EADS in Russia and the CIS

The predecessors of EADS had already had informal contacts with the then Soviet industrial partners as early as the end of the 1980s and those contacts were intensified in 1991. EADS and its predecessors have had offices in Moscow since 1992, thus allowing continual contact with the aerospace industry of this important region.

In 2001, after an approximately ten year long history of cooperation, EADS and the Russian Aerospace Agency Rosaviakosmos signed an agreement which placed European-Russian cooperation on new foundations. Alongside the extension of existing European-Russian EADS programmes, the agreement also envisages new collaborative projects.

EADS is divided into the following five divisions: Airbus, Aeronautics division, Military Transport Aircraft division, Space division, and Defence and Security Systems division.

In the field of passenger aircraft, EADS is, with an 80 % share, the leading partner in the civil aircraft manufacturer Airbus. Airbus has been working with the Russian aviation sector both at airline and industrial levels, since 1991 and co-operation has been intensified on a constant and progressive basis. In 1995 Airbus established its regional office in Moscow in charge of a broad spectrum of activities, ranging from co-ordination of marketing activities to the facilitation of greater co-operation with the Russian aviation industry.

In the meantime, there is closer cooperation between Airbus and Russia in the materials sector. The purchasing of material has been one of Airbus’ earliest activities with the Russian industry. Over the last few years, it has evolved from raw material only to raw material and semi-finished products including those with higher added value. Long-term procurement contracts have been renewed an extended. VSMPO has become a major titanium supplier to Airbus for both flat and round rolled products, now supplying over 55 per cent of all Airbus titanium. Russian Aluminium has been recently identified as a major potential supplier of aluminium and is currently going through Airbus qualification process. In addition VILS and VIAM research institutes have obtained full approval for conducting material test on behalf of Airbus contract. A comprehensive programme for the evaluation of advanced aluminium alloys for future use on Airbus products has been initiated with several institutes and material suppliers (VILS, VIAM, VSMPO, KUMS).

Aeroflot put its first Western-built aircraft in service in 1992, an A310, and has been steadily increasing its European widebody twin fleet up to a current of eleven aircraft serving both its long-range and medium-range network. Reflecting its satisfaction with the unrivalled qualities of Airbus aircraft and Airbus customer support, Aeroflot made decision to upgrade its medium-short haul fleet with 18 A320 Family airliners. First deliveries of these aircraft are scheduled for this autumn. In the framework of its commitment to give full support to its customers, Airbus has been actively participating in the modernisation of Aeroflot’s training centre. This included the installation there of an A300-600/A310 Full Flight Simulator in 1999 as well as at the beginning of 2002 the setting up of computer-based training equipment for the latest generation aircraft including for the future Russian-produced aircraft.

In the field of research and technology, co-operation has been very active too with up to now some 600 Russian scientists, engineers and workers involved in more than 50 Airbus related projects including recently-launched A380 superjumbo. This activity covers material development, advanced aircraft studies, manufacturing simulation software creation and aerodynamics modelling.

Following the strategic agreement signed on 2nd July 2001 between EADS and Rosaviakosmos, Airbus is steadily implementing its most ambitious co-operation programme with the Russian industry. In May 2002 Airbus selected the Kaskol Group as a leading partner for the implementation of the first phase of this programme. The Engineering Centre Airbus in Russia, ECAR, - the first one Airbus establishes in Russia – already operates in Moscow. It was created jointly with Kaskol Group. ECAR, which will employ some 100 Russian engineers by end-2004, promotes cross-transfer of expertise and both co-ordinates and enlarges the scope of activities which Airbus is developing with Russian companies. In the manufacturing field, the program to produce parts for Airbus aircraft including the A318, A340-500/-600 and A380 in Russia is under preparation.

EADS, Irkut and Rolls-Royce Deutschland have finalised a feasibility study on the Russian-made amphibious aircraft Be-200.

