fast23 p12 / 23 17/09/1998 10:21 Page 18
Figure 10
AFS MTBUR COMPARED TO INDIVIDUAL LRU MTBUR
COMBINING ENVIRONMENT
Relative MTBUR value
400
AFS MTBUR
364
PROTECTION AND
350
300
WINDSHIELD RAIN PROTECTION
by François Poveda
250
200 190
ON AIRBUS AIRCRAFT
Engineer Fire, Ice and Rain Protection
Customer Services Engineering
150 Airbus Industrie
100
100
50
0
Non FBW a/c FCC FAC TCC FMC A320 FAC FMGC A340 FMGEC
LRU MTBUR
Figure 11 However with eleven years of techno- two following factors:
logical improvements the Auto Flight ● The administrative efficiency of an
AFS COST EFFECTIVENESS system MTBUR has increased quite airline in realising that a spare has been
COMPARISON
dramatically from the non-FBW aircraft removed, shipping the spare part out
to the latest technology FBW aircraft, and then, when the spare part returns,
Non FBW a/c
Relative the A320 and A340. placing it back on the shelf.
Spares investment A320 The savings for a recommended ● The speed and efficiency of the
/ AFS MTBUR spares investment in dollar terms as a freight forwarder and Customs authori-
A340
result of the integration of AFS func- ties in importing/exporting and trans-
Index value (10 aircraft fleet) tions are considerable. The investment porting the spare part will have an im-
required for the AFS equipment for ten pact on the transit time. Airbus
120
A340 or A320 being roughly half of Industrie has been working closely with
that required for ten non FBW type air- several major forwarders and logistics
100 craft. The advances made in component service suppliers to develop an off-the-
integration offsets the increase in price shelf transit management programme.
80 of the individual LRUs (Figure 10). This will offer customers a choice of
The cost effectiveness of the integra- forwarder service with defined perfor-
60 tion of the AFS can be measured by di- mance levels and terms.
viding the recommended spares invest-
40 ment figures by the AFS reliability i.e. The repair processing time
Cost/AFS MTBUR. The results can be Airbus Industrie has taken the initiative
20 seen in the Figure 11. with its proprietary parts repair turn-
0
The AFS fitted to the A320 is four
times, and the A340 seven times, more
cost effective than the pre-FBW aircraft
and as fleet size increases this effect be-
around time.
Airbus Industrie now guarantees a
maximum of 15 calendar days repair
time for its proprietary parts. This is
W indshield rain protection provides
the flight crew with a clear vision through
comes more pronounced. backed up by a forward exchange at no the aircraft windshield when rain is
additional cost should the repair time
PUNCTUALITY exceed this guarantee. The operator in encountered. The “ Rainboe ” rain
this case is then only invoiced for the repellent fluid, originally used on Airbus
The turnaround time for rotable and re- repair charges and not the exchange
pairable spares is a combination of the fee. This significantly reduces the level aircraft in addition to the basic windshield
transit time and the repair processing of inventory which needs to be stored wiper system, has been phased out as
time. to cover those “just-in-case” situations
and moves away from the current part of the worldwide effort to protect the
The transit time industry ‘standard’ of guaranteeing av- Ozone layer. Airbus Industrie has been
The transit time is dependent on the erage repair times.
actively working on alternative solutions
CONCLUSION
and is now in a position to provide the
operators with a choice of environmentally
Airbus Industrie is able to demonstrate that its aircraft families share large commonality in aircraft spares, enabling opera- friendly rain repellent fluid or windshield
tors to reduce their operating costs. This has been achieved through aircraft design with maintenance in mind. Further, the
fly-by-wire technology has lent itself to improving commonality by integrating the Automated Flight System Computers hydrophobic coating. This combines
into a reduced number of LRUs, which share high commonality and reliability within the family groups. So, when it comes maximum windshield rain protection with
to aircraft spare parts, Airbus Industrie is glad to be called common, reliable and punctual. ✈ safe guards for the environment.
