BELUGA XL THE GIANT OF AIRBUS

where he pointed the tip of his nose on the slopes of Blagnac.

In a few months the Belgula XL will be able to fly, but the first images already reveal its outsized dimensions exceptional. This super carrier, used by the aircraft manufacturer for trans carrying airplane parts between the various European Airbus plants for assembly, will be able to carry up to 53 tons and carry two long wings of the A350XWB at the same time, compared to only one for the current Beluga ST.

The Beluga is a cargo plane that is experiencing a new youth.

The "XL" will carry 30% more payload.

To get all these elements onboard, the Airbus engineers have planned a gigantic front cargo door:

with a surface of 140 m2 it weighs 3.1 tons alone!

In total, five copies will be built

It was the last time that Airbus had given news of the unusual carrier, it was in December when the installation of the famous cargo carrier!

It is 63.1 meters long, almost 19 meters high and has a wingspan of more than 60 meters.

This first release of Beluga XL marks the beginning of the test phase of this giant aircraft, first on the ground and then in flight.

The flight test campaign is scheduled to begin in mid-2018, leading to certification of the aircraft in the process to ensure a 2019 entry into service.

Commissioned in 2019

This new aircraft was launched by Airbus to cope with the increase in production rates of the aircraft manufacturer with the A350 and A320 NEO which delivered in 2017 more than 700 aircraft.