THE WEEK ON THE WEB

ightglobal.com
fightglobal.com
CONTENTS
Flightglobal reaches up to 1.3 million visitors from 220
countries viewing 7.1 million pages each month
Vote at ightglobal.com/poll
Find all these items at ightglobal.com/wotw
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
For a full list of reader services, editorial
and advertising contacts see P43
EDITORIAL
+44 20 8652 3842
fight.international@fightglobal.com
DISPLAY ADVERTISING
+44 20 8652 3315
gillian.cumming@rbi.co.uk
CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING
+44 20 8652 4897
fight.classifed@fightglobal.com
RECRUITMENT ADVERTISING
+44 20 8652 4900
recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk
SUBSCRIPTIONS
+44 1444 475 682
fightinternational.subs@qss-uk.com
REPRINTS
+44 20 8652 8612
reprints@rbi.co.uk
FLIGHT DAILY NEWS
+44 20 8652 3096
fightdailynews@fightglobal.com
Total votes: 2,730
This week, we ask: Will KC-390 meet its 2014 rst-ight target?
Yes Embraer has the experience to deliver Possibly but it
will be close No programme already appears to be behind
Last week, we asked: What is the future of the 767? You said:
Freighter and military
applications
Niche passenger
aircraft
32
%
68
%
BEHIND THE
HEADLINES
HIGH FLIERS
The top ve stories for the week just gone:
1 Re-launched Eastern Air Lines orders up to 20 737s
2 Falcon 7X sets transatlantic speed record
3 Saab responds to Swiss Gripen defeat
4 ILA: A380 remains a customer magnet for Emirates
5 USAF reveals notional specifcations for JSTARS replacement
Arie Egozi asks on his Ariel View blog why Israeli fag
carrier El Al continues to sidestep the real issues behind its
weak fnancial performance. The airline attributes its poor
results to rising competition
but, notes Egozi, it has failed
to reduce its workforce and it
is still only fying fve and a
half days a week in spite of
having been privatised. El Al
is also infuenced by the
countrys religious community
who it believes will take their custom elsewhere unless the
feet is grounded on Friday afternoons, ahead of the Jewish
Sabbath. On the Airline Business blog, Edward Russell
hails a new era of 75-seat regional jets for United Airlines.
The US carriers frst Embraer 175 took to the skies for the
frst time on 17 May on the Chicago OHare, Washington
National route. United will add two to four E175s to its feet
per month for a total of 70 by the end of 2015.
We dispatched a couple of crack
teams this week to cover two of
Europes leading aviation shows.
Our Flight Daily News troop (top)
travelled to Berlin to report from
the biennial ILA airshow. Over at
EBACE in Geneva, our Flight
Evening News gang covered all
the latest developments in the
business aviation world (p.24)
IN THIS ISSUE
Companies listed
ADAT ............................................................15
Aerion ..........................................................26
AgustaWestland ...........................................21
Air Bridge Cargo ...........................................32
Airbus ................. 9, 12, 13, 19, 20, 21, 28, 32
Airbus Defence & Space ..... 10, 17, 18, 19, 21
Airbus Helicopters ..................................11, 18
Air France-KLM-Martinair Cargo ....................32
Alenia Aermacchi .........................................19
Alpha Star Aviation Services ........................28
Amedeo .......................................................13
Angara Airlines .............................................12
Austrian Airlines Group .................................15
Avic Aircraft ..................................................12
BAE Systems ...............................................12
Bell Helicopter ............................................... 8
Boeing .........................8, 9, 16, 21, 26, 27, 32
Bombardier .............. 8, 12, 15, 16, 21, 24, 27
Cessna ..................................................15, 29
CFM International .......................................... 9
CHC Helicopter ............................................11
Comac .........................................................12
Coyne Airways ..............................................32
Dassault Aviation .............................18, 19, 24
Diamond Aircraft ..........................................15
Diehl ............................................................10
Elbit Systems ...........................................8, 10
Elta Systems ................................................10
Embraer .......................................................17
Emirates ......................................................13
ESG .............................................................10
Etihad ..........................................................15
FedEx...........................................................13
Finnair ........................................................... 8
Fokker....................................................15, 27
Gama Aviation .............................................29
Garmin ........................................................27
GE Aviation ..................................................27
General Electric .................................8, 26, 27
Gulfstream ...................................8, 16, 24, 26
Heli-Union ...................................................11
HondaJet .....................................................27
Horizon International Flight Academy ...........15
IABG ............................................................20
ILFC .............................................................13
Israel Aerospace Industries ..........................10
IrAero...........................................................12
Jade Cargo International ..............................32
Japan Airlines ..............................................32
LCF Conversions ...........................................13
Liebherr .......................................................20
Lockheed Martin ....................8, 17, 18, 21, 26
Lufthansa Cargo ...........................................32
Lufthansa Technik ........................................19
MTU Aero Engines ........................................20
Nextant Aerospace .................................27, 28
NH Industries ...............................................18
Nok Air ........................................................... 9
Noordzee Helikopters ...................................11
Northrop Grumman ............................8, 10, 16
Northwest Airlines ........................................32
Piaggio Aero ...........................................24, 29
Pilatus ...................................................16, 28
Pratt & Whitney ................................25, 27, 29
Raytheon .....................................................27
Rockwell Collins ...........................................25
Roketsan .....................................................21
Saab ...........................................................16
Shenzhen Airlines ........................................32
Strategic Aviation Solutions..........................32
Textron Aviation ......................................24, 25
Turkish Aerospace Industries ........................20
Walter Aircraft Engines .................................27
Williams ......................................................25
Xian Aircraft ................................................... 8
4
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
F
lig
h
t
g
lo
b
a
l/
E
d
w
a
r
d

R
u
s
s
e
ll
Download The Engine Directory.
ightglobal.com/ComEngDirectory
Download the new Commercial Engines Report
now updated for 2014 with enhanced data and in-depth market analysis
ightgIobaI.com/commengines
The FASTEST
The EASIEST
The MOST COST-EFFECTIVE
way to meet the
Link 2000+ Mandate.
EASA STCs:
Airbus
A319
A320
A321
Boeing
737 Classic
737NG
757
767
All in a single LRU
Easy to install
CPDLC and ACARS
Meet the Mandate with Dlink+ w/CPDLC
www.spectralux.com/meetthemandate
AIRLINES ATTENDING INCLUDE:
MAINTENANCE
8TH 9TH JULY 2014
KENSINGTON CLOSE HOTEL, LONDON
THE ONLY TARGETED SAFETY EVENT FOR THE MRO INDUSTRY!
AIRLINE ENGINEERING
ORGANISED BY:
SAFETY
&
Billy Nolen
Managing Director Employee
Safety and Regulatory
Affairs, American Airlines
Neil Williams
Head of Airworthiness Policy
and Rulemaking
Civil Aviation Authority
Warner van der
Veer-Jehee
Vice President - Safety
and Quality, KLM - E&M
Division
Jorge Leite
VP Quality and Safety -
Maintenance and
Engineering Safety Manager,
TAP
Zlatko Sirac
Member of the Board
and COO
Croatia Airlines
Mick Adams
Managing Director
Monarch Aircraft
Engineering
Ian Williams
President
European Aviation
Maintenance Training
Committee
Philip Sproul
Manager Quality and Safety
Air New Zeland
Keven Baines
Managing Director
Baines Simmons
Gunnar Andersson
Director
SAS Technical
Training
Conrmed speakers include:
For further information on
sponsorship and exhibition
opportunities please contact:
Stacey Ludlow
Sponsorship Executive
T: +44 (0)20 8652 3492
E: stacey.ludlow@rbi.co.uk
Visit www.ightglobalevents.com
/aems14 and enter promo code
RGR49322 to book your place
and save 100.
EXHIBITOR:
EARLY BOOKING
DISCOUNT!
Book on or before
23rd May to save 100
Quote to
secure your place today!
SUPPORTED BY:
COMMENT
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
7 fightglobal.com
See Show Report P24
T
he skies over Geneva were clear and bright for
EBACE, reecting the mood of an industry
emerging from its recent turbulent past.
Although Textrons acquisition of Beechcraft earlier
this year meant there was one less paying exhibitor in
the halls, it is already clear the formation of Textron
Aviation is the best possible outcome for three of
Wichitas most famous corporate residents.
The outlook in the light jet market is improving, but
sales must still improve if EBACE is not to lose more
exhibitor income.
But if cautiously always precedes optimistic
among makers of light and midsize business aircraft,
the mood among large-cabin players is pure jubilation.
Even after a few years of steady growth, supply of
ever wider, longer, faster and longer-range jets appears
unequal to demand for a long time to come.
So we witnessed the unveiling of the stretched
Dassault Falcon 8X, an even longer-range Gulfstream
G650 and the cabin mock-up of Bombardiers largest
business jet to date.
Although the skies were mostly blue, there were still
traces of cloud. Europe has yet to recover from the 2008
recession and unrest in Ukraine is unhelpful.
Overall, however, EBACE saw an industry again
under sunny skies, and looking at an even warmer fore-
cast for the NBAA show in October.
A brighter tomorrow
Read our archive of Flight
International comments on
editor Murdo Morrisons blog at
ightglobal.com/comment
See Air Transport P15
R
e
x

F
e
a
t
u
r
e
s
A sign of things to come?
A few airlines are having to cut back schedules and even routes because they cannot get
enough pilots. Is this a local problem or is it a sign of an approaching crisis?
Filling front seats
J
apanese airlines are having to cancel schedules
because they have too few ightcrew. American
carriers, especially regionals, have the same problem.
Ryanair is having to migrate crew around its network to
patch up holes in local rosters.
Gulf carrier Etihad, meanwhile, plans to acquire a
local training academy, thus guaranteeing a steady ow
of recruits for its own operation.
The question arises whether the shortages are local
issues caused by bad planning or something more
general. A pilot shortage has been predicted for nearly
15 years but never seemed to arrive. There is now, how-
ever, a growing nervousness about whether it is nally
happening, because all the reasons why the previously
predicted shortages failed to materialise since about
2000 are no longer applicable. The successive
reprieves were the result of the travel slump after 9/11,
the extension of the pilot working age from 60 to 65 in
2006, the 2008 banking crash, and the general move by
all airlines to squeeze more ying hours out of pilots by
tighter rostering and faster turnarounds. Now all that
has happened there is no more juice in the lemon.
Meanwhile the worlds economy looks set to return
to steady growth, and airlines appear on a more robust
nancial footing too. So pilots are needed, not just for
the status quo, but for growth in a marketplace where
no more ightcrew time savings can be made.
The Japan example is difcult to judge. Is it a demo-
The pilot shortage is here, but
as with climate change there
are still unhelpful deniers
graphic product of Japans ageing population, quiescent
economy and falling birth rate? It is too early to judge.
The American example is easier to understand, being a
self-inicted condition resulting from the law passed
by Congress after the 2009 Colgan Air crash at Buffalo.
It required that FAR Part 121 airline pilots must have
1,500h experience before hiring. Congress not only
failed to question whether hours alone produced
quality, but also how enough pilots would get the hours
if no-one was allowed to hire them.
Pilot unions say there are plenty of unemployed
qualied pilots out there, arguing this means there is
no panic. But just because a pilot has a licence it does
not mean they are good, so a fair proportion of those
remaining will not pass muster.
The next test for the industry is nding the instruc-
tors the training sector will need to meet the growing
demand for well-trained fresh pilots.
The pilot shortage is here and but, as with climate
change, there are still unhelpful deniers.
THIS WEEK
fightglobal.com 8
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
Keep up to date with the latest news and
opinion from the world of military aviation
ightglobal.com/DEWline
G
ulfstream will offer the G650
to the US Air Force as a
replacement for the services
ageing eet of air-to-ground
surveillance and targeting air-
craft, chief executive Larry Flynn
conrms.
The 30m (110ft)-long G650 can
be adapted to meet the USAFs
still-emerging requirements for an
aircraft to replace the Northrop
Grumman E-8C JSTARS eet,
which are based on used Boeing
707s acquired in the late 1980s.
We think we have [the right
aircraft] and the government can
save a lot of money, Flynn says.
Boeing and Bombardier also
attended an April industry day
hosted by the USAF.
It believes that acquiring a new
platform avoids a $10.5 billion bill
required to upgrade and sustain
the E-8C. The replacement plan
was unveiled earlier this year, but
the service is still working to de-
ne exactly what it wants and to
obtain funding approval.
Documents released by the
USAF in early May indicate the
replacement aircraft must
accommodate a crew of between
10-13 and a belly-mounted radar
between 3.9-6m long. That com-
pares with the E-8Cs 7.3m-long
APY-7 radar and 18-strong crew.
Boeing is expected to offer a
ground surveillance version of
REQUIREMENT STEPHEN TRIMBLE GENEVA
G650 pitched for
surveillance role
Gulfstream to offer its fagship ultra-long-range business jet
to meet US Air Force need to replace elderly JSTARS aircraft
U
S
A
F
The Northrop Grumman E-8C is based on the Boeing 707
FOURTH FLIGHT-TEST CSERIES MAKES DEBUT
TWINJET Bombardier few the performance-focused fourth CSeries
fight-test vehicle (FTV-4) for the frst time on 18 May. The arrival of
FTV-4 allows Bombardier to begin the process of confrming
promises made on fuel economy. The frst three aircraft inducted in
the fight-test programme are aimed at opening the fight envelope
and validating the functions of the systems, avionics and interiors.
FTV-4s role in the test campaign is dedicated to evaluating the air-
crafts performance. Bombardier launched the CSeries in 2008 by
promising to deliver a 15% reduction in seat-mile costs for aircraft in
the 110-150-seat market segment.
ALL SYSTEMS GO FOR ORION SERVICE MODULE
SPACEFLIGHT The European Space Agency has approved a design
for the service module it will supply for NASAs Lockheed Martin-led
Orion multi-purpose crew vehicle, which will take astronauts to deep
space from the early 2020s. Airbus Defence & Space is adapting its
Automated Transfer Vehicle robotic supply ship for the project: ESAs
frst signifcant foray into hardware for manned missions.
BOLIVIA TO TAKE MORE XIAN MA60S
ORDER Bolivian authorities have signed an order with AVIC
International for four Xian Aircraft MA60 turboprops, marking the frst
international sale for the type this year. It is unclear whether the
aircraft will be used for military or civil operations in Bolivia. The
country already has two MA60s, which it received in 2007. Sale of
the twin-engined aircraft is a lift for the type, following a series of
incidents as well as a grounding in China earlier this year.
ELBIT TO SUPPORT USMC COBRA UPGRADE
AWARDS Elbit Systems of America has been awarded contracts
worth a combined $20.1 million to support the upgrade of the US
Marine Corps Bell AH-1W Cobra attack helicopters. To be completed
within two years, the deals cover the provision of helmet display
tracker system kits and a tactical video data link capability.
FINNAIR A330 SUFFERS HARD LANDING AT JFK
SAFETY One of Finnairs Airbus A330-300s sustained a heavy
landing at New York JFK on 20 May, putting the aircraft out of service
for a number of days. The twinjet (OH-LTS) had been arriving from
Halifax where it had been grounded for two days over a technical
issue in one of its General Electric CF6 engines. Finnair says this
engine issue was unrelated to the subsequent hard landing which,
the carrier adds, took place in very strong winds. Meteorological
data from JFK indicates gusts of up to 26kt (48km/h) at the time of
the aircrafts approach. The airline has not indicated the touchdown
impact or the extent of any damage.
E2 WINDTUNNEL TESTS SATISFY EMBRAER
PROGRAMME Windtunnel tests on Embraers new E-Jet E2 line
were on target with expectations, says Embraer commercial
aviations executive vice-president Paulo Cesar Silva. The tests
showed that our numbers, our forecasts are in good shape, he
stated during the Regional Airline Associations convention in St
Louis. Embraer is still in the preliminary development phase of the
E2 but is on track for entry into service in the frst half of 2018, he
adds. The E190 E2 will be the frst variant to enter service, followed
by the E195 E2 about a year later and the E175 E2 in 2020.
Embraer has frm orders and commitments for 465 E2s.
BRIEFING
the next-generation 737, which is
already adapted for maritime
surveillance as the P-8A for the
US and Indian navies.
Although shorter and
narrower than the 737, the G650
is still large enough to
accommodate the air forces
requirement, Flynn says. The
stuff they want to put in it will t
in a 650, he says.
Gulfstream has supplied
several versions of the G550 to
US and foreign militaries. But the
JSTARS replacement is the rst
known attempt by Gulfstream to
offer a militarised variant of the
new G650. Gulfstreams bidding
strategy is to team with a defence
contractor to serve as the
integrator, Flynn says.
The future JSTARS is expected
to benet from a decade of
research on radars with moving
target indication capability. The
air force has elded a miniature
version of the Northrop
Grumman/Raytheon multi-
platform radar technology inser-
tion sensor, originally developed
for the cancelled Northrop E-10A.
Meanwhile, the US Navy has
developed the Raytheon littoral
surveillance radar system for the
Lockheed P-3C Orion. A more
advanced radar the active array
sensor is now in testing on the
Boeing P-8A Poseidon.
THIS WEEK
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
9 fightglobal.com
Flagship Berlin
airport too small to
handle citys traffc
THIS WEEK P10
B
oeing has added 37 new
orders for the 737 Max from
customers in the past week,
pushing the re-engined and
updated narrowbodys order
backlog beyond the 2,000 mark.
As of 22 May the total 737 Max
backlog stood at 2,017 orders
from 40 customers, with a total
value of $209 billion.
Although the latest tranche of
commitments include several
from undisclosed customers, one
carrier to place an order was
Thailands Nok Air, which nal-
ised a deal rst announced at the
Singapore air show in February.
It plans to take seven CFM In-
ternational Leap-1B-powered 737
Max 8s, alongside seven current
generation models.
Boeing launched the 737 Max
in August 2011, at a time when
Airbus had already amassed
more than 800 orders for the
re-engined A320neo family un-
veiled nine months earlier.
Airbus has maintained a strong
lead in the orders race with a cur-
rent backlog of 2,645 for the Neo,
but Boeing has now whittled its
rivals advantage to fewer than
650 aircraft. Boeing is scheduled
to deliver the 737 Max 8 in the
third quarter of 2017.
Nonetheless, Airbus still main-
tains a market share of nearly 57%
in the segment despite Boeings ef-
forts. Flightglobals Ascend On-
line database suggests that Airbus
reached the 2,000 sales mark for
the Neo in a little over 28 months
following the programmes
Boeings long-term strategy to
address a potential market for
4,000-5,000nm (7,410-9,260km)
range aircraft with 200-250 seats
is to leverage existing products
rather than launch a clean-sheet
programme, says chief executive
James McNerney.
The most attractive options in-
clude a shortened version of the
787-8 or a stretched variant of the
737 Max, McNerney says. An all-new
aircraft is also an option, but Boeing
is less inclined to take on the risk of
integrating a clean-sheet product.
The [strategy] will be to avoid the
moonshot unless we have to,
McNerney says, addressing a Boeing
investor conference in Seattle. The
[strategy] will be to mature technolo-
gies weve got to address it.
The need for a new aircraft in the
4,000-5,000nm range is emerging
as a replacement for the long-range
757. Neither the 737 Max or the
Airbus A320neo come within
400nm of the low end of the long-
range narrowbody market.
At the same time, addressing that
market is not a near-term priority.
Boeing already has eight major
variants of commercial aircraft in
development over the next eight
years, leaving little room for taking
on new products.
We dont see a need for it
immediately as compared to some
other opportunities weve got,
McNerney says.
T
he rst set of production-rep-
resentative Trent XWB en-
gines for the Airbus A350 is being
prepared for installation onto the
nal test aircraft in Toulouse,
while the rst full production
specication engine has been
shipped to Airbus for installation
on the initial customer airframe.
Airbus says the production-
representative Trents will power
MSN5, the last of its ve ight-test
A350-900s currently in the paint
shop and due to join the certica-
tion campaign in June to verify the
types delivery specication.
This aircraft is the rst batch 2
airframe built to full production
specication and is the second
A350 to be equipped with a
furnished cabin.
Airbus says that while MSN5s
Trents are not the rst production-
standard engines built, they are
production representative, as the
aircraft will test the standard that
will be delivered to customers.
It adds: They have been deliv-
ered to the podding facility in
Toulouse and will be installed
after MSN5 leaves the paint shop.
The aircraft will participate
in the A350s route-proving
programme, which is due to be
own in conjunction with Qatar
Airways in Doha.
STRATEGY
Boeing steers away from clean-sheet 757 replacement
DEVELOPMENT STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC
Max narrows Neos order advantage
Re-engined Boeing single-aisle passes 2,000 commitments as it claws back lost ground against rival Airbus twinjet
Production-representative XWBs readied for A350
PROPULSION MAX KINGSLEY-JONES LONDON
December 2010 launch. The 737
Max, meanwhile, reached the
target in around 33 months.
Chris Seymour, senior aviation
analyst at Flightglobals Ascend
consultancy arm, believes that
market share will eventually
level out at around 50% each
but there will be differences be-
tween the competing variants.
At the top end the A320neo
seems to have an advantage, he
says, but overall it will be close
in delivery terms.
There is speculation that the
huge backlog for narrowbodies is
part of an order bubble, but
Seymour says this is not the case.
If theres no shock to the system,
the industry is capable of absorb-
ing these aircraft, he says.
Thailands Nok
Air has ordered
both current and
re-engined 737s
B
o
e
in
g
THIS WEEK
fightglobal.com 10
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
G
ermanys ESG has revealed
its proposal for a replacement
for the nations ill-fated Euro
Hawk signals intelligence pro-
gramme, which was cancelled
last year.
It will co-operate with Israel
Aerospace Industries Elta Sys-
tems subsidiary to t the latters
AISIS suite into a Bombardier
Global 5000 business jet.
A model on ESGs stand
showed the type with a large
canoe fairing under the for-
ward fuselage, along with a satel-
lite communications radome
atop the structure, an aerial farm
on the lower rear and two ventral
ns under the tail.
The interior featured a six-
workstation layout, but Ingo Eick-
mann, head of aircraft and un-
manned air vehicle systems at
ESGs aerosystems division, says
AISIS is scalable from just two or
three to seven or eight operators.
Germany walked away from
Euro Hawk, a modied version of
Northrop Grummans Global
Hawk UAV, almost exactly a year
ago. It cancelled its planned 1
billion ($1.3 billion) procurement
of ve aircraft, citing signicant
barriers to certicating the type
for ights in civil airspace.
Currently there is no formal
request for proposals for a re-
placement for Euro Hawk, with
Germany in the midst of assess-
ing its possible options.
Eickmann says his companys
proposal holds several possible
attractions to the German air
force including its maturity and
the impending civil certication
for the same airframe for an un-
disclosed customer.
See our full coverage of the ILA air show at:
ightglobal.com/ila
SURVEILLANCE
ESG senses an
appetite to plug
Euro Hawk hole
A
irbus Defence & Space is pitch-
ing its A400M as a disaster-re-
lief platform and believes civilian
organisations could eventually
purchase the military transport.
Speaking at the ILA Berlin air
show, Norbert Kolvenbach, vice-
president public affairs Germany
for Airbus, said the aircrafts abil-
ity to deliver a 20-25t payload to
unprepared or semi-prepared air
strips was invaluable.
Aid organisations that had
looked at the A400M had been
very impressed, he adds.
Kolvenbach says the aircraft will
be certicated to civil standards by
EASA, and that a civilian purchase
E
ven as the date for Berlin
Brandenburg airports open-
ing remains unclear two years
after its planned inauguration
it has emerged that the agship
hub will be too small when op-
erations move to the new site.
The greeneld complex has
been designed to handle 27 mil-
lion passengers a year. But cur-
rent airport Schnefelds trafc,
combined with that of Berlin
Tegel, will surpass that total this
year. Forecasts predict trafc to
the German capital will rise to 35
million a year by 2020.
Based on current calcula-
tions, Berlin Brandenburg airport
will open with more than 30 mil-
lion passengers and would thus
be too small already at its inaugu-
ration, says operator Flughafen
Berlin Brandenburg.
Bottlenecks are expected, espe-
cially in the check-in, security and
baggage reclaim areas. As soon as
the airport opens, work will begin
to add two more baggage reclaim
belts to the eight already installed
in the main terminal, but that is a
stop-gap measure.
More capacity is required even
before the inauguration, if airlines
aiming to y to the city are not to
be declined access, says FBB. If
no expansion takes place in the
near term, trafc would need to be
rejected to ensure stable opera-
tions without disruption.
This would jeopardise its aim
of creating a long-haul hub, and
create signicant damage for
the region and the airports busi-
ness plan, says FBB.
Even if the operator proceeds
immediately to construct a satel-
lite terminal, that would not be
completed before 2022. As a re-
sult, FBB wants to keep Schne-
feld in operation under a plan
dubbed Double-Roof. It is pres-
ently due to be closed, along with
Tegel, once Brandenburg opens.
See Show Report P18
F
lu
g
h
a
f
e
n

