FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
2004
2004-09 - 2246.PDF
A400M: development & evolution BIRTH PAINS With seven nations committed to buying the A400M, the programme appears to have t shaken off the doubts that have dogged it GUY NORRIS / TOULOUSE The A400M is finally a real pro gramme, on schedule and on cost. That is the message from Adolfo Revuelta, head of the biggest multinational military aircraft development programme ever launched. With seven nations acting together, not only is the A400M the largest joint pro curement programme of its kind, but it is also the first military procurement contract on anything like this scale to be drafted on a commercial basis. Although only 16 months into a six- and-a-half year contract, a palpable sense of urgency pervades the Toulouse offices of the Airbus Military Company (AMC), which is developing the turboprop- powered airlifter. "We have had to move quickly because we have to fulfil our com mitments to our customers," says Revuelta, who adds: "In terms of schedule and relia bility this is one of the most ambitious mil itary procurements ever made." Part of the challenge is building credibil ity in a programme with which phrases such as "move quickly" are not readily associated. The airlifter effort is no stranger to adversity, having emerged into full-scale development after overcoming almost two decades of uncertainty and several "near- death" experiences. Another reason for urgency is that, despite the formation of AMC in 1999, Revuelta acknowledges that the real effort to get the A400M developed could not begin until the formal industrial launch on 31 May 2003. This came a few days after the seven European customers - Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Turkey, Luxembourg and the UK - signed for 180 aircraft. "We were never 100% sure it The A400M is heading for reality after a long gestation would happen before that, but since May 2003 the team has been put in place very quickly, and the resources have ramped up with the same speed." Perhaps surprisingly, the aircraft that will enter service in 2009 is not so different from initial concepts studied in the early 1980s. But although overall size, capacity, range and speed have remained steady, the tech nology to deliver this promised capacity and performance has advanced radically, an indirect benefit of the prolonged gestation. Cutting the risk From the technical perspective, the A400M is very much a 21st century aircraft, but without the inherent risks of a pioneering design. The 2003 start date enabled AMC to take advantage of the tried-and-tested tech nology of the A380, which begins flight tests early in 2005. Where the technology goes further, such as the first use of a pre dominantly composite primary wing struc ture, or in a different direction, such as the advanced turboprops, the programme is supported by a robust platform of tests modelled on the Airbus methodology. From a programme perspective, time has allowed AMC to not only clone itself around the organisation of the A380, but has also enabled it to operate under the basis of a totally commercial approach - something that would have been impossi ble under the original timescale. Time may also play into its hands from a marketing position. Geopolitically, the A400M is being prepared for a far different world to that of the 1980s. The European need for military self-sufficiency, particu larly in airlift, has been highlighted by a range of crises from Kosovo to Iraq. The www.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 9-15 NOVEMBER 2004 33
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