The three companies have identified a market potential for 320 aircraft in 25 countries over the next 20 years as fire-fighting and multi-role mission aircraft. In its role as an amphibious fire-fighting aircraft it has a unique water scooping capacity of up to 12 t (3000 US Gallons).

“The partners are now preparing the detailed sales proposition for the Western markets. This includes Western certification and provision of a full product and customer support capability.

The three partners are preparing for the introduction of the Be-200 with BR715 engines mainly in Europe, North America and Australia.

The Be-200 was developed for fire-fighting missions. It is equipped with two jet engines, can take off and land on water or ground and is able to scoop 12 tons of water in 17 seconds. Two prototypes are already flying and the aircraft has been certified in Russia for fire-fighting mission. The launch customer is the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations, which has ordered seven aircraft. One of these aircraft Has been delivered to the customer in June 2003.

The helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter is a 100 % subsidiary of EADS and covers the entire product spectrum from single-engine light helicopters to medium-weight transport helicopters. Eurocopter has delivered five Bo 105 CBS EC Super Five helicopters to the Russian Ministry for Disaster Control. Together with the design bureau Mil and the production plant Kasan, Eurocopter is achieving the development of a prototype of the Mi-38 helicopter, a 14-ton 30-seater heavy aircraft.

Since German reunification, EADS has had production capacity in the former East Germany. Parts of the workshops of Flugzeugwerft Dresden were incorporated into the newly founded Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH, which is a 100% affiliate of EADS. This site is especially suitable for the maintenance and re-equipping of Soviet and Russian aircraft since the engineers in Dresden have had decades of experience with Russian partners and the Russian language. For example, in Dresden a Tupolev Tu-154M was re-equipped for the "Open Skies" mission, the work being conducted in conjunction with the Russian ANTK Tupolev design bureau. Furthermore, in Dresden Airbus A300/310 aircraft are being converted into freighters.

Exchanges with Russia have, over recent years, dramatically increased on a global scale. The space field has emerged as one of the key areas of cooperation in which EADS Space Transportation and EADS Astrium, subsidiaries of EADS Space, have had significant involvement over many years. Satellites:

Since 1957, Russia has built more than a thousand satellites, also developing and installing the satellite navigation system Glonass. Like the USA, Russia therefore has a long history of practical experience in the operation of navigation satellites. Western Europe has no navigation satellites of its own in orbit, but possesses capabilities in their practical application and marketing. Being the country with the largest surface area in the world, Russia profits especially well from the civil application of satellite navigation.

In a user-oriented study consisting of several parts EADS and its subsidiary Astrium worked together with the Russian Space Agency Rosaviakosmos and Russian companies to examine potential satellite constellations and application alternatives. A joint study has been achieved to prepare a Russian contribution in the Galileo project, a future European civil navigation satellite system. A European industrial team, which also includes companies from Russia, the USA and Japan as strategic partners, is working under contract to ESA and the EU to propose appropriate solutions.

EADS Space has a major involvement in the Mars Express programme which will be launch from Baikonur on June 2nd by a Soyuz rocket. Astrium is prime contractor of Mars Express orbiter and Astrium in UK is also prime of the British Beagle 2 probe. EADS SPACE Transportation has provided the Beagle 2 heat shield.

Cooperation of Astrium with Russian space industry is increasing with the sale of equipment such as onboard computer, antennas or VSAT. It could continue with the development of new payload and platforms for the new generation of Russian telecom satellites.

Launchers: The Franco-Russian company Starsem was formed in 1996 on the initiative of EADS. Starsem is a public limited company incorporated under French law that manages the industrial and commercial exploitation of the Soyuz launch vehicle on the world launch vehicle market, concentrating on low or medium altitude Earth orbit tasks for small satellites or constellations (a mission that is complementary to that of Ariane 5).

