Airbus has completed over 150h of flight testing with its A350 prototype, having resumed the campaign in August following a short break.
The first test aircraft, MSN1, re-emerged in mid-August after undergoing modification to its flight-test installation in July.
These upgrades included the fitting of a device beneath the aft fuselage which appears to be linked to high-attitude take-off testing, although Airbus says these minimum-unstick tests have not yet been conducted and are not scheduled for the "immediate future".
Airbus chief Fabrice Brégier has completed his first flight on board the aircraft, joining a routine 3h sortie over south-west France.
“The aircraft is a very smooth ride and I was particularly impressed by the maturity of the aircraft at such an early stage in its life," he says.
"The new cockpit layout with the large screens and head-up display are amazing and I am confident that pilots are going to love being behind the controls of this machine."
Airbus is nearly three months into A350 flight-testing, following the maiden flight on 14 June. Its overall campaign will cover around 2,500h across a fleet of five aircraft.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
