Latest news with #AirbusSummit
The National
27-03-2025
- Business
- The National
Folding wings and open fan engine: Airbus reveals 'radical' design for A320 successor
Airbus has revealed the initial design concepts behind its next-generation single-aisle aircraft, as it develops a successor for its best-selling A320 Neo family of jets and focuses on decarbonisation. Over the two-day Airbus Summit in Toulouse this week, the world's biggest plane maker highlighted proposals on key technology for the new aircraft, including propulsion systems, wing design, advanced composition materials, electrification, automation and connectivity. This is part of aviation's "fourth revolution" to make flying more sustainable, Airbus executives said. 'We cannot do it with incremental optimisation, this will come with disruption, this will come through clean sheet design,' Bruno Fichefeux, head of future programmes at Airbus, told the innovation summit. The new aircraft, which will be able to fly entirely on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), will target a 20 per cent to 30 per cent fuel-burn reduction compared with the models flying today, thanks to developments in wing design, engines and systems. 'It's a research and technology phase, where we mature many technologies, and when we combine them together we need to look at what are the best trade-offs – which paths do we open, which do we close? We are not there yet," Mr Fichefeux said. Lighter but stronger advanced composite materials will be used to build lighter aircraft, allowing for a 'substantial' reduction in mass. That will lead to an increase in fuel efficiency. Longer, thinner and narrower wings will be another feature of the new narrow-body. To ensure the aircraft fits into existing airport gates, it will also feature folded wing-tips. The design draws on principles of 'biomimicry', where engineers study and imitate the flight of birds. Mimicking the flight of the albatross, the aircraft will have a longer wingspan in flight, increasing lift and reducing drag. For the engines, Airbus is exploring several options, but the main contender is the open fan engine concept, in which fan blades that generate thrust are larger and not contained by a nacelle, the cowling that contains the fan in current-generation engines. This allows air to move efficiently through the engine, reducing fuel consumption, Airbus said. Engine maker CFM, a joint venture between France's Safran and GE Aerospace, is working on the Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines (RISE) open fan engine demonstrator, which aims to show how this technology could reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions by 20 per cent compared with current single-aisle aircraft. Airbus is planning to perform flight tests of the open fan engine on a modified A380 flying test bed by the end of the decade, it said. The open fan engine is "much more rewarding, much more challenging and much more revolutionary" than the "evolutionary" ducted fan engines, Frank Haselbach, senior vice president of propulsion angineering at Airbus, told the summit. At an aircraft engine's bypass ratio of 15 or 16, the benefits of a large fan are wiped out by the additional drag created by a very big duct, Mohamed Ali, senior vice president and chief technology and operations officer at GE Aerospace, told the summit. The current bypass ratio on jet engines is at 11 to 12, so that point is not too far. An open fan design can take the bypass ratio up to 60. "That is the fuel burn opportunity that we are thrilled and excited about," he added. A bypass ratio is a key measure of the efficiency and performance of jet engines, referring to the ratio of air bypassing the engine core versus air passing through it. During the summit, Airbus showcased the concept of a tube-and-wing aircraft that could have either wing-mounted or rear-mounted open fan engines. Electrification, automation and hybrid-electric propulsion, which supplements the use of conventional jet fuel or SAF with electricity from batteries or fuel cells, are some of the areas Airbus is working on. "Imagine for one second that we have an aircraft that could onboard during its life-cycle all the technologies that will improve step by step ... it will be a game-changer, radically different," said Karim Mokaddem, head of aircraft of tomorrow research and technology at Airbus. But he acknowledged that "what is in front of us is a huge mountain of challenges, of unknowns". 'If I had to sell this aircraft to a passenger, I would simply say that it is an aircraft that is radically different in terms of fuel-consumption and therefore it is a sustainable aircraft,' Mr Mokaddem told The National on the sidelines of the summit. The passenger experience on the aircraft will be much improved, with better connectivity onboard. 'If we reach this level of hyper-connectivity, it's an aircraft on which you will be able not only to work, but also connect and talk to your family, to see your movies," he added. "The passenger experience will be different.' One of the most important selling points Airbus is emphasising for airlines is the economic benefits that result from 20 per cent to 30 per cent fuel efficiency. 'We are doing all this because we already know that the added price of SAF will be huge," he said. "And therefore, if you want to maintain the ambition of connecting people today and even more people tomorrow, we need to propose to the airline something that is reducing the cost of operation, which is likely to increase because of the SAF price. And that's why we are focusing on the performance of the aircraft."
