United Airlines and Airbus have announced that the airline will add 35 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft to its future fleet.
United Airlines and Airbus have announced that the airline will add 35 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft to its future fleet. The agreement between the companies represents a conversion of the U.S. carrier’s previous order for 25 A350-900s to the -1000 model, as well as the addition of 10 more orders for A350-1000 aircraft. The announcement was made today during the Paris Air Show.
The first A350 XWB made its maiden flight on Friday June 14th, marking the begining of 2500 hour extensive flight test program. Entry into commercial service of the first customer aircraft is scheduled for the second half of 2014.
The A350-1000 is the largest version of the A350 XWB (Xtra Wide-Body) family and typically seats 350 passengers in a three-class layout. The aircraft is capable of flying 8,400 nautical miles non-stop and will be operated by United on higher density routes, including non-stop flights between the United States and the Asia/Pacific region.
The aircraft is powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines delivering 97,000lbs of thrust – the most powerful engines ever developed for an Airbus aircraft.
To date, Airbus has recorded 678 firm orders for the A350 XWB from 34 customers worldwide.
