AIRBUS A 350 XWB

Sevrien a écrit: Korean Air Would Be Interested In Larger Airbus A350 XWB
Published May 24, 2011 | Dow Jones Newswires

TOULOUSE, France -([Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien])- Korean Air Lines Co. (003490.SE) would be interested in buying a larger version of the Airbus A350 XWB, the carrier's president and chief executive said Tuesday.

The airline currently has no A350s on order, although it has ordered 10 of [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] Co.'s (BA) wide-bodied 787 [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] aircraft that are due to start flying with customer airlines at the end of this year.

Dancer John LEAHY est certainement sur le coup depuis longtemps !

But Yang Ho Cho told Dow Jones that Korean Air might be interested in the long-range A350-1000, a stretched version of the A350-900 when it eventually becomes available. Airbus plans to make three versions of the wide-bodied A350, starting with the A350-900. It also plans shorter and longer versions of the initial design but won't start making them until later in the decade. Airbus still plans to put the A350 into service in the second half of 2013.

Sur le plan des A350-XWB & A350-XWB-1000, le calendrier a bien bougé, et pour cause, bien entendu !

"The A350 is not the ideal configuration for us yet, so we are waiting for the right aircraft with the right engines, a larger one, the A350-1000," Cho said. The list price of an A350-1000 is $300 million.

• et, en sus, d'accorder "a bit of the action" à GE, pour les GE90-115B, que SIA n'affectionne pas trop (la Cie. aurait eu bien plus d'ennuis avec ces moteurs, pendant la période plutôt courte depuis l'acquisition des B777-300ER, qu'avec les RR Trent 800, sur les 57+ B777-200 / 200ER et B777-300, pendant les nombreuses années),
  
• mais sans que SIA crée un terrain sur lequel GE pourrait se sentir comme dans une position sure, où il pourrait avoir l'impression que son GEnx-1B serait le choix automatique de SIA pour les 20 x B787-9, quand ces avions auront une date de livraison ferme vers SIA !
  

Air France-KLM, qui doit dévoiler cette semaine un plan d'austérité pour la compagnie française, a confirmé l'achat de 25 Boeing long-courriers 787, a-t-on appris mardi auprès d'un porte-parole du groupe franco-néerlandais. "Air France-KLM confirme la signature avec (le constructeur américain) Boeing du contrat d'acquisition de 25 commandes fermes de Boeing 787-9, assorties de 25 options", a déclaré le porte-parole.

Il a rappelé que cette transaction s'inscrivait dans le cadre d'une commande de 110 appareils, dont 50 fermes, passée en septembre à la fois auprès de Boeing et de son concurrent européen Airbus. Au prix catalogue, la commande s'élève au total à 12 milliards de dollars. Les avions doivent être livrés entre 2016 et 2026.

"Le premier appareil Boeing 787-9 entrera en service chez KLM en 2016, puis ultérieurement chez Air France", a également expliqué le porte-parole. Il a enfin indiqué que les négociations se poursuivaient avec Airbus et le motoriste britannique Rolls Royce pour la finalisation du contrat concernant les commandes d'Airbus A350. Cette annonce intervient l'avant-veille de la tenue, à Amsterdam, d'un comité d'administration d'Air France-KLM, qui doit examiner des mesures d'urgence pour la compagnie tricolore, principal foyer de pertes du groupe.

Parmi les mesures attendues, qui seront présentées jeudi aux salariés, figurent le gel des salaires, l'arrêt de lignes non rentables ou encore le recours à la vente-crédit bail pour ses avions et le gel de certains investissements.

Mais, soyons objectifs. Si AF veut des concessions sur le MRO, au bénéfice d'AFI, il a intérêt à commander (quelle hérésie ! ) les RR Trent pour les B787-9, avec les RR Trent XWB pour les Airbus A350-XWB !

Air France-KLM today confirmed that it has placed a firm order for 25 Boeing 787-9s plus 25 options as part of the 110-strong widebody order signed last September, but it has yet to finalise its A350-900 agreement with Airbus.

The carrier has not selected an engine for the 787s.

• donner le temps à GE de combler le retard qu'il a par rapport à RR. Mais les proferssionnels savent que le "core" du GEnx a ses limites, et n'est pas "scaleable". C'est vraisemblablement le problème de l'histoire du mauvais choix dans le compromis entre le GEnx-1B ("bleedless", pour le B787, et le GEnx-2B ("bleed-air", pour les B747-8F & -8I) ;
  
• opter tacitement pour RR (RR Trent 1000, qui a de l'avance sur le GEnx, aujourd'hui, et en aura encore davantage demain pour les B787-9, sans oublier les perspectives de "upgrade", facilement ouvertes à RR pour les B787-8, B787-9 et B787-10 / -10X, le cas échéant, ... mais moins accessibles pour le GEnx-1B), et utiliser cette option tacite pour négocier un "package" plus intéressant, qui embrasse les RR Trent 1000 pour leS B787-9, et le RR Trent XWB pour les A350-XWB !
  

The A350 is only offered with the Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine.

The first 787-9 will enter service with KLM in 2016, with Air France to operate its first 787 "at a later date", said an Air France-KLM spokesman.

Air France-KLM in September revealed plans to order up to 110 A350s and 787s. The deal comprised 50 firm orders and 60 options for the two widebody types, subject to finalisation with the manufacturers.

The spokesman added that "discussions are ongoing" with Airbus and Rolls-Royce over finalising the A350 deal.

A correction, clarification and explanation of early A350 production

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Since September, structural parts for the first two A350-900s have traversed the Atlantic ocean and the European continent on their way through Airbus's most distributed commercial supply chain.

Monday, Spirit AeroSystems delivered its first center fuselage from its St. Nazaire, France facility to Airbus's facility pre-final assembly next door. The handover marked the first time on a new Airbus aircraft that a non-EADS company has supplied major structure for a first unit.

Following the build-up of parts and their transition from the airframer's wholly-owned and independent structural suppliers has at times been challenging, while understanding the sequencing of the aircraft's early production.

With the static test airframe, MSN5000, scheduled to be the first A350 to enter final assembly later this quarter, the first deliveries by Spirit, Aerolia and Premium Aerotec to Airbus were in fact MSN1, which will be the first A350-900 to fly.

Airbus and Spirit confirmed yesterday that while the first forward fuselage section to arrive in Toulouse for final assembly was for MSN5000, as noted last month, that structure was delivered is actually the second to pass through the St. Nazaire site after the first deliveries of parts for MSN1.

The reason, explained Airbus, is MSN1 will spend longer in pre-final assembly for systems installation and says MSN5000's passing the first A350 to fly on its way to Toulouse is "fully in accordance with the planning."

Flight deck structure (Section 11-12) from Aerolia was delivered in September, followed by transfer of the MSN1 center fuselage panels (Section 15) from Kinston, North Carolina to Spirit's St. Nazaire facility in October and the first forward barrel (Section 13-14) from Premium Aerotec in November to Hamburg for systems installation. This page incorrectly noted that those deliveries had been for MSN5000 and have since been corrected.

