Less than three years after its industrial launch, Airbus' A350 XWB surpassed the 500-order milestone with Ethiopian Airlines' firm order for 12 of these next-generation aircraft, which was announced at the 2009 Dubai Airshow. This new Airbus customer will operate the A350-900 version from its hub in the capital city of Addis Ababa on routes to Europe, the U.S. and Asia - bringing a new level of passenger comfort and fuel efficiency to its expanding operations. Firm orders for the A350 XWB now stand at 505 aircraft from 32 customers worldwide.
The no. 1 A330-200 Freighter - which has been painted in Airbus livery - is being prepared for ground tests in advance of its maiden flight scheduled for November 2009 (21 October 2009)
An A380 test aircraft was brought to Seoul, South Korea as a highlight of Airbus' major presence at the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition on 20-25 October 2009
Marking its inaugural visit to Russia, the A380 arrived at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport on 16 October 2009 as part of a new international demonstration tour for this 21st century Airbus flagship
Using cleaner Gas-to-Liquids Jet Fuel, an Airbus A340-600 operated by Qatar Airways performed the first revenue flight powered by a fuel made from natural gas on October 12, 2009
The first A380 for Lufthansa made its maiden flight on 6 October from Toulouse, France, completing a four hour evaluation under the command of test pilot Wolfgang Absmeier (8 October 2009)
MNG Airlines, Turkey’s largest all-cargo operator, has ordered two more Airbus A330-200 Freighters, reaffirming its confidence in this aircraft type (25 September 2009)
Oman Air’s initial A330-200 aircraft – acquired under a lease agreement with Dublin-based AWAS – allows this operator to introduce its first long-haul flights (15 September 2009)
The first A318 with “steep approach” capability is delivered to British Airways for operation on long-haul flights between London City and New York’s JFK Airport (1 September 2009)
Airbus delivered the milestone 4,000th A320 Family aircraft – an A319 to Brazilian flag carrier TAM – at its final assembly line in Hamburg, Germany (28 August 2009)
TAM's latest A319 aircraft - which was delivered by Airbus in Hamburg, Germany - will transport goods for handicapped children on its ferry flight to Brazil (28 August 2009)
