50 years ago today, September 3rd, was the day Air France became the launch customer of the A300. (September 3, 1970)
As of 2022, there will be no opportunity to board the A300 in Japan, and we are lucky if we can see an aircraft operated as a freighter at Narita International Airport. The theme of this time is to explain what kind of aircraft the rare A300 is now. The key points are the following three points.
Airbus Wesite
First airliner developed by Airbus
The world’s first twin-engine widebody aircraft
Most of the aircraft currently in service are freighters
First of all, I will explain "Airbus's first passenger aircraft". In the 1960s when the development took place, Boeing, one of the three major aircraft manufacturers in the United States, developed the B747, commonly known as a jumbo jet, Douglas developed the DC-10, and Lockheed developed the Tristar. It was lagging behind the United States. At that time, none of the aircraft manufacturers in Europe had a track record of developing medium- to large-sized passenger aircraft. It's decided. The first step of that concept will be the prototype of the A300. Ordered by Air France in 1970 and first flew on 28 October 1972. After that, derivative production was also carried out for several decades, and a total of 567 aircraft were produced.
Airbus Website
Next, I will explain "the world's first twin-engine widebody plane". In the 1970s, the reliability of the engine was not high, and it was an era before the appearance of high-power engines, so it was common for medium to large passenger aircraft to have 3 to 4 engines. Specifically, B747 equipped with four engines, DC-10 and Tristar equipped with three engines were the mainstream. The A300 cut into that market.
At the beginning of sales, sales will be difficult. One of the reasons is that the cruising range is as short as 1,500 km because it is assumed to operate within the European region. 1,500 km is from Tokyo to Cape Soya, the northernmost tip of Hokkaido, and does not reach Naha. For this reason, we developed a range extension model while incorporating the opinions of airlines. After that, Airbus accumulated sales and operational results, and sales were able to get on track.
During development, the fuselage diameter was set to a perfect circle with an outer diameter of 5.64 meters, contributing to the maximization of passenger and cargo loading capacity. This fuselage was also used for the later developed A330 and A340.
Japan Airlines Website
Finally, I would like to explain about “Most of the aircraft currently in service are freighters”. More than 40 years have passed since the A300 first entered service, and there were many aircraft that were refurbished from passenger types to cargo types. UPS and FedEx are the top airlines currently operating the A300. Currently, there are no airlines operating in Japan, but JAL (introduced by JAS before the merger) used to operate.
The DNA of Airbus' first passenger aircraft will be firmly carried on to the new Airbus aircraft.