The second shipments from Aerolia and Premium Aerotec for MSN5000 were joined together in early December before the end of the month handover to Toulouse. The Premium Aerotec Section 13-14 for MSN5000 bypassed Hamburg for systems installation completely as they weren't required for the static airframe.

Spirit's second unit, MSN5000 or ES, has begun partial build up in St. Nazaire, the aerostructures manufacturer explains:

The Crown Panel, Left Lateral Panel and Right Lateral Panel (also known as the Upper Shell when assembled) for MSN5000 have been shipped to Spirit's St. Nazaire assembly center and is in work there. The Forward Lower Shell and Left and Right Lateral Junction Panels for MSN5000 are still in Kinston and will ship to our St. Nazaire facility later this month.

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Further, MSN1's Section 19, the A350's tail cone, was shipped in December from Getafe, Spain to Hamburg for build up with the Section 16-18 panels. That aft section's side panels and floor grids are fabricated by Premium Aerotec and shipped to EADS in Hamburg for integration, but it is not known if they have been delivered.

Staying with the wings for a while (they are not yet in TLS

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Here Composites world describes the production of the top wing-skins at Airbus Illecias Spain but also the story of modern aerostructures entreprise in Spain. Reading this story one can understand how important the Airbus success story is for this industry in Spain or for that matter for many other industrial areas across Europe (of course the same applies for Bs supplier network. It is noteworthy that Airbus Illecias Spain claims:

“Illescas is Airbus’ center of excellence for advanced carbon composite parts,” ... “and where we produce large and complex shapes.” “Hand layup and hand labor just isn’t effective for rate production any more,” .... “In some cases, we operate our machines in four shifts, essentially 24/7, to maximize production.”

The lower wingskins sure fits this description, here we see the bottom wingskin (the most highly loaded one carrying the tension loads) being checked after production by a NDI = Non Destructive Inspection system (utlrasound AFAIK):

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To back this high tech industrial ambitions one of the top manufacturers of CFRP tape-laying machines comes from Spain, MTorres. This entrepreneurial company has worked its way to the top echelon of advanced CFRP manufacturing (customers both A and B and their supplier networks, the other top tier tape layer company is Ingersoll Rand AFAIK). GKN uses a MTorres system for the TE spar as does Spirit Kinston for the LE spar.

It all nicely describes that making our 7X7 and 3X0 frames is not all about Seattle and Toulouse, there is a huge network of countries and suppliers who work their butt out to stay competitive and to be selected as suppliers to the big 2. That they also develop new technologies while striving for this level is described in the next post .

BTW re the wing I have revisited some previous 350 posts and A statements, the MSN001 will stay a while at Broughton as it will have fuel, hydraulics and LR/TE structures installed there before leaving for Bremen to have the Slats, Flaps and rest of equipment installed. The MNS5000 static test wingboxes are being completed next followed by the fatigue wing boxes. Expect this all to be taking a while, mid spring deliveries seems realistic.

Although the mention of Spain might conjure images of sun, olive groves, tapas and Rioja wine, it should also bring to mind a thriving center of advanced materials and aerospace manufacturing. The country’s aerospace sector grew 12.5 percent annually between 2001 and 2008 and employed a workforce of more than 15,000 at the end of that time, according to a 2009 study of the European aerospace industry, funded by the European Commission and prepared by Ecorys (Rotterdam, The Netherlands). The Spanish trade group TEDAE (Asociación Española de Empresas Tecnológicas de Defensa, Aeronáutica y Espacio), formed that same year, counts more than 70 member companies with a collective €8 billion ($11.2 billion USD) in total turnover. Propelled by strong investments in research and development, aerospace in Spain is still on the upswing.

An early take-off
As in many other countries, the aviation era dawned in Spain around 1900, generating tremendous interest and many entrepreneurial endeavors. One of the first Spanish aeronautical enterprises is today one of Spain’s aerospace cornerstones. Construcciones Aeronáuticas Sociedad Anónima (CASA) was formed in 1923 by José Ortiz de Echaugue — reportedly the first Spaniard to fly a military plane — and several colleagues. CASA built a production plant at Getafe, near Madrid, to manufacture military aircraft and was perhaps best known for its C212 Aviocar high-wing, short takeoff and landing (STOL) light transport aircraft, a plane that is still produced today.

CASA produced military planes and components during and after World War II, many under licensing agreements from other OEMs. During the mid-1960s, European aircraft companies and their governments began to explore a collaborative agreement to produce commercial aircraft transports that could compete against those built by U.S.-based Boeing, McDonnell Douglas and Lockheed. The result was Airbus Industrie, established on Dec. 18, 1970, as a Groupement d’intérêt économique (Economic Interest Group), with production work split equitably among France, Germany and the U.K. In October 1971, CASA joined this group with a 4.2 percent share of Airbus Industrie. In 2000, following the development of the Airbus A300 and subsequent aircraft models, CASA became one of the founding partners of EADS (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. N.V.), together with DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG and Aerospatiale Matra. EADS owns Airbus SAS and other entities, including Eurocopter and space launch company Astrium.

As the nucleus of Spain’s aerospace manufacturing, EADS CASA has evolved to become a major supplier of program components for Airbus, Eurocopter, Eurofighter and others — at facilities in Madrid, Toledo, Seville and Cadiz — with a strong emphasis on composites. Its success has helped spawn a host of smaller Tier 1 and Tier 2 parts manufacturers that have composites expertise, including Aernnova Composites (Vitoria), Sener (Madrid), SACESA (Seville) and TECNALIA (San Sebastián).

Composites manufacturing activities are distributed throughout the country. For example, final assembly of the Airbus Military A400M (see “A400M cargo door" Out of the autoclave,” under "Editor's Picks" at top right) takes place in San Pablo near Seville, and Toledo is home of the Airbus Advanced Composites Center. HPC had the opportunity to visit the region near Madrid and tour three key facilities: FIDAMC (the acronym for its name in Spanish, which in English translation is Foundation for the Research Development and Application of Composite Materials), the Airbus facility in Illescas and the adjacent Aernnova Composites plant.

Tour 1: Regional research center
FIDAMC, located in a greenfields region known as the Southern Technological Area, south of Madrid and close to Getafe and Illescas, is a world-class research and development facility. Completed in 2009, with more than 5,500m2/59,200 ft2 of space for offices, laboratories and workshops, the foundation is a collaborative effort of the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade, the Madrid regional government and EADS.

