Tag Archives: A350-900

Japan Airlines takes delivery of its first Airbus A350-900

Japan Airlines (JAL) has taken delivery of its first A350 XWB at Airbus Headquarters in Toulouse, France. The A350-900 is the first aircraft produced by Airbus for JAL. The milestone event was attended by JAL Representative Director and Chairman Yoshiharu Ueki and Airbus Chief Commercial Officer Christian Scherer.

Altogether, JAL has ordered 31 A350 XWB aircraft, comprising 18 A350-900s and 13 A350-1000s. JAL will initially operate the A350-900 on high frequency domestic routes, while the larger A350-1000 will fly on the carrier’s long haul international network. The first aircraft will enter service on the airline’s Haneda – Fukuoka route at the start of September.

JAL’s A350-900 is configured in a premium three class layout, with 12 seats in First Class, 94 in Class J and 263 in Comfort Economy.

The ferry flight of the first JAL A350-900 is being performed with a blend of conventional and synthetic fuel, contributing to reduced CO₂ emissions.

The A350 XWB offers by design unrivalled operational flexibility and efficiency for all market segments up to ultra-long haul (15,000km). It features the latest aerodynamic design, a carbon fibre fuselage and wings, plus new fuel-efficient Rolls-Royce engines. Together, these latest technologies translate into unrivalled levels of operational efficiency, with a 25 per cent reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The A350 XWB’s Airspace by Airbus cabin is the quietest of any twin-aisle and offers passengers and crews the most modern in-flight products for the most comfortable flying experience.

At the end of May 2019, the A350 XWB Family had received 893 firm orders from 51 customers worldwide, making it one of the most successful wide-body aircraft ever.

Photos: Airbus.

Previously JAL announced its schedule for the new type:

Japan Airlines will launch Airbus A350-900 service on September 1, 2019 from Tokyo Haneda to Fukuoka airport.

JAL Airbus A350 – First Flight
1. Service Date: September 1, 2019 (Sunday)
2. Route: Tokyo Haneda-Fukuoka
Gradually expand to Tokyo (Haneda)-Sapporo (New Chitose)/Okinawa(Naha)/Osaka(Itami) routes
3. First Flight: [From Haneda] 　JAL 317 Tokyo Haneda 12:10 – Fukuoka 14:00
[From Fukuoka]　JAL 318 Fukuoka 15:00 – Tokyo Haneda 16: 40

Schedule of Operations.png

Delta’s first Airbus A350-900 is painted

Delta Air Lines issued this statement and Airbus photo of the pictured A350-941 F-WZGP (msn 115) which will become N501DN on delivery:

Delta’s first Airbus A350, Ship 3501, left Airbus’ paint shop in Toulouse, France, on Tuesday June 13, 2017 coated in Delta’s signature livery as the aircraft prepares to be delivered in July.

The state-of-the-art widebody jet had its first test flight two weeks ago and will undergo additional flight testing in France before being handed over to Delta, Ship 3501 is expected to enter service this fall on trans-Pacific routes. Delta will be the first U.S. carrier to take delivery of the A350.

As Delta’s flagship international aircraft, the A350 will be debut the airline’s Delta One suites in the business class cabin as well as Delta Premium Select. The aircraft will feature 32 Delta One suites, 48 Delta Premium Select seats and 226 seats in the Main Cabin.

Photo: Airbus.

Video:

China Southern Airlines orders 20 Airbus A350-900s

China Southern A350-900 (91)(Flt)(Airbus)(LRW)

China Southern Airlines has signed a purchase agreement with Airbus for 20 A350-900s, becoming the latest customer for the aircraft.

China Southern Airlines now operates one of the largest Airbus fleet in the world with more than 300 Airbus aircraft in service, comprising the A320 Family, the A330 Family and five A380s.

With this latest order, Airbus has recorded a total of 841 firm orders for the A350 XWB from 45 customers worldwide, making it one of the most successful widebody aircraft ever.

Image: Airbus.

Lufthansa welcomes its second Airbus A350-900

On February 24, 2017 Lufthansa welcomed its second Airbus A350-900 to the Munich base. Flight LH 9921 from Toulouse landed at around 11:00 at Munich Airport. There was also a special welcome from the airport’s fire service who received the new Airbus with a ceremonial fountain of water (below). Captain Georg Obermaier carried out the transfer flight from the Airbus works in Toulouse and is full of enthusiasm for the newest member of the fleet.

