AIRBUS

Airbus Helicopters' DisruptiveLab technology demonstration helicopter sets a new record

After the fifth flight, Airbus Helicopters' DisruptiveLab technology demonstration helicopter set a new record when it stayed in flight for more than an hour for the first time.

The flight took place on February 14, 2023 from Marseille airport. Airbus presented the helicopter at the end of November last year and on January 11 of this year it took off from Marignane for its maiden flight.

“We fly once a week on average,” said Tomasz Krysinski, senior vice president of research and development at Airbus Helicopters. “We don't fly very often, but we fly very efficiently.” After each flight, the flight test data transmitted by telemetry is evaluated, and after the evaluation, the test points for the next test flight are determined.

The helicopter is intended to be a "concept car" of sorts, Krysinski reported. It is not a modified existing standard, but a completely redesigned helicopter that aims to mark a huge leap forward in the decarbonisation of helicopter flight. Krysinski assumes that technologies developed for DisruptiveLab will achieve a reduction in CO2 emissions from helicopters by up to 50 percent.

To do this, the team that developed the helicopter focused on three areas:

aerodynamics;

maneuverability;

helicopter mass.

According to Krysinski, 50 small and medium-sized companies worked on the development team, not as suppliers, but deliberately as partners who could contribute their ideas. At Airbus Helicopters, the team has been isolated as a separate company in order to be able to work as little affected as possible.

“40 percent of the power of a helicopter engine is needed in horizontal flight to overcome drag,” says Krysinski. Therefore, the shape of the fuselage, the engine housing, the tail and even the Fenestron itself were aerodynamically optimized for the lowest possible drag. This is clearly recognizable, for example, by the small distance between the three-bladed rotor and the main gearbox. The development team ran 40 wind tunnel campaigns when designing DisruptiveLab to find the optimal configuration. Not only was the wind tunnel at Marignane used, but also facilities at other locations.

The rotor blades were also redesigned. The rotor circle has a diameter of 11.70 meters and is therefore larger than comparable helicopters. The tips of the rotor blades are particularly thin and the rotor rotates at a slower speed than current helicopter rotors. This means the new helicopter is also quieter and has significantly less vibration.

The ongoing flight test campaign is expected to provide the data to prove the assumptions of the designers and developers. Krysinski emphasizes that the technologies developed by Airbus Helicopters for the DisruptiveLab are scalable and therefore could also find their way into the next generation of helicopters, regardless of the size of the helicopter developed next.

To power DisruptiveLab, Airbus Helicopters has a hybrid-electric drive whose turbine comes from Safran Helicopter engines. Airbus can choose between different suppliers for the electric motor. The DisruptiveLab is currently flying without the electric drive, but everything is in place for the inclusion of the electric drive.

The electric propulsion will have a power of around 250 kW and will have a battery that, with the technologies available today, can provide energy for a three-minute flight. This flight time can be recovered in an emergency if the turbine fails and gives the crew time to find and make their way to a suitable emergency landing site, but the electric drive can also provide additional power, for example to increase the helicopter altitude performance. If the helicopter's turbine produces excess energy, it can be stored as electricity in the battery of the hybrid-electric drive and will be available when needed.

The first tests of the hybrid-electric helicopter should take place next year. With the new hybrid-electric drive alone, the manufacturer aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 25%. The unit must also be approved for the use of sustainably produced fuel (SAF), which further reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

In the medium term, hydrogen could also be used as fuel for helicopters, according to Krysinski. In funding DisruptiveLab, Airbus Helicopters received support from the French government under the Stimulus program and obtained from the DGAC civil aviation authority.