El grupo de escuelas de Matacán acogerá el Centro de Formación en UAS

• Continúan las sesiones del programa de Conferencias de UNVEX'12, centradas hoy en los aspectos relacionados con formación y regulación
• El día 26 de abril, Jornada de demostraciones en el aeródromo de Marugán (Segovia)

Madrid, 24 de abril de 2012

 

El Grupo de Escuelas de Matacán (GRUEMA) del Ejército del Aire acogerá el centro responsable de formación en UAS, formación que estará adaptada a la nueva Orden Ministerial 18/2012, aprobada el pasado 26 de marzo, que establece la aptitud y las titulaciones que deben tener los operadores de sistemas aéreos no tripulados y señala este centro como el responsable en dicha formación.

 

El propio jefe de GRUEMA, el coronel Alejandro Monedero, ha sido el encargado de explicar hoy en UNVEX la aplicación en las Fuerzas Armadas españolas de esta nueva Orden Ministerial. Así, ha señalado que, partiendo de la estructura establecida en GRUEMA, se han sentado las bases para crear un centro específico para la formación en UAS. El coronel Monedero ha asegurado que "las instalaciones están listas y los profesores, preparados para impartir los cursos".

 

Unidad de UAV's en España

 

Por otro lado y, dentro de la jornada de Conferencias de hoy, el coronel Javier Sancho, destinado en el Estado Mayor del Ejército (EME) ha avanzado que el Ejército de Tierra tiene previsto crear una única unidad de UAV`s en España.

 

El oficial ha indicado que el repliegue de las tropas de Afganistán, previsto para el año 2014, conllevará la vuelta a Territorio Nacional de los sistemas aéreos no tripulados allí desplegados, por lo que se está estudiando la creación de una unidad de UAV en la base de helicópteros de Agoncillo (La Rioja) o en el Centro de Adiestramiento de San Gregorio (Zaragoza).

 

Son algunas de las conclusiones extraidas en la Jornada de hoy, en la que se está debatiendo sobre los aspectos vinculados a formación y los requerimientos, legislación y certificación de aeronavegabilidad.  Mañana continúa el programa de Conferencias que puede consultarse en www.unvex12.com y el próximo jueves tendrá lugar la Jornada de Demostraciones en Marugán (Segovia) como cierre del Congreso.

 

UNVEX'12 se celebra esta semana en el Hotel Auditorium de Madrid, organizado por IDS. El evento cuenta con el apoyo y respaldo del Ministerio de Defensa; del CDTI; de las dos principales asociaciones empresariales del sector: TEDAE y AESMIDE; y de la Plataforma Tecnológica Hisparob; así como con el patrocinio de Cassidian, Indra, Thales, Navantia, Tekplus, CESA e INTA y la colaboración de Hisdesat.

 

 

Sukhoi Superjet 100 starts "Welcome Asia" tour on May 3

On May 3, 2012 the SSJ 100 aircraft will start its first roadshow — "Welcome Asia". Sukhoi Civil Aircraft will bring the 95005 airplane to six countries: Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar. The airplane will be outfitted with the dual class cabin configuration, so that customers, stakeholders, government officials and media could enjoy the first-hand in-flight experience of the unparalleled comfort a regional jet can give and share it with almost 200,000 passengers who have already travelled with Aeroflot and Armavia. At each destination point the aircraft will be demonstrated on static display and will perform demo flights for specially invited guests and media.

The first destination point is Astana, Kazakhstan. On May 3, at the International Exhibition KADEX-2012 the SSJ100 will launch its premiere tour. On May 5, the aircraft will arrive in Karachi, Pakistan. Naypyidaw, Myanmar, is the next stop for May 7. Two days later, on May 9 the aircraft will land in Jakarta, Indonesia. And on May 11 it will arrive in Vientiane, Laos. The final destination point of the "Welcome Asia" tour is Hanoi, Vietnam, where the aircraft will be shown on May 14. During the overall tour the aircraft, piloted by SSJ100 Chief test pilot Alexander Yablontsev and his co-pilot Alexander Kochetkov will have covered 8375 nautical miles (15510 km).

Sukhoi Superjet 100 is designed for transportation of 98 passengers and possesses a number of technical and economical advantages allowing to compete successfully with products of leading western regional jet manufacturers. Sukhoi Superjet 100 has an essential efficiency advantage on cash operational cost if compared to competitors. The aircraft enjoys unique piloting characteristics and controllability.

