Saab 340 / 2000

Development

Origins

During the 1970s, Swedish aircraft manufacturer Saab AB became increasingly interested in the civil aircraft market. In 1974, the company decided to proceed with developing its first major civilian aircraft, having previously focused almost entirely upon military aircraft. During the late 1970s, internal studies had determined that a short-haul airliner should be optimized to seat around 30 passengers. Likewise, it was decided to make use of turboprop propulsion, which was slower but more economical than turbofan engines, and to optimize the airliner to take advantage of this type of powerplant; this decision may have been influenced by high oil prices during that decade, such as the 1973 oil crisis. According to author Gunnar Eliasson, the selection of a turboprop engine made the type less attractive to airlines than jet-powered competitors, however recognized that the General Electric CT7-5A2 engine picked was quite competitive with the jet engines of that era. As conceived, the airliner was to match the performance of jets within its short-haul role.

Towards the end of the 1970s, the regional airliner venture had become the largest industrial venture in Sweden and was recognized as being too large for Saab to conduct alone. Accordingly, in January 1980, it was announced that Saab had entered into a partnership arrangement with US manufacturer Fairchild Aircraft to develop and produce the upcoming regional airliner. Under this partnership, Fairchild became responsible for the manufacture of sections such as the wings, tail unit, and engine nacelles while Saab was responsible for 75 per cent of the costs of development, system integration and certification. To match the new partnership, the type received the designation of SF340. The decision to develop a new generation regional airliner had fortuitously coincided with the removal of control by the US federal government under the 1978 Airline Deregulation Act, an event which would notably contribute to sales of the type during the following decade.

The 340 shared several manufacturing and design techniques that were used in Saab's military aircraft, such as the then in-development Saab JAS 39 Gripen multirole combat aircraft. One such technique was eliminating the use of rivets on the aluminum structures, using diffusion bonding instead, to reduce weight. On 25 January 1983, the first SF340 performed its maiden flight. Shortly following its launch onto the market in 1984, the Saab 340 became the best selling commuter aircraft in the world. By 1987, all activity by Fairchild on the programme had ceased, the US company having chosen to curtail its aircraft activities, thus Saab became solely responsible for producing the 340.

Further development

In 1985, due to Fairchild's decision to exit the aircraft manufacturing business following the completion of the first 40 units, Saab dropped the Fairchild name from the project and proceeded to continue aircraft production, referring to the type under the designation Saab 340A. A total of 159 A models were manufactured. In 1989, an improved version of the airliner, the second generation 340B, introduced more powerful engines and wider horizontal stabilizers; later production 340Bs also featured an active noise control system. A total of 200 aircraft were built. In 1994, the final third generation version, the 340B Plus, was delivered for service and incorporated improvements that were being introduced at the same time upon the larger Saab 2000, itself a derivative of the 340. A total of 100 aircraft were completed, adding up to a total of 300 B models. The Saab 340 typically seated between 30 and 36 passengers, with 34 seats being the most common configuration. The last two 340s built were constructed as older configuration 36-seat aircraft for Japan Air Commuter.

One of the major improvements introduced in the 340B Plus was the installation of an active noise and vibration control system in the cabin, reducing noise and vibration levels by about ten dB during cruising flight. Additionally, an optional extended wingtip modification on the initial 340B (fitted to approximately 30 aircraft) was made standard on the 340B Plus. The interior design was also modernized, and the lavatory compartment was relocated from the aft of the passenger cabin to just aft of the flight deck in most 3rd generation units. This increased total available cargo volume as the original location intruded into the cargo bin area. While the active noise control became standard on all Saab 340Bs in 1994, the first-ever 340B Plus (third B+ built) was delivered new to Hazelton Airlines in Australia in 1995, later operating for Rex Airlines, and currently for the Japanese Coast Guard. The system could also be retrofitted onto existing airliners.

During 1997, Saab was releasing pessimistic press releases on the 340 programme, stating that it was considering the potential closure of production line, but also pledged that it would maintain full support to existing customers if this happened.