DSEI 2015 raises profile of aerospace
Above: Airbus' Zephyr in flight.
Emphasising the importance of DSEI as a premier aerospace forum, DSEI will also host presentations by top level UK and overseas senior air officers.
Leading aerospace companies exhibiting include Airbus Defence & Space, BAE Systems, Bell Helicopters, Boeing, Finmeccanica, General Dynamics, L3, Lockheed Martin, MBDA, Northrop Grumman, Rafael, Rolls-Royce, SAAB, CAE and Thales. The platforms on display will include AgustaWestland's Sea King, Merlin and Wildcat helicopters, Airbus Helicopters' Puma 2, as well as Thales' Watchkeeper UAV, Boeing ScanEagle and the Eurofighter Typhoon multi-role combat aircraft.
The dedicated Air Zone, one of the most popular attractions of DSEI, includes a capability area dedicated to the aerospace supply chain. The zone will host a comprehensive seminar programme reinforcing the show's core themes of capability development, delivery and operations. There are seminars touching on procurement, training, export maximisation and promoting opportunities for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME).
The UK RAF will again be participating in strength, led by Air Chief Marshal Sir Andrew Pulford, Chief of the Air Staff. Other high profile speakers include: Air Marshal Sir Stephen Hillier, Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (Capability) and Air Commodore Simon Moss, Director Helicopters, Defence Equipment & Support, MOD; Major General Richard Felton, Commander, UK Joint Helicopter Command; Lt Gen Alexander Schnitger, Commander, Royal Netherlands Air Force, and Rear Admiral Tony Dalton, Head Helicopters, Unmanned Aerial Systems and Guided Weapons Division (HUG-D), Australian Defence Organisation.
Further evidence of DSEI's role as an influential thought leadership platform is provided by a conference to be staged at ExCeL on Monday, 14 September, the day before DSEI begins. Entitled Future of Military Rotorcraft: 2030 and Beyond, the conference will examine the drive to develop military rotorcraft beyond their current operational capabilities, including an in-depth discussion of the US' Future Vertical Lift (FVL) Programme. The event is being supported by UK Joint Helicopter Command, with Major General Felton giving the keynote address.
DSEI Event Director, Duncan Reid, said: "The aerospace component of DSEI has grown significantly in recent years, reflecting the increasing cohesion of air, land and maritime capabilities in the modern battlespace. Examples of the joint nature of modern warfare will be on display. We are delighted by the level of support we are receiving from the procurement, operational and supplier communities around the world".
Aerospace innovation featured at DSEI will include:
Airbus Defence and Space - The winner of the Centre for Defence Enterprise'sSmall Business Research Initiative will be announced at DSEI. The competition, held in association with the UK Defence Solutions Centre, forms part of the Defence Growth Partnership's Innovation Challenge. The competition is seeking innovative sensor and communications technologies to enable persistent surveillance operations from the air and will operate on Airbus Defence and Space's Zephyr platform. Running exclusively on solar power and flying autonomously at 65,000ft for record periods of time, Zephyr fills a capability gap between satellites and Unmanned Aerial Systems, providing continuous surveillance, communications and monitoring services.
Boeing is show-casing two products at DSEI. The Boeing Insitu ScanEagle unmanned aerial system is in service with the Royal Navy. It comes with many features beneficial to the Royal Navy including flying at speeds of up to 80 knots and staying airborne for around 10 hours, covering areas of around 60 miles from launch. ScanEagle provides the Royal Navy with a persistent surveillance and reconnaissance capability, supplementing our Lynx aircraft so that it can be held for higher priority missions. The ability to fly ScanEagle for extremely long periods of time extends the eyes and ears of the ship way beyond what was achievable. Secondly, the Boeing Portal is a bespoke, multi-faceted, globally networked, analysis, experimentation and engagement facility designed to produce robust, analytical, structured and defensible evidence for decision makers. Real-time scenarios will be demonstrated during DSEI. The Portal is able to compare the effectiveness and survivability of competing systems, to test future scenarios and to assess potential solutions before they are delivered to the front line.
Cobham Mission Systems has developed a new aerial refuelling reception coupling to meet the technical requirements of the latest tanker aircraft platforms. It is part of the drogue assembly which is mounted at the end of a tanker hose so it can be paired with a probe from a receiver aircraft. The Cobham Aerial Refuelling Reception Coupling encompasses a variety of design improvements compared to the industry standard solution and achieves enhanced performance. It has the additional advantage of only containing UK export controlled components.
EyeCare Plans, a provider of sight testing and corrective eyewear, including specialist protective eyewear solutions, will be exhibiting its range of eyewear, including new specialist eyewear for Aircrew. Spectacles, optical inserts, laser protective eyewear and ballistic ranges will all be on display.
For the first time at DSEI, Close Air Solutions will showcase its Ruggedised Deployable Immersive Close Air Support Simulator (RD iCASS). It is a completely modular version of the iCASS Full Mission Simulator that was delivered and accredited as part of the UK JTAC Training programme. The entire system is mounted and encased in ruggedized, portable casing that can be transported over land or by sea, and set up in any location. The system is capable of running multiple image generators, such as the MetaVR Virtual Reality Scene Generator (VRSG) and Bohemia Interactive Simulations' Virtual Battlespace 3. RD iCASS uses head mounted displays and is provided with a suite of form fit and function simulated military equipment tailored to national requirements. This allows trainees to operate in the day and night environments using the kit as they would use for real.
CAE will demonstrate airborne and naval tactical mission trainers integrated in a realistic virtual environment for training naval command teams and maritime patrol aircrews.