"Having performed commercial flights for almost a year our aircraft has shown remarkable results both in safety and operational efficiency. The recent European certification confirmed full compliance of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 with stringent safety requirements. It opens up new perspectives for this aircraft in the international markets. We believe that the SSJ100 with its excellent operational economics and mainline level of comfort for the passengers is the best choice in the 70-120 seat segment for many airlines from the region. We already have customers in Asia, so for us the road show is a good opportunity to demonstrate the aircraft and the Program progress and to enhance our presence in the Asian market", said Vladimir Prisyazhnyuk, President of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft.

Airbus Managed Inventory Service operational at Iberia Maintenance

Automatically managing material inventory replenishment in real-time

Iberia has started operations with the Airbus Managed Inventory (AMI) service, an automated system which ensures the continuous automatic replenishment of high-usage and non-repairable Airbus parts at Iberia's facility.

Alberto de la Cal Lanza, VP Administration and Purchasing of Iberia, said: "We have implemented AMI in our supply chain process, as this allows us to focus more on the planning and procurement activities for our heavy maintenance." He added: "This increases our material off-shelf performance with optimized inventory levels."

"We are pleased that Iberia has chosen the Airbus Managed Inventory solution which is tailor-made for supply chain requirements of our industry. This service is being well recognized in the market," said Didier Lux, EVP of Airbus Customer Services. "We are pleased to welcome Iberia as a new AMI customer. This will further strengthen the close partnership between Iberia and Airbus."

The AMI service, which underlines Airbus' innovative strategy in offering customised services based on latest industry standards, captures material consumption information in real-time and automatically triggers the replenishment process within the agreed inventory levels.

Iberia Maintenance is in charge of maintaining Iberia's fleet and those of another 100 clients around the world. It is Spain's second largest aviation-related company by income and number of employees, and the world's ninth-largest aircraft maintenance company.

Airbus is the world's leading aircraft manufacturer offering the most modern, innovative and efficient family of passenger airliners on the market, ranging in capacity from 100 to more than 500 seats. Airbus is an EADS company

RAAF carries its most passengers ever in A330 MRTT

An Airbus Military A330 MRTT multi role tanker transport of the Royal Australian Air Force, designated the KC-30A, has flown the highest number of passengers ever carried by the service in a single flight. Photo copyright Commonwealth of Australia
An Airbus Military A330 MRTT multi role tanker transport of the Royal Australian Air Force, designated the KC-30A, has flown the highest number of passengers ever carried by the service in a single flight. The aircraft of 33 Sqn, RAAF carried 220 passengers from the Australian Defence Force Academy as well as its 14 crew, on a two-hour flight from Defence Establishment Fairbairn last month.

The sortie was part of the squadron's introduction into service of the KC-30A which is capable of carrying 270 passengers in the configuration selected by the RAAF.

"Las tecnologías relacionadas con UAS van a discriminar entre los países avanzados y los que no lo son" - Nota de Prensa UNVEX'12

 

El Secretario de Estado de Defensa, Pedro Argüelles, inauguró ayer UNVEX'12, "la Cumbre Española de los Sistemas No Tripulados" que se celebrará  en Madrid los días 23 a 26 de abril

 Argüelles señaló la importancia de la tecnología de UAS en estos momentos que van a discriminar entre los países avanzados y los que no lo son. "España y su industria han de profundizar en este sector", apuntó el Secretario de Estado, quien ha señalado que son tres los retos del mercado: "Regular el sector de manera eficiente; fomentar la cooperación público-privada; e integrarse en las iniciativas europeas en esta materia".

 

The first anniversary of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 commercial operations in Armavia

The first anniversary of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 commercial operations in Armavia

 
April 23 2012, Moscow

Just a year ago, on the 21st of April 2011, the first production Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ100) aircraft operated by the Armenian airline, Armavia, performed the first scheduled flight on route Yerevan – Moscow, marking the start of the commercial operations of the brand new commercial aircraft. Armavia puts the new aircraft (MSN 95007, register number EK 95015) in service an extremely short period of time - in two days after the official delivery.

By April 20, 2012 Armavia's SSJ100 aircraft accumulated more than 1,870 flight hours in more than 760 revenue flights. The SSJ100 carried over 48,000 passengers and covered distance more than 1.4 million kilometers. Armavia SSJ100 regularly performed flights from Yerevan to 34 airports in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Western and Southern Europe and Middle East including Moscow, St Petersburg, Madrid, Paris, Rome, Venice, Amsterdam, Athens and Dubai. Flights were performed at 35000 – 39000 ft altitude, at the speed of 0.78-0.8 M. The highest daily utilization reached 16.5 flight hours while the longest distance exceeded 4,000 kilometers on route Yerevan – Madrid. The SSJ100 fully confirmed to be suitable both to regional and to short-haul routes. The best results in terms of number of flights per month and monthly utilization stood at 88 flights and 224 hours in November 2011 and 91 flights and 213 hours in February 2012.