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Airbus sets out its stall ahead of new plane development
By Tim Hepher TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) - Airbus on Tuesday gave a glimpse of technologies for its next airplane, a replacement for its best-selling A320neo family due to enter service between 10 and 15 years from now. The question of when to replace the industry's top-selling model, which competes with Boeing's 737 MAX in the busiest part of the market, is one of the key decisions for Guillaume Faury as he enters a third three-year term as CEO next month. Airbus said the new airplane would be 20-30% more efficient than the current A320neo family. In the U.S., NASA has said it is working on a rival configuration with Boeing that could reduce fuel consumption and therefore emissions by up to 30%. Airbus is, however, keeping investors and competitors guessing over the scope and timing of any new project. On Monday, Faury said the plane would be evolutionary rather than revolutionary, though Airbus has warmed to a potential open-fan engine studied by CFM that he described as more revolutionary than its alternatives. On Tuesday, the company's top development officials adopted a less cautious tone at an event to promote Airbus efforts to act as a catalyst for decarbonisation. "We want to do this major gap (with the current model) which is not incremental, which is not optimisation," said Bruno Fichefeux, head of future programmes at the world's largest planemaker. "We need to make sure that these technologies come to maturity and that we can bet our design on them, and we are not there yet," he told the Airbus Summit. "Our target ... would be to introduce an aircraft in the second half of the next decade." Analysts said the emphasis on ground-breaking technology suggests that Airbus is in no immediate hurry to launch a new development, with rival Boeing hamstrung by financial problems and important wing and engine developments still taking shape. Faury said last year Airbus would launch a new plane towards the end of the current decade. Most analysts estimate it would need around seven years after that to bring it to the market. In its largest single research project, Airbus said it was making progress towards designing a light folding wing dubbed Wing of Tomorrow and studying new composite materials. Airbus confirmed that it was looking at a drastic increase in production to 100 of the new airplanes a month, almost double current production. Reuters reported on Monday that Airbus and Boeing were both separately pushing composite suppliers to be ready for sharp increases in output to 100 planes a month each for the next jet, as they make more use of plastic materials and robotic assembly. Airbus said it continues to explore a possible hydrogen fuel-cell-based aircraft for the regional market after delaying development by five to 10 years from an original target of 2035.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Airbus says next jet 'evolutionary not revolutionary'
By Tim Hepher TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) -Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said on Tuesday the planemaker's next single-aisle jet would be "evolutionary rather than revolutionary", but that this could include an open-rotor engine such as one being studied by supplier CFM. The head of the world's largest planemaker was speaking at the start of an event aimed at focusing attention on ongoing innovation following the company's decision last month to delay development of a radical hydrogen-powered regional aircraft. "There will be a significant step forward with the next generation of planes, and we're looking at technologies that will make a significant difference," Faury told the Airbus Summit. Airbus and Boeing are years away from launching new jet programmes to replace their best-selling narrow-body models as they wait for the engine industry to make the next leap in fuel efficiency, which typically comes every 15 years or so. Among designs under examination, French-U.S. venture CFM, the world's largest engine maker by units sold, is developing a demonstrator called RISE based on an efficient open fan, or visible rotor blades, with a target of 20% fuel savings by 2035. Faury, who has previously said Airbus would launch a new mainstream jet by the end of the current decade, said the model would be "evolutionary ... maybe not revolutionary, even if an open rotor, in my view, is quite revolutionary. That's one of the things we are looking at with our friends from CFM." Jointly owned by GE Aerospace and Safran, CFM competes with Pratt & Whitney to power medium-haul jets and Britain's Rolls-Royce is also eyeing a return to that segment. Faury defended a decision to delay adoption of a smaller hydrogen plane with 100 seats, saying Airbus did not want to produce a "Concorde of hydrogen" - referring to the 1960s icon that captured worldwide imagination but racked up huge losses. Airbus has not given a new timeline for the project, but the Force Ouvriere union said last month that staff had been told that the technology was running five to 10 years behind the pace needed to support an original 2035 target. Faury said aviation's goal of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050 was reachable but acknowledged it remained fragile as supplies of alternative fuel remain scarce. "I don't think we are wrong to continue to pursue net zero by 2050 ... Maybe it's going to take a bit more time, but let's not be shy in the ambition," Faury said. Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
25-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Airbus sets out its stall ahead of new plane development
TOULOUSE, France, March 25 (Reuters) - Airbus ( opens new tab on Tuesday gave a glimpse of technologies for its next airplane, a replacement for its best-selling A320neo family due to enter service between 10 and 15 years from now. The question of when to replace the industry's top-selling model, which competes with Boeing's (BA.N), opens new tab 737 MAX in the busiest part of the market, is one of the key decisions for Guillaume Faury as he enters a third three-year term as CEO next month. here. Airbus said the new airplane would be 20-30% more efficient than the current A320neo family. In the U.S., NASA has said it is working on a rival configuration with Boeing that could reduce fuel consumption and therefore emissions by up to 30%. Airbus is, however, keeping investors and competitors guessing over the scope and timing of any new project. On Monday, Faury said the plane would be evolutionary rather than revolutionary, though Airbus has warmed to a potential open-fan engine studied by CFM (GE.N), opens new tab, ( opens new tab that he described as more revolutionary than its alternatives. On Tuesday, the company's top development officials adopted a less cautious tone at an event to promote Airbus efforts to act as a catalyst for decarbonisation. "We want to do this major gap (with the current model) which is not incremental, which is not optimisation," said Bruno Fichefeux, head of future programmes at the world's largest planemaker. "We need to make sure that these technologies come to maturity and that we can bet our design on them, and we are not there yet," he told the Airbus Summit. "Our target ... would be to introduce an aircraft in the second half of the next decade." Analysts said the emphasis on ground-breaking technology suggests that Airbus is in no immediate hurry to launch a new development, with rival Boeing hamstrung by financial problems and important wing and engine developments still taking shape. Faury said last year Airbus would launch a new plane towards the end of the current decade. Most analysts estimate it would need around seven years after that to bring it to the market. In its largest single research project, Airbus said it was making progress towards designing a light folding wing dubbed Wing of Tomorrow and studying new composite materials. Airbus confirmed that it was looking at a drastic increase in production to 100 of the new airplanes a month, almost double current production. Reuters reported on Monday that Airbus and Boeing were both separately pushing composite suppliers to be ready for sharp increases in output to 100 planes a month each for the next jet, as they make more use of plastic materials and robotic assembly. Airbus said it continues to explore a possible hydrogen fuel-cell-based aircraft for the regional market after delaying development by five to 10 years from an original target of 2035.
The National
25-03-2025
- Business
- The National
US tariff war risks making planes more expensive and may hurt Boeing, says Airbus CEO
Airbus's top executives have warned that retaliatory aviation sector tariffs between the US and Europe could raise the price tags of aircraft and potentially hurt its chief rival Boeing, as President Donald Trump's rapid pivots on US trade policy stoke uncertainty for businesses around the world. Aviation is a 'North Atlantic ecosystem: there's a lot of parts and goods going from Europe to US and US to Europe … we think it will be a lose-lose situation to put tariffs', Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury told The National in Toulouse on the sidelines of the annual Airbus Summit. 'In a number of scenarios, tariffs would much more impact US activities than non-US activities, given the nature of this industry.' For now, there have not been indications of aviation-related tariffs targeting the sector and, Mr Faury said, he hopes this will continue to be the case. 'I continue to hope there will be no tariffs targeting aerospace … and if we have, then, we have to understand what it looks like and what we need to do to respond to the situation,' he said. In a scenario where Airbus' US airline customers are impacted by potential tariffs, Airbus 'can adapt because of the demand we have', Mr Faury added. 'We will adapt to the situation, including potentially by redirecting our clients, but again, we are not in that situation today.' Airbus is currently in 'wait-and-see mode' until it becomes clear if any tariffs will be imposed on the sector, by when and what will be the potential retaliation from Europe, according to Mr Faury. 'There's plenty of scenarios and we are trying to understand,' he said. Mr Faury told the summit that in most scenarios, potential tariffs would be 'very damaging' to the US aviation industry, and therefore, 'it is not very likely' that the Trump administration would impose tariffs on aviation. 'We are in an industry where putting tariffs will be very damaging, probably more damaging to the US at first glance or they would have to be very sophisticated, we don't know what the response would look like so we are in wait-and-see mode.' Airbus has a significant manufacturing base in the US with a plant in Alabama where it has final assembly lines for the A220, A320 and A321 narrow-bodies. The French plane maker also assembles and retrofits civil and military helicopters in Mississippi and produces satellites in Florida. Employing more than 5,000 people in the US, Airbus also supports 275,000 American jobs through its annual spending of $15 billion with more than 2,000 suppliers across 40 states, according to its website. Its production factories in the US potentially gives Airbus more leverage to mitigate potential fallout from tariffs. 