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'Most XWB customers' endorse A350-800 rethink: Airbus
By Max Kingsley-Jones

Airbus acknowledges that the decision not to optimise the A350-800 and instead develop it as a shrink of the -900 does have a weight and fuel-burn penalty of "a few percent". However it denies that the decision to focus on range capability rather than optimum operating costs has irritated some customers wanting to use the aircraft on shorter routes.

"The customers have mostly endorsed that decision [to create the -800 as a shrink of the -900]," says A350 chief engineer Gordon McConnell.
Airbus presented the revised -800 to current and potential customers during April's annual A350 programme progress review in Nantes (Airbus says non-XWB-customer attendees included Air France, British Airways and Lufthansa).

Flight International understands that some attendees have been unhappy with the plan to trade operating economics for range and lower ownership cost with the decision not to optimise the design of the -800 around reduced weights. Airbus denies this, although McConnell concedes that "trying to keep all the airlines happy at the same time is not easy".

He says that Airbus has "to develop an aircraft that everyone wants" and points out that despite the -800's increased weights which boost range by 460km (250nm), it has retained the original basic weights "because they will be more interesting to airlines who are flying regional operations, and we'll probably offer some even lower take-off weights for customers with very short-range activities".

Despite the fuel burn penalty, McConnell says that the A350-800 retains a very strong advantage in operating economics over the airframer's current long-range twin, the A330-200.

"The A350-800 has got about 1,400nm [2,590km] more range with 30 more passengers, but it's burning less fuel too - over a 4,000nm [7,400km] mission the A350-800 burns around 23% less fuel [per seat] than an A330-200," McConnell says.

He also dismisses the notion that the decision to revise the A350-800 into a heavier, longer-range aircraft could leave a niche open for the smaller, lighter A330-200. "The economics mean that once this aircraft is available, people will not probably chose to buy our A330-200 any more," he says.

Source: http://flightglobal.com - Flight International

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A350 systems testing gathers pace on flightdeck and cabin engineering mock-ups
By Max Kingsley-Jones

Airbus is undertaking intensive testing of A350 XWB systems across its various plants as part of the ongoing development effort to ensure a high level of equipment maturity ahead of the twinjet's first flight a little over two years from now.

The XWB's systems development is following a similar programme to that of the A380, with cockpit mock-ups, integration benches and "Aircraft -1", "Aircraft 0" and "Cabin 0" test platforms being used by engineering teams ahead of the construction of the first flight-test aircraft.

Airbus has just completed the "Class 2" mock-up of the A350's cockpit, which will be used to hone the flightdeck layout while the Aircraft -1 development simulator is helping to fine-tune control laws.



"We've had a Class 1 mock-up, but this didn't have real components in it," says A350 chief engineer Gordon McConnell. "The Class 2 mock-up has all the prototypes of the final equipment, so it's got real controls, and a real overhead panel, which we've not had before. It allows us to work on the final tuning of the pilot interface, lighting balance and ergonomics."

For the last year, Airbus engineers have been using the A350's Aircraft -1 simulator in Toulouse, which incorporates some prototype hardware and software models for various systems such as flight control architectures for some 300h of testing.

The Aircraft -1 platform is a complete cockpit built into one of the A380 simulators which, other than the windshield shapes, is representative of the A350's flightdeck. "It has real displays, flight control laws, and a vision system, so we can actually fly the aeroplane," says McConnell. "This has enabled us to do a lot of important testing, such as the examination of handling qualities with flight control system failures, to validate the control laws."

The next phase of systems ground-testing will be undertaken on the Aircraft 0 integration simulators and iron-bird hydraulic/flight control system test rig. Construction is now underway in Toulouse and it is due to become operational towards the end of the year.



"One of the main purposes of the mechanical part of the rig is to carry out endurance testing the hydraulic system for certification purposes," McConnell says. "But we can also link it to the Aircraft 0 cockpit simulator, which allows us to 'fly' the aeroplane and exercise all the hydraulic and electrical systems as if they're on the aircraft."

Another important A350 "zero-test" item is what Airbus calls the "Cabin 0 V&V (verification and validation) platform" in Hamburg, says McConnell. The mock-up, dubbed "MSN5011", is 37m (121ft) long and comprises fully equipped fuselage sections 11/12 (nose), 13/14 (forward) and 16/18 (aft), with three passenger doors on each side and the three cargo hold hatches. It will be fully furnished with seats, lining and monuments in a layout based on the arrangement of the A350 cabin flight-test aircraft MSN002.

