Technology

By Shobha Kulavil Imagine an aircraft simulation providing insights into engine’s optimum capacity in harsh weather conditions or digitally tracking a spacecraft’s movement in real time and analysing its performance. Thanks to the digital twin technology, such information can be obtained with accuracy and leveraged to enhance the lifespan of the system, predict any potential risk, and optimize performance. Complex and safety-critical airborne platforms and systems such as aircraft, spacecraft and physical spaces like airports, Maintenance Repair Overhaul (MRO) hubs, and factories can benefit from digital twin as it not only enhances operational efficiency but also helps meet safety and sustainability goals. Owing to its advantages in aerospace and defence (A&D), digital twin is generating interest among startups in India. Aerospace design firms are integrating advanced technologies such as simulation, artificial intelligence (AI), and 3D to create a digital twin platform for aerospace products and services, which can be deployed in defence and enterprise applications. Operational capabilities Historically, virtual models and simulations have not always met A&D complete requirements. The advent of digital twin has introduced simplified design modification and innovation for complex systems of aircraft and defence equipment. It also speeds up the production time for physical components and system integration (such as engines) and physical space planning (such as hangars, MRO centres, airports, and factories) through simulation of equipment flow and factory while ensuring safety and efficiency. As a result, global A&D organizations are contemplating the integration of digital twin technology into their long-term plans across platforms and ecosystem. For example, digital twin enables a real-time virtual model of an airport where long queues, crowds, and foot traffic flow can be analysed, giving insights into the most-used as well as underused corners. A virtual understanding of people’s movement and designing of spaces can help optimize airports physically, making human interaction and passenger experience more efficient and seamless. Role in sustainability efforts The aerospace sector is turning to digital twin to validate designs for eco-friendly alternatives such as electric batteries and hydrogen fuel. With this technology, manufacturers can test various parameters of aircraft design, including aerodynamics, propulsion systems, and material, to identify areas for improvement and enhance fuel efficiency while reducing carbon emissions. Leading engine manufacturers heavily rely on digital twin for engine health monitoring and predictive analytics to reduce the engine downtime. AI systems and machine learning(ML) help monitor the progress toward lowering the amount of carbon produced by engines and optimizing aircraft engine maintenance. Companies are also using AI to better understand handling of metal scrap and waste from parts when they reach the end of their lifespan. Impact on the A&D ecosystem Digital twin offers valuable insights into supply chain operations, fuelling data-driven decision making for enhanced performance. By inferring historical data and advanced data analytics, digital twin creates realistic training scenarios, augmenting the skills and decision-making abilities of operators, pilots, and personnel. This fosters familiarity with complex operational environments, promoting safer and more efficient practices. By leveraging historical data and advanced analytics, digital twin can also predict and mitigate potential concerns, reducing the risk of unplanned downtime or critical failures during flight operations or at airports. The technology also considers factors such as weather conditions and system failures to evaluate potential risks. Game-changing synergies Digital twin is poised to revolutionize the A&D industry, which often has long design and development gestation cycles for new products and even upgrades, eventually leading to high costs. The true power of this technology lies in its ability to accurately simulate every aspect of the creation process, from design to manufacturing and real-world operations in a highly-connected manner. This capability will be a game changer for countries aspiring to become a global hub for A&D innovation and delivery. While India has been making significant investments to transform its A&D landscape, it is imperative for the private sector to actively contribute and build systems that go beyond individual digital replicas and integrate information and resources for the sector seamlessly. By bridging the gap between the physical and digital realms, digital twin can synergizes data, technologies, and business processes, thus, enabling the transformation of the A&D sector. (The writer is Vice President and Industry Platform Leader for Aerospace and Defence – India, Capgemini)