B
e
r
lin

B
r
a
n
d
e
n
b
u
r
g
The greenfield complex already requires further expansion
A400M pitched for disaster-relief role
TRANSPORTS CRAIG HOYLE BERLIN
is possible. However, no requests
from non-military organisations
have yet been received, he says.
Birgitte Stalder-Olsen, head of
logistics for the International
Federation of Red Cross and Red
Crescent Societies, says: We
could see a pooling [of organisa-
tions] and have one or two of
these aircraft operating in the
humanitarian community.
Many of the aircraft operating
such missions are elderly, ex-
Soviet military types, she adds.
Meanwhile, Germanys Bun-
deswehr has selected Elbit Sys-
tems J-MUSIC countermeasures
equipment to protect its on-or-
der eet of A400Ms.
Contractor Diehl will install three
of the multi-spectral infrared coun-
termeasures systems on each air-
craft. The rst system for Germanys
eet is to be delivered in 2015.
B
illy
P
ix
The type impressed aid groups
INFRASTRUCTURE MICHAEL GUBISCH BERLIN
Berlin Brandenburg lurches
towards fresh controversy
Operator warns that serially delayed facility will lack suffcient capacity for capitals traffc
Eickmann says his
companys proposal
holds several possible
attractions
including its maturity
THIS WEEK
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
11 fightglobal.com
Russia, China
advance widebody
plan
AIR TRANSPORT P12
A
irbus Helicopters may
produce two versions of its
new super-medium EC175,
depending on the results of a
planned ight-test campaign for a
new higher-weight variant.
The Marignane-based manu-
facturer will next year begin
evaluating the new model, which
gains an additional 300kg (660lb)
over the baseline helicopter,
ahead of planned 2016 certica-
tion. This can be used to increase
payload or range by around
40nm (74km), it says.
Although it believes the higher
maximum take-off weight of 7.8t
can be achieved without modi-
cations to the airframe or engines,
the test programme will assess
any potential impact on mainte-
nance costs, says Mickael Melaye,
head of worldwide oil and gas
sales at Airbus Helicopters.
We know that we had mar-
gins on pretty much every part of
the aircraft; now we are asking for
additional payload, he says.
If the assessments reveal a
negative effect on overhaul
intervals or on the helicopters
empty equipped weight, it may
from 2016 offer a customers a
choice of variants to maximise
exibility, says Melaye.
However, if the reverse is true,
it will likely only produce the
heavier model. We still have to
discuss this with our customers,
says Melaye. Any modications
required will also be retrotta-
ble to the previously delivered
7.5t examples, he says.
Just ve orders for the EC175
were added to the backlog in
2013, with certication only
achieved on 30 January this year.
Although he declines to be
drawn on how many additional
commitments it hopes to amass in
2014, Melaye remains condent
on the types sales prospects.
The oil and gas market is a
very careful environment, they
dont get too excited about things
they prefer they are real and
proven, then they are capable of
making a big noise, he says.
ROTORCRAFT DOMINIC PERRY ABERDEEN
EC175 to get 300kg payload boost
Flight testing of higher maximum take-off weight variant to begin in 2015 as Airbus Helicopters eyes additional sales
Deliveries of the 7.5t helicopter to three launch customers are due to begin later this year
A
ir
b
u
s

H
e
lic
o
p
t
e
r
s
Melaye was speaking in
Aberdeen on 20 May during the
second day of a demonstration
tour covering North Sea bases in
the UK and Norway.
Among those due to see the
aircraft during the tour was Bill
Amelio, chief executive of
Canadas CHC Helicopter, one of
the three big Aberdeen operators.
CHC has yet to commit to the
Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-
powered helicopter, however.
Deliveries to launch customers
Noordzee Helikopters, Vlaan-
deren, Hli-Union and UTair will
begin in the second half of 2014,
with operators having previously
indicated this will slip into the
fourth quarter. In all, Airbus
Helicopters plans to deliver three
to four EC175s this year, before
ramping up to 18 in 2015 and 30
in 2016, says Melaye.
DEVELOPMENT
Dauphin replacement set to surface at Heli-Expo
Next years Heli-Expo show in
Orlando, Florida will see the
unveiling of the shape of Airbus
Helicopters new X4 rotorcraft family,
which is envisioned as sitting in the
4-6t weight class.
Development work on the new
helicopter is already underway, but
the Marignane-based airframer has
been coy on releasing details.
Speaking at the ILA Berlin air
show, chief executive Guillaume
Faury said that 2015 will be a key
year for the programme.
We will show the X4 at Heli-Expo
next year, he says. We will freeze
the major elements. We will reveal
the X4 mock-up and start discussing
with customers about placing this
helicopter.
Asked whether the new aircraft
would be a direct replacement for
the 4.5t AS365 or the newer 4.9t
EC155, Faury says the X4 will slot
into the segment, but this segment
has moved a bit.
The X4 will have much more ca-
pability, he adds.
The all-composite X4 family will
have a choice of powerplants
Turbomecas new 1,100shp Arrano
1A turboshaft and Pratt & Whitney
Canadas PW210.
Faury also confrms that from
July all new-build EC225s and
EC725s will be delivered with the
redesigned bevel gear vertical
shaft in the main gearbox. Failure
of this component was pinpointed
as the cause of two 2012 ditch-
ings in the North Sea, incidents
that led to a ban on overwater
fights and most of the 11t types
global feet being grounded for
around 10 months.
All existing EC225s and EC725s
are being retroftted with the new
vertical shaft.
AIR TRANSPORT
fightglobal.com 12
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
Check out our unique collection of
technical cutaway drawings
ightglobal.com/cutaways
R
ussian investigators have
highlighted several recent in-
cidents at Irkutsk airport in
which aircraft descended prema-
turely during their approach.
Federal air transport authority
Rosaviatsia, in a safety bulletin,
has detailed six occurrences
with causes including distraction
and pressure-setting errors over
the past six months.
On the night of 9 December
2013, an Aurora Airbus A319,
conducting the USONA 1B arriv-
al procedure to runway 30, de-
scended to 330-490ft above ter-
rain, while 5.4nm (10km) from
the threshold.
The crew had correctly con-
rmed the air pressure setting
but set the descent height to
INVESTIGATION DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON
Irkutsk errors prompt
call for better training
A
ir
T
e
a
m
I
m
a
g
e
s
CRJ200 crew forgot to change pressure setting before descent
800ft, instead of the 800m in-
tended by air trafc control. It
continued to descend to 920ft
while 5.9nm out and was
cleared to land, says Rosaviatsia,
without air trafc control notic-
ing the signicant deviation
from the glideslope. Its descent
was eventually halted at 4.9nm.
Russian carrier IrAero was in-
volved in the latest incident, on
15 May, while on approach to the
same runway. Rosaviatsia says
the Bombardier CRJ200 crew
forgot to change the pressure
setting below the transition alti-
tude, and descending below
2,950ft to a height of 1,380ft be-
fore executing a go-around.
Between these events, there
were four other instances of pre-
mature descent. Rosaviatsia says
a calculation error resulted in a
Ural Airbus A320 ying at
1,210m while 8.6nm from run-
way 12, while temporary distrac-
tion by an Angara Airlines An-
tonov An-148 crew carrying
out the same NH1C approach
pattern resulted in the aircraft
A
ir
T
e
a
m
I
m
a
g
e
s
R
ussias United Aircraft and
Chinas Comac are to submit
a feasibility study on a jointly de-
veloped long-haul passenger air-
craft to their respective govern-
ments this summer.
The schedule follows the sign-
ing of a memorandum of under-
standing by senior ofcials from
both sides.
United Aircraft and Comac
sealed the agreement in the pres-
ence of Russian president
Vladimir Putin and Chinese gen-
eral secretary Xi Jinping.
The pact is the result of a two-
year collaborative effort between
the two countries, says United
Aircraft. President Mikhail Pogo-
syan says this work has exam-
ined the joint development of a
family of widebody transports
and illustrates a new level of
engineering co-operation.
drifting below the required ap-
proach height.
Rosaviatsia is directing the
state air trafc management or-
ganisations and airlines atten-
tion to the incidents in an effort
to improve training in proce-
dures including barometric pres-
sure-setting.
NARROWBODY MAVIS TOH SINGAPORE
First C919 forward fuselage completed
The frst forward fuselage for Chinas
Comac C919 narrowbody has rolled
off the production line at manufacturer
Jiangxi Hongdu Aviation Industry.
Made of aluminium-lithium alloy,
the structure will now undergo a test
and evaluation process before deliv-
ery to Comac.
In March, AVIC Aircraft completed
the frst wing to mid-fuselage join for
the developmental C919. The section
is currently undergoing various struc-
tural tests, ahead of the launch of se-
ries production.
AVIC Aircraft is responsible for man-
ufacturing the narrowbodys outer
wingbox, mid-fuselage and their as-
sembly. Jiangxi Hongdu, meanwhile, is
supplying the forward and aft fuselage
sections of the aircraft. Comac is
working towards a maiden fight of the
C919 at the end of 2015.
DEVELOPMENT DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON
Russia, China advance widebody plan
United Aircraft and Comac will submit feasibility study for long-haul passenger jet to respective governments this summer
Development of the aircraft
will be one of the largest interna-
tional joint programmes under-
taken by the countries in the aer-
ospace and technology eld.
In the near future, the parties
will begin implementing the next
phase of work on the project,
says United Aircraft, adding that
this will involve examining de-
velopment of the aircraft systems
and nding the most effective
participation mechanism.
It believes the long-haul air-
craft will take a substantial
share of the market in Russia
and China, as well as nding cus-
tomers in third countries.
Russia has not developed an in-
digenous widebody passenger air-
craft since the Ilyushin Il-96 which
entered service with Aeroot in
1992. However, fewer than 30 of
the four-engined type were built.
Russia has not built a widebody passenger jet since the Il-96
AIR TRANSPORT
fightglobal.com
Etihad grows with
training acquisition
AIR TRANSPORT P15
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
13
A
380 leasing specialist Amed-
eo believes an A380 passen-
ger-to-freighter (PTF) conversion
could be developed a decade
from now, and it may use an in-
ternal lift system for loading con-
tainers to each deck rather than
conventional maindeck doors.
The London-based lessor has
20 A380s on order and has also
built a portfolio of in-service air-
craft through sale/leaseback
deals. Chief executive Mark
Lapidus says Amedeo denite-
ly sees a possibility for the de-
velopment of a PTF conversion
programme for the superjumbo
which, as a cargo aircraft, would
have three decks.
Weve looked at putting in
two cargo doors. However, there
are some new ideas about having
internal lift systems, he says.
If there was ever an aircraft
where that could work, that
would be the A380. That would
be more efcient in the A380
than other systems.
LCF Conversions, which is
headed by former BAE Systems
executive Cliff Duke, has pro-
posed a freight conversion for the
Airbus A340 that uses the stand-
ard belly hold freight doors and
incorporates a pair of internal
cargo lifts forward and aft to trans-
fer payload between the lower
and main decks. If such a modi-
cation was adopted for the A380,
it would eliminate the need for
bespoke ground-handling equip-
ment to service the upper deck.
We havent seriously looked at
it yet because it would be in the
2025 timeframe, but were looking
LEASING MAX KINGSLEY-JONES LONDON
Lessor sees A380 as future freighter
Amedeo envisages cargo conversions beyond 2025 and that modifcation could incorporate novel internal lift system
A
ir
b
u
s
Airbus dropped the A380F (above), but a cargo variant may become a reality through conversions
ACQUISITIONS
Market maker spies early opportunity
Amedeo expects to establish itself
as the primary leasing specialist for
Airbus A380s and will look to ex-
pand its portfolio through the acqui-
sition of second-hand aircraft as
their initial lease terms expire.
The London-based lessor has 20
A380s on order for delivery from late
2016 and is also involved in 12 air-
craft in the Emirates feet that were
fnanced through the UK market be-
tween 2010 and 2013. Were either
asset manager or have oversight of
those 12 aircraft, says Amedeo
chief executive Mark Lapidus.
As Amedeo looks to place the
new-build aircraft it has on order, it
is also evaluating ways to remarket
second-hand A380s. But Lapidus
says that this does not just apply to
the Emirates aircraft: We have in
mind all of the A380s that may be
coming back [off lease] from any
operator, whether they are man-
aged by us currently or not, be-
cause we see ourselves as a
market maker with vast opportuni-
ties to deal with returning aircraft in
terms of knowing where they can be
deployed, having Airbus agree-
ments that allow us to reconfgure
aircraft inexpensively.
Amedeo could acquire A380s as
their initial lease terms end. The
frst batch of aircraft to become
available will be the early deliveries
to Singapore Airlines, due to return
in 2018.
with sufcient interest at the idea
to create, in its third life, a volu-
metric [conversion] which would
be interesting to UPS and FedEx
to carry large [amounts] of pack-
ages, says Lapidus.
By third life, Lapidus means
that he envisages when early-
build A380s return off lease to-
wards the end of this decade, they
would spend a second lease term
in the passenger role before be-
coming cargo conversion candi-
dates around 10 years from now.
Lapidus is condent that a
market for second-hand passen-
ger A380s will emerge as the ear-
ly-build aircraft return off lease:
When A380s start coming back
from their initial lease periods,
then the market where they could
be operated [as passenger aircraft]
will have grown by 50-100%, he
says. The placement of A380s
that will be coming back in ve,
seven, 10 or 12 years time will be
very liquid and very attractive.
Airbus originally offered a con-
ventional new-build A380-800
Freighter for which it secured
launch orders from FedEx, UPS,
Emirates and ILFC for 27 air-
craft. However, after running
into production problems during
The placement of
A380s that will be
coming back in ve,
seven, 10 or 12 years
time will be very
attractive
MARK LAPIDUS
Chief executive, Amedeo
the mid-2000s, Airbus aban-
doned the freighter variant to
concentrate its resources on re-
solving the issues with the pas-
senger model.
Innovata powers timetable and mapping services for some of the best known
names in air travel and transportation, from the global airline alliances through
to airports and a host of online travel sites.
To find out more visit www.innovata-llc.com
Innovata joins Flightglobal
You may have read that Flightglobal has acquired the schedules data services
company, Innovata. As a leading source of airline schedules data covering more
than 800 carriers worldwide, Innovata builds, hosts and maintains a wide range
of electronic timetable and route network mapping solutions.
AIR TRANSPORT
fightglobal.com
Put it in the belly
FEATURE P32
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
15
M
iddle Eastern carrier Etihad
Airways is planning to ac-
quire part of Horizon Interna-
tional Flight Academy in order
to set up a ight-training school
in the United Arab Emirates.
The airline is taking over the
xed-wing arm of Horizon,
which is part of investment
group Mubadala.
Etihad is already using Al
Ain-based Horizon to train its
own commercial pilots. It has
not made available the terms of
the transaction.
Under the agreement, Etihad
Flight College will acquire 13
Cessna 172s and three Diamond
Aircraft DA42s. It will also take
over two ight-training simula-
tors as well as hangars.
The college will put in place a
multi-crew pilot licence pro-
gramme, says Etihad, which
claims it will be the rst to use
multi-engined aircraft in the
core of the training scheme.
We are committed to devel-
oping a world-class facility
which combines new and best-
practice training programmes
with high-calibre instructors,
says Etihad chief executive
James Hogan.
Japanese low-cost carrier Vanilla Air
will reduce its schedule on two
routes during June as a result of a
pilot shortage.
The airline will cancel some
fights between Tokyo and Okinawa
and Sapporo over the month, but
adds that the full schedule will re-
sume in July. None of its interna-
tional services will be affected,
Vanilla Air adds.
Vanilla is the second low-cost car-
A
ustrian Airlines Group is in-
tending to order a replace-
ment for its regional Fokker eet
this year, a plan which depends
on the adoption of a new employ-
ee agreement.
The carrier has 15 Fokker 100s
and seven Fokker 70s which are
operated by its subsidiary, Tyro-
lean Airways.
It has put forward a new col-
lective agreement to cockpit and
cabin crew which is intended to
ease the path to merging Tyrolean
and Austrian Airlines.
Austrian chief executive Jaan
Albrecht says the company will
move ahead with ordering a
A
ir
T
e
a
m

