Travel expert goes behind the scenes of the colossal Airbus factory in Wales and discovers how entire WINGS are transported in an astonishing mega plane: the BelugaXL
Some say size doesn’t matter, but it does if you want an airplane big enough to carry an entire airplane wing.
See the remarkable BelugaXL, an Airbus megaplane with a Beluga whale-shaped nose used to transport Airbus wings across Europe.
Nicky KelvinEditor at Large at The Points Guy, finds out more about this amazing freighter – type A330-743L – in a fascinating video for a series he hosts called Flight mode.
The travel expert goes behind the scenes of the colossal Airbus facility in Broughton, North Wales, where BelugaXL planes fly in and out several times a day.
Nicky says in his video: ‘Today we are swallowed by this beast. This is the aircraft that transports parts for Airbus throughout Europe.’
In a fascinating video for a series called Airplane Mode, Nicky Kelvin, Editor at Large at The Points Guy, visits the Airbus facility in Broughton, North Wales, and learns about the BelugaXL mega-plane, which transports aircraft parts (including wings) around. Europe
Once on the ground, the BelugaXL is pulled into a huge aircraft hangar via a tugboat, where the cargo hold is loaded
Pictured here are some of the aircraft’s wings coming off the Broughton production line
In 2020 the BelugaXL has the largest cross-section of all cargo aircraft in the world. It is 18 meters high, 63 meters long and eight meters wide.
With a maximum payload of 50 tonnes, the bulky BelugaXL has the power to carry seven adult male African elephants over a range of 4,000 kilometers (2,485 miles) – that’s roughly the distance from London to the North Pole. Instead, it acts as a crucial part of the Airbus production line.
In the video, Nicky explains: ‘Airbus… is made up of Spanish, German, British and French companies that now all come together under the Airbus umbrella. But that’s why they make the parts of the planes everywhere.
‘Here [in Broughton] they make the wings, and the Beluga plane comes in to take them to the places where they need to be attached to the fuselage of the planes.”
During a meeting with Paul Kilmister, head of Airbus UK supply chain, Nicky watches a Beluga XL land from a recent expedition to Toulouse, where he had delivered wings earlier that day.
As Paul explains: ‘Today we see Lima entering India – our XL3. We’re going to take off our empty molds, and we’re going to fill her back up with some 330 wings.’
Once landed, the plane is pulled into the enormous aircraft hangar via a tugboat.
The BelugaXL functions as a crucial part of the Airbus production line
The BelugaXL can carry two A350 wings at the same time. Above is a still from Nicky’s video, showing a grand piano being loaded
Nicky is in awe as the plane opens its huge door (“this is crazy!”) to unload his empty mold
Nicky describes climbing in the BelugaXL as if you were boarding a spaceship
Nicky talks to Paul Kilmister, Airbus’ UK Head of Supply Chain. Paul is responsible for all aircraft parts coming into the Broughton factory from other European Airbus factories, as well as the huge wings that the BelugaXL makes for assembly
Nicky is in awe as the plane opens its enormous door (“this is crazy!”) to load its empty mold onto a Beluga Interface Rack (BIR – a device that bridges the gap between the craft and the freighters). forward on rails on a cargo border loader (the vehicles used to transport loads to and from the aircraft).
Surprised by the size of the cargo space in the Beluga XL, Nicky asks Paul about its capacity and size.
Paul explains: ‘When opened, the doors are 7.5 by 8.1 meters, so they are as big as they seem! In terms of capacity, we can take two A350 1000 wings.”
That’s a significant payload: each wing of an Airbus A350 is 32 meters long and 6 meters wide. Using tracks and the BIR, the wings are loaded onto the aircraft.
You can expect it to take forever for such heavy cargo to get onto the plane. But the process is surprisingly fast.
As Paul explains, the process of landing the aircraft, entering the hangar, unloading the empty mold and then taking a new load on board is very efficient: ‘We’re really proud of our turnaround time here at Broughton . We consistently change the plane from blocks to blocks in 60 minutes.”
That lead time means that the Airbus facility can process six BelugaXL loads per day.
The interior of the BelugaXL. The massive cargo hold has the largest cross-section of any aircraft in the world and has a payload capacity of 50 tonnes – that’s seven adult male African elephants
Nicky speaks to a BelugaXL pilot who loves his work: ‘We have a very nice office, you know. The wallpaper is constantly changing and the view is beautiful’
Now that the wings are safely loaded, the plane is destined to transport them to a factory in Bremen, Germany, for a full fit-out, before finally heading to an assembly plant in Toulouse to be attached to a fuselage.
Before Nicky takes off, he can climb aboard the BelugaXL to look around the enormous cargo space and meet the pilots.
Nicky climbs aboard and marvels: ‘It feels like I’m stepping onto some kind of spaceship here.’
From the cockpit the pilot notices what a nice job he has: ‘We have a very nice office, you know. The wallpaper is constantly changing and the view is beautiful.’
He also explains how impressive the aircraft is, stating that despite its bulky size, it delivers high performance and can make both very short takeoffs and landings. When Nicky asks if the plane flies differently when fully loaded, the pilot says ‘there’s no big difference’.
That’s because the unique craft is powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent 700 turbofan engines. It also has a lowered cockpit to facilitate the colossal cargo space.
With a lowered cockpit for more space, the enormous cargo space in the BelugaXL gives it its signature top-heavy shape and bulbous nose. Cheekily, the plane has eyes and a smile painted on the side, making it a surprisingly friendly-looking plane
A fully loaded BelugaXL. They can be loaded and prepared for departure within an hour
That enormous loading space also gives the BelugaXL its characteristic, top-heavy shape and rounded nose. Cheekily, the plane has eyes and a little smile painted on the side, so despite its hulking frame it’s a surprisingly friendly-looking plane.
The XL is the latest in a legendary line of water-inspired aircraft carriers. In the video, Nicky explains: ‘In the 70s and 80s, Airbus used planes called Super Guppies to transport everything around the world.’
From 1995 they introduced the much larger Belugas, and as of 2020 they now field a fleet of BelugaXL, which have 30 percent more capacity than their most recent predecessors (the original Belugas could only carry one A350 wing at a time).
At the end of his journey to the Airbus facility, Nicky watches the BelugaXL take off fully loaded for its journey to Bremen. He concludes with excitement: ‘Today was crazy. When you look at that takeoff, aviation dreams come true. The whole experience today was incredible.”
To see the full video, click here. For more information from The Points Guy, visit thepointsguy.com/uk-travel.