18 FAST / NUMBER 23 FAST / NUMBER 23 19
fast23 p12 / 23 17/09/1998 10:34 Page 20
Figure 1 - WINDSHIELD WIPERS - - RAINBOE - Figure 3
WINDSHIELD WIPER SYSTEM THE BASIC RAIN RAIN REPELLENT FLUID RAIN REPELLENT SYSTEM SCHEMATIC
PROTECTION SYSTEM PHASE OUT
Wiper blade Rain repellent fluid can assembly Test check valve
The basic windshield rain protection The ‘Rainboe’ rain repellent fluid origi-
system on Airbus aircraft consists of nally used on Airbus aircraft and on all Gauge assembly Purge check valves
two electrically operated windshield other jetliners equipped with a similar
wipers, one on the Captain’s side and system contains CFC 113. This sub- Rain repellent blowout Solenoid valves
reservoir
one on the First Officer’s side stance is a type of freon (Chloro-
(Figure 1). The wipers can be operated fluorocarbon). It is officially listed as Spray nozzles
independently and at low or high speed, an Ozone depleting substance by the
depending on the level of the precipita- Montreal Protocol which bans its pro-
tion (Figure 2). An optional intermittent duction, import and export since 1st
function is also available. January 1996.
All Airbus aircraft are certified for Since this date and in order to comply
operation without further windshield with the international agreements for
Wiper arm rain protection system. the protection of the Ozone layer
(Vienna Convention and Montreal
- RAIN REPELLENT - Protocol), the ‘Rainboe’ fluid bottle is
AN ADDITIONAL FORM no longer installed on delivered aircraft.
OF RAIN PROTECTION Airbus Industrie has nevertheless taken
the option to leave the rain repellent
All Airbus aircraft are also equipped system installed on the aircraft (electri- S S
with a so-called rain repellent system. cally deactivated) whilst actively work-
This system allows spraying of a fluid ing with chemical manufacturers on the
onto the windshield outer surface when development of a new rain repellent
heavy rain is encountered (see Figure 3 fluid free of CFC.
on the following page). Service Bulletins for all aircraft types From
The fluid can be sprayed indepen- were issued in January 1996 in order to hot air
manifold
dently on the Captain’s side and on the allow ‘Rainboe’ fluid bottle removal
First Officer’s side. It temporarily mod- and system deactivation on aircraft in
ifies the surface tension on the wind- service (refer to Table below for the
Motor converter shield and, combined with the effect of applicable Service Bulletins and
the air flow caused by aircraft move- Modifications references).
ment, prevents water droplets from ad-
hering to the windshield outer surface.
RAIN RPLNT WIPER
OFF
SLOW
Figure 2
WINDSHIELD RAIN PROTECTION COCKPIT CONTROLS FAST
Applicable Service Bulletins and Modifications references
‘RAINBOE’ RAIN REPELLENT FLUID DEACTIVATION
A300 A300-600 A310 A319/A320/A321 A330 A340
MOD 11480 11480 11480 25419 44482 44482
SB A300-30-0044 A300-30-6023 A310-30-2029 A320-30-1032 A330-30-3015 A340-30-4020
(1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1)
CFC FREE (LBFS) RAIN REPELLENT FLUID INSTALLATION
RAIN RPLNT WIPER WIPER RAIN RPLNT A300 A300-600 A310 A319/A320/A321 A330 A340
OFF OFF
MOD 11974 11974 11974 26963 45897 45897
SLOW SLOW
SB A300-30-0046 A300-30-6025 A310-30-2032 A320-30-1037 A330-30-3019 A340-30-4022
FAST FAST (2) (2) (2) (3) (3) (3)
PPG ‘SURFACE SEAL’ COATING INSTALLATION
AIRBUS Service Information Letter 30-024 - Issued in July 1997
(1) SB issued in January 1996 (2) SB will be issued by end of 1998 (3) SB issued in July 1998
20 FAST / NUMBER 23 FAST / NUMBER 23 21
fast23 p12 / 23 17/09/1998 10:37 Page 22
NEW RAIN REPELLENT bench testing and flight testing WINDSHIELD life and needs to be reapplied on a regu-
FLUID FREE OF CFC (Figure 4). The fluid bottle can be in- HYDROPHOBIC COATINGS lar basis.
