A330-200 eyed as Beluga successor
Rising output across Airbus product range drives airframer to consider options for next iteration of oversize transport
Airbus has tentatively identified an A330-200 derivative as the most promising long-term candidate to replace its five A300-600ST Beluga oversize transports. The airframer has already embarked on a programme to restructure its A300-600ST operations to cope with the demands of ramped-up production during the next four or five years. This programme, designated Fly 10,000, is intended to increase the flight work performed by the transport fleet to 10,000h per year in 2017, from the current level of about 6,000h. Airbus says it is changing “ways of working, opening hours and organisation” to meet this demand, which would double the number of weekly flights to about 120. The greater Beluga workload will primarily arise from a surge in A350 output. However, Airbus will also require capacity for the A400M military airlifter, which will partly offset a decline in A330 production, while A320 and A320neo rates are set to remain high. Airbus recently indicated to Flightglobal that the A300-600ST fleet would probably remain in service for another 10 years or so. But while the fleet stay in use until about 2025, the cost of operating the type will increase as the aircraft age. The airframer has initiated a study to replace the A300-600ST fleet in the long term. “No decision for immediate launch has been taken,” it stresses. But to address any capacity limitations beyond the Fly 10,000 scheme, as well as the ageing of the current Beluga fleet, Airbus is likely to aim for 2018-2020 as a window to have a new aircraft available. Several airframes are being considered as a platform for a Beluga successor, notably the A330-200 and -300, as well as the A340-500 and even the A300-600. While the current Beluga fleet is carrying A350-900 sections, the size of the A350-1000 central fuselage assembly will determine the final cross-section for the freight hold of the new transport. The A300-600ST has a hold diameter of about 23ft (7.1m). As well as the requirement for high payload capabilities, airfield landing limitations at its UK wing facility in Broughton will also determine the eventual choice of base airframe. Airbus believes an A330-200 variant – tentatively designated the A330-200XL – could potentially cope with the landing criteria at projected weights of about 135t, and is the most promising option.
David Kaminski-Morrow, London, Flight International, 19-25 February 2013, page 9
