It has been a good summer for Airbus. Farnborough in July saw the launch of the A330neo, and the last days of a balmy September the first flight of the A320neo and certification of the A350-900. Although the A350 will enter service over two years later than the mid-2012 target promised when Airbus relaunched the twinjet as the “Xtra Wide Body” or XWB in July 2006, the programme has been a triumph for Toulouse.
From the wreckage of its original A350 concept, Airbus has designed and delivered an all-new widebody. In addition, flight testing, and the crucial preparations on the ground before that – a stumbling block for many an aircraft programme – passed flawlessly.
The airframer’s widebody strategy – which appeared in disarray earlier this year – looks in better shape. With the A350-900 entering production and the larger -1000 in the pipeline, Airbus can now seriously start taking on Boeing’s larger twin-aisle offerings, while the addition of the re-engined A330neo gives it a much more plausible competitor for the 787-8.
However, do not get too carried away in the euphoria. Airbus is playing catch-up with its transatlantic rival, and the arrival of the 777X at the end of the decade could make matters worse. There is every indication that the -8X and -9X will supplant the 777-300ER as twinjet of choice on high-capacity long-haul routes. The A380, while selling respectably, is not proving the game changer Airbus hoped (the 747-8 is less popular, but Boeing never expected it to be more than a niche product). High fuel costs put paid to the A340, and the A330neo – while a crafty tactical play by Airbus following the failure of its A350-800 – is essentially a medium-term spoiler that will tempt some airlines from the Dreamliner without causing too much sleeplessness in Seattle.
Airbus is to be congratulated for bringing the A350 to certification with minimum fuss, but so much now hangs on what happens next. Like a heavyweight preparing for the big fight, the aircraft needs to keep the pounds off. The widebody must have a near-flawless entry into service, and Airbus is under pressure to meet its commitments too on its bigger sibling, the -1000, which is due to fly commercially in 2017.
Airbus has played catch-up before, of course. Prior to the success of the A320 it was a European wannabe. Toulouse would like to think it is Boeing now that has it all to lose, but in reality it is the European company that still has the convincing to do when it comes to widebody credibility.
Source: Flight International
