Newsdesk – Commercial Aviation

The stretched A320 is envisaged as a 185 seat aircraft (two class) with a range of around 2,500nm. A shade smaller than the 757 and with substantially less range, the new Airbus twinjet could be formally launched as early as this Christmas for an entry to service during 1993.

The stretched twinjet would feature double slotted flaps, a stronger main undercarriage and uprated CFM56-5 and IAE V2500 turbofans in the 28,000 thrust class. Both engines will have no trouble meeting these requirements while the CFM56 will be actually certificated at that stage for up to 32. 000lb thrust for the long-range four engined A340.

At September, Airbus held over 650 orders, options and commitments on the standard body A320 from a total of 24 customers.

MDC Promoting Lower Deck Passenger Compartment for MD-11 Trujet:

McDonnell Douglas is actively promoting its newly launched lower deck passenger compartment on both versions of the MD-11.

Designated the Panorama Deck (because the windows slope down, thereby giving a much better downward view than main deck windows), the option would use the forward underfloor cargo holds in a configuration that on the standard body! MD-11 could accommodate either 44 four abreast (with c centre aisle) business class seats or up to 66 five abreast The underfloor cabin is economy seats roughly the same width as that of an MD-80. The stretched fuselage, shorter range version of the MD-11 would be able to accommodate 62 business class passengers or up to 94 economy pax. The Panorama Deck would also have its own galley and tolet facilities and would serve to greatly reduce per seat kilometre costs where underfloor freight capacity was not important This is not the first time though that passengers have been carried in special underfloor cabins. Many of the great flying boats of the thirties boasted two deck arrangements where after ww2 proudly feat 2 Boeing red a lower deck cocktail bar in their Stratocruiser, Continental for a time operated a special underfloor Pub Bar in their DC-10 feet while underfloor galleys have for a long time been common features of all three of the long haul wide body designs.

Meanwhile MDC is still discussing with Airbus Industrie the possibility of using the A330/340 wing and carry through structure in concert with the MD-11 fuselage though it is expected to be some time before negotiations on this variant are complete. Such an aircraft would be developed further to offer a true 747 competitor, which would be marketed jointly by MDC and Airbus.

First fight of the MD-11 is expected next March for a target of FAA certification one year later and an entry to airline service in Apn 1990. MDC presently has orders, options and committed reserves for 134 MD-118.

Pratt & Whitney to Develop Stage Jtbd Kit:

As the threat of an accelerated ban on all civil aircraft not complying with ICAO Stage 3 requirements grows, Pratt & Whitney are moving to develop their own retrofit kit that will make heavier weight versions of the Boeing 727-200, 737-200 and McDonnell Douglas DC-9 fully Stage 3 compatible.

In this market there presently exists over 3,800 aircraft which, if not able to be cost effectively modified, will drop in value to the point where many airlines won’t be able to af ford to replace them with new generation equipment. Already the European Civil Aviation Conference has recommended a ban on the introduction of Stage 2 aircraft into the European network after October 1990. Though Europe is deregulating in 1992, this will effectively stifle many new entrants from buying low cost used equipment with which to commence operations. Conversion to Stage 3 will thus not only maintain the relative value of this large fleet but will enable their use well into the 21st Century.

The kit that Pratts are working on comprises a series of suppressors with an exhaust mixer arrangement similar to that presently under evaluation by Federal Express for its 727-1000 fleet of freighters. Work has already begun on the programme with FAA certification expected to be gained late in 1990.

Air France A320 Crash Pilot Dismissed:

Ar France has dismissed Michel Asseline, the captain of the A320 which crashed at an air show near Mulhouse, France in June killing 3 of the 130 on board.

The crash has been attributed entirely to crew error, allowing the aircraft to descend too low with insufficient airspeed to initiate a safe recovery despite in-cockpit warning devices advising of the imminent danger of the manoeuvre.

Captain Asseline was also barred from flying for 8 years by the French civil aviation authorities while his coplot. Pierre Mazieres was grounded for two months.

The long awaited mega order by Delta Airlines has proven a timely boost for the corporate morale of Pratt & Whitney as every aircraft in the 215 order is to be powered by P&W powerplants.

Announced late September (refer Sales) the order is for 9 firm and 31 optioned MD-11 tijes 9 firm and 16 optioned 767s plus 100 options against the MD-88 and a further 50 options against the Boeing 757. Delta now has commitments on no less than 210 MD-88 and 130 757s and in the past has established a strong record for converting options to firm delivery positions as they fall due.

To power the MD-11s and 767s, Delta selected the PW4000 (making it the 24th customer for this engine), the JTBD-200 series for the MD-88 and the PW2041 for the 757.

Delta Mega Order Great News for Pratt & Whitney and McDonnell Douglas:

The long awaited mega order by Delta Airlines has proven a timely boost for the corporate morale of Pratt & Whitney as every aircraft in the 215 order is to be powered by P&W powerplants. Announced late September (refer Sales the order is for 9 firm and 31 optioned MD-11 tnJets, 9 firm and 15 optioned 767s plus 100 options against the MD-88 and a further 50 options against the Boeing 757. Delta now has commitments on no less than 210 MD-88S and 130 757s and in the past has established a st_rong record for converting options to firm delivery positions as they fall due. To power the MD-11s and 767s, Delta selected the PW4000 (making it the 24th customer for this engine), the JTBD-200 series for the MD-88 and the PW2041 for the 757.

Farnborough Was Biggest Ever:

Fine weather and the first time appearance of state-of-the-art Soviet combat aircraft in the MiG-29 Fulcrum resulted in a record attendance at this year’s Farnborough Air Show.

