Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

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KarelXWB
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Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 3:13 pm

The very first A320, MSN1, now sporting its original livery and will join the Aeroscopia museum in Toulouse.

Even the sharklets have been removed and the original registration F-WWAI has been applied.

Image
https://twitter.com/Airbus/status/905808347194163200
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MrHMSH
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 3:29 pm

Happy retirement to her, while an A320 may not seem exciting in a museum, just think of how many people will have flown on them, and how much it has changed how we fly today.
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Dutchy
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 3:49 pm

Fitting for such an important plane, for many people, and for Airbus. This plane turned Airbus truly into a global player.
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ikolkyo
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 3:59 pm

Very nice to go to such detail to even remove the sharklet! I would love to see how well the cockpit and cabin have held up after all this time. Not related but I wish Boeing kept the first 787 in the US
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Revelation
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 4:08 pm

Lovely! Great job by Airbus, so respectful of their heritage!

I really hope I can make a pilgrimage to the Aeroscopia museum in Toulouse and take it all in.
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RalXWB
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 4:29 pm

Just a great plane and what a development!
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9252fly
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 4:54 pm

What's the production date of MSN1?
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Boair
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 5:16 pm

9252fly wrote:
What's the production date of MSN1?

1987
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bw50505
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:05 pm

Does it now look identical to an A320-100 (for the most part) because all of the wingtip devices are gone?
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winterlight
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:18 pm

It even has the 1980s wing escape markings!
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breiz
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:26 pm

bw50505 wrote:
Does it now look identical to an A320-100 (for the most part) because all of the wingtip devices are gone?

A320 MSN 0001 is an A320-100. It was originally a-110, modified to a -130 to test the IAE 4500, then a -131 with the IAE 4500-A5.
Being a test bed, a lot of small modifications were made over the years. As these modifications were ad-ons, they were removed once tested.

Very nice that Airbus finally takes care of one of its prototypes.
As it has been written above, this one is beginning of a big story.
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JannEejit
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:30 pm

bw50505 wrote:
Does it now look identical to an A320-100 (for the most part) because all of the wingtip devices are gone?


Looks accurate to me, didn't the standard Airbus wing fences arrive with the A320-200 ?
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bw50505
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:41 pm

breiz wrote:
bw50505 wrote:
Does it now look identical to an A320-100 (for the most part) because all of the wingtip devices are gone?

A320 MSN 0001 is an A320-100. It was originally a-110, modified to a -130 to test the IAE 4500, then a -131 with the IAE 4500-A5.
Being a test bed, a lot of small modifications were made over the years. As these modifications were ad-ons, they were removed once tested.

Very nice that Airbus finally takes care of one of its prototypes.
As it has been written above, this one is beginning of a big story.


Interesting, thanks for the explanation. So even though photos in the DB show it as an A320-200, the mods for that were removed and it is now a -100 again?
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KLDC10
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:52 pm

A wonderful gesture from Airbus. Great to see that they have gone to great lengths to produce historical accuracy (e.g. the removal of the sharklets), rather than just putting a new coat of paint on it.
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Aircellist
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 8:59 pm

Is it possible that I've seen this aircraft in the then Aérospatiale factory, in summer 1985? In very early stages of build, of course…
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n471wn
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 10:59 pm

ikolkyo wrote:
Very nice to go to such detail to even remove the sharklet! I would love to see how well the cockpit and cabin have held up after all this time. Not related but I wish Boeing kept the first 787 in the US


You are so right about Boeing not having the #1 787 prototype. It is a shame that it sits in Japan and few see it and Boeing should be horse whipped
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ODwyerPW
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Thu Sep 07, 2017 11:51 pm

it looks awesome. congratulations. one of the greatest commercial successes ever.
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LY777
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 5:07 am

Very few A320-100s were built but I flew one in AF in 2005 :)
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FlySSC
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 6:34 am

LY777 wrote:
Very few A320-100s were built but I flew one in AF in 2005 :)


Only 21 A320-100 were built, including the prototype MSN1 : F-WWAI

7 were delivered to Air Inter : F-GGEA ---> F-GGEF
8 were delivered to Air France : F-GFKA (MSN2, the very first production aircraft) ---> F-GFKG + F-GFKQ
5 were delivered to British Airways (originally ordered by B-Cal) : G-BUSB ---> G-BUSF

All of them are now retired from service and scrapped. The last one in service was Air Inter/Air France F-GGEE, retired from service in May 2010.
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BoeingVista
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 1:40 pm

LY777 wrote:
Very few A320-100s were built but I flew one in AF in 2005 :)


I flew one MPL-ORY 2005 or 2006, it had ashtrays in the seat rests, A320-100's are a real piece of history
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WingsFan
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:54 pm

Did this particular aircraft ever carry passengers?
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767333ER
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:56 pm

They got almost every detail right to make it look like it originally did, but the engines are wrong. It originally had the CFM56-5A and now it has the -5B. This is understandable though.
Last edited by 767333ER on Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Chaostheory
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:58 pm

breiz wrote:
bw50505 wrote:
Does it now look identical to an A320-100 (for the most part) because all of the wingtip devices are gone?

A320 MSN 0001 is an A320-100. It was originally a-110, modified to a -130 to test the IAE 4500, then a -131 with the IAE 4500-A5.
Being a test bed, a lot of small modifications were made over the years. As these modifications were ad-ons, they were removed once tested.

Very nice that Airbus finally takes care of one of its prototypes.
As it has been written above, this one is beginning of a big story.


That's right. The aircraft that made Airbus what it is.

It is nothing short of phenomenal when you consider the hundreds if not thousands of mods that have been to the A320 since the 80s. Everything from fbw tweaks, structural mods, engine upgrades, avionics and the related software etc all requiring flight testing. It would be interesting to know how much parts commonality there is between this airframe in its original guise and ceos coming off the line today.

Does anyone know whether the replacement test-bed is a ceo or neo?
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dcaviation
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:59 pm

WingsFan wrote:
Did this particular aircraft ever carry passengers?


Not revenue passengers. It did many times like MSN9.
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787Driver
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 3:01 pm

Nice! And great to see my former office in a museum. I have more than 3000 hours on the A319/A320/A321 and I enjoyed every moment of flying it.
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Revelation
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Re: Airbus repaints very first A320, will join museum

Fri Sep 08, 2017 3:33 pm

Chaostheory wrote:
That's right. The aircraft that made Airbus what it is.

Spot on. The best product to replace 727-200s (much better than the 737 Classic), and also for new entrants too. Still selling like crazy.

Great job to Airbus for preserving this landmark aircraft. Am already scheming a way to get to France to go see it.
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