British Airways takes delivery of its first A350-1000
The UK's leading legacy carrier, British Airways has taken delivery of its first A350-1000 at Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France, making it the first operator of the larger A350-1000 in International Airlines Group (IAG). The handing over of the new yet had been delayed due to bad weather, but now the new jet has been welcomed into the airlines fleet. In total, BA has ordered 18 A350-1000s. Iberia, which is also part of IAG, already operates five of the smaller A350-900s.
BA’s A350 XWB with its modern and comfortable Airspace cabin will usher in new levels of comfort with the launch of the Club Suite, the first new business class seat for British Airways in 13 years. The airline's sophisticated and newly-branded “Club Suite” offers direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy and luxurious flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration.
The three-class layout includes 56 Club Suites, 56 World Traveller Plus and 219 World Traveller economy seats.
BA, celebrating its 100th anniversary, will initially use the aircraft to fly between London and Madrid prior to flying long-haul routes from September. BA operates a fleet of over 150 Airbus aircraft from the smallest A318 to the largest A380.
The A350 XWB offers by design unrivalled operational flexibility and efficiency for all market segments up to ultra-long haul (15,000 km). It features the latest aerodynamic design, a carbon fibre fuselage and wings, plus new fuel-efficient Rolls-Royce engines. Together, these latest technologies translate into unrivalled levels of operational efficiency, with a 25% reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The A350 XWB’s Airspace by Airbus cabin is the quietest of any twin-aisle and offers passengers and crews the most modern in-flight products for the most comfortable flying experience.
At the end of June 2019, the A350 XWB Family had received 893 firm orders from 51 customers worldwide, making it one of the most successful wide-body aircraft ever.
Upon arrival at BA's home base of London Heathrow, Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ Director of Brand and Customer Experience said: “We are delighted to welcome the first of our A350s to the fleet. This aircraft marks a significant and exciting milestone in our £6.5 billion investment programme and is even more special as it comes with our new Club Suite. The A350 is a fantastic aircraft and an excellent showpiece for British engineering. Our customers are going to love the space, light and comfort on board.”
The newly-branded 'Club Suite' offers direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy and luxurious flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. Boasting 40 per cent more storage, including a vanity unit and mirror, WiFi, enviable 18.5-inch inflight entertainment screens, high definition gate-to-gate programming, and PC / USB power; every aspect of British Airways' Club Suite has been designed for today's customer.
The A350 promotes a feeling of well-being, space and calm due to its reduced noise levels, high ceilings and ambient lighting which is intended to compliment the time of day and outside light. Customers will leave their flight feeling rested thanks to higher levels of humidity and refreshed air as the cabin pressure is equivalent to an altitude of just 6,000 feet. There are also environmental benefits to flying on the state-of-the-art A350 as 25 per cent lower fuel burn significantly reduces CO2 emissions.
As well as a new 56-seat Club World cabin, the three-cabin A350 features the latest World Traveller Plus cabin (56 seats) with new furnishings including a plush new pillow and warm quilt, new amenity kits and an enhanced service and an improved dining experience. The World Traveller (economy) cabin offers 219 seats. Customers will also benefit from high-speed WiFi, allowing travellers to browse the internet on their personal electronic devices.
During phase one in August, the first A350 aircraft will start some short-haul flying between London and Madrid to allow the airline's teams to perfect their customer service delivery and familiarise cabin crew with the aircraft layout.
In phase two, which starts during September, the aircraft will begin long-haul flying to Dubai, followed by services to Toronto, Tel Aviv and Bangalore this year. During this period another three A350 aircraft will join the British Airways fleet and two Boeing 777 aircraft will also be retrofitted with the new cabin.
At the start of 2020 phase three will begin which will see British Airways rolling out its Club Suite on further long-haul aircraft across the network.
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