Vertiflite May/June 2021

THE VERTICAL FLIGHT SOCIETY Leadership Profile

Tomasz Krysinski Vice President Research and Innovation Airbus Helicopters

can notice on our H160 we have the Blue Edge concept — this is really fantastic in noise reduction. Everything, of course, must be affordable.” Krysinski served as chief engineer for the Airbus X3 compound helicopter and now aims to refine the high- speed vision with the RACER — “Rapid and Cost-Effective Rotorcraft” — under the European Clean Sky 2 initiative. He explained, “this was the reason for X3 and its successor the RACER: speed must be done with normal operating costs. In the RACER, we have an aircraft which is not more complicated than the normal helicopters. The differences are limited — we have the main rotor, the propellers, the main gearbox, but we can fly 50% faster. In one hour, we cover 50% more distance, so the productivity of the aircraft should be better than the normal helicopter. That’s what we want to bring to the market — the cost-efficiency of speed.” Engineer Ethos Tomasz Krysinski grew up in the city of Lodz in central Poland, the son of mechanical engineer and university professor Jan Krysinski. The senior Krysinski ultimately headed the Institute of Turbomachinery at the Lodz University of Technology (Politechnika Łódzka). The Airbus VP recalled, “My father built in 1963 or ‘64 the first turbine to turn the pumps of Polish fire brigades. It was able to throw three tonnes of water in one minute. He told me, ‘Look how it saved the lives of people.’ As a young kid, I was highly motivated to protect people. My motivation when I go to work every day is our helicopters are saving lives, helping people; that’s something that wakes me up every morning.” As an engineering student in Poland, Krysinski had only a passing connection to aviation. “I studied under professors who designed the first aircraft in Poland after the Second World War.” The PWS-40 Junak propeller-driven trainer equipped the Polish Air Force through the 1950s. “One of my professors designed the structures and taught me how to make things light and all the elements you needed to apply — aeromechanics, stability of the aircraft.” Krysinski noted, “It’s really important when you have a good teacher who motivates you.” Upheaval in Europe presented new opportunities. Krysinski explained, “I started my engineering career in Poland and studied in Poland, but it was the period of Solidarity in the ‘80s, and I left the country to attend engineering school in France.” The émigré student passed physics and mathematics exams for Master’s studies at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers (ENSAM) in Paris. Krysinski said, “My French was very poor, but fortunately equations are international. Of course, my English was also very poor, but when I joined the school I was well accepted. It was extraordinary the way I was accepted in France. I made many friends, and they helped me a lot. We’re still friends 40 years later.” France also offered specialized propulsion engineering studies at École Nationale Supérieure du Pétroles et des Moteurs in Rueil-Malmaison. Krysinski explained, “I studied engines because of family tradition. I liked the transformation going from pure energy to mechanical energy, the thermodynamics. I wanted to go where engines make things move. I started in the shipyard with big

At the head of a distributed Airbus Helicopters Research and Innovation organization, Tomasz Krysinski draws on talent from Airbus centers in Marignane, France, and Donauwörth, Germany, and from organizations and locations outside the company. He observed, “We have people from Airbus Helicopters, people from startups, people from our partner suppliers. In many areas, we cannot do innovation alone. In all the projects, we have a mixture.” The flexible research organization also interfaces with Airbus Helicopters’ programs, production and marketing arms. “The exchange helps us align our orientation for the choices we are making,” said Krysinski. “We must bring new technology to the maximum number of our customers.” Technology projects now underway include the Flightlab H130 testbed, H160 medium-twin helicopter, RACER high-speed compound helicopter, and CityAirbus electric ducted-fan demonstrator — all have different time horizons. Krysinski noted, “Short-term, we have 12,000 helicopters flying all over the world. We must bring new technology, new innovation to those helicopters. We are also preparing for the new programs — our mid-term aircraft — now going through flight demonstrations. We have longer-term initiatives going for high speeds or hybrid-electric drive.” Krysinski summarized, “All things must bring value to our customers.” Research and Innovation projects also address broader themes. “Safety is of course the key area at Airbus of major importance to us,” explained Krysinski. “Then, of course, is the cost of operation, because we must make all of our products accountable to the customer so they see the value. For the environment, we are very proud at Airbus that we are really pushing for zero-emissions flight, and for helicopters that reduce not only fuel burn but noise. You

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