Airliners-India.com

747-237

NOTE: Intentionally posted in the "Civil Aviation" section, as this relates to an aircraft type, rather than an (non-Indian) airline.

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/airbus-to-raise-a330-take-off-weight-and-fuel-capacity-379583/

Airbus to raise A330 take-off weight and fuel capacity

Airbus is further hiking the maximum take-off weight of the A330, raising it to 242t, and will offer a higher fuel capacity option for the larger A330-300 variant.

The airframer had previously disclosed plans to increase the twinjet's take-off weight to 240t.

Airbus's latest enhancements will extend the range of the A330-300 by 500nm (930km) over the 235t model, and by 350nm for the 238t A330-200 at full passenger load.

It will give operators of the -300 the option of activating the centre wing fuel tank, a standard feature on the longer-range -200 but one which has remained unused on the larger aircraft.

This will increase the -300's fuel capacity from 97,500 litres to more than 139,000 litres. The modification will include tank inerting.

Airbus hopes the improvements will extend the A330-300's range to 6,100nm by 2015, enabling it to perform westbound flights from south-east Asia to Europe.

A330 programme chief Patrick Piedrafita says the airframer has "taken it as our duty" to maximise the capability of the twinjet.

Airbus took gross orders for 76 of the type over the first 10 months of this year, and delivered 80 - including six freighters - over the same period.

"We are currently delivering more A330s per month than ever before, and this is set to continue," adds Piedrafita.

Airbus's formal technical documentation for the A330 lists 21 weight variants for both the -200 and -300. The new weight increase and fuel-capacity improvements will become available to carriers in 2015.

The airframer is aiming to achieve the enhancements by refining the A330's aerodynamics - shortening flap-track fairings and reshaping inner slats - and capitalising on the aircraft's load-alleviation function. The aircraft will also undergo partial wing and fuselage reinforcement.

Airbus expects to reduce the -300's fuel burn by 2%, half of which will derive from the aerodynamic tweaks and the rest from higher engine efficiency.

No customer for the 242t variant has been disclosed but lessor CIT had signed up to take the 240t version shortly after it was unveiled in July this year.

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747-237 · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 4:42 pm Post subject:

http://www.airbus.com/presscentre/pressreleases/press-release-detail/detail/first-242-tonne-take-off-weight-a330-successfully-completes-first-flight/#

First 242 tonne take-off weight A330 successfully completes first flight

12 January 2015

The first 242 tonne Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) variant of the A330 has successfully completed its maiden flight, landing back in Toulouse-Blagnac Airport following a 3 hours and 30 minutes flight.

Didier Evrard, Airbus Executive Vice President Head of Programmes said: “I congratulate the whole team in charge of the A330 242 tonnes weight variant for making this day happen ahead of schedule. We are on track to deliver this new higher weight variant in 2015 to launch customer Delta Air Lines, who will also be the launch customer for the A330neo.”

The A330 242 tonne MTOW is the platform for the future A330neo and is concrete example of Airbus’ incremental innovation strategy. The newest enhancement offers more capability at lower operating cost with a range extended by up to 500 nautical miles and up to two percent reduced fuel consumption while also benefiting from operational reliability of above 99 percent. The 242 tonne MTOW is capable of flying missions up to 15 hours.

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