Oh great. Autocredit isn't working... again

Updated Paint Color Correction Version

Original Aircraft Credit goes to GalacticaAsia's A300-600GE

Thank you to SimpleplanesJP11 for providing the shader preset for the thumbnail.

Map used for thumbnail: Washington & BC by Annedzsrue

---

About the Airbus A300 and -600 Variant + Brief History of Airbus & the A300 Program

Before we begin, in order to understand the A300, we must first understand Airbus itself. During the 1960s, European airline operators such as UK based Hawker Siddeley, British Aircraft Corporation (BAC), and French based Sud Aviation all wanted in on the growing airliner market, and all had ambitions to create an airliner with at least 200 seats. Each company already had their own products in the market, the Hawker Siddeley Trident, the BAC 1-11, and the Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle respectively. Following WW2, Germany also had aspirations to join into the international airline market in order to revive its own aviation industry. It wouldn't be until 1967 when ministers from the British, French, and German governments came to an agreement for the cooperation of the countries to develop new technologies in the field of aviation, or in the words of those at the meeting, "or the purpose of strengthening European co-operation in the field of aviation technology and thereby promoting economic and technological progress in Europe, to take appropriate measures for the joint development and production of an airbus."

Although the British withdrew from the contract, they still agreed to create the wings for future aircraft, and would rejoin the consortium in the 70s. It was from this point that the A300 program began to come into being, and was officially signed in on May 29th, 1969 at the Paris Air Show by French Transport Minister Jean Chamant and German Economics Minister Karl Schiller in a truly historic agreement, or 'concord'. In 1970, the Airbus Industrie GIE Consortium was officially formed. The Airbus corporation as we know today wouldn't be formed until 2000.

Jean Chamant (Left) and Karl Schimer (Middle) signing the documentation for the A300 program.

The goal of the A300 program was fairly simple. To create a twin-engine widebody airliner designed to compete with the American McDonnell Douglas DC-10 and Lockheed L-1011 Tristar trijets by being smaller, lighter, and more economic. Air France would be the first to put in orders for the aircraft, requesting six of a stretched variant of the A300B1, the A300B2. With six orders for the A300B2, Airbus had a customer secured.

The construction of the first A300 was located at what is now the Toulouse Airbus Factory at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport (IATA: TLS/ICAO: LFBO) in France. On October 28th, 1972, the first A300, an A300B1 (Registration: F-WUAB), was revealed to the public and embarked on her maiden flight on a route around Toulouse.

The A300 prototype at Toulouse-Blagnac wearing the retro Airbus house livery.

The prototype departing for her maiden flight.

The prototype on her maiden flight.

The aircraft was certified on March 15th, 1974. On May 23rd, 1974, the aircraft entered commercial service with Air France on their Paris-London route.

The first A300 to enter commerical service with operator Air France, an A300B2-101 with registration F-BVGA at London Heathrow International Airport (IATA: LHR/ICAO: EGLL) on June 5th, 1976.

The A300 itself became the worlds first wide body twin-jet. The A300 typically seats ~250 passengers in two classes and has a range of 5,375 to 7,500 km (2,900 to 4,050 nmi). The initial variants are powered by General Electric CF6-50 or Pratt & Whitney JT9D turbofans and have a three-crew flight deck.

The A300-600 was introduced after the A310 began commercial service. The A300-600, officially designated as the A300B4-600, was slightly longer than the A300B2 and A300B4 variants and had an increased interior space from using a similar rear fuselage to the Airbus A310, this allowed it to have two additional rows of seats. It was initially powered by Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7R4H1 engines, but was later fitted with General Electric CF6-80C2 engines, with Pratt & Whitney PW4056 or PW4058 engines being introduced in 1986. Other changes include an improved wing featuring a recambered trailing edge, the incorporation of simpler single-slotted Fowler flaps, the deletion of slat fences, and the removal of the outboard ailerons after they were deemed unnecessary on the A310. The variant made its first flight on July 8th, 1983, received certification on March 9th, 1984, and entered service in June of 1984 with Saudi Arabian Airlines.

The prototype A300-600 (Registration: F-WZLR) at the 1984 Farnborough Airshow

The first A300-600 to enter commercial service with operator Saudi Arabian Airlines (Registration: HZ-AJA) at King Abdulaziz International Airport (IATA: JED/ICAO: OEJN) on March 20th, 2006.

