A400M Faces Long Haul On Contract Talks
Robert Wall/Spain wall@aviationweek.com
Sorting out the future for the A400M military airlifter may take most of the year, even if customers commit this summer to continuing with the program.
A critical milestone is fast approaching for the TP400D turboprop's full-authority digital engine control (Fadec) software: Its initial flight-test is scheduled for this month. The Fadec software has become the pacing item for the airlifter's first flight, owing to problems with attaining the needed civil certification with the European Aviation Safety Agency.
Airbus Military is locked in detailed discussions with buyers about the program's status, schedule problems, technical challenges and roadmap to recovery as it tries to convince the seven core countries not to exercise their option to walk away from the A400M, which has fallen more than two years behind schedule. Parties in the project have declared a moratorium on deciding the program's future until July, to allow time for a thorough exchange of information.
But that does not mean a decision will in fact come in July. Industry has warned that it will not see the program through to completion unless the fixed-price contractual arrangement for development and production is modified. Under the current terms the contract is loss-making for industry. "We give ourselves until the end of the year to reach a common understanding" between industry and government, says Domingo Urena, the chairman and managing director of Airbus Military. Urena took over the program after EADS restructured operations to gain more control of the A400M's development.
Urena expresses optimism that some agreement will be reached, noting that a contract modification or update is probably all that will be needed.
In addition to relief from the fixed prices, the A400M industrial team is looking for adjustments to some performance requirements it says are simply too costly to meet at this point. Urena insists, though, that there are also areas where the airlifter exceeds demand.
An accord around year's end could coincide with the A400M's first flight, which the industrial team still hopes to pull off this year. Customers have been given a target date, but Urena won't disclose it, citing the sensitive nature of the government-industry deliberations.
However, the achievement controlling the timing of that event, EASA's engine certification, is planned for the end of the year, says Nick Durham, president of the Europrop International (EPI) consortium developing the TP400. Durham says a version of the MTU-developed Fadec software to allow first flight was nearly ready last year, when developers realized it failed to meet EASA development standards and couldn't be certified. Developers then went back to recode the software, adhering to EASA standards, Durham says. EPI members had to triple their workforce to do the recoding.
Developers decided not to seek a waiver from EASA to commence flight trials with a noncompliant Fadec while they rewrote the software in parallel. Jacques Desclaux, EPI's executive vice president, says there were indications the waiver would not have been granted. Other program officials say some on the A400M development team also were concerned that flight-testing done with a noncompliant Fadec would have to be redone, too.
In effect, though, that decision contributed to customer dissatisfaction with the program and made its delays all the more visible. Still, A400M officials are reluctant to second-guess the move, noting that in hindsight things often look different.
Durham says overall engine development is now 90 percent complete. Icing tests, medium-sized bird and water ingestion and short-duration tests, such as fuel icing, have yet to be performed. Extended endurance trials also must be finished. Specific fuel consumption is meeting specifications, with engine weight within about 1 percent of target. Durham says ways to lighten the engine have been identified.
In parallel, the powerplant has been undergoing extensive ground trials and has completed nine flights on a modified C-130 flying testbed, logging more than 25 hours. "We have not detected any major issues," Urena says. It is primarily the EASA certification requirement that has put the program behind schedule.
The Fadec is not the only subsystem to lag, but it has drawn the most attention and been most closely linked to the delay of first flight.
In addition to the Fadec software problems, the A400M is struggling with weight. Peter Scoffham, Airbus Military vice president for defense capability marketing, insists weight was never a program specification and the airlifter is within the margins of the range/payload demand. While he agrees that the A400M may not be able to carry some ground vehicles customers want, he says that is because they were added to the equipment list late and do not conform to the weight parameters agreed to at the outset. German officials say they want the A400M to carry the Puma, but that vehicle is too heavy for the transport.
Urena says that, as with all aircraft programs, weight is not a trivial issue, and efforts are underway to lower it. But until flight trials start, the weight question remains open.
One circumstance in which weight could be critical is a soft field landing at 45 degrees. The performance criteria call for the airlifter to be able to perform 40 missions on a muddy airfield (or CBR 6 standard). If weight is too high, that number may be reduced, Scoffham concedes, adding that the situation can be mitigated in many operational scenarios simply by shifting the landing area slightly.
The industrial team's focus now is to get to first flight and start accruing the almost 4,000 flight-test hours. Along with engine development activities, the first-flight aircraft (MSN001) is about to undergo outdoor fuel-testing. Static engine ground runs will follow in midsummer, Urena says.
Due to delays, the A400M test program will soon have two flight-test aircraft available. MSN002 has completed power-on, and the fuselage for MSN003 is scheduled to arrive here this month to start final assembly. Wing assembly has begun.
Meanwhile, the limit-load campaign on the static test aircraft, MSN5000, should finish around mid-month. Ultimate loads testing is planned for October.
Urena says building customer confidence that industry can deliver on the new promises made will be key in the coming weeks and months, but he is optimistic that no customers will abandon the project.
Photo credit: EADS
