UPS A300 Freighter Planes Get a Facelift
Originally delivered in 1999, the Airbus A300 freighter planes have serviced UPS for over two decades. Although the 52 planes have been reliable for the extensive travel they do for UPS, it was time for an upgrade.
The first upgraded Airbus has been completed and was delivered to UPS on February 3rd at Airbus’ U.S. facility in Mobile Alabama. This is the first time a complex upgrade has been performed on any of the A300 planes.
The upgrade increased capabilities and flexibility in the cockpit, bringing the aircraft as close to the modern generation of aircraft as possible. The new system primarily gives pilots a much larger navigation database, with drastically larger screens. The original computer systems had such limited storage space, that flight crews could only upload a limited amount of airport data before each flight.
The main factor in achieving the full “facelift” of the aircraft is the integrated avionics system supplied by Honeywell, which is based on its Primus Epic suite. In addition to the new software features, the upgrades also have improved safety features. One of these new features is the ability to predict when wind shear will happen, and a terrain collision avoidance system.
The new upgrades are believed to enable the UPS freighters to reliably operate and maintain their intense travel lifestyle until around 2035.
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