I
m
a
g
e
s
A
ir
T
e
a
m
I
m
a
g
e
s
Fokker 70s and 100s will be withdrawn from service by 2018
FLEET DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON
Staff deal key to Austrian Fokker replacement plan
rier to have reduced its schedule due
to a shortage of pilots. In April, Peach
Aviation announced that it would re-
schedule and cancel a number of
fights between May and October be-
cause of a lack of fightcrew.
Peach blamed growth in the
Japanese low-cost segment, which
has made the market for hiring quali-
fed pilots much more competitive.
As a result, it has begun a more pro-
active hiring strategy.
The training facility will en-
hance the career opportunities
in aviation, especially for UAE
nationals, he adds.
All of the Horizon xed-wing
instructors, as well as a number
of support personnel, will trans-
fer to the Etihad college. Horizon
will retain its rotary-wing opera-
tion.
Etihad is expanding its newly-
established aviation group and
recently agreed to acquire main-
tenance operation ADAT from
Mubadala.
successor to the Fokker eet this
year.
However, such a signicant
investment decision cannot be
made without a consensus being
reached on a collective wage
agreement, he warns.
Austrian has indicated that it
will phase out the eet by 2018,
initially withdrawing the smaller
Fokker 70s.
While Tyrolean has Bombar-
dier Q400s, the company has not
yet indicated whether it would
want to maintain a typical re-
gional jet operation or move to a
larger type, such as the Bombar-
dier CSeries.
ACQUISITION DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW LONDON
Etihad grows with training acquisition
Gulf carriers new fight academy will provide tuition for multi-crew pilot licence to create world-class facility in region
WORKFORCE ELLIS TAYLOR SINGAPORE
Pilot shortage hampers low-cost Vanilla
Etihad already uses Al
Ain-based Horizon for
its training requirement
DEFENCE
fightglobal.com 16
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
To get more defence sector coverage,
subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter:
ightglobal.com/defencenewsletter
I
ndian companies seeking to an-
swer a request for information
(RFI) for the procurement of an
additional 106 Pilatus PC-7 Mk II
basic trainers for the nations air
force have requested a further ex-
tension to the date by which re-
sponses need to be submitted. A
nal date for responses to be sub-
mitted had already been extend-
ed until 21 April.
The RFI released by Indias de-
fence ministry falls under the
Buy & Make (Indian) category,
which limits respondents to Indi-
an-registered companies only.
This means Pilatus will have to
form a joint venture, or establish
a production arrangement with
an Indian company to success-
fully execute the contract.
The RFI calls for 38 aircraft
previously listed as options as
part of an earlier buy to be pro-
cured in a yaway condition
by 2015-2016, with the remain-
ing 68 to be license-produced in
India ending in 2020-2021.
As of April, the Indian air force
had taken delivery of 35 PC-7 Mk
IIs from the earlier direct buy
with Pilatus. The Swiss airframer
says it is due to complete delivery
of the remaining 40 by August
2015.
TRAINERS
ATUL CHANDRA BENGALURU
Indian PC-7
bidders seek
extra time
S
aabs Gripen E sales plans
have suffered a setback, with
the Swiss government having
narrowly lost out in a public ref-
erendum on whether to fund a
planned 22-aircraft acquisition.
Held on 18 May, the nations vote
on whether to advance with the
Gripen Fund Law was defeated
by a no vote representing just
over 52% of respondents.
Responding to the outcome,
Swiss federal councilor Ueli
Maurer warns: This decision
will cause a security gap. We will
do everything we can to ll this
gap in these difcult circum-
stances as quickly as is possible.
Different options on how best to
ensure the armed forces opera-
tional readiness must be consid-
ered in the next few months.
Maurer adds that it will be
some time before new proposals
are submitted on how to protect
Swiss airspace after the anticipat-
ed decommissioning of the [Boe-
ing] F/A-18s in 2025. The federal
council and parliament will then
be required to decide on lling the
security gap. The Gripens were
to replace the Swiss air forces re-
maining Northrop F-5 ghters,
from later this decade.
Despite the disappointment,
the Swedish airframer comments:
For Saab, the Gripen E pro-
gramme continues according to
plan, with development and pro-
duction of 60 Gripen E for Swe-
den ongoing and deliveries sched-
uled for 2018. And it adds: The
negotiations regarding 36 Gripen
NG to Brazil are ongoing, and ac-
cording to plan with the ambition
from both parties, an agreement
should be signed in 2014.
Saab adds that of the more
than 500 supply deals arranged
with 125 Swiss businesses in
support of the planned deal,
contracts placed will be hon-
oured, subject to their terms and
conditions. However, the deci-
sion could threaten some pro-
posed collaborative measures,
such as a pact to offer the Pilatus
PC-21 turboprop as a possible so-
lution for Swedens future pilot
training requirements.
Meanwhile, the governments of
the Czech Republic and Sweden
have signed a new agreement to
extend the NATO nations lease
deal for 14 Gripen C/Ds by a fur-
ther 12 years, until at least 2027.
FIGHTERS CRAIG HOYLE BERLIN
Swiss voters shoot down
Gripen E acquisition plan
Narrow referendum defeat kills 22-aircraft purchase, but Saab programme unaffected
Better news came with a
Czech lease extension
R
eplacing the Northrop Grum-
man E-8C JSTARS eet could
require an aircraft with 10-13 crew
and a 4.0m-6.1m-long (13-20ft)
radar array, according to US Air
Force brieng documents.
The USAF earlier this year an-
nounced plans to acquire an E-8C
replacement in the business jet
class that could achieve initial op-
erational capability in 2022. A
host of potential bidders, includ-
ing Boeing, Bombardier and Gulf-
stream, attended an industry day
hosted by the service on 8 April. Crew levels could drop to 10
USAF thinks big business for JSTARS successor
SURVEILLANCE STEPHEN TRIMBLE WASHINGTON DC
While the contents of the brief-
ings were initially withheld from
public view, the service on 13
May posted the presentations on a
federal acquisition web site, with
each slide stamped notional.
Although a 13-strong crew
with a 6.1m radar array would be
a reduction from the 18-member
team and 7.3m array on the Boe-
ing 707-based E-8C, the stafng
and sensor requirements for the
new system could make it chal-
lenging to accommodate in a typ-
ical business jet.
The capabilities sought by the
USAF compare more closely to
the cancelled Northrop E-10A
multisensor command and con-
trol aircraft, which was the origi-
nal planned replacement for the
E-8C and based on the Boeing 767-
400ER. This included a 16-mem-
ber aircrew and a 6.1m sensor for
wide area surveillance.
Despite still lacking a validated
requirement, the brieng docu-
ments show that the USAF plans
to make a contract award at the
end of scal year 2016.
U
S

A
ir

F
o
r
c
e
B
illy
P
ix
DEFENCE
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
17 fightglobal.com
Eurofghter targets
sales as partners
agree roadmap
SHOW REPORT P18
D
uring a public unveiling of
Embraers KC-390 nal assem-
bly site in Gavio Peixoto, Sao
Paulo, company president Freder-
ico Curado signed a rm order
with the Brazilian air force for the
supply of 28 production examples
of the tactical transport and tanker.
First delivery is expected at the
end of 2016, with production
under the contract to run for 10
years. In addition to the aircraft,
the deal also includes a compre-
hensive logistics support package
covering spare parts and mainte-
nance services.
Valued at R7.2 billion ($3.25
billion), the contract is dependent
on additional documentation that
is expected to be completed in
about 90 days.
Curado says the Brazilian air
forces KC-390 is a state-of-the-art
aircraft and the largest ever de-
signed and developed in the
southern hemisphere. He adds
that he expects the model also
will be popular on the export mar-
M
exico has conducted an
evaluation of the Airbus De-
fence & Space A400M, following
the arrival of an example of the
tactical transport in the country
for the rst time on 15 May.
The European airframer says
one of its Grizzly development
aircraft was due to show its per-
formance in a series of demon-
stration ights after arriving at
Mexico Citys international air-
port, where it was scheduled to
remain until 23 May.
PRODUCTION FELIPE SALLES GAVIO PEIXOTO
Brazilian contract launches KC-390
Air force seals order for 28 tanker/transports, as Embraer opens doors at its fnal assembly line for versatile airlifter
ket. However, he notes that the
KC-390s multi-mission capability
represents a challenge, as it has
been designed for cargo and troop
transport, cargo air drops, inight
refuelling, search and rescue and
reghting missions.
Brazil has had previous experi-
ence in multinational [aerospace]
development programmes, but this
time around Brazil leads in the key
engineering and in the project
management areas, Curado says.
This is a fundamental partner-
ship for Brazil, said the nations
president Dilma Rousseff, who
also attended the event. Her mes-
sage focused on the importance of
the benets to Brazil of exportable
technology development pro-
grammes like the KC-390.
Celso Amorim, Brazilian de-
fence minister, said: This is the
rst rm order of the type and it
paves the way for the conclusion
of further rm sales for the pro-
grammes current industrial part-
ners Argentina, Chile, Colombia,
Portugal and the Czech Republic.
He adds: These countries have
signed memoranda of under-
standing comprising potential de-
mand for a further 32 KC-390s.
Paulo Gasto Silva, Embraer
vice-president for the programme,
declines to say when the rst pro-
totype aircraft will be rolled out,
noting that the timing will be
technically driven. But its presi-
dent of Defence and Security,
Jackson Schneider, says rst ight
will happen late this year.
Brig Gen Crepaldi Affonso,
chief of air force programmes, says
two prototypes might be slightly
different from the full production
aircraft, due to the continuing
ne tuning of the specications.
Operational assessments will
be conducted by air force trans-
port unit pilots using actual pro-
duction aircraft, not prototypes,
Affonso adds, as the latter are not
set to be converted to full opera-
tional standard. Cold weather
tests to support certication for
Antarctic operations are to be held
elsewhere, possibly in Canada.
Final assembly is to begin in
June, with more than 1,500 Em-
braer employees working on the
project. Over 50 Brazilian compa-
nies are currently contributing to
the KC-390s development.
Mexicos air force is an existing
user of the Airbus C295 medium
transport, along with the Alenia
Aermacchi C-27J Spartan. Flight-
globals Ascend Online database
records its current tactical airlift
inventory as including a mix of
ve Lockheed Martin C-130E/K
Hercules built between 1964 and
1968 and one civilian-standard
L-100. The service has previously
shown interest in possibly ac-
quiring a pair of new-generation
C-130Js from the USA.
A
ir
b
u
s

