Pronal's rubber cushions give aircraft a lift in recovery situations

Keywords Pronal, Aircraft

French company Pronal has designed a range of recovery cushions for large aircraft called PAC (Pronal Aircraft recovery Cushions) (Plate 3). This new product was introduced at the Inter-Airport show in Munich last September.

 Plate 3Pronal aircraft recovery cushions in use

According to Pronal its PAC cushions can raise a 15, 25, or 40 ton aircraft from the runway up to a height of 7 metres. These cushions, produced from a three dimensional heavy-duty fabric, are coated with synthetic rubber, and have been specially designed for lifting aircraft. Divided into three parts, this system includes a stable base (comprising three groups of inflatable elements)that supports a group of cushions upon which the upper dihedral-shaped element is positioned. This system has been designed for perfect support of the part of the aircraft to be raised (the wing or the fuselage), by forming a flexible,balanced cradle. A black cross shows the centre of the cushion, an invaluable aid when positioning it. The upper and lower surfaces of the cushions include a diamond pyramid indentation to hold the aircraft in place during the recovery operation.

Pronal manufactures PAC cushions by vulcanisation (high temperature vulcanisation under vacuum and pressure, as opposed to traditional cold bonding). Vulcanisation is said to provide a 100 per cent homogeneous product,and offers a high degree of mechanical resistance. It also claims to ensure that the product remains largely unaffected by harsh atmospheric conditions or chemicals.

PAC cushions can be combined with the "TEMP TRAIL", a synthetic temporary trail manufactured by Deschamps, making it possible to move the aircraft back to the runway.

Details available from French Technology Press Bureau. Fax: +44 (0) 207 235 2773; E-mail: MAILTO:dan.ray.ftpb@cfme-actim.com