A340-600 COMPLETES FIRST FLIGHT SUCCESSFULLY

The 380-seat A340-600, Airbus’ largest airliner to date, made its first flight today, completing a successful mission which lasted 5 hours and 22 minutes. The first A340-600 took off from the Blagnac international airport in Toulouse, France at 10h34 hours local time (08h34GMT), and returned at 15h56 hours local time (13h56 GMT).

The maiden flight was captained by Claude Lelaie, Vice President of Airbus’ Flight Division, and co-piloted by test pilot Ed Strongman with Gilles Robert, the Division’s Test and Development Director, Jacky Joye and Gérard Desbois as flight test engineers.

Commenting on the flight, a very satisfied Claude Lelaie confirmed that the new aircraft had handled as anticipated. “We flew the aircraft throughout the flight envelope from minimum to maximum operating speeds and despite its impressive size, the A340-600 handles just like any other A330/A340 Family aircraft thanks to cockpit commonality and fly-by-wire controls. The innovative systems introduced on this aircraft such as the latest generation LCD displays and taxi cameras worked well,” he said. “This aircraft is a real tribute to everyone at Airbus, Rolls Royce and our suppliers who have worked on it over the last few years. We are proud to have inaugurated the decades of in-flight satisfaction this 21st century aircraft will bring to our customers and their passengers,” he added.

The team explored the aircraft handling using both direct and normal flight control laws as well as various operational criteria such as buffet and stall margins, and manoeuvring capability. Handling checks with the undercarriage up and down, and with various slat and flap settings were also covered.

The A340-600 took off at a weight of over 300 tonnes (660,000 lbs) allowing a realistic first appraisal of its in-flight behaviour. Indeed, the A340-600 is the highest capacity member of the Airbus family so far, with a maximum take off weight of 365 tonnes. The aircraft was fitted with around 36 tonnes of equipment, comprising water ballast tanks and around 14 tonnes of flight-test instrumentation that is capable of recording the thousands of parameters necessary for a full and thorough analysis of the aircraft’s in-flight performance.

This maiden voyage marks the beginning of a comprehensive flight test campaign involving three A340-600s in 1,600 flight hours and culminating in certification and entry into airline service in mid 2002.

The A340-600 was launched in December 1997 alongside its sister aircraft, the ultra-long range A340-500. Designed in close collaboration with airlines these two airliners will further extend the attraction of the market-leading A330/A340 Family, taking advantage of the latest proven technologies to deliver the ultimate in long range air travel. Both new versions are powered by Trent 500 engines from Rolls-Royce.

With 127 orders and commitments from eleven customers, the A340-500/-600 are clear leaders in their category, with 59 per cent of the market at the end of 2000.

With over 4,200 orders booked to date from more than 170 customers worldwide, Airbus is one of only two manufacturers in the market for commercial aircraft seating more than 100 passengers. Offering the most modern and comprehensive airliner family in the world, Airbus consistently captures about half of this market - a position it is well-equipped to maintaining in the future. Headquartered in Toulouse, France, Airbus is jointly owned by BAE SYSTEMS and EADS.