D
e
f
e
n
c
e

&

S
p
a
c
e
The visiting Grizzly touched down in the nation on 15 May
A400M completes Mexican air force evaluation
CAMPAIGN
E
m
b
r
a
e
r
Six nations could field the type
Embraer expects its first prototype to get airborne late this year
This paves the way
for the conclusion of
further rm sales with
industrial partners
CELSO AMORIM
Brazilian defence minister
E
m
b
r
a
e
r
SHOW
REPORT
fightglobal.com 18
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
For all the latest news and images
from the show, go online at
ightglobal.com/ila
Held every two years, the ILA Berlin air show
provides the best forum for Germanys aerospace
industry to display its capabilities and technologi-
cal innovation. While the event lacked the usual
rush of commercial aircraft sales announce-
ments, it provided military and civil programme
updates, with Airbus at centre stage. Alan Dron,
Michael Gubisch, Craig Hoyle, Mark Pilling and
Dan Thisdell report. Photography by BillyPix
ILA 2014
I
t tasted disappointment at the
end of last year when the Unit-
ed Arab Emirates walked away
from a possible Typhoon pur-
chase, but the head of the four-
nation Euroghter consortium
says it is moving into a new posi-
tion to secure further sales,
thanks to a coming paradigm
shift in combat capability.
Speaking exclusively to Flight
Daily News, Euroghter chief ex-
ecutive Alberto Gutierrez said the
UAE decision has been followed
by a fresh drive across Germany,
Italy, Spain and the UK to intro-
duce key new systems widely re-
quested by international buyers.
This includes an agreed roadmap
to add an active electronically
scanned array (AESA) radar, and
fully integrate weapons like the
MBDA Storm Shadow cruise mis-
sile and air-to-surface Brimstone.
We are working to see how we
can make this fantastic machine
fully optimised, he adds.
Gutierrez says the new AESA
sensor should be own in the UK
soon. We are progressing quite
well with the nations: they all
want the e-scan. We are pretty op-
timistic to go through the specic
nations approval processes, but
this will be done at their own in-
dividual pace.
Sales campaigns are currently
being staged for Bahrain, Kuwait,
Malaysia and Qatar, with Den-
mark having sought information
too. Company ofcials will also
visit Canada in late May, having
previously answered a capability
questionnaire for Ottawa.
We want a competition [with
the Lockheed Martin F-35], he
says of the Canadian require-
ment. We think we can prove
not only our capabilities, but also
are condent that we can offer in-
dustrial opportunities that no
others can match.
Euroghter is also watching to
see how Indias newly-elected
government will choose to pro-
ceed in the medium multi-role
combat aircraft process, with a
planned Dassault Rafale buy not
yet done. We are just ready,
says Gutierrez. If they call, we
will be there. Likewise, it will
evaluate Switzerlands future in-
tentions, following a public refer-
endum which derailed a planned
buy of 22 Saab Gripen Es.
Also speaking at the show, Air-
bus Defence & Space head of mil-
itary aircraft Domingo Urea said
the company is looking at a
range of improvements to better
postion the Euroghter in inter-
national competitions, including
by encouraging its partner na-
tions to work together more
closely. Opportunities remain for
the aircraft, he says, and the con-
sortium will aim to offer better
value to customers.
T
he German navys Sea Lion
version of the NH Industries
(NHI) NH90 will not incur the
same level of development risk as
earlier variants of the rotorcraft,
says Airbus Helicopters chief ex-
ecutive Guillaume Faury.
Berlin wants 18 of the NFH-
derivative aircraft to replace its
aged Westland Lynx, but with
multiple national variants of the
NH90 already in service, con-
cerns had been raised that the Sea
Lion would add yet another level
of complexity.
Faury says the new model will
be very similar to other NH90s,
although there will be some cus-
tomer-specic equipment, such
as the communications t.
Its fair to say the level of devel-
opment and risk in Sea Lion is
much lower than the rst [pro-
gramme examples]. It will benet
from the lessons learned from those
that are already being operated.
The NH90 programme has so far
delivered 195 aircraft, with a back-
log of around 300 remaining. Flight
hours are starting to ramp up sharp-
ly, says Faury, and Airbus Helicop-
ters is receiving interesting feed-
back from customers, who regard it
as an outstanding product.
We now need to focus on in-
service support, which is okay but
needs improvement, says NHI
president Vincent Dubrule. Areas
being looked at include ways to
reduce the scheduled mainte-
nance plan, while continuing to
solve teething problems.
ROTORCRAFT
Safe passage
for Sea Lion
version of NH90
PROGRAMME
Euroghter targets sales
as partners agree roadmap
Collapse of potential deal with UAE has driven four-nation organisation on, says CEO
The Typhoon is being aimed at multiple export customers
We are working
to see how we can
make this fantastic
machine fully
optimised
ALBERTO GUTIERREZ
Euroghter chief executive
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
19 fightglobal.com
ILA 2014
SHOW REPORT
Airbuss A350 test aircraft MSN4
made a fying visit to Berlin from 19-
20 May to provide the backdrop for
Chancellor Angela Merkels opening
of the ILA show, as the programme
remains on track for certifcation
and entry into service in the third and
fourth quarters of 2014, respectively.
Gnter Butschek, chief operating
offcer and head of the companys
German operations, says evacuation
tests have just been conducted for
the widebody in Toulouse, although
these have so far been done only
with a partial passenger load. Airbus
says the activity focused exclusively
on using the aircrafts doors 1 and 3,
as these are equipped with new-
style single slides, while all other
doors are equipped with escape
chute types that are already in use
on other aircraft.
Airbus will reach a production rate
of two A350s per month by year-end
and increase that to 10 per month
by 2018, says Butschek. The manu-
facturer has 812 orders for the long-
haul twin.
A
irbus Defence & Space, Alenia
Aermacchi and Dassault Avia-
tion have delivered a proposal to
the defence ministries of France,
Germany and Italy to further dene
a joint European medium-altitude,
long-endurance (MALE) un-
manned air system.
The development follows the
companies call at last years Paris
air show for the development of
the new aircraft.
Also backed by an industrial
agreement on work share, their
proposal for a denition phase
calls on the three countries gov-
ernments, armed forces and in-
dustry to dene their require-
ments for a MALE system. They
also should minimise nancial
and development risks, for exam-
ple by leveraging past investment
by Airbus in the shelved Talarion
concept. A commitment to pro-
ceed should result in there being
an affordable and certiable so-
lution ready by 2020.
We have reached an important
milestone for the development of a
European MALE drone. The need
for our armed forces is indisputa-
ble, says Airbus Defence & Space
chief executive Bernhard Gerwert.
Airbus Defence & Space head
of military aircraft Domingo
Urea says the MALE 2020 pro-
posal is not a closed club, but
that the three nations have
formed a good starting point that
could be joined later by others.
D
espite sluggish sales for its
agship model, Airbus is in-
sisting the market for the A380
will grow as the number of inter-
national hub airports increases.
Chief operating ofcer for cus-
tomers John Leahy says the
number of A380s serving the
German market will grow near-
ly ve-fold over the next two
decades. While 21 of the super-
jumbos were employed for
ights to and from the country
last year, he expects that number
to rise to 97 aircraft by 2032.
This will be due to the in-
creasing number of international
hub airports as airline trafc ex-
pands, says Airbus, pointing
particularly to the emerging mar-
kets in Asia, the Middle East and
Latin America. While there are
about 40 aviation mega-cities
today such as Dubai, London
and Singapore the company
estimates that this number will
GROWTH
Leahy condent on agship sales
Airbus says rising demand for air travel makes it physically impossible to serve market without aircraft like A380
DLR puts forward-
swept wing
research on display
SHOW REPORT P20
European trio reveal 2020 vision for MALE project
UNMANNED SYSTEMS
DEVELOPMENT
A350 takes time out from testing
reach nearly 90 within the next
two decades.
As airport infrastructure ex-
pansion is outpaced by air trafc
growth, Leahy argues that it will
be physically impossible to
transport more passengers with-
out an increasing number of very
large aircraft, such as the A380.
Airbus has delivered 128 of
the type since 2007, and has a
backlog of 196. Emirates dis-
played its 48th of an eventual
120 examples, with this then
own on to Dubai, to enter ser-
vice this summer.
Emirates serves 10 destina-
tions in Europe with A380s with
95 weekly ights. The load fac-
tor for the A380 eet is above av-
erage, and for us it is a protable
aircraft. It is a customer magnet,
says Hubert Frach, the Emirates
executive responsible for sales
in the Americas, Europe, Africa
and the Russian federation.
MSN4 was in Berlin for the
opening ceremony at ILA
fightglobal.com 20
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
ILA 2014
SHOW REPORT
For all the latest news and images
from the show, go online at
ightglobal.com/ila
R
educing airframe drag and
gaining thrust is the aim of a
fuselage fan being explored by
Munich-based aerospace research
institute Bauhaus Luftfahrt.
Engineers and scientists at the
A
t German aerospace research
agency DLR, modern com-
posite technology is nally catch-
ing up with a 1970s fast jet vision
of the future to slash airliner
fuel burn by up to 13% by using
forward-swept wings.
Displayed in model form, the
Airbus A320-sized concept used
in the agencys Laminar Aircraft
Research (LamAiR) project is de-
signed to cruise at the same
Mach 0.78 speed as a current air-
liner, but with 18% less aerody-
namic drag owing to the natural
laminar ow over its forward-
sweeping wings.
DLR aerodynamics researcher
Martin Kruse says that drag re-
duction would translate into a
9% fuel burn improvement with
the rear-mounted engine congu-
ration studied in detail to-date.
While some fuel economy bene-
ts are lost due to the extra struc-
tural mass needed for the T-tail,
and to strengthen the fuselage for
engine mounting and bending
around the wings, he says further
L
ufthansa Technik is aiming to
trial the use of a robot it has
developed for composite repairs
on secondary structure compo-
nents at its Hamburg base by
year-end, and to start testing it as
a mobile unit from 2015.
The demonstrator was jointly
developed with Airbuss defence
and helicopter divisions, German
aerospace research centre DLR
and Hamburgs technical univer-
sity. The Composite Adaptable
Inspection and Repair, or CAIRE,
project ends in March 2015.
While components such as
ight control surfaces can easily
be detached from an aircraft for
workshop repair, the CAIRE
robot is to be used for airframe
damage, automatically cutting
out affected areas and delivering
the data needed to produce pur-
pose-made repair patches.
Equipped with suction pads, it
can be attached anywhere on the
fuselage and wings.
The new robot cuts repair
times by at least 60% versus a
manual procedure, says project
manager Jan Popp.
aerodynamic work could move
the engines to the standard un-
der-wing position, improving the
centre of gravity and taking some
bending load off the fuselage.
This would cut mass enough to
bump fuel savings up to 13%.
The key to LamAiR lies in
modern carbon composite con-
struction to overcome the inher-
ent structural shortcoming of for-
ward-swept wings: aerodynamic
lift forces on the wing tips are ex-
cessive and self-reinforcing, pos-
sibly leading to stall or even
breakage.
Kruse acknowledges that the
Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737
Max programmes are pushing
back the timetable for any true
next-generation airliner, but says
DLR is ready to take the next step
and turn LamAiR into a produc-
tion-ready design.
DESIGN
DLR puts forward-swept
wing research on display
Innovative design concept has potential to cut aerodynamic drag and fuel burn
The LamAiR idea
is related to an
A320-sized airliner
Fuselage fan concept powered up by Bauhaus
PROPULSION
centre are evaluating the installa-
tion of a turbofan engine in the
tail section of an aircraft, under-
neath the vertical stabiliser,
which would ingest air from the
boundary layer around the fuse-
lage to produce thrust in addition
to conventional wing-mounted
powerplants and, as an overall ef-
fect, reduce drag. The fan is to be
centrally installed inside the tail
section, with a narrow air intake
gap to run around the fuselage
circumference. Airow would be
used for for thrust generation, re-
ducing the demand from the
main engines.
A 1:30 scale model of the novel
architecture was on show at the
exhibit of MTU Aero Engines,
which funds the research institute
along with Airbus, IABG, Liebherr
and the state of Bavaria. The EU-
backed, two-year research project
will nish in January 2015, but
Arne Seitz, who leads Advanced
Motive Power activities at Bau-
haus Luftfahrt, is optimistic that
the work will be continued in a
follow-up initiative, such as wind-
tunnel tests, he says.
Also dubbed the propulsive
fuselage, the concept could
slash fuel burn on a future aircraft
by 10%, says Seitz. This would
be in addition to an expected
30% efciency gain on next-gen-
eration aircraft by 2035 through
innovations such as slender, low-
drag wings, lightweight airframes
and ultra-high by-pass engines.
The fuselage fan design has
been made for a potential future
medium-range widebody capable
of carrying around 340 passen-
gers, he says.
MRO
Repair robot to
give due CAIRE
and attention
An engine would
be installed inside
the tail section
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
21 fightglobal.com
ILA 2014
SHOW REPORT
Sunshine and style
SHOW REPORT P22
E
uropean Space Agency direc-
tor general Jean-Jacques Dor-
dain underscored the agencys
condence that it can meet the
ambitious cost and performance
targets set for its all-new Ariane 6
heavy launcher, which must re-
place the hugely successful Ari-
ane 5 at less than half the cost.
Dordains duty is to go to the
Luxembourg meeting of ESA
member state science and indus-
try ministers in December with a
SHOW COVERAGE
ON THE SCENE
Three issues of Flight Daily News
were published during the ILA
Berlin air show. For free on-line
access to the trio of titles, fnd
them on our dedicated landing
page. Plus, see more news and
images from Germanys most
important aerospace industry
gathering:
ightglobal.com/ila
JUST THE
JOB FOR
THE A380
D
espite sluggish sales for its agship model, Air- bus is insisting the mar- ket for the A380 will grow as the number of interna- tional hub airports increases. Speaking as the show opened yesterday, Airbus chief operating ofcer for customers John Leahy said that the number of A380s serving the German market would grow nearly vefold over the next two decades. While 21 of the superjumbos were employed for ights to and from the country last year, he says that number is ex- pected to rise to 97 aircraft by 2032. This will be due to the increas- ing number of international hub airports as airline trafc ex- pands, says Airbus, pointing par- ticularly to the emerging markets in Asia, the Middle East and
Latin America. While there are about 40 aviation mega-cities today such as Dubai, London and Singapore the company es- timates that this number will more than double, to nearly 90 over the next two decades. In Germany, Dusseldorf would become a major international hub were it not for the countrys two existing main gateways in Frank- furt and Munich, says Leahy. But as airport infrastructure expan-
sion is outpaced by air trafc growth, he argues that it will be physically impossible to trans- port more passengers without an increasing number of very large aircraft, such as the A380. Airbus has delivered 128 A380s since the type entered ser- vice in 2007, and has a backlog of 196. Its largest single customer for the type, Emirates, is showing one of its eventual 120 examples at the show.
ISSUE 2 WEDNESDAY 21 MAY 2014
COMPLETE COVERAGE IN PRINT AND WEB
HUB MASTER: A380 arrivals in Germany are set to increase
Pictures: BillyPix
Distribution supported by
DAY
222222222222222
More mobility for the world
287_246x40mm_Banner-ILA_cmyk_RZ01.indd 1
Visit us at
hall 2, stand 2323 Untitled-5.indd 1
German services to grow vefold
The 2014 ILA Berlin air show received top-level political support yesterday, when German Chan- cellor Angela Merkel offcially opened the event. Mrs Merkel, pictured touring the Airbus De- fence & Space exhibit with the companys chief executive, Bernhard Gerwert (shown on her left), cut a ribbon with a pair of giant scissors to open the show, then toured various aircraft, including the fourth prototype Airbus A350, which provid- ed one of the centrepieces of the static park in its joint Airbus/Qatar Airways colour scheme. Continuing with the Middle East theme, she also visited an Emirates A380 at the site, before departing by helicopter.
Show gets
VIP launch
ILA_210514_001.indd 1
ISSUE 3 THURSDAY 22 MAY 2014
COMPLETE COVERAGE IN PRINT AND WEB
Pictures: BillyPix
The next edition of ILA will take place from 31
May to 5 June 2016, show organiser Messe Ber-
lin has announced. The slightly later dates, compared to this
year, means that the event will not clash with
the annual EBACE business aviation show,
which is taking place this week in Geneva.
Flightglobal looks forward to returning to ILA
in 2016 with this very newspaper, the famous
Flight Daily News. For more action from Flightglobal and Flight
Daily News, be sure to follow fightglobal.com as
we gear up for the next show, Farnborough,
which begins on 14 July.
Distribution supported by
I
t tasted disappointment at the end of last year
when the United Arab Emirates walked away
from a possible Typhoon purchase, but the
houd nI tho Inur-nutinn Furnghtor cnnsnrtium
suys it is mnving intn u now pnsitinn tn socuro Iur-
thor sulos, thunks tn u cnming "purudigm shiIt" in
its combat capability. Spouking tn Flight Daily News exclusively yes-
torduy, Furnghtor chioI oxocutivo Albortn Gutior-
rez said the UAE decision has been followed by a
Irosh drivo ucrnss Gormuny, Ituly, Spuin und tho
UK to introduce key new systems widely requested
by intornutinnul buyors. This includos un ugrood
roadmap to add an active electronically scanned
urruy (AFSA} rudur, und Iully intogruto woupnns
like the MBDA Storm Shadow cruise missile and
air-to-surface Brimstone. The new AESA is now installed in instrumented
prnductinn uircruIt IPA in tho UK, und tho cnmbi-
nutinn shnuld got uirbnrno Inr tho rst timo "quito
snnn", ho suys. "Wo uro prngrossing quito woll with
tho nutinns: thoy ull wunt tho o-scun. Wo uro protty
nptimistic tn gn thrnugh tho spocic nutinns' up-
proval processes, but this will be done at their own
individuul puco." Sinco tuking tho cnntrnls ut tho industriul cnn-
snrtium ulmnst nno your ugn, tho Spuniurd hus
worked tirelessly to determine how its processes
cun bo hnnod, "ulwuys using tho mnst prugmutic
upprnuch Inr tho diIIoront stukohnldors."
Cruciully, ho nntos: "Whutovor is docidod, it is Inur
nations and three industries, and always on some-
thing thut is stuto nI tho urt. Wo uro wnrking tn soo hnw
wo cun muko this Iuntustic muchino Iully nptimisod."
Activo sulos cumpuigns uro currontly boing
stugod Inr Buhruin, Kuwuit, Muluysiu und Qutur,
with Donmurk huving snught inInrmutinn tnn. And
cnmpuny nIciuls will visit Cunudu noxt wook, huv-
ing provinusly unsworod u cupubility quostinnnuiro
for Ottawa. "Wo wunt u cnmpotitinn |with tho Lnckhood
Murtin F-8]," ho suys nI tho Cunudiun roquiro-
mont. "Wo think wo cun prnvo nnt nnly nur cupu-
bilitios, but ulsn uro cnndont thut wo cun nIIor in-
dustriul nppnrtunitios thut nn nthors cun mutch."
Furnghtor is ulsn wutching tn soo hnw Indiu's
nowly-oloctod gnvornmont will chnnso tn prncood
in the medium multi-role combat aircraft process,
with a planned Dassault Rafale buy not yet done.
"Wo uro just roudy," suys Gutiorroz. "II thoy cull, wo
will bo thoro." Likowiso, it will ovuluuto Switzor-
lund's Iuturo intontinns, Inllnwing u public roIoron-
dum which derailed a planned buy of 22 Saab
Gripon Fs.
DAY
3333333333333333
More mobility for the world
287_246x40mm_Banner-ILA_cmyk_RZ01.indd 1
Visit us at
hall 2, stand 2323
Untitled-5.indd 1
14/05
O
N
THE RISE
New capabilities, new ambitions for Eurofighter
TOOLED UP: New weapons, and AESA radar SALES POWER: Alberto Gutierrez
ILA be back: 2016 dates announced
ILA_220514_001.indd 1
20
Pictures: BillyPix
ace ce f e fro rom m m 331 MMes esse se e BBer er- rr
edd to to t th this is as ash h wwit with h n n sh show howw, , a. a.
Flightgloba in 2016 with Flight Daily Ne For more ac Daily News D , be s wwe gear up fo wh which begins on
Distribution supported by
s s aaaaat at
d
st ta ta aan and
: 220 20 001 116 date
ISSUE 1 TUESDAY 20 MAY 2014
COMPLETE COVERAGE IN PRINT AND WEB
B i l l y P i x
Distribution supported by
NIFTY A350
DAY
1111111111111111
More mobility for the world
05.09.12 12:17
Visit us at
hall 2, stand 2323 14/05/2014 14:04
O
ne of the main stars of the show
touched down in the late afternoon
sunshine as many visitors were drift-
ing home yesterday, ahead of perform-
ing the types rst dynamic display here at ILA.
The Airbus A350, MSN4, is taking time out of
the companys busy development schedule to par-
ticipate in the ying display, as the design edges
towards certication and a scheduled service
entry before the end of this year.
By earlier this month, the companys current
four ying prototypes had clocked up more than a
combined 350 ights and 1,600h since June 2013,
including performing high-altitude testing in Bo-
livia, hot-weather actitivies in the United Arab
Emirates and cold-weather work in Canada. The
airframers fth and nal test aircraft is expected
to make its ight debut in the coming weeks.
Sporting a joint livery of Airbus and launch
A350 operator Qatar Airways, MSN4 recently
completed water ingestion certication trials at
Istres air base in France. Intended to prove the
Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-powered types ability to
operate on wet runways, these involved the air-
craft performing several runs through troughs
lled with water to a depth of 22mm, at speeds of
up to 140kt (259km/h).
The aircraft also performed a rst ight over Ge-
neva, where the clashing EBACE show is taking
place, before arriving here.
R-R has meanwhile dispatched the rst produc-
tion Trent XWB that will be tted to the A350 to
Toulouse, where the rst two production aircraft
are on the nal assembly line.
Qatar has 80 of the twinjets on order 43 of the
-900 model, plus 37 -1000s and is to receive the
rst, a -900, in the fourth quarter.
Flightglobals Ascend Online database shows a
current total of 812 A350s on order: 34 -800s, 589
-900s and 189 -1000s.
Meanwhile, Airbus says that progress is being
made towards its target of achieving a production
break-even on the A380. It adds that it is acting
on lessons from testing and in-service experience,
as six-year maintenance checks begin on the global
eet. Emirates 48th example of the superjumbo
also touched down at the show, from the compa-
nys Finkenwerder interior completions site.
DEBUT:
The A350 is
to perform its
first display
sequence
SUNNY ARRIVAL: MSN4
joins the Airbus A400M
as an ILA attraction
Twinjets ILA debut comes
at key moment, as Airbus
pushes for certication
2014-05-19 18:20
Dortkasli: ready to
sell ATAK helicopter
T
urkish Aerospace Industries
made its rst appearance at a
major European show with its
own systems on display, with its
presence headlining Turkeys sta-
tus as ofcial partner nation.
Speaking beside the T129 at-
tack helicopter which his com-
pany has developed from an
AgustaWestland airframe, TAI
president and chief executive
Muharrem Dortkasli highlighted
the great strides made in a short
time since it began attending
such events in a bid to get in-
volved in major aerospace pro-
grammes as a supplier to original
Ariane 6 to hit ambitious cost target, says Dordain
SPACEFLIGHT
DEBUT
TAI ies the ag
for Turkey, nears
rst T129 export
Chief executive Muharrem Dortkasli hails companys move
from equipment supplier to indigenous platform developer
equipment manufacturers like
Airbus, Boeing and Bombardier.
We have looked at product
development for the last 10 years:
now we can show the fruits of
our efforts, Dortkasli says.
The rst T129 from a nine-unit
batch produced in an early deliv-
ery helicopter standard has al-
ready been accepted by the Turk-
ish army, with the next three
examples also likely to be ap-
proved by mid-June. TAI is now
looking to export the T129
ATAK system, having also
taken it to the Bahrain air show
earlier this year.
There is great interest from
several governments. We are
working with them and negotiat-
ing, and I think we will have a
rst sale shortly, Dortkasli says.
We have a cutting-edge design,
and think we are competitive.
Also on show was the compa-
nys indigenous Anka unmanned
air vehicle, which is in produc-
tion for the Turkish armed forces
and the subject of talks with other
potential future operators.
TAIs stand also included a
full-scale mock-up of the cockpit
for its Hurkus trainer, which is in
ground testing in Turkey, and a
model of a new satellite assem-
bly, inspection and test facility.
Ten years ago we were in
small booths: now we are becom-
ing an OEM, with something
complete on the table, Dortkasli
says. We are going to increase
the coverage at shows like ILA,
Farnborough and Paris.
COLLABORATION
Roketsan, Airbus pact agreed for TFX
Airbus Defence & Space and Turkish
company Roketsan have linked up to
investigate collaboration on several
projects, including Ankaras planned
TFX indigenous fghter. Under the
terms of their new memorandum of
understanding, the companies will
initially exchange technical and busi-
ness information to defne possible
areas of co-operation.
Roketsan president and chief
executive Selcuk Yasar says the pair
could explore the integration of
weapons systems such as Turkeys
Stand-Off Missile on Airbus military
aircraft and future combat systems.
For Airbus, the big prize would be
a role in Turkeys ffth-generation TFX
project, to replace its air forces
Lockheed Martin F-16s.
rm plan that will convince them
to continue funding the project,
which seeks a launcher that
could y nine times a year and
cost 70 million ($95 million) per
launch, from 2021. This com-
pares with as much as 200 mil-
lion per launch currently.
Ariane 6 will have to be built
through no more than three inte-
gration sites: one each in France,
Germany and Italy, says Dordain.
Failure, he adds, would be dra-
matic for the entire European
space industry.
Dordain expects further design
discussion to end by July, when
he will make what amounts to a
progress report at a mini-minis-
terial meeting of ESAs largest
members. The project will have
to be run in a at 2015-2024
budget corridor of about 850
million per year. This is the same
as has been spent during the last
couple of years. On course for 2021 service
E
S
A
fightglobal.com
ILA 2014
SHOW REPORT
SUNSHINE
AND STYLE
As the temperature soared in Berlin, ILAs daily fying display
and static park provided plenty of attractions for show visitors
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
23
ILA 2014
SHOW REPORT
(Clockwise from main): A400M;
Solo Turk F-16; DC-3 makes
classic viewing point; US Air
Force C-17; Extra 300s of
Eichhorn Air Adventure; Belgian
air force EMB-145 gives welcome
shade; Patrouille Suisse F-5s in
formation; ying the ag; Polish
MiG-29; Do-24 seaplane; more
are from Solo Turk
B
illy
P
ix
SHOW
REPORT
fightglobal.com 24
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
For all the news and
images from the show
ightglobal.com/ebace
The 14th edition of EBACE, held from 20-22 May at
Genevas Palexpo, played host to a European business
aviation community still in the economic trough, but, after
fve years of diffcult trading, looking forward to a sustained
upturn. The large-business jet brands Bombardiers
Global series, Dassaults Falcon and Gulfstream were
making the running. Less affected by the downturn, they
are pushing ahead with bigger and longer-range models.
There was activity, however, at the smaller end of the
market, with a new variant from Piaggio Aero and a
successful start for the Pilatus PC-24 orderbook, while
Textron Aviation parent to the Beechcraft, Cessna and
Hawker brands rolled out its new identity. Murdo
Morrison, Liz Moscrop, Alan Peaford, Kate Sarsfeld
and Stephen Trimble report. Photography by BillyPix
EBACE 2014
Airframers push the limits
in ultra-long range arena
C
ompetition in the ultra-long
range business jet market in-
tensied at EBACE as the sectors
leading airframers revealed a trio
of long-legged large cabin prod-
ucts each designed to secure a
larger share of this lucrative
niche.
Dassault dominated headlines
with the launch of the Falcon 8X
its longest range, longest cabin
business jet to date. The unveil-
ing of the agship trijet comes
just seven months after the
French airframer took the wraps
off its all-new and widest cabin
Falcon, the 5X.
The 8X is a stretched version
of the 7X which entered service
seven years ago with the 250th
example in completion.
With a range of 6,450nm
(11,950 km) 500nm more than
the 7X the 8X will offer a more
extensive list of one-leg missions
than its stablemate. These in-
clude the Hong Kong to London
route a vital city pair within the
lucrative Chinese market.
Gulfstream shot back by an-
nouncing a second range exten-
sion for the G650. The Savannah-
based manufacturer originally
unveiled the G650 with 6,000nm
range, but raised the gure to
7,000nm upon certication in
2012. Gulfstrean now has
launched the G650ER with a plan
to be ready to deliver the rst air-
craft in quarter one next year. The
G650ER will be able to y
7,500nm at Mach 0.9, or 25%
higher than the original specica-
tion for the baseline model.
For the moment, the G650ER
boasts more range than the Bom-
bardier Global 7000, which is ad-
vertised with 7,300nm range at
Mach 0.9. Gulfstream senior vice-
president of sales and marketing
Scott Neal emphasised that point
as the G650ER was announced,
saying it will be the only busi-
ness aircraft in the world capable
of travelling 7,500nm.
As the Global 7000 gets closer
to rst delivery in 2016, Bombar-
dier Business Aircraft president
ric Martel declines to comment
on whether Gulfstreams move
could motivate a range extension
for the Canadian-built competi-
tor, but he also leaves the door
open to future upgrades.
I dont think we can comment
on that now, Martel says, but
adds: Theres always potential
to do more.
By unveiling the cabin mock-
up during EBACE, Bombardier
made clear the Global 7000 will
have no deciency to its peers in
terms of cabin length. The interi-
or mockup of the 33.7m (110ft)-
long cabin revealed four true
cabin zones not counting space
for galleys, lavatories, crew rest
and storage featuring a lounge,
working area, living room and
bedroom.
Everything that you see in the
cabin is designed for comfort for
long ight, exibility and reliabil-
ity, says Bassam Sabbagh,
vice-president and general man-
ager of the Global 7000 and 8000
programme.
The size of the cabin windows
80% larger than on previous
Global jets means the Global
7000 will enter the market pro-
viding the most natural light in-
side the cabin of any business jet,
Sabbagh says.
Although shorter by a lengthy
3.3m, the G650 shares a common
philosophy with the Global
7000/8000 series with a similar
emphasis on cabin volume, range
ULTRA-LONG RANGE
Bombardier, Dassault and Gulfstream all reveal offerings in top-selling market segment
Bombardier unveiled
a full-scale mock-up
of Global 7000
and speed. By contrast, the
Falcon 8X makes no attempt to
match the range and speed of its
competitors.
Dassault has introduced a
number of renements and en-
hancements to the aircrafts de-
sign including an extra fuel tank
within the centre fuselage sec-
tion, which enables the 8X to
carry up to 15,800kg (34,900lb)
fuel compared with 14,500kg
carried by the 7X. It will also fea-
ture a redesigned ultra-efcient
wing derived from the Falcon 7X
and three Pratt & Whitney
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
25 fightglobal.com
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
Aerion revamps AS2
concept as trijet
SHOW REPORT P26
Canada PW307D engines, each
delivering 6,720lb (30kN) of
thrust 5% more than the 7Xs
PW307As. The 8X cabin is 1.1m
longer than the 7X bringing the
total cabin length to 13m.
Dassault says this extra space has
enabled it to offer the most
diverse selection of cabin layouts
on the market. Priced at around
$57 million, rst ight is expect-
ed in early 2015 with certication
in the middle of 2016 and initial
deliveries before the end of
the year.
Dassault is evaluating the mar-
ket for an ultra-long-range deriva-
tive of the 5X to compete against
the G650ER, Global 7000 and
8000, but says it has yet to nd a
business case for an aircraft of
this size.
It argues while the 8X range is
shorter than these competitors,
its agship can operate to and
from many of the worlds most
challenging airports including
La-Mole St Tropez, and London
City which these other types
cannot.
Turn to P38 for a cutaway
drawing and feature on the 8X
B
illy
P
ix
RESTRUCTURING
Textron Aviation vows all
three brands will survive
A
ll three brands Cessna,
Beechcraft and Hawker and
all active production lines of the
newly-formed Textron Aviation
division are safe, but priorities for
new product development and
deeper integration is still in de-
bate, say company executives.
The closing of Textrons $1.4
billion acquisition of Beechcraft
two months ago uniting two,
80-year-old neighbours in Wichi-
ta, Kansas created a very com-
plimentary line-up of products
stretching from pistons to turbo-
props to jets, says chief executive
Scott Ernest.
We see them all tting togeth-
er within the family, Ernest says.
Despite preserving the Hawker
brand, Textron Aviation has no
plans to re-launch jet production
lines shut down during the bank-
ruptcy of Beechcraft in 2012.
At this point of time we dont
have any plans to restart that
from a standpoint of trying to get
that product back into the mar-
ket, Ernest says.
In the near-term, Textron Avia-
tion plans to complete a long-de-
layed certication programme for
the Hawker 400XPR, which modi-
es the light jet with Williams
FJ44 turbofans, Rockwell Collins
ProLine 21 avionics and winglets.
Supplemental type certicates for
the latter two have already been
received, and engine certication
is now expected by the end of the
year, says Brad Thress, vice-
president of customer service.
Textron is also focused on bring-
ing Cessnas superlight Citation
Latitude and top-of-the-range
super midsize Longitude business
jets to market in 2015 and 2017 re-
spectively. Its revamped Citation
X, meanwhile, is earmarked for
approval this quarter, says Cessna.
Less clear is the fate of the
Beechcraft single-engine turbo-
prop (SETP), a concept intro-
duced by the company before it
was acquired as a lead-in to the
King Air.
Ernest says discussions about
the fate of the SETP have an en-
tered a focused stage, but so far
no decisions have been made. If
the SETP is approved for launch,
programme supports must come
with a compelling business strat-
egy and a plan to take market
share from competitors.
Moving technology between
the two companies is also being
discussed. The wings of the Cess-
na Scorpion light attack and
trainer aircraft could be built in-
side the Beechcraft autoclave,
Ernest says.
fightglobal.com 26
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
For all the news and
images from the show
ightglobal.com/ebace
Aerion revamps AS2 concept as trijet
A
erion unveiled a redesigned
supersonic business jet with
three engines, trans-Pacic range
and a new industrial strategy
aimed at completing certication
of the renamed AS2 aircraft in
2021.
Nearly a decade after launching
development of the twinjet, Pratt
& Whitney JT8D-powered SBJ, the
start-up company founded by bil-
lionaire Robert Bass was forced to
go back to the drawing boards a
year ago when new noise regula-
tions ruled out the 1980s-vintage,
low-bypass ratio engines.
At the same time, Aerion also
reconsidered the SBJs trans-At-
lantic range prole, as well as its
plan to partner with an OEM to
take-over the project for certica-
tion and production.
The result of the year-long re-
view was unveiled at EBACE as
the AS2.
The new design preserves the
SBJs natural laminar ow airfoil
a technological leap in super-
sonic aircraft design with its
distinctive recurve on the in-
board section of the wing leading
edge, but lengthens the cabin to
the size of a Gulfstream G450.
To meet ICAO Chapter 5 noise
regulations, Aerion has added a
third, tail-mounted engine, with
each engine notionally requiring
about 16,000lb-thrust.
The engine selection process
remains ongoing, including con-
rmed interest from General
Electric as it develops the
16,000lb-thrust Passport engine
for the subsonic Bombardier
Global 7000/8000.
Aerion plans to select an engine
supplier within a few months and
complete the conceptual design
phase a year later, says chief exec-
utive Doug Nichols.
Aerion originally launched the
SBJ in 2005 with a six-year time-
line for certication, but those
plans were disrupted by the glob-
al nancial crisis.
The plan now is to complete
development in seven years and
begin deliveries of the AS2
after 2021, but Aerion ofcials
acknowledge this schedule is
challenging.
We know its ambitious but
stretch goals get performance,
Nichols says.
The accelerated timing is also
driven by Aerions plan to claim a
rst-mover advantage in the
market.
NASA and several large OEMs,
including Gulfstream, Lockheed
Martin and Boeing, have been
working for more than a decade to
develop an airframe design that is
shaped specically to mufe the
loud clap of a supersonic boom.
But the technology remains years
away from being validated in
ight on a business-jet sized air-
craft, and regulators are unlikely
to change a global ban on super-
sonic ight over populated areas
until they receive hard data.
Aerion, however, is not using
quiet boom airframe technolo-
gy, and so does not have to wait
for regulators to drop the ban. At-
mospheric defraction may allow
the AS2 to y at supersonic
speeds without creating an audi-
ble boom on the ground, but Aer-
ions plan does not rely upon reg-
ulators accepting this claim.
Instead, the AS2 is designed to
enter service to y at high sub-
sonic speed over populated areas,
then accelerate to Mach 1.4 for
long-range cruise or Mach 1.6 for
maximum speed.
The natural laminar ow wing
is designed to prevent the airow
from transitioning to turbulent
conditions beyond Mach 0.90,
allowing the AS2 to avoid a sig-
nicant rise in wave drag at
cruise speeds from Mach 0.95 to
Mach 0.99.
Flight tests of a sub-scale wing
section on a NASA Boeing F-15
ying testbed have shown that
the wing design can prevent the
transition from laminar to turbu-
lent airow at subsonic and su-
personic speeds, according to
Aerion. But Aerion has not yet
tested the wing on a demonstra-
tor aircraft.
The AS2 will feature a compos-
ite wing and a titanium leading
edge, but the material of the fuse-
lage structure is still undecided be-
tween composite and aluminium,
Nichols says. The composite mate-
rial is preferred, if it is possible to
produce the heavily-tapered fuse-
lage structure efciently, he says.
Aerion has also tweaked how
it intends to manage the develop-
ment programme. Rather than
turning the project over to a sin-
gle OEM after completing the
desgin, Aerion now plans to lead
the certication and production
project itself, Nichols says.
Multiple OEM partners will be
selected to play a supporting role
with detailed design, supply
chain management and compo-
nent certication, Nichols says.
Its not the monolithic OEM
that was sort of part of the con-
versations a few years ago, he
says. We think theres room for a
number of participants in this
programme.
Aerion is also taking on the
nancial burden during the early
conceptual phase of the pro-
gramme, relieving OEM partners
of the need to make a commit-
ment before the conceptual de-
sign is complete.
When we are not asking a par-
ticipant to lend us their balance
sheet then the conversation can get
redirected to more important pro-
grammatic issues, Nichols says.
DEVELOPMENT
US frm returns from the drawing board with aim to complete certifcation of supersonic project by start of next decade
A
e
r
io
n
AS2 is designed to fly at high subsonic speed over populated areas before accelerating to M1.6
We think theres
room for a number
of participants in this
programme
DOUG NICHOLS
Chief executive, Aerion
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
27 fightglobal.com
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
Nextant banks on
fnance to avoid
losing customers
SHOW REPORT P28
GE to take on PT6A market
G
E Aviation plans to take on
rival Pratt & Whitneys mar-
ket-leading PT6A with new en-
gines in the 1,100-1,200 shaft
horsepower and 1,800-2,000shp
class, by developing a turboprop
centre of excellence in Prague
the former Walter Aircraft Engines
business it acquired in 2008.
The new family of advanced
turboprop engines will be based
on the architecture of its H80
family, itself developed from
Walters M601. The H80 will
power the Nextant King Air
G90XT, a re-engined version of the
King Air C90 with a Garmin ight-
deck, which enters service later
this year, and is already installed
in the Thrush 510G crop-spraying
aircraft. The slightly lower-thrust
H75 derivative is available as a ret-
rot in the Aircraft Industries Let
L410 utility transport.
The US Federal Aviation Ad-
ministration certicated the H75
and uprated H85 variants in
April, GE announced yesterday.
GE has already made huge
changes to the Walter business,
which it relocated to new premis-
es in Letnany, outside Prague,
driving revenues from around $38
million at the time of acquisition
to a forecast of $78 million in 2014.
The company expects revenues to
more than quadruple over the next
six years to $300 million annually.
When we acquired the com-
pany, most of the production was
for MRO, with only 10 or 12 new
engines a year. This year, we will
do 80 to 90 engines, says Milan
Slapak, commercial director of
GEs Czech business. But GE has
further ambitions. We would
like to grow in this segment, he
says. We got into this to start
competition with the PT6A.
The three-member H80 family
comprising the 800shp H80
and two derivatives, the H75 and
H85 is based on the M601, but
with signicant changes, includ-
ing the use of a corrosion-
resistant titanium alloy compres-
sor, and replacing bladed discs
with blisks. There are some 700
M601s in service, the majority of
them in the former Soviet Union,
Africa and Latin America.
The H80 was the rst GE en-
gine to be developed outside the
USA, and the rst one to be certi-
cated, in 2011, by the European
Aviation Safety Agency, before the
Federal Aviation Administration.
GE has put no timescale on
when it expects to launch its
new engines, but it is hoping to
establish an engineering depart-
ment near its Prague facility.
Passport fight
tests to begin in
a few months
G
eneral Electric is on track to
begin ights tests of the Pass-
port jet engine this summer, as it
continues to carve out a growing
share of business and general
aviation markets, a top executive
said at EBACE.
The Passport selected to
power the Bombardier Global
7000, which enters service in
2016 has been making steady
progress in ground tests.
Four engines have completed
seven testing programmes so far,
accumulating 450h on 150 take-
off and landing cycles, says Brad
Mottier, vice-president and gen-
eral manager of business and gen-
eral aviation.
Another engine is being instru-
mented to be installed on the GE-
owned Boeing 747 ying testbed.
Delivering the Passport engine on
time along with the HondaJets
GE Honda Aero Engines HF120
is a key element of GEs strategy to
build a $1 billion annual business
supporting business and general
aviation by 2020, Mottier says.
Aerions plan announced on
19 May to develop a supersonic
version of a current engine also
has gained GEs interest. Abso-
lutely, Mottier says, when asked
if GE would offer an engine to
Aerion. However, Mottier says it is
premature to determine which en-
gine should be proposed.
GE has no other plans to ex-
pand in the business and general
aviation sector, where it has no
presence in the crowded thrust
range between 3,500lb-thrust and
about 9,000lb-thrust.
Fokker works with Boeing on panoramic window
V
IP completions and refur-
bishment provider Fokker
Services has teamed up with
Boeing Business Jets to propose
the SkyView panoramic window
which is larger than three win-
dows on a Boeing 737. We did a
feasibility study and told Boeing
it was very do-able. BBJ president
Steve Taylor was very excited by
the whole idea and it took off
from there, says James Aspell,
Fokker Services vice president
technical services.
Boeing engineers tested the
concept and while Fokker owns
the STC, Boeing will do the vali-
dation. By working together As-
pell says certication could be
complete as early as the third
quarter 2015. Since we unveiled
the new window here we have
had incredible reaction. Especial-
ly from designers, Aspell says.
ENGINES
Propulsion giant will vie with rivals family from turboprop centre of excellence in Prague
G
E

