Honeywell has announced two key contracts with aviation OEMs at Farnborough, showcasing technology designed to reduce maintenance costs for airline operators.
First, Honeywell has entered a contract with Boeing to supply Catalytic Ozone Converters starting in 2009 through 2012. Honeywell ozone converters, used to reduce cabin ozone levels that can cause passenger discomfort, will be optional on the next-generation 737, 747 and 767 airliners and offered as standard equipment on the 747-8.
The ozone converter connects directly to the incoming air supply for the aircraft’s air conditioning system to improve cabin air quality by decomposing ozone gas. The ozone converter also lowers airline operator maintenance costs by permitting longer maintenance intervals.
“The high reliability of the Honeywell ozone converter results in fewer aircraft delays attributed to an inactive ozone converter,” says Steve Pitts, Honeywell vice president for Boeing business.
Honeywell has also signed a contract with Airbus valued in excess of $80 million to upgrade the navigation wingtip lighting on A320 aircraft to Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology. The LEDs last more than 40 times longer than the current halogen lights - 20,000 hours compared with 500h - resulting in significantly lower maintenance costs for airline operators, due to fewer lamp changes, lower spares inventory and reduced labour costs.
“Honeywell’s LED technology upgrade for wingtip lighting offers significant cost-savings for operators – up to $30,000 per aircraft,” says Jeff Johnston, Honeywell vice president of platform components. “The longer life of the LED, plus the ease of installation, keeps the aircraft out of the maintenance shop and in the air, where it belongs.”
The Airbus upgrade, which covers the forward navigation lights located inside the wingtip that provide recognition lighting in the air and situational awareness lighting on the ground, will be incorporated into the Airbus production line in March 2009 for all forward-fit A320 aircraft. The contract spans 30 years and approximately 5,000 aircraft in the A320 family.
Honeywell also announced that upgraded lighting retrofits for existing airline operators on A320 aircraft will be available in April 2009, noting that the drop-in replacement for the existing lighting does not require any aircraft modification.
Honeywell’s RDR-4000 weather radar is also in the news recently, with the first business jet implementation. The RDR-4000 will be deployed on the all new Gulfstream G650 aircraft, as part of a contract announced in March to supply a range of new avionics and mechanical systems for the business jet.
The RDR-4000 is standard on the Airbus A380, and will be standard on A350. It is also certified on the Boeing 777 and Honeywell expects to announce certification on the 737 later this summer. The RDR-4000 - the first totally new design in onboard weather radar for commercial aircraft in more than 25 years - is the only radar certified to FAA minimum operating performance standards (MOPS).
“Adverse weather is a factor in one-third of all aircraft accidents and turbulence is the leading cause of in-flight injuries to passengers and crew,” explains Brian Sill, vice president, Gulfstream Programs, Honeywell Aerospace. “The enhanced turbulence detection of the RDR-4000 provides earlier and more accurate alerting for these events.”
Source: Flight International
