Konrad Adenauer (aircraft)

Last updated
The current Konrad Adenauer (10+01) in April 2023 10+01@PEK (20230415084435).jpg
The current Konrad Adenauer (10+01) in April 2023

The Konrad Adenauer is a German aircraft used by the government for official travel and diplomatic business. It is named after German statesman Konrad Adenauer. Like all German governmental aircraft, the Konrad Adenauer is operated by the Executive Transport Wing of the German Air Force at Cologne Bonn Airport and Berlin Brandenburg Airport. Three different aircraft have carried the name, an Airbus A310, an Airbus A340 and an Airbus A350.

Contents

A310 Konrad Adenauer (1990–2011)

The former Konrad Adenauer (10+21) in April 2007 Flugzeug; Luftwaffe Airbus (447459573).jpg
The former Konrad Adenauer (10+21) in April 2007

The first Konrad Adenauer (registration number 10+21) was an Airbus A310-304 (msn 498), just like the other similar-purposed German aircraft Kurt Schumacher, Hermann Köhl and Theodor Heuss. The Konrad Adenauer had a white livery with the national colours of Germany (black-red-gold) around it and the words BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND (Federal Republic of Germany).

In February 2011, the Konrad Adenauer was used to safely evacuate citizens of 15 nations from Libya. [1] Soon after, in April 2011, the A310-304 Konrad Adenauer was replaced by an Airbus A340-313 VIP purchased secondhand from Lufthansa, also named Konrad Adenauer. The A310-304 was eventually sold to French operator Novespace, subsidiary of French Space Study National Center (CNES) which currently operates the airframe as a zero-g aircraft to perform scientific research, astronaut training and public passenger flights under the Air Zero G  [ fr ] brand. [2]

A340 Konrad Adenauer (2011–2022)

The former Konrad Adenauer (16+01) in September 2014 German Air Force, Airbus A340-300, 16+01 (15185684358).jpg
The former Konrad Adenauer (16+01) in September 2014

The second Konrad Adenauer (registration number 16+01) is a former Lufthansa Airbus A340-313 (msn 274) re-configured into a VIP configuration with sleeping rooms and a wide variety of safety technology. This former Konrad Adenauer is capable of flying 13,500 km (8,400 mi) non-stop, with the capability of transporting 143 passengers

In November 2022, the A340-313 Konrad Adenauer was replaced by an Airbus A350-900 handed over from Lufthansa Technik, also named Konrad Adenauer. [3]

The aircraft was taken out of service in August 2023 after technical problems and started to be auctioned off in January 2024. [4] [5]

A350 Konrad Adenauer (2022–present)

The current Konrad Adenauer (registration number 10+01) is a former Lufthansa Technik Airbus A350-900 re-configured into a VIP configuration with political-parliamentary operations, and has separate spaces to allow for private meetings, roundtables and other activities. The rest of the space in the aircraft has been given over to the delegations that typically travel with the VIPs. These areas have large seating arrangements, bathrooms and modern galley equipment. As well as the visible alterations, the jet is also fitted with cutting edge communications and radar technology. [6] All three government A350s will be outfitted with Directional Infrared Counter Measures starting in 2026. [7]

Related Research Articles

Deutsche Lufthansa AG / Lufthansa German Airlines, commonly shortened to Lufthansa, serves as the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it stands as the second-largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried, after the ultra low-cost carrier Ryanair, largest in Europe and fourth largest in the world by revenue. Lufthansa is also one of the five founding members of Star Alliance, which is the world's largest airline alliance, formed in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A310</span> Short-fuselage derivative of the Airbus A300 airliner

The Airbus A310 is a wide-body aircraft, designed and manufactured by Airbus Industrie, then a consortium of European aerospace manufacturers. Airbus had identified a demand for an aircraft smaller than the A300, the first twin-jet wide-body. On 7 July 1978, the A310 was launched with orders from Swissair and Lufthansa. On 3 April 1982, the first prototype conducted its maiden flight, and the A310 received its type certificate on 11 March 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A340</span> Type of aircraft

