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Airbus grooms five A400Ms for intense flight-test duties With its first A400M in the air, Airbus Military is embarking on an intensive flight trials campaign, with the aim of clearing the baseline common standard aircraft (CSA) configuration for service in 2012.

As political controversy surrounded the airplane, with Airbus threatening to stop funding, the flight test team made good progress. By the end of the fourth flight in mid-January, the normal operational flight envelope had been completely cleared.

Airbus is building five flight-test airframes to support the A400M, in addition to several ground rigs for testing fatigue and loads, hydraulics and systems, and avionics. The initial plan called for six flight-test aircraft, but one (MSN005) was cancelled to save costs.

Within the plan the five airframes have distinct primary tasks, but can also be used for secondary duties and to cover for other aircraft. MSN001, the first aircraft, is naturally dedicated to handling, envelope, flutter and loads testing. MSN002 is intended for detailed performance and certification trials, and tests of the defensive aids subsystem. MSN003 is the primary systems testbed for evaluation of the autopilot, navigation, fuel, electrics and other key systems.

The fourth aircraft, MSN004, is to be the first fitted with a cargo system and provision for air-to-air refueling. It will focus on these areas accordingly. The last of the flying trials aircraft is MSN006, which is regarded as the first serial representative machine. It will be used to prove the maturity of systems, route proving and engine endurance trials.

Test Campaign

Formulation of a flight-test plan began in 2004. Delays to the overall program allowed Airbus to devise and install an impressive test infrastructure, based on what it had learned during testing of the A380 and MRTT tanker/transport. The main test centers are at Toulouse in France and Seville in Spain, the latter also being the assembly and delivery site. Both sites are integrated into a single test team so that flights can be followed from either center, using the same tools and a common database. Furthermore, real-time links have been established to other key A400M sites, such as Bremen in Germany and Filton in the UK, so that specialists can monitor flight trials without having to travel. Two flights can be monitored simultaneously.

Telemetry antennas cover most of France and Spain, and there is a mobile unit that can be deployed to other locations. The test fleet is expected to fly to many parts of the world to conduct both tests and demonstrations. Plans include cold weather testing at Kiruna (Sweden), Thule (Greenland), Iqaluit and Goose Bay (Canada). High-latitude tests will be conducted in Svalbard (Norway) and high

crosswind tests at Keflavik (Iceland). Hotweather trials will be conducted at Al Ain (UAE), hot and sandy at Tozeur (Tunisia), and hot and humid at Cayenne (Guyane).

Further high-altitude trials will be performed in Bolivia and Colombia.

Tests also will be conducted at government-furnished test ranges throughout France, Germany, Spain, Turkey and the UK. Among them will be grass runway trials in Germany, soil runway tests in Spain, and low-level flying workload assessment (down to 150 feet) in the UK. The final phases of the paratroop tests will take place in Turkey, during which the A400M will carry 116 troops.

Overall, the initial flight test campaign is expected to total 4,370 hours, of which 1,850 hours are required for EASA type certification, and 2,520 hours for military certification and qualification. The latter is to be conducted by the procuring agency OCCAR through various joint panels representing the partner nations.

A. DOUMENJOU/EXM COMPANY

by David Donald

The first A400M (MSN001) made its first flight on December 11 from San Pablo Airport in Seville, Spain, launching the military airlifter’s intensive flight-test program. Meanwhile, Airbus Military and the partner governments wrangle over the program’s finances.

All four engines seen here running for the first time during the preparation for the A400M’s first flight.

The TP400-D6 first flew on a C-130, but key aspects such as reverse pitch could not be tested until installation in the A400M. Currently, MSN001 has working reverse thrust only on the inboard engines.

First Flight in December

The official flight test campaign got under way on November 12 last year, when MSN001 was handed over to the flight-test department. During the following week the engines and APU were prepared after a period of storage. All four engines were started from the APU on November 19 and were run to full power the next day. Tests of a single Europrop TP400-D6 engine had previously been conducted on a C-130 Hercules.

Low-speed taxi trials, including 180degree turns and reversing, began on November 23. Subsequent high-speed runs took the A400M up to the 120-knot takeoff speed. These tests revealed a number of minor problems, principally in the brakes and anti-skid system. An extra taxi run was required to test the fixes before the first flight could go ahead.

Adverse weather caused some delay to the first flight, as MSN001 has instrumented propeller blades on engines one and two. The delicate and expensive instrumentation is highly susceptible to precipitation damage, so good weather was needed for both ground and air tests.

This problem has continued into the new year, with unusually wet weather in southern Spain.

All was well on December 11 and MSN001 took off from Seville’s San Pablo Airport at 10:15 a.m. local. The first flight was undertaken with Airbus Military’s chief test pilot Ed Strongman in the left seat and Ignacio Lombo in the right seat.

Four flight test engineers were also onboard to monitor systems.

The flight began with a commendably short takeoff run and sprightly climbout, before Strongman and his crew put the aircraft through a series of maneuvers with various flap configurations and at various

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speeds. The landing gear was cycled several times, and MSN001 returned to Seville after three hours and 47 minutes airborne.

The A400M flew again on December 22 and by the end of the three-hour sortie the complete normal envelope had been opened. This included altitude up to 30,000 feet, speed down to stall warning with and without flaps, maximum operating speed of 300 knots and maximum operating Mach number of 0.72. This was accomplished in both direct and normal control laws.

MSN001 flew for a third time on January 7, a two-hour 25-minute sortie that further explored handling. Michel Gagneaux became the third pilot to fly the aircraft, supporting “Nacho” Lombo. The fourth flight lasted nearly five hours.

Ongoing Tests

Following initial testing at Seville, MSN001 is to become one of three A400Ms based at Toulouse, from where it will conduct around 1,200 hours testing. It is in the “heavy” instrumentation configuration, with between 14 and 16 metric tons of test equipment aboard. MSN002 is rapidly nearing completion, and will also be in “heavy” layout. It is due to join the test fleet in March and will fly 1,100 hours from Seville. Aircraft 3 will have less flight test instrumentation (“medium FTI”) and is

due to fly 975 hours from Toulouse after a scheduled first flight in May. At the end of the year, a second medium FTI aircraft (MSN004) is scheduled to begin 870 test hours from the base at Seville. MSN006, the production-representative aircraft is due to fly with only “light” instrumentation and is to fly 225 hours from Toulouse beginning in July 2011.

Airbus Military has orchestrated an intensive campaign, with up to two flights a day from Monday to Friday. Regular maintenance will be performed overnight and during weekends. In the current outlook, there are no planned lay-ups, or interruptions of the test program, for further modifications.

European certification for the common standard aircraft (cargo transport) is targeted for the end of November 2011, and first production aircraft delivery scheduled for the end of 2012. Airbus Military is offering a staged introduction of the aircraft’s capabilities. Further testing will be required to certificate various customer J options, including tanker capability.

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EADS forges ahead on two UAV programs

by David Donald EADS is moving forward with its Talarion medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) UAV, with an eye to flying it in 2014. In the meantime, its Barracuda demonstrator is gearing up for a series of trials to demonstrate the employment of UAVs in a netcentric environment.

The European group’s UAV demonstrator has evolved from two programs: the company’s own Barracuda unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV), and the Agile UAV funded by the German government. The first prototype flew on April 2, 2006, but in September of that year it crashed at Murcia-San Javier in Spain due to software problems in the flight control system. A second air vehicle was rolled out at Augsburg, Germany, in May 2008. The fuselage was built in Germany, while the wings were constructed at Getafe in Spain.

The Barracuda is a 7,165-pound vehicle with a 661-pound payload.

It was originally designed for low observability trials, which explains its configuration with a dorsal intake and edge alignments. However, low observability subsequently was dropped as a requirement on cost grounds, and features such as a thrust-vectoring flat engine nozzle were not incorporated.

The Barracuda is built using a vacuum-assisted carbon fiber process, and has detachable wings for transportation. There is an internal payload bay measuring around six and half feet in length

and 16 inches in width. The vehicle is fully autonomous, with a triplex flight control/navigation system. It uses differential GPS with a space-based augmentation system, and so requires no ground infrastructure. Most of the systems are electric, with hydraulics required only for undercarriage operation and nosewheel steering.

A modular mission computer lies at the heart of the Barracuda.

The system is easy to upgrade as the flight safety critical elements are segregated. Most of the systems were tested on a Dornier Do 228 aircraft provided by the German DLR organization.

In its current incarnation the Barracuda is configured for Germany’s Agile UAV research program. It has a Zeiss turret mounted under the belly, with electro-optical and infrared sensors, and a laser designator. The aircraft also has a datalink installed. The Agile UAV is a wide-ranging program to evaluate operational concepts, interoperability, sensor fusion and data distribution for UAVs, with the aim of accelerating the reconnaissance/attack cycle. Finland joined the program in late 2006, and Switzerland followed last year, having already had some involvement in the earlier Barracuda.

Test Program Under Way

EADS shipped the Barracuda to Goose Bay, Labrador, for the first flight trial campaign. The vehicle first flew on July 10 last

AURA Radar for the Talarion Building on its experience of electronically scanned antenna (e-scan) radars such as DO-SAR, CAESAR, SOSTAR-X, BÜR and MEADS, EADS is developing an advanced radar that will become one of the Talarion’s prime sensors. “For us the Talarion is a radar with wings, an IP node in the sky,” said Martin Pirkl, vice president for radar/IFF at EADS Defence & Security’s defense electronics division. “Advanced UAVs need a new class of radar, and this bird needs advanced eyes.”

