ANNIVERSARY

MSN1’s airborne debut

on 11 December 2009
was a qualified success

Airbus
Heavy going
A full decade has passed since Airbus performed the first flight with an A400M. We assess
whether the airlifter could at last be ready to rise above the turbulence of its service entry
CRAIG HOYLE LONDON Martin C-130J and Boeing’s C-17 strategic the onboard equipment that would modify its
transport. But in reality, even as aircraft control laws from direct to normal mode
en years ago this week, Airbus MSN1 left the ground for the first time, the while airborne. This same problem added

T conducted the first flight of what

was viewed at the time as its poster-
child military product: the A400M
tactical transport. The result of a broad wish
list of operating requirements drawn up by
huge complexity of the A400M’s develop-
ment path and challenges of its overly ambi-
tious and rigid contract framework were al-
ready evident.
Speaking after the 3h 45min debut, Ed
around 30min to the sortie’s expected
duration, as a large attendance of dignitaries,
invited guests and company employees
looked on.

multiple European nations, the four-engined Strongman, the manufacturer’s chief military UNDERCARRIAGE FIX
turboprop on 11 December 2009 soared im- pilot, described the A400M as having been Besides this inconvenience, Strongman re-
pressively from the runway adjacent to the “a pleasure to fly”, noting that it was “far vealed that the A400M also encountered an
company’s San Pablo final assembly site in more agile and manoeuvrable than a civil unexpected buffet issue when its landing gear
Seville, Spain. aeroplane”. was cycled in flight. This flaw was subse-
A decade ago, the airlifter’s prospects ap- The milestone flight had departed Seville quently addressed through the addition of
peared strong, based on its position in a mar- on a warm winter day approximately 15min small fins to the lower aft section of each main
ket sweet spot between the smaller Lockheed later than planned because of an issue with landing gear pontoon, drawing on the

22 | Flight International | 10-16 December 2019 flightglobal.com

 A400M

airframer’s past design experience gained on including armoured vehicles, or medium- A400M GLOBAL FLEET
the Transall C160 programme. sized helicopter and humanitarian relief
Nation Active Ordered
While the debut flight was a cause of equipment such as a large excavator. To hold
Belgium 7
celebration, the mood was tempered by the both military and civilian type certification,
France 15 35
event taking place two months after the it would also be capable of performing the
type’s first delivery had been scheduled, ac- air-to-air refuelling of fixed-wing aircraft and Germany 31 22

cording to a €20 billion (at that time $29.5 helicopters, and of operating from austere Luxembourg* 1
billion) development and production-phase landing strips. Malaysia 4
contract signed in May 2003. Even before the Early challenges, including with the air- Spain 6 21
flight, the then-EADS was in discussion with craft’s 11,000shp (8,200kW) Europrop Inter- Turkey 9 1
launch partners Belgium, France, Germany, national TP400-D6 engines identified during UK 20 2
Luxembourg, Spain, Turkey and the UK via flight testing with a five-strong “Grizzly” fleet, Totals 85 89
Europe’s OCCAR defence procurement agen- caused delay and friction, and it was not until Source: Cirium fleets data
cy about the viability of the 180-unit arrange- April 2011 that a revised contract was agreed. Note: *To be operated with Belgium

