Airbus Leads way towards sustainable aviation at Paris Air Show

Shares vision for the future of air travel
Blagnac,  08 June 2011

Airbus, a market leader in commercial and military transport aircraft is showcasing ideas for a sustainable aviation at the Le Bourget Air Show between June 20th– 26th. Visitors will be able to see revolutionary ideas and concepts as well as daily flying displays from the world's most modern passenger and military transport aircraft.

Walk through domes at the EADS Stand (Hall 2A-253) will give an insight into the 'Future by Airbus' – a free thinking vision for the future of aviation. Visitors can immerse themselves in this vision by watching it in a spectacular wrap-around film for free at the Le Bourget "Musee de L'air" Planetarium.

Media are welcome to visit the EADS Press Chalet at Row A (366-368) for covering commercial announcements and media events throughout the week. Alerts to upcoming press events will be posted in the Media Centre as well as the EADS Press Chalet. Airbus will hold its sum-up press conference on Thursday, June 23rd, starting at 11:00 in the Air Show Conference Centre (Hall 2C - Auditorium).

Aircraft on static display will include the A380, an Airbus Corporate Jet (ACJ), the Airbus Military A400M and C295. The Airbus A380 and A400M will be on flying displays every day. Some customer aircraft will also be on display - depending on the day. Aircraft visits can be organised for media each day, 09:00-10:00 am. On Tuesday June 21st, Airbus Military will hold an event at the C295, to which media are invited.

The VIP hospitality tent at the aircraft static display will showcase several cut-away models (A350 XWB, A320neo, A330, A380 commercial aircraft, and the A400M military aircraft) and a life size Airbus A320 Family fuel saving Sharklet' wingtip device.

Throughout the week, Airbus will hold a series of career workshops with an opportunity to meet industry experts as part of its drive to recruit more than 3,000 talents in 2011.

On Thursday June 23rd at 10:00, the winners of Airbus' second worldwide student challenge "Fly Your Ideas" will be announced. The five finalists this year are teams from Chile, China, India, Malaysia and Sweden.


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CASSIDIAN improves performance of air traffic control radars in eliminating wind turbine interference

Wind turbines generate radar interference signals which can compromise the safe guidance of aircraft.


Cassidian, the defence and security division of EADS, has developed a technical solution to largely eliminate interference to air traffic control radars caused by wind turbines. This means that the guidance of aircraft in the vicinity of wind parks can be significantly improved, while at the same time making the approval of wind parks easier.

Wind turbines generate radar interference signals, primarily through their rotors, which overlap with the echoes from aircraft, or which can easily be confused with them. Due to this interference, radar systems may no longer detect aircraft, which makes the control of air traffic much more difficult. For this reason, wind turbines may not be installed, or only to a limited extent, in approach control zones, especially in the vicinity of military airports.

As a result of a multi-year research project carried out in cooperation with the German Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMU), Cassidian now has developed a solution in the form of a technical modification for digital air traffic control radars. This solution is based on changes to the radar antenna as well as to the signal and data processing. On the one hand, using a controllable antenna diagram, a large part of the interfering radar echoes from wind turbines can be masked out. On the other hand, using pattern recognition algorithms, the radar system is able to reliably distinguish aircraft echoes from interference signals, even in the immediate vicinity of wind turbines.

The effectiveness of these procedures has been proved in extensive flight tests at Büchel air base in Germany. This new technology will facilitate the extension of wind parks in the vicinity of airports while taking account of flight safety. The detailed results were presented at the beginning of this year and will be made generally accessible by the BMU on the conclusion of the study. It will be possible to use this new technology within a period of two years.

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El primer Airbus Military C295 AEW&C realiza vuelo inaugural

El primer avión de desarrollo Airbus Military C295 dotado de un rotodomo de alerta temprana y de control aerotransportado (Airbone Early Warning and Command – AEW&C) efectuó con éxito su vuelo inaugural el 7 de junio de 2011 en la sede de Airbus Military en Sevilla. Este vuelo es el resultado de un gran trabajo de investigación y desarrollo que incluye pruebas en túnel de viento destinadas a la conversión de un C295 para ser equipado con el rotodomo desarrollado internamente.

