1986 Farnborough Air Show Report

To some extent though the presence of both aircraft showed that there are indeed still fundamental differences between the various European states. Initially the long-mooted future European fighter aircraft, with a potential market for up to 2000 aircraft in Europe alone, was to comprise all the major aerospace genius that Europe had to offer. France was however the odd man out {which most non-Frenchmen tend to think is hardly unusual!) when the requirement called for an aircraft that would weigh in at 9. 5 tonnes dry.

France riot only required the major work share of the programme but demanded that it could not get by with an aircraft this heavy and wanted one with a max empty weight of no more than 8. 5 tonnes. After almost a year of fairly high-level bartering, the rest of Europe finally decided to let the Gallic connection slip and to proceed with what is now termed the European Fighter Aircraft (EFA) on their own. EFA comprises BAe, the Spanish, West Germans and Italians. While Dassault will forge ahead with Rafala B, it is presently on its own though is desperately looking for a link-up with a partner to spread its risks. Mooted have been active. Collaboration With Indonesia, Belgium, India, Brazil and even the USA via a USN requirement which the Americans quite firmly insist will be a navalised version of the new 1990s Advanced Technology Fighter (ATF). Apart from Belgium most of these options look unlikely to be realised which places·Dassault in a precarious position regarding the long-term viability of Rafale B.

Meanwhile Ralafe A will undergo comprehensive flight test over the coming two years as a lead-up to the final design of Rafale B. Ironically, while the definitive production B aircraft is to weigh in at no more than 8. 5 tonnes the existing Rafale A already weighs the 9. 5 tonnes that France originally excluded as being an acceptable dry Weight. We only mention this as if the aircraft is actually lighter, and by a considerable margin, than its essential prototype then it will certainly go down in aviation annals as a true first!

Meanwhile Dassault will continue to develop the Mirage 2000 and will use much of the technology developed within Rafale A to produce improved versions of its latest production fighter. As it stands at present Rafale B will ultimately replace all French-serving Mirage Ills, Jaguars, Crusaders, Etendards and early series F1s through the nineties. The aircraft will also be campaigned aggressively on the export market where it will be pitted against the EFA and the American ATF.

The British-led EAP on the other hand will be flight-tested for another eighteen months; or so before the final design stage of EFA is achieved. The UK will use EFA to replace its Jaguars, Phantoms, Buccaneers and Lightnings. West Germany will replace the last of its Starfighters and some of the older Phantoms while Spain will replace Phantoms and F-5s with Italy replacing its locally built Starfighters. In all a captive market for more than 1000 aircraft without even contemplating inevitable re-orders and sales abroad.

To power EFA a consortium has been announced consisting of Rolls Royce (33%), MTU (33%), Fiat (21%) and Sener of Spain with 13°/o. Designated, Eurojet, bath airframe engine groups will have learnt many valuable lessons from their general experience in Panavia (arid even Airbus) this past decade and will certainly be capable of producing a highly viable end product in every sense of the word. The projected EFA powerplant will be an advanced turbojet in the 20,000lb thrust class and is already well underway via Roll’s long parentage of their: XG40 technology engine testbed.

On the civil side the show was again dominated by the big names though ironically the biggest sales were those being chalked up by the super commuter brigade.

Boeing did not bring one aircraft this year, somewhat of a first and a rather sad one at that The reasons for the Americans taking a relatively low profile rested not on an objection to bringing aircraft but rather that coincidentally he had aircraft free to display which I imagine in an inverse way is good news in itself. It would have been nice though to have seen perhaps a USN F-18 (from a Med. squadron) and F-111, F-15 and F-16 aircraft from the regional units on static display as a counter to the squadron-level strength of the European combat aircraft display. Boeing’s ohly metal presence was a daily flyby of a USAF E-3A Sentry, flying the flag for the final round of the high-stakes RAF AEW bid.

