30 years to the day that Airbus Beluga made first flight

The legendary transporter plane took off for its flight on this day 30 years ago - and has been a daily sight in the skies above Flintshire ever since in its flights from Broughton.

The huge aircraft was designed to transport Airbus components from its factories across Europe.

The first flight took place on September 13 1994, and lasted 4 hours and 23 minutes. The certification process, which included 400 hours of flight time, was completed in September 1995, and led to the first of five examples for Airbus Industrie being delivered in January 1996. The fleet was completed by delivery of the fifth example in December 2000.

In 1997, the BelugaST set a world record for the biggest payload to be carried by air, transporting a chemical tank for a merchant ship.  

The Beluga ST in flight (Image: Airbus)

In 1999, a BelugaST transported the famous Eugène Delacroix painting ‘Liberty Leading the People’ from Paris to Tokyo.  

The BelugaST was phased out from 2021, replaced by the BelugaXL. The XL first launched in 2014, primarily to support production of the A350 because its wings and largest fuselage section were too big to fit in the ST.

Based on the A330-200, the BelugaXL offers 30 per cent more payload capacity than its predecessor.

Today’s Beluga network extends to 11 internal Airbus destinations, from Wales to Turkey.

The BelugaXL’s average turnaround time is just 70 minutes, and has a range of 4,000 kilometres, or 2,200 nautical miles.

Airbus' H175M helicopter pictured with the the BelugaXL taking off in the background. (Image: Newsquest)

Its maximum takeoff weight is 227 tonnes, the equivalent of 18 London Routemaster buses.

The BelugaST’s payload of 40 tonnes is the equivalent weight of an adult Humpback whale. Its cargo hold is big enough to load 26 small cars, or seven elephants. At just over eight metres, the BelugaXL’s cargo cross section is the biggest of all cargo aircraft.

Despite its size, it takes a crew of just three to fly the BelugaXL: two pilots and a loadmaster. They have their very own onboard coffee machine.

Airbus operates two airlines: Airbus Transport International (ATI), and Airbus Beluga Transport (AiBT). The BelugaXL operates under ATI and carries Airbus cargo from site to site around Europe. AiBT is a dedicated freight airline, operating the BelugaST fleet to carry outsized cargo for customers around the world.

Now operating for Airbus Beluga Transport, the ST can carry many types of outsize cargo. This includes helicopters, which have to be carried at a lower altitude for certification reasons, and even satellites. Recent trip to China to drop off two helicopters. 

Paul Kilmister, head of supply chain operations at Airbus Broughton, said: “For the past 30 years, our Beluga fleet has been an integral part of Airbus’ UK success story, taking our wings proudly made in Broughton, to our Final Assembly Lines in Hamburg and Toulouse.

"It's the glue in our industrial system and so much more - promoting UK manufacturing and inspiring the younger generation to look into a career in aerospace. A special and unique aircraft that is really part of the fabric of our local community. 

"No matter how many Beluga's fly into Broughton on any given day, there is always someone ready to capture it with their camera. Bring on the next 30!"