Bombardier Aircraft Executes Technology Demonstration Flight in Alaska

June 20, 2011 — Paris
Aerospace

Bombardier Aerospace today announced the completion of another milestone in the execution of its Strategic Technology program for civil aviation: a Bombardier Global 5000 test aircraft executed a series of flight tests in known icing conditions equipped with a composite electro-thermal wing leading edge ice protection system.

“One of Bombardier Aerospace’s strategic priorities is to develop innovative, environmentally conscious products that meet customer needs globally, and we take great pride in this commitment to aircraft innovation,” said François Caza, Vice President and Chief Engineer, Bombardier Aerospace. “These successful flight tests highlight Bombardier’s commitment to the advancement of aviation technology. They are part of a comprehensive technology development program covering various areas, including avionics, aircraft systems, advanced structures and advanced manufacturing methods,” he added.

The Electro-thermal Ice Protection System (EIPS) flight testing lasted in excess of 35 hours, seven of which were completed with the Electro-thermal Ice Protection System selected “on” in both dry air and natural icing conditions. The main components of the EIPS are a Meggitt thermal solution with a Fokker advanced material leading edge slat structure, incorporating Meggitt heaters and ICE Corporation controllers. Extensive wind tunnel and icing tunnel tests were conducted beforehand to support in-flight safety.

On board the test aircraft were Sam Gamar and Frank Magnusson, Engineering Test pilots; Jeff Hyde and Laura Hilboldt, Flight Test engineers and Eduardo Freitas and Kheira Aboubi, Thermodynamics engineers.

“We tested the EIPS in both dry air and natural icing conditions south of Anchorage, Alaska, with great success. The system demonstrated structural integrity and successful ice protection performance as anticipated from a more efficient electrical system,” said Peter Rawlinson, System Lead engineer, Bombardier Aerospace.

“The demonstration of an Electro-thermal Ice Protection system is one step further towards a “More Electric Aircraft” that will have electrical power as the primary means to operate systems normally driven by less efficient engine compressor bleed air,” said Avraham Ardman, Chief Systems engineer, Bombardier Aerospace.

Less than two years ago, Bombardier successfully flight-tested an all electric braking system. This time, Bombardier’s strategic technology demonstrator aircraft was modified by removing the bleed air ducting and leak detection system from the most outboard slat, an eleven-foot-long span, on both wings. In their place, an electro-thermal composite leading edge, incorporating Meggitt heaters and an associated power harness, was installed on each wing.

The key benefits of this new technology are: an expected increase in aircraft dispatch reliability; elimination of bleed-air ducting, valves, and leak detection associated with hot bleed air duct failures. The new technology will simplify the aircraft manufacturing and assembly processes and lead to reduced maintenance costs for operators. It will also save energy and reduce aircraft emissions, leading to a more environmentally conscious product.

About Bombardier
A world-leading manufacturer of innovative transportation solutions, from commercial aircraft and business jets to rail transportation equipment, systems and services, Bombardier Inc. is a global corporation headquartered in Canada. Its revenues for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2011, were $17.7 billion, and its shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD). Bombardier is listed as an index component to the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America indexes. News and information are available at www.bombardier.com or follow us on Twitter @BombardierInc.

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Bombardier and Global 5000 are trademarks of Bombardier Inc. or its subsidiaries.

For Information
Haley Dunne
Bombardier Aerospace
+1 514 573 7124

www.bombardier.com

WheelTug 'Front-Wheel Drive' for Airplanes Improves Aviation Ground Operations
 

June 20, 2011 22:02 ET

PARIS--(Marketwire - Jun 20, 2011) - The revolutionary onboard electrical drive system for aircraft being developed by WheelTug plc has stimulated aerospace industry efforts to revamp ground operations. Recent developments are being unveiled at the Paris Air Show this week.

The WheelTug system brings front-wheel drive to aircraft, with twin electrical motors in the nosewheels giving aircraft greater maneuverability and efficiency during ground movements such as reversing from a gate and taxiing to a runway, as well as reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

New to WheelTug's display space at the Paris Air Show (Hall 4-5, Booth G10) is the latest WheelTug unit, designed for narrowbodied aircraft such as the Boeing 737NG and Airbus A320. WheelTug is also showing a hands-on demonstration WheelTug cockpit control panel by which the pilot will be able to control the system and maneuver the aircraft on the ground. The WheelTug team has been working on developing WheelTug's system design over the past year, and moving towards certification and entry into service.

While independent ground maneuverability by aircraft has long been an industry dream, WheelTug's innovative engines-off taxi technology is becoming a widespread industry expectation in the near future, far sooner than government-devised industry roadmaps projected.

A new European Union agenda for the aeronautics industry, called Flightpath 2050 and set by the European Commission on Mobility and Transport, calls for aircraft to be emissions-free during taxi by 2050. WheelTug, which first demonstrated proof of concept hardware allowing taxiing without engines in 2005, expects to conduct on-aircraft tests within 6 months and to introduce the system into service in 2013.

"WheelTug will deliver in 2013 what the E.U. has set as a target for 2050," said Isaiah W. Cox, the company's president. "We are pleased to have successfully guided the industry here, first by demonstrating that the technology is viable and then by showing that the system's overall operating cost savings well exceed $500,000 per year on a typical narrowbody aircraft."

Now that WheelTug has proven both the concept and its potential value to the industry, several competitors have emerged. Taxibot is a pilot-driven tug system primarily for use on larger aircraft. The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) have shown an in-wheel design for use on the A320. And just this week, Safran and Honeywell announced a joint venture to offer an engines-off taxi solution in 2016.

The patented and proprietary WheelTug® electric drive system uses high-performance electric motors, installed in the nose landing gear wheels of an aircraft, to provide full mobility while on the ground without the use of the aircraft's jet engines or tugs for both pushback and taxi operations. WheelTug enables aircraft to be electrically driven from the terminal gate to the takeoff runway, and upon landing from runway exit to the gate. The resulting improvements in efficiency, flexibility, fuel savings, and reduced noise and engine foreign object damage (FOD) yield projected savings of more than $500,000 per aircraft per year, plus substantial reductions in CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions.

The WheelTug system is being developed initially for the Boeing 737NG, one of the world's most widely-flown aircraft; systems for other commercial and military aircraft will follow. WheelTug is developing the system with a team of partner companies capable of providing airlines with fully-operational systems years ahead of any competitor.

Forward-Looking Statement: http://www.wheeltug.gi/fls.shtml