Mumbai,5th October 2023: Vistara has become the first Indian airline to deploy both SITA eWAS and SITA OptiClimb solutions. With this, Vistara aims to significantly improve efficiency in flight planning and operations, reducing fuel burn and thereby reducing carbon emissions by 15,000 tons yearly. Using SITA eWAS, Vistara will be able to enhance overall flight safety and efficiency by providing pilots with better weather awareness data. It serves as a highly effective mechanism for delivering OptiClimb recommendations. SITA OptiClimb® leverages historical flight data to predict fuel burn during the climb out and is the industry’s only machine-learning solution providing customized climb profile recommendations for every flight. This will enable Vistara to save 80 tons of fuel per year per aircraft on average and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 250 tons yearly. For Vistara’s entire fleet, yearly fuel savings are estimated to be more than 5,000 tons, leading to a reduction in carbon emissions of more than 15,000 tons. Sumesh Patel, President, Asia Pacific, SITA, said, “India’s aviation industry is accelerating at lightning speed, and we’re excited to help leading airlines like Vistara with solutions that supercharge their efficiency, significantly reduce fuel consumption, and support efforts towards more sustainable air travel. We’re now seeing an increasing number of Indian airlines looking for smart solutions to optimize operations and enhance the passenger experience.” Captain Hamish Maxwell, Senior Vice President – Flight Operations, Vistara, said,”Continuous improvements in operational efficiency and safety remain key focus areas for us. Advanced technology solutions, such as SITA OptiClimb and SITA eWAS, enable clear enhancements in these areas, which ultimately help us to reduce our carbon footprint. We are committed to continuing on this path and will keep evolving as a future-ready, world-class airline.”

Swedan, 11th Sept 2023: Swedish electric airplane maker Heart Aerospace and Honeywell have announced a collaboration to integrate Honeywell’s next-generation flight control system into the new ES-30 regional electric airplane.Honeywell was selected by Heart Aerospace for the Joint Definition Phase of Heart’s ES-30 airplane, and the goal, once the phase has been completed successfully, is to fully integrate Honeywell’s compact Fly-by-Wire system into development for production. “We are thrilled to welcome Honeywell to the ES-30 program. With its long track record in flight controls, they are an ideal collaboration partner for Heart Aerospace as we strive to decarbonize air travel before the end of this decade,” said Anders Forslund, co-founder and CEO of Heart Aerospace. Honeywell’s next-generation compact Fly-by-Wire system is in an advanced stage of development on multiple aircraft, and its functions are adaptable to the ES-30, allowing Heart to bring its airplane to market quickly and cost-effectively. “Honeywell’s flight controls provide the ideal solution for Heart’s mission to revitalize and electrify the regional transport market,” said Vipul Gupta, President, Electronic Solutions, Honeywell Aerospace. “Honeywell’s all-electric compact Fly-by-Wire is a ready-now solution based on decades of flight control experience in all aircraft types, and that reduces development time and risk for Heart.” The ES-30 is a regional electric airplane with a 30-passenger standard seating capacity and is driven by electric motors powered by batteries. It will have a fully electric zero-emissions range of 200 kilometers, an extended hybrid range of 400 kilometers with 30 passengers, and flexibility to fly up to 800 kilometers with 25 passengers, all with typical airline reserves. Heart Aerospace has 250 firm orders for the ES-30, with options and purchase rights for an additional 120 planes.

