Airbus Starts Production of First A350-1000 Wing in Wales, UK

Airbus has begun production of the first wing for their wide-body A350-1000 aircraft at their North Wales, UK facility.

The wing is thirty-two meters long and is made from carbon fiber composite material components. It is believed to be the largest of its kind in the civil aviation segment. It bears similarities to its predecessor, the A350-900, with the difference being the modification of components and the trailing edge being extended to resize the wing. The new design gives it greater capabilities than previous versions allowed.

To improve efficiency at higher speeds, the A350 XWB can deflect its wing flaps differentially, optimizing the wing profile and providing better load control, Airbus said.

The new features include droop-nose, leading-edge devices, and adaptive dropped-hinge flaps. These all contribute to aircraft efficiency, mostly at low speeds.

The A350-1000 measures in at seventy-four meters from nose to tail, making it the longest-fuselage version of Airbus wide-body airliners. It is designed to hold 366 passengers, but can be configured to fit as many as 440 inside at once. The range of the aircraft will be 7,900 nautical miles, while also having 25% better fuel efficiency than similar models. It will be powered by Rolls-Royce's Trent XWB engines.

Full performance specifications for the European jet are as follows:

• Range: 14 800 km
• MMO: M0.89
• Max ramp weight: 308.9 tons
• Max take-off weight: 308.0 tons
• Max landing weight: 233 tons
• Max zero fuel weight: 220 tons
• Max fuel capacity: 156,000 liters

The wing is designed and manufactured at their facility in Filton, situated on the northern outskirts of Bristol, UK. Other parts of the aircraft will soon be tested or developed at this same location. This includes, but is not limited to, the fuel systems and landing gear. The plane is planned to enter service in 2017.

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1. jacob luiz
2. Posted on August 26, 2015
aviation