"The cabin can be linked to functional system integration benches, such as the air system - to look at air distribution - or the IFE system," says McConnell. "This will enable us to achieve a good standard of maturity before we fly our first furnished aircraft, MSN002."

Sorce: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/20 ... k-ups.html - Flight International

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A350 Cabin 0 test rig will validate systems
By Max Kingsley-Jones

Airbus has built a 37m (121ft) -long A350 XWB cabin test rig at its Hamburg plant as part of its drive to maximise system maturity ahead of first flight.
Dubbed "Cabin 0", the verification and validation platform comprises forward and aft fuselage sections. It will be fully furnished in a layout based on the arrangement of the A350 cabin flight-test aircraft MSN002.

"The cabin can be linked to functional system integration benches, such as the air system - to look at air distribution - or the IFE system," says A350 chief engineer Gordon McConnell."

Source: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/20 ... stems.html - Flight International

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Airbus builds 'physical mock-up' of XWB fuselage to avoid A380 mistakes
By Max Kingsley-Jones

Airbus aims to avoid a repeat of the A380 production dramas caused by over-reliance on the digital mock-up (DMU), by building a physical mock-up of the A350's fuselage.

"The DMU is a fantastic tool, but the lesson learned from the A380 was that we needed to go further to anticipate system installation problems," says A350 programme manager Didier Evrard. "This was a large burden we carried on the A380 programme and this is why we've built this physical mock-up."

On the A380, Airbus relied solely on digital mock-up software to test the installation of wiring and other systems, which it found to its cost was inadequate at replicating the reality of the actual assembly effort. The airframer was forced to redesign and reinstall wiring looms and re-invent its assembly process, leading to the major production delays suffered by the programme.



The A350's fuselage and cabin physical mock-up is being assembled at Airbus's Hamburg plant, with the front fuselage so far having been constructed. "In the coming months the whole fuselage will be built - we have already used it a lot last year for testing design, assembly processes, tools and jigs," adds Evrard.

Next year the physical mock-up will be used for a dry run of the systems installation into the entire fuselage before this is attempted on A350-900 MSN001, says Evrard. "This will be a very strong de-risking measure for the MSN001 final assembly."

Source: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/20 ... takes.html - Flight International

United's A350 order 'unclear' under merger
By Laura Mueller

Airbus believes that the proposed US airline "mega-merger" will have no impact on its competitiveness during the campaign to replace United Airlines' huge Boeing 757 fleet, despite Continental's traditional favouritism for the US airframer's products.

However, a US investment bank has indicated that United's existing Airbus orders could become casualties of the planned tie-up.

Airbus's chief operating officer customers John Leahy says the airframer's prospects in the sales battle are good, despite Continental's close ties to Seattle - it had previously agreed a "20-year exclusivity deal" with Boeing.

"Any time an airline makes a major change it re-evaluates all the traditional fleet planning assumptions. This merger changes the game, even if Continental has traditionally bought Boeing. They are now going to look for the best airplane," Leahy says.

However, he thinks the merger could push back the timing of United's decision, which had been expected this year. "Every time you get a mega-consolidation you tend to have more aircraft than you need, so any of that refleeting might get delayed a bit."

The merged airline would have combined 50 Boeing 787s and 25 A350s on order - the latter being the legacy of a split deal United agreed last year for Dreamliners and XWBs.

However, Wells Fargo senior analyst Sam Pearlstein thinks the merger could threaten the Airbus widebody contract. "Although management has said it was committed to United's A350 orders, with these deliveries more than five years away, it would not be surprising if there were adjustments," he writes in a research note.
"We believe that United's A350 backlog is unclear as it would add one more airplane type to the combined airline."

Pearlstein also notes that while Airbus list United with a firm backlog of 42 A320s, United's "10-K" financial report says it has "the right to buy" these aircraft, but they are not legally binding purchase orders. "From this language we assume United is far from committed to these aircraft; given the merger with Continental, we would think these airplanes may not be taken," he says.

Source: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/20 ... erger.html

xplan303ex escribió:Se puede apreciar que el A350 todavia tiene "lap joints" o el fuselaje en 4 secciones circulares, en vez de el "one piece barrel" del 787.

CAJIMO escribió:me atrevo a decir que se ve un poco mas imponente que el 787..

designlatin escribió:Saludos,

Qué alegría ver que el proyecto avanza, ¿tendrán problemas similares al Dreamliner? Tal vez no, teniendo en cuenta que, como en los negocios en general, las lecciones aprendidas de Boeing seguramente las habrán tomado ya en Airbus.
Diferencias grandes, la parte posterior de los motores y los winglets.
¿Llegará primero este o el B787 a Avianca, por ejemplo?