By Joseph M. Calisi ©2022 All Rights Reserved
The first of eight Airbus A350-900 planes to be delivered to ITA Airways will likely occur this June. This fleet is scheduled to handle long-haul routes to various locations in the Americas. ITA’s fleet currently consists of 55aircraft in 2022, 78 by the end of 2022, and will increase to 105 by 2025 with critical Rome-JFK and Rome-Buenos Aires route destinations.
The Airbus A350-900 model plane has the largest fuel and passenger load of the A350 class.
The 3-year old plane with two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-84 engines, was first assigned to Hong Kong Airlines, with a two-class configuration offering 33 business class and 301 economy seats. However, Hong Kong Airlines failed to accept the plane so it will fall into ITA’s hands as part of a leasing agreement with Kuwaiti lessor ALAFCO. It has been sighted at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport in recent months after conducting several test flights in 2021.