Airbus continues pioneering innovation in 2023

Airbus’ long history of innovation continues in 2023 as immersive technologies, flight tasks, automation and leading progress in sustainable aviation fuel production underline the scope of the Airbus innovation ecosystem over the coming year.

2022 will be remembered as the year of the metaverse, an immersive virtual environment where the aviation industry has already landed with applications such as the Virtual Procedure Trainer (VPT), recently launched by Airbus to train pilots without using a flight simulator or on-site procedure trainers. Immersed within a virtual cockpit, VPT offers trainees an innovative way to learn about Airbus Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) facilitating drill procedures repeatedly and acting intuitively on each switch and lever, following the correct sequence whilst building their ‘muscle memory’ and procedural knowledge.

Lufthansa Group is the first customer to test the VPT, already enjoyed by a group of A320 pilots on VR, PC and iPad devices.

This year ushered in the revelation of Airbus UpNext’s DragonFly, a new pilot assistance technology, on ground and in-flight, to make operations safer and improve performance. Testing is being done on an A350-1000 aircraft. The first tests showed DragonFly's capability in a simulated incapacitated crew member event during landing and taxiing operations. DragonFly takes into account external factors such as flight zones, terrain and weather conditions to generate new flight trajectory plans and communicate with both Air Traffic Control (ATC) and the airline’s Operations Control Centre.

Airbus UpNext has also explored taxi assistance operations in real-world conditions at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport. This technology provides the crew with audio alerts in reaction to obstacles, assisted speed control and guidance to the runway using a dedicated airport map.

Mexico’s top aviation companies and associations called on the country’s academia and research institutions to submit proposals on ways to accelerate the production and scalability of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF). At the end of January a total of 40 projects were submitted by participants from 17 universities, all of which are undergoing the mentoring phase. The winners will be announced at the Mexico Aerospace Fair (FAMEX) in April. This initiative aims to consolidate the country's know-how, and promote investigation to accelerate fuel production and biomass diversity as a source of innovation and sustainable economic growth.

With this partnership, Airbus acknowledges the value of cooperating with education institutions to drive future aerospace technologies forward.

For more information contact:
Jasnna Pempelfort
Communications Manager
jasnna.pempelfort@airbus.com