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what are the advantages and disadvantages of the latest technologies introduced in Airbus A-310?

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Public Comments

1. The A310 is a pretty old plane. One neat thing that it did introduce was fuel in the tail. I allows more fuel to be carried and it also increases the aircraft's speed by taking the air load (which produces drag) off the tail.
2. The DC-10 introduced in 1970 had fuel in the tail. The A310 was much later, making its first flight in 1981.
3. The A-310 is basically an A300 with a new wing and a shorter fuselage. Plus it's not that new. The A-310's maiden flight was in 1982. But at it's roll out time it did have some new inovations.( Note: most of these technologies are from the A300.) First Airliner with On Board windshear protection. Elimination of flight engineer position by use of computers. Wingtip fences for better aerodynamics AND Calnickle is right! The DC-10 didnt use the fuel for trim! The A-310 did.
4. The DC10 fuel in the tail was to serve the centre engine only though. The A310 was the first "Common" airliner to pump fuel about to maximise the Centre of Gravity as the fuel was consumed. Ad...better A/c trim....more economical. Disad...another system built in (Potential more problems) and the extra weight of the pumps. Concorde was the first commercial airliner to do it. The A310 was the first twin engined airliner to cross the atlantic (Or other greater expanses of water). The Cockpit that was designed for two was the first to use CRT (Tellies) instead of dials. Ad...Cheaper to fly with two wages not 3! Ad...Cheaper to build a cockpit with TV screens than 100's of dials. Disad...Do you trust computers yet? The A310 was the first commercial airliner to pioneer fly by wire....some secondary controls were done by electric signalling. Ad...Significant weight saving. All those pulley wheels that used to be at the wing joints and elsewhere. Gone. Ad...far more control surfaces can be added to the wing. Ad...the control surfaces are now flipped up and down by a computer, leaving the pilot to concentrate on landing it :-) Disad...the control stick does not truly reflect the movement of the control surface. You could feel a vibration in the old cables. The fist use of a LOT of Carbon Fibre, such as VTP was on the A300 and A310. Ad..All in weight and the alleged longer life of CFRP parts. Ad...less parts needed, no fasterners required on a bonded panel. Disad...there is not a component that is cheaper to manufacture out of CFRP than it was out of Al Alloy. And all costs need to be added here, Raw materials, lay up time, cure costs, finishing costs and assembly onto A/c. CFRP often comes out 3 to 5 times as much in total $...but that extra cost is gained back by the weight saving...fuel costs that is. Or, squash a few more passengers in to the steerage class. You struggle now if your inside leg is longer than 20 inches!!! Oh, and the A310 was originally known as the A300 B10 (After the B1, B2 ,B4). All pretty pioneering stuff from Airbus.
5. The Airbus A310 is a medium to long-range widebody airliner manufactured by Airbus It was Airbus' second model to be introduced, and is a shortened derivative of the A300. The A310-300 range exceeds all A300 models in range, and the A310-200 exceeds all A300 models in range except the A300-600. This quality has led to the aircraft being used extensively on transatlantic routes. The A300 and A310 introduced the concept of commonality: A300-600 and A310 pilots can qualify for the other aircraft with one day of training. Like its sister aircraft, the A300, the A310 is reaching the end of its market life as a passenger and cargo aircraft. There have been no new A310 passenger orders since the late 1990s, and only a few freighter orders remain. The A310 (along with the A300) ceased production in July of 2007, though five orders from Iraqi Airways remain on the books. Freighter sales are to be fulfilled by a new A330-200F derivative. The aircraft was formally launched in July 1978 for Lufthansa and Swissair. A further development of the A300, the aircraft was initially designated the A300 B10. Essentially a "baby" A300, the main differences in the two aircraft are 1.Shortened fuselage - same cross section, providing capacity of about 200. 2.Redesigned wing - designed by British Aerospace who rejoined Airbus consortium 3.Smaller vertical fin A British Caledonian A310-200 circa 1984. The A310 is marketed as an introduction to widebody operations for developing airlines. With the Airbus A330 now a success, further orders for the A310 are unlikely. Between 1983 and 1997, 255 A310s were delivered by Airbus. . There were no inherent disadvantages in the A310 design because if anything it was a remodel of the sugcessful A-300. The total number of aircraft built although a respectable amount was somewhat low as compared to other types. As it was a spin-off of the A-300 the total number built of the two types together is considered a success story and the reason Airbus is around today. It has already been eclipsed by the A-330 and that type shortly will be surpased in capability by the 787 and the A-350. .