Singapore -- Airbus Chief Salesman John Leahy hinted at the development of an ultra-long range A350 XWB with the -900 variant as the platform for such expansion.

The new product would be designated the A350-900R and likely replace the A340-500 in the Airbus product line.

The aircraft would be the fifth member in the XWB family. The -900R would potentially be available following certification and entry into service of the A350-1000 and Freighter models in the second half of the next decade.

The announcement came this morning at the Airbus press conference.

More on this, including audio of the answer to the ultra long range aircraft question which was posed by this blogger on location.

Filed Wirelessly

Read the complete post at http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/flightblogger/2008/02/breaking-leahy-airbus-looking.html