"Beluga" - an aircraft related to turbojet wide-body cargo vehicles. "Airbus Beluga" was designed specifically for the transport of not only heavy, but also bulky cargo. The idea of creating such a vehicle as the Beluga aircraft belongs to the Airbus consortium. In connection with the conclusion of the contract, the company needed such equipment that would allow delivering cabin parts for the Airbus A-310 to Toulouse from Hamburg.
A bit of history
At the beginning of its activity, this company used another transport aircraft, namely the Super Guppy, which at that time was quite enough. But the transported parts of the aircraft being created increased, and other open spaces were required for their transportation. The Beluga aircraft (see photo in the article), also known as the Beluga, was developed on the basis of the predecessor Airbus A300. He even inherited his name, however, with a small addition - 600ST.
Main parameters
"Beluga" - an aircraft whose body looks like a handsome whale with a consonant name ("beluga whale", do not confuse with commercial fish). In a sufficiently voluminous transport compartment (approximately 1400 m³), goods weighing up to 47 tons and almost 40 meters long can be transported.
The flight range at maximum allowable loads can reach 1700 km, with half loads (up to 26 tons) it can reach 4600 km, the practical range is 5200 km. Unlike the "Super Guppy", this machine boasts a high speed, which is twice as high. The crew consists of two people.
Beluga is an aircraft designed for (and owned by) Airbus. There are only five such devices, they work for their company, but can be rented if necessary for special transportation.
Interesting details
The new plane was decided to be made without "fasteners". The double-wing cargo door goes almost from the floor (to the level), but the cockpit and the entire bow are lowered down. The loading system is semi-automatic, more convenient. In addition to the main cabin, Beluga has one more (cargo) compartment - it can be equipped with aviation containers that are within the standard. Of course, the new car is strikingly different from its progenitor, although about 80% are parts of a passenger airbus. In addition to the rework of the fuselage, the wings and tail were changed, and additional washers on the stabilizer improved directional stability.
The cabin itselfidentical to the cockpit of the A-300-600 aircraft. The bow section has everything the crew needs: kitchen, toilet, extra seats.
The Beluga engine with a takeoff power of 262kN was borrowed from the CF6-80C-2 from General Electric. Of course, there were other options, but this one proved to be the best. Such an engine is installed in most of the A-310 and A-300 airbuses and managed to "flow" about 20,000,000 hours. In addition, it is easy to maintain. By the way, the same engine is used on 700 new-generation aircraft. The fact is that the failure rate here is only 0.008%. No other engine has such high reliability. However, this is not all. In airplanes, if one engine fails, the second allows you to extend the flight for another hour. "Beluga" - the plane that broke the record here too: emergency flight time - 180 minutes!
The assembly of the first copy was started in Toulouse on January 11, 1993, and on September 13 of the following year it solemnly took off.
Undoubtedly, this unique machine in every sense has the right to be on the list with the eloquent name "the best aircraft in the world".
