A350 remains on track as officially reported during Airbus-Group 1Q/2014 results presentation, but ... (Part1/2).

The Airbus A350 is progressing apace and remains on track to be delivered this year.

During the First Quarter 2014 Results presentation, concerning the A350 program, Airbus did not reported officially any special news; “The A350 XWB program is progressing towards certification, with 4 of the 5 development aircraft now flying and over 1,600 flight test hours accumulated. The first 2 customer aircraft are now in the assembly line with certification targeted for the third quarter and entry-into-service by the end of 2014.” 

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-05-13/airbus-profit-drops-on-fewer-plane-deliveries-higher-costs-1

“The Group made further progress in the opening quarter of 2014, with improved revenues and earnings per share,” said Airbus Group CEO Tom Enders. “We confirm our guidance, however there are still many challenges ahead for the rest of the year. A strong focus remains on program execution and the implementation of our various improvement and restructuring plans.”

Based on the article “Airbus Still Expects an On-Time Arrival for the A350” published in Businessweek.

Rolls Royce delivers the first production engine for Qatar´s A350. Team great achievement. Videos

Rolls-Royce has delivered its first production line Trent XWB engine to Toulouse, ahead of the Airbus A350-900’s entry into service with Qatar Airways later this year.

Click the picture to watch the video (via BBC)

Rolls-Royce is the sole engine supplier for the 3-member A350 XWB family. The A350-900 is powered by a baseline 370 kN (83,000 lb.) thrust version.  “When we reach peak production in 2017, we will be delivering a Trent XWB every working day,” Rolls-Royce Trent XWB program director Chris Young said.

Click the picture to watch a time-lapse video of a Trent XWB engine being built  (via Telegraph)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/industry/10835098/Rolls-Royces-newest-jet-engine-the-XWB.html?frame=2912890

From design to conception the Trent XWB has come a long way, and its journey has just started. 88 global suppliers, 16 Rolls-Royce plants, 13 partners & 25 dual sources for 1 spectacular engine.

Click the picture to watch the video

An open-top bus parade was held in Derby to celebrate the success of an important British export. Crowds were on hand to cheer the designers of the new Rolls-Royce's Trent XWB engine as the first one was delivered to Toulouse. The firm hopes to produce 4,000 of the aeroplane engines.

All eyes on the Trent XWB. The team celebrate the 1st production engine being delivered to Airbus FAL.

The XWB engine will be fitted at the Airbus FAL in Toulouse. It will be followed in just a couple of weeks by the second one and Rolls-Royce expects to deliver 30 this year and produce one a day by 2017.

All pictures ©Rolls-Royce

Based on the article “Rolls-Royce releases first production Trent XWB engine” published in ATW

A350 prototype will be at Berlin ILA Airshow

MSN4 prototype with Qatar logo as Launch Customer will be at ILA next week, only for the opening day Tuesday 20/May in the static & flying display from 11am.

http://www.icandy.pw/News/A350-Launch-Customer/i-Sc87GgT

It is planned that the flight-test aircraft will arrive Berlin on Monday 19/May in the afternoon, living the show one day later at 17:30h

http://www.icandy.pw/News/A350-Launch-Customer/i-Sc87GgT

Based on the article “Airbus bringt A350 Prototyp MSN4 nach Berlin” published in Aero.de

Automatic stringers placement on the A350 fuselage section with Six Degrees of Freedom laser trackers.

Within the last decade, laser trackers have improved greatly in functionality. One of the most significant improvements is the ability for a laser tracker to measure in a full Six Degrees of Freedom, or 6DoF. This capability allows robot manufacturers to correct the end effector of the robot during a calibration cycle with less poses, but it has also opened up new possibilities. 

http://www.hexagonmetrology.com/Premium-Aerotec---Nordenham_1543.htm

In the past when using a traditional 3-D laser tracker, multiple positions had to be measured to calculate the tooling center point (TCP) in 6D space. Now by using a 6DoF laser tracker, it is possible to know the exact location of the end effector in 6D space in real time. This innovation removes the need for robot calibration completely as the tracker can monitor and correct the position of the end effector in real time without the need to worry about what the robot is doing in “joint space.”

