Swiss needs more-fuel-efficient aircraft than A340 to operate the Zurich-Singapore daily service. And the best candidate is the A350-1000.

Swiss International Airlines plans to go head-to-head with its Star Alliance partner Singapore Airlines on the Singapore-Zurich route to take advantage of burgeoning business traffic between the two cities.

The airline is returning to Singapore on May 2013 with a daily nonstop service from Zurich, says Arved von zur Muhlen, head of sales and marketing international. The carrier will operate an Airbus A340-300, but needs a more fuel-efficient aircraft longer-term, he adds. SIA operates a daily Airbus A380 service.

"The A340 is not the most fuel-efficient, but it's great for passengers. In future we will look at replacing the A340. Only two aircraft spring to mind-the Airbus A350-1000 and the Boeing 777-300ER," Muhlen says. "We expect in the course of next year, there will be a decision. It's a Swiss and Lufthansa board decision and it [the proposal] is laying on the table." Swiss is part of the Lufthansa group.

The Airbus A350-1000 would be appealing, Muhlen says, because Swiss believes it could fill a larger widebody on some of its routes, such as its flights to New York and Bangkok. He concedes, however, that the -1000 is still in development and that Swiss may be unwilling to wait. But he adds, "My personal opinion is that Swiss could get [second-hand] A340-600s as an interim solution," while the carrier waits for the A350-1000.

  

Based on article “Swiss Returns to Singapore Lured by Growing Business Travel” published in Aviation Daily

Key objective for 2013

Achieving first test flights by mid 2013 for the A350 XWB is the “key objective” for 2013, and Bregier called results from engine tests “promising.” The first A350 after construction is on track for ground testing of mechanical, electrical and avionics systems, he said.

Based on article "Airbus Set to Beat Targets as CEO Cautions on Challenges Ahead" published in Bloomberg

Airbus CEO identifies 2 “risky” partners in the A350 XWB. Financial issues in the second one. (2)

Fabrice Brégier, Airbus President & CEO said last week in a meeting with media. "We are satisfied with the past stages but there is more risk of delay than to be in advance”. In that meeting, Brégier talked about three risk sharing partners; the first one, British Rolls Royce, in charge of the engine that is arriving the FAL in few weeks.

The goal is certification by the European aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and risk mitigation.

Airbus has identified another two suppliers (called RSP-risk sharing partners) that gives small signs of concerns.

Alestis Aerospace. Financial issues.

The case of Spanish Alestis Aerospace, which was placed under court administration in May/2012, is different. As same as what it did with the German supplier PFW -which produces precision aviation tubes-, Airbus is trying to enter the capital of Alestis. In principle, this operation will be temporary.

Alestis Aerospace is facing a cash crunch and from May this year it is operating from one bill to the next. Airbus has taken the control of the group as new CEO was former managing director of Airbus Military facility of Tablada (Sevilla). This is a more severe intervention called “transformation project” where “deeper levels of operational support are provided”, with financial support, if approved before Christmas.

Alestis is in charge of the belly fairing and the section 19.1 of the rear fuselage.

Alestis, as Spirit, has a workpackage in 787-9 and has delivered the HTP-Tips (a subassembly of metallic and composite parts) and strakelets (2 fairing in the HTP) to Boeing some weeks ago.

 

Based on the article “L'Airbus A350 proche de son envol“ published in La Tribune

Airbus CEO identifies 2 “risky” partners in the A350 XWB. Technical issues in the first one. (1)

Fabrice Brégier, Airbus President & CEO said last week in a meeting with media. "We are satisfied with the past stages but there is more risk of delay than to be in advance”. In that meeting, Brégier talked about three risk sharing partners; the first one, British Rolls Royce, in charge of the engine that is arriving the FAL in few weeks.

The goal is certification by the European aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and risk mitigation.

Airbus has identified another two suppliers (called RSP-risk sharing partners) that gives small signs of concerns.

Spirit Aerosystems. Technical issues.

The complex section 15 centre fuselage, produced by Spirit AeroSystems, is a critical component. Didier Evrard said some months ago "I can't say everything is fully bridged" regarding the production process.

Spirit AeroSystems Inc., the largest U.S. supplier for the A350 structure, is still working to produce parts more efficiently. CEO Jeff Turner said in a recent interview. “It’s not going as well as I’d like”. And last month, during the presentation of the Third Quarter 2012 Financial Results, he clearly stated: “While new airplane programs are always challenging, I am extremely disappointed in our management of the complexity on these programs”.

Spirit and Airbus had said they are cooperating to meet ambitious production targets for the aircraft and Airbus has sent its own teams to help Spirit in difficulty, after introducing a joint improvement program to seek “sustainable improved delivery performance”.

