Wide-body aircraft.html



This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. Please help recruit one or improve this article yourself. See the talk page for details. Please consider using {{Expert-subject}} to associate this request with a WikiProject

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2008)

The European Airbus A380 is the world's largest and widest passenger aircraft

A wide-body aircraft is a large airliner with two passenger aisles, and a typical fuselage diameter of 5 to 6 metres (16 to 20 feet)¹. In the typical widebody economy cabin, passengers are seated seven to ten abreast, allowing a total capacity of 200 to 600 passengers. The largest widebody aircraft are over 6 metres (20 ft) wide, and can accommodate up to eleven passengers abreast in high-density configurations. As well, wide-body aircraft are used for the transport of commercial freight and cargo.²

For comparison, a traditional narrow-body airliner has a diameter of 3 to 4 metres (10 to 13 feet), with a single aisle, and seats accommodating between two and six people abreast.

Widebody aircraft were originally designed for a combination of efficiency and passenger comfort. However, airlines quickly gave in to hard economics, and reduced the extra passenger space in order to maximize revenue and profits.³. Depending on how the airline configures the aircraft, the size and seat pitch of the airline seats will vary significantly⁴. For example, aircraft scheduled for shorter flights are often configured at a higher seating density than long-haul aircraft.

Due to current economic pressures on the airline industry, high seating densities in the economy cabin are likely to continue.⁵

History

Boeing 747, the first wide-body passenger aircraft, operated by Pan American World Airways

Following the success of the narrow-body Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 in the late 1950s, airlines began seeking larger aircraft to meet the rising global demand for air travel. Engineers were faced with many challenges as airlines demanded more passenger seats per aircraft, longer fuel ranges and lower operating costs.^{citation needed}

Early jet aircraft such as the 707 and DC-8 seated passengers along either side of a single aisle, with no more than six seats per row.^{citation needed} Larger aircraft would have to be longer, higher (such as a double deck), or wider in order to accommodate the greater number of passenger seats. Engineers also realized that lengthening the fuselage would have resulted in aircraft that would be too long to be handled by airports, while having two decks created difficulties in meeting emergency evacuation regulations, which were extremely challenging provided the technology available at the time. These parameters left a wider fuselage as the best option: by adding a second aisle, the wider aircraft could accommodate as many as 10 seats across.⁶

The widebody age began in 1970 with the entry into service of the first wide-body airliner, the four-engined Boeing 747^{citation needed}. The main deck of the 747 features twin aisles and seats ten people abreast, while the upper-deck "hump" of the aircraft seats six abreast along a single aisle. Other wide-body aircraft soon followed, including the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 and the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar. In 1974, Airbus introduced the Airbus A300, the first twin-engine wide-body jet.^{citation needed}

After the success of the early widebody aircraft, several successors came to market over the next two decades, including the Airbus A330-A340 Series and the Boeing 767-777. In the jumbo category, the capacity of the Boeing 747 was not surpassed until October 2007, when the Airbus A380 entered commercial service with the nickname Superjumbo.⁷

Present

Boeing 787, the first large composite aircraft, expected in service in 2009 or 2010

Airbus replies with the A350, expected in service in 2012 or 2013

Airbus and Boeing are racing to market with two new wide-body designs, currently in development⁸. Initially, the A350 was a minor upgrade to the A330/A340 series, but Airbus made significant design changes in response to feedback from the airlines. Both manufacturers have been under significant pressure to see who can get the most orders.⁹. Currently, Boeing has received more orders than Airbus.

• Boeing 787: The first large commercial aircraft to utilize a monolithic composite fuselage, and planned replacement for the 767.^{citation needed}

• Airbus A350: The planned replacement for the Airbus A330/A340. Although slightly wider than the Boeing 787, the A350 will be later to market than the Boeing 787.^{citation needed}

Order counts between the two aircraft can be compared here: Airbus A350 orders or Boeing 787 orders. The article competition between Airbus and Boeing further discusses the rivalry.

