Israel Aeronautical R&TD Activities on the Threshold of the 21st Century

National & International Programmes

Israel Aeronautical R&TD Activities on the Threshold of the 2 Ist Century David HARARI

Half a century after the resurrection of the State, though Israel is a young country, it is blessed with many intellectual assets. Despite the many political storms it continues to weather, Israel has become a hothouse for some of the most profitable technological ideas. It is well integrated into the international community of technological industries and is regarded as one of the most prominent countries in the R&TD field. The Aeronautical and Space activities of the country are one of the leading technologies of such development.

OLulded in 1053 by the Israeli Government, lsnk'l Airc;qt7 In dustries (IAI) has been the spear- head of development of tile country's aerospace industries

and has enabied tile State of Israel to reach high technological achievements in the fields of aeronautics and space. Tile industry has been developed on tile basis of Israel's national security and defence needs and has attained a ted> nological level equivalent to that of the European and American aeronautics industries In 1%4, the Fnctdty qt AcromHtical EG, i nccfim/qf the Twtmion, the Israel hlstitutc of TccMolo~;y, was founded and grew in para]]e] with the Israel Air Force, Israel Aircraft Industries and other advanced technology industries. It is tile onh aerospace faculty in the country. Beginning with a class of 12 stL1c]ents, graduated in 1058, the Faculty has grown when the demand for aeronautical engineers increased. Today, over 1700 students have completed studies in the Faculty. In parallel with the foundation at Israel Aircraft Industries and the Faculty of Aeronautical Engineering of the Technion, other military and missiles industries have been created such as the Isnwl Militm'y Industries and RAF,4EI, the Arnlatnent Dev&~pstwnt Authority of the Ministry of Defence. In tile earh, 1070s and 1080s, private Israeli industries began to enter tile aeronautical arena and to enlarge tile

industrial infrastructure. Examples include EMt St/stems mainh' involved in Upgrade Integration systems, C!tdom' Aviation in Build-to-Specification aero- structures and in maintenance, Bet- Shcmcsh En<~im's in\'olved in small jet engines manufacturing and maintenance actMties, Silver Arrorr involved in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) activities, R~dom Aviation Sm,in's and AD&D Scrvin's pro\'iding services in engineering design and prototypes manufacturing and others. From an R&TD activities point of vim\, tile main civilian aeronautical activities in Israel are concentrated in Israel Air- ::raft hldustrics, as an industry, and in the F~Tcnlty qf Aermmntical l!nkffnwrin\, qf the /?chniosl, as an aeronautical research center with some other specific research activities at the E%~im'crinl .qchool of the 7i'l Avic LM;'crsitl/.

IAI general presentation Israel Aircraft Industries, initially created with the assistance of the French aeronautics industry, has developed, starting immediately after the Six Day War in 1067, the technological infrastructure of a national aeronautical industry. Since the beginning at its foundation, it has been established as a maintenance and overhaul infrastructure for commercial aircraft, structures, engines and components. In tile earh. 1070s, the activities were expanded to include ci-

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vilian aircraft devdopment and manufacturing that began with the Executi\e aircraft WESTWIND and ASTI,L,\ tarot- lies. Today, this civilian aircraft acti~it\ includes the ASTRA SPX mid-silo business jets and tile GALAXY super mid- size business jets families. Hie (,AL,,\XY, fourth generation in IAI% family at executive jets b> positioned to be tile ValLle Standard for the' 21st ten turv, in its category. IAi-is a world leader in meeting the best xalue for full service to commercial air- lines. Tile company's areas of expertise include file conversion of Boring aircraft family fronl passenger c>r combi configuration to tull-fieighter. It is one, of the fe~ conlpanic, s in the ~oIld approved for B-747 pylon and ~ing strut modifications, which can be pc'r- formed simLfltaneous to the converqon of the aircraft. This infrastructure enabled I,\1, in l~S7, to conlplete tile de~dopment of the LAVI combat aircraft and to enlarge national space activities that launched the OFEQ observation satellite by means of SHAK.Tf, an lsradi satc'llitc' launcher. All of these activities were mlplemented simultaneouslx with the devdopmc'nt of transmission, sundllance and inlor- marion systems for military purpose, as well as tile developnwnt of mb, sile defense systems and LI,\\ ,' systems. In the course of the last deci~de, I,,\1 has ri>en from a national aeronautical in dustrv to an aerospact, indtlstrv o{ miter-