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Photo Above: Lufthansa.

The airline continued;

The flight crew completed their first training flights from the northern runway at Munich Airport to Leipzig. After a short interim stop, the A350-900 continued on to Cologne where it is pictured, where it landed for the first time at around 15:00.

The new aircraft has capacity to carry 293 passengers – 48 passengers in Business Class, 21 in Premium Economy Class and 224 in Economy Class. The A350-900 is currently the world’s most advanced and most environmentally-friendly long-haul aircraft. It uses 25 percent less kerosene, produces 25 percent fewer emissions and is significantly quieter on take-off than comparable types of aircraft.

On March 14, 2017, the second A350-900 will take off for Boston as its first flight in scheduled service.

Sichuan Airlines to lease an Airbus A350-900 from ALC

Air Lease Corporation (AL) has announced the placement of one Airbus A350-900 wide body jet on long term lease to Sichuan Airlines (Chengdu, China). The aircraft will be delivered in the first quarter of 2019 from ALC’s order book with Airbus. The A350-900 will be primarily operated across the Pacific, linking major cities in China with USA and Canada.

Sichuan will be leasing three Airbus A350-900s through AerCap and now one through ALC.

Sichuan Airlines has leased Airbus A330-200, A330-300, A319, and A321 aircraft from ALC. Later this year, Sichuan will receive the first A320neo and A321neo leased into China from ALC.

Lufthansa takes delivery of its first Airbus A350-900

Lufthansa has taken delivery of its first A350 XWB, the pictured A350-941 D-AIXA (msn 074). The new type is pictured arriving back at Toulouse on December 21, 2016 after a training flight.

The aircraft is the first of 25 A350-900s that Lufthansa has on order. Lufthansa will deploy their first A350s on long-haul routes from Munich to Delhi and Munich to Boston.

Powered by Rolls-Royce engines, Lufthansa’s A350 XWB will feature a comfortable three-class cabin layout with 48 seats in Business, 21 seats in Premium Economy and 224 seats in Economy. The A350 XWB is equipped with Lufthansa’s latest cabin products including new seats, an all-new inflight entertainment experience and, for the first time, inflight connectivity, offering new levels of comfort and convenience to Lufthansa’s passengers in all classes.

Lufthansa made this announcement on December 21, 2016:

It is one of the most important events for the year for the Lufthansa Group: The first Lufthansa Airbus A350-900 landed at its home airport of Munich airport on December 21, 2016. With a total of ten aircraft, Lufthansa stations the world’s most modern long-haul fleet at the Munich hub.

Captain Martin Hoell flew the A350-900 “home”, and is thrilled: “The A350-900 is the most modern plane with the most up-to-date technical features a commercial pilot can fly.”

For the cabin crew who brought the A350-900 to Munich, the event is also “a milestone that makes us very proud”, says flight attendant Annika Wittmann.

Flight LH 9921 from Toulouse landed on the southern runway, and was greeted by the fire brigade spraying arches of water as a welcome. There was a Lufthansa Christmas angel on board, Lufthansa employee Anja Oskoui, who had a special something in her suitcase: She gave a 10,000 euro cheque to a Munich orphanage from help alliance, Lufthansa’s non-profit employee organization.

The help alliance organization has been around for more than 17 years. It is committed to ensuring that more people on our planet can decide for themselves how to live their lives. The result of the 13 Lufthansa-founded associations: More than 140 successfully supported aid projects, more than ten million euros in donations – in addition to emergency aid provided in the event of various natural disasters.

Lufthansa:

Lufthansa to take delivery of its first Airbus A350-900 on December 19, 2016, will go into service on February 10, 2017

lufthansa-a350-900-d-aixa-88grdlufthansalr

On December 19, 2016, the Lufthansa Group will receive its first Airbus A350-900, which is the most modern long haul aircraft worldwide and which will be based at Lufthansa’s Munich Hub.

The first regular commercial flight will be from Munich to Delhi on February 10, 2017.

Once Lufthansa has taken ownership of the aircraft on December 19, the A350-900 will be transferred to Munich during the week leading up to Christmas. Lufthansa Technik in Munich will then install the cabin interior including the new Premium Economy Class as well as other features so that the new flagship aircraft will be ready to be presented to the public at the beginning of February.

From February 2017 onwards, Lufthansa will station the first ten Airbus A350-900 aircrafts in Munich. The first flight destinations are Delhi and Boston. The aircraft will have space for 293 passengers – 48 in Business Class, 21 in Premium Economy and 224 in the regular Economy Class section. The A350-900 is the most modern and environmentally friendly long haul aircraft worldwide and uses 25 percent less kerosene and produces 25 percent fewer emissions. The A350-900’s noise “footprint” is up to 50 percent lower than that of comparable aircraft types.

Photo: Lufthansa.

The first Airbus A350-900 for Lufthansa is rolled out of the Airbus paint shop

Lufthansa issued this statement and this Airbus photo about its first Airbus A350, namely the pictured A350-941 D-AIXA (msn 074):

The Lufthansa Airbus was in the so-called “paint shop” in the Airbus plant in Toulouse for eleven days, and then the moment arrived – the first A350-900 with white Lufthansa paint and blue lettering was ready to go. 30 people worked on the task, painting a total surface area of around 2,100 square meters.

This is the first time that the official identification code of D-AIXA has been seen. The use of an “X” follows in the style of the Airbus designation “A350 XWB” (extra wide body) – the cabin width of the A350-900 measures a generous 5.6 meters and gives passengers a great feeling of space.

The first ten Lufthansa Airbus A350-900 aircraft will be stationed in Munich for the coming winter. Delhi and Boston will be the first destinations to be served. The plane has space for 293 passengers – 48 in Business Class, 21 in Premium Economy and 224 in Economy Class. The A350-900 is the most modern and the most environmentally friendly long-haul aircraft in service world-wide. In comparison with similar types of aircraft, it uses 25 percent less kerosene and produces 25 percent fewer emissions, and the noise “footprint” produced by the A350-900 is up to 50 percent smaller.

Photo: Airbus.

Finnair sells and leases back two Airbus A350-900s with GECAS

https://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-Europe-2/Airlines-Europe-2/Finnair/i-SfLrn2q

Finnair (Helsinki) has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with GE Capital Aviation Services Limited (GECAS), on the sale and leaseback of two Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The financing will cover Finnair’s 6th and 7th A350 deliveries, which are currently scheduled to enter the Finnair fleet in July 2016 and February 2017, respectively. The value of the transaction at present foreign exchange rates is approximately 265 million euro. The lease period is 12 years, and it includes extension options.

Finnair has ordered a total of 19 new A350-900 XWB aircraft in the fleet or on order. Finnair took delivery of its first A350 aircraft (OH-LWA) on October 7, 2015 and the second (OH-LWB, above) on December 14, 2015. According to the currently anticipated delivery schedule, Finnair will have five A350-900 aircraft at the beginning of the second quarter of 2016, seven by the end of 2016, 11 by the end of 2017, and 19 by the end of 2023.

Disclosures on financing arrangements for the A350 aircraft will be made as those agreements are finalized. Finnair’s fleet consists of both owned and leased aircraft.

Copyright Photo: Eurospot/AirlinersGallery.com. The second Finnair Airbus A350-941 (OH-LWB, msn 019) is also the first A350 to appear in the oneworld special livery.

Finnair aircraft slide show:

TAM Airlines becomes the first Airbus A350-900 operator in the Americas

https://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-CSAmerica-2/Airlines-Latin-America2-GZ/TAM-Linhas-Aereas-Brazil/i-nJ8sSrw

LATAM Airlines Group, made up of LAN Airlines (Santiago) and TAM Airlines (TAM Linhas Aereas) (Sao Paulo), has taken delivery of its first A350-900 in Toulouse, France.

In doing so, TAM will become the first airline in the Americas to operate the all-new airliner and the fourth worldwide. TAM’s aircraft is configured in a premium two-class layout, with 348 seats, comprising of 30 Premium Business Class and 318 Economy. LATAM has ordered a total of 27 A350-900s aircraft for the Group.

The carrier will start operating the A350-900 commercially in January 2016 between Sao Paulo and Manaus, Brazil, as part of continued training and crew familiarization. This will be followed by operations from Sao Paulo to Miami in March and then to Madrid in April.

Copyright Photo: Eurospot/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A350-941 F-WZFS (msn 024) became PR-XTA when it was officially handed over on December 17.

TAM Airlines aircraft slide show: