Airbus A350 has maiden flight

  • Bloomberg News
  • Friday, June 14, 2013 11:48am
  • Business

Airbus’s new A350 wide-body returned from its maiden flight after a four-hour airborne test of the long-range airliner, in a show of confidence that the jet can enter service in late 2014 and challenge Boeing Co.

Two test pilots and four engineers returned the A350 to the airfield at Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, southwestern France, shortly after 2 p.m., after they had performed the first flight under the gaze of 12,000 spectators that included workers, journalists and senior management.

The plane, which cost about $14 billion to develop, is aimed at competing with Boeing’s two best-selling wide-body models, the new 787 Dreamliner, and the 20-year-old 777, for which Boeing is now promising a successor model, the 777X. The first flight came days ahead of the Paris Air Show, the annual showdown between the two manufacturers.

“It was an impressive sight,” said Airbus sales chief John Leahy after the plane had taken off at 10 a.m.. “I knew it was going to be impressive but I was blown away. Did you hear how quiet it was? People living around airports won’t even know we’re taking off.”

At stake is the leadership in twin-aisle planes, the workhorses of intercontinental flying that Boeing pioneered and in which it remains dominant. The A350-900, the first variant of three planes in development, will be followed by a stretched version in 2017 to challenge Boeing’s 777, as well as a smaller variant, the A350-800 competing with a smaller Dreamliner.

The first flight was witnessed by Airbus Chief Executive Officer Fabrice Bregier and A350 program Director Didier Evrard, as well as Tom Enders, the CEO of Airbus parent European Aeronautic, Defence &Space Co. Weather in southern France was lightly clouded, and the A350, painted in Airbus livery on a white fuselage, was escorted by smaller aircraft, with its undercarriage exposed as it disappeared into the sky.

Airbus employees waving blue and white flags gathered by the runway, with local residents standing in fields among the tall grass along the taxiway to get a view of the plane. The A350 will be the last all-new aircraft that Airbus showcases in at least a decade, as both manufacturers will spend the next years tweaking their existing line-up for fuel efficiency.

The aircraft that took off today is one of five test airliners that Airbus will manufacture ahead of serial production next year. Even before today, the A350 had logged 2,800 test hours in a simulator, and about 3,000 hours in the so-called iron bird, a mock-up of the main systems.

“No matter what simulation you do, you need to make it real,” said Evrard, the program director.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Business

Black Press Media operates Sound Publishing, the largest community news organization in Washington State with dailies and community news outlets in Alaska.
Black Press Media concludes transition of ownership

Black Press Media, which operates Sound Publishing, completed its sale Monday (March 25), following the formerly announced corporate restructuring.

Maygen Hetherington, executive director of the Historic Downtown Snohomish Association, laughs during an interview in her office on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Snohomish, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Maygen Hetherington: tireless advocate for the city of Snohomish

Historic Downtown Snohomish Association receives the Opportunity Lives Here award from Economic Alliance.

FILE - Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs poses in front of photos of the 15 people who previously held the office on Nov. 22, 2021, after he was sworn in at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Hobbs faces several challengers as he runs for election to the office he was appointed to last fall. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Secretary of State Steve Hobbs: ‘I wanted to serve my country’

Hobbs, a former Lake Stevens senator, is the recipient of the Henry M. Jackson Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Mark Duffy poses for a photo in his office at the Mountain Pacific Bank headquarters on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Mark Duffy: Building a hometown bank; giving kids an opportunity

Mountain Pacific Bank’s founder is the recipient of the Fluke Award from Economic Alliance Snohomish County.

Barb Tolbert poses for a photo at Silver Scoop Ice Cream on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Barb Tolbert: Former mayor piloted Arlington out of economic brink

Tolbert won the Elson S. Floyd Award, honoring a leader who has “created lasting opportunities” for the underserved.

Photo provided by 
Economic Alliance
Economic Alliance presented one of the Washington Rising Stem Awards to Katie Larios, a senior at Mountlake Terrace High School.
Mountlake Terrace High School senior wins state STEM award

Katie Larios was honored at an Economic Alliance gathering: “A champion for other young women of color in STEM.”

The Westwood Rainier is one of the seven ships in the Westwood line. The ships serve ports in the Pacific Northwest and Northeast Asia. (Photo provided by Swire Shipping)
Westwood Shipping Lines, an Everett mainstay, has new name

The four green-hulled Westwood vessels will keep their names, but the ships will display the Swire Shipping flag.

A Keyport ship docked at Lake Union in Seattle in June 2018. The ship spends most of the year in Alaska harvesting Golden King crab in the Bering Sea. During the summer it ties up for maintenance and repairs at Lake Union. (Keyport LLC)
In crabbers’ turbulent moment, Edmonds seafood processor ‘saved our season’

When a processing plant in Alaska closed, Edmonds-based business Keyport stepped up to solve a “no-win situation.”

Angela Harris, Executive Director of the Port of Edmonds, stands at the port’s marina on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, in Edmonds, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Leadership, love for the Port of Edmonds got exec the job

Shoring up an aging seawall is the first order of business for Angela Harris, the first woman to lead the Edmonds port.

The Cascade Warbirds fly over Naval Station Everett. (Sue Misao / The Herald file)
Bothell High School senior awarded $2,500 to keep on flying

Cascade Warbirds scholarship helps students 16-21 continue flight training and earn a private pilot’s certificate.

Rachel Gardner, the owner of Musicology Co., a new music boutique record store on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024 in Edmonds, Washington. Musicology Co. will open in February, selling used and new vinyl, CDs and other music-related merchandise. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Edmonds record shop intends to be a ‘destination for every musician’

Rachel Gardner opened Musicology Co. this month, filling a record store gap in Edmonds.

MyMyToyStore.com owner Tom Harrison at his brick and mortar storefront on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burst pipe permanently closes downtown Everett toy store

After a pipe flooded the store, MyMyToystore in downtown Everett closed. Owner Tom Harrison is already on to his next venture.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.