El aparato despegó a las 17:16 horas, hora local (15:16 UTC) y aterrizó a las 20:04 horas, hora local (18:04 UTC), después de un vuelo de aproximadamente 2 horas y 48 minutos de duración. El piloto de ensayos en vuelo, Alejandro Madurga, pilotó el aparato con la ayuda del copiloto Alfonso de Castro y los ingenieros de ensayos en vuelo, Juan José Baeza y Antonio Ojeda.

El objetivo de las pruebas es comprobar el impacto aerodinámico y estructural del rotodomo en la estructura general del avión, las cualidades de manejo y su funcionamiento. El rotodomo de seis metros de diámetro, utilizado para las pruebas iniciales, es una estructura fija para ensayos. El aparato de serie estará dotado de un rotodomo de rotación rápida con un radar que proporcionará una completa y continua cobertura de 360 grados del área seleccionada.

"Este primer vuelo nos confirma que el C295 es una excelente plataforma para dar soporte a semejante rotodomo", afirmó Alejandro Madurga, tras el vuelo. "El comportamiento del avión y sus características de vuelo fueron muy satisfactorias, tal y como se esperaba".

El ensayo en vuelo se seguirá realizando durante los tres próximos meses para completar el estudio de viabilidad y validar completamente el concepto. El Airbus Military C295 es una plataforma ideal para misiones AEW&C. El C295 se utiliza actualmente para otras aplicaciones de inteligencia, vigilancia y reconocimiento, como misiones de patrullas marítimas, guerra antisubmarina o de protección medioambiental, entre otras. El C295 es una plataforma simple pero robusta de fiabilidad probada que se utiliza en operaciones conflictivas de misiones de defensa y seguridad nacional. Este aparato polivalente, que dispone de la cabina más grande de su categoría, puede también utilizarse como AEW&C. El sistema táctico FITS (Fully Integrated Tactical System), desarrollado por Airbus Military, permite integrar a bordo sensores para operar y controlar el futuro sistema de radar, así como visualizar las imágenes aéreas.

Las actuales pruebas con AEW&C tienen el objetivo de demostrar la capacidad del C295 en este sector y, con ello, aumentar su gama de aplicaciones. Con el C295, Airbus Military dispone de la herramienta necesaria para crear un nuevo segmento de mercado para sistemas de alto rendimiento AEW&C asequibles.

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First Airbus Military C295 with AEW&C rotodome completes maiden flight

The first Airbus Military C295 development aircraft fitted with an Airbone Early Warning sand Command (AEW&C) rotodome has successfully completed its first flight on 7th June 2011 at Airbus Military's site in Seville (Spain).

The flight follows extensive research and development work, including wind tunnel testing, leading to the conversion of a C295 to be fitted with the in-house developed rotodome

The aircraft took off at 17h16 local time (15h16 UTC) and landed at 20h04 local time (18h04 UTC), after a flight lasting 2h48 (wheels off – wheels down). The experimental test pilot Alejandro Madurga captained the flight together with co-pilot Alfonso de Castro, the Flight Test Engineer Juan José Baeza, and the Test Flight Engineer Antonio Ojeda.

The objective of the trials is to verify the aerodynamic and structural impact of the rotodome on the aircraft's overall structure, handling qualities and performance. The six metre diameter rotodome fitted for the initial trials is a fixed dummy structure. On production aircraft the rotodome would be a fast-rotating device housing a state-of-the-art radar providing full 360 degree and continuous coverage of a selected area.

"This first flight confirmed to us that the C295 is an excellent platform to support such a rotodome", said Alejandro Maurga after the flight. The behavior of the aircraft and its flying characteristics were very satisfactory and as expected".

Flight testing will continue during the next three months to complete the feasibility study and fully validate the concept.

Airbus Military's C295 is an ideal platform for Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) missions. The C295 is currently used for other Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance applications such as maritime patrol, anti-submarine warfare or environmental protection missions, to list just a few. The C295 is a simple but robust platform with proven reliability, used in conflict operations for defence and homeland security missions. It is adaptable to the AEW&C role thanks to its versatility and the largest cabin in its class. The in-house developed Fully Integrated Tactical System (FITS) enables the integration of on-board sensors, including operation and monitoring of the future radar system and display of the
aerial picture.

The current AEW&C trials are to demonstrate the C295's capability in this sector and thereby expand its range of applications. With the C295, Airbus Military has the tool to open up a new market segment for affordable high-performance AEW&C systems

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