AIRBUS A380-800 "IGW" ?

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is waiting for [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] to provide more detailed specifications for a new higher gross weight variant of the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] before deciding whether to order the superjumbo.

The flag carrier revealed last November that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus covering four A380s. Vietnam Airlines chief executive Pham Ngoc Minh told Flightglobal on 22 June that the carrier has still not committed to acquiring A380s and the superjumbo is still "under study".
Minh says while a final decision has not yet been made Vietnam Airlines is leaning towards waiting for "the next generation of the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]" to become available. He adds that Airbus has informed him the manufacturer should be able to deliver to Vietnam Airlines in 2014 or 2015 A380s with a higher gross weight and more range than the current variant.
Flightglobal reported in May that Airbus was about to begin producing an upgraded [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] that features a 4t increase in maximum take-off weight and an additional 190km (100nm) in range. The launch customer of the new variant, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], is due to take the first upgraded A380 in 2013 and the higher gross weight is expected to be subsequently available as an option for other customers.

Minh says Vietnam Airlines is interested in acquiring A380s with more range than the current variant as it may operate the type on long-haul routes to the USA. But he says for now Airbus is unwilling to guarantee the performance the carrier seeks.

"We have to wait a bit. We have to make sure they meet the performance guarantee," Minh says.

Intox. Minh sait que si BA accepte, la garantie de performance aura été donnée par Airbus, à BA, qui l'aurait acceptée pour "argent comptant" ! Il sait, aussi, que, dans cette hypothèse, ... ce qui est le cas aujourd'hui, la première motorisation à être traitée, dans l'ordre chronologique, sera (et est, de fait) celle de RR ! Point ! Même Emirates suivra. Aussi, Qatar aura, vraisemblablement cette variante à MTOW accru, ce qui indiquerait que Qatar opterait plutôt pour les RR Trent 900, que pour le GP7200, de l'EA. (? )

He adds that the airline may have to wait until next year to find out if Airbus can meet Vietnam's desired operating specifications, but "if they can commit earlier we can conclude [the deal] earlier".

Airbus has not yet booked an A380 order from Vietnam Airlines. Last November the manufacturer confirmed it was talking to the carrier about the A380 without elaborating on a possible timescale for the negotiations or the number of aircraft that could be involved in the deal.

SEVRIEN a écrit:Bonjour, chers tous !

Est-ce qu'Airbus a vraiment commencé les travaux sur une version A380-800 "IGW" ("Increased Gross Weight" / 'à masse accrue') ?

Il semble y avoir eu quelques indiscrétions chez RR.

Et est-ce que ceci sera le passage, ou, du moins, une étape, vers la version A38O-900 ?

A suivre !

Bien entendu, pour RR, il n'y a aucun problème de poussée, ... même pour la vraie version -900 ! Aucun ! Ce qui n'est pas le cas pour le "one-trick pony", GP7200 !

Jeannot a écrit:Il sera intéressant de voir comme le GP7200 va pouvoir "pousser" cette nouvelle version. C'est important pour Emirates qui est le principal client de l'A380.

Sevrien a écrit:"-- Je ne révélerai pas, sur un quelconque Forum, les vrais facteurs derrière la sélection d'Emirates en faveur du GP7200 de l'EA ;
-- sauf à dire que, pour une partie significative, ils n'avaient rien à voir avec les critères & mérites techniques d'un choix de moteur".

Sevrien a écrit: Le moteur RR Trent fut certifié (à date, ... ou même avant) en octobre 2004, à la poussée de 80,000 lbs, pour "a same bill of material", et extensible -- avec une légère modification du "bill of material", permettant d'incorporer les nouveaux matériaux attendus (déjà en cours de développement, ... comme d'habitude ; c'est une donnée, une chose "normale" chez les motoristes ) -- à 84,000 lbs (ou un peu plus, ..... mais pas beaucoup.. ), ... soit deux niveaux de poussée jugés (par Airbus) tout à fait acceptables et adaptés aux besoins du futur A380-900 "Stretch".

"Thrust Performance margins"

Pendant les essais, le RR Trent 900, dans la version certifiée à la poussée de 80,000 lbs ("from the same bill of material", en conformité avec la spécification d'Airbus ; car c'est l'airframer Airbus qui décide, .... le motoriste RR qui se conforme et exécute / réalise, .... et ce sont les Autorités qui certifient) a, en effet, "poussé" plusieurs fois à 91,200 lbs, et a été ensuite monté au niveau de 93,000 lbs. Je cite le "Fact Sheet" de RR, qui n'est pas de la propagande "marketing" (le rédacteur n'est pas Randy BASELER ou John LEAHY) ....

