MSN5 flight prototype airbornes with a 8 hours First Flight

Airbus’s 5th and final A350 test aircraft has departed Toulouse on its maiden flight, taking the programme into the last stage of certification.

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The MSN5 aircraft has taken off at around 09:40h and has spent more than 8 hours in this First Flight before returning back to Toulouse.

Like MSN2 the aircraft is fitted with a full passenger cabin. Airbus says MSN5 "embodies the operationally definitive configuration for type certification duties".

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Airbus had originally expected MSN5 to fly earlier this year but the interior has been undergoing adjustments in preparation for the route work.

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Airbus is to use the aircraft for cabin operability tests and route proving, as well as extended operations trials which will last around 300h in a flight program that is being defined -it would include Canada, Australia, USA and China- finalising the certification of the twin-engined type.

Based on the article “Last A350 test aircraft departs on maiden flight” published in Flight International

B787 against A350. Orders & Cancellations. Boeing 2 - Airbus 0.

In terms of numbers, the historic Emirates cancellation of 11/June reshuffles the cards in the commercial battle between Airbus and Boeing.

Video capture. Source Airbus

If we compare the firm orders for the A350 with those of its direct competitor, the Boeing 787, the Boeing is well ahead with 1.031 purchase commitments against 742 for the Airbus.

Video capture. Source Airbus

And in of cancellation terms, Boeing has suffered 223 total since 2006 for its Dreamliner, and Airbus 252 since 2007 for the A350.

Based on the article "Emirates cancels its Airbus A350 order: explanations." published in  Aeronewstv

Emirates simply prefers the larger A380 to the A350. “This is not about demand”

Emirates has not said much about why it cancelled its order for 70 Airbus A350s, but a senior executive from the Dubai-based airline speaking to analysts and reporters last week in New York shortly after the cancellation was announced offered some insight.

http://pic.tiexue.net/bbs_7480355_1.html

Emirates EVP-service departments Nigel Hopkins emphasized that the airline had not changed its view about future passenger demand in the Middle East. The A350 cancellation “has nothing to do” with Emirates downgrading its demand forecast, he said. “This is not about demand,” he made a point of saying. “We’re absolutely optimistic about the future.”

Video capture. Source Airbus

But Hopkins did say Emirates increasingly sees the “flexible” A380 facilitating future growth because the aircraft’s large capacity allows it to operate to slot-constrained major airports –as Heathrow- and generate around the same revenue with 1 flight as 2 flights using a smaller A350.

http://img5.itiexue.net/1792/17925125.jpg

“Emirates has just 5 slots at Heathrow, but we’ve grown revenue using the A380 on London flights and we couldn’t do that with other aircraft” Hopkins explained.

Unlike the rest of the airline industry, Emirates simply prefers the larger A380 to the A350.

Based on the article “Why did Emirates cancel A350s?” published in ATW

First Flight of the A350 MSN5 flight-test aircraft scheduled for next Thursday 19/June

MSN5 prototype is finishing last ground tests before airborne next Thursday 19/June.

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This cabin equipped aircraft will be used for Route Proving, ETOPS certification and pilot training. Or as it is known, "functional and reliability testing". It will fly all around the world for more than 200 hours in 3 weeks.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/47086222@N03/14402946576/lightbox/

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.

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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/