http://www.automationspraxis.de/automotive/-/article/33568397/38718972/Airbus-Montage%3A-Laser-Tracker-korrigiert-exakte-Roboter-Position/art_co_INSTANCE_0000/maximized/

This advanced technology was recently applied at Premium Aerotec (Nordenahm, Germany) to automate the process of placing stringers for the fuselage section of the Airbus A350 XWB. Because the stringers were up to 18 meters long, the specified absolute accuracy of the robots being used still were not accurate enough to place them correctly. The team was only able to meet their stringent accuracy requirements by correcting the robots in real time based on feedback from the 6DoF Absolute laser tracker.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/13974028596/lightbox/

Automated cells based on robots and mobile measurement systems are no longer viewed as futuristic, and these implementations have grown substantially in a worldwide scale. As a result of this intelligence, a variety of manufacturers and industries are investigating their processes with fresh eyes, setting their sights on areas where measurement and inspection automation can play a vital role. In the midst of a paradigm shift, manufacturing history is changing right before our eyes. 

Based on the article “Metrology Automation is Here and Now” published in Quality magazine.

Qatar Airways plans Doha-Perth (Australia) ultra long-haul route with A350s in 2015.

Qatar Airways will fly its new Airbus A350 to Perth in early 2015 as one of the launch routes for the next-generation jetliner, according to airline CEO Akbar Al Baker.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/14005004923/lightbox/

Speaking at a press conference at the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai last week, Al Baker said that the current daily Perth-Doha Boeing 777 service would be upgraded to the new Airbus A350 "in early 2015, I hope."

Al Baker said that Perth was chosen both for being an "ultra long-haul route" from Qatar's Doha hub as well as for its importance as Australia's "mineral resources capital."

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/14061036142/lightbox/

"Perth will not be the launch route for the A350 but it will be one of the first ultra long-haul routes that we will operate" he added.

Qatar previously intended to run a Boeing 787 Dreamliner onto the Perth-Doha route from 1/February/2013, but cancelled those plans just 2 weeks shy of the launch when the Boeing 787 was grounded around the world.

https://www.facebook.com/PerpignanSpotting

However, Al Baker admitted that the long Perth-Doha flight would have been towards the edge of the operating range of the early model Boeing 787-8s which were ordered without the necessary crew rest.

By comparison, he said, the flight "can comfortably be flown by an Airbus A350 which is designed for these ultra long-haul routes."

Based on the article “Qatar Airways CEO promises Airbus A350 for Perth in early 2015” published in Australian Business Traveller

Spirit AeroSystems preparing for A350 ramp-up. 2nd autoclave and 440 employees in Kinston.

Spirit AeroSystems Composite Center of Excellence in Kinston has boosted its employee base to 440 people in recent months with more prospective hires in training.

http://www.kinston.com/news/local/bike-to-the-future-1.303934

Spirit AeroSystems builds the composite center fuselage section and front wing spar for the A350 XWB. Those assemblies are then to be shipped to Spirit’s facilities in St. Nazaire, France, and Prestwick, Scotland for assembly and delivery to Airbus.

At build-out, the Kinston plant is expected to employ more than 1,000 workers.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/63651768@N08/6419451199

Spirit also recently confirmed that it is building a second big autoclave at the Kinston facility that will be used to cure large aerostructure components. “The autoclave was added to support increased production rates for our customer,” says Jarrod Bartlett, a spokesman for Wichita, Kan.-based Spirit Aerosystems. “The addition represents a significant investment in the Spirit Kinston facility and continued strong demand for commercial airplanes.”

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/14018858854/lightbox/

 

Based on the article “Spirit AeroSystems invests in more people, equipment in Kinston for Airbus orders” published in Triangle Business Journal

A350 certification by EASA looking at the end of the summer.

Airbus is on track to get safety certification for its A350, by "the end of the summer" as planned, Europe's top air safety regulator said on Wednesday last week.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/13981833131/lightbox/

Airbus has said tests are going well on the A350.

"We are still looking at the end of the summer," said Patrick Ky, executive director of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/14015198641/lightbox/

EASA is seen likely to certify the jet at the end of August or in early September so that Airbus can deliver the A350 to its first customer, Qatar Airways, around the end of the year.

 

Based on the article “Airbus set for A350 safety approval in late summer: EASA” published in Reuters.