In this presentation provided to the media in Spain during the Airbus Trade Media Briefing on June 8th and 9th, Eric Isorce, the head of A400M flight tests provides an overview of the test effort and results to date. As the plane has entered service, testing has continued to broaden the use envelope of this very flexible asset.
1. A400M Flight Tests status
Eric ISORCE
Head of A400M Flight Tests
9th June 2014
2. A400M: Flight Test Status on 29th May2014
Since the first flight
on 11th Dec 2009
• MSN 1 475 Flt 1448 h
• MSN 2 622 Flt 1651 h
• MSN 3 502 Flt 1386 h
• MSN 4 341 Flt 788 h
• MSN 6 338 Flt 1067 h
• MSN 7, 8 & 9 delivered 31 h
• MSN 10 & 11 under delivery
• MSN 12 FF done 12th May
1270 h / 540 Flt since last TMB13
Total A400M = 6 343 h / 2 278 Flt
3. Berlin ILA
Airshow
A400M FT Areas - Test sites
La Paz Bolivia –
Hot & High Z ops
Lima Peru –
Demo Tour
Subang Kuala
Lumpur Malaysia
– Hot & Humid
and RMAF visit
Cayenne Guyane –
Hot & Humid
Le Bourget
Airshow
Farnborough
Airshow
Kiruna Sweden
– Cold Weather
Cochabamba
Colombia – Hot &
Med Z ops
Halim Djakarta
Indonesia –
Demo Tour
Santiago Chile
Airshow
Izmir Ankara
Kayseri Turkey
TAF
Brize Norton
RAF visit
Santa Cruz
Bolivia
Sale Cape
Verde
Salvador de
Bahia Brazil
Chiang Mai & Don
Muang Thailand –
Demo Tour
A400M Flight Test areas
Iqaluit
Canada – Cold
Weather
Wunstorf GAF
visit
Keflavik
Island
Crosswind
Cottbus Germany
Grass runway tests
Riyadh demo to
Royal Saudi Arabia
AF
Abu Dhabi UAE AF
demo
Al Ain UAE Hot
weather tests
Muscat Oman
Hot
Ablitas
Spain
Gravel RWY
tests
Mexico –
Demo Tour
(wk20)
Norway
Svalbard–
Polar flight
Orleans FAF
visit
Acapulco Toluca
Veracruz Pemex
Santa Lucia
St Pierre &
Miquelon
Bermuda
Quebec
Boscombe
Down RAF
Combat Offload
demo
Kazakhstan
Astana KADEX
Eskisehir Kayseri
Turkey Airdrop
tests
4. Flight Test Achievements 2009 - 2012
Natural icingDemo to Customers 12.12Air drop operations 1:36 Air to air dry contacts 1:17 High altitude 05:15
aradroopers emergency evac. 1:00 Medical evac. Hot refuelling Ramp & door operations 2.Night vision operations 0:12 Formation flights 3:02
VMU tests 1:04 Airshow demo 2:00First flight 1.04 VMCG tests 2:12 Unprepared runways 3:00
High Energy 1:14 Structural tests over bumps 2:05 Cold weather 4.46 Cross Wind 00.37Water trough 1:22
5. Flight Test Achievements 2013
Operations on natural & gravel
runway
Ablitas in June13 with MSN2
Aircraft identification and signatu
at Manching on MSN6 ongoing
DASS - Radar Warning Receiver in Cazaux
and Background recording at Meppen
Defense AIDS System
Flares and Chaff Ejection, Sensors 500 flares
ejection over El Arenosillo test range
Military mission management system
Integral to most Military Systems & includes
Functions such as Mil Terrain Ground Collision
Avoidance – Tests on-going
Airdrop static lines done - Paratroops
May-July13 and Gravity Loads ongoing
September 13
Ground loading / unloading
Clearance of Multiple Loads
(including Helicopter loading)
Braking Max Energy MERTO in
LFBO Toulouse April13
Airshows at Le Bourget, RIAT
& DUBAI with MSN6
Combat Offload in Boscombe Down
in July 2013
Climatic Envelope Expansion in
Iqaluit Canada Jan13
AAR tanker Pod & HDU Structural,
Perfos & Hose Stability
6. Flight Test Achievements & Tests ongoing 2014
Unpaved RWY Operations on
Laterite & Sand runway
Oman and Djibouti candidate
Aircraft identification and signatu
at Manching on MSN2 Sept 201
DASS - Radar Warning Receiver in Cazaux
nd Background recording at Meppen & Wunstorf
May 2014
Defense AIDS System
EDS certification – Full flares Jettison over El
Arenosillo test range MSN2 March 2014
Airdrop RAS Wedge tests MSN4 March
2014
Airdrop Paratroops Live jump in
Fonsorbes MSN6 April 2014 Qualif tests
in Turkey June 2014
Air drop platforms and CDS by gravity MSN4
in August & October 2014
Airdrop Gravity Loads Cazaux &
Fonsorbes MSN4 May 2014
Airshows at ILA Berlin in June,
KADEX, RIAT & Farnborough July
MSN6
Airdrop RAS Wedge tests on MSN4
Fonsorbes March 2014
AAR as tanker with F18 behind
wet contact MSN4 June 2014
AAR as receiver behind A330 FSTA
wet contacts
7. A400M - Flight Test Achievements
7
Ait to Air Refuelling as a Tanker
• First clearance done (loads envelope expansion)
