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Aviation History
2001
2001 - 2143.PDF
PARIS 2001 le A340-300. The -300 has done well in ie market, its appeal based largely on good :onomics, low noise levels and reliability. Performance has not been a main selling oint, however. Its Mach 0.82 cruising jeed is less than that of many other long- inge aircraft, leaving air traffic controllers •ustrated by the aircraft's poor station eeping. The A340-600, according to Pardoe, will y at a "true Mach 0.83". He also claims ie aircraft will climb faster to its maxi- mm operating altitude than the Boeing 77-300ER. "This aircraft will reach flight ivel 330 (33,O0Oft/10,O0Om) in 38 min- tes, having flown 330km, while the 777- OOER will take 70 minutes, by which time will have covered 630km," he promises. Structural changes l structural terms the A340-500/600 is mch more than a simple stretch of its pre- ecessor, the -300. Besides the longer fuse- ige and associated modifications, the langes relate principally to greater range i% for the -600, 20% for the -500), and le need to accommodate heavier engines, he result is a 105t increase in maximum ike-off weight and a 64t increase in maxi mal landing weight. The A340-600 fuselage has been letched by 20 frames (see diagram): 10 lead of the wing, four for the centre sec- on/wing box (as with the -500) and six ehind the fuselage. The longer fuselage so means a 38% increase in the area f the new all-composite and all-moving orizontal tailplane, which is made from vo carbonfibre reinforced plastic torsion axes with a titanium centre joint. The all-composite fin and rudder are taken from the A330-200, but have been reduced by 0.5m in height and 1.5m2 (16ft2) in fin area (a larger tailplane is nec essary to control the greater pitching moment caused by power variations in the new engines, while the smaller rudder is possible because of the extra leverage resulting from the longer fuselage). The design of the forward fuselage is an example of Airbus "mix-and-match" phi losophy: sections 12, 13 and 14 are the same as for the -300, section 14 is the same but has the door removed and section 14B is new and 10 frames longer. The BAE Systems-designed wing is 20% larger in area and accommodates an extra 53,4001 (11,760 gal) of kerosene, a capacity increase of 38% compared to the A34O-30O (the -500 contains a further 20,0001 in the central fuel tank). Lifting ability goes up by 40%, while the leading- and trailing-edge structures and moving surfaces have the same basic geometry and layout as that of the -300. Wing growth has been achieved with an insert running the length of the wing, spanning three fuselage frame pitches at the root and tapering out to the tip. The wing itself has been extended by 1.6m. This gives the A340-600 a total wingspan of 63.5m, against 60.3m for the -300. The (removable) winglets are raked at 31.5° against 29.7°. Around It has been saved by removing the wing joint at 62% semi-span, a rriodification made possible by the availability of'aluminium alloys in billets lorjg enough to accommodate the necessAy span. A strengthened four-bogie Messier- Dowty centre landing gear with its own braking system has been introduced, and titanium has been used in both the land ing gear and engine'mounting pylons to reduce empty weight. To minimise weight the -600 employs more composite materials than any Airbus aircraft. The Aircell nacelles housing the Trent engines are constructed from pre- impregnated carbon composites, as are the rear pressurisation dome and belly fairings. New aluminium alloys and thermoplastics have been used in panels and hydraulic tubing, giving a further It reduction. Improved comfort The increasing demand for passenger com fort on the kind of ultra-long ranges the A340 will fly has prompted Airbus to make major changes to the passenger cabin, many of which will feed through to the A380. The main cabin area has been thor oughly restyled and includes extensive use of light emitting diode (LED) lighting, which replaces the old halogen bulbs and provides far greater flexibility in the way "The 340- 500/600 will maintain its lead...this aircraft will sell itself once it begins operating" JOHN LEAHY, AIRBUS illumination is distributed. The LEDs will have a bulb lifetime "longer than that of the aircraft," says Pardoe. A new touch-screen flight atten dant panel has also been developed which allows the display and control of far more data than before, including information on cabin temperature for example. The panel will give flight attendants much more choice in choosing cabin lighting colours and dimming combinations. Passengers will also benefit from redesigned overhead bins in which the centre support has been made smaller to accommodate three of the roll-on mini- suitcases which have become popular as carry-on luggage. Design solutions Airlines will be able to configure the lower deck in a number of ways by using con tainer-sized roll-on/roll-off modules devel oped by Airbus. Crew rest compartments, extra toilets and lower-deck galleys will be accessible from a rear stair. "We've tried to modularise the design to provide a lot of solutions based around a common modu lar concept. We've already sold both full and partial bulk crew rest options," says Pardoe. He admits, however, that it has taken "a lot of clever design" to find the right bal ance between providing flexibility for pas sengers as opposed to cargo. "The market says freight is vital. The -600 will have potentially twice the cargo volume of the 747 and some airlines have indicated they intend to use it," Pardoe says. Developed specifically to power the A340-500/600, the Trent 500 breaks new ground in being the first R-R powerplant to power an Airbus from entry into service. R-R's relationship with Airbus began in the early 1980s when it joined with Pratt & Whitney and Japanese Aero Engines to develop the International Aero Engines V2500, which became the second power- ivw.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 2-18 JUNE 2001 127
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