An agreement to proceed with the foundation, signed in March 2006, was the result of the Spanish government’s belief in the strategic importance of the aerospace sector and the need for a center of excellence for research into the industrial application of composites. Funding, initially totaling €26 million ($37 million USD) for the building and equipment, was supplied by EADS, the Spanish government’s Centre for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI) and the Madrid regional government, says Jacinto Tortosa Lozano, FIDAMC’s director general. “Our target is to enhance and consolidate Spain’s leading position in composites through technology transfer with organizations throughout the country, including our universities,” he says. “One of our principal strategic goals is to dramatically reduce the cost of composite parts.” Lozano adds that innovations developed at FIDAMC aren’t owned by the foundation, but they are protected via nondisclosure agreements with participating aerospace companies, which include Airbus Military, Airbus SAS, Eurocopter and others.

Although the recent financial downturn put a drag on the center’s momentum, an impressive array of automated equipment has been installed thus far, says Miguel Ángel Garcia, key account manager for MTorres (Pamplona, Spain), a donor of several key machines. “It was a slow start but it’s growing,” he notes. “Several qualification programs for Airbus aircraft are underway and it’s an opportunity to test out new composite material concepts. We can use the machines ourselves for product development, and FIDAMC allows member companies time on the machines for testing materials and concepts.”

The machines installed to date include a TORRESFIBERLAYUP automated fiber placement (AFP) machine and work cell, with a 24-tow laying head that uses 0.125-inch/3.2-mm slit tape for maximum flexibility in producing contoured parts in the R&D setting (wider tape would typically be used in production). Configured during the facility tour to lay fibers on a flat, vertically oriented metal tool, the head lays tows at a high rate, reportedly 60m/195 ft per minute in one direction, then it rotates 180° for the return path while a heated roller on the head consolidates each prepreg ply. The head design prevents tows from interfering with one another during the rotation and laydown process, explains Garcia. Carbon material is supplied by Hexcel (Illescas, Spain and Stamford, Conn.) at no charge, he adds, in exchange for their use of the machine to test prepreg products.

Key features of the large work cell, configured with a headstock, a tailstock and a moving platform for multiple tool setups, include a take-up system for the polyester prepreg backing tape. The system chops the tape and then blows it into a separate collection chamber for recycling. Garcia points out that the tow guiding system, from the chilled prepreg creel area to the head, is designed for very low friction to minimize any contact of the carbon with machine parts and to prevent fuzzing. TORFIBER, the company’s simulation software, allows the designer to simulate and analyze the part program within a CATIA environment prior to generation of the CNC program by the machine’s postprocessor. MTorres’ AFP product manager Manu Motilva says the company is developing, in partnership with FIDAMC, a new thermoplastic laying head with laser heating. The new head should be installed on the machine in mid-2012 for trials of thermoplastic composite parts.

At the opposite end of the cavernous workshop space is a TORRESLAYUP 11-axis high-speed gantry-style automated tape laying (ATL) machine with an impressively large work envelope — 12.5m long by 5.4m wide (40.6 ft by 17.6 ft). Garcia says the machine has the highest compaction capability available in the industry, which eliminates the need for frequent bagging/debulking steps.

Able to lay up slit tapes as wide as 12 inches/300 mm, this ATL is designed for fast production of flat to moderately contoured parts. Two ultrasonic knives cut the prepreg during operation, and the head also features a built-in tape defect detection system.

A large adjoining workshop is equipped with a 6m/19.5-ft autoclave manufactured by Dalkia España (Madrid, Spain), as well as a smaller autoclave and a walk-in oven. Installed in the same space is a gantry-mounted nondestructive inspection (NDI) C-scan cell manufactured by Tecnatom (Madrid, Spain), a well-known provider to a wide range of industries. The one-channel, phased-array machine is just the beginning, says FIDAMC, which plans to install additional NDI capability as work picks up at the center.

The tour itinerary also included a fully equipped materials lab, design space and comfortable conference rooms, with huge windows that overlook ancient olive trees ensconced in outdoor garden spaces.

Lozano says FIDAMC’s equipment ultimately will support part production, and reports that the facility already is adding staff as work picks up. When asked if thermoplastic composites are the future for Spanish aerospace, he retorted, “That’s not the right question. What’s important is that we move faster, and innovate, no matter what the material — we need to think about new composites that aren’t as costly and time consuming to make. The pressure is on to improve and grow the industry.”

Tour 2: Top Tier 1 supplier
Officially opened just two months prior to HPC’s visit, Aernnova Composites’ shining new 33,000m2/355,000-ft2 plant abuts the back side of HPC’s third tour destination, the huge Airbus facility that manufactures the A350 XWB passenger jet’s lower wingskin. Aernnova Composites began in 1986 as a build-to-print subcontractor to CASA, but now it is the Composites Business Unit of Aernnova Aerospace and Spain’s largest Tier 1 structural aerospace manufacturer, operating four composites plants in Spain with another under construction across the Atlantic in Mexico. Its new state-of-the-art plant in Illescas uses lean automated manufacturing technology to produce parts for many programs, says Jose Antonio Villares, who oversaw its construction.

“Our experience in carbon fiber structures for aerospace is extensive and spans more than 25 years,” he points out. Indeed, Aernnova’s customer list for composites includes Airbus (commercial and military), Embraer, Bombardier, Sikorsky, Eurocopter, Eurofighter, Alenia, Agusta Westland and EADS Sogerma. Parts range from empennages, horizontal tail planes, rudders and elevators, to leading and trailing edges and doors, processed via hand layup and automated means, such as ATL. Parts also are produced for industrial clients, including train interior parts and filament-wound carbon fiber rollers for Madrid-based Talgo and for Bombardier (Montréal, Québec, Canada). With its ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and Nadcap certifications, the company is a serious international player and a risk-sharing partner with Airbus on the A350 XWB.

Two MTorres TORRESLAYUP machines were installed and running during the tour. Eventually they will be joined by four more as production demands ramp up. Villares pointed out that one of the gantry ATLs is configured with two working areas, one with a flat table that incorporates a TORRESPANEX ultrasonic cutting machine, and the other for layup directly on a tool. With this setup, which can be customized for stringers, skins, stiffeners, ribs or spars, the machine can perform two separate tasks simultaneously, significantly increasing manufacturing productivity.

As set up during the tour, the ATL head quickly layed a swath of material for stringers onto the flat table, and the machine shuttled the layup within seconds to the cutter, which cut out the stringer shapes from the green laminate blank. The stringers then were shaped in a hot-form press, one of three that will eventually be installed and used with aluminum tools. Villares points out that the hot-press position has twin worktables. “Workers can prepare tooling and laminates on one table,” he says, “while the other is involved in the hot-forming process to maximize the machine’s productivity.”

An additional flat cutter from Lectra (Paris, France) cuts broadgoods in the cleanroom. The first of three autoclaves is installed, a 5m/16.25-ft diameter vessel manufactured by Olmar (Gijón, Spain), with two more coming in the near future, says Villares. One phased-array pulse-echo NDI station, supplied by GE Inspection Technologies LP (Lewistown, Pa.), is also in place for part inspection.

