Cathay Pacific Airways’ first Airbus A350-900 XWB aircraft arrived at Hong Kong International Airport from Toulouse, France on Sunday, 29th May. It is the first of 48 A350s scheduled to be delivered to the airline — 22 A350-900s and 26 A350-1000s. The airline is the sixth operator of the Airbus widebody twin.

The aircraft is configured with a premium three-class layout with a total of 280 seats, comprising 38 in Business Class, convertible to fully lie-flat beds, 28 in Premium Economy and 214 in the main cabin.

Premium Economy Class and Economy Class seats come with a number of new features, including dedicated tablet holders that make it easy for passengers to enjoy entertainment content on their own devices.

The A350 inflight entertainment system is equipped with new interactive features along with a wider screen in all classes. Connectivity is installed for the first time in a Cathay Pacific aircraft, allowing passengers, for a fee, to browse the internet, send and receive emails and connect on social media. Access to the Cathay Pacific website, a number of partner websites and three live TV news channels is available free of charge.

Cathay Pacific’s first A350-900 will enter into service on 1st June with a turnaround flight to Manila. It will operate mainly on regional destinations until more A350s arrive. The aircraft will be deployed on various long-haul routes — including London Gatwick and Düsseldorf — from the third quarter of 2016.