Sevrien a écrit: Lien :
[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]

The engine has a baseline take-off thrust of 70,000lb and is certificated up to 80,000lb from the same bill of material.
In testing, it has been run up to 93,000lb thrust.
Performance of the engine is exceptional, meeting or exceeding all of the next generation targets it has been set.

Sevrien a écrit:NB : RAPPEL à toutes fins utiles : le moteur rival GP7200 de l'EA n'est certifié qu'à un niveau maximal actuel de 76,500 lbs, sans prévision aujourd'hui de pouvoir monter plus haut, ... quoique le contrat avec Airbus soit d'assurer des valeurs de poussée entre 70,000 lbs et 85,000 lbs ; tirer vos conclusions !

Oui ! Les "Usual Suspects", surtout leur porte-drapeau, qui n'y comprend rien, et qui se donne en spectacle avec ses petites phrases (qui glissent comme un pet sur une toile cirée) balancées contre le RR Trent 900, n'ont toujours pas compris que ce moteur, dans sa forme d'origine (sans les améliorations déjà réalisées, et stockées sur l'étagère du R&T, en attente de l'EIS) avait déjà été testé, sur l'aile de'A380, configuré à des MTOW allant de 573 à 590 tonnes.

• l'avion ait décollé & / ou volé à ces valeurs-là de MTOW ;
  
• l'avion puisse voler en toute sécurité, avec une telle config. de MTOW, même si le moteur RR Trent 900 a démontré sa capacité à le faire décoller à divers poids, allant de 573 à 590 tonnes ;
  
• le GP7200 ait une capacité même approchant (loin s'en faut) la possibilité d'assurer le décollage de l'A380-800, la montée en altitude et / ou 'le voler' !
  

• Emirates, AF / KLM, BA, Cathay, Lufthansa, SIA, Qantas, Virgin Atlantique, Qatar, Etihad, ...
  

Pre-start flows were straightforward, and the aircraft was pushed back for engine start. As with the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]-600, both engines on a wing are started simultaneously: engines 3 and 4 were started first, followed by 1 and 2. Unlike in other Airbus aircraft, the engine start selector is now on the overhead panel, not the pedestal. With its starter engaged, the master lever for each engine was placed to the “on” position. The dual-channel full-authority digital engine control managed the start sequence, providing fuel and ignition at the appropriate time. Each engine reached idle in less than 60s. Peak exhaust-gas temperature was less than 410°C on each engine, well below the redline limit displayed on the ECAM. With all four engines running, the APU was shut down and a flight-control check conducted.

Flaps were set to Config 3 (slats 23°, flaps 26° and ailerons drooped 5°) and pitch trim set to 4° up before taxiing for take-off from Toulouse’s runway 32L. The A380 is the first Airbus that does not have a tailplane trim wheel on the centre console. Fitted to previous FBW Airbuses to give pilots a manual reversion option in the event of a full failure, the wheel is replaced by a pitch trim switch on the aft end of the pedestal.
For the initial take-off, a reduced thrust setting was programmed by selecting “Flex 50” on the FMS, which told the engines to assume an outside air temperature of 50°C, compared with the ambient temperature of 18°C. The Trent engines are limited to 78% N1 low-spool speed during take-off until 45kt (83km/h) is achieved, to reduce fatigue on engine components. This limit will be reduced to 35kt on customer aircraft, and has a negligible impact on take-off performance, says Rosay.

Smooth acceleration

At take-off the aircraft weighed 390t – well below the standard 560t maximum take-off weight (MTOW) – which included 90t of fuel and 1.8t of passengers. This implies an operating weight empty (OWE) of 298.3t,but MSN001 is configured for flight test and likely has 10-20t of ballast and test equipment on board. For production aircraft, Airbus is projecting a typical OWE of 277t.

For the take-off and first portion of the climb to altitude I occupied a seat on the upper deck of the passenger compartment. Observed acceleration during the take-off roll was smooth, with the ECAM showing that only 75% of available thrust for the ambient conditions was used for the reduced-power take-off. The Trent 900’s standard thrust rating for the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is 70,000lb thrust (312kN), but for our flight MSN001’s engines had the 72,000lb thrust rating that is offered with the optional 569t MTOW.

Ground roll and time to lift-off, as recorded by the flight test engineer Fernando Alonso, were 1,345m and 37s respectively. Distance and time to clear a 35ft obstacle were computed at 1,825m and 43s respectively. Final performance numbers have not been released, but at MTOW Airbus projects a balanced-field take-off distance of 2,990m at sea level and ISA+15°C.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is eyeing an increase in maximum take-off weight for the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] as part of a series of improvements over 2010-12.

The airframer, which lists the type's current MTOW at 560t, is not disclosing the size of any increase.

