One Of Several Componants Arriving For Assembly Of The New
Airliner
Spirit AeroSystems reports that it has shipped the first
production composite center fuselage panels for the Airbus A350 XWB
program out of its Kinston, NC, facility. The Section 15 fuselage
panels are being sent to Saint-Nazaire, France, where final upper
shell assembly will occur.
Fuselage Panel
Section 15 of the fuselage consists of the center composite
upper and forward lower shells manufactured by Spirit.
"Our North Carolina team has worked hard to achieve this
important milestone," said Dan Wheeler, vice president-general
manager, North Carolina business unit. "With help from our
customer, we have successfully integrated with Airbus methods,
tools, processes and systems. Shipment of these composite fuselage
panels represents a significant achievement for Spirit employees as
we work with Airbus to meet all their requirements and delivery
schedules for the pre-final assembly phase."
Spirit won a contract with Airbus in May 2008 to design and
produce the A350 XWB's composite center fuselage section. Spirit
also designs and builds the spar and fixed leading edge for the
A350 XWB.
Nose Section
The panels are among several pieces being fabricated shipped to
France from over the past several weeks as the new airliner takes
shape. Airbus reports that Premium Aerotec has successfully put
together the first forward fuselage for the A350 XWB at Nordenham,
Germany. Structural assembly work on the all-composite fuselage,
comprosed of four panels and the floor grid, will continue over the
coming weeks before it is transported by boat to Airbus’
Hamburg site for systems installation.
Meanwhile, the first A350 XWB nose section has been transported
by Beluga to Airbus in St Nazaire from partner company
Aerolia’s site in Méaulte. The A350 XWB nose section
comprises three main sub-assemblies: the cockpit plus upper and
lower forward fuselage parts, which incorporate door one and the
nose landing gear bay. Once assembled and equipped, the nose
section will be joined to the forward fuselage to form together the
A350 XWB front fuselage.
And assembly of the aircraft's horizontal tailplane (HTP) is
underway in Getafe, Spain. Joining of the two lateral boxes will
produce the 55-foot long primary structure of the HTP. Structural
assembly will continue over the coming weeks, followed by
installation of the unit’s electric and hydraulic systems.
Once the assembly and equipping work is finished, the HTP will be
flown by Airbus’ Beluga transport aircraft to the final
assembly line in Toulouse, France.