At least on paper, Etihad Airways has had long-haul Airbus A350-1000 jets for a long time. However, these were parked in France immediately after the takeover. Now the golf carrier is mothballing the brand-new machines.

The first Airbus A350-1000 was transferred from Bordeaux to Abu Dhabi last Friday under the factory registration F-WXAA. There the long-haul aircraft will be given the identification A6-XWB. The five affected aircraft were already taken over in 2019, i.e. before the corona pandemic, and immediately moved to Long Time Storage.

Company boss Tony Douglas explained during the World Aviation Festival that the Boeing 787 will form the backbone of the long-haul fleet in the future. The Airbus A350-1000 will also play a major role. The pattern was firmly planned. However, it is still unclear whether the other 15 orders will be accepted. There is also no fixed date for the first commercial flight with the A350-1000. But the preparations are in the middle, so Etihad.