farnborough International Airshow, Marcus

Bryson, president and CEO of GKN Aerospace, told reporters that “all four divisions of GKN are at or near record profits” and sales are up 13 percent, to £6 billion, of which aerospace accounts for around 24 percent. He said its strategic move into more civil programs at a time when defense spending is squeezed has paid off so far.

GKN has seven key product families: flying surfaces, nacelles and pylons, engine structures, engine “rotatives,” transparencies and coatings, plus protection systems. Geographically, the company is still “dominated by Europe, at 47 percent,” said Bryson, although it hopes to exploit new aircraft program opportunities in emerging markets.

Priorities for the business

are “safety, technology and customers,” said Bryson, who has also “deliberately” tried to make the work “very extensive and diverse.” He pointed to Dassault Aviation and Bell Helicopter as examples of new Blue Chip OEM clients added in the previous 12 months.

The company’s core activities are the design and manufacture of structural components for large commercial aircraft (primarily the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350XWB) and military aircraft, such as the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. “We have a strong order book,” said Bryson, “and this is pretty well underpinned by the strong order book of the primes.”

Mike McCann, senior v-p business development and

What Does It Take To Keep Aerospace Work In The UK?

GKN has established a strong specialization in aero engines, supplying, for example, parts such as this composite fan blade.

Despite its recent successes, GKN hasn’t had everything its own way.

In December 2011, it lost out to Korea Aerospace Industries for some wing structures work for Airbus A320s. According to then Airbus chief executive Thomas Enders, the European airframer opted to send the work to Korea for “purely competitive reasons,” and, in January, he stated that “GKN did not make the upmost effort to come up with a competitive offer.”

GKN didn’t respond at the time, but at a press briefing in May it hinted that they might not have been competing on an entirely level playing field in trying to win the contract. “Our strategy was to leverage a large UK solution,” said Mike McCann, senior v-p business development and strategy. “We knew it was going to be challenging as the Koreans were very open about wanting to bring technology in and they have strong government backing.”

So does that mean that the UK government gives insufficient backing to firms like GKN? McCann acknowledged contributions such as an interest-bearing loan of approximately $93 million toward the new composites Western Approach factory (see box on page 36). He also praised government support for a new UK aerodynamics center. “But the UK should think more like Japan, Korea, Singapore or the U.S.,” he concluded, suggesting that these countries have a more integrated strategy for boosting their aerospace industries. –I.S.

34 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

strategy, said that GKN’s Filton facility had seen work for three new customers: Dassault (structure for its proposed new super-midsize aircraft), Bombardier (CSeries control surfaces) and on Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter. GKN also collaborates closely with companies such as Wichita-based Spirit Aerosystems (work on the 787-9 for the Section 41 floor assembly) and Triumph, which GKN also uses as a supplier for various items, such as F-15 sheet metal.

Five years ago the company’s main focus was “mainly military,” but this has shifted “from around 58 percent to around 42 percent now,” said Bryson.

“Three to four years from now, 70 percent will be civil.”

Specialization in Aero Engines

GKN also has established a strong specialization in aero engines; for example, supplying titanium honeycomb inner core fairings to Rolls-Royce (see box below). According to Bryson, the company won this contract by offering niche technology, “which was unique because it replaced a piece of composite.”

It also has taken to partnering with aircraft and engine manufacturers to be more than just an ordinary Tier One supplier.

“I think of us as ‘super Tier One,’” he added.

Content on some airframe

platforms is very significant–led by the A380 with $8 million per shipset and C-17 with $7 million. This makes it worthwhile for GKN to have its own team partly integrated with the OEM client and the customer’s manufacturing plant.

The 787 is currently ramping up in terms of production rates and Bryson commented that, “once it hits $8- to $10 million that’ll have quite a significant effect on our business.”

Looking to the future, China’s Comac C919 is one of the new airliner programs with which GKN wants to be involved.

“We are working hard with Comac to form a joint venture,” said Bryson.

GKN is always eager to exploit potential technological edges, and new civil aircraft programs that are racing to drive operating costs down are perfect outlets for such ambitions.

According to technology director Rich Oldfield, there are plenty of opportunities for GKN to demonstrate its technological prowess, such as further developments of the 787 family, the A350XWB program, the new A320neo narrowbody, enhancements to the A380, as well as Boeing 737 MAX and the proposed 777X. He also cited Embraer and Mitsubishi as examples of originators of new platforms requiring technology differentiators. “We are preparing for a step-change with the next-generation narrowbodies,” he said. “We need to prepare now, especially if it includes ‘disruptive technologies.’”

Bryson said that having technology is the key to

Continued on page 36 u

Composites Aren’t Always the Answer Rolls-Royce turned to GKN for help in alleviating service-life limitations caused by harsh heat and environmental conditions inside some of its engines. GKN’s engineers considered the problem very carefully and, somewhat unusually these days, concluded that the answer didn’t lie with advanced composite materials.

What GKN proposed was a new titanium honeycomb design for engine core fairings that deliver a service life of around five to six years. “It gives a long life cycle and can handle 25 percent higher temperatures, so it doesn’t need the surface treatments that composites do,” explained Mike McCann, senior v-p business development and strategy. “It also is weight neutral and has overall system benefits for the OEM.” GKN also has established

a strong specialization in aero engines, for example, supplying titanium honeycomb inner core fairings to Rolls-Royce. ­A ccording to Bryson, it won this contract by offering niche technology, “which was unique because it replaced a piece of composite.” The company is now exploring other applications for the same materials and design combination.

“If you’re not careful, you get tunnel vision that composites can solve anything,” commented GKN CEO Marcus Bryson. “This [new design] shows that this is not always the case. As a business, we have deliberately–perhaps belatedly–focused on metallics, as well. We need to ensure that we have the right technologies in both areas.” –I.S.

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GKN plays the technology card uContinued from page 34

sustainable business yields and to create such technology the company has trebled research spending over the past two years. One new technology Oldfield highlighted is “waffle skin” for winglets, and another is microwave curing for composites. “We try to position ourselves at the higher end of complexity,” said Bryson, “as if you don’t have the technology, there is huge pressure to commoditize what we do…we get primes coming to us, recognizing we have something they don’t have and they want access to. Pratt & Whitney is a recent example.”

On the military side, the company remains committed and has “created a legal structure in the U.S. that enables us to play in bigger, newer programs, including ‘black’ programs.” The military program opportunities listed by Bryson in his presentation include heavy-lift assault/transport rotorcraft (CH-53K), the NewGen (T-X) trainer, UCLASS carrier-based UAV, Armed Aerial/Joint Multirole Helicopter and a mooted long-range strike mission aircraft. However, McCann said that with so many new programs being delayed for budgetary reasons, the emphasis would be on upgrades. “[For example], JSF moving to the right means more F-18s and we do $3 million on each aircraft,” he concluded.

“We will look carefully at which aircraft are likely to have longevity.” o

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GKN Opens Advanced Composite Wing Center The opening in late April of GKN Aerospace’s manufacturing and assembly facility for composite wing structures at Bristol in the UK represents a $270 million investment that the company believes will see it significantly boost its presence in this sector over the next 30 to 40 years. The new 333,000-sq-ft facility is primarily dedicated to making wing spars for the new

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A robot drills an Airbus A350XWB end spar at GKN’s Western Approach manufacturing facility.

Airbus A350XWB airliner, but it is also producing spares for the A400M military transport.

The new Western Approach factory is just a few miles from GKN’s Filton facility, where it makes wing structures for the A320, wing trailing edges for the A380 and flap components for the A330. It has introduced a new level of automation, both in the manufacturing of the carbon fiber wing structures at rates that are up to 10 times faster than hand-laid structures and also in the assembly phase with a new moving-line architecture. GKN produces the six rear spars for the A350 wings.

The automated facility assembles the wing fixed trailing edge parts to the rear spars before the completed 89-foot units are delivered to the Airbus wing factory at Broughton in the northwest of the UK. The moving line uses automated guided vehicles to bring the wing structures through the various stages of assembly, where complex tasks such as five-axis machining, robotic drilling and laser scanning are conducted.

The A350XWB is due to enter service in 2014 and the program currently is backed by 555 orders. When full production rates are reached (around 2016) it anticipates producing 13 shipsets per month. By then, the new plant expects to be employing 450 people–up from 300 staff today. –I.S.

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GKN’s Western Approach manufactures composite wing structures for several Airbus models. The automated facility in Bristol houses a moveable assembly jig in a five-axis machining workstation.

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36 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

3-D woven composites lighten fan blades, cases The aero-acoustic geometry fan blades, fan case and several other parts of CFM International’s Leap engine series will be the first major engine application of a new technology, 3-D woven composites. The process was pioneered by Albany Engineering Composites (AEC), a U.S. company that has teamed with CFM parent company Snecma and has granted the French engine maker exclusivity for its process (for propulsion applications) for the life of the Leap program. With more than 3,600 Leap series engines on the order books, “This is the fastest, steepest ramp-up by far in the history of the aircraft engine industry,” said AEC president and CEO Joseph Morone.

AEC started more than 100 years ago specializing in making industrial papermaking machinery. The belts that carry wet paper slurry through the process required a highly durable yet porous material, and AEC developed looms that wove a strong fabric mesh.

miles of the carbon twists are required for each engine’s 18 fan blades and the fan case, offering the finished blade strength and durability at approximately half the weight of the comparable blade in titanium, and the case one-third the weight of similar aluminum part. That allows the Leap designers to use larger fan blades, which produce a higher by-pass ratio. The jacquard looms can weave in different thicknesses in a single part; in the case of a fan blade thicker at the root, thinner at the tip, making a three dimensional carbon matrix that will not delaminate as blades made from bonded sheets of composite are susceptible to doing.

Stronger and Lighter

Each blade takes more than 24 hours to complete, the bulk of time spent waiting for resin to cool and solidify. Upon completion, the composition of the blade is approximately 60 percent carbon fiber and 40 percent resin. According to CFM,

The technology of 3-D woven composites was born a century ago in paper mills.

Modern applications include engine fan blades, fan cases, landing gear and more.

A dozen years ago, Snecma scientists began exploring the idea of adapting the technology to create carbon fiber engine components. Today, the fan blades and fan casing on the Leap engine are woven from carbon fiber using huge industrial looms using a proprietary process similar to that used by AEC for its paper slurry belts.

The continuously spooling process weaves twists of up to 48,000 carbon fibers–each thinner than a human hair–in three dimensions. More than 200

the blades are expected to last the life of the engine with little maintenance required due to their extremely high damage resistance. For the fan case, a roll of the specially woven fabric is wound around a form or mandrel and quickly takes shape.

It is then enclosed in a mold, treated with resin and baked in the same way as the blades.

Based on the use of the new components, CFM claims a resulting savings of 1,000 pounds per aircraft compared with similar sized engines using

DAVID McINTOSH

by Curt Epstein

farnborough means business Business aviation has long been a vital element of the Farnborough International airshow, and this year’s edition carries on the tradition. The global sales strategy for business jets, such as these three display models from Canada’s Bombardier, has shifted toward new markets in light of the changing world economy.

metal components. Though composite engine parts are not new, those fabricated with this new process promise to raise the technology to a higher level. “We are nowhere near seeing how much this technology can transform the engine,” said Vincent Garnier, Snecma’s vice president of research and technology.

The process is also currently used to produce some components used on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner’s landing gear and the manufacturers say it could be used to eventually produce larger blades for engines such as the GE90.

While initial production on the blades and fan casings is currently being conducted at AEC’s plant in New Hampshire, last month Safran broke ground on a factory of its own, just down the road. The new 210,000-sq-ft facility will be completed late next year and production is scheduled to begin there in early 2014.

A similar plant in France will open a year later. Each plant will employee 400 workers (an even split between Snecma and AEC) and once production ramps up fully by 2019, will combined produce 32,000 fan blades and nearly 1,800 fan casings a year, enough to satisfy the projected annual production rates for the engine. o AINonline iPhone App NOW AVAILABLE

New hydrogen fuel cells could triple UAV endurance

by Bill Carey L2 Aerospace and Cella Energy have teamed up to develop hydrogen storage technology for small, fuel-cell-powered unmanned aircraft systems and potentially other, larger manned and unmanned vehicles. The companies are displaying a mockup of a concept design here at the Farnborough International airshow (Hall 3 Stand B25).

In March, Cape Canaveral, Florida-based L2 Aerospace received an Aerovironment RQ-11 Raven UAV on loan from the U.S. government to use as a demonstrator for the hydrogen storage project. The hand-launched Raven is powered by a lithium-ion battery and has an endurance of 60 to 90 minutes. L2’s initial goal is to provide three times the duration of lithium ion batteries using a hydrogen fuel cell that converts chemical energy into electricity, and Cella’s hydrogen storage technology.

Nick Gritti, L2 Aerospace president of intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR) and flight systems, said the company would modify an existing fuel cell for the Raven demonstration. Cella Energy plans to have hydrogen storage material operating in the UAV by early 2013, followed by flight-testing later in the year, said Kevin Brundish,

chief operating officer.

Cella Energy is a spin-off company of the UK government’s Rutherford Appleton Laboratories (RAL), formed last year to commercialize complex hydride materials developed by the RAL labs between 2007 and 2011. The company has a U.S. location at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The lead investor in Cella Energy is Space Florida, an independent special district in Florida created to foster the growth of the state’s space industry.

Cella’s technology provides a way to “nanostructure and encapsulate” chemical compounds containing hydrogen.

The company’s hydrogen storage materials can be stored at ambient temperatures and pressures and packaged for space-constrained applications. Storing hydrogen now requires either high-pressure cylinders or supercooled liquids.

L2 Aerospace was established in 2010 by U.S. Air Force General (Ret.) Lance Lord.

The company is co-developer of the Instant Eyes hand-held, rocket-launched UAV. The vehicle is propelled to approximately 2,500 feet above ground level and provides high-resolution imagery, GPS and metadata within 20 seconds of launch, according to L2. o

www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 37

by David Donald European missile house MBDA unveiled the results of its latest Concept Visions initiative yesterday: the CVS301 Vigilus. This concept seeks to define a system that could provide manned and unmanned aircraft with on-demand effects from around 2035.

Now in its third year, MBDA’s Concept Visions process involves inviting novel concepts and ideas from around the company. These are brought together into a single conceptual project that could provide the basis for future development.

User experience from MBDA’s customers is a key factor in driving these concepts.

This year weaponization of UAVs is the subject. One of the key objectives is to increase the standoff range of UAVs in all conditions, therefore increasing their survivability. Another objective is to provide increased proportionality of response, and to reduce the command chain so that troops on the ground can engage multiple targets. Other aims of the system are to provide flexible modes of operation, and to allow operators to stay in continuous contact with the target.

Initiated in January, this year’s Concept Visions initiative drew 170 responses, resulting in the Vigilus system revealed here at the show. The CVS301 comprises three main elements: the Armatus integrated communications and launcher; the Caelus persistent target identification and tracking missile; and the Gladius lightweight missile.

At the heart of the Vigilus weapon system is the Armatus

smart launcher. Weighing 77 kilograms, the launcher attaches to the air vehicle with a standard Mil Std 1760 interface through which it only needs to draw positional information from the carrier platform.

The Armatus system does not intrude into that of the carrier, as all other weapons links are contained internally. Onboard mission planning is performed within the launcher, which also provides a link between ground operators and the other elements of the system, such as Caelus and weapons.

Armatus offers a 300-kilogram payload and is intended to carry a variety of weapon types for mission flexibility. The concept envisions that weapons are held in simple clamps that can accommodate ordnance of various weights and body diameters.

This removes the need for traditional bale lugs and sway braces, and also drag-inducing attachments on the weapons themselves. All connection between launcher and weapon, carrying data and power, would be handled wirelessly.

Smart Tracker

Another key element of CVS301 is the Caelus vehicle. Weighing around 100 kilograms, the vehicle would be dropped from the Armatus.