A
v
ia
t
io
n
GE launched the H80
after acquiring Walter
ENGINES
INNOVATION
B
illy
P
ix
Aspell: Incredible reaction
fightglobal.com 28
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
For all the news and
images from the show
ightglobal.com/ebace
N
extant Aerospace launched
a nance offering at the
show aimed at buyers of its
400XTi and G90XT remanufac-
tured business aircraft. The
Cleveland, Ohio-based rm says
the $2 million to $10 million
light sector of the market
where its product offering is
placed is underserved by the
nance industry and it has lost
sales due a customers inability
to secure funding for the
purchase.
Over the past ve years, se-
curing aircraft nancing has be-
come complicated and uncer-
tain, says Nextant president
Sean McGeough.
There has been a general lack
of available nancing for deals
under $10 million, he contin-
ues. Many banks turn away
small aircraft nancing in favour
of larger types which take just as
much effort, but the rewards are
far greater.
Barry Woods, chairman of the
new Nextant Finance agrees:
Since the start of the recession,
it has been very difcult for own-
ers and operators of light jets and
P
ilatus Aircraft has secured
over 80 orders for its PC-24
and has named its ve launch
customers which between them
have acquired 18 of the super-
light twin jets.
This line-up includes: Luxem-
bourg fractional ownership com-
pany JetFly, which has an order for
six of the $9 million aircraft, Abu
Dhabi charter and management
company Falcon Aviation Services
with four aircraft, US fractional
provider PlaneSense, with six and
S
audi Arabian private jet op-
erator and management
company Alpha Star Aviation
Services has become the rst
Airbus ACJ320 customer for an
in-service retrot of Sharklets.
The Sharklets are upswept
ns attached to the wingtips that
save about 4% in fuel consump-
tion while also enhancing per-
formance and appearance.
The Sharklets will be tted to
the ACJ320 which is already in
service with the Riyadh-based
operator in 2016. The retrot
has local structural reinforcement
of the outer wing, a software up-
grade to several ight-control
computers, and replacement of
the existing winglets.
We pride ourselves on having
a modern and efcient eet, and
adding Sharklets to our Airbus
ACJ320 and also adopting
FlySmart [Airbuss performance
calculation software for iPad] will
help us to keep it that way, as well
as improving our day to day oper-
ations, says Alpha Star chief ex-
ecutive Salem Abaid Al Muzaini.
Adding Sharklets also helps
us to preserve the value of our
investment in the longer term,
and they pay for themselves
relatively quickly through the
savings they deliver, Al
Muzaini says.
Airbus says FlySmart will also
give savings to the Saudi operator.
It can improve payload by a tonne
on challenging missions, via more
precise take-off performance calcu-
lation, and delivers more consist-
ent results in degraded conditions,
such as when landing on contami-
nated runways.
turboprops to nd nancing,
leaving a signicant and unnec-
essary void in the market. Our
straightforward yet creative -
nancing vehicles are ideal for
those who have struggled to nd
nancing in the US and through-
out the world, he says.
Nextant Finance terms range
from two to 20 years and include
a range of options from capital
and operating leases to xed and
oating loans.
The Directional Aviation Cap-
ital-owned company has deliv-
ered 42 Williams FJ44-3AP
400XTis to date and is planning
to certicate and deliver the rst
G90XT twin-engined turboprop
later this year. McGeough says it
has received tremendous inter-
est in the aircraft since the pro-
gramme was launched last Octo-
ber in partnership with GE. It
will not start taking orders, how-
ever, until the aircrafts perfor-
mance parameters have been
conrmed. We hope to have
these by [AirVenture] Oshkosh
in late July when the aircraft is
ying with the new H75 en-
gines, says McGeough.
Australias Royal Flying Doctor
service with three orders.
The Williams FJ44-4A-pow-
ered PC-24 was launched at
EBACE last year marking Stans
Switzerland-based Pilatuss rst
foray into the business jet space.
The twinjet has a projected take-
off distance of 820m (2,690ft) and
a landing distance of 2,530ft, ena-
bling it to operate from unpaved
runways and grass strips.
The rst of three ying proto-
types is being built at Stans.
UPGRADE
Saudi operator is frst to
retroft ACJ320 sharklet
PROGRAMME
Pilatus takes 80 PC-24 orders
The first of three
flying prototypes is
being built in Stans
Company says many banks turn away small aircraft buyers
FUNDING
Nextant banks on
nance to avoid
losing customers
Firm behind 400XTi and G90XT remanufactured aircraft
says the sector it competes in is underserved
N
e
x
t
a
n
t

A
e
r
o
s
p
a
c
e
B
illy
P
ix
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
29 fightglobal.com
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
Serious business
SHOW REPORT P30
U
S business aircraft members
club Wheels Up set out plans
at EBACE to launch its Beech-
craft King Air 350i programme
in Europe.
This is a perfect market for
the 350i, says Wheels Up
founder and chief executive
Kenny Dichter.
We plan to place up to four of
the twin-engined turboprops in
Europe in the rst six months of
2015 which will service both
existing members wishing to
travel to Europe and new
customers.
The aircraft will be operated
by business aviation services
provider Gama Aviation, which
also operates Wheels Ups 350is
in the USA.
Dichter believes the aircraft
is a perfect t for the region.
You can connect anywhere
across the continent from Lon-
don City airport, for example,
adds Dichter, who is also co-
founder of pre-paid charter card
company Marquis Jet.
Despite the continuing fragili-
ty of the European business air-
craft market, he is condent the
Wheels Up brand will be well-
received.
Wheels Up placed a record
order last year for 105 350is and
has taken delivery of 22 of the
types to date. A further ve
aircraft are scheduled for deliv-
ery before the end of the year
and the remainder will be hand-
ed over by the end of 2018.
P
iaggio Aero unveiled the next
evolution of its P.180 Avanti
twin pusher at the show amid
hopes that the upgrades will
breathe life back into the seven-
seat turboprop programme,
Piaggios executive aviation
business has been hit hard by
the collapse of the light business
aircraft sector. Deliveries of its
Avanti II have fallen from a
record 30 aircraft in 2008 to two
aircraft last year, according to
General Aviation Manufacturers
Association gures.
The EVO features a host of im-
provements and upgrades to its
predecessor, the Avanti II. It is
designed to boost efciency, re-
duce operating costs, provide
greater levels of comfort for pas-
sengers, says the airframer.
With a maximum speed of
400kt (740km/h), the EVO is the
fastest turboprop in the world
and faster than many jets doing
so at fuel economy and emissions
levels signicantly below that of
rival aircraft, says Piaggio.
LAUNCH
Piaggio and the theory of EVO-lution
Twin-pusher turboprop gets revamp as Abu Dhabi-owned Italian airframer aims to inject new appeal into programme
The EVO has a number of im-
provements to the airframe
including winglets, redesigned
nacelles, and a reshaped front
wing to help boost efciency and
cut emissions by 3%. Climb per-
formance also increases by 3%
compared with its predecessor.
The aircraft is also equipped
with new ve-blade scimitar pro-
pellers, which combine with aer-
odynamic changes to reduce ex-
ternal noise by 68% 5 dB(A.)
The EVOs whisper quiet cabin
reduces internal noise by 1 dB(A).
The cabin design has also under-
gone a revamp with new VIP seats
developed by Italian company
Iacobucci new cabin air condi-
tioning and lighting systems.
Piaggio is also offering an
increased range option, which
boosts the Avantis reach from
2,720km (1,470nm) to 3,180km.
The EVO blends the very
best of Italian style, peerless
craftsmanship, and intelligent
thinking to create the speed of a
light/mid-size jet, and the com-
fort of a large, whisper quiet full
stand-up cabin, with fuel ef-
ciencies 40% greater than most
business jets, says Piaggio.
The Italian airframer now
majority owned by Mubadala
following its acquisition earlier
this month of Tata Industries
45% stake in the company says
the EVO launch shows the com-
mitment to the company by the
Abu Dhabi government invest-
ment group.
This marks an historical mo-
ment under the new ownership
of Mubadala, and vividly dis-
plays its commitment to Piaggio
and our aircraft, says Piaggios
chairman Alberto Galassi. He
says Mubadalas commitment
has also been shown through in-
vesting in new production facili-
ties, notably a new aircraft and
engine manufacturing base in
Villanova dAlbenga, Savona,
80km southwest of Genoa.
TURBOPROP
Grand Caravans EASA EX appeal
Cessna has clinched European validation for its Grand Caravan EX
paving the way for deliveries to begin immediately. The frst custom-
er for the single-engined turboprop is an undisclosed Turkish owner,
says the US airframer.
The Grand Caravan EX entered service in early 2013 and so far
Cessna has delivered 100 of the 10-seat types including 22 in the frst
quarter. The Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-140- powered EX is the
latest evolution of the 20-year old Grand Caravan and is the fourth
member of the ubiquitous Caravan family. More than 2,200 of the util-
ity types have been delivered worldwide 160 to European customers.
B
illy
P
ix
MEMBERS CLUB
Wheels Up plans to get
wheels down in Europe
New winglets and nascelles are among improvements to aircraft
P
ia
g
g
io