As the aviation sector grows, digitalization will enable the sector by streamlining procedures, lowering manual labor requirements, and fostering collaboration to provide a seamless experience for all stakeholders by creating and delivering custom digital applications quickly and at scale. By Sri Srinivasan, Chief Revenue Officer, Zvolv Recent developments in the aviation sector – including the proposed Air India and IndiGo investments with their fleet renewals to revamping of the airports signal a marked shift within the Indian Aviation industry, fast-tracking aviation sector growth and reiterating its criticality to keep India moving.Airlines are evolving their business operating models and focusing on driving a “better” travel experience for consumers. As airlines evolve, the airports are becoming “destinations” by themselves, rather than a channel facilitating travel. Slowly and steadily, the leading airports of the country such as Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru are being revamped keeping the “destination” approach in mind. Airports Authority of India (AAI) is actively looking to upgrade and enhance more than 70 additional airports across tier 2 & tier 3 cities, an effort directly linked to the growing preference for air travel by Indian consumers and passengers. The Indian government expects to invest $1.83 Bn in the development of airport infrastructure by 2026. The sector will have a huge impact with an economic multiplier of 3.1 and an employment multiplier of 6x in this phase. The private airlines’ expansion is seeing an uptick in the Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) investments, with leading plane builders Boeing and Airbus, and international carriers, dramatically increasing their investments in MRO set up in-country. To achieve the Indian government’s stated goal of a unified transportation policy, the aviation sector is key. Air cargo and associated logistics cost efficiencies will be fundamental to driving the government’s ambition to improve national logistics cost efficiencies from 13% to 10% of the country’s GDP. Challenges & Opportunities -“Doing More with Less” Whilst investments in the aviation industry are certainly seeing an uptick, there are still some real challenges the industry is facing for it to fulfill the promise of keeping India moving. A majority of operations within the airport, airlines, and logistics segments are still run by legacy core systems and a multitude of manual and paper-driven processes. These legacy technologies continue to increase safety risks and drive costs upwards. The Indian aviation industry as a low-margin industry continues to face pressure from all sides to reduce costs by optimizing operational efficiency. Cut-throat competition leading to an airline price war, rising fuel bills for the airlines, and the overall macroeconomic conditions add to the current uncertainty for aviation players looking to invest for growth, all of which represent significant challenges to the industry. As the e-commerce market continues to explode, managing supply chain risks is becoming a priority risk for many corporations. Logistics-focused investments are key to mitigating this risk and improving supply chain resilience. The still-developing MRO ecosystem (with airlines fleet refreshing underway) creates a challenging narrative for an industry segment having the ambition to make a difference to a few hundred million citizens. In addition, sustainability is a continued concern for the industry, with growing recognition that transformation is required to achieve the stated emission reduction goals of tomorrow. The aviation sector has a key role to play here and the industry titans whilst acknowledging this challenge, do not necessarily have an easy way to finding a path that balances environmental concerns, vis-a-vis short-term commercial needs. How citizens look at sustainability will also determine the pressure on the industry to transform on this key topic. However, the good news is there is a tremendous opportunity for aviation players to invest in digital technologies to modernise and operationalise their legacy processes within and around the airports and their ecosystems. From leveraging Generative AI for improved customer service and delivering enhanced forecasting capabilities to managing passenger and cargo demand accurately, to metaverse technologies (incl VR/AR) getting deployed within airports to transform the customer experience e.g. virtual check-ins, to driving airport development leveraging digital twins capability, technology has been playing a key role in transforming this sector globally. The Indian aviation sector has an opportunity to leapfrog with such technology-led advancements.The recent example of the DigiYatra project, with almost a million+ downloads of the DigiYatra app in less than a few months, provides a glimpse of what the future holds. The DigiYatra initiative has the potential to extend passenger experience beyond the physical precincts of an airport – think seamless passenger check-ins at airport hotels beyond the airport with the DigiYatra ID. The use case of leveraging this digital infrastructure is still in its nascency and is only expected to greatly enhance as the ecosystem develops around this program. Likewise, we are seeing increasing adoption of modern low code technology platforms by leading airlines and airports across the country – from digitising taxi booking process outside the airports to airport retailing and