But Airbus executive vice-president of programmes Tom Williams, speaking to ATI during a briefing in Hamburg today, said it would be a "small" improvement which operators could trade for increased range or payload.
[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] product marketing head Richard Carcaillet says the airframer is still evaluating the potential improvement and is "not authorised to offer it to the market".

He adds that it would apply to the[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] and would not amount to a new variant of the aircraft. There would also be "no empty weight impact".

Other improvements tentatively planned for the A380 during 2010-12, says Williams, include a progressive removal of 2t from the manufacturer empty weight for the type, and new operational functions such as flexible climb.
Earlier enhancements, which are set to be introduced in the fourth quarter of this year, aim to expand on-board diagnostics through built-in test equipment, and bring on board dual head-up displays and functions such as brake-to-vacate.

Un des deux prototypes de l'A380 encore chez Airbus devrait effectuer sur la plateforme de Toulouse-Blagnac un décollage avorté (Rejected Take-Off) avec une masse de six cents tonnes. Bien qu'anodin, cet événement marque le début d'un Airbus A380-800 à rayon d'action accru.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] and [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] will take delivery of an improved version of the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] from 2012 offering a slightly better payload/range performance through a modest increase in maximum take-off weight.

Although the airframer has confirmed the weight increase, which will be offered as an option from 2012, it will not disclose the actual figure until the modification passes a critical design review next month. "We'll begin offering it to customers from September, it will be a nice (increase)," says A380 product marketing chief Richard Carcaillet.
The A380-800 is currently offered with a baseline maximum take-off weight of 560t, with an increase to 569t available as an option. Airbus quotes a typical range for the 560t version of 15,200km (8,200nm).

The increased weight version, which is not a new "-800R" type variant, says Carcaillet, will be introduced with a new build standard in 2012. He adds that the performance gain came from a requirement for a couple of customers during sales campaigns against the Boeing 747-8I. BA and Emirates will be the first to receive the upgraded aircraft, in 2012.

The baseline thrust rating currently offered for the A380-800's engines is 70,000lb (312kN), with 72,000lb as an option. Carcaillet does not expect the new weight to require additional thrust, but says this will be confirmed after the critical design review.

Airbus executive vice-president Tom Williams says the weight increase will require a paperwork change for aircraft with the requisite structural capability.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is about to begin production of an upgraded [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] with increased operating weights that will offer more range and payload capability when it enters service with launch customer [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] in 2013.

The new version features a 4t increase in maximum take-off weight to 573t and an additional 190km (100nm) range that will enable it to fly distances of 15,360km on MTOW-limited missions. Maximum landing weight and maximum zero fuel weight have also each increased by 2t, and structural payload capability rises by 1.5t on MZFW-limited missions.

"Because we understand design cycles much better now, we are able to further optimise the performance," says Airbus's executive vice-president programmes Tom Williams.

Full-scale fatigue testing of the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] has passed 45,000 cycles, which Williams say is 2.4 times the original design service goal or "aircraft life", and testing is continuing to beyond 2.5 design service goals.

To achieve the operating weight increases the airframe structure has been strengthened, which will become standard on aircraft delivered from 2013, although the higher operating weights will be offered as an option. According to Williams the increases are made possible through reductions in flight loads, which are partly achieved by the optimisation of the fly-by-wire control laws.

This new A380 build standard will be introduced later this year when assembly begins of the first wings at Airbus's Broughton, UK plant, and these will also incorporate a 1.5° increase in twist to further optimise aerodynamics as part of the improvement package. Airbus says that the upgrade does not require any thrust bumps, and is not capable of retrofit to earlier build aircraft.

BA is due to be the launch operator for the improved A380, when its first [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]-powered aircraft is delivered in 2013. Airbus executives previously disclosed that the weight and performance gain came from a requirement for a couple of customers during sales campaigns against the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]-8I...........

Il y en a qui oublient !

Jeannot a écrit:Airbus a finalisé la version de l'A380 avec un MTOW à 573 tonnes.