national fame. Its turnover, by the end ~.f 2000, reached more than $2.3 billion ~,f which, more than SUS 1.8 billion is derived from exports to more than 60 ~ountries, with 20% of the export to I!uropean countries. IAI's industrial activity has been devel- ~ped in both military and civilian areas. In keeping with the global decline in lnilitary budgets, which has forced companies to expand their commercial activ- it,,,, IAI has successfully made this transi- l ion w i th a Corporate Vision of striving lowards a long-term balance between ~nilitarv and commercial actMties. i-oda> 45% of the total company activi- Iv is concentrated in commercial aero- imutical and space actMties.

Research activities at Technion Research support for the aerospace industry is conducted at the Aeronau- lical Research Center attached to the Faculty of Engineering at the Technion. Faculty researchers have carried out projects for Israeli and foreign govem- 1lent agencies and for private industr> I',esearch is concentrated into different groups of activities and departmental ] ~boratories.

Aerodynamics group '!he aerodynamics group conducts ex- t~erimental, analytical and numerical l,asic and applied research in fluid mechanics and aerodynamics. Research t:~cilities and technical support are pro- , ided by the Aerodynamics Laborator> which was established in 1956. Llanv of these research programs have t,artial support from bilateral funds [,etween Israel and Europe and the trotted States of America and national lesearch institutions, such as, the USA- I~rael Binational Fund, US-Arm> XASA, the German-Israeli Foundation (GIF), ONERA and DLR. The Laboratory t,articipates in the Subsonic Ttmnel ,~ssociation (SATA), the Supersonic - unnel Association (STA) and tile Ram ,\ccelerator Organization (RAMAC).

Propulsion and combustion group Tile propulsion and combustion group conducts experimental, analytical and numerical research in rocket, missile and space propulsion as well as in chal- lenging areas in combustion.

Flight control group The flight control group carries out experinaental and theoretical studies in advanced flight-control, guidance and navigation. Research facilities are pro- vided by the Flight Control Laboratory, which was established in 1971 as one of the principal applied research facilities at the Aeronautical Research Center. It has established itself as a center of knowledge and support for the benefit of the aeronautical industry in Israel.

Structures group

Tile structures group is involved in the theoretical and experimental research, and instruction in advanced lightweight structures for aerospace, marine, ground transportation, robotics and other structural applications.

Turbo and jet engine laboratory The Turbo and jet engine laborator\ houses a wide spectrum of R&D facilities in the fields of advanced vectoring / reversing nozzles for advanced fighters, engine combustors with an engine alti- tude test chamber and extensive com- putational facilities.

Design for manufacturing laboratory The design for manufacturing laboratory is also invol\ed in instruction, research and development.

Aerospace Systems An important area of research at the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering deals with Aerospace Systems. Here, multi- disciplinary approaches, utilizing results from and collaborating with the laboratories mentioned earlier, applied to research and design of integrated systems. These include work in satellites in space, aircraft and helicopter dwlamics and performance, and rocket and missile research.

The R&TD IAI aeronautical infrastructure Israel Aircraft Industries is well known in the international aerospace field, botll in development and in manufacturing of aerospace sxstems. Intensive activities and investments in the aeronautical and space R&TD domains are developed in tile four IAI operating groups. Each operates as an autonomous business, but all the groups also cooperate in order to bring together full-service solu- tions under one roof - from design and development through production and after-sales service. With research and de\ elopment as a top prior i ty, over the years, IAI has invested extensixe resources in these actMties. As a result, a significant proportion of tile compan) 's current R&D budgets are obtained from customers who want to acquire IAl's experience and ingenuity in the development of their next-generation products. Between 25% and 30% of the annual turnover of the company is related to R&D actMties. As a strategy' goal, IAI is expanding its engineering capabilities in aerodynamics, materials and composite materials development and integration.

