The A330 MRTT is the first tanker

transport from Airbus Military with a

boom refueling system; this flight

test program was critical in the

evolution of this technology. Airbus

Military conducted more than 350

A330 MRTT flights and nearly 180

more on an A310 demonstrator to

obtain the certification.

The System 12 Acra KAM-500 DAUs, each

acting as an Ethernet node, often

physically very far apart

The Results • A low risk, re-usable and

flexible flight test

instrumentation system

• Fewer flights due to real-time

• Reduction in overall flight test

program time through quick,

reliable delivery of new

products

Airbus Military move to an

Ethernet flight test instrumentation system for certification

A330 MRTT

COMMERCIAL OFF-THE-SHELF

MODULAR DESIGN

The System The FTI system consisted of 12 Acra KAM-500 DAUs, each acting as an Ethernet node, often physically very far apart. Each DAU contained :

• PCM Encoder (used only as unit backplane

controller and not as PCM encoder),

• Fast Ethernet interface for programming and acquisition

• Multiple ARINC-429, MIL-STD-1533 RS-232/422 bus monitors

• Various A/D modules.

One of the nodes in the data acquisition system was

designated as “timemaster node” while the remaining eleven nodes were assumed to be “time-slave nodes”. The time-master synchronizes with the incoming IRIG B time generated by the system time server and broadcasts a proprietary RS-422 synchronization signal to the remaining

timeslave nodes providing an accuracy of 1 μsec and 1 PPS synchronization.

Acra KAM-500

Lowers Risk Proven on every platform type in

all environmental conditions

COTS hardware with short delivery

times

Reduces Cost of Ownership Reduced inventory of spares due

to common product line

Lower installation, setup and

maintenance requirements

Modular design greatly extends

system lifetime

FTI by Design Designed to minimize the data

transfer time from sensor to screen

Guaranteed predictable data

Simultaneous sampling occurs

across the complete system

WORKS ONCE

WORKS ALWAYS

“ Working with Acra

means hardware is

never delayed and

support is always at

hand.

The Results I

A low risk, re-usable and flexible flight test

instrumentation system

This project marked Airbus Military’s first use of a

completely networked FTI system.

• The success of the hybrid Ethernet FTI system on the

A310, meant the system was proven, reliable and

mature prior to installation on the A330 MRTT, lowering

the risk of the program

• The Acra KAM-500 chassis’ modularity yields an

exceptionally long useful life with a direct upgrade

path to new technologies.

Airbus Military has a re-usable Ethernet networked FTI

system that can be easily adapted to suit changing

requirements and advancements in technology.

Pedro Rubio

Head of Flight Test Ground Station Group Airbus Military

No other company

listens to customers

as much as Acra.

The Results II

Fewer flights due to real-time data access and

increased data throughput.

The move to Ethernet allowed a dramatic increase

in data throughput to handle the increased data

acquisition requirements of the program.

• Data was available to the FTI engineers in real

time and time it took to access the data on the

ground was determined only by the time it took

to copy the files.

• The quantity and quality of data allowed the

complex program to be conducted with fewer

test flights

“

HIGH QUALITY DATA

FLIGHT AFTER FLIGHT

UNPARALLELED LEVELS OF

CUSTOMER SUPPORT

The Results III

Reduction in overall flight test program time

through quick, reliable delivery of new products

When the need for a CAN bus monitor was

identified Acra developed the KAD/CBM module

in 12 months.

During the time it took to develop the new module,

Acra provided Airbus Military with a temporary system

so that the program could start without delay.

The confidence that Acra would deliver a working

solution in time was instilled by past success with Airbus,

the proven modular architecture of the Acra KAM-500,

and a track record of delivering 100+ modules.

For more information visit

www.cwc-ae.com

Curtiss-Wright Controls Avionics & Electronics

cwc-ae@curtisswright.com

665 North Baldwin Park Boulevard City of Industry, CA 91746, USA Phone: 626-851-3100

Landscape House, Landscape Road Dublin 14, Ireland Phone: +353-1295-1264