• Test stability phases started in July 2012
and completed in April 2013
ü 7 different pod nacelle strakes tested à tests
completed in April 2014
ü 2 different wing pods hoses length tested
Ø 80 & 91ft
ü Flight with F18 dry contact tests completed
ü Wet contact with F18 expected in June 2014
8. A400M - Flight Test Achievements
• Next phases à wet contact:
• Trials with Transall C160
completed in September 2013
• New testing campaign with
A330 FSTA in June 2014
Page 8
Air to Air Refuelling as Receiver
Video AAR C160
9. A400M : Flight Test Achievements
Military Systems
• Night vision goggles operation at low level conditions
down to 500ft (short runs down to 300ft)
Ø low level flight over France corridor by night in May 2013
• Enhanced Vision System certified end of 2012
• NVG & EVS certification tests completed
Ø in July 2013 in LLF
Ø in Nov13 for formation flight
• Military radar certification tests completed
Video EVS Video 2nd multi vision
10. • Infrared Sensors (MWS-PE) - Background recording campaign :
• Ride Along IR recording
• Dedicated flights for
• Afterburner recording (F4 Phantom)
• Flares ejection recording from Transall
• Low Level Flight over Germany for Industry, Airfield,
Urban, Rural recording
• Flares ejection recording from own aircraft
DASS Flares
Jettison Flight
Defensive Aids Sub-System
EDS certified & qualified in March 2014
• Flare ejection campaign #1 & #2:
• Ejection of flares from Nose Fuselage and Wing Fairing
for load assessment
• Safety barriers tests
• Flare ejection from aft Sponson and aft wing fairing
fuselage dispensers for trajectory assessment
• Opening of the domain (low speed, high speed, all conf)
• Flare ejection campaign #3 & #4 in Dec 2013:
• Ejection of multiple flares from Sponson and Wing Fairing
dispenser for trajectory validation
• More than 1000 flares ejected during these 5 test campaigns
Ø Partial Jettison done in June 2013
Ø Full flares Jettison in March 2014
A400M - Flight Test Achievements
Extract of DASS
Flares Jettison
11. A400M - Flight Test Achievements
• First campaign done in 2012 for unpaved
runways tests in Cottbus Germany on grass
runway low CBR
• A series of ground runs on the grass surface
including maximum-braked rejected take-offs
were performed
• Second test campaign in July 2013 in Ablitas
Spain on Soil Gravel surface medium CBR
• A series of 25 take-off & landing including RTOs
and U-Turn performed
• Certification tests completed in November
2013 for operations on unpaved runway for
SOC1 down to CBR11
Unpaved Runway operations
Video Ablitas
12. 52 flights - 500 passengers
A400M - Flight Test Achievements
Cargo Loading Offloading demo in UAE & RSAF in June July 2013
13. 52 flights - 500 passengers
A400M - Flight Test Achievements
Combat Offload Qualification tests done in Boscombe Down in July 2013
Combat Offload
14. A400M : Flight Test Achievements
• Air Drop phase in Zaragoza - January 2014
• HUP Stability (PTD & Ramp)
• HUP (PTD) & S/L (58) Recovery
• Dynamic Dispatch (PTD & Ramp ð RWS
Certification
• Air Drop phase in Fonsorbes - April 2014
• First Live Automatic Jump (PTD) with EPC
canopies (FR)
• 57 jumps
• Up to 7 jumps simultaneous
• HUPRA (UK) ð Qualified
• Roadmap
• Phase 1.2B-3.5 - Live Automatic Jumps (PTD)
with T10 canopies (SP & TU)
• Phase 4 - Final Dev & Qualif of paratroopers
jumping in auto through PTD (stick of 58) - Turkey
Airdrop Operations - Paratroops
Air Drop Cross Over
tests
Air Drop Paratroops
tests
Extract Air Drop
Paratroops tests
15. A400M : Flight Test Achievements
• RAS / Wedge - February / March 2014 - Fonsorbes
• 22 × CDS (48 × 48 & 48 × 96 inch) - 255 - 1000 Kg
• 4 × ATADP (88 × 108 inch) - 1 - 4 Tons
• 15 × Bundles (15 to 320kg, with rollers)
• Certification & Qualification
• Gravity Drop - May 2014 - Fonsorbes - Cazaux
• 12 pallets (ATADP) - manual release
• AFT - FWD positions
• Triple Release from FWD positions
• HQ Dev - Estimated NZ & AP, with Pitch Box
• Roadmap
• Phase 2.2 - Extraction
• Phase 2.3 - CARP
• Phase 2.4 - Mixed Cargo Hold
• Phase 2.5 - Gravity CDS (Loads & HQ)
• Phase 2.6 - HAAD
• Phase 2 - Pallets Combat Offload
Airdrop Operations – Loads and Paratroops
Air Drop Gravity
Loads tests
Air Drop RAS
Wedge tests
Extract of Air Drop
Gravity Loads tests