ment, which was already considered to be This trimmed 10 units from the original deal,
“unworkable”. with Germany cutting its commitment by capable airlifter that is undeniably an Air-
seven, to 53, and the UK lowering its planned bus”, and concluded that its “first clean-sheet
“There is clear export offtake to 22, from an original 25. offering may be just right”.
Malaysia also became the programme’s first Grizzly 1 was retired in November 2013,
potential, with a number of export customer, with Kuala Lumpur signing after 475 flights and almost 1,450h of service.
for four examples. This went some way to- As production deliveries gathered pace for
countries expressing interest wards recovering business lost when South early recipients also including Germany, Tur-
in the A400M” Africa axed its plans to purchase eight of the
type just a month before the first flight.
key and the UK – the Luftwaffe took the 50th
example in September 2017 – Airbus main-
Alberto Gutierrez
July 2012 saw the A400M given the formal tained its ambitious export targets. In October
Head of military aircraft, Airbus Defence & Space
product name Atlas, and 13 months later, the 2015, the company said it expected to secure
first production example, MSN7, was handed orders for 50 examples within a five-year pe-
Following a gestation period of roughly over to the French air force. The lead user for- riod. Sales targets included multiple nations
two decades from the Future Large Aircraft mally introduced the transport in October in the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and
project’s emergence, the A400M had original- 2013, and within two months had made its the Middle East, either to replace ageing trans-
ly been due to fly early in 2008, with deliver- first deployment to an operational theatre, ports or to complement assets such as the
ies from October 2009. Production was tar- performing a logistics supply mission to Mali. C-17 and C-130J.
geted to run until 2022, while Airbus Ahead of the 2013 Paris air show, Flight
bullishly forecast a likely market opportunity International test pilot Michael Gerzanics was ENGINE TROUBLE
to sell another 200 to export customers. invited to fly development aircraft “Grizzly 1” But at the same time, the programme was
Created as a more capable replacement for alongside Strongman. After putting the air- mired with lingering engine and gearbox reli-
the decades-old C-130s and C160s flown by lifter through its paces in a variety of flight ability issues, a slower-than-expected deliv-
European air forces, the A400M was de- conditions, he wrote that the then-Airbus ery rate and delays with the introduction of
signed around a large cargo box capable of Military had “leveraged the civil side’s exten- contracted tactical capabilities, including air-
accommodating a maximum payload of 37t, sive fly-by-wire experience to field a very to-air refuelling and securing airdrop and
paratroop delivery clearances. The pro-
gramme also experienced tragedy in May
2015, when an example produced for the
Turkish air force crashed on its first flight, kill-
ing four Airbus personnel and injuring two
others. The loss was attributed to a software
load issue, which resulted in the aircraft’s en-
gines remaining stuck on full power after
take-off, and three of them failing to recover
after being moved back to flight idle in a bid to
resolve the issue.
Airbus financial results updates also be-
came punctuated with revelations of punish-
ing liquidated damages for contract failings,
with these totalling €2.2 billion in 2016 alone.
Matters came to a head in February 2017,
when then-Airbus chief executive Tom End-
ers called for a new round of discussions with
A400M customers. Voicing his frustration at
the level and frequency of penalty charges, he
went as far as to describe the company’s sig-
nature of the original contract as an “original
sin”, and singled out its error in having taken
Our archive cutaway drawing, produced after tactical transport’s formal launch in 2003 contractual responsibility for a propulsion ❯❯

flightglobal.com 10-16 December 2019 | Flight International | 23

 ANNIVERSARY

❯❯ system that was the result of national

workshare requirements.
After more than two years of negotiations,
OCCAR signed a so-called contract
“re-baselining” agreement with Airbus in
June 2019. This established the timeline for
delivering remaining tactical capabilities,
removed the threat of further financial
damages and slowed annual output – only
eight will be delivered in 2020 – in a step that
will extend production activities until 2030,
keeping the door open for future exports.
Crucially for Airbus, the financial impact of
this revised deal was described by OCCAR as
being “cost neutral”.
Speaking at the Paris air show the same
month, Airbus Defence & Space head of mili-
tary aircraft Alberto Gutierrez said the new
deal had been forged in part after the compa-
ny fully met its contractual requirements for
the first time during 2018.
With programme stability seemingly now
in place – albeit at the third time of asking,
what might the coming decade hold in store
for the Atlas?
By mid-October, a total of 85 A400Ms had
been delivered to six nations, leaving 89 to
follow, according to the company’s current
orderbook. Germany is the type’s clear fleet
leader today, with 31 in use. Three of these
are employed in the tanker role, including in
support of operations in the Middle East. It is
followed by the UK Royal Air Force, which
has received 20 examples, and the French air
force, which has 15. Turkey has received all
but one of its contracted 10 units, while
Spain has made a slow start, with just six of

