A long-range twin-engine wide-body airliner made by Airbus in Toulouse, France, which entered service in 2013 with Qatar Airways as its launch customer. It is the primary competitor with Boeing's787 Dreamliner, featuring similar characteristics such as a lightweight composite fuselage, fuel-efficient high-bypass turbofan engines, a digital cockpit, and improved cabin pressurization. Newer models also include electronically-dimming windows in lieu on pull-down window shades.
The A350-900ULR (Ultra-Long Range) variant has the longest range of any commercial airliner in service in the world at 9700 nm (17,900 km), which has resulted in it being used on the world's (current) longest commercial flight from New York City to Singapore, taking 18 hours and 30 minutes. Qantas has selected a modified variant of the A350-1000 to be used on its upcoming Project Sunrise route from Sydney to New York and London, both flights upwards of 19 hours. Japan Airlines is also currently taking deliveries of the A350-1000 as its new long-haul flagship, replacing the Boeing 777-300ER.
Although the aircraft has a near-perfect safety record, it has had one hull loss--in January 2024--when a JAL A350-900 collided with a Japan Coast Guard De Havilland Dash 8 on the runway of Haneda Airport in Tokyo, resulting in the complete destruction of both aircraft. However investigations concluded that the incident was caused by a miscommunication with air traffic control rather than mechanical failure.