Boeing announced no new large orders at the show though its pre-show release of the sale of up to 28 747-400s to British Airways (the largest in history) leaves one in no doubt who is No. 1 in the world civil airframe market. Boeing did however plug the fact that their 7J7 was progressing well and hoped to be able to finalise a definitive design, probably a six-abreast twin-aisle configuration, by early next year. Both GE and Boeing were very happy, indeed surprised, by the early performance of the recently test-flown UDF aboard a 727 testbed. Even so early in the test programme, the unit is proving much quieter than expected while fuel burn is also well below expectations. The 7J7 will, it is thought, be co-developed in parallel as two programmes as 110 and 150-seat airliners.

A few chalets away lies Airbus. The successful consortium now boasts firm sales of no less than 545 aircraft (as of October 1) comprising 281 A300s, 130 A31Os and 134 A320s with more than 150 additional aircraft on option. Considering that Airbus only delivered their first aircraft twelve years ago this is a fairly good track record and one that nowadays has not been lost on Boeing who at the show were (for the very first time) actually saying nice things about their European rival! An interesting sidelight to Airbus’ European parentage is that in each A300/310 sold there is the cash value in US-produced goods to the equivalent value of a new MD-80.

Airbus also did not announce any real sales at the show though their ultra-impressive· flying display of the A320s FBW control system aboard the company’s A300 demonstrator (with side stick controller) had the vast crowd riveted to attention as the huge airliner performed simulated wind shear recoveries from as low as 300ft AGL at 95kts IAS with a fully automatic max power climbout at angles approaching thirty degrees in the pitch! “Boeing eat your hearts out”, was the grinning catch cry heard through the crowded Al chalet and for good reason too!

McDonnell Douglas of course is too busy building MD-80s to ever bother bringing one to an air show though it would have been nice to have seen them perhaps influencing the various US Services in getting some of their combat aircraft represented. -MDC took the occasion of Farnborough to provisionally launch the long awaited MD-11 trijet though this still won’t formally happen till the end of the year when the present unannounced customers are ready to throw their cards in the ring. One suspects there is still active negotiation and poker playing between MDC and Airbus though from our pre-show visit to Toulouse we would be surprised if the European manufacturer would trade off either of its new A330 or A340 projects for a share of the MD-11.

MDC did however surprise everybody with an announced order by Thai International of two DC-10-30ERs for late 1987 delivery. Combined with the on-going KC-10 programme this latest DC-10 order will keep the MDC wide-bodied line viable long enough to ensure a smooth transition to MD-11 production around 1989. In addition to the Thai DC-1 Os, MDC also announ ced additional MD-80 orders to ILFC and a number of propfan derivatives of this aircraft that could well be big money earners for the company during the nineties. MDC indeed look well placed in the propfan market as they have the only existing (and fully amortised) airframe that can be produced in a number of cabin variant lengths (from 110 through to 180 seats in three versions) using existing wing and fuselage structures. This will result in a lower acquisition cost structure which gives Boeing and MDC some of the price advantage they enjoy today with their existing DC-9 and 737 variants against the newer competitors.

For many decades the British seemed hell bent on following a course of Mutual Assured Destruction for their once thriving aerospace industry. Fortunately during the latter seventies the penny dropped and nowadays the combined cream of British aeronautical achievement is no better demonstrated than by the combined talents of British Aerospace. This company is so large and diverse that one tends to forget that barely a third of its total output is devoted to civil airframes though it is these which tend to attract the limelight due to their market presence and wider marketing base.

BAe were of course dynamically represented at the show and rightly claim Farnborough, set in those rolling green fields of Hampshire, as their show just as Dassault and Aerospatiale place the same importance upon the Paris Salon. Nineteen eighty six was no exception for BAe which debuted of course with the stunning EAP and followed with displays of the Tornado, Hawk and the ever popular (and very combat-proven) Sea Harrier. Even the new RAF GR. 5 made a flyby, though too briefly to be able to properly digest its visual relationship to its American cousin, the MDC AV-8B.

On the civil side the company demonstrated its established 125, 146 and Jetstream aircraft in addition to the new ATP advanced turboprop. This aircraft makes a lot of commercial sense. It is also the only new generation turboprop to be able to use large city airport aerobridges, which could be very handy in the US hub and spoke system and can break even over a typical 150nm sector with as few as two dozen passengers paying an equivalent $US60 fare. The ATP is due to enter service next July though is still looking for a massive increase in its existing five aircraft order base which is reminiscent of the early days of the 146 and Fokker F27 programmes!