Much of the large manufacturing space is occupied by a huge stock of tools and molds, most made of Invar, for the wide variety of parts that Aernnova manufactures, including the A350 XWB’s rudder, horizontal tail and elevators as well as subassemblies for the Bombardier CSeries center wingbox, among others. During the tour, workers were assembling an A350 rear pressure bulkhead, layed up and cured in two parts (front and rear). “We don’t perform postcure part trimming here,” Villares noted. “That’s done by Delta Illescas in a building adjacent to ours.”

The new plant will create at least 500 skilled jobs for the region, and Villares looks toward future expansion. “The Castilla-La Mancha region is one of the five autonomous regions in Spain in which there is a clear focus on the aerospace industry. With our government’s support, we are committed to developing lean composites manufacturing expertise.”

Tour 3: Illuminating Illescas
“This is where we manufacture the difficult composite parts,” declares José Manuel Santos-Gómez, who is in charge of machinery and automated equipment at Airbus and was HPC’s guide during the third facility tour. “Illescas is Airbus’ center of excellence for advanced carbon composite parts,” he emphasized, “and where we produce large and complex shapes.”

Established in 1989 to produce horizontal tailplane components for all Airbus models, the original 59,000m2/635,070-ft2 Illescas facility has grown to 107,000m2/1.152 million ft2 and produces parts for the Airbus A330/340, A320, A380, A350 and Eurofighter Typhoon. Immediately adjacent to the original plant, a new building houses A350 XWB lower-wingskin manufacturing activities. The facility’s more than 500 employees use lean manufacturing practices to perform a significant percentage of the composites work done within Airbus.

There is great emphasis on automation, and the lean theme applies not only to part manufacture, but it also carries through to tool, part and materials handling — for example, with automated tool carts and conveying systems. “Hand layup and hand labor just isn’t effective for rate production any more,” says Santos-Gómez. “In some cases, we operate our machines in four shifts, essentially 24/7, to maximize production.” And the number of machines involved isn’t trivial. Of varying ages and built by a number of suppliers, they include ATL and AFP machines. More are on order for the A350 program. All of the machines, plus multiple autoclaves, are kept busy around the clock. Also in use are automated trimming/cutting systems, including waterjet cutting cells, for postmold part finishing. Several automated NDI cells have been installed as well.

In the older part of the facility, the ATL and AFP machines produce the empennage components for the A330/340, A320 and A380, using carbon/epoxy prepregs manufactured by Hexcel at its nearby plant in Illescas. Santos-Gómez points out that while laydown of material is occurring in an Invar tool at one end of a machine’s work envelope, workers are preparing a second tool for layup at the opposite end to minimize changeover downtime. Because most of the parts involve stiffening stringers or ribs, an automated overhead crane is employed to move stiffener tools out of storage (in racks above the floor) and down to the shop floor for layup. The same system then conveys the layed up tools to the hot drape forming machines. An Airbus Illescas-designed “turning rack” device, like a barrel with longitudinal slots, approximately 6 ft/1.8m in diameter by 20 ft/6.1m long, is suspended from the ceiling. The rack holds the formed (but uncured) stiffeners in the slots in the correct layup sequence above the worktables. As it rotates it deposits the stiffeners onto the layed-up part skins on the work surfaces, greatly reducing assembly time. The placed stiffeners are then bagged and cocured with the skins, eliminating a postcure bonding step. As part of the company’s lean and environmentally driven manufacturing, layup technicians use reusable silicone bags for much of the processing, greatly reducing the use of consumables.

Section 19 of the A350, its fuselage tailcone, is produced with a dedicated autoclave in a newer area of the original building. In the tailcone process, a series of “omega” stringers (shaped like the Greek letter “Ω,” with a trapezoidal profile) are produced by an MTorres ATL machine configured with a layup head on one end and an automated ultrasonic cutting head on the other. The ATL head rapidly lays down the material for a group of stringers, nested for minimum waste, to form a prepreg “blanket.” Within seconds, a conveyor shuttles the blanket over to the cutter, which cuts and trims it into the final stringer shapes. The head and cutter operate simultaneously, significantly increasing the ATL’s productivity. The cut stringers are manually carried to a metallic stamping machine that is equipped with the appropriate tool. The parts are formed then placed into the longitudinal recesses around the circumference of the Section 19 aluminum mandrel tool so the stringers are flush with the tool’s surface. Rubber inserts are placed within the hollow “hats” of each stringer to apply consolidation pressure, and they are bagged and vacuum-consolidated. Then a MAG Cincinnati (Hebron, Ky.) AFP machine automatically lays up the skin over the prepared stringers, and the entire part is bagged and cured in one shot.

After cure and demolding, parts are moved to the trimming machines for processing, then to the automated NDI machine for inspection, before they are prepared for shipping to Airbus final assembly locations, including nearby Getafe; Toulouse, France; and Hamburg, Germany. Says Santos-Gómez, “We have tremendous flexibility here to adapt to the manufacture of the large variety of different composite parts.”

The facility centerpiece, however, is its new A350 lower wingskin production building. Representing an investment of more than €450 million ($637 million USD), the vast space (180,000m2/19.375 million ft2) was designed for a nearly 100 percent automated manufacturing flow, says Santos-Gómez. “This lower wingskin part is quite complex, with a thickness between 6 mm [0.2 inch] and 30 mm [1.15 inches] at the root end.”
Specially designed automated carts transport the wingskin tools, made of Invar by Coast Composites Inc. (Irvine, Calif.), to one of the ATL stations at one end of the building — space is available for eight stations, but at the time of HPC’s visit, one was operational and a second was being prepared. The ATL machines are TORRESLAYUP units. After layup of the 35m/115-ft long skin is complete, it is cured in a huge autoclave manufactured by Dalkia España.

Wing stringer production takes place simultaneously at the opposite side of the room, which is dominated by a huge expanse of stringer tools, a heated press, an MTorres AFP machine and an overhead gantry transport system. The AFP machine rapidly lays fiber tows to create the complex stringers (the longest of which is 35m/115-ft long) in two dimensions to near-net shape, in accordance with a CNC nesting plan that minimizes waste, says Motilva. “We can save a small percentage of carbon prepreg with each stringer, but multiplied by the 25 stringers per wingskin, at 13 aircraft per month, the savings in reduced scrap is dramatic and significantly reduces overall stringer cost.” The massive moving gantry system, with pick-and-place capability, automatically transports each layed-up stringer to its assigned tool, takes the tools to and from the hot press, and then moves the formed stringers to the cured wingskin for application. According to Airbus, the automated wingskin production process will use more than 800 metric tonnes (1.8 million lb) of carbon fiber annually at the facility’s maximum production rate.

After the stringers are applied to the skin and bagged, the wingskin is cured again, then moved to a finishing bay, where a Flow International Corp. (Kent, Wash.) waterjet system performs necessary trimming while the wingskin is secured in a unique holding fixture. Santos-Gómez says the NDI step that follows is done in one shot because what he calls a “better method” of performing inspection scans significantly increases scanning speed. Additional bays handle the final inspection (and any cosmetic repairs) and painting before preparation for shipping to the U.K. for assembly.