Engineering Division The Engineering Division is the largest Israeli Engineering Center in aeronautical activities. With over 800 highly capa- ble, dedicated and experienced engineers, scientists and designers, its expertise is well known in every required engineering discipline and task, from concept definition to prototype testing and certification of airborne platforms. Its fully integrated engineering capabil- ity is based on various development facilities and infrastructures, such as, low-speed, high-speed and hypersonic wind tunnels, structural and fatigue test facilities, environmental and acoustic laboratories, metallurgical, chemical and non-metallic materials laboratories and a modern flight test center. IAI, thanks to the high professional standard of its technicians and its R&D departments, has succeeded in achiev- ing an international reputation which,

A I R & SPACE E U R O P E • V O L . 3 • bdo 3 /4 2001

ISRAEL AERONAUTICAL R& TO ACTIVITIES

in the last decade, has enabled it to form industrial partnerships with American and European aerospace industries. Major investments are being made to also upgrade IAl's mantffacturing infrastructure. A Developing Process Center is being established with the most advanced facilities for aircraft manufacturing, such as a modern machining center and high-efficiency production lines.

IAI partnership strategy IAI is also offering its developnlent and manufacturing capabilities and exper- rise through partnerships and subcontracting for the design and production of aircraft and structures. Through various forms of strategic cooperation, IAI looks forward to becoming a leading global player and partner in the development and manufacture of commercial aircraft, including executive jets, cargo aircraft and special- mission aircraft. As a contribution to the development of the European Aeronautical activities, IAI is an active member to the AECMA- EASE (European Aerospace Supplier Evaluation) Association and is con- tributing to the unified evaluation of the European Aerospace suppliers. During each of the past years, about a dozen new joint ventures ha\'e been created with leading international corpora- tions in the aerospace industry. Their willingness to share risk with IA1 is a true indicator of the trust and respect that serve as the foundation of these relationships. On the threshold of tile 21st centur}, IAI envisages its development based oil a

policy of partnerships and industrial investments in Europe. This strategy has already been launched in several areas and European industries have become preferred partners. Sogerma, from EADS, has been assi- gned to manufacture the fuselage of the Galaxy Executive aircraft; lntertech- nique is a partner in all of lAl's executive and commuter aircraft; Astrium, Alcatel, Alenia and Arianespace are

involved in the various space programs directed by IAI. hl tile coming years, with a steadily growing turnover, IAI foresees an increase in its purchases in Europe and tile assignment of subcontracting programs to European industries. IAI purchases, within tile European Comnlu- airy, anlounted to about SUS 150 million in 2000 and will increase in tile coming vears. "[hose subcontracting partnerships are accompanied bv industrial partnerships in tile area of UAVs with EADS and in the field of space with Astrium, Alcatel, Alenia and also bv investments in France (partnership in Euralair, an aircraft maintenance company located at l.e Bourget) and in Belgium (Bats, a daughter company in electronics and radar activities). IAI is interested in pursuing additional ioint ventures with quality partners in a host of acti\ities, particularly in those that challenge the teclmological capabilities and ingenuity of the Company. Space being one of tile growth frontiers of the 21st centur> as well as tile hub for inforlnation technologies, IA[ decided to strengthen its partnerships in the worldwide space actMties. As a provider of space systems and services, Israel Aircraft Industries has established itself as a member of an elite group of companies in this market. IAl's extensixe research and development expertise makes it an attractive partner in tile development of advanced technologies for tile future. This strategy is well supported by the fruitful dialogue between the Israel Space Agency and European National Space Agencies and tile European Space Agency. Among tile Company's own space devel- opments, are the AMOS communication and broadcasting gee-satellite based oil partnerships with European companies and the OFEQ low earthIorbiting satellite which carries commercial, scientific and technological payloads. IAI is a main partner in an international joint company between Israeli industries and investors in Europe and tile USA for comnlercial image satellite activities. file EROS, IAI's next genera-

m

tion Earth Resources Observation Satel- lite offers sur\'eillance for oceanogra ph 5 agricLllture and monitoring of nat- ural disasters; and monitoring of remote sites. Super high-resolution satellite' images are now available for commercial mapping applications.

