On 12th December, a brand new Condor A330neo sustained damage at Airbus facilities in Toulouse after its right wingtip collided with a building.
The Airbus A330-900 with registration D-ANRA was being towed when the aircraft hit a building, probably a hangar. According to local planespotters, fuel started leaking after the collision, since the fuel tanks are on the wings and the firefighters intervened to prevent a possible fire.
Condor has planned to begin service with its new Airbus A330neos on December 18th. However, this incident could delay the delivery of the aircraft longer than planned. Airbus will have to repair the wing tip before the aircraft can be delivered. It is still unclear how long that will take.
Even though Airbus has not yet commented on the incident, a Condor spokesperson confirmed the incident saying,
“The Condor A330neo, with 1966 serial number, still under the care of Airbus because it has not been delivered to Condor, resulted in damage to the winglet during the operation of a routine trailer on the ground, in Toulouse. At the moment, it cannot be ruled out that there is a delay in its delivery. Because the Airbus investigation is ongoing, there is still no conclusive information.”
Condor spokesperson
Condor And The A330neo
In July last year, the German airline announced the plans to introduce 16 Airbus A330-900 aircraft to replace its aging Boeing 767s and some A330ceos that it currently has on lease. Of those planes, nine are leased and seven are bought directly from Airbus. Furthermore, the airline asked for two more A330neos for lease a few months ago, so in total Condor has 18 A330neos on order.
Condor’s A330neos will be configured with a brand new interior that will accommodate 310 passengers, with 30 in Business Class, 64 in Premium Economy, and 216 in Economy Class.
In Business Class, the seats are installed in a 1-2-1 configuration and can be converted into 1.99 meters long, lie-flat beds. All Business Class passengers will have direct aisle access alongside access to the latest movies, series, podcasts, and games, all accessible on a 17.3-inch screen in 4K mode, with touchscreen and remote control.
Moreover, both the Premium Economy Class and Economy Class seats have 13.3-inch in-seat 4K monitors with touchscreens for in-flight entertainment. Seats in these two classes will have a 2-4-2 seating configuration.
Feature Image via Frenchpainter