Malaysia Airlines has joined the list of A350 operators, following delivery of its first A350-900.
Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) has taken delivery of its first A350-900, leased from Air Lease Corporation (ALC), becoming the 17th airline to operate the new Airbus widebody twin.
The aircraft is the first A350 Family aircraft received by ALC, out of a total order for 29 aircraft, including six A350-900s. All of the -900s are destined for Malaysia Airlines.
Malaysia Airlines will initially deploy the aircraft on flights within Asia. From the first quarter of 2018, the A350 will fly on the airline’s long-haul service from Kuala Lumpur to London.
Malaysia Airlines is the first carrier to offer a First Class cabin in the A350-900. The aircraft is configured in a three-class cabin layout with a total of 286 seats. This comprises four in First Class, 35 in Business, featuring convertible seats to fully flat beds, and 247 in Economy.
Malaysia Airlines already operates 24 Airbus aircraft including six A380s, 15 A330-300s and three A330-200Fs on its regional routes and long-haul services.
To date, Airbus has recorded a total of 858 firm orders for the A350 XWB from 45 customers worldwide. The 100th A350 was delivered in July.