GKN Aerospace: from “Most Improved” to “Best Performing” Supplier

GKN Aerospace in Filton (Bristol, UK) has been recognized as Airbus's Best Performing Supplier. This follows receipt of the 2013 Most Improved Supplier award by the site, the result of significant industrial performance enhancements achieved working with Airbus during 2012.

http://www.gkn.com/aerospace/media/news/Pages/GKN-Aerospace-gains-further-recognition-for-A350-XWB-wing-spar.aspx

Sales to Airbus represent approximately 20% of GKN Aerospace’s total annual turnover of £2.2 billion and the company supports almost all Airbus aircraft programs with products ranging from complex composite and metallic airframe and engine structures to advanced cockpit and cabin transparencies.

http://www.economist.com/node/21556582

“To receive both ‘most improved supplier’ and then ‘best performing supplier’ from Airbus in just 24 months is an excellent achievement for us,” says John Pritchard, vice president and managing director - metallics, GKN Aerospace. “Our entire workforce - at Filton and globally - is committed to delivering excellence to our customers. We have embedded robust practices and created a customer-focused culture that have delivered significant, measurable performance benefits. It is extremely satisfying for us all - and our Filton team in particular - to see the site recognised with such an important customer award.”

http://www.exova.com/news/newsroom/gkn-aerospace-awards-contract-to-exova/

GKN bought the wing components manufacturing facility at Airbus's Filton site in January 2009 and has built a separate, dedicated factory for its A350 work 8km from the Filton plant.

GKN Aerospace in Filton produces the rear wing spar and the fixed trailing edge for A350 XWB family of aircraft. The site employs more than 1.700 of the GKN Aerospace’s worldwide total of 12.000 staff.

http://www.compositesworld.com/articles/a350-a400m-wing-spars-a-study-in-contrasts

Each wing's 27m long rear spar is manufactured in 3 sections and forms the structural heart of the wing fixed trailing edge (FTE). The spar attaches vital parts including the main landing gear, to the wing. Its complex integral contours are achievable only as a result of manufacturing innovations introduced by GKN Aerospace and these contours provide the specific strength and flexibility required with minimal weight.

Once the spar is manufactured, GKN Aerospace is responsible for assembling the complete wing FTE and delivering this assembly to Airbus in Broughton ready for integration onto the wing.

Based on the article “GKN Aerospace — Filton wins Airbus performance award” published in Composites World.

The A350's hot weather trials in the Middle East

Airbus’ A350 XWB MSN3 development aircraft with a team of around 40 Airbus specialists is doing hot weather trials at Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. With an average temperature of 35ºC, temperatures reached 48°C.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49477547@N04/14356103601/lightbox/

The scope of the trials includes verifying system behavior, low-speed taxi, engine starts and rejected take-offs.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49477547@N04/14078240387/lightbox/

This latest phase of the development test program comes after MSN3 completed high altitude tests in Bolivia and cold weather tests in Canada. And last month, the MSN2 prototype was at Florida in some indoor extreme weather tests.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49477547@N04/14273311035/lightbox/

The A350 arrived at Al Ain Airport in the United Arab Emirates on 12/June for a less-than-a-week-long mission to test systems and evaluate performance in hot climate conditions.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49477547@N04/14279477442/lightbox/

One year since the first flight of the A350 XWB. Video

Airbus has released a video showing the main milestones on the Type-Certification Campaign that should be completed by October in order to deliver the first series aircraft (MSN6) to Qatar, the Launch Customer.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/52420842@N04/14264421011/lightbox/

One year later, the first 4 flight-test prototype are flying and the 5^th one will airborne next week. Many tests have been done and some of them can be shown in the video.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/14248436671/lightbox/

Cathay Pacific expects to take delivery of its first A350 in February/2016.

Cathay Pacific expects to take delivery of its first A350 in February/2016, with 47 more of the next-gen jetliners to follow.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/13889544046/lightbox/

The airline has confirmed that its debutant A350 is "currently slated to arrive in February/2016" so it will be around MSN30 and it will include all-new business class and economy seats designed by Porsche Design Group and London-based Tangerine.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/32376857@N02/13776070354/lightbox/

Cathay Pacific has signed up for 22 of the mid-size A350-900 and 26 of the largest and longest-range A350-1000 model.

