Airbus // Universal Registration Document 2021

1. Information on the Company’s Activities /

1.3 Other Corporate Activities

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The Autonomous Taxi, Take-of f and Landing (“ATTOL”) demonstrator leveraging computer vision technologies and techniques successfully finished in 2020 is progressing. Further work on safety enhancing systems that goes beyond ATTOL state-of-the-art is ongoing. In December 2021, Airbus increased its presence in Spain with the launch of an Airbus UpNext entity, a wholly-owned innovation subsidiary. The Spanish Airbus UpNext entity will initially be accountable for the study and demonstration of hydrogen- powered non-propulsive energies, as well as autonomous air- to-air refuelling operations applying advancements in vision- based technology. This new presence will leverage the expertise of Airbus Commercial Aircraft, Airbus Helicopters and Airbus Defence and Space in Spain. Acubed Acubed is the Company’s innovation centre based in Silicon Valley, an epicenter of tech talent and investment. Acubed’s mission is to develop and deliver breakthrough technologies at the intersection of software and hardware. Since 2015, Acubed has been a driving force to help Airbus build the future of flight. Initially set up to disrupt Airbus from within to mitigate disruption from external forces, Acubed kick-started Airbus’ exploration of areas such as electric vertical take off and landing aircraft (Vahana), mobility-as-a-service (Voom), Unmanned Traffic Management (Airbus UTM), Advanced Digital Design and Manufacturing (ADAM), and modular cabin concepts (Transpose), among other emerging trends. With over six years of operations, Acubed’s model has evolved to ensure it injects lasting value and expertise from Silicon Valley into Airbus. Its current flagship projects are closely aligned to Airbus’ strategic priorities and aim to help Airbus secure and maintain leading positions in new and emerging aerospace markets. Acubed’s Wayfinder team is developing certifiable autonomous flight and machine learning solutions to help Airbus bring about a significant increase in safety and efficiency in the next generation of commercial aircraft. In 2021, the team progressed its vision-based landing flight test programme, adding new cameras and processing to handle night-time imagery to its flying testbed operating out of Palo Alto Airport, in order to continue laying the groundwork for more autonomous aircraft systems. The Wayfinder team, which delivered AI algorithms in 2021 for vision-based landing and taxi functions for testing on an A350 flight test aircraft, is working hand-in-hand with Airbus’ teams in Europe to continue to improve and iterate on their computer vision-based autonomous systems and data- driven development in order to support the Company’s wider autonomy goals. The Advanced Digital Design and Manufacturing (ADAM) team at Acubed is seeking to future-proof the aerospace industry through the application of digital innovation to design and manufacturing. Whether adapting manufacturing processes to gain efficiencies or to cope with disruptions, ADAM is helping to reduce lead times, production costs and to improve workflows dynamically, while helping to blend software and hardware expertise, an emerging skill set required for future aerospace careers. In 2021, the ADAM team actively delivered on a number of engagements, namely for the DDMS organisation in Europe to digitally generate cabin layout options for customers’ quick turn-around service upgrade offers; to the US final assembly line in Mobile, USA, generating measurable improvements in

expect on the ground, thanks to a smart usage of the various communication channels available on board. This so-called Airbus UpNext TELEO smart routing is the result of a broad review of the commercial software defined networking solutions (13 suppliers), most of them tested in a dedicated benchmark lab. The selected solution has then been implemented on commercial avionics, validated through rigorous lab testing, field tested on ground vehicles and finally flight tested on an A350-XWB all within three years, and is recognised as having reached the point of a minimum viable service. In parallel, by developing a very high-capacity analogue optical feeder link communication, TELEO demonstrated the potential for space solutions to offer data rates beyond current radio frequency transmission limits. Although the solution will only be fully proven and validated in 2023 (in space demonstration onboard the Arabsat BADR 8 satellite), it is already part of Airbus Defence & Space’ ongoing product solutions, and will continue to be developed and deployed in the years ahead. In September 2021, Airbus UpNext launched an extra- performance wing demonstrator project focused on accelerating and validating technologies that will improve and optimise wing aerodynamics and performance for any future aircraft. This scaled demonstrator will integrate and fly breakthrough wing technologies on a Cessna Citation VII business jet platform in representative flight conditions. The applications of the extra- performance wing would be compatible with any propulsion solution and aircraft configuration and would reduce CO 2 emissions, contributing greatly to Airbus’ decarbonisation roadmap. In April 2021 Airbus UpNext announced VERTEX, a demonstrator with the aim to simplify mission preparation and management, reduce helicopter pilot workload, and further increase safety. The autonomous technology bricks set to integrate the Flightlab are: vision-based sensors and algorithms for situational awareness and obstacle detection; fly-by-wire for enhanced auto-pilot; and an advanced human-machine-interface – in the form of a touchscreen and head worn display for inflight monitoring and control. The combination of these technologies will enable a system that can manage navigation and route preparation, automatic take-off and landing, as well as following a predefined flight path. The incremental integration of these technologies onto the helicopter Flightlab has begun ahead of a complete demonstration in 2023. In March 2021, Airbus UpNext announced ASCEND “Advanced Superconducting and Cryogenic Experimental powertraiN Demonstrator” to break through the performance of electric propulsion systems below 1MW and enable high-power propulsion (>1MW) using superconducting materials and cryogenic temperatures. These technologies will also optimise or enable new propulsion architectures for low and zero emission flight. The results are expected to show the potential for a 50% reduction in component weight and an increase in efficiency of more than 5%. It will also show a reduction in the volume of electrical components, the complexity of the installation as well as a reduction of the voltage below 500V, compared to current systems. The ZEROe concept planes revealed in September 2020 unveiled the Company’s investigation and research into hydrogen-based propulsion. Airbus UpNext is preparing the ground for technology maturation and demonstration, actively identifying and de-risking the main technology bricks to support Airbus’ 2035 ambition.

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Airbus / Registration Document 2021