Airbus Exploring Electric Taxiing Solution for A320 Family

January 2, 2014

Matthew Monaghan

Per trip, the projected fuel savings and CO2 reductions for the A320 Family would be approximately 4% with the eTaxi option.

Airbus signed a memorandum of understanding with EGTS International, a joint-venture company between Safran and Honeywell Aerospace, to further develop and evaluate an autonomous electric pushback and taxiing solution for the A320 Family. The agreement marks the selection of EGTS International’s Electric Green Taxiing System to be evaluated as a new option on the A320 Family—referred to by Airbus as eTaxi. This option would allow the aircraft to push-back from the gate without a tug, taxi-out to the runway, and return to the gate after landing without operating the main engines. Over the next few months the partners will jointly develop and present a global commercial case and implementation plan to determine the feasibility of an electric taxiing solution for the A320 Family. To this end, Airbus and EGTS International are reinforcing their existing teams to finalize validation studies, define specifications, and converge on market requirements for a fully tailored forward-fit and retrofit technological solution.