Qatar Airways has upgraded five of its current order of A350-900s to the larger A350-1000, citing a need for extra capacity.
Qatar Airways has upgraded five of its current order of Airbus A350-900s to the higher-capacity A350-1000. The airline has already taken delivery of 30 A350s (27 A350-900s and three A350-1000s) from a total order for 76 A350 XWBs.
The decision comes just eight months after the airline, which was the launch customer for the latest, stretched addition to the A350 family, welcomed the first A350-1000 into its fleet. The airline says that the strong performance of the aircraft and the need for extra capacity were the key factors behind this latest announcement.
The A350-1000 — seven metres longer than the -900 — offers 28% more capacity in the Premium class cabin. It currently operates on the London and Frankfurt routes and will launch on the JFK service from 28th October.
The A350-1000, which received EASA and FAA certification in November 2017, features a modified wing trailing-edge, new six-wheel main landing gears and more powerful Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines.