Nigel Pittaway | Seville
In late October, Airbus Defence and Space revealed a range of improvements it is developing for its A330-based Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT).
Beyond the updates planned for the New Standard Definition version (formerly referred to as MRTT-Enhanced) now in production for new customers, Airbus D&S head of engineering Miguel Ángel Morell said the company was also developing an automatic air to air refuelling system.
The first of the updated MRTTs is the first of what Airbus D&S refers to as ‘second wave’ aircraft as well as the first of six for the Republic of Singapore Air Force. It is already undergoing conversion to tanker configuration at the company’s facility in Getafe, outside Madrid.
Following completion towards the end of 2016 it will be used for certification and qualification testing for a one-year period, prior to delivery in 2018.
Morell said that the New Standard Definition configuration is based on the latest production version of the Airbus A330-200 airliner, which includes structural and aerodynamic upgrade packages, an increase in Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) and the flight management system based on the current ‘Power 8’ computers.
Mission equipment enhancements will include Wideband SATCOM, an air-to-air refuelling capability upgrade, IFF Mode 5 and new mission computers, referred to as the Tanker Integrated Mission System (TIMS).
TIMS is Intel Core 17 processor-based and incorporates new mission system software which, among other improvements, will allow in-flight replanning of the tanker mission, Link 16 data link management and a mission debrief capability that can be conducted using the boom operators console in the cockpit if desired.
The system is based on Airbus D&S’ Fully Integrated Tactical System (FITS) currently integrated in some maritime patrol aircraft, but oriented to the tactical capabilities of a tanker.
Morell said that Airbus D&S was developing a retrofit solution for the IFF Mode 5 capability into the ‘first wave’ of MRRT aircraft – which includes the RAAF’s five original KC-30As and the additional two aircraft announced earlier this year – but development of a full New Standard Definition retrofit package is currently not a priority.
Morell said that the Airbus D&S was studying the incorporation of additional capabilities into the baseline MRTT in the future, including an Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) mission capability and, in the near-term, automatic air to air refuelling for Aerial Refuelling Boom System (ARBS) operations.
The automatic system under development takes advantage of the fact that the receiver’s Universal Aerial Refuelling Receptacle Slipway Installation (UARRSI) is common across all aircraft that can be refuelled using the boom method. The tanker’s Boom Control Unit detects the position of the receiver’s UARRSI in relation to the tanker and automatically positions the boom into contact.
“It is designed to reduce workload, improve system efficiency and to assure contact,” Morell said. “The only thing the ‘boomer’ controls is the extension and retraction of the boom.”
Morell said that the software is already running in the laboratory and has been tested in the MRTT simulator. The next step will be to test it using Airbus D&S’ A310 MRTT testbed, first with a virtual receiver and later using a real Portuguese Air Force F-16 Fighter.
“We will hopefully complete the trials by the end of next year,” he said.
Disclaimer: Nigel Pittaway travelled to Spain as a guest of Airbus Defence & Space.