Big Aeroplanes

The Airbus Beluga, also known like Airbus To300-600ST is an aeroplane of load, specialised in bulky loads, designed by Airbus from the To300, with big modifications to be able to carry loads of big size.

Because of his history and structure, Airbus has different centres of production delivered by all Europe, each one of which produces a part of the aeroplane, that has to be moved to be joined to other parts in the final chain of montaje. Although the load of work of each centre varies as the model, generally distribute of the following form: the wings manufacture in Great Britain, the tail and the doors in Spain, the fuselaje in Germany and the central section and the leading part in France, which are joined in Toulouse, Hamburg or Filton as the model and version.

At the beginning the components carried by earth or by ship, but the increase of the production did necessary to transport them by air. For this Airbus bought in 1972 four Super Guppies, that had belonged to the space program Apollo of the NASA. But the Super Guppies did not give the result that expected , because of his antiquity had a high cost of maintenance, besides his capacity was not sufficient to satisfy the speed of production of the factories of Airbus. To solve these problems created the Beluga.

They exist other cargueros that can transport loads much heavier (as the Antonov An-225, the Boeing B747 or the Lockheed C-5), but any can transport loads so big and bulky like the Beluga. The compartment of load of the Beluga measures 7,4 m of diameter and 37,7 m of long. In total, carries until 47 tonnes of load.

In 1991 Aérospatiale and DASA, created a company to develop the substitute of the Super Guppies. From the bimotor of fuselaje wide Airbus To300 developed the Beluga. They kept the wings, engines, train of landing and the inferior part of the fuselaje. The top of the fuselaje substituted by a structure with form of horseshoe of 7,4 m of diameter. To allow the access to the cabin of load, the cabin of control carried to an inferior level to the of load, and incorporated a door of 17 m of high in the frontal part of the aeroplane. Besides it modified the structure of the tail, that was alargada and widened, adding him two vertical rudders additional, to improve the maniobrabilidad and stability of the aeroplane.

The montaje of the aeroplane began in September of 1992, being the flight inaugural in September of 1994. The model obtained the certification of aeronavegabilidad a year afterwards. In total built five Belugas. His main task is to carry the components of the aeroplanes Airbus from the places of production until the final chains of montaje, but besides are available for special works of load, as the transfer of components of the International Space Station, works of art of big size, industrial machinery, or whole helicopters.

Specifications

Length: 56,16 metres
Envergadura: 44,84 metres
Height: 17,34 metres
Surface alar: 258,8 m2
Diameter of the fuselaje: 7,7 metres
Weight in empty: 86 Tonnes
Maximum weight to the despegue: 152,9 Tn
Radio of action with 40Tn: 2.780 Km
Radio of action with 26Tn: 4.630 Km
Capacity of load: 47 tonnes
Volume of load: 1.365 m2
Crew: 4

Official web: Airbus Beluga