Roger Béteille, one of the founders of Airbus, has passed away aged 97.
Béteille, who not only shaped Airbus’ first commercial aircraft - the A300B - but also Airbus Industrie, was born in Aveyron, France, in 1921.
He studied at Supaéro in Toulouse before joining France’s SNCASE, which later became Sud Aviation, in 1943, receiving his pilot’s licence in 1945, becoming thereafter flight test engineer in 1952.
In July 1967, the idea to develop a 300-seater all new wide-body twinjet was progressing with Béteille appointed chief engineer for the A300 programme at Sud Aviation.
The following year, Béteille started work in secret on what would become the A300B, a 250 seater with a hold large enough to accommodate two standard containers side by side.
The A300B was formally launched in 1969.
When the Airbus Industrie grouping of economic interests (GIE) was created in 1970, Béteille, then senior vice president of engineering, pushed for its headquarters to be close to the final assembly line in Toulouse, so potential customers could see the product under construction.
The A300B made its first flight on 28 October 1972 with Béteille's efforts culminating in the A300’s first US customer - Eastern Airlines - in 1977.
Eastern was led by the former Commander of Apollo 8, Frank Borman, with whom Béteille built a strong relationship.
According to Airbus, Béteille was quoted saying: “I was convinced that Airbus would never take off with a single aircraft,” he explained. “Potential customers would wonder if we’d still be around in ten or 20 years’ time.”
His dream truly came to fruition towards the end of his career, when in March 1984 he managed the formal launch of the A320.
The industry has shown its respect to Béteille.
Guillaume Faury , CEO of Airbus, said: " Roger Béteille occupies such an important place in the history of Airbus, since the creation of the A300B in 1969 until the launch of the A320 in 1984 - assert that it had had a lasting impact would be a euphemism. 'The man with the white tie' will be sorely missed."
Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg added: "As Airbus celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, we pay tribute to Roger Béteille and the legacy of its founders. Their contributions have strengthened our industry."