(FS24) A310 - Salzburg to Geneva and thoughts of JT8D/JT9D..

[P_7878]

In my previous post I'd made references to the Pratt & Whitney PT6A-140 turboprop engine, which made me think a bit more about some of the (legendary) Pratt & Whitney Aero Engines. And a month or so ago, around here in Chicago, taking advantage of a brief (and transient) warm weather, I'd paid a visit to the local Science Museum (hadn't visited it in several years). My one must-see exhibit there has always been the UAL (N7017U) B727, preserved and suspended (rather impressively), inside the building, as if it's still in flight. That 727 trijet was (once) powered by the triplet of Pratt & Whitney JT8D engines. As I stood inches away from the engines and ran my hands over the smooth outer surface of the engine, that tiny and historic "PRATT & WHITNEY / DEPENDABLE ENGINES" Eagle Logo, on the engine casing, seemed so large when viewed at such close range. I also thought to myself how the JT8D engine (the pitch, buzz and the screaming noise of which is as legendary as the engines themselves...🙂...), has now forever gone silent on this exhibit 727. The low-bypass turbofan (JT8D) engine, been the first to power the B727 (regarded as the first successful short-range airplane of the world), played a pivotal role in aviation history establishing itself as a highly reliable and widely used turbofan engine for over half a century. It would also power other iconic jets, notably the first 737 (-100/-200), DC-9, and MD-80. 

Back in 2013 December, when I'd travelled on a Delta's DC-9 (recall the occasion because it was on a trip to Disney World...🙂...to Orlando via Miami), I didn't know that Delta would be retiring all its DC-9s in just less than a month (in January 2014). I still recall the tired and whining sound of the JT8D engines from that flight (I could feel that JT8D's time had clearly come and gone, and it was ready to bow out making room for the newer, quieter, and younger engine types). The next time I would visit Disney World was 6 months ago last year (about which I've posted here), when I travelled on a 737 MAX 9 (powered by CFM LEAP engines, so advanced and such a far cry from the JT8Ds of my last visit...🙂...) ...

Next in the series of Pratt & Whitney engines, came the JT9D, another legendary engine type (the first ever high-bypass turbofan for widebody airliners), that powered the original 747 (-100) Jumbo, the only jet engine deemed good enough to meet the (since unheard of) Boeing 747 specifications. Thus, the JT9D engine opened a new era in commercial aviation with its high-bypass ratio to power wide-bodied aircraft.

The first commercial flight of a B747 was on January 22, 1970 (see one of my earlier posts, if you wish). This milestone energized and accelerated the Airbus initiative, and Airbus Industrie got formally established the same year on December 18, 1970. Two strategic and significant decisions had influenced the introduction of the first Airbus entry, the A300, into market: (1) Choice of a/c engine - the original intent was to develop and use a Rolls-Royce engine (2) Reduction of target capacity of the a/c - the original intent was to support 300 pax (hence the original designation "300"). The first A300 flew with 247 pax, not the intended 300, but it did fly just 2 years after the formation of Airbus Industrie, thereby heralding the start of the Airbus era. Another two years later, in 1974, the A300 would conduct its first ever commercial flight, as the world's first twinjet widebody. One of the major players, behind the shadow, of these inaugural flights of the Airbus jets was again the JT9D (along with GE CF6). The JT9D that established a reputation with the B747 and A300, would go on to power the likes of A310 (see below), B767 and DC-10. 

So, the very first two Airbus Jets (A300 and A310) were powered by the Pratt & Whitney and General Electric engines, with the absence of Rolls-Royce, duly noted. The Rolls-Royce engine that was meant to be used on the A300, would then evolve into RB211, and later into the (legendary) "Trent" series. So, the "Trent" may not have made it into the first Airbus jets, but it would go on to power the L-1011s (first application), and then the B747s (-100 through-400), B757s etc. and today, 50 years later, is (exclusively) powering the A350 XWB (in a remarkable engine legacy of its own). It's a bit ironic that the first Airbus Jets (300/310) were equipped (exclusively) with American Engine types (PW/GE), just as e.g., Lockheed's widebody jetliner L-1011 Tristar was equipped (exclusively) with European engine types (RR)... with the nationalist sentiments (prevailing on both sides of the Atlantic) thrown to the winds...🙂...So, sometimes, it makes business sense just to go with the flow...I guess...

For this post, I fly the iniBuilds A310, an a/c I like a lot, on a short flight, here, between Salzburg (LOWS) and Geneva (LSGG), skirting the Swiss Alps, a favorite test-route of mine since the FS9 days. My route is also dictated by the fact that the A310 was first introduced into service by Swissair (along with Lufthansa). Geneva airport changed Runways numbers from "23/05" to "22/04" in September 2018. For over 100 years, the airport LSGG (Geneva) was known as "23/05", but today it's called "22/04". So, for this flight, I've landed my A310 today on Geneva's ILS Runway 22. I was on FSX from 2006 to 2020, so, I recall "23/05" too well from my FSX years. I still distinctly recall that I would (then) land into Geneva's ILS Runway 23, which has been since changed to Runway 22 when the (magnetic) heading changed to 224°. 

Since the MSFS2024 Marketplace is not yet open, unfortunately I do not have any choice of liveries or engine types for this (MSFS/Default) A310 aircraft. So, this A310-300 variant, images of which you see below, is actually equipped with a GE CF6-80 engine (not a P&W type; as I would have liked for this post). Nonetheless, I hope, you enjoy this collection of images from my short trip today...with the classic A310 twinjet...a most enigmatic aircraft in its own right...that (just as the A300) owes some debt of gratitude to the unsung hero, the P&W JT9D engines that had powered them into the skies for the first time and thereby played a critical role in the early phases of the remarkable Airbus story as we know it today...

Thanks for viewing...!

[pmplayer]

Beautys, like that A310-300, seems as it was a nice flight !

cheers 😉

[Alaska738]

Nice one! 😉 

[crosswind]

Nice set.  The 310 is definitely a joy to fly.

[P_7878]

pmplayer, Will, crosswind:

Many thanks for the comments...!

Yes, 310 is a nice plane to fly in MSFS... (while I seem to be having unpredictable server issues...on/off ...)