空中客车公司已成功试飞了一款基于其A350客机改装的新型货机。昨日，首架A350F货机在位于法国图卢兹的空客总部跑道上滑行起飞，标志着这家航空航天巨头距离交付这款大容量货机又近了一步。空中客车公司目前已拥有基于A330和A321机型改装的两款货机。过去，该公司还曾制造过定制货机，其特点是在机身上方加装了一个球状外壳，该机身改装自A330或A300。
Airbus has successfully flown a new freighter based on its A350 passenger jet. The first A350F yesterday rolled down the runway at Airbus HQ in Toulouse, France, bringing the aerospace giant closer to delivering a high-capacity freighter. Airbus already makes two freighters, based on its A330 and A321 planes. In the past, it also made custom freighters that featured a bulbous enclosure atop a fuselage adapted from an A330 or A300.
空中客车公司将这些飞机命名为“大白鲸”（Beluga），因为它们看起来有点像鲸鱼。基于A300改装的BelugaST主要负责在各工厂之间运输空客自有的货物。该公司后来利用这些飞机运营过商业货运服务，但已于2024年停止。空中客车公司制造了五架更大的BelugaXL，该机型基于A330F改装。最后一架于2024年投入使用，空客计划让它们服役30年。XL的设计使其能够运输A350的大型零部件。
Airbus named the planes “Beluga” because they looked a little like a whale. The BelugaST, based on the A300, mostly did duty carrying Airbus’ own cargo between factories. The company later operated a commercial cargo service using the planes but discontinued that in 2024. Airbus built five of the larger BelugaXL, which is based on the A330F. The last entered service in 2024 and Airbus intends to fly them for 30 years. The XL’s design allows it to carry large components of the A350.
新款A350F的有效载荷为109吨，而A330F为64吨。新机型还拥有更远的航程和更大的舱门。正如空中客车公司在5月份所解释的那样，其4.3米宽的舱门足以直接将涡轮风扇发动机装入机舱。这家航空航天巨头还表示，巨大的舱门使其“非常适合装载现代经济中至关重要的高价值、时效性强的货物，从高密度计算机服务器到大型电子芯片制造设备，应有尽有。”
The new A350F can carry a payload of 109 tonnes, compared to 64 tonnes for the A330F. The new plane also has longer range, and a bigger door. As Airbus explained in May, the 4.3-metre door is big enough that it’s possible to slot a turbofan engine straight into the plane. The aerospace giant also suggests the giant door makes it “perfectly suited to accommodate high-value, time-sensitive cargo critical to the modern economy, from high-density computer servers to large-scale electronic chip manufacturing machines.”
亲爱的读者，这就是你们关注的IT视角。该机型的载货量略低于竞争对手波音公司的777F，但空中客车公司声称A350F效率更高，因此运营成本更低。
There’s your IT angle, dear reader. The plane’s capacity is a little less than rival Boeing’s 777F, but Airbus claims the A350F is more efficient and therefore cheaper to run.
首架A350F飞行了四小时十分钟，爬升至25,000英尺高度。空中客车公司已基本完成第二架机型的制造，随着新机型认证所需的数百次试飞工作展开，该机型将发挥重要作用。空中客车公司表示，客户目前已订购了115架A350F货机。
The first A350F flew for four hours and ten minutes, climbing to 25,000 feet. Airbus has almost finished making a second model, which will be needed as it embarks on the hundreds of test flights required to certify the new plane. Airbus says customers have already ordered 115 A350Fs.
尽管A350F体型庞大且令人印象深刻，但它无法承载747货机或安东诺夫An124所运输的真正超大载荷；这两种飞机都配有可向外开启的机鼻货舱门，以便将超长货物装入舱内。BelugaXL也采用了这种机鼻设计。An124和747都已使用多年，促使欧洲防务局开展名为“欧洲超大型货物空运系统”（ESOCA）的项目，研究替代方案。该机构最近总结了ESOCA的调查结果，表示其认为“对安东诺夫124机队进行深度现代化改造，和/或研发一种新型欧洲飞机以替代C-17，同时探索其他可行方案。”®
While colossal and impressive, the A350F can’t handle the truly enormous loads carried by 747 freighters or the Antonov An124, both of which boast a nose cargo door that can swing open to allow very long cargoes to be slotted inside. The BelugaXL also features such a nose. The An124 and the 747 are both getting long in the tooth, leading the European Defence Agency to conduct a project called the European System for Outsized Cargo Airlift (ESOCA) to investigate alternatives. The agency recently summarized the findings of ESOCA by suggesting it considers “deeply modernising the Antonov 124 fleet, or/and developing a new European aircraft to replace C-17s, as well as other viable alternatives.” ®