Concludes Santos-Gómez, “I believe this may be the largest dedicated composites manufacturing plant in the world, and certainly one of the most automated.”

This story is about how the development continues unabated to improve (=lower the weight) for such things as the frames for the later coming A350-1000 versus the 350-900. Here the innovation process behind what we A.nutters sweepingly say "it will lower weight with X%" is being developed in real life:

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According to the article today's 359 frames are made with classical methods and with "one size fits all" necessity. For the 350-1000 one is now seeking a highly automated adaptable method to produce the next versions frames more lightweight and economically. That the investments are not small is clear, here the machine that weaves/braids the fibers into the frame form before the expoxi is injected:

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Airbus A350 Update: BRaF & FPP
EADS Innovation Works pursues qualification of Braided Frames for the A350-1000 fuselage and develops Fiber Patch Preforming for complex local reinforcements.

The Airbus A350-1000 is the Toulouse, France-based aircraft OEM’s newest and biggest A350 XWB jetliner. Its fuselage is the same diameter as other jets in the family, but it will be 7m/23 ft longer than the near-production-ready A350-900. More powerful but heavier engines will enable the 1000 variant to surpass the 900’s range by 600 km/373 miles and increase its payload by 40 metric tonnes (88,185 lb). However, the aircraft’s empty weight will go up by 2.4 metric tonnes (5,291 lb), and the plane’s cost will be $9 million (USD) more than the 900.

Airbus is pursuing weight and cost reduction efforts. One program is aimed at automating production and optimizing the weight and performance of the 1000’s carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) fuselage frames.

The frames are the ring-like ribs that encircle the inside diameter of the fuselage, which, along with the longitudinal stringers, form the aircraft’s skeleton. Eleven additional frames will be required for the 1000’s longer fuselage, five aft of the wing and six forward. Producing identical frames is simple and cheap, but it typically does not allow for each frame to be designed to meet specific mechanical requirements based on its location in the structure. Because of this, many frames are overdesigned and, therefore, add unnecessary weight. To avoid this scenario, Airbus elected to tailor each barrel section of the fuselage (see “A350 XWB Update ...." under "Editor's Picks," at right), including its frames, to the loads each will carry. The challenge was to find a way to produce individually tailored CFRP composite frames in a serial-production environment and do so cost-effectively.

Airbus and parent company European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. (EADS, Amsterdam, The Netherlands) had developed this process for A350-900 frames using prepreg. But for the 1000 there was an opportunity for improvement. “We knew there were areas where we could reduce the weight further,” says Matthew Beaumont, head of operations, Composite Technologies, at EADS Innovation Works (EADS IW, Ottobrunn, Germany). “Thus, instead of waiting for the next platform, perhaps 5 to 10 years away, we saw the opportunity for quick wins in weight savings and manufacturing process robustness within two to three years with the A350-1000.” He presents an image of the A350-900 as the first-generation composite fuselage and the A350-1000 as generation 1.5.

Braided CFRP frames
To escape the limitations of prepreg, Beaumont’s EADS IW team has worked for 10 years with Airbus and SGL Kümpers (Rheine, Germany) to develop a quasi-endless process for making uniaxial braided preforms from dry carbon fiber using a highly automated circular machine that is sized to the aircraft’s fuselage diameter. The preforms are then resin infused, cured and finished via computer-controlled machining and EADS-patented processes.

“It’s low risk and highly automated,” claims Beaumont, but for Airbus, he says, it’s a completely new process. “This is a big change, going from prepreg laid by automated placement machines to dry fiber braided preforms that are resin infused.” It is a new step for EADS IW, too, beyond research to real component development. And, Beaumont admits, it is a job not yet finished. “We still have a lot of work to do in order to prove out the process and product to Airbus’ satisfaction.”

A prototype Braided Frames (BRaF) production line has been in use since 2008, originally installed in Airbus’ Composites Technology Center (CTC) in Stade, Germany. It has since been moved to the larger CFK Nord research center, also in Stade.

Uniaxial braiding reduces waviness
The BRaF automated braiding production line was based, initially, on an existing SGL Kümpers unit. Although it was capable of higher volume and lower production cost, it produced a product that exhibited poor mechanical properties due to fiber waviness inherent in conventional braiding. Further, the team observed that fibers were often damaged or weakened by shear forces exerted upon them during conventional braiding, or as a result of the friction at crossover points. EADS IW knew this friction could be reduced by using a machine with two braiding rings, but the fiber waviness problem would remain. Given that, EADS IW began work on its patented uniaxial braiding process.

The new process, according to U.S. patent 2007/0193439 A1, resolves fiber wrinkling via two developments. First, instead of the conventional setup in which all bobbins are fitted with reinforcing fibers, EADS IW uses bobbins with reinforcing threads only for the first path and uses bobbins with auxiliary yarns (called “supporting threads” in the patent) for the opposite circular path (see Fig. 1, at right).

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Second, at least some, if not all, of the auxiliary yarns/supporting threads are thermoplastic fibers, which are heated to melt and then cooled to resolidify, resulting in good sliding characteristics so that friction between the crossed braiding threads is reduced, as is fiber damage. The thermoplastic threads also hold the reinforcing fibers in position after they are laid on the braiding core (mandrel). The patent explains: “The elastic thermoplastic threads are placed so snugly between the reinforcing threads that the latter come to be situated in parallel virtually without any space in-between and are therefore deposited almost without any waves” (see Fig. 2, at right).

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Thus, the compressive strength of the carbon fibers is improved significantly, as are the overall mechanical properties of the finished profile or frame.

To demonstrate BRaF, the team used HTS40 F13 12K 800tex (Toho Tenax Europe GmbH, Wuppertal Germany) as the reinforcement fiber and fusible polyamide K85 Grilon fiber made by EMS-Chemie AG (Domat/Ems, Switzerland) for the auxiliary yarns. All layers featured an areal weight of 260g/m2 (7.7 oz/yd2). A demonstrator stacking sequence featured 12 layers that were built up around an aluminum mandrel with a square cross-section. These layers were applied at +30° or -30°, followed by application of the same reinforcement fibers either by winding 90° layers or interleaving unidirectional (UD) dry fiber tape as 0° flange layers.

“Realistic fiber angles for normal braiding machines span ±10° to ±75°,” Beaumont explains. “Thus, it is key that BRaF includes the 0° and 90° capabilities.” The 0° unidirectional dry fiber tape is layed between the braided layers along the left and right side of the square mandrel. When the square preform is cut in half horizontally, this tape is aligned with the flanges of the two resulting C sections, analogous to laying UD tape along a spar cap. The 90° UD layers are wound circumferentially (see Fig. 3, at right). Beaumont notes that adding the 0° and 90° layers efficiently is a development SGL Kümpers brought to the table.

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Fig. 4 (at right) shows the demonstrator equipment layout. The transport system is described as being able to clamp with a self-adapting position and span. Both the braiders and the winder are capable of lateral movement, and the winder also features angle correction. This equipment arrangement enables variable frame radii and web heights. It also can fabricate complex frames, including ply drop-offs for braided and 0° UD layers, and integrate local reinforcements (such as those produced by FPP, described later).

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When braiding and winding are complete, the ring of square cross-section preformed fibers is cut in half, and the two C-shaped profiles are removed from the mandrel. The C-shapes, which match the aircraft fuselage diameter as specified, can be shaped further by using a die and an expandable silicone insert to invert one of the C flanges to form a Z-profile. SGL Kümpers reports that BRaF “enables maximum design flexibility and unmatched repeatability to meet the high-volume demands of future aircraft manufacture.”

According to Beaumont, the prototype braided-frame production line is now able to fabricate frames that are fully functional and comparable to frames currently in serial production. “The lessons learned on this prototype machine,” he says, “will be used to design the final production equipment.”

Fiber Patch Preforming
EADS IW and partners Oxeon AB (Borås, Sweden) and Manz Automation Tübingen GmbH (Tübingen, Germany) have developed another process targeted not only for CFRP frames, but also for stringers (longitudinals) and for localized reinforcement for larger composite fuselage panels (e.g., window cutouts and door surrounds). This process is called Fiber Patch Preforming (FPP).

FPP was conceived as a way to automate the production of composite structures that, as a result of topology optimization and other advanced CAD techniques, end up with very complex geometries. Designed to outperform legacy metal structures, these composites feature complex 3-D fiber paths not easily produced using existing technologies, such as prepreg tapes.

In the FPP process, short (20 mm by 60 mm or 0.79 inch by 2.36 inch) patches of spread-tow unidirectional fiber are cut and then placed by a specialized robot in any direction to construct a dry fiber preform that has a precisely tailored fiber architecture. It retains the conformability required for complex shapes and geometries, without wrinkling or bridging. Robotics reduce production cost without sacrificing precision or producing waste material. The resulting preforms are easy to use in standard resin injection and infusion processes, including resin transfer molding (RTM) and EADS’ patented Vacuum Assisted Process (VAP), and they also may be combined with other types of preforms. (VAP, patented in 2002, is a double vacuum bag resin infusion process in which the inner bag is a gas-porous membrane that allows extraction of volatiles while serving as a resin barrier.)

An FPP dry fiber preform could be used as a local reinforcement for a prepreg structure, using resin from the prepreg or an additional resin film to impregnate the very thin preform (several 100 g/m2 layers) during autoclave cure. Beaumont also cites FPP’s completely 3-D digital process chain as an aid to fabrication robustness: “Beginning with a CAD model of the part, through stress analysis and location of patches, to programming the preform layup robots and then robotic placement, the part’s information is never removed from the digital CAD world.”

FPP in detail
EADS IW’s partners supply the unidirectional reinforcements and robotic equipment. EADS IW developed the FPP robot in-house and has licensed Manz Automation Tübingen to reproduce it. Oxeon furnishes TeXero UD Spread Tow Tapes (all Oxeon products are now sold under the trade name TeXtreme), which feature a thermally activated binder on one side to enable fixation after placement. Beaumont explains that FPP is not limited to spread-tow materials. “We can also use noncrimp fabrics,” he says. “However, our goal was to have a preforming process that was as flexible as possible in the types of geometries it can make. Thus, we use small amounts of fiber per patch, roughly 1g by weight, using 12K tow, and we spread it as flat as we can get it without losing stability, which is about 20 mm [0.79 inch].”

Beefier noncrimp fabrics reportedly limit the possible geometries and shapes due to their greater areal weight and thickness. Thinner reinforcements tend to be more drapable and flexible; they also aid in steering patch to patch — in other words, the direction and location of each patch. “This is the building block of our preform,” says Beaumont. “This is a process for low-volume, high-complexity parts. We are talking lay-down rates of g/hr not kg/hr.”

Although it’s too slow for large parts, the process achieves the tailored fiber designs needed for small parts with complex geometries. “We lose deposition rate because the patches are so small, but we gain flexibility and tailoring, which was our original goal.” Beaumont says that components with a fiber weight of less than 500g are attractive targets for FPP.

Initially, the approach to make such complex preforms was based on advanced fiber sprayup technology, with the goal of having online adjustable fiber length and control of fiber layup angle. However, experiments showed that this process did not achieve the high level of material quality required. Thus, the current technology was undertaken. Short fiber patches were desired, so a specialized mechanical cutting device was developed with the ability to specify cutting length. Lasers were explored as an alternative to mechanical cutting, but they showed no improvement in process or speed. Regarding the size, Beaumont comments, “We have used 20-mm by 60-mm patches up to now, but we are not limited to that size nor shape. We could use triangular patches, for example.”

A robotic layup machine picks up the fiber patches and places them as defined by a digital control file. The layup head is made from an elastic material, which makes optimal contact with complex curved surfaces and applies homogeneous pressure as patches are deposited.

Quality assurance (QA) during cutting and layup was an EADS IW concern from the beginning. Beaumont relates, “Quality-control steps were built in throughout its development, not as an afterthought between prototyping and production.” The first step ensures there is no splitting of fibers and the patch shape is correct after it is cut. In the next QA step, the robotic layup machine picks up the fiber patch from the conveyor belt and moves it to a station where a laser device essentially takes a picture of the patch. In real time, the location and orientation of the patch on the robotic stamp is assessed and compared with the CAD layup data. If a correction is necessary, that is communicated to the robot, which then compensates for any variation in the position of the patch on the stamp, adjusting the rotation by the number of degrees required to correct the stamp position as it is placed on the preform. Thus, both the geometry and the position of each patch are checked as an inherent part of the process.

FPP uses a rudimentary steering system. Basically, the robot locates the patch using x, y and z coordinates for both point 1 (the beginning of the patch) and point 2 (the end of the patch) so that only six numbers and a beginning reference are needed to precisely position it. The steering system and QA checks combine to achieve a patch positioning tolerance of ±0.1 mm (±0.04 inch).

When it was discovered that the overlap patterns of the patches significantly affected the strength of the composite preform, a scale-like patch was developed with rounded fore and aft edges to allow inline nesting of patches. The patches also aid in maintaining high strength and stiffness in parts with complex curvature and geometry. The team found that the resulting composites could resist interlaminar delamination and crack propagation. Compared to continuous fiber-reinforced composites, FPP laminates exhibited a small knockdown in strength (14 percent) but practically the same stiffness.

Additional experiments showed failure was mainly due to fiber fracture. Beaumont explains, “With the short, discontinuous fibers in these patches, you would expect failure in between the patches, but the test specimens don’t show this. Failure tests show results that look the same as with continuous fiber laminates.” Impact testing also revealed an ability to absorb relatively high impact energies with small damage areas and high residual compression strength compared to continuous fiber laminates.