A total of 313 A300-600s have been sold. The A300-600 uses the A310 cockpits, featuring digital technology and electronic displays, eliminating the need for a flight engineer. Production of the A300 series ended in July of 2007 after 561 deliveries. A few are still in passenger service, mainly being used by Iranian based airlines such as IranAir and Mahan Air, whilst the rest have been converted to freighter use and carry cargo for airlines such as UPS Airlines and FedEx Express.

A300-600 Specifications
Length: 177ft 5in / 54.08m
Height: 54ft 6.5in / 16.62m
Wingspan: 147ft 1in / 44.84m

Type Designation
ICAO: A306
IATA: AB6

The cockpit of a DHL European Air Transport A300B4-622R(F) (Registration: D-AEAP) at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport (IATA: BUD/ ICAO: LHBP) on March 29th, 2019.

The cabin of a Lufthansa A300B4-605R (Registration: D-AIAY) at Nice Côte d'Azur Airport on (IATA: NCE/ICAO: LFMN) on September 21st, 2003.

---

About American Airlines

IATA Code: AA
ICAO Code: AAL
Callsign: AMERICAN
Primary Hub: Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (IATA: DFW/ICAO: KDFW)
Headquarters: Fort Worth, Texas
Years Active: 1926-Present

American Airlines current logo

An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (Registration: N984TW) wearing the retro 'Vignelli Eagle' livery at Dallas-Fort Worth performing the airlines final MD-80 revenue flight on September 4th, 2019. This was also the last MD-80 ever built.

An American Airlines 737-823 (Registration: N835NN) wearing the airlines 'New American' livery at Dallas-Fort Worth on November 5th, 2022.

American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passenger mile at the time of writing. American, together with its regional partners and affiliates, operates an extensive international and domestic network with almost 6,800 flights per day to nearly 350 destinations in more than 50 countries. American Airlines is a founding member of the Oneworld alliance, the third-largest airline alliance in the world. Regional service is operated by independent and subsidiary carriers under the brand name American Eagle.

American Airlines and American Eagle operate out of 10 hubs, with Dallas/Fort Worth being its largest. The airline handles more than 200 million passengers annually with an average of more than 500,000 passengers daily. As of 2021, the company employs 123,400 staff members.

American Airlines was started in 1930 via a union of more than eighty small airlines. The two organizations from which American Airlines was originated were Robertson Aircraft Corporation and Colonial Air Transport. The former was first created in Missouri in 1921, with both being merged in 1929 into holding company The Aviation Corporation. This, in turn, was made in 1930 into an operating company and rebranded as American Airways. In 1934, when new laws and attrition of mail contracts forced many airlines to reorganize, the corporation redid its routes into a connected system and was renamed American Airlines. Between 1970 and 2000, the company grew into being an international carrier, purchasing Trans World Airlines in 2001.

---

American Airlines Flight 587: Pushed Beyond The Limits

The accident aircraft (Registration: N14053) at Miami International Airport (IATA: MIA/ICAO:KMIA) on October 23rd, 1998.

Obligatory ‘not a pilot’ disclaimer

November 12th, 2001. It's a new day in New York City, and the international airline industry is struggling to cope with the changes bought on by the September 11th attacks just two months earlier. Still, flights continue as usual, with this one being no different. A 13 year old Airbus A300B4-605R registered as N14053 is preparing for a regularly scheduled domestic flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport (IATA: JFK/ICAO: KJFK) to Las Américas International Airport (IATA: SDQ/ICAO: MDSD) operating as American Airlines Flight 587. The aircraft is equipped with two General Electric CF6-80C2A5 engines. Onboard are 260 occupants, 251 passengers, 7 cabin crew, and 2 pilots. In the cockpit are 42 year old Captain Edward States who was acting as pilot monitoring, and 34 year old First Officer Sten Molin, who was the pilot flying.

The flight was scheduled to leave New York-JFK at 08:00 EST for the Dominican Republic. The boarding process at took a little longer than planned due to the new additional security procedures that delayed boarding. The aircraft pushed back from the gate at 09:00EST and proceeded to taxi to runway 31L behind a Japan Air Lines Boeing 747-400 operating as Japan Air Lines 047 bound for Tokyo-Narita International Airport (IATA: NRT: ICAO: RJAA).

A JAL 747-400 (Registration JA8077) similar to the one involved.

JL047 was cleared for takeoff at 09:11:08 but started its takeoff roll one minute later. While JL047 was still preparing for takeoff, the tower controller called AA587, cautioned the flight crew about wake turbulence and instructed them to taxi into position and hold on runway 31L.

