The Super Guppy connection.
As Airbus production expanded across Europe, Super Guppy airlifters originally developed for NASA connected the company's distributed manufacturing sites.
Oversize airlifter · Super Transporter
Airbus BelugaXL
Europe · Airbus production network
The whale-shaped logistics aircraft that carries entire wings and fuselage sections between Airbus production sites, keeping one of the world's largest aerospace manufacturing networks moving.
Thinking big
The flying backbone of Airbus.
The Beluga exists because modern airliners are assembled across a continent. Wings, fuselage sections, and tailplanes produced in France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom must reach final assembly lines on a precise industrial schedule. Components of that scale do not fit inside a conventional freighter, so Airbus built an aircraft around the cargo itself.
BelugaXL is derived from the A330-200. Its cockpit was lowered beneath the cargo deck, while an enlarged upper fuselage, modified tail, and front-opening loading system created one of aviation's most recognisable silhouettes. The enormous hold can accept the largest A350 fuselage section or two 30-metre A350 wings at once.
The current six-aircraft fleet is operated by Airbus Transport International across 11 European destinations. With 30 percent more transport capacity than the preceding BelugaST, the XL reduces the number of flights needed to support Airbus production while turning an industrial machine into a genuine aviation celebrity.
Fleet6 aircraft
European destinations11
Maximum payload51 t
Overall length63.1 m
Range4,000 km
Capacity increase30% vs BelugaST
Chronology
From Super Guppy to BelugaXL.
BelugaST enters service.
The A300-600ST replaced the ageing Super Guppy fleet. Its rounded upper fuselage inspired the Beluga name and made the aircraft an instant aviation landmark.
The XL programme begins.
Airbus launched a larger A330-based transporter to support rising production and carry the biggest A350 sections more efficiently.
First flight with a smile.
BelugaXL completed its maiden flight on 19 July. Almost 21,000 Airbus employees had voted for the whale-eye and smiling-mouth livery.
Operational service.
The first operational BelugaXL flew from Toulouse to Broughton on 9 January, beginning the transition from the original BelugaST fleet.
The fleet is complete.
The sixth and final BelugaXL joined Airbus Transport International after the first airframe completed more than 800 hours of flight testing.
Official Airbus photography
The whale in the sky.
