The first flight of Airbus Helicopters’ DisruptiveLab flying test demonstrator on January 13 marked the latest milestone in the company's decade-long effort to accelerate improvements in rotorcraft performance and fuel efficiency. Now in the midst of testing a series of mainly sustainability advances, Airbus expects the DisruptiveLab to deliver technology that will slash carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in half, thanks largely to a planned fully parallel hybrid propulsion system that allows for battery recharging in flight.
Other advances include a more compact rotor head for reduced drag, improved energy efficiency, and perceived noise, enabled through more efficient integration with its three blades. What Airbus Helicopters director of research and innovation Tomasz Krysinski called dynamic optimization of the rotors, in part using a new damper concept and blades with thinner tips, accounts for 15 percent of the 50 percent reduction in CO2 targeted for the DisruptiveLab. Speaking with AIN ahead of the Heli-Expo show, Krysinksi called the feature “really key because the future is really to reduce the energy need for flight.
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