{{Short description|Preserved prototype of the Airbus A300}} {{Infobox aircraft | name = F-WUAB/F-OCAZ | image = Airbus A300B4-203 Airbus Industrie (AIB) F-WUAB - MSN 238 (3291919477).jpg | image_caption = | other_names = | aircraft_type = [[Airbus A300B1]] | manufacturers = [[Airbus]] | owners = [[Airbus Industries]] | civil_registration = F-WUAB <small>(1972-1973)</small><br>F-OCAZ <small>(1973-1974)</small> | military_serial = 001 | construction_date = 1972 | first_flight = October 28th, 1972 | in_service = October 28th, 1972-August 27th, 1974 | last_flight = August 27th, 1974 | preservation = Partially preserved as a display exhibit at the [[Deutsches Museum]], [[Munich]], [[Germany]] | fate = Disassembled, on static display }}
'''F-WUAB''' (later known as '''F-OCAZ''') is an [[Airbus A300B1]] that was built by [[Airbus]] as the first prototype of the [[Airbus A300]] and is known to be the first Airbus A300 ever built.
== History == === Construction and first flight === [[File:05.02.72 Airbus roule pour la 1ère fois (1972) - 53Fi1948.jpg|left|thumb|F-WUAB when being constructed in 1972.]] The aircraft was assembled at Airbus's [[Aérospatiale]] facility based in [[Toulouse]], [[Occitania]], [[France]] as the first Airbus A300 aircraft ever built, the prototype aircraft took its first flight on October 28, 1972.<ref name="AirBuscomHist-3232024">{{Cite web |title=A300 First Flight 50th Anniversary |url=https://www.airbus.com/en/who-we-are/our-history/commercial-aircraft-history/a300-first-flight |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=www.airbus.com|date=27 July 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=10 facts about the Airbus First A300B Aircraft. |url=https://jetlinemarvel.net/10-facts-about-the-airbus-first-a300b-aircraft/ |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=Jetline Marvel Aviation News |date= 29 October 2022|language=English}}</ref>
The aircraft had recorded a maximum take-off weight of {{Convert|132|t|lbs|abbr=off}} and was powered by two [[General Electric CF6-50A]] engines.<ref name="AirBuscomHist-3232024" /><ref name="NorWag">{{Cite book |last1=Norris |first1=Guy and Mark Wagner |url=https://archive.org/details/airbus0000norr |title=Airbus |publisher=MBI Publishing |year=1999 |isbn=0-7603-0677-X |location=Osceola, Wisconsin |pages=16–25 |ref={{harvid|Norris|Wagner|1999}} |url-access=registration}}</ref>{{rp|21}}<ref name="Endres99">{{Cite book |last=Endres |first=Günter |title=Airbus A300 |publisher=MBI Pub. |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-7603-0827-1 |pages=17–110}}</ref>{{rp|41}}
The Airbus A300B1 type had set several records, including being the first wide-body airliner powered by twin engines, the first commercial aircraft constructed of composite materials, and the first to use [[Center of gravity of an aircraft|center-of-gravity]] control. It was also the first Extended Operations (ETOPS) compliant aircraft in 1977. The F-WUAB could accommodate 300 passengers in flight.<ref name="AirBuscomHist-3232024" />
The aircraft remained as a testbed with its registration F-WUAB until September 1973 when Airbus Industries had reregistered the aircraft as F-OCAZ.<ref name="AirBuscomHist-3232024" />{{Failed verification|date=September 2024}}
=== Preservation === [[File:Airbus A300 cross section.jpg|thumb|Cross-section of A300 F-OCAZ preserved at the [[Deutsches Museum]]]] The aircraft was retired on August 27, 1974, after only two years of service as a testbed by Airbus Industries and the aircraft was partially scrapped, but some parts were salvaged and placed on display at the [[Deutsches Museum]] based in [[Munich]], [[Bavaria]], [[Germany]]. The parts that were salvaged from the breaker's yard included a fuselage section, the right-hand wing, and an engine.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}
== References == <references />
== Further reading == * {{Cite book |last=Endres |first=Günter G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DwYKAQAAMAAJ&q=%22N210PA%22+-wikipedia |title=Airbus A300 |publisher=[[MBI Pub.]] |year=1999 |isbn=9780760308271}} * {{Cite book |last=Kemp |first=Kenny |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=on7kvG9_neQC&dq=%22F-WUAB%22+Airbus+A300B1+-wikipedia&pg=PA86 |title=Flight Of The Titans: Boeing, Airbus and the Battle for the Future of Air Travel |publisher=[[Ebury Publishing]] |year=2013 |isbn=9781448133918 |publication-date=2013-07-31 |pages=}}
== External links == * [https://aerocorner.com/aircraft/airbus-a300b1/ Airbus A300B1 - Aero Corner]
[[Category:Airbus A300]]