A350 XWB Performs Well in First Flight Tests

Airbus says the A350 XWB aircraft performed well during the first 92 flight test hours logged since its maiden flight on 14 June 2013.

The A350 XWB flight test campaign will total around 2,500 flight hours and involve a fleet of five development aircraft.

During the first four weeks of the flight test campaign, 10 Airbus experimental test pilots put the aircraft through its paces.

This early phase of test flights resulted in the clearance of the entire flight envelope and initial testing of all key systems. These include engines, electrics, Ram Air Turbine (RAT), landing gear and braking, fuel and cabin pressurization as well as a preliminary assessment of the autopilot and auto-land functions.

The A350 MSN1 will now undergo routine maintenance and upgrades of its flight test installation, in preparation for the second phase of the flight test campaign which starts in August. The design office, meanwhile, will analyse the results of the initial flight tests.

Airbus A350 - MSN1

The first A350 XWB development aircraft (MSN1) is fitted with heavy test instrumentation and will be used for handling qualities evaluation, the natural icing campaign, systems and powerplant testing.

The second aircraft (MSN2) will also be equipped with heavy flight test instrumentation and will be used for performance measurement, high altitude, hot and cold weather testing as well as systems and powerplant tests.

The third and fifth aircraft (MSN3 and MSN5) will be equipped with a cabin and carry out the cabin and cabin systems tests, including the early long flights and route-proving.

The fourth aircraft to fly (MSN4) will have a light flight test installation and will be focused on external noise tests, lightning tests and pilot training for first customer and maintenance teams.

The first A350 XWB is scheduled to enter commercial service in the second half of 2014. To date, Airbus has recorded 678 firm orders for the aircraft from 34 customers worldwide.