For those wanting to experience the luxuries of long-haul flying but don’t have the time or budget to book an international flight, you can always look to book a domestic flight on an Airbus A350.
The Airbus A350 is one of the newer ultra-long-range widebody aircraft that have appeared on the market. Its rival is the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
Luckily for American travelers, there is an airline within the United States that operates Airbus A350s on domestic flights. If you’re lucky enough, you might be able to experience international travel at a fraction of the time and cost.
In this guide, we’ll discuss some of the features of the Airbus A350, the appeal of flying on one domestically, the American airline that operates the Airbus A350, and some of the routes we’ve seen the aircraft being flown on.
What is an Airbus A350?
The Airbus A350 is a new ultra-long-range widebody airliner. It was developed throughout the 2000s & 2010s and first flew on June 14th, 2013. The A350 was Airbus’s response to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner which serves in the same ultra-long haul capacity.
The A350 was first introduced for passenger service in 2015 when it performed its first revenue flight for Qatar Airways. Since then close to 600 Airbus A350’s have been built. As of January 2024, a total of 40 airlines around the world fly with the Airbus A350 with the most notable being Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and Delta Air Lines.
Upgraded Flight Performance
The Airbus can seat up to 440 people per flight across distances between 9,500 and 11,100 miles without having to refuel. This is largely thanks to the composite polymer wings and new fuel-efficient engines.
The aircraft has a faster cruise speed than most airliners on the market. An average passenger jet can fly at a cruise speed of .82 Mach at final cruise altitude. The Airbus A350 can fly at an average cruise speed of .85 Mach.
Technologically Advanced For Passenger Comfort
With its innovative design and technology making it perform very well on ultra-long-haul flights, the A350 also has innovative designs that take passenger comfort to the next level. Features such as cabin altitudes being lower than normal passenger aircraft, leave passengers feeling less groggy and tired after flights. Mood lighting reduces eye strain and helps keep passengers calm.
Which U.S Airlines Fly an Airbus A350?
Delta Air Lines is the only American air carrier that has Airbus A350’s in their fleet. They specifically operate the Airbus A350-900. Delta has a total of 28 A350-900s at its disposal for passenger service.
The airline also has orders placed for the next version, the Airbus A350-1000. Airbus has yet to deliver any aircraft for that class but the anticipation is that before 2030, these aircraft will be made available.
United Airlines is the only other American airline that has expressed interest in the Airbus A350. United has placed an order for the A350-1000 to be delivered when the type is ready.
Why Does Delta Air Lines Use an Airbus A350 on Domestic Flights?
Delta Air Lines mainly uses large widebody aircraft for domestic flights for purposes like repositioning. Aircraft repositioning flights are when the airline moves an aircraft from one airport to another usually without passengers, in anticipation of a revenue flight.
Unfortunately, for any airline, there is just not enough aircraft to go around. Delta has many routes that the Airbus A350 flies on, however with only 28 aircraft in its inventory, there is no way the airline can sufficiently serve an outbound and inbound flight with only 28 airplanes.
The thing about repositioning flights is that they usually are without passengers. With no passengers, means there is no revenue generated and only cost (fuel, pilots, etc). To ensure repositioning flights generate revenue for the airline, Delta offers domestic routes between its hubs that usually serve international flights using the Airbus A350.
These hubs like Los Angeles and Atlanta, are larger cities so there is always demand for these flights. Plus, with the larger passenger capacity, more premium passenger seats available, and better fuel economy, domestic flights using an Airbus A350 can generate lots of revenue that they wouldn’t get from an empty repositioning flight.
What is the appeal of flying on an Airbus A350 Domestically?
Flying onboard a large widebody aircraft domestically like an Airbus A350 has tremendous appeal for some travelers.
Don’t Have to Travel Internationally
One of the major benefits of catching an A350 domestic flight is that passengers can experience the comfort of flying internationally on a 4 to 5-hour flight instead of booking a long-haul international flight.