For those who are not aware, wake turbulence is a form of turbulence that occurs when an aircraft generates lift. Newtons Third Law states that 'every action has an equal and opposite reaction'. As lift is produced, the air flowing back over the wings forms into counter rotating wingtip vortices. Depending on the weight of the aircraft, the heavier the aircraft, the stronger the wake turbulence as per increased wing area and takeoff speed of large aircrafts, such as a fully loaded 747. It goes without saying that wake turbulence can pose a hazard to smaller aircraft.

Wake turbulence being generated by an Air France A380. Notice the large vortex.

At 09:13:27 EST, Flight 587 is cleared for takeoff. Takeoff roll was initiated about 09:14 EST, approximately 1 minute and 45 seconds following the 747, and the aircraft lifts off 34 seconds later. Flight 587 contacted the ARTCC controller at about 09:15, and stated they were climbing out of 1,300 ft/396 m for 5,000ft/1524m. The controller responded by clearing the flight to climb to 13,000ft/3962m and to turn left.

At 9:15:36 while in a climbing left turn, the crew heard a brief squeak and a rattling sound, presumably caused by wake turbulence. Some fifteen seconds later the A300 began to yaw to the right. Full right and left rudder were applied and the first officer called for "max power" at 09:15:54. Again full right and left rudder were applied. Normally applying rudder inputs is not a problem, however, the F.O. was repeatedly fully deflecting the rudder right and left in order to counteract the turbulence, and this did not come without consequences. By performing these deflections in such quick succession, the rudder experiences intense lateral forces, with upwards of 200,000lbs/90718kg being experienced by the rudder.

Moments later a loud snap and bang is recorded by the CVR as the force on the rudder becomes too great for the aircraft to handle, causing the entire vertical stabilizer to separate from the aircraft. Without the stabilizing influence of the tail, the A300 quickly enters an uncontrolled descent from an altitude of about 2500ft/762m. The aircraft enters into a violent flat spin in which both engines separate from the wings coming down within 100ft/30m of each other near the Newport Avenue / Beach 129th Street crossroads. At 09:16EST, just three minutes after takeoff, the aircraft crashes into Beach 131 Street, a residential area in a Queens neighborhood, Belle Harbor. The aircraft explodes on impact, taking the lives of all 260 onboard as well as 5 people on the ground.

The crash site burning

The crash site after the fire is extinguished. Notice the crater.

Part of the vertical stabilizer being recovered from the NY Harbor

One of the engines which impacted a home several blocks from the main crash site

Misc. wreckage of both the plane and residential housing

As news spread of the crash, several large buildings in downtown NY, including the Empire State Building and UN headquarters are evacuated as rumors of a terrorism plot spread. Given that this took place just two months after the September 11th attacks, this panic makes sense. However, once the investigation began and the vertical stabilizer was recovered and examined, it quickly became clear that an act of terror was not the cause.

Ultimately, the NTSB determined that poor training at American Airlines which incorrectly taught pilots to use strong, exaggerated rudder inputs to counteract wake turbulence was to blame for the actions of the F.O. This training ultimately caused the F.O. to overreact to the wake turbulence as per his training, causing the composite bolts and rivets which held the vertical stabilizer to the fuselage to snap. There was also investigation into the strength of the composite materials of the bolts as it was believed that the bolts may have been less durable than originally thought given other similar incidents involving the A300. However, the NTSB concluded that the failure of the bolts was due to the failure of the bolts being stressed beyond their design limit and not the material of the bolts that becoming compromised. In the words of the NTSB, the accident was due to the first officer's "unnecessary and excessive" rudder inputs. At the time of writing, it is the second deadliest aviation accident on US Soil behind American Airlines 191 and the second deadliest incident involving an A300 behind Iran Air 655.

---

Well I'm back. This is why I say I don't have a consistent upload schedule. This one has been in the works on and off for about a month as I've been catching up on some other games and doing some other life stuff. Luckily I've got multiple other projects in the works. As always safe flying and hope you enjoy.

---

NTSB Final Report
ASN Entry
CVR Transcript
NTSB Animation
Lockheed C-5 Galaxy Wake Turbulence Demonstration
In Depth Animation
Footage of AA587 taxiing to RW 31L
AA587 Crash CCTV Footage
NBC Nightly News AA587 Report 11/12/2001