A
e
r
o
fightglobal.com 30
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
SERIOUS
BUSINESS
Our photographers were on hand to capture the best
of the static display next to Geneva International Airport
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
31 fightglobal.com
TOP - text. Style for
three lines of text
on story elsewhere
TOP - SUBJECT PXX
EBACE 2014
SHOW REPORT
The static display at EBACE was as busy as ever with exhibits
ranging from piston singles to business jetliners. Our picture
shows (clockwise from main picture): Bombardiers Global 6000,
currently the Canadian manufacturers agship product; the
Daher Socata TBM 900 single-engine turboprop; the Dassault
Falcon display; Dassaults Falcon 7X muscles in on a display of
Cessnas from the Citation X to the Grand Caravan EX, the latest
variant of the Wichita rms single-engine turboprop to receive
certication; there were two Airbus ACJ319s on display, one
from K5 Aviation, and the other from Haitec; Embraers Phenom
100 and 300; and the Gulfstream G450
fightglobal.com
CARGO
32
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
MICHAEL GUBISCH LONDON
A
re freighters in decline in the air
cargo business? This might seem an
odd question to ask at a time when
an unprecedented number of new
all-cargo aircraft 230 widebodies in the next
four years are rolling off the production
lines. This is supposed to be a golden age for
freighters, when airlines have nally made
long-term commitments to buy new
fuel- efcient capacity such as the Airbus
A330-200F, Boeing 747-8F and 777F.
Instead, the air cargo industry is suffering a
crisis of condence in all-cargo aircraft.
Carriers that have invested in them seem to be
struggling to make a return on capital, and
those that have got rid of them seem to suffer
no ill effects. So are airlines better off without
them?
It is certainly possible to put forward a
negative case, as does Larry Coyne, chief
executive of Coyne Airways, a specialist air
cargo operator that has no freighters of its own
but charters capacity from other carriers. The
real problem is that the upside in the freighter
business is not that big, but the downside is
very big, he says.
In the last 10 years or so, we have seen
constant upheaval in air cargo, which is a
problem for carriers who have to y
freighters 14-16h a day to justify the pur-
chase price. If I was the chief executive of a
combination carrier, I would see freighters as
a bit of a headache.
Meanwhile Stan Wraight, executive direc-
tor of consultants Strategic Aviation Solutions
International, and a former chief executive of
Russian cargo airline AirBridgeCargo,
describes freighters as expensive to operate
and now expensive to buy, too. And with
cargo prices at passenger belly operator levels,
the revenue will not return to pay for them.
This sentiment is in stark contrast to the
1990s, when operating a freighter was the sign
that a carrier was serious about cargo.
Freighter eets grew rapidly and the widely-
cited Boeing forecast reckoned that they
would double in size over the next 20 years.
But in fact, since 1999 the eet has barely
grown at all from 1,676 aircraft in the
Boeing 2000-2001 World Air Cargo Forecast
to 1,740 in the 2012 Current Market Outlook.
FLEET SLIMMING
It is certainly easy to call to mind major carri-
ers that have eliminated or slimmed their
freighter eets. In 2005, Japan Airlines and
Northwest had 12 747 freighters each; now
both eets have disappeared entirely. Mean-
while Singapore Airlines has gone from 16
747-400Fs in 2005 to 13 today, and the three
airlines that now make up Air France-KLM-
Martinair Cargo have gone from 26 widebody
All-cargo operations
have been hit hard
by the economic
downturn, and airlines
are making more use of
their hold capacity. So
does it make sense to
invest in freighters?
freighters in 2005 to 16 today. Jade Cargo
International, a joint venture between Luf-
thansa Cargo and Shenzhen Airlines, exited
the market in December 2011, and as Karl
Ulrich Garnadt, chairman of Lufthansa Cargo,
admits the market did not even notice that
its six 747-400ERFs were no longer ying.
Other major carriers have increased their
eets somewhat, although all seem to be
questioning just how big those eets should
now be. Lufthansa had 14 widebody freight-
ers in 2005. It now has 18, as well as a share in
eight 777Fs operated by AeroLogic its joint
venture airline with DHL and ve more
777Fs on order, the rst of which are due to
arrive later this year. Those ve aircraft were
planned as expansion for the eet, but
Garnadt says they may now be used as
replacements instead.
Meanwhile, Cathay Pacic has risen from
20 widebody freighters in 2005 (including
Dragonair, which it later took over) and now
has 21, but that is after disposing of a number
of older freighters in the past few years, some
of which it initially expected to operate along-
side its eight new 747-8Fs. It has two more
747-8Fs and eight 777Fs to come, but its
director of cargo Nick Rhodes admits to a
great deal of uncertainty about how big the
eet might be in future.
What is making carriers doubt the viability
of freighter operations? One factor is certainly
the state of the global economy. Thomas Crab-
tree, regional director of airline market analy-
sis for Boeing and one of the key people be-
hind its freighter forecast, compares the
current era to the 1929-1939 depression.
RECOVERY WORRIES
Then, he points out, it took two years until
1931 before cargo trafc began to fall, and in
the next three years, it saw a 25% fall, only
recovering to 1929 levels in 1939. Air cargo
today seems to be in a similar trough, with
negative growth in four of the last ve years,
although IATA is predicting a 1.4% recovery
in 2013 after a 1.5% decline in 2012 and a
0.6% fall in 2011.
The big question is whether everything will
go back to normal once the economy recovers,
with air cargo resuming the vigorous growth it
saw in the 1990s. Boeing essentially says that
it will, predicting 5.2% growth over the next
20 years in its 2012 forecast, although many
expect this years update to predict a reduc-
tion in that gure. Do the last 12 years reect
the next 20? We dont think so, says Crabtree.
We expect the end of this year to see a slight
recovery low single digits and then to see a
return to trend, or above-trend, growth.
PUT IT IN
THE BELLY
fightglobal.com
MARKET
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
33

At Cathay, Rhodes also says the rise in
belly capacity is making the carrier think
very carefully about how many freighters it
should have. I should stress that as a carrier
based in the heart of Asia, we will always
need a freighter eet to y to destinations
where passenger aircraft dont y and to lift
the specialist cargo that doesnt work below
deck. But the question remains how many
freighters do we need and of what type?
Wraight identies China as one market that
will continue to need freighters. But he sees
belly capacity already eroding the key trans-
pacic market, and feels that as much as 80%
of cargo that is currently carried by freighters
could y in passenger bellies. With 2,300
passenger planes on their way, carriers had
better start to rethink their strategies, he says.
Is the fear about belly cargo overstated,
however? At Boeing, Crabtree has a chart
which shows that the percentage of air cargo
carried on freighters has remained more or
less constant at 60% (a gure which includes
the volumes of the big four express operators).
It was 56.9% in 2000 and actually rose to
60.2% in 2003, declined to 58% in 2009, and
recovered to 59.4% in 2011. Boeings forecast
is for 60.9% in 2016 and 60.2% in 2021.
In other words, the shift to belly capacity is
barely perceptible. How is this possible
when Boeing is delivering cargo-capable
777-300ERs? Because shippers still by and
large prefer freighter capacity where their
needs are not subordinated to the passenger
business, Crabtree says. In difcult times
like these it is easy to say that freighters are in
retreat, but in fact it is not true.
He admits that it got the overall gures in
its 2000 freighter forecast wrong, but interest-
ingly one key component was fairly accurate.
This was the forecast that widebody freighters
those over 40t payload would rise to 999
freighters by the close of 2009. The actual g-
ure was 926, which is not a huge shortfall.
Why then, was the overall gure so wrong?
The answer lies in narrowbody freighters, of
which Boeing predicted 1,100 would be in
service by 2009, while the actual gure was
650. What we missed here was the rise in
fuel prices, which forced express operators to
drive unit costs down. There was a big diver-
sion to trucking in North America and Europe
as a result of that, Crabtree says.
If the number of widebody freighters has
risen since 2000, but major airlines have been
reducing their eets, where have the new
freighters gone? Crabtree has a big list of carri-
ers, including China Southern, China Cargo
Airlines, as well as secondary Chinese carri-
ers such as Yangtze River Express, which did
not exist in 2000. Russian cargo operator Air-
BridgeCargo is also new since 2000, as are
Qatar Airways and Etihad. The latter has six
freighters already and will add three this year.
it will be hard for freighters to earn the income
they need to sustain operations, Wraight says.
Air France-KLM-Martinair Cargo certainly
came to that conclusion some years ago.
Catherine Colbus, its senior vice-president of
revenue management, market and network,
praises the 777-300ER for which Air France
was effectively the launch customer.
It can carry an impressive amount of cargo
on very long distance ights, for example car-
rying 25t on top of more than 300 passengers
from Paris to Tokyo, she says. Every time
you replace a 747 with a 777-300ER, you dou-
ble the cargo payload.
BELLY EROSION
She adds that the average load factors of
passenger bellyholds is less than 50%, leav-
ing signicant potential for further
development: Our conclusion at Air France-
KLM-Martinair Cargo is that our motto should
be bellies rst.
What if growth does not come back so
strongly? Or what if a structural change is un-
derway in the air cargo business? Air cargo ex-
ecutives worry about various nightmare sce-
narios: that companies are changing the way
they ship goods to make more use of sea
freight; or that the traditional strong Asian peak
from September to November a key time for
freighter operators to make money is a thing
of the past. But the biggest concern is about the
rise of belly capacity, which is seen as squeez-
ing freighters out of more and more markets.
The concern here is that while the cargo
business has been moribund, the passenger
business has continued to grow, particularly
for long-haul widebody aircraft which are
friendly to belly cargo. Wraight calculates that
there are 2,300 such widebodies on the order-
books, equivalent to 450 777Fs.
The great thing about belly capacity is that
its costs are largely and in some carriers al-
most entirely paid for by the passenger side
of the business, with cargo only having to
carry extra fuel, sales and handling costs.
Wraight reckons that protability is be-
tween 30% and 60%, while consultancy
Seabury Group has put it at as much as
65%.The more reality settles in with airline
chief executives of the tremendous earning po-
tential beneath their passenger eet, the more
Boeings 777F freighter can
transport a payload of 103t
The upside in the freighter
business is not that big, but
the downside is very big
LARRY COYNE
Chief executive, Coyne Airways
Organised by: Sponsored by:
Supported by:
Exhibitors:
Join us for the only established safety focused event for airlines and
suppliers in the European marketplace!
Visit www.ightglobalevents.com/fsafety14 and enter promo code
FS2705 to book your place and save up to 200
16
th
and 17
th
September 2014, London, UK
Conrmed speakers include:
Limited exhibition stands are available in 2014!
Contact Stacey Ludlow, Sponsorship Sales Executive on
+44 (0)20 8652 3492 or email her at stacey.ludlow@rbi.co.uk
to avoid disappointment.
TIM STEEDS
Director of Safety and
Security
British Airways
MARTIN TIMMONS
Deputy Director Safety
and Security
Ryanair
DAVE PRIOR
Director of Safety and
Security
easyJet
SIMON GRACE
Safety & Quality Manager -
Aviation Support
ybe
PASCAL KREMER
Airline Safety Manager
Luxair
DIRCH HANSEN
Senior Training Captain
Scandinavian Airlines
DAVID MORGAN
Chief Pilot
Wizz Air
FRANK LAWLESS
Chief Pilot/Director of
Flight Operations
Aer Lingus
DAVID LEARMOUNT
Operations and Safety
Editor
Flightglobal
PERE FABREGAS
Safety Manager
Vueling
MICHEL GOROG
Safety and Compliance
Compliance MD
Air France
PETER MEILBY
Director of Flight
Operations
Thomas Cook
HCTOR DAVID
HIDALGO MEDELLIN
Safety Management
Systems Manager
Avianca
g
2014
Book on or before 8th June
2014 to save up to 200
Quote FS2705 to secure
your place today
SUPER EARLY BIRD
8
JUNE
Flight Safety
AQD
SafetyandRiskManagement Solution
TM
fightglobal.com
MARKET
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
35
For assessment of the difference in proftability
of freighter and belly cargo operations visit
ightglobal.com/cargomkt
As Chris Seymour, head of market analysis
at Flightglobals Ascend advisory service, ob-
serves, passenger aircraft with bellyhold ca-
pacity y routes where passengers want to y
which do not always match cargo needs. So,
although the major trade lanes between the
major hubs and now belly-dominated, it is
emerging markets where there is more oppor-
tunity for main deck freighters. For example,
he cites the growth of cargo from secondary
Chinese cities as a driver of main deck freight-
er links to Europe and the Middle East:
There is not yet enough passenger demand
to justify direct passenger routes.
NEW CHALLENGERS
Meanwhile Saudia has steadily boosted its
widebody freighter eet from two aircraft in
1998 to 12 today, with two 747-8Fs due to
join the eet this summer, and carriers such
as Ethiopian Airlines, Turkish Airlines and
LAN Cargo have become major all-cargo
players in their regions.
There is another category of long-haul
freighter operators which are often forgotten
by the conventional air cargo industry but
have had a big impact. FedEx, UPS and DHL
have all put in place signicant long-haul
freighter networks in the last few years
FedEx, for example, now has 23 777Fs, while
DHL is estimated to have 29 long-haul
freighters ying.
Nearly all of this capacity has been added
since 2005, and although its primary purpose
is to move express items, in practice about
40% of it is lled with general cargo. This is
for the simple reason that an express operator
must have capacity available for any
shipments that turn up on the day, so
traditional cargo will always be a key buffer to
enable the freighters to y full.
It may be, then, that growth in freighter
eets has simply shifted from traditional
airlines to new challengers, and with fuel
prices set to stay high, that trend can only
continue. That is because fuel costs have
eliminated older, inefcient freighters hit-
ting the freighter conversion market hard
and forced carriers to choose between mak-
ing a big capital investment in new freighters
or exiting the business.
In strong manufacturing economies like
China, Germany or Turkey, or for carriers
with geographical advantages like those in the
Middle East, that investment may still make
sense. Likewise for big express operators,
which are earning high yields built on
premium service.
But for other carriers, given the attractions
of belly capacity, it could be a lot harder to
make the gures stack up.
Q
a
t
a
r

c
a
r
g
o
,
E
t
ih
a
d
,
A
ir
F
r
a
n
c
e
Qatar Airways A330-200Fs are provided on lease from BOC Aviation; Etihad operates
three of the type, with one on order. Air France was the launch customer for the 777F
fightglobal.com
CARGO
36
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
IAN PUTZGER TORONTO
While narrowbody airliners continue to be transformed to cargo transports, the market
for widebody freighter conversions has virtually dried up. Why the great difference?
UNCONVERTIBLE
D
epending on which end of the mar-
ket you are looking at, the freighter
conversion sector is going full throt-
tle or resembling a graveyard. While
Aeronautical Engineers (AEI) is straining to
meet its backlog of Boeing 737 and MD-80
conversion orders and is preparing for the
next types to come into the picture, the large
freighter segment is hardly moving at all.
We do not see a 747 conversion or any
large freighter conversion this year or next
year, and there is a question mark over 2016,
says Dan da Silva, vice-president of modica-
tion and conversion services at Boeing.
The company completed what was likely
the nal conversion of an MD-11 into all-car-
go conguration last autumn and currently
has no backlogs for large freighters. Airbus
never embraced a conversion programme for
its A340, but there is a concept for a low-cost
freighter version that would use internal lifts
to move cargo between decks to avoid the cost
of installing a cargo door.
However, two years of marketing effort
have not yielded a single order to date for the
A340LCF, which would be able to haul 60t of
cargo over distances exceeding 5,000nm
(9,260km).
Data from Flightglobals Ascend advisory
service tells the story. During 2013 the num-
ber of 747-400Fs parked in storage jumped
from 18 to 42; for MD-11s, the number stored
grew from 11 to 20. Between 2012 and 2013,
the number of widebody conversions
slumped from 29 to just eight; as Ascends
head of analysis Chris Seymour observes, the
747-400 conversions have effectively gone,
leaving just the 767 and Airbus A300 at
low levels.
In such an environment, there is naturally
no call for conversions in the bracket above
60t. On the major trunk routes where these
planes usually are deployed, available
capacity easily outstrips demand. A major
factor in this has been the rise of widebody
bellyhold capacity, notably in Boeing 777-
300s and 787s. Air cargo executives frequent-
ly refer to the 777-300ER as a mini freighter, as
it can carry up to 40t of cargo.
UNDER PRESSURE
Despite efforts of freighter airlines to curtail
capacity often by replacing older freighters
with newer types rather than expanding their
eet maindeck lift has also increased, due to
the higher payload of newer models (for
example, 140t versus 110t where a 747-8F
replaces a 747-400F).
As a result, yields are under huge pressure,
and passenger airlines can offer very aggres-
sive prices on bellyhold freight, as their prime
costs are covered by the passenger business.
Hit by high fuel prices, over the past year
several 747 freighter operators ceased opera-
tions, including Evergreen International Avia-
tion, World Airways and Air Cargo Germany.
On the long-haul sectors, this tilts the bal-
ance in favour of more fuel-efcient models.
When you y 16 hours a day, the cost of oper-
ating overshadows the cost of ownership,
says da Silva, adding that Boeing has kept
shifting its projections for new and converted
freighter additions to the global eet in its 20-
year forecast over the past three years in favour
of new aircraft. Boeing, he says, believes there
will be demand for 100t freighters over the
next decade, including conversions: Not eve-
rybody will be able to afford a new freighter.
For 747 conversions to resume, the pool of
sidelined capacity rst has to be absorbed.
But in the meantime, more 747-400Fs are
going to come out of service. Several carriers,
including Cathay Pacic, Air France and Eva
Air, plan to phase out their 747 contingents
and freighter operators continue to shed
747-400Fs as they receive 747-8Fs. Under-
scoring the challenges facing the conversion
market, Ascends Seymour notes that Boeing
fightglobal.com
PROGRAMMES
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
37
B
o
e
in
g
For more analysis of the proftability of the
bellyhold and freight markets visit
ightglobal.com/cargoloads
the traditional trunk sectors to emerging econo-
mies, favouring mid-sized cargo planes carry-
ing between 30t and 80t. Its own contender in
this space, the A330-200F, is scheduled to get a
conversion equivalent by 2017 but, says
Seymour, it has no customers yet. The manu-
facturer ofcially launched the programme in
2012 for a plane that can carry 60t up to
3,600nm or 59t over ranges up to 4,000nm.
At the instigation of a customer, Boeing has
a blueprint for a 777 conversion programme,
but da Silva does not expect this to get under
way in the near future, given the high residual
value of 777-200s in passenger service. At the
same time, though, the launch of a 777 pas-
senger to freighter conversion keeps being
put back, says Seymour.
NARROWING OPTIONS
In stark contrast to the large widebody scene,
there is plenty of activity in the narrowbody
segment, particularly with 737-400 conver-
sions. We cannot turn them out fast enough,
says Bob Convey, vice-president of sales and
marketing at AEI.
In addition to the 737-400, the company also
has MD-80 conversions going on. The acquisi-
tion cost of less than $1 million for an aircraft
makes this a cheap option with similar pay-
load capabilities to the 737-400 and the Boeing
727F. While it may have strong appeal, particu-
larly for 727 operators looking for a new model
as 727 maintenance programmes are winding
down slowly but surely, there is one stumbling
block. Its cross section does not match with the
narrowbodies used by the integrators, so none
of them has embraced the MD-80SF.
I think we will do half a dozen conver-
sions a year. If we can do 30 to 50, I think well
be doing good, Convey says.
He is extremely bullish on AEIs next ven-
ture, the 737-800SF. The programme for a
737NG conversion was unveiled by the com-
pany at the beginning of April. This will
produce a freighter with 12 pallet positions
one more than AEIs 737-400SF and a cross
section in line with the integrators.
In addition, Convey anticipates strong
demand for the model in markets like China,
Russia or Brazil, where rapidly rising domes-
tic express trafc on the back of growing e-
commerce is fuelling demand for freighters.
The same dynamics are fuelling growing
interest in converted 757-200 freighters,
according to Brian McCarthy, vice-president
of sales and marketing at Precision Aircraft
Solutions. This was highlighted last year,
when Air China historically a 747 operator
in the freighter arena ordered four convert-
ed 757-200s. The airline ies these on an
ACMI basis for the Chinese postal service
hauling express parcels on major routes to
and from China Posts hub in Nanjing.
According to Titus Diu, chief operating ofc-
er of Air China Cargo, this has been the only
segment where the carrier has seen strong
growth in recent years.
McCarthy sees the requisite factors for a
successful 757 programme align, with de-
mand rising at a time where feedstock be-
comes available at viable prices, supported by
affordable prices for engines and spares.
The demand curve for 737s and 757s ex-
tends to the 767, da Silva reckons. After a
three-year hiatus, Boeing has been back to
converting 767-300s since last autumn. With
more 767-300s becoming available as passen-
ger airlines phase in 787s, he anticipates a
good balance between demand and feedstock
in the years ahead.
Ultimately, the situation for dedicated
freighter operators is well summarised by the
background market environment. Ascend
head of consultancy Rob Morris notes that in
2013, Ascends Fleet Forecast predicted an-
nual freight trafc growth of 4.2% over the
next 20 years.
Morris thinks that may be achievable
IATA gures show rst quarter 2014 growth
of 4.4% but while some semblance of
recovery is underway, main deck cargo
demand remains weak. He also notes that
much of that 4.4% growth if it is achieved
will go to the bellyholds of the growing
number of twin-aisle passenger aircraft, not
to main deck freighters. Overall, he says,
the cargo market is not a happy place to be
right now.
is having to take 747-400BCFs in trade to sell
new freighters to Cathay and Air China.
As in passenger aircraft, however, fuel
efciency is driving eet choices, and four-
engine aircraft are being pushed out for mod-
els like the 777-200. Wet lessor Air Atlanta
expects a few more years of good business
with the 747 but ultimately, says vice-presi-
dent Baldvin Hermannsson: Twin-engine is
denitely where we are going.
Airbus has made a strong case for twin-
engined freighters, arguing that intra-regional
ows are on the rise as more trafc shifts from
Boeings third-generation 747-8F is replacing 747-400Fs in the eets of several major carriers
The 777-300ER
offers up to 40t of
bellyhold capacity
fightglobal.com
named the Falcon 20, entered service in 1965.
In the intervening years, the French airframer
has introduced seven new aircraft and 14 de-
rivatives, including its rst tri-engined jet, the
Falcon 50, in 1976. Production of the super-
midsize aircraft then called the 50EX fol-
lowing a re-engining effort ceased in 2008.
The 1980s marked the introduction of the
Falcon 900 trijet and twin-engined 2000 se-
ries. More than 1,000 variants of these aircraft
are ying worldwide, says Trappier.
Dassault waited until 2001 to make its
foray into the ultra-long-range market. The tri-
engined 7X entered service in 2007 and the
programme is now approaching its 250th de-
livery milestone.
The 7X has been a huge success for us,
says John Rosanvallon, president and chief
executive of Dassault Falcon Jet. But for
some of our customers its [5,950nm] range
and cabin length is not long enough.
Rosanvallon admits the company needed
to capture the move-up market to fend off
competition from rival aircraft such as the
Bombardier Global 6000, Gulfstream G550
and G650.
Dassaults answer is the 8X, says Rosan-
vallon, which offers 5,000nm more range
than the 7X.
This extra range, he argues, allows the 8X to
connect to more city pairs than its stable mate.
Rosanvallon explains: Flying at Mach 0.8
38
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
KATE SARSFIELD BORDEAUX
CUTAWAY TIM HALL
Dassault is pitching for a bigger share of the ultra-long-
range business aviation sector, with a longer-legged
and stretched version of its agship Falcon, the 7X
The 8X is earmarked for
service entry in 2016
With this extra range and
longer cabin, we expect
the 8X to be well-received
in China
JOHN ROSANVALLON
President and chief executive, Dassault Falcon Jet
DESIGN WEIGHTS
Maximum ramp weight 33,200kg
Maximum take-offweight 33,110kg
Maximum zero-fuel weight 18,600kg
Maximum landing weight 28.300kg
Maximum fuel weight 15,830kg
SOURCE: Dassault Aviation
T
his is a very busy time for Dassault. Less
than seven months after launching its
all-new, large-cabin Falcon 5X, the
French airframer has introduced a new
business jet to sit at the head of its family of
high-end, twin- and tri-engined business jets.
The 8X has the longest cabin and longest
range of any Falcon produced in the compa-
nys history spanning more than 50 years. Its
introduction strengthens the companys offer-
ing in the coveted ultra-long-range sector,
which has been largely unscathed by the
bruising nancial downturn thanks to the
continued demand for these types from the
worlds wealthy elite and global corporations.
Unlike the clean-sheet 5X, the 8X is an en-
hanced and stretched version of its former
agship Falcon, the 7X.
The 19-seat trijet was launched internally
three years ago under the project name
M1000. Dassault has kept the programme
tightly under wraps over this period, success-
fully diverting industry attention to its all-
new business jet, which it cloaked under the
titles SMS or Future Falcon.
This large cabin, long-range twinjet now
known as the 5X was nally launched in
October 2013 as Dassaults widest-cabin offer-
ing. This was the rst time we have had such
an overwhelmingly positive reaction to our
aircraft after an ofcial launch, says Dassault
chairman and chief executive Eric Trappier.
TO NEW HORIZONS
Dassault will be hoping the new 8X will be
as well received following its launch on 19
May. Im sure the market is going to be en-
thusiastic, says Trappier. This aircraft
builds on Dassault expertise in aerodynamics,
in precision design and manufacturing, and
in advanced digital ight controls. It embod-
ies the best of Falcons that have come before
with the most capability of any Falcon ever.
The 8X and 5X are being developed in par-
allel, marking what Trappier calls an unprec-
edented nancial investment [in Falcon jets]
for Dassault.
The company now boasts a family of six
business jets designed, Trappier says, to meet
the widest possible range of operator needs at
the upper end of the business jet spectrum.
LENGTHY HISTORY
The Falcon line-up spans the 3,350nm
(6,200km)-range super-midsize 2000S Das-
saults entry-level offering to the latest ag-
ship 8X, with a 6,450nm range.
Trappier points out that 2,000 Falcons have
been delivered since the companys rst busi-
ness jet, born as the Mystre 20 and later re-
D
a
s
s
a
u
lt

