The Airbus A330 is a large-capacity, wide-body, twin-engine, medium-to-long-range commercial passenger airliner. Built at Toulouse in France by Airbus, over 600 units have been delivered.
First flown in 1992 the A330 was developed at the same time as the four-engined Airbus A340 and shared common fuselage and wing components. The first variant (series 300) was delivered to Air Inter in 1994 and was followed by the slightly shorter series 200. This has been followed by dedicated freighter variants.
A multi-role tanker and transport variant based on the series 200 has been developed as the Airbus A330 MRTT, this was further developed as the Northrop Grumman KC-45 which won a United States Air Force order which has since been cancelled
Airbus intended the A330 to compete directly in the ETOPS (Extended-range Twin-engine Operation Performance Standards) market, specifically with the Boeing 767. The A330 and A340 programs were jointly launched in November 1987. Airlines purchased it to replace the McDonnell Douglas DC-10. The A330 is 38% more fuel efficient than the DC-10.
The A330's fuselage and wings are virtually identical to those of the smaller A340 variants, although it has different engines. The A330 basic fuselage design is inherited from the Airbus A300, and the nose/cockpit section and the fly-by-wire system and flightdeck are inherited from the A320. Both the A330 and A340 are assembled on the same final assembly line at Toulouse-Blagnac, France.
By the end of July 2008, a total of 1,006 A330s had been ordered and 555 delivered. The 1,000 milestone was passed with orders from the 2008 Farnborough Air Show.
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