Airbus has started final assembly of the first A350-1000 on schedule at the A350 XWB Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Toulouse, France. This A350-1000, one of three flight test aircraft to be built, will take to the skies for its maiden flight before the end of 2016. A350-1000 deliveries will start in mid-2017.

To ensure the smooth integration of the A350-1000 into the FAL while A350-900 production is ramping-up, Airbus has added three additional final assembly stations.

While having a very high degree of commonality with the A350-900, the A350-1000, measuring nearly 74 meters from nose to tail, is the longest fuselage version of Airbus’ all-new family of wide body jetliners.

The A350-1000 will be powered by Rolls Royce Trent XWB-97 engines, the most powerful engine developed for an Airbus aircraft