commerce, safety inspection checklists and fuel price management, to contract and supplier management process automation, low code platforms are fast-tracking the airports and airlines efforts to find the efficiencies without compromising on experience. This is only a good sign for an industry looking to find ways to “Do more with less” and scrap to find more avenues for higher margin realisation. Conclusion An aspirational population willing to spend on air travel, and demanding consumers used to sophisticated mobile technologies and implicitly expecting higher levels of personalisation, will drive the aviation industry forward. The government of India’s transformation program around enabling better services for its citizens, and focusing on improving underlying supply chain resilience with targeted investments in logistics and MRO, with an overarching travel and transportation framework augurs well. Smart technology, automation, and digitalisation are key for the aviation industry to thread the needle between safety, profitability, and sustainability. The aviation players understand this and are starting to take the right steps to make the aviation sector key to keeping India moving. The writer is the Board Director and Chief Revenue Officer for Zvolv. He is

Paris Air Show, 20.06.2023: Pratt & Whitney, an RTX business, announces the launch of Percept – an advanced AI-based Aircraft Engine Analysis Tool. Percept is a computer vision product that operates on top of the Awiros Video Intelligence Operating System (OS). Its cloud-based interface allows users to capture images and videos of aircraft engines on their mobile devices and receive real-time responses on parts availability. This helps enable faster and cost-efficient turnaround of leased engine assets. Instead of an inspector having to examine an engine and check part-by-part, Percept automates this inspection, and reduces time taken by nearly 90%. “The Percept tool helps reduce time and effort involved in the pre-and-post lease analysis of aircraft engines,” said O Sung Kwon, vice president, Customer Support, Pratt & Whitney. “We have been working with Awiros, an Indian Computer Vision and Artificial Intelligence (AI) start-up for the past few years to mature this technology; we are excited to be shifting from technology development to now bringing an operational product to the market.” “Building the Percept tool in collaboration with RTX has been one of the most exciting opportunities in the journey of Awiros as a startup. We are proud that Percept’s high-fidelity scanning of Pratt & Whitney engines with handheld mobiles phones, without any specialized hardware, is being commercially deployed in the aerospace industry.” said Vikram Gupta, founder and CEO, Awiros. Awiros was selected as the winner of the RTX Innovation Challenge. The Innovation Challenge was launched in September 2019 with over 60 Indian and global startups in Computer Vision, AI, and Machine learning (ML) domains. The teams proposed solutions to optimize and automate aircraft engine inspections with reduced human interventions. Awiros’ idea was evaluated through 2020-21 and is expected to be launched commercially later this year. “As the fastest growing aviation industry and world’s emerging start-up capital, India has become a hotbed for agile aerospace innovation,” said Ashmita Sethi, president & country head, India, Pratt & Whitney (UTCIPL). “Percept is the result of some of India’s best and brightest minds collaborating with Pratt & Whitney to innovate a solution that delivers significant efficiencies and value to our customers.” The Percept solution will be deployed exclusively on Pratt & Whitney’s most advanced commercial engines, including the Pratt & Whitney GTFTM engine and the V2500.

Delhi, 12th April 2023: Akasa Air has partnered with Blue Ribbon Bags (BRB) to provide delayed luggage protection services to its customers. This add-on service will be available at a reasonable fee of INR 95 per passenger with provision to offer a compensation of INR 19,000 per bag (up to 2 bags) in case the check-in bag is delayed or lost beyond 96 hours, following the submission of complaint. The service will also provide Akasa Air customer with real-time status updates via email and SMS regarding the status of the delayed bag and assist them in tracking and expediting the return of delayed luggage. he fee will be refunded/adjusted in case the booking is cancelled or rescheduled by the customer or the airline. Senior Vice President & Partner of Blue Ribbon Bags,Siraj Shah, stated “It is essential for airlines to ensure a holistic travel experience to their customers, and luggage protection is an integral aspect of it. We are glad to partner with Akasa Air to extend the service to their customers, promising them a hassle-free journey with the airline.” Commenting on the partnership, Belson Coutinho, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing & Experience Officer, Akasa Air, said, “We recognise that baggage delivery is not just a top-of-mind factor for travellers but is also an extremely important service area for us at Akasa. We are delighted to partner with Blue Ribbon Bags to help our customers travel with greater confidence and peace of mind. The baggage protection service is yet another conscious addition to our growing portfolio of add-on services and is in line with our promise to be the country’s most dependable airline.” Akasa Air now flies to 17 cities operating over 900 weekly flights across India.

