The A400 multirole transporter from Airbus will replace aging heavy-lift aircraft in military fleets. It will have four 1,000-shp variable-pitch turboprops, giving it enough power to take off from short landing fields ( under 3,000 ft), and still carry a 20-ton payload. The TP-4000-D6 turboprop engine uses an offset gearbox and a three-shaft design, keeping the total engine length (3.5 m) and stiffness down. Each blade of the 17.5-ft-diameter props has a carbon spar surrounded by a composite shell with a polyurethane anticorrosion coating. The leading edge has electric deicing while the outer edge has a nickel guard to protect against foreign-object damage (FOD) and erosion. The engines on each wing spin counterclockwise for more symmetric airflow, reducing wing loading and noise, and improving lift. The plane can carry 116 fully equipped troops in four long rows of seats in its cargo hold, which is 58-ft long (with a 17.5-ft ramp), 13-ft wide, and 12.5-ft tall. Paratroopers can jump from two rear doors or the ramp, and four static-line anchor cables can be used by troops or cargo. For medical evacuations, the plane carries 66 standard NATO stretchers attaching directly to tie-down rings on the floor, along with 25 medical personnel. The plane's oxygen supply has provisions for handling the extra demand patients might have. For cargo, it carries nine standard military pallets (108 88 in.), with two on the ramp. The floor is outfitted with a roller system for moving and securing the pallets, but it can be easily stowed below the floor, leaving a flat surface for holding vehicles. The hold is sized to carry a variety of vehicles such as six light trucks and trailers, two medium-sized trucks, two attack helicopters, or one transport helicopter. To simplify loading and unloading, the ramp has three extendable hydraulic mini-ramps which can be adjusted up and down so cargo can be rolled on or off to trucks with different cargobed heights. A single loadmaster workstation, is located on the left side of the cargo deck just below the cockpit, monitors and controls cargo. It's loaded with data on practically every piece of military equipment listed in the European Staff Requirements for the seven countries involved in developing the A400. The station gives a commanding view of the cargo hold, doors, and ramps, which a single loadmaster can use to control all freight-handling operations, such as loading, unloading, low and high-altitude deliveries, and parachute drops, and other cargo-related tasks. The loadmaster also uses the computer for ancillary tasks including lighting, heating, and operating the plane's two electric winches. The A400 will have the necessary software, plumbing, and mounting hardpoints on the wings for two fueling pods to convert it from a cargo hauler to an airborne gas station in 2 hr, which can refuel up to two aircraft at a time. The fuselage, a conventional monocoque with non-circular cross section to maximize cargo volume, maintains 8,000-ft cabin pressure when flying at 37,000 ft, and for high-altitude missions, it will keep 9,000-ft pressure at altitudes up to 40,000 ft. For medical evacuations or other sensitive cargo, the plane can maintain sea-level pressure up to 19,400 ft. Primary support structures, such as the skin, stringers, and frames, are aluminum. But titanium alloys are used in highly loaded areas such as around the windscreen, the wing-to-fuselage attachment, and around the landing gear. Lightly loaded areas, such as the fairings, use glass or carbon-reinforced composites. As the A400 will be a military plane, flying missions in and out of hotspots, interior fixtures will hold armor plating, and windows will be bulletproof against 12.7-mm rounds to protect the crew. The exhaust will be ducted and muffled to minimize the plane's four-engine-IR signature and vulnerability to shoulder-fired missiles. Incoming missiles can also be decoyed by chaff and flares launched from up to 24 dispensers, or with a towed decoy. The plane will carry missile-launch and approach warning systems that rely on radar and visual cues (engine firing). The avionics will detect ranging lasers bouncing off the aircraft. There will be hardpoints on the wing for mounting jamming and other electronic warfare pods. And if the plane is hit, the fuel system is pressurized with inert gas to prevent explosions and slow down fires. A Defensive Aids Computer coordinates all these systems, connecting the various detection systems to appropriate countermeasures. It can also be programmed to look specifically for anticipated threats. Airbus has already booked 180 sales of the 100-million dollar plane to eight NATO nations. The first A400M will fly in 2008 and customers will begin taking delivery the following year.


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    Title :

    Airbus builds a military airlifter


    Additional title:

    Das neue Militärtransportflugzeug von Airbus


    Contributors:

    Published in:

    Machine Design ; 77 , 4 ; 98-104


    Publication date :

    2005


    Size :

    5 Seiten, 8 Bilder, 1 Tabelle



    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Print


    Language :

    English