The hot-selling 146 was represented by the new QT or Quiet Trader freighter version. This aircraft could prove of great interest to the booming US and European night high-priority parcel trade and could also eventually see service in Ansett livery. Also announced was a firm commitment to the stretched 146-300, which BAe claim will be flying in time for the Paris Salon next June. Handed over at the show was the 100th 146, a -200 for CAAC while Air Wisconsin rounded out the day with a re-order of 6 146s for their US East Coast operation.

The diminutive Jetstream seems to go from strength to strength with further announcements made at the show of a further three dozen sales, indeed enough sales in one week to fill the first two years of production capacity! Some 124 firm sales have now been made while production is heading towards 60 a year, something that was difficult to envisage back in 1981 when the aircraft was re-engineered from the once promising Handley Page product of the sixties.

Mr James Strong accepted delivery of the first of three such aircraft for Australian Airlines and in so doing did not rule out the possibility of additional Jetstream purchases if the carrier should gain entry to NSW in the year ahead. Australia’s Jetstreams are fitted out with 15 larger-than-standard composite seats which save some 30kg in weight. The aircraft will also have a hostess and full F27-standard galley. While nobody alludes to the aircraft being able to turn a profit in such a configuration over such routes it certainly will give the people of outback Queensland a first-class passage.

Everybody knows that there is nothing like having a big brother, especially if he’s the toughest kid on the block! In this case the old saying is borne out ably in real life by the now almost fairy tale rebirth of the once ailing De Havilland Canada. DHC nowadays lives a shell-shocked existence compared with its former self. Indeed since July the still relatively small Canadian company has written orders and options against some 75 Dash 8 aircraft and stunned its many rivals at the show with an impressive re-order by Henson of up to 24 airframes. Boeing meanwhile are very confident of the future of their new acquisition and have earmarked the necessary funds to ensure that the Dash 8-300 will be a market leader in its class.

One of DHC’s rivals is Embraer. Embraer it is now becoming clear see itself as rapidly emerging as an international aerospace firm rather than a mere producer of high quality aggressively financed commuter aircraft. Their sales performance in recent years of the excellent T27 Tucano trainer and the Brasilia put to rest any competitor’s misgivings of the long-term technical capabilities of this impressive company which is a glaring example of what can be done when a government is fully, indeed totally, committed to developing its own indigenous high tech export products.

For Farnborough, Embraer formally launched the very promising EMB-123 pressurised high-speed commuter that will ultimately replace the Bandeirante and augment the larger Brasilia. To be built in partnership with Argentina’s FMA, the 123 will seat 19 pax and also be available in corporate and military versions. Additionally, Embraer mooted a stretched Brasilia which could be launched on back of an existing Brazilian Air Force requirement for a special mission aircraft of this size.

And just to top off the show, Embraer announced the stunning sale of up to 66 Brasilias to Atlantic Southeast Airlines, the largest sale of regional transports in history.

Shorts meanwhile were pleased with the sales and technical performance of their reliable 360 fleet and flew the 100th example of same each day in the display along with the USAF C-23 Sherpa. Shorts now have firm sales against some 140 360s – 16 of which were announced at the show. The Belfast manufacturer, which is the world’s oldest aerospace concern, also announced a collaborative signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with De Havilland Canada for the formalisation of concepts to building a successor to the 330/360 and Dash 7/8 fleet during the 1990s. Shorts signed a similar MOU at the last Paris Salon with Embraer on the same topic though both firms contend that this latest agreement does not in any way hinder the previously signed MOU. With its share of the Fokker 100 programme and the large and diversified offset and component workload that Shorts enjoy along with continuing success with the cheapest of the 36-seat regionals, the Belfast company looks well placed to maintain their corporate strength in the years ahead.