Tel Aviv, 24 March, 2023: IAI is a global leader in passenger-to-cargo aircraft conversions, and is currently in the final stages of the certification process for“The Big Twin” 777-300ERSF with a firm backlog of over 60 aircraft expected to deliver over the next five years. Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) announced the successful completion of the first test flight,as part of the final certification process for the B777-300ER passenger aircraft converted to a cargo configuration, known as, The Big Twin. On conclusion of the certification process by the Civil Aviation Authorities, The Big Twin will be the first twin engine aircraft of this type, able to carry 100 tons’ cargo payload. This program adds to IAI’s 45-year aircraft conversion track record including the B767-200/300, B747-400, and B737-700/800 freighter programs,in service today. In response to the strong demand for cargo aircraft, IAI is currently establishing a number of remoteconversion facilities around the world, in addition to the facilities at IAI’s home company. During the last year, IAI’s Aviation Group has signed hundreds of millions of dollars of passenger-to-cargo conversion contracts withthe world’s leading aviation companies including AerCap,Emirates Cargo,Challenge Group, EVA Air and CargoJet. Shmuel Kuzi, EVP and General Manager of IAI’s Aviation Group said: “The successful first flight conducted today is a world breakthrough in the field of widebody aircraft passenger-to-cargo conversions. The advanced capabilities and efficient solutions which IAI offers its customers provide the solution having the best value available in the market, supporting the growing demand for cargo aircraft around the world.” Richard Greener, the Head of Cargo, AerCap, said, “IAI’s Aviation Group has achieved a significant milestone today. We would like to thank all of IAI’s employees who made this inaugural flight happen.AerCapfirmly believes that this conversion program is the most comprehensive and well-designed widebody freighter to meet the future requirements for the globalair cargo market.” IAI’s Aviation Group is the world’s leading conversion facility for many aircraft types. The Group deals with all types of manned aircraft, both military and civilian, in IAI; passenger-to-cargo conversion; maintenance, repair and operations (MRO); business jets; aerostructures and assemblies; aircraft upgrades, and more. Among IAI’s customers are the world’s leading logistics and delivery companies including Amazon, FedEx, and DHL.

Bengaluru, December 23, 2022: AXISCADES Technologies Ltd., end-to-end technology and engineering solutions company announced the completion of the acquisition of Mistral Solutions Private Ltd., which deals into semiconductor, Embedded Electronics, Defence and Product Engineering capabilities. The acquisition, which was initiated in the year 2017, was executed over 4 phases at an aggregate acquisition cost of INR 296 crores. With the completion of this acquisition, AXISCADES strengthens its position as a technology leader, providing cutting-edge product design and development services to its customers for a wide range of applications. Mistral is a perfect complement to AXISCADES’ portfolio, and with the resulting synergies the Company unlocks diversified opportunities and foresees significant upside to both revenue and margins. The acquisition bolsters the company’s ability in the digital engineering, embedded electronics and systems engineering domains, enabling it to make an even bigger impact and add value to collective clients across industries and geographies. Commenting on the acquisition David Bradley, Chairman of AXISCADES Technologies Ltd. Said, “We are delighted with the completion of Mistral acquisition, which is one of the industry leaders, with exceptional competencies in the semiconductor industry and a recognized defence player, operating for more than 25 years. This partnership will enable us to build upon a complementary portfolio of offerings and allow us to scale-up our operations, while delivering innovative solutions to our customers.” Arun Krishnamurthi, CEO and MD of AXISCADES Technologies Limited, commenting on the strategic benefits of the acquisition further adds, “Our vision aligns with the government’s initiatives of Make-In-India and Atmanirbhar Bharat that boost technology driven infrastructure and defence indigenization in the country. AXISCADES, is already a preferred partner for the defence industry. The collaboration with Mistral will provide us a complementary customer base and opportunities to cross-sell and expand our product and service portfolio, along with the ability to offer our global clientele, latest technologies in embedded electronics and chip design.” The alliance is anticipated to not only produce strong and consistent earnings and margin expansion for the combined enterprise, but it will also enable the organisation to take advantage of new opportunities in ER&D industry and contribute to usher in an era of a self-sufficient India.

