Airbus is forecasting that airlines globally will need some 40,850 new widebody aircraft over the next 20 years, including 8,220 freighters, a segment where the European airframer claims it has won a significant market share since launching the A350F program in 2021. Airbus has delayed entry into service of the new twinjet from 2025 to 2026, but operators will receive an aircraft with a higher payload capability than initially planned. “We started marketing that platform at a 109-tonne payload,” said Florent Massou dit Labaquére, head of Airbus’s widebody program. “Now we have progressed so well on the design that we can already offer up to 2 tonnes more, [allowing for] more revenue for the airlines.” Another modification entails the main deck cargo door, which designers have expanded from its initial width of 165 inches to 175 inches and, according to Massou dit Labaquére, establishes it as the largest main deck cargo door available in the market.
Airbus has secured firm orders for 39 A350Fs, which it launched to challenge Boeing’s monopoly in the larger freighter segment. “We already gained a 42 percent market share versus the 777-8F. We are very proud of that,” he said. When considering the total widebody market, Airbus claims a 48 percent market share.
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