BRaF and FPP moving forward
In its early stage, BRaF captured the 2010 JEC Innovation Award for Automation and the Niedersachsen Innovation Award, which was presented at the annual CFK-Valley Stade Convention for developments with a particularly high degree of innovation in lightweight CFRP construction. Notably, the JEC Innovation Award judges predicted that the process would enable composites to compete with metals for adoption in structural airframe components. But the work continues in the form of BRaF II, with the goal of optimizing the overall process, including inline fixation of auxiliary yarn (melt and cooling), automated cutting and refinement of the load and deload station. New mandrel materials also will be investigated, as will inline QA measures, such as fiber monitoring within the winders and braiders, and optical angle detection for braiding layers. Future BRaF material development is targeted at reducing areal weight, improving bearing stress and increasing edge protection against impact.

Technology development will be financed by Airbus for the next two years, leading to qualification and certification of both the frame components and the process. This will push frame certification out to 2013, but it should easily accommodate the onset of A350-1000 component production, ahead of assembly and testing prior to the aircraft’s scheduled 2017 entry into service. Serial production of the braided frame preforms will be awarded to a supplier, such as EADS IW’s partner, SGL Kümpers.

Meanwhile, FPP garnered EADS IW another JEC recognition in the Automation category, this time as a finalist for the 2011 Innovation Awards. And the first application of FPP, stringers, is being developed within the IMac-Pro project funded by the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Program. EADS IW leads the project, targeting at least 20 percent weight savings vs. aluminum profiles, and minimum 5 percent weight reduction with a 45 percent drop in cost vs. prepreg profiles.

Multiple processes are being explored for stringer preform consolidation and cure, including RTM with adaptable elements to compensate for preform settling (thickness reduction), continuous resin injection and high-speed microwave heating. Three demonstrators are planned: (1) a stiffened panel with four precured stringers on a prepreg skin; (2) a stiffened panel with four stringer preforms and textile skin cured simultaneously; and (3) a cargo floor unit consisting of a curved framed profile, a straight crossbeam and z-struts.

Beaumont also sees the potential for FPP to dovetail with BRaF. “FPP is well suited for producing local reinforcements, for example, where floor beams attach to the [fuselage] ring frames,” says Beaumont, “where simply more fiber is needed and in specific tailored layups.” He also sees it as being able to improve reinforcing structures, such as door surrounds. “We do see using local reinforcements in manufacturing the braided CFRP frames targeted for the A350-1000,” Beaumont states, “but whether that process looks like the FPP developed to date or something more primitive, we don’t know.” He adds that FPP for fuselage ring frames may be more streamlined to better suit the needs of manufacturing that product vs. FPP for local reinforcement of fuselage panels, which should exploit more of the process’ expanded capabilities.

Automated fiber placement to replace established tape laying/drape forming process for the composite rear spars on the new midsize commercial passenger jet.
Author: Bob Griffiths

Posted on: 1/1/2011
[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] Fig. 1: The inner rear spar demonstrator for the Airbus A350 XWB. The height of the spar a... [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] Fig. 2: One of GKN’s AFP machines undergoes production trials. Source: GKN Aerospace

Headquartered in Redditch, Worcestershire, U.K., GKN Plc’s Aerospace Division continues its strong growth, based to a large extent on its expertise in the production of composite structures. Even the 50 percent of the business that is not focused on composites is based primarily on materials technologies, such as complex titanium aero-engine components and cockpit canopies with vacuum-deposited surfaces to enhance stealth performance. This should not come as a surprise, because GKN’s first use of materials technology to gain market share was in the 1860s, when it dominated the railroad supply business by being the first company in the U.K. to make steel by the cost-effective Bessemer process. The company produced more than 56 million lb (25,400 metric tonnes) of steel per year by 1871.

As GKN Aerospace has expanded its business, it has acquired companies outside the U.K. By the end of 2008, more than half its business was conducted in the U.S. In 2009, it restored the balance between its European and American operations by buying the Airbus manufacturing operation at Filton, U.K., for £136 million/$210 million (USD). Not content with this large acquisition, GKN committed to invest an additional £125 million/$192 million to develop Filton as a global Center of Excellence in composite wing structures. This decision was a result of GKN’s selection as a participant in the Airbus A350 XWB program.

GKN has been awarded a contract under which it will supply fully assembled rear spars for the A350. Chris Gear, GKN’s VP and chief engineer, explains that the company’s role is to be the designer, integrator and supplier of rear spars that are prefitted with all the trailing-edge assemblies. GKN has overall responsibility for delivering the assembly, but Airbus has selected the suppliers for many of the components. For example, GE Aviation Systems will manufacture many of the components in the trailing edge at its facility in Hamble, Hampshire, U.K.

A significant number of trailing-edge panels will be made in an out-of-autoclave process, using Advanced Composites Group’s (ACG, Heanor, Derbyshire, U.K.) oven-curable MTM 44-1 prepreg system — the first time this technology has been used in a major production application. (For more on this and other out-of-autoclave resin systems, see HPC’s feature article in this issue, titled "Out-of-Autocalve Prepregs," under "Editor's Picks.") GKN will be responsible for making the 30m/97-ft long spars in three sections and then attaching all the frames, rib posts, undercarriage attachment fittings and other accessories to each spar section.

Fig. 1 shows the demonstrator inner rear spar. The height of the spar at the root end is nearly 2m/6.5 ft and tapers to about 0.25m/10 inches at the wingtip.

After the components are attached to the spar sections, the joints between the sections are completed to create the entire rear spar subassembly. Then the subassembly is broken into three parts, each about 10m/32-ft long, for ease of transport to the final wing assembly line in Broughton, located on the Wales/England border.

The design responsibilities flow down the supply chain. GKN uses Airbus methods and design tools to calculate the stresses and strains in the rear spar and trailing edge assembly. Airbus then is responsible for the integration of components from GKN and other manufacturers into the wing. The main loads in the spar come from the wingskins. These loads are derived from the Airbus global finite element model for the wing. Additionally, there are landing loads from undercarriage attachments that connect to the spars as well as fuel loads, which include both the weight of the fuel itself and sloshing loads when the fuel tank is partially empty. GKN must analyze all of these load types when designing the composite spar.

Airbus requires that spar manufacturing methods involve the use of an automated fiber placement (AFP) machine. GKN will use AFP equipment supplied by MTorres (Torres de Elorz, Navarra, Spain).