For the first year of operations the first production SSJ100 aircraft, equipped with the brand new SaM146 engines, revealed remarkable operational results and outstanding safety performance.

This milestone was also achieved thanks to a full-fledged after-sales support organization managed by SuperJet International (responsible for the technical support of the aircraft operations and maintenance as well as for training). Its Customer Services provides Armavia with the first class-service agreement "SuperCare Plan" covering the entire spectrum of supporting activities.

"The newest Russian aircraft SSJ100 met our expectations. Our passengers like this aircraft while our pilots, flight attendants and technicians easily get an experience to operate the SSJ100. We believe that the SSJ100 has a bright future", said Sergey Kharatyan, Head of Armavia Flight Services.

«We are satisfied with results of the first year operations of our aircraft with Armavia. It was reached through joint efforts of SCAC, SuperJet International, PowerJet (the engine manufacturer) and Armavia. We are confident that the obtained joint experience and proper teamwork will help us to achieve all established targets", noted Vladimir Prisyazhnyuk, President of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft.

Omni Helicopter International (OHI) receives first Eurocopter EC225 and places order for six additional aircraft of this type

Eurocopter has delivered the first from an initial contract for four EC225 helicopters to OMNI Helicopter International (OHI). During this occasion, OHI also placed a second order for six additional aircraft of this type, bringing to ten the total number of EC225s that they will operate for oil & gas missions in Brazil.

Delivered in offshore configuration, this helicopter will be operated by OHI's Brazilian subsidiary, Omni Taxi Aéreo, for the oil company Petrobras. The second EC225 from the initial contract will be delivered this May and the remaining two in 2013. Delivery of the six helicopters included in the second contract will be completed by mid-2015.


This new helicopter is also the first EC225 that Eurocopter has delivered to Milestone Aviation Group, as OHI has decided to partner with this company, a world leader in the helicopter leasing sector, for the purchase of this landmark helicopter. In the short time since its creation, Milestone has become a key player in arranging financing solutions for operators. Eurocopter endeavours to work closely with Milestone in order to find new opportunities and solutions for its customers around the world.

"We have been working with Eurocopter for more than ten years now and we're very pleased to bring the EC225 into our fleet," said Rui Almeida, Chairman of OHI. "This helicopter will help us respond to the needs of our main customer, Petrobras, which demands increasingly more powerful and safer aircraft to guarantee transportation many miles offshore."

Following the discovery of gas and oil reserves in the pre-salt layer, Brazil is looking to become the world's fourth-largest oil producer by 2030 and Petrobras, which exploits most of these resources, is preparing for its oil rigs to be located increasingly farther offshore. With a range of up to 600 nautical miles when equipped with external fuel tanks, the EC225 offers outstanding performance in such conditions. Following this delivery to OMNI, there are now three companies currently operating the EC225 for Brazil's largest oil company.

"The success of the EC225 in the oil & gas sector boils down in particular to its outstanding reliability in the most demanding operational conditions," explained Olivier Lambert, Senior Vice-President Sales and Customer Relations for Eurocopter. "We are grateful to Omni Helicopter International for the confidence they have placed in the aircraft that make up the Eurocopter range, and we are confident that the new EC225 will guarantee the success of many new projects."

Omni Taxi Aéreo operates one of the largest civil fleets of Eurocopter aircraft in Latin America, one that comprises five EC155s, six EC135s, four AS365 N3s, one AS365 N2 and four BO105s, in addition to the new EC225. All of these aircraft are used for operations in Brazil's oil & gas sector and are mainly counted on for passenger transportation to and between oil rigs, while also carrying out emergency medical services.


In its efforts to support Brazil's oil and gas market, the world's fastest-growing offshore helicopter market, Eurocopter is making preparations to manufacture the EC225 at its Brazilian subsidiary, Helibras. The subsidiary is soon to open new facilities that will initially be used to produce the EC725, the military version of the helicopter, for Brazil's armed forces. The EC225/EC725 production and service structure will be further enhanced by the installation of an EC225 Full Flight Simulator (FFS) in Rio de Janeiro.

