Page 20 - AAA JULY / SEPTEMBER 2023 Latest Magazine | GBP

magnitude more,” adds McAlonis. When you get into electric
propulsion, you need even more cables. You are generating even
higher power, to get the lift and propulsion. For higher voltages,
you need special cables and next generation power switches.
You must have corona-mitigated or partial discharge-mitigated
products. Safety and reliability are very important for us as our
products need to last for decades.”

Extensive Product Range

McAlonis believes that the wide spectrum of products it has
makes TE Connectivity unique. “There are competitors that do
power switching. There are some that make cables and connec-
tors. We do the complete architecture. We are doing a lot inside
the batteries, to interconnect all the cells together. We are one
of the only connector suppliers approved on commercial aircraft
fuel is consumed during flight, vehicle weight engines; These connectors contain a thermal locking switch inside
remains constant in eVTOLs and nearly con- that ensures that the connectors do not fail even if they experi-
stant in hybrid-electric aircraft. Reducing the ence an engine fire.”
weight of components, therefore, becomes
even more critical for such aircraft. With The company’s story is one of constant innovation and the abil-
new-generation aircraft carrying more elec- ity to anticipate trends in the various industries it is involved in.
tronics than ever before, the amount of wiring With hydrogen fuel cell propulsion for aircraft on the cards, TE
needed is significant; the total weight of all Connectivity is already making a move.
wiring and connectors in a wide-body com-
mercial jet is about 1,814 kg/4,000 lbs. “As with any other fuel, hydrogen is used for two purposes – for

“Think about how much power you need on propulsion and for power generation. Airbus has a research and
development project called ZEROe; what they are doing is taking
a commercial aircraft,” says McAlonis. “If you generators and burning hydrogen to generate the electricity, for
think of an airplane like the 777, you are car- electric propulsion. Downstream, it is still high voltage electrical
rying around a small village at almost 40,000 cables.”
feet. You have everything from air condi-
tioning, lighting, plumbing, kitchen, inflight
entertainment systems, charging ports, avi- Enabling Green Air Travel
onics, and radar systems. Think about all the
power and energy being generated already. Sustainability is a major focus area at TE Connectivity, says
When you generate that amount of power, McAlonis. “The first thing we look at is the use of proper materials
you need switching products, cable products, and the optimization of size and weight. Helping our customers
connectors.” save energy is important for us. The whole eVTOL market depends
on reliability and how long you can fly. The longer we can help
The type of cables and power switches used in them fly, the better it is for them. You can save fuel with light-
eVTOLs differ considerably from those in com- weight products.”’
mercial aircraft, says McAlonis. “For electric
propulsion, there are a lot of requirements for The aviation industry has made a near-total recovery from the
higher voltages. With a typical commercial air- pandemic, but supply chain issues continue to persist, says
liner, we deal with systems designed around McAlonis. “There are areas where it is still very sensitive. There
270 volts. In eVTOLs, because you need a tre- is also a void created by retirements; many of those who retired
mendous amount of power, we are seeing were experts and we do not have that anymore. There are a lot
applications nearing the 1000 volts range and of complex issues that come in with a disruption like that, one
beyond. High voltage is dangerous. We must that lasted as long as it did. That really affects everybody.
make sure that we do the proper testing to
ensure safety. In some of these products, like
in a battery, many of the components are ser- “There were close to 25,000 airplanes flying pre -pandemic,” adds
viceable but touch safe. And it is important McAlonis. “When the pandemic happened, it went down to about
that we make products that are quick and 7,000 airplanes in service, with more than 15,000 airplanes sitting
simple to install.” on the ground. That affected our ability to move our inventory.
The market has certainly picked up now. A good supplier will be
EVTOLs are even more power intensive dependable and able to keep up with the increased demand.
than commercial aircraft, “usually orders of That is what we want to be for our customers.”.

20 | JULY - SEPTEMBER 2023 WWW.GBP.COM.SG/AAA