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Aviation History
1992
1992 - 0853.PDF
HEADLINES Airbus redesigns A340 to go further Airbus modifies wing to restore A340 range Airbus Industrie is test-flying a modification to the wing of its four-engined A340, which, it says, will restore the range of the aircraft to the level guaran teed to airlines. "A modification to improve performance has been flown, and has worked," says the con sortium. Airbus denies persistent rumours of flutter problems with the outer engine pylon, however, although the wing modification is known to centre on this area. Airbus detailed the shortfall, and the wing modification, at a briefing for A340 customers on the aircraft's initial flight-test results at a two-day meeting in Toulouse in March. One future operator says: "After the briefing, we are con vinced that the A340 will meet its guaranteed performance by the time it enters service." An other airline claims that Airbus has not provided enough detail on the aircraft's performance shortfall, however. An airline official who at tended the meeting says: "We are. still trying to establish with Airbus what is going on. We don't know which level they are talking about. It appears they are about 1% down on the book level, but we don't know where they stand against the guaran teed level, or how it affects our guarantee." Referring to the A340 wing modification, he says: "I'm not sure which modification they mean. There are quite a few- required to rectify the perform ance problems." The A340 outer pylon was the subject of intense design work, because Airbus wanted to ensure that the overall drag of the wing was no more than that of the twin-engined.A330 (which is otherwise virtually identical to the A340). It is, however, the first time Airbus has designed a four-engined aircraft. Its ability to meet range guar antees is critical to its battle against the McDonnell Douglas MD-11, which did not make its guaranteed range initially, and was subsequently dropped by Singapore Airlines in favour of the A340. The Toulouse briefing con firmed that the A340 is within weight specifications, and within the production and certification schedule. The aircraft is also said to be demonstrating "excel lent" system's reliability. • T-45 engine assembly site for USA BY KIERAN DALY IN WASHINGTON DC Rolls-Royce and Turbomeca (RRTM) are to set up a final assembly and support unit in the USA for the F405 variant of the Adour 871 turbofan fitted in the US Navy's T-45 trainer. The move increases the en gine's US content at a time when Garrett is attempting to displace the F405 with its F124 version of the TFE1042 engine. The new operation will be at Turbomeca's Grand Prairie, Texas, site, which is also con veniently located for the T-45's initial operating base at Kingsville near Corpus Christi, although RRTM will have to bid for maintenance work. Turbomeca estimates that the transfer of work from R-R's Fil- ton, UK, plant will create 30 US jobs. The news was announced by Texan congressman Martin Frost rather than by the compa nies, and is likely to help RRTM to obtain congressional support for the F405. R-R director of Navy program mes Mike Ferguson says the move is not directly linked to the Garrett challenge, and repre sents a long-standing attempt to increase the engine's US content. Nevertheless, it is timely, be cause the Navy has placed the funds appropriated for the alter native engine study, on its recis- sion list, and it will now be up to Congress to decide whether to mandate the study. RRTM says the first Grand Prairie engine would not be delivered until June 1994, and the project is contingent on con tinued acquisition of the F405. Ferguson says: "The intent is to deliver the engines out of Grand Prairie for T-45, so that in essence they have a 'Made in Texas' stamp on them." • New Atlas Cheetah at Johannesburg The South African Air Force is to reveal a new variant of the Atlas Cheetah, dubbed Pro ject 855, at the Aviation Africa show in Johannesburg starting on 1 April. The aircraft is believed to be SAAB 2000 COMPLETES FIRST FLIGHT The Saab 2000 regional airliner has flown for the first time. The Swedish company says the handling was "exactly as expected'" on the lh 27min maiden flight at Linkoping on 26 March. During the flight, which was conducted by chief test pilot Eric Sjoberg and project test pilot Lennart Nordh, the aircraft achieved a speed of 160kt (300hm/h) and a height of 15,000ft (4,500m). A second flight was scheduled jbr 30 March and, after four or five flights, test-flying will be continued about 100km away, at Skavsta Airport near Nyhoping. Saab says ttidt l,200h of flight-testing will lead to certification in the second quarter of 1993. The Saab 2000 is scheduled to enter service with Crossair about six months later. Orders stand at 46, with options on 148. the prototype of a Cheetah up grade, with an uprated engine and a new radar, possibly based on the Israeli Elta EL/M-2035. The Cheetah is a Dassault Mirage III conversion with ca nards, updated avionics and zero-speed/zero-height-capable ejection seats. The SAAF con verted 35-40 of its Mirage Ills to single and two-seat Cheetahs. The South African Air Force is examining the feasibility of re- engining its 30 Dassault Mirage F.lAZs and 15 Mirage F.lCZs with the Russian-built Klimov RD-33 engine, of which two power the Mikoyan MiG-29 Ful crum (Flight International, 29 January, 1991, P 4). D Tiger found airworthy Preliminary analysis of the Bristow Helicopters Aerospa tiale AS.332T Tiger helicopter, which crashed into the North Sea on 14 March during a 200m oil-rig shuttle flight, shows no evidence of airworthiness abnor mality, says the UK Department of Transport Air Accidents In vestigation Branch. Eleven of the 17 passengers and crew aboard the helicopter were killed. D CLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 1 - 7 April, 1992 5
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