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	Airbus A330 Medium to Long-Range Jetliner

DESCRIPTION: Airbus launched both the A330 and A340 projects following several years of design studies investigating high-capacity, long-range aircraft. The pair of new designs was developed primarily to compete with Boeing's 767, 777, and older models of the 747. In keeping with the many advancements made by earlier Airbus products, the A330 and A340 set precedents of their own by becoming the first commercial aircraft to be designed entirely by computer-aided design (CAD) software. This innovation helped to reduce development time and costs. Development and production costs were further reduced by maximizing commonality between the A330 and A340 as much as possible. The two aircraft share the same fuselage, landing gear, tail assembly, flight deck and basic wing. In addition, the fly-by-wire control system developed for the A320 was incorporated into both aircraft as were the digitial cockpit displays used on the earlier A300 and A310. The only significant difference between the A330 and A340 is the propulsion arrangement. Whereas the A340 is equipped with four engines for intercontinental flights, the A330 instead uses two engines for better economy on shorter routes. Two major versions of the A330 have been developed to date. These include the basic A330-300 and the shorter extended-range A330-200. Additional shortened and stretched versions have also been studied. The A330 has also been heavily marketed to military services needing in-flight refueling tanker and cargo transport capabilities. Known as the Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), the design has been sold to Australia, the United Kingdom, and the UAE. Airbus has also partnered with the American defense contractor Northrop Grumman hoping to sell a version of the MRTT called the KC-30 to the US Air Force. Around 250 examples of the A330 were built by 2003 with production still underway. Data below for A330-200 and A330-300 Last modified 13 June 2012
HISTORY:
First Flight	(A330-300) 2 November 1992 (A330-200) 13 August 1997 (A330-200F) 5 November 2009
Service Entry	(A330-300) January 1994 (with Air Inter) (A330-200) April 1998 (A330-200F) planned for mid-2010 (with Etihad Airways)
CREW:	two flight crew: pilot, co-pilot
PASSENGERS:	(A330-200) 253 in three classes, 293 in two classes, 380 in one class (A330-300) 335 in three classes, 440 in one class
ESTIMATED COST:	(A330-200) $185 million [2008$]
AIRFOIL SECTIONS:
Wing Root	unknown
Wing Tip	unknown
DIMENSIONS:
Length	(A330-200) 193.58 ft (59.06 m) (A330-300) 208.83 ft (63.65 m)
Wingspan	(A330-200) 197.83 ft (59.06 m) (A330-300) 148.42 ft (45.23 m)
Height	(A330-200) 58.67 ft (17.90 m) (A330-300) 42.42 ft (12.92 m)
Wing Area	(A340-200) 3,892 ft² (361.6 m²)
Canard Area	not applicable
WEIGHTS:
Empty	(A330-200) 265,700 lb (120,520 kg) (A330-300) 265,185 lb (120,285 kg)
Normal Takeoff	unknown
Max Takeoff	(A330-200) 507,000 lb (229,970 kg) (A330-300) 467,380 lb (212,000 kg)
Fuel Capacity	(A330-200) 36,750 gal (139,090 L)
Max Payload	(A330-200) 80,250 lb (36,400 kg) (A330-300) 102,960 lb (46,715 kg)
PROPULSION:
Powerplant	two General Electric CF6-80E1 turbofans or two Pratt & Whitney PW4000 turbofans or two Rolls-Royce Trent 700 turbofans
Thrust	(GE) 135,000 lb (600.6 kN)
PERFORMANCE:
Max Level Speed	at altitude: 560 mph (900 km/h) at sea level: unknown cruise speed: 545 mph (880 km/h)
Initial Climb Rate	unknown
Service Ceiling	39,370 ft (12,000 m)
Range	(A330-200) 6,400 nm (11,850 km) (A330-300) 4,500 nm (8,335 km)
g-Limits	unknown
KNOWN VARIANTS:
A300B9	Airbus design study based on the A300 that led to the A330 concept
A330-100	Proposed shortened model to replace the A300-600 and A310, combines the A300-600 fuselage with a wing derived from the A330 plus digital cockpit displays and a fly-by-wire control system