Its shareholders are EADS, the European leader in the space field and especially for the development and manufacture of Ariane 5 as industrial architect and prime contractor for stage manufacturing with 35 percent, the Russian aerospace agency Rosaviakosmos with 25 percent, the Samara Space Centre, which combines the centralised design bureau TsSKB and the Progress factory and which develops, builds and launches, among others, the Soyuz rocket with 25%, and Arianespace, the world leader amongst commercial satellite launch services with 15%.

Since it was formed, Starsem has carried out ten successful launches including six Soyuz-Ikar flights in 1999 on behalf of Globalstar (24 out of the 48 satellites in the constellation) and two Soyuz-Fregat flights in 2000 to orbit the four Cluster II satellites for ESA. Starsem has also been selected for the launch of the ESA Mars Express mission in June 2003. EADS SPACE Transportation plays a major role in Starsem activities.

In order to successfully exploit the growing small launcher market, EADS and the M.V.Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center have jointly founded the marketing company Eurockot Launch Services GmbH. This company undertakes the world-wide marketing of the Rockot launch vehicle, which is a modified SS-19 missile. This rocket can transport small satellites weighing up to 1,900 kilograms into low earth orbits thus complementing the capacity of the heavy launcher Ariane, which can transport loads of up to six tons (geostationary).

The first Rockot launch under the auspices of Eurockot took place in May 2000. Two starts take place in 2003. Eurockot`s launch manifest presently covers another five contracts with customers in Europe, Canada and Asia.

Through Rockot, Soyuz and Ariane, Western Europe and Russia together offer a family consisting of various launchers, which complement each other.

International Space Station:

One of the cornerstones of the international cooperation within the development of the International Space Station ISS is the collaboration between EADS and its Russian partners. EADS Space Transportation has been commissioned by the European Space Agency ESA to develop the main elements of the data management system (DMS-R) for the Russian service module “Zvezda”. Along with the Russian system software, the DMS-R forms the attitude control system of the space station and ensures that the space station keeps precisely to its orbit approx. 450 km from the earth and provides for correct orientation of the solar cells and communications equipment. The DMS-R takes over important control and systems management functions during the space station’s construction phase both in the Russian service module and in the other elements of the station. It was delivered to Russia in late 1997 and has been in operation in the service module since July 2000. The Russian partners involved are the Russian Space Agency Rosaviakosmos and the company RSC Energia.

On behalf of ESA, EADS Space Transportation is the prime contractor for the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) intended for re-supply of the ISS and the periodic re-energising of its orbit. Launched by Ariane 5 in September 2004, this will be the first vehicle developed in Europe that will carry out a rendezvous and docking with an orbital station. As the ATV is intended to dock with the Russian Zvezda module on the Station, EADS Space Transportation maintains close daily contact with RSC-Energia located in Korolev outside Moscow. The two companies work in close collaboration on the design of the ATV-ISS and ATV-Zvezda interfaces. EADS SPACE Transportation is also in contact with RSC-Energia to whom it has assigned the development of several components of the ATV (ISS refuelling system, avionics for the refuelling system and the ISS docking gear).

Advertising in space - this revolutionary marketing tool for commercial customers was initiated by the BEOS GmbH (Bremen Engineering and Operations Science), a subsidiary of EADS Space Transportation, and the Russian Spaceflight and Control Center TSuP. In June 2002 an official contract concerning the commercial use of the International Space Station was signed. Due to this agreement e.g. a video spot can be produced by commercial customers in order to launch a new product.

Research & Technology Within the scope of the Tehora project, which is supported jointly by the German Aerospace Center DLR and Rosaviakosmos, EADS Space Transportation has concluded together with the Russian partners KBKhA in Voronezh investigations into technologies associated with components for future high-performance rocket engines. In particular, the studies covered transpiration cooling of combustion chamber walls, injection elements with a wide throttling range and a thrust nozzle with twofold expansion. All three technologies have been successfully demonstrated. There collaboration is continued investigating and testing advanced injection elements for cryogenic propellants and for environmentally friendly propellants like kerosene. The contract for a new phase for the next three years will be signed on the MAKS 2003 airshow in Moscow.