Fokker meanwhile flew their new Fokker 50 prototype into the show each afternoon for its quick display as the aircraft was busily engaged in water ingestion tests at nearby Cranbrook. Fokker make no secret of the fact that both the Fokker 50 and 100 programmes are around six months behind target. The reason claim Fokker is that they have found that their customers, and potential customers, have required changes that have necessitated sufficient overall change to both aircraft that it was deemed best to simply delay the programmes in order to make them specifically what the market required. In the long-term, this should benefit Fokker in having better market-matched aircraft. Though with Ansett’s first 50 now not due to enter service till next June, the Dutch manufacturer is having to pay out sizeable penalty payments to Ansett due to its inability have the aircraft delivered in the timespan dictated by the Australian taxation office requirements as per the terms of the now expired investment allowance.

Both types are selling well though and to prove the point Fokker announced during the show that ILFC, the ultra-large US leasing firm that appears nowadays to be responsible for buying half the world’s jet fleet, had indeed signed for 7 Fokker 100 twinjets. Also on the back burner were two massive potential orders for the promising twinjet – both American Airlines and GPA Leasing are looking at up to 100 aircraft each! Fokker had hoped to be able to announce one of these show-stopping orders during the course of Farnborough week but reluctantly admitted that there is still some way to go in negotiating a mutually acceptable agreement.

On another front, Fokker is protecting its six o’clock by joining IPTN Nusantara of Indonesia, Boeing and MBB of West Germany on an MOU to study the feasibility of jointly building an advanced regional airliner in the 100-seat class. This aircraft could ultimately succeed the Fokker 100 twinjet and the smaller version of the Boeing 7J7 – what a tragedy Australian industry can’t be as aggressive!

On that count it is worth remembering that we had the opportunity, in the early fifties, to join with Fokker in building, developing and selling the F27 Friendship in the region. The idea at the time was as usual considered too grand for contemplation and as a nation, we spent the next three decades kicking ourselves for such commercial reticence. If Australia doesn’t seriously get aboard an international collaborative project (refer to Reece p4) in the coming year or so we will have again missed the boat for another generation. How the Dutch do it is that their government lends Fokker the necessary launch funds, which are then repaid in full by Fokker to a prearranged schedule. The Netherlands government doesn’t provide a blank cheque but rather sells its future on a commercial trust in its own technical viability. Needless to say the programme, which was launched after the War, has paid handsome dividends and if Fokker was an Australian company (remember that Holland has about the same population as Australia with less GDP) it would be one of our biggest. Perhaps someone somewhere is understanding what we are saying – just for a change it would be nice to think so before we are the only developed nation in the world without a real aerospace industry!

Away from the larger companies, there was stiil plenty happening. Canadair, like their Maple Leaf cousin, DHC, are looking much better this Farnborough with a growing Challenger order book and plans for a turboprop version of the consistently selling CL-215 water bomber. Australia’s interest in the Challenger 601 is now on the boil with one in-country and another reported to be in the wings while the spectre of the RAAF VIP Flight being turned over to civilian leased aircraft must surely be a reason for Canadair seeing Australia as perhaps one of its best longer-term prospects. New owner, Bombardier, have now endorsed the company’s overall future marketing policy and hopefully now Canadair, like DHC, will prosper from having a big and powerful parent.

Dornier recorded sales of seven of its successful Do228s at the show and were still smiling after their large July order of 26 surveillance 228s to the Indian Navy. This simple but highly effective unpressurised short to medium-haul commuter has achieved particularly strong sales throughout the world and talk of a stretched 26-seat version was again alive at Farnborough as it was nearly a year and a half before at Paris. No firm decision to launch such a version though has been taken and for the time being, production concentrates on the 18-passenger 228-201.

Fellow European aircraft manufacturer and also heavily involved in EFA and Airbus is Casa. Casa continues to update their established C-212 Aviocar and the 1986 version fits squarely between the Shorts 360 and the Dornier 228 in the marketplace.