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Malaysia has taken all four of its transports, number of countries expressing interest in
FLIGHT
flightglobal.com

15-21 DECEMBER 2009

INTERNATIONAL
while Belgium will receive a first of seven in
2020, along with another funded by
the A400M,” Gutierrez says, adding: “This
needs to be part of our government-to-
A400M FLIGHT SCHEDULE
Luxembourg. government sales strategy.” His view is
A LIFT AT LAST,
BUT TESTING Operational use of the type has now echoed by Airbus Defence & Space chief
TIMES AHEAD
Getting airborne is just start of long credibility
battle for Airbus’s delay-plagued programme
topped the 60,000 flight hour mark, Airbus executive Dirk Hoke, who says the company
says. is “very optimistic that the speed of discus-
Flight test Nations including Chile, Indonesia, Mexi- sions for export will increase, as we have
flagged co and Saudi Arabia have at various points delivered important capabilities to our
type‘s early been eyed as potential future buyers, and Gut- customers”.
potential ierrez also believes that India is emerging as a Airbus officials decline to speculate on the
PARIS
SPECIAL REPOR
T
£2.95 USA$8.99

possib candidate. But to close future sales,

possible potential timing of a next export order, but
GETTING TO Airbus needs to have the support of a Gutierrez says he would like to see this hap-
FLIGHTINTERNATIONAL

PARIS
FLIGHT TEST

GRIPS WIT s
satisfied base of core customers, making pen “the sooner the better”. He adds that feed-
THE A400MH
As Airbus Militar
y prepares to deliver
i delivery against their re-baselining
its back from the A400M user group shows that
example to the French its first production
Europe’s new airlift

MIKE GERZANICS
air force, Flight Interna
and refuelling asset
TOULOUSE
tional puts
through its paces c
contract essential. the aircraft is delivering “capabilities that
Gutierrez says the military personnel even the air forces were not aware of”.
The first A400M
development aircraft

T
he A400M is Airbus rolled out from Airbus was
Military’s first be- Military’s Seville
spoke product and duction facility in pro-
traces Spain on 26 June
European Staff Requiremenits roots to a medium transport 2008. The
t for a more turboprop features the largest
capable airlifter for
the 21st century. In engines to date swinging Western
broad terms the type eight-bladed scimitar massive
would replace the propellers. The

w operate the Atlas love the platform,

who
Transall and Lockheed C160 first
Martin C-130 Hercules Grizzly, as the five developmental
of purchasing countries’ came nicknamed aircraft be-
,
partner nations specified air forces. The eight 2009. Following was flown on 11 December
an aircraft that could an extensive developme
perform both tactical programme ntal
and strategic airlift , Airbus Military
Airbus Military and roles. is set to deliver
project partners Turkish the first operational A400M, or

GAINING LIFT
Aerospace Industries French air force in Atlas, to the
and Belgium’s Flabel late June or early July

b
but concedes that its reliability and avail-
alised that in an era re- In advance 2013.
of tight budgets, any of the
aircraft would have new Flight Internation milestone being achieved,
to be able to fulfil a al was invited to
Airbus Military

of roles. In addition number to fly the

to transport duties, new-generation product. Toulouse
A400M would be the
designed
provide an aerial refuelling from the outset to HEAVY LIFTING A five-strong Grizzly
be no mere form/fit/fun capability. It would From an overall tures a flat-floored development fleet

