Airbus A350

Airbus A350

The Airbus A350 is a long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner developed and produced by Airbus. The first A350 design proposed by Airbus in 2004 would have been a development of the Airbus A330 with composite wings and new engines. As market support was inadequate, in 2006, Airbus switched to a clean-sheet "XWB" (eXtra Wide Body) design, powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB turbofan engines. The prototype first flew on 14 June 2013 from Toulouse, France. The A350 is the first Airbus aircraft largely made of carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers. It has a new fuselage designed around a nine-abreast economy cross-section, up from the eight-abreast A330/A340. The airliner has two variants: the A350-900 typically carries 300 to 350 passengers over a 15,000-kilometre (8,100-nautical-mile) range, and has a 283-tonne (617,300-pound) maximum takeoff weight (MTOW); the longer A350-1000 accommodates 350 to 410 passengers and has a maximum range of 16,100 km (8,700 nmi) and a 319 t (703,200 lb) MTOW.  On 15 January 2015, the initial A350-900 entered service, followed by the A350-1000 on 24 February 2018 with the same launch customer. As of March 2023, Singapore Airlines is the largest operator with 62 A350-900 aircraft in its fleet. A350 orders stood at 967 aircraft, of which 526 had been delivered and all were in service with 40 operators. 

Variants
A350-900  
The A350-900 is the first A350 model; it has a MTOW of 280 tonnes (620,000 lb), typically seats 325 passengers, and has a range of 8,100 nmi (15,000 km). 
A350-900HGW
A350-900HGW ("high-gross weight") variant available from 2017. It enables non-stop Manila-New York City flights, a 7,404 nmi (13,712 km) flight. It has a 278 tonnes (613,000 lb) MTOW, and from 2020, the -900 is certified 260, 272, and 275 tonnes (573,000, 600,000, and 606,000 lb) variants, with the large fuel capacity. This will enable an 8,100 nmi (15,000 km) range with 325 seats in a three-class layout. 
A350-900ULR  
The MTOW of the ultra-long range -900ULR has been increased to 280 t (620,000 lb) and its fuel capacity increased to 165,000 L (37,000 to 44,000 US gal) within existing fuel tanks, enabling up to 19-hour flights with a 9,700 nmi (18,000 km) range, the longest range of any airliner in service as of 2022. The MTOW is increased by 5 tonnes (11,000 lb). Non-stop flights could last more than 20 hours. The first −900ULR was rolled out without its engines in February 2018 for ground testing and made its first flight on 23 April 2018. Singapore Airlines, the launch customer and currently the only operator, used its seven -900ULR aircraft on non-stop flights between Singapore and New York City and cities on the U.S. west coast. Singapore Airlines' seating is to range from 170 up to over 250. The planes can be reconfigured. The airline received its first -900ULR on 23 September 2018, with 67 business class seats and 94 premium economy seats. On 12 October 2018, it landed the world's then-longest flight at Newark Liberty Intl Airport from Singapore Changi after 17 hours and 52 minutes,covering 16,561 kilometres (8,942 nmi). As of 2022, the A350-900ULR is used on the longest flight in the world, Singapore Airlines Flights 23 and 24 from Singapore to New York JFK.  
ACJ350 
Airbus Corporate Jet version of the A350, the ACJ350, is derived from the A350-900ULR. The ACJ350 has a maximum range of 20,000 km (10,800 nmi).
A350 Regional 
After the Boeing 787-10 launch at the 2013 Paris Air Show, Airbus discussed with airlines a possible A350-900 Regional with a reduced MTOW of 250 t (550,000 lb). Engine thrust would have been reduced to 70,000–75,000 lbf (310–330 kN) from the standard 85,000 lbf (380 kN) and the variant would have been optimised for routes up to 6,800 nmi (12,600 km) with seating for up to 360 passengers in a single-class layout. Since 2013, there has been no further announcement about this variant. 



A350-1000 
The A350-1000 is the largest variant of the A350 family at just under 74 metres (243 ft) in length. It seats 350-410 passengers in a typical three-class layout with a range of 8,700 nmi (16,100 km).  The 7 m (23 ft) extension seats 40 more passengers with 40% more premium area. The -1000 can match the 40 more seats of the 777-9 by going 10-abreast but with diminished comfort. The main landing gear is a 6-wheel bogie instead of a 4-wheel bogie, put in a one frame longer bay. The Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine's thrust is augmented to 97,000 lbf (430 kN). Qatar Airways was the A350-1000 XWB launch operator in February 2018. It features an automatic emergency descent function to around 10,000 ft (3,000 m) and notifies air traffic control if the crew fails to respond to an alert, indicating possible incapacitation from depressurisation. The avionics software adaptation is activated by a push and pull button to avoid mistakes and could be retrofitted in the smaller -900. The -1000 basic 308 t (679,000 lb) MTOW was increased to 311 t (686,000 lb) before offering a possible 316 t (697,000 lb) version. In November 2019, maximum accommodation increased to 480 seats from 440 through the installation of new "Type-A+" exits, with a dual-lane evacuation slide. 
A350F  
An A350-900 freighter was first mentioned in 2007 with a range of 9,250 km (5,000 nmi), to be developed after the passenger version. In early 2020, Airbus was proposing an A350F before a potential launch. The proposed freighter would be slightly longer than the A350-900. In July 2021, the Airbus board approved the freighter development. It is based on the -1000 version for a payload over 90 tonnes, and entry into service is targeted for 2025. The A350F would keep the A350-1000 319 t MTOW. With a maindeck cargo door behind the wing and reinforced main deck aluminum floor beams, it has 109 t (240,000 lb), while its empty weight is 30 t (66,000 lb) lighter than the A350-1000. At the November 2021 Dubai Air Show, US lessor Air Lease Corporation became the launch customer with an order for seven to be delivered around 2026, among other Airbus airliners. The 70.8 m (232 ft) long cargo variant should have a 4,700 nmi (8,700 km) range at max payload.