For several years EADS Space Transportation also collaborates very successfully with NPO Energomash in the area of re-usable Lox/Kerosene rocket engines. Lox/Kerosene rocket engines are promising solutions for high-thrust booster engines. This is one of the reasons, why EADS Space Transportation intends to further intensify the co-operation with NPO Enerogmash, since here the aim is to take over a leading position as complete Lox/Kerosene system supplier in the European market place.

In 2002, Astrium and the Russian Babakin Space and Research Centre formed a joint venture to market the innovative re-entry technology IRDT (Inflatable Re-entry and Descent Technology). Aiming at establishing the heat shield technology at the re-entry market, the extremely light, modular system can be adapted to any space element and launched into orbit in the folded state. Unlike conventional systems (e.g. Space Shuttle, capsules), the heat shield need not be delivered into space in its final configuration, a fact that will save space, weight and thus transport fees. The IRDT system passed first space testing successfully during the "Mission 2000" carried out in February 2000.

EADS Space Transportation also maintains contacts with organisations such as Tsnimash, TsAGI, TsIAM and NIITP under self-funded research programmes or joint study programmes funded by the European Union. Over the last ten years, exchanges have mainly concerned aerobic propulsion, including engines using super-ramjets, hot materials and thermo structures, hypersonic demonstrators and in-flight instrumentation techniques. Exchanges currently involve a range of fields:

RST Rostock System Technik GmbH, a 100% subsidiary of EADS Space Transportation, already worked together with Russian companies during the era of the German Democratic Republic. RST has already completed a number of projects in the CIS and, after a comprehensive study, has produced a catalogue of the differences and common ground regarding the quality standards and regulations of the European Space Agency ESA and the aerospace sector of the CIS. This comparison is one of the technical prerequisites for permanent cooperation with Russia in the aerospace sector, for example in the construction of the International Space Station. The results of this study are stored in a computer database which can also be utilised by other sectors. Of equal importance to European-Russian space activities is the comparison of materials for long-duration space missions, the comparison of the various testing procedures in East and West and the evaluation of the testing units in the CIS. RST Rostock has already compiled extensive catalogues covering all three aspects. RST produces a dispenser for the Russian launcher Rockot, which is being marketed jointly by EADS and Khrunichev.

As early as 1992, a Russian Photon space capsule was used to carry out biological experiments in a micro-gravity environment (protein crystallization). EADS Space Transportation re-equipped a capsule belonging to the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center for the international re-entry experiment Express.

EADS is also cooperating with Russian partners within the Military Aircraft business unit.

EADS, Sukhoi Corporation, the Russian defence technology sales company Rosoboronexport and the European missile manufacturer MBDA have signed a protocol at Le Bourget.

The protocol outlines opportunities for cooperation in the areas of joint development of future defence systems including UCAV technology, possibilities for inclusion of MBDA missile systems for Sukhoi fighter aircraft, joint product support activities and aircraft modernisation. The partners will set up a working group, which will develop the issues of the protocol.

For technical maintenance of the 23 MiG-29 aircraft which the German Luftwaffe inherited from the former East German forces, EADS founded a joint venture with the manufacturer RSK MiG and the state company for the export and import of weapons and weapon technology Rosoboronexport. EADS has a 50 percent stake in this joint venture, which is named MAPS (MiG Aircraft Product Support GmbH) and offers a wide selection of services: maintenance and repair, customer-specific re-equipping and modification of the airframe, assemblies, equipment and avionics, spare parts supply and the training of aircrews and maintenance staff. MAPS has already successfully completed several modifications of the MiG-29, including the fitting of additional wing fuel tanks. MAPS is the only company in the world that possesses the know-how for upgrading MiG-29 aircraft to western standards and for converting the necessary logistics to western standards, especially for reduction of service life costs. It is also offering its services to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe who operate the MiG-29. An international agreement between Russia and Germany, signed on 11 January 2001 in Moscow, guarantees this cooperation.

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