A330-200	Long-range model with a shorter fuselage and larger wing derived from that of the A340-300; 79 built by 2001
A330-200F	Cargo freighter based on the A330-200
A330-300	First production model; 97 built by 2001
A330-300P2F	Proposed passenger-to-freighter model that would be converted from A330-300 airliners
A330-400X	Proposed stretched model for a larger passenger load to operate over shorter ranges
A330 MRTT	Multi Role Tanker Transport marketed to military operators for use as a combined in-flight refueling tanker and cargo transport, model is based on the A330-200 and capable of carrying 37,000 gal (140,000 L) of fuel
KC-30	Designation used for the A330 MRTT offered to the US Air Force by EADS and partner Northrop Grumman
KNOWN OPERATORS:
Civil	AerCap Aer Lingus Aeroflot Aerolineas Argentinas Afriqiyah Airways Air Afrique AirAsia Aircalin Air Canada Aircastle Air China Air Comet Air France Air Greenland Air Holland Air India Air Inter Air Luxor Air Mauritius Air One Airtours International Air Transat Alis Aerolinee Asiana Austrian Airlines Avequis Avianca Avion Aircraft Trading AWAS Birdy Airlines BOC Aviation British Midland International Brussels Airlines Canada 3000 Cathay Pacific Airways China Eastern Airlines China Southern Airlines CIT Aerospace Conquest Vacations Corsair Cyprus Airways Delsey Airlines Delta Air Lines Dragonair Edelweiss Air EgyptAir Emirates Etihad Airways Eurofly Eva Air Finnair Finnair Leisure Flights Fly Asian Xpress (FAX) Flyington Freighters Garuda Indonesia Global Aero Logistics GMT Global Republic Aviation Guggenheim Aviation Partners (GAP) Gulf Air Hawaiian Airlines Hong Kong Airlines Iberia Iberworld Icelandair Cargo Indian Airlines International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) Intrepid Aviation Group Jet Airways JMC Airlines Khalifa Airways Kingfisher Airlines KLM - Royal Dutch Airlines Korean Air Lines L-Air Lauda Air Libyan Airlines LTU International Airways Lufthansa Malaysian Airline System (MAS) Matlin Patterson Investment Middle East Airlines MNG Airlines Monarch Airlines MyTravel Airways Nepal Airlines Northwest Airlines Novair OceanAir Oman Air Paradise Air Philippine Air Lines Premiair Qantas Qatar Airways Sabena SAS Scandinavian Airlines Saudia Singapore Airlines Skyservice SN Brussels South African Airways Srilankan Airlines Star Airlines Swissair Swiss International Air Lines TAM Brasil Thai Airways International THY Turkish Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) Transasia TUI Tunisair US Airways Varig Logistica VG Airlines Vietnam Airlines Virgin Atlantic Volare Airlines XL Airways UK Yemenia
Government/Military	Australia (Royal Australian Air Force) Saudi Arabia, Al Quwwat al Jawwiya al Malakiya as Sa'udiya (Royal Saudi Air Force) United Arab Emirates (United Arab Emirates Air Force) United Kingdom (Royal Air Force)
3-VIEW SCHEMATIC:
SOURCES: Aboulafia, Richard. Jane's Civil Aircraft. Glasgow: Harper Collins Publishers, 1996, p. 34-35, Airbus A330. Airbus A330/A340 site Donald, David, ed. The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. NY: Barnes & Noble, 1997, p. 36, Airbus Industrie A330 and A340. Donald, David, ed. The Encyclopedia of Civil Aircraft. San Diego, CA: Thunder Bay Press, 1999, p. 42-46, A330/A340. Müller, Claudio. Aircraft of the World. NY: Muddle Puddle Books, 2004, p. 34-35, Airbus A330-200. Rendall, David. Jane's Aircraft Recognition Guide, 2nd ed. London: Harper Collins Publishers, 1999, p. 205, Airbus A330. Taylor, Michael. Brassey's World Aircraft & Systems Directory 1996/1997. London: Brassey's, 1996, p. 289-290, Airbus A330. Taylor, Michael J. H. Brassey's World Aircraft & Systems Directory 1999/2000. London: Brassey's, 1999, p. 273-274, Airbus A330.