"With the entry into service EIS of the A350 just 6 months away, Cathay Pacific is working hard to fine-tune its own cabin definition and technical specifications for the new aircraft" the airline said.

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

However, Cathay Pacific has already clocked up some time with the A350 as part of a ‘virtual passenger flight’ held in August/2013, when a CX cabin crew served 129 passengers during a four hour dry run in an A350 mock-up dubbed ‘Cabin Zero’.

Source: Airbus.

The 'flight' took place in the Airbus plant situated on the outskirts of Hamburg, with passengers even treated to a hearty hot lunch on their imaginary journey from the Canary Islands to Hamburg.

Based on the article “Cathay Pacific's first Airbus A350 due for February 2016” published in Australian Business Traveller

http://www.ausbt.com.au/cathay-pacif...-airbus-a350-due-for-february-2016 

Rejected Take Off RTO test video. Smoke and only smoke.

Airbus has performed different tests of RTO during the Certification campaign. This is one of the test available in Youtube.

Click the picture to watch the video.

Emirates cancels entire A350 Order

Emirates has cancelled its order for 70 A350s, comprising 50 A350-900s and 20 A350-1000s.

"Airbus and Emirates Airline benefit from a long-standing relationship and the airline recently reiterated its confidence in Airbus products particularly by praising the A380 and the benefits the aircraft brings to their operations," said Airbus in a press release.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/52420842@N04/14265630752/lightbox/

“While disappointed with this decision, we are confident that the delivery slots which start towards the end of this decade vacated by Emirates will be taken up by other airlines. Demand for the Airbus A350 remains strong, with more than 700 aircraft already sold.”

In November/2012, Clark said the airline's A350-1000 was in limbo, and the A350-900 “is starting to look a bit marginal to us because of size,” he said. “Gauge is the way we grow, you cannot get any more aircraft into the Dubai hub”.  But today´s decision is a surprise.

“It is not the world’s greatest news,” said Airbus COO Customers John Leahy. “Tim does change his mind from time to time.” Leahy stated there was no impact financially given that first deliveries were only planned for 2019 and spanned out to 2034. “There is certainly no hole in production, I’m not particularly worried at all.” Leahy pointed out that he has already received expressions of interest from other A350 customers who would like to pick up production slots now freed up as a result of the Emirates decision.

http://airlineworld.wordpress.com/2007/07/27/cartoon-airline-industry/

The cancellation is not so much a problem in terms of order numbers – Airbus still holds 742 commitments for the aircraft – but it does raise the question whether other airlines are as unsatisfied with the -1000. Other Gulf carriers have also placed large orders for the -1000 variant –- Qatar Airways has bought 37 and Etihad 22 of the type.

The Emirates cancellation does leave a significant dent in the -1000 backlog which has now shrunk from 189 to 169 aircraft. 

Since the A350 order, Emirates has been increasingly focused on even larger aircraft. It placed an order for 150 Boeing 777Xs and 50 more A380s. Emirates stated that “the contract which we signed in 2007 for 70 A350 aircraft has lapsed. We are reviewing our fleet requirements.”

Based on the article “Emirates Cancels Airbus A350 Order” published in Aviation Week and based on the article “Emirates cancels 70 A350s after A380 deal” published in Flight International.

A350 XWB Ramp-up for coming years. As much as possible, as faster as possible.

"We closely follow up all the constraints for the smooth running of the program and we need to be very transparent about our targets and objectives”. said Harald Wilhelm, Airbus Groups CFO.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49477547@N04/14172802738/lightbox/

Regarding the A350, we plan to deliver 1 or 2 aircraft this year, 10 to 15 by 2015 and reach a production rate of 10 per month late 2018. Above all, we want to reach the point of balance for the A350 by the end of the Decade", he said.

Based on the article “Première assemblée générale pour le nouveau groupe Airbus” published in Les Echos