ab
ability need to improve further. With Pointing to the 40,000ft operating altitude and
ction replacemen size perspective the cargo hold with
the C-130; but offer t for A400M mounted has been used since
dramatically improved slots neatly between the C-130J-30 ramp. an aft-
aircraft and helicopters
performance and cules and the Boeing Super Her- The A400M can December 2009
operational capabilities C-17. Like both these carry a total of nine from wing-moun
. airlifters, the business US (88 x 108in) 463L hose and drogue ted C-17, which
units. cruises at speeds
end of the A400M
fea- C-130J-30
cargo pallets: one
more than the proven to be an effective This capability has and M0.77, between M0.74
velopmental simulator.
and nine fewer than force multiplier for the more fuel-efficien
the C-17. Two combat search and es in the M0.68-0.72 t A400M cruis- The preview aircraft,
variants of the LD7 rescue operations, range. MSN6/F-WWMZ/Grizz
civil pallet can also as special operations as well How this plays ly 5, was production
representative, with

B
Boeing already having ended production up to Mach 0.72 cruise performance of the
transported, with be missions. out in operational -
dimensions of 88 With a top speed can be terms the exception of
and 96 x 125in. All x 125in of less illustrated by France’s recent software loadings. The aircraft some
three airlifters can C-130J would struggle than Mach 0.58 the erations. With Mali op- with
ated with a single
loadmaster, working
be oper- to refuel tactical the A400M, according an air refuelling receiver was configured
from a The A400M has a jets. bus Military to Air- not have probe, but did
dedicated station in top-end calibrated chief test pilot Ed Strongman wing-moun ted pods installed.
the cargo hold. giving it the ability airspeed the French ,
While palletised cargo to refuel forces could have Parked on the ramp
capability is one meas- also support helicopters fighters, but it will more rapidly, been deployed
facility, the A400M
at Airbus’s Toulouse
ure of a transport’s flying as slow as and with a
usefulness, the ability 105kt (194km/h). in total air movements dramatic reduction rounded by looked out of place,

of the C-17, competition remains from the Atlas, Airbus Defence & Space head of mar-
outsized loads has to carry It comes plumbed . a large variety and sur-
assumed greater importance. tanking duties, with for aerial Assuming staging number of
Pallets can be loaded the option for two out of civil airliners. While
on mounted pods as wing- Istres air base in the paint the grey camouflage
freighters and landed any number of civil well as a ramp centerline- south of France and arrival in is new, it lacks the
at mounted hose and Bamako, Mali, shine of a passenger
bases. Moving armoured in-theatre logistics drum unit. Offloaded the A400M would
require only 5h 30min aircraft.
is from the A400M’s fuel transport
helicopters for deploying fighting vehicles and normal fuel system, 31t of cargo. The
air force’s current
to The A400M’s appearance
additional capability but Transall would screams that this
demands a voluminous rapid reaction forces can require 10h to deliver is not your typical
cargo hold. The A400M installation of optional be realised with the while a C-130 Airbus. The high

C- keting Ioannis Papachristofilou notes: “The

only 5t, Europrop

C-130J, which recently gained selection

has demonstrated
the ability to load both pallet-mounted cargo would need 7h 30min International TP400-D6 wing, four
hold fuel tanks. These to deliver engines
Industries NH90
and Eurocopter EC725
the NH are connected directly 13t. “While C-17s were used to deliver and fuselage-mounted turboprop
to the aircraft’s fuel cargo and fighting outsized gear pontoons main landing
copters with minimal heli- system and controlled vehicles, it was to all say military transport.
disassembly. Airbus the centralised fuel by which was Bamako, general The
tary is confident it Mili- management system. 900km [486nm] configuration of
will even be able In terms of range lines,” says Strongman. from the front the A400M is the
Craig Hoyle/Flightglobal