Highlight of the Casa display though was their involvement as a partner with IPTN Nusantara on the CN-235 40 seat civil and military transport. This aircraft has had a fairly protracted development career though the partners felt it prudent to take the time to get the aircraft just as they want it now rather than having to greatly modify the transport with a B version later in its life. The CN-235 gained official Spanish and Indonesian certification earlier this year and the company hope to have full FAA certification by the end of 1986. To date the test fleet have logged more than 1400 hours flight time and the dual assembly lines are presently working up towards delivering production aircraft in the first quarter of 1987. Production is being undertaken jointly in both countries though any Australian destined CN-235s would be from the Spanish Casa plant rather than from Nusantara. The company has not been pushing heavily to date for outside orders as they have a captive market that has already signed for more than 150 aircraft though Saudi Arabia has recently ordered some and a big order from Turkey is in the wind.

Saab have meanwhile settled down to life without Fairchild and have in the past eighteen months streamlined their marketing, management and production system to perhaps what it should have been several years ago when the consortium was initially launched. The aircraft is certainly selling well and was also the first of the super commuters to enter service. Regrettably it was also plagued with a series of peculiar engine maladies that were largely associated with icing and extreme cold weather operation. These problems have now totally been overcome and Don Kendell reports excellent results from his two aircraft and looks forward to accepting the third of type as soon as Australian regional traffic recovers. We believe that Saab were thankful when Don delayed his delivery, which was scheduled for September 1986, as they were hard-pressed to meet the more urgent US commuter requirements due to the strong sales achieved by the SF340 this past year. What do they say, one man’s pleasure, another man’s pain!

The Aeritalia/Aerospatiale consortium of ATR are also doing well. Indeed it is nice to report on a show where the mood is most definitely ‘go’. I remember the 1982 Farnborough, and indeed the following year’s Paris as reminiscent to attending a wake. Sorry times amidst the depths of a recession that nowadays seems a thousand years ago, how quickly things change in this rapid fire world of aviation. Returning to ATR, the 42/46 seat ATR42 has now met with sales success from three regional operators, Air Queensland, Air Caledonie and Air Pacific. Though Air Queensland seem to not know exactly what they want to do with their original order of four this appears to be mainly a reaction to the change of route profile within Queensland and the new Australian Airlines ownership. Two of the final four AQ machines are going to Air Pacific on lease till that carrier receives its aircraft in 1988. Meanwhile ATR hope for a greater Australian presence as some form of route liberalisation enters the local marketplace in addition to gaining a toe hold in the New Zealand market. Sales of the stretched ATR72, a direct competitor to the already flying BAe ATP, are going well and in time the teaming of the two capacities will prove to be one of the type’s greatest marketing strengths.

A firm pushing itself hard now in Australia, and with good reason, is Agusta. Largely thought of as a small builder of helicopters, Agusta is quite the reverse as it now manufactures an excellent range of Siai Marchetti trainer, leisure and light transport aircraft in addition to being a world-renowned precision component and electronics manufacturer. Agusta is also teamed with Westland on the EH101 programme and has won European NATO partner support for the development of an enhanced version of its highly capable A129 Mangusta (Mongoose) to be called Tonal (named after an Aztec god). Tonal will be one of Europe’s largest helo programmes for the nineties and is indicative of the expertise nowadays embraced by Agusta. The Italian manufacturer, with thousands of helicopter deliveries under its belt, is also promoting to Australia the battlefield recce and light gunship version of the A129, a most interesting aircraft that is smaller than a Black Hawk but with the approximate cabin area of an Iroquois.

So much for the airframe market. An aircraft though is nothing without a powerplant and that is precisely where the real news was at Farnborough ’86.

Rolls Royce were able to gloat with their domination of the big fan 747-400 market. What is ironic is that when this aircraft was first launched most observers did not even list the RB211 as a viable powerplant for the largest Boeing. Rolls indeed had, or have, a marketing and production agreement with General Electric that effectively limits the fan dimensions of the RB211 to the -524D4 version (as presently flown on later Qantas 747s). What the agreement did not cover was Rolls using their forward thinking advanced blade technology from the smaller RB211-535 off the 757 to gain additional thrust and thermal efficiency from the 524 to produce the -524D4D of some 58,000lb thrust. This engine has gained its extra muscle from a redesigned nozzle assembly, newly formed front fan blades, additional streamlining and a new exhaust mixer. Though GE are playing the loser in public they do recognise that Rolls has not really breached the terms of their agreement. Meanwhile the RB211 goes from strength to strength and now powers some 40% of the 7 47-400s so far ordered, a situation that has their rivals obviously dismayed.

