Labinal announced yesterday that it had been chosen by Airbus France to supply the wiring system for the nose and cockpit on the A400M military transport aircraft.

“In fact, we signed two separate contracts, one for engineering and the other for production,” points out Philippe Carette, Vice President and General Manager of Labinal. A world leader in aircraft wiring, Labinal was chosen by Airbus France to develop, engineer, produce and test the wiring system on the A400M. Its design engineering work will concern the 3D digital model, installation plans and definition of the electrical harnesses for the A400M’s nose.

These harnesses will be installed in the forward section of the fuselage, from the cockpit to the central section (frames 1 to 22), in a pressurized zone for the cockpit and avionics bays, and in a non-pressurized zone for the landing gear bay and radome. The wiring system comprises about 40 wire bundles and a total of 15,000 connections. It provides connections between the various avionics assemblies and the part of the fuselage with the cutoff board (sections 13/14).

Labinal is drawing on its experience in the production of wiring harnesses for defense and other advanced applications to meet the requirements of the A400M military transport. It will develop and apply special technologies such as the aluminum wiring already developed for the A380, or overbraiding to protect against electromagnetic interference (EMI).

Following the detailed definition phase, which should be completed in March 2006, Labinal will start production engineering and manufacture of the wiring harnesses. The first deliveries are slated for the second half of 2006.