Known as AURA (advanced UAV radar architecture), the sensor is being developed in cooperation with Indra and Thales, and is currently in the risk reduction phase. AURA is a 360-degree radar that employs an e-scan array with 500 to 1,000 transmit/receive modules, with rotating capability to compensate for aircraft

maneuvering. It offers synthetic aperture radar capability in both swath and spot modes, and ground moving target indication (GMTI). Spot SAR and GMTI can be performed simultaneously. AURA offers the ability to cover around 1,930 sq mi in an hour, far greater than is possible with mechanically scanned antennas.

As well as AURA, EADS is working on the smaller SmartRadar family of sensors for a variety of applications, including lightweight podded versions. Much of the backend architecture has been air-tested already from a Transall C-160, albeit with a mechanically scanned antenna. An escan version is due for air-testing around the end of the year.

SmartRadar technology advances will be fed into the ongoing AURA –D.D. development effort.

EADS’s Talarion, seen above in mockup form, has a much wider fuselage than many MALE UAVs, increasing its versatility and payload-carrying ability.

The Barracuda UAV flies over the Goose Bay ranges during last summer’s flight-test campaign. It was equipped with a Zeiss turret to demonstrate its reconnaissance capability.

year, and during the second flight the landing gear was retracted. On the third and fourth flights the Barracuda employed the Zeiss turret to demonstrate its intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities as part of the Agile UAV program. Using the sensors, the Barracuda successfully performed target searches in a given box, and point reconnaissance.

The system demonstrated the ability to hold a stable broadband link while maneuvering.

The Barracuda’s next campaign is scheduled for next year and will probably take place at Goose Bay again, where the ranges provide a vast unrestricted airspace and a variety of terrains.

The next round of tests will focus on sensor-to-shooter operations in a peace enforcement type of mission. The Barracuda will spot targets, hand them off to a fighter and then perform follow-up battle damage assessment.

This round of trials is likely to involve a Luftwaffe Eurofighter as the shooter, and may extend to control of the sensor or the UAV itself from the cockpit. Three to five flights are planned, and at the very least the handover of an accurate geo-location is expected.

It is hoped that compressed video or still images can be transmitted.

For these tests EADS is working on accurate four-dimensional navigation and onboard automatic

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target recognition for the vehicle.

Beyond the 2011 sensor-toshooter tests, EADS has a number of possibilities for the Agile UAV, including a two-UAV trial and demonstration in the search-andrescue role. A fast emitter location system could be added to evaluate employment in the defense suppression role, while netcentric/C4I functionality may also be expanded. The Barracuda is likely also to be a vehicle for testing systems such as sense-and-avoid for the Talarion MALE vehicle.

Talarion

Originally known as the Advanced UAV, the Talarion is being developed to answer a joint requirement from France, Germany and Spain for an in-theater I-STAR platform. Turkey is also an interested party, and EADS is courting other European nations–including the UK–to participate.

In the summer of 2008 the three partner nations confirmed their intention to proceed with the program, and at the end of May last year a risk-reduction study was finalized, allowing EADS to submit its proposal. The Talarion was officially unveiled at last year’s Paris airshow.

A definition phase was launched in August, which is to culminate in a system preliminary design review to be held in the middle of this year. Pending the

outcome of a review by the three national armament directors, EADS aims to have the Talarion in the air by 2014, the first delivery at the end of 2015 and initial operating capability achieved by the end of 2017. Customers see this schedule is as vital.

The Talarion is a twin-engine UAV with the ability to operate at over 50,000 feet. It has an internal payload of 1,764 pounds and external payload of 2,204 pounds.

Wingspan is 92 feet. Among the key technologies are advanced laminar-flow wing section, low observable materials and an advanced structural health monitoring system. Technologies destined for the Talarion are being tested in ground facilities, in a UAV “battlelab” and on existing designs such as the Barracuda and SIDM (the EADS Eagle used by France, based on the IAI Heron TP).

In terms of sensors and comms, the Talarion will have a satellite communications antenna in the forward fuselage, a large EO/IR/laser turret under the rear fuselage and a modular payload bay. The latter can accommodate a weapon carrier module, e-scan radar, extended range fuel tank, or other sensor options.

J

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Asia-Pacific region is key to Airbus’s future

Airbus is still grappling with significant manufacturing and engineering headaches with the A380 widebody, and several early customers for the type have endured annoying operational problems.

by Jeff Apter

DAVID MCINTOSH

Airbus closed 2009 on a posi- models. Fewer cancellations were tive commercial note with orders recorded last year than in 2008, for 85 aircraft received in De- he said, despite earlier expectacember–27 from Asia-Pacific tions that airframer’s backlogs customers, including 16 A330- could be undermined by fallout 200s for China Eastern Airlines, from the financial crisis.

10 A320s for Air New Zealand Today, China accounts for 15 and one A320 for Zest Airways percent of Airbus sales worldof the Philippines. Despite the wide and has 320 of its airliners continuing weakness of the on order, most of them, coinciworld economy, the European dentally, A320s. The vast country’s airframer expects to maintain carriers are expecting delivery of 2010 orders and deliveries at almost 100 jets this year, up from 2009 levels, especially to China. around 80 delivered in 2009. AirLast year, Airbus delivered bus forecasts that it will sell 498 aircraft, establishing a new almost 300 A380s to China alone company record for a single over the next 20 years and that year–up from 483 delivered in these aircraft will service both 2008. The 2009 figure includes international and domestic routes.

402 A320 family aircraft, 86 The A320 joint venture final A330/340s–both records for a assembly line that opened in single year–and 10 A380s. In Tianjin in September 2008 to date addition, its military aircraft divi- has delivered 11 aircraft that, sion delivered 16 light- and according to Airbus, are of the medium-transport aircraft. same quality as those assembled Airbus CEO customers John in Toulouse and Hamburg. It aims Leahy last month told jour- to produce four aircraft a month nalists he expects to log orders by the end of 2011. for 250 to 300 airplanes in In addition to the Tianjin 2010–the year in which the assembly line, Airbus will mancompany celebrates its 40th ufacture around 5 percent of the anniversary and in which its A350XWBs in China and it has EADS parent has its 10th birth- established a logistics center in day. The manufacturer ended Tianjin for the distribution of 2009 with an annual total of 310 parts throughout its Chinese orders, including 228 A320 sin- production network. The center gle-aisle airliners, 78 A330/ is due to be fully operational A340/A350XWB twinnext month. aisles and four new Meanwhile, Airbus orders for the A380 is seriously considersuper-widebody, two ing re-engining its of them from Korean A320 family, motiAir. Three years after vated in part by comlaunch, the OEM has petition from China’s logged orders for more C919 and Bombarthan 500 of the next dier’s C Series nargeneration A350XWB. rowbodies. Airbus and According to AirBoeing narrowbody bus, total 2009 orders backlogs will ensure represent 54 percent of production until 2015, the worldwide market Leahy said, adding share for 100-plus-seat According to Airbus that the decision on recommercial aircraft. president and CEO Tom engining will be taken Enders, high fuel prices Leahy said he expects a have by the end of this year meant that airlines turnaround in 2012. with a view to having have been less inclined President and CEO to cancel or defer new the updated A320 in Tom Enders confirmed aircraft orders than service around 2015. they might otherwise an order backlog of have been.

At the Dubai air3,500 models. Producshow in November, tion rates are set to stay Airbus unveiled plans flat at around 300 per year, but he to incorporate the Sharklet winglet said they will not fall–contrary to to the A320 design. The new the expectations of several lead- winglet promises to deliver fuel ing Airbus suppliers. savings of up to 3.5 percent and Enders said one of the reasons the prospect of 150 nm more range output remains relatively high is or 1,100 pounds more payload. that high fuel prices have boosted The sharklets, which may also airlines’ resolve to replace older be offered for retrofit to existing aircraft with more fuel-efficient A320s, are expected to be available

About 5 percent of the new A350XWB airliner will be built in China.

on new-build aircraft beginning in late 2012. Air New Zealand has specified Sharklets for the 14 A320s it has on order. Upgrades to the A321 and A319 are to follow six and 12 months later with the position of the A318 under review.

Enders expressed some “disappointment” that only 10 A380s were delivered last year, including four to Singapore Airlines and two to Qantas in Australia. This figure was down from an original forecast of 18 that already had been revised downward to 14.

The latest operational difficulties with the A380, which entered service with Singapore Airlines two years ago, concerns a fuel gauge problem on a Qantas aircraft due to operate on the Melbourneto-Los Angeles route. The same problem had already kept two other Qantas A380s on the tarmac last spring. And in December, a Singapore Airlines A380 had to return to Paris following an electrical fault in its kitchens. In addition, Air France’s first A380 has been grounded three times.

As of mid-January, Airbus had delivered 24 A380s, two thirds of them to airlines in the AsiaPacific region, including 10 to

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Singapore Airlines and six to Qantas. Airbus’s backlog of 202 orders for the double-decker includes delivery of three copies to China Southern in 2011, one each in 2011 and 2012 to Malaysia Airlines and one to Thai Airways International in September 2012, deferred from this year.

Enders acknowledged that Airbus has “not yet come to

grips” with the complexity of the manufacturing and engineering processes causing delivery delays. The company’s target is to deliver “at least 20” A380s this year, he said. Although the troubled Airbus program will not break even for “years to come,” he said the aircraft is increasingly popular and airlines J are making money with it.