The Airbus A340 is a long-range, wide-body passenger airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. In the mid-1970s, Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner, and developed the A340 quadjet in parallel with the A330 twinjet. In June 1987, Airbus launched both designs with their first orders and the A340-300 took its maiden flight on 25 October 1991. It was certified along with the A340-200 on 22 December 1992 and both versions entered service in March 1993 with launch customers Lufthansa and Air France. The larger A340-500/600 were launched on 8 December 1997; the A340-600 flew for the first time on 23 April 2001 and entered service on 1 August 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A330</span> Wide-body twin-engine jet airliner

The Airbus A330 is a wide-body aircraft developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner from the mid-1970s. Then the company began development on the A330 twinjet in parallel with the A340 quadjet and launched both designs with their first orders in June 1987. The A330-300, the first variant, took its maiden flight in November 1992 and entered service with Air Inter in January 1994. The slightly shorter A330-200 variant followed in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wide-body aircraft</span> Airliner with two aisles

A wide-body aircraft, also known as a twin-aisle aircraft and in the largest cases as a jumbo jet, is an airliner with a fuselage wide enough to accommodate two passenger aisles with seven or more seats abreast. The typical fuselage diameter is 5 to 6 m. In the typical wide-body economy cabin, passengers are seated seven to ten abreast, allowing a total capacity of 200 to 850 passengers. Seven-abreast aircraft typically seat 160 to 260 passengers, eight-abreast 250 to 380, nine- and ten-abreast 350 to 480. The largest wide-body aircraft are over 6 m (20 ft) wide, and can accommodate up to eleven passengers abreast in high-density configurations.

Mahan Airlines, operating under the name Mahan Air, is a privately owned Iranian airline based in Tehran, Iran. It operates scheduled domestic services and international flights to the Far East, Middle East, Central Asia and Europe. Its main home bases are Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport and Mehrabad International Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interflug</span> Former airline of the German Democratic Republic

Interflug GmbH was the national airline of the German Democratic Republic from 1963 to 1990. Based in East Berlin, it operated scheduled and chartered flights to European and intercontinental destinations out of its hub at Berlin Schönefeld Airport, focusing on Comecon countries. Interflug also had significant crop dusting operations. Following German reunification, the company was liquidated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A310 MRTT</span> Airbus A310 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) air to air refuelling tanker / transport aircraft

The Airbus A310 MRTT Multi-Role Tanker Transport is a military air-to-air refuelling, or in-flight refuelling tanker transport aircraft, capable of operating multi-role missions. The A310 MRTT tanker aircraft is a subsequent development from the earlier Airbus A310 MRT Multi-Role Transport, which was a military transport aircraft for passengers, cargo, and medical evacuation. The A310 MRT and A310 MRTT are both specialist military conversions of existing airframes of the civilian Airbus A310-300C wide-bodied passenger jet airliner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A350</span> Family of long-range, wide-body jet airliners

The Airbus A350 is a long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner developed and produced by Airbus. The initial A350 design proposed by Airbus in 2004, in response to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, would have been a development of the Airbus A330 with composite wings and new engines. Due to inadequate market support, Airbus switched in 2006 to a clean-sheet "XWB" design, powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB high bypass turbofan engines. The prototype first flew on 14 June 2013 from Toulouse, France. Type certification from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) was obtained in September 2014, followed by certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) two months later.

Edelweiss Air AG is a Swiss leisure and charter airline and the sister company of Swiss International Air Lines and a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. It operates flights to European and intercontinental destinations from its base at Zürich Airport.