Israel participation in the EU's Research Programmes The im:olvement ot the State of Israel in research programs under the auspices of the European Union has enabled till' forging of links between the industries,, universities and research centers of the various European countries and the State of Israel. It has created a syneGic and mutually beneficial relationship among them and has enabled tile development of opportunities for investment, partnerships and cooperation. In tile scope of the 4th and the 5th Frame- work Programme, two aeronautics workstlops have been held in Israel: • in October 1998, on i:t l ture develop-

merits in Israeli Aeronautics; • in November 2000, on cMl applica-

tions for Unmanned Aerial \ ehicles. The fruits of these successful workshops are presently being reaped with increased cooperation between European and b,- raeli partners. IAI, which takes an active role in these research programs, has succeeded in developing with its European partners, links that will permit it to expand it, cooperation programs in tile near future. Noteworthy anions tile leading indcls- tries, are IAt's industrial partnerships with British Aerospace Systems, EAI)S, Alenia, We~tland-Agusta, t:urocopter, Saab, Snecma in illany projects sUC]l a>: • the TANGO project, working togeth-

er o n tile development of low o > t ,

low weight primary structures for tilt' {tlttlrt_' transport aircraft Ahbus 3XX;

• the HELIX project, dedicated to eval- uating innovative high lift devices;

• tile CAST project, a joint venttlre developing necessar\ fools to e\'alLi- ate crashworthiness of helicopter structtires;


• the TAURUS project, working together on a European standard for CFD analysis including aeroelastic effects;

. the ADFCS project lead by IAI and regarding affordable fly-by-wire technology for small commercial aircraft;

• the ASL project, a joint venture for an automated catering system improv- ing service to passengers.

11 the 5th Framework Programme, IAI i~ partner in: , 13 projects in Competitive and Sus-

tainable Growth; • 8 projects in Information Society

Technologies; • 1 project in Energy, Environment and

Sustainable Development; ° 1 network on Civil UAV applications, ~,nd developes fruitful cooperation with ion-aerospace companies like, Fiat, Walxo, Philips, Kodak, Lucent, Alcatel ,,nd with research centers such as NLR, I)LR, CIRA, ONERA and others.

Conclusion Israel, having a variety of aeronautical capabilities in academia and industr'4 is an ideal partner for R&TD European partnerships. Israel Aircraft Industries has achieved its global success through an emphasis on R&D, innovation and a highest quality work. Aware of the significance of the consolidation of the European and American aerospace industries, IAI is willing to participate in international partnerships. Looking forward to developing strong links with the worldwide aerospace partners, it is committed to place at its partners' disposal, all of the ingenuity and high technological value of its technicians, and all the resources required assuring the complete success of such partnerships. Concerning the future of the Israeli R&TD activities in Europe, the member- ship of the State of Israel to the R&D Framework Programmes of the

European Community will contribute to the closeness of Israeli aeronautical research centers and industries and European partners for the benefit of both parties. The recent success of fruitful participation of Israeli academia and industries into 4th and 5th Framework Programmes projects, is a guarantee for their contribution to the European aeronautical R&TD. These common programs will be the building blocks for further activities and will build the way for cooperation between Europe an~.{ Israel. •

About the author:

David Harari is Corporate Deputy Vice

President for Research and Development

with the Israel Aircraft Industries, dharari@hdq,iai,co,il

AIR, & S P A C E EUP, O P E • V O L . 3 • r 'qo 3 / 4 },~00L

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Israel Aeronautical R&TD Activities on the Threshold of the 21st Century