A340-300 landing at KPVD?????

hey guys,

I live in RI, USA and my local airport is KPVD, “Providence, RI”. The largest planes that land here are maybe a 757, although Air Force One did land here last October (first 747 i knew of that could land here).

Well, i’m checking flightaware and there seems to be an A340-300 with Iberia - Lineas Aereas de Espana “Iberia” on its way here from Barajas Int’l.

It’s about 50 minutes out and the frequency for KPVD is down on LiveATC so i can’t even listen. Could this be a mistake??? I have NO idea how an A340-300 could land here at KPVD even with no fuel, as the longest runway is 7,166ft. And why would this plane be landing HERE?? I’ve never heard of an international flight landing here in KPVD.

It’s flight IBE2940 date is 6/1/11

flightaware.com/live/flight/IBE2940

Any input is appreciated!

7100 feet of runway is enough to land an A340-300.

It can also take off with fuel to just go to JFK or IAD or wherever it’s destination is.

Well, apparently it’s going BACK all the way to Barajas Int’l tonight, with no other stops along the way.

flightaware.com/live/flight/IBE2941

Can it really take off from PVD with enough fuel to make its 7 hour journey back?? As i watched the landing on flightaware it appeared they were on the wrong runway heading (the smallest of the 2 runways here) and had to make a quick turn to land on the longer runway… Apparently they didn’t know how small this airport was!

I checked out the flight path for landing on flightaware and there is nothing unusual about it - the sharp turn you describe is simply entering the traffic patten on the downwind leg, then turning to base and then to final. The pilots and ATC know exactly which runway is to be used.

What’s more interesting to me is what was it doing there? And why the quick scheduled return?

EDIT: About the runway length issue, the trip back to Spain is only a portion of the maximum range of the aircraft. Hence, less fuel is needed, hence weight is lower and less runway length would be needed.

I googled a bit and found out there’s gonna be a soccer game on the 4th in MA (about a half hour from PVD) with a team from Spain.

“CHICAGO (March 25, 2011) — The U.S. Men’s National Team will face 2010 FIFA World Cup Champion Spain on June 4 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. Kickoff against the No. 1-ranked team in the world and defending European Champion is set for 4:30 p.m. ET, and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN and Univision…”

from:
ussoccer.com/News/Mens-Natio … rough.aspx

Theoretically PVD is closer than KBOS… so could this be related to the A340? Maybe the team from Spain was on this flight?

Is there any way to find out?

I think there’s a good chance it could be the sports team (which was my initial thought). It looks like they stopped in just long enough to drop the team off, then they’ll be back later.

As for Boston, I don’t know why they didn’t land there (maybe attract less attention at PVD?) Of course no problem for the A340 to land at Boston.

Hmmm… i found this pic, apparently the team flew with Iberia on an a340-600 last year!

jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=6884409&nseq=0

How can i find out who was on that plane?

I’m 99% sure it was the Spanish soccer team.

well what to you know, someone here in RI took a video of the a340 at PVD!

Iberia Airlines Airbus A340-300 landing at T.F. Green Airport (KPVD), Warwick, RI - 6/1/2011 - YouTube)

Marshall’s in Cambridge England had a contract with British Airways to do some upgrades to BA’s 747-400 fleet back about 10 or 12 years ago. Of course the flight is not very far but the runway at Cambridge is 6446 ft. long. if you use the concrete runway. If you use the grass runway you only get 2949. I’m pretty sure BA used the concrete one. :unamused:

When you get into aircraft of this size you can greatly reduce the runway needed by lowering the weight. The one thing you can’t do is reduce the width of the runway, taxiway and ramp needed.

It looks like the maximum weight allowed at PVD is 590,000 Lbs. although airports have been known to issue waivers under some circumstances.

I live about 20 min. north of PVD right next to Foxboro, Ma. I think your assumption of the soccer team is probably correct. PVD is closer to Foxboro and is always used by visiting teams either NFL, MLS or music artists for concerts. Cheaper landing and transient fees and hotels vs Boston make it desirable.

[quote=“cd1989”]
well what to you know, someone here in RI took a video of the a340 at PVD!

Iberia Airlines Airbus A340-300 landing at T.F. Green Airport (KPVD), Warwick, RI - 6/1/2011 - YouTube)

I love the contrast between the hugeness of the 340 against the CRJ holding short. Some of those people must’ve been shocked to see such a massive jet touch down.

It’s a shame PVD’s runway is too short to see at least A330s and B767s from overseas. They used to have an A310 coming in weekly from the Azores, which was a cool sight to see, and of course, during football season we’re at least treated to 767s from some of the visiting teams.[/quote]

100% it was the Spanish national team, saw a picture of it on wikipedia when I was checking out the Providence Airport a couple weeks ago.