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Aviation History
2002
2002 - 2485.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT CARGO MAX KINGSLEY-JONES / LONDON Emirates begins search for regional freighters Middle East carrier wants Boeing to consider developing cargo version of 777 A freighter version of the 777 would complement Emirates' passenger fleet Emirates has begun to evaluate medium-sized widebody freighters to operate regional services in the Gulf, and has asked Boeing to look at developing a cargo 777 as a potential candidate. The study is being undertaken as part of the air line's initial planning for its Airbus A380 freighter fleet, which is due to begin operations in 2008. "We are looking at all candidates in the 50-85t payload," says Emi rates' director of cargo Ram Menen. "We see a need for a regional net work to feed the A380 freighters through our Dubai cargo hub." The size category that Emirates is evaluating includes freighters such as the Airbus A300-600F, Boeing 767-300F and MD-11F. Menen says that all options will be considered, including the acquisition of both new aircraft or converted, second hand examples. Although Boeing's only new- build offering in the size category being evaluated is the 767-300F, Menen says this "doesn't really work for us as we don't operate the type already [as passenger air craft]". This suggests that the air line's preferred choice would be a freighter version of a type already in its passenger fleet, which com prises Airbus A330s, 777s and, from next year, A340s. The airline is evaluating the proposed A330-200F and is "pushing Boeing to develop a freighter version of the 777-200", says Menen. Boeing says its product develop ment activities are focused on a freighter derivative of the General Electric GE90-110B pow ered 777-200LR. Studies of the cargo variant are at "a really early level", according to Boeing. Emirates carried 400,000t of cargo in the year to March and expects the business to grow this year by 25-30%. Belly cargo hold capacity of its passenger fleet makes up 80% of the airline's cargo business, but a Boeing 747-400F is wet-leased from Atlas Air for dedi cated cargo flights to Amsterdam, Hong Kong and, from next month, S Shanghai. The airline has two | A380-800Fs on order along with 20 A380-800 passenger models. Menen says that Emirates is just beginning to look at its long-term freighter needs, but says it will def initely add more freighters. He envisages that the regional fleet will be in place to complement the arrival of its two A380Fs in 2008. FREIGHTERS MICHAEL PHELAN /LONDON Airbus reveals A380 cargo specifications Airbus is firming up specifications for its A380-800 Freighter as it works towards its 2008 in-service target with Emirates and FedEx Express. The basic entry-into-service aircraft has a baseline maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 590,000kg (1,300,0001b) and is being marketed as a 10,360km (5,600nm)-range aircraft with a 150,000kg payload. Airbus, how ever, is touting several range and payload options to be available on the aircraft at service entry. Airbus A380 senior marketing analyst Marie-Ange Plancq says three addi tional options will be available - an increased payload version, an increased MTOW version for longer range; and an increased MTOW version with addi tional fuel capacity for extra-long-range operations. The increased payload version will be able to lift 158,000kg, but with its range limited to 5,550km. The MTOW would be restricted to 540,000kg, while the maximum zero fuel weight (MZFW) would be increased to 410,000kg from the baseline 402,000kg. The longer-range version will have an increased MTOW of 600,000kg, but with a reduced cargo capacity of 127,000kg and MZFW of 379,000kg. This aircraft has a design range of 12,765km with 127,000kg payload. A centre fuel tank is also being offered for extra-long-range operations with smaller payloads, also using the 600,000kg MTOW. This would enable the A380 to carry 93,000kg of cargo 15,725km, according to Airbus payload/ range charts. These options would be available at service entry without structural modi fications, says Plancq, who describes the options as "technical trade-offs". She says: "The aircraft has enough structural margin to cope with the MTOW increase without modifications or operating restrictions," adding the MTOW could be increased to 650,000kg "on current design principles". • Italian airlines Alpi Eagles and Gandalf Airlines are to expand their codeshare agree ment to include flights from Venice Tessera to Naples Capodichino. They will also intro duce a new link between Venice to Ban Palese and from Bergamo Orio al Serio to Naples Capodichino. Meanwhile, Gandalf is starting daily charter flights from Orio al Serio to Olbia, Sardinia, and the Romanian cities of Bucharest and Timisoara for the summer season. • The Israeli ministry of transport plans to restructure the route allo cation of domestic carriers to improve the balance between state-owned El Al and private air lines Arkia and Israir, which want to take up routes that have been dropped by El Al or that are oper ated with low frequencies. • Australia and New Zealand have signed an expanded open skies agreement, which brings into full effect an earlier agree ment under which airlines from either country can fly across the Tasman Sea unrestricted, and have the option of setting up domestic networks in one another's countries. • Volare Group has started a daily flight from Rome Fiumicino to Berlin Tegel, operated under a codeshare with Alitalia. • KLM Cityhopper is to launch twice- daily services between Amsterdam and Trondheim in Norway on 30 March. Meanwhile, twice-daily services between Aberdeen, Scotland and Stavanger, Norway, will begin this week, connecting Europe's two key off-shore oil centres. • Emi rates SkyCargo is to launch its second all-freight route next month with a weekly flight between Dubai and Shanghai. Services will be operated by a Boeing 747-400F wet-leased from Atlas Air. Emirates has also initiated four times weekly non stop passenger flights between Dubai and Perth. • Qatar Airways is launching two new destinations in October to Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates and the southern Indian city of Hyderabad. • British Airways CitiExpress has intro duced two weekly flights between Leeds Bradford and Bristol using a BAe Jetstream 41. www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 20-26 AUGUST 2002 9
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