Meanwhile, Spirit AeroSystems is celebrating the completion of the 100th composite forward fuselage section for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Based on the article “L'Airbus A350 proche de son envol “ published in La Tribune

 

A350 XWB will have as standard the runway overrun protection system (ROPS) to avoid the most common type of airline accident.

ROPS represents a major contribution to increased safety, and will be fitted as standard to the A350 XWB. It will be also available as a retrofit to all Airbus aircraft.

This system will warn the pilots, during approach, of the risk of runway overrun. This is the most common type of airline accident, occasionally fatal but almost always damaging to the aircraft.

ROPS is an avionics solution that compares aircraft energy state and landing performance against the runway end throughout the short final approach to the aircraft’s eventual stop. It issues warnings to pilots on final approach, if the runway length from the projected touchdown spot is too short, aiding them in making the decision to go around. Once the aircraft has touched down, ROPS warns if heavier braking and reverse thrust are required to stop the aircraft within the confines of the runway.

ROPS provides the pilots, during approach, with a visual display of where the aircraft will stop on the selected runway in both dry and wet conditions if the aircraft carries out a standard stabilized approach at the correct speeds. If the runway is too short, the stop lines show beyond the end of the runway, and the pilots receive spoken and visual warnings.

This GPS-linked function is active in real time, so if the pilots approach to fast or too high, or land too far down a runway that originally showed as sufficiently long, the visual information about stopping positions is continually adjusted and warnings are activated if necessary.

click the image to watch a demo-video

The crew can call up an image of the desired runway layout on to the navigation display to designate the runway required (Toulouse Runway 14L, for example). The pilots then designate the runway by using their keyboard cursor control unit to place the magenta chevrons over the threshold of Runway 14L and click. Seconds later, the magenta crossbars across the runway show where the landing roll would come to a full stop if the runway were dry, and the second - further on - if it were wet. If the runway were too short the crossbars would be in the overrun.

When ROPS provides the stopping point designators early in the approach, it assumes you will fly a standard profile at standard reference speeds, crossing the threshold at 50ft (15m) and putting the aircraft down in the touchdown zone. But if the aircraft is high and fast on approach, the ROPS knows, and the stopping point designators move away down the runway.

 click the image to watch a demo-video

 While the safety enhancement aspect of ROPS cannot be overlooked, there is also a cost-saving implication.

The ROPS has been developed from the A380's "brake-to-vacate" (BTV) capability, whereas BTV itself will be optional on the A350 XWB. BTV is a programmable braking control system which, if set before landing, provides automatic braking to slow the aircraft evenly to enable the crew to turn off the runway at a chosen exit, potentially reducing runway occupancy time. BTV would be particularly useful when landing in marginal visibility.

 

Based on article “Airbus To Offer Runway Protection System for Its Aircraft” published in AINOnline

Brégier: “We are satisfied with the past stages but there is more risk of delay than to be in advance”

Airbus acknowledges the first flight of the A350 XWB by mid-2013 won’t be easy. Airbus is trying very hard, though: there’s a lot of pressure to have the airplane at the Paris Air Show.

Airbus's CEO Fabrice Brégier said the goal to hold the first flight for the A350 XWB in mid 2013 is "not easy, but reachable". Mr. Brégier said the MSN001 aircraft is on schedule -with engines´ blade off test passed last week- though the calendar is "tight".

 

"For the program, the important thing is to fly in good conditions. For the A350-team, flying at the Paris Air Show in mid-June is an important goal".

Therefore, Airbus CEO has set internally to its A350-team the goal of the Airshow. "I don't want to make the same roll-out than the Boeing 787", summed up. "It was completely disassemble after that marketing operation". Because the 787 has known many technological and technical difficulties between its roll-out (on 07/08/07) and its first flight 2,5 years later (on 12/15/09).

The roll-out of the A350 XWB is scheduled for May/2013, a month before its first flight.

 

Brégier “Our concern is not to increase the backlog but the schedule”

Based on article “l'objectif d'un premier vol de l'A350 à la mi-2013 n'est "pas facile" published in Les Echos

Nose landing gear doors open or closed during taxing?

Airbus has confirmed that the Nose Landing Gear doors on the A350 XWB, as shown in these photos, will be closed on the ground during normal operations. “The forward set of doors only will be open when the gear is being extended or retracted,” Airbus said.

“The reason that they are open in this picture is that the aircraft is not hydraulically active at the point when the picture was snapped and there was no reason to close the doors for the short road trip.”

These NLG doors are manufactured by Corse Composites Aeronautiques as a tier 2 to Aerolia.