Boeing CH-47 Chinook to load a and payload, compared same as the venerable
heavy-lift helicopter. the C130-J the A400M to Hercules.
In addition to its excels. At cruise, Closer examinatio
n however, reveals

in New Zealand – another previous Atlas aircraft is now proving its game-changing
large Super Hercules has the FIRST IMPRESSI
The aircraft’s flightdeck
was developed from spectable 37t maximum cargo hold and re- a true airspeed in the ONS aircraft that is more
akin to the C-17.
an
payload, the A400M of 348kt, while the region
the A380 and adapted
to military requirement has a unique aerial A400M can comfortably Our preview flight was flown out of the C-130’s
straight, highly
In place
92 | Flight Internationa s tanker capability. cruise at 422kt. In Blagnac, with Strongman of Toulouse wing, cambered
l | 11-17 June 2013 variants of the C-130 Several general terms the A400M the A400M
can refuel slow-movin carry the same payload can command. acting as the pilot has a thin supercritica
g twice as far, or twice Prior to the flight he in with 15˚ of l one
payload the same the to the A400M introduced me sweep. Instead
distance. Compared mounted horizontal of a fuselage-
and our proposed stabiliser
flightglobal.com to the with a session flight profile has and elevator, it
in a fixed-base engineering a high-mounted

tar
target – and Embraer’s C/KC-390 twinjet. characteristics.” Giving as an example its
flightglobal.com de- propeller-d all-moving T-tail.
riven A400M was The
built for speed. ❯❯
11-17 June 2013 |
Flight Internationa |
l 93

24 | Flight International | 10-16 December 2019 flightglobal.com

 A400M

Luftwaffe is type’s lead

user, with 31 examples
now in service

Fazry Ismail/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Malaysia has used its fleet for supporting disaster relief in Bangladesh and Palu, Indonesia
Bundeswehr

DGA
Air-to-air refuelling trial with an H160 (right) and H225M (far right) has proven successful

He describes progress made with advancing conditions will take place during 2020,
“The users are now really tactical capabilities over the past two years as Isorce says.
putting this into operational “fantastic”.
Air-to-air refuelling work has included so-
An internal cargo crane with a 5t lift
capacity has been tested successfully, proving
use on real military missions” called “dry” contacts with an Airbus Helicop- the ability to operate without ground infra-
Ioannis Papachristofilou ters H225M and this work will advance with structure.
Head of marketing, Airbus Defence & Space fuel transfers from December using an extend- Notable operational use has included the
ed 36m hose design. Certification is expected UK delivering humanitarian relief supplies to
during 2020 or 2021. Trials work has also the Caribbean and Mozambique, and Malay-
ability to land on a 915m (3,000ft)-long been conducted using a centreline hose drum sia’s use in supporting disaster relief efforts in
unpaved runway while carrying a 27t unit and two additional fuselage tanks, to Bangladesh in 2017 and flights of heavy
payload, he adds: “The users are now really support large receiver aircraft. equipment and supplies into Palu, Indonesia
putting this into operational use on real Paratroop drop testing has at last validated last year.
military missions.” that two lines of personnel can be deployed It has been a highly turbulent first decade
Gutierrez notes that with the re-baselining from the aircraft’s side doors without crossing for the A400M, and by the time the next 10
agreement, all of the A400M’s remaining ca- behind. Side door modifications have been years have passed, production of the Atlas
pabilities will be available by its Batch 7 approved, and during trials 40 troops jumped will either be reaching its conclusion for the
standard, due for acceptance by the end of from each side simultaneously, and 58 from original nations, or enjoying better fortunes
2021. This will especially improve reliability one side only. after attracting additional customers.
and availability, he adds. Tactical low-level flight work is also Only time will tell, but Airbus is hoping
Speaking in early November, Eric Isorce – advancing. Users can currently fly the Atlas that the type’s attraction will prove to be more
one of the crew members from the first as low as 150ft in daylight in visual meteoro- enduring than seen with its commercial flag-
A400M flight, and the head of the company’s logical conditions and 300ft at night, and the ship and development peer, the A380. If that
flight-test department between 2015 and July same capability has been shown during trials ends up to be the case, then its early optimism
2019, detailed the recent activities conducted in automatic terrain-following mode. Similar for the A400M could ultimately end up deliv-
in support of delivering further functionality. work in instrument meteorological ering the goods after all. ■

flightglobal.com 10-16 December 2019 | Flight International | 25