Design considerations

Airbus A300 cross-section, showing cargo, passenger, and overhead areas

Cross section of the Airbus A380 with twin aisles on both decks

Although wide-body aircraft have a larger frontal area (and thus greater form drag) than a narrow-body aircraft of similar capacity, they have several advantages over their narrow-body counterparts:^{citation needed}

• Larger volume of space for passengers, giving a more open feeling to the space
• Lower ratio of surface area to volume, and thus (for equal volume) lower frictional drag; also, lower drag on a per-passenger basis
• Twin aisles that accelerate loading and unloading/evacuation relative to a single aisle
• Wider fuselage that reduces the overall length of the aircraft, improving ground manoeuvrability and reducing the risk of tail strikes
• Greater under-floor freight capacity
• Better structural efficiency for larger aircraft than would be possible with a narrow-body design

British and the Russian designers had proposed widebody aircraft similar in configuration to the Vickers VC-10 and Boeing 717, but with a wide-body fuselage.^{citation needed} The British Three-Eleven project never left the drawing board, while the Russian Il-86 wide-body proposal eventually gave way to a more conventional wing-mounted engine design, most likely due to the inefficiencies of mounting such a large engine on the aft fuselage.

Operating considerations

This picture from a NASA study on wingtip vortices qualitatively illustrates the wake turbulence.

Aircraft are categorised by ICAO according to the wake turbulence they produce. Because wake turbulence is generally related to the weight of an aircraft, these categories are based on one of four weight categoreies¹⁰: medium, large, heavy, and super. Aircraft with a maximum certificated take-off weight of 300,000 lb (140,000 kg) or more are classed as Heavy; those between 15,500 lb (7,000 kg) and 300,000 lb (140,000 kg) are classed as Medium; and those below 15,500 lb (7,000 kg) are classed as Light. Due to their weight, all current wide-body aircraft are categorised as Heavy, or in the case of the A380, Super. The lightest widebody aircraft ever built was the Airbus A300B1 with a maximum take-off weight of 291,000 lb (132,000 kg).^{citation needed}

The wake-turbulence category also is used to guide the separation of aircraft.^{citation needed} Super and Heavy-category aircraft require greater separation behind them than do those in the Medium category, which in turn require more separation than aircraft in the Light category. In some countries, such as the United States, it is a requirement to suffix a heavy aircraft's call sign with the word "heavy" when communicating with ATC in the Terminal Radar Area. If the aircraft is operating on an Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) frequency, it is not required to append "heavy" at the end of its call sign. For example, flight UAL342 operated by United Airlines using a wide-body aircraft would use the call sign "United 342 Heavy" while operating in the United States.^{citation needed}

Solely wide-bodied fleets

Very few airlines have been economically successful operating a fleet consisting solely of wide-body aircraft. Four notable airlines with this fleet type (Singapore Airlines, Emirates Airline, Cathay Pacific Airways, and Air Tahiti Nui) are based in small countries or territories.

Passenger airlines that operate an all-wide-body fleet, and exist as a single company, without subsidiaries that operate narrow-body aircraft, include:

• Air Tahiti Nui
• Air Transat
• Cathay Pacific Airways
• Emirates Airlines
• Singapore Airlines

Widebody Specifications

The Airbus A300 introduced in 1972 was the first twin-engined wide body

An example of a widebody Lockheed L-1011 TriStar in a trijet configuration of Royal Jordanian Airlines in this short-lived, early 1980s livery.

