The first A350-1000 prototype aircraft, the longest member of Airbus's new generation A350 jetliner family has completed maiden flig...
The first A350-1000 prototype aircraft, the longest member of Airbus's new generation A350 jetliner family has completed maiden flight.
The maiden flight commences a year long developmental flight testing which will involve three prototype aircraft.
The MSN059 took off from Blagnac Airport in Toulouse, France at 10.42 hrs local time and landed back at 15.00 hrs local time, successfully completing its first flight which lasted four hours and 18 minutes.
Furthermore, monitoring all the test parameters at the Flight-Test-Instrumentation (FTI) station behind the cockpit were: Patrick du Ché, Head of Flight & Integration Tests; Emanuele Costanzo, Head of A350 Development Flight Tests; and Stéphane Vaux, Flight-Test Engineer.
Powered by Rolls-Royce’s new Trent XWB-97 engines, the aircraft traversed south-western France, during which the crew explored the aircraft’s handling and flight envelope.
The aircraft was accompanied by a chase plane to observe and film the various manoeuvres. Its progress was monitored by experts on the ground in real-time via a direct telemetry link.
Measuring nearly 74 meters from nose to tail, the A350-1000 can seat 366 passengers in a typical 3-class configuration and fly non-stop on routes of up to 7950 nautical miles (14700 km).
The MSN059 will be used to perform explore the flight envelope, handling qualities, loads and braking.
The second aircraft to fly, MSN071, will also be tasked with performance evaluation, which will encompass braking, powerplant, systems and autopilot.
The third and final aircraft to fly – MSN065 – will be equipped with a cabin and will evaluate the cabin and air systems. MSN065 will also perform the “early long flights” and route-proving.
The overall campaign will culminate in the type’s certification followed by its entry into airline service in the second half of 2017 with first operator Qatar Airways – the largest A350-1000 customer to date with 37 on order.
As well as having a longer fuselage to accommodate 40 more passengers than the A350-900 which entered commercial service with Qatar Airways in January 2015., the A350-1000 also features a modified wing trailing-edge, new six-wheel main landing gears and more powerful Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines.
It is powered by the specially enhanced Trent XWB-97 engine that produces 97,000 lbs of thrust on take-off – making it the most powerful engine ever developed for an Airbus aircraft. The Rolls Royce Trent XWB engine family exclusively powers the A350 aircraft.
