AIRCRAFT OF THE DAY 12/18/20
AIRBUS A350 XWB; THE AIRBUS A350 XWB IS A FAMILY OF LONG-RANGE, WIDE-BODY AIRLINERS DEVELOPED BY AIRBUS. THE FIRST A350 DESIGN PROPOSED BY AIRBUS IN 2004, IN RESPONSE TO THE BOEING 787 DREAMLINER. AS MARKET SUPPORT WAS INADEQUATE, IN 2006, AIRBUS SWITCHED TO A CLEAN-SHEET "XWB" DESIGN, POWERED BY ROLLS-ROYCE TRENT XWB TURBOFAN ENGINES. THE PROTOTYPE FIRST FLEW ON 14 JUNE 2013 FROM TOULOUSE IN FRANCE. TYPE CERTIFICATION FROM THE EUROPEAN AVIATION SAFETY AGENCY WAS OBTAINED IN SEPTEMBER 2014, FOLLOWED BY CERTIFICATION FROM THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION TWO MONTHS LATER.