The UK company, which is due to be privatised around next Easter, also has enjoyed great success with its Tay turbofan with over 540 ordered to power the Gulfstream GIV and Fokker 100 twinjet. Developed versions out to 15,000lb thrust are also being planned for certification by late 1988. While this engine will find many uses aboard a higher gross weight Fokker 100 it may well also be appropriate for any future re-engined version of the rival BAe 146.

Rolls, along with partner Turbomeca, are also pushing fairly aggressively the RTM322 turboshaft engine for use aboard future versions of the Black Hawk helo. Now that Sikorsky has an interest in Westland it is plain that the British high tech helo manufacturer will be producing any European Black Hawks and that they will most probably be RTM322-powered. GE are fighting back with 2,000shp versions of their established T700 though the RTM is said to be eventually capable of outputs approaching 3,000shp. In a combat helicopter, you can never have too much power so this long-term battle will be interesting. Further complicating the matter is that Pratt & Whitney have now signed an agreement to produce the engine under licence in the US for Mk2 versions of the US Army Black Hawk. As United Technologies is the parent of both Pratts and Sikorsky it doesn’t take much imagination to see that GE will have to work hard to remain aboard this helo in the years to come. A turboprop version of the RTM322 is also under development and this engine will be designated the RB550 and will provide timely competition for the more powerful versions of the P&W PW100 series which presently powers the Brasilia, ATR42/72 ATP and Dash 8. Rated from 3,200shp to upwards of 5,000shp the engine is aimed primarily at the new generation of 50/80 seat aircraft of the nineties and beyond.

The big propulsion news though was, like the last Farnborough in ’84, propfans and their generic ilk. Call them what you like, they are now maturing from Buck Rogers-like drawings to actual demonstrators while General Electric presently lead the field with their UDF (Unducted Fan) already flying aboard a converted 727. Similar trials will start mid ’87 aboard an MD-80 with a Mk2 version of this engine. To date the trials have been most impressive with the engine already meeting its noise and fuel burn requirements with ease, something that the sceptics said was not possible two years back. GE as always are finding good support for their biggest fan, the advanced CF6-80C2 which has recently achieved some worthwhile 747 orders and is now standard fit on most 767s and twin-aisle Airbus products.

What represents the real GEcash box though is the hot-selling CFM56. Over 2,800 of these engines have been sold to date and the present order backlog exceeds a staggering $A10bn! CFM, which is a partnership between GE and Snecma (who also has 35% of the UDF programme) is standard fit aboard the hot-selling 737-300 and -400, the KC-135R, DC-8-70 Series aircraft, future E-3 variants and of course the A320 twinjet and A340 long-range four engined airliner.

CFM’s primary competitor is the International Association of International Aero Engines, or IAE. IAE have the V2500 on offer for the A320 and hope to be the primary powerplant aboard the early nineties A340. However, as they are facing much long-term competition from the propfan family of engines, IAE have sensibly retaliated with what they term Superfan. This is virtually a shrouded propfan with a bypass ratio in the region of 20:1, or about double the present factor. Rolls, who are 30% partners in IAE have a similar proposal in the big fan class called Contrafan so between them they hope to be able to have two engines to power the majority of medium to long-range civil airframes from the early nineties onwards.

Pratt & Whitney meanwhile have teamed with Allison to develop their own open, and shrouded, versions of propfan while even West Germany’s MTU has got into the act with a counterrotating shrouded propfan designated Crisp. For propulsion the story is that the dreams of Farnborough ’84 are now being cut into metal, it will no doubt be Farnborough ’88 where the hardware begins to take definitive shape and the entire history of civil airliner design begins to take a new heading as we return to the propeller.

Who knows, our Farnborough ’96 report may well document the total passing of the jet engine as we know it. Certainly, stranger things have happened.