Folding wings of around two meters span and an electric ducted fan (EDF) engine would give an endurance of about two hours. It would carry a sensor suite that includes visible and uncooled long-wave IR capability, plus laser designator. The EDF offers very low infrared

The Gladius is a lightweight missile concept to complement MBDA’s Vigilus system. It is meant to incorporate a multi-mode one-kilogram warhead to minimize collateral damage.

and noise signatures, and a good speed range.

The operational concept for the Caelus is for it to be dropped by the UAV (or manned platform) to go in closer to the target than is possible with larger vehicles. It can also go under the cloudbase to maintain persistent contact, removing one of the constraints that hampers current UAV operations. Although primarily intended for ISTAR purposes, the Caelus is also envisioned with a small payload bay that could accommodate a one-kilogram warhead. So armed, the Caelus could be used for immediate attack against ultra-critical targets. An alternative payload for the bay could be small unmanned ground vehicles, or unattended ground sensors, that can be seeded into the target area.

Lightweight Weapon

While the Armatus launcher is planned to handle many weapon types, MBDA has designed a weapon that would be ideal for application to the Vigilus system. Known as Gladius, the missile weighs seven kilograms and has a 44-centimeter wing span, its foldout wings having upturned winglets for greater aerodynamic efficiency. It is essentially a subsonic glide weapon, but has a rocket booster for initial launch to give a range of around 30 kilometers.

Low collateral damage effect is a key driver in the design of the Gladius, and it is envisioned with a multimode, in-flight-programmable one-kilogram warhead with explosively formed projectile or directed fragment effects. Guidance would be by a multi-global navigation satellite system with anti-jamming technology, and terminal precision provided by a low-cost strap-down dual-mode sensor with visual/near-IR and semiactive laser guidance.

One of the benefits of the Concept Visions program is to identify technology areas where further work is needed, and to help customers shape future weapon systems requirements. Last year’s program, the CVS401 Perseus anti-ship/ deep-strike concept, has already spurred some UK MoD development work. Regarding the Vigilus, two key areas where development is being focused are further sensor work and the electric ducted fan. Low-level work on EDFs is already under way as part of a joint UK MoD/ French DGA program. o

38 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

MARK WAGNER

MBDA unveils Vigilus to extend UAV capability

yak is a tough teacher Irkut’s Yak-130 jet has started life as a jet trainer, but can also carry plenty of fire power for light-attack roles (see page 18).

Canada’s aerospace firms cluster for regional growth

by Richard Gardner This year’s Canadian aerospace presence at Farnborough is larger than ever, with nearly 130 organizations attending. Although some companies have their own stands, the national pavilion (Canadian Pavilion, Hall 4 Stand C17-19), one of the largest at the show, reflects the diversity of the country’s aerospace and defense sector and, in particular, the capabilities of its regional clusters.

Many of the companies responsible for delivering specialized products and services, as well as innovative SMEs anxious to expand, have been able to take advantage of the attractive business investment environment created by the regional governments and trade promotion agencies.

One example of what is being done is Aero Montreal, which has launched its “Mach” initiative designed to optimize the performance of Quebec’s aerospace supply chain and to increase its global competitiveness.

Across the country, the Western Canada Aerospace & Defence Industries clusters are working in partnership with Western Economic Diversification, with the support of the governments of British Columbia, Manitoba, Alberta and Saskatchewan, to exploit the region’s abundant resources, low costs and conditions, which are ideal for research, test and evaluation activities. Another advantage is their close proximity to U.S. aerospace companies.

Lucie Boily, v-p policy and competitiveness at the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC), pointed out that the Canadian aerospace sector achieved manufacturing revenues of $23.2 billion last year,

with exports worth over $17 billion, ranking it number five in the world. Some 84.3 percent of revenue came through civil sales and 15.7 percent from military work.

Retaining the level of research and development and capital investment in the sector at a time of global uncertainty is regarded as a national strength, and Canada’s booming economy has allowed this to increase slightly to $2 billion. The location of the aerospace clusters within Canada is partly historical, grouped close to the major aircraft manufacturing and maintenance, repair and overhaul centers, but they are increasingly expanding around new centers of excellence in specialist areas of activity, such as composite structures, space and unmanned air vehicles, and also where high quality academic facilities are located.

The regional aerospace clusters are focused on Quebec (51.9 percent), Ontario (28.9 percent), West Canada (13.6 percent) and Atlantic Alliance (5.6 percent). The Atlantic region, comprising Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, has seen much progress in developing specialist products from SMEs which are now winning contracts from global aerospace manufacturers, helped by their ability to exploit the investment incentives which assist growth. As well as tier-one and -two suppliers, new technology products and services are emerging, especially in the fields of computerized design and advanced manufacturing processes. Appropriately, many of the cluster companies have booths alongside, or close by, their trade association and government stands. o

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right attitude/right approach/right alongside

by Ian Goold Italy’s Aero Sekur (Hall 4 Stand B8) is promoting its safety systems and advanced flexible material products here this week. It is highlighting the establishment of a new Genoa-based subsidiary, Sekur Sistemi, for the design and production of nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) filtration and air-conditioning units for military and other applications, including aerospace. The company will also develop ground-support equipment; in particular, cooling and environmental-control units.

Aero Sekur said the new

company reinforces its commitment to supporting global aerospace in the supply of inflatable maintenance enclosures providing environmental and NBC protection.

The group has extended its controlled-atmosphere maintenance shelter service to incorporate inflatable beams, collective protection and air conditioning. Flexible fabric construction is said to ensure rapid deployment and avoid aircraft damage while offering an optimum temperature and a humidity-controlled atmosphere suitable for

Italian company Aero Sekur has launched a new company to design and manufacture inflatable, environmentally secure maintenance structures for the military.

Rostvertol’s Mi-26T2 aimed at Russia, India

by David Donald Rostvertol, the Russian Helicopters subsidiary, is currently testing a modernized version of the world’s most powerful helicopter–the Mi-26 Halo–and is hoping that Russia will buy the new version after a current order for 15 Mi-26Ts has been fulfilled. It is also hoping that India may also choose the new model to fulfill its outstanding requirement for heavy-lifters.

Known as the Mi-26T2, the new version of the heavy-lifter was developed in cooperation with the Moscow-based Mil Helicopter Plant. It has modern systems that allow the basic crew complement to be reduced from five to two (a third crewmember is required if under-slung loads are carried). A five-screen glass cockpit is installed and a new navigation system with GPS (Navstar and Glonass), inertial and Doppler elements is fitted, allowing IFR and airways flight around the world.

For monitoring under-slung loads, the Mi-26T2 has a BTU-3

TV camera for daytime use, providing imagery on a multifunction display in the cockpit. A TSL-1600 projector provides visual illumination for nighttime use, and has an infrared mode for use with night-vision goggles. Other improvements include cockpit air conditioning and cabin heating, while the Mi-26T2 retains the legendary 20-ton lifting capability of the current production version.

when repairs involve resins or advanced surface treatments. It has supplied an inflatable maintenance enclosure to Northrop Grumman for field repairs to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, for example.

Aero Sekur has also announced that it has entered the detailed design and spacequalification phase for the recovery system of the European Space Agency’s Intermediate Experimental Vehicle (IXV), which comprises four floats to provide buoyancy and stability following splashdown.

The group also is developing structural health-monitoring equipment as an alternative to fiber-optic systems for rapid and effective nondestructive testing of composite structures. On-board aircraft sensors will identify airframe/component strain and monitor structural status.

A handbook on helicopter safety and survival products is available at the company’s stand.

At the end of the show, there will be a drawing for a Star Max F35 RC model fighter. o recovered successfully on October 27. The eight-metric-ton Ka-27 was lifted out in one piece the next day, from the lower altitude of 11,500 feet.

Rostvertol’s other main line of business is the production of Mi-28N and Mi-35M gunships.

The Mi-28N Night Hunter, known to NATO as Havoc-B, is

Helos Saving Helos

Late last year the Mi-26T’s power was put to an extreme test while recovering three helicopters (Mi-8AMTSh, Robinson R-44 and Kamov Ka-27) from Mount Elbrus. Seven world records were set during this operation. The most ambitious project was the recovery of the Mi-8 from an unprecedented altitude of 15,800 feet. The downed helicopter was dismantled into sections, the largest of which was the fuselage, weighing three metric tons. This was

40 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

yanking and banking over farnborough

You don’t usually get to see airliners pirouetting through the sky in steep banks and sharp pull-ups. With full loads of passengers and fuel, the maneuvers you see during the daily aerial displays would probably land the pilots in the unemployment line. But for airshow display crews, those rules don’t apply, and we all get to enjoy the results.

being built at the rate of around 12 per year for the Russian air force to slowly replace the Mi-24 Hind. More than 50 have been produced and are in service with the army aviation training center at Torzhok, plus independent helicopter regiments at Budenovsk, Korenovsk and Vyazma.

In April the display team Berkut

The world’s most powerful helicopter, the Russian Mi-26T, was tested last year when it recovered three disabled helicopters from Mount Elbrus.

(Eagles) began flying Mi-28Ns in place of Mi-24/35s. Rostvertol and Mil are planning to launch a modernized Mi-28NM version in the near future.

Rostvertol is offering the Night Hunter for export as the Mi-28NE, and the type has been linked with a number of potential customers, including Algeria and Venezuela. The latter apparently ordered 10 in 2010, but no contract seems to have been signed. In February three Mi28s were reported delivered to the Kenyan air force’s 50th Air Cavalry Division, with another 13 reportedly to follow, primarily for operations alongside Harbin Z-9WEs against Al Shabaab forces along the Somali border.

Meanwhile, the older Hind design continues to be improved, and is still popular in the export market. The Mi-35M is the latest version of this old warrior, brought up to date by incorporating the combat systems and VK-2500 engines from the Mi-28N. It also features new composite main rotor blades of redesigned profile, and an X-shaped tail rotor. The 9K113K anti-tank missile system can fire up to eight 9M114 Shturm or 9M120 Ataka-V missiles, the latter also forming the primary armament of the Mi-28N. o

MARK WAGNER

Aero Sekur launches new business

Thales preps for Avant IFE arrival

by Charles Alcock Thales’s in-flight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) division has opened a new facility close to London Heathrow Airport. The new premises will be the base for its sales and marketing operations in the UK and Ireland, but will also be the base for its maintenance, repair and onboard services team covering Europe and Africa.

The decision to relocate to Heathrow is partly driven by the opportunity to be close to so many airline customers operating through the hub airport.

More specifically, it is linked to Thales’s strategic relationship with British Airways (BA), which has been built on the carrier’s 2008 decision to invest in the Thales TopSeries IFEC system for its new fleet.

In 2011, this relationship was extended to a component repair agreement through which BA (now part of the International Airlines Group, also including Iberia) will repair Thales IFE equipment for both its own fleet and those of other carriers. This work is done at BA’s engineering facility in Llantrisant in Wales.

Meanwhile, Thales is completing development of its newgeneration, lightweight Avant IFE systems, which are due to enter service on Qatar Airways A380s at the end of 2013.

These systems will feature the new touch passenger media unit (TouchPMU)–a smartphone-like device through which passengers can control their connectivity and entertainment options, as well as order drinks and meals.

All of this can be done without disturbing the content on Avant’s seatback displays. TouchPMU is to enter service on Qatar’s 787 by the end of August and will be used to control the existing Thales i8000 IFE system.

Thales IFEC chief executive Alan Pellegrini said Avant will give airlines a higher level of redundancy because up to 100 movies will be able to be stored in the seat units, as a backup in case the main server fails. Avant will come with up to 256GB of data storage capacity in each seat, but a more typical allocation for many airlines will be 64GB. Also due to enter service next year is Thales’s new AVA wireless streaming solution, which will allow video and other content to be streamed onto passengers’ wireless devices. The company is also working on new

features such as gesture-controls to allow premium-fare passengers to control IFEC by simply pointing at their displays.

Thales believes the IFEC market will increase in annual

Thales’s touch passenger media unit (TouchPMU) is a smartphone-like device that allows passengers to control their connectivity and entertainment, as well as order drinks and meals.

value from $2.9 billion this year to over $7.4 billion in 2022.

“Passenger growth is driving competition between airlines [to provide superior IFEC service],” said Pellegrini. o

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www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 41

Gipps readies GA10 utility single for 2013

by Mark Huber GippsAero (Hall 1 Stand D2) is currently flight-testing its new $1.3 million GA10 turboprop single and anticipates certification by May 2013. Because so much of the GA10 is based on the current GA8 piston-powered Airvan, the Australian company’s marketing manager, Mark McNamara, expects an expeditious certification program using one or two aircraft.

“We’re excited to have the aircraft flying and headed toward certification,” he said.

Last summer Gipps announced that it would build a stretched turboprop version of the GA8 and that it would

expand its global sales and service footprint. The 10-passenger GA10 is powered by a 715-shp Rolls-Royce M250B17F/2 engine.

The GA10 will be certified on fixed gear and floats. Preliminary data indicates the aircraft will have a maximum takeoff weight of 4,450 pounds and be able to carry eight passengers with a full 500-gallon fuel load that delivers an endurance of approximately five hours at 150 knots.

The aircraft will be built at the Gipps Latrobe factory in Victoria, Australia. McNamara said work also is continuing

GippsAero’s $1.3 million GA10 turboprop single is currently undergoing flight tests. The company anticipates certification by May 2013.

on the GA18 twin turboprop now targeted for certification in 2014. That aircraft is based on the N24 Nomad. “But right now, our focus is on the GA10,” McNamara said.

Multi-Role Missions

Market interest in the aircraft has been strong, especially from skydiving clubs and “budgetconscious governments” that are interested in the GA10 for tactical use, including observation,

surveillance, re-supply and personnel drops, he added.

To accommodate the wide range of possible missions, Gipps is developing a variety of interior configurations: skydiving, aerial survey, aerial surveillance, freight and passenger, including an “executive style” option, among others, McNamara said.

Gipps is currently building its worldwide dealer and service network and plans to announce

Boeing preps 737 ecoDemonstrator for first flight

by Gregory Polek A specially configured Boeing 737-800 meant to test some of the airframe maker’s most promising new technologies now sits at Boeing Field in Seattle, where crews prepare to install experimental systems that could appear in service as early as 2017 on the 737 MAX. Just off Boeing’s narrowbody assembly line in Renton, Washington, the 737 “ecoDemonstrator” will carry no fewer than five separate developments, including an adaptive wing trailing edge meant to morph into an optimum shape during takeoff, climb, cruise and decent. The device works with an actuator that can deflect the last 4 percent of the airfoil up or down, thereby cutting fuel burn by making the wing more aerodynamically efficient and reducing takeoff noise by improving the airplane’s climb performance.

“The key for us is finding out a way to create an actuation system that is very light and efficient because these are very small devices,” ecoDemonstrator program manager David Akiyama explained to AIN. “There’s lots of different ways you can actuate it, so there are some systems that would actuate depending on the temperature, but you can also use electromechanical actuators or hydraulic actuators.”

Using standard aluminum alloy, engineers will modify a spare trailing edge to use in the

demonstrator and bolt it onto the wing box. Once complete with testing, Boeing will simply remove the test part and replace it with the 737-800’s original trailing edge for delivery to the airplane’s eventual operator, American Airlines, explained Akiyama.

The airfoil technology–partially funded by a $25 million matching cost contract as part of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration’s continuous lower energy emissions noise (CLEEN) program–won’t likely make its way onto the MAX, changes to which Boeing wants to keep to a minimum. A more likely application, he said, would involve a new program or major derivative, such as the 777X. Active Engine Vibration Reduction

Another candidate for a MAX application centers on a technology under development to reduce engine vibration. The system, called active engine vibration reduction, senses imbalances caused by rotating turbomachinery in the engine and applies a counterforce–using a principle similar to that found in noise-canceling headsets–to cancel vibration that would otherwise make its way into the cabin and produce noise. “That’s a technology that you can retrofit to existing airplanes or apply to a brand-new airplane,” said Akiyama.

In the ecoDemonstrator’s

cockpit, a system called flight trajectory optimization incorporates a broadband satellite antenna, a so-called onboard networking system–or data backbone–and a system similar to a wireless network router to enable broadband communication both within the airplane and between the airplane and the ground.

The bandwidth such a system would carry could allow for transmission of real-time weather information to a wireless device such as an iPad in the cockpit, allowing pilots to immediately re-route around thunderstorms or turbulence, for example.

An engine-related advance slated for testing on the ecoDemonstrator involves a fan nozzle that can open and close to allow for as much as a 10-percent variation in exhaust area. “Just like the adaptable trailing edges morph the wing to optimize for all flight conditions, the variablearea fan nozzle optimizes itself for takeoff, for landing and for cruise,” said Akiyama. “Most of the designs that are fixed geometry are a compromise. When you’re able to move geometry you can actually optimize it for each of those conditions.”

By opening the nozzle area during takeoff, for example, the fan won’t have to spin as fast to generate the same amount of thrust. The resulting decrease in jet velocity reduces noise and increases fuel efficiency.

00 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com 42

Also slated for testing on the ecoDemonstrator, a regenerative fuel cell developed in partnership with Japan’s IHI likely wouldn’t appear in a large-scale application until after the turn of the decade.

The technology involves the conversion of hydrogen into electricity that, on an airplane, could power systems independent of engine-driven generators, allowing for smaller, lighter power-generation systems.

Basic Lessons

“This is taking technology that is much lower in maturity,” said Akiyama. “So we’re going to learn some very basic lessons on hydrogen handling, on coupling a fuel cell to the power systems of an airplane. But in terms of the actual hardware and technology being ready for application, we’re still many years away.”

Schedules call for the ecoDemonstrator to remain at Boe­ ing Field for some 45 days, then travel to Glasgow, Montana, on or about August 18 for 30 days of intensive flight testing, flying as many hours as needed to complete the project.

Next year, Boeing plans to test ceramic matrix composite acoustic engine nozzles on a widebody airplane, most likely a 787 Dreamliner. Each year thereafter it plans to deploy a different platform to test still more advanced systems. o

GippsAero test pilot Tony Morris and flight-test engineer Gerhard Jordaan were at the controls of the Rolls-Royce 250-powered GA10–during its maiden flight on May 1.

the appointment of additional authorized representatives in the U.S., Canada, Europe and other markets throughout the remainder of the year. In the U.S., the company is hoping to add seven more dealers. McNamara thinks the GA10 will do particularly well in Canada as a replacement for aging, piston-engine aircraft.

He sees Europe as a more difficult market, but one with still plenty of potential.

“It’s similar to the U.S., although market conditions are not quite as favorable in Europe,” commented McNamara. “There are more restrictions on aircraft in Europe and the operational opportunities are more limited than in the U.S. and other places. It’s difficult to finance aircraft in Europe at the moment, but we are still getting sales there and we certainly intend to expand our market there.”

European skydiving clubs have expressed strong interest in the GA10 because of its low acquisition and operating costs, he said. “It’s less expensive than a [Cessna] Caravan and has a lower fuel burn than a Pilatus Porter.”

McNamara predicted that the company’s piston-powered, $699,000 GA8 Airvan likely will see increased sales in Europe once the company completes certification of a new, quieter composite propeller being developed by Germany’s MT. “Without noise solutions you are not going to get additional sales in Europe,” he said.

Flight tests on the propeller began in June and certification should be completed by year’s end. McNamara thinks the new propeller will reduce the aircraft’s noise signature by some 6 to 8 dB. He estimates the cost to retrofit existing GA8s with the new prop at $13,000. o

Mississippi is becoming a major aerospace player

Rolls-Royce broke ground last month on an engine test facility at NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. It will be used for research and development on all civil aerospace engines.

by Mark Huber The southern U.S. state of Mississippi is continuing to grow as an aerospace center, having recently announced major plant expansions by General Atomics’ Electromagnetic Systems group and Rolls-Royce. It is home to companies that produce helicopters, airborne early warning radar systems, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), parachutes, electromagnetic launch systems for aircraft carriers and composite jet engine components.

The roster of companies with aerospace operations based in Mississippi includes GE Aviation, Stark Aerospace, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Eaton Aerospace, Aurora Flight Systems, Alliant Technicsystems (ATK) and American Eurocopter. Most recently, Rolls-Royce built its first engine test facility outside of the UK in Mississippi adjacent to the Stennis Space Center. Among mid-size metropolitan markets, the state’s Gulf Coast region hosts one of the highest concentrations of avionics and aircraft maintenance personnel in the nation.

Beneficial new state tax laws and incentives could expand the sector there even more. Mississippi’s Aerospace Initiative Incentives program, gives tax incentives to companies that manufacture or assemble components for the aerospace industry; provide research, development or training services for the sector; and are looking to locate or expand in the state. The incentives include a 10-year exemption from income and franchise taxes, as well as a sales and use tax exemption for the startup of the facility. In order to qualify, companies must invest a minimum of $30 million and create at least 100 full-time jobs.

“The state of Mississippi invented economic development incentives back in the 1930s,” said Skip Scaggs, a senior executive with the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA, Hall 2 Stand A10), who cited one long-standing incentive: “We continue to fine-tune our economic

incentive packages to make sure we are offering what the market demands,” said Scaggs. “We do a lot of work on public infrastructure, providing pad-ready sites, so the companies need to focus only on building design and the equipment they need.

We also focus a lot of incentives on workforce skill sets so the workforce is able to perform productively on day one.”

A number of UAV makers have facilities in Mississippi. In Columbus, Aurora Flight Services produces its long-endurance Orion, left, while Stark Aerospace builds its medium-altitude, long-endurance Heron, above, in the same city.

American Eurocopter assembles the U.S. Army UH-72A Lakota and the AS350-B2 and -B3 in Columbus. The facility includes an assembly hall, flight line, paint shop, warehouse, administrative offices, flight operations and flight test engineering.

Discussions at last year’s Paris Air Show led to GE Aviation’s decision to construct a composite components facility in Mississippi. Scaggs also said that ATK will make composite stringers and frames for the Airbus A350 in Iuka. The deal is worth $1 billion and will result in a direct investment in Mississippi of $175 million and hundreds of new jobs.

University Involvement

Mississippi has a long history promoting aerospace and composites. The University of Southern Mississippi’s School of Polymers/Mississippi Polymer Institute focuses on the development of

high-performance composites and integrating them into production aircraft, Scaggs said. The first aircraft application of these materials is sometimes done at the Raspet Flight Research Laboratory at Mississippi State University in Starkville.

Founded in 1948, Raspet is the largest university flight lab in the U.S. and features a complete aircraft manufacturing facility and more than 90,000 sq ft.

Current projects under way at Raspet include development of a high-speed Vtol aircraft with DuPont Aerospace for the Office of Naval Research (ONR); development of composite helicopter hangar doors; evaluating the structural integrity of composite structures at high temperatures; and, with Bosch Aerospace, developing a cycloidal propeller system (which generates thrust in any direction in the plane of propeller rotation) for lighter-than-air and Vtol aircraft. Other projects include the development of a

long-duration UAV for the Army, fabrication of a composite hydrogen fuel tank, testing ethanol in piston aircraft engines and damper-free rotor designs for helicopters.

Scaggs said Mississippi is well-positioned to take advantage of what could be a coming boom in the UAV market.

“We’re looking to establish a greater presence in that market.” He noted that the area around Pascagula “is one of only two areas within the national airspace system where the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration currently authorizes UAV flights” and that UAV players Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Aurora Flight Systems, Stark Aerospace and General Atomics already have facilities in the area. General Atomics makes the Predator UAV; its Mississippi facility is not concerned with UAV operations at this time, but rather with building launch systems for aircraft carriers, Scaggs said. o

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43 Farnborough Air Show News • July10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

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Ukraine and Russia team to revive Ruslan

by Vladimir Karnozov The anticipated signing of a government-to-government deal between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Victor Yanukovich, is expected to kick-start a plan to resume production of Antonov’s An-124 Ruslan freighter. The text of the agreement has already been prepared, outlining the envisaged roles for aerospace interests in both countries, but government backing for the program needs to be confirmed, not least because Russia’s defense ministry would effectively be the launch customer under the provisional plan.

Russian vice-premier Dmitry Rogozin recently outlined plans for the country’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC, Hall 1 Stand E8) to produce 60 new Ruslans by 2020 at its AviastarSP factory in Ulianovsk. The Russian government intends to seal its support for the revived

program with a defense ministry order for 10 of the new-build aircraft and a commitment to pay for 22 in-service Ruslans to be overhauled and refitted. On top of this, commercial airlines Volga-Dnepr and Polet have indicated an intention to buy, respectively, 40 and 6 An-124s.

According to Volga-Dnepr vice-president Valery Gabriel, the airline (see box) is expected to award UAC a contract for 20 An-124s, provided Russia’s defense ministry places its order first. The $4 billion contract would have an option for 20 more Ruslans, with deliveries running through 2030.

Polet general director Anatoly Karpov told AIN that the airline has an interest in buying Ruslans, but Russia’s antimonopoly laws prevent it from making a joint order with Volga-Dnepr, as it would prefer to do. Assuming Polet goes

Antonov’s An-124 Ruslan

through with its own purchase of six An-124s and VolgaDnepr and the Russian military confirm their orders, UAC would be very close to landing the 60-ship commitment it says is required to make the relaunched program viable.

Russia’s Ministry for Emergencies (Emercom) is considering a purchase of two new Ruslans at a price per airplane that the agency’s aviation chief, Gen. Rafael Zakirov, has estimated at $300 million. It is the relatively high unit price for the new Ruslans that has raised concerns about the project’s viability.

Meanwhile, Volga-Dnepr and Ukrainian design bureau Antonov (Hall 2 Stand C22) have yet to reach final agreement on technical specifications for the new Ruslan. Antonov is pushing for it to be based on the existing An-124-300 version with an extended fuselage, but VolgaDnepr prefers the An-124NG

44 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

with a fuselage similar to the earlier production models. But they both, along with the prospective airframer UAC, agree that the new Ruslan should offer the following: a glass cockpit; full compliance to current and upcoming environmental standards; the necessary avionics be able to fly in a congested airspace over the U.S. and Europe; and a service life extended from 50,000 to 70,000 flight hours.

Engine Battle

Also substantially agreed between Antonov and VolgaDnepr is the crucial choice of a new powerplant. The most likely choice, according to the airline’s technical director, Victor Tolmachev, would be an improved version of the D-18T turbofan to

be developed by Ukrainian aero engine companies Motor Sich (Hall 3 Stand B30) and Ivchenko Progress. But, also in contention is the new PD-30 geared turbofan being developed by Russia’s Kuznetsov.

In the first instance, what Motor Sich and Ivchenko have in mind is a Series 3M version of the D-18T featuring new cold and hot sections, a new digital control system, as well as noise and emissions performance that will be compliant with ICAO Chapter IV requirements.

At Moscow’s Engines 2012 exhibition in April, Motor Sich president Vyacheslav Boguslaev told AIN that he believes the Russian and Ukrainian governments will get behind the new Ruslan program. His company is ready to invest $62 million in developing a far more fuel-efficient D-18T Series 4 engine that would enable the

existing An-124 fuselage to greatly increase its range (with a 150-ton payload) from around 2,482 nm to almost 6,000 nm.

Further ahead, Motor Sich already sees the case for a completely new D-18T Series 5 turbofan. The Series 5 would have a fan diameter of around 10 feet and weigh 12,566 pounds, delivering 61,400 pounds of takeoff thrust (18,845 pounds in cruise) and specific fuel consumption (SFC) of 0.541 (pounds of fuel per hour per pound of thrust).

As the alternative engine choice for the Ruslan, the PD-30 offers greater takeoff thrust (65,000 pounds), but slightly lower thrust in cruise (up to 13,670 pounds). With a high-bypass ratio of between 7.65 and 8.7, SFC for the PD-30 is also low at between 0.535 and 0.548. The PD-30 weighs 1,235 pounds less than the D-18T. Its overall performance is reckoned

to be similar to that of RollsRoyce’s Trent series.

According to Kuznetsov– part of Russia’s United Engine Corporation–the PD-30 is a low-risk choice for the new Ruslan because it makes extensive use of off-the-shelf components and technologies proven on other projects. But it is not without innovation, such as a new

high-power gearbox between the fan and the turbine operating at efficiency levels of up to 99.6 percent; wide-chord, hollow (honeycomb) fan blades; a lowemission combustor; monocrystal blades; blisks in the high-pressure compressor and booster; a chevron-shaped nozzle; allcomposite nacelles, intakes and thrust reversers; and a Fadec.

The centerpiece of the PD-30 program is the use of a modified baseline gas-generator from the improved NK-32 engine that powers the Tupolev Tu-160 swing-wing strategic bomber. The use of a multi-fuel-injector-combustor has resulted in levels of nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide and HC being, respectively,

2, 10 and 15 times less than ICAO’s 2004 requirements.

Key technologies for the PD-30 come from the 33,000-hp unit developed for the An-70’s D-27 powerplant. Kuznetsov has issued manufacturing documentation for the PD-30, but says it needs another four or five years to mature the design for series production. o

New Ruslan’s Launch Airlines Count on Freight Growth Last year commercial airline Volga-Dnepr had revenues of $1.741 billion and generated a net profit of $59.3 million.

At the same time, its debts rose to $186 million and, by the company’s estimates, are expected to increase by a further $250to $300 million during 2012 as Volga-Dnepr borrows more capital money for its Boeing 747-8F acquisitions. The loans will also cover the construction of large hangars in Moscow, Ulianovsk and in the United Arab Emirates to be used for 747 maintenance.

Meanwhile, smaller airline Polet had to sell one of its existing Ruslans to UAC subsidiary Ilyushin Finance in 2011 and one more in 2012 to cover debts amassed with the lessor on the three Il-96-400T freighters and related maintenance services.

Both Ruslan operators hope for increase in their earning as the outsized cargo transportation market continues to revive.

Volga-Dnepr technical director Victor Tolmachev told AIN that each commercially flown Ruslan can operate more than 2,000 flight hours annually, which he said is a high work rate for charter operations. Higher earnings would need to come from higher charter rates, and the latest IATA traffic figures indicate softening demand in response to worldwide economic troubles. –V.K.

GOOD FLYING! PILATUS WISHES YOU AN EXCELLENT AIR SHOW! Come and visit us at the Static Display www.pilatus-aircraft.com

www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 45

In a bid to attract more aerospace business to its country, Melbourne, Australia, will host the Avalon Airshow next winter.

Aerospace poised for lift off Down Under

into aerospace, and is now a second-source supplier for vertical tails on Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program in Australia.

Aerospace Investment

by Ian Sheppard Representatives from the Australian state of Victoria, which will host the Avalon Airshow in Melbourne next year (February 26 to March 3), are busy here at the Farnborough International Airshow trying to find new connections for companies “Down Under.” In particular, they are also trying to persuade UK firms that they could benefit from opening branches in Australia, despite the distance, current high cost of living and adverse effect of the exchange rate on exports.

Victoria’s aerospace sector exports $800 million worth of products and services a year and the Australian government has set out plans (and started) to invest more than $150 billion in aerospace and defense between 2011 and 2020. Incentives for companies to set up in Victoria do not include tax concessions (apart from a researchand-development tax credit, which was revamped in July 2011 and is available via Innovation Australia), but do include assistance, for example, finding suitable sites, help with recruitment or promotion.

During a briefing at Australia House in London last month,

Sally Capp, agent-general for Victoria, said that such assistance is “free of charge.” There are state subsidies available also to help offset costs and they are being increased to counter the effect of the strong currency.

Capp argued that Australia is “a unique place” as it is effectively a Western nation in the East, and “the hottest region in the world” for business–so it is ideal for accessing the booming Asia Pacific market. Of particular advantage is that, from Australia, foreign companies can benefit from the free-trade agreements the country has with its fellow members of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations.

To boost its aerospace human resources, Capp said Australia needs to attract more skilled workers as the booming mining sector in Western Australia has drawn heavily on supply in areas such as engineering.

Phil Doyle, aerospace and defense for Invest Victoria, said some companies could find an opportunity to move into aerospace. He gave the example of Marand Precision Engineering, which is an automotive supplier but made a “big shift”

The Australian government is committed to investing in aerospace. “They have invested millions into a new open-source composites facility that anyone can use for testing and prototyping materials and products,” explained Doyle. “We have had a huge amount of interest in this from Europe because many existing facilities are owned and, therefore, not accessible. It’s the only open-source research facility in the world on that scale.” He added that the facility is due to open later this year, and that Boeing, which already manufactures 787 trailing edge surfaces in Melbourne, is interested in using it.

“It’s an opportunity for them to break the stranglehold of the big suppliers [on this technology], as the suppliers keep their recipes secret,” said Doyle. The center will have close links with the new UK national composites

center, although on a different basis as the UK center is not run on an open-source basis.

Meanwhile, Australia’s National Aviation Services Precinct (NASP) is pressing ahead with a project to create an “aerospace precinct” next to Melbourne’s Avalon Airport. A discussion paper has been published. “At the moment we’re asking industry in Europe for feedback, so it is a big focus of ours at Farnborough,” said Doyle. “We’re looking for input on what support is required to get MRO providers, training providers and possibly R&D providers all in one place.”

As a former automotive industry executive with Toyota in Australia, Doyle pointed out that Australian aerospace had adopted many “lean” manufacturing practices from that sector. “Lean was pioneered in Australia by the automotive sector and other sectors caught on quickly,” he said. “We’ve also had teams [in the UK] learning how to implement SC21 [the UK ADS-led 21st Century Supply Chains initiative] and Australia is a participant in SC21.”

International Partnerships

According to Mike Maiden, former government relations director at BAE Systems and now a consultant to Victoria, Australia is very aware of how important aerospace is and in particular how it is projected to grow in the future, and the country wants to be a bigger part of it. “[The challenge is] how do we take the opportunity of that and build long-term, lasting relationships that span international boundaries,” he said. “My thesis is that [Victoria can] get a share of the market by cooperating

Victoria Delegation Here in Force The delegation from Victoria, Australia, to the Farnborough Airshow ­numbers 11 companies: u Aerospace Australia u Marand Precision Engineering u Agent Oriented Software u Ocean Software u CGear u PHM Technologies u GippsAero u Sypaq Systems and u JNP Simulators u Vipac Engineering u Loc8 and Scientists.

Other aerospace companies engaged in the aerospace industry in Victoria are: Adacel Technologies, Aerosonde, BAE Systems, Boeing, Cablex, Hofmann Metaltec, Lovitt Technologies Australia, Qantas, Rosebank Engineering and Trimcast.

Marand Precision Engineering, in Victoria, which produces the F-35 engine trailer is working in partnership with BAE Systems (UK), manufacturing vertical tail assemblies for the JSF, potentially worth $800 million over the life of the program.

46 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

[and] Farnborough is a great opportunity for this.”

“UK-Australia cooperation already exists–what we’re most interested in is how we grow that,” Maiden continued. “There are more similarities than differences. For example, both countries have a ‘world view,’ so there’s a sound business baseline.” That said, he acknowledged, however, the distance between the two countries could make cooperation difficult, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, but he argued that it could pay dividends over a long time frame.

Capp said that while Australia is targeting UK and European companies, specifically, at Farnborough, this is part of a wider effort to promote and expand the Australian aerospace industry and its ties with the rest of the world. For example, she reported that Victoria state premier Ted Baillieu recently led a delegation of 120 companies to India, looking for aerospace cooperation. This group included a number of UK firms already established in the state.

According to Capp, Victoria has been the fastest growing state in Australia for the past eight years, partly because it was less expensive than the Sydney area. Throughout Australia some 22,000 people are currently employed in the aerospace sector and, though productivity there has been criticized in the past, Capp said there is now a “real focus” on improving this performance. “The best I can say at the moment is that it is a high priority on the political and government agenda, and this could increase beyond the next election in 18 months’ time,” she concluded. o

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Trent tests accelerate as A350 flights looms

by Ian Goold By the beginning of June, the first 84,000-pound-thrust RollsRoyce Trent XWB engine had flown for more than 40 hours aboard the Airbus A380 flying testbed (FTB) as Airbus moves toward a first A350 flight “probably around mid-2013,” according to engine program director Chris Young. Trent XWB Serial Number 20990 had logged 43 hours and was scheduled to make two more flights before replacement by S/N21000, dubbed FTB2 (see box). Tests with the latter, which has updated parts and is said to have demonstrated the “lowest Trent XWB specific fuel consumption so far,” will be conducted using a revised instrumentation suite.

The Trent XWB-84 is fitted to a dedicated pylon in the inboard right wing (No. 3) position using a new mounting that suspends the powerplant from the fan and rear engine cases, rather than, as previously, from

the now-unloaded core. Tests are being conducted jointly by Airbus and Rolls-Royce, giving both partners access to the raw data for the first time. Airbus pilots flew the initial air test and, subsequently, some Rolls-Royce pilots have taken part.

The 175-hour Trent XWB flight test campaign includes 16 flights with S/N20990 and the balance with the modified second unit, which was delivered to Airbus on May 23 and will be used for post-Phase 2 flights from about the end of this month.

Flight-test highlights are an early confirmation of specific fuel consumption, with RollsRoyce confident the engine will meet specifications, as well as low oil consumption. Full “takeoff and go-around” power was held for 10 minutes and a full-power rejected takeoff with reverse thrust has been demonstrated, as have engine relight and wind milling.

By the beginning of June, the first 84,000-pound thrust Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine fitted to the Airbus A380 flying testbed had accumulated more than 40 hours in the air.

Flight testing of this second Trent XWB engine, said by Rolls-Royce to have demonstrated the model’s lowest specific fuel consumption to date, is expected to begin around the end of this month.

The A380 FTB has performed high- and low-speed calibration curves and maximum angle of attack, as well as reaching FL430 and Mach 0.90.

Rolls-Royce describes pilot feedback as “very positive,” while noise and rumble characteristics also are “good.”

Last month, Rolls-Royce was preparing to finish certification testing with cold-water ingestion and blade-off trials with the latest standard fan, which, at 118inch diameter, is the biggest Trent fan the UK-based engine maker has produced. The overall test program involves 10 engines that will run for some 2,000 hours.

Apart from the two flight engines and two others earmarked for mechanical tests, the remaining six units will be

dedicated trials covering airframe integration, cyclic operation, endurance, low-pressure system tests, performance and robustness, said Young. Rolls-Royce said about 75 people–drawn equally from research, production and maintenance teams–are currently working to produce the first 16 production Trent XWBs. Because baseline Trent XWB tests demonstrated better-thanexpected specific fuel consumption with greater efficiency and surge margins, Rolls-Royce has been able to trade that margin for fuel burn in developing the more powerful engine for the A3501000 to deliver 97,000-pounds thrust from service entry.

The extra power, which had initially been planned at 93,000 pounds of thrust, comes from

Ten Turbofans Complete Trent XWB Test Duties Ten Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines–serial numbers (S/Ns) 20990, 20001 through 20006, 20009 and 21000–are being used in the test program.

•B y last month, some 43 hours’ testing had been accumulated during 14 of 16 scheduled flights with initial flight-test unit S/N 20990, which will ­subsequently be available to provide spare capacity. Rolls-Royce says the powerplant is its most highly instrumented flight-test engine ever.

•P reviously used for performance-envelope expansion, compressor functional operations, and operability testing and medium-weight bird-ingestion trials ­using strain-gauged fan blades, Trent XWB S/N 20001 has this year been used for “successful” cold-start and icing tests in Manitoba, Canada.

• After low-pressure turbine testing and aircraft-interface systems-integration ­trials on Rolls-Royce’s Test Bed 58 at Derby in the UK last year, Trent XWB1C S/N 20002 was scheduled for thermal and emissions tests, integration of buyer-furnished equipment and water-ingestion trials. It was used in March this year for “large flocking bird” ingestion tests, when it met certification requirements, according to the manufacturer, which said that “over time” the hollow titanium fan blades may be replaced by carbon fiber items.

• In late May, Rolls-Royce had almost completed cyclic-maturity tests involving a

1,000-hour maintenance-interval simulation trial with Trent XWB 1A/1 S/N 20003.

• Endurance testing with involving “lots of hours” at high speed and high thrust has been conducted on S/N 20004.

• Trent XWB 20005 has been used for flutter and cross-wind tests, as well as ­thermal-survey work, which confirmed cooler-than-predicted disc-cavity temperatures. A U.S. test program with this unit has involved fan strain-gauging and noise trials. It has recently completed initial thrust-reverser unit cycling tests.

• Rolls-Royce reports “positive” results following completion of altitude performance and operability testing with S/N 20006. The powerplant had previously been used to validate sea-level performance, low-, intermediate- and high-pressure bearing loads, variable-frequency generators and oil-system optimization.

• Thermal and strain-gauge testing of the intermediate pressure turbine has been performed on Trent XWB S/N 20007.

• Trent XWB S/N 20009 has been used for engine high-pressure system telemetry.

In addition, three other Trent XWBs are being manufactured to provide spare ­capacity and a further unit will be produced for Rolls-Royce in-house training in its Derby headquarters. –I.G.

48 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

a 6-percent increase in fan flow (enabled by use of an inflected annulus), coupled with aerodynamic improvements to the enlarged core that also increases flow. The fan is driven at a higher speed than on the baseline engine, but because it retains the latter’s optimum-size 118-inch diameter, Rolls-Royce is able to use a common nacelle without any aerodynamic compromise.

The manufacturer said the Trent XWB-97’s turbines have increased capability arising from use of tip-clearance control, upgraded materials and advanced coatings and cooling technology. An improved combustor retains a 20-percent nitrous oxide margin to CAEP 6 limits, while noise levels are said to remain at QC1 for arrivals and QC2 on departure.

Rolls-Royce needs to agree with Airbus about flight-testing of an initial modified Trent XWB-84 engine providing the higher thrust, but has disclosed that it might need to invest in a new FTB to prove the powerplant’s capability. Young said that it might be possible to conduct the tests on an A350 airframe, although four-engine machines were traditionally used. The manufacturer expects to demonstrate a 97,000-pound thrust prototype engine early next year, ahead of a formal first engine run in mid-2014. o

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Single European Sky so far fails to deliver promised efficiencies

by Aimée Turner The reality is pretty obvious: managing fewer flights can only help European air traffic control meet the tough targets that were designed to prepare it for a wholesale transformation to a radical space-based regime. The latest statistics show that Europe-wide, the en-route delay in 2012 is now 0.45 minutes per flight–well down from the figure last year of 1.1 minutes and already lower than the 0.5 minutes target for 2014.

The traffic growth curve has moved most definitely to the right by several years and the region’s air navigation agency Eurocontrol reckons that it will take until 2014 for Europe to get back to the traffic levels it saw in 2007. But does the prospect of a double-dip recession mean a respite for Europe’s air navigation service providers (ANSPs) during a watershed year that sees both the introduction of binding performance targets and the creation of functional airspace blocks (FABs)?

Not really, said David McMillan, Eurocontrol’s director general, who believes there is a balance to be struck between running an efficient and, crucially, a safe service; and, on the other hand, responding to the pressure on costs, not just from the European Commission but also from the airspace users and, indeed, the owners of the ANSPs. According to McMillan, matters will not get any easier as the implementation of new satellite-based technologies gathers speed over the next few years.

For airlines, it’s a simple case of European states–the owners of the ANSPs– using the excuse of the current economic crisis as a means to stall the Single European Sky (SES) project. They bitterly complain that Europe’s fragmented air traffic management system continues to have a devastating impact in terms of time, fuel burn and money. Their chief complaint is that nothing has really changed since the European architects of the SES drafted the original timetable that would frame the deployment of space-age technologies that could transform air traffic across the continent.

Performance Targets

As part of gearing up for that deployment, European governments several years ago agreed to some pretty tough performance targets for their national providers. Those performance targets remain an integral part of the Single European Sky Package II (SES II) approved by the European Union’s Transport Council in March 2009.

Between 2012 and 2014, each state is supposed to achieve specific targets for reducing excess miles flown, reducing air traffic delays per flight and reducing the cost of managing air traffic by 50 percent by 2020. Alongside improving cost

efficiency, the SES also aims to increase airspace capacity by more than 70 percent, improve the safety record by a factor of 10 and reduce the effects of air transport on the environment by 10 percent.

Eurocontrol duly went about creating a performance review body (PRB) to measure and monitor how these targets were being fulfilled, publishing performance in annual review reports.

The bad news came out at the end of November. Member states had delivered their plans to the European Commission in June. They were subsequently analyzed by the PRB over the summer. Reports

then-secretary general of the Association of European Airlines. Three more airline associations–ELFAA, ERA and IACA– echoed the plea, accusing EU nations of trying to escape their SES commitments.

The rate of progress of FABs has come under fire, too. Originally conceived as a means to help make the air traffic management industry in Europe more efficient and bring down costs to something closer to the levels seen in North America, the jury is still out. Observers say it is too early to determine the impact of a double-dip recession on their development.

One thing is for sure. Airlines are still waiting for the meaningful emergence of unified airspace that straddles European borders and they see the concept as mere window dressing.

“It is important that the public knows that there are no insurmountable technical obstacles to the early implementation of the Single European Sky: speedier

Outmoded labor practices and the oversupply of airspace sectors and control centers in Europe, dictated by having an ANSP for every country, are among the causes of high cost and low productivity that the Single European Sky is supposed to be fixing.

indicated that the ANSPs were barely achieving cost containment, let alone the targeted reductions.

Based on this, the Commission’s November assessment was that only five small countries–Belgium, Denmark, Lithuania, Luxembourg and the Netherlands–were on track to meet both cost efficiency and punctuality targets. The big hitters responsible for the lion’s share of air traffic–Britain, France, Germany plus Austria and Spain–were singled out as having dragged their collective feet and ordered to present more ambitious plans before the end of December.

“Outmoded labor practices are certainly one cause of high cost and low productivity. But another is certainly the huge oversupply of airspace sectors and control centers in Europe, dictated by having an ANSP for every country,” said industry observer Bob Poole.

“That’s something the Single European Sky is supposed to be fixing, but progress here has been glacial.”

The European airline industry, meanwhile, points the finger of blame squarely at European member states. “Airlines need urgent deliverables. Member states must stop procrastinating and make progress toward a genuine Single European Sky,” said Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus, the

50 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

progress is constrained only by lack of political will,” insisted Mike Ambrose, the outgoing director general of the European Regions Airline Association.

The Big Five

The real story is with the “Big Five” ANSPs–Germany, the UK, France, Italy and Spain–according to IATA chief Tony Tyler. “Being responsible for 54 percent of the costs of air navigation services in Europe, the success of the performance scheme is dependent on these states meeting their share of the required cost reductions with no shortfall,” he said.

The PRB’s damning report also noted that the six performance plans–(Austria, Greece, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the FABEC region covering Germany, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland–were failing to make adequate contributions to meeting the EU-wide capacity target.

“If the European ANSPs cannot meet modest short-term goals, then there is no chance of meeting the significantly more ambitious but necessary targets that are required for the second phase of the performance scheme between 2015 and 2019. States and ANSPs need to close the gap and return to course,” said Tyler.

At risk, transport commissioner Siim Kallas believes, is the credibility of the SES project with failure to take measures at the national level potentially forcing Brussels to re-open the dossier and instigate a far more radical solution.

Leadership Needed

Airlines don’t actually know if the Commission warning of “specific corrective measures” was heeded. Much has taken place behind closed doors in what one can only imagine as stern but tedious knuckle-rapping sessions delivered by Brussels bureaucrats–at least so far.

“The European Commission has said it will not accept a suboptimal result, but, in that case, it may find itself having to take more direct action and drive a more topdown approach, something it has instinctively avoided so far,” said McMillan.

For its part, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization (CANSO) is calling on European states to provide critical political leadership and address what it sees as the key issues delaying progress toward achieving a Single European Sky. At the top of its wish list is for Brussels to offer critical guidance on defining a system approach to a future SES together with adequate implementation arrangements.

Along with transitional financial support, it also wants to see an industryled deployment manager in the driver’s seat that would work with the ANSPs to steer advanced technologies and operational procedures in a timely, synchronized and cost-effective way. Also at issue, CANSO insists that the necessary institutional reform of Eurocontrol– now designated as Europe’s network manager–is vital if a true Single European Sky is to be achieved.

Interestingly, CANSO is also calling for an up-to-date traffic forecast by February 2014 to assess whether EU-wide targets need tweaking in the next, more demanding phase of the SES performance scheme. “This would prevent a situation arising as it did in [the first phase], where, due to the negative economic environment and high traffic instability, performance plans and EU-wide targets were not consistent with the latest traffic projections,” stated the organization.

So is the Single European Sky still on track despite, or maybe because of, a slowdown in traffic?

McMillan believes that in some key areas the downturn has bought some a little more time but he pointed out that the financial challenges are becoming even harder to overcome with a real need to remain focused on the goal and on the benefits that a truly Single European Sky can bring. Even so, he said, Europe will need to ensure that improvements are deployed when, but only when, there is a real network benefit.

“That means using all the tools we have–whether it’s regulation, innovative financing or plain and simple communication–to make sure that everyone– ANSPs and airspace users–acts with the benefit of the whole network in mind rather than just their own part of that network,” McMillan concluded. o

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FlightSafety International trains nearly 3,000 pilots a year at its Farnborough hub. For now, most of those pilots hail from Europe, but the company is seeing increased demand from Africa and the Middle East.

Bizjet and regional aircraft training expanding at FSI Farnborough hub

by Ian Sheppard FlightSafety International (FSI) continues to expand its training center here at Farn­ borough Airport. In a visit to the site ahead of this week’s Farnborough International Air­ show, AIN was able to sample its capabilities in training using the latest equipment and simulators– mainly focused on business air­ craft, although the company as a whole trains for airlines as well.

The U.S.-based group, which opened the Farnborough facility in 2005, has 40 learning centers in total around the world.

The majority of the Farn­ borough center’s 95,000 sq ft of floor space is taken up by three simulator halls, although it also boasts 27 classrooms and 30 briefing rooms, and has just over 120 employees (70 on the instructing side and the rest support staff).

Hall A has a Gulfstream G550, Bombardier Challenger 605, Hawker 800, Hawker 400 and Dash 8 Q400 turboprop.

As impressive as these fullmotion level-D simulators are,

the most impressive thing is that FlightSafety designs and builds all its own simulators at its Bro­ ken Arrow base near Tulsa, Oklahoma (where the factory has just been increased in size to 375,000 sq ft).

“We now have the capacity to build 19 simulators simultane­ ously,” said communications vice president Steve Phillips. “The facility is running at near full capacity.” The company expects “to deliver around 30 simulators this year,” with notable recent deliveries including the A320, G550 and Sikorsky HH-60G. The Middle Hall (Hall B) has a Hawker 800 and 750, a Sikorsky S-92 helicopter and a King Air 200, while Hall C has smaller business jets: the Cessna Citation Excel, Bravo, CJ2, Mustang and Sovereign.

The center currently has 15 fullmotion simulator bays.

Firmly on the company’s agenda is bringing in Embraer simulators. FSI is owned by Berkshire Hathaway Group, the same parent company as the

FlightSafety International’s Hall C features full-motion simulators for smaller business jets: the Cessna Citation Excel, Bravo, CJ2, Mustang (seen here) and Sovereign.

NetJets fractional-ownership specialist, which has ordered some 75 Embraer Phenom air­ craft. FSI has been the official training provider for Embraer for all its aircraft types except the Phenom, which marked company’s entry into the mar­ ket for purpose-built business jets rather than corporate/VIP versions of its regional jets. “So we’re getting the Phenom, too,” said assistant center manager Anthony van de Geest, who was part of the original team that set up the Farnborough center.

Regional Coverage

On the regional airliner side of the business, FSI helps UK carrier Flybe to run its new train­ ing center at Exeter, in southwest England, having shipped one of its Q400 simulators there, join­ ing an Embraer E190 model.

The Farnborough center sees just fewer than 3,000 “clients” (which is what FSI calls pilots) a year, said van de Geest. They are split into around 85 percent taking recurrent (refresher) training with the other 15 percent taking initial type-rating training. Typically, a type-rating course takes from 10 days to as much as a month, depending on the complexity of the aircraft, while recurrent train­ ing takes four to five days.

The main geographic area of focus is Europe, the Middle East and Africa, although 80 per­ cent of its business comes from Europe. Van de Geest, said, “We’re seeing growth out of Africa; for example, from Nige­ ria.” Farnborough is a popular location with clients, he added, especially as it is in the same time zone as Africa and almost

52 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

Flying FlightSafety’s Sims AIN had the opportunity to fly three simulators at FlightSafety International’s Farnborough Center: the Bombardier Challenger 605, into London’s Luton Airport; the Sikorsky S-92, out to an oil platform; and the Gulfstream G550 (with its Honeywell-derived PlaneView cockpit) on the “Canarsie” approach to New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport–once visually and once trying the head-up display and very impressive synthetic-vision system.

David Judge, project manager overseeing the introduction of FSI Farnbrough’s new Challenger 605 simulator, said that, typically, it takes three months to install a simulator and to get it on line. The 605 has a Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite, while the older Challenger 604 model has a Pro Line 4 suite; all that is required for a 604 pilot is a differences course, as the aircraft share a common type rating.

Judge told AIN that two Farnborough-based operators–GAMA and TAG Aviation–are interested in using the simulator. “The simulator comes on line here in August and we’ll do both EASA and FAA training here.

In the corporate world you really do need to offer both. We are also

the same as the Middle East.

“From a European perspective it is a good location, although the pilots might prefer a shop­ ping trip to the States for their training,” he joked, adding that Farnborough Airport owner TAG Aviation is supportive of the center growing. The major­ ity of the airport’s operators are corporate aircraft operators.

FSI operates several centers in the U.S., the primary ones being in Dallas, Texas; Savannah, Geor­ gia; Wichita, Kansas; and Wilm­ ington, Delaware. It also has a Paris center (at Le Bourget Air­ port) and two Embraer simula­ tors located in Australia through a housing agreement with rival CAE. More recently it installed a G550 simulator at its Hong Kong center, which is based in the Cathay Pacific facility.

“We are looking at establish­ ing our own facility in Hong Kong,” said van de Geest, who added that in Johannesburg the company has a Beech 1900D (the second largest 1900D fleet in the world is in Africa, operat­ ing mainly with aid agencies) and a Q300, which is used primarily by operators from Kenya and Tanzania. It previously was used

by South Africa’s SA Express, which has sold its Q300s and replaced them with Q400s.

aiming for Saudi GACA approval.”

Despite the fact that they are already Challenger pilots, the team of instructors for the 605 will go through the entire type-rating course, said Judge, “so they know what the clients will go through” well before they teach them. The 605 simulator sports the latest technology, such as a “very quiet and efficient” electric motion system, which has the added advantage of not needing a compressor room, unlike hydraulically actuated systems.

The newest simulators being produced by FlightSafety International include visual systems produced by Glass Mountain, which it acquired in January 2009. Glass mirror displays have many advantages over the traditional Mylar displays– a much wider field of view (310 degrees compared with 220 degrees with Mylar) and virtually no edge distortion. They also provide higher fidelity. FSI plans to install a Sikorsky S-76 simulator equipped with glass mirror technology at its West Palm Beach, Florida facility this year.

Meanwhile, the company has started work on the design and manufacturing of the first full-flight simulator for the new HondaJet. –I.S.

FSI Offers Proficiency Aid to the Unemployed FlightSafety International recently introduced its Proficiency Protection Program offering training at no cost to pilots and maintenance technicians in Europe and around the world who are involuntarily unemployed. The company will provide, at no cost, recurrent training courses to business aircraft pilots who were training under a full-service contract at the time they lost their jobs.

In addition, maintenance technicians who were enrolled in FSI’s master technician program can finish the next course toward the completion of the program. –I.S.

The company’s latest proj­ ect is to build the first two Gulfstream G650 simulators, which are intended for the Savannah center (Gulfstream is based in Savannah), while the Farnborough center hopes it will receive the third device to be built. The aircraft itself has quickly built up a healthy order book, so the simulators will be in demand, Dennis Simon, G450/550 program manager at FSI Farnborough told AIN. o

Courtesy: Washington State Governor’s Office

Governor fights back against U.S. Congress biofuels block

by Bill Carey Last November, Christine Gregoire, governor of the U.S. state of Washington, announced an “action agenda” with the central goal of convincing Boeing to build the reengined 737 MAX in her state. Here at the Farnborough International Airshow, where she is leading a trade mission, the governor can rightfully claim credit for accomplishing that goal.

But the state still faces headwinds in its quest to retain and further grow its aerospace industrial base.

In large part, those headwinds are blowing westward from Washington, D.C., where the federal government resides. The promotion of sustainable, cleaner-burning aviation biofuels derived from plants, which could help airlines meet emissions targets and eventually offset the cost of petroleum-based fuel, is a case in point.

Washington state and its neighbors in the U.S. Pacific Northwest region have staked out a leadership position in the development of aviation biofuels.

Seattle-based Alaska Airlines and Boeing have been out front in the industry’s efforts to use and commercialize them. Yet, in May, the U.S. House and Senate armed services committees each approved language that would prohibit the Department of Defense from acquiring alternative fuels that exceed the cost of traditional fossil fuel. The language is contained in committee drafts of the Fiscal Year 2013 defense authorization bill that awaited approval from the full Congress.

In an exclusive interview with AIN, Gregoire was outspoken in criticizing the committees’ actions. “I’m very disappointed,” said the two-term Democrat, who has announced that she will not seek a third term this year. “The fact of the matter is, we were projecting that we were going to be able to develop about five commercial-scale bio refineries around the country. This was seen by [Washington state] as a big opportunity to land

Austro Engine showcases diesel, rotary powerplants

by Thierry Dubois

Thierry Dubois

Austro Engine (Outside Exhibit 18), part of the group that owns Austria’s Diamond Aircraft, is exhibiting its new diesel and rotary engines for light aircraft and drones at the 2012 Farnborough International Airshow.

The company is actively talking to other airframers about finding new applications for its AE series of diesel engines, which will include the in-development AE500. It is also promoting a modernization kit for the Diamond Aircraft DA42 twin’s 170-hp AE300 engines that converts DA42s into DA42 NGs. Other highlights of the Austro Engine exhibit include its Wankel-type rotary engines, such as the 55-hp IAE50RAA that powers motor gliders and the

Schiebel Camcopter S-100 UAV; and the in-development, 75-hp IAE75R, which features “a totally different architecture from the existing IAE50R series.” The engine is in the final test phase with certification expected by 2013, head of sales and marketing Peter Lietz told AIN. The IAE75R will have a “revolutionary engine control, with inputs from the AE300.”

Design engineers target “a significant decrease in fuel consumption” and a time between overhaul of 1,000 hours.

Not at the show but in development at the company’s Wiener Neustadt, Austria headquarters is the six-cylinder AE500.

This 275-hp diesel is to power the Diamond DA50 single and DA52 twin.

Jointly developed with another Austrian company, Steyr Motors, the AE500 could provide up to 300 hp. The first engine is to go to test by year-end.

Austro Engine’s workforce stands at 60. Currently, the annual production rate is in the 200 to 250 bracket for the four-cylinder AE300, and between 100 and 150 for the IAE50 rotary series.

“Due to the continuous increase in avgas prices and the decrease in its availability, we expect a massive growth in diesel demand over the next couple of years,” Lietz predicted. o Austro Engine is developing a 275-hp, six-cylinder diesel, the AE500.

54 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

Christine Gregoire, governor of Washington, addressed employees at Boeing’s Renton manufacturing plant, where the new 737 MAX is to be built.

one of those,” she explained.

Gregoire said she has had numerous discussions on the issue with Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, who has led military efforts to advance biofuels. Last August, Mabus and the secretaries of Energy and Agriculture announced their “intention,” pending approval by Congress, to invest $510 million over three years to assist private industry in developing biofuels for Navy ships and aircraft, including the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet and Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey.

“This will undercut that,” Gregoire said.

“I find the whole thing quite puzzling. I find it very shortsighted. There is a clear demand. The commercial arena is pushing and leading on it. I would have expected the Department of Defense, frankly, to lead in this arena, not to follow the commercial sector. I sure hope Congress reconsiders and puts them back in the game.”

Local Successes

The Washington state government in Olympia has nevertheless achieved success in some of the major priorities in its own backyard.

In the spring of 2011, when Boeing was contemplating new production sites for the reengined 737 MAX, Gregoire launched “Project Pegasus,” a coalition of community, labor and business organizations formed to identify and take the steps necessary to convince Boeing of the state’s “compelling value proposition.” She led a state delegation to the Paris Air Show for the first time that June and sought to impress upon labor representatives “how internationally competitive” aerospace is, using Le Bourget as a backdrop.

Upon returning from Paris, Gregoire said she encouraged Boeing and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) to come to terms on a new contract, “because that was, in my opinion, critical to our ability to secure the 737.” In November, Gregoire announced an “action agenda” to bolster the state’s education system in turning out a trained aerospace work force, focusing the series of steps on winning the 737 MAX. Late last year, Boeing and the IAM agreed on a new four-year contract that includes a Boeing commitment to build the 737 MAX in Renton, Washington, where

current 737s are manufactured. The state estimates the 737 MAX will support 20,000 jobs directly and indirectly. “We thought it was extremely important for us to be able to secure the 737 MAX, and at the same time to have a new contract between labor and management that would go out a number of years. Both occurred,” Gregoire said. “The fact that we’re going to be able to retain the 737 MAX is very important to Washington state.”

Universities Step Up

Meanwhile, the bulk of the governor’s action agenda won approval in the state legislature, and Gregoire said she convinced the leaderships of the University of Washington and Washington State University to provide appropriate funding for 850 additional engineering slots per year. In March, Gregoire signed legislation that is designed to advance the development “of commercial-scale aviation biofuels production facilities” by streamlining the permitting process for new facilities and providing access to low-cost financing through the issuance of state revenue bonds.

The governor said she is “quite pleased” with the progress made toward biofuels development during her eight years in office. “When I think about when I came into office, there was virtually nothing going on,” she said. “There’s so much going on now: in production and in research and in the commercial willingness through Alaska [Airlines’]” demonstrated use of biofuels.

“As I see it,” she added, “the problem is unless and until we grow sufficient demand, we won’t drive down the price. That’s why it was so critical for the Department of Defense to get engaged and involved. Those in the private sector need to know that there is going to be a continuing demand for it, and only with that are they going to be able to drive down the price.”

Still promoting aerospace, Gregoire embarked on a trade mission to Ireland and the UK on July 4 that included scheduled stops at Bombardier’s Belfast operation in Northern Ireland and the Airbus wing assembly plant in Broughton, Wales. More than 50 aerospace companies and consortiums from the state are exhibiting in Washington’s section of the U.S. Pavilion (Hall 2 Stand 28). o

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Ontic supplies and supports out-of-production parts

by Matt Thurber BBA Aviation’s Ontic division is rapidly developing a new source of growth: the support of legacy electronics products. Ontic is an aerospace manufacturer that focuses on making parts and components that other original equipment manufacturer (OEMs) don’t want to make or can’t make efficiently anymore. The U.S. company also operates repair stations to support the products that it makes.

Ontic manufactures parts and complex assemblies under license from the OEM that originally made the product.

In some cases, the OEM can’t afford to keep making those parts, preferring to apply those resources to more remunerative and higher margin products. Or the volume of those parts has dropped so low that it is impossible to make and support them efficiently, yet there remain actively flying aircraft that need them.

“We focus on keeping parts producible and sustainable, but also product support,” said Robert Sadler, director of marketing and licensor relations. “That is our model and it takes a big headache away from the prime [OEM].”

Ontic either makes parts and components for OEMs or acquires the product line and then supports those products as long as there is a viable market. The U.S.-based group’s main lines of business include environmental control systems, control and actuation, hydraulics, electronics, avionics, pneumatics, heat transfer, electric power and fuel controls.

Electronics Capability

About a year ago, Ontic (Hall 4 Stand F15) began strengthening its electronics manufacturing and support capabilities by building a new electronics lab at its Chatsworth, California headquarters. In March 2011, it bought GE Aviation’s fuel measurement business, which also boosted its electronics capabilities by adding facilities in Slough and Cheltenham, UK. Ontic is also building a new facility next to the BBA engine repair and overhaul facility in Singapore.

Electronics components fit into four generational categories, according to Ontic president Peg Billson. The first generation was the vacuum-tube era; next, in the 1960s and 1970s, OEMs began installing second-generation computers on aircraft; the third generation added integrated circuits and software; and, finally, digital circuits and embedded software represent the fourth generation–the modern age. The GE fuel systems business is mostly thirdgeneration software and hardware.

“All generations are equally attractive,” Billson told AIN. “A generation four needs different support than generation one. You have to understand the nuances of the different generations.”

Many of these electronic systems are still flying on a variety of older and even

modern aircraft, giving the company the ability to target the spares market for fleets already flying, as well as for new aircraft.

The addition of the dedicated electronics lab, which opened about six months ago, is big business for Ontic. In 2010, electronics manufacturing and support represented just 3 percent of revenues, and after the GE acquisition that number climbed to 30 percent. “Our vision is that electronics can and should be 50 percent of our portfolio,” Billson said.

The electronics business represents another challenge for the company, however, and that is dealing with components that require software to operate. “We must be ready for that,” she said. “But one of the capabilities that Ontic is expert at is sorting out the unknown. That’s a skill we have in our engineers and technicians. What motivates them is the challenge of figuring things out.”

Among the maintenance tasks handled by Ontic are repairs to smoke detection systems on Boeing 737 airliners, above, and testing of radar equipment, below, for a wide variety of military and commercial aircraft, but increasingly the BBA Aviation division is active in parts manufacturing.

OEM Benefits

Ontic isn’t concerned about the volume of products that are involved in a particular program and makes its services available to any customer, regardless of size.

Parts are always made in cooperation with the OEM that owns the intellectual property underpinning the product, but the parts also carry an Ontic nameplate.

The company can supply the parts either to the OEM, which installs them on new aircraft or distributes them to customers, or directly to the aftermarket. This includes obtaining the necessary parts manufacturer approval (PMA) certification so it can ship parts directly to end-users. Ontic is licensed to make nearly 4,000 LRUs, which use up to one million discrete parts.

Another advantage Ontic offers to

OEMs is the ability to store inventory.

When evaluating a program, the company’s “procurement detectives” and “forensic engineers” look at the demand for the component by the OEM and the aftermarket. This includes evaluating the sales, inventory and planning process for making the item.

“We’re balancing how best to supply it,”

Billson said. Ontic, for example, can make money from both a large batch-production process or by making a complex item in small numbers and keeping them in inventory. OEMs typically make parts and components in large continuous-flow processes that can’t be scaled down efficiently, and maintaining inventory is costly and not a goal of an OEM. o

Andalusia lifts Spanish hopes with aerospace success Vela highlighted Hélice’s research-andAndalusian aerospace cluster Hélice (Hall 1 Stand C8) is promoting the capa- development support services, such as the bilities of the Spanish region’s compa- Centre for Advanced Aerospace Technies and research facilities, including nologies, Fada-Catec, based in Seville. It its flagship: Airbus’s final assembly line has rapid manufacturing and prototyping machines for components made for the A400M military transfrom polyamide, a kind of polymer port. Hélice is also attending the that is being investigated for aero2012 Farnborough International space applications. “Rapid manuAirshow on behalf of about 120 facturing techniques with polymers other firms, some 90 percent of are of interest for producing small which are based on the Sevillepieces for subassemblies, as they Cadiz axis. avoid tooling investments,” Vela Cluster president Juan Pedro explained. In addition, polyamide Vela said that only 37 member enterprises are active in the Juan Pedro Vela components are much lighter than cluster’s “business action council,” but their metallic equivalents.

Also an initiative of the Fada-Catec, he insisted that Hélice represents all of Andalusia’s significant aerospace firms. the Atlas flight-test center is to be operaIn the course of this year, four enterprises tional for UAV trials next year. After some have joined the cluster: Metal Improve- delay, construction work, near Jaén, is to ment Company (MIC), Indaero Tecni- start this summer. “It will be open to all those public or private enterprises and grab, Aercal and Global Q.

56 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

entities willing to undertake their flight tests with light and tactical unmanned systems–up to 650 kilograms [1,430 pounds],” Vela told AIN. The Andalusian aerospace industry had a turnover of almost $2.5 billion in 2010, based on the most recent numbers available, and employed more than 10,000 people. These represented increases of 26 percent and 10 percent, respectively, from the year before.

Asked about the impact of the financial crisis in Spain, Vela emphasized that the aerospace industry “is one of the few productive sectors that are resisting well the international credit crunch at national level.” He acknowledged, however, that budget cuts by the Spanish administration affect research, development and innovation support. “Like other productive industries, aeronautics is being affected in this sense,” he said. –T.D.

Simrit silicone sealant can trim airlines’ costs Simrit, a global supplier of precision-manufactured products for the aerospace industry, is focusing on fuel efficiency as the main theme during the show. The company is promoting its recently developed proprietary, low-density silicone materials–AMS 3302 and AMS 3303–to commercial airframe manufacturers. It has started to supply an undisclosed manufacturer, and the first aircraft using the new material will enter service in early 2014.

The company has worked with the business jet market in the past and is targeting airframers such as Cessna and Bombardier to be among its first customers. “After the executive jets, we will focus on the very light jets,” said Vinay Nilkanth, vice president global sales aerospace. Diamond Aviation and Eclipse Aerospace are working closely with Simrit

MARK WAGNER

by Neelam Mathews

company has been present in China for more than two years working with Comac on its requirements for aerospace sealing applications on airframes, engines, landing gear, wheels and brakes and flight controls.

The material is produced at (Hall 4 Stand D10) for their Simrit’s factory in Canada. It requirements, he explained.

Seals are replaced during designs and manufactures aeroA, B, C and D checks, a mar- dynamic seals and sealing prodket worth approximately $650 ucts, including engine seals, thrust reverser seals, million a year. Weight and door and winreduction has become dow seals, for coma critical element in mercial aircraft and jet aircraft design and engines. The plant is has created an increascertified to the AS9100 ing customer demand Revision C quality for weight-conscious management system sealing components. including design for “We expect a 17-perthe aerospace industry. cent weight reduction Simrit is part of [over similar mateGermany-based Freudrial]. We are now Vinay Nilkanth looking at how much Simrit v-p for global enberg-NOK Sealing aerospace sales Technologies and offers fuel savings we can an extensive portfoget for new aircraft,” said Nilkanth. The material lio of precision-manufactured withstands extreme low and products for the aerospace, agrihigh temperatures, is resis- culture, appliance, construction, tant to common aircraft fluids energy, fluid power, mechanical and can be combined into fire- power generation, mechanical power transmission and recreproof construction. o Expanding into Asia, the ation markets.

Esterline keeps A320s under control

“Fill it up, please. And I’m in a bit of a hurry.” Alenia’s C-27J airlifter can top off its tanks from this Boeing KC-767 in just five minutes.

C-27J bellies up to tanker at 2,800 liters per minute Alenia’s C-27J tactical airlifter has recently undergone a series of successful refueling trials with an Italian air force Boeing KC767A tanker. During the test campaign the C-27J undertook “contacts” at altitudes between 10,000 and 20,000 feet, and at speeds of up to 220 knots. The trials also involved tanking at night with night-vision goggles.

Refueling runs during turns, in turbulence and in an emergency descent were also accomplished

successfully. The campaign demonstrated the C-27J’s ability to take on fuel at the rate of 2,800 liters per minute, which allows a complete top-up in five minutes. For the trials, Alenia provided a test crew and an instrumented aircraft. The aim of the campaign is to certify the aircraft’s in-flight refueling system, which has currently been adopted for Italy’s 12 C-27Js, and one of the three aircraft supplied to Lithuania. –D.D.

Esterline CMC Electronics recently delivered its 1000th multifunction control display unit (MCDU) for Airbus A320 family aircraft to Thales Avionics of France.

Low-rate production of the MCDU began in 2010 and has gradually increased to a steady pace of close to 100 units a month. Each A318/319/320/321 airliner has two MCDUs installed and they serve as the primary interface between the pilot and avionics subsystems, including the flight management system and aircraft communications, addressing and reporting system (Acars).

CMC (Hall 1 Stand B11) has supported Thales with the MCDU keyboard since 2002, with more than 5,000 of these units delivered to date. Based on the keyboard’s in-service record for quality and reliability, in 2008 Thales awarded CMC with a long-term contract to supply the entire MCDU, which includes an improved keyboard, LCD screen, backlight and electrical interface (see page 18). –C.T.

news clips z Morocco Signs Up for Sidewinder Morocco and the U.S. government have signed a letter of offer and acceptance (LOA) to purchase Raytheon’s AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder infrared guided air-to-air missile for the country’s Lockheed Martin F-16s. This makes Morocco the fourth country to purchase the Block II and the eleventh to purchase AIM-9X, although the quantity is undisclosed.

“This sale is a win for both the U.S. and Moroccan warfighters because it enhances coalition air combat operations and also reduces the unit cost of the AIM-9X Block II missile through economies of scale,” said John Martins, U.S. Navy air-to-air missile program manager.

The first test shot of an AIM-9X Block II took place in November 2008. The missile is now in full rate production.

z China’s Hebei Orders Five Embraer 190s Chinese carrier Hebei Airlines has ordered five more Embraer 190s with the 100-seaters due to join Hebei’s two in-service E-190s by the end of 2013. The Brazilian airframer values the deal, at list prices, at $226 million.

The additional E-Jets “will help Hebei Airlines to expand its network by exploring new markets and adding frequencies on existing routes,” said Paulo Cesar Silva, Embraer’s president for commercial aviation. Based in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Airlines uses its two E-190s to serve eight destinations, with around 70 flights per week. Since entry into service in January this year, average schedule reliability has been 99.5 percent.

Embraer has about 60 E-190s in service in China now.

According to the company’s own forecast, the Chinese market will need 1,050 jets up to 120 seats (the category served by the larger E-Jets) over the next 20 years.

z Aircelle To Support BA’s Trent 900 Nacelles Rolls-Royce and Aircelle have signed a service contract for the Trent 900 engine nacelles that will be fitted to British Airways Airbus A380s. The airline has ordered 12 of the type.

Under the agreement, starting in 2013 Safran subsidiary Aircelle will ensure the availability of key Trent 900 nacelle components, including thrust reversers, fan cowls, air inlets and exhaust systems, to be located at the airline’s London Heathrow airport technical base. Aircelle will also position some 130 line-replaceable unit part items at the technical base and will create a field service office at Rolls-Royce’s facility near Heathrow, offering around-the-clock support.

z TAI Selects Mecaer Landing System Italy’s Mecaer Aviation Group (MAG) has become the exclusive tier-one supplier to Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) for the complete landing system for Hurkus, Turkey’s new primary and basic trainer aircraft. MAG will be responsible for engineering system integration, hydraulic steering system hydraulic actuation, braking system, brakes, tires and landing gear cockpit controls for the tandem-configured Hurkus.

“Undercarriage designs must be robust, yet must also be as light as possible. With the Hurkus project, our objective was to develop and deliver a high shock absorbing landing gear ideal for training missions,” said Ruggero Rossi, MAG’s chief project engineer, actuation and landing systems.

z GKN To Design Global Windows GKN Aerospace has been awarded a contract for the design, development and production of transparencies for Bombardier’s Global 7000 and Global 8000 business jets.

Initial test items will be delivered in 2013.

The contract includes both the cockpit and passenger cabin windows that will incorporate GKN’s CrystalVue I abrasion resistant coating. Design and production will take place at the GKN facility in Garden Grove, California.

“These windows have been produced using advanced forming technology and incorporate our market-leading coatings,” said Ron Kato, vice president and managing director of GKN’s Special Products division.

www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 57

HBC seeks prosperity in special missions area Hawker Beechcraft has identified special-mission aircraft as a substantial growth area for the company. It believes popular models such as the King Air A350 and Baron G58 outfitted with sensors and other equipment will be embraced by civil and military agencies for their performance and affordability.

The U.S. manufacturer is displaying three special-mission King Airs here at the Farnborough International air­ show, as well as the T-6C Texan II military trainer with hard points for mounting external fuel tanks and stores. One of the aircraft on static display–a King Air 350ER–can be configured with two sleds in the air ambulance role or for high-density seating. It also has a radome certified by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance

(ISR) applications. Another is a King Air B200 operated by Malta for maritime patrol and search and rescue.

In the past five years, Hawker Beechcraft (Chalet J3) has sold more than two thirds of its special-mission aircraft outside the U.S. The company’s prime international market is Europe, the Middle East and Africa, accounting for 34 percent of sales between 2007 and 2011, followed by the Asia Pacific region at 26 percent and Latin America at 7 percent.

Most of the Hawker Beech­ craft special-mission aircraft purchased outside the U.S. are used for air ambulance work (27 percent), with trainer aircraft the second largest category at 19 percent. The Hawker Beechcraft Services facility in Chester, UK, recently delivered its first modified air ambulance

Unmanned aircraft study is new UK center’s mission

by Neelam Mathews The UK is marking the opening of the new National Aeronautical Centre (NAC), based at West Wales Airport (WWA), here at the show. The NAC initiative is designed to position the UK at the forefront of the unmanned air systems (UAS) market, which is forecast to be worth more than $50 billion by 2020.

Last year, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced its endorsement of an airspace change proposal (ACP) that would allow UASs to fly in

segregated airspace. The driving force behind the initiative was the Welsh government, which sponsored the ACP and a dedicated center for UAS. The NAC (Hall 1 Stand A19) will enhance services already available within the region. The airspace is centered on WWA and extends inland 40 nm to the east, covering an area of 500 sq miles. WWA is a small airfield with a paved runway approximately 4,000 feet (1,200 meters) long suitable for tactical UAVs.

DAVID McINTOSH

by Bill Carey

Hawker Beechcraft believes special missions operators will embrace its King Air 350 (above) and Baron G58 models for their performance and affordability. The Wichita, Kansas-based airframer also markets the T-6C Texan II military trainer.

conversion Hawker 900XP to a customer in Saudi Arabia. The factory-owned service center also recently received a multimillion-pound contract from BAE Systems Regional Aircraft to convert two BAe 146-200QCs from commercial to military configuration for the UK Royal Air Force.

Jay Gibson, Hawker Beech­ craft vice president of special missions, said the company anticipates an “explosion” in demand for ISR-equipped aircraft, particularly in Africa and Latin America, as countries invest in new capabilities “The idea behind the NAC is that all users have a platform where they can exchange ideas and create cutting-edge products in safe, controlled and segregated airspace,” said a statement from The Mann Organisation, which owns WWA. “The [UK Ministry of Defence] needs this, the industry needs this and the UK needs this. It is the go-place for aeronautic products to be developed, evaluated and demonstrated,” said Ray Mann, managing director of WWA. “Today, no regulation exists anywhere in the world that allows UAS to fly beyond visual line-ofsight outside segregated airspace.

The NAC is the only place where this can be satisfactorily carried out,” added Mann. o

Black Eagle alights

MARK WAGNER

Though Farnborough attendees will not get to enjoy the full routine of Korea’s Black Eagle aerobatic jet team, one of the team’s T-50B supersonic trainers will perform in the aerial display.

58 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 2012 • www.ainonline.com

to secure their borders. Special mission aircraft may be sold either by direct commercial sale or foreign military sale, depending on U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations.

Gibson said smaller platforms such as the King Air and the Baron are attractive and affordable “because they come off of a commercial installed base”; in the case of the King Air, this amounts to around 7,000 aircraft. That installed base also supports long-term “sustainment” of specially configured aircraft, he said.

Hawker Beechcraft is testing

the waters at Farnborough to gauge market interest in its twin-turboprop Baron G58 ISR platform. A Baron outfitted with mockups of ISR sensors, including an electro-optical/ infrared camera, is being displayed from Monday to Thursday at the company’s chalet.

The T-6C Texan II on display here completed a twomonth demonstration tour in May that was concentrated in the Asia Pacific region. It performed seven airshow display flights and 43 demonstration flights for military and government officials. o

The EVO Falco UAV has longer wings and tailbooms for endurance and efficiency.

Selex Galileo now has four Falco clients

by David Donald Selex Galileo has announced a new sale for its Falco tactical unmanned air system, bringing the number of export customers to four. The company has also revealed that more than 50 air vehicles are in operation.

While Selex has not named any of its Falco customers, the Pakistan air force has separately declared that it is a major user of the type and that it has seen operational service during anti-terrorist campaigns in Pakistan’s remote federally administered tribal areas.

Pakistan is believed to have been the launch customer for the Falco, which began operations in 2007. Other nations that have been linked with the Falco include Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

As well as providing the Falco air vehicle, Selex Galileo

offers a range of sensors, including EOST 46 electro-optical/ infrared turret, Gabbiano 20 multi-mode surveillance radar and the PicoSAR radar. The latter is a compact, active “e-scan” radar providing synthetic aperture radar imagery and ground moving target indication. When used in conjunction with change detection software, the PicoSAR can be a powerful counter-IED tool. The Falco can also carry the SAGE electronic warfare suite for accurate direction-finding, classification and geo-location of emitters.

Meanwhile, Selex Galileo (Outdoor Exhibit 1) is expecting to begin flight tests of the Falco EVO derivative this week. The EVO was unveiled at last year’s Paris Air Show and is a version with longer tailbooms and wingspan extended to 41 feet, compared with the 24 feet of the standard version. The extra span equates to an increase in maximum takeoff weight, which is shared between extra payload capacity and more fuel.The latter gives Falco EVO an endurance of more than 18 hours. o

Thomas Cook group chooses Rockwell Collins

MARK WAGNER

Leisure travel specialist Thomas Cook Group's fleet of Airbus A320/321s will soon be equipped with Rockwell Collins MultiScan weather radar and GLU-925 multi-mode navigation sensors.

Commemorating the deal here at Farnborough are Rockwell Collins' v-p and managing director for Europe Claude Alber, left, and Thomas Cook Group executive v-p of group fleet management Bernd Bechtel.

news clips z S.S. White’s Flexible Shafts for P&W PW1000G S.S. White Technologies (Hall 4 Stand A4) has been selected to provide flexible rotary shafts for the Pratt & Whitney PW1000G engine’s nacelle. The shafts will transfer power on the variable area fan nozzle (VAFN) and synchronize actuators on the thrust reversers. The U.S. company has already provided two flexible rotary shafts for the thrust reverser rig, and previously supplied two flexible shafts for the VAFN test setup.

The PW1000G geared turbofan, which is to power the Bombardier CSeries, is the first to feature a VAFN. It is a variable duct that deploys at takeoff to increase the fan exit area. This protects the engine against possible fan resonance and flutter, according to nacelle manufacturer Goodrich. It also increases the bypass ratio, which helps to improve fuel efficiency.

z L-3 Wins Business on Embraer KC-390

CMC finalizes deliveries of Finns’ Hawk upgrades

by Chad Trautvetter Esterline CMC Electronics has completed final deliveries of its Cockpit 4000 integrated avionics systems, which are being retrofitted in 26 Finnish Air Force BAE Systems Hawk jet trainers. Defense and aerospace group Patria, which is jointly owned by Finland and EADS, awarded the contract for the glass-cockpit upgrades to CMC for the air force’s fleet of eight Hawk Mk51s and 18 Mk66s.

The Finnish Air Force Hawks provide basic and advanced training at Kauhava Air Base for pilots destined for the F-18C and F-18D front-line squadrons. According to CMC, the upgrade aims to further increase the quality of flight training by improving the jets’ training efficiency and extending the training that is currently carried out on Hawk aircraft.

“CMC’s integrated glass

Cockpit 4000 avionics suite is specifically designed to lower training costs while offering superior training capabilities and, if required, to provide an operational weaponsdelivery role,” said CMC Electronics president Greg Yeldon.

“By using CMC avionics, jet pilot training, from basic to advanced level, can be performed using a single training platform, resulting in a significant savings,” he added.

The core avionics for the Patria upgrade includes CMC’s open-architecture mission computer; a wide field-of-view SparrowHawk head-up display (HUD) and up-front control panel; two five- by seven-inch multifunction displays; and a HUD repeater for the rear-seat instructor pilot. In addition, the avionics suite features “mature and proven” operational flight programs that integrate the

Asia’s ATM upgrade is key for Raytheon’s AutoTrac III Raytheon says tapping into Asia’s urgent need to update its air traffic management (ATM) infrastructure to handle rapid growth in air traffic is one of its key priorities. The company recently responded to a request for proposals from Vietnam and Thailand, and opportunities are surfacing in Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, said the U.S. company. In the Middle East, it has set up its AutoTrac III (AT3) system at Dubai World Central’s Al Maktoum International Airport, and this is due to be operational by the end of 2012.

“We are going to franchise

AutoTrac,” Andrew Zogg, vice president, business development, told AIN. “We will look at broader partnerships, more licensing, more industrial relations.”

Clear exceptions are India and Hong Kong. Raytheon has been working closely with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to providing an advanced ATM system that covers three of the four Indian Flight Information Regions–Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai, which are all now equipped with Raytheon’s AT3 system. “We took the concepts implemented on AT3 in India to the U.S,” said Zogg. The AT3

aircraft sensors, radios and weapons systems.

Patria aviation business unit president Lassi Matikainen said the modernization “significantly improves” the capability of the Mk66s for military pilot training. “The feedback received from pilots operating with upgraded Hawks at the Finnish Air Force Flight Academy in Kauhava has been extremely positive,” he added.

Patria, together with CMC, is now offering the Cockpit 4000 avionics retrofit package to other Hawk Mk50/60 and 100 series operators. o

The Esterline CMC Hawk upgrade includes Cockpit 4000 glass panels.

incorporates advanced surveillance and flight data processing and India can claim to have the most modern ATM system operational. Raytheon is presently, in collaboration with its partner, Tata Power Strategic Electronic Systems, planning to install AT3 for 30 military airfields in India.

In Hong Kong, the company is supplying the AT3 system for the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department’s new area control center at Hong Kong International Airport.

Raytheon has also built 16 ground reference stations for the GPS-aided geosynchronous augmented navigation (GAGAN) system, a satellite-based navigation system for civil aircraft flying over Indian airspace. –N.M.

Embraer Defense and Security has selected L-3 Aviation Products’ GH-3900 electronic standby instrument system, cockpit voice and data recorder and micro-quick access recorder for its military transport aircraft, the Embraer KC-390, which is due to enter service in 2016.

“This is another example of how a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) product such as the GH-3900 has the flexibility to be adapted for military applications,” said Ralph DeMarco, vice president sales and marketing for L-3 Aviation Products.

Earlier this year, L-3/Thales joint venture ACSS announced that it had been selected to supply its T3CAS traffic management computer as the standard surveillance avionics equipment for the KC-390.

z FAA Approves P&WC Diagnostics for Q400 Pratt & Whitney Canada has been awarded a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration supplemental type certificate for its flight-data acquisition storage and transmission (FAST) engine-diagnostic system for the Bombardier Dash 8-Q400 regional turboprop. The system is claimed to be unique in its ability to acquire, store and transmit information from the flight-data recorder, allowing review of full flight operations quality analysis (FOQA) information. Fast units are already fitted to 400 in-service Dash 8 aircraft.

The engine manufacturer said FAST gives operators a competitive advantage by providing a single source for managing all aircraft performance data, eliminating the need for scheduled manual downloads. FAST is intended to allow operators to plan maintenance sessions, for example, by taking advantage of overnight layovers.

The system provides early detection of minor issues so that preventative maintenance can be conducted. It also gives timely post-flight fault code/event review, which enables determination of aircraft availability.

z Bombardier Opens UK Regional Support Office Bombardier has opened a regional support office here at Farnborough Airport for its business aircraft customers in Europe, and it will also assist non-European Bombardier aircraft flying into the region. Located within the TAG Farnborough Airport terminal, it is next to TAG Farnborough Engineering, which is already a Bombardier authorized service facility.

A manager and three field service representatives staff the office, which also coordinates another 12 field representatives based in Belgium, France, Germany and Latvia. Some 560 Bombardier business jets are based in Europe.

For the London Olympic games, Bombardier is bolstering its on-site support from July 23 to August 17. Five field reps will be posted in the London area, with the company’s mobile response team in close proximity. Technicians will also be on standby at the factory-owned Amsterdam Schiphol service center and at three of its authorized services facilities in the London area. Spare parts inventories will also be boosted, said the Canadian airframer.

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z Electromechanical Uplock from Tactair Tactair Fluid Controls is developing a new electro­ mechanical uplock system for doors and landing gears.

Compared with traditional mechanical systems, the new uplock offers airframe manufacturers an opportunity to introduce significant weight-savings as well as design flexibility.

U.S.-based Tactair designs and manufactures a range of fluid-power and motion-control products, and has made the design and manufacture of uplocks a strategic focus, particularly those sized for business and regional aircraft. The company has a technology demonstrator of its electromechanical system here at the Farnborough International airshow (Hall 2 Stand B1).

z Hamilton Sundstrand To Supply Spares to Fokker Hamilton Sundstrand has signed an agreement with Fokker Services to provide spare parts in support of Fokker repair work at its Amsterdam facility. The purchase contract, which runs through 2016, is valued at $33.2 million. It covers “integrated drive generators and other equipment” for aircraft built mainly by Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier and Fokker.

The U.S. company has also announced three maintenance and support deals with airlines here at the show: • With Japan Airlines (JAL), it has extended an exclusive repair agreement on Boeing 767, 777 and MD90 fleets. The additional three years cover repairs until August 2014, as the extension was signed earlier this year and retroactive to 2011.

• With Latin America’s Avianca group, it has signed two “long-term agreements” to provide maintenance on auxiliary power units (APUs). The first, with Oceanair, is for APS3200s on Airbus A320s; its fleet is planned to grow from 20 to more than 30 aircraft; the second is with TACA Airlines in San Salvador; the carrier operates 12 Embraer 190s equipped with APS2300 APUs.

DAVID McINTOSH

Canada’s National Research Council (NRC) has added new capabilities to its altitude icing wind tunnel (AIWT), such as simulating flights at 25,000 feet and the addition of hot air supply for models that use it for de-icing. The improvements will help NRC meet client demands for development and certification work recognized by regulators such as Europe’s EASA and the U.S. FAA. With a 0.5-meter-square test section, NRC’s Altitude Icing Wind Tunnel is a cost-effective facility used by clients for testing of small models, wing sections and air-data probes, validation of numerical ice accretion codes and evaluation of ice accretion on non-protected aircraft components.

The tunnel’s comparatively small test section, combined with its relatively high-speed capabilities (up to Mach 0.5 with insert), makes it particularly suitable and efficient for the testing of instrumentation and for viewing the microphysical processes of ice accretion.

The NRC and Newmerical Technologies International (NTI) recently announced an exclusive licensing agreement for NTI to use, market and further develop NRC-patented in-flight icing modeling technology to predict the shape and structural details of ice accretions affecting aircraft safety.

DAVID McINTOSH

z NRC Improves Icing Tunnel To Meet Demand

Steep demand for commercial airliners has one research firm concerned that component suppliers might not be able to keep up.

Fear of parts shortfalls as airframers ramp-up

by Gregory Polek Forecast International is questioning whether component suppliers will manage to keep up with the demand from Airbus and Boeing as they prepare to raise production rates of commercial airliners over the next 10 years. Forecast’s newly released report, “The Market for Large Commercial Jet Transports,” projects that 14,655 large commercial airliners will roll out over the 10-year period 20122021. The U.S market research firm estimates the value of the production at $2.04 trillion.

“Airbus and Boeing, the two dominant manufacturers in the market, are implementing production increases and are considering additional increases for the future,” said the consultancy. “However,

determining how fast and high to increase production is a tricky proposition for the two companies. In addition to the vulnerability of their supply chains, another concern is the overall health of the airline industry.”

The desire of Airbus and Boeing to expand production is putting a considerable strain on their suppliers, especially in light of ongoing global economic sluggishness and uncertainty, said the report. More pressure has come from the desire by Airbus and Boeing to outsource more design work and production responsibilities.

“The potential for bottlenecks among suppliers means that Airbus and Boeing need to tread cautiously when it comes

to future production increases,” said Forecast International senior aerospace analyst Raymond Jaworowski.

A second major concern involves the health of the airline industry, said the report.

Although air traffic continues to grow and the industry as a whole remains profitable, many individual airlines are experiencing financial difficulties, including some carriers that hold orders for hundreds of new airplanes.

At the same time, Airbus and Boeing have considerable incentive to keep production rates high and growing. The two companies hold large numbers of unfilled orders, resulting in long waiting times for customers to take delivery of their aircraft, which often translates into considerable frustration for customers. A lack of early delivery slots could also tempt potential buyers to take a serious look at new aircraft emerging from manufacturers outside of the Airbus/Boeing duopoly, the report suggests. o

GE partner Avio is driving development Italian propulsion component company Avio has made the trip to Farnborough to showcase its role in some of the engine industry’s latest and most advanced offerings.

A GE partner, Avio holds a 12-percent share in the GEnx engine (an option for the Boeing 787) and carries responsibility for the accessory drive gearbox, stator parts of the low-pressure

turbine and lubrication system.

In the civil realm, apart from the GEnx, Avio has major roles in the GE90 for the Boeing 777, the Trent 900 for the Airbus A380 and the CFM Leap engine (for the Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737 MAX and Comac C919).

Other projects in which Avio plays a significant role include the TP400 turboprop chosen

by Airbus Military to power the A400M transport. Avio designs and produces the propeller gearbox, the largest ever produced in the Western world.

Avio’s involvement in military programs extends to the EJ200 engine for the Eurofighter Typhoon, the T700-6E1 for the NH90 helicopter and the F135 engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. –G.P.

z Olivier Is New Esterline CMC Electronics VP Esterline CMC Electronics (Hall 1, Stand B11), a provider of cockpit systems integration and avionics solutions worldwide, has appointed Christian Olivier as its vice president, operations. He will be responsible for operations, supply chain management, master planning, facilities management and IT across all three of the company’s facilities. Olivier, with over 25 years of experience in the aerospace and electronics industries, moves from France’s Direction Générale pour l’Armement, following a 10-year stint. He is a graduate of the École Polytechnique (Paris) and the École Nationale Supérieure de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace (Toulouse). He also holds a pilot’s certificate.