Exclusive Interview Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) exhibited at the Bahrain International Airshow for the first time and showcased variety of products. At this occasion, Vishal Kashyap, Managing Editor, Aviation World interacted with Mr. Shmuel kuzi, Executive VP and GM-Aviation Group, IAI, who talked about aircraft conversion project, vision for GCC regions, Make in India and the close friendship between the two powerful nations India & Israel. Excerpts from the interview… What are the focus areas that IAI is looking forward to as future? For IAI, one of the primary focus areas is conversion of passenger aircraft. Today, around 70 % of the market revolves around conversion of Boeing 767. The next 10-15 years we will rule because we have wealth of experience of converting aero planes for more than 45 years. And going by the symmetry of conversion of Boeing 747/757/767,777 & Airbus 320, in future we will be converting Boeing 777 and we are going to lead the market. So with this experience, we have lot of very-very talented engineers who give us the opportunity to do this complicated work and we are very happy and proud of that. This is about the conversion as it is a very important issue for us and with that we are looking forward to the future which seems very good. How do you see your participation at the Bahrain International Air show for the first time? It’s a historic moment for us and is very intimate. It’s not huge as other air shows but I really liked the atmosphere. We interacted with many new people and also we met our friends from Abu Dhabi and Bahrain. So, for us it’s new and we liked it very much. There is lot of potential of working between the two countries. So it’s very nice and people here are very welcoming and they liked our presence here. What is your business focus for the GCC regions? We have started talking here about civil aviation and we see lot of opportunities here in Bahrain. Any business doesn’t come in one day. We are very well known in the Abu Dhabi and we have some relationship over there. Here, we have started talking about conversion of aero planes and we don’t force anyone but we try to make win-win situation for everyone and this is what we are going to do here. Anything specific that you are focusing through the participation at this air show? At the moment nothing as this is the first time we have participated at BAS. As we don’t know anyone, there is no talking, no understanding, so it’s important to mix with each other. After this, we will come with experience because in the beginning you have to know with whom you are dealing with. How you see your presence in the India? We have business relation with HAL at present. We are checking with few options now to work together in India, with India. Now that the Prime Minister of India is focused into ‘Make in India’, so we are doing everything to be in position that we can supply the goods. So we are seeking after cooperation. India is big & important country and Israel has a very good relationship with them. We have to develop things in the civil aviation sector for ex. MRO, engine shop, etc. There is a lot of air traffic in India, so we can do something together, start to talk about that but now it’s premature. We didn’t succeed too much but we like the challenge because it’s not easy task. What is IAI Vision to participate Make in India and Make for the World concept? We have started making business relations with India. Israel and India are going to make bridge and everything will be routed through them. As I said before, we are talking about Civil Aviation, aero planes conversion, engine shops, depending what is needed and what can make business issue. There is a lot of opportunity between us. India is a huge country with huge amount of aero planes that can find the place for cooperation between the two companies and two countries in the race. Israel and India are very good friends.So anything specific plans that you would like to share for year 2023 and beyond? Today, this kind of relationship has to meet the goals of the Prime Minister of India. So we have to join the company in India and working together. In this case things have changed from the past, where you come, offer your deals and take it or leave it. Today, you know your relationship is tight starting with a company in India and then you start working. So to develop a full association will take time. Because we have to find the right partner and right thing on which we can work together. This is the future and we will be there for sure because the demand is huge and there is no reason about not to be there and we are seeking after this kind of relationship or Joint venture .I think the bridge will be there to create win-win situation for all of us in India. Anything specific you would like mention about India & Israel? India is good friend of Israel. IAI & India have long-long and good relationship. We have to keep on doing everything that is good for two sides. I think what the PM Modi says indeed its very smart work. Sometimes things are little bit more complicated but it’s the right work for India. India has to be the place where witness lot of things as it’s a huge country. You know what you are doing and with technology you can be another place.