In anticipation of the Airbus A350

In awaiting the delivery of the six Airbus A350 XWB aircraft purchased by Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB), Astro AWANI was among several Malaysian media which recently had the honour of visiting the aircraft’s final assembly line in Toulouse, France.

The facility, spanning 74,000 square metres, was conceived with eco-efficiency in mind. According to Airbus, a streamlined aircraft assembly for the A350 allows work to be done in parallel, reducing the time by 30 percent from the start of final assembly to aircraft delivery.

"At this plant, this is where the wings are put around the fuselage and where the tail plane is attached to the back of the aircraft. Essentially, this (plant) is where everything happens," said Airbus A350 assembly line marketing director, François Obe.

"However, this is the result of a whole industrial process, whereby all individual sub-assemblies will be manufactured and shipped down to Toulouse here to create this airplane," he told Astro AWANI's Markets Today.

Obe said, countries involved in manufacturing the A350 XWB are the four founding members of Airbus – Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany and France.

"But the A350 XWB programme involves many more countries around the world, which are either bringing their design expertise or their sub-assemblies to us."

He also said the facility could host a dozen airplanes at any one time.

"In this final assembly process, the aim is that, end of 2018, we will be manufacturing and delivering 10 airplanes every month from this assembly line," he said.

Airbus has reportedly received 858 orders for the A350, which is said to consume 25 percent less fuel.

This feature, among others, would help Malaysia Airlines reduce its operating cost by 40 percent for its Kuala Lumpur-London direct flight, of which the first four of the A350s will cater to, replacing the super jumbo A380.

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Obe said the A350 XWB will "clearly be a game-changer for Malaysia Airlines."

"It is the most efficient and most modern aircraft around and it offers an unprecedented level of comfort for passengers. It is a very efficient and performing aircraft. To date, we have delivered about 114 airplanes. They are in service and are performing extremely well," he added.

The first delivery of A350s for Malaysia Airlines, leased from Air Lease Corp under a 12-year programme, is expected to be made in December.

Other airlines that currently use the Airbus A350 include Singapore Airlines, Vietnam Airlines, Thai Airways and Cathay Pacific.