Industry EASA approves new TOW variant of the A330-900

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency EASA has issued an approval for Airbus´ latest A330neo product enhancement. The manufacturer has increased the Maximum-Take-Off-Weight (MTOW) in order to enable the aircraft flying longer routes.

When compared with the stock A330-900´s current 242-tonne version, the new version has 251 metric tonnes as MTOW and is expected to offer a significant 650 nautical miles boost in range, or six tonnes more payload overall.

Airbus decided to develop this variant, as it responds to evolving market needs, enabling airlines to use the good operational performance of the aircraft in connection with the new opportunity to fly longer routes.

Launch customer of the newly certified A330-900 with increased MTOW will be French carrier Corsair. The airline is already operating with A330-200 and A330-300 aircraft. This latest addition will enhance the opportunities to exploit new markets and to operate more efficiently.

François Kubica, A330 Chief Engineer commented: “Airbus is always supporting its customers to find solutions by advancing our products. With the new 251 tonne weight variant the A330neo is more flexible than ever to meet their current and future requirements.”

Regarding the use of the enhanced A330-900, Airbus stated: "Overall, the new MTOW option makes the A330-900 the perfect fit for longer trans-Pacific or Asia-Europe routes. The -900 is the longer-fuselage A330neo version, seating 260-300 passengers in a typical three-class cabin configuration."

The manufacturer also added that certification of a 251 tonne weight version for the shorter A330-800 is expected to take place next year. The A330-800 can accommodate 220-260 passengers in a three-class configuration and is expected to deliver the lowest seat-mile cost in its category.

In order to achieve the 251t capability, Airbus reinforced weight-neutral structural and landing gear adaptions. Also, modifications to the main landing gear and the nose have enabled the company´s engineers to extend their time-before-overhaul (TBO) from 10 years to 12 years, making the aircraft even more cost efficient.