The Airbus A350-900 XWB first flew on June 14, 2013. The aircraft, registered F-WXWB, took off from the Airbus facility at Toulouse-Blagnac airport at 12:05 UTC on a test flight around southwest France. Certification followed from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA in late 2014, with EASA approving the aircraft for ETOPS 370, making it the first commercial airliner to be approved for ‘ETOPS beyond 180 minutes’ prior to service. (ETOPS testing is a certification that allows twin-engine aircraft to operate on routes that are further away from diversion airports than would be allowed by standard regulations).
The A350 first flew paying passengers for launch customer Qatar Airways on January 15, 2015. The A350 family represents Airbus’ direct competition to Boeing’s successful long-haul twin jets such as the 787 Dreamliner and 777, and is the main competitor to the upcoming 777X. There are currently three variants of the A350. These are the A350-900, A350-900ULR, and A350-1000.
What are the longest A350 flights?
The A350-900ULR (ultra long range) variant currently operates the world’s longest non-stop commercial flight, Singapore Airlines flight SQ23 – from New York JFK (JFK) to Singapore (SIN).The A350-900ULR has a range of around 18,000km, almost 12% higher than the A350-1000.
Interestingly, the ULR does not achieve this incredible range with the use of additional fuel tanks, but with modified larger main fuel tanks which increase overall fuel capacity from 141,000 to 165,000 liters. Find out more about the unique features of the Airbus A350-900ULR here.
How does the A350 compare to the Boeing 787?
Whilst the A350-1000 and largest member of the 787 family compete on similar sectors, there are several differences. The A350 is around 5 meters longer, carries up to 40 more passengers, and can fly around 30% further than the 787-10. The 787 is famous for its pioneering use of electrical systems, whereas the A350 utilizes a more traditional mixed hydraulic and electrical system.
| Airbus A350-1000 | Boeing 787-10 | |
|---|---|---|
| Range | 15,500km or 8,400nm | 11,910km or 6,430nm |
| Service ceiling | 41,450ft or 12,630m | 43,000ft or 13,100m |
| Engines | 2 x Rolls Royce Trent XWB | Rolls Royce Trent 1000 or General Electric GEnx-1B |
| Maximum passenger capacity | 480 | 440 |
One of the most notable design differences between the two aircraft can be found on the wing tips, with the A350 using the curved ‘Sharklet’ design compared to the raked wingtips found on the 787 family.
Who are the largest A350 operators?
- Singapore Airlines (SQ) – 69 aircraft
- Cathay Pacific (CX) – 62 aircraft
- Qatar Airways (QR) – 53 aircraft
- Delta Air Lines (DL) – 28 aircraft
- Air China (CA) – 23 aircraft
(as of June 2023)
How can I track the A350 on Flightradar24?
The Airbus A350 is one of the most tracked aircraft types on Flightradar24. One such example is the oldest active aircraft, A350 MSN001 F-WXWB, which can often be seen flying at Toulouse (TLS) as an Airbus test aircraft. We also see a lot of our users tracking A350 delivery flights, as well as shorter training and ferry flights.
You can best track the Airbus A350 using aircraft filters in Flightradar24. Click on the Filters icon in the bottom toolbar, head to custom filters – choose aircraft -enter ‘A350’ – and select which variants you would like to track, or filter for the A350 in the app.
Cover image: Yvan Panas, JetPhotos
![An example full flight summary response from the Flightradar24 API: { "data": [ { "fr24_id": "0987654321", "flight": "SK1415", "callsign": "SAS1415", "operated_as": "SAS", "painted_as": "SAS", "type": "A20N", "reg": "SE-DOY", "orig_icao": "ESSA", "orig_iata": "ARN", "datetime_takeoff": "2023-01-27T05:15:22", "runway_takeoff": "12R", "dest_icao": "EKCH", "dest_iata": "CPH", "dest_icao_actual": "EPWA", "dest_iata_actual": "WAW", "datetime_landed": "2023-01-27T06:15:10", "runway_landed": "27L", "flight_time": 3600, "actual_distance": 1007.74, "circle_distance": 6245, "category": "Passenger", "hex": "4A91F9", "first_seen": "2023-01-27T05:06:22", "last_seen": "2023-01-27T06:18:10", "flight_ended": "true" } ] }](https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Flight-summary-API-cover-768x378.jpg)