AERIAL DISPLAYS GO INTO OVERTIME THIS WEEKEND The weekend aerial displays at this year’s Singapore Airshow will feature a bonus 30-minute show separate from the traditional 60minute display. With two slots this Saturday and Sunday, the aerial displays will include a one-hour presentation at 11:30 a.m. and an extra 30-minute display at 3 p.m.

An F-111 strike aircraft operated by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) will be making its last performance in Asia, lighting up the skies above Changi Airport by performing the “dump and burn” maneuver.

In addition, the A-10 Thunderbolt II–being flown here by the U.S. Air Force–will be making its first Asian show debut.

Also appearing for the first time here in the Singapore Airshow flying displays is the PC-21, a basic trainer that was recently acquired by the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF). The transonic Alenia Aermacchi M-346 and supersonic Korean T-50 Golden Eagle, both of which are in the running for the RSAF’s advanced jet trainer program, will also take part in the daily flying displays. In addition, the RSAF AH-64 Apache attack helicopter and F-16 Falcon fighter jet will come together for an Integrated air display segment.

I

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ScanEagle UAV success hooked Boeing on Insitu

by Chris Pocock Singapore last year joined the expanding list of countries that have tested and/or introduced the ScanEagle, a UAV that was designed in the 1990s as a maritime monitoring tool that could be launched and recovered by fishing ships. The world being a dangerous place, military surveillance applications have long since become the staple diet for the makers, Insitu.

This small American company based in

more than 20 hours at up to 16,000 feet, but is often operated at 2,000 to 3,000 feet where its size and low noise still makes it “truly nondetectable,” according to Edsall.

Missions can be preprogrammed, or controlled in real-time from the fully transportable ground station by the operator via the uplink. Imagery from the electro-optical or infrared camera is returned by a 2.4-GHz downlink. Unlike

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southern Washington state went into partnership with Boeing in 2002 and was bought by the defense giant in 2008. Insitu delivered its 1,000th UAV last year, is now producing a family of them at a rate of 50 per month and enjoyed revenue of more than $200 million last year.

International business director Eric Edsall attributed much of Insitu’s success to a “secret sauce” consisting of a smallcompany culture that emphasizes agility and innovation, combined with a servicebased business model. Insitu built its reputation by offering turnkey operations via a large force of field service representatives (FSRs). Contracts have typically included guarantees of coverage, such as 15 hours of imagery per day. The FSRs typically are deployed for three months of intensive work, followed by three months off, and receive a good bonus.

But basic design has also played an important part. The endurance/payload combination of the ScanEagle is unmatched for a vehicle of this size, according to Boeing. Moreover, it was the first small UAV to have an inertially stabilized sensor turret.

One operator can control the vehicle and payload in flight; “no advanced degrees or additional certifications are needed to use the ScanEagle,” according to Insitu. In 2007 it became the first small UAV to offer a heavy fuel engine option, claimed Insitu, when a German two-stroke lawnmower engine was adapted to run on JP5.

Just four feet long and with a 10-foot wingspan, ScanEagle is launched from a pneumatic wedge catapult. It can fly for

A “Skyhook” system snags the wingtip of the UAV. According to Insitu, this system does not suffer from the crosswind constraints that afflict other means of recovering UAVs.

other shipborne UAVs that must be carefully flown into a net for recovery, this UAV is recovered by a “Skyhook” system where the wing is snagged by a rope hanging from a 50-foot pole.

But it was a land-based application that gave Insitu its big break. The ScanEagle went to war in Iraq in 2004 with the U.S. Marine Corps. They logged more than 4,000 hours in the first year of operations.

The Marines noted the high quality of the imagery, which they used to call in air strikes against insurgents attacking their Continued on page 20

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ScanEagle success hooked Boeing Continued from page 18

patrols. They noted that the ScanEagle can fly for much longer than the Pioneer UAV that they also operated.

Australia and Canada both chose the ScanEagle to support

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their soldiers deployed to the ISAF in Afghanistan. “Although Kandahar is a difficult environment, we can fly there for 12 hours and for eight hours in the high mountains,” Edsall noted.

Previously, the Canadians operated the Spehrwehr system, but in the summer season this UAV could fly only in the cool hours around dawn, he added.

In 2005, the U.S. Navy started operating the UAV from ships deployed to the Middle East and elsewhere. To meet naval requirements, an automatic identification system (AIS) and a mode-C transponder were added. In a well publicized incident last April, imagery from a ScanEagle flying from the U.S.S. Bainbridge helped rescue the captain of that ship

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after he was held hostage by Somali pirates. The ScanEagle has now operated from 15 different ship classes.

Last year, Insitu announced the development of a larger UAV called the Integrator. The twinboom design is powered by an 8-hp reciprocating engine, the mtow is tripled to 135 pounds and the wingspan is increased by

The Integrator is a larger UAV that offers greater payload options.

six feet, to 16 feet. It has a dedicated, “plug-and-play” payload bay and provision for a datalink in the wingtips. The EO/IR ball turret can be retained, if required.

The Integrator will compete for the U.S. Navy’s STU-S requirement, which the ScanEagle is already meeting on an interim basis. A new version of the pneumatic launcher has been developed for the heavier Integrator, but is still compatible with the ScanEagle. The new UAV can be captured by the “Skyhook,” but Insitu is offering the option of a landing gear if a small runway is available for recovery.

Also last year, Insitu set up an Asia-Pacific subsidiary in Australia to market these UAVs in the region, and to develop new payloads for the Australian Defence Forces.

Meanwhile, the smaller ScanEagle continued to log new achievements in 2009 including: • demonstration of control from a Boeing Wedgetail airborne early warning aircraft via a Satcom link and a ground station relay; • a potential $250 million contract to fly for the U.S. Special Operations Command; • development of a compressed carriage version designed for box launch from ships or from aircraft, carrying lethal submunitions; • introduction of the NightEagle version with a cooled mediumwave infrared sensor in a larger nose. Endurance is reduced, but higher resolution imagery and 24hour operation is made possible; • demonstration of hand off of control from a vessel to a landbased ground station; • integration of L3’s Bandit digital datalink, which offers advanced encryption of imagery and compatibility with the smaller ROVER 4 and 5 ground receivers; and • passing the milestone of 250,000 hours in service over Iraq and Afghanistan.

Last June, Boeing created a new Unmanned Airborne Systems (UAS) division, but presumably it will not fully integrate Insitu into the new setup. To date, Insitu’s cost structure has remained “outside of Boeing overheads,” according to the company. Speaking just before the creation of the new division, Edsall noted that “it would not be easy to merge with a J Boeing-size company.”

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Korean Air has ordered five 747-8Is to replace some of its aging 747-400s. The 8,000-nm-range Intercontinental is targeted to serve KAL’s longest-haul operations to North America and Europe.

Korean Air is first in region to fly long-range 747-8s

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Given Asia’s affinity for big airplanes and the fact that the region is emerging from the global recession as one of the few in the world that has experienced growth in airline traffic, it should come as little surprise that some of Boeing’s brightest prospects for the 747-8 reside there. In fact, according to Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice president of marketing Randy Tinseth, more than half of the expected demand for very large aircraft–the segment covering 747-8s and Airbus A380s–will come from the Asia-Pacific region. So when Korean Air signed a firm order for five examples of the 747-8 Intercontinental last year, one might forgive Boeing for seeming less than stunned by a deal that gave it only its second customer for the passenger carrying-version of the new jumbo jet.

Nevertheless, Tinseth couldn’t deny the significance of the order, particularly at a time when any sale of any kind of airplane makes news. “I think it absolutely will help,” said Tinseth, when asked whether the

order could whet the appetites of other operators in the region. “I think it will open some eyes about what this airplane is all about.

“Frankly, airlines had seen a lot of things that we had been thinking about on 747 replacements for a long, long time, and I think to some extent we lost a little bit of our credibility there. But I think we hit the right combination of performance, in terms of operating cost and in terms of passenger environment with the 747-8. This will really give them a chance to take a second look at what that airplane is all about and I think they’ll be very, very impressed.”

Korean Air proved sufficiently impressed to commit to taking delivery of its first 747-8I during the first quarter of 2013 and its second passenger-carrying -8 in the second quarter of that year. Also a customer for the 747-8 Freighter, scheduled to fly for the first time just as the start of the Singapore Airshow approached, Korean plans to

Indonesia’s first ATR 72-500s enter service

purchase options, if exercised, could total $600 million based on list prices. With the introduction of its new fleet of ATR 72-500s, Wings Air expects to consolidate its leading position in the domestic market in Indonesia, develop more feeder routes to Lion Air’s main hubs and expand its network to remote areas of the country without regular air transportation links.

“We are proud of being the first to introduce the ATR 72-500 in Indonesia, an aircraft reputed worldwide for its reliability and comfort,” said Rusdi Kirana, chairman of Wings Air and CEO of Lion Air. “Our new fleet of ATRs will enable us to optimize our operating costs on the regional network, therefore we will be able to propose very competitive fares to our passengers. We are glad to invite them to discover the new ATR experience, and we are delighted to contribute to the expansion of the air connectivity to remote areas of the country, while participating in the development of tourism and business.”

Kirana also said“the large support network of ATR in Asia as a key factor of our decision of introducing the ATRs into the fleet.”

J

Lion Air subsidiary Wings Air last month introduced the first three ATR 72500s to the Indonesian market. Wings Air celebrated the milestone with a ceremony in Manado attended by Indonesian transportation minister Freddy Numberi and North Sulawesi governor SH Sarundajang.

Plans call for Wings Air to use the 72seat turboprops to fly on routes now served by its own aging MD-80s and increase frequencies to destinations served with Lion Air Boeing 737-900ERs. It expects to introduce the remaining 12 of 15 airplanes on firm order this year and next. It also holds an option for 15 ATR 72-600s, now undergoing flight testing in Toulouse, France, and scheduled to enter service next year.

The value of the firm contract and the Wings Air expects to consolidate its leading position in the domestic market in Indonesia with its new fleet of ATR 72-500s.

Continued on page 30

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Korean first to fly long-range 747s Continued from page 28

take its first -8F during this year’s fourth quarter and six more at a rate of one per year into 2016.

Although the airline had placed an order for just five -8Fs, it plans to take seven in all, the first two

Page 2

from a leasing company. Meanwhile, Korean told AIN it expects to take two more Intercontinentals in 2014 and the fifth in 2015.

Although the airline said it did not receive any offers from Boeing for a shorter 747-8I (Boeing originally planned to make the fuselage of the 747-8 passenger version some 80 inches shorter than the freighter), the 8,000-nm range now

promised will serve its purposes sufficiently for its longest-haul operations to North America and Europe. Now flying 21 B747-400s in passenger service and another 22 B747-400Fs along with a single 747-400 Combi, Korean Air told AIN it hasn’t yet established a plan for retiring any of its older 747s, and that its contract does not include provisions for

any returns to Boeing.

Still, given Boeing’s expectations that virtually all the demand for the 747-8 outside the Middle East will come from airlines that want to replace aging -400s, it stands to reason KAL will use the -8s to replace some of its older airplanes. “In fact, that’s how we see this market in general, as a replacement market,” said Tinseth.

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Of course, the big airplane segment includes the Airbus A380, which should figure in Korean Air’s replacement plans as well. As a customer for the A380, Korean Air proved again that the Intercontinental and the Airbus superjumbo carry distinct mission characteristics. Lufthansa, which is the 747-8I launch customer and also holds firm orders for 15 A380s, placed its 20-aircraft order for the latest 747 in December 2006–validating early on Boeing’s assertions that the two airplanes not only compete directly, but also could serve in complementary roles.

“Clearly, if you’re operating an airline and you have a network that supports a 550-seat airplane there are going to be a number of routes that will be optimized around the seating capacity of the 747-8,” noted Tinseth.

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In fact, according to Tinseth, the Intercontinental just about perfectly fills a 200-seat capacity gap between the 777-300ER and A380. Although Korean Air said it has yet to decide on the precise seating configuration of its 747-8Is, it expects roughly a 10percent increase in seat capacity over the average capacity of its -400s–which now accommodate 333 or 335 passengers in either of two first-class sleeper configurations and 384 passengers in its standard three-class layout.

KAL and, indeed, Asian carriers that fly the 747-400 should find use for the extra seats the -8I offers if Boeing’s expectations for the region materialize. Expected to carry some 50 more seats than the 747-400 typically holds, the 747-8 can help airlines cope with the capacity constraints even Boeing concedes will continue to exist in some of Asia’s largest hubs, while avoiding what Tinseth characterized as the “risk” of an airplane as large as an A380.

Although Boeing believes most of the growth it projects for the region will involve singleaisle airplanes and twin-aisle varieties ranging in capacity from 200 to 400 seats, the need for large-aircraft replacements in the Asia-Pacific region–particularly in Southeast Asia, Japan, Oceania and Taiwan–will result in modest increase in the number of large aircraft.

“It has a lot to do with geography,” explained Tinseth. “It has a lot to do with the number of large cities you have in the market. You also have a number of countries like Singapore, like Korea, that have built very large hub structures around their economies, and that bodes well for large airplanes.” J

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Asia-Pacific traffic recovers but profits are still elusive

by Charles Alcock This year will likely be an improvement on 2009 for airlines in this part of the world but it won’t mean a quick return to profitability, according to Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA). But the substantial losses the group’s members have suffered in the last two years should at least be reduced, he told AIN in an interview ahead of this week’s Singapore Airshow.

Herdman said, “2009 was a very tough year but the mood definitely shifted in the

skilled personnel. To keep staff costs down they have opted to scrap bonus payments (which form a significant part of payroll costs in the region) and have imposed unpaid leave.

According to Herdman, all types of Asian airline have been hit by the economic downturn. But he added that market conditions have been hardest on carriers that fly a lot of long-haul flights and that aim to attract high-yield businessand first-class passengers. These include

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific is one of several major Asian carriers that has struggled over the past couple of years due to reduced demand for long-haul flights and premium seats.

Short-haul operations–such as those conducted by Vietnam Airlines–have continued to be well supported by domestic and intra-Asian passengers.

last couple of months, with steady im- carriers such as Japan Airlines, Cathay provement on the cargo side and the Pacific, Qantas and Singapore Airlines. passenger business coming back slowly,” Proportionately, cargo operators have said Herdman. “But we are still very chal- had a harder time than the passenger sector lenged because yields are still weak and as international trade has contracted the oil price is still high at $80 per barrel.” severely. On the other hand, short-haul According to projections from the Inter- operators focusing on the leisure market, national Air Transport Assoincluding both low-cost carriers ciation (IATA), Asian carriers and regional airlines, have not were expected to account for aphad it quite so hard and some proximately $4 billion of the of them have actually achieved more than $11 billion in losses some growth. by all world airlines last year.

The impact of the downturn “There has been a lot of damage has not been uniform in geoto balance sheets,” said Herdgraphical terms either, with man, explaining that some continued growth in China, AAPA carriers have had to patch Indonesia and India, and with up their financial reserves by Australia avoiding a recession.

Andrew Herdman, raising funds through new equity director general of the Much of this has come down to or increasing debt. the fact that domestic and intraAssociation of Asia Capacity also has been cut, Pacific Airlines Asia demand has compensated mainly through simply reducing for a fall in international business. flight schedules but also with the retire- But Herdman was clear that AAPA memment of some older aircraft and the bers will not see a full return to prosperity temporary grounding of new models. until the global economy is more uniformly Unlike carriers in the West, Asian airlines back on its feet. have generally tried to avoid laying off Herdman shares the view that governstaff–partly because of a desire to retain ment restrictions on issues such as foreign

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ownership of airlines and the difficulty in negotiating bilateral traffic rights has continued to stand in the way of very necessary industry restructuring and consolidation. “The industry operates under a very archaic framework,” he commented. “It is almost impossible to merge airlines in different jurisdictions and the industry is calling for fresh thinking on the part of governments.”

AAPA also wants to see fresh government thinking on the vexed issue of security. In the wake of the December 25 attempt by a passenger to blow up a U.S. airliner en route to Detroit, Herdman complained of ill-considered “knee-jerk” reactions in moves such as the decision to accelerate the introduction of full-body scanners at airports.

Page 2

On the increasingly contentious issue of aviation’s environmental footprint, AAPA shares the IATA view that industry must take the lead in pushing through a uniform global response through the International Civil Aviation Organization. The airline lobby is adamant that unilateral responses such as Europe’s new emissions trading scheme and

plans for different taxes and levies on aircraft fuels in individual countries will result in anti-competitive market distortion.

But Herdman insisted that airlines have never been more economically motivated to reduce their carbon footprint by cutting the amount of fuel they burn.

However, without political consensus as to the economic measures

they believe are necessary to ensure a comprehensive approach, airlines can focus only on incremental improvements in fuel efficiency and technological solutions. In Herdman’s view, the industry continues to be frustrated by the obstructive, parochial agendas of national governments and it wants to see more decisive action on efforts to rationalize air

traffic management to cut back on the extra fuel that is needlessly burned worldwide.

AAPA has 17 member airlines, which account for almost one fifth of global passenger traffic and one third of cargo traffic. The Asia Pacific air transport industry collectively represents one quarter of the world’s passenger traffic and two fifths of all freight.

J

Threat Assessment

“Good security is based on a proper assessment of the threats and risks, measuring the probabilities and the possibilities,” said Herdman, arguing that the new measures rushed into effect right after the attempted Christmas Day attack may prove to be disproportionate to the ongoing risk of a repeat attempt. “It is much harder to reverse restrictions than to introduce them; it took years to get metal cutlery back onto planes [following the 9/11 terrorist attacks].” AAPA is also concerned that airline passengers will end up confused by conflicting approaches to security resulting from disparate initiatives taken by different countries.

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NEWS NOTE The Airbus A320 family final assembly line China (FALC) achieved its target last year, delivering its 11th A320-series airliner to Deer Air, part of the HNA Group, on December 16 in Tianjin. The A320 family includes the A318, A319, A320 and A321.

FALC shipped its first A320 to Sichuan Airlines via Dragon Aviation Leasing on June 23. Since then, six A320s and five A319s assembled at FALC have been delivered and are now in operation with Sichuan Airlines, Deer Air, Shenzhen Airlines and China Eastern Airlines.

“We are very proud to have achieved our target in the first year of operation, on schedule and on quality,” said Airbus China president Laurence Barron. “The success achieved in FALC is definitely a way forward for the continuous industrial cooperation between Airbus and China.”

As of year-end, 442 A320 family airliners were in operation with 12 operators in China. Chinese airlines have ordered nearly 600 A320-series aircraft.

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Leap-X to power Chinese airliner

by Jeff Apter The recent selection of CFM International’s LEAP-X1C engine to power the 150- to 190-seat C919 airliner family being developed by Commercial Aircraft of Corp. of China (Comac) marks the start of one of the most significant aerospace collaborations between China and the West. It is also represents a major boost in credibility for the program and must remove any doubt by Airbus and Boeing that the Chinese do not intend to wait for them to decide about future narrowbody airliner developments beyond the A320 and 737 families.