Delta typically uses their A350s on flights across continents. It’s currently being used on routes from North America to Asia & Africa. It currently flies the longest route offered by Delta, which is a flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg, South Africa. That flight alone is a 15+ hour nonstop flight.
Domestic travelers, don’t have to devote money to booking a long-haul international flight and give up time to get the experience of flying on an Airbus A350.
Try Aircraft Features You Won’t Find on Domestic Flights
There are comforts that you will get on an Airbus A350 that you won’t get on any other aircraft found in Delta’s domestic fleet.
Lower Cabin Altitude for Maximum Comfort
The A350 has one of the lowest pressurized cabin altitudes of all passenger airliners worldwide. The cabin altitude is set at 6000 feet. A normal airliner has a pressurized cabin altitude of 8000 feet. This means while you’re at a cruise altitude of 30,000+ feet, the atmosphere in the cabin will feel like you’re at 6000 feet.
This translates into passengers feeling more rested after flights. Flying at higher altitudes for long periods puts a strain on your body, and the A350 does a great job of mitigating that.
Larger Windows
Another difference between the Airbus A350 and standard passenger aircraft is the window size. The windows on the A350 are significantly larger than what is offered on domestic flights. Similar to what is already offered on the Boeing 787, this allows for more natural lighting to enter the aircraft which can help with the fatigue factor on long-haul flights.
There are also plans to include dimming windows on this aircraft just like you would find on a Boeing 787. Passengers would have the option to allow 100% percent light through the windows make the windows completely opaque, or somewhere in between. This works wonders if you want to catch some sleep on flights when you’re flying east to west since these flights fly with the sun as it sets.
Airbus is already starting to include this feature on new Airbus A350-1000s.
LED Artificial Lighting & Air Filtration
For overnight flights, the A350 offers a unique LED-powered cabin mood lighting system that is supposed to emulate the sun’s glow. This allows passengers to maintain their circadian rhythm and reduce the effects of jet lag.
In conjunction, the A350 also has an advanced air filtration system that circulates fresh air throughout the aircraft every 2 to 3 minutes. This also helps passengers feel refreshed on through longer flights.
Both of these features you won’t find on any domestic passenger aircraft. The only other aircraft that has these features is the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
Cabin Noise Ambience
Another feature that you will get on the A350 that you won’t get flying on normal domestic passenger aircraft is the premium noise ambiance in the cabin.
The A350 features high-tech engines that minimize noise on takeoff and cruise. The cabin also has state-of-the-art noise reduction technology and is insulated with soundproofing materials to further suppress noise and vibrations.
The aircraft cabin is one of the quietest in the world. Some even debate that it is even more quiet than the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
More Storage for Luggage
Compared to other domestic aircraft, the Airbus A350 gives passengers more headspace and more for luggage. Airbus developed a new luggage bin, “XL Bins” and implemented them on all Airbus A350 aircraft. The company claims that a single luggage bin can store up to 5 full-sized carry-ons.
This can facilitate faster boarding times for A350 aircraft as passengers won’t hold up the aisles looking for overhead storage bins for their luggage.
Domestic Routes That We’ve Seen a Delta Airbus A350 Fly.
Below are some of the routes we have observed the Airbus A350 being flown on. All these routes are performed by Delta Air Lines. The destinations are major Delta Air Line hubs, which makes sense because these flights are operated as revenue-generating repositioning flights.
While these routes have been observed to be flown with an Airbus A350, the majority of the time Delta will assign one of their domestic aircraft for this particular route. It is the luck of the draw whether you will be able to book a domestic ticket to fly on an A350.
- Los Angeles – Atlanta
- Atlanta -Detroit
- Tampa – Seattle
- Minneapolis – Atlanta
- Salt Lake City – San Jose
Sources
https://liveandletsfly.com/a350-overhead-bins/
https://www.airlineratings.com/news/airbus-offers-dimmable-windows-a350/