Widebody Passenger Aircraft Statistics

	Model	EIS	# Eng.	Inside Diameter, main passenger deck	Outside Diameter, main passenger deck	Number of seats across, economy, main deck (seat width)11
	Airbus A300	1974	2	208 inches (5.28 m) [1]	222 inches (5.64 m) [2]12	8 across (17.0" wide) in 2-4-2 on TG [3][4] 8 across (17.0" wide) in 2-4-2 on LH [5]
	Airbus A310	1982	2	208 inches (5.28 m) [6]	222 inches (5.64 m) [7]	8 across (17.4" wide) in 2-4-2 on AI [8][9]
	Airbus A330	1994	2	208 inches (5.28 m) [10]	222 inches (5.64 m) [11]	8 across (17.5" wide) in 2-4-2 on EK [12] 8 across (17.5" wide) in 2-4-2 on NW [13]
	Airbus A340	1993	4	208 inches (5.28 m) [14]	222 inches (5.64 m) [15]	8 across (17.3" wide) in 2-4-2 on EY [16]
	Airbus A350	2012	2	220 inches (5.59 m) [17]	234 inches (5.94 m) [18]	8 across (18.9" wide) in 2-4-2 Proposed [19]13 9 across (17.7" wide) in 3-3-3 Proposed [20]14
	Airbus A380	2007	4	259 inches (6.58 m)	281 inches (7.14 m) [21]	10 across (18.6" wide) in 3-4-3 on SQ [22] 10 across (18.1" wide) in 3-4-3 on QF [23] 10 across (18.0" wide) in 3-4-3 on EK [24]
	Boeing 747	1970	4	240 inches (6.10 m) [25]	256 inches (6.50 m)	10 across (17.7" wide) in 3-4-3 on TG [26] 10 across (17.2" wide) in 3-4-3 on NW [27][28]
	Boeing 767	1982	2	186 inches (4.72 m) [29]	198 inches (5.03 m) 15	7 across (18.0" wide) in 2-3-2 on UA [30][31] 7 acorss (17.0" wide) in 2-3-2 on US [32][33]
	Boeing 777	1995	2	231 inches (5.87 m) [34]	244 inches (6.20 m)	9 across (17.9" wide) in 3-3-3 on CO [35][36] 9 across (18.0" wide) in 2-5-2 on UA [37][38]
	Boeing 787	2010	2	215 inches (5.46 m) [39]	227 inches (5.77 m) [40]16	8 across (18.5" wide) in 2-4-2 Proposed [41] 9 across (17.2" wide) in 3-3-3 Proposed [42]
	Ilyushin Il-86	1980	4		239 inches (6.07 m)
	Ilyushin Il-96	1992	4		239 inches (6.07 m)
	L1011 Tristar	1972	3		237 inches (6.02 m)
	MD DC-10	1971	3	218 inches (5.54 m)	237 inches (6.02 m)	9 across (17.2" wide) in 2-5-2 on NW [43]17
	MD MD-11	1990	3		237 inches (6.02 m)	9 across (17.5" wide) in 3-3-3 on KL [44]18

References

1. ^ Paul J. C. Friedlander (1972-03-19). "the traveler's world; Test of a New Wide-Bodied Airbus". New York Times.
2. ^ http://www.impactpub.com.au/aircargo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2659&Itemid=60
3. ^ Eric Pace (1981-05-24). "How Airline Cabins are Being Reshaped". New York Times.
4. ^ http://www.uk-air.net/seatpitch.htm
5. ^ http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/displaystory.cfm?subjectid=348873&story_id=12454133
6. ^ Irving, Clive (1994). Wide Body: The Making of the Boeing 747, Coronet. ISBN 0 340 59983 9. 
7. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4183201.stm
8. ^ http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/04/10/business/airbus.php
9. ^ http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/228341_qatar14.html
10. ^ http://propilotnews.com/2008/08/airbus-a380-requires-new-super-wake.html
11. ^ Note: Seat-width specifications are not always represented accurately; multiple sources are encouraged, as well as the comparison of multiple airlines. Unexpected widths may be in error and should not be included here.
12. ^ Note: There appears to be a unit conversion error on the Airbus webpage for the A300 O.D. specifications. 222 inches (5.64 m) is presumed to be correct.
13. ^ Note: Possible unit-conversion error in article, 48 cm used as source.
14. ^ Note: Published article indicated most airlines will choose the 9-across configuration
15. ^ Note: An extensive Internet search did not reveal any original Boeing source for the actual O.D. of the B767.
16. ^ http://www.boeing.com/commercial/787family/787-8prod.html Note: some Boeing B787 source material indicates 227 inches (5.77 m) outer diameter, while other Boeing sources indicate 226 inches (5.74 m)
17. ^ Note: Retired from service in 2007.
18. ^ http://www.klm.com/travel/gb_en/travel_information/on_board/seating_plans/md11.htm KLM's website does not include seat width information.

See Also

• Seat configurations of the Airbus A380
• Aircraft seat maps
• List of large aircraft
• List of airliners by seat capacity
• Competition between Airbus and Boeing

External links

Airbus A330, operated by Swiss International Air Lines

• Official Airbus website
• Official Boeing website

• Airplane seating Information from seatguru.com, single aircraft per page
• Airplane seat pitch and width information from eskyguide.com, in table form
• Airplane seat pitch and width information from cheapflights.com, in table form
• SeatMaestro.com

• WidebodyAircraft.nl information and chronology

v • d • e Airbus aircraft Civil A300 · A300 Beluga · A310  · A320 family (A318, A319, A320, A321)  · A330  · A340  · A350 · A380 Military A310 MRTT · A330 MRTT · A400M In development/ proposed A350 · A400M · NSR · KC-45 Other supported types Sud Aviation Caravelle · Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde