The Airbus A330neo took to the skies for the first time today, completing a 4 hour 15 minute maiden flight from Toulouse, France. The aircraft is scheduled to enter service in the second half of 2018 with launch customer TAP Air Portugal.
First flight
On its first flight, the A330neo (reg F-WTTN) spent 4 hours 15 minutes in skies above France, spending about 90 minutes at 10,000 feet, before climbing to 20,000 feet, and finally 30,000 feet. After a low pass at Toulouse, the flight landed at 12:14 UTC (14:14 local).
What’s new about the neo?
The A330neo has an enlarged wing, now with a 64m wingspan, an increase of nearly 4 meters from the A330ceo. The A330neo wing also includes new sharklets similar to those on the A350. Under the wing, the A330neo is powered by the new Rolls Royce Trent 7000 engine, which includes a new composite nacelle and titanium pylon. Taken together, these contribute to an improved fuel burn and increased range of 400 nm compared to the A330ceo.
Flight test campaign
The A330neo flight test campaign will make use of 3 aircraft, two A330-900s and one A330-800. 1,100 flight hours have been allotted for the A330-900 campaign, while an additional 300 hours have been scheduled for the A330-800 campaign.
Tracking the flight tests
| Aircraft Type | Registration | MSN |
|---|---|---|
| A330-900 | F-WTTN | 1795 |
| A330-900 | F-WTTE | 1813 |
| A330-800 | TBA | TBA |
First flight photos