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U.S. Pavilion opens The delegation at the opening of the U.S. Pavilion included Tom Kallman, CEO of Kallman Worldwide; Marion Blakey, CEO of the Aeropace Industries Association; Michael Donley, Secretary of the Air Force; Francisco Sanchez, Undersecretary for International Trade; and Louis Susman, Ambassador to the Court of St. James.

z GKN to Design Global Windows GKN Aerospace has been awarded a contract for the design, development and production of transparencies for Bombardier’s Global 7000 and Global 8000 business jets. Initial test items will be delivered in 2013.

The contract includes both the cockpit and passenger cabin windows that will incorporate GKN’s CrystalVue I abrasion resistant coating for the ultra-long-range business jets. Design and production will take place at the GKN facility in Garden Grove, California.

“These windows represent the absolute state-of-the-art in transparencies technology. They have been produced using advanced forming technology and incorporate our market-leading coatings, which together provide unbeatable performance and reliability in all operating conditions,” said Ron Kato, vice president and managing director of GKN’s Special Products division.

z Raytheon Awarded Major UAV Turret Contract Raytheon has been awarded a major contract for the MTS-B multi-spectral targeting system. The $191 million contract was awarded by the U.S. Air Force in April and covers the supply of 149 high-definition MTS-B turrets for Reaper unmanned air vehicles, plus support equipment and spares. Deliveries are due to start in the first quarter of next year, and will run for around two years.

MTS-B is the primary sensor system of the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper. Versions also equip the Reaper/Predator B UAVs used by Italy and the UK, as well as by other U.S. agencies, such as the Navy and Customs and Border Protection. The MTS-B is a larger derivative of the MTS-A turret that equips the MQ-1 Predator UAV. Raytheon has more than 1,500 MTS systems deployed in 44 separate subvariants on 21 different platforms. The system passed one million flight hours in August 2010.

z Aussie 737s Get CMC GPS Upgrade Esterline CMC Electronics has been selected to equip four Australian airExpress Boeing 737s with CMA-5024 IntegriFlight GPS landing system sensors. Qantas’s engineering department is performing the installation for the cargo airline.

The GPS sensors, which are certified by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Transport Canada to TSO-C145c Beta-3 and TSO-146c Delta-4, the most stringent categories for aviation GPS receivers, will provide automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) capability. Additionally, the CMA-5024 can relay precision approach guidance signals to the aircraft’s autopilot and instrument displays to execute a localizer precision with vertical guidance (LPV) approach.

“We are extremely pleased to supply the highest level of navigation performance to the Australian airExpress postal service fleet with our latest generation aviation GPS system,” said Esterline CMC Electronics president Greg Yeldon. “This selection reconfirms our position as the global technology leader for high-integrity aviation GPS technology and products.”

z PPG Introduces Advanced Material for G650 PPG Aerospace Transparencies group has started full-scale commercial production of its Opticor advanced transparency material at its Sylmar facility in Los Angeles. Opticor is being used for the outboard surface of the cabin windows for the soon-to-becertified Gulfstream G650 corporate jet (a G650 window is on display on the company’s stand here at the show, at Hall 4 Stand B10).

PPG, the world’s largest supplier of aircraft windshields, windows and canopies, has increased its output capability for Opticor, according to Anthony Stone, PPG global director for new business development and innovations for transparencies.

“Aircraft windows made of Opticor advanced transparency material are lightweight and resist crazing to maintain optical clarity,” said Stone. The proprietary, specialist plastic is laminated to stretched acrylic for increased stiffness, and is assembled with an inboard coated glass panel that is heated for antifogging.

PPG’s windows are fabricated at its plant in Huntsville, Alabama.

V-22 ventures ‘over here’ in search of export buyers

by Chris Pocock The drive to find international customers for the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor continues, prompting four U.S. Marine Corps MV-22s to make a transatlantic trip to fly displays and demonstrations here at Farnborough and at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) at Fairford last weekend. Aircraft for export could easily be slotted into the expected second American multiyear buy, Col. Greg Masiello, joint V-22 program manager, U.S. Naval Air Systems command, said here at the Farnborough Interna-

surfaced as if to offload a seriously ill sailor. Arriving overhead exactly on time, the CV-22 hovered and lowered a hoist for the evacuation.

Fourteen V-22s are slated to replace the CH-46s that fly support missions for HMX-1, the U.S. presidential transport squadrons. Bell Boeing officials have suggested that the tilt-rotor could also replace the VH-3s used to transport the U.S. President himself. They are also pitching the V-22 as a replacement for

The V-22 Osprey marketing team hopes show visitors will be impressed with the unique aircraft’s performance and mission flexibility.

tional airshow yesterday. He did not identify potential customers, but serious interest from Canada, Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been reported.

Masiello sought to offset the Osprey’s high sticker price by describing its multi-mission capabilities and superior performance. “This is an airplane–not a helicopter–that can fly at 282 knots as well as hover. Affordability is relative.

“U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command [AFSOC] is replacing a fleet of over 100 various aircraft with 50 Ospreys,” he said. The V-22 has done humanitarian relief, search and rescue, cargo delivery to a variety of warships, and VIP transport. AFSOC “is doing a lot of behind-the-scenes; directaction, time-sensitive target missions,” with the five aircraft that it deployed operationally in May 2011, Masiello added.

He described a notable longrange medevac mission test flown on June 6. This was a nonstop 11.5-hour roundtrip from Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico with the aid of in-flight refueling. The CV-22 flew to a position off the U.S. East Coast, where the nuclear submarine U.S.S. Wyoming

articulating fashion to the UK’s existing Sea King surveillance helicopters, as their replacement.

“But the UK indicated their preference for a solution based on the EH101 Merlin helicopter, even though we offered six times the coverage,” a Bell Boeing official told AIN recently.

Masiello reported that the U.S. Marine Corps still intends to buy 350 MV-22s and AFSOC 50 CV-22s. The U.S. Navy wants 48. A five-year performance-based logistics contract is being negotiated.

“The cost per flying hour is trending down well,” the Bell Boeing official told AIN. Masi-

DAVID McINTOSH

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the U.S. Navy’s C-2 Greyhound carrier on-board delivery (COD) aircraft. Ospreys could deliver direct to smaller ships.

Other future applications could include aerial and ground refueling of other aircraft, and an ISR/C2 version.

Both of these would use rollon, roll-off palletized mission kits.

Bell Boeing and Thales UK studied a version that could deploy an AEW and ISR radar in similar

Jazz signs Smart Parts contract Bombardier Aerospace has signed a nine-year agreement with Canadian airline Jazz Aviation for its Q400 Smart Parts program.

According to the manufacturer, Smart Parts provides convenient access to parts using cost-efficient inventory management.

“The program is predictable in terms of cash flow and provides a single channel for airlines, allowing them to focus on flying,” said Eric Martel, president, Bombardier customer services & specialized and amphibious aircraft.

ello noted that Ospreys have been continuously deployed on operations since 2007 by the Marine Corps. “We don’t ‘baby’ it…it’s been shot at,” he said.

Despite the recent crash of an AFSOC aircraft on a training mission, Masiello said the Osprey’s poor safety reputation was behind it. “The hydraulics and the wiring were completely redesigned after the early accidents. It’s perfectly safe. I would fly my family in it,” he added. o Martel said Bombardier would leverage the program for the CSeries in 2013 when it goes into service.

“We need full control of our costs and Smart Parts can help us predict [requirements],” said Richard Steer, vice president, maintenance and engineering, for Jazz Aviation.

Currently Q400 operators across the world, including India’s SpiceJet, Eurolot of Poland and Luxembourg’s Luxair, have selected the program, which was introduced in 2008. “The program is doing well in parts reliability with SpiceJet. There are 50 people supporting the fleet,” said Martel to AIN. Bombardier is to open its service center in Singapore early next year. –N.M.

www.ainonline.com • July 10, 2012 • Farnborough Airshow News 61

AgustaWestland offering beefed-up AW609 variant

When the first Boeing 737 MAXs are delivered to Air Lease Corp., they’ll be sporting this newdesign winglet, as seen here at Farnborough.

‘Programs Under Pressure’ report released by PWC New research from Price Waterhouse Coopers stresses the need for a different kind of mindset to deal with the “intensity” of pressure on aerospace and defense companies to deliver across the board. The new report titled, A New Intensity: Programs Under Pressure, underscores the need for companies to excel in more than one discipline, as opposed to past approaches toward choosing one of three areas: solutions leadership, operational excellence or customer intimacy.

“Our report reveals that companies will need a different kind of program management mindset in which partnership, internationalism, inclusivity and innovation rank as highly

as the ‘getting it out the door’ approach,” said Price Waterhouse Coopers’ global A&D leader, Neil Hampson. “We are in an era of fierce international competition. The winners will need to demonstrate they can use innovation as a key competitive advantage as well as anticipate, understand and match customers’ needs.”

In all, 64 percent of senior executives surveyed for the report said innovation would prove vital to gaining a competitive edge, as well as delivering programs more integrated with customer needs, markets and supply chains. Only 9 percent said they consider protecting intellectual property a top priority. –G.P.

Air Lease signs for 75 B737 MAXs uContinued from page 1

leasing company, although it converts a previously tentative commitment.

Still far behind Airbus in terms of orders for re-engined narrowbodies, Boeing hopes to close the gap here at the show this week. The rival A320neo has drawn firm orders for more than 1,400 aircraft, while the tally for the 737 MAX now stands at 549.

Calling the deal “a natural follow-on” for its existing commitment for 78 Boeing 737-800s, ALC chairman Steven UdvarHazy expressed satisfaction with the improvements Boeing has made to the MAX over the past few months after the ALC chairman issued a rather negative assessment of the airplane’s features during a finance

Pogosyan: no hint of technical fault uContinued from page 1

on that data we can say there were no technical issues with the aircraft.” In a seeming contradiction, however, Pogosyan said, “It would be premature” to discuss details of the investigation (although this would reflect standard industry etiquette).

Making its second demonstration flight of the day, MSN 95004 had flown just 20 minutes when the flight crew requested a descent to 6,000 feet from 10,000 feet before losing radio contact with ATC. A crewmember and passenger list released

by Sukhoi confirmed the airplane carried 45 people, including SSJ100 chief pilot Alexander Yablontsev and copilot Alexander Kocketkov. Yablontsev had logged more than 10,000 hours and commanded the first flight

00 Farnborough Airshow News • July 10, 62 7, 2012 2012• •www.ainonline.com www.ainonline.com

conference in the U.S. in March.

“Boeing and CFM have really worked hard in the last six months to change the original design concept,” he said.

“A number of things evolved.

First of all, the [CFM Leap1B] engine on the airplane is no longer the same engine that’s on the A320 family for the neo.

This is an engine that’s been customized and optimized for the 737 MAX…its core, fan diameter and the whole installation is significantly better than we saw in the early part of this year.”

Udvar-Hazy also mentioned the aerodynamic changes, specifically in the wing-tip configuration, the aft part of the fuselage and the tail section, to reduce drag and improve fuel efficiency.

Also a customer for the A320neo, ALC now has covered the majority of the single-aisle market.

“Already, the 737-800 has five percent more seating capacity–maximum 189 versus 180 on the A320–so that translates into further unit cost advantages for our customers,” Udvar-Hazy continued.

The leasing industry icon noted that ALC conducted an “exhaustive analysis” of the MAX and determined that the CFM Leap-1B-powered narrowbody would yield a fuel efficiency improvement of between 12and 13 percent compared with the 737-800. Boeing recently increased its estimated fuel-burn improvement quote from 11 percent to 13 percent.

“Once we went into the optimization of that engine, that’s when things really got better,” concluded Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Ray Conner.

The value of the engine order to CFM International is approximately $1.9 billion. –G.P.

Pogosyan. “And I would like to of the SSJ100’s first prototype.

The aircraft’s arrival in Indo- stress that the aircraft was cernesia marked the fourth stop in a tified by EASA, and this also six-country Asian demonstration [shows] that the safety of the tour. It had already visited Paki- aircraft was confirmed through stan, Kazakhstan and Myanmar extensive testing. This was a real milestone in the and schedules called project. So there’s no for it to go to Laos and hint of any technical Vietnam over the folmalfperformance of lowing few days.

Pogosyan said yesthe Superjet 100.” terday that the accident Pogosyan also might result in a “shift” revealed that SCAC in deliveries to Indoneexpects to close talks sian airlines but that, with three customers in general, customer in Southeast Asia over interest in the airplane orders and options covAircraft hasn’t waned. In fact, United ering 40 new airplanes president Mikhail only two weeks ago Pogosyan “in a two- to threeSukhoi Civil Aircraft month period.”

(SCAC) landed an order for six Meanwhile, he added, the of the regional jets from Russia’s accident has actually inspired second largest airline, Transaero. the Superjet’s suppliers and “We keep informing our partners to “consolidate” their customers, both potential and efforts toward a concerted bid existing, of the information to meet the production target of that we have on the results 20 airplanes this year and 60 a of the investigation,” said year by 2014. o GREG POLEK

THIERRY DUBOIS

AgustaWestland (Pavilion do this. In cruise, speed would OE1) is offering an increased- be 250 knots (these numbers gross-weight version of its assume ISA conditions, with a AW609 tiltrotor, which trades 30-minute fuel reserve).

The certification process is off some vertical takeoff capability for a higher payload limit. complex, according to Luck.

This will make it more attrac- “We have a certification basis tive for some missions where agreed with the [U.S.] FAA,” he vertical capabilities are not said. The AW609 will be certified under both Part 25 [fixed-wing needed on departure.

Type certification of the aircraft] and Part 29 [helicopAW609, for which the Anglo- ter] rules. In addition, the transiItalian airframer claims to have tion phase, which lasts a mere 40 seconds, calls for “a new around 60 orders, is element” of certification. planned for 2016. The EASA is shadowing the protracted program (the FAA’s certification effort aircraft first flew in 2003) with a view to eventual is now entirely in Aguscertification of the first taWestland’s hands, since civil tiltrotor in Europe. the company effectively The two aircraft in took over Bell’s share late the flight-test program last year. have logged a combined As Richard Luck, 700 hours. This transhead of AW609 marketRichard Luck, head of ing, explained in a brief- AW609 marketing for lates to 85 percent of the flight envelope. Next in ing here at the show AgustaWestland the program is autorotayesterday maximum takeoff weight can be 16,800 tion testing. One aircraft is based pounds or 18,000 pounds. The in Cascina Costa, Italy, and the latter could allow an offshore other in Arlington, Texas.

AgustaWestland officially operator to take off from its land base using around 800 feet (take- became the sole owner of the off distance to 35 feet). All nine program on Nov. 15, 2011, and passenger seats would be occu- the type certification application pied and the rotorcraft would was transferred on Feb. 15, 2012. still embark with enough fuel to It is now the “design authorfly 350 nm. At the offshore oil ity” for the AW609. Transfer of platform, the aircraft would land intellectual property rights from and take off vertically, as weight Bell is also complete and the cero would have reduced enough to tification has resumed.

MARK WAGNER

by Thierry Dubois

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Up to 12,000 pounds lighter than its competitors *, the CSeries aircraft delivers a 20% fuel burn advantage — which contributes to the 15% cash operating cost advantage and 20% less CO2 emissions **. It is a 100% newly designed aircraft for today’s operational realities. A new choice for a changed world. www.cseries.com

Bombardier, CSeries and CS300 are Trademark(s) of Bombardier Inc. or its subsidiaries. * Up to 12,000 pounds lighter vs. in-production aircraft of 110-seat & 130-seat categories and re-engined options. ** 20% fuel burn advantage, 20% less CO2 emissions and 15% cash operating cost advantage vs. average in-production aircraft of 110-seat & 130-seat categories @ 500 NM. The CSeries aircraft program is currently in development phase and as such is subject to changes in family strategy, branding, capacity, performance, design and / or systems. All specifications and data are approximate, may change without notice and are subject to certain operating rules, assumptions and other conditions. The actual aircraft and configuration may differ from the image shown. © 2012 Bombardier Inc. All rights reserved.