Airbus Plans Higher Max Takeoff Weight For A380

Airbus has finalized an A380 design package available to airlines allowing them to fly the aircraft farther or with more payload.
The design changes are available as an option to airlines and boost the maximum takeoff weight of the aircraft by four metric tons to 573,000 metric tons. The change would enable the aircraft to fly 120 nm farther or carry the equivalent of 20 more passengers.
Airbus is now in discussions with airlines about who want to take the option. The new weight variant is available starting in 2013, says program chief Alain Flourens.
The upgraded version introduces a slight modification to the wing twist on the A380 to improve efficiency, features a number of weight savings and, in some areas, slight reinforcements. “We simply sharpened our pencil.”
No engine changes were required to achieve the higher performance, says the Airbus official. Nevertheless, Rolls-Royce and Engine Alliance are looking at upgrades to introduce to their powerplant offerings on the A380, although Mary Ellen Jones, president of the General Electric/Pratt & Whitney joint venture, says right now Engine Alliance remains in the evaluation stage.
Meanwhile, Airbus is preparing for flight certification of new Koito Industries seats for Singapore Airlines, and deliveries will restart in a few weeks.
Flourens notes that progress in production is clearly being made, but concedes that seat issues and supply bottlenecks on the Trent 900 following last year’s uncontained engine failure on a Qantas A380 that has eaten up spares supplies will mean deliveries are heavily backloaded in the second half. Lead time for production, however, is significantly down, he stresses.
Production, meanwhile, is set to continue ramping up, with a goal of reaching three aircraft per month next year from about 2.5 aircraft per month this year.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]

No engine changes were required to achieve the higher performance, says the Airbus official. Nevertheless, Rolls-Royce and Engine Alliance are looking at upgrades to introduce to their powerplant offerings on the A380, although Mary Ellen Jones, president of the General Electric/Pratt & Whitney joint venture, says right now Engine Alliance remains in the evaluation stage.

Airbus COO-Customers John Leahy told ATW that 2011 is shaping up as a strong year for the manufacturer. "Look at our A320neo [currently 332 orders, commitments and undisclosed MOUs]," he said during an interview in Toulouse last week. "They've been taken by storm. The market has spoken that this kind of aircraft will be needed."
He predicted additional A320neo orders will be announced at next month's Paris Air Show.

Leahy also touted the A380 program and noted Airbus will offer an option to increase maximum takeoff weight to 573 tons, adding 120 nautical miles to its range. Leahy said the variety of markets to which the aircraft is operating, pointing in particular to Emirates serving Manchester with an A380, was not anticipated by Airbus. "I never expected" it go to MAN, he commented. "Everywhere [EK] goes with the A380, they're adding business."

He conceded that an A380 order from a US airline is not expected anytime soon: "There are just two US airlines which operate 747-400s [Delta Air Lines and United Airlines]. That could change when US carriers get more competition from A380 operators, such as on routes to Asia. Nevertheless, we're happy that Air France and Lufthansa are serving seven destinations in North America" with the A380, enabling the product to be demonstrated in the market.

Korean Air took delivery of its first A380 last week ([Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]). China Southern Airlines is slated to take its first A380 in the second half 2011. Next year, A380 deliveries to Malaysia Airlines and Thai Airways are on the list.
As of April 15, the worldwide A380 fleet had operated 270,000 flight hr. on 30,000 revenue flights. Currently, there are 48 A380s in service and 233 firm orders from 17 customers.

Jeannot a écrit:La commande de Hong Kong Airlines va peut être pousser Cathay Pacific dans les bras du 380 ? Just a though !

The Trent 900 is the engine of choice for the Airbus A380, with two thirds of operators selecting the engine.

It delivers the lowest lifetime fuel burn and has excellent environmental attributes. The Trent 900 will continue to deliver customer benefits as it is part of a living engine family.

The Trent 900 demonstrates the result of the environment being the driving force behind its design. It satisfied all its key requirements, most delivering better than specification: fuel burn, noise, emissions, weight and power. The Trent 900 powered A380 is quiet, meeting the QC0.5 level for Arrivals and QC2 for departures.

As the fourth generation of the Trent family of engines, the Trent 900 benefits from our ability to feed back low-risk new technology from future generations.

Rolls-Royce has a demonstrated commitment to continuous improvement, having already delivered a fuel burn improvement package for the Trent 900. Further enhancement is planned to make the Trent 900 up to 1.8% better than specification.

The excellent environmental attributes of the engine are evident as it has the greatest cumulative margin to ICAO emission standards of any engine for the A380. The engine has the lowest NOx emissions for the A380, NOx is currently the only regulated emission subject to specific airport charging.

The Trent 900 is certified at 70k, 72k, 76k and 80k pounds of thrust.

It is the only engine certified at both 70k and 72k for the Airbus A380. The higher two ratings demonstrate the growth capability embedded in the engine, should further aircraft development be required.

• 'le RR Trent 900 offre beaucoup de possibilités et d'avenues d'évolutions et de progrès / "upgrade" ;
  
• 'en réalité, ... "There is a lot one can do" .... ;
  
• 'et la beauté des perspective est la possibilité d'avoir, pour faire simple, la double source, et le double itéinéraire des RR Trent 900 et Trent, .......
  
• 'en fonction des projets d'Airbus, .... et des préférences du marché'.