GKN already had developed a production method for wing spars, used to lay up spars for Airbus Military’s (Madrid, Spain) A400M transport plane. However, this method was not practical for the A350 spars. Briefly, the method involves high-speed tape laying of a flat laminate, followed by hot drape forming of the material into the C-section of the spar. (Read about the A400M wing spar forming method in “Composite wing spars carry the Western world’s biggest turboprop engines,” under "Editor's Picks," at top right). At first sight, the forming appears to be comparatively simple, but a close examination of either spar reveals many padded areas where attachments, such as flap track beams and ribs, are secured. These buildups require that the laminate allows for complex inter- and intraply slippage during the drape forming process. This is possible using Cytec Engineered Materials’ (Tempe, Ariz.) Cytec 977-2 prepreg selected for the A400M, but such movement is not possible with the more sophisticated Hexcel M21E prepreg (Hexcel Corp., Dublin, Calif.) chosen by Airbus for all structural parts on the A350.

Two spars, of opposite hand, are made at one time on a CFRP mandrel mounted on the AFP machine. The layup is then cut in two — for the port and starboard spars — and transferred with vacuum devices to male Invar tools for curing. The spars are then machined in an automated robotic cell supplied by Brötje Automation GmbH (Wiefelstede, Germany). The cell drills all the holes and trims the spar edges. It also machines the outer surfaces of the spar caps to a close tolerance because the positions of the surfaces are critical for controlling the depth of the wing.

Prototype parts were made on GKN’s first AFP machine while it was still at MTorres in Spain. Since then, that machine and a second one have been installed at GKN’s dedicated spar facility, which is now taking shape at Weston Approach, about eight miles from Filton. All the spar manufacturing operations — lay up, curing, machining, nondestructive testing and assembly — will take place at this location. Eventually five AFP machines will be installed to meet the need for 10 shipsets per month. (Fig. 2 shows a GKN AFP machines undergoing trials.)

This type of work is very important to both GKN and Airbus and signifies the revolution that is taking place in the aerostructures supply chain.

GKN expects the contract to enhance its position as a structural integrator rather than a maker of parts. At the same time, it is part of Airbus’ effort to simplify its assembly operations by delegating many former responsibilities to a new generation of “Super Tier 1” suppliers.

Etihad Airways has cancelled six Airbus A350-1000s, the first carrier to have cut its backlog for the type since the aircraft was redesigned last year.

Airbus had a backlog of 75 A350-1000s but its latest order and delivery figures show Etihad's backlog of 25 has been cut to 19.

While Etihad has not commented on the A350-1000 redesign, a source close to the carrier said it was not content with the changes made to the twinjet, echoing the feelings expressed by Emirates and Qatar Airways.

Airbus chief Tom Enders indicated there might be "short-term" issues regarding discussions with existing customers for the A350-1000.

The A350 programme secured orders for only 10 aircraft in 2011, while cancellation of 41 left the type in negative net figures for the year.

Cancellation of a single A350-800 also helped to reduce the A350 order backlog to 555 aircraft, comprising 118 -800s, 368 -900s and 19 -1000s. (Sevrien : non ! 69 -1000's ; 19 est le nombre de'Etihad, après déduction des 6 annulations précitées).

Enders reiterated the airframer's caution over A350 development, admitting that postponement of its entry to the final assembly line had been decided after the programme "ran into some serious problems" with key elements.

He said the A350's final assembly would begin in March 2012. Without caution, and assurance of maturity, he said, "you're setting yourself up for disaster".

Chief operating officer for customers John Leahy said he was in discussions with three major airlines for the A350-1000, and added that the main problem was "getting them early delivery positions".

..... With this new fuselage – along with the latest systems and engines, as well as an advanced wing optimised for Mach 0.85 cruise speed – the A350-800 is a step ahead of its direct competitor, benefitting from an eight per cent lower fuel burn, eight per cent lower operating costs, and eight percent lower CO2 emissions. The A350-800 also has a greater range by 900 nautical miles******, with 20 additional seats for greater revenue potential.

Le B787-8 est, tout simplement, trop petit et trop lourd. Il offre des performances inférieures à celles de l'A350-XWB-800.

Jeannot a écrit:Cathay Pacific prend 6 A350-900

Cathay Pacific says to buy 6 Airbus aircraft

Hong Kong's dominant carrier Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd said on Friday that it has signed a deal to buy six Airbus A350-900 aircraft with a basic price of $1.628 billion for delivery between 2016 and 2017.

The company said in a stock exchange filing that it would pay for the aircraft in cash in eight installments, to be funded by loans, other debt instruments and internal cash.

The Airbus aircraft would replenish and expand the company's fleet capacity and will principally serve long-haul destinations in Europe, the statement said.

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• sept. 2010 : 30 x A350-XWB-900 ;
  
• mars 2011 : 2 x A350-XWB-900 ;
  
• janvier, 2012 : 6 x A350-XWB-900.
  
• 
  
• Total : 38 ?
  

Gill2 a écrit:Bonjour

Les 2 A350 XWB-900 de mars 2011 correspondent à un placement par ILFC

qui s'ajoutent aux 30 + 6 appareils désormais en "firm commitments"

Réactions?

Jeannot a écrit: Hawaiian commande un A300 de plus avec livraison en 2011.

Hawaiian Airlines Expands New Fleet with Another New Airbus A330 for Delivery in 2011
With an eye on accelerating its plan to expand service in Asia and other markets, Hawaiian Airlines ...today announced the purchase of an additional Airbus ...A330-200 scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of 2011.
With this announcement, Hawaiian is now acquiring 10 new A330s with purchase rights available for five additional aircraft. The first three A330s to join Hawaiian’s fleet are scheduled to arrive in April, May and November of this year(2011).
Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian’s president and CEO, said, “.... The A330 is the right aircraft for our customers and our bottom line and acquiring this additional aircraft will allow us to better capitalize on improving demand as the economic recovery gets underway.”
Hawaiian’s firm commitments for the A330 deliveries to date are as follows:

Delivery Date

1. April 2010 Lease
2. May 2010 Lease
3. November 2010 Lease
4. 2nd Qtr 2011 Firm Order
5. 1st Qtr 2012 Firm Order
6. 2nd Qtr 2012 Firm Order
7. 1st Qtr 2013 Firm Order
8. 2nd Qtr 2013 Firm Order
9. 2nd Qtr 2013 Firm Order
10. 1st Qtr 2014 Firm Order

Like the other A330s that Hawaiian is acquiring, this newest aircraft will carry more passengers, fly farther, and be more fuel-efficient than the company’s existing widebody fleet of B767s.
Hawaiian’s new A330s will seat 294 passengers – 30 more than its current fleet – in a two-class configuration and have an operating range of 6,050 nautical miles that would allow Hawaiian to fly nonstop between Hawaii and points in eastern Asia and all of North America.

In 2017, Hawaiian will continue to expand its fleet by taking the first delivery of six new A350XWB-800 (Extra Wide Body) aircraft from Airbus, with options to purchase an additional six aircraft. The next-generation fuel-efficient A350s will seat 322 passengers in a two-class configuration and have a range of 8,300 nautical miles (15,400 kms) that would allow Hawaiian to fly nonstop between Hawaii and Asia, Australasia, the Americas, and Europe.

Bonne nouvelle ! Motorisation : surement RR Trent 772-EP !