Aviation_News_2017-03

the design further with the A300B4-600,

later designated the A300-600. The

slightly different tail and empennage of its

smaller A310 derivative was used, adding

a couple of inches to the overall aircraft

but a signi cant amount of useable interior

space. Other changes were the addition of

 y-by-wire, simpli cation of the wing trailing

edge Fowler  aps and a ‘recamber’ of the

rest of the trailing edge, the addition of a

small wing-tip fence and the deletion of the

outboard aileron. The -600 had a range of

2,650nm (4,908km). Uprated engines were

also available from both Pratt & Whitney

(PW4000) and General Electric (CF6-80).

Earlier versions of the A300 had also used

the CF-6 with another option being the Pratt

& Whitney JT9D.

The A300-600  rst  ew on July 8, 1983

and received its type certi cate from the

French and West German authorities on

March 9, 1984. The  rst deliveries were

Pratt & Whitney-powered machines to

carriers based in the Persian Gulf (Saudia

and Kuwait Airways), both in June. The

initial General Electric-powered aircraft went

to Thai Airways in September 1985.

A long-range variant, dubbed the A300-

600R (‘R’ for Range) was kicked off with an

order by American Airlines, which bought 35,

mostly to serve high-density markets in the

Caribbean and Central America.

Although the -600R had a range of

4,050nm (6,670km) – it had an extra fuel

tank in the horizontal stabiliser, adding an

extra 6,150 lit (1,624 US gal) to the total fuel

capacity – it was still not truly intercontinental.

However, American did use its A300s on

shorter transatlantic trips such as New York to

London, albeit with payload penalties.

Britain’s Monarch Airlines became an

enthusiastic operator of the A300-600R,

 ying its four examples from early 1990 until

April 2014, mostly to European sunspots

in summer, ski resorts in winter, and some

long-haul trips such as Goa (usually via

Bahrain to pick up fuel), Mombasa (via

Athens) and Florida (via Gander).

Finally, the A300-600F (‘F’ for Freight)

was developed at the initiation of FedEx and

UPS (United Parcel Service). Respectively

they ordered 35 and 90 (later reduced to

53). Daimler-Benz Aerospace, later known

as DaimlerChrysler, created a freighter

conversion programme for A300 passenger

aircraft. This included adding a large

main-deck cargo door, the replacement of

passenger doors 2L and 2R with a blank

shell panel, reinforcement of the main-

deck  oor, plus enhanced smoke detection

and  re suppression systems. The  rst

converted A300B4 was delivered to Channel

Express in July 1997.

END OF PRODUCTION

The last of 554 A300s to be manufactured

was an A300-600F, which performed its  rst

test  ight out of Toulouse on April 18, 2007

and was handed over to FedEx on July 12.

By the second decade of the 21st

century, the A330-200, which matched the

70 Aviation News incorporating Jets March 2017

British leisure carrier Monarch Airlines purchased four A300-600Rs. It retired the type on April 13, 2014. Airbus

Above: China Eastern Airlines was one of the last carriers to  y the A300 on passenger

services retiring its  nal example in 2014. It had owned 13 A300-600Rs. Airbus

Below: FedEx Express, the US-based global parcel and freight giant, has 68 A300-600Fs. Some

are converted from passenger aircraft and others, including N652FE, were delivered new from

Toulouse as pure freighters. Airbus

66-71_a300DC.mf.indd 70 03/02/2017 17:47