Amsterdam, 28
October
2008
The Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) Joint Undertaking (JU) has signed on October 17 a 60 Mio € contract entrusting EADS-Airbus with the role of “Industrial Support” in the SESAR programme, a contract that will involve EADS-Defence & Security and EADS-Astrium to assist the SESAR JU to manage the development phase of SESAR up to 2015.
The JU was created by the European Union with, as founding members, the European Community and EUROCONTROL, to manage the research and development programme for SESAR, which aims to reorganise European air traffic management (E-ATM) systems by 2020.
In its Industrial Support role, Airbus will be responsible for the technical coherence of all the work, and will give support for ‘system-of-systems’ engineering methods so that all the stakeholders can progressively build, under the leadership of the SESAR JU, the highly complex shared data model of this programme.
With the support of the EADS group, Airbus will contribute its experience in developing and managing large complex systems involving numerous manufacturers (deterrent systems, Ariane 5, A380, border control and security systems, etc.).
Louis Gallois, CEO of EADS, commented: “this success is a clear recognition that EADS, through the wide range of its activities as well as its capability of having them work together, is able to provide the most innovative and consistent solutions for the future”.
Above and beyond Airbus and its know-how, the choice made by the SESAR JU shows that aircraft remain the focal-point of all air traffic management systems, with which they must be compatible, both in Europe and the rest of the world.
To this end, Tom Enders, CEO of Airbus, had earlier signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Boeing at the Geneva Aviation and Environment Summit in April 2008. Under the MOA, the world’s two largest aircraft manufacturers agreed to ensure the interoperability of the two future ATM systems: the European SESAR and the American NextGen.
By choosing an independent player for which ATM is a strategic, but not a commercial focus, the SESAR programme also demonstrates its ability to federate all the players in ATM, such as air control authorities, airport operators, the ground or airborne equipment industry and aircraft manufacturers.
Europe has been actively advancing civil aviation for many years now, especially thanks to the foresight of the European Commission. Indeed, it was the introduction by the Commission of the SES1 (Single European Sky 1) regulation which has now paved the way for the next phase, SES2 and the SESAR joint undertaking.
EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2007, EADS generated revenues of € 39.1 billion and employed a workforce of about 116,000. The Group includes the leading aircraft manufacturer Airbus, the world's largest helicopter supplier Eurocopter and EADS Astrium, the European leader in space programmes from Ariane to Galileo. Its Defence & Security Division is a provider of comprehensive systems solutions and makes EADS the major partner in the Eurofighter consortium as well as a stakeholder in the missile systems provider MBDA. EADS also develops the A400M through its Military Transport Aircraft Division.
