British Airways has released footage of its first Airbus A350 touching down at London Heathrow.
The state-of-the-art aircraft, registration G-XWBA, made a smooth landing on Saturday with Captain Mike Blythe, British Airways Flight Technical and Training Manager for the Airbus A350, and Senior First Officer Ilkka Tahvanainen, at the controls.
BA’s A350 features the airline’s newest-generation business class seat, called Club Suite.
British Airways has released footage of its first Airbus A350 (pictured) touching down at London Heathrow
The state-of-the-art aircraft, registration G-XWBA, made a smooth landing with Captain Mike Blythe (right), British Airways Flight Technical and Training Manager for the Airbus A350, and Senior First Officer Ilkka Tahvanainen (left), at the controls
The airline will take delivery of 18 A350s, with four of the new aircraft joining the fleet before the end of the year. This image shows the first A350 touching down on Saturday
The new suites will offer direct aisle access to every passenger, a door for greater privacy – a first for BA – a ‘luxurious’ lie-flat seat and an 18.5-inch TV screen
The new suites will offer direct aisle access to every passenger, a door for greater privacy – a first for BA – a ‘luxurious’ lie-flat seat and an 18.5-inch TV screen.
The club suites will be arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration and will boast 40 per cent more storage, including a vanity unit and a mirror.
The seat itself is 79 inches long (6ft 6in) when in the bed position, seven inches longer than the current offering.
Club World passengers in the suites will also benefit from onboard WiFi, high-definition gate-to-gate entertainment and PC/USB power.
Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ Director of Brand and Customer Experience, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome the first of our A350s to the fleet. This aircraft marks a significant and exciting milestone in our £6.5 billion investment programme’. Pictured is Captain Blythe and Senior First Officer Tahvanainen at the controls, just above the runway
The airline will take delivery of 18 A350s, with four of the new aircraft joining the fleet before the end of the year.
Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ Director of Brand and Customer Experience, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome the first of our A350s to the fleet. This aircraft marks a significant and exciting milestone in our £6.5 billion investment programme and is even more special as it comes with our new Club Suite. The A350 is a fantastic aircraft and an excellent showpiece for British engineering. Our customers are going to love the space, light and comfort on board.’
BA said in a statement: ‘The A350 promotes a feeling of well-being, space and calm due to its reduced noise levels, high ceilings and ambient lighting, which is intended to compliment the time of day and outside light. Customers will leave their flight feeling rested thanks to higher levels of humidity and refreshed air as the cabin pressure is equivalent to an altitude of just 6,000 feet. There are also environmental benefits to flying on the state-of-the-art A350 as 25 per cent lower fuel burn significantly reduces CO2 emissions.’
In August, the first A350 aircraft will start some short-haul flying between London and Madrid to allow the airline’s teams to perfect their customer service delivery and familiarise cabin crew with the aircraft layout. Pictured is the first A350 on Saturday
As well as the new 56-seat Club World cabin, the three-cabin A350 features the latest World Traveller Plus cabin (56 seats) with new furnishings including a ‘plush new pillow and warm quilt’, new amenity kits and an ‘enhanced service’ and an ‘improved dining experience’.
The World Traveller (economy) cabin offers 219 seats.
Customers will also benefit from high-speed WiFi, allowing travellers to browse the internet on their electronic devices.
The club suites will be arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration and will boast 40 per cent more storage, including a vanity unit and a mirror
In August, the first A350 aircraft will start some short-haul flying between London and Madrid to allow the airline’s teams to perfect their customer service delivery and familiarise cabin crew with the aircraft layout.
In phase two, which starts during September, the aircraft will begin long-haul flying to Dubai, followed by services to Toronto, Tel Aviv and Bangalore this year. During this period another three A350 aircraft will join the British Airways fleet and two Boeing 777 aircraft will also be retrofitted with the new cabin.
At the start of 2020 phase three will begin, which will see British Airways rolling out its Club Suite on further long-haul aircraft across the network.
The arrival of the A350 is part of the airline’s £6.5bn current investment programme and forms part of the centenary celebrations.