Comac has opted to take the first available version of the new LEAP-X engine with the aim of certifying it by the end of 2014 and getting the C919 into commercial service in 2016. The -1C will incorporate the LEAP-X technology that CFM can make available in that time frame, with further technology to be developed in later versions of LEAP-X that are expected to be ready for certification around 2016-17.

CFM partners Safran of France and General Electric of the U.S. won Comac’s business in competition with Pratt & Whitney, with the deal having been announced just in December.

Together they are to develop a version of the LEAP-X powerplant platform that will deliver 30,000 pounds of thrust from each of the C919’s two engines, giving a range of up to 2,500 nm.

LEAP-X might someday replace the ubiquitous CFM56 family of turbofans, of which some 1,800 are currently flying in China powering about half of the country’s commercial fleet. Airbus and

Boeing are known to be considering LEAP-X as one engine option to power their envisioned replacements for the A320 and 737.

The C919’s powerplant will also feature nacelles and thrust reversers developed by Nexcelle–a joint venture between Safran’s Aircelle and GE’s Middle River Aircraft Systems, which was formed in September 2009.

According to Safran group vice president Marc Ventre, the agreement with Comac covers larger or

flight-testing and certification to follow in 2014.

For its part, Comac is confident that the C919 program is commercially viable. It claims to have preliminary commitments from airlines, with the first firm orders expected from Chinese carriers sometime this year.

According to Ventre, Safran’s assessment for marketing this type of aircraft found that world demand in the next 20 years is for 20,000 engines, with China accounting for 25 percent of the market. “So the Chinese market has great potential for us,” he concluded.

No Contest

smaller versions of the C919 for a possible future family of aircraft.

“Safran’s strategy is to develop technologies and mature them.

This was seen in our TECH56 and LEAP56 programs that preceded LEAP-X,” he explained to AIN. “We decided it was time to announce a new engine called LEAP-X, which includes LEAP56 technologies, provides 16 percent lower CO2 emissions compared to the latest CFM56 and would be available for certification in 2016-17.” The first engine ground test of the -1C version is due to take place in early 2013 with

Silvercrest’s Day Could Still Come Safran remains confident it will find applications for its proposed Silvercrest engine, once the business aviation market recovers. Possible programs for the new turbofan could yet include Dassault’s planned supermidsize (SMS) business jet, since the French airframer is contemplating a need for a more powerful engine than the Rolls-Royce RB282 powerplant it originally selected.

“Several commercial projects could still involve the 9,500- to 12,000pound Silvercrest engine but most have been delayed because of the crisis in business jets. There will be recovery, but we don’t know when it will be,” Safran group vice president Marc Ventre told AIN. Last June, Dassault said all design choices for the SMS aircraft had been reopened, including for the powerplant. Ventre said this provides a new opportunity for Silvercrest, which would “not need considerable changes to be back in the competition for the project.” Silvercrest could be certified within three years of being selected for a new aircraft, he said, adding that he believes this breakthrough could come this year.

–J.A.

To some the C919 program appears to be receiving more attention from the Chinese aerospace hierarchy than the 78- to 90-seat ARJ21 regional jet, which is to be powered by GE’s CF34 engine, but Ventre insisted there is no contest between the two.

The C919 has the Chinese government’s full backing and the commercial aircraft does not appear to conflict with development of the regional 78- to 90-passenger twin-engine ARJ21-700 program, he said.

“The Chinese government and aerospace industry have not switched its attention from the ARJ to the C919, the largest commercial airliner ever produced in China,” he told AIN. “They are committed to both aircraft, which they see as complementary. Comac has the full support of a government that sees aerospace as a national priority and [the program] is overseen by a deputy prime minister.”

The integration of the C919 engine with the airframe is to take place close to Comac locations in China.

It has not yet been decided whether this will happen in Safran subsidiary facilities.

Ventre does not anticipate that the C919 program will encounter the same kind of delays experienced in its joint development with Saturn of the SaM 146 engine for Russia’s new Superjet.

He acknowledged that “financial difficulties” have meant delays in investment in engine supplies needed to meet certification targets for the SaM 146. However, he insisted that these problems have been resolved and that efforts are being made to catch up and complete engine certification in May or June of this year.

36aaSingapore Airshow News • February 2, 2010 • www.ainonline.com

“There is absolutely no comparison [between the SaM 146 and LEAP-X1C] because, on the Russian side, the engine is being produced in partnership with a Russian manufacturer, and on the Chinese side, engines are being produced in the CFM joint venture, which has 30 years experience in the field,” said Ventre.

“We are doing a job for the Chinese airframers but the engine is being designed and developed by CFM. For Russia, the engine is a joint venture with a partner that had no experience in design, development and certification under Western requirements.

In short, apart from some components manufactured in China we are producing an engine for China, not in China, while for Russia part of the engine is produced there.”

Furthermore, added Ventre, Safran and GE have no concerns about patent infringements, despite widely reported breaches of intellectual property rules in other Chinese industries. “Safran manufactures CFM56 components in several industrial facilities and in joint ventures with AVIC in six cities in China. These include

CFM International’s LEAP-X, which includes LEAP56 technologies, provides 16 percent lower CO2 emissions compared to the latest CFM56 and is targeted for certification in 2016-17.

turbine discs and we have not experienced a single case of copying,” he said.

Recent airline order deferrals and cancellations have had little effect on engine output levels, Ventre told AIN. CFM expects to produce around 1,210 to 1,220 engines this year, “because airframers are maintaining production rates.” This compares with 1,250 produced in 2009.

For Safran, China is the big market in the Asia-Pacific region with about 2,500 aircraft needed in the next 20 years, representing a quarter of world market needs and to accommodate the growth, J Ventre said.

NEWS CLIPS T Forecast International Unveils Integrated Data Tool Forecast International, known for development of the 10-year unit and value production forecast for aerospace, defense, electronics and power systems industries, is unveiling its new Platinum Forecast System here at the Singapore Airshow.

The system is based on a company-designed database that accepts all information generated by company analysts, integrates it and then provides, through graphical interface, an instantaneous readout of the current status of any market segment. The data graphics allow the user to employ “drill-down” and “hover-over” features to obtain expanded information and a rationale for the presentation.

Platinum encompasses 20 Forecast International platformoriented market intelligence services and 54 pre-configured market segments. It is supported by another 13 services that provide additional detail on specified markets. Attendees are invited to view a series of daily system demonstrations at the U.S. Pavilion (Stand S78).

T GKN Delivers Poseidon P-8A Windshields GKN Aerospace has delivered the first windshields as part of a contract with Boeing to design and develop, bird-strike test and qualify the new anti-spall windshields for the Boeing P-8A Poseidon multi-mission maritime aircraft. The new windshields incorporate GKN’s anti-spall (spraying of glass fragments) technology, which provides pilot protection in the event of bird strike and at the same time incorporates a 5-percent weight reduction.

The number one and number two windshields for the P-8A also introduce an all-polyurethane interlayer, replacing the traditional PVB interlayer, to provide extended glass life in a product that is thinner and stronger.

In addition to the cockpit windows, GKN has also designed, developed and qualified a large, heated observer window for the P-8A cabin.

The P-8A is a derivative of the next-generation Boeing 737 with the fuselage of the 737-800 and wings of the 737-900.

Initial operational capability is scheduled for 2013.

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KAI T-50 Golden Eagle

Jury remains out on T-50’s export potential When Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) developed the T-50 Golden Eagle in partnership with Lockheed Martin in 2001 hopes were high in South Korea that the only supersonic trainer jet would become a hit around the world.

Nine years later, industry opinion remains divided as to whether this potential will be fulfilled and what has actually been achieved to this end since KAI entered a joint marketing effort with Lockheed Martin in 2006.

South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) and KAI are jointly pushing for a first overseas sale of T-50, which they had hoped to achieve last year. The aircraft is on display here at the Singapore Airshow specifically to impress prospective customers here in Southeast Asia.

“The sale of T-50 is central to boosting South Korea’s defense exports,” said Jeon Young-bok, head of DAPA’s bureau on arms export policy. “We expect the first sale to be sealed this year, as several deals are in the works.”

The T-50 is competing for trainer selections here and in Poland, while Greece and the U.S. also have shown interest. Lockheed submitted the T-50 bid to Singapore in July, but it needs to overcome its Italian competitor–Alenia Aermacchi’s M-346–following the frustration of losing out in its first competitive bid for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) earlier this year, when it made it onto the shortlist.

KAI (Stand T87) could have an advantage in Lockheed’s involvement in the project since the U.S. company participated in Pilatus’ successful bid of its PC-21 single turboprop basic

trainer to Singapore. Meanwhile, Aermacchi has teamed with Singapore’s state-run ST Aerospace.

The Korean OEM wants to secure about 30 percent of the global military trainer market within 25 years, and it believes the T-50’s position as the world’s sole supersonic high-performance trainer will play in its favor.

However, some in the defense industry question whether governments will pay the higher price associated with this supersonic capability. The T-50’s flyaway cost is ranges from $16- to $20 million, while the slower M-346 is 20 percent cheaper.

The T-50 can fly at Mach 1.4, has an operational range of just over 1,000 nm and a service ceiling of 48,000 feet.

Poland is looking to acquire 16 lead-in fighter trainers for delivery beginning in the third quarter of this year to replace its PZL TS-11 Iskra; it is considering the T-50 as well as Finland’s surplus BAE Hawk 128 trainers.

Also, KAI and Lockheed hope for at least 600 to 800 export orders if the T-50 succeeds in replacing U.S. Air Force’s T-38 platform in the long term.

South Korea’s air force, which has been flying the aircraft since 2005 when mass production began, wants to have 50 by 2013.

It also wants another 10 T-50s for aerobatic displays and has ordered 22 FA-50s, the modified light attack version.

About $300 million is being spent to reconfigure four T-50s as FA-50s under a contract signed by DAPA and KAI in December 2008.

Once mass production begins by 2013, FA-50s will replace A-37 attack jets and F-4/F-5 fighters in

ROGER BAIN

by KK Chadha

the low-tier backup to the air force’s frontline capability.

South Korea’s air force also wants more than 100 FA-50s to replace its older fighters. The FA50 will be equipped with EL/M-2032 radar from Israel’s Elta Systems, which has look-up tracking range of between 35 and 55

nm. The aircraft will also feature advanced tactical data link systems, precision missile guidance equipment and enhanced avionics.

The lighter fighter will be outfitted with the wind-corrected munitions dispenser kit, incorporating an internal navigation system and flip-out control fins to

Airbus set to launch Tianjin trade hub

by Ian Goold The full launch of the new Airbus logistics center in China’s Tianjin Free Trade Zone is due to occur next month. The facility will manage the European manufacturer’s industrial cooperation projects in China, where six companies, in different cities and with individual supply chains, manufacture parts and components for Airbus.

The move increases the collective presence of Airbus and U.S.

competitor Boeing in China. The People’s Republic offers the prospect of many hundreds of orders for jetliners needed for what is forecast to become the world’s second largest domestic aviation market.

The two companies have worked hard for many years to establish influence through direct investment, joint ventures or other partnerships, or employment of Chinese manufacturers to

make parts. Indeed, for domestic customers, Airbus has opened a Chinese A320 final assembly line, which aims to produce four a month independently from European production requirements.

Airbus China opened Beijing offices in 1990, while Boeing’s first Chinese suppliers date from the mid-1970s.

The U.S. manufacturer claims its “expanding links with Chinese Continued on page 40

Made in China Each Boeing jetliner design and half of the global Airbus fleet include Chinese parts. Major Chinese suppliers include:

Supplier

Components Airbus

Chengdu Commercial Aircraft

Airbus A320 rear passenger door and nose-section parts

Guizhou Aviation

Airbus maintenance jigs and tools

Hafei Aviation Hong Yuan Aviation

Boeing 737 doors, 747-8 ailerons and spoilers, and 787 rudders

787 panels and components Airbus engine-pylon titanium forgings

Shanghai Aviation Manufacturing

KAI wants to secure about 30 percent of the global military trainer market within 25 years and hopes that its recent success in making it onto the shortlist for the UAE’s jet trainer requirement–although it was not ultimately chosen–will be pivotal to the export potential of the T-50 program.

guide bombs. This corrects weapons launch errors, determines atmospheric conditions and computes optimum flight paths and cluster bomb release points. The FA-50’s armaments will include AGM-65 Maverick air-to-surface missiles and joint direct attack munitions bombs. J

737 tailplanes

Shenyang Commercial Aircraft

A320 emergency-exit doors, fixed leading edges, wing inter-spar ribs, cargo doors and skin plates

737 tail section modules and 787 tailfin leading edges

Xi’an Aircraft International

A320 wing boxes, fixed trailing edges and electronic-bay doors, and A330/A340 electronic-bay doors, brake blades and medium air ducts

737 tailfins, 747-8 fixed trailing-edge ribs and inboard flaps, and 747F floor beams.

Work undertaken by joint ventures includes Boeing Tianjin Composites and maintenance company Boeing Shanghai Aviation Services. The U.S. manufacturer owns 9 percent of Taikoo (Xiamen) Aircraft Engineering (TAECO).

Harbin Hafei Airbus Composite Manufacturing Centre (HHACMC) comprises Airbus China (20 percent), Harbin Aircraft Industry Group (50 percent), Hafei Aviation Industry (10 percent), AviChina Industry and Technology (10 percent) and Harbin Development Zone (10 percent). HHACMC makes A320-series elevators and will produce the A350 elevator, rudder and a maintenance door.

Airbus and China Aviation Supplies Import & Export jointly train maintenance engineers and flight and cabin crew. I

38aaSingapore Airshow News • February 2, 2010 • www.ainonline.com

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Eleven A320s were built on the Tianjin final-assembly line in China last year and production is expected to reach four per month by the end of 2011.

Airbus-Tianjin launch Continued from page 38

airlines, manufacturing partners and financial institutions [have established] a solid platform,” but it does not view the Asian country as only a market. “We’re looking to broaden and deepen our relationship,” said China operations vice president John Bruns.

A major Airbus milestone was on-time delivery of the 11th A320-series aircraft from Tianjin at the end of last year. The first A320 was delivered in June, five more A320s and five A319s followed, and 25 are expected this year. Production is expected to reach four a month late next year.

The first Chinese-made A320 wing is to be delivered later this year to Tianjin, where current final-assembly business plans extend until 2016.

Wings are being produced in China to avoid the cost of shipping locally made wing boxes and leading- and trailing edges to Europe for wings returning to Tianjin final assembly.

Airbus and Aviation Industry Corp. of China (Avic) are building a factory in Harbin to make A320 elevator parts, A330 components and composite items for the A350 (5 percent of which will be Chinese).

The A318 was the first new Airbus developed with Chinese assistance.

Of about 260 Airbus employees in China, 80 percent are nationals, while Boeing has

SIAEC, P&W partner on PW1000G mill SIA Engineering (SIAEC) and Pratt & Whitney have signed a partnership deal that will see the Singaporean MRO provider participate in the PW1000G risk-revenue sharing program, SIAEC announced today.

Under the terms of the deal, SIAEC will take a 3-percent stake in the PW1000G engine development for the Bombardier C Series and a 1-percent stake in the PW1000G variant under development for the Mitsubishi MRJ. SIAEC said it has incorporated two special-purpose subsidiaries to hold the investments in the respective programs.

40aaSingapore Airshow News • February 2, 2010 • www.ainonline.com

150 employees. Annual Airbus procurement from China is expected to reach $120 million this year. As China’s largest single aerospace customer, Boeing has bought $1.5 billion worth of such hardware and services since the 1980s, a figure the company expects to double in the future.

The U.S. manufacturer sees mutual advantage in its Chinese initiatives. “Boeing partnerships in China are strategically chosen for long-term benefits to all,” said Boeing China business development vice president Kenneth Yata. “Our projects help Chinese partners gain technical and manufacturing experience.”

While both Western companies might appear altruistic, they are driven by hardnosed business considerations. Underlying their respective activities (see box on page 38) is recognition that if they don’t win Chinese orders, someone else will–possibly China’s own developing aerospace industry, which plans a narrowbody. “That’s going to happen,” said Boeing commercial airplanes marketing vice president Randy Tinseth.

“We have to find a way in China to both partner and compete.”

Estimating that by 2020 Chinese airline capacity will have to have increased by at least 300 percent, Airbus intends to capture “at least half ” of all new orders. Boeing has similar ambitions: “We must be successful in China. There’s no alternative. It’s so important to our future,” concluded a spokesman.

J The contract also calls for Pratt & Whitney to designate Eagle Services Asia–a joint venture between SIAEC and P&W–as the first engine center in the global MRO network planned for the PW1500G engine (the version of the PW1000G slated to power the C Series). Furthermore, the arrangement will supply business to the SIAEC/P&W engine component repair joint ventures in Singapore, SIAEC said.

“By scaling up the MRO value chain through our investments in the development of the PW1000G engine, our P&W joint ventures will benefit from the downstream MRO work,” said SIAEC chief executive William Tan. “The acquisition of new engine capabilities will also enable SIAEC to access the markets of next-generation aircraft powered by the new engines.”

SIAEC said it does not expect the transaction to materially affect its financial performance in FY2009/2010.

J

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Eurocopter deepens roots in Asia

by Thierry Dubois Eurocopter (Stand H23) has chosen a strategy of partnerships in Asia. In Japan, the helicopter manufacturer wants to grow its subsidiary, notably through its maintenance joint venture with All Nippon Airways (ANA). In Korea, it is supporting Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI, Stand T87) in the design of the Korean Utility Helicopter (KUH), also known as the Surion. In China, a 50-50 alliance with Avicopter has already led to the first flight of the EC 175 medium twin.

In Japan last April, Eurocopter announced the acquisition of 80 percent of Japan-based distributor Euroheli’s shares, bringing its stake to 90 percent. The organization has subsequently been merged with its Eurocopter Japan subsidiary.

Itochu Corp., the former majority shareholder, keeps 10 percent of the company’s shares.

With a staff of some 60 employees locally, Eurocopter has become “the first foreign aircraft manufacturer in Japan to carry out direct sales and customer support activities,” according to Eurocopter Japan CEO Stéphane Ginoux.

The French rotorcraft maker also has taken over 60 percent of ANA’s helicopter maintenance division, which it has renamed Eurocopter Japan T&E. It has facilities at Osaka International airport and Tokyo heliport. One of the company’s goals is to boost its technical support and training skills, and to this end it is planning exchanges with Eurocopter’s sites in France, Germany and Spain. For the long term, Eurocopter Japan T&E envisions getting involved in license-production of helicopters.

Also in Japan, Eurocopter has a long history of cooperation with Kawasaki Heavy Industries. KHI currently operates one of the world’s three EC145 assembly lines (the other two being in Germany and the U.S.). Surprisingly, in Japan the light twin is still known as the BK 117C2, its former name in Eurocopter’s portfolio.

KHI, which employs a total of 3,250 people, is responsible for sales in the Asia-Pacific area. In design and development, it was in charge of the main body structure, the main transmission and the fuel tank, said a spokesman.

Eurocopter claims a 55-percent market share of Japan’s civil market; that is, approximately 360 of 660 helicopters. The fleet composition includes 44 percent in aerial work, 20 percent in news gathering, 16 percent fighting fires, 11 percent in passenger transporta-

tion, including private use–a sector Eurocopter wants to boost–and 9 percent in law enforcement.

There are plans to install an EC 135 full-flight simulator in the country in response to a growing emergency medical sector (part of the 44 percent), as well as an order received last year for 15 military training EC 135 T2s.

The Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force will receive two aircraft per year for its TH-X program until 2017. This order, along with the contract signed in 2004 for three EC 225s in VIP configuration, fuels optimism that the doors of the military market have opened.

One of the few EC 135 “L’hélicoptère par Hermès,” a luxury version of the light twin, is in

also have formed a joint venture (51 and 49 percent, respectively) to work on KUH exports.

In addition, Eurocopter has been flight-testing a so-called dynamic test vehicle (DTV). It is a Cougar modified to represent the Surion. The DTV will help, among other tasks, integrate the 1,855-shp General Electric T700 powerplant chosen by the Korean procurement agency.

“The first flight took place in July last year, a bit ahead of schedule,” Mantel told AIN. The DTV now has flown more than 60 hours. “This is about 80 percent of the test program,” he added, noting that 100 hours were planned initially. Engineers eventually determined that 80 hours would be

Eurocopter is involved in a 50-50 joint program with China’s Avicopter on the EC 175/Z15 medium twin, following a successful cooperation on the EC 120 light single.

service in Japan. Currently, ANA is offering its first-class passengers a helicopter transfer from Narita Airport to downtown Tokyo. Passengers are first driven by car to Narita Sakura heliport, then they board an EC 135 Hermès operated

by Mori Building City Air Services. According to ANA, the complimentary transfer to the Ark Hills heliport lasts a total 30 minutes. The service is available until March 31 this year and is offered to round-trip passengers returning from New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, London, Paris and Frankfurt.

Korean Surion

In Korea, Eurocopter is supporting KAI in designing the KUH Surion, a military transport helicopter based on the European group’s Super Puma/Cougar.

According to Eurocopter’s Korean helicopter program director, Hubert Mantel, this project is ahead of schedule, and he is confident the first flight of KAI’s prototype will take place on time, on March 5.

The European company has a 30-percent share in the program, supplying the autopilot, the main gearbox and main rotor components. In addition to this role, Eurocopter provides KAI with technology transfer and technical assistance. KAI and Eurocopter

enough, as no serious difficulty had emerged. “We have validated maximum altitude, extreme c-gs, maximum weight and operations in hot weather,” Mantel said.

Eurocopter will now test the aircraft with its infrared suppressors. These devices, which look like big black boxes mounted next to the engines, dilute the exhaust gases and thus cut the infrared signature of these hot gases.

DTV flight tests are expected to end late in February. The aircraft will then be shipped to KAI’s base in Sacheon, Korean, where it will become a ground test vehicle.

The first Surion prototype made its first ground run at Sacheon with both engines and rotors in December. Another three prototypes will engage in the flight test program. Plans call for the Korean government to sign an initial production approval after at least 50 successful flight hours in

Eurocopter is flying a modified Super Puma to test some dynamic components of the Surion, a military transport helicopter developed by Korea Aerospace Industries.

development. This milestone, one on the way to a firm contract, is expected in November.

KAI has pegged the first delivery of the Surion to the country’s Army for the end of 2012. “This is a tight schedule,” Mantel said.

Therefore, Eurocopter is negotiating with KAI to produce some components early.

The Korean company also is envisioning derivatives–one is for parapublic missions, such as medevac, and another as a naval KUH, with capabilities for search-and-rescue and ship operations. An attack variant would have a tandem cockpit and weapon-carrying hardpoints.

Last year, there were up to 40 Eurocopter employees working in KAI’s offices. The number has decreased to 30 and will continue to diminish until 2012. Engineers at Eurocopter’s sites in Marignane, France, and Ottobrunn, Germany, also are supporting the program.

EC 175/Z15 Developing

On December 4, in Marignane, the first prototype (PT1) of the EC 175 made its first flight. The seven-ton-class helicopter is mainly targeted at the offshore market, with a passenger capacity of 16. It is an $840 million program, shared on a 50-50 basis. The Z15 is the rotorcraft Avicopter will produce, based on a “common standard vehicle” with Eurocopter.

The differences will be in options.

Also, according to Eurocopter CEO Lutz Bertling, Avicopter is reevaluating the engine selection. The two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-67Es, providing 1,775 shp each, could be replaced by Turbomeca Ardidens. The French turboshaft

The KUH Surion by the Numbers Engines

Two 1,855-shp General Electric T700-701Ks

Capacity

Two pilots plus 16 troops

Mtow

19,200 (19,700 pounds with external load)

Max cruise speed

144 knots (clean configuration)

Service ceiling

13,000 feet

46aaSingapore Airshow News • February 2, 2010 • www.ainonline.com

manufacturer told AIN it is talking to Avicopter “and other OEMs” about the Ardiden.

In the joint effort, Avicopter is in charge of the entire airframe, including flight controls.

It is also developing the main rotor, the tailrotor transmission and the fuel system. “It is also responsible for some equipment integration–namely the landing gear and the engine,” EC 175 program director Francis Combes told AIN. Eurocopter’s share is made of the main gearbox, the tailrotor, doors, electric systems and, maybe most important, the entire avionics, including the autopilot.

Eurocopter is planning to achieve European certification of the EC 175 in the second half of 2011. The Chinese schedule is less clear, but it appears that the first flight of Avicopter’s first Z15 prototype could take place as late as 2011.

Eurocopter officials pride themselves on having a long, successful and friendly cooperation with their Chinese counterparts. Combes talked about “trust and mutual respect.”

He used to be the director of the EC 120 program, the first joint effort with the Chinese industry, which has a 15-percent stake in the light single program.

Some limits have been drawn, though. Although the EC175/Z15 is a joint development, it does not imply a joint certification. “Otherwise we would have to fully open our books to them,” Combes explained. Eurocopter is very keen, for example, on keeping its main gearbox technology in Europe.

Bertling stated no “major problem” has ever occurred with “intellectual property use [the Chinese] don’t own or selling outside their zone; almost nothing in 25 years.” However, French aerospace weekly magazine Air & Cosmos recently suggested the Chinese could develop a military version of the Z15. Such an option is certainly not in the agreement.

J

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Turbomeca looks to boost its presence in Asia Pacific

by Jeff Apter Safran’s helicopter subsidiary Turbomeca could be back in the contest to provide the powerplant for the Z15 helicopter following China’s recent decision to re-evaluate the engine. Late last year, executives with Eurocopter’s EC 175 program indicated that discussions are under way for the possible launch of a new engine for the Chinese version of the medium twin.

In December 2005 when the program was launched as a joint venture between Eurocopter and China’s Avic group, Pratt & Whitney had been chosen over Turbomeca to provide the powerplant.

the work gradually becoming comprehensive, including engine removal module replacement. The aim is be more responsive to the needs of operators in markets such as Malaysia and Indonesia, eliminating the necessity to transport helicopters out of Asia for technical support.

Turbomeca Asia Pacific, whose staff of 32 provides support for more than 120 helicopter operators using 800 engines in over 16 countries, is one of 15 Turbomeca sites that manages maintenance, service and distribution centers in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Manila, with field representatives stationed in Malaysia, India, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Kuala Lumpur-based Helipartner is to be approved to provide level-three maintenance. The company also has branches in Norway and Indonesia, and is preparing to open a new facility Hong Kong.

Today, Turbomeca lays claim to being the leading provider of helicopter engines in China, with powerplants fitted on some

Above, technicians perform maintenance on an Arriel engine, produced in China under license from Turbomeca. At right, the company has signed a draft agreement with China’s civil aviation university to provide advanced training courses in line maintenance and engine inspection.

Turbomeca is offering the Chinese a more powerful version of its Ardiden turboshaft for the helicopter. The Z15 is not identical to the EC 175 and the differences, which have not yet been revealed, are said to be optional equipment and features. The new model is intended to fill the gap between the Dauphin and the Puma.

In other developments, the engine maker recently signed a memorandum of agreement with the Civil Aviation Flight University of China (CAFUC) to develop training programs for initial helicopter engine maintenance, advanced courses in line maintenance and inspection of Turbomeca engines, and to train new engineers to work on future models of engines. The Turbomeca training network will work under a “training know-how manual,” based on more than 40 years of experience, to meet European EASA Part 147 standards and their local equivalents.

In a further bid to upgrade customer service, Turbomeca Asia Pacific and Helipartner have agreed on a strategic joint partnership to improve maintenance, repair and overhaul services offered to helicopter operators. Under the new service center agreement the partners will carry out maintenance on Turbomeca engines, with

48aaSingapore Airshow News • February 2, 2010 • www.ainonline.com

460 civil and military helicopters. The Chinese transport ministry recently ordered two EC 225 helicopters powered by Turbomeca Makila 2A1 engines.

