Airbus A350-1000 took its maiden flight in Toulouse
November 25,2016- Toulouse
Europe’s largest twin-engined passenger jet, the Airbus (AIR.PA) A350-1000 took its maiden flight for the very first time on Thursday in Toulouse Blagnac Airport.
The aircraft weighs 230 tons and takes flight at the maximum speed of 350 knots.
The aircraft took a three-hour test flight which is made at an investment of $356 million and is the longest twin-engine jet aircraft which is seven meters longer along with being able to carry 40 more passengers than the other A350s was flown in front of the high-level delegates and some news media.
The aircraft has the capacity of 366 passengers which is in competition with Boeing has its aircraft entirely made from carbon fiber which is same advance material as that of Boeing 787 Dreamliner for fuel savings and better passenger comfort.
The aircraft implicated in Thursday’s Toulouse debut is one of three test planes facing 1,600 hours of rigorous flight testing before the A350-1000 enters service in the latter half of 2017.
Airbus says the A350-1000 will be 25 percent cheaper to function than the contending Boeing 777-300ER, an older aircraft which weighs more but which has more seats in some layouts.
The aircraft is powered by Rolls-Royce (RR.L) Trent XWB engine, one of the largest with a fan case large enough to gulp down the fuselage of the now obsolete Concorde.
