Airbus has taken A350 deliveries into triple figures with the handover of a -900 to Taiwanese carrier China Airlines.
The airframer confirms it has notched up 100 deliveries of the twinjet, around 30 months after the first A350 was accepted by Qatar Airways in December 2014.
China Airlines' latest A350 (B-18908) is its seventh of the Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-powered aircraft type.
Its transfer means Airbus has delivered at least 36 A350s this year. The company has been aiming to reach some 75 deliveries over the course of 2017 in order to meet its production ramp-up schedule.
Airbus commercial aircraft president Fabrice Bregier, speaking as the 100th A350 was handed over, insisted that the ramp-up was "on track".
Boeing reached 100 deliveries of its 787 in a little over 25 months.
It reached triple figures with a delivery to Japan Airlines in November 2013, the airframer's backlog data shows. The first 787 was transferred to All Nippon Airways in September 2011.
China Airlines chairman Nuan-shuan Ho says the A350-900 has "not only met, but exceeded our expectations at every level", including fuel consumption, comfort and operational efficiency.
Bregier puts the A350 operational reliability rate at 99%. Fourteen customers currently operate the twinjet type, which has accumulated total orders for 847 aircraft.
Airbus is intending to deliver the first example of the larger -1000 variant before the end of this year. This aircraft, like the first -900, will go to Qatar Airways.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
