A330 : Version Passagers ; toute la famille

"A330-200 : performances améliorées."

Combien de B777-300ER, par exemple, dans le monde sont, en ce moment, certifiés ETOPS 240 (voire même ETOPS 207) !

Combien d'avions dans le monde, propulsés par les GE CF-6, ont "ETOPS 240"?

KUALA LUMPUR, June 8 (Reuters) - European aircraft manufacturer Airbus said on Monday that its A330-200 aircraft was safe and was essential for the airline industry."It's the backbone of the industry," Airbus Commercial Director John Leahy told reporters on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the International Air Transport Association.

AerCap Holdings N.V. ("AerCap," NYSE: AER) today announced that it has signed letters of intent with Virgin Atlantic Airways for the purchase and leaseback of six Airbus A330-300s that Virgin Atlantic has on order with Airbus. In addition, AerCap will lease four Airbus A330-300 aircraft to Virgin Atlantic from its own A330 order.

The lease terms for all aircraft are twelve years and deliveries are scheduled for 2011 and 2012.

Virgin Atlantic has not yet selected the engine type.

AerCap expects to finance the six new aircraft purchases under its existing funding facilities. The four aircraft for direct lease to Virgin Atlantic were the only remaining positions from AerCap's order of thirty Airbus A330s placed in 2006/2007.

Steve Ridgway, CEO of Virgin Atlantic, said: "This order shows we are confident about our future growth. AerCap has helped make this deal a reality against the backdrop of unprecedented financial turmoil. We look forward to working with the AerCap team again."

Soeren Ferre, CEO of AerCap Group Services B.V., commented on the transaction: "We are very pleased with this ten-aircraft-deal with Virgin Atlantic Airways as one of the world's premier long haul airlines. With the transaction coinciding with Virgin Atlantic's 25th birthday this year and representing the completion of AerCap's A330 order placements, there is good reason to celebrate for both parties. We expect to close the final negotiations with Virgin Atlantic shortly and, above all, wish them a very Happy Birthday."

Jeannot a écrit:Pardon mais j'ai trop envie que Mr B paye un peu pour son retard.

Airbus proposes jack to avoid modifying A330 P2F nose
By David Kaminski-Morrow

Airbus will not develop a nose-gear modification for passenger-to-freight conversion of the A330-200, but instead opt for a simple jacking tool to level the fuselage.

While passenger versions of the A330-200 sit slightly nose-down, the new freighter version needs a level fuselage to aid loading.

New-build A330-200 freighters - the first example of which is due to begin a flight-test campaign shortly - have a lower-mounted nose-gear assembly to overcome the problem, and the type has a distinctive 'bubble' housing to contain the gear when retracted.

But A330-200F chief engineer Matthias Ierovante says that this modification on a passenger-to-freight conversion would involve significant work, including replacement of much of the nose section.

"This is something we didn't want to do," he says. "We have a solution for the passenger-to-freighter which we think is acceptable for customers."

He says Airbus is proposing a piece of external ground-support equipment which would physically lift the aircraft, producing the same effect as the lowered gear in new-build freighters.

The tool, he adds, would be mounted on an air cushion and use the jacking points for tyre changes. Airbus adds that the tool would need only a single person to operate it.

Airbus did not want customers for new aircraft to depend on a similar tool, says Ierovante, stating that the production A330-200F is designed to be "optimised for purpose".

A330 is first airliner to be certified for ETOPS “beyond 180 minutes

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has approved all Airbus A330 models for ETOPS (Extended-Range Operations for two-engined aircraft) “beyond 180 minutes”. This award makes the A330 the first aircraft type to receive such approval, either from EASA or the FAA. The new capability will be available as a customer-selectable option which extends the diversion distance potentially up to 1,700 nm. This distance corresponds to a maximum ETOPS diversion time for the A330 of approximately 240 minutes (at one-engine-inoperative speed under standard conditions).

Operators with two-engined aircraft who choose this option will now be able to serve new routes which are presently not flown within the existing ETOPS rules (i.e. up to 180 minutes diversion time). For the A330, examples include new routes over South Atlantic Ocean, Mid- and South Pacific Ocean, and Mid-Indian Ocean. Operators flying on existing routes will benefit from the new regulation, since it will allow them to fly more directly and eco-efficiently. Some estimates show a fuel saving potential of up to 10 percent for some long range routes (with consequent reductions in CO2 emissions).

The granting of this latest ETOPS extension, to around 1,700nm and 240 minutes, has been made possible in part due to the proven reliability and robust systems of the aircraft and its engines, as demonstrated over 14 million A330 flight hours and 3.5 million flights.

ETOPS, is an International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) rule permitting two-engined commercial aircraft operators to fly routes that are up to a specified flying time from the nearest airport. Since 1995 all Airbus A330 models have been approved by EASA and FAA for ETOPS up to 180 minutes, and with this they have since accumulated more than five million ETOPS flight hours in more than 800,000 ETOPS flights.

Today Airbus has won more than 1,000 orders for the A330 and more than 600 are in service worldwide with more than 80 customers and operators

"The A330-200 passenger variant was initially operated with a maximum take-off weight of 215t, and 230t was available in 1998. In 2000 we introduced what we called the 'growth' with 233t MTOW," he says.

The "growth" was the first of two structural developments on the aircraft, the second of which being central to the enhanced variant introduced in 2003, but not incorporating any further weight increases.

"The enhanced had important changes to the fuselage and wing - material changes and weight reduction. It was a re-optimisation of the aircraft with the main objective to increase the design service goal," says Favre. "Improvements included an enhanced landing gear with design improvements."

The freighter has the 233t MTOW of current A330-200s, while MZFW is up to 8t above the passenger variant, at 178t. But the passenger model is about to gain further weight growth and performance, thanks to the freighter. "When we were developing the freighter, we had a close look at the wing in particular, which was the limiting element, and could find the margins to demonstrate the passenger aircraft could be capable of 235t MTOW, or 238t with a 2t reduction maximum zero fuel weight [to 168t]."

This upgrade, which is introduced this year on new-build aircraft providing up to an additional 650km range, will be available as a retrofit to the in-service A330s built to enhanced standard (that is, from MSN555) with a small package of modifications.

Modifications included material changes, such as a switch to that used on the A380 for some air conditioning bleed pipes, says Favre. Overall, the "diet" shaved off between 200kg and 250kg on the passenger aircraft, depending on whether it is a -200 or -300.