Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON
Components for the first Airbus A330-200 are being fabricated at plants around Europe, with final assembly scheduled to begin at Toulouse in March 1997. The 256-seat, 11,800km (6,400nm)-range derivative was launched in November 1995. Thirty-one orders have been announced to date.
The first wingset is being constructed at the British Aerospace Chester factory, and will be ferried to Daimler-Benz Aerospace (DASA) Airbus in January for integration with the aircraft. Meanwhile, the forward centre fuselage is being constructed at Aerospatiale's St Nazaire, France, site.
DASA is also responsible for the production of the A330-200's new fin, which is undertaken at Stade near Hamburg. The fin, which is 17% larger than the existing A330/A340 item, to balance the shorter fuselage of the new aircraft, will be delivered to Toulouse in mid-April.
The first A330-200, a General Electric CF6-80E1-powered example, is to have its maiden flight in August 1997. Certification will follow in March 1998, and Canada 3000 will take delivery of the first aircraft the following month. The second aircraft to be completed will be powered by the Pratt & Whitney PW4000. It will be flown in December 1997, with certification due in May 1998, while the Rolls-Royce -powered version will begin testing in July 1998, with certification by the end of that year.
Source: Flight International
