Detailed analysis of the A350´s fuel burn and range performance will be done with MSN5 “batch2” prototype starting in May.

Airbus will undertake detailed analysis of the A350 XWB’s fuel burn and range performance with the first fully representative aircraft when it flies in May, but is confident that it is on course to achieve all its targets.

The first two aircraft MSN1 and MSN3 -with more than 1000 flight hours logged- have been used for some basic performance testing. MSN2 and MSN4 will also play a role in the process as soon as they airborne in February.

However the test team will concentrate on MSN5 when it becomes available in May for definitive analysis, said Fernando Alonso senior vice-president flight and integration tests.

“MSN5 will be the first ‘batch 2’ airplane built with production-standard engines, and we will fly a 2-3 month test campaign on that airplane which is mandatory to certificate everything related to ‘batch 2’ modifications and the engines,” said Alonso.

This aircraft will also be used for the route-proving program to be flown in conjunction with launch customer Qatar Airways, from the airline’s Doha base.

“Batch 2” represents the production specification A350 with modifications mainly related to weight-saving, said Alonso. “We are on target for the weight with the ‘batch 2’ aircraft. I am very confident that we will deliver the payload and the range that we planned.”

The first A350 off the line for Qatar Airways will be MSN6.

Airbus says it is making “steady progress” towards type certification in the third quarter and it is confident that first deliveries to Qatar Airways and entry-into-service will take place before the end of the year.

Based on the article “Airbus confident on A350 performance numbers.” published in FlightGlobal

Extreme temperature tests second round scheduled for May. But this time the A350 will be tested indoor.

Following the Bolivia and Canada trials, the A350 will undergo another round of extreme temperature tests in May, but this time it will use the McKinley Climatic Laboratory at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.

The hangar will be cooled down to temperatures of around -40 degrees Celsius and heated to reach +45 degrees Celsius. The hangar has been used by many previous programs including, most recently, the Boeing 787.

Two months before, in March, natural icing tests will be completed.

Based on the article “A350 Test Progress Exceeds Expectations” published in AviationWeek

Qatar could order more A350 -1000s

Qatar Airways is in talks with Airbus about an order for additional A350 XWBs, probably -1000s, as it prepares for the arrival of its first A350-900 later this year.

“There is a possibility that we will order additional A350s”, Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said. “We still have not worked out the size of the order. At the moment we are looking at the A350-1000”, he added.

The airliner´s first A350-900 is due for delivery in the Q4 of this year, and the A350-1000s are due to arrive from 2017. Al Baker said the schedule for the planned new A350 order “could overlap with deliveries of the current batch”.

Qatar Airways is the launch customer for the A350 with firm orders for 80 aircraft, comprisiong 43 -900s and 37 -1000s.

It is not clear if the proposed A350 deal would have any impact on 30 options the airline holds for Boeing 787s, as Al Baker has previously been critical of the Dreamliner´s teething problems.

Based on the article “Qatar in talks to order more A350s” published in Flight International

Singapore Airlines pilots feel at home in the A350 XWB. Commonality is key.

The A350 XWB has been given high marks by two Singapore Airlines pilots following a demonstration flight from Changi Airport in this new jetliner – as both praised its commonality with the A380 and A330 they currently fly, while also appreciating new features incorporated in the cockpit.

Click on the picture to watch a video

Taking the controls from the left seat pilot-in-command position, the two aviators were provided a first-hand A350 XWB experience during a weekend evaluation flight performed prior to the Singapore Airshow’s opening

Captain Quay Chew Eng, the Vice President and Chief Pilot Training at Singapore Airlines – who currently flies the A330 – found the A350 XWB’s handling characteristics to be nearly the same as the rest of Airbus’ fly-by-wire jetliner family, and predicted a nearly seamless transition for pilots to this latest member of the company’s product line.  

He said the A350 XWB’s new cockpit features, including the use of six large-format LCD (liquid crystal display) screens to display flight information for improved pilot interface, were “quiet intuitive.

Captian Gerard Yeap, Singapore Airlines’ Senior Vice President – Flight Operations, said he was immediately comfortable on the A350 XWB flight deck based on his current experience flying the A380

“The greatest complement to Airbus is that I feel very at home stepping into this cockpit,” he explained after completing the demonstration flight.  “It handles, looks and feels like another Airbus.

Based on the press release "Singapore Airlines pilots feel at home in the A350 XWB"

Airbus confident in the EIS of the A350; “We have taken a lot of risk out of the program”

According to Fernando Alonso - senior vice-president flight and integration tests-, Airbus had built in some contingencies into the schedule in case some significant difficulties would be discovered, but there weren’t any.

Because he expects a larger number of requests for late modifications, he has “no hope” however, that the certification and test program could be accelerated.

On the other hand, Alonso is very confident that entry into service will not be delayed. “We have taken a lot of risk out of the program,” he says.

2 more test aircraft, MSN2 -the first full cabin installed- and MSN4 are going to fly before the end of February and MSN5 is planned to fly in May.

All the configurations of the aircraft – flaps and slats settings for various flight phases amongst others – are now defined and frozen. Certification testing involving airworthiness authorities has begun.

Based on the article “A350 Test Progress Exceeds Expectations” published in AviationWeek

Kuwait's parliament will investigate the provisional agreement of Kuwait Airways to buy 10 A350-900.

Kuwait's parliament voted last week to investigate a deal between the state carrier and Airbus to buy and lease aircraft.

Politics have long complicated Kuwait's plans to modernize its infrastructure and to implement a program to diversify the economy and enable it to compete as a Gulf financial centre.

Such parliamentary inquiries are common in Kuwait, where lawmakers often question large government projects and have delayed or scuppered them in the past.

Lawmakers want to investigate all deals agreed by Kuwait Airways, which is attempting the biggest overhaul of its fleet since the 1990 Iraqi invasion.

In December it signed a provisional agreement with Airbus to buy 25 new aircraft in a deal worth $4.4 billion at list prices.

The order would include the purchase of 10 A350-900 and 15 medium-haul A320neo jets. The airline also aims to lease 12 aircraft from Airbus pending delivery of the new planes.

Based on the article “Kuwait to probe Airbus, power project contracts” published in Reuters

The discussions on German A350 loan are over.

Airbus has signaled that it no longer expects to get financial aid from Germany for the development of the A350, underscoring how a wide-ranging restructuring of the aerospace giant has loosened the relationship with one of its largest government shareholders.

Airbus has received billions of euros in preferential loans from European governments to support the development of new jetliner models over the past 4 decades. This includes a €500 million loan from Germany for the A350 four years ago.

An agreement on a 2nd loan, for €600 million, remains outstanding because Airbus Group has balked at the terms being imposed by the German government.

"As you're aware, we reopened discussions 18 months ago and we didn't come to a sound conclusion, so we decided to stop," said Airbus Chief Executive Fabrice Brégier, on the sidelines of the Singapore Air Show. “For me the discussions are over on that."

"We weren't ready for the requirements they wanted," an Airbus spokesman said.

Germany has long insisted on guaranteed work and jobs as part of its shareholding in Airbus Group. The restructuring of EADS as Airbus Group last year further reduced Germany's influence. The company streamlined its defense and space operations, cutting 5,800 jobs and consolidating sites across France, Germany, Spain and the U.K. The group has also shifted its main headquarters from Munich and Paris to its commercial aerospace base in Toulouse, France.

Based on the article “Airbus Ends Talks on German A350 Loans” published in The Wall Street Journal