20 mai 2021 | International, Aérospatial

Ratier-Figeac : nouvelle commande d'hélices pour les avions militaires américains

Collins Aerospace, groupe américain dont fait partie Ratier-Figeac, annonce avoir reçu un contrat pluriannuel pour la fourniture de nouveaux systèmes d'hélices NP2000 pour les avions Hawkeye E-2D de Northrop Grumman. Ces systèmes hélices seront fabriqués par Ratier-Figeac (Lot), qui a récemment investi dans la construction d'un centre d'excellence des hélices d'avion, qui devrait être inauguré à l'automne, comme le précise Jean-François Chanut, président de Ratier Figeac et directeur général de la branche Propeller Systems de Collins Aerospace. L'assemblage final des pièces sera réalisé aux Etats-Unis, sur le site de Windsor Locks (Connecticut). « Avec sa nouvelle hélice NP2000 et son système numérique de commande d'hélice électronique, Collins Aerospace continue de fournir aux opérateurs d'E-2D Advanced Hawkeye un temps et un coût de maintenance réduits, ainsi qu'un confort et une sécurité améliorés pour l'équipage », souligne Collins Aerospace.

La Dépêche du Midi du 20 mai

Sur le même sujet

  • Boeing’s KC-46 tanker now has a pathway for autonomous aerial refueling

    9 avril 2020 | International, Aérospatial

    Boeing’s KC-46 tanker now has a pathway for autonomous aerial refueling

    By: Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — Last week's deal between Boeing and the U.S. Air Force on a fix for the KC-46 could pave the way for the tanker to refuel other aircraft without a person needed to manually control the process, a top service official said Thursday. On April 2, Boeing agreed to fix the KC-46's troubled Remote Vision System by creating an overhauled RVS 2.0 with new hardware and software. Air Force acquisition executive Will Roper told reporters those changes would include the addition of 4K high-definition cameras that will display imagery in color as well as modern processors and LiDAR (light detecting and ranging) sensors that will help improve depth perception. “A proper RVS like that is right on the doorstep to autonomy,” Roper said. “All you have to do is take that data that tells the world inside the jet the reality of geometries between the airplane and the boom outside the jet. Once you have that, you simply need to translate it into algorithms that allow the tanker to tank itself.” The KC-46's Remote Vision System has been a thorn in the side of the aircraft program since 2017, when issues with the system were first discovered. The RVS is basically a suite of cameras, sensors and software that is supposed to allow boom operators sitting inside the aircraft to safety steer the boom into the aircraft needing fuel. But in certain conditions, the system produces distorted imagery that increases the risk of the boom hitting another aircraft. The new LIDAR system will be key to fixing that problem, said Roper, who likened it to a backup camera on a car that also provides cues to a driver for parallel parking or assessing whether a vehicle is aligned flush to a curb. “We'll have something very similar to that for the boom operators, so telling them are they left, right and how close are they getting to the airplane,” he said. “[It's] something very intuitive and easy to work with, and I think that will help significantly with them understanding their distance [from the other aircraft] because LIDAR is extremely accurate.” Because Boeing is locked into a firm fixed-price contract for the development of the KC-46, it will have to pay for the upgrade to RVS 2.0 out of its own pocket, as the Air Force maintains that the current system does not meet requirements. But the service is so confident in the prospect of using the RVS 2.0 as a stepping stone to an autonomous tanker that it included an option in last week's agreement to fund the development of technologies that enable autonomous or semiautonomous refueling. “We have added an engineering change proposal into the deal with a not-to-exceed threshold of $55 million, so that when RVS 2.0 is done, we can then take the next step beyond 2.0 to develop those autonomy algorithms and install them if we think we can certify them for safe use,” Roper said. “We took that step because, one, we're excited about being on the doorsteps of autonomy and, [two], we wanted to send a clear signal in the deal that this is our tanker for the future,” he said. If the Air Force decides to move forward with those design changes, more will need to be done to hammer out the contractual details, said Jamie Burgess, Boeing's KC-46 program manager. “There was no commitment one way or another on who pays for what. But there's definitely a strong partnership between Boeing and the Air Force as far as developing this technology,” he said. Autonomous refueling capability has been of increasing interest to the Air Force over the past few years, as sensing and artificial intelligence technologies grow by leaps and bounds. Boeing previously signaled it could include such technology as part of a menu of potential upgrade options for the KC-46, as reported by FlightGlobal in 2018. https://www.defensenews.com/air/2020/04/08/boeings-kc-46-tanker-now-has-a-pathway-for-autonomous-aerial-refueling

  • Contracts for October 21, 2021

    22 octobre 2021 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

    Contracts for October 21, 2021

    Today

  • Important next step in the M Frigate Project

    26 juin 2020 | International, Naval

    Important next step in the M Frigate Project

    June 25, 2020 - On Wednesday 24 June, the Dutch Ministry of Defense took an essential step in the replacement of the current M frigates of the Netherlands and Belgian Navies. The B-letter was sent to the Dutch Lower House, marking the completion of the investigation phase, with a design that meets the requirements of both the Defense and NATO. Damen, Thales and a whole chain of companies involved in naval shipbuilding in the Netherlands, are delighted with this next step. They are ready to start with the next phase of the project. Director Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding Hein van Ameijden: “This kind of launching customer projects are essential for the future of naval shipbuilding in the Netherlands. We are delighted that we can build the successor to the M frigates. Much more importantly, the men and women of the Royal Netherlands Navy will once again have an innovative ship at their disposal, to sail and fight with.” The main task of the frigates will be to fight submarines remotely. This will be performed by way of a new torpedo, to be deployed from the ship or by the NH90 helicopter onboard. This is one of the subjects stated in the letter that the Dutch Lower House received from State Secretary Barbara Visser. The current four M frigates of the Belgian and Dutch navies are at the end of their lifetime. In addition to submarine combat, the new frigates must be able to protect themselves and other units. They must be deployable worldwide for maritime combat and safety operations and assistance. This requires means of defence against threats from the air and enemy ships on and underwater. The frigate has room for a 110-man crew. For mission-specific personnel and their equipment, 40 extra beds and various spaces are available. The first ship is expected to be delivered in 2027. After that, operational effectiveness and safety of the ship will be tested. The Dutch Navy is expected to receive this first frigate in 2028 and the second one a year later. The Belgian frigates will be delivered no later than 2030. View source version on Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding: https://nlnavy.damen.com/important-next-step-in-the-m-frigate-project/

Toutes les nouvelles