stalled on the aircraft with only minor - AN ALTERNATIVE - Airbus Service Information Letter
modification of the existing rain repel- 30-024, issued in July 1997, provides
A new rain repellent fluid has been suc- lent system. For those operators wishing to leave the procurement and material information
cessfully developed. The product com- Airbus Industrie is now preparing the rain repellent system deactivated, related to the coating, as well as recom-
plies with all the existing regulations introduction of the new fluid in produc- Airbus Industrie has also formally ap- mendations for application and servic-
for the protection of the environment. tion. Service Bulletins allow reactiva- proved the use of the PPG Industries ing. The content of this SIL is being in-
Laboratory testing has confirmed its tion of the rain repellent system and in- “Surface Seal” windshield hydrophobic corporated in the Aircraft Maintenance
compliance with the existing toxicity stallation of the fluid bottle on aircraft coating on all Airbus aircraft types Manual, Maintenance Planning docu-
requirements and its compatibility with in service (Figure 5). The coating, which can be used with- ment, Consumable Materials List and
the surrounding materials on Airbus The rain repellent fluid bottle is sup- out restriction on all types of wind- Tool and Equipment Manual in accor-
aircraft (windshield, structure, paint). plied by Le Bozec Filtration and shields available on Airbus aircraft, dance with the normal revision plan-
The excellent rain repellent charac- Systems (LBFS). Refer to the Table on consists of a treatment applied on the ning set for each document and aircraft
teristics of the fluid and its endurance the preceding page for the applicable windshield outer surface in a liquid type.
have been demonstrated by extensive Service Bulletins and Mod references. form. It dries out to provide rain repel- Airbus Industrie is closely monitor-
lent characteristics similar to those of ing the development of other wind-
the fluid. shield hydrophobic coatings, which will
The coating does not contain CFC also be incorporated in the SIL and in
Figure 4 Figure 5 the aircraft documentation if their per-
and is therefore not subjected to the re-
CFC-FREE RAIN REPELLENT FLUID - ENDURANCE TESTING CFC-FREE RAIN REPELLENT FLUID quirements of the Montreal protocol. formance is found to be satisfactory on
HEAVY RAIN BOTTLE REPLACEMENT The treatment has a limited service Airbus aircraft.
No rain repellent
EFFECT OF RAIN REPELLENT OR HYDROPHOBIC COATING ON WATER DROPLET / WINDSHIELD CONTACT ANGLE
BEFORE APPLICATION AFTER APPLICATION
Rain repellent fluid applied
After 15 seconds
After 2 minutes
CONCLUSION
The commitments of Airbus Industrie on the subject of windshield rain protection were twofold:
● To comply with the requirements of the Montreal Protocol on Ozone depleting substances.
After 10 minutes ● To provide Airbus operators with an alternative form of windshield rain protection, in addition to the basic wiper system.
These commitments are today achieved with the removal of the ‘Rainboe’ fluid from the Airbus aircraft and with the
availability of two alternative forms of windshield rain protection for use on all Airbus aircraft types:
● A new rain repellent fluid,
● A windshield hydrophobic coating.
The needs of Airbus operators regarding windshield rain protection vary a lot, depending on local weather conditions,
habits, operational and maintenance procedures.
Airbus Industrie strongly believes that the choice of fluid or coating now available provides the best response to these dif-
Before After ferent needs. ✈
22 FAST / NUMBER 23 FAST / NUMBER 23 23
