Airbus takes wraps off derivatives of A330-200 and -300 designed to rival 7E7
Airbus is close to launching two variants of its proposed A350 long-range twin to compete directly with the Boeing 7E7 family. It says it can fund the programme internally if necessary. "We're well on the way to confirming the market," says Airbus chief executive Noel Forgeard. "We could move before year-end."
The A350-800 and -900 would be derivatives of the current A330-200 and -300 twinjets, powered by the new General Electric and Rolls-Royce engines under development for the 7E7 and bringing in materials and systems technology developed for the more recent A340-500/600 and A380. However, the A350 will not use bleedless engines, whereas the 7E7 will.
Each variant would offer around 1,850km (1,000nm) extra range compared with its forebear. The 250-seat A350-800 would therefore be capable of around 14,300km range, bringing London-Los Angeles within reach with a full payload, and would compete with the 220-passenger, 15,700km-range 7E7-8. The -900 answers the unlaunched, 257-passenger, 15,400km 7E7-9, and would have a range of around 12,300km with 295 passengers. "We're looking at the seating capacity of the -900 and might stretch it by a couple of rows," says Airbus chief commercial officer John Leahy. "Some airlines want more range, others say add a few seats."
Entry into service of the A350-800 would be a year after the 7E7, in 2009. "We haven't found any airline which is worried about the extra year," says Leahy, adding: "I haven't seen any great momentum for 7E7-8 sales to this point." Catalogue prices of the A350 would be "comparable to those of the 7E7", but Leahy claims the A350 has the advantage of 8-10% lower seat-kilometre costs. He concedes that trip costs "are about the same".
Forgeard puts A350 development costs at about a third those of the 7E7, at €2-3 billion ($2.5-3.7 billion). Under the 1992 Europe-US agreement for subsidies Airbus can fund a third of new programmes through refundable government loans, so would be looking to borrow around €700 million. "As long as launch aid is available we'll apply for it," he says. "But we can self-finance if we want to."
The A350 will, says Leahy, stand "side by side" with the A330-200/300. "We don't want to shoot ourselves in both feet to replace the -200/300, which between them have 80% of this element of the market. Their Achilles' heel is range. We solve that with the A350."
The A350 will feature more composites - in the rear pressure bulkhead, floor beams and keel and centre wing box, and will use the new Glare metal/composite material developed for the A380 for parts of the fuselage. The wing will benefit from three-dimensional aerodynamic design technology, and advanced fly-by-wire flight control system and cockpit features developed since the A330-300, launched in 1987, will be incorporated.
JULIAN MOXON / TOULOUSE
Source: Flight International
