When talking of aeronautics test centres in France, most think immediately of Istres, near Marseilles, which for many years has been the traditional home of flight testing for the country's fighter aircraft. Istres, however, is but one of 20 national aeronautics test centres and laboratories, employing 12,000 people, which have been the subject of re-organisation as part of the overall restructuring of the Délégation Générale pour L'Armament (DGA).
Previously operated under Ìve main directorates, covering the air force, navy, industry, research and environment, the sites have been regrouped under a single directorate, the Direction des Centres d'expertise et d'Essais (DCE), run by DGA engineer-general Michel Javelot. "The main reason for the restructuring was to provide a coherence that previously had been lacking, and to better optimise the functioning of the numerous DGA test establishments," he says. He adds that up to 10% of the cost of an armaments programme is accounted for by testing, and that cost reduction is therefore as important as it is for the programmes themselves. The aim, as for the DGA itself, is to achieve cuts of 30% across the board. Much of this can be carried out by eliminating duplication and by finding synergies among the various establishments.
The DCE research and test centres will now be operated under a more "horizontal" structure, so that ideas and expertise can be cross-linked throughout the system more easily. "This means that, for example, the laboratory of research into missile ballistics and aerodynamics at Vernon should find common ground with flight-test centres at Istres, Cazaux or Brétigny," says Javelot.
A major effort is also being mounted to diversify up to 15% of the DCE's activities, of which 90% is funded by the ministry of defence, into civil research. Its large climatic chamber at Bourges, for example, is unique in Europe, and, along with several other sites, is hoping to find applications in civil-vehicle development - possibly on a Europe-wide basis.
The DCE faces plenty of competition from Germany and the UK, however. The focus is on efficiency, and with programmes such as the Airbus A3XX around the corner, sites such as the Centre d'Essais Aeronautique de Toulouse will be campaigning for a significant slice of the work. It will have to do so on the basis of cost effectiveness, however, and like other centres, is being forced to cut its workforce to save money.
A further cost-cutting measure, however, is increased co-operation, rather than competition, with other European establishments - a solution being supported strongly by the European Commission, which wants to ensure that Europe pursues a more-unified answer to what it sees as the Government-supported system of research and development in the USA. There is already considerable co-operation among some centres, on specific programmes, but the aim, according to the DCE, is to see this expanded, "-to ensure that Europe can provide a permanent answer to the US challenge".
Source: Flight International