updated 4 years ago
This week the AERALIS team together with our AERTEAM partners and supply chain have delivered a tremendous event, demonstrating the full breadth of the programme to special guests from Government, armed forces and industry, including Deputy Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Paul Lloyd; Major General Al-Dosari, Commander of the Al-Zaeem Air College in Qatar; Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge MP; Dame Caroline Dinenage MP; and Commander Steven Bolton, Deputy Director Aviation Programmes & Futures for the Royal Navy.
AERALIS’s Common Core Fuselage engineering demonstrator took centre stage, among an array of exhibits of key off-the-shelf systems that will be incorporated into the aircraft provided by AERTEAM members, including Honeywell’s F124 Turbofan engine, Martin-Baker Aircraft Co Ltd’s Mk10 ejection seat and landing gear from Héroux-Devtek, who developed and continue to proudly support the landing gear for the Red Arrows and RAF Hawks.
Glyn Complin, Héroux-Devtek UK engineering director commented: “This event is a crucial opportunity to demonstrate AERTEAM’s readiness to deliver this much-needed jet. By using one of our existing systems, AERALIS is keeping costs and risks low and delivery fast.”
Mike Vallillo, Vice President of Defense & Space International at Honeywell Aerospace Technologies, who will supply environmental control systems, life support systems, auxiliary power as well as one of AERALIS’s target powerplants, the F124 turbofan, commented: “AERALIS’s programme is demonstrative of their low-risk approach by using proven systems to deliver the right performance for the right missions.”
The full complement of AERTEAM members, including (in addition to those already mentioned) StandardAero, Hamble Aerostructures Ltd and Siemens Digital Industries Software, were supported by a number of key equipment providers to the programme, and we would like to extend our gratitude to Chelton, Datum, Dunlop Aircraft Tyres, Cambridge Aero Club (Marshall Aerospace), Olsen Actuators & Drives, Ontic, Oxley Inc., Red 6, Ultra PCS and AQ Wiring Systems Rockford.
Tristan Crawford, AERALIS CEO, said: “This week’s event has been a show of force; a physical manifestation of AERTEAM’s industrial readiness, and a proud demonstration of AERALIS’s achievement in bringing this extraordinary group of leading aerospace companies together. With five years of design development already complete, AERALIS and AERTEAM is clearly ready to deliver a British designed and British built jet well within this decade.”
Watch out for further coverage from the event in the coming days.
The Phoenix demonstrator left the scorching heat of Doha, Qatar four weeks ago on a ship bound for the scorching heat of…Aztec West. Although the summer sun was welcome, it did give the team a proper roasting as they nursed the precious cargo from trailer to the AERALIS hangar.
Kane Marshall, AERALIS Assembly Director, who oversaw Phoenix’s manufacture and shipping to and from the DIMDEX defence show in Qatar, commented: “It’s great to have it back. It’s been a real team effort to develop our first, real Core Fuselage, get it built, shipped to a key defence event, return it, unloaded and unpacked safely. Phoenix has fared really well in transit – she’s looking great.”
The Phoenix demonstrator was built to showcase the design maturity of the CCF – the engineering and digital heart of the AERALIS modular air system, which enables true spiral development and rapid configuration for a broad range of air missions all supported by end-to-end digital certification.
With a DAL-A software driven reconfigurable cockpit display, it also gave international visitors to DIMDEX their first impression of how AERALIS platforms can be configured to train for a range of different front-line types whilst giving both pilot and instructor the best ergonomics and field of view of any trainer on the market today.
Phoenix will remain at the AERALIS offices for now to be used for upcoming customer, programme partner and STEM engagements that we look forward to reporting on soon.
Thanks to Kane and the rest of the team for your sterling work in the heat!
The story behind their production demonstrates the agility inherent in the AERALIS approach, taking just three months to produce from start to finish.
For generations, Air Forces have faced the challenge of operating an ever growing mix of single point aircraft designs.
Each brings its own logistic support, management and training burden.
Each locks the military into a single point design for a generation.
Operational flexibility is limited.
Strategic change is expensive.
Until now.