'What President Trump is trying to achieve is to encourage activity, work, jobs, employment in the US and this is very much contributing to jobs in the US,' Mr Faury said. Depending on the potential tariffs, they could result in a bigger price tag for supplies and aircraft, Wouter van Wersch, executive vice president International at Airbus, told The National. 'Depending on how it is positioned, it can make our supply more expensive and it can also make the price of the aircraft more expensive. Ultimately, it's not the best situation for the industry,' he said. 'We like a free world and everything that promotes the free trade of goods is helping us and other manufacturers because everybody is in the same boat.' Imposing tariffs could hurt the aviation industry's rebound as the supply chain continues to heal from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Airbus receives a million parts for one aircraft and has thousands of suppliers worldwide. 'Many of the suppliers are still recovering from Covid [impact] and at the same time, we've got our massive backlog and we need to ramp-up [production],' Mr van Wersch said. 'So clearly, the tariffs are an additional burden that we would like to avoid.' As a company with a global supply chain, with assembly lines in Europe, the US and China, Airbus is closely monitoring developments around tariffs, but it is 'too early' to say what the impact will be, he added. 'Like many other companies, we are assessing how this is all going to evolve, and especially assessing the impact on our operations and the supply chain,' he said. 'We have a very wide supply chain … we have a very strong risk-management system and we are trying to see where this is going.' Christian scherr, chief executive of the Commercial Aircraft business of Airbus, told the summit Airbus needs to understand what the tariffs are 'before we can draw conclusions, whether it's for us, for our suppliers, who we would be worried about, or for our competitors'. Rising trade tension between the US and China since Mr Trump's first term have helped Airbus gain the upper hand over Boeing in supplying aircraft to China, the world's second-largest aviation market. Airbus also has the advantage of a final assembly line in Tianjin in northern China that produces the popular A320 family of narrow-body aircraft. 'We have maintained a professional business relationship with our Chinese partners, whereas the situation of Boeing has been indeed impacted by the general situation of political tension between the US and China,' Mr Faury said. 'So, it's probably a situation that is different than what Boeing is having but we are looking at our own way of doing business with our Chinese stakeholders. We try to continue to do the right things, and that's where we are, working directly with the airlines and Chinese stakeholders.' Last week, in a meeting with Mr Faury in China, the country's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said China's trade policies towards trading partners, including the EU, have consistently been stable. He also welcomed European companies to increase their investment in China, according to a ministry statement, adding that China will continue to improve its business environment, and will vigorously encourage foreign investment. Earlier this month Airbus estimated it will deliver 820 aircraft this year, setting a modest target as the plane maker struggles with trade tension, persistent supply constraints and delays at some engine makers. Airbus will absorb some parts of struggling US supplier Spirit Aerosystems, while Boeing is buying the majority of that company it once owned to gain better control over plane parts manufacturing. Mr Faury said he is hopeful that Airbus taking over Spirit work packages for the A220 and A350 aircraft by midyear is a realistic timeline. 'I got from my team signals that things are coming together. It becomes more and more difficult to be done by the middle of the year, but that was the objective, so we keep sticking to that date for the moment to put pressure on the system so we can come to a result,' he said. Mr van Wersch added that demand for new aircraft continues to hold strong, despite economic uncertainty, as airlines want to buy more fuel-efficient jets and replace older equipment. 'Today, if I look at all the campaigns we are working on, it is set to look very positive in the coming years. Middle East carriers are very ambitious and have an amazing position geographically to link the world.' Mr Scherer said Airbus is beginning to see 'encouraging signs' of improvement in the overall performance of supply chains, but as the plane maker increases production, it is facing some constraints that it is addressing. 'The overall noise or disturbance in the supply environment seems to be … on a somewhat positive trend,' he said. Looking ahead, the Airbus chief executive is optimistic of a smooth landing. 'Take the example of a plane taking off from one place going to another with bad weather on the way, a bit of headwind, some turbulence, that's what we are experiencing. But we continue to target landing at our destination,' Mr Faury said.
