Imagine trying to test a brand new, futuristic car engine without building a whole new car from scratch. This project takes a giant Airbus A380 and modifies it to act as a flying laboratory. It allows engineers to plug in different experimental engines to see how they actually perform in the sky before mass-producing them.
Developing new aircraft engines is incredibly expensive because testing them in real flight conditions requires a certified aircraft. Companies currently lack a shared, flexible platform to validate ultra-efficient engines without building separate test planes.
A design and preparation plan for a modified Airbus A380 flight test platform capable of hosting Open Rotor and hybrid electric engines.
If you are an engine manufacturer dealing with the high cost of certifying new propulsion systems — this project developed a common flight test platform that allows for the validation of Open Rotor and hybrid electric engines in realistic conditions. This reduces the need for every company to build their own dedicated test aircraft.
If you are a fuel producer dealing with the need to prove your fuel works in next-gen engines — this project developed a platform that allows demonstrator engines to operate on conventional kerosene and SAF blends. This provides the real-world flight data needed to validate fuel efficiency and emissions.
If you are a sensor company dealing with the challenge of measuring emissions in flight — this project developed a system to host standard and special flight test instrumentation. This allows for the precise quantification of engine performance under operational conditions.
Based on available project data, the specific pricing or cost for using the platform is not provided.
The project uses a full-scale Airbus A380 aircraft as the demonstrator platform to test full-scale propulsion systems.
Based on available project data, the coordinator is Airbus Operations SAS, but specific licensing terms are not listed.
The project runs from 2024-01-01 to 2027-06-30, aiming to prepare the platform for flight tests in Clean Aviation Phase 2 before 2030.
The project initiates the flight clearance process with EASA support through a dedicated service contract.
The consortium is heavily industry-led, with 8 industrial partners (57% ratio) including the coordinator Airbus Operations SAS. With 14 partners across 6 countries, the group combines the scale of a prime aircraft manufacturer with 4 research centers and 2 universities, ensuring that the technical design for the A380 modification is grounded in both academic research and industrial feasibility.
Contact Airbus Operations SAS regarding the COMPANION flight test platform
Contact us to find partners for Clean Aviation Phase 2 propulsion testing.
