Airbus starts final assembly of A330-800

Airbus commenced (29-Nov-2017) final assembly of the first A330-800. The manufacturer announced the aircraft programme is on track for the first flight planned in mid 2018. The A330-800 is the smaller version of the two variant A330neo family, with 250 seats. The A330-800 base variant will have a 242 tonne maximum take off weight (MTOW) and a range of 7500nm. The recently launched 251 tonne MTOW variant can operate routes of up to 8150nm. [more - original PR]