The Safran group subsidiary’s activities in China began with an order from the Chinese army for Turmo III-powered Super Frelon helicopters from Aerospatiale, now Eurocopter, in the 1970s. Subsequently, Turbomeca and China’s Avic II group began working together, and the first license agreement, initiated by China National South Aero Engine Corp., was signed for production of the Arriel 1 engine in the 1980s.

In 2005, a cooperation agreement was signed with Avic for the delivery of 200 Arriel 2C engines (known in China as the WZ8C) under license, and in 2009 Avic itself placed an order for another 80 engines.

Turbomeca’s first joint venture with an Avic subsidiary was initiated in 2006 when it signed a contract with Beijing Changkong Machinery creating Beijing Turbomeca Changkong Aero-Engine Control Equipment Co. Ltd. The company assembles and tests the hydromechanical parts of turbine engines for Turbomeca and Beijing Changkong Machinery in their respective markets.

J

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Detail design changes to Mitsubishi’s MRJ included scrapping plans for an all-composite wing in favor of aluminum, reverting to the airplane’s original–but larger diameter–circular fuselage and also consolidating its baggage capacity into a single rear compartment.

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Engineers and designers in Nagoya, inches. Now what we did was basically Japan, have kept busy over the past year make our fuselage circular again, with a redrawing parts of the nascent Mitsubishi diameter of 116.5 inches. Again, it was MRJ regional jet to satisfy the evolving simply because of the voices we heard desires of potential and existing airline cus- from the customers and market.” tomers. However, in the expectation that Although moving from the original 114they will freeze the airplane’s design in the inch circular fuselage to a wider design did third quarter of 2010, the development add some weight to the structure, the second team knows that the time for major change resulted in no further weight penalty changes has passed. due to the uniform stress characteristics “What we are doing now is the detailed inherent in a nearly perfectly round design. design, so if you look at the airplane from Composites for Wing Box Scrapped the outside almost nothing will be changed,” Mitsubishi Aircraft executive vice president Of course, the laws of physics don’t alJunichi Miyakawa told AIN. The company ways allow desired design elements to has frozen all the interfaces between the var- fall into place so neatly. That certainly ious systems, he explained, leaving only the appeared the case when Mitsubishi deelemental details within each system to set- cided to scrap plans for an all-composite tle on. Still, “we might–we might–have to wing. Using composites in an airplane as come back to the interfaces [depending on] small as the MRJ, Mitsubishi found, would not yield enough of a weight rethe detailed design results,” said Miyakawa. duction to warrant their use, Now scheduled for Japanese particularly given the need for certification in late 2013, the metal reinforcements in parts MRJ underwent some major of the structure. changes in 2009 as the company “A second reason is optiadded area to the fuselage cross mization of the wing boxes section, subtracted composite across the MRJ family,” said content from its wings and conMiyakawa. The aluminum box solidated its cargo capacity into will allow for a shorter lead time a single rear compartment. for structural changes because The changes will apply both Mitsubishi plans to use the same to the 88-seat MRJ90, which wing box across the entire famMitsubishi plans to introduce ily of airplanes. first, and the 76-seat MRJ70, as Mitsubishi Aircraft Still another reason centered well as a potential stretch of the executive vice president on Mitsubishi’s desire to lighten MRJ90 that would hold as Junichi Miyakawa the wing of the MRJ70 by using many as 100 passengers. Any stretch variant will remain hypothetical, thinner wing skins. “The MRJ70 has however, until a large enough customer less maximum takeoff weight, so the wing base surfaces to justify a formal launch, doesn’t have to be so strong, not as strong as the one for the MRJ90,” said Miyakawa. according to Miyakawa.

Meanwhile, Mitsubishi believes it has Manufacturing a thinner wing skin for found a “sweet spot” with the changes it the smaller airplane would simply prove instituted over the summer, including a more difficult with composites than with second change in the size and shape of the aluminum, he explained. fuselage. “We used to have a 114-inchAdvisory Groups Weighed In diameter circular cross-section almost two years ago,” explained Miyakawa. “After we While industrial considerations led to listened to some customers, we expanded the decision to switch from composites to the width of the fuselage by two-and-a-half aluminum for the wings, most of the

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other changes resulted from consultations with airlines during a series of advisory group meetings.

“For example, we have right now a passenger seat under development in cooperation with a Japanese automobile industry company and we’ve got many suggestions for the seat design, in terms of the height, the width, the angle…so many details,” said Miyakawa.

Mitsubishi has recruited Delta Kogyo, the company perhaps best known for the seats it manufactures for Mazda automobiles, to supply the airplane’s slim-profile seats. Rather than urethane, Delta Kogyo’s 3-D net seats use fibers woven into threedimensional structures that act as small springs and dampers. The approach results in thinner yet stronger seats, according to Mitsubishi. In fact, although the company assumes a 31-inch pitch in its calculation of both airplanes’ typical capacity, several airlines have expressed interest in a 29-inch pitch due to the extra space the thin seats afford, said Miyakawa.

Consultation with airlines also led to the decision to combine the pair of cargo holds–one in the front of the airplane and one in the rear–to a single 644-sq-ft compartment in the rear of the airplane. To help compensate for what might have presented a center-of-gravity problem, designers moved the avionics equipment to the forward belly, where an access panel will replace the baggage door.

Another improvement related to baggage capacity took the form of expanded overhead bins, the capacity of which designers managed to increase 12 percent by adding width and changing the contour of the side that faces the fuselage wall. According to Miyakawa, the bins can hold the largest roller bags allowed by any airline.

Parent MHI To Build and Test

While Mitsubishi Aircraft carries responsibility for design, procurement, sales and support, parent company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) will take care of manufacture and final assembly, as well as flight testing. Although it has not formally announced the location of the final assembly facility, Miyakawa told AIN that MHI had chosen its Komaki South plant, located adjacent to Nagoya Airfield, the regional airport north of the city center.

Mitsubishi stopped building the MU-300 business jet at Komaki South after Raytheon bought that airplane’s marketing rights and renamed it the Beechjet 400 in 1985. However, MHI still assembles the F-2 fighter jet at the plant for the Japanese Self Defense Forces.

Expecting to cut the first metal for the MRJ during this year’s third or fourth quarter and fly the first prototype in early 2012, Mitsubishi hasn’t yet decided between building an entirely new assembly hall and using existing buildings. Miyakawa said a decision would have to happen in “probably a year or so.”

Although the company hasn’t chosen all the suppliers for the MRJ, all the “major” contributors have signed on, said Miyakawa, including, of course, Pratt & Whitney with its PW1000G geared turbofan. According to Mitsubishi, both the

Saab Signs for MRJ Technical Support Late last year, Sweden’s Saab group signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Aircraft under which it will provide documentation services for the MRJ family technical publications. The new partners have indicated that the alliance could be extended to cover wider aspects of technical support for MRJ operators. In fact, a support contract has already been signed with an undis–C.A. closed MRJ customer.

MRJ70 and MRJ90 will use some 20 percent less fuel per seat on a 400-nm trip than the comparably sized jets now produced by Embraer. At least half of that benefit would come from the engines.

Notwithstanding its purely regional airline pedigree, the MRJ will employ Rockwell Collins avionics “equivalent to the ones used on the 787,” said Miyakawa.

Other suppliers include risk-sharing partner Sumimoto Precision (landing gear), Parker Aerospace (hydraulic systems), Spirit Aerosystems (engine pylons), Hamilton Sundstrand (APU, electrical power and air management systems) and Nabtesco (flight control actuator). In January last year Taiwan’s AIDC agreed to design and build the airplane’s slats, flaps, belly fairings, rudders and elevators. Mitsubishi has not signed any Chinese suppliers.

Along with the wings and fuselage, Mitsubishi itself will manufacture the airplane’s composite empennage using a process called vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM). While conventional RTM uses pressure to push resin into a mold held together with rigid, typically metal upper and lower sections, the VARTM method uses a vacuum to draw resin into the mold, allowing for the use of cheaper materials such as nylon tape for one side of the tool. Mitsubishi’s advanced VARTM also involves the treatment of the preform with a spray of thermoplastic particles, which allow for the use of less viscous and cheaper epoxy resins.

By last month the MRJ had drawn a single firm order, from Japan’s ANA, for 15 MRJ90s. The airline also holds an option for 10 more airplanes. Last October Mitsubishi secured a letter of intent from Trans States Holdings of the U.S. calling for an eventual firm order for 50 MRJs and options on another 50.

Miyakawa said Mitsubishi has already begun type certification work with Japan’s civil aviation bureau, the JCAB, which coincidentally maintains an office at Nagoya Airfield. The JCAB has begun talks over a bilateral certification agreement with the U.S. FAA, from which Mitsubishi expects to gain certification for the MRJ90 in early 2014.

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TM

SmartLanding

Safe ‘til you stop.

Here are more statistics that are hard to ignore: runway excursions cost the aviation industry $900 million per year and account for 83% of runway fatalities. Honeywell’s new SmartLanding helps reduce the risk of runway excursions by alerting pilots during unstable approaches and long landings. Safe from start to stop. Together, SmartRunway and SmartLanding provide a powerful continuum of awareness from takeoff to landing.

SmartLanding is an easy software upgrade to Honeywell’s.

Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS).

For details, visit Honeywell.com/runwaysafety. ©2010 Honeywell International Inc.

www.ainonline.com • February 2, 2010 • Singapore Airshow Newsaa51