So I have noticed that the A330 always seems to be in those “smoothest landings ever” videos, and was wondering if there was a good reason for this, or if it was just coincidence?
A few examples to prove my point…
What seems to be commonly accepted as the smoothest landing ever: Smoothest Landing? US Airways Airbus A330 - YouTube
And there are many more, but this could be random chance, but I was wondering if anyone knew why the A330 seemed especially good at buttering the bread…?
The A330 was basically a downsized version of the A340 meaning that the lift factor of the A330 is far higher than needed for an aircraft it’s size. Just as the wings of the A388 was made for the expanded version of the A389, resulting in a lower approach speed and a larger ground effect on the aircraft.
In my opinion the landings aren’t any smoother than other planes, however its the fact the gear sets absorb the impact and thus making it seem like the second set hits a lot slower. However other aircraft like the 777 for instance when the gear hits it immediately forces weight onto other wheels making it look harder than the A330. This is my opinion on it, maybe look at how the first set of landing gear touches to judge smoothness.
Wow, that first link, that was incredible, awesome that someone was there to film it. I have personally never been an a 330 but from what I’ve seen they look smooth
This is the reason why I love the A330. Pity the liveries are so limited in IF. The A330 is one of my favorite aircraft in real world and IF because it handles like a dream. The A340 is my favorite. The similarities are awesome but the A330 handles better. I still don’t know why people voted for a rework in IF when it’s the perfect aircraft in my opinion.
SAA has both versions of the A330, -200 and -300 and man those birds are beautiful.
I believe the wings, having been designed for the A340 also used the the A330 and the gear makes it a smooth operator when landing.
Have you noticed that it has an unusually long range? Not sure if this is empirical enough to assert that the IF A330 is not reflective of the real world capabilities of A330s.
They are and the wing is gorgeous and provides a ton of lift. The A330 doesn’t like to get down and slow down that massive wing/lift at touchdown gives pilots who know how to feather it properly good star landings