Airbus confirms Honeywell FMS for future fight decks

The new FMS incorporates connectivity with the outside world, including electronic flight bags (EFB), to ease pilot workload and enhance fuel savings with the use of real-time data.

 “This win for Honeywell is a testament to Airbus’ confidence in our avionics systems,” said Jim Currier, president, electronic solutions, Honeywell Aerospace. “The new FMS combines multiple current FMS offerings for Airbus into one single solution for their A320, A330 and A350 platforms. Importantly, the new FMS hardware is 15 times more capable than current hardware and enables a path to future enhancements without hardware changes. “Honeywell has been supplying flight management systems since Airbus’ first A300 went into service, and this win will extend our 35-year partnership well into the future,” he said.

Honeywell’s FMS family has already been deployed by Airbus on the A320, A330, A350 and A380 platforms. The new FMS is being developed to build upon millions of hours of Honeywell’s FMS legacy, with enhanced modularity, advanced functionality, and a multi-core processing platform.  At the completion of development, the new FMS will be a standalone federated system, making it easier for operators to support the fleet.

 The FMS will be offered as a single standardized hardware and software platform that can be used across the Airbus A320, A330 and A350 aircraft fleet with expected entry into service by end of 2026.

A retrofit solution based on the same core hardware and common software is also planned for the A320 and A330 fleet of aircraft. An FMS provides the primary navigation, flight planning, and optimised route determination and enroute guidance for an aircraft.