Bankrupt South African Airways just debuted its newest plane, the Airbus A350, weeks early despite verging on the brink of collapse
South African Airways stunned onlookers when it announced it would be acquiring the Airbus A350-900 XWB as financial troubles have plagued the airline for quite some time.
Despite rumors of collapse, the airline took delivery of its new flagship in October 2019, with plans to take on a total of four.
Source: FlightGlobal
Its first two A350s are secondhand, both previously in service with Hainan Airlines and LATAM Brazil, but its final two will come straight from Airbus's production line in Toulouse, France.
Sources: FlightGlobal and Planespotters.net
The aircraft will replace South African's aging and inefficient Airbus A340-600 aircraft that formerly operated the Johannesberg-New York route.
Most airlines around the world are retiring their Airbus A340s in favor of aircraft like the A350. Virgin Atlantic, Scandinavian Airlines, and Iberia are among them.
For a long-haul airline, an efficient plane such as the A350 could help save on fuel and operating costs.
The arrival of the aircraft to South African's fleet also represents the first step of a fleet revitalization, with the aircraft also wearing a new livery.
The aircraft is comprised of two sections: business class and economy class. Business class with feature South African's newest product, a staggered 1-2-1 configuration offering direct aisle access at every seat.
The rest of the aircraft consists of economy seats in the standard 3-3-3 configuration as South African hasn't yet adopted a premium economy section.
The aircraft can seat 339 passengers, 22 more than the aircraft it will be replacing. Operators of the A350 say that the aircraft can hold more passengers and still burn less fuel than the aircraft it is replacing.
The aircraft can currently be seen flying to destinations such as New York, Frankfurt, and Cape Town, according to FlightRadar24.
Though a well-needed boost for a struggling airline, the financial situation of the airline, however, may see the aircraft disappear from the skies just as quickly as it appeared.
South African recently announced it would sell some of its Airbus A340 aircraft to get some well-needed cash, according to FlightGlobal, which may help its current fleet flying a bit longer. A Thursday Bloomberg report, however, stated that the airline was slashing routes to cut back on costs.
While it once operated between South Africa and the US largely without any direct competition, those days are gone. Fellow Star Alliance member United Airlines recently entered the market with a nonstop route between Newark and Cape Town using a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft, offering an alternative.
Source: FlightRadar24
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