Eurocopter's EC225 offers optimal safety with superior speed, range, payload and reliability. Deployed worldwide for civil and military search and rescue (SAR) missions, as well as offshore and passenger transport flights, it is the latest-generation member of the Super Puma/Cougar family, which has logged more than four million flight hours in operations around the world. In the global oil & gas industry alone, there are currently some 70 EC225s in operation.

This aircraft is perfectly suited to operate in adverse weather conditions. Designed to meet the highest safety requirements, it is backed by system redundancy, a highly capable automatic flight control system and the capability for full deicing, which allows for flight in all known icing conditions.
The EC225 can also be rapidly reconfigured for SAR missions from its offshore configuration for oil & gas companies.

Barcelona-El Prat, galardonado como el mejor aeropuerto del sur de Europa según Skytrax por segundo año consecutivo

• Este premio se basa en los  resultados de encuestas de satisfacción realizadas a los pasajeros sobre accesos, transporte público, confort, limpieza o seguridad, entre otros

El Aeropuerto de Barcelona-El Prat ha  recibido  por segundo año consecutivo el galardón como mejor aeropuerto del sur de Europa concedido por Skytrax en el marco de los World Airport Awards 2012, premios otorgados por los pasajeros de todo el mundo. 

El galardón, recogido  anoche  por la directora de la instalación, Sonia Corrochano, en el transcurso de una recepción en Viena, ha sido concedido basándose en encuestas realizadas a cerca de 11 millones de pasajeros de más de 100 nacionalidades. Los cuestionarios evalúan la experiencia de los pasajeros en 39 productos y áreas de servicios una vez completado el viaje, como son los accesos, transporte público, confort,  limpieza, facturación, tránsitos, seguridad, señalización o llegadas.

Skytrax es una empresa auditora reconocida mundialmente dedicada al análisis y comparación en materia de calidad de las diferentes aerolíneas y aeropuertos de todo el mundo. Desde 1999, realiza encuestas de satisfacción a los pasajeros con un único formato de cuestionario y análisis. Con los resultados obtenidos por las encuestas, Skytrax celebra los World Airport Awards,  que este año ha repartido 50 premios  agrupados en 6 categorías.

Eurocopter South East Asia commences training on its Dauphin AS365 N3/N3+ Full Flight Simulator with launch customers from Asia Pacific and Middle East

Eurocopter South East Asia received bookings from five customers from the Asia Pacific and Middle East regions for its duly certified Dauphin AS365 N3/N3+ Full Flight Simulator, which commenced operations in early April 2012 at the Eurocopter South East Asia Training Centre located in Singapore.

In line with Eurocopter's Vision 2020 to develop worldwide training capabilities, the Dauphin AS365 N3/N3+ Full Flight Simulator (FFS) has been set up in Singapore, managed and operated by Eurocopter's South East Asian subsidiary.

Mainly targeted at Dauphin pilots in Asia Pacific and the Middle East, the FFS is also open to other regions such as North and South America. The first bookings have been received from five customers, with a total of 38 pilots coming from Australia, Bangladesh, India, Korea and the United Arab Emirates. The first batch of trainees arrived in early April, and around 100 pilots are expected to be trained this year. An annual target of 3,000 FFS training hours is expected to be achieved in four years' time.

"Safety has always been a top priority for Eurocopter. This Full Flight Simulator will provide Dauphin pilots with high quality training in a completely safe environment," said Bernhard Brenner, President & CEO of Eurocopter South East Asia. "With the FFS located in a strategic location like Singapore, we will be able to provide our customers, as well as customers of other Eurocopter subsidiaries, with specialized training services at shorter turnaround times and lower costs as well."

The Dauphin AS365N3/N3+ FFS achieved the FFS level B and FTD level 3 dual certification from the French Civil Aviation Authority in accordance with the European JAR/EASA criteria. This dual certification concept has been selected by Eurocopter as the optimal balance between high quality training and a reasonable price per flight hour.

The FFS will allow operators to perform initial and recurrent type training as well as specific training covering emergency procedures, instrument flight rules (IFR), offshore and search and rescue (SAR) operations, night flights (night vision goggles), flights over mountainous regions and low altitude navigation.

Designed to meet operators' current and future expectations, the FFS features a full Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) simulation data-package, which provides the highest realism in flight loop, engine and autopilot models and ensures close reproduction of helicopter behavior. Incorporating advanced reconfigurable cockpit concept, both conventional and glass cockpit instrument panel layouts are available.

The Dauphin AS365N3/N3+ FFS at ESEA TC is Eurocopter's 17th FFS around the world – part of Eurocopter's global strategy to deploy training capabilities in its network of subsidiaries in order to provide proximity services to its customers.