The A350 is a very special and amazing aircraft. In this post, I will tell you about why it is so pricy and special. I will also compare it to the 787-9.
1. Airspace by Airbus.
The Airspace cabin was designed to minimise jet-lag and increase passenger wellbeing on board. It has special features, such as a special welcome feature where there are lots of lights on the roof. It has massive windows which has an option to be fitted with electronic blinds. It also features large 18 inch seats in economy, with 18.6 the largest, and 34 inch pitch (the largest seats in eco). The Airspace cabin also has the largest overhead lockers, with at least one carry-on suitcase per passenger in economy. There is also LED ambient lighting.
2. New cockpit design.
The A350 features a redesigned A380 cockpit. The EFB (Electronic Flight Bag) now controls 40 systems instead of 23 on the A380. The A350 cockpit features 6 large LCD displays (there is an option to make them touchscreen, see me post about it) and the cockpit also features a new redesigned windscreen.
3. New safety systems.
New safety systems include Airbus's first AED (Automatic Emergency Descent). If the cabin pressure is below a certain point, the pilots will be notified with the 'MASTER CAUTION' warning and a message in the ECAM. If they do not respond within 15 seconds, AED will come into play. This adds an extra degree of safety and the A350 is the only plane with AED.
Comparison A350-900 vs B787-9.
The A350-900 has more capacity (it has capacity closer to 787-10) but in terms of range and payload, the A350 is closer to the 787-9. The A350 has a range of 8,100 nm and the 787-9 has 7,215nm of range. But the A350 is more pricy, but I think this price is justified because the A350 has a nicer cabin quieter engines and more tech.
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