European Aviation Safety Agency(EASA) has awarded Airbus Military A400M airlifter with full Type Civil Certification, marking a critical ...
Award of the Type Certificate makes the A400M the world’s first large military transport to be designed and certified to civil standards from its inception.
Military Initial Operating Clearance is ongoing, paving the way towards first delivery.
The Type Certificate, was presented to Airbus Military by EASA Certification Director Dr. Norbert Lohl.
During the certification programme the A400M has undergone exhaustive testing of its handling qualities throughout the flight envelope in normal and failure conditions; demonstrated outstanding performance in the heat of the Gulf, cold of Sweden and Canada, and at the high altitude of La Paz, Bolivia; and satisfactorily completed more than 300 hours of function and reliability testing to demonstrate the robustness of its Europrop TP400 engines and systems.
Additionally it has begun tests of more advanced military functions such as air-to-air refuelling, air dropping of supplies and paratroopers, and low-level flight – all with highly encouraging results. The five-strong fleet of “Grizzly” development aircraft has now completed some 4,800 hours in the air during more than 1,600 flights and will continue intensively to expand the A400M’s military capabilities.
Recently the first production prototype of A400M for French air force made its maiden flight.
