Business Traveler, February 2015
February 2015 n 31 Visit businesstravelerusa com Cover Story n Airbus has begun to make deliveries of its new A350s Will it be as revolutionary as its rival the 787 Dreamliner take off Ready for The A350 has been designed and built with the marketplace in mind In December Qatar Airways became the launch customer of Airbus newest aircraft the A350 XWB The twin engine aircraft has been built by Airbus as a competitor to Boeings 787 Dreamliner So far the A350 comes in three sizes the A350 800 which will carry 276 passengers the A350 900 accommodating 315 passengers and the A350 1000 seating 369 It is the A350 900 that is being manufactured first this is the aircraft that with much fanfare Qatar Airways put into commercial service last month In the run up to the launch Airbus unveiled its Customer Definition Centre in Hamburg This new facility is the place where potential customers are persuaded that this is the aircraft for them and where they will decide on the exact configuration Even before the center officially opened in April last year 14 customers had already been through the process choosing everything from the fabric and color schemes of their planes to the seating and galley options The process is important for a number of reasons First without airlines being persuaded to buy new aircraft we would never be able to fly on them It doesnt matter how improved or revolutionary an aircraft is if the carriers arent convinced the only place were going to see them is in computer generated pictures or perhaps in a corner of a museum reserved for glorious failures and futuristic what ifs As Chris Emerson Airbuss senior vice president for marketing puts it The A350 has been designed and built with the marketplace in mind Unlike in the days of Concorde today manufacturers respond to the requirements of airlines The process is about much more than how many seats fit on these aircraft Emerson says Its also who is sitting in these seats are they on business or leisure trips How price sensitive are they Are they flying on trunk routes or newly established routes The A350 has to allow for all of these possibilities hence the degree to which it can be customized by the airlines In one of the Airbus centers rooms is a mock up of the aircraft interior where various seating configurations can be tried out To keep things as simple as possible Airbus has developed a catalog approach to the options compiling a one stop shop list of approved suppliers of seats fabrics and in flight entertainment from which the courting airlines can choose Responding to airlines demands has meant doubling the size of the catalog and the number of suppliers says Emerson a process likely to continue as carriers seek to assert their own stamp of individuality How revolutionary is the A350 There is little doubt it is new generation when it By Tom Otley
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