Airbus A350-1000 demonstration aircraft makes its first stop at Doha

January 29, 2017: The state of Qatar was the first stop for the Airbus A350-1000 demonstration tour to showcase the world’s most advanced widebody aircraft.

Qatar Airways Group chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, welcomed the arrival of the Airbus A350-1000 test aircraft to Qatar. The advanced aircraft is making visits to 12 destinations throughout the Middle East and Asia Pacific, designed to showcase the aircraft’s exclusive features to airlines and passengers. The arrival of the test aircraft comes just a month before Qatar Airways becoming the global launch customer for the first A350-1000.

Qatar Airways has ordered 37 of the world’s most advanced passenger aircraft. Next month it will take delivery of the very first aircraft off the Airbus assembly line in Toulouse. The aircraft has been tailor-made with superior-quality cabins to meet Qatar Airway’s exacting specifications for its valued passengers.

The aircraft performed an impressive fly-by over the iconic Doha corniche to commence its international tour. During its stop in Doha, the test aircraft was visited by local dignitaries and VIPs who were given a guided tour of the A350-1000 hosted by Akbar Al Baker.

Among the VIPs were the Ambassador of France to the State of Qatar, Eric Chevallier; the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the State Qatar, Hans-Udo Muzel; the Ambassador of Spain to the State of Qatar, Ignacio Escobar; and the British Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Ajay Sharma. Also in attendance was chief operating officer of Hamad International Airport, Badr Al Meer. Senior members of Qatar Airways flight operations, cabin services, technical and corporate planning departments who are all involved in its extensive delivery programme were also given a tour of the aircraft.

Akbar Al Baker, said, “The delivery of the world’s first commercial A350-1000 next month is highly-anticipated by Qatar Airways passengers and employees. Our expert delivery staffs have been working in partnership with Airbus to ensure a prompt entry into service so we can deliver outstanding levels of comfort, thanks to the A350-1000’s spacious cabins and advanced technology. We very much look forward to welcoming the A350-1000 into our growing fleet of more than 200 aircraft.”

Airbus chief operating officer and president commercial aircraft, Fabrice Bregier, said, “We are delighted that one of our A350-1000 test aircraft visited Doha as the first stop on a global Demonstration Tour to salute Qatar Airways, the global launch customer for the aircraft. At Airbus, we look forward to delivering the world’s first A350-1000 to Qatar Airways in the coming weeks.”

The test A350-1000 aircraft undertaking the 30,000 nautical mile tour, is one of three owned by Airbus and is equipped with fully functional Business Class and Economy Class cabins. The tour follows a highly successful test flight campaign which demonstrated the aircraft’s exceptional design and performance capabilities. The A350-1000 offers a substantial increase in capacity with extra seating onboard, a more powerful Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine.

Qatar Airways operates a wide range of Airbus passenger and cargo aircraft in its fleet, which is one of the youngest in the world, with an average age of just five years.

Qatar Airways flies to more than 150 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, North America and South America. The airline is launching a host of exciting new destinations in 2018, including Penang, Malaysia; Canberra, Australia; and Cardiff, U.K, to name just a few.