Provisional figures indicate an attendance in excess of 350,000 people with an estimated 1,200 different exhibitors displaying through culprits in aviation accidents. In fact, when the vast increase in hours Sown and the passengers uplifted is taken into account, the fatality rate has actually reduced.

The report also interestingly pointed out that it estimated that deregulation had actually been responsible for saving the lives of up to 1,700 people who would have otherwise driven from point to point and would have had a motor accident. Like they say, driving to the airport is the most dangerous component of modern aviation.

Safer With Deregulation?:

An interesting item in a recent edition of the UK’s Royal Aeronautical Society magazine on the US deregulation experience notes that it has had little adverse effect on airline safety and that, as always, human error and the secondary effect of weather, are the primary culprits in aviation accidents. In fact, when the vast increase in hours flown and the passengers uplifted is taken into account, the fatality rate has actually reduced.

The report also interestingly pointed out that it estimated that deregulation had actually been responsible for saving the lives of up to 1,700 people who would have otherwise driven from point to point and would have had a motor accident. Like they say, driving to the airport is the most dangerouscomponent of modern aviation.

Fokker to Stretch F100 Twinjet, Rolls to Uprate Tay:

The heart of every aeroplane is its powerplant and certainly the combination of Rolls Royce Tay and Fokker 100 in the years to come will be a long lived partnership.

Rolls Royce have now officially launched the latest version of the Tay, the Model 670 which will boast 18,000lb thrust and will be used by Fokker to offer a stretched version of their hot selling Fokker 100. The stretch will take in between four and five seat rows and will offer an aircraft in the 120/130 range. Fokker is confident of being able to launch the stretched toft aircraft around mid to late 1989 for an entry to service by 1993. Total firm orders for the Fokker 100 stand at 110 with a further 91 on option while the production rate is now 3 a month In an at Fokker’s Schiphol facility.

an associated move, Rolls Royce has also signed a technical agreement with Anacorp of the US (which has a technical association with MDC) to develop a re-engining programme for DC-9 aircraft with the RA Tay 670 as a replacement for the the Stage 2 P&W JTBDs which are sure to force many such aircraft into premature retirement during the next decade due to ever more stringent local airport noise standards. Dee Howard are already running a similar programme on a Tay/BAC 111 retrofit while the Tay is also used on the Gulfstream G. IV corporate jet.

Viva la Paris:

Famborough may be the most civilised but the bi-annual Paris Salon is still the biggest. For 1989 the Paris Air Show will launch on the 8th June with the final day being Sunday the 18th Be warned though, the 8th is largely reserved for President Mitterand’s fleeting visit to the show which means that unless you are a dedicated masochist, it might be better to make your first serious work day the 9th!

Need an Overseas Magazine Subscription?:

Unless you live in a major city, it is odds on that you find it difficult to get some of those small (local) circulation specialist aviation magazines that just happen to cater specifically for your particular interest in aviation.

Well, might we recommend the new subscription service that has been recently launched by Natbooks of Sydney. Natbooks, who are also aviation book marketers and publishers in their own right can offer you subscriptions to such magazines as Air Display, Air Pictonal, Air Combat, Aero Modeller, Airfix Magazine, Aircraft Illustrated, Fly Past and of course Flight and Interavia. Interested, then contact Natbooks direct at 207/396 Kent St, Sydney, 2000 or refer to their advertisement on p. 129 of our September issue.

Riblets for A300:

Apart from damn good skippering and crew work, the secret weapon up Dennis Connor’s sleeve in the 1987 America’s Cup challenge off Fremantle was the 3M riblets that apparently made Stars & stripes about 1. 5% slippener through the waters of Gage Roads.

Our Cup loss though it would seem, is to be aerospace’s gain as those same 3M riblets are now undergoing an extensive series of tests with Airbus and Lufthansa. The latter is using one of its A300-600s as a test bed and has twelve crucial areas of the airframe and wing covered with test patches of the new material in an effort to determine endurance to the elements and drag reduction characteristics.

The exterior of an airliner suffers greatly inits day to day operation, surface temperature may vary by up to 90°C within a period of a half hour. Rain, hall and airborne dust and debris impacting the surface at nearly 1,000kph also takes its toll, so the in service testing of the riblets is crucial prior to their more widespread use.

If these provisional tests are successful then Airbus will commence fight testing of an A320 with riblets covering three quarters of its exterior during early 1989.

 More Guppies for Airbus:

With the projected monthly airframe output at Airbus Industrie set to soar, the consortium is planning to build an additional two Super Guppy transports.

The Super Guppy is modelled on the original postwar Boeing Stratocruiser and is used to transport completed wing and fuselage sections around the Al European partner network for delivery to Toulouse where final assembly takes place. Many observers note that it is indeed ironic that so much of the logistics success of Al rests squarely on the ability of a former Boeing product! Airbus plan to acquire a fifth Super Guppy in 1992 and may buy a sixth by 1995. The aircraft are modified by UTA Industries and Tracor at Le Bourget airport in Paris and are originally purchased in standard Guppy configuration. Airbus Industrie are investing heavily in the future and plan to spend just over $US1bn at Toulouse with extensions to their current A300/ 310 and A320 assembly halls in addition to an all new A330/340 assembly plant nearby. Planned production rate of the A320 is 8 a month by 1990 with this expected to rise quickly to 10 while by 1993/94, it is expected that the consortium will be producing up to 20 airframes a month comprising 10 A320s, 2/4 A300/310s and 6/8 A330/340s as the initial order backlog is worked through.