A
v
ia
t
io
n
fightglobal.com
FALCON 8X
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
39

Higher-thrust
Pratt & Whitney Canada
PW307D engines
Cabin length increased
by 1.1m
Additional
fuselage
section
Additional fuselage section
Landing gear
reinforcement
New wing structural design
and profile optimisation
New winglets
Increased fuel tank capacity
SOURCE: Dassault Aviation
KEY STRUCTURAL CHANGES COMPARED WITH 7X
Cabin length (m)
Range (nm)
14
12
10
8
6
3,000
Falcon 2000S Falcon 2000LXS
Falcon 900LX
Falcon 5X Falcon 7X
Falcon 8X
6,450 nm
4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000
SOURCE: Dassault Aviation
THE FALCON FAMILY
with eight passengers and three crew, the 8X
can y non-stop from Paris to Singapore,
Lagos to Chicago, Mumbai to Sydney and
Moscow to Los Angeles and importantly, Bei-
jing-Los Angeles and Hong Kong to London.
This will appeal to the Chinese market. The
7X has the capacity to y from London to
Hong Kong, but not the other way around
because of the headwinds, he says.
China has become a crucial region for Das-
sault in recent years. Here, Falcon jets account
for around 30% of the regions business jet
eet. The desire for long-range aircraft, main-
ly from Chinese entrepreneurs, has resulted
in deliveries of 30 7Xs in the past three years
alone, including 11 of the tri-engined types in
2013. With this extra range and longer cabin,
we expect the 8X to be well-received in
China, Rosanvallon says.
To give the 8X this vital extra range, Das-
sault has introduced a number of renements
and enhancements to the aircrafts design.
CAPACITY BOOST
These include an extra fuel tank within the cen-
tre fuselage section, which enables the 8X to
carry up to 15,800kg (34,900lb) fuel compared
with 14,500kg carried by the 7X. The 8X will
also feature a redesigned ultra-efcient wing de-
rived from the Falcon 7X. The wing structure
has been redesigned to minimise the overall air-
craft drag during cruise while achieving 600lb
weight saving, says Olivier Villa, senior vice
president, civil aircraft. It will also feature an
optimised leading edge prole and winglets.
These improvements are expected to increase
signicantly the lift to drag ratio.
The 8X will be equipped with three Pratt &
Whitney Canada PW307D engines, each de-
livering 6,720lb (30kN) of thrust a 5% in-
crease compared to the PW307As that power
the Falcon 7X. These engines will offer a new
full authority digital engine control system, as
well as a signicant reduction in fuel con-
sumption, noise and nitrogen oxide emis-
sions, says Dassault.
You can now read Flight International
wherever you are on your tablet, via your
desktop or in print
Subscribe to Tablet for all the great content you
enjoy in print, and:
Download your weekly copy on Saturday
Enjoy In-app videos
More photos
Links to related content on ightglobal.com
Subscribe to Tablet, Digital or Print today at
www.ightsubs.com/1607
Theres something NEW
about Flight International
(Overseas) +44 1444 445454 (UK) 0845 077 7733
ightinternational.subs@quadrantsubs.com
fightglobal.com
FALCON 8X
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
41
26ft 1in
7.94m
80ft 3in
24.46m
8
6
f
t

3
i
n
2
6
.
2
9
m
14ft
4.27m
EXTERNAL DIMENSIONS
The 8X has an anticipated balanced
eld length of about 1,830m (6,000ft), an ap-
proach speed of about 107kt (200km/h) at
typical landing weight and an ability to
make approaches at up to 6. The 8X is in-
credibly versatile, says Villa. Like the 7X,
it will operate many of the worlds most chal-
lenging airports, including London City,
Aspen, La Mole-Saint Tropez and Saannen,
which are normally not accessible to most
large-cabin aircraft, he adds.
Following in the footsteps of its smaller sib-
ling, the 8X will be capable of ying non-stop
from London City which has a 5 steep ap-
proach to New York, says Dassault.
COCKPIT AND CABIN FEATURES
The 8X will be equipped with a totally rede-
signed cockpit modelled on that of the 5X. It
will feature a new iteration of the EASy ight-
deck, based on Honeywell Primus Epic avion-
ics with Honeywell ight management sys-
tems. Another facet of the cockpit is the
head-up display technology, provided by
Elbit Systems, combining an enhanced and
synthetic vision (EVS/SVS) to offer improved
situational awareness in darkness, fog or
dense haze. EVS uses infrared sensors to dis-
play terrain in darkness and reduced visibili-
ty. SVS uses a global terrain database for the
same purpose. In the 8X, they will be com-
bined on the head-up display to provide a
high-delity view of the outside world, even
in zero visibility.
The 8X has the same cabin cross-section
as the 7X, but is around 1.1m longer bringing
the total cabin length to 13m. This extra
space has allowed us to offer three oor
plans for our customers, offering up to 30 dif-
ferent interior congurations [including
three lounges], says Villa. The short entry-
way layout is the same as for the 7X but the
cabin will be 15% longer.
The middle entryway conguration offers a
25% bigger galley and a 7% larger passenger
cabin, Dassault says, while the large entryway
layout is equipped with a comfortable and
convertible crew rest area. To accommodate
this entrance layout, the cabin length will be
the same as that of the 7X.
This arrangement, Dassault suggests, is
likely to appeal to commercial operators that
travel long distances and have to adhere to
strict ight time regulations for their crews.
The 8X also has a shower option. This is a
big constraint in the 7X, Dassault says, be-
cause of a shortage of cabin space. Well offer
innite possibilities for 8X cabin congura-
tions, it adds.
The 8X cabin also features up to 33 windows,
depending on the conguration, compared with
a maximum of 29 windows on the 7X.
Dassault is planning to build two aircraft
for the certication campaign. The rst 8X is
already at an advanced stage of production,
it says.
The fully assembled and pressure-tested
fuselage and wings manufactured at Das-
saults Biarritz and Martignas-sur-Jalle facili-
ties respectively will be shipped in the third
quarter to the companys Merignac nal as-
sembly plant in Bordeaux. Its rst ight is
planned for early 2015, leading to certication
in the rst quarter of 2016 and service entry
later that year.
The test aircraft are likely to be used as
demonstrators and could be sold to customers
at a later date.
Dassault is poised to expand its US com-
pletions facility in Little Rock, Arkansas, to
accommodate the 8X and 5X.
The 8X will be produced and sold in paral-
lel with the 7X and Dassault expects to manu-
facture around three aircraft a month initially.
MARKET DEMAND
The 8X will be priced at around $57 million
10% more than the 7X. Dassault expects the
bulk of the demand will come from existing
7X customers seeking to move up to a larger,
longer-range aircraft or to trade-in their older
Falcons.
Given the relatively small price differential
between its two top-end products, is there is a
danger that the 8X will cannibalise the 7X
market? We will have to wait and see what
the market decides, says Rosanvallon.
There will always be customers who dont
need the extra range and longer cabin and
wont want to pay 10% more for the 8X. Only
time will tell.
FAMILY PLANNING
Meanwhile, Dassault says it is continuing to
evaluate the market for the ultra-long-range
derivative of the 5X to compete against the in-
development Global 7000 and 8000 and the
G650. We havent found a business case for
an aircraft of this size yet, Rosanvallon says.
A key concern for Dassault is the operating
restrictions that a larger business jet will im-
pose. A bigger aircraft requires bigger wings
and this could limit its access to popular air-
ports such as St Tropez, it argues.
Dassault is in no hurry to make a decision.
Rosanvallon points to the development time-
scales of its previous new aircraft pro-
grammes to indicate a possible launch date.
The 7X entered service in 2007 and the 8X
was launched seven years later with entry in
service scheduled for 2016, he says. EIS of
the 5X is also scheduled for 2016, so dont ex-
pect a derivative to enter the market until nine
years later.
Cutaway P42
The 8X is incredibly versatile.
Like the 7X, it will operate
many of the worlds most
challenging airports
OLIVIER VILLA
Senior vice president, civil aircraft,
Dassault Aviation

fightglobal.com 42
|
Flight International
|
27 May-2 June 2014
FALCON 8X
This page should hold a cutaway poster of the
Dassault Falcon 8X. If yours is missing or
damaged please contact:
Dawn Hartwell
Quadrant House, The Quadrant,
Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8652 3315
Fax: +44 (0) 20 8652 3840
dawn.hartwell@ightglobal.com
FLIGHT
INTERNATIONAL
READER SERVICES
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
43 fightglobal.com
EDITORIAL, ADVERTISING, PRODUCTION & READER CONTACTS
Flight International welcomes unsolicited contributions
from readers but cannot guarantee to return
photographs, transparencies, etc safely.
and Database Rights 2014 Reed Business Information
Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior
permission in writing of the publishers.
Ascend, a Flightglobal
advisory service, is a leading
provider of expert advisory
and valuations services to
the global aviation industry. Its specialist, independent
services inform and shape the strategies of aviation
businesses worldwide. Ascend offers an unrivalled
breadth and depth of aviation expertise and experience,
backed by unique access to robust industry data.
www.ascendworldwide.com Tel: +44 20 8564 6700
email: consultancy@ascendworldwide.com
Flightglobal Pro is a paid-for news and data service for
professionals who need to fnd new opportunities or
track competition within the air transport industry. The
service puts a wealth of global intelligence at your
fngertips, covering everything from airline feets, routes
and traffc, through to aircraft fnance, industry
regulation and more. www.fightglobal.com/pro
Flightglobal Insight provides a range of tailored research
reports and analysis, with access to information and
industry expertise from the unrivalled Flightglobal Premium
services portfolio. www.fightglobal.com/insight
Tel: +44 20 8652 3914 email: insight@fightglobal.com
Registered at the Post Offce as a newspaper.
Published by Reed Business Information Ltd, Quadrant
House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS, UK.
Tel: +44 20 8652 3500.
Newstrade distributed by Marketforce (UK) Ltd, Blue Fin
Building, 110 Southwark Street, London SE1 0SU, UK.
Tel: +44 20 3148 3300.
Classifed advertising prepress by CCM.
Printed in Great Britain by Polestar (Colchester) Ltd.
Flight International published weekly 49 issues per year.
Periodicals postage paid at Rahway, NJ. Postmaster send
changes to Reed Business Information, c/o Mercury
International Ltd, 365 Blair Road, Avenel, NJ 07001
This periodical is sold subject to the following conditions:
namely that it is not, without the written consent of the
publishers frst given, lent, re-sold, hired out or in any
unauthorised cover by way of trade, or affxed to, or as
part of, any publication of advertising, literary or pictorial
matter whatsoever. No part of the content may be stored
electronically, or reproduced or transmitted in any form
without the written permission of the Publisher.
ISSN 0015-3710
EDITORIAL +44 20 8652 3842
Quadrant House, The Quadrant,
Sutton, Surrey, SM2 5AS, UK
ight.international@ightglobal.com
Editor Murdo Morrison FRAeS
+44 20 8652 4395 murdo.morrison@fightglobal.com
Head of Strategic Content/
Flight Daily News Editor Dominic Perry
+44 20 8652 3206 dominic.perry@fightglobal.com
Managing Editor/Defence Editor Craig Hoyle
+44 20 8652 3834 craig.hoyle@fightglobal.com
Business Editor Dan Thisdell
+44 20 8652 4491 dan.thisdell@fightglobal.com
Operations/Safety Editor David Learmount
+44 20 8652 3845 david.learmount@fightglobal.com
Business & General Aviation Editor Kate Sarsfeld
+44 20 8652 3885 kate.sarsfeld@fightglobal.com
Magazine Enquiries Dawn Hartwell
+44 20 8652 3315 dawn.hartwell@fightglobal.com
AIR TRANSPORT TEAM
Editor Airline Business Max Kingsley-Jones
+44 20 8652 3825
max.kingsley.jones@fightglobal.com
Editor Flightglobal Pro Graham Dunn
+44 20 8652 4995 graham.dunn@fightglobal.com
Managing Editor Niall OKeeffe
+44 20 8652 4007 niall.okeeffe@fightglobal.com
Air Transport Editor David Kaminski-Morrow
+44 20 8652 3909
david.kaminski-morrow@fightglobal.com
Air Transport/MRO Reporter Michael Gubisch
+44 20 8652 8747 michael.gubisch@fightglobal.com
Senior Reporter Oliver Clark
+44 20 8652 8534 oliver.clark@fightglobal.com
AMERICAS
Americas Managing Editor Stephen Trimble
+1 703 836 8052 stephen.trimble@fightglobal.com
Deputy Americas Editor Air Transport Ghim-Lay Yeo
+1 703 836 9474 ghimlay.yeo@fightglobal.com
Americas Air Transport Reporter Edward Russell
+1 703 836 1897 edward.russell@fightglobal.com
MRO and Air Transport Reporter Kristin Majcher
+1 703 836 8053 kristin.majcher@fightglobal.com
Reporter Jon Hemmerdinger
+1 703 836 3084 jon.hemmerdinger@fightglobal.com
ASIA/PACIFIC
Asia Editor Greg Waldron
+65 6780 4314 greg.waldron@fightglobal.com
Reporter Mavis Toh
+65 6780 4309 mavis.toh@fightglobal.com
Reporter Ellis Taylor
+65 6780 4307 ellis.taylor@fightglobal.com
Australia Correspondent Emma Kelly
EUROPE/MIDDLE EAST
Israel Correspondent Arie Egozi
Russia Correspondent Vladimir Karnozov
FLIGHTGLOBAL.COM
Editor Stuart Clarke
+44 20 8652 3835 stuart.clarke@fightglobal.com
Web co-ordinator Rebecca Springate
+44 20 8652 4641
rebecca.springate@fightglobal.com
EDITORIAL PRODUCTION
Head of Design & Production Alexis Rendell
Global Chief Copy Editor Lewis Harper
Chief Copy Editor, Europe Dan Bloch
Layout Copy Editors Andy Hemphill, Sophia
Huang, Tim Norman, George Norton
Global Production Editor Louise Murrell
Deputy Global Production Editor Rachel Kemp
Production Assistant Lizabeth Davis
Global Digital Producer Jerome Joyce
Deputy Digital Producer Damion Diplock
Digital Production Editor Colin Miller
Web Production Editor Andrew Costerton
Designer Lauren Mills
Technical Artist Tim Bicheno-Brown
Consulting Technical Artist Tim Hall
READER SERVICES
Subscriptions
Jenny Smith
Flight International
Subscriptions, Reed Business Information,
PO Box 302, Haywards Heath,
West Sussex, RH16 3DH, UK
Subscription Enquiries
+44 1444 475682
Fax +44 1444 445301
fightinternational.subs@quadrantsubs.com
Subscription Rates
1 Year 2 Years 3 Years
137/$219/ 232/$372/ 328/$525/
169 287 405
Only paid subscriptions available. Cheques
payable to Flight International
DISPLAY ADVERTISEMENT SALES
Quadrant House, The Quadrant,
Sutton, Surrey, SM2 5AS, UK
Group Display Sales Manager Stuart Burgess
stuart.burgess@fightglobal.com
Sales Support Gillian Cumming
+44 20 8652 8837 gillian.cumming@rbi.co.uk
EUROPE
Sales Manager Shawn Buck
+44 20 8652 4998 shawn.buck@fightglobal.com
Sales Manager Mark Hillier
+44 20 8652 8022 mark.hillier@fightglobal.com
Display Account Manager Grace Hewitt
+44 20 8652 3469 grace.hewitt@fightglobal.com
NORTH & SOUTH AMERICA
Vice-President, North & South America Rob Hancock
+1 703 836 7444 robert.hancock@fightglobal.com
Regional Sales Director Warren McEwan
+1 703 836 3719 warren.mcewan@fightglobal.com
Sales Executive Kaye Woody
+1 703 836 7445 kaye.woody@fightglobal.com
Reed Business Information, 333 N.Fairfax Street,
Suite 301, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA
ITALY
Sales Manager Riccardo Laureri
+39 (02) 236 2500 media@laureriassociates.it
Laureri Associates SRL, Via Vallazze 43,
20131 Milano, Italy
ISRAEL
Sales Executive Asa Talbar +972 77 562 1900
Fax: +972 77 562 1903 talbar@talbar.co.il
Talbar Media, 41 HaGivaa St, PO Box 3184, Givat
Ada 37808, Israel
ASIA/AUSTRALASIA
Sales Manager Michael Tang
+65 6780 4301 michael.tang@fightglobal.com
Fax: +65 6789 7575
1 Changi Business Park Crescent,
#06-01 Plaza 8 @ CBP, Singapore 486025
RUSSIA & CIS
Director Arkady Komarov
komarov@worldbusinessmedia.ru
Tel/Fax: +7 (495) 987 3800
World Business Media, Leningradsky Prospekt, 80,
Korpus G, Offce 807, Moscow 125190, Russia
CLASSIFIED & RECRUITMENT
Group Sales Manager Louise Rees
+44 20 8652 8425 louise.rees@rbi.co.uk
Sales Manager Sophie Wild
Sophie.wild@rbi.co.uk
Recruitment Sales Executive Katie Mann
+44 20 8652 4900
Recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk
Classifed Sales Executive Daniel Brooker
+44 20 8652 4897
Classifed.services@rbi.co.uk
Key Account Manager Asia Michael Tang
+65 6780 4301
ADVERTISEMENT PRODUCTION
Production Manager Sean Behan
+44 20 8652 8232 sean.behan@rbi.co.uk
Production Manager Classifed Alan Blagrove
+44 20 8652 4406 alan.blagrove@rbi.co.uk
MARKETING
Marketing Director Justine Gillen
+44 20 8652 8031
justine.gillen@fightglobal.com
DATA TEAM
Head of Data Pete Webber
+44 20 8564 6715
peter.webber@fightglobal.com
Commercial Aviation Steven Phipps
+44 20 8564 6797
steven.phipps@fightglobal.com
Defence & GA John Maloney
+44 20 8564 6704
john.maloney@fightglobal.com
PUBLISHING MANAGEMENT
Publishing Director Melanie Robson
Publisher Mark Pilling
For a full list of events see
ightglobal.com/events
EVENTS
24-26 June
Next Generation ISR
Arlington, Virginia, USA
hoodk@ttcus.com
25-26 June
Airline & Aerospace MRO &
Operations IT Conference - EMEA
London Heathrow, UK
aircraft-commerce.com
1-2 July
Ascend Finance Forum
London, UK
ascendconferences.com
11-13 July
Royal International Air Tattoo
RAF Fairford, UK
airtattoo.com
14-20 July
Farnborough air show
Farnborough, UK
farnborough.com
8-9 September
Ascend Aviation 2020 Finance Forum
Tokyo, Japan
ascendconferences.com
17-21 September
Africa Aerospace and Defence
Waterkloof, South Africa
aadexpo.co.za
25-26 September
Central Asian Business Aviation
Almaty, Kazakhstan
aeropodium.com/cp/caba
1-2 October
Aircraft eEnablement Connectivity &
IFE Conference (AEEC 2014)
London Heathrow, UK
aircraft-commerce.com
9-11 October
African Air Expo
Accra, Ghana
africanairexpo.com
14-16 October
Helitech International
Amsterdam, Netherlands
helitechevents.com
17-21 October
NBAA Business Aviation Convention
and Exhibition
Orlando, USA
nbaa.org
2-3 November
Offshore/Onshore Aviation
Armed Forces Offcers Club, Abu Dhabi
alison@accessgroup.aero
8-10 December
Middle East Business Aviation
Dubai, UAE
meba.aero
10-11 May 2015
Aviation Africa
Dubai, UAE
aviationafrica.aero
T
E
L
+
4
4

(
0
)

2
0

8
6
5
2

4
8
9
7


F
A
X
+
4
4

(
0
)

2
0

8
6
5
2

3
7
7
9


E
M
A
I
L
c
l
a
s
s
i
f
i
e
d
.
s
e
r
v
i
c
e
s
@
r
b
i
.
c
o
.
u
k
C
L
A
S
S
I
F
I
E
D
44| Flight International | 27 May - 2 June 2014 ightglobal.com
CLASSIFIED
TEL +44 (0) 20 8652 4897 FAX+44 (0) 20 8652 3779 EMAIL classified.services@rbi.co.uk
Calls may be monitored for training purposes
Independent Authorised Sales Representative for the United Kingdom
+44 (0) 1258 818181 tim@timleacockaircraft.com jonathan@timleacockaircraft.com timleacockaircraft.com
www. mt -propel l er. com
Airport Straubing-Wallmuehle, EDMS
94348 Atting / Germany
phone:+49-(0)9429-9409-0, fax: +49 (0)9429-8432
sales@mt-propeller.com
Development & Production
of high performance
composite constant
speed propellers and
[HGSLWFKSURSHOOHUV
Sales & Service for
products made by
McCauley,
Hartzell,
Sensenich,
Woodward,
*RRGULFK
Beech KingAir 90 Series
Dauphin AS.365
Parts Specialists
www. al pi ne. aer o
Tel: +41 52 345 3605
Aircraft spares
New and used aircraft
Equipment, maintenance and service
Courses and tuition
Courses and tuition
T
E
L
+
4
4

(
0
)

2
0

8
6
5
2

4
8
9
7


F
A
X
+
4
4

(
0
)

2
0

8
6
5
2

3
7
7
9


E
M
A
I
L
c
l
a
s
s
i
f
i
e
d
.
s
e
r
v
i
c
e
s
@
r
b
i
.
c
o
.
u
k
C
L
A
S
S
I
F
I
E
D
ightglobal.com 27 May - 2 June 2014 | Flight International | 45
AOG? THI NK ACS
T: +44(0)208 335 1097
E: acmi@aircharter.co.uk
W: www.aircharterservice.com
U Wet lease
U Damp lease
U Cargo charters
U Crew movements
LONDON BIGGIN HILL
CLOSE TO THE HEART OF LONDON
HANGARAGE AND
OFFICES AVAI LABLE
I N LONDON TODAY
For long and short term competitively
priced office space and hangarage
contact: Katy Woolcott
+44(0)1959 578500
estates@bigginhillairport.com
www.bigginhillairport.com
FTEJerez is pleased to announce a new MPL scheme leading to a position as a professional pilot with Europes
largest regional airline and longstanding airline partners, Flybe.
The MPL is an innovative training course that makes use of high level simulation, specifically designed to
produce a high quality airline professional. It has been designed to teach all of the key elements necessary to
successfully transition to a Flybe flight-deck.
FTEJerez and Flybe are looking for a maximum of six (6) high calibre and motivated individuals.
Successful candidates will receive a sponsorship of 23,760 from Flybe, repayable out of salary over the
first 5 years of employment.
For further information and to apply,
please visit
www.ftejerez.com
PARTIALLY SPONSORED AIRLINE PILOT SCHEME
Multi-Crew Pilots Licence (MPL)
May 2014
SE-ATO-003.
TYPE RATINGS INCLUDING AIRCRAFT TRAINING ON:
ATR 42/72-500, SAAB 2000,
SAAB 340, AVRO RJ and ATP.
New courses started continuously.For more information contact us
on info@braathenstraining.com or visit BraathensTraining.com
Business services
Courses and tuition
Hangarage
Business services
T
E
L
+
4
4

(
0
)

2
0

8
6
5
2

4
8
9
7


F
A
X
+
4
4

(
0
)

2
0

8
6
5
2

3
7
7
9


E
M
A
I
L
c
l
a
s
s
i
f
i
e
d
.
s
e
r
v
i
c
e
s
@
r
b
i
.
c
o
.
u
k
C
L
A
S
S
I
F
I
E
D
46| Flight International | 27 May - 2 June 2014 ightglobal.com
Ref: DACPM/151/2014/1247 Date: 19 May 2014
Request for Proposal (RFP)
1. Biman Bangladesh Airlines Limited is looking for CMI (Crew, Maintenance, Insurance) Partner
for operation of 02 (two) of its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft to USA. These aircraft have been
purchased with loan under the Guarantee of US EXIM Bank and Sovereign Guarantee of the
Government of Bangladesh.
2. The intended CMI Partner may submit their proposals/offers meeting the terms & conditions of
the RFP Schedule including the following:
a. Must be able to meet the requirements of US FAA and other US and Bangladesh regulatory
authorities.
b. Must hold a Category-1 AOC for passenger transportation as determined by the US FAA and
other US regulatory bodies.
c. Biman will initially operate two weekly services to New York via an intermediate point,
probably Birmingham, U.K. The aircraft deputed for New York operation, will also be operated
to European/Middle East points and other destinations of Biman for optimum utilization.
d. In the process of deregistration/re-registration, ownership of aircraft including any insurance
claim must remain with Biman.
e. The period of CMI operation will be for one year or two years to be decided at the option of
Biman.
f. CMI Partner must have experience in CMI/ACMI operation with any other airlines or
operators OR must be an international passenger airliner operating with 777-200/300 variant.
CMI Partner must clearly mention their experience in carrying out CMI/ACMI operation with
any other Airlines or Operators. If RFP respondent is not a current Boeing 777 operator, then
they must clearly indicate the process and time for arranging maintenance and crew.
g. The CMI Partner must mention the rate per Block Hour for cost of Crew, Maintenance &
Hull Insurance of Aircraft and also the full cost of CMI lease for one year and two years
separately.
3. Detail information are available in the RFP Schedule. RFP Notice and Schedule may be viewed
at Bimans website: www.biman-airlines.com.
4. Proposals/Offers are to be submitted to General Manager (Corporate Planning), Biman
Bangladesh Airlines Limited, Head Office, Balaka, Kurmitola, Dhaka-1229, Bangladesh latest by
1000 hours BST (0400 hours UTC) on 15 June 2014 through Courier Service or e-mail to
dacpm151@bdbiman.com. The Proposals/Offers may also be dropped in the Tender Box within
the stipulated time and date, to be placed in Planning Division. No Proposal/Offer will be accepted
after the closing time.
5. Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd reserves the right to accept or reject any or all
Proposal(s)/Offer(s) partly or wholly at any time and/or stage without assigning any reason,
whatsoever, and no claim will be entertained in this regard.
Md. Belayet Hossain
General Manager (Corporate Planning)
Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd
GLOBAL TENDER FOR WET LEASE-IN
OF VARIOUS AIRCRAFT
Offers are invited by the International Committee of the Red Cross
(ICRC) from established companies holding AOC for Wet Lease-in
of following aircraft types and locations.
Operations Area Aircraft Type
Afghanistan Beech 1900D
Iraq Beech 1900D
Somalia Beech 1900D & Beech King Air & Dash 8
Mali Beech 1900D
Congo DRC DHC 6-300 or LET 410 UVP-E20 & Dash 8
The successful companies will operate under the ICRC time
charter agreement, ICRC SOP, brand name "The International
Committee of the Red Cross" and with its call sign "RED CROSS".
The proposed aircraft are to be inducted effective July 2014.
Closing date for submissions:
Monday 02 June 2014 12:00 Geneva local time
The ICRC reserves the right to accept or reject any or all of the
offer(s) at any time and/or stage without assigning any reason
whatsoever. Offers from agents/brokers will not be entertained.
For more information and tender documents contact:
ICRC AirOps Unit
gva_log_airops@icrc.org
www.icrc.org
The leading specialist in
international transport finance
DVBs Aviation Asset Management
offers for immediate sale
5 x A330-300 (2013/2014 build)
For more information please send us
an email aircraftsales@dvbbank.com
www.dvbbank.com
Tenders
Build your career
Try Flightglobal Trainings new site for the fastest
route to building your aerospace and aviation career
Scan with your smart phone
to search the latest aerospace
and aviation training
Training courses to take you there
ZZZLJKWJOREDOFRPWUDLQLQJ
H
U
N
D
R
E
D
S

O
F

J
O
B
S

@
f
l
i
g
h
t
g
l
o
b
a
l
.
c
o
m
/
j
o
b
s


R
E
C
R
U
I
T
M
E
N
T
flightglobal.com/jobs
EMAIL recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk CALL +44 (20) 8652 4900 FAX +44 (20) 8652 4877
Getting careers off the ground
flightglobal.com 27 May - 2 June 2014 | Flight International | 47
/1 |||.| J||:-|.
You thrive in a challenging environment.
Youre committed to doing whatever it takes to deliver an exceptional service.
You want to make the most of your expertise.
You want to go to new places, explore new territory and discover new things about yourself.
You have previous Airbus experience.
Youre just the sort of pilot we need.
ROCK STARS WANTED!
We are looking for an experienced VIP/Executive
Charter Broker to join our unique band of music and
VIP charter specialists - based near London Gatwick.
Contact: julie.black@chapman-freeborn.com
www.chapman-freeborn.com/careers
H
U
N
D
R
E
D
S

O
F

J
O
B
S

@
f
l
i
g
h
t
g
l
o
b
a
l
.
c
o
m
/
j
o
b
s


R
E
C
R
U
I
T
M
E
N
T
48| Flight International | 27 May - 2 June 2014 flightglobal.com
There are always
new challenges
on the horizon
Airworthiness Surveyors
Circa 45,000 pa
Gatwick
For further information, please visit www.caacareers.com
If youre ready to depart from your
job, start with jobs.flightglobal.com
THE job site for the aviation and
aerospace industry.
Ready to depart
from your job?
Print Online Mobile
Your industry, your job site
50 | Flight International | 27 May-2 June 2014 ightglobal.com
www.ctcaviation.com/ctcflexicrew
CTC FlexiCrew
High flyers, on demand
Seeks Type Rated Pilots
Locations UK & Worldwide
Flexible & Permanent Positions
Email: recruitment@sigmaaviationservices.com
www.sigmaaviationservices.com
Tel: +353 1 669 8224
Fax: +353 1 669 8201
Email: recruitment@sigmaaviationservices.com
www.sigmaaviationservices.com
The preferred company for Stress (Fatigue & DT), GFEM,
Composites), Aeronautical Research. Business units:
Contract staff, Workpackages, Innovation and New
Concepts, Aeronautical Research. www.bishop-gmbh.com
Contact bishop.peter@bishop-gmbh.com
Tel 0049-(0)40-866-258-10 Fax 0049-(0)40-866-258-20
To advertise in this
Employment Services Index
call +44 (0) 20 8652 4900
fax +44 (0) 20 8261 8434
email recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk
Please note that calls may
be monitored for training purposes
Flight International
Recruitment Support
to the Aviation Industry
T: +44(0)1483 332000
recruitment@zenon.aero
aviation recruitment
!"" $%&'% ()** (*+( ,-./0./1234561789,:49-.;-6<
===;34561789,:;-6<
>4561789,:
>?9-@/,@34 A9563?/-9
B9536119,
One industry, one job site
Get express relief with
THE industry job site
at Jobs.Flightglobal.com
Recruitment
headache?
Print Online Mobile
youre in safe hands with us
Call: +44 (0)1524 381 544
Email: info@safehands.aero
www.safehands.aero
To advertise in this
Employment Services Index
call +44 (0) 20 8652 4900
fax +44 (0) 20 8261 8434
email recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk
Please note that calls may
be monitored for training purposes
Flight International
WORKING WEEK
fightglobal.com
E
m
b
r
a
e
r
Engineering evolution at Embraer
Ricardo Custodio Vidal is responsible for structures and materials at the Brazilian airframer. His team is
currently working on four aircraft programmes, a challenge he describes as a singular learning opportunity
Vidal: Being part of a committed and competent team is truly rewarding
WORK EXPERIENCE RICARDO CUSTODIO VIDAL
What was it that rst attracted
you to aviation?
My father was an aeronautics
engineer and professor at the
Aeronautics Technological Insti-
tute (ITA). When I was a child,
Sunday outings with the family
almost always included a stop at
the Board of Aerospace Science
and Technology (DCTA) airport,
where we could always get close
to the aircraft. At six years old, I
ew for the rst time and, as a
young man, I had an opportuni-
ty to learn how to pilot gliders. I
was always near aircraft and I al-
ways liked to be near them.
Where were you educated?
I have a civil engineering degree
from the Polytechnic School of
the University of So Paulo, and I
specialised in the area of aero-
nautical solid and structural me-
chanics at ITA.
What was your rst job in the
aviation sector?
My professional life began in
1990 at Embraer. I worked there
for seven years, in the area of
structural analysis. In 1997, I
moved to Canada to work at
Bombardier, where I stayed for
two years. Then I returned to
Brazil and to Embraer, where I
am today. At the end of 1999,
the project I was working on at
Bombardier was winding down
and I had begun to look for new
opportunities with other pro-
jects. That was when I received
an invitation to join Embraers
team to develop the E-Jets fami-
ly. The challenge was attractive
and I decided to return to Em-
braer, where I am still working.
What are your current duties?
Now, I work under the vice pres-
ident chief engineer, as the
engineering manager in charge
of the structures and materials
area. My group is responsible,
among other things, for the
supervision and technical
support of several groups in
structural and materials engi-
neering. We provide engineering
methods, processes and criteria,
and we approve or generate
solutions for complex problems,
while working on the evolution
of the technology, in order to
ensure the quality and competi-
tiveness of our products. It is
part of my work to do the
technical follow-up of new
projects and, at this time,
among several that are under
way, we have four large projects
that are simultaneously under
development: the superlight
Legacy 450 and midsize Legacy
500 executive jets; the E175
enhanced version; the KC-390
military transport; and the E190
E2, the rst member of the new
E-Jets family. Keeping track of
the developments of four pro-
jects of this magnitude, all of
which are taking place simulta-
neously, demands a lot of
dedication and an accelerated
work pace but, at the same time,
it has been a singular learning
opportunity.
What is your favourite part of
the job?
Developing new aeronautical
products along with competent
and committed teams is highly
gratifying, and I consider it to be
the best part of my job. Through-
out my professional life, I have
had the opportunity to take part
in the development of several
products and to do that alongside
highly competent people with an
uncontrollable desire to make
things work. I consider that to be
a privilege.
What is your least favourite
part of it?
Thats hard to say. I think the
difculty is in areas over which
we have no control and that
interferes with the progress of
our work. A good example of that
is the susceptibility of the
aeronautics market to economic
crises, worldwide, which end up
directly interfering with the
performance of companies in
this industry.
For more employee work
experiences, pay a visit to
ightglobal.com/workingweek
If you would like to feature in
Working Week, or you know
someone who does, email your
pitch to kate.sarseld@
ightglobal.com
27 May-2 June 2014
|
Flight International
|
51
Training courses to take you there
www.ightglobal.comJtraining
Try Flightglobal Training's new site for the fastest
route to building your aerospace and aviation career
Build your career
BREITLING. COM
WELCOME TO OUR WORLD
AVENGER GMT
At the heart of the most extreme missions are the exceptional pilots
who experience daring feats on a daily basis and are prepared to
entrust their security only to the most high-performing instruments.
At the heart of the most extreme missions is the Breitling Avenger.
A concentrated blend of power, precision and functionality, Avenger
models boast an ultra-sturdy construction and water resistance
ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 feet. These authentic instruments for
professionals are equipped with selfwinding movements chronometer-
certied by the COSC the highest ofcial benchmark in terms of
reliability and precision. Welcome to the sphere of extremes. Welcome
to the Breitling world.