BANGALORE: Global aerospace and defence firm Airbus Group has completed a successful first public flight of E-Fan, its electrically-powered aircraft on April 25 in Bordeaux, France, and, is all geared to get into production by 2017. TOI, which had reported in October last that the aircraft is ready for its public flight, has an exclusive interview with Jean Botti, the Group's Chief Technical and Innovation Officer. Excerpts:
Why is Airbus Group doing research on electric propulsion? How does it benefit you?
E-Fan is our commitment to further reduce aircraft emissions and noise. Hybrid and electric propulsion will also lead to more economic and efficient aircraft technology in the long run and we want to pioneer this technology. The technical and operational experiences gained with E-Fan could serve as stepping stones for improvements across our product range - for example hybrid helicopter and more electric aircraft in general.
Your vision is to commercialize electric planes?
Yes. We plan to construct an E-FAN 2.0. Airbus Group and its partners are aiming at R&D to build a series version of the E-Fan and propose an industrial plan for a production facility near Bordeaux Airport in France. At the end of 2017, the E-Fan 2.0 is scheduled to enter into service, dedicated to flight schools for initial pilot training.
What is the difference between the demonstrator and E-FAN 2.0?
The demonstrator is a unique plane, a flight test-bed to be more exact, representing the first step of the E-Fan idea and future family. E-Fan 1.0 is what we call a tandem plane where the instructor is behind the student, whereas in E-Fan 2.0 the student and the instructor are side by side. The E-Fan 2.0 will be a full optimized plane to save energy and is able to be industrialized and sold. Moreover, the technology and validation will be driven by customer and certification needs and therefore, it will be redesigned to meet the customer based specifications.
What are your next steps to get there?
To facilitate the production of the E-Fan 2.0 as well as the commercialization, providing maintenance and services to the E-Fan aircraft, the foundation of a company called Voltair SAS is underway. We are also working to attract public and private funding to support the development and certification of the E-Fan 2.0.
How important is Green Technology for Airbus Group?
It is one of our key pillars within innovation. Our E-Roadmap strives to gain experience for future regional aircraft concepts using hybrid or electric propulsion. We also plan to build an E-Aircraft System House located in Munich, Germany, which will be an extension of our current research laboratory, called the PowerLab. We want to enhance our research on hybrid and electric systems through a large scale ground demonstrator facility.
Airbus Group has a research Center in Bangalore. Does it you contribute to e-technology?
Yes. Our researches in Aerothermics are an important step for this field of technology. As electronic content increases dramatically in new generation aircraft, our researchers are exploring new methods and tools to develop more efficient cooling systems which are lighter. This is significant because it would allow us to build more electrical aircraft in the future. But there are more reasons why we are present in Bengaluru: As an engineering focused company, it is very important for us to have a great pool of talents as we have it in India.
Airbus Group recently showcased the E-Fan, an all-electric aircraft in Bordeaux, France. What's special about this type of aircraft?
The E-Fan is a highly innovative technology experimental demonstrator based on an all-composite construction. It is an all-electric general training aircraft with an engine power of 60 kilowatts supplied by two battery packs located in the wings. The E-Fan has a wingspan of only almost 10 metres and a length of more than 7 metres. Compared to other electrical aircraft, the E-Fan is driven by a fan, which operates at very low noise level. I like to call it a learning platform but it is a decisive stepping stone in our roadmap towards electric flight. That's why the recent event in Bordeaux was groundbreaking.
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