The MSc Aerospace Management students were invited to participate in an event jointly organised by Collins Aerospace and La Fabrique Défense.
The theme: The renovation of the C130-H & the stakes for the maintenance in operational condition of the armed forces
After a few words of welcome from Mr Hervé Tilloy, Communication Director, Collins Aerospace, Mrs Evelyne Audisio, President of Collins Aerospace Avionics France, gave an introductory speech to present the afternoon agenda, the round tables and the various activities proposed, as well as to evoke the activities of Collins Aerospace and the career prospects.
The first conference, moderated by Xavier Tytelman, included:
- Mr. Fabien Willig, Director of Military Avionics EMEA at Collins Aerospace
- Mr. Gilles Foultier, Deputy Managing Director Military at Sabena Technics
- Mr. Nicolas Huard, Director of Avionics Engineering at Collins Aerospace.
The originality of the C130-H aircraft refurbishment project lies firstly in the fact that the DGA (Direction Générale de l’Armement, e.g. France’s Defence Procurement Agency) has entrusted the project management to Collins Aerospace. In addition, the project brings together Sabena Technics for its MRO and aircraft transition skills and Lockheed Martin as the aircraft manufacturer for the C130 programme. Together, the challenge was to equip these older generation aircraft with the latest technologies. The challenge was both in engineering, in teams of trained workers, and in being able to make new decisions to deal with the technical operational hurdles of managing the historical aircraft and integrating new devices in accordance with the highest quality and safety standards. The reconfigured aircraft should be able to perform their mission until 2050! The digitalisation of maintenance enabled to bring back the full potential of the aircraft to be restored with the integration of latest advances in the human-machine interface. Moreover, the project has revealed that, in addition to skills in engineering, operations and technical production, many “support” jobs are needed: project management, business manager, budget and finance manager, human resources, communication, etc.
Artificial intelligence is gradually being used in MRO activities to improve the efficiency of operations (digital twins, virtual reality, etc.). It took almost 2 years of work to modernise the C130-H and ensure their commissioning. The pilots and the DGA were of course involved in the project with flight test campaigns.
The second round table dealt with the missions and concepts of operations of the C130-H with :
- Colonel Sébastien CABAJ, Head of Corps, 1st RTP
- Lieutenant-Colonel Loïc LE BASTARD, Deputy Head of the Operations and Training Office, 1st RTP
Very interesting, this conference allowed to dive into the operations carried out by the First “Regiment Train Parachutist” with the airdrop (delivery by air) of different types of equipment and men from different heights for very varied interventions (sea, land, enemy territory, supply, humanitarian assistance…). The very important and efficient participation of the 1st RTP in the framework of the Barkhane operation allowed to pay tribute to the French troops who carry out a remarkable and unique work at the European level.
Finally, workshops and demonstrations concluded this afternoon in an interactive and friendly way, allowing the students to meet the human resources teams of Collins Aerospace.
Among the workshops:
- ACCEPT avionics bench designed to rapidly prototype and evaluate new cockpit solutions
- Head Up Display (VR)
- Fusion avionics suite (VR)
- Connectivity
- FIGHTER bench
- 1st RTP Exhibition
- human resources stand
Congratulations and thanks for the invitation to this event which immersed the students present in a new and instructive environment.
