Qatar Airways' first A350 XWB.
Qatar Airways' first A350 XWB. Photo courtesy the airline.

Qatar Airways to take delivery of first Airbus A350 XWB on December 13

December 4, 2014 3 Comments 405 Views

Launch customer Qatar Airways will take delivery of the world’s first A350 XWB from Airbus on December 13, 2014, in Toulouse, France. The airline has 80 A350s on order with the European airframer.

The A350 will be first deployed in to commercial service on the Doha Frankfurt route in January 2015.

The A350 XWB is Airbus’s response to Boeing 787 Dreamliner and like the US aircraft makes extensive use of composite (53% of the airframe) and advanced aluminium and titanium alloys (over 17% of the airframe), along with new generation engines to reduce fuel costs and improve the quietness of the aircraft. The A350 fuselage is made from an innovative carbon fibre re-inforced plastic (CFRP) which also improves maintenance.

About Devesh Agarwal

A electronics and automotive product management, marketing and branding expert, he was awarded a silver medal at the Lockheed Martin innovation competition 2010. He is ranked 6th on Mashable's list of aviation pros on Twitter and in addition to Bangalore Aviation, he has contributed to leading publications like Aviation Week, Conde Nast Traveller India, The Economic Times, and The Mint (a Wall Street Journal content partner). He remains a frequent flier and shares the good, the bad, and the ugly about the Indian aviation industry without fear or favour.

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3 comments

  1. abhishek kumar
    December 4, 2014 at 20:20

    devesh sir,
    i have one question?
    cask of jet airways is Rs. 3.30( USc 5.5) on international route
    cask of emirates Usc 8.4- 8.5
    cask of etihad Usc 8.5
    there is a clear margin of 1/3rd
    if jet airways improves its service & advertisement, adding 7-8% to its cost(cask),
    can it compete with them to become a network carrier like gulf carriers, connecting world to world with one stop at mumbai or delhi?

  2. iluvcruising2
    June 30, 2015 at 19:04

    I flew on the Qatar Airbus A350-XWB in Economy and it was very good indeed. Here is my video review. https://youtu.be/MeTxDyDYHyQ

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