Air transports for heads of state and government are, in many countries, provided by the air force in specially equipped airliners or business jets. One such aircraft in particular has become part of popular culture: Air Force One, used by the President of the United States and operated by the United States Air Force. Other well known official aircraft include the Russian presidential aircraft, the British Royal Air Force VIP aircraft, the French Cotam 001, the Royal Canadian Air Force VIP aircraft, the German Konrad Adenauer, the Royal Australian Airforce VIP aircraft, the Japanese Air Force One, the South Korean Code One, the Indian Air India One, the Brazilian Air Force One, and the Israeli Wing of Zion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus Corporate Jets</span> Business unit of Airbus that sells corporate jet variants of parents airliner range

Airbus Corporate Jets, a business unit of Airbus SAS and part of Airbus, markets and completes corporate jet variants from the parent's airliner range. Types include the A318 Elite to the double/triple-decked Airbus A380 Prestige. Following the entry of the 737-based Boeing Business Jet, Airbus joined the business jet market with the A319 Corporate Jet in 1997. Although the term Airbus Corporate jet was initially used only for the A319CJ, it is now often used for all models, including the VIP widebodies. As of June 2019, 213 corporate and private jets are operating; 222 aircraft have been ordered, including 128 A320 family jets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lufthansa Technik</span> German aeronautical company

Lufthansa Technik AG provides worldwide maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for aircraft, engines, and components. It is a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group.

The Emirates fleet is composed of two wide-bodied aircraft families, the Airbus A380 and Boeing 777. The airline also has the Airbus A350-900, Boeing 777X and Boeing 787 aircraft on order.

Lufthansa operates a mainline fleet consisting of Airbus narrow and widebody and Boeing widebody aircraft. The mainline fleet is composed of seven different aircraft families: the Airbus A320, Airbus A330, Airbus A340, Airbus A350, Airbus A380, Boeing 747 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Additionally, Lufthansa currently has orders placed for new Airbus A320neo, Airbus A350 and Boeing 777X aircraft. They have also placed an order for 40 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with an optional 60, making it the first order of Boeing single aisle aircraft in 40 years. In the following years, the 777X will replace all Boeing 747-400 aircraft in the fleet, and the 787 and A350 will replace all remaining Airbus A340 aircraft.

Philippine Airlines is composed of wide-body and narrow-body aircraft from five families : Airbus A320ceo family, Airbus A321neo, Airbus A330, Airbus A350, and Boeing 777.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German intervention against the Islamic State</span> Ongoing military conflict between Germany and the Islamic State

The German intervention against the Islamic State was authorized on 4 December 2015. The involvement of the country in the Syrian Civil War and the War in Iraq (2013–2017) began with the Bundeswehr mission in Syria and Iraq to combat the terrorist organization Islamic State. The mission was primarily created as a reaction to the November 2015 Paris attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Executive Transport Wing (German Air Force)</span> Military unit

The Executive Transport Wing of the Federal Ministry of Defence is a flying formation of the German Air Force with a wide variety of tasks. Occasionally it is ambiguously listed as the Special Air Missions Wing in English language articles. The wing is based at Cologne Bonn Airport with Berlin Tegel Airport used as a location for its helicopters. It is planned to bring the two operating locations together at Berlin Brandenburg Airport once its construction is finished.

References

  1. Entdecke Deutschland «Evakuierung aus Libyen läuft auf Hochtouren»
  2. "Zero-G flying means high stress for an old A310". Flightglobal.com. 2015-03-23. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
  3. "Airbus A350 "Konrad Adenauer" an die Bundeswehr übergeben". NDR 90,3 (in German). 16 November 2022. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  4. "Luftwaffe mustert Regierungsflieger vom Typ A340 umgehend aus". Der Spiegel (in German). 15 August 2023. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  5. Frommberg, Laura (16 January 2024). "Jetzt können Interessenten den zweiten Airbus A340 der Flugbereitschaft kaufen". aerotelegraph.com (in German). Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  6. "Bundeswehr erhält neuen Kanzlerjet mit »Regierungskabine«". Der Spiegel (in German). 17 November 2022. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  7. "Langstreckenflugzeuge der Flugbereitschaft BMVg erhalten Selbstschutzsysteme" (Press release) (in German). Federal Ministry of Defence. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 29 February 2024.

See also