Honeywell Provides LED Technology for Wingtip Navigation Lighting on Airbus A320 Family of Planes
Upgraded lighting lasts 40x longer than traditional halogen lamps, with anticipated savings of $30,000 per year per aircraft for operators
FARNBOROUGH AIRSHOW, July 14 -- Honeywell (NYSE:HON) announced today that it has signed a contract with Airbus valued in excess of $80 million to upgrade the navigation wingtip lighting on the A320 to Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology that lasts more than 40 times longer than current halogen technology, resulting in significantly lowered maintenance costs for airline operators.
Honeywell's lighting technology upgrade will be incorporated into the Airbus production line in March 2009 for all forward-fit A320 aircraft. This 30-year contract covers approximately 5,000 forward-fit production and fielded aircraft in the A320 family including A318, A319, A320, A321. The technology upgrade covers the forward navigation lights located inside the wingtip that provide recognition lighting in the air and situational awareness lighting on the ground.
Honeywell's solid-state lighting has a much longer life - up to 20,000 hours before replacement - than existing halogen lights that have an end of life of about 500 hours. This improved reliability results in substantial savings for operators in fewer lamp changes, lower spares inventory and lower labor costs. Honeywell has pioneered technology advances in the field of light emitting diodes (LEDs) many of which are now being applied in consumer electronics applications such as large screen TVs, computers, and other display systems around the world. Honeywell's LED technology has been used for commercial and military planes for more than a decade.
"Honeywell's LED technology upgrade for wingtip lighting offers significant cost-savings for operators - up to $30,000 per aircraft," said Jeff Johnston, Vice President of Platform Components. "The longer life of the LED, plus the ease of installation, keeps the aircraft out of the maintenance shop and in the air, where it belongs."
Honeywell's upgraded lighting technology will be available for retrofit for existing airline operators on A320 aircraft beginning in April 2009. The drop-in replacement for the existing lighting does not require any aircraft modification.
For more than 70 years, Honeywell has designed and manufactured lighting products and complete vision systems for virtually every configuration of fixed-wing and rotary aircraft.
Honeywell International is a $37 billion diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes and industry; automotive products; turbochargers; and specialty materials. Based in Morris Township, N.J., Honeywell's shares are traded on the New York, London and Chicago Stock Exchanges. For additional information, please visit www.honeywell.com/. Based in Phoenix, Honeywell's aerospace business is a leading global provider of integrated avionics, engines, systems and service solutions for aircraft manufacturers, airlines, business and general aviation, military, space and airport operations.
Source: Honeywell
CONTACT:
Karen Crabtree,
+1-480-235-0675,
karen.crabtree@honeywell.com, or
Cathy Gedvilas,
+1-602-365-5930,
cathy.gedvilas@honeywell.com,
both of Honeywell
Web site: http://www.honeywell.com/
