June 17, 2013, 02:25 / Business

What will delight the 50th anniversary air show in Le Bourget

The 50th anniversary air show in Le Bourget, France, will present innovative developments from industry giants and newcomers: aircraft made from new materials and running on clean fuel Ekaterina Sobol Alexey Nikolsky

Solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse will fly to Le Bourget again / Michel Euler / REUTERS

Today in France, at the Le Bourget airfield, the anniversary, 50th International Air Show starts, which promises to be one of the largest in recent years: more than 2,100 representatives of 150 industry companies will take part in it, 150 new aircraft will be presented, according to the air show’s website.

New technology, new materials

The special guest of the air show will be the Solar Impulse aircraft (HB-SIA), an experimental aircraft powered solely by solar energy. The Swiss company of the same name began its design back in 2003, and in 2011 it was first presented to the public in Le Bourget. On the eve of the air show, Solar Impulse completed four of the five stages of the Across America project (flying from San Francisco to New York), the first round-the-world flight is planned for 2015.

Aviation giants are also introducing new technologies. American Boeing will present two 787 Dreamliner aircraft (list prices: $206.8–243.6 million). They allow airlines to save up to 40% on operating costs compared to today's technologies, the manufacturer assures. One Dreamliner will make demonstration flights, while the other, owned by Qatar Airways, will be on display.

Boeing's European competitor Airbus will show the world's two largest A380 airliners ($403.9 million). One of them will be transferred to British Airways, which will become the 10th operator of the airliner, and the second will carry out the flight program. The Airbus stand will also display a new product from the aviation concern - a full-size cockpit and a section of the passenger cabin of the A350 XWB aircraft, a competitor to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. On June 14, this aircraft made its first test flight. The new aircraft is designed to carry 250–400 passengers. The A350 XWB family consumes a quarter less fuel than previous ones; 53% of the aircraft’s weight is made up of composite materials, according to the concern’s website. List prices of the liners are $245.5–320.6 million.

The Russian UAC promises to work on its mistakes this year, perform successfully and present almost its entire product line (with the exception of the military transport Il-476), the president of the corporation, Mikhail Pogosyan, promised in an interview with Vedomosti (see interview on page 08). It is expected that a contract will be signed with Ilyushin Finance Co. for 20 Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ100), the first aircraft will be transferred to the Mexican Interjet in its livery.

Military news

From Russia, three military aircraft will participate in Le Bourget - the new Su-35 fighter of the Russian Air Force, the Yak-130 combat trainer aircraft of the Irkut corporation and the Ka-52 attack helicopter of the Russian Helicopters holding company. All vehicles are produced under contracts for the Russian Air Force and are promoted for export; a presentation of the Ka-52 will be held for customers. It has the least clear export prospects, notes a source close to Rosoboronexport.

The EADS A400M military transport aircraft will be presented in Le Bourget. France's Dassault will again demonstrate a prototype of the Neuron drone, and Italy's AgustaWestland will present the ethical concept. This year the Pentagon is not demonstrating a single combat aircraft of the US Air Force, as follows from